Twinsies

If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm kind of crazy about my dog. I wouldn't mind having another greyhound so Dillan would have some company while we're gone, but our resources (small apt., no yard, time/monetary limitations, etc) prevent us from expanding our family to include another puppy.  Also, Dillan really does seem quite content being the object of our affection.

But look at who I found!!! Dillan's twin, who happens to go by the name Dylan! Can you believe it, they are  identical even down to their name!

Nathan, can we have him?!?

"FLYING LARCHMONT"

Dylan as we are calling this handsome boy is 3 years old.  He has tested cat and small dog friendly and seems to love everyone.

Dylan  is currently settling into foster care and will let us know his likes and dislikes.  He has excellent house manners and crates well.  No need to mention what a sweet boy he is as one look into those eyes and you can see the sweetness just flowing.

Fostered by Mike & Randall in the Tri Cities area

Small Animal Friendly:  Yes

Status:  Available"

Source: greyhoundrescue.org

Compared to our puppy:

Same spots and freckles. Oh, they must become brothers!

Sir, I believe you are Mistaken...

For some odd reason, people commonly mistake Dillan for an "Italian Greyhound."  In my pride I want to say, "actually, he's the real deal. Full blown Greyhound." But I don't. I accept the fact that the people on our walks are at least complimenting Dillan on his extreme good looks and move on. 

However, that doesn't mean that I can't help you guys understand. 

don't have a source... : (

Greyhound = big guy in the back

Whippet = medium guy in the middle

Italian = little guy in the front 

So you see, there's a big difference between a teeny Italian Greyhound and a Greyhound. I guess "Italian Greyhound" sounds fancier, and Dillan is a very fancy dog. I mean all he needs is a bowtie.

(note to self, buy Dillan a bowtie) 
(note to self, buy Dillan a top hat) 

 What do you guys think? I'm thinking super classy.

Concerning Christmas

Hello Readers! We had a great time visiting my family this past weekend. It of course included food, pajamas, laughter, knitting (like a fiend I might add), movies, food, gifts, and oogling at my super cute neice. 

So, here's a little picture wrap up of the weekend.

Blog world, meet Douglas.

Douglas is our 5 year old Douglas Fir sapling.  At first we weren't going to do the whole Christmas tree thing because a. we weren't at our apt. on Christmas, b. we don't want to invest in tree trimmings, and c. we don't want to store tree trimmings.  But Douglas is the exception. he just looked so little and cute at the tree farm, how could I resist? I like Douglas, a lot. He's pretty much the best Charlie Brown tree ever. And I'm going to do my best to keep him alive for a while. Repotting him and such until we have somewhere to plant him. 
Thanks to my dad, he now resides in a glavanized bucket. Inspired by this:

Source: via pinterest

 

Remember how I mentioned I was really trying to fix a bow on Dillan's head. Here's my attempt caught on camera. And Nathan's foot. And clutter. And messiness.   We keep it real people.

Here we are at my parent's house. We found a pair of reindeer antlers, so naturally we put them on Dillan. And he tolerated it long enough to snap a few photos. I think this one is profile pic worthy...

Dragon puppy. That's all.  Rawwwwrrrrr.

And this is how we spent Christmas day. In a new sweater and pajama pants. And Dillan lying on my legs. Merry Christmas puppy. He so enjoyed that x-large greenie. Which, btw, we got a Petsmart gift card (thanks Leah!!), so Dillan just might be getting a few more of those soon.

I hope you all had a great Christmas day too!

Dillan's Kindred

Nathan and I joke about how similar to a deer our dog is.

     - He curls into a little ball like Bambi.

     - His long legs and sleek physique.

     - His doe eyes.

Well this morning we rounded the corner of the apartment building to see 5 deer. We immediately froze. Dillan was enamored. I'm not sure if it's because he thought "These are my people" or "I bet I could catch one," but we didn't move for about 5 minutes.

The deer were frozen too.  All staring back at us. I couldn't tell whether there were any bucks or fawns because it was so dark (a detail for my Dad). Two were definitely shorter.

Finally one deer turned and pranced off and the others followed. So did we. Dillan and I ran down the little hill and back behind the next set of apartments to see the deer squeezing through a little gap between the fences and on into a wide open field.

In other news, while wrapping Christmas gifts we tried to put a bow on Dillan's head. While putting the bow on his tiny head he gave us puppy eyes, literally wanting us to know "why???". Then just when we were ready to grab a camera, he'd shake it off. Oh well, we'll try again Sunday.

Also, we took our annual trip to Asheville to visit the Grove Park Inn gingerbread houses. Here's one of my favorites.

Merry Christmas Dillan. You met your real family.  Your real gift will be a giant Greenie.

And I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas weekend. What are your plans?

Hunger Strike

Last night I made this tasty soup.  It's really easy and super tasty, and with the hubs out of town it will make an easy microwavable dinner for me. He might be a little sad that I made it without him.

source again

Anyway, so this recipe includes a rotisserie chicken. As any good dog mom I gave Dillan some chicken as I was shredding it into the soup. I try to sometimes only put his treats in his dog bowl so that he doesn't beg. Because Dillan's first experience with living with people, aka being spoiled, was with us he hasn't really figured out things like begging and lounging on furniture. And we'd like to keep it that way.

Well the second I brought groceries in, Dillan was there sniffing the chicken, knowing there was some good stuff in the bags. I gave him his normal helping of dog food and placed a little chicken on top. He grabbed the chicken and took it to the living room to inhale.

He came back in the kitchen and stared at me.

I resisted.

He stared at me.

I turned my back and continued to shred chicken.

He stared.

I cried. 

He stared.

I gave in, giving him all of the chicken skin.  He pretty much swallowed it whole. 

And we played the staring game again until I was finished with the soup and went to eat my supper.

On my route to the table I passed dillan's dog bowl still completely filled with dry dog food. Meaning he hadn't touched the stuff. 

He is on a hunger strike until he gets more rotisserie chicken...

I must stay strong!

The Way the Dill Pico lays (ongoing series)

Didn't I say that this would be a weekly type post? Yes, I did. As promised here is a Dill Pico pic (hehe pico pic...). 

This is pretty par for the course. For whatever reason he loves to lie with his whole body on the pillow and is head on the floor... Perhaps it has something to do with his giraffe neck. Oh yeah, and he's lazy.

Dillan Shreds and so does Nathan

Dillan has been doing his best the past few days to prove he is a puppy.  Nope, not a 4.5 year old retired racing dog, but in fact a puppy.  

I have been doing little the past few days to discourage this.  Here are the results:

Shredded Tube (out of the empty aluminum foil box)...

This tube ended up in slobbery pieces on the carpet. And I knew it would. So I took it away. I know, no fun mom. That's me. 

Shredded Duck.
We weren't even sure if he liked the Duck. But a few days ago he decided he really liked the rope tail. Seriously, he sat down and worked, and in about 5 minutes he had sawn the tail in half.

The damage done. Tail halved.

Still chewing the tail.

Oh yeah, what's that?

 Nathan has also been doing his fair share of shredding.

Check out his bands cover of "Carol of the Bells" to put you in the Christmas Spirit. And while you're there go ahead and like them on facebook!

Face Melting Carol of the Bells

Happy Monday. What are your puppies shredding?

This is how we cuddle...

In the evenings I like to snuggle up on the couch to watch my shows. This calls for comfy pants, toasty socks, and the granny quilt. Dillan lays at my feet with his head twisted back. Just waiting to get pets and scratches. He's trained us well.

Those ears. I can't handle it.

I used to be a soccer player

I grew up playing soccer pretty much year round. Especially in high school. Travel, indoor, school...

Then I got to college and played intramural soccer or just a friendly game with friends.

But sadly, my soccer days are over, and I had one last nostalgic item that kept me hanging on to those past days of soccer glory...My Adidas Sambas. Oh, the sambas. How I loved thee. Let me count the ways,

   1. If you have Sambas you understand.

   2. If you don't you won't.
   3. That's pretty much it.

Aren't they beautiful?

Why am I taking this walk down memory lane? Well, the shoes have to be retired (trashed). Wah!!! After months of dodging puppy poo (our apartments have about 10 other dogs) I finally stepped right into a landmine, and what was I wearing, my beloved Adidas Sambas.

I've had those babies since 7th or 8th grade! I bought a boy size (because they don't make awesome soccer shoes for girls...) And they've fit for what, 12 or 13 years! Well, Dad, it looks like you definitely got your money's worth from that investment.

And I wore them almost every shift of my short hostessing job at Carrabbas. Forget unsupportive and uncomfortable black flats! You better believe I sharpied in those 3 majestic white lines!

Anyway, RIP Sambas. You were good to me.

The Way the Dill Pico Lays (ongoing series)

It's high time for another edition of "The way the Dill Pico Lays". (lies...)

Perhaps I should make this a everyday Monday Post? What do you think? Any clever title names?

Anyway. After a good nap Dillan will stretch out his legs, rotate, and then stay like this from anywhere between 15 seconds to five minutes. He's weird...

Additional dillan sleeping positions.

A Warning

Part of the reason that I decided to start a blog was because I am terrible at keeping up with friends and family. I wanted to give them a way to stay updated with me and Nathan, and a way to do so on their own time. 

Part of the reason I decided to make this blog focused on my dog is that he has no idea it exists. He, to your disappointment I'm sure, does not know you exist, and probably doesn't care whether you visit this blog or not. I focus my posts more on him so that I don't become consumed with what  people I may have or have not ever met think about me, or my living space, or my clothes, etc., etc., etc. I know that I could easily get wrapped up in finding my worth through the number of followers I have, the number of comments on posts, and the number of daily readers, instead of where my worth and identity truly is, and that is in Christ.

All that to say, I still check my stats like crazy. Some people must love me on facebook because it is pretty much my biggest referencing source...
Other than that time I commented on Young House Love.
And then geeked out when Sherry responded on my comment, because SHE visited my blog.

 But I wanted give a general warning to bloggers on what I found out this morning. After reading that "getdentalplantsinfo.com" was a big traffic source, I decided to look into it.

All of these are viral links. So, don't click on them!

Anyway, happy Wednesday. How's the middle of your week?

I took some Photos

Warning: this post is not about Dillan. Dang, I just made it about him. Now you'll probably be thinking about Dillan through this whole post. But don't. It's okay. He won't be sad. He'll still love you...moving on

Am I a photographer? Errrrrr....I don't know. Let's not categorize things that way. 

I graduated with a Digital Media degree, so I'd say that I have a good knowledge of Photoshop. I had to take photos for lots of projects, including finished architectural projects for work, so I know how to control settings on my camera (mostly). But a professional, I think not.

I do have lots of fun taking pictures though. Recently I did a quicky engagement shoot for my sister and her fiance. Here are a few of my favorites.

Aren't they beautiful (people not pictures)?

So, if your sister graciously asks you to take photos of her for any occasion, here's a few things that a professional photographer could remember.
     1. Remember to focus...
     2. Remember to check your exposure...
     3. Don't be shy to boss them around. They feel awkward too...
     4. If you're photographing subjects for free make sure they buy you   coffee...or ice cream...or both.
     5. Going inside Hotel Roanoke is a waste of time. A pro would have a great flash and lighting to deal with the situation, I don't.

I loved spending time with them and watching their cutesy selves be in love and capturing some fun moments with them.

I had fun. They had fun. They got free photos. Everybody won. Except me, they didn't buy me coffee...just kidding. But seriously, coffee date at Christmas.

You two, I'm So EXCITED for your wedding and marriage!! I can't wait to celebrate with you!!! I love you guys!

If you're around East Tennessee, sure I'll take some pictures of you. But you're buying the coffee.

Lessons Learned - Black Friday Edition

For the past 10 or so years I have woken up with my mom and sisters for the insanity that is Black friday shopping. I missed shopping with them this year because we were with Nathan's family all weekend. But I still perused the sale papers for "great" deals and ideas on what to buy people for Christmas.

Nate and I stuck with the envelope method and only used cash for gifts so we wouldn't go over budget. Highly recommended. 

Also recommended, not shopping at midnight when most crazy stores open. While creating our list, we decided that the best place to do that was in bed. So at 11 p.m. after a day of pigging out, we decided to stay in bed and cut our losses by shopping in the morning. I got up at 6:30 as usual to let Dillan out, and we were out the door to hit the shops at about 7:15. Of course this was not before stopping at Chic-fil-a for chicken minis...
But the town was deserted. Seriously, no lines, no traffic, and we still found everything on our list. Noted for next year.

Since family members read this (I'm talking to you mother) I can't give away our awesome Christmas surprises. But I did find a great deal for Dillan.

Petsmart had all Purina products on sale with your "PetPerks" card. I usually buy the giant 34 pound bag at Wal-Mart for about $30, but Petsmart had bags for 25.99, savings of maybe $4. WOOT! I am a deal machine. 

Update: if you're curious, Dillan eats Purina One Chicken and Rice along with a fish oil pill and a scoop of plain yogurt. What does your dog love to eat?

Kind of like Barney

It seems anymore that I can't take a candid photo without making this face.

Me = center of the couch

Throwing leaves for my sisters engagement shots.

I want to play wii, but no one else does.

Dinner with friends, but not supposed to be in the picture??

Everyone else looks normal. But I look super excited or interested or enthusiastic. I don't know that I am any of those things often. 

But I'm going to take it.  And just say that I can't take a "bad" photo. Kind of like Barney Stinson. 

Road Trip (Part Deux)

You'd think that traveling with a big dog would be somewhat problematic. But Dillan is a pro. I think he learned a lot traveling to race tracks and such, so he seems mostly comfortable in a car. 

The first few weeks we had him he'd stand the whole time and topple out of the backseat whenever I made a turn or quick stop. To try and train against this behavior we'd say "Down" just as Dillan was starting to lie down in the backseat. This way he would associate the word with this action. Our "Retired Racing Greyhounds for Dummies" book called this the "couch potato training approach," meaning we're too lazy to actually try and teach our dog any tricks. But this method worked really well and Dillan knows that the car won't move anywhere unless he's "down".

Dillan has been on this trip before (about 3 hours), but this time we got stuck in traffic for about 1.5 hours! So, I took pictures of him to pass the time. 

He was bored.

So I cracked the window for him.

Then he was happy.

Which reminds me, Happy Thanksgiving!

Road Trip

Husband, Dillan, and I took a little road trip to visit my family in Virginia this weekend since we will be with Nathan's family this year for Thanksgiving.

Of course, since having a dog is like traveling with a 65 pound 3 year old, we had to pack all of his necessities. Here is the contents of Dillan's travel bag:

Bag included the bunny, bear, and ball toys, food for the weekend, and his coat. Not to mention the crate that went in the trunk and the fluffy pillow he slept on the whole way. He wore his leash in route.

Equals...

 

Plus this: 

Equals This =

 Social Networking, you never cease to amaze...

My Dog's a Winner!

When people find out I have a Greyhound, they usually ask me what his racing career was like. To which I respond, "I don't know, but I think it was probably pretty good because he raced for about 2 years..."

Greyhound puppies are introduced to the track when they are about a year old, then they get to play around. If they show promise of being a strong racer, they continue training and usually begin racing around 2 and continue until their career starts to decline. The longest careers can last until the dog is about 5. If the dog is being studded then he might stick with the owner until he's 7 or 8 and I think it's the same for females.

Anyway, yesterday I decided it was high time to find my dog's racing scores. So I did what any normal human being would do and Googled "greyhound stats"...duh...and found this awesome site.  Then I entered Dillan's name, which is technically "BACS Dillanbrooks" and there he was!!

Isn't he handsome!

This site gives me the pedigree, stats, and racing scores of Dillan. He never got the chance to breed (which is a shame he would have been a great Dad), so there's no info in that section.  And I have no idea how to read the whole pedigree thing, but check it, that boy was a champ!

Bacs Dillanbooks has won the following races:

Race Name	Date	Stadium	Grade	Dist m/y	Time	Box	Comment
VictoryLand 13 MAY 2010 HT A1	13 MAY 2010	VictoryLand	GR D	503 / 550	31.58	1	Box To Wire, Rail
Raynham/Taunton 02 August 2009 HT A6	2 AUG 2009	Raynham/Taunton	GR TC	302 / 330	18.06	5	Led every step ins
Raynham 29 July 2009 HT	29 JUL 2009	Raynham/Taunton	GR TC	302 / 330	18.13	7

I immediately jumped up and gave him a victory hug!

Cozy Time

This weekend I woke up and decided it was a shopping day. I love those early morning shopping trips, ya know, the ones without teenagers and traffic. I floated around my usual stores when I noticed a huge banner while leaving Target. The banner read "FLEECE FEST" below the Hancock Fabrics store sign and I couldn't resist. 

I've been wanting to get Dillan a nice piece of fleece for his crate. All I had in there was an old pillow and an old towel, not the comfiest (see before picture...). So, you can only imagine how LUCKY I felt when I spotted this fleecey gem in the scraps bin outside.  Oh yes, it is covered in grizzly bears and pine trees and just Screamed DILLAN! at me. I bought it.  

First though, of course we had to throw it on the dog...

Don't let him fool you he loves it, Loves It!

LOVES IT!!!!!

For all you makeover buffs, my fleece scrap was $3.50.  Small price to pay to keep my pico warm and cozy when we aren't there.

As you can see, this crate is not inviting. Dillan kept telling us, you guys I hate pink! But we just couldn't do anything about it until now.

EWWW. The Before.

The cozy after. Who doesn't want to sleep in there???

And the after, he's so comfortable in there, he can't wait to go inside.  But maybe the treat he gets for going in has something to do with that too.  Nah, it's definitely for da Bears.

Quick Turn Around

My husband sent me these pictures this morning...

See how easily we go from this:

What we'd refer to as "Peekin"

To this:

Awww, the puppy is sleeping.

Have a happy weekend.