Weight-ing Around

It's weigh-in day, folks! And the theme today is "2 steps up, 2 steps down." I managed to lose those two pounds that I gained last week, and not a smidge more. I guess I'm happy with that, although I was really hoping for a bonus pound as a reward for coming to my senses. :)  Ah well, considering I missed three gym days last week to take the dogs for a walk, I didn't burn quite as many calories as I should/could have. So I'm good with two pounds.

I've decided something. I know in the past I said I was only going to track my weight loss since January and not count the 5 lbs I lost in November/December. Well that's just stupid. Because in my head I'm still including that 5 lbs and it's just getting downright confusing tracking two different numbers. Plus, it's weight that's gone off my body, why shouldn't I count it? I was at my heaviest weight EVER around Thanksgiving, so I should be counting any weight lost since then. There, it's decided. So I'm down 17lbs. That's a big chunka change, folks! Looking at myself, I don't really know where I put it! Guess I was bigger than I thought.

AND! AND guess what! There's more! You know my handy dandy scale with it's fancy doohickies that measure body fat? Well my percentage went down! I was at 31.somethin' (after we figured out how tall I really am *hehe*) and this morning it read 28.7! That's a significant drop, isn't it? So I guess I'm building some muscle, which is great. To be honest I haven't even worked that hard at strength-training yet. I've been doing mostly cardio with some weights thrown in every once in a while. So I was pleased to see that number had changed. :)

Here's what I'm most excited about. Remember the great weather I told you about? Well it spurred me to dig out some shorts and capris from the depths of my drawers. I thought trying them on might give me some extra motivation, y'know, to shrink into them. But they FIT!!! Hallelujah! My super cute denim capri's that I ballooned out of last Summer are fitting beautifully again. 

And then there's a couple pairs of shorts that I bought last Spring on sale. They were too tight when I bought them but I planned on losing some more weight so they'd fit. I never managed to do that, so these shorts were sitting in my drawer with the tags still on them. Tragic! But I was able to get them up and zipped AND still breathe in them. :) It was a very good day.

Dogwalker

My dogs are getting spoiled. Today I treated them to their fourth consecutive walk. I know, I think they might explode with joy! *haha* The weather since Thursday has just been too good to be true, though. So I couldn't resist taking advantage of it. And each day we've walked in a different direction or place so it's been fresh and fun each time. (Of course I think I could walk them in a circle in the driveway and they'd probably still enjoy it.)

On Thursday it actually got into the 80's here!! It was crazy! I mean, I was physically hot at one point. In March. Nutso! But that day we walked a whole city block, which I measured later in my car and it equals about 4 miles. Not too shabby! No wonder all of their tails and tongues were dragging when we got home. 

Then on Friday I decided to walk them to our closest Sonic. That's something I've always wanted to do, since it's the only place I can think of where you can place your order outside. (You'll be proud, though. No corndog and tator tots for this girl. Just a small water, extra ice for me and a small water, no ice for them. Boooooring but refreshing. And cheap! *haha*) And on the residential road we took to get there, a passing car honked and stopped alongside us...it was my friend Sandy that I used to work with! What ARE the odds?? (It was great to see you Sandy! It made our day! Well, it made my day. Putting the leashes on their necks had already made the dogs' day. *hehe*)  When we got there, some of the carhops loved up my doggies while I sipped my water for a bit, then we headed back. But it was fun, I think we'll do it again!

Yesterday was the first time I've driven the dogs anywhere since I cleaned my car. I wanted it to stay fur-free as long as possible for a while, considering how hard those guys had worked (and the fact I'd paid for it). Earlier in the week, I had spotted a walkway around a lake that sits behind a local shopping center, so we went there for our stroll. It was much, much windier than I'd expected so it was the least pleasant of our walks this week. But they still seemed to enjoy it.

And today we just strolled around our neighborhood. We live in a pretty nice area for walking...there aren't many sidewalks but the streets are plenty wide and not too busy. I like to always go a different way and see what new routes I can come up with.  Today we ran across a group of little girls riding bikes. They all started to "Awwww PUPPIES! Awww! AWWW!!!' and eventually one said, "Can we pet'em real quick?" I obliged, since the boys LOVE attention and are usually disappointed when passerby's don't feel the need to pet them. At the same time, I thought back to when I was a kid...I would have NEVER approached a total stranger and requested to pet their dogs. I guess my Mom just engrained a much better stranger-danger radar in me. Then again I probably didn't look all that intimidating to these kids. *haha* And at least they did ask...a lot of kids just come running, not knowing if the dogs are friendly or not. Dangerous! 

Generally when people see me walking three dogs, they say something like, "Looks like you've got your hands full!" or "Are they all yours?" I just laugh and nod. Really, I'm surprised no one ever comments about how under control they are. They are SUCH good walkers. I mean, walking three dogs at once could be an absolute nightmare but they're so good, it's a pleasure! (Except for the occasional opportunity to carry fresh, warm, dog poop in a thin plastic baggy. That's not so fun.)

Of course, I do have some help. MoJo and Wrigley both wear Gentle Leaders, which work wonders! I haven't seen the need to get Cubby one at this point. Since neither MoJo or Wrigley are pulling, he doesn't seem to feel competitive or need to charge ahead of us. 

Other than that, my tricks are these: They must remain by my side at all times. MoJo walks on the right by himself because he touchy if he doesn't have enough room, Cubby and Wrigley are on the left (although sometimes Cubby trails behind, which is fine.) I don't let them pull out in front (that was a tip from the Dog Whisperer...a dog that leads the way believes its in control). I used to let MoJo trot around ahead of me however he pleased, but then when we got Wrigley, this became a problem because their leashes would get tangled. I can't even imagine the chaos of THREE dogs doing their own thing! Yikes! Oh, in order to keep them reigned in and close I take all three leashes and tie them around my right hand, which I keep behind my back. So I guess you can say I walk all three dogs with one arm tied behind my back! *haha* 

Also, they're only allowed to pee/sniff/pee some more, at designated stops. I can't have them all tugging to get at different poles and bushes the entire time...that would be exhausting. So two or three times on a walk, I'll "pull over" to let them have their fun. I make them take turns (learned that lesson after having them pee on each other one too many times...three hiking dogs is a mess.) and they've learned the routine. First MoJo, then Wrigley, then Cubby. What this does to their little doggy hierarchy I don't really know...but that would be interesting to have analyzed! *haha* Somebody call Cesar! ;)

Hmmm...sorry, I just realized this is my fourth dog post in a row since I did the "Meet My Mutts" triolgy. But tomorrow is weigh-in day, so no dogs here tomorrow I promise! 

Meet Cubby!

It's time to complete the Trifecta.....my three amigos, three musketeers, three little piggies. *hehe* Thanks for indulging my need to ramble incessantly about my dogs. They really are my babies. :)

Cubby 

(aka Cubs, Cubbers, Cubby Wubby, Cubby Dubby, Cubbalicious, and CUBBY MATTHEW!! when he's in trouble.)

Oh and to answer a question that was posed...yes we ARE Cubs (and Bears) fans. Well, Jeremy is and I tagalong cause I'm his wife. *hehe* Wrigley was named after Wrigley Field, but I actually chose the name Cubby because he reminded me so much of a little lion cub as a puppy. But it still works for that theme too. :)

The 411

Breed: Pretty much no clue. Any guesses?? His mom was a chihuahua mix and we don't know what the daddy was, so there's no telling how much of a hybrid this baby is.

Age: 1 1/2 (but still all puppy!)

Fur Color:  Cream, blonde, whatever you wanna call it. I call it Pudding. :)

Fur Type: Amazingly soft! It reminds me of a Golden Retriever. The only problem is that it acts like a cottony magnet...everything sticks to it! Leaves, twigs, fuzz, everything.

Eye Color: Brown

Size: Around 11 lbs. The funny thing about Cubby is that he has fairly short legs but a long body, so when he stands next to the other dogs he's smaller than they are, but when he SITS next to them, his head is even with MoJo's! 

What's your favorite thing about your dog? He is sweet as sugar! Something about him just makes me wanna baby him and kiss him all over. He does this adorable noise when he yawns, that I call the "Littlefoot yawn." (Which can be observed at 1:13 in the below clip). It's precious. He also happens to follow me around everywhere and practically melts at my feet when I acknowledge his presence. 

What's your least favorite thing? He growls. Not like aggressively. Almost like an unconscious response to being moved or disturbed. Like instead of a groan or a sigh to release excess air, he growls. *haha* And brave visitors think it's really funny to get him all riled up and annoyed because then he growls REALLY loud.  

Background

Where did you get him? We got him from the same shelter that Wrigley came from: OK-Save-A-Dog in Oklahoma City.

Any special details? Well sometime in the Fall of '07 I was struck by puppy fever. True, we had just gotten Wrigley in February, but we didn't get to enjoy his puppy stage since he was already a couple years old. So I started to hint, ask, beg....whatever it took. Jeremy finally agreed. 

This time I thought I wanted a much smaller dog, a "pocket puppy" if you will. I also thought it would be fun to have a female. Just to mix things up (and dress things up, if you get my drift *hehe*). But I also wanted to adopt from a shelter again, so that narrowed my choices a bit.

Then in December I found a listing on Petfinder.com for a litter of Chihuahua mix puppies at OK-Save-A-Dog. There were a couple females in the mix, but they were already spoken for. But that was OK because the one I fell in love with was the male: a fluffy little poofball that just melted my heart! Check it out, these were the pictures from the ad:

Cubby's on the left.

Hanging out with a fellow-shelter dog. He's the chubby lump giving kisses. (And yes, I did want the St. Bernard too, but that wasn't gonna happen.)

So that weekend we drove down to OKC to pick up our new baby. On the way there, I started to feel kinda yucky and by the time we arrived, I had the full-fledged flu with a fever and all. It was miserable. Especially because that same weekend, OKC was hit with the biggest ice storm they've ever seen. It was actually quite scary. Everything shut down and in the morning Jeremy literally had to break our car out of a layer of ice. (While I laid down on the bed like a zombie.) 

We were actually scared that we wouldn't be able to make it to the shelter, because the roads were really bad. But luckily, the shelter was far enough away that the area almost completely missed the storm. Thank God! To go through all that without getting to take Cubby home would have been terribly frustrating.

So we showed up and Kim (the shelter owner) brought out this tiny, fuzzy, wiggly little ball. I tried to be a little more thorough with the "dog-testing" this time, doing a few quick things to make sure he wasn't "broken." *haha* He seemed just perfect so we loaded up in the car and made our way back home. We had a little photo shoot as he sat in my lap.

Where's the mother? I believe she was still at the shelter. :( I hope she found a good home too!

Spayed/Neutered? Yes. The shelter spays and neuters every animal before it's adopted.

Any injuries or illnesses?  Nothing! *knock on wood*

Training

Does he bite? He's our biggest "play-biter." He doesn't bite down hard but he does still like to "mouth" on hands. Nothing a little smack on the nose doesn't take care of, though. ;)

Does he jump on people? This is a yes on all our boys. :(

Is he house-broken? Yes, almost completely. If we don't pay close enough attention to him and miss his very quiet and polite requests, though, he will leave us a present in front of the door.

Has he chewed up anything special? Other than a few stray pens or pieces of paper, he really hasn't gotten into much. 

Does he bark? Yes. But only when he's playing. He doesn't bark at people or animals out the window or at the doorbell. 

Fetch? YES!! We were so excited when we discovered he liked to fetch. He's really good at it, too. He'll just keep bringing that ball back until you ignore him.

Did he go to obedience school? No....I kept meaning to sign him up for the puppy class but time got away from us.  

Does he play nicely with others? Well he plays really well with MoJo and Wrigley. But I took him (without the other two) to a church football game where he met a friend's huge, very excited Golden Retriever puppy. He coward behind my legs and growled. I think he was already feeling insecure to be without his brothers in a strange place for the first time...plus a little scared by this big dog.

Has he ever humped your leg? No, nor anything else.

Any special tricks? He can sit and shake. We really dropped the ball on teaching him stuff. But it's really hard to teach anything when you've got two other dogs trying to get the treats too.

Preferences

Where's his favorite place to sleep? At night he sleeps at the end of the bed at my feet. 

Favorite food? CHEESE!! 

Favorite toy? He loves toys, period! 

Favorite place to run around? Backyard.

Favorite owner? I think it's ME! *hehe* I know he loves Jeremy too, but I truly feel that he's a mama's boy. :)

Personality

Is your dog calm or hyper?  He's still a puppy, what can I say? He does the silliest things for attention.

Explorer or Couch Potato? Explorer! He loves the outdoors, especially when he finds a stick that needs chewing. 

Does he learn quickly? We haven't really challenged him enough to know! :(

Stubborn at all? Yeah. if he doesn't want to come in when you call him he'll just stare at you from the yard. Reminds me of the Miniature Schnauzer I grew up with. 

Does he like to swim? Probably not...he doesn't like to get wet.

Is he a cuddler? Yes, absolutely! When Jeremy and I sit on the couch together he simply must be touching one of us. He prefers to be in a lap, but he'll settle for just leaning up against you if the laps are taken by the other two.

Some Favorite Photos 

Cutest puppy EVER! :)

What a great Christmas present! 

Snow puppy

Standing at me feet

Looking grown up!

His ears get kinda crazy sometimes. :)

Snuggly wuggly

My favorite Cubby photo to date. Doesn't he look regal? :)

Meet Wrigley!

It's time for another installment of HERE'S...MY....DOGGY!!! *trying to sound like a game show host*

(BTW, thanks for the nice comments about my Mojey Pojey. And yes, absolutely, everyone should feel free to use this on their blog for their own dogs [or cats! or guinea pigs! or whatever!] I would adore that! It would be a hoot to meet the special little creatures in your lives.)

Wrigley 

(aka Wriggles, Wrigs, WrigaMaJig, Wrigaroo, and 

WRIGLEY JAMES!! when he's in trouble)

The 411

Breed: He's a Terrier Casserole. Can'tcha tell? (More Rat than Jack Russell, if you ask me. But others have disagreed.

Age: 3-ish we think.

Fur Color:  Mostly white, with a few liver polka dots...and some great freckles on his shnozz.

Fur Type: Short and wiry. He sheds the kind of hair that digs itself into your clothes (or upholstery) and then holds on for dear life. *sigh*

Eye Color: Brown

Size: He's smaller than MoJo but weighs more! He's almost 16lbs! He's pretty stalky...but we do watch his treat intake because the vet warned us he was getting "too round." Of all the nerve! *haha*

What's your favorite thing about your dog? Aw Wrigley. What's not to love? He really is quite a charmer...making every single person that enters this house feel as though they are the only person he has ever loved. He rolls over in your lap and gazes up at you as if you were singing him a love song. I also love how well he gets along with both MoJo and Cubby. I call him the "Glue Dog," as in the glue that holds us all together. (Obscure White Squall reference anyone?) It's so cute to see how much they both want to be with him. They almost fight over him. *haha*

What's your least favorite thing? The same quality that makes him so sweet: he's SO stinkin' needy! There always seems to be this extreme urgency in his desire to be near you. He doesn't respect personal space AT ALL.

Those are MY legs! Told ya, no personal space.

Background

Where did you get him? He's from a shelter right outside of Oklahoma City called OK-Save-A-Dog. We found him through Petfinder.com.

Runt of the litter?  Wish I knew! 

Any special details? Of course silly head! In February of 2007, we started thinking MoJo needed a friend. This time around I knew I wanted a rescue dog, but other than that the only qualification was that it be another male, young and close in size. Breed didn't matter to me.

We found his profile the week of Valentine's Day and I made a mental note of him, but I was still extremely surprised when I got home from work Valentine's Day evening and Jeremy met me at the door with a suitcase. He told me we were taking a little roadtrip to OKC and were going to meet Wrigley (then going by "Tyro") the next morning! He'd already bought another crate, leash, colloar...the whole shebang. So I guess you could say Wrigs was my Valentine's Day present. :)

The next day when we went to meet Wrigley, we were smitten with him instantly. It was a FREEEEEEZING cold day and the poor little guy was just shivering like mad. I picked him up and he nuzzled into my chest. He was dirty (there was mud and snow on the ground) and painfully thin. I know you're supposed to do a full-blown examination of a dog before you adopt them, to make sure you don't end up with a "lemon." But from the minute I held him I just wanted to sweep him off into the car. And that's basically what we did (after we paid the lady, that is). I wrapped him up in the blankets Jeremy had thoughtfully brought and blasted the car heat on high. He looked up at me with that patented Wrigley look...and I knew we'd done the right thing. Here are pictures of what he looked like when we first got him home:

So sad, isn't it?? And to think he's now being accused of being "too round!" That's what getting into our family will do for ya. *wink wink*

Where's the mother? Wouldn't really know, now would I? *haha*

Spayed/Neutered? Yes. The shelter spays and neuters every animal before it's adopted.

Any injuries or illnesses?  The only thing that's ever happened to this poor fella is when he ripped his dewclaw in half. (The story's here, if you wanna read it.) He was a super trooper about it, though.

Training

Does he bite? We've never been bitten by Wrigley. Now...if he gets really into a bone he will growl and bare his teeth and make all sorts of evil noises. But he doesn't follow through on it. *haha*

Does he jump on people? This is a yes on all our boys. :(

Is he house-broken? Yes! The best of the three. I can't think of a single accident he's ever had in the house...not even straight from the shelter.

Has he chewed up anything special? Nothing "special," but he is a bit of a chew monster. He destroyed the tray that used to sit in the bottom of his crate (which now sits on a plank of wood so he won't chew a hole in the carpet). And he shreds any blanket, pillow or towel that is put in his crate. Plus he can "kill" a stuffed toy and have the squeaker out in record time. I haven't been able to find a toy he can't destroy. But he's never chewed anything up around the house, like shoes or furniture or anything.

Does he bark? Yeeeah. The terrier in him demands that he bark at anyone who comes to the door or any furry creature that passes his way. He also barks in protest when he's first crated. But he's fairly easy to shut up.

Fetch? Kinda. He likes to fetch a few times but then decides he'd rather chew up whatever we're throwing. *haha*

Did he go to obedience school? No but I wish we would have. 

Does he play nicely with others? Yes! I can't imagine him not getting along with anyone. Oh wait....

When we first brought him home, he and MoJo were no love connection. I think it was mostly MoJo's fault, but it was still very frustrating! We had to keep them completely separated for the first WEEK. I was starting to think Wrigley was gonna have to find a new place to live, but then we saw on the Dog Whisperer a similar situation. Cesar (our hero) simply took the dogs on a walk together, conveying to them that they were "in the same pack." We decided to give it a try and AMAZINGLY it worked!  We brought them home and they ran around the backyard, playing like they were best buddies. It was nothing short of a miracle. :) This picture was taken shortly thereafter:

(Look how much he'd already fattened up. Just in a week!)

Has he ever humped your leg? No. But he does like to play that "game" with Cubby. Especially when we have company. I think he's just trying to get our attention, cause we always go nuts trying to stop him. 

Any special tricks? *haha* No. Wrigley is the sweetest thing, but he ain't the brightest crayon in the box. He can sit on command and after about 2 months we managed to teach him to shake. And anytime you try to teach him anything new...he just keeps puttin' that paw up in the air like, "I can do THIS! I can do THIS! I can do THIS!" :)

Preferences

Where's his favorite place to sleep? Curled up next to me, under the covers. During the day, since he's always cold, his very best friend is the portable space heater I use. He follows it wherever I put it and basks in its glow.

Favorite food? I think he'd eat anything...but lately he's really into apple cores. 

Favorite toy? Anything with a squeaker!

Favorite place to run around? Backyard.

Favorite owner? I know he has plenty of love for me, but I'd be crazy not to admit he's a Daddy's boy. The evidence is overwhelming:

Personality

Is your dog calm or hyper?  Fairly calm. We've coined the exceptionally clever name "Crazy Wrigley Time" for when he does go nuts. He runs up and down the stairs, around tables, on and off of couches...the whole time making these "Rooroooroooroo!" noises. It's pretty hilarious. He also enjoys a good romp with Cubby. They love the wrestle.

Explorer or Couch Potato? Couch potato. He's always the first one ready to come inside.

Does he learn quickly? Ahuh, no.

Stubborn at all? Not really. He's easily intimidated so he doesn't stick to his guns. And he's eager for affection so he'll stop whatever he's doing if you'll pet him.

Does he like to swim? I doubt it. He has come to enjoy bathtime, though. Being covered in hot water while being massaged can't be that bad, right?

Is he a cuddler? Yes! His joints are very stiff, though, which makes him awkward to cuddle sometimes.

Some Favorite Photos 

Happy face!

I'll do anything for you, Mommy.

Loungin' around in a t-shirt.

All dressed up with nowhere to go!

"If you leave me now, you'll take away the biggest part of meeeee!!! OOOOOOOOH baby please don't gooooo!"