More trip pics

It's been a while...

We made it back home. I have never been so happy to get out of the car. The change in altitude through the mountains really bothered my ears this time. Now for the trip recap.
The drive to MN/WI was uneventful. We stayed in a motel one night, I guarded it well. We got to my grandparents and they had SNOW!!!!!!!! I played in it a lot. I really had a good time just laying in it. I could play in the snow all day. At my grandparents the had this evil turtle. I told him who was boss. Then he disappeared and I never saw him again. ( he was put on top of the freezer to help all of our headaches) I also got to play with my cousin Sophie. She is fun. I an a little jealous she can fit under the furniture.
I meet my Cousin Aurelia too. She didn't seem real interested in me, but she made my people very happy! She is very cute and a very good baby!
I meet a bunch of other relatives at Chad's Aunts house. It was fun. They have a new puppy. He was very cute, but too much energy for me. My people ATTEMPTED to play Guitar Hero and Dance Revolution. It was funny!
I didn't get to go to Rochester, but I heard it was a good time and I might get to try some chicken noodle soup!
I did get to go to Austin and meet some nice people there. I met my Great Grandma! There was a dog there that I wasn't sure about, so I spent dinner under the table. I than had to get back in the car for another ride.. but I got to see Grandma D. She has snow and and and a bird. I growled at the bird, but they wouldn't let me have it. I haven't had my gift from her yet, but I think I will ask for it tomorrow during football.
I spent a ton of time out in the snow. We all had a great holiday and were so happy we were able to see so many of you.
The drive home was long... we got to sit on the side of the road and chat with an officer once. My people didn't have the front plate on the car... so he stopped them. We'll then they couldn't find their current insurance. They were only ticket for the insurance. Chad made a phone call when were were back on the road, there was a fax sent and the ticket should be gone. We did have the current slip in the car, it just wasn't in the glove box.. We were annoyed.. there were a lot of people speeding and driving too fast for all the snow and ice. Where were the cops then?!
We hope you all had a great holiday season. Happy New Year!!!!!!

Good times.

Heidi and I took a dance class. They gave us a video at the end. Please watch it. I changed the comment option, everyone should be able to post.
www.elfyourself.com/?id=1241277605

Water, Wind and more Water

I am sure many of you have watched the news and are thinking of us. We are fine. We have power, never lost it in fact. There is a lot of standing water around, but nothing inside. Most of the bad stuff is north and south of us. So far the worst part for us has been drying off after the wet, windy walks. We got about 4 inches of rain in 2 days. Just across the sound, Bremerton, got just under 13 inches. Sunny today 50.

Pictures

Want to see us. www.seattlemarathon.org click 2007 pics and put in our last name.
(I look more rested than Chad.) I also look happier than last year!

Recommendation

I bought Josh Groban Noel today. WOW!!! If you like Josh run out and get this CD. You wont be sorry.

Thanksgiving week

I have had better Thanksgivings. My people had a potluck at work, so no leftovers for me...In fact I had to sit in the car while they ate. Although I have been given these extra special treats this week that taste like pumpkin pie! Yummy

Sunday was the worst. I had to guard the house while they...they..I am so mad I can hardly type. They went for a really long run and walk. 13.1 miles to be exact. It was a beautiful day for it. Dry, 40, sunny. Chad did about the same as last year, he had a little trouble with cramping in his legs. (that might have been from my evil thoughts..leave me at home) Heidi knocked 20 minutes off her time last year.

They have been lazy today. I guess that is ok. They promise we will walk tomorrow.

My bed is gone. They just gave it away to the neighbor dog. I guess this means I get their bed.

We got the place ready for Christmas today. No tree, but the stockings and some lights. I need to write my letter to Santa.

Not much scares me but...

lightning does. We had 2 big flashes and booms last night. The first one sounded like it hit in the back yard. This is rare here, but when it happens I just want to be held. (He was shaking for about half an hour)

Just wondering....

When you check my site and I haven't posted anything new do you click on the charity sites?

Here is how the click for cans standings are.
Team Votes
1. Green Bay Packers 1,630,965

2. Indianapolis Colts 659,893

3. Pittsburgh Steelers 441,058

4. Jacksonville Jaguars 369,814

5. Washington Redskins 205,752

6. Oakland Raiders 192,150

7. Buffalo Bills 97,809

8. Cincinnati Bengals 87,083

9. Dallas Cowboys 65,651

10. San Diego Chargers 61,137

11. Chicago Bears 48,393

12. Kansas City Chiefs 48,270

13. Seattle Seahawks 27,903

14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27,457

15. New England Patriots 25,603

16. Tennessee Titans 25,344

17. Arizona Cardinals 24,401

18. Cleveland Browns 24,173

19. Detroit Lions 22,664

20. New Orleans Saints 20,683

21. New York Jets 19,579

22. Minnesota Vikings 18,428

23. Denver Broncos 18,068

24. Miami Dolphins 17,335

25. Houston Texans 15,526

26. Carolina Panthers 13,411

27. Philadelphia Eagles 13,144

28. Baltimore Ravens 13,076

29. San Francisco 49ers 11,506

30. Atlanta Falcons 10,910

31. St. Louis Rams 10,006

32. New York Giants 9,487

Where was she.....

My female person keeps leaving us. I don't like it when she is gone. She came back this time very happy. Here isher recap of where she was.

Hi All! I was out in Atlantic City area, Philly and Rhode Island. I was in AC for work. They are building a new runway at the airport and we were running simulators to try to develop new procedures. It is interesting, but still work.. We stayed at a really cool hotel. It was built in 1912. It feels like you are in the Shinning. I wanted to go buy a big wheel and ride around. One of the pictures is of a hallway at the hotel. Am I right? I never saw girls on tricycles but... I was able to add 2 shot glasses to the collection. We collect Hard Rock Cafe shot glasses that one of us has been too. I believe this puts us at 28.

The highlight of the trip was my weekend in Rhode Island. It had been a year since I last saw this part of my family. I wish it were more often, I really enjoy them. I feel like I get to know Hans and Rachel better each time. Of course the kids too, but they change daily! Joe and Annika were great. I could go on and on about how cute and smart they are. Joe can do the alphabet back words, Annika amazed me each day with a new word, or knowing the next number when you count! I should have taken more pictures of them, but here are a few.
I have a long couple of weeks coming up. 6 day work week, Thanksgiving week, the half marathon. I wish I could be home next week. It have been almost 3 years since my brothers and I have been together. I checked airline prices.. unless no one wants a Christmas gift...
I hope all is well!

Sunday AKA: Football day

We spent most of the day watching football. My team lost in OT. The tough thing is that they were kicking butt in the first half and never should have lost. I was happy to see Payton lose!
We are all doing well. My paw is almost healed. I think I have put back on that lbs I lost. I am pretty good at begging!
Heidi's finger isn't healed yet. The tip is still numb. She can use it more though. It was 6 weeks ago that she hurt it. She is leaving us again for a week. I hope she is careful near trunks.
Chad is busy training for the half marathon. I don't get it.. he goes into a room and runs on this thing. No fresh air, no bushes to smell. No people to greet. Weird. I don't always get people.

Not a Halloween Decoration

Somehow I hurt my paw and Friday and left a bit of a mess. My people were a little overly excited.. They took me to my vet right away. She shaved my paw and sent me home. Oh I am 1.5# under my ideal weight, so I am working on my begging skills.
I feel fine. I actually don't know what all the fuss is about. Boys will be boys!

I know I know....

I know we don't want to admit the Holidays are about 2 months away. I have started thinking about all the peanut butter and new balls I am going (hoping) to get.
BUT since it is the season of giving... would you all consider making an amazon.com wish list? It is easy, free and convenient. Just log on and save wishes. You can add a link to a blog, or we can just search by name. We don't have to buy from amazon. Just a thought..... oh, I like stuffed toys too.

Happy Birthday!!!!

Hope you have a great day today!!!!

What I DIDN'T do this weekend

I don't think it's fair I can't go everywhere my people go. I am better behaved than some humans. I did help Heidi reach all her goals last week!
Saturday she left me with Chad to go with the neighbors to a corn maze and pumpkin patch. It sounded like a lot of fun.
The next day my people went the Seahawks game. They were quickly reminded that Seahawk fans do not have good Sportsmanship. They noticed this at the last game. They booed the Saints when they took the field. I know my people are way above that. After the game they went to Krispy Kreme and brought me nothing. They had fun and loved their seats. Maybe someday I can do with them.

Good Human!

I have added some new things to my blog. I am a giving dog. Please go to the 2 links you see on the top right of the page and help make a difference. You can go to each site once a day. With the click of the mouse you will feed an animal or donate a can of soup. This could not be easier to make a difference. Please feel free to share these sites with others!

Not the best football day...

Neither of my peoples teams won yesterday.. They are taking it ok. I was mad, I didn't get walked until 9pm. Heidi did get 15 miles in for the week. She didn't do weights due to her finger. Her finger is better. It is just the very tip that is still tingly. I like to bite at the bandage! I don't bite it, I just pretend to and than she pets me! Next weekend my people are leaving me to guard the house while they go to the Seahawks game. I would rather go to the game with them. I could catch a pass.

Dedication or Stupidity

Heidi and I after our 3 mile walk.

October Challenge

When you all read this it will be October. I have 2 challenge for all of you. First, if you have a blog, post something today. We all check these everyday and long for new stuff. Second, set a goal for the month and let us help you.
This is my October 1st post and my challenge is to increase my work outs this month.
Today has been a long day. I woke up yesterday with a sore throat. I got home from work feeling worn out, hot/cold. I decided about 10pm I wasn't going to make it into work this morning. I called in and went to bed. I didn't sleep well. Spent most of the day on the couch watching football. Slept part of the afternoon and decided I could not go in tonight for the overnight. I hope this is short lived. My fingers are doing better. My middle finger is 99% usable. My pointer finger is about 50% now. I have had it unwrapped all day today. I can tell when it bends or moves too much, my whole arm will hurt. The tingling is mostly just from my top knuckle to the tip.
I have been slacking on working out. I have been walking, but weights... hard cardio... So this month I WILL get a total of 15 miles a week in, weights once a week and at least one workout a week will push me out of my comfort zone.

Brian puppy is doing well. We have had a ton of rain today, so he has had fun playing with towels! He got to go running with Chad. (I think he might be starting to get a little grey..) He cuddled with me a lot of the day.

The neighbors keep showing up... more stuff comes out of the house. More junk gets pilled up in the yard. We are still hopefull.

more pics

Hawaii

We had a great time in Hawaii. Due to the ER visit typing isn't very easy. I will let the pictures speak for most of the trip. We climbed Diamond Head, swam at a few beaches. Including one that had huge turtles. Chad golfed. We drove most of the island. Janelle's wedding was beautiful! On the beach at sunset for the ceremony and the Yacht Club for the reception.
So the ER visit. I was watching something near the parking lot of the resort at about 12:45 am with the right hand resting on the car. Chad was unloading the trunk... he naturally closed the trunk and picked up the stuff off the ground. Then I say Chad... Chad... He looks up to see my hand in the CLOSED trunk. He drops the stuff, digs out the keys and opens the trunk. I was sure fingers were gone. They were all there.. just dented and a few blood blisters. PAIN, almost fainting, nausea.. it was a great walk back to the room. I iced my hand and called the nurse hot line. She said to go to the ER. I went. I was reminded of a Friends episode... The DR walks in and reaches out with his hand to shake my hand. " right hand hurt, you just read it" They also tried to do the pulse thing on my right pointer finger. Hummm... They did x rays and there were not any breaks. There isn't too much pain now, my pointer finger is still tingly. There are some fun colors, but not as bad as I thought it would be.

Quick update...

This will be short. We are are back home and happy to be back together.

Brain did good at his trainers house.

Chad and Heidi had a great time in Hawaii. ( there was only one trip to the ER)

Neighbrs are either still moving out, or the owner has moved all the junk to the yard.

I promise I will write more tomorrow and post pictures.

Hope all are good!

Neighbors and ice cream

We are mostly sure the neighbors are moving out. They haven't been back in hours. There is still A LOT of junk at the house... you are as surprised as we are.
I went to another dog festival today. I was in 4 competitions and didn't win any. Bailey (my best friend) didn't win either. We had fun. We had ice cream, did some tricks, got to play on an agility course. And I got speed clocked while playing fetch. I was clocked at 18 mph!
We are now watching to see if Thome hits #500.

Do we chill the Champagne?

We are getting lots of indications the bad neighbors are moving out.. There is a truck, they are loading it... We are trying (not very well at times) to not get too excited. We will update you tomorrow.

Bandwagon....

Since everyone else is posting, I should too.
~ I am able to play fetch again. I just got back from the dog park. I think I am fine, no limping so far!

~ I spent part of the weekend as a cheerleader. We went to the corner and cheered on the 3 Day walkers Saturday. They were in our neck off the woods this year. You could see the camp form the tower.

~ Sunday we cheered on Heidi and a lady named Deb as they competed together in a triathalon. ( I was mad I couldn't swim)

~ I than helped cheer on the Packers for Chad and the Seahawks for Heidi. I should pick a team....

~ Heidi is off work for 2 whole weeks!!!!!

~ Please wear red, white and blue tomorrow. Being an air traffic controller, tomorrow brings a lot of memories for Heidi. We need to remember all those lost September 11, 2001.

~ There is still time to join the football picks. It really is fun. We have a smaller group this year. Think about it. No money, just fun!

I hope everyone is doing well!

Are you ready for some football!!

For years we have been doing football picks. It has been very fun. Now that we're less than a week away from the opening of the football season, go ahead and sign up for the football pool. It's free. No money involved, only pride. And not a lot of that!
Go to this link.
http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/pickem
Once there click on the 'Create or Join Group' button. Then 'Join an Existing Group'. Next 'Join a Private Group'. The Group ID # is '14052' and the password is 'Poltergeist'. You will need a Yahoo account to sign up but they're free and easy to create.
Go ahead and do it. You'll enjoy it.

No fetch or swimming makes Brain.....

BORED!!!!!! I had to go to my vet on Monday. I like her a lot. She gives me belly rubs! But she said something to my people... I don't know what it was, but for 10 whole days I can not play fetch or go swimming. All I can do is walk. So I had a limp.. big deal. I love fetch. I guess I have something called shoulder tendinitis. I am hoping my 10 day rest and pills will cure this and never happen again.
Tonight I was left to guard the house.. my people were off doing something. My guess is swimming and going to the dog park. I think I will wake them during the night tonight!

Pet Festival

I had great day yesterday! We went to a local pet festival for the afternoon. There were booths with free treats and a massages and fly ball. I even competed in 4 competitions. I won 2 of them, I say 3 of them... but you be the judge. We were given ice cream. I ate all of mine, but lost because another dog ate theirs faster. I say a bowl of ice cream is a win!

I won for best basic obedience and best trick. I know know if it was a trick. Chad and I just played football. I didn't enter in the costume contest, but my friend Mason did, he was a tourist. It was fun! There was also a raffle. We won 4 things. 2 baskets of dog toys, some spa stuff and a gift certificate to a bakery and coffee place.

Good news!

On a happier note! We have a new addition to the family!!! Aurelia was born to Peder and Sarah Aug 23rd. To see pictures click on Peder in the links on the right.

AND if you need a Michael Vick chew toy click here.
http://www.vickdogchewtoy.com/

Very Sad...

I have very sad news to tell you all. I will start with a little back story. My very first Christmas I gave Heidi a book written by a golden named Trixie Koontz. She is the dog of Dean Koontz. It was a great book about lessons in joyful living. Trixie was a service dog who had to retire due to an injury. Trixie was diagnosed with cancer and recently passed away.
Here is Chad's favorite quote of Trixie's, and a blog entry that Heidi loves. She was my inspiration for this blog. Please give your pet and extra hug for me today. If you don't have a pet, smile at the next one you pass on the street. Or go get a pet!

"Never miss a chance to share laughs with those you love. Life will give you enough time to share tears." Trixie Koontz, dog

http://www.deankoontz.com/trixie/archive/summer-vacation.php

I hope they don't think they are done...

The city told our nighbors to clean up the yard. This is what they have done... we hope it is just a start! The other picture is from just a few days ago.

After 4 months of trying.....

We FINALLY got the city to do something about our neighbors! I hope to be posting after pictures this weekend.

It's Friday

Since I am a dog I don't really know what day it is, but I heard it is Friday and that makes you bi-peds happy. I know it the time of the month I get that weird stuff on my back. My people says it keeps bugs off me. I am not sure.. I guess I trust them.

Anyway, I am curious how much of an audience I have. I would love to know who is reading me too. Did you know all this is free? You can get a blogger account with just an email address. You don't have to make a whole page for everyone to read. (although it is fun to read these, you get addicted after a while)

If you can, drop me a note.

Have a great weekend!

Green just got better!

So, some of you know I have gotten greener this year. No I am not a full blown granola lover. Really I am tired of all the trash and where will it be in 50 years. So I now use reusable grocery bags and recycle all that I can. A few months back I signed up for a company that promises to reduce your junk mail. For $36 a year I would see less junk mail and they plant a tree for me every month. Well!!!!! Now they are JUST $15 forever. It took about 2 months to really see a reduction in junk mail. We have about 3 days a week with no mail at all. We haven't gotten a credit card offer all summer. I really like it. Think about all the stuff you get from the mail box and throw away... think about the reduction of identity theft....
www.greendimes.com

Happy Birthday Grandma

Ruff Ruff Ruff !!!