A new first

Socializing Haddie has become an art of creativity. While she is fitting into our day, I am trying my best to always think of something to do with her daily outside of our house environment. Other PR's ... let me know if this is normal and what advice you have about getting her out and about.

Today was more tricky because my son came home early from school yesterday with a slight fever and sore throat, which left him with me all day today. My boundaries were limited regarding socializing Haddie. While my husband works at home, I didn't want to abandon my son for the sake of training. My kiddos will always come first.

But I was able to take Haddie for a walk while my cutie was sleeping on the couch with his dad on a conference call in the office. As I left the house, I happened to look up and notice that our sunshine had turned to dark, gray clouds off in the distance. I figured that I could beat whatever that was coming towards us - afterall, Haddie isn't walking that far.

Wrong.

We were a good fifteen minutes from home when the rain, out of nowhere, started falling and falling fast. It was on the verge of a hailstorm. Haddie looked up at me with squinted eyes and ears back as if to say, "Really?!!"  Sorry, babe, but we must continue in order to escape the weather. If we stand here, we are just going to continue to get wet.

Then, the thunder rang. It was not the loudest thunder I have ever heard, but it was thunder. I am sure she heard it. Dogs have better hearing than humans, right? She had no reaction to it, however, so maybe it was too far away and she didn't really pick up on it. But it was a new first.

We got back with a wet CCI Cape, a drizzled-wet furry puppy, and a damp headed Puppy Raiser. My new life - walking in the rain - is not as bad as I thought it would be. It was worth the puppy exercise; we dried off rather quickly.

And then Haddie did this ...

Park Day

Today Haddie and I met my college buddy at a park that is half way between her city and my city. It was a gorgeous Fall day and the park was the perfect setting. We walked. We sat. We walked. We ate lunch. We walked. We sat.

Haddie did great. She allowed me to chat with my friend, and didn't carry-on when she needed my attention for a correction. She just listened. Sometimes more quickly than others, but I didn't feel it was too disruptive on either side - the training side and the people conversation side. It was a great balance.

Haddie was a trooper. There were many dogs on leash wandering through with their owners, and thankfully, all but one left us alone. We were sitting on a park bench under the tree for shade and rest. Haddie was close to my feet just chilling out in a Sit watching passer-bys. It was going well.

Until this man decided that his Boxer (who was gorgeous, but intimidating) "liked" puppies and thought it was important that his Boxer "see" Haddie. My friend, myself, and Haddie all felt differently. Haddie was quick to get behind my legs and tucked herself nicely. The Boxer, and the man, did not get the point at! all! The Boxer did nothing aggressive, he just didn't have good personal space/boundaries. Luckily I caught his drool on my pant leg and Haddie was saved from all slobber and contact. Whew!

I felt I was polite to represent CCI well with a smile, but I honestly did not elaborate in my answers to his questions. In fact, it got to the point when I was just about ready to ask him to back up his dog when he decided to move along.

My college buddy and I had a common friend, Kim, in college that had a service dog through Guide Dogs of America. My college buddy was great about assisting Kim with driving, shopping, and other areas of help before she received her dog, and after too. After seeing the clueless man with  Boxer, my friend was reminded about some of the clueless folks she encountered while hanging out with Kim. She shared her stories, and after experiencing my tiny example, I have a whole new appreciation.

All in all, Haddie and I had a great day hanging in the Fall sunshine at the park with my friend. But sadly, no photos. Kicking myself over that one. It just means that we'll have to do it again soon, JH! 

25 pounds of pure Joy

Haddie weighed in at her veterinary booster checkup yesterday at 25 pounds. She was carried in and out of the doctors and she was so cuddly in my arms while I was paying to leave.  With perked ears and a curious face, she watched the receptionist type on the computer and answer a phone call while we waited for the total cost of our visit. She was adorable. The rest of the evening was spent chilling out.

I like how she turns her head to the side to relax. Our beagle turns her whole body, or will keep her head straight forward. But Haddie looks like she is a kid laying on her belly on a pillow.

Today my mom met us at the mall to walk the inside loop. It was good to see Haddie so well behaved. We walked through one store (Bed, Bath and Beyond) and she was more curious about what was at her eye level. However, she did good with corrections.

Haddie received the most praise at this store - we'll have to continue to visit as she grows. The saleswomen seemed to be taken with her. It was a great location with all the different smells of candles and aromas that waft through. Amazing what Puppy Raisers notice while pup is at the end of the leash.

The funny situation of our outing was Haddie's keen interest in a headless Mannequin. Fully dressed with toes exposed, but missing a head, Haddie stopped quick when we passed. So we joined her interest to help her figure it out. Sadly, her tail was wagging a mile a minute - almost more so than with a real human. Hmmm. (Ha). She smelled the cool jeans the faux chick was wearing, and looked as though she was going to bark - but thankfully she restrained. A sign we'll have to continue to search out Mannequins so her reaction is more nonchalant.

We also took a walking break at a little bistro table in the mall. Haddie placed herself voluntarily under the legs of the table. She just barely fit. As a result of the tight squeeze, I used it to my advantage to teach her to Stay in the Down command. While she tried a few times to get up, she corrected quickly to my verbal cue. She did a great job.

It's sunny here - so we'll have outside time to wear out some energy before heading to CCI Class this evening.

Haddie is truly 25 pounds of pure Joy!

Cora is Queen

My pet dog Cora and the CCI puppy Haddie met for the first time on September 3rd. Their first meeting went down with Haddie prancing away as top dog with my girl happy as second. Since that day, the two girls have gotten along only because Cora backs down all the time from the sloppy kisses from Haddie, and the ultra-friendly sniffs and playfulness.

Until ...

This weekend when Cora decided twice to let Haddie know who is Queen. All it took was two separate occasions of Cora turning fast on Haddie with a Beagle growl. Haddie ran fast the other way and hunkered down. The first time Cora allowed a gentle return from Haddie for the next 24 hours. But since the second incident yesterday, Haddie has a new perspective of the other four-legged that lives under the same roof.

I am thankful that Cora is so passive, and that she saved it for when she meant business, and when she meant business, it was just forceful enough to get her point across and nothing more. I am happy that Haddie finally listened, because it was starting to drive me crazy at how much she wanted to play with Cora, even though I knew there were strict rules from CCI regarding this topic.

I could always call Haddie out of her attention to Cora, but my girl is well behaved and would come running alongside Haddie when I called her out. Cora would come and sit and pay attention to me just as fast as Haddie. Kinda defeated the purpose - the two dogs were still together in the end.

Today Haddie was calm and did not follow Cora like a shadow, she didn't lick her face, she didn't nose up to her ... she just let Cora be Queen ... and Haddie voluntarily stuck to me like glue.

YAY!

Cradling

We start and end every CCI Class with Cradling. I think it is adorable. Even when the pup has outgrown the legs of their Puppy Raiser.

Here is Haddie on day three of being with us - being cradled by my son.

And here she is two days ago - much bigger. She is now officially taller than our sweet 12.5 inch Beagle. All in a month's time frame.

This is the view from the one cradling her ... how adorable! Sweet reward for the life of a Puppy Raiser.

This California girl brought us a heat wave the day she arrived, lasting the entire month. But today she has been officially initiated to the Pacific Northwest. We've had a mixed bag of weather today. From sunshine, to heavy winds, to downpour of rain.

Haddie was outside to experience each. She seemed the most curious about the wind on her face, and my hair flying like crazy, and seemed annoyed with the rain.  Sorry, Haddie, it's something you'll have to get used to, because we will not be home-bodies.

I found that puddles make a yellow dog very brown real quick. Thankfully I have been toting a dog towel in the back of the car since the day we received her. It was put to use upon our return to the car today. I can count on our new routine. Dry off and clean up before securing her in the kennel for the ride home.

There is a lot of work to Puppy Raising - but I wouldn't change it. The reward is great.

Video of Haddie: age 12.5 weeks

Ta Da!!! Triple-tasking ... puppy training, video taping, and reward giving. Whew!

Enjoy the fuzzy yellow Super Star.

Backyard Blast

I have been doing baby steps with Haddie. For example, just yesterday she was allowed to run crazy through our fenced backyard off leash. Her Here command is getting more consistent, so I thought the time was right .... and the weather was perfect. Not too sunny, but humid enough to enjoy the warmth of the air.

Haddie ran the length of our grass, but would voluntarily always come back to my feet to land. I'd make high pitched noises and clap my hands to get her to get up and start all over. And sure enough, after a couple seconds of heavy breathing, she'd be off again chasing the air and then come back to my feet.  

I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking about this experience. The two words that come to mind so far when I think of Haddie: Adorable. Reliable.

Happy Weekend, Blog Readers!!!

CCI Class

Hubby will be joining us soon to the CCI Classes in order to take photos, because it is too hard to handle a dog, or help my kiddos with the dog, and be responsible for photographs. I am missing some really sweet growing up moments of Haddie. The urgency has been noted.

Last night's class was very helpful. We worked more on new commands. While Haddie knew some of them, it was nice to work with her in a highly distracting environment with new puppies surrounding her, and older experienced dogs too. The commands she was not familiar with, it was nice to get one on one attention from Terri to get the scoop on what our objective was for the command, and how to train Haddie on the command.

Haddie has a bed at home where she plays with her toys, and depending on attitude of the humans or dogs in our household, she is sometimes put on her bed with toys on a tie-down. Last night we worked on the Bed command; used to get the dog on a designated bed area in a Down. Terri worked with Haddie to teach us how to lure her into position.

When Terri was finished, she looked at us and said that Haddie was very smart and took to learning very quickly. I agreed. Then she said, "This also can be dangerous."  Ha! Yes, I got the point. Alpha Dog Status of the human-kind is necessary for Haddie at all times.

Thankfully, I feel, we have done a good job in this role. We don't need her being too smart for her own good. Working and expecting her smarts to be positive and appropriate will be key to consistently bringing out Haddie's Super Dog status before Turn-In.

Haddie's eyes tell all her secrets. You can see her think. I like that.

My son was offered an experienced dog named Monroe at the start of class. He quickly took the leash happy to have a dog "all to himself". He enjoyed his evening and was highly impressed with all the different commands he could give to Monroe, who would respond quickly and accurately.

My daughter and I shared the training role for Haddie. After class, my girl came up to me and gave me a high five. We did it!! We were a good team - supporting each other, and not going crazy when things just didn't work as we thought it should. We alternated nicely, and helped each other with soft critiques. Yay - Team Haddie!!!

It was a good night at CCI Class.

Piano Mondays

I am a Mom first, and a piano teacher second. I have been teaching Piano Lessons on Mondays for the last six years. I teach Home School students during the day, and public/private school students during the evenings. I have twelve students that rotate through my living room on Mondays. And then my work week is through. I love it.

Today was the first Piano Monday of the school year. And, it was the first time having Haddie by my side. I wasn't real sure how it was going to go. I have a goal to eventually have Haddie on a tie-down in her comfy bed by the piano while I teach. But since she is just learning how to keep her large paws in the bed, and not drape them over and out of the bed, I decided that her kennel was the sure bet that all would be calm during lessons.

I practiced yesterday - a dry run. In the beginning, she was not hip on the sound of the piano. I didn't think my playing was that bad (Ha!). It took some time before she settled into a sleep and all was fine. I debated back and worth with myself on whether to chicken-out and kennel her in a different room, or to just go-for-it and let her settle in during lessons.

At the last minute today I made my choice. Puppy Raising is the volunteer gig I signed up for - the good, the bad, the uncertain. I was not going to default to easy, as I knew that would be cheating Team Haddie. So, Haddie kenneled up right next to the piano for the day.

And ... in typical Haddie-Style ... she did fantastic. She did not whine, or fuss for any of the lessons. The most that she did was Snore. Some moments were much louder than others, but that just made the students relax and laugh during their lesson time. I really don't think they minded. To me, it was much better than the alternative of noises she is capable of making while kenneled.

I was so happy! I can't wait for one day to have her on a tie down in her bed in place of her kennel. Baby Steps. Then the students will really get to see her in action and it may take away any worries they may have at the piano as they learn new music, or help face their challenges on existing pieces, or settle them after a hard day at school.

And here's a bonus photo ... my girl was doing some computer work after she got ready for bed last night. Haddie decided to join her under the computer desk. She doesn't know the Under command, we just claim it when she does it. Haddie is in this same location as I type this post. I think she finally realized she truly has outgrown going Under our tiny kitchen table and chairs.

Observations from a first timer

I am used to the stares in public, the whispers as people pass, over the Super Dog status of Haddie. I am used to getting asked What breed?, and How Old?. I am even used to the compliments of how well behaved she is, and her adorable beauty.


But the one statement that I have yet to get used to, for those that stick around long enough to realize that the Yellow Cape is a Service Dog Cape and not a shirt for my dog, is I could never give up a dog. Never. How can you give this dog back?


I smile with my best attitude on and share that I am doing this for Haddie's Future Handler. I share that one day the hope is that she will be a Service Dog ... and for the most part, the conversation ends there and the person moves on.

Not sure if I have my lingo right, my phrases cemented correctly, or my persuasion set.

That's it? That's the end of the conversation?

Help - Fellow Puppy Raisers. Is it me, or is this normal?

I've stated this before on my blog, but I'll state it again. To me, this is much more than just raising a cute puppy. This is truly, for me, about the future Handler. I don't even go down the future Pet Status for Haddie, because I am a positive-thinker when it comes to my goals ... and should it turn out where she is a Pet Status dog - well good for her in working so hard as a Team under my care, and I will smile at the thought of her life of play, and rest. But since that is not my goal, I don't dwell, nor think about that option.

For me, raising a CCI Pup is a job with pages worth of expectations, reports to write and submit to Home Office, accountability weekly at class check-in's, extra time spent every day on Dog Field Trips for training, house rules that are for a working dog, versus house rules for my pet, and keeping every family member on the same page for the sake of Haddie's success.

So, while it is fun to have an adorable yellow lab under foot, who gives puppy loves, and wiggly tails, it truly is a job. And like all jobs, there are the good parts, and the not so fun parts.

In the end - yes, I can return this dog. She is not my pet, she is working for me, and I am working for her. Teamwork that lasts for just short of 18 months. Then our objective is over, and we both move forward independently. No question I will be nervous on our journey to Turn In, I will shed tears, I will feel a part of me leaving, but behind all the emotions I will be able to say with happiness that my job with Haddie is complete.

In all the "stranger folks" that I have encountered (and Haddie and I go out daily in some form of public outings), only ONE said ... Thank you. This is an amazing service you are providing. She looks like she's ready for a good future. 

I wanted to hug that strange-man right then and there - but resisted as I am sure that would not have been a good CCI Representation - nor good for my marriage.

I don't know what to make of the other gobs of people who only state, I could never give her back. I know it is not my responsibility to change their view, but I wish I had a killer of a sentence to convey the big picture, the message of serving other, the point about thinking beyond myself.

But ... maybe that too is not my responsibility.

A boy and his friend

My girl started her flute lessons this week. My son, Haddie, and I decided to wait during the lesson (versus driving home and returning) because the Flute Teacher's neighborhood provided a new environment for our newest four-legged.

I am getting my routine down on what I need when I pack Haddie into the car - but I need to remember my good camera, and not rely on my camera phone. These would have been much cuter with my Lumix.

I loved watching my son work with Haddie. After a walk, and observing the local High School's Cross-Country Team jog by (Yay, Haddie!!! She's witnessed more runners since the original freak-out, and this time Jogger numbers 5,6,7,8 didn't phase her!), my son decided it was time to just sit and watch the world.

Another day this week, my son split her last meal of the day; half went into her bowl to consume all at once, the other half he put on the laundry room counter. He used the countered-food as a Reward for training. He got the whim to teach her how to Shake with her paw. A few minutes had transpired before I heard the call from the Laundry Room - "Mom, come see this! Haddie knows Shake."

And she did. She was eventually getting it more and more consistently as he showed me. I don't know which of the two I was more happy for - my four-legged friend for learning so quickly, or my son who was beaming with pride.

The next morning, I tested Haddie with her newest commands - Sit, Down, Shake.  She knew them. We'll continue to perform these commands out in public and test her thinking skills. But so far, she is doing pretty outstanding.

Our chapter of CCI

I have been so impressed with our local chapter of CCI. I joined their Yahoo! Group in June and it has been fun to see the messages transpire about different events, questions, or housekeeping items.

The fellow PR's have been so giving too of their time in class in answering our questions (even before our puppy arrived) and taking us under their care at the first class we attended with Haddie. There is a lot to learn right from the start, and various classmates came to us willing to help and settle us in. It is so nice to know we are not on an island while Puppy Raising.

In addition to the nice Welcome Waggin' that we received from group members the day we received Haddie, yesterday we received a package in the mail from another local Puppy Raiser.

Isn't this fantastic?! A plush Lab with a hand stitched CCI Cape with Haddie's name and birthdate. What a great keepsake to remember the first adventure into Puppy Raising. The card stated that B.J.'s Stitchin' Time was responsible for the cape. They did a wonderful job!

Thank you, Brenda, for the lovely surprise!! What a neat welcome to the journey of Puppy Raising and CCI. 

Under and Out

Haddie naturally selects furniture to go Under. She started on her first day at our house going under our small round table and four kitchen chairs. She is quickly outgrowing that spot; but I will let her squeeze in for as long as she thinks she is able.

I was doing work on my laptop, which is on the desk in the kitchen, last night and Haddie volunteered to join me. She went Under the desk and Sat, then layed Down, then stretched out and fell asleep. Could this be her new Under spot?

She paid no attention to the cords, but I will need to organize them better. It just looks bad and she could change her interest at any moment during these early puppy weeks. All the things you find when you have a puppy underfoot. What used to be normal and no big deals, are recognized rather quickly.

I am working on the Down command this week. What fun to see a dog go from no comprehension, to getting it. You can see her mind processing the command through her eyes. If you have never seen a dog do this - it is really a neat experience. They become human-like.

I will say the command and wait ... I'll look into her eyes and literally see her thinking - starring me back, her eyes-only looking to the right while the rest of her head is motionless, and then looking back to me, and then she'll move her head and look down, and her paw will bat the air and she will slowly (or quickly sometimes) go into a Down position. Had I talked after the first command was given, it would break her concentration and I'd pretty much be starting over; doubling the time for her to get it. I learned that rather quickly.

Then from a Down - I tell her to Sit - and because she knows that one like the back of her paw, she will pop her front legs up (keeping her rear and back legs down) into an awesome Sit. And then we are ready to do the routine again, and again, and again.

Today's adventure was to the New Home Construction Site down the trail from our neighborhood. While she was cautious over the Brand New Neonish Yellow Fire Hydrants (!!) she seemed okay about all the noise of saws, wood being thrown, and hammers. Men in hardhats, and a jogger, both went by - paying no attention to Haddie, and she paying no attention to them.

For "fun" I used the Down command after she had been sitting for awhile observing. She did it! And she stayed for a good two minutes before we moved on. Marking Haddie's success at every point, because I know there will be days ahead where success has flown out the window. She's bound to have her moments, and we'll just work through them. But until that moment - YAY TEAM HADDIE!!

Under and Out ...

Famous Haddie

My husband attends weekly staff meetings via conference call. A wide audience attends in this fashion as the organization spans nationwide; scattering people from all different states. The weekly agenda for the meetings are posted on their internal website, and the manager uses the Home Page as an opener. 

Employees submit what's happening, or what has happened that week, and he chooses one to post to start dialogue among the employees cross country to open the meeting. Some openers have been an employee's vacation photo, a birthday celebration photo, or graduation pose. Whatever strikes that week, it starts connecting people to each other, some who have never met in person, but work closely together and have conference call meetings often. 

Last week my husband submitted a photo of Haddie, and it was used on the Home Page to open the meeting. My husband shared the details of CCI, and all about the first week of Haddie being under our care. My hubby commented that the phone line was filled with Ooohs and Aaahs, and a lot of questions. If you clicked on Haddie's nose ~ it directed the employee to the CCI website. Perfect!!

What a FUN way to deliver the news about our volunteer project. Thanks, Honey!!

Haddie needs Joggers

I am finding that my routine is to pack Haddie in kennel to the back of our car and let her come with us during the school drop off of my son. From there we find our adventures. Today I chose to walk on the brand new sidewalk that boarders the busy street in our town. It is the road that our neighborhood runs into, the road that parallels the elementary school my son attends, the road that crosses over a huge trail system that weaves its way throughout our town and the next one over.

This road used to be dangerous. With no shoulders, no turn lanes, it was a mecca for creating traffic jams and scary scenes when a walker, jogger, or biker wanted to commute through. Thankfully the city planned a great upgrade that took the entire school year last year to complete.

Just in time for Haddie.

There is a large section of road that has full sidewalks on both sides with great landscaping, a Round About in the middle, nice benches along the way, and easy access to the park's trail system and Community Center.

We parked the car at the Community Center and hit the sidewalk. The cars whizzed by and we both just kept walking. It was a few blocks long before we landed on the brand new benches that are in a little alcove in the sidewalk - enough distance from the road that I felt secure for my own safety; and Haddie's too.

Haddie is learning the Down command. We are in the learning phase at home, but it just worked into the scene at the benches to get her to do it there. With traffic behind her, she listened to me instead, and followed my lure quickly into a Down. And then she didn't move. She would watch the traffic, or close her eyes, or spot a pine cone sprout blowing (because she was actually moving it when she breathed - that was funny). We stayed for awhile letting her listen to the various cars, trucks, and buses. It didn't phase her.

We moved to the trail system via the long cemented pathway down. We ventured through some trail landscape until we were faced with a choice to either go through the Tunnel that went under the road we were just on, or to turn and head the other direction down the trail - deeper into a wooded scene.

Haddie has been so mellow and nothing has phased her yet. So I thought I'd give it a try with the high value treats ready for use. We entered. Nothing. I started to calmly talk to her. Nothing. We got deeper into the tunnel and she started to hear my echo. Bingo.

She was half walking, half stopping, but looking all around chasing the echo of my voice with her ears. It was cute, but we needed to keep focused and keep moving. She did - she made it to the end with no worries. When we turned around to go back where we started, she no longer paid attention to the echo and just walked.

However, very shortly after exiting the tunnel, two joggers were coming towards us. Haddie was a little concerned and quickly gave out two barks that I didn't know she had in her. The two joggers were not worried, smiled, and kept going. Although she did not carry on and on; I could sense that the barks were not playful, but more on the defensive.

We stuck around and waited for more joggers. Eventually two more came by, but this time with a dog. Knowing what I was up for, I put her in a Sit in front of me and kept her attention focused on me by calling her name, and rewarding her with high value treats. It did the trick. The two joggers passed, the dog passed with them, and all was fine.

We'll need to work on this one, however. It was not "easy", but she passed with a thumbs up compared to the minutes prior.

We came home, and she has been zonked out under the table. One day she will outgrow this favorite lounging spot due to her own size. Until then, it's nice to know where she is when she is on Release.

A Dog in the Pew

Our Worship Pastor, his wife, and their youngest daughter came over to our house yesterday to meet Haddie and visit. They have been Puppy Raisers with CCI for many years ~ in fact, they were the ones who originally sparked our curiosity about CCI. They didn't do anything formal to initiate the conversation ... they just had an adorable puppy and we were hooked with questions.

They passed on a lot of tips and tricks from their years of adventures in Puppy Raising. They thought Haddie was very mellow and reminded them of their first puppy (who passed!).  We are praying some good genes have been included in Haddie and she passes too.

They mentioned that they would take their puppys to church with them from the very beginning. And, since we attend the same church, we figured it was a go for us too!  Due to Haddie's age, she just suggested that we sit in the last pew of the balcony with Haddie on our lap. Carry her in and carry her out. Eventually she will be ready to walk in, go under the pew, and walk out.

Today Haddie went to church!! Shhh, she fell asleep during the Pastor's sermon! Her treats seemed to be louder than what I remember hearing them to be, and the tags on her collar jingled more loudly too than what I remembered. I kept looking in front of me to see if any heads were turning around, but everyone stayed focused straight ahead, so I figured it was all good.

Now, if Haddie would have fallen into a deep sleep, then she would have snored and that certainly would have been rude and disruptive. (wink).

It was fun having a dog in the pew this morning!!

Bath Time!!

Last night was Bath Time for the two dogs in the household. I am super happy that I have had four years of experience in bathing our lil'Beagle. I figured that bathing Haddie would be the same on my behalf; and controlling any unnecessary wiggles would be expected. But at least I already knew the routine ~ half the battle was already won.

Haddie went first. I am positive that she was bathed prior to coming to our home. I am starting to sound like a broken record; she did wonderful. It helped that it was a 90 degree day at our house, so the welcomed cooling off was to our benefit. Haddie did the entire routine as if she had studied the book the night before.

I can imagine that next month when Haddie has her next bath that she will have out grown our slop sink in the laundry room. I already have a backup plan which involves asking my parents for some help. They have a Portuguese Water Dog and the best setup of a dog-tub in their garage. It provides easy access for the dogs to walk in and out; a benefit as my days are winding down on picking up Haddie.

She'll need to learn to go in and out of the tub on her own and to settle with many distractions in their garage while I bathe her. It'll be a fun learning experience for both of us. I am sure my parents will agree to my idea.

Once Haddie was dried off and placed in her kennel, Cora went next. She always finds a way to hide from me when I tell her Bath Time, and especially after seeing Haddie in her sink she knew what was coming next for! sure! But once I scoop up Cora, and talk sweet nothin's in her ear, she is a champion bather too.

I am sure the dogs appreciated the cooling off before bedtime. I know I did!

First Cape Photoshoot

When Haddie's cap arrived last weekend, we made a little formal ordeal in placing the cape on her for the first time. Okay, so it wasn't that formal but we did make a point of taking pictures and being together. I think she is adorable! I was surprised to find ties on the cape. It feels like I am lacing a preschooler's tennis shoes every time I put it on her; which is kinda fun since my kids are way past that stage.

I like to think that she knows the significance of having the cape placed on her. She holds very still and looks rather regal as I am securing the ties around her neck and belly.

A true Super Hero in the making!!

Perfect Morning

What could be better than hanging out dockside on a beautiful sunny, warm morning after the kiddos have been dropped off to school, and with your CCI friend by your side? It was so peaceful.

Haddie and I watched the ducks swim by, fish jump, dogs going for jogs with their owners off in the distance, and a group of moms with jogging strollers that were exercising on the large lawn lakeside. Haddie found her shadow in the lake, and the bugs hopping on the water. She enjoyed the sun in her eyes and my continuous photo shoot with my phone. She was more interested in the cawing crows than the adorable ducks.

Perfect morning to start my Friday!!