i love rainboots.

i think it's kind of like a snow in lake tahoe.  it's only 1-2 inches, people aren't comfortable with it, so they walk around like their going to have an afternoon hike up mt. everest.  i feel like this is what i look like during the rainy season here in ca.  rainboots, raincoat, & half the time, a baseball cap.  i look like a fool walking around target & to work, but on our daily trips to the dog park, jack has the most functional owner! 

the rain has been going for at least the last 2 months, so i've been marveling at all the green!  surprising what it can do with the "winter blues."  obviously, this "issue" doesn't exist out here!  along with the green, comes snails & slugs around here.  jacks ate 3 to-date.  thrown up 1.  (that we've found.)

i'll spare you the details on the digestive problems & show you some samples.  these creatures didn't show themselves often (or at all) in nd, so i'm amazed with the armies that come out when it's damp!  they don't survive very long in packs on our apartment complex sidewalks, but i got the chance to see them alive & well in a desolate area one morning last week.  jack only goes for the dime sized ones as shown, but there were some larger than quarters that came out that night -- gross, right?

i think they're cute.  i don't understand why jack wants to eat them.  because they move?  that's my theory.

they leave a sparkly trail in their path -- love!  it stays for days & marks all corners of our sidewalks.

graduation day in the bay.

i realize that the title makes it sound like a huge extravogant event -- you wouldn't think that it was all going down at petsmart, huh?  i also realize that puppy training classes at a chain-store are a little ridiculous when there are various dog wisperers & cozy dog trainer facilities in each part of the city, but i had a coupon!

so, once-a-week jack & i try & do our best in the back of the store to focus & work on our manners.  he's been great & i've had so much fun with him -- we've only gotten kicked out twice.  no big deal.  his adhd got the best of him.  a lap around the hampsters does wonders.

here's a glipse of the magic that took place during his graduation ceremony:

classic grad pic.

this is the closest the cap came to getting on his head.  even the shrimp chuahua barney let it touch him.

so proud!

here's his girlfriend piper.

she was rad.

at home he celebrated bromance style with andrew.  jack was obsessed with holding his hand.  i didn't even try to understand.

we start intermediate classes next week in hopes of cleaning up his act before we head down to az at the end of april.  good thing he'll do anything for a treat!

housesitting extravaganza.

so, not only am i a single parent this week, but i'm also housesitting for clint & conni!  wonderful people, amazing house -- complete with a 15-year-old cat.  i would like to say that they get along & play, but there's no chance of that happening.  they keep their distance.  the only real contact was when he went for her tuna/fancy feast breakfast & she stopped him in his tracks with a swat!  i gave him props for not wetting himself. 

daisy.  a photo from the night we went there for dinner last week.  jack was hidden away during dinner in conni's office.  daisy was completely annoyed with the crying -- it echoed thru the entire house.  no apology could cover the audio.

again, a photo from our initial trial dinner.  daisy hissing, jack a blur of running away.

anyways, i appreciate the opportunity to be an hour closer to work & jack doesn't seem to mind being together 24/7.  i can't say that i do either!

tired from exploring.  yeah, he's on a leash...going from a 1 bedroom apt. to their house throws off his entire world.  why give him the chance to become un-potty-trained & mark up their gorgeous house?  not worth it.

enjoy my andy warhol depiction of jack? so fun!

as i've said previously, obsessed.  he's had a couple visits to other houses & held it together pretty well.

• visit #1 was to clint & conni's.  only obsticles there were the cat (daisy) & wide open spaces.  he cried for an extra 25 minutes each time he was kenneled, made the cat hiss more than necessary, & examined every corner of their mansion-like house.
• visit #2 was to lindsey & tony's house (friends).  obsticles here were enzo & jessie, who are two dogs more that 5 times his size.  he survived & ended up in the car for a time-out by the end of the night.  i'm pretty sure his heart rate was well above it's limit for the entire night.  one thing we did learn was that he loved the fenced in backyard -- or at least he prefered it over our current situation of a 3rd floor apartment.

one thing that i am going to focus on: focusing on other things.  he's becoming more comfortable, we are becoming more trusting, so i think the time has come that we can turn our attention to other things.  my focus: sewing adventures & cleaning.  a's focus: work & laundry. 

i'm sure you are all breathing out a sigh of relief that the jack-streak is coming to an end!  ha!

hobby #382

i'm not that big of an arts & crafts person.  by that, i mean that i don't have a million scrapbooks, calligraphy talents, 20 crocheting & knitting projects going on at the same time, etc.  but i decided that i would attempt some quilting/sewing endeavors. 

ione (mom) was one of those chosen few that was talented in this field.  because her sewing/craft room was located in the basement, the echoes of the machine "humming" could be heard through the entire family room -- so my little simple singer noise is somewhat nostalgic! halloween costumes, dress-up dresses, first day of school outfits, a handful of picture day dresses (usually the first day of school dress), holiday vests, & elastic-waisted cotton pants with crewneck cotton puff painted outfits (mostly adorned with cartoon characters) are some of the sewing projects that ione created when we were growing up.  i want to do this!  cute little first day of school skirts -- adorable! 

too bad 3/5 projects that i've worked on so far have been repairing jacks toys.  lame.

project #1: puppy quilt
    i mostly didn't want to try make a "full" quilt as my first attempt & i knew i wouldn't set up the sewing
    machine right the first time.  plus, binding & basting is kind of hard!

here's the halfways point.  i think half the issue was getting him to stop trying to sit on it as i went through the machine!

as long as you don't look at it close-up, it looks pretty snazzy!

project #2: hamburger pin cushin
    each layer is a different storage for pins -- genius!  andrew approved of my choice of object & it inspired
    us to go to red robin this afternoon, so i consider it a success!

again, genius!

it has multiple issues, such as the sesame seed pattern is on the bottom too & the top "bun" isn't shaped quite right.  details...

i'll let you know what my next project is when inspiration strikes!

husband homecoming & v-day surprises

andrew got back from skiing on sunday night & walked in looking ridiculous, as seen here:

notice the monkey-handle chops?  apparently, no one really questioned or stared at him at heavenly.  gross.

jack didn't seem to mind.

other than that, i've been sick with the flu for the past 24 hours, which put a damper on v-day celebrations.  we didn't have big plans, but andrew made an amazing pasta dinner & we traded gifts.  i got him tickets to explore the "body works exhibit" that's currently up at the tech museum & the sf academy of sciences.  (okay, so i got it for both of us...).  he got me a huge talking balloon, chocolates, a diet coke (he thought this would help with my flu symptoms), & made dinner.  jack was totally intrigued, scared of, & fascinated by andrew's balloon choice:

at first, he was running & trying to sneak attack on it from different angles.  it talks, so barking was a given.

the last ditch effort was using andrew as a shield -- can you find him?

overall, we had a nice evening as a family, which is better than the whole cheesy night out around here -- i saw too many sparkly hearts & pre-determined valentine's day menus for my taste. 

the last surprise of the night was from talia & gus -- a sweet dog bone card.  jack had an interesting time trying to bite into it & finally figured it out, but it was hard to watch!

like i said, hard to watch!

i hope you all had a lovely day!

obsessed.

it's all i can talk about on the phone with family & friends.
it's the only thing i've flipped the camera lense off for lately.
it's what i watch like a hawk in my waking hours.
it's what i spend my breaks in the day with.
it's what i've been building a love/hate relationship with for the past 2 weeks.  (mostly love.)
it's what i cuddle with on a nightly basis. 
it's why i've invested in multi-sized lint rollers.  poor couch.

need i go on? 
yes, it's = jack.

he lives in my car during the day. i crack the windows & let him wander around the spacious trunk space in the crv, so it's legal folks!  i would rather do this than run the risk of getting stuck in traffic & not getting home in a timely manner.  i'm not complaining about this fact, but i do feel guilty for making him operate on my schedule. 

andrew is skiing for the weekend, so jack & i are making the best of our weekend together.  currently we are bonding with a pre-night nap (for him) & blog reading/writing (for me).  action packed saturday night, huh?

pup has grown, i swear.  see for yourself.

the puppy-eye wrinkles haven't disappeared yet.  so cute!

he's not a fan of polka dots.  he bits & licks all in no apparent order.

love.