Dog Park

Toby finally got his 3rd distemperment and rabies shot last week, so we took him to an off-leash dog park to celebrate.  He did so great by staying close to us and coming back when called.  He loves the tall grass; we played hide and seek for a good half and hour.  

Then, we took him down to the pond to test out his swimming skills.  We kept the leash on him, just in case...but after a minute or two, he was already romping around in the water and swimming out towards the middle.  We had to take the leash off and let him run wild.  It was great to see him have so much fun in the water.  All of the other dogs were running around chasing each other and Toby could not have had more fun running through the mini trails in the woods.  

Next time we go, I'll take a couple pictures of him swimming.  I was able to get this shot in the car.  It just goes to show how much fun he had....



One word:  EXHAUSTED!

Father's Day

Toby took his first big road trip and over night stay this past weekend for Father's Day.  We went down to Mankato to visit Lori's dad.  Toby had a great time outside and LOVED the boat ride around the lake.  We had some time to take a couple quick pictures.





I am working on getting the pictures from the boat ride.  They are sooo cute.

Muddy Paws

Somebody had fun this morning...

wet grass + freshly tilled garden = trouble

I think the subject tells enough of the story.  I will say that this was one of those 'how cute' moments rather than.... 'Toby what are you doing?'

Spliff's Visit

Toby and Spliff finally got to meet today!  Ben and Mel brought their new arrival, a Bernese Mountain dog over to meet Toby.  The boys started off a little slow...Toby, being the energetic pup that he is was all over his new play friend. 



It took a bit of warming up to, but Spliff and Toby soon realized how much fun it was to chase one another around.  The two had a great time together wrestling and playing in the pool.



We took a little break to take some portraits of just Spliff.  What a cutie!



Then it was time for everyone to rest so the parents could eat some lunch and relax a bit.  Spliff wasted no time getting in some shut-eye.



Before leaving, we got the pups together again for a quick goodbye...  little did we know they would start playing and wrestling with each other.  We then knew that they would be best friends!!



More pictures of Spliffy can be found here:

http://www.erickrausphotography.com/gallery/5124374_mTpZA

Something Fishy

Some how we lost Toby's Nylabone..and so as a replacement, we got him a Nylabone fish chew toy.  He loves it.

 

 

Week #3 of puppy class was this week.  We are definitely learning a lot.  We thought Toby was far ahead of the class, but it seems that puppies across the class are all doing well.  Each puppy has their own "quirk" and everyone benefits from sharing ideas with the group.  This week we learned how to "stand", "come", and "stay".   Our homework for next week is to have Toby sit and stay for 2 whole minutes. 

Hope the rain holds out a bit so Toby can meet Spliff.  Pictures pending.

Fun in the house

 

Just had to post this picture of Toby with a new toy.  I was laughing so hard, I could barely hold the camera straight.

 

 

 

What a beautiful smile.     ;)

Great Summer Day

Wow, so much to talk about today...where to begin....

We went to a friend's wedding last night, leaving the house in beautiful sunny weather.  We knew that a storm was coming in, but the down pour at the reception led us to believe that all we were getting was some rain.

After returning home last night, we discovered what looked like a war zone.  Most of the lawn was covered in hail...and the leaves had all been blown off of the trees.

 

 

We got up early the next morning to clean up the yard and finish up with the fence on the side of the house.  Toby now has almost the entire lot width to run up and down.  He loves it.

It was definitely a warm day out, so we thought it would be a good day to introduce Toby to water.  We filled up his little kiddie-pool and enticed him to climb in.  He was a little apprehensive, but he didn't seem to mind after awhile.  The cool water felt pretty nice on the hot fur.

 

 

Meanwhile, Vinnie watched from inside wondering, "what a weird thing to do..."

 

 

Oh, and a frozen peanut butter-filled Kong is the best toy ever!