Howie came home today with three doggie presents: three Nylabones, the kind with the transluscent middles full of nubs to clean their teeth while they chew. AND they're bacon flavored. I tell ya, this evening was the first time since Buddy came into our lives that it was quiet. All three dogs were gnawing away in happy abandonment.

Emma demonstrated one of her peculularities again; for some reason, she loves to take a chew toy and put it in one of Howie's shoes while she chews it. Whether this produces some added olfactory zing, I'm not sure. I suspect so, however. She also seems to like how she can prop the bone up in the shoe. Howie's friend Mark stopped by tonight with his wife and one of his girls so they could meet Buddy, and Emma was true to form, bringing her bone over to mark and putting her paws on top of his shod feet to chew her bone. Goofy dog.

Our old meezer cat Elliott used to take his toys and make a game of putting them in empty tennis shoes. There was a little wind-up furry dog he especially loved, and at least one time I put my shoe on only to find my toes blocked by that little gadget stuffed down in the tip of my shoe. For that matter, he liked just burying his head in stinky shoes and wrapping his front feet around them. I'd forgotten about that until just now! Ah, memories.

What IS it with shoes??