Today would have been Sid’s 14th birthday.

I think about him every day and some days that means crying about losing him and other days that means smiling or laughing about a fun memory of our time together.

Here are some photos that capture what a fun, loveable, smooshy little doofus he was.

I love you, Siddy! You are truly missed! ❤️❤️❤️

Well, folks, he’s at it again!

Oh look! More delicious frosty treats have fallen from the sky!

Leave your shovels and snow plows at home because you’re not gonna need ’em.

This, my friends, is the (adorable) face of an unapologetic snow eater.

Sid has decided to start his own business; a snow removal business.

Yep, you heard me correctly. Let me back up a minute and I think you’ll see why it makes perfect sense. It all started when we went outside during my lunch break to check out the freshly fallen snow.

Like usual, Sid just sniffed around, hunting for any pee-mail messages my neighbors’ dogs might have left for him in our apartment building’s back yard.

I decided to make a snow ball to see what Sid would do with it.

Well, like everything else new he encounters, he attempted to eat it.

Once he got a taste for the white fluffy treat, there was no stopping him. He quickly got to work excavating more of this delicious substance.

I tried to explain it was just regular old frozen water but I don’t think he could hear me over the crunch of the snowballs he kept devouring.

The cold didn’t seem to bother him and he was making some significant headway clearing away a path in the middle of the yard.

So now I think you understand the nature of Sid’s new business. Anyone need their driveway plowed??

If you aren’t yet convinced to hire this pug, here’s some video of Sid demonstrating his unwavering commitment to snow removal (and consumption):

Earlier in the month, Sid and I went camping yet again. I know, it seems we can’t get enough of it this year! This time our destination was Turkey Run State Park in Indiana. Joining us along for the adventure was Sid’s grandma (my Mom).

The last time we were all at Turkey Run was two years ago, again right around Sid’s Birthday, and we stayed in a rustic camping cabin. This year, since the weather was so ideal, we opted for the tent experience. Lucky for us, it was warm and sunny the whole time.

After we got our campsite set up, and Sid took inventory of our firewood supplies, we hit some of the lovely trails within the park.

Sid may be twelve years old but he’s still pretty athletic (at least when he chooses to be).

We enjoyed just sitting around and relaxing at our campsite. It was really quiet and serene and the smell and cracking and of the campfire put us at ease.

We hit up a couple trails the next day as well since that is one of the highlights of this lovely state park. And once again Sid showed us what an adventurer he is.

Well, until he decided to take a break mid-hike. I guess I couldn’t blame him as I was a bit tired by then, too!

On our last day, Sid was reluctant to get out of bed.

I guess he had overdone it a bit on previous hikes and was not in the mood to walk anymore. So I came up with a solution:

Sid was super snug and comfortable in the backpack. At one point he even dozed off and started snoring! On the trails that day we saw dozens of tiny frogs. They would dive into the water as soon as you’d get close, but I did manage to get close enough to this guy for a photo op before he took off.

After the last trail, we had a picnic lunch and then it was time to pack up the tent, the camping supplies, and the pug – and head back to the city!

So if you missed Part 1 of our Midwest road trip, Sid and I had just spent a slightly chilly night camped out in Madison, WI. As the sun rose the next morning, I fired up the tiny butane camping stove, got some hot tea brewing, and gave Sid his breakfast.

We packed up the tent and hit the road towards St. Paul, Minnesota. As you all know, Sid insists on a comfortable ride when traveling, so I had two beds stacked up on the passenger seat for him to sprawl out on. And sprawl out he did.

We arrived at my friends’ house right around noon and had a great time catching up and getting a tour of their place. Sid approved of the original vintage wood floors.

We all loaded up into one car, crossed the Mississippi into Minneapolis and spent some time on Nicollet Island.

We enjoyed hanging out by the water and enjoying the natural beauty and lovely views of the city from this vantage point. I think Sid liked being the object of affection of my friend’s 2-year-old son.

In the evening we went to an outdoor concert back in St. Paul, called the Grand Oak Opry. The weather was perfect and even Sid got to partake in our snacks.

The next morning we hung out a little more and then had hit to road for our next stop, Des Moines!

To be continued in Part 3…

Sid’s 10-step guide to successfully battling a watermelon:

1. Size up your opponent.

2. When striking the first blow, make it a good one.

3. Keep moving and work the angles.

4. Mix in some tiny attacks.

5. Extend yourself for maximum reach.

6. Use all the tools you have available to you.

7. Yes, every tool. Even that one.

8. Keep close to your opponent.

9. Don’t quit until the enemy has been licked!

10. Hold your head high in victory.

Have you battled any watermelons lately? Let us know if you came out the victor!

Thank you for sending good pug juju over to Sid. His eyelid healed up perfectly and the dental extractions have healed as well. It’s now been two weeks since his dental cleaning and eyelid surgery so it’s finally time to ditch the cone. Although I couldn’t resist just a few more pics of him in his cone, especially this one where he is sunbathing in his home-made “short cone”.

See, the standard cone is great when Sid’s at home but when we go on walks the extreme length of it gets in the way of his sniffing abilities – especially when he’s attempting to sniff the ground to do his business. I had immediately sensed his frustration and with a quick modification of a plastic salad container, came up with a solution. I guess when the cone manufacturers were creating the standard cone sizes, they didn’t take into account the inverse relation between the pug’s nick girth (huge) and snout length (practically zero).

His short cone even caused him to become a local celebrity when the staff at our local pet store couldn’t resist sharing a pic of him in this admittedly-hilarious contraption.

Well, rest assured, after his follow up appointment at the vet yesterday Sid is now comfortably cone-free and back to his usual shenanigans.