Thursday, December 31, 2009

Some Great Things about 2009

As we say goodbye to the old year and get ready for the new year…

I want to Thank You for making 2009 so great!

Here's My Top 10 List of great online moments in 2009!

* 1) Cloud K9® was named Top Dog Site of the Day for 12/25/2009!

* 2) I started this blog in 2009!

* 3) I made some great new friends and anipals on Twitter!

* 4) I met over 1,000 new Tweeps!

* 5) I saw the dedication and determination of animal rescue groups all over the world to help four-legged friends in need.

* 6) Thanks to all of you, I learned new things about dogs, animals, rescues, Twitter and more!

* 7) I laughed (you Tweeps have great senses of humor!)

* 8) I cried (some animal rescue stories did not have the happiest of endings :-( )

* 9) I learned a whole new vocabulary (retweets, tweeps, anipals, pawcircle, etc.)

* 10) I got a fantastic new potato soup recipe (that has become a fav recipe) from a great tweep!

Looking forward to a great new 2010!

Carole
[Text copyright Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Top 10 Uses for Cheese :-)

So, what to do with all that cheese? Here is a Top 10 List (with some tongue in cheek ideas)

1) Grilled Cheese

2) Cheese Sauce for Vegetables

3) Nachos with Cheese

4) Occasional Treats for K9 Friends

Contingency Plans after it is no longer edible.  Would these work if it becomes leathery or rubbery in texture? :-)

5) Create a Pair of New Shoes

6) Patch a Tire

7) Replacement Floor Tiles

8) Sew Together and Use as a Door Mat

9) Shingles on the Roof

10) Patch Nail Holes in the Wall

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

No More Cheese, Please!

A good friend of mine gave me 5 pounds (FYI: 5 pounds=160 slices) of American cheese a while back!  The cheese is from a warehouse club and is undoubtedly intended for restaurant use. The slices are not individually wrapped in plastic, so it would be perfect for a deli where they are grabbing slices of cheese all day long!

I like cheese as much as, or more than, the next person.  While this is an extremely nice gesture and I greatly appreciate it (Good Grief!) what does anyone do with 160 slices of cheese?

Even using 2 slices every single day, that's 80 days (or over 2 1/2  months) of daily cheese! And what household uses cheese every day?!?! So even after eating and eating and eating cheese… having given some away…there is still a surplus of cheese. Even though my friend said I could freeze it…I am not too ‘hot’ about 'freezing' cheese! (Pun intended!)

A pleasant surprise was a potato soup recipe that has an optional addition of cheese.  So thanks to the Twitter friend who helped immensely in the Great Cheese Project!

The expiration date shows that it lasts until January 2010, so, one of my New Year’s resolutions is to finish the cheese in January 2010. Getting there, slooowly but surely.

Carole

Monday, December 28, 2009

White Christmas

We were fortunate enough to have a White Christmas!

A little bit of snow coated the dog statue.

Snow rests on the holly leaves.
In a few weeks or months, the birds migrating back to our area
 will hungrily gobble up these berries.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Hope your Christmas was Merry!
Carole

[Text and photos copyright Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Friday, December 25, 2009

We are Featured as The COOL DOG SITE OF THE DAY!

Today (December 25th), CloudK9.com is featured as The Cool Dog Site of The Day on dogmark.net (-->on this list, we are #25 for the month of December).

Cool Dog Site of the Day features a Cool Dog Site everyday and receives visitors from more than 68 countries.

Cool Dog Site of the Day has received many awards and been mentioned in several magazines like "DOG FANCY".  "Qui me amat, amet et canem meum." ("Love me, love my dog." in Latin) is the motto of their site.

Thanks for visiting!
Happy Howl-idays!
Carole

Thursday, December 24, 2009

The 12 Dog Days of Christmas

 A friend bought me a cute dishtowel at our local Sur La Table store.

It's a clever rendition of the 12 Days of Christmas with a Dog Theme.
   



A Dog's Christmas

A Peekapoo in a Pear Tree
Two Chewed Slippers
Three Chased Cars
Four Guarded Doors
Five Golden Retrievers
Six Flowers Flying
Seven Westies Walking
Eight Legs a-Lifting
Nine Hounds a-Howling
Ten Fleas a-Hopping
Eleven Labs a-Licking
Twelve Leashes Tugging

Woof! Woof!
The towel is from the Sur La Table store, but, I can't locate it on their website.
If you are interested, you can contact the store or email them: SurLaTable.com .
(Note: I do not receive any compensation for featuring this item.)
 
Hope you enjoyed this cute version of the song and Happy Howl-idays!
 
Carole

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Top 10 Ways that Tweeters Made Me Smile! :-)

I received a tweet that if someone made me smile, I should send them a tweet and tell them so.

To send a tweet to everyone that made me smile would be a HUGE job, since I truly believe that Every Tweep that I follow has made me smile in one way or another. 

Making someone smile is not only “Ha Ha…that was funny!” There are many ways Tweeps have made me smile throughout the year!  And so, here is the…

Top 10 List ...
Ways Your Tweets Have Made Me Smile:

1. Pictures of Cute Anipals (Awww moments)

2. Silly/Witty/Clever Tweets (HA! HA! moments)

3. Learning Something New (Lightbulb AHA! moments)

4. Warm, Friendly Tweets ({{{Hug moments}}})

5. Helping Someone or Some Anipal in Need (Heartwarming Moments)

6. Being Grateful for a Greater Insight into Life (Gratitude Moments)

7. RTing my Tweets (Thank You Moments)

8. Sharing Favorite Recipes (Nom Nom/ Yummy Moments)

9. Meeting Many New Pals and Furriends (Friend Moments)

And…last, but not least…there have been a few well-meaning tweets with

10. Unintended Typos that Tickled My Funny Bone (Oops! Typo Moments)

So I thank each and every one of you, who, (in 140 characters or less) shared a little bit of yourself to make me smile in many ways, each and every day!

Keep up the good work as we tweet our way into 2010!

Carole

[Text copyright by Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Samoyed Sugar Cookies (American Eskimo)

I have to do a Samoyed cookie with it being so close to Christmas. The description of a Samoyed often includes: "the big white dog carries in its face and heart the spirit of Christmas the whole year through."

After cutting the sugar cookie dough with our Cloud K9® Snow Dog Cookie Cutter , baking the cookies, and letting them cool, I'm ready to decorate the Sammy cookies (or American Eskimo).

So, here we go!  I used a tube of white cookie decorating icing on the front of the dog, then black decorating icing for the eye, nose and whiskers.  Keep a toothpick handy for the finer details. Yes, it's as easy as that!











Another option, to give texture to the coat, is to lightly press shredded coconut into the white icing before it sets/dries (as shown in the picture).  Gently turn the cookie upside down to remove any excess coconut.

Hope you have fun creating these cookies, too!
Carole
PS Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters.
[Text and photos copyright by Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Monday, December 21, 2009

Dog House Cookie Cutter

This can be a cute cookie for dog lovers or... a not so good cookie if it signifies that "You are In the Dog House!"

I used the Dog House Cookie Cutter from our Cloud K9® website to cut out sugar cookie dough, baked the cookies, and let them cool.

*The front of the doghouse is covered with red decorator icing. (Use red food coloring to tint white cookie decorating icing the appropriate shade of red, or buy red decorating icing.)
*The stripes on the dog house are made using a tube of black decorating icing and a plastic decorating tip.  (You could use chocolate decorating icing, but remember that chocolate is toxic to dogs, so these cookies are for people.) I outlined the entire dog house first, then went back to create the horizontal stripes. 

*I made the sign using white decorating icing.  Let the white icing set, or harden first, before writing the name on the sign.

You can use an "icing writer" available at many craft stores, for writing the letters on the sign and/or the stripes on the doghouse.

Hope you stay out of the doghouse!

Carole
Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters.
[text and photos copyright Carole of Cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Friday, December 18, 2009

Siberian Husky / Alaskan Malamute Cookie Cutter

Our versatile "snow dog" cookie cutter at Cloud K9® can represent many of the Northern "snow dog" breeds: Siberian Husky, Alaskan Malamute, Samoyed, American Eskimo, etc.
Of course, the preliminary steps for creating the cookies are: cut the sugar cookie dough using the dog shaped cookie cutter, bake the cookies, and let them cool. Then you are ready to start decorating!
I made 2 variations:

Black and White (could represent a Husky or Malamute)
I covered the front of the cookie using a tube of white cookie decorating icing and let it set/dry. Then I used a tube of black decorator icing for the dark part of the coat, and the eye and nose. (A toothpick comes in handy for creating smaller features.)

A Grey/Silver and White dog could be made following the instructions above and substituting grey icing (white mixed with black) for the black icing on the coat.


Copper Color/Red and White
I covered the front of the cookie using a tube of white cookie decorating icing. Then I used a tube of black decorator icing for the eye and nose. (I used a toothpick for these features.)  I lightly pressed toasted coconut into the white icing while the icing was still moist.  (The coconut needs to be toasted before you start icing the cookies, because the white icing dries fairly quickly and then the coconut will not adhere to the icing once it is dry.) The coconut bag provides instructions for toasting coconut, but watch it closely. The coconut can burn very quickly!

These are just a few ideas...have fun creating your own "snow dog" cookies!
Carole
PS Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters.

[Text and pictures copyright Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Westie Cookie Cutter

A spirited little Westie (West Highland White Terrier) is another sugar cookie that I decorated for this blog. The steps, of course, were:
cut the sugar cookie dough with the Westie cookie cutter available at Cloud K9®, bake the cookies, and let them cool.

First, I iced the cookie with a tube of white cookie decorating icing.

Then, I added details with black decorating icing. A toothpick always comes in handy for adding the little details (like the whiskers).

I like the crisp color combination of black and white on this cookie. Of course, you could make the collar in any color that you like. You could match the collar to a certain theme or holiday:

*Christmas: Red and Green Collar
*Valentine's Day: Red Collar with a tiny Red Heart

*St. Patrick's Day: Green collar with a small Green Shamrock...you get the idea!

You can also add shredded coconut before the icing sets/dries.  Gently press the shredded coconut into the icing.  (If you add the coconut after the icing has dried, it will not stick.)  Gently turn the cookie upside down to remove any excess coconut.  The coconut will give the cookie the appearance of textured "fur."

Yumm! Yumm!
Carole
Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters.
[Text and photos copyright Carole of cloudk9.com   All Rights reserved.]

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound) Cookie Cutter

I had a "lightbulb moment" when thinking of ways to create the "fur" for long-haired dogs: use toasted coconut to create a brown and white Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound)!

I used the Borzoi Cookie Cutter at our Cloud K9® website to cut out sugar cookie dough, baked the cookies, and let them cool.

To create the Borzoi:

* First I toasted coconut.  The coconut bag has instructions for how to do this, but watch the coconut carefully or it will burn really quickly! If you are going to use toasted coconut, it has to be ready at this stage, because the decorating icing will dry fairly quickly.

* Then, I used a tube of white cookie decorating icing and covered the front of the Borzoi cookie. I added the nose, eye and whiskers with black decorating icing. It helps to use a toothpick for very fine details.

If you like, you can create the Borzoi with just frosting and not add the coconut.


*Next, I gently pressed the white/untoasted coconut and the toasted coconut into the white icing to create the spots on the Borzoi.  Gently turn the cookie upside down to remove the excess coconut.

I think this created a fantastic-looking cookie! The coconut (toasted and untoasted) does a great job of creating the look of long fur and is just the right color for a Borzoi!

Gee! I love doing cookies for this blog! I get to eat them when they are completed! Yummm!

Carole
Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters.
[Photos and text copyright Carole of cloudk9.com All rights reserved.]

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

More Ideas: The Paw Print Cookie Cutter

The Paw Print Cookie Cutter at Cloud K9® makes a cute little sugar cookie!

(It's versatile since it can represent either a dog or a cat paw print. I have also used this cookie cutter to cut brownies into paw print shapes!)

Plus, this paw print cookie is really easy to decorate!

After the baked cookies have cooled, I used a tube of black decorator icing to create the pads on the bottom of the paw, but you could also use chocolate decorator icing. 

These sugar cookies are intended for people only. (Please remember that chocolate is toxic to pets.)

Have fun! Be creative!

Carole
PS Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog-theme and dog-shaped cookie cutters!

[Photos and text copyright Carole of cloudk9.com All rights reserved.]

Monday, December 14, 2009

How to Decorate Dog-Shaped Sugar Cookies

Fun with Dog-Shaped Cookie Cutters

Sugar cookies are always fun, but they are especially fun when they’re in special shapes… like dog-shaped sugar cookies!

Dough
You can make sugar cookie dough: from scratch, or use a mix that comes in a little plastic pouch.  I prefer not to use refrigerated sugar cookie dough that comes in little tubes, since the small size of the "slice and bake" dough is not wide enough for larger cookie cutters. (Although you could possibly try rolling pieces of the dough together to make a larger piece of dough.)

Decorating the Cookies
There are numerous options for decorating dog shaped cookies. Tubes of icing designed especially for decorating cookies are available in a variety of colors, and special tips can be used for different effects and textures.  Semi-Sweet and White Chocolate chips can also be used for decorating cookies. (Note: chocolate can be toxic to dogs, so the cookies described here are for people and not for dogs.) Some of these supplies are shown in the photo above.

Cloud K9® carries over 80 different dog theme and dog shaped cookie cutters. I selected 3 dog breeds at random for today's blog:
Labrador Retriever Cookie Cutter ,
Cocker Spaniel Cookie Cutter ,
Great Dane Cookie Cutter.

Here We Go!
Make sure the cookies are completely cooled before decorating them!

You can leave the sugar cookie plain without decorating it.

Shown: Cocker Spaniel





Or you and the kids (with supervision) can decorate the cookies with simple designs.

 Shown: Labrador Retriever. Collar and eye created with tubes of cookie decorating icing and decorating tips (or "icing writers" sold at many craft stores).




Coat Textures and Patterns

For Short-Coated Dogs

Shown: Harlequin Great Dane. You can “ice” the sugar cookie with white chocolate chips. The white chips are melted, then smoothed on with a knife or spatula. This gives a sleek smooth look. Let the chocolate harden.

Dogs with Spots
Then black spots are applied using a tube of black decorating icing over the coating of white chocolate



For Long-Coated Dogs



Shown: Cocker Spaniel.  Cover the front of the cookie with decorating icing; you can use various implements (spoon, fork, table knife, spatula, toothpicks, decorating tips) to create waves or texture in the "fur." Additional icing is applied on the ear to make it more 3-dimensional.





More De-"Tails"



Shown: Holly Wreath Collar. You can use a tube of green decorating icing with a decorating tip to create texture and then apply red holly “berries” using a tube of red decorating icing and a decorating tip. (Or you can use "icing writers" which are available at many craft stores.)


The options are endless!
Have fun and I would love to see your photos!

Happy Howl-idays!
Carole
PS We will be covering lots more dog breeds in future blogs! Stay tuned!
[Photos and text copyright Carole of cloudk9.com  All rights reserved.]

Friday, December 11, 2009

Howl-iday Cookies (Dog Cookie Cutters Series)

Nothing says the "Holidays" like homemade cookies...and nothing says the "Howl-idays" for people who love dogs like dog shaped sugar cookies!

Next week, we will be starting a blog series on decorating dog shaped cookies...just in time for the Howl-idays!

We feature over 80 different dog breed cookie cutters on our website.
Click Here to take a peek at them.

Join us next week and let the fun begin!

Carole
CloudK9

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Sweet Gifts and Recipes

Just in time for the holidays, I found a nifty little section on the C&H Sugar website.

It has recipes for Sugar Cookies (of course, it’s a sugar website!), Muffins, and Sugar Scrubs (to moisturize and exfoliate).  They even provide templates for labels to print out and put on the bottle of sugar scrub.
Sugar Scrub
I tried the Sugar Scrub recipe last night.  A perfect evening to try it (when the temperatures were supposed to dip to 10 degrees)...and of course, everyone has dry, flaky skin with this weather!  The recipe was easy to make, did a good job of exfoliating, and also moisturing my skin!

This site is worth checking out:

Holiday Sugar Recipes
 
You can make some really sweet gifts!
(I do not receive any compensation for linking to the sugar website.)

Enjoy!
Carole

[Photo and Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

A Holiday Tip to Save Some Green and Go Green

Save $ome Green
I found this cute little Santa hat for pets at the dollar store (the first way to save money...the dollar store).  This store did not have clothes for 90 lb dogs (probably because the amount of fabric required would cost more than $1).  But, if you have a small pet that will wear clothes, this is a great find!
"Hoppy" Holidays!
Paisley the Rabbit modeling the festive hat!

Instead of mailing a card by snail mail, a cute and clever e-card can be as good or even better!  Who wouldn’t enjoy receiving a holiday email with an adorable pet picture?  The photo of your pet creates a very personal touch.  Plus, during this season when everyone is trying to save money, an e-card you create yourself can save $$$.  In addition to saving the cost of purchased cards, an e-card will also save money on postage!

Go Green!
Sending your own e-card saves paper and it saves trees. You just need a great picture and a clever verse.

For this Rabbit-theme e-card, the verse will be: ‘Hoppy’ Holidays!

You could also use:

Happy Howl-idays or Yappy New Year (for a dog theme),
Purr-fect (for a cat theme),
Fleas Navidad (for a cat or dog theme)!

Be creative and have fun!  Feel free to share with everyone here your great pictures and ideas!

Carole

[Photo and Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Peppermint Bark Recipe (yummy)

About 2 weeks ago, I began craving Peppermint Bark. So I did some searching online and hit gold!  I didn't find a recipe for just any Peppermint Bark, this recipe is based on Peppermint Bark from Williams Sonoma!

The information with the recipe says that Williams Sonoma Peppermint Bark is $22.00 a pound.  However, that statement must be from last year.  I made a trip to Williams Sonoma (yes, I spare no expense for my blog followers) and this year (2009) the Peppermint Bark is $26.000 a pound!

I made several batches of the recipe (see one in my picture above) and it is truly delicious.  A few tips:
* Supposedly, crushed peppermint from Candy Canes is softer than crushed peppermint from the little round "Starlight" Mints.
For one batch, I made more of a powder or dust by using the blender, so that I didn't have to worry about breaking a tooth on a larger piece of crushed peppermint.  It tastes equally good using the very finely crushed peppermint.

* I found when using Nestle's white chocolate chips, that the chocolate became very thick when the peppermint extract was added.  This happened with 2 separate batches.  This did not happen when I tried another brand of white chocolate chips (actually from Aldi).

So there is no copyright infringement, I am posting a link to the recipe rather than copying the recipe here:
(I do not receive any compensation for posting/linking to this recipe.)

I believe, if you can find some of the ingredients on sale (which is easy to do during the holiday season), that the bark costs less than $5.00 a pound. A HUGE savings over $26.00 a pound if you purchase it from the store! Just find a cute tin or container to put this candy in and you will have a wonderful gift...or keep it for yourself!

Enjoy! The only thing that could make this recipe any better is if it had no calories!
Carole

[Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]



Monday, December 7, 2009

A Little Bird Told Me

On Saturday, I received this little bird ornament as an early stocking stuffer. It looks like a male house sparrow with the black throat patch.

So I was very surprised on Monday when I found out that there is a little sparrow (that looks like the ornament) living on the front porch!  This is the fourth different bird that has taken up residence on the porch over the past few years.  The porch (under the eaves) is a smart place for a bird to live in winter: protected from rain and snow, benefitting from the warmth of the house, and limited exposure to preditors.

This makes the little ornament even more special.  I was planning on leaving it out all year, and now I will for sure!

Carole

[Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Friday, December 4, 2009

Cold, Cold, COLD!

The weather is getting colder in many parts of the country.

Please remember your four-legged friends and (if they don't live inside already) bring them inside when the weather gets cold.

Also, be sure to keep pets away from anti-freeze which is toxic!

Stay warm and safe.

Carole

[Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Update on the "Stop Killing Dogs" Petition

There is some good news on the petition to stop dogs from being eaten in South Korea! I received the following email on 11/27/09 which gives an update and how you can help! (Plus link to sign petition is at the very bottom.)

Hello again,

The number of signatures is growing and we really feel your support to South-Korean dogs. It is a great feeling. Thank you!

Just last week we asked you all to nominate "Stop Killing Dogs" for the Mashable Open Web Awards at http:mashable.com/owa/votes

And you know what? We made it!!!

"Stop Killing Dogs" became among the TOP5 nominees in the category "The Best Non-Profit Use of Social Media". And all this thanks to you!

We are almost singing in our seats!

It is one step closer to 1 million signatures. The more people know about what's going on in South-Korea, the quicker we can collect these 1 million signatures.

* * *

Now it is voting time!

The TOP5 nominees in each category moved forward to the voting round. "Stop Killing Dogs" petition among them. Voting lasts until Sunday, December 13th.

Our message to you is pretty much the same: vote.

We promise it won't take much of your time, only a couple of seconds.

1. Visit http:mashable.com/owa/votes?v=23&c=5

2. Sign in with your Facebook or Twitter account

3. Click "Submit & post".

OR alternatively got to http:www.mashable.com/owa, select "The Best Non-profit Use of Social Media" and look for www.uniteddogs.com/stopkillingdogs on the list of nominees.


If you do not have an account on Twitter or on Facebook, there is no need to worry. Thought of helping is what counts. Maybe your friend has an account on these two sites.

Please feel free to share this letter.

Please vote today at http:mashable.com/owa/votes?v=23&c=5 and vote because dogs in South Korea deserves the world's attention. They do not have to live in the horrible conditions of dog farms.

Again there is a possibility to vote once a day. So, if you do it today, then you can do it again tomorrow and the day after, until December 13 when the voting closes.

We thank you very much for your support.

We believe that together everything is possible.

Thanks again,

United Dogs and Cats team

* * *

online petition at http://uniteddogs.com/stopkillingdogs/


Carole
[Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Countdown to the Howl-idays ~ Santa Mascots

Thanksgiving is over...and the countdown to the holidays has begun!

So I will share our Santa mascots: Baron and Paisley!


We would love to see your pet Santa Pictures...either your pet dressed as Santa...or your pet with Santa!

Happy Howl-idays!
Carole
[Text and Photos Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Howl-idays Traditions

It's countdown time to the Howl-idays!  How can the year have gone by so quickly?

So many things to do: buy presents, wrap gifts, make cookies, decorate the tree, etc.  There are recipes that I make every year, but I also like to try some new recipes to add to the collection.

Are there special traditions in your family?
* A recipe passed down from generation to generation?
* A treasured ornament that brings back a special memory?
* Or do you create new memories each year by trying something different?

We will be posting some new ideas, recipes, projects over the next few weeks to inspire some howl-iday spirit.

Hope you enjoy them! And feel free to leave a comment with your special ideas or traditions!

Carole
PS Unfortunately, no one entered the November Contest for the locket or business card case.
We will try this contest again in the future.
[Text Copyright 2009 Carole of CloudK9.com All Rights Reserved.]