What Wisconsin Knows...

There are some things we do well here in Wisconsin:

Snow

Football

Protests

(I am very proud of my fellow Wisconsinites!)

Milk

Did I ever mention how much I would love to move to the western part of the state and work for Organic Valley?

But, here in Wisconsin, some things are more important than others.

Like Beer...

and Cheese...

and Bratwursts.

And when we get really crazy, we bring them all together in a culinary masterpiece of epic proportions.

(if you're on a diet, I suggest closing your browser... immediately)

That's right.  We think beer makes a perfectly acceptable "broth" for soup, and we (or maybe just I) find that most food is best served as a cheese delivery system.  The brats just add to the perfection.

Should you feel you need to taste a spoonful of heaven yourself, here's the recipe:

2tbsp butter
1/2c chopped onions
1 bottle of beer of your choice  (I use Guinness)
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 can Campbell's Cheddar Cheese soup
1 soup can milk
1tsp Worcestershire sauce
1tsp Dijon mustard
1lb cheddar cheese - shredded

Couple Johnsonville Bratwursts.  (I suppose other brands would be acceptable, but why not use the best?)

In soup pot, fry chopped onions in butter.  As soon as they are fully cooked, add all other ingredients except the shredded cheese.  (After putting the Campbell's soup in the pot, use the empty can to measure out your milk.)  When the mixture is hot (no need to boil) and the Campbell's soup is completely mixed in, stir in the shredded cheese.  Stir regularly on medium heat until all the cheese is melted and blended into the soup.



Boil a couple brats until they're at least mostly cooked.  Slice brats and brown slices in a pan, then toss into soup.  (grilling the brats is excellent, unless your grill is currently buried under 2 feet of snow)  I suggest adding brats right before eating - I'm not sure how they would reheat if there was left over soup and they were mixed in.      

And just for the record, since this is a dog blog and all, dogs LOVE beer cheese soup.  :)

All in a day's work...

You're just jealous you don't have Beer Cheese soup on YOUR face!

Lilly and Mendel hanging out.  I woke them up and they started alligator dueling.

Mom got me a new toy!

Mud is fun

Bath Time - Part Deux

This looks reminds me SO much of his daddy!

Bath Time is exhausting

The Monthly Mendel

This is the beginning of our Monthly Mendel pictures.  I'm planning to have pictures done every month for comparison.  Mostly for my own curiosity, and partly because it forces me to get some good shots of my little monkey every month.

Here he is at 3 months:

This is actually probably the best stack of the bunch, but I need to do a better job of editing it.

Making Friends - 11 Weeks

My cousin's little girl, Ella, has been wanting to meet Mendel so last night we went and had a visit.

Ella's little brother Cameron visiting with Mendel

Getting a face wash.  Cam's giggle was just hilarious. 

Dancing

Mendel wants to know - "Can we keep her?"

SQUIRREL!

Yesterday, this happened:

Click on the lower right portion of the video where it says YouTube to watch it on their site - it sucks watching it on here and you won't be able to read the annotations.

Today, this happened:

This is not an injury.  It is bystander/assistant spray.

This... is an injury.  Dogs really should be warned -

Squirrels fight back.

But not hard enough.

That back leg going the wrong way kinda grosses me out a little.

"That's right squirrel!  That's what you GET!"  ~Lilly

On another note.

I ate this today.  It was just so pretty I felt the need to photograph it first.

Try not to drool on your keyboard, k?

Preserving Memories

 A while back I was reading an article about removing clutter from your life.  It mentioned a lot of things I should probably take into consideration but won't.  (hey, at least I'm being honest)  One thing, however, did sink in.

It said that instead of keeping a ton of sentimental things that will just sit around unused, you should take a picture of them and then let them go - particularly things that somebody else could use if you were to donate them.

I happen to think this is a great idea.

A couple weeks before I went to pick up Mendel I stopped at PetCo to see what they had on sale after Christmas.  I do this after most holidays.  Pretty much everything from the holiday is on sale, and it's a great way to get super cute toys cheap.  I spotted a really cute little lion with a Santa hat on that was 50% off.

It was one of those toys that doesn't have any stuffing in the body of it to pull out, it had squeakers in the feet, and it was super soft.  I decided I would take it with me to Seattle to give to Mendel when I picked him up.  

Mendel played with it a little at the airport and snuggled with it on the plane.

Now I put it in his crate with him at bedtime every night, and every morning after going out to go potty he retrieves it from his crate, plays with it a little, and puts it on his "nap blanky" next to my desk to cuddle with later.  He really likes his little lion. 

Given the nature of stuffed toys, I know it won't last forever.  So, I decided to get some good pictures of it while I still can.  It's not exactly something I need to get rid of in order to reduce my clutter, but the article sure gave me a good idea of what I can do to preserve Mendel's favorite baby toy for all of eternity.

We don't normally play with stuffed toys outside, but today the sun is out and shining bright so I decided it would be a good idea to get out and take some pictures.