Pup in the Paper

The past few days have been a whirlwind. On Tuesday, my picture (with my mom on the other end of the leash) was in all of the local papers. Front page news in two of them! Sure the article was about my mom's battle with cancer and the upcoming walk/run for cancer that my parents help organize, but I think I was the breakout star. The photographer wanted me on a specific side, so I went. The photographer wanted me to look up at him, so I did. I sat there posing, trying a few different expressions to get that perfect shot. I guess my mom looked okay in it too.

The rush of people finally settled down and the mobs stopped swarming the house for a glimpse of me. Okay, so they might have just been school children walking by on their way to school. In any case, normal life had to resume, and that included another visit to the vet. It was that time for my third round of puppy vaccinations, and I was happy to go back. I even jumped into the car!

Like my other experiences at the vet, this one was great. I get a bit scared in the waiting room if another dog loudly barks, but my mom doesn't seem concerned, so I just hide behind her legs and observe the situation. When my name was called and we went to the scale, the tech knelt down and was excited to see me. It was so awesome and exciting for me too, and I peed all over the place again. I just can't help myself. She was great though and didn't mind. I finally calmed down enough to walk onto the scale... 31 pounds! Even though I've gained six pounds in the past two weeks, the vet said that I looked very healthy.

This week has been very exciting, which should continue through next week. My grand puppy parents are flying in from California today and will be staying for just over a week. I have never met them, but I know they will love me. Who couldn't?!

Hoppy Easter!

Today we celebrated my first ever Easter. The whole weekend has been beautiful, and we spent a lot of time playing outdoors. Leia and I even went on a hunt around the whole yard for the Easter Bunny, or any bunnies for that matter, but found nothing. Well, we did find a bunch of sticks... my favorite!

Leia and I are really getting along great now. We play all the time in the yard, chasing each other, stealing each others sticks, and pouncing on our big red ball together. Her favorite is when I chase her, and sometimes when I get distracted by something, she comes up and noses me into chasing her more.

My favorite outdoor activity by far is chewing sticks, followed closely by parading around with a stick and finding sticks. My parents love when I do these things, because they think it is adorable. They are always nearby in case I break off a piece that I might choke on. Most of the time I am good and just spit out the pieces... most of the time.

Since it was Easter, I thought it would be nice to do something sweet for my mom. While Leia, daddy, and I were playing in the yard, she was sitting over by herself, watching us. She is recovering from surgery and needs to rest a lot. So I decided to bring her the big red Jolly Ball, in case she wanted to play too. Boy was she happy, as she laughed and praised me when I brought it to her. She even traded me a stick!

Save the Sticks!

Last weekend, after a big rain storm, my parents gave me the pleasure of playing in the massive puddle in the yard. I started off nosing the water, and splashing my massive paws around. That changed as soon as my dad threw a stick in the water. I must save the stick!

Each time I brought the stick out of the water, my parents fussed over me, and I loved it. At one point I even pulled a magic trick, as my dad had thrown a small stick into the puddle, but I came back with one twice my size. Leia didn't really want any part of the cold water, but that's okay. More room for me.

The puddle is mostly dried up now... just a bit of squishy grass. My parents say more rain will come, and I will once again be able to romp around the water and embrace being a puppy.

** My mom decided to start uploading videos to You Tube and then linking it in my blog. This will allow us to share longer, more quality videos. And who knows, maybe I will be the next Justin Bieber! **

Growing up is hard to do... and a little painful

Yesterday my parents brought me into the vet to get my Rabies vaccination now that I am 12 weeks old. I was just in this strange place last week, but I was too young for the shot (only 11 weeks), and my parents don't feel comfortable getting that and my normal vaccines at the same time. I was okay with this, as I knew that meant I would get to come back and get treats and more lovin'.

And boy was I right! After we checked in and were waiting for our appointment, the vet tech I saw last week, the one that gave me all the treats, came over and was super excited to see me. I was super excited too, and "excited" all over the floor. Hey, they call me 'Wookie Leaks' for a reason.

Anyways when it was time to go in, we took a stop at the scale. 25 pounds.... awwww yeayah! I had gained five pounds this past week, which made a lot of sense considering all the whining I was doing. My limbs were achy, and I would lick and lightly nibble them, hoping it would feel better. I guess I was having a growth spurt! Mom says that might happen a lot, as I begin to grown into these big, floppy paws of mine!

The rest of the appointment went great, and before I knew it, we were home again. After a long nap, we went out back for another off-leash play session. It was awesome as I started chasing Leia, though I was scared a few times when she turned around to circle back for me. She is huge, 130 pounds, and it is a bit intimidating. I ran back to the safety of my parents legs, and waiting for her to turn again.... then ::pounce::. It was back on!

When the excitement settled down a bit, and some of our energy had been sapped, Dad brought me an amazing gift. A nice, thick stick. I chewed on it a bit, until he gently took it away and threw it a short distance away. "Get it," he called out. I playfully bounded toward the stick, and paraded my finding around the yard in front of my parents. I like that game a lot, and didn't mind playing it for awhile.

When both Leia and I were tuckered out, lying in the grass as the crisp air made my mom shiver, it was time to head back into the house. I was put back on my leash, and we walked as a pack toward the back porch. Another fun day.

Wookie on the Loose

It was a beautiful Spring day today... the sun was shining bright, little tufts of puffy white clouds littered the blue skies, and a gentle crisp wind was blowing. What a perfect day to play outside!

My pack headed outdoors, and once I had "gotten it together", I got a huge surprise. I was let off my leash! Sure I was still fenced into the backyard, but this was a new found freedom. I wasn't sure what to do at first... I just kinda wandered around sniffing. When I looked up, my pack had walked away from me toward the center of the backyard. I quickly bounded toward them, as I enjoy the safe feeling being near the pack gives me.

We had a great time playing, sniffing, and eating some grass and leaves! When it was time to head in, my dad knelt down and held out some treats while calling "come". I didn't notice at first, but my sister Leia sure did. She quickly trotted over to him, and I followed, figuring she knew what she was doing. We enjoyed our freeze-dried liver snacks as dad snapped my leash back onto my collar.

All that playing was a lot of fun, but we were definitely all tuckered out. Leia and I found our napping spots in the den... her on the recliner, and me nestled on the floor beside her. I cannot wait for this to happen again.

My First "Bath"

My parents want to expose me to a lot of experiences as a young puppy so that I will be a more easy-going adult. Today we went upstairs for some water play. My dad stood in the shower stall with me, the water aimed toward the wall. He encouraged me to investigate the flowing water as it streamed down the wall, pooled across the floor, and swirled down the drain. I was allowed to walk freely in and out of the stall, though I got much more praise for hanging inside the shower. At some point, my dad sprayed the water over my back a bit, but I didn't mind at all. I was too fascinated with the drain!

After a bit of play, it was time to be finished and to get toweled off. Man is that fun! My mom shakes the towel around calling my name, and frantically rubs it all over when I run to her. She is teaching me that getting toweled off is fun, but I do get reprimanded if I accidentally bite through the towel. I am a quick learner. My dad was filming it, which was an exciting experience too.

To the Vet

Yesterday I had a vet appointment to get my second series of puppy vaccines. My parents had learned that Parvovirus was going around the area, so my daddy carried me the whole time. My precious little (well kind of big) paws never touched the ground. I didn't really know what to expect in this place, especially after seeing a few dogs go in and come out of some doors in the back.

"Wookie" someone called, holding a folder in their hands. My parents stood up and walked toward her. The three of us walked toward the doors, making a quick stop at a large floor scale. I now weigh 20 pounds, and proud of it! I was around 16 or 17 pounds when my parents first picked me up, so I have been gaining around a pound per week.

Soon after entering a small room, the vet tech left the room to grab my vaccine. Thankfully the vaccine is a combination, so I would only receive one shot. I sniffed the syringe when she came back, but my attention was quickly diverted to a soft treat she had smeared on the counter in front of me. Om nom nom. I was so busy licking up the delicious treat that I didn't even notice her give me the shot!

Afterwards, my parents also had her trim my nails for the first time, as they bring my big sis here to get hers done as well. They wanted me to experience this at a young age, so that I will be accustom to it and stand patiently like a little angel. Again, the tech bribed me with treats, and man did I love it. Every snip, I got a little bit of treat. I never flinched or pulled my paw away... and the treats kept flowing. I wouldn't mind getting my nails trimmed everyday!

When we got home, Leia sniffed me all over. She was very curious where I had been and what had happened. It was an exciting adventure, one that was worthy of a lengthy nap.

My First Ice Cube

What an exciting day! Earlier in the day while we were all outside, some kind of heavy snow started falling from the sky. My mom referred to it as 'hail', though she was not too concerned about it as it was very snow-like. The white balls fell and clung to my rich chocolate coat, and after a few seconds I looked like a baby fawn. We made our way onto the back porch (me bounding with excitement) and watched for a few minutes, listening to the tiny 'pings' as it hit the tin roof above us.

Well this gave my parents the idea to give me my first ice cube. With pop standing close by in case I decided to literally bite off more than I could chew, I played and licked at the cold and mysterious object. It seemed intuitive to grab it and bring it onto the carpet, and later tested to see how it acted on the hard, kitchen flooring. Just as I had suspected... it slid all over the place. So back to the carpet we went, until the whole thing was gone. Weird how the object just kind of disappeared. I did bite at it a little, but I don't recall ever really chewing it. I just licked at it a lot, and flipped it all over the floor.

Puppy Haiku

seasons changing,

the last snow grips for life.

warmth is coming

struggling blades.

new grass emerges

while last year's blow

the earthy taste

and firm but giving feel.

this is my stick

leaves are blowing

must pounce into action.

I got you leaf

towering above

my big sister approaches.

sniff