A New Way of Life

We've been dog parents for 3 weeks now and except for a few small bumps in the road, it has been really nice. Jon's new favorite time of day is his morning walk with Ray. (Should I be jealous?) I look around the apartment and think of how much we've altered our schedules and space to accommodate our little one. We've rearranged our bedroom to make room for a soft crate and we've given up some valuable real estate on the first floor for a gigantic food and water bowl, a fluffy bed, a metal crate, a baby gate to guard the stairs, and toy box. We eat at our table now instead of on the couch - it's bar height so it makes it hard for Ray to beg - and we snack standing up at the counter which is probably better for us because we don't eat as much. 

This time of year, Jon works a lot of extra hours and it can be a little lonely around the house so I am really enjoying having a companion to hang out with and take care of. We talk on the phone just as much as always but now there is always a dog report involved: where Ray was walked, for how long, was he good on the leash, did he do something naughty or incredibly cute. I told Jon that eventually this won't be so new and we'll go back to talking about other things. I imagine this is exactly what it's like to have a new baby, right down to getting up in the middle of the night to take him outside. (Thankfully, we're over that.)

By the way, Ray is not 7 months as we were originally told. He's probably somewhere between 12 and 18 months, so he is about as big as he's going to get. He might fill out a bit but he's definitely on the small side for a lab. That's fine with us. And we found a phenomenal vet right down the street since we can't take him to Houston every time he needs shots or has the sniffles.

Not long after we got Ray we also realized that we have more cable than we thought we were paying for. Until we sort it out, we are enjoying ESPN, TLC, Animal Panet, and National Geographic. We've watched all of the recent episodes of Dog Whisperer (that Cesar Millan is a genius), It's Me Or The Dog, Dog Town, Whale Wars, and What Not To Wear (Marianna's story is my favorite). Kristy, if you'd go to work for the Houston SPCA I could watch you on TV. That would be cool.

As for Cesar Millan's show, it always bugs me that he hangs out in Vegas, Los Angeles, and Arizona - very sunny, hot places - and he and has trainees never wear sunglasses. Random, yes, but it is a problem for me almost everytime I watch. Has anyone else noticed this?

Not much else going on here. Just keeping our eyes on this situation. Will let you know if there's any news.

These eyes get me every time.