the mess of a monday morning.

Sorry about our unexpected hiatus from the blogging world - I've been sick for the past few weeks (so typical) and so Little One spent a bit more time at Bark-O-Lounge than usual. I'd like to think that I'm on the mend now, however, so we're getting back into our groove. And of course we had to come back with a bang...

I was running late for work this morning, so while I rushed around the kitchen throwing together breakfast and lunch, I let Claire into the backyard for a few minutes. I was keeping an eye on her out the kitchen window, and I saw her start digging by the shed. It's rained for the past million days, so I ran outside to tell her to stop playing in the mud and come inside so I could clean her up before I left for work. As I ran outside, however, I saw Claire wagging her tail like crazy and puppy-bow at something. I looked around the corner to see who/what she had befriended juuuust in time to see her get sprayed by a skunk. She yelped and then began rolling around in the mud - possibly to get the smell off? or to get it further embedded in her fur? I'm not sure what the purpose of that was, but she was a hot mess.

When I finally managed to wrangle her inside, I put her in the bathroom while I tried to find some tomato sauce. Does anyone even own plain boring tomato sauce? I mean, I had a variety of name-brand options. Four cheese, sweet basil marinara, vodka sauce, spicy red pepper, etc. I grabbed a jar of the sweet basil and dumped it all over her. For a girl who isn't a fan of the bath in general, why would she like getting scrubbed with tomato sauce? Before I knew it, she leapt into me, covering me with marinara, and then started running around the house. I ran after her and tried to grab her, but she thought we were playing a game of chase, so she took off just as I got close enough to catch her. Then she stopped in the dead center of the kitchen and shook sauce and mud all over the place. I managed to get ahold of her mid-shake and carried her back to the tub so I could finish giving her a bath.

At this point, I was ridiculously late for work but I was a disaster - as was my house. I managed to take a quick shower, change clothes, clean up the kitchen, throw all of the towels into the washing machine, and run out the door in less than 15 minutes. Claire was sulking on the couch when I left, likely for ruining her fun with a bath, but hey, at least she was clean and smelling like an Italian side dish.

   

positive-reinforcement training.

I think we need to step up the training. Or I do, rather. Little One's anxiety has been gradually kicking in again. I think it's happened so gradually that I didn't even realize it until a friend commented about it the other day while we were at the park. My friend commented (with part humor and part seriousness) that Claire doesn't like many dogs. Maybe I'm biased, but I just don't think that's it. I mean, she's around dogs all the time at daycare and she is just fine. And again, she's great with the dogs that she knows. I guess I've always thought that it was normal for some dogs to need a little space when meeting new dogs. But maybe that's just "normal" for Claire...?

I've always been aware that Claire's anxiety mainly manifests itself in that she is leash-reactive, and we have continued to work on that; I'm seeing improvement there, mainly because we work on it every time we go for walks. But as I look back on the past few months, I find that, when we're at the park, she is only 100% comfortable around the dogs she knows. She hates when puppies jump all over her, and she gets nervous when dogs get in her face - even if they're just coming up to say hello. Her reaction is to give them one quick bark, and then she removes herself from the situation. I'm proud of her for doing this, but ideally, she wouldn't react at all and would just walk away. What are your thoughts? Am I overreacting and making this a bigger deal than it needs to be?

I'm big on positive-reinforcement training. It promotes trust and confidence. That's why, if you're around me and Claire, you'll notice that I praise her a lot with either treats or "life rewards" such as positive touch and verbal praise. I don't yell at her for doing something wrong, and I would never ever cause discomfort or pain. On the rare occasions that she needs a scolding, she gets a stern voice and a time-out immediately after whatever incident occurred. Instead of saying "no" all the time, I redirect her to do the correct thing and then I praise her for it. I'm a firm believer that positive-reinforcement training is the best training method for all dogs, but especially for dogs who deal with anxiety. This is why it's the best fit for Claire. So now it's time to kick it up a notch to get her over this hurdle.

dog days of summer.

It's been a little quiet here on the home front over the past few weeks, mainly because Claire and I have been soaking up the last little bits of summer. We've been going on lots of walks and hikes, and of course we've been frequenting the dog park as much as possible before the days get shorter.

So, for your Instagram recap, here's what we've got:

• Claire and Tucker playing frisbee/tug
• Sitting on Katie's lap while getting some love from Patrick
• Doing her best impression of a person - it's good, isn't it?!
• Playdate with the ever-so-handsome Chase
• Smiling all pretty
• Hanging out with Sooki -aka- taking all of Sooki's bones/toys for herself
• Staying cool with Courtney in the office at Bark-O-Lounge [picture courtesy of Miss Courtney]
• Muddy dog park feet
• Relaxing in the shade under a bench at the park
• Sleeping soundly

We hope you all have been enjoying the end of summer too! I love the warm weather, but I'm actually quite ready for the fall season this year. There have just been too many 100* days for us here in Nashville!

   

true confessions of a dog owner.

It's time for some true confessions! Are you ready for this? I put together a list of twelve truths pertaining to being a dog owner. Know that I mean no offense, so I apologize in advance if anything written is taken the wrong way. But I figured it would be fun to let you all know some of my honest-to-goodness thoughts and maybe even share some of my own bad habits! Leave a comment below with some of your confessions - I love getting the scoop!

1. I am of the persuasion that raising a dog is just as hard as raising a child.

2. Every Sunday, when I go grocery shopping, I make sure to bring back a special little treat or toy for Claire.

3. It's very likely that I spend more money on Christmas presents for Claire than I do on all of my friends combined.

4. No matter how adorable I think your dog is, I'll always think that mine is cuter.

5. I think you can tell a lot about a person by the way they treat their dog. I tend to write people off if I see them treating their dog poorly.

6. It's really hard for me to like you if you don't like my dog. And please know that "like" does not mean "tolerate."

7. I have more of a problem with separation anxiety than Claire does. She usually does just fine when she's at Bark-O-Lounge while I'm on vacation. I, however, call/text a few times per day to make sure that she's all right...

8. I have been late to work a time or two solely because I've stayed in bed cuddling with Claire for too long.

9. Sometimes when we're at the park, I yell "SQUIRREL!!" really loudly because I think it's hilarious how Claire's ears immediately perk up and she looks all around to find it.

10. There have been many times where I have slept on the very edge of the bed as to not disturb the angelic sleep of Princess Claire.

11. Claire's vice is digging, and I even encourage it sometimes because I feel like it helps file those nails ;)

12. If I believed in past lives, I would definitely think that I was a dog.
  

cape cod's black dog.

I know, I know... We completely disappeared for a week. But I couldn't blog about where I was going because it was a surprise!! Now that I'm back, however, I can tell you that I took a quick trip home to see my family and to celebrate my grandparents 55th wedding anniversary -- yes, you read that correctly, they have been married for FIFTY FIVE years! Amazing, right?! And while I was spending time at the beach, Miss Claire went off to "camp" at Bark-O-Lounge. Stacey and Courtney are so amazing: they sent me a couple pictures each day of Claire playing in the pool, lounging around on Stacey's bed, giving Courtney kisses, and hanging out with her pals. I was a teensy bit jealous, actually...

While I was home, I just had to stop at one of my favorite stores of all time: The Black Dog [Seriously, I'm obsessed! I'll always accept gift cards... hint hint.] If any of you have ever been to Cape Cod, it's likely that you know about this store. They have awesome apparel for the whole family - including great gifts for your dog. Whenever I go on vacation, I always bring Claire a gift [she gets really excited if you mention that you have a present for her], and when I take trips back home, it's always something awesome from The Black Dog. This time, she got some bacon flavored treats - I was happily surprised to see that their line of treats are wheat, soy, and corn free and don't contain any of the things that Claire is allergic to. That being said, you should definitely check out their website and get some for your dog - and maybe even a comfy sweatshirt for yourself, while you're at it.

Gifts for my black dog from The Black Dog.

   

a tired dog is a happy dog.

I can tell that Claire had a fun day at school because as soon as we got home, she put herself right to bed. She didn't come when I called her for dinner, which was odd, and when I went to get her, she had completely passed out. I brought her dinner to her in bed, which she was quite happy about [as evidenced in her wagging tail] and she ate while lying down. I'm not kidding. There's that quote: "a tired dog is a happy dog" - it's quite true! And I'm happy knowing that Claire is happy.

You might be wondering why Claire is so tired. Well, this is what she did today while I was at work - and please note: this is the first time that she willingly immersed herself in the kiddie pool! We're making memories, here, people! When I got this picture, I was so happy to see that she was having such a great time! Courtney said that Claire would stick her face in the water, splash around, and then go zoom around the yard. She does that at the river, too - it's like she just gets so excited that she can't contain herself!

Share pictures of your dog's summer fun on our Facebook page - we'd loved to see what you all are up to!

   

TGIF.

It has been a busy few weeks around here. I'm sure that most 27-year-olds are out on this Friday night having a grand old time with their pals and staying out until the wee hours of the morning, but not this girl. Nope. I can honestly say that there is nowhere else I'd rather be than in this bed, snuggled up with Claire. Let's give a quick recap of recent happenings, yes?

• Work. Work is always crazy busy, but especially when you're covering for a coworker. [Elizabeth, next time you go to Switzerland, don't forget to pack me in your suitcase. Just kidding... or am I?]
• Preparing for a conference. I have a little over a month to do some research, make a powerpoint presentation, and come up with an hour's worth of pediatric social work goodness to present at a national conference. [I'm really excited about this opportunity, and I've got some great material. The only hitch is that I have a slight phobia of public speaking...]
• Uganda. The missions trip with Visiting Orphans is three months away, and it's coming up quick! We've been doing a lot to prepare, both individually and collectively. A lot of the planning has been for our fundraising event that is tomorrow night [if you're in Nashville, you should come!]
• Dog-sitting. I love my friends. I love dogs. So, it just makes sense that I help 'em out by doing this, you know? Also, Claire loves it! She gets to hang out (a) with me, (b) explore new places, and (c) hang out with her puppy friends. What more could she possibly want? [Answer: an endless supply of Nylabones].
• Photography. My other job. You know, aside from being a social worker and blogger. I absolutely adore photography, and I cherish the times that I get to use this creative outlet - especially when getting to take pictures of people's beloved pets! [That being said, I'm booking shoots into the fall, so let me know if you're interested!]
• Working out isn't my favorite way to spend my time, but it's important. You know, for my health and all that. I try to go 2-3 times a week, which gets a little tricky now and then, but I try to make it happen. [Unfortunately, in this case, it's not the thought that counts].

Even with all of this great stuff going on, the most important thing is that I get to spend some solid time with Claire each day. She goes to school with her friends on my busiest days, so when we get home, we usually just get into bed and cuddle [and there's no complaining from me about this!] while I blog or read or watch a movie. During the other days of the week - the less busy ones - I rush home, pick her up, and we go for walks and hang out at the park for a couple hours. Lately, I've been trying to squeeze in some time to teach her some new tricks, too - she loves to learn, that's for sure!

Claire is one of my main priorities, and because of that, I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything. I'm always up for a quiet night at home with my best friend - especially with the busyness that has been going on throughout the past few weeks. It's no sacrifice at all. :)

    

on our way to getting some answers.

Where have we been for the past four days? I've been busy making homemade food for the princess, while she has been lying around and being sick. Well, that's not completely true; on the days that she felt better, she went to daycare and had some fun with her pals. But we both stayed home today because she had an appointment with a veterinary specialist in the hopes that we could get some answers about this GERD issue.

It was a frustrating appointment. First of all, I specifically asked over the phone if I should bring a copy of her vet records, and I was told not to. Then, when I got there and explained what the past three years of GERD have been like for Claire, they asked if I brought a copy of her vet records. Yeah. I was pissed. I called up my girls at Banfield and asked them to quickly fax over her records, but they misunderstood and faxed over her vaccination records. I offered to call them back and have them send everything, but the specialist said, "Well, I have to get to my next appointment, but on your way out, make another appointment and then have them fax it before you come in next."

...And then I burst into tears. I told her that it's breaking my heart to hear Claire wake up crying in the middle of the night. I told her that I haven't been sleeping because I'm so worried about her. I told her how she won't eat anything but homemade food or else she throws up all over the place. I told her that I need her to do something today, because I'm not a vet and I can't fix this, but she can.

So she ordered a complete food allergy panel which will be sent out to a lab in Texas. We won't have results for the next two weeks, so in the meantime, she gave me prescription hypoallergenic food for Claire and prescription probiotics. $600 later and we're finally getting somewhere.

Keep praying those prayers and thinking happy thoughts for us. Lord knows the next two weeks are going to go by very slowly as we wait for results. And thank you so very much for all of your emails, texts, FB messages, and tweets - I read them all to Claire, and I'm positive that if she could speak, she'd say thank you too! Knowing that you all love her so much is the best kind of support I could ask for!

   

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!

    

who's who in this crazy game of life?

I went to pick up Claire from daycare at Bark-O-Lounge today, and Miss Stacey told me that she picked up a little something for my girl...

Coincidentally, these are some of Claire's favorite treats [thank you Stacey!!]. Stacey said that she thought of Claire when she saw them because the dog on the front looks exactly like her - down to the collar and everything. And while I do agree that there are a lot of similarities, I think that Claire bears a more striking resemblance to this famous girl:

When I suggested this to my friend Michal, she originally thought that I was crazy [which you might also be thinking right now]. But then when I showed her Claire's picture next to Kim's, she honestly agreed with me [that's right, Michal, I'm calling you out!]

You know, I think it's something about the eyes...

  

  

someone needs a breath mint.

I tried. I really did. But it was nearly impossible...

It was so difficult that I gave up after the second attempt...

I failed.

But she just would not let me brush her teeth.

We were in the car the other day, heading to the dog park. She was standing on the center console with her head sticking out the sunroof, ears blowing in the breeze. Maybe it was the way the wind was blowing, but I caught a whiff of something that just smelled terrible. Like dead fish.

I'll be totally honest with you: I thought it was my breath at first. I'd eaten some spicy food for lunch, complete with garlic and onions [yes, my officemate adores me, if you were wondering]. I was mortified. I stuffed a whole pack's worth of gum into my mouth in the hopes that it would eradicate any remnant of my stinky lunch before I got to the park. [Did you know that eating a whole pack of Orbit at once isn't just hard to chew, but the mint makes you sneeze at least eight times? Truth. Firsthand knowledge]. But when we stopped at a red light and Claire leaned down to give me a big fat kiss, I realized -- partly with relief and partly in horror -- that it was not MY breath causing the dead-fish smell... it was HERS.

She's never been one to have bad breath, but I recently started giving her a different flavor of her food - trout and potato, as a matter of fact. And apparently, it reeks. But she actually likes it and it's easy on her stomach [which is important with her chronic GERD and recent pancreatitis scare], so I am hesitating to change it back...

The next day, after taking a quick trip to PetSmart, I sat down with Claire and discussed why I absolutely have to brush her teeth. She listened to me explain that I don't want her to be the smelly kid dog at school daycare who doesn't have any friends because they can't stand the stench. She also heard me say that preventative care is the best care, so we had to nip this in the bud. I believe I also told her that this would be more painful for me than it would be for her. And then I tried to persuade her by telling her that the toothbrush itself is peanut butter flavored, so maybe she would like it.

Aaaaand... nope. She let me look at those pearly whites, but she wouldn't let me touch them with the toothbrush. Actually, when she saw it coming towards her, she kept leaning backwards until she tumbled over. And then she rolled over for a belly rub. [Does she think I'm an amateur?! As if I was going to get distracted by that!] I tried putting the toothpaste on my finger to brush her teeth that way, but when I started walking over to her, she turned and ran into our room. And then, my fifty pound dog tried to hide behind the bookcase.

That's when I gave up.

I realized that this was not going to happen, no matter how badly I needed wanted it to. I haven't yet come up with a solution, so suggestions are welcome. For now, I'm trying to manage it with dental chews, a water additive, and raw marrow bones.

HELP!! I just can't let the trout win this battle.

  

the shortest distance between A and B is always a straight line.

I have been home sick since Wednesday. One thing that you need to know about me: I hate being sick. I'd much rather use my sick time for "mental health" days, because then it can be quite enjoyable. But using sick time when you're actually sick is NO FUN AT ALL. I've slept the past 48 hours away, and my head hurt so bad from this sinus infection that I couldn't watch TV or use my laptop. Thankfully my headache has eased up today, which is why you get to read this new blog post - lucky you!

I dragged myself out of bed on Wednesday morning so that I could take Claire to daycare. She's very sweet and snuggly when I'm sick, but that only lasts a couple hours. Then she wants to play. And I needed to sleep. When I dropped her off, she was a little reluctant to leave my side, but once Stacey and I assured her that I was just going to go rest while she had fun with her friends, she was all right. I drove home, climbed back into bed, and slept for the next nine hours.

Claire was very happy to see me when I went to pick her up - she squealed, she jumped, she kissed me... the whole nine yards. [I love it! It never gets old!!] I don't put a leash on her to get her from the front door of the daycare to the car because it's such a short distance and she usually just hops right in the front seat. But on Wednesday night, she smelled something interesting and followed it  through the hedges into the next yard.

I walked down the hill to go around the hedges, and I spotted Claire on the other side of the neighbor's driveway. Now [picture this with me], their yard is on a hill, so on both sides of their driveway, they have walls that are level with the top of their parked cars. I was standing next to one wall, and Claire was across from me near the other. I called for Claire and told her that it was time to go home and eat dinner. She stopped in her tracks and looked at me, then looked down the hill, and then looked at the car that was parked between us in the driveway. [It can never be good when you see a dog stop and think]. And then:

...she started running as fast as she could...

...and she leapt over the wall...

...and landed on top of the car...

...and then took another huge leap to get across to me.

I'm not kidding. I mean, forget agility classes - I think she was telling me that she wants to learn how to parkour.

  

  

on the mend.

Sick puppy...

I had quite the scare last Thursday while I was getting ready to go to work. I got out of the shower and Claire was laying on the couch looking forlorn, and she had gotten sick all over the living room. The poor girl has had so many tummy issues with GERD that I know enough about it to know that it wasn't GERD this time. As I continued to get ready for work, Claire continued to get sick... And I began to worry. I went to work and sent my roommate a text for when she woke up, asking her to call me if Claire kept getting sick. I worried my way through the morning and finally had a chance to call Lyndsey to ask for an update on Claire. She said that Claire had curled into a ball on the couch and hadn't moved all morning. She also was dry-heaving and whining. Heartbreaking, right? I get sad just thinking about it. But that did it for me. I called the vet and made an appointment to take Claire in later that afternoon.

Not feeling well and not happy to be at the veterinarian's office.

Our very favorite nurse, Josie, was working that day and she commented that Claire was the sickest she'd ever seen in our 2.5 years of knowing her. I don't know who felt worse - Claire with her stomach ache or Josie for having to take her blood! When all was said and done, Claire was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis (for more info on pancreatitis, check out this post on my friend Jana's blog). We were sent home with an antibiotic, anti-emetic, anti-inflammatory, and a 4-day supply of prescription food.

She's always happy to see Josie, though!

Claire was down and out into Saturday, but by Saturday afternoon, she started wagging her tail again - such a good sign! We went to the park for just a half an hour yesterday and then I made her get back into bed. This morning, however, she was up early and excited to go back to daycare! No, really! She bounded out of bed when I mentioned it and then waited by the door until I was ready to go! And when I picked her up this afternoon, they said that she played all day and was back to her old self. Now that is news that I like to hear!

Feeling much better!

Just relaxing after a full day of fun at daycare!

  

Thank you to everyone who called, texted, emailed, commented, tweeted (etc etc etc) over the weekend to ask how she was/is doing! It means so much to us both!

  

  

gearing up for barkworld.

I realize that I have been somewhat MIA over the past few days (in person, by phone, text, the blog, Twitter, FB... you name it!) but I've been extremely busy at work trying to tie up loose ends. Especially because I'll be spending the next few days in Atlanta at the Barkworld conference! Claire will be hanging out with her friends at Bark-O-Lounge; I really wish I could bring her to Atlanta with me, but the doggie daycare at the conference filled up pretty quickly, and I think she would destroy the hotel room if I let her hang out there while I was attending the sessions. But she'll have fun as usual, and she will be working as Lead Squirrel Chaser, so she'll be busy! While she's having fun doing that, I'll get to spend some time with blogging buddies, network like crazy, hear Victoria Stillwell speak, and participate in some really great workshops! My goal is to keep you all updated about the conference, and I can promise you that I will do my best - the next couple days will be pretty packed, so I may not get a chance to blog until I get back home, but I will certainly try! You can guarantee that I'll be tweeting throughout the whole thing though, so feel free to follow! I'll talk to you all soon!

couch potatoes.

Gorgeous, isn't it? Please note that the small portion of my leg that is showing in this picture is, in fact, TAN!! Thank you, vacation, for allowing me to see the sun! So yes, as you can clearly see, The Boot is my new fashion statement. Coincidentally, it also keeps my ankle stabilized, which is extremely helpful since it is severely sprained.


I wish I had some outrageous story to explain how it happened. You know, something like, "I was walking down the street and witnessed a guy run by and steal a sweet old lady's purse, so I immediately ran after him, pulled some ninja-like moves, and sprained my ankle in the process. But I still got the purse back, and I used my immense strength to pin the thief to the ground until the police arrived." Yeah. Wishful thinking. What actually happened is that I was doing a photo shoot for an adorable family who has two sweet dogs, and while I was shooting a series of pictures that involved their Boston terrier, their incredibly large golden retriever ran into my leg at 34720.6 miles per hour. Okay okay, fine, he wasn't running quite that fast, but he was running at me as fast as he could. I thought my ankle was just badly bruised, but when I went on vacation, it continued to hurt and began to swell. Thankfully, upon my return to Nashville, my doctor gave me The Boot. And I get to wear it for two weeks.


The most disappointing part of having an injury such as this is that I cannot go on long walks with Claire until it has healed. Claire will be going to school every day this week so that she can still have fun and play with her friends - because, Lord knows, it would be extremely frustrating for her to have to join me in the boring activity of sitting around. She has been pretty exhausted over the past few days, however, and I'm assuming that it is because she's catching up on rest from last week when she was at sleepover camp while I was on vacation. So if you're looking for us for the next two weeks, you can most likely find us on the couch resting. You know us, we're always trying to keep it interesting!
  
  

a beautiful "welcome home".

Nothing compares to reuniting with a loved one after time spent apart, no matter how long that time apart is. Obviously (and understandably) this includes the most loyal member of the family: your beloved dog.

I arrived back in Nashville late last night after spending an incredible week at home with family and friends. I wasn't ready to leave them, and I wasn't ready for vacation to end, but I was more than ready to see Claire. When I walked in to Bark-O-Lounge to pick her up, she was standing on her hind legs, resting her front paws on the top of the baby gate in the next room; she always likes to see who is coming and going. When she saw me, her ears perked up and she started wagging her tail like crazy. Stacey let her out into the hallway where I was, and she started running in circles around me, jumping up, giving me tons of kisses, and crying and crying - she wouldn't stay still long enough for me to hug her because she was so excited!

It just warms my heart.

I love her so much.

Claire's welcoming reminded me of this video that my friend sent me a little while ago. Aren't dogs the best?! They don't speak our language, but they still manage to tell us - in a variety of ways - how much they love us.

  

  

hot diggity, i'm on vacation!

Greetings from Cape Cod! I arrived last night and am now settling in at home with my family, and I will be here for the next week! It has been glorious already, and I am loving it. Of course, I am already missing my sweet Claire Baby, and I have been busy trying to convince my beautiful mother to let me bring her home with me next summer for a solid three week vacation (it would really help if you all could engage in the persuasion by leaving a comment pointing out all of the reasons of why this would be a fantastic idea). I've been texting Stacey throughout the day about a few things, and it seems that Claire is doing well and having a blast with her friends - which I knew she would. I worry more at night time when she has settled down: is she wondering why I haven't picked her up yet? Is she anxious? Is she lonely? Does she realize that I am coming back? Sigh. If I'd been able to take a longer vacation, I would have gladly driven the 20 hours home so that she could have come with me. Jay and I were tweeting about how Pet Airways really needs to open more locations - especially in Nashville and Boston! That would make it so easy!


Anyway, today my mom and I met up with Becky (one of my besties) and her mom for lunch. It was so great to see them and get to spend time together! (It wasn't nearly long enough, B!) After that, we went to run some errands and I came across an adorable little pet boutique called Hot Diggity! I was jonesing for a dog fix, so I had to go in. As it turns out, my old friend Ashley is the manager - we went to high school together and it has been far too long since we had seen each other last! It was wonderful to catch up with her and to see all of the hard work that she has put into the store! Her sweet dog Winnie was hanging out, as well as her coworker's dog, Frankie. I got to love on the dogs, check out all of the amazing products, and buy something special for Stacey for taking such great care of Claire while I'm on vacation. I got something for Claire too, so I can't say much more right now - you'll have to wait and see what it is when I get back next weekend. Can't give anything away now!

Although I'm on vacation right now, you'll still be hearing from me! I also have a couple guest bloggers who will be making appearances this week, so stay tuned! Have a great weekend!
   
   

a recap from my birthday.

Well, I turned the big 2-7 yesterday, and I have to say, I rang it in with style! I wasn't expecting too much (because really, the next big birthday after 21 is 30... which I feel I am quickly approaching!) but I clearly underestimated my friends! Lissa and Leigh threw me a surprise party on Monday evening - and I was VERY surprised, especially because I always thought I'd figure out something like that far in advance! I was so completely blindsided by it! I actually walked into Leigh's house eating quinoa with my fingers (I forgot a fork! I was hungry!) and almost threw it everywhere when my closest friends leapt out of the next room shouting "SURPRISE!!"

Lissa and I at the party

Though I had to work on my birthday, Claire spent the day at school trying to score a winning prize to give to me as a birthday gift: a squirrel! Her favorite thing!

Claire on squirrel duty

(Thanks for sending this to me, Stacey!)

Last night I came home to a lovely dinner (Lissa should really open her own cafe) that was just amazing. I had my choice of wine, too, from the party the night before! And hey, if you're in the neighborhood, swing by and share some with me, because otherwise it will be in my house until 2014!

Birthday dinner with the birthday wine selection

I had saved all of the cards and gifts that my incredible family and friends sent me so that I could open them on my birthday, so I did that after dinner. Claire sat by me and sniffed every package - normally when I bring home gifts, they are for her, so I'm sure she was hoping for a bone. She didn't find any in my gift boxes, but I did buy her some at Whole Foods so that she would have something to look forward to.

Organic beef bones for Claire and a magazine for me!

I spent the rest of the night watching old home videos from my parents' wedding, my christening, and my first birthday that my mom was kind enough to let me borrow. My parents were 27 when I was born, and it was crazy to see my mom when she was my age - she doesn't look any different than she does now, and she used to talk to me in the same baby voice that I use when I talk to Claire! I should note that when I pointed that out to her, she said, "Oh goodness, how ANNOYING!!" Ha!

All in all, turning 27 wasn't as scary as I thought it would be! But that was clearly because I had some great distractions from my family and friends. Thank you guys so so so much!

  

  

from ollie's kitchen: homemade buffaloaf.

This adorable girl is Ollie - one of Claire's best friends. We met Ollie and her parents (Erin and Jake) at the dog park almost a year ago when she was just a little munchkin. Now they go to school together at Bark-O-Lounge and have play dates on the weekends. They're becoming more and more like sisters! I wish I knew what kind of dog Ollie is, because I would get one. She is just SO cute! And she has these long eyelashes that Maybelline models would just die for.

Claire's been a bit bored with her food lately, so I asked Erin for help. She is a fantastic cook and with all of her amazing kitchen gadgets (including a blender that cleans itself and an automatic trash can - how cool!), I figured she'd have some tricks up her sleeve. Sure enough, she did, and it came in the form of homemade buffaloaf. I made this baby last night, cut it into slices, and then froze some of it so that I can heat it up and add it to Claire's food over the next few weeks. I'm telling you, she can't wait to eat now that she's got this deliciousness mixed in with her kibble! What's that saying? Variety is the spice of life? Claire would agree.

*Photo courtesy of Blue Kitchen*

Ollie's Buffaloaf

Ingredients:

1 lb ground hamburger meat - or ground turkey meat

2 eggs

1.5 cups of oats (Ollie prefers rice oats)

3/4 cup of mixed vegetables (Claire prefers 1 cup)

1/2 cup of cottage cheese

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350*F.

Lightly grease loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients.

Hand mix and press into a loaf pan.

Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350*F.

May be refrigerated or frozen in slices.

Let your pup enjoy!

  

* Confession: I may have tasted some of this myself because it smelled so amazing while it was cooking. It's delicious. It took every ounce of my will-power to save it for Claire.

    

    

what we've been up to, etc etc.

I hate when I don't have time to blog. It probably bothers me more than it bothers any of you who might read this, but I just had to be honest. That being said, let me tell you what we've been up to over this past week!


Nicole (one of my favorite college roommates) was in town for a business conference, which meant that I got to spend some quality time with her! Not only that, but Claire got to meet her too - and they bonded, very quickly:

Of course, Claire also got to hang out with her pals at daycare, went swimming down at the river, and played at the dog park. Though I have to tell you, she hasn't been super active lately due to the intense heat and humidity. The girl just likes being outside, even if she can't run around and be crazy. We've been going to the park pretty early on weekends so that she can get in some good exercise before it gets too hot out. I don't exactly enjoy 6:30am wake-up calls on my days off, but I stumble out of bed for her. When we went this morning before church at a bright and early 7am, she was very excited to find that someone brought a kiddie pool and filled it up with nice cool water from the fountain. After she took the time to jump in and cool off, she decided to sunbath in the middle of the park:

Doesn't she look like a regal Egyptian Sphinx?! Maybe if you ask her nicely, she will let you enter her dog park. ;) We went to the river after that so she could go swimming, and she finally got up the courage to swim out into the deeper water. She did this quite a bit last summer, but hadn't gotten the hang of it yet this year. If you are wondering what made her take the plunge (literally), it was a squirrel on the other side of the river. Apparently, her desire to hunt was stronger than her fear!


And so, after a busy week and a busy weekend, Claire is down for the count. Knowing her, she will rest tomorrow while I'm at work and then will be ready to go by the time 5pm rolls around! Hope you all are well!