Hi everyone.  I thought I'd stop by to let you all know that we're in the process of launching an all new Coffee Talk with Baxter.  I really appreciate the readership and look forward to your comments on the new website.

February is one of my favorite months of the year.  My birthday is Valentine's Day - that's how my name Baxter "Be Mine" Freemont came about.  I usually like to take this time to scour the Interweb to familiarize myself with the latest and greatest doggie products to find which are going to make it onto my birthday list.  By the way, these also make great Dog Valentine Gifts.


I'm going to start right out with the surprise product of the 2010 holiday season: Puppy Tweets™ by Mattel.  Have you seen this? http://puppytweet.com/

Ever wonder what your pet is doing while you're away? Puppy Tweets™ is the electronic dog tag that sends messages to your home computer, then Tweets to you! Whenever your dog moves or barks, the Puppy Tweets™ tag detects it and sends a Tweet via Twitter.

I was delighted when I heard about Martha Stewart Pets launching early last year.  It was difficult for me to choose only one product to feature since there are so many great options.  Groom and Play with your dog... and look good doing it.



Here are a couple of my faves: the Crochet Squak Toys and (since I love getting groomed), Martha Stewart's Grooming Tote (see above.) The Martha Stewart Pet collection is available exclusively at Petsmart.


In my opinion, no dog's birthday would be complete without a treat.  Doggie Gourmet Treat Shops are popping up across the nation, so it's my recommendation to support your local doggie business.

Living nearby Joey's Pet Outfitters (Lansing, MI area) makes me a very lucky dog.  Joey's has the best lineup of natural and holistic foods and treats anywhere. They have a lot of other great products too, and they're all paw-picked by Joey the Golden Retriever himself.  If you're in the area, definitely stop by and check it out.
Last but not least, if your dog's active like I am, you may find yourself away from home on occasion.  PortablePET has some lunchbox options that are surely to come in handy - store food, treats, and a bottle of water.

I think that should do it for my list this year.  Thanks to all of the creatives who continue coming up with these great items that make a dog's life so great!

I hope all of you and your dogs have a very Happy Valentine's Day!

First of all, let me say Happy New Year to all of my loyal readers.  With all the talk about New Years Resolutions in the past few weeks, I wondered - should we dogs be making New Years Resolutions?  Well, most of us lead pretty simple lives.  If there's one thing I would prefer to do more of in 2011, it's read more dog blogs.  I have a short attention span, and my schedule is pretty busy so I do fall behind on my reading from time to time.

For any dogs or dog people out there who are interested in doing a little dog blog catchup of your own, I thought I'd mention a few of my favorites to get you started.  Here you go:

Obviously, Celebrity Dog Watcher.  Dogs need our fill of celeb gossip too!  This is a great blog with lots of new updates, witty commentary and fabulous photos every time I check in. www.celebritydogwatcher.com/

As many of you know, I'm the spokesdog for a green social media company, www.jsncafe.com.  It goes without saying that we all try to find ways to preserve the environment and ourselves as best we can.  Raise a Green Dog has some great tips for the green-enthusiast dog and dog owner: http://blog.raiseagreendog.com/

I wonder how many of you knew that Bo Obama, maintains a dog blog of his own.  Talk about a dog with a busy schedule.  I often wonder how Bo has the time keep up with all of his responsibilities in the white house and still finds time to blog.  Nevertheless, you can check him out here: http://www.obama-dog.com/

Dogster is one of the more mainstream dog blogs, but they have some great tips like "How to care for your pets toys" and "After bath ear care for dogs."  I'm always sure to pick up a useful nugget when I visit this blog: http://www.dogster.com/

Modern Dog Magazine has a few dog bloggers on tap.  My favorite of the group is Bark.Sniff.Play: Lifestyles of the Modern Canine - great variety, content, and photos.  What more could a dog ask for?  Here's the link: http://www.moderndogmagazine.com/blogs/barksniffplay

I hope you'll enjoy your stroll through some of my favorite dog blogs.  If you have a dog blog or your own recommendation, please comment below.  The more the merrier.

As many of you know, I am the official spokesdog for Java Social Networking.  I hosted the annual party this year, and great fun was had by all.  A little rain couldn't keep our pumpkin carving contest down, and we had some great pumpkin contestants when all was said and done.  Michigan State was playing that afternoon, and since many of us are from the Lansing area, that was reason to celebrate alone.  Here are a couple of my favorite photos from the event!

As the summer months have come to a close here in Michigan, we're pushing to get the last bit of work done before the winter hibernation.  I don't see myself heading up on a snowy roof unless I'm working on my Clark Griswold impression, but that's a different story.  I just wanted to drop a line... it's been a busy few months, and I'll be blogging more during my winter downtime.

Photo by Brandon Denby, Canine Photographer

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We make it look so easy.

If you know me personally, then you're probably aware of my love for Frank Sinatra's music... in fact, I celebrate his entire collection (shout out to Mike Judge a la Office Space).

In the next few days, I'm headed to Frank's hometown of Hoboken, New Jersey to get up close and personal to his roots and those who still celebrate his life, love and legacy... everyday. My understanding is that Hoboken is worlds away from the Jersey Shore in more ways than one, yet I know Snookie was hanging out with the Cake Boss a few weeks back, so who knows.

Anyhow... if you're a Frank fan, curious about his upbringing or just wondering what's going on in New Jersey next week, stay tuned!  Drop me a comment with your favorite tune... I'd love it.