happy birthday hanna!

Today is Hanna's 2nd birthday!  Sometimes, it seems like just yesterday we were picking her out at the breeder.  But other times it seems like we have had her forever!  Having her there to greet when I get home makes me so happy and I can't imagine life without her.

Her first ever picture!  K and I knew right away that she was the one for us!

My dad holding her when we visited her at the breeder a couple weeks before she came home.

Hanging out on the bed.

With her BFF Gryffin (my parent's dog)

hanna's birthday party (and the rest of the weekend)

This weekend was a lot of fun. Friday I called out of work (I actually did today too...I'm a slacker I know...but I need to use up my days) and K and I met up with some family friends at our favorite Mexican restaurant. After being lazy most of the morning and running some errands in the afternoon of course. My parents were out of town so we stayed over at their house. The next morning was my Broadway Babies show. The show went well and I am happy it's over for now, I don't think I will be able to do the next session but I may do it again in the fall. Then we met up with our friends B and M to see "Alice in Wonderland" and went out to dinner. The movie was really good, we saw it in IMAX 3-d which was pretty cool.

Sunday we cleaned and cooked all day for Hanna's 1st Birthday party, which was basically just my parents and brother coming over for dinner but I have to say...I got a little into it.

The birthday girl, who is desperate need of a haircut.

I made K stop at Party City on the way home from the grocery store.

The birthday dog cake, dog owners let me know if you want the recipe. Hanna and Gryffin (my parent's dog) both loved it.

Our family.

Hanna enjoying her cake.

We were being a little silly after the party.

Hanna at 10 months old.

You can sort of see her new "dog bling," it's a silver heart shaped dog tag with pink jewels.

She is so girly...except for the whole biting me whenever I try and put a bow in her hair thing.

Random Thoughts on a Thursday Afternoon

-Only a few more hours until my 4 day weekend begins! Jealous?

-I found out today my boss got promoted, I liked him a lot and he definitely deserves it, but I am happier about the fact that when I get a new boss it will take him/her a couple months to get used to the team. Thus they won't be pressuring me to apply for other jobs. I don't want to do that because I am planning on quiting if/when I get into school. My current boss was talking to me about it yesterday and I had to semi-lie. I wish I could be honest about my plans for the future, but I don't trust that I wouldn't get fired. Not sure if that made sense...but oh well.

-Speaking of schools, I still haven't heard anything. Boo.

- My outfit today is really cute (I think.) It's a dress I got from Express a couple years ago and I think was supposed to be for summer, but it is black and brown and I am wearing a black turtleneck and black tights under it. With black booties. Too bad no one at my office ever compliments my clothes...sometimes working with all men sucks.

-All of your comments on my business idea were very sweet! I don't think I will ever want to start my own business but you never know!

-Does anyone know where you can get dog stairs? Hanna sleeps on the bed and likes to get up and down at night. She will jump down but then whine for us to pick her up because the bed is too high. It's getting old.

-The Shred is going well, I have done 3 days so far and am definitly sore. It's not as bad today but last night I was in serious pain. I'm going to stick with it though and even do it on my 4 days off (normally I slack off working out on the weekend but I really want to see this through for 30 days.) Even after 3 days I totally would recomend the Shred to anyone, it seriously kicks your ass.

puppy in a winter wonderland

puppy's first Christmas

(please note the stunning new TV in the background)

I just like this one...she looks like she is up to no good. Plus it shows off her new-ish haircut. It has grown out a little since then so please don't judge for looking a bit rat-like.

conversations in my apartment

My normal evening routine this fall has been to start cooking dinner around 7 so it's ready when K gets home from class, then we eat in front of the TV (don't judge.)

However, now his classes are done for the semester and he just has a finals this Thursday night and next Thursday night so we are both home in the evening and can hang out, drink some wine and talk while I cook dinner.

This extra time together (and the wine) leads to some very deep conversations about truly fascinating subjects. Like this one...

Me: If Hanna were a Disney princess, which one would she be?

K: Xena, Warrior Princess. Because she is a little warrior girl.

Me: Xena isn't a Disney princess, so she can be Mulan, she was a warrior...although Mulan wasn't technically a princess.

K: She can be Nala, she became the queen right?

Me: I'm not sure Nala normally is considered a princess either, because she is a lion. You know...she probably was actually Simba's sister and his wife. Mufasa was the only male lion at Pride Rock.

K: Yea, there is only one male lion who mates with all the females.

Me: Maybe her father was actually Scar?

K: Mufasa never should have let Scar stay around he should have kicked him out and prevented the fratricide.

At this point I started singing "Be Prepared," and went back to chopping up green peppers...

We are so weird.

a puppy in fall

Hanna got a makeover

Well, it was really just a haircut.

That bow lasted about an hour then she ripped it out and I had to trim up the top of her head so she didn't look like Alfalfa from Little Rascals.

(please pardon the poor image quality---all I had handy was my Blackberry)

Whew...that was a close call

I have to say one of my biggest fears regarding other people's kids is having them ask me something about sex or reproduction. Such a weird area, especially when you don't know the parents or what the kid already knows. You don't want to step on any toes or reveal too much. Having spent a lot of time babysitting I have fielded my fare share of awkward questions but in those cases I normally had a good relationship with the parents.

This brings me to today...

There is a little girl (she is 11 actually so you would think she would know some things) who lives in our building, and she just loves Hanna. Whenever she sees her she runs over and plays with her for a couple minutes. This gets Hanna all excited and she jumps around and climbs on her.

We haven't seen her since Hanna got spayed...that is until this evening:

Little Girl: Hanna!

Me: Be careful, she just had surgery on Monday and isn't supposed to jump around too much.

Little Girl: Oh, what's wrong with her?

Me: Nothing (panicking about what I should say...should I say spayed or fixed or will that prompt more questions...or will she know what that is...I mean she is 11) just her...puppy surgery

Little Girl: For what?

Me: Ummmm...(shit...how do I explain this to a stranger's child without getting sued) ummmm...

Little Girl: Dog things?

Me: Exactly! (thank God)

In retrospect my over-active imagination was probably turning the whole thing into a bigger deal then it actually was. I probably could have just said fixed and if she asked I could just say so she can't have puppies. But I panicked. I've seen the girl's mom and she looks like she could take me.

Relaxing at Home

I picked up Hanna this morning and we have both been relaxing ever since. She actually seems pretty good, just sleeping and laying down a lot. I wish I could explain to her what is going on; she probably is so confused about why she isn't feel well and doesn't feel like playing.

That you all for your sweet comments...maybe some people would think I was crazy for obsessing so much about a dog but I am glad my bloggy friends are fellow dog lovers who understand!

Hanna's Surgury

I just talked to the vet's office and Hanna's surgery went very well. I get to pick her up around 9 tomorrow. We will miss having her around tonight, but I am glad she is staying over there so they can monitor her!

Weekend Review and Hanna

I had a wonderful weekend with my friends, the Mexican lasagna turned out awesome and I will share the recipe soon. On Saturday we went to Boordy Vineyards where you can get a tour, tasting and a glass all for only $5. We brought a picnic and had a great time enjoying the beautiful farm/vineyards and drinking great wine. It was great to catch up and spend a weekend with the girls.


In other news...Hanna is getting spayed tomorrow. K will be dropping her off in the morning then she will have the surgery and stay over night. I am going to call out of work on Tuesday so I can pick her up and be with her. Please keep my little puppy girl in your thoughts! I know it is routine surgery and we have a very capable, caring and experienced vet, but I can't help but be a little worried.


Here are some pictures of her (and Gryffin) that we took at the beach:

Puppy Breath: Advice Needed!

Hanna has started getting in her adult teeth but her baby teeth don't really seem to be falling out so they are starting to rot and her mouth looks pretty gross and crowded. When I can get a look at her mouth that is...she has always been a little weird about letting me look at her teeth but since she started teething it has gotten even worse. K and I have been working on trying to get her more comfortable with us touching her mouth but she has a long way to go.

Anyways, I know shih tzu's can have teeth issues, so it will most likely take a long time before all the baby teeth come out. We give her a lot of chew toys and even freeze some so she doesn't seem to be in much pain but her breath is sooooo disgusting right now! Seriously...it smells like a sewer. It's nothing like regular dog breath at all.

I saw online that rotting baby teeth can cause this, but do any of you dog owners have any advice on how to make her breath smell better? Or any other teething tips?

Thanks in advance!

Hanna at 3 months old

I have been meaning to do this since Hanna turned 3 months old and now she is almost 4 months old...better late then never!

She is completely crate trained and potty trained (knock on wood.) All I have to say is "kennel up" and she runs right in, in the morning she gets a kong then in the afternoon she gets some treats. I come home at lunch to feed and walk her then (I think) she goes back to sleep until we get home. The only thing is...she still sleeps on the bed...in her crate. Honestly, I don't know if that will change, unless we take her out of the crate and she keeps sleeping on the bed. What a spoiled dog.

Hanna knows some tricks already and we are working on more, she is very active and can be a bit of a diva. She likes to follow me around the house but doesn't really like to be held unless she is sleepy or in a new area. My mom got me a puppy purse so I am working on carrying her in that so I can take her more places. According to our vet she probably won't get over 10 pounds (big difference from Gryffin who is 15.) She is a tiny girl with a big personality!

All in all she is a great dog and we are so glad we have her. Here are some pictures:

On a walk with her parents.

Taking a break and being carried by Daddy.

Pre-haircut, she looked like a mop!


Post-haircut! So pretty!

First hair bows! They were 4th of July themed but after

playing with Gryffin all weekend they came out.

Sleepy Puppies

In the car on the way back from Annapolis yesterday (please ignore the little bit of my pale leg.) Gryffin looks a little weird right now since he had to get his ears shaved (they got matted) and Hanna gets her first haircut on Friday.

Puppy Cuteness for your Viewing Pleasure

The past two days I have been at home pretty much all day just watching movies and hanging out with Hanna, unfortunately tomorrow I have to go to work and K will be with her but starting Tuesday we will be starting her on the normal us going to work everyday schedule. Which should include me working out again because I have been super lazy!


She is being a very good puppy so far...any accidents she has had in the house have been completely my fault for not getting her out in time, she is walking well on a leash and sleeping all night in her crate. She also seems to be improving being crated in during the day however she hasn't been in it too much yesterday and today. Thank you all for your tips, we are doing those same kind of things! On Saturday we are taking her to the vet for her first check-up so hopefully that will go well too.


Yesterday I had a little photo shoot with her...enjoy the cuteness!

Little Puppy girl

Sleepy

Playing and being a wild puppy.

She likes to hang out under the coffee table, we call it her den.

She also is obsessed with chewies, she is laying on the blankie I made for her which you can't really see but is a very adorable fleece.

I just love her. I hope that didn't just sound like Teresa from Real Housewives, she says that about every 2 minutes about her kids.

She was charging the camera at this point.

Note the dog toys everywhere and the crocs which have become my official dog walking shoes. I wanted to get a picture of her standing so you all could see how tiny she is.

Little Furbaby

So now I have some pictures so I can finally post more about my little furbaby. She seems to be adjusting very well to living with us, she is very tiny (about 2.5 pounds) but is pretty vocal...as was illustrated on her first night with us. We are crate training her so we first tried to put the crate on the floor next to the bed and she literally screamed like a howler monkey, so we put the crate on a chair hoping if she she saw us she would calm down, which didn't work, so after a few hours and almost giving up K suggested putting the crate in between our pillows. And that worked! So that is where the crate has been and we are going to gradually move it to next to the bed.

The only day time she has spent in her crate was on Saturday when we went over to my parents to go to a wine festival. I think she did pretty well, and was right next to Gryffin, who loves his crate...my brother was in the house briefly and said she was whining but we didn't hear anything when we came in. The test will be tomorrow, because I have to go into work in the morning.

Ok I could probably go on and on about her, but I will stop and post some pictures. All of these are from the first day we got her. I will try to take some more and work around my annoying camera. My sister is going to puppy-sit while I get my hair done today so maybe she will take more too!

She loves this rawhide chewy.

She is so cute.

Sharing the chewy with Gryffin, not really she kept taking it away from him.

I think she is going to be a little more feisty then him, he is so laid back and she is a little diva already.



My baby girl

New Puppy Parenthood

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to pop in and say I am alive and baby Hanna (my new puppy) is adorable and doing great! We have spent the weekend being immersed in new puppy parenthood and I promise to post pictures and more later. Unfortunately my camera is a piece of crap and I think has finally died...she also moves too quick to get a good one on my blackberry! My sister took a bunch but when she tried to send them to me they didn't work since she has a mac. So it is a comedy of errors, I will be going over there tomorrow and I am going to get them then.

I am not working most of this week to continue to get Hanna acclimated so will have plenty of time to blog!

Hope you all had wonderful weekends!