Icecream

Who doesn't LOVE icecream?

Cone Head

Leni loves being a cone head. Most dogs walk in shame but Leni holds her head up proud. She doesn't let that cone stop her from doing anything. Leni was spayed last week and thus she has a shaved belly and one shaved leg. She was crashed out like this for less than 24 hours after the surgery.



She was then up and about using that cone to her advantage. She uses it to hold her toys while she chews on them. She picks up sticks and gum balls on our walks with it. She even managed to crawl under the bed with it on!



Why let a little cone get in your way from enjoying life, right?

Who is who?

Lula and Leni went to Petsmart for a grooming this past week. I told the lady to just cut off their winter coats and that is what she did. So, now they look exactly the same. Leni has 2lbs on her sister Lula and the way they carry their tails is different but for the first time ever I am mixing them up all the time!

Fifty in Februrary

When it is 50 degrees on Feb 13th you have to go outside and romp in the woods. Lula and Leni even decided it was a good day to swim. These pictures were put together by April's sister with a completely perfect caption!

Sisters

Lula and Leni are inseparable. They truly love being together. So, here are some pictures of sisterly love.


Our morning walks have been in the dark for several weeks now so they now have reflective belts so that cars can see us!


Chilln' on the couch


Snuggled up and ready for bed. See Leni's foot under Lula's head?

Fluffy Puppies

Lula and Leni are fully shagged out in their winter coats. Here you can see Leni's poof and her favorite spot in the house.



Lula's hair is not fully on display here but you can see just how cold they get in the winter. She is snuggled up on her blanket and then covered herself with my jacket (which she pulled of the chair behind her).

Run Leni RUN!

April and I refuse to believe that Leni is a smoker and thus have consulted some dog behavior experts (aka my kick ass dog trainers at Canine Training Solutions) about Leni's foot licking obsession. Their theory is that a 3-4 miles walk, going to work with us all day every day, and playing with Lula all evening is just not enough exercise for 1 year old Leni. So, now Leni gets treadmill time every day. She runs at a 4.0 on a 10% grade for 10-20 minutes per day. And yes, there is definitely less licking!

Licking

Leni has been licking her paws rather obsessively for a few months. It happens at random times but it is most annoying at 2 AM when it wakes you up. She doesn't pull out the hair between her toes. She doesn't bite her nails. Her pads and webs are never red and yet she just keeps licking. I tried eliminating possible food allergens and there was no change. I tried soaking her feet in anti-itch solutions and it didn't help. Even benadryl didn't really help quiet the slurping sounds of 2 AM.

So, I took her to the vet. The vet grilled me about her behavior, diet, exercise, mental stimulation, and routine. She examined every single foot and between ever toe. There was nothing wrong and no clear source of irritation.





So this was the vet's answer to Leni's licking. "If Leni were a human she would be a smoker." HA! My little Leni has a nervous habit and thank goodness it is not smoking :)

Happy Birthday Leni

Today Leni is 1 year old. Her heat is almost over (yeah!) and she actually sat still for this picture.



She then proceeded to fall over into "dead dog"


pull her hat off with her paws


and destroy it!


All within approx 2 minutes! Love that Leni!

Pup'sters

Just 10 days shy of her first birthday, Leni became a woman. I should have known it was coming because last week she chewed up something every single day. However, sunday morning I woke up shocked to find red stains all over my bed.

So, off I went to the store in search of a product to control this mess. Of course you can buy disposable gigantic diapers but why would you when your dog could wear PUP'sters! As the box says: "simple solution that suits feminine contours". How funny :)

So here she is sporting her Pup'sters, my grown up girl, Leni.

Rally Ribbons

Lula and I had fun this weekend at another Rally show. During our first day Lula was a super star and got a perfect score of 100! However, someone else also got a 100, and they did the course faster than me, so we settled for second place.




During our second event Lula was almost perfect and scored a 99, which earned her first place! YEAH Lula!!!




Here we are getting our blue ribbon!

Beach Portraits

It is a rare moment when my girls are so tired that they sit still for more than 2 seconds. However, after three hours of running on the beach I convinced them to chill out for a portrait session.

Crabbie Friend

This morning Leni and Lula found a crab on the beach. This crab was extra special because it played with the girls for approximately 15 minutes. It never retreated into a hole nor swam away into the ocean. In fact, I had to pull the girls away to give it time to escape because I started to feel bad for it!

Beach Action Shots

The girls love the freedom of off leash running on the beach in the Outter Banks. They even got brave and started dashing into the water for a refreshing dip!

Beach Chase

The tennis ball is all we needed to have hours of fun on the beach. We even got frisky and lept into the air after a wild throw a few times.

Digging in the sand

We are on vacation this week in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The girls have never been on a true vacation but they have settled into the relaxed rhythm very easily. Here is their first adventure with the beach!

The girls LOVE digging in the sand. There are usually two goals to the digging. #1 - hide and then find the ball....




Or #2 - make a little nest to lay in for a while.


Lula tends to prefer the ball game


While Leni prefers making a nest and then rolling in it over and over and over.


What they always forget it that sand play means a long bath before going inside to keep the house (and my bed) from being too sandy!

Kennel Up

If you say the words "Kennel Up" at my house you will find two black dogs dashing across the house towards their kennel. Well, when a toddler sees this action she follows right behind. Burke crawled right into the kennel too and Lula and Leni didn't seem to mind.


Burke thought the game got even better when we shut the door (just for a quick moment) to catch this picture!

Hair Cuts

Can you tell who is who in these pictures? The girls sported the mohawk-look for about a week and now they are in their full summer short hair best! The best part is that they are as soft as velour.


Their favorite way to play!


Leni


Lula

Tie Dye

Leni and Lula are completely in love and they paraded their curly tails around Oxford last weekend in their tie dye gear in support of the Humaine Society. Can you tell who his who in this picture? It is getting harder and harder to tell them apart every day as Leni continues to grow. Leni is now 37 lbs which is almost as big as Lula who is 41 lbs.