use real butter

Today (December 14th) is Kaweah’s 15th birthday! At this time last year, Jeremy and I figured she probably wouldn’t make it to fifteen… figured that her various ailments and most of all, her age, would catch up to her before this day. We agreed to take each day as it comes and to make Kaweah as happy and as comfortable as possible. Even last night when I reached over from under the covers to stroke her soft ears, I never assumed that she would be here today. For her birthday, we are making sure she enjoys the one thing in this world that makes her happiest – food!

amuse bouche: brussels sprout leaf, carrot, cheddar, and a peanut

beef 3-ways: hand cut, medallion wrapped in prosciutto, carpaccio

birthday dessert: crushed pumpkin peanut butter dog treats in peanut butter, sliced lady apple, whipped cream, sprinkles, whole lady apple, homemade dog treats

Jeremy fed Kaweah a quarter of her usual kibble allotment for breakfast, because I had this nice birthday meal planned for her (too much food guarantees a puke episode in the middle of the night). She happily gobbled it down and wandered off to contemplate the things that Kaweah contemplates in the office. An hour later, as I was preparing her birthday meal in the kitchen, she emerged from the office looking around as if something was amiss. “I think she just realized that she was short-changed at breakfast,” Jeremy observed.

ready to start

she could not stop licking her chops

jeremy gives her a hand with the carpaccio

licking the plate clean

It’s a silly thing I do for Kaweah – making pretty food for her to devour. She’s a dog’s dog and would be just as happy if I filled a bowl with kibble. I guess I do it for me as much as I do it for her. Perhaps it’s all in my mind, but I think I see her wag more when she inhales beef or peanut butter or cheese.

intent on her birthday dessert

looking to jeremy for the go ahead

she got so excited, she started panting

birthday puppy!!!

Kaweah spent a good 30 minutes lying in the sun and licking her chops after her birthday meal. Later, I noticed she had capsized onto her side taking a much needed nap – her belly happily full. Jeremy called the vet to make an appointment for a check-up next week and the technician knew Kaweah by name. When the appointment had been booked, she said to Jeremy, “She’s pretty remarkable.” We feel the same way. It’s hard to watch a beloved pet age, but every day we get with Kaweah is a gift. She just keeps surprising us all.

Happy birthday, baby puppy. We love you so much!

outtake: sometimes her eagerness gets the better of her

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! There are so many and so much to be thankful for today and every single day. xo

cheese, beef, apple, and carrot goodies

for kaweah, of course!

happy thanksgiving, rawrrrrrr!

Recipe: banana peanut butter pupsicles

We’re back home in Nederland and it’s been ass hot here on the Front Range. Not only has it been ass hot, but pine pollen season is in full swing. We haven’t had any rain to wash away the pollen such that when the winds blow, giant clouds of thick yellow blegh go swirling into the air for miles. So of course the windows stay closed during the day and the house just gets plain old angry hot (or perhaps that’s me?).

i bet this fox was running for the nearest stream to cool off

Kaweah’s susceptibility to the heat has increased with her old age. After seeing how much she enjoyed the scoop dog frozen treat in Crested Butte, I decided to make some at home for her. I didn’t want to make it dairy-based as we try to keep her dairy intake to a minimum because it gives her gas. So I went with my favorite non-dairy ice cream recipe: single ingredient ice cream. The ice cream base is made entirely of bananas, which she loves, and I added some other goodies to sweeten the deal for her.

ripe bananas, peanut butter, bacon, carrot

slice the bananas

place them in a vessel and freeze them

**Jump for more butter**