Just for the Record

New Year's Day I always like to take the dogs out and photograph them as a sort of record of the day. This January 1st is was gently snowing, there was little to no wind, it wasn't very cold and there was snow on the ground which allowed them to explore and dig and have a great time.

I love big flakes of softly falling snow, it acts as an insulation to sound so the world is muffled and sounds are never so sharp. Anything to give Cora an excuse to pretend she can't hear me. It's strange though because I know the dogs, if they get some distance away from me, can't always tell where I am when I'm calling them. The added benefit of the snow, for me though, is that I can just follow their tracks to see where they've gone! Especially this one ... Cora is always disappearing on her own little adventures which is why I am always calling her name, the neighbours certainly know I have a do named Cora.

Esme wears the suit and it's taking a heck of a beating, let me tell you. I had to put red duct tape on the front between her legs to act as a chest shield because she had torn it up a bit dashing through the woods. The reflective tape on the side is also coming off, she must have caught it on something, and there are little rips in a few spots. She is not easy on her clothes! I'm looking forward to the day I can take her hair off and use a regular suit for her and I'm sure she is looking forward to that day too. She hates the application of the suit, the getting dressed part, but I know she prefers to wear it because twigs don't get caught in her coat.

Leeloo doesn't wear a coat when it's not too cold - partially because she doesn't really need it and partially because I need to get her a new one. The old one has been altered by Cora and needs a little help to stay closed. It's really a matter of me buckling down to repair it ... I'm sure I'll get to that during the long winter nights. As it is, once she gets going, she forgets she doesn't have a coat and spends a lot of time sniffing through the snow and gazing into the woods.

Raimi, on the other hand, wants his coat all the time and almost refuses to go out without it. He can be a bit of a sissy, especially if it's raining. If he thinks it's raining he stands about 10 feet from the door, peers out and then backs away. He knows if he comes any closer I'll just grab him and shove his butt outside. He does the same thing if he thinks it's cold or snowing but usually I can convince him to go out anyway. Just typical that the biggest and toughest looking dog in the house is the softest, sissiest one.