happy 4th birthday to claire!

My sweet girl turned four today - making the next six months the only time in our lives that we will be the same age (if you're counting her age in dog years, that is).

She could feel the excitement in the air, which was evident at 730am when she forced me to wake up to begin the celebration! We started the day by going for an early morning hike at a new place, and we will definitely be going there again! It was a perfect day for a perfect hike that included a dip in the creek, a run through some cornfields, and a romp with some horses. We both loved it and will be hiking this trail a lot over the next few months!

On our way back home, we stopped by my dear friend Shannon's house and Claire had a great time hanging out with Shannon's adorable kids! Lindsay Miller and Brooke played fetch with her and chased her around their backyard - two of her favorite games. Claire couldn't get enough of the kids and would've been quite content to follow them around for the whole day.

Next, we went to See Spot Eat to get Claire some special birthday treats. Her day wouldn't be complete without some fresh salmon ice cream! Of course, it didn't make it out the door, so we grabbed some other snacks for the next few days too!

Claire was completely exhausted at that point, so we went back home for a little nap. Because it was such a beautiful day, I opened all the doors to get some fresh air in the house while we napped, and it was nothing short of amazing!

When we woke up, Claire was ready to go back outside, so we went on another long walk and stopped by Rebel's house so she could see him and play for a bit before we continued on our way. He is such a good boy, and he was just as excited as she was to get a chance to play. He is so sweet to her and kept kissing her baby face. It just melted my heart!

Once we got home, Claire was just about ready for bed. So much excitement will do that to a girl, you know. But she had to have "cake" first, so I made her one that was made of dog food and mashed pumpkin, and topped with a pumpkin and rice flour biscotti dipped in carob and yogurt. And after that? Well, she's been fast asleep for the past few hours already, which can only mean that her birthday was a success!

Enjoy some Instagram pics from Claire's 4th birthday!

our bucket list.

So, by now, most of you have probably heard about this sweet story of a boy who created a bucket "lick it" list for his terminally ill service dog. When I read it, of course it got me thinking about all of the things I'd like to do with Claire in her lifetime. I have my own bucket list that consists of 90+ things that I'd like to do in my life [getting a puppy was one of them], but I decided to put together a separate list for me and Claire. Here are some of the items, in no particular order of importance.

1. Fence in the backyard so that Claire has more room to run when we're not at the dog park.
2. Go on a vacation to the beach, just the two of us - spend our nights staying at a dog-friendly hotel and spend our days playing by the ocean.
3. Share a cone of Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream.
4. Walk a 5k together [I'd say that we'd run, but that would be a nightmare because she would think we were playing a game of chase, and I would die of either exhaustion or of embarrassment].
5. Have my friend and fellow photographer Erin do a photo shoot of me and Claire.
6. Let Claire lead a walk.
7. Have a birthday party in my backyard with a cake from See Spot Eat, and invite all of her friends. Send out real invitations, hand out party favors, and have decorations fit for a queen!
8. Go for a ride in a convertible. [I'll have to hold on to her so she doesn't jump out].
9. Take a picture of Claire in a field of sunflowers. Print it on a canvas to hang up in the house.
10. Get a tattoo of Claire's paw print.
11. Get 100 followers on Google Friend Connect, and reach 200 followers on our Facebook page. [This is obviously a personal goal, but I still felt that I needed to add it!]
12. Create another masterpiece and sell copies to raise money for the Nashville Humane Society.

What should I add to this list? What's on the bucket list for you and your dog?

  

my birthday girl.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

to my sweet Claire Baby!

Claire turned THREE-YEARS-OLD today!! And clearly, my girl got to celebrate in style! Thanks to Stacey at Bark-O-Lounge for working your magic and taking this picture! [Just ignore the fact that she looks terrified - this happens every time someone attempts to put any kind of clothing on her].

The little miss got to sleep in, spent the day at daycare - or "school" as we like to call it - and then got to go pick up some special homemade treats at See Spot Eat. In addition, she got a ton of birthday cards and presents in the mail from family and friends. She is one very loved dog, and every day I pray that she knows it!

    

weekends go by too fast for our liking!

We had a busy weekend over here in the Butterworth household - filled with fun and friends! I was feeling really run down on Friday night, and Claire was exhausted from spending the day at Bark-O-Lounge, so we snuggled and watched The Food Network - a favorite for us both!


We met up with Kinlin and Dickson at the park on Saturday (And sidenote: guess who else was there? Hint: CELEBRITY SIGHTING!! Answer: Clint Black and his dog Cooper!) and Claire did quite a bit of showing off! She can really run! She is unstoppable when she gets going! Once, when we were at the park, a police officer was there on break and he clocked her at running 30mph. Now, I'm sure there are other dogs who can run faster than that, but there aren't many of them at our park! I get so proud when I overhear someone comment on how fast she is with shock and awe - I mean, come on, that's my girl!


Anyway, later that afternoon, Amy had a birthday party for Kingsley's 1st birthday - complete with cake from See Spot Eat for the pups, and cupcakes from Gigi's for the people! Claire had two pieces of cake and ended up with blue frosting all over her face. She looked adorable. She then sat politely at the feet of the other guests with her tail wagging, hoping that they would see how good she was so that they would reward her with another piece of cake. At my insistence, they managed to resist her good looks and charm...!


Once she was tired, I went off to a holiday ball with a friend on Saturday night and had an amazing time! Lissa tells me that Claire waited up for me until I got home. What a thoughtful baby! But she was so excited to see me and my friend when we got back that she didn't sleep much longer, but bounced around the house between my bed and the couch trying to get each of us to play with her while we tried desperately to grab a couple hours of sleep. I think my friend managed to catch some zzzz's but I most certainly did not!


We went to hang out with Amy and Kingsley for awhile on Sunday night, and when the dogs finished wrestling and chasing each other up and down the stairs, Claire curled up on Kings' bed and he attempted to curl up on me...

...which was short-lived, as he is not exactly a lap dog, and I am not strong enough to support a 140 pound dog, as much as I love him! I managed to squeeze out from under him and grab the other couch before it was claimed by my sweet girl! Once we were all settled, the four of us watched Julie & Julia - and Kingsley kept looking over at Claire from his perch on Amy to check on her. Well, I guess he could have been a little mad about her using his bed, but I prefer to think that it was the former option rather than the latter. So, with that: cutest thing ever. Amy has become such a good friend to me, so I love that Kingsley and Claire feel the same way about each other!


So that's a recap of our weekend. I think Claire is still recouping from all of the activity, though. She put herself to bed early tonight, so this is the scene in front of me as I conclude this blog entry:

Early to bed on a school night!

a typical saturday with my girl.

We have a routine, Claire and I. Saturday mornings are a little rough, since she wakes me up between 5am-6am to eat breakfast, then again between 7am-8am to go for a walk, then around 9:30am to see if I am wanting to play yet, and then one last time around 10:30am. And by then, I'm up.  Next, we hop in the car to make a run to the library in addition to other errands, and we swing by our favorite bakery, See Spot Eat to pick up some organic and freshly-baked treats for Claire (check out their selection - it is amazing!). We usually run home after that to drop off the library books and such, and while I clean up around the house a little bit, Claire chews on a bone or plays with some toys. Between 2pm-3pm, we head to the dog park for a couple hours. And when you frequent a park as much as Claire and I do (4-5 times a week), you can count on running into at least one person - and dog - you know.

Claire at the dog park!

Today, when we arrived, Amy was there with her great dane, Kingsley. Kingsley and Claire are so cute when they play together, because Kingsley is HUGE but often forgets his size. Claire loves to be chased, so she'll run as fast as she possibly can while Kingsley lumbers after her. Claire will run so fast that she will leap over other dogs who are in her path, cut through groups of people, and run under benches. Kingsley, attempting to follow in Claire's footsteps, dodges around other dogs, runs into people, and tips over benches. And it is hilarious to watch them! They were having such a great time today while Amy and I were hanging out.

Kingsley, Claire's boyfriend :)

Once Amy and Kingsley left, Claire took a little break by digging a hole so deep that half of her body disappeared into it. I attempted to catch this on video, but by the time I got it working on my phone, she was done. Don't worry, I'll get it next time. All of a sudden, Claire stopped sniffing around her freshly dug hole and just stared at the gate with her tail wagging. Then she ran and disappeared into a crowd of newcomers. I was watching to see what had her so excited, and then all of a sudden, she emerged. Who was in pursuit? Her best friend, Ava.

Ava and Claire after a play date.

Ava is a yellow lab who is about six months younger than Claire. They have been playing together since Ava was just a teeny thing. And, boy, do they love each other! They have play dates often, and tend to just wear themselves out! Ava's parents, Amy and Cope, live in the same apartment complex as we do - and we are going to miss them so much when we move! So I was just as happy as Claire to see them at the park today. Ava and Claire frolicked, tumbled, chased, dug holes, and sniffed around together for two hours. They were both a complete mess afterward, but at least they had fun! The bottom half of Ava was brown from rolling around in the dirt, and Claire had paw prints and drool from other dogs all over her!


When we came home, I cleaned her up, and we both had dinner. Then she curled up in her favorite spot on the couch and promptly fell asleep. There is a saying among dog owners: "a tired dog is a happy dog." And tonight, this is especially true.

Sleepy girl...