Our New Dog - Piper Payne

Dear Gage and Gabe,

The day we got back from vacation, we stopped by Charlie's house and picked up our new puppy Piper. Charlie's dog Hippy had 11 puppies for her very first litter. They were born on April 30 and that day your Daddy and I went over to their house and picked out little Piper. They live nearby, so we would go over and visit her on occasion just to see how she was doing. We were very excited to bring her home and you boys really like her. She is a hyper little thing and she loves to play.


3 days old - Gage just loves the little "hamster"

Playing with Piper - 4 weeks old

Piper and her brothers and sisters - 4 weeks old



Taking Piper for a ride in the wagon

Reading Piper a story

Taking Piper down the slide

My fur baby

Recently, I started taking her out for runs with us. She does OK. She's getting better. The very first time was terrible. She couldn't figure out which side to run on, kept biting the leash and would somehow get twisted around the tires. I nearly fell a few times as she switched sides and tangled the leash around my legs. I have yet to take her out with only me. I usually take my longs runs solo on the backroads near the house, and my shorter runs are accompanied by you boys at either Kerieakes Park or the park in Plano. There are several dogs that live out on the roads near the house, so I am afraid of a doggie conflict. I think we'll just keep taking her with us to the park until she gets a little bigger and can hold her own.

After our first run at the park

 

Crate training was a breeze. Every night she goes into her crate to sleep and doesn't make a peep until morning. Potty training, on the other hand, is not going well. She can be outside on her lead for hours and then come inside and potty on the floor within minutes. She won't go in her crate, but loves to go on the carpet. I'm getting frustrated, but we are trying to be patient and take her outside every 30 minutes or so to potty. She's doing a little better, but definitely not accident free.

We are happy to have Piper in our family. Right now, since she's young, she is a ball of energy. She can't sit still and always wants to play. Once she's a little older, she'll calm down and I think you boys will enjoy her more.

I love you,
Mommy

Gage gives himself a haircut (6/5/14)

Dear Gage and Gabe,

Gage, back in June you found a pair of scissors and decided to give yourself a little haircut. Luckily, you only cut your own hair and didn't try to play barber shop with Gabe. We kept telling ourselves it wasn't as bad as we thought, but it honestly did not look good. Not at all. Thankfully, you didn't cut any more of your hair than you did, so after about a month of wearing hats, it was time for a real haircut and you couldn't see the evidence of your barbershop horror.

It doesn't look that bad...

Actually, yes. It does.

At the end of vacation, the nearly hairless spots were burned from the Florida sun

I love you,

Mommy

Vacation Day 5 (6/13/14)

Dear Gage and Gabe,

Gabe, you and I started Friday the 13th out with an early morning run. You were up early and since everyone else was still in bed, we decided to take advantage and hit the pavement. I was hoping to get in 6 miles, and while the total was six, we walked the final mile. It was so beautiful outside and the perfect way to start the day.

Our running view



Gabe, you snoozed for the final few miles. I wish I had it that easy

By the time we got back, everyone was starting to wake up. Since it was our last full day in Miramar, we decided to take full advantage and get outside to soak up some sun. We started out at the pool.

Gage, you loved to play on the steps of the pool.

But occasionally, Daddy would take you out further into the pool

It was quite windy down on the beach and unfortunately, the wind took our canopy tent for a tumble across the beach. Luckily, there wasn't anyone too close by, but the tent wasn't that lucky. Two of the legs were bent beyond repair, so we retired the tent into the dumpster. We were still able to enjoy the day. The windy conditions were perfect for kite flying. You boys thought the kite was pretty cool and took turns flying it. We played in the water, built sandcastles and enjoyed the day. 

That sun is bright!

Gabe, you liked playing in the pools of water caught by the tide.

Daddy buried Gage in the sand

We decided to go out to eat on our last day. We got a recommendation from a local and went into Destin to a place called Harbor Docks. We were able to sit out on the patio to enjoy our meal. The food was delicious and it was a nice atmosphere.

Pretty girls

Daddy and Mommy

Silly boys wouldn't sit still for a picture

We went back to the condo and decided to go for a walk on the beach. There was a full moon that night so it was a beautiful site. It was the perfect end for a great week at the beach.

We had such a great vacation and we look forward to going back again next year!

I love you,
Mommy