minxybaby

I forgot to write about this...

When we were in Thunder Bay, I went shopping to kill some time while Steve helped clear out his mother's house. I got Serenity out of the car and was putting her in the stroller when I saw a women walking through the parking lot with a baby in a carrier. I was curious how old her baby was, and as I pushed Serenity closer, I realized this woman was carrying a dog.

Well, today when I was getting Vicki's dog food I saw that they now sell dog strollers. This just boggles my mind. I thought dogs needed the exercise, not be pushed and carried around like babies. Talk about spoiled. Not Vicki though, I make her walk. ;-)

I have to give a HUMONGOUS thanks to canadiandreamr for getting me this room at such a great price. She's saving us $60 a night! The room is gorgeous too. I wish I had known there'd be a kitchenette with a microwave. The website for this hotel is kinda wonky. I found out they have wireless internet before we left so we packed the laptop. Now I have LJ to keep me company, so tonight I won't be too bored while my husband is at work.

Vicki has been driving me batty since we got here. The poor cats are still a bit freaked out and have spent the entire time under the beds. Anytime they try to come out, the damn dog chases them back under. Binka is getting to used to the room quicker than Munchie. She'll actually come up onto the bed with me when I call her. I can't get Munchie to move an inch under the bed. lol

When I took Vicki to go pee earlier, the lobby was full of people, a couple kids too. She gets so excited to see new people. I can control her, but she really fights her leash. When we came back in, I waited by the elevators to go back to our room. An old couple stood waiting for the elevator with me. I was not too pleased at the idea of sharing an elevator because every other time we got in it, she'd go nuts and jump around on the walls. I think she's curious of her own reflection because the elevators are mirrored. Anyways, the old man gets on and lets out a fart. Then says "She needs a better walk." I refrained from blurting out "You need some Gas-X." They get off on the 3rd floor while we had to go up several more flights inhaling his nasty ass smell he left behind.

EDIT: I should've mentioned that Vicki was behaving when the old man was around us. She was visibly excited, but sat and stayed put when I told her to. I just think that you shouldn't critisize someone unless you are perfect.

So my job now is try to keep Vicki away from the cat food in the kitchenette. We only brought enough for a couple days and that dog can chow it all down in seconds. Cat food is her favourite food. I'd pick the food up, but Munchie still hasn't gone in the kitchenette to find anything (litter, food, and water).

And while I'm talking about that dog, I'll tell you one of her latest habits. It's charming, really. If she has to go poo, she'll fart for about an hour before the urge hits her. You can tell she's going to ask to go soon because as soon as she farts, she bends herself in half and rests her nose against her butt cheek just taking it all in. Sometimes if it's really stinky she'll start biting her bum. Weird dog.

Vicki turns 1 year old today. :) I didn't even realize that she was born on St. Patrick's Day last year. We picked her up on Victoria Day weekend, so that's how she got her name. Binka's birthday is this month as well, but we don't know the exact date; just that it was around the middle of March. Binka is 3 years old now. :) My babies are growing up. hehe

This is the first time I am logging on to the computer today. I've been spending so many hours working in the house, trying to get it to a finished state. The painting and all the touch-ups are done. The living room is 100% back to normal, and the dining room needs a good mopping. The closet still has to get sorted out, and all the tools and painting supplies have to be taken out to the garage. Add laundry, dishes, and cleaning the bathrooms, and that'll fill my day tomorrow. Hubby wants to go to a matine when he gets home from work. Should be fun! Tomorrow is my last day off. I can't believe how fast the last 2 weeks went. One week of that I worked non-stop from morning to night, every day.

I really need to think up a meal plan for this week coming up. Tomorrow I want to make some empanadas. I'll probably double it so there are enough for leftovers for a couple meals. My husband loves them, and they go quick. lol Tonight I made meatloaf, and packed hubby's lunch with leftovers. There is enough left in the fridge for 2 more meals. I also made a dozen blueberry muffins for breakfast for us. They smell wonderful! I was hoping to bake some peanut butter dog cookies tonight, but now the time is gone.

Pictures of the house might have to wait till next week now. I go back to work on Sunday, and tomorrow my whole day is filled. I don't think I'll have a chance to post pics tomorrow, but I'll try. The colours look deadly!! It feels like a brand new house. :D I love it!

I think I'll get started on the ensuite bathroom now. Good night!

The cheesecake was wicked! Vicki passed her test! I have to go put away some stuff downstairs, pack hubby's lunch, and get to bed.

A longer update tomorrow. Recipe and pictures to follow!

Good night!

Puppy school is tonight, and even though I have a lot of things to do today, I decided to take Vicki to the dog park to wear her out so she won't be so hyper for class. Last time I went and posted pictures, my husband said he was disappointed that I didn't take any of Vicki playing with other dogs. So for him, and anyone else who was disappointed, here are more pictures from today.

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And now I have about 5 minutes left until we go to puppy school tonight. I'll try to update again later.

Here are some pictures because I wanted you to see Vicki feeling great, and how much snow we got. I hope you enjoy!



( 7 more pictures )

My husband said it was probably a bad idea to bring the camera to puppy training so I didn't. Sorry no pictures of baby's first day of school. lol Last night was a lot of fun for Vicki. She was the loudest and most hyper dog there. She wasn't the youngest though, there was a male golden lab who is 8 months, Vicki is now 10 months. She was the most outgoing dog though, afraid of no one, willing to play with everyone, and got her nose in every dog's butt. lol That's my girl!

The first class we had a couple exercises to do with the dogs. The first one was to pass your dog to the left to get them socialized with people. Vicki didn't mind, but she kept wanting to run away and play no matter who held her leash. The second exercise was to "load your clicker." The idea of "loading your clicker" is to eventually get your dog used to the click sound and associate it with praise. You do this by clicking it and immediately giving them a treat. I found this exercise pointless. We taught Vicki to do tricks to earn her treats, but now she works for praise. She would do anything we asked, no matter what the new challenge might be. She was too distracted by all the other dogs to give a care about the clicker. None of the dogs seemed to respond to it in class. The third exercise was to hold a treat to your forehead and say "Watch me" and have the dog make eye contact with you... more like stare at the treat stuck to your forehead. I found this one stupid too. We're always talking to Vicki and she'll sit there and stare at us in the eyes. Sometimes she'll tilt her head like she's trying to understand, other times she'll bark back as if to answer us. We talk to her about things she knows (like going for a car ride) or just talk to her for the fun of it (like about the weather). Either way, she never had a problem making eye contact or paying attention to us when we spoke to her. This exercise just made her pissed off that I wouldn't give her the damn treat on my head. lol

For homework we have to continue with the "watch me" and "loading the clicker." I'm not going to bother with the "watch me," but I did continue with the clicker. Last night we bought some soft treats and cut them into small pieces for "training treats" as they recommended. As I cut them up, Vicki sat and watched me, sometimes barking at me as if I was teasing her. (She does this when I'm filling her Kong with peanut butter and putting in the freezer.) Every once in a while I'd stop cutting, click and give her a treat. Today I did this again about 5 times. Right afterwards, she went under the breakfast table to lick the wood or search for cat food. I clicked and she calmly walked back to me, sat down, and looked up into my eyes expecting a treat.. so I gave her one. It looks like the clicker is loaded. lol She is one smart cookie.

Butter fingers was sick all day. Surprise, surprise. She threw up all night and I think most of the day. My husband was home with her in the morning and part of the afternoon. She wouldn't eat her lunch, and only wanted to drink water.

She couldn't wait to get outside when I got home, but all she did was pee. She's been obsessed with drinking water. I guess it's the only thing her little tummy can handle. I gave her supper, but she won't eat it. I think she nibbled a bit, but that's it.

My husband cleaned up some of the mess, but there was still a lot for me to do when I got home. I gave her a bath, cleaned out both her kennels, cleaned the floors, and threw her blankets in the washer. I think her vomit smells worse than human vomit. I almost threw up in the washing machine it's so bad. I can't get the stink out of the house either. I sprayed some Febreeze Air Freshener, and now it smells like melon puke.

Do you think she learned her lesson? Neither do I. Now she's whining to go back outside. That's my cue.