Selfies with Blu

 

I have two German Shepherds, Holly and Blu.  German Shepherd Dogs (GSDs) tend to choose a human.  Holly chose Ryan and Blu chose me.  It's kind of like they've chosen who their favorites are and while I LOVE both my dogs, Blu holds a special place in my heart.  When we got Blu, it was a few weeks after we moved to Montana.  He is this boisterous dog who is incredibly vocal.  I had never heard a dog that vocal in my entire life.  When he was a little puppy, he used to make this noise all of the time that sounded like a bird chirping.  Now that he's older, he creates crazy noises...kind of like the whale calls that Dory makes when she's "speaking whale" in Finding Nemo.  While incredibly entertaining, it can be annoying.  I like to think it's his way of "speaking" with us.  

Last year, a lot of time, money, and energy was spent on Blu.  He has a medical condition that hasn't actually been fully diagnosed.  We thought he had a version of incontinence and we believe it's a variation of it.  Essentially his bladder and sphincter muscles overwork themselves so that it's difficult for him to pee when he's out in the yard.  He was the fastest potty-trained puppy I had ever known but he would walk around the house and occasionally drip.  It was the craziest thing.  So after numerous vet visits to three different veterinarians, we decided to take a break.  Blu was becoming super accustomed to the vet and I felt bad for our baby.  We then decided to make homemade belly bands.  I made these "diapers" out of old bedsheets and big velcro pieces.  To add an extra layer, we use a baby diaper as a protective barrier.  We basically rip off the attachments and elastic pieces and lay it on the diaper before he get wrapped up.  Last summer, he spent so much time outside because we hadn't even thought of using a diaper system and when winter approached, this method allowed him to spend a lot more time indoors.  

Due to all the time he's spent inside, we've seen his personality flourish and it's so fun!  He's so big but he likes to sit in your lap...or on you.  He also loves to snuggle and bed times in our bedroom are his favorite.  He also LOVES food and even on his first few days staying in the house, he would fall asleep in the kitchen.  He hates linoleum flooring because his paws don't have very good grip and for the longest time would only walk backwards on them.  He can now walk forward and backwards.  He loves to craft with me.  While I'm making anything, he will lie down right next to me and play with the ribbons and fabric.  Often times he'll explore the craft room on his own and bring random things from my craft tubs.

I'm obsessed and he's a wonderful dog.  I feel so blessed to have him in my life :)

Holly's First Birthday

Top O' the Mornin' to Ya! As my Saturday is filled with first attempts at making traditional Irish food, I thought I would share these photos from Holly's first birthday.  Holly turned 1 earlier this week and I did a photoshoot with her and Blu.

Happiest of birthdays to my sweet girl!

P U P P Y =]

Puppies have a magical power to make you feel better in every situation. Holly and Blu are both snuggle bugs and have foot fetishes. Holly likes to lick toes and Blu likes to bite teeth (ouch, those puppy needle teeth!).  Blu has learned how to scale things, just like Holly did at his age, and he also loves his "babies."  This usually involves a small, colorful lion toy that I got him from PETCO.  I'm also trying Nylabones with him, as well as toys you can freeze.  Today we got him reusable puppy diapers and liners.  The first use was rather unfortunate, leading to a very gross interaction, and me informing Ryan that's what having a baby consists of (lots of diapers).  For some reason, I felt very much like a mom. Although Ryan and I have talked about having babies, I think having Blu and Holly was a very real reminder of what goes into raising and developing anything, from a dog to a baby.  So enjoy this video of Blu and Holly romping around.  The song is "Sweet Thing" by Keith Urban.

Thanks for reading and watching!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Be sure to check out this month's featured blog:

Blog Changes & Too Cute: The Blu Wilhelm Edition

Before I go into the details of our adorable dog, I wanted to introduce a few changes on my blog.

The first is that I think I'm going to do "bedtime posting" (aka later hours).  I usually try to have it posted that morning of, but I find that I prefer to read through blog posts after work.  So expect more posting in the later hours and my next change involves sponsorships.  I still have my free ad space labeled the Falalala Friendship Ad. You can have your blog button (100x250) in my sidebar for FreeNinetyNine!  In exchange, I ask that you feature my blog through alternative social media methods rather than having my button.  Hey, if you still want my button, go for it! 

I've found that if you like my blog, we probably have a lot in common, including similar readership.  I would love to get to know more about you and your readers.  I have been invited to participate in mass giveaways to promote The Simplicity of Being Curious.  Honestly though, I appreciate all of your genuine comments and would rather not have someone forced to "like" my blog to win something.  I write for myself, but the blogging community is therapeutic and there are so many bloggers out there that I would love to meet!

Now I've left the "alternative social media methods" open-ended because I want to work with you and your needs.  If you would like to do Twitter shout-outs about my posts, Facebook links, feature me at the end of one of your posts, or have me come over and do a guest blog post--that's all up to you.  Those are just a few ideas, and I'm always game for anything.   

There is also a new sponsorship feature called: Weekly Shoutout.  On my Monday posts, I'll reserve half of it to showcase your blog.  Not only do you get a sidebar ad, but the opportunity to interact with my readers (who are pretty cool folks). I can't leave my sponsors hanging, so to top it off, I will also dedicate social media outlets to you for that week (i.e. Twitter, Facebook blog page, Instagram).  It's the perfect ad option if you're starting to invest in your blog and getting quality readership established and it's only $5.  If you want to get maximum ad exposure, I highly recommend the Granddaddy of 'em All ad space.  You are featured at the end of every single blog post.  Y'all know me, I love posting, aka you get a ton of exposure.  Not just that, but you get a guest blog post, sidebar ad, and social media blasts for the entire month!  It's also a really good deal.  That type of offer usually goes for $30 and here you can get it for $12. 

Now it's time for

P U P P I E S!

Have you seen the show on Animal Planet called Too Cute?  Our friend Hannah introduced it to us when they came to visit and see Blu, our new puppy.  Yes indeedy, we have another dog and his name is Blu Wilhelm.  I also call him Paddington Bear, Scrappy, and Little Man.  He is fricken adorable.

So in case you haven't seen the show, its premise is showing you adorable baby animals, especially puppies and kittens.  We saw Sharpei Puppies, Boston Terrier Puppies, Cairn Terrier Puppies and even an episode with itty bitty kittens.  I'm allergic to cats and so I'm absolutely lovin' the opportunity to ooh and ahh over anything that cute without getting itchy, watery eyes.

In celebration of a new dog in our home, here is Blu Wilhelm's edition of Too Cute:

 

It has definitely been an adjustment process for Holly, but she is doing a great job!  She has had to learn how to share toys, the space and domain of the house, and she is kind of adjusting to being a "momma" to him.  It's taken her a few days to understand that he's smaller than her so she can't play quite as rough.  With the assistance of a few time outs for both of them, they've learned to love playing with each other. 

He is an absolute joy!  He has longer fur than what Holly had as a puppy and it makes him look like a small bear, hence the reasons I call him Paddington Bear.  I call both of my dogs my baby bears and love nuggets...they're so cute!  He is basically potty trained and I can't stress enough how awesome that is.  However, with every set of good news is bad and we have had to reduce his water intake because he just loves drinking water.  Not normally a bad thing, but since he's developing an understanding of his kegel muscles, he occasionally "leaks."  It's not even a full on pee, it's just a few drops.  Nevertheless, it gets old really fast.  After taking him to the vet, the doctor basically explained my already existing thoughts on the problem.  He's perfectly fine, just a baby.  This does lead us to carry him everywhere in a towel, otherwise you risk the chance of getting pee droplets on you.  Awesome, I know.  This has quickly turned into the Too Cute, Reality Edition.  Tomorrow we're going to try a dog diaper on him, so that he becomes a little easier to carry around the house.  We've had troubles having him play with Holly on carpeted areas due those pesky pee droplets.  I also had to utilize dog wipes in wiping his belly and legs down quite frequently. 
Each of our puppies has had a unique issue while growing up.  Holly, when she was about a month older than Blu is now, used to pee & poop in her kennel and then stomp in it.  Ryan and I grew up with labradors and we had never seen that behavior before.  We had to wash her kennel out multiple times a day.  It took a trip to Wisconsin and a stay with several our labs back home to help her understand the concept of potty training.  So to say the least, I am incredibly happy that Blu is potty trained, I just hope his kegel muscles catch up with him. 

We learned so much with Holly.  This time around we're using a play pen and a kennel for Blu.  The play pen serves as his "home" and play area on the linoleum flooring and he loves it.  I prefer this to having solely a kennel for him because if he has to go outside, he cries (it's awesome that he understands that at a young age) and I can quickly grab him, the towel (you don't want to forget that) and take him outside.

Tomorrow I'll share some cute videos of his little adventures around the house and yard :)

Thanks for Reading!

Be sure to check out this month's awesome blog: