Tucker at 5 Months

Our vizsla puppy, Tucker (aka, Mr. Puppers, Pup Pup, Smuckers or Tuck Tuck - why have just one nickname) is now 5 months old.  We have had him 2 months and he is such a great little guy.  He is actually really easy to train because he is super tuned in to the people in the house and hates to get in trouble.  He is far more clingy than Ella and follows me everywhere. 

He is also super smart.  If I have any errands or outings to do, I typically go in the morning after I have showered and gotten dressed for the day.  The last thing I do before I am done getting ready is put on my jewelry and then Tucker goes in his crate and I leave.  After about a week of this routine, one day as I reached for my watch, Tucker got up from where he was laying walked over to his crate and climbed in.  I thought maybe it was a fluke and that he just wanted his bed in the crate.  The next day, same thing and he has done this pretty much every day since.  One day last week, I left the house in a rush and forgot to put on some of the jewelry I wear daily.  Later in the day, I put on my necklace and Tucker wandered into the room, saw me and went straight for the crate, which had me laughing since I wasn't going anywhere. 

Here is some video of Tucker bouncing around showing me his toy.  He loves to have a toy in his mouth and then strut around with it or bounce around hoping someone will play. 

An Upswing

After last week's cold/flu thing and feeling a bit like the universe hated me, this past weekend and week are feeling really good.  My weekend consisted of homemade cinnamon rolls the size of my face, yum.

A "date" with Drew while Ethan was at a movie with friends.  My hubby, who spent part of the weekend out of town for a funeral, arrived back Sunday morning, which made me very happy because I missed him.  Since it was almost 90 outside we all went for a walk on the bluff near our home, a place that I love because it has 360 degree views of downtown Denver, Pikes Peak, the mountains and Colorado's plains. 

I got some nice Mother's Day gifts and then everyone made me dinner.  Drew, being Drew, complained about how making dinner was such a trial for him because he was tired (he is so giving) which made me laugh and I reminded him that I make dinner every, single, night, tired or not.  Not surprisingly, I got no sympathy for that comment.  He also had me laughing telling me that since it was Mother's Day, I needed to be extra nice to HIM.  We had to explain how he kind of had that backwards. 

All in all, a great weekend and a wonderful Mother's Day.  I missed seeing my own mother who decided traipsing around Africa was better than staying home to get a lame card and some flowers from me. 

Mom at Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.  Oh and can I just say how is it that at 64 she seems to have fewer wrinkles than me?  Totally unjust in my opinion!

Despite her absence, I did get to send her an email and let her know what a great mama she is and how much I love her.  

In other good news, Tucker, or Mr. Puppers as I have started calling him, finally seems to be getting this whole pee outside concept which means my days of going outside hourly and then saying in a ridiculous voice, "good pee-pee" are numbered.  It's a good thing too because he chewed the cord to our Spotbot last week while I was in the shower completely eliminating my ability to really clean up any accidents.

Banana Bread & Something That Will Make You Say, "Awwww"

I have always liked quick breads.  Really they are more like cakes in loaf form but I can tell myself it is only bread I am eating and what's not to like about that?  I still have fond memories of the banana bread served at my dorm cafeteria in college.  Really tasty and being that it wasn't the cafeteria's usual compilation of mystery meats, one of the few safe items available to eat. 

Yesterday, Ethan was home sick from school so I spent the day at home not running errands (okay, we did make one trip to Whole Foods for ragu ingredients and milk).  It is amazing how much I can get done when forced to stay at home.  Between my 5,000 (not even exaggerating) potty training trips outside with Tucker, I got lots of cleaning done, had time to try a new ragu sauce which takes many hours on the stove, and finally turned our browning bananas into some banana bread. 

This is my favorite banana bread recipe from Bon Appetit.  It takes banana bread up a notch with cinnamon, honey and a streusel topping and if you like banana bread I suggest giving it a try.   

Now for the "awwww" factor.  Last weekend, in a midday lull, the kids were playing and Kevin and I were lounging.  I was playing Sudoku on Kevin's phone while Kevin was watching t.v.  After a bit, I look up and see this,

the pupster and Kevin napping together.  So adorable, both of them!

No Need For A Sleep Aid Here

We have been in full puppy mode since Tuesday afternoon when we welcomed 13 week old Tucker to our house.  He seems to have a great little personality and is really interested in what we, the humans, are doing which will make training just a little bit easier. 

He and Ella have been getting along better and better each day.  At first, I think she was a little unsure who this newcomer was and what to do with him but they have been wrestling a lot and playing in the yard and lately on our hourly trips outside, he is following her around instead of me.

Between the playing, the hourly bathroom trips outside, the daily walk down the street to get used to the leash, the getting to know all the sounds around the house, and the frequency of no's being thrown his way, by the end of the day, the poor guy is wiped out.

He isn't the only one.  Ella is all tuckered (maybe I should say Tuckered) out by days end.  Whipping a newbie into shape is tough work.  As for me, well by about 8 p.m. I pretty much feel how Ella looks here.  Let's just say I am sleeping like a baby with all this running around after the little guy.

A Wiggly Four Legged Distraction

Last Wednesday night I totally mucked up my back.  As is typical, I have no real clue what I did except for I had been feeling really great the past month and I am pretty darn sure that there was some overdoing it involved.  Since Wednesday night, I have been dealing with the pain and stiffness and trying to heal from whatever ridiculous thing happened.  I have also been feeling pissed and sad and frustrated but yesterday the most amazing distraction arrived. 

No, it can't cure my back problems. 

No, I didn't buy it off a late night infomercial. 

No, it is not just a boatload of Vicodin, a Diet Coke and a pile of dark chocolate (even though I have to say that all sounds pretty good right at the moment).

It IS a 12 pound, four-legged bundle of energy.

Meet our newest family member. 

Kevin and I were up in Beaver Creek for a long weekend and when we got home Monday afternoon, there was a call from Vizsla Rescue saying that had gotten in a male puppy.  He was taken by the state of Kansas from a hoarder.  Kevin and I drove an hour and a half north of our home yesterday afternoon to pick him up from his foster mom.  He is super sweet and his puppy dorkiness has been making us laugh pretty regularly since bringing him home.  The kids are totally over the moon about him and last night we all picked a name we liked, put the names in a hat, and drew one out.  Ethan's choice of Tucker won the draw.  Ella seems to like him alright so far and has already gotten him chasing her around the yard and wrestling in the house.  I have a feeling her lessons in counter-surfing and forbidden furniture sitting are next.