a poops oops!

When bringing the dogs out late, late at night and waiting long enough and expecting them to actually poop outside, it is beneficial to have a flashlight in hand if one expects to clean up after oneself (which one is certainly expected to do, especially when the offending present is laid on the landlord’s lawn). I guess I know who’s on clean-up duty in the morning…

Resolved at Last

We started potty training today, in earnest, at least. I’ve been talking about potty training since Gracie was 3 months old, and we had a good start on it…until Cyrus started shredding the training pads. That was unfortunate. Then they started using the rugs and I stopped having guests…and now we’re trying to remedy both of those situations.

I have to admit, after numerous failed attempts, my resolve was fading, but after a motivating phone call from Kristen Magil (who reminded me that if she could take Maddy to the potty every half hour and clean up poopy underpants when accidents happened, then I could certainly do the same with my dogs!!), I made a pit-stop at Checkerhill Farms on the way home to pick up the necessities: namely, treats, and lots of them!

While I was trying to decide whether Beafeaters Liver Treats or the All Natural Baa Baa Q’s Dog Treats would be more enticing to the pups, a helpful employee (noticing I was in the training treats section) asked me if I had any training questions she could answer. Our extensive conversation ended with her essentially stating: “Well, you’re doomed with the little one, good luck with Cyrus, and I still think your best bet is to dog-litter-train them both.”

This was not the first time I had been told it might be hard to train Gracie, and it was not the first I had heard of litter-training dogs, but it was the most convincing argument I had hear yet…so I pondered. I pondered so much I almost pondered right over with my check book…until I thought of lugging a doggie litter box, in addition to all of the other dog paraphernalia I lug with us wherever we go, and I made up my mind resolutely – to the grass they will go. And by they, I mean we (blasted renting a second-story apartment with no first floor yard access or doggie-door!!!). Let’s see how fun this gets when it starts snowing and I’m trudging outside at 5:30am in my p.j.’s and boots.

At least Maddy’s potty is INside.

Stay tuned for updates on our progress!! No graphic pictures will follow, I promise. SJV.

Photo Shoot: Wagon

So I'm a bit of a dork when it comes to my dogs (in case you somehow don't already know this!), and I just couldn't help myself when I saw the red wagon by the lake today, so here is a series of shots I took with the dogs in the wagon, plus a nice one of Grace by the lake and a random one of a stone tower and feet. Please enjoy!

Another Episode of Puppies and Babies

My life these days seems to consist of various episodes of puppies meeting babies, and today was yet another fun episode. James and fam are still in town, and the Magils came out to visit. Hooray! Here's what happened:

Claire spent most of her time trying to escape from the pink blanket trying to a) eat grass, and b) get puppies (see photos)



Her attempts were successfully thwarted by her mother, much to Claire's chagrin.

Maddie, having met the pups previously, enjoyed both immensely and, when asked which she liked better replied "Cyrus, and Grace" very matter-of-factly. I like her for that. :-)





We then decided to take a stroll down to the lake...and Chris decided he wanted to take a moment and pretend to be like Paris Hilton.....we don't ask questions.....


Claire hitched a special ride

And Maddie was really excited...

Until she smelled the stinky fish.....

But all in all, we had a really good day after Independence Day!!!!!

Let Freedom Ring

Independence Day 2008 was a first for all of the October babies in my life, and coincidentally they all got to spend it together at the Lake. Fun! This was also the first weekend that Claire really got to meet the pups, and Cyrus got his first haircut last week so lots of fun firsts all around this weekend!! Enjoy the pictures...


Claire meeting Cyrus
Claire meeting Gracie (who she seems to like best, sorry Cy!)

Claire, however, does not like smoochie kisses (Abby's words) from Gracie!!







Cyrus with EYES!!!!!

Now how in the world does Grandpa not think this is cute?????







Look, Mom & Dad, I'm almost standing...and then I'll be walking.....

A Day at the Lake

Two weekends ago, the whole family came out to Mom & Dad's house. We had spectacular weather and spent lots of time playing outside. Abby loves the dogs, so Saturday afternoon, she and I took them for a romp down by the lake...

Playing favorites, Abby definitely likes Gracie best! (sorry Cyrus)

Here's Abby being a "big girl" and holding Gracie's leash. She only dropped it a few times...



Abby seemed to be having some trouble with her pants that day...they didn't quite want to stay up...

So I got a nice double-butt shot here with her and Cyrus. Sorry Abbs, you'll hate me later, but Auntie thinks it's funny. :-)

Abby and Cyrus both enjoyed being at the end of the dock, as close to the water as they could get

And with no accidents (Grandpa wasn't there to let her fall in!), we had a fantastic time!!

Bath Time

So one of the benefits of having small dogs is that you can bathe them yourself rather than paying a groomer. One of the downsides is that you often get a bath, too. :-)

Here are some pics from bathtime with Cyrus & Gracie a couple weeks ago...

Movin' on up!

So I officially have a new apartment!! It's close to twice as big as my current place, so the pups, kits, and I are VERY excited to get into our new home. For a visual tour, please see associated pics...(click on them to see larger view with captions).