Well, we've come to the end of another year.  The theme this week had me looking back through old blog post photos and doggy photos in my files.  I thought I would share some of my favorites, taken of our dogs who do happen to be some of my most favorite things .

First there is Lilah.  She is the puppy we've had since she was eight weeks old.  Lilah is an old soul who worries.  When she is not worrying, she is whining.  When she is not whining, she is racing around the yard like an inflated balloon that someone let go.  We love her.  She has the best eyes.

Next is Billie.  She is hard to photograph due to the nuances and color variances of her coat, but when you get it right, she presents a striking image.  Billie is my personal go-everywhere-do-everything dog.  I have been neglecting this lately, and I promised her that in the New Year, we would get back to our walking schedule, providing the weather cooperated.

Our little Bethy is one of the best dogs we've ever had.  She is a rescue from Another Chance for English Setters and came to us at the age of between 3-4 months old.  She was the fattest little puppy, but has grown in to a svelte dog.  Bethy is very smart, and as she has gotten older, she is much more excited about life in general, and a bit more noisier.

Burton is the perpetual puppy in our group.  Even though he is nine years old, you wouldn't know it.  He is also one of our two deaf dogs.  You wouldn't know that either, because he listens to hand signals better than our hearing dogs listen to voice commands.

Our dog Danny came to us in January of 2011, a very fearful foster dog.  He has his own facebook page, and the notes there discuss how we progressed through the stages of building trust.  Danny's page can be located HERE.  He has certainly come a very long way, but still has some issues that just cannot be overcome.  We decided to adopt him in September of 2011, when we realized that moving him might undo all of the work we had accomplished to that point.  It has actually taken a number of years for Danny to feel totally comfortable with just about everything that goes on in our home.

Piper is our other deaf boy.  He is a Border Collie that we adopted from Glen Highland Farm when he was six months old.  He has been very easy to train, and his job is to supervise the kitties, which he does constantly and very well.  It's often hard to get him, and his ears, in the same photo.

Moe (or as his friends know him--M.O.E.) is quite the character.  He will wear anything, do anything, go anywhere.  Everyone who meets him loves him.  He is easy to wash, groom, great for the vet, etc.  Moe also came to us when he was between 3-4 months old and we made a decision to adopt him in a 24 hour period because we immediately recognized his disposition was something you don't often see.

Last, but certainly never least, is little Luke.  Luke came to us from Jacks Galore Russell Rescue.  He is part whippet and part JRT.  He is as fast as a speeding bullet without a superman cape.  He is also quite goofy, a snuggler and has the best, most expressive ears.

And that's our crew. Through thick and thin, highs and lows, happiness and sadness, they walk the path with us. They make us laugh, give us comfort, and sometimes they even listen.

We love our kitties too (Harry, Gus, Matty and Barney), even though they are less cooperative when it comes to photos.

I wish everyone a Happy New Year!  I hope 2018 brings you good health, happiness, success and whatever you want it to bring!

To see more FAVORITE THINGS, read through the blog circle, starting with Susannah Maynard of Pet Love Photography, serving Greater Cincinnati and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Although I am sure I have some friends and family members who would beg to differ, I am pretty positive I don't have any ugly sweaters in my possession.

That posed a problem for me this week, considering the theme. 

I am, however, a card carrying member of HeARTs Speak, an organization of artists/photographers who donate their time to shelters and rescues, providing quality photographs of pets who need homes.  (Check it out HERE.)

I remembered that I recently downloaded some ugly sweater themed overlays to use with shelter and rescue pet photos for the holidays, so my creative juices got to work and I had some fun making the images above and below.

They are meant as pure fun.  Ugly sweater cartoon overlays courtesy of the great creative minds at HeARTs Speak.  Backdrop courtesy of my backdrop stock file folder.  The dog is a shelter pet, who has since found a home.

Time to see what others in the blog circle have come up with for this week.  I warn you, it could get ugly!  Start with Kim Hollis of  BARKography in Charlotte NC.

I have been missing for a few weeks. 

This week's theme actually brought me back.  It brought me back because, it's not until you have a significant life event, that you realize how important animals can be in a healing process.

My crew and I have become adept at relaxation over the course of the past two weeks.  They lay with me and around me, on top of me, beside me, in their own space or in mine.  Little furry bodies of warmth and comfort.

I knew that if I pulled out my camera, I would never capture what I wanted to share.  So I kept my cell phone handy, and when the time was right, I would use it to catch a quick glimpse into the calmness of animals, who care about their human and offer support in any way they can.

Below, in this little slideshow,  are the cell photos of my loving, furry creatures, as they relaxed with me.

The first photo in the slideshow is Lilah, relaxing with me one evening on the couch.  Barney is in the second photo, laying on a throw which I placed on the coffee table while I got up to get something to drink.  Harry demonstrates relaxed kitty paw patterns in the third photo.  The final photo shows the three amigos--Bethy (front), Burton (middle), and Moe, napping with me on the couch one afternoon.  Yes, I did have a spot left on the couch that day, but just barely.

Our corner-box-sitting kitty, Matty, marches to a different drummer, but always seems to find something to do that makes me smile.  I like to think of him as our court jester.  So it's his photo I will leave you with this week.  As we get ready to celebrate Christmas in my home, Matty found the ideal place to relax this past week.

There are more relaxing photos ahead in the blog circle.  If you need some relaxation time in this busy season, please sit a while longer, and read through the blog circle starting with Kim Hollis of BARKography, photographing dogs in the greater Charlotte NC area.