My Life in Blog Years

The 'Zoom Room' is a Monterey Bay dog training and agility facility, and this past Sunday it played host to a meet-up for our local dog walking group - the first of hopefully many such gatherings.  This was such a nice opportunity to socialize the dogs off leash, but unfortunately we left Penny at home, since there is still one dog in the weekly walking group that thinks she is some type of snack.  It's really quite strange, since this hungry dog is smaller than our girl - but that's not the point of this post.  Beyond fearing that Penny would become another pet's snack, we really wanted an opportunity to focus completely on getting Luna comfortable with the agility equipment - and we really weren't sure how she was going to behave.  For those who may not remember, in the past I've posted on how strongly Luna reacts to everyday things (like cardboard boxes), so we really had low expectations.

Our Tuesday Trekkers Walking Group - Photo provided by The Zoom Room
We knew two things for certain going into this meet-up.  ONE:  Luna is extremely athletic (she can, after all, leap tall buildings in a single bound).  TWO:  Agility training is very good for building confidence (for both owners AND dogs).  Unfortunately, based on some of Luna's behavioral tendencies, D and I have told one another that despite our hopes, in Luna's case ONE + TWO = DISASTER.  Well, we got a chance to eat our words on Sunday.  Luna walked on narrow, elevated planks; she jumped over [low] hurdles; she weaved through a slalom; she even passed through a 12-foot-long tunnel!  Who is this girl?!?!?  Needless to say, we were full of praise for our Luna, and we hope to do this again very soon!

Getting Luna used the to equipment

A fellow walker giving me advice about getting Luna into the tunnel.

Now that is a look of determination... on Luna's face, too!

D giving Luna a pep talk, "Now listen up, Luna!  The only way we can beat this tunnel is by keeping our wits about us - panic will get us nowhere!"

D rewarding Luna after successfully tackling the tunnel!

• Upside Down Jellies are more than 95 percent water. They don’t
  have bones, brains, teeth or fins.
• Moon Jellies have symmetrical bodies that allow each other to
  catch prey and avoid danger.
• Cross Jellies have thousands of stinging cells that stun
  prey by injecting a does of toxins.
• Elegant Jellies glow in the dark.  If you shine a blue light on an Elegant jelly,
  neon green dots appear around the edge of the bell. Remove the lights and it’s
  crystal clear.
• The jellies exhibit tanks are kreisels, a design developed
  in Germany about a decade ago. They're circular tanks with no corners and especially
  good homes for delicate creatures that might injure themselves in a tank with
  corners.

Click on a photo to enlarge it.

• Link up your blog name and URL using the Linky Tool below.
• Follow your co-hosts, and follow as many other blogs on the linky as you’d like.
• Please ONLY SUBMIT A FEW PHOTOS with minimal or no text, and make sure it’s in BLACK AND WHITE.
• Grab the “Black and White Sunday Blog Hop” button and include it in your Sunday Blog post.

We
are teaming up with You Did What With Your Weiner and Dachshund Nola to host a
Black and White Sunday blog hop. Yep, that’s right…Black and White Sunday is
now an official blog hop!

Want to join the hop? Just follow the rules below.

• Link up your blog name and URL using the Linky Tool below.

• Follow your co-hosts, and follow as many other blogs on the
  linky as you’d like.

• Please ONLY SUBMIT A FEW PHOTOS with minimal or no text, and
  make sure it’s in BLACK AND WHITE.

• Grab the “Black and White Sunday Blog Hop” button and
  include it in your Sunday Blog post.

Photo Challenge - "With A Quote"

Think of one of your favorite quotes and take a photo to illustrate it with your dog. The quote can be included on your picture or you can just share it with us in the description. It can be a quote about anything that strikes your fancy!

Along time ago my sister gave me a license plate holder that
said “if the shoe fits, charge it”!  To
this day I still think it’s a funny quote – even though it has absolutely no
relevance to me what-so-ever! Ya right! 
I also think it’s funny that both of my dogs could care less about my
shoes.  I could leave them lying all over
the house and they wouldn't pay any attention to them.  Is that normal – I don’t think so.

Last week Alfie from Alfies Blog interviewed one of my
favorite dog photography bloggers called BZ Training.  I have been following BZ Training for a while
now and have always admired her photography and her dog’s ability to do just
about anything.  After reading the
interview I decided to join BZ’s Flickr challenge group called The Daily
Dog Challenge.  I figured it would give me opportunities
to not only learn more about photography (I basically have no knowledge what so
ever) but to work on training with Luna and Penny. So, we will see how it
goes.  I am hoping that the learning process with these
things will be fun and challenging all at the same time.

Photography Assignment - We all think of our dogs as works of art in some way. Take a photo of your dog with a work of art. 

My first photo submitted for the Daily Dog Challenge was
taken with Penny. Penny was an obvious choice as I had recently received a framed
print of a Dachshund that had Penny’s same coloring.  The photo was taken in the bedroom with an
old chest as the back ground.  Not my
best photo - the lighting was poor - but I do like the way the overall coloring
came out. 

What I'm loving right now: vintage bicycles. I am seeing them all over town and their combination of utility and beauty makes me want one.

I want to be where this person is!  Happy Monday.

We are teaming up with You Did What With Your Weiner and Dachshund Nola to host a Black and White Sunday blog hop. Yep, that’s right…Black and White Sunday is now an official blog hop!

Want to join the hop? Just follow the rules below.

• Link up your blog name and URL using the Linky Tool below.

• Follow your co-hosts, and follow as many other blogs on the linky as you’d like.

• Please ONLY SUBMIT A FEW PHOTOS with minimal or no text, and make sure it’s in BLACK AND WHITE.

• Grab the “Black and White Sunday Blog Hop” button and include it in your Sunday Blog post.

My family's visit to Carmel this past week was very entertaining.  Living away from family always makes you appreciate the time you do get to spend with them.  Besides all the social time, we were able to give my nephew Ben his first haircut, which was a big deal for my sister.  It's not like she was going to take Ben somewhere else to receive his first haircut when she has two stylist in the family.  While I felt privileged to have the opportunity to cut his hair, I gladly handed the shears to my mother as I did feel a little rusty - having been away from the trade for a few months.  Plus, it gave me the
opportunity to take a lot of photos of Ben's first experience with someone other
than his mom messing around with his head.

Saturday was spent walking around town and visiting
Fisherman Wharf.  The Wharf, which includes
restaurants, gift and candy shops, a theater, an aquarium, snack bars, and fish
markets, is always a must-see when you visit Monterey. 

Sunday was beach day, and we spent the afternoon basking in
the sun and watching Ben kick his little legs in the surf.  My sister did mention that Ben loves the
water, but the degree to which he wanted to constantly be swallowed up by the
waves was quite comical.

It was incredibly gratifying to see Ben's fascination with
Luna, and even more importantly, her patience with him.  Every opportunity Ben got, he would wander over to our couch-bound dog and squeal, slap, pinch and hug Luna’s
face; and like the good Golden she is, Luna would just lie there and accept Ben's
affection.  Luna always managed to reciprocate
with a big lick on his face - which in return, made Ben squeal even louder.

I am sorry to see my family and Ben leave, but I am very thankful
that everyone was able to come and visit. 
Next week we will be expecting D’s parents to pay us a visit, and hopefully
I will get to do this all over again!  

It seems like everybody (west coast and east coast dwellers)
were at the beach this past weekend. 
Here are a few photos (provided by my husband) of my family's visit to
Carmel Beach.