In loving memory...

On April 24, 2010, sadly we had to put Fred to sleep.

He taught us to pursue our passions with unbridled enthusiasm. He loved tennis balls, swimming and food. Though he miss him tremendously, we think of him fondly and will forever love him.

Spring has sprung!

Here are some pictures of Fred today at one of our favorite play places, the Serpentine Prairie at Redwood Regional Park.

And playing football...

Happy (belated) birthday, Fred!

Since Fred was at boarding school for his first birthday, we missed the opportunity to celebrate with him. So yesterday, we had a joint birthday party for him and his doggie cousin, Lucy. Much to my dismay and Carey's delight, Fred did NOT like wearing a birthday hat (why am I not surprised?), so this is the only picture that I got of him with his hat on.

More pictures on my sister's blog.

We also took Fred to Napa for the first time this weekend. Here are some of my favorites:

Welcome home, Fred!

Yesterday, Fred came back from "boarding school" - more than one month with Francis of Friends of the Family Dog Training. We missed him a lot, but are glad he went. The resource guarding is definitely better: Fred now lets us take stuff from his mouth without too much of a fight. :)

It was a month of firsts for Fred... his first birthday was on October 15 (he missed his birthday party with all of his siblings!), he got his first (and hopefully only) stitches, and started a raw diet. Yes, RAW. He now eats raw chicken leg quarters instead of doggie kibble. I am going to have to get over my fear of touching slimy raw chicken and salmonella.

Here are some pictures from the doggie birthday party, and Fred in his halloween costume (hee hee):

Koda (Rosy), Kuma (Lily) and Wiki (Joey)


Auntie Lula, Nikko and Mama Billie (Wiggles)

Koda (Rosy), Kuma (Lily), Wiki (Joey), Emma (Violet), Auntie Lula, Nikko, Mama Billie (Wiggles)

(Missing Fred, Rufus, Mika)

Mom, do I have to be a cat for Halloween?!?!? I'd rather go back to boarding school...

See what Lucy (my sister's Corgi) was for Halloween here.

Dog Park

Since I've been on vacation this month, Fred and I have spent a lot of time at the Joaquin Miller - Woodminster Theater dog park, especially this week since my tendinitis isn't getting better. Most days, there are a bunch of dogs there, but earlier this month, we caught a few days when it was just us!

Shake, (rattle), and roll!

Videos of Fred's most recently acquired, not-really-practical tricks...

And also a video of what we've been doing some of the time in my home version of doggy daycare...

More pictures of Fred playing with bubbles in Yosemite on my sister's blog. We had been using regular ol' non-toxic bubbles, but then got these. (Lynn, I also got some for Lucy to see if we can break her of her bubble fear.)

Mr. Papilloma Face

Fred has recently acquired a "beauty mark", a.k.a. WART, on his face. Apparently, canine papillomavirus is highly contagious, so he's been banished from doggie daycare (which is probably where he got it in the first place anyway) until it's gone... and that could take weeks to months! In the meantime, I have to figure out how to keep him entertained during the day while we're at home. And today, it's been tough because I think I've re-developed tendinitis in my right foot. :( I wish one or the other would go away!

Beach Bum

We just got back from a weekend at Dillon Beach, which is in Marin County between Tomales Bay and Bodega Bay. Our fun-filled weekend with Carey's family also included Fred's first beach adventure and a tour of the Marine Mammal Center by my friend Michelle. (Thanks, Michelle!)

Here are some pictures from our weekend...

wet dog + roll in the sand = corn dog

Camel...

or dog?

Doggie Paddle

I can't believe that I forgot to add the video footage that we took of Lucy and Fred this weekend swimming in the Merced River!

And more footage of them playing at the campsite... (it also includes a cute spooning segment)

And in other exciting Fred news... he now shakes and rolls over on command!!! :)

Yosemite

Here are some pictures from our Fourth of July Weekend trip to Yosemite...

Warm-Up

So, we're taking Fred to Yosemite this weekend for my family's annual camping trip. Given that he barks at everything (especially things that he hears, but can't see), we thought it would be a good idea to warm him up to the idea of being in a tent.

Here are some pictures of the dry run in our backyard...

Since he now goes to "his tent" on command, I think he likes it okay... We'll see how it goes this weekend. Half Dome... here we come!!!

See Fred Swim!

Yesterday, we had our second puppy reunion with Fred's litter mates, Kuma, Rufus and Nikko at Lake Anza. Auntie Lula (Fred's foster aunt) and my friend Leslie's dog, Mitch, were there as well.

Fred can now rightfully claim that he is at least half labrador retriever... He finally learned to swim!!! (Welcoming committee at the end of first video = Rufus & Nikko)

Here are more pictures from the puppy reunion...

Kuma, Fred's sister

Allison, Fred's first foster mom, and Lula, his foster aunt

Rufus, Fred's brother

Mitch

Fred and Keely, a chocolate lab who we met at Lake Anza

Lula and Rufus

Fred's Restaurant

Thanks to my friend, Hsing, for alerting us to this NYC restaurant...

Soggy Doggie

As we've found out in the past, the idea of getting wet doesn't exactly thrill Fred, even though he is part lab retriever. We think the only exception is if the water is coming from the garden hose, sprinklers, etc. Here's a video of him playing with the water in our backyard yesterday.

We can't really tell if it's more distressing or fun for him. We think he likes it though because when we stop spraying, he runs over to an area where there's currently a leak in the hose and plays with the water (and of course, the muddy spot that it creates there too).

"Pup" and Circumstance

Doggie classmates from left to right: Scooby, Chili, Fred, and Kuma (Fred's sister).

It was a big week for Fred! On Tuesday, he graduated from Puppy 2. We are such proud parents!!!


Today, we also took Fred to Tomales Bay State Park (Millerton Point), where he got to go off-leash for a bit and play in the marsh!!!






Only 1 more week left until my half-marathon! We've started tapering, which means no more long strenuous workouts until the actual race. Yesterday, it was a 35 minute run at Dillon Beach, also part of the Tomales Bay State Park.

Thanks for reading! Hope you all have a good week!

Brrrr!

Yesterday's run was at Point Isabel / Richmond Marina in the cold, WINDY weather. It didn't take us too much time to warm up though... and eventually, we ran our highest mileage to date: 10 miles! At mile 9.5 or so, as I was sprinting to the finish line, I felt as though my legs were totally detached from my body, like those Looney Toons cartoons where the Roadrunner's body is in focus, but his legs are just a blur ("mheep mheep").

When I got home, I took the advice of my running friends, and finally got up the courage to take an ice bath, which is supposed to reduce swelling and inflammation. For those of you who aren't familiar with ice baths, basically you fill a tub with cool water, then empty bags of ice into it and sit there for about 15 minutes. TORTURE! But, I'm finding today that maybe it's worth it... my legs feel pretty good!

Fred also seemed to enjoy the ice bath, but more for a nice, cool refreshing drink!

The Avenue of Giants half-marathon is just 2 weeks away! It's hard to believe that it's so close! Can't wait!