Whimsical Wednesday

Belly breeze.  Soft tummy hair fluttering.  A comfy door mat and warm sunshine mixed with a light wind from the open screen door.

Ultimate relaxation

Belly breeze -- Momma's smart boy.  If only everyone was this intuitive.

Marvelous Monday

Surprisingly enough, sometimes Milton, especially in the early mornings, does not want to join me on a walk.  Yesterday, when he saw his leash, he even hid to avoid it.  That lazy, lazy dog...

Milt trying to scoot behind Grand Nan's chair.

Attempting to blend in

I suppose playing fetch is a little more fun but Momma Dog does need her exercise too...!

Sunny Sunday!

Happy Belated Fourth of July!  The Fourth was a grand success -- my sister threw a big party resplendent with tasty food, a giant water slide, and fantastic fireworks at the evening's end.
Last year I missed the celebration because I was down in Dallas, but this year I was present in full force with Milton connected to my hip by leash.  He was very well-behaved -- impressive, actually. When he gets wet though, not so much...

In other news, yesterday I caved and finally asked my sister to prescribe me an antibiotic for my virus, and, double unfortunately, she diagnosed both Mom and me with conjunctivitis aka pinkeye. Lovely, I know; it's a mess over here -- now Mom has a sore throat too!

Hopefully, it will all blow over soon enough.  Here just a few pictures from the holiday's festivities.  It's hard to snap photos when you are having so much fun!

Patriotic puppy!

Three of the six nieces and nephews!

Beauuutiful!

July is upon us!  Get out there and enjoy it.

Thankful Thursday

Tomorrow is the big day -- the Fourth of July!  This was my dad's absolute favorite holiday, so this special time of year is filled with a lot of reminiscing.  Today Mom and I begin baking for our celebration -- Mississippi mud cake, blondies, blackberry pie, red velvet cake balls, and flag cupcakes!  It is gonna be good.

Underfoot

Underfoot is a good way to describe our goldendoodle - the Milt.  He always likes to be around the action, and I am certain that he will be sniffing and licking his way all throughout the kitchen today. Happy Third of July, everyone; enjoy the fireworks tonight!

Wonderful Wednesday!

Momma's little trooper visited the vet yesterday for a little poking and prodding.  We had a laundry list of tasks to accomplish -- distemper shot, kennel cough vaccine, yearly heart worm test, and, of course, a brief examination of our goldendoodle's left ear -- another yeast infection -- too much swimming!

Cayuga Veterinary Services, where Milton had a rabies shot the very first summer of his life, is a fantastic office with super friendly and knowledgeable staff!  I really like our Dallas vet too, but I was very impressed yesterday by how warm everyone was towards us.  Once again, with Milton's lean body and slow heartbeat, he was referred to as "athletic."  I always find this description rather amusing because it sounds like we are raising a future soccer star or young Olympian!  Milt is, quite frankly, the most physically fit one in our little family.

Patiently waiting for Dr. Ottosen

After a clean bill of health, we were handed a big bill - $181, but our little boy is worth every last penny.

On a side note, below is this morning's bounty!

Blackberries!

In the South, we gather pecans, and in the North, we pick blackberries.  The best part is both are 100% free!  Unfortunately, Milton could not join this morning's expedition up to the land because I just put a topical tick preventative on his back.  We were warned that Lyme disease is very bad this year in New York (Our vet has seen a lot of infected dogs.), and we should be wary.  A Lyme disease vaccine was also recommended, but I need to read up on that first.  Until then, hopefully this ointment will keep Milton parasite-free although he will miss a solid day of swimming.  I haven't broken the news to him just yet.  It won't be pretty when he finds out...

Terrific Tuesday!

Lately I seem to be more of a casual observer of life rather than an active participant.  In my opinion, Jeff and I fell into a funk this past year of dining out much too much (Dallas has amazing restaurants!), which is always fun, but we seemed to have lost that crucial piece of trying new things.  Upon arrival to New York for the summer, I thought I would make a much needed change with my normal routine.  The main objective, quite honestly, is to meet up with friends and family to do things besides sitting around a table and eating.  For example, play mini-golf, and if ice cream just so happens to be present, grab a cone, but don't go mini-golfing merely for the sweet treat at the end. 

Case in point, why does this post open with a picture of myself dining with a friend and Mom?  Well, that was the byproduct of visiting the Ithaca Dog Park.  I could have been lazy and just thrown ball with Milt in our yard, but instead I made the point to drive an hour away with both Mom and Milt, meet with my close friend, Ashley, to visit a new dog park venue (I always love to check them out!), and then and only then eat dinner out.  It was quite the enjoyable day!

The BoatYard Grill - This restaurant holds sweet college memories for me - If you ever visit, definitely order the sizzling cookie for dessert!

Our fourth dinner guest!

Interesting enough, Ashley had never visited a dog park before, quite possibly because she does not own a dog...!  It was an eye-opening experience for her that's for sure.

Ithaca Dog Park

Our Dallas dog park does not have boxes like these, but what a beneficial idea!

Only in Ithaca...!



Two acres to roam

Happiest with a ball in mouth

Relaxing

Typical - "Happy as a pig in mud."

I think this is a fantastic idea as well!

Now that we have visited dog parks in Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, and New York, I guess you could say that Jeff and I are becoming connoisseurs.  Some people might take pride in being connoisseurs of fine wine or imported cheeses, but Jeff and I, well, we know a good dog park when we see one.

Super Sunday!

I promised Jeff that I would post a picture every single day this summer, and I already missed yesterday -- Spectacular Saturday (These days of the week labels are beginning to remind me of a pack of little kid's underwear.)!  I do have an excuse though.  I am sick.  Yesterday I came down with some sort of rogenbogen, as my mom would say.  I tried to google this word, but, curiously, nothing turned up!  Regardless, I feel  bad, and I think Jeff will understand.

Secret spot

When it gets too hot on the deck, this is where the Milt Dog likes to sit -- under the table in his little cave.  After another runaway incident at the lake yesterday, Milton has been spending more and more of his time in close vicinity under his Momma's eye.  I think Jeff is beginning to regret that he let me take our goldendoodle for the summer.  Discipline is not my strong suit, and this guy's been a little hellion on four-legs since he got here!