Happy New Year!

I was looking for a picture to communicate putting 2011 behind me and that would also express my hope for the upcoming year. I came across the photo above and thought it was absolutely perfect. The editorial that went with the photo spoke to me, also, as a wonderful approach to dealing with the old and looking forward to the new. Please take a minute to read it by clicking here.

Our team members have had their share of ups and downs this past year, but I think we have all become so much closer as a result. I, for one, lost my husband of 25 years to colon cancer on Valentine's Day. Its been a struggle, its been devastating and unbearable at times, but with the help and support of my family and my friends on PetsJubilee, and elsewhere, I've managed to survive the last 11 months and become a little bit stronger over time. My husband always liked to say, "what doesn't kill me, makes me stronger", and I try to look at the difficult times like hurdles to be dealt with and conquered. I try to find the silver lining in all things and believe that everything happens for a reason. I'm a glass half full type of person. I pray everyday and give thanks for all that I have in my life. Being this type of person allows me to embrace the New Year and grow stronger and wiser from the lessons learned during the old year. So,

goodbye 2011

hello 2012

Please share whatever you would like in the comments below. Talk about the old year and/or the new year; what's happened in your life and what you're looking forward to.

Shari
PetsJubilee
Ciaohound

I hope everyone had a glorious Christmas:

The Geese

Found in an e-mail from Pauline from paulinesfashions.

There was once a man who didn't believe in the incarnation of Christ or the spiritual meaning of Christmas, and was skeptical about God.

He and his family lived in a farm community. His wife was a devout believer and diligently raised her children in her faith. He sometimes gave her a hard time about her faith and mocked her observance of Christmas. "It's all nonsense - why would God lower himself and become a human like us?! It's such a ridiculous story!" he said.

One snowy day, she and the children left for church while he stayed home. After they had left, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blinding snowstorm. He sat down to relax before the fire for the evening.

Then he heard a loud thump, something hitting against the window. And another thump. He looked outside but couldn't see. So he ventured outside to see. In the field near his house he saw, of all the strangest things, a flock of geese! They were apparently flying to look for a warmer area down south, but had been caught in the snow storm.

The storm had become too blinding and violent for the geese to fly or see their way. They were stranded on his farm, with no food or shelter, unable to do more than flutter their wings and fly in aimless circles.

He had compassion for them and wanted to help them. He thought to himself, "The barn would be a great place for them to stay! It's warm and safe; surely they could spend the night and wait out the storm."

So he opened the barn doors for them. He waited, watching them, hoping they would notice the open barn and go inside. But they didn't notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them. He moved closer toward them to get their attention, but they just moved away from him out of fear. He went into the house and came back out with some bread, broke it up, and made a bread trail to the barn. They still didn't catch on.

Starting to get frustrated, he went over and tried to shoo them toward the barn. They panicked and scattered into every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where there was warmth, safety and shelter.

Feeling totally frustrated, he exclaimed, "Why don't they follow me? Can't they see this is the only place where they can survive the storm? How can I possibly get them into the one place to save them?" He thought for a moment and realized that they just wouldn't follow a human. He said to himself, "How can I possibly save them? The only way would be for me to become like those geese. If only I could become like one of them! Then I could save them! They would follow me and I would lead them to safety."

At that moment, he stopped and considered what he had said. The words reverberated in his mind: "If only I could become like one of them - then I could save them." And then, at last, he understood God's heart towards mankind, and he fell on his knees in the snow and worshipped Him.


"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld His Glory, the Glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of Grace and Truth!" (John 1:14)

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

Everyone Loves A Kitten...

Well, almost everyone. :)




Shared by Alice of makingstuffwithlove.

Annie's Boys

Here is a video that Annie of anniekdesigns wanted to share of her boys playing outside.

Christmas House Lights

Thought this one was funny:


I love the song, and I love the dog that barks in the audio.




Diana
www.DianaDesignsNY.etsy.com
www.StylinDogsBoutique.esty.com

Handmade Pet Products 12/26/11

Each weekday, the members of the Pets Jubilee Team on Etsy choose an item to promote from all of the active members. Here are last week's handcrafted items:

TheHubbyShop

TheVintagePineapple

InspiredByMocha

CiaoHound

Please click on the image to go to the item and click on the name to visit their Etsy shop.

Team Gift Exchange Part 3

Ok.  Hopefully, I didn't forget anyone this time.  Here are the awesome gifts received from some of our team members this week from the team gift exchange.


First, Sean of CamargoCreations. received some cute little vintage Beagle figurines from Shari and Velvet of CiaoHound.



Then, Alice of makingstuffwithlove received lots of pretty fabric for making doll clothes from Annie of anniekdesigns.



Next, K of kceknits received a greyhound, kitty, and two pieces of art work from Patty of catcalls.

Lastly, Diana of DianaDesignsNY received a tote bag with her two dogs photos on them from Sean of CamargoCreations.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from our Petsjubilee Family to yours.

One Pound Deer

Found in an e-mail from Pauline from paulinesfashions.

This tiny deer was delivered by Caesarean section at a

Wildlife hospital after a car killed his mother.

Little Rupert, who is so small he can fit in an adult's hand,

was born after vets failed in their battle to save his mother.

At just 6" tall and weighing just over a pound, he is now

in an incubator in the intensive care unit at Tiggywinkles

Wildlife Hospital in Buckinghamshire.

He has only recently opened his eyes.

Les Stocker, founder of Tiggywinkles, said, "Rupert's

mother had very severe injuries. We brought him out and

got him breathing, and then he went into an incubator on

oxygen. He is now being fed by a tube"

Staff members are optimistic that Rupert, now 5 days old,

 

will make a full recovery.

"Deer are very, very tricky, but this one has spirit. He's an

 

extremely feisty, Little guy and quite pushy," Mr. Stocker said.

Alice's Favorite Christmas Song

I've copied Diana this week and, with Sasha's help, am posting my favorite Christmas song:

I hope you enjoy -- and Merry Christmas to you all :)

Alice England

makingstuffwithlove.etsy.com

http://www.etsy.com/shop/makingstuffwithlove?ref=pr_shop_more

A Charlie Brown Christmas

I can't let Christmas pass without these wise words. A simple child, in a simple setting, with a simple message that changed the world. 

(And a lowly tree to help!)

Warm wishes for a Christmas filled with the simplicity of Christ's birth. 

Patty 

It's Christmas Time - Tuesday post

I bring to you simply - a song:





This is my favorite Christmas song.
I hope you enjoyed it as well.
Wishing you a
Very Merry Christmas
and a wonderful and healthy New Year.

Diana

www.DianaDesignsNY.etsy.com
www.StylinDogsBoutique.etsy.com

Handmade Pet Products 12/19/11

Each weekday, the members of the Pets Jubilee Team on Etsy choose an item to promote from all of the active members. Here are last week's handcrafted items:

kceknits

GrandmasBliss

PaulinesFashions

PaniEva

SassySashadoxie

Please click on the image to go to the item and click on the name to visit their Etsy shop.

****************

For the month of December, we'll be sharing letters to Santa Paws. So be sure to add you furbaby's letter for all to enjoy. Click the link below to go to the post:

Letters To Santa Paws

Petsjubilee Team Gift Exchange Part 2

This week has brought many surprises to the team in the way of the team gift exchange.  I am hoping I didn't forget anyone.  If so let me know, and I will see if I can edit you in.



First up, Shari from ciaohound received three beautiful pairs of earrings and some chocolate from Sue from frumsglassmenagerie and her puppers (Sweet Pea, Pepie and Gemma).


Second, Patty from DogBarks got a great Guinea Pig Art Print of the piggies dressed up as Victorian Ladies from Pauline of paulinesfashion.  I must have missed the first piggie art gift since this was part two.

Third, Tammy from happydapperdogs received a beautiful framed art prints of her two dogs, a handmade sleepy sack, and a sewing caddy from Alice from makingstuffwithlove.

Fourth, Sue frumsglassmenagerie got a Sweat Pea Reindeer Hat ornament from me as part two of her gifts.  The ornament was created by Angelika from KritterKraze.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/frumsglassmenagerie/6513681161/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/frumsglassmenagerie/6531308271/

Fifth, Annie from AnnieKDesigns received her gift from Tammy from happydapperdogs. She got a package containing a pink necklace with doggy charms, a bandanna with footballs for Cody, and a red and white tux bib with snowflake tie for Copper.

Sixth, Pauline from paulinesfashions received a  very cute "berry bowl" from K from kceknits.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/65921990@N08/6527594893/in/photostream

I got my lovely ornament, handmade card, and dachshund pin today from Eva and her puppers from PaniEva. I love it so much and Thank you.

Time to Wrap Presents

I think this has almost become a holiday tradition, and I never get tired of watching it:

The Envelope

It's just a small white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree. No name, no identification, no inscription. It has peeked through the branches of our tree for the past 10 years or so. It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas -- oh, not the true meaning of Christmas, but the commercial aspects of it -- the overspending, the frantic running around at the last minute to get a tie for Uncle Harry and the dusting powder for Grandma -- the gifts given in desperation because you couldn't think of anything else.

Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to bypass the usual shirts, sweaters, ties, and so forth. I reached for something special just for Mike. The inspiration came in an unusual way. Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended. Shortly before Christmas, there was a non-league match against a team sponsored by an inner-city church.

These youngsters, dressed in sneakers so ragged that shoestrings seemed to be the only thing holding them together, presented a sharp contrast to our boys in their spiffy blue and gold uniforms and sparkling new wrestling shoes. As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the other team was wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler's ears. It was a luxury the ragtag team obviously could not afford.

Well, we ended up walloping them. We took every weight class. And as each of their boys got up from the mat, he swaggered around in his tatters with false bravado, a kind of street pride that couldn't acknowledge defeat.

Mike, seated beside me, shook his head sadly, "I wish just one of them could have won," he said. "They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them." Mike loved kids -- all kids -- and he knew them, having coached little league football, baseball, and lacrosse.

That's when the idea for his present came. That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought an assortment of wrestling headgear and shoes and sent them anonymously to the inner-city church. On Christmas Eve, I placed the envelope on the tree, the note inside telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me. His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year and in succeeding years.

For each Christmas, I followed the tradition -- one year sending a group of mentally handicapped youngsters to a hockey game, another year a check to a pair of elderly brothers whose home had burned to the ground the week before Christmas, and on and on. The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas. It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning, and our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed anticipation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to reveal its contents.

As the children grew, the toys gave way to more practical presents, but the envelope never lost its allure. The story doesn't end there. You see, we lost Mike last year due to cancer. When Christmas rolled around, I was still so wrapped in grief that I barely got the tree up. But Christmas Eve found me placing an envelope on the tree, and in the morning it was joined by three more. Each of our children, unbeknownst to the others, had placed an envelope on the tree for their dad. The tradition has grown and someday will expand even further with our grandchildren standing around the tree with wide-eyed anticipation watching as their fathers take down the envelope.

Mike's spirit, like the Christmas spirit, will always be with us. May we all remember Christ, who is the reason for the season, and the true Christmas spirit this year and always.

This was found in an e-mail by Pauline from paulinesfashions.

Jake's New Toy

Here is Jake the Yorkie's new indestructible toy shown with many cute and happy dogs. We are so pleased with it I thought I'd give it a plug :)

Alice England

makingstuffwithlove.etsy.com

Santa's Helper Copper

Reindeer hat made by Diana of StylinDogsBoutique.etsy.com

 

 

Photo provided by:

 

Ann Kvittum

AnnieKDesigns.etsy.com

SHOW AND TELL TUESDAY - DOLPHIN AND DOG

2 videos that remind me of the friends we have made here on our PetsJubilee team.

Enjoy:

We ALL need someone to lean on. I am so glad to have you.
Diana

www.DianaDesignsNY.etsy.com
www.StylinDogsBoutique.etsy.com

Handmade Pet Products 12/12/11

Each weekday, the members of the Pets Jubilee Team on Etsy choose an item to promote from all of the active members. Here are last week's handcrafted items:

Jenya2

FrumsGlassMenagerie

CamargoCreations

FreyasStudio

HappyDapperDogs

Please click on the image to go to the item and click on the name to visit their Etsy shop.

****************

For the month of December, we'll be sharing letters to Santa Paws. So be sure to add you furbaby's letter for all to enjoy. Click the link below to go to the post:

Letters To Santa Paws

PJ Team Holiday Gift Exchange Part Two

This week some more prezzies surprised someone in the Petsjubilee team exchange.  Diana from DianaDesignsNY had gotten Eva from PaniEva as her gift exchange person.  Diana sent a very nice package to Eva full with a flower squeaky toy (with multiple squeakers) she made her self, a pendant necklace from TheHubbyShop that her hubby made, and a cute Santa Bobo like toy for the puppers that she got from PetsSuppliesPlus.  Looks like Kami has claimed it for now.

I wonder what will arrive in the mail next week for our team mates and from whom.  I guess we will just have to wait and see.

Happy Birthday, Lauren

My oldest daughter just celebrated her 25th birthday, and one of her gifts was this cute little hat and collar for her furbaby, Julia. I just love the look on Julia's face. It took so much effort to get her to keep the hat on and finally she just gave in. It was kind of like, "ok, mamma, I don't like it, but I will do this for you." The hat stayed on just long enough to get this picture.

Don't forget to turn in your furbaby's "Letters to Santa Paws" Click Here and add it to the comment section.

Happy Birthday to all the December children out there :)

Shari at
PetsJubilee &
Ciaohound

Reasons why you should always carry a camera...

Found by paulinefashions in an e-mail.

Holiday Travel and Pets

It's that time of year when we often take trips to see family and friends. The question comes up: should I board or kennel my pooch? Or should I get a pet sitter?

There are soem clear pros and cons to each. Importantly - regardless of what you decide - you need to make plans soon if you are going to be leaving your pets (especially for the holidays and end of the year).

Whether you decide on a kennel or pet sitter - print and fill out these instructions so that your wishes and your pets needs are met: http://www.petplace.com/dogs/pet-sitter-instructions-for-your-dog/page1.aspx?utm_source=dogcrazynews001et&utm_medium=email&utm_content=petplace_article&utm_campaign=dailynewsletter

Alice England

Makingstuffwithlove.etsy.com

Sugarless Gum May be Good for us Humans, but Deadly for Dogs

A friend of a friend recently had to put their 18-month old Golden Retriever down. What would fell an energetic and young dog? Sugarless gum. Xylitol is a sugar alcohol used as a sweetner in mints, chewable vitamins, cookies and candy.

When the dog eats this sugar substitute, the body releases insulin. It is followed by a decrease in the natural glucose, or sugar, in the blood, which will cause hypoglycemia. Low blood sugar is what causes the fatigue and confusion, even seizures. Many other problems can cause these symptoms. All are serious and need medical attention.

In high doses, it can also cause liver damage. Liver tissue will actually start to die. In extreme cases it causes problems with the blood-clotting mechanism of the body, and that means the dog can bleed out. Unfortunately, not all dogs that suffer from acute liver failure will show any signs of illness. Or they appear sick, and then get better. Even if the pet appears fine, if they did ingest xylitol, they need to be seen immediately for treatment.

Read more: Sugarless Gum Toxicity in Dogs | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_6585439_sugarless-gum-toxicity-dogs.html#ixzz1fcSO1zmo

Be watching those little devils and what they get into.

Ann Kvittum AnnieKDesigns.etsy.com

Short but cute

A cat died and went to Heaven. God met her at the gates and said, 'You have been a good cat all these years. Anything you want is yours for the asking.'

The cat thought for a minute and then said, 'All my life I lived on a farm and slept on hard wooden floors. I would like a real fluffy pillow to sleep on.'

God said, 'Say no more.' Instantly the cat had a huge fluffy pillow.

A few days later, six mice were killed in an accident and they all went to Heaven together. God met the mice at the gates with the same offer that He made to the cat.

The mice said, 'Well, we have had to run all of our lives: from cats, dogs, and even people with brooms! If we could just have some little roller skates, we would not have to run again.'

God answered, 'It is done.' All the mice had beautiful
little roller skates.

About a week later, God decided to check on the cat. He found her sound asleep on her fluffy pillow.. God gently awakened the cat and asked, 'Is everything okay? How have you been doing? Are you happy?'

The cat replied, 'Oh, it is WONDERFUL. I have never been so happy in my life.
The pillow is so fluffy, and those little Meals on Wheels you have been sending over are delicious!'

Just a little humor- from
Diana
----------------------------------------------------------

I also found this video, and the reason I was intrigued with it, is this is a Sinbad look-a-like (a Sun Conure) on the left and a DaVinci look-a-like (Moustache parrot) on the right.
((For those of you that do not know - Sinbad was a sun conure parrot I had that died last year at the age of 19. DaVinci is the bird I have now that I adopted a few months after Sinbad passed.)) This is not them, but just so wonderful for me to see this. To compare the 2, and the sizes are so similar, and to see them side by side like this.




www.DianaDesignsNY.etsy.com
www.StylinDogsBoutique.etsy.com

Handmade Pet Products 12/5/11

Each weekday, the members of the Pets Jubilee Team on Etsy choose an item to promote from all of the active members. Here are last week's handcrafted items:

InspiredByMocha

Petsjubilee

AnnieKDesigns

MewMart

DianaDesignsNY

Please click on the image to go to the item and click on the name to visit their Etsy shop.

****************

For the month of December, we'll be sharing letters to Santa Paws. So be sure to add you furbaby's letter for all to enjoy. Click the link below to go to the post:

Letters To Santa Paws