TRAINING TREATS & TRICKS

So far miss Annie can: sit. lay down. and walk loosely on a leash (ok-we're working on this one) and stop on cue. she can also leave treats on the floor when you tell her to, even though they are right in front of her. we are also working on, ok-go say hello (where you give your dog permission to say hello to dogs & people.....a big need to accomplish for Annie). she is very good at load the clicker & watch me (both games involve treats). and actually all of her training & tasks are done with treats as incentive. it totally works though. and she was quite the show-off at class last night by sitting before the trainer even told her to. she is a real good dog! class always wears her out & she is asleep in the car after 1 minute! this week, i'm hoping we can take her to doggie daycare, not because she needs it, but would be good to have some friends to play with where its warm!

RESTED

So...I finally finished the office renovation. It was really just tearing down old wallpaper (nasty) and painting. My Mom came in town Thursday to help me get started. And thanks goodness for Mom because I really had no clue where to begin! Here is a slight peak of how it looks now compared to the old maroon, gold & brown paper with large flowers & monkeys...Matt & I both love the new fresh, clean look!
This weekend we bummed around, decided to have an impromptu gathering & (eventhough Sheehan was the only one that showed) it was a fun night for the 3 of us! Matt took a couple naps & said he felt well rested when he woke up this morning. He hates taking naps & is usually grumpy when waking from one, although this weekend was different. He's been working so hard, he definitely deserved/needed some rest!
This week should be great. He is taking vacation Wed-Fri, so it's only a 2 day work week for him! Hooray! I am so excited that he will be at home with us....we hate when he has to go to work!

DAWGS

I love dogs. Plain & simple. I absolutely love our puppy Annie. She can drive me nuts some days but other days she is the sweetest thing. She can also be pretty hilarious. There isn't a day that goes by that Matt & I aren't laughing about something she has done.
She did really well in puppy class last night & I am confident she will do well this week with loose leash training (say those 2 words 5 times real fast). I have so much faith in our little orphan Annie. She is also super smart....especially when it comes to trying to trick us into giving her treats!
I love watching Ceasar Milan on Dog Whisperer. He's so awesome. I wish he was our next door neighbor! I'm also totally addicted to Dogtown ( I even watched it on our honeymoon....hey! I let Matt watch the TU bowl game, so there!)
Pretty much I love ANYTHING dawgs. And all dawgs (ok-most dogs).

Another posting MUST: Dear Tulsa drivers, when entering a highway via a ramp that YIELD SIGN IS FOR YOU! Ugh!

What are your secret addictions, what's your favorite animal & what's the funniest thing your pet does?

OK LET'S BE HONEST.....WE'RE TIRED OF THE WEATHER

Ugh.....I'm not going to complain. I just want to explain 1 thing. We are used to living in 90 degrees F weather. This cold stuff is about to kill us! How is it that it snowed on Valentine's Day? Uh, Matt was taking Annie out for a potty break at 5am=no snow. I take Annie for a potty break at 830am=everything covered in snow! How did we miss that?! So when we came back, I was ready for cold weather, but had no idea we were in for this much snow! Well, I will confess 1 thing. I was pretty sure after last year's reasonable warm winter that this winter was going to be pretty harsh. YUCK! Makes waking up with a smile a little more challenging. I'll keep working on it.

So on Friday, my poor husband got a flat tire on Owasso. Luckily I was already out running errands & came to his rescue pretty quickly. At least we got some Friday lunch together out of it! Matt was such a trooper, he never complained once! I feel for him too. I was the queen of breaking down when I was growing up, so I know how bad it sucks. I've definitely had my share!
We had a nice relaxing weekend.....Saturday night we took an basketball game at TU. It was a good game, unfortunately they didnt end up winning :( But Matt & I had a great time! It was definitely better than going to an average movie niether of us really cared to see!
Sunday was a lazy Valentine's Day! I went out for donuts & the paper. And Matt got me some beautiful flowers. We exchanged cards. Matt did some work & worked around the house fixing a few things. Then I made an awesome Italian dinner for to complete the Valentine's weekend.
Oh and we took in plenty of Olymipcs over the weekend. I love watching them, especially the opening ceremonies. Really like to see what they do different each year! Not sure about the Indian dancing though & some other things.

Some Annie updates: she now weighs 13 lbs and she can officially jump on the couch. We do have our hands full, but she really is a good little pup!
Hope everyone has a great week & I pray for warmer weather soon!

HAPPY VALENTINES/OLYMPIC OPENING/DAYOTNA WEEKEND!!

I am proud to say yesterday I managed (ok...barely) to take Annie for some booster shots. She could have used like 5 handlers! It's not that she bites or barks or is aggressive. She is a freak when it comes to people & all animals. She LOVES everyone & wants to say hi & give kisses to literally everyone. Ugh....it could be worse. At least she is super friendly & sweet. Her Momma needed a drink about noon yesterday, I had lunch & took a nap instead :)
We had our alarm system all set-up yesterday. Yeah for security. We actually have a basic system, but as basic as it is, there are still some pretty sweet features (like our remotes for it). Cant reveal all....but anyway, feel safe for sure now!
Looking forward to this weekend & spending some r&r time with Matt! We have had a super busy week. Thats life though, right? He has had a crazy week at work (so what's new?) and deserves some down time. What would the perfect Valentine's Day gift be for him???Hmmm....I've got some ideas since my others have failed!
I am looking forward to the opening of the Olympics tonight. I love watching the opening ceremonies. There is alot of action on tv this weekend ie:olympics, Daytona, OSU bball, college sports, etc...Good thing Matt worked so hard last weekend to get the speakers, receiver, & surround sound system set up!!
Hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day weekend!

WEEKEND FUN

We had some fu-un this weekend. I have an awesome husband & we had a great weekend.
Friday night we started off with dinner with Ryan. He came over & enjoyed some of my delicious cooking (uhm spaghetti actually). It was fun for Matt to see him & fun to catch up. Ryan is such a good friend.

Then Saturday we hung out @ home for the first part of the day & then attended my friend Kari's wedding. She looked beautiful & it was a very nice ceremony! The recption was fun with some sorority sisters there :) 
Sunday was pretty uneventful. We took some lunch to Melissa & had a short visit with Charlie. She looked super cute in an outfit that was picked out by her Uncle Matt & Aunt Natalie. Watched the Superbowl. Good for the Saints. Even better was the Undercover Boss afterwards.
Hope everyone else had a great weekend. I owe my husband big time for putting up with me & the girls Saturday night. It was so fun to see everyone & I really had a great time!

T IS FOR TERROR AND TERRIER

So we had our first session of puupy class last night. Annie was absolutely THE cutest pup there. Although, I will admit, some pretty dawg-gone cute ones there too. She was the smallest out of everyone, but not the youngest. There was a German Shephard the size of a Great Dane and he was only 5 months old (he was the most timid as well, funny)....I hope they have a big yard & big fence!!
The class was all working breed dogs & a couple hearders. So we had: Annie the terrier, Holly who sat next to us who was a border collie, a german shepard, some weird looking hunting dog that was brown, a boxer, a pit-bull/bishon frise mix, and some wierd white dog/hearder.
They all got along & played. Annie's mom was really nervous b/c she was smaller than everyone & wanted to be right in the middle of all the playing. I was so scared she was going to get trampled!
We learned a couple things about terriers:
1. We are going to have our hands full with Annie, according to the trainer
2. She has a very high energy level needing 3 hours of physical activity every day as well as 3 hours of mental exercise everyday :) and she likes to be in the center of everything :)
3. She does not care if she pleases us or not
4. She is a huntin' scavengin' dog & likes to work
Ahhh...the lovely task of training. Actually she be ok. Annie does really well with mental stimulation & exercises, so any kind of trick or training task, she really seems to focus on, unless somebody nearby drops a treat on the floor!
I will say we had the friendliest dog. Not only did she meet all the other dogs, she also proceeded to go meet all their owners as well. She is just too cute puttin her paws on everyone's knees waggin her tail for some attention & lovin! Everyone said awwww when Matt brought her in the training room before class started. Definitely THE cutest.
Enough about puppy class, more to come on that for sure!

SNOW SNOW SNOW

Did we get a lot of snow & ice or what? You should see some of the icycles in our neighborhood, those things could be used as weapons.

Annie, our puupy, loves the snow. She loves to dig her head down into to & run around like a wild banshee....she goes nuts & her tail is wagging 90 miles an hour every time she heads outside. What are we going to do when it melts off?
Matt was slightly restless but productive over the weekend. He ended up working half a day Friday (eventhough I was not thrilled about this). Sometimes, its just not worth it, but I've learned I have to pick my battles! So...we got even more of our sea shipment put away & found a place for some stuff etc....It feels good to have the house looking normal again.
As for us girls, we just bunkered down & snuggled most of the time & stayed out of Matt's way! I wish all weeks could be like this, with the hubs at home more but also appreciate that he has a job & brings home the bacon!
We've got a busy week coming up......
Due to our trainer not showing at puppy classes Saturday, we have been moved to the Monday night class, so that will begin tonight & we cant wait (when I say we, I mean Matt & I, Annie will probably be a different story).
Then we have some dinner plans scheduled oh and a wedding Saturday (let's hope Kari & Chris have good weather over the weekend) and then there is always the superbowl. Hmmm. not even sure what we are doing for it yet, but have gotten a couple invites around here & there. It may be nice to just stay at home (something we are loving doing).
Definitely ready for everything to be in its place or sold or donated. We are ready to be settled for awhile. Its been a little bit of a hard adjustment going from Singapore to where it was just the 2 of us to coming back & having so many family & friends around & so much going on. We'll get there though.
Hopefully soon we can find a church that suits us BOTH and maybe that will help bring a little peace into our lives!!
Hope everyone stayed safe & warm over the weekend!