(Thank you to my talented sister who handmade the bunny bow tie for Sid. She also was the one who made him the crocheted Easter egg toy.)

Well, I hope everyone was as fortunate as Sid this year because he got all that his heart/stomach desired and more this Christmas.

First up was a hand-made fleece blanket from his grandmother (he’s sitting on it in the photo above). It’s extra thick so it doubles as a play mat where he can round up his toys and partake in a good chew session. The bright colors help balance out the ho-hum grey weather we’ve had all December in Chicago.

Also in the photo above you might be able to catch a glimpse of Sid’s new collar (look closely under the neck fat).

It was made by Kelly from Collars By Design. She has fantastic patterns and it was hard for me to pick out just one. The collar is really soft, sturdy, and the colors are really vibrant! I would definitely recommend her shop if you are looking for a new collar with some style.

Lastly, Sid got a Wigzi  Stuff n’ Throw ball and grain-free crunchy peanut butter treats (“Tasties“) to stuff inside the ball’s pockets. He absolutely LOVES this thing! It’s perfect for keeping him busy while I shovel down my own food.

Oh yeah, and last, but not least: Squeakers.

And by Squeakers, I mean a GIGANTIC BAG FULL OF SQUEAKERS!

Whoops – I said that too loud and now Sid is staring at me expectantly.

For those of you that might not be hip to the cutting edge of pug culture, according to Sid – “Raw squeakers are the new coolest thing among pugs“. You can read more on his obsession with “raw squeakers” here.

Hope you all had a great Christmas and all got some fun and tasty stuff!

Howdy, awesome, awesome friends!  I’m not gonna spend a lot of time typing today because there’s a big storm coming our way and I want to make sure I get my newest PLANET COOL SID video up here before I need to start barking at the thunder.  Enjoy!!

A few weeks ago, we were lucky enough to win a giveaway over at Urban Hounds and the prize was an accessory from P-Dawg Accessories. Since Sid already has a few bandanas from his Aunt Erin, we opted for a nice new collar.

Erika over at P-Dawg was so helpful and directed us to her fabrics that would work best for the collar. We ordered a bright green fabric with little circles that remind me of tiny cheerios (I think that’s also why Sid approved of the fabric choice). Even though P-Dawg features accessories designed for bulldogs, Erika makes everything by hand and has no trouble scaling down the accessories to “pug-size”.

Within a couple days Erika emailed us that the collar was finished. She sure is a whiz to be able to create a collar by hand in such a short amount of time!

Not only did the new collar arrive quickly, it also had a very cute little personalized note for our flat-faced wonder that featured a photo of Erika’s bulldog, Pippa-Lou.

Here’s a better view of the collar itself and the brightly-colored fabric.

And here’s our little dude sporting the new look for spring!

Thank you so much Urban Hounds and Erika @ P-Dawg Accessories!!!

A couple weeks ago, our neighbors took a trip to rural Pennsylvania to visit Amish country. While they were there, we tended to their adorable little plump cat, Snip. According to Sid’s allergy test from a few years back, he’s highly allergic to cats and so, unfortunately, we didn’t get to do a photo shoot with the two side-by-side.

Our neighbors are very thoughtful and brought us back an amazing gift that has actually come in handy now that the weather has taken a turn for the worse (e.g. it’s freezing outside!).

So – not only are the Amish adept at making rugged, hand-crafted wood furniture, apparently they also know a thing or two about knitting rugged cable-knit sweaters – for dogs.

This truely is a distinguished gentlepug’s sweater. Sid just needs a few accessories – a cup of tea, a pipe, and a good novel – and he could be on the cover of The Gentle Pug Quarterly.

Sid has donned his full Leap Day garb today in hopes that Leap Day William‘s bucket of sweets also contains TREATS!!! Happy Leap Day, everyone!

First, a little back story:

When we flew Southwest over the holiday, we neglected to get Sid his first pair of wings. This was unfortunate but strategic.  Our Sherpa bag was slightly larger than the official airline-approved model, and as we were stepping onto the plane an eagle-eyed flight attendent said, “That dog bag is too big.  Have you flown with it before?”  Without hesitation I said, “yes” – we’d made it onto the plane at that point, and there was no way we were turning back!  My involuntary lie, though, meant that we felt funny about asking for Sid’s official Southwest wings to commemorate his first flight.

Cut to last week, when Sid received ANOTHER package in the mail. (I think the pug gets more mail than us, these days!)

This one came from the amazing Suki, and Sid couldn’t wait to open it.  Inside was a photo and a note from Suki, along with a fancy lil’ box.

Inside the box?

SID’S WINGS!

Apparently Sid left a comment on Suki’s blog about how we bozos neglected to get him his wings, and Suki set out to correct this egregious error. She must have connections in high places, because they are OFFICIAL wings from Southwest Airlines!

Sid could barely contain his excitement!

Get this pug behind the wheel of a jumbo jet!  He’s earned his wings!

 Thank you, Suki, for such an amazing and thoughtful gift!