Swimming lessons

Murphy finally learned how to swim today! After about 8 visits to Pennsylvania to visit family that lives on a creek, we finally saw a doggie paddle today. Each time we come here he gets a little braver but we always have to start from scratch and get him re acclimated to the water before he will go anywhere near it. Usually we can get him in a little by throwing a stick in the water but he would usually chase it downstream from the banks rather than risk going in too deep where he can't touch. Today he was determined to get his favorite ball out of the water. We may have had to drop him in the deeper water once or twice but pretty soon he was swimming like he was a lab! This is the place we joke most about him being a true city dog. He has proven us wrong over and over again though. He loves to hike and now swim...it just takes him a bit longer to learn :)

Meet Murphy

Since I will be talking about my dog quite a bit I thought I should introduce him. His name is Murphy and he's a boston terrier. He's two years old and absolutely crazy (in a good way!). He could play fetch with a ball for hours on end. Thank goodness I have a long hallway since that is what we do for about 2 hours each night! My neighbor with the shared hallway wall isn't Murphy's biggest fan to say the least unfortunately. We typically spend at least an hour each day in the dog park in an attempt to reduce his boundless energy. This week has been tough with the extreme heat. Murphy lasts about 5 minutes in the park before he plops down. When we try to take a walk he lasts about 2 blocks before sprawling out on the sidewalk. As soon as we get back inside in the AC though, he's ready to go! It's been a fun week :)

Not in Kansas anymore...

I've had dogs before. They were all my family dogs, which isn't exactly the same, but I thought I knew what I was in for. I grew up in upstate NY. Our dogs were big dogs who lived outside in their igloo doghouses most of the time. They were great companions, and I thought I knew all I needed to know about dogs before getting my own. This may have been the case, but what I didn't realize is the stark difference between owning a country dog and a city dog. I was NOT prepared to raise a 'city dog.' Sometimes I feel as though I have become the crazy lady who talks about her dog too much (and maybe I have) but then I step outside my building and walk by a dog birthday party in the dog park; hats, party favors, cake and all. At least I am not throwing birthday parties for my dog and all of his neighborhood dog friends. Yet.