Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!

A bit too much turkey left Griffin and Olivia pretty sleepy!

Olivia and Griffin's 5 Year Photos

Olivia and Griffin turned 5 in October, and, as I have done every year, I had their photos taken. The photo session happened to be a week after Nate and I got engaged, so the bullies and I decided to include him this year.

When Nate and I first started dating, he thought I was a CRAZY dog lady who worried too much about Olivia's feelings. Three years later, HE is just as dog focused as I am (is it coincidental that our engagement happened once he went dog crazy???).

Anyway, here are some of my favorites-

Worst Dog Ever

Griffin bit a guy in his prosthetic hook arm today. Yes, go ahead and re-read that- my dog bit a man in his hook hand.

Kill me now.

We were at the park and a man saw Olivia chasing her ball and he approached, asking me, "how did you teach her to do that?" I get approached at least twice a week when we are at the park- we are a spectacle, so this is pretty common. Then the man turned his attention to Grif and Griffin was his super friendly, wiggly, adorable self. The man bent down to pet him and as he did, Grif jumped up and bit his hook. Griffin LOVES tools and is very curious about everything, so I can't say I'm surprised that he reacted that way. But I was shocked when he did it and I apologized profusely as I grabbed him.

The man was very understanding and said, "whoa! He's a playful one!" I was relieved that he wasn't mad, but I was still mortified and absolutely wanted to strangle Griffin.

Anyway, other than that, the bulldogs have just been hanging out, going to daycare & the office, playing at the park, living the life.

Announcement!

Griffin and Olivia have an announcement---

On Tuesday of last week, Nate told me that on Friday, I needed to be ready by 4pm with an overnight bag packed. I said, "wait, overnight? I need to call my mom to have her come stay with the dogs!"

He told me he'd already taken care of it.

I asked if "taken care of" meant that he was planning on leaving a big pile of food in the living room, telling Olivia to be in charge, or if he'd called my mother. He told me he thought Liv could handle it.

I called my mom and asked her what she was doing Friday. She said, "nothing."

I asked if that meant nothing at my house and then explained the situation. She agreed that Olivia would definitely rise to the occasion.

Despite everyone's confidence in my darling bulldog, Nate had already arranged for my mom to stay and he surprised me with a stay at an amazing B&B, fabulous dinner and a romantic proposal. 

We're getting married!

Noisy Dogs!

Do all dogs make as much noise as my dogs do? Is it a bulldog thing? Sometimes I feel like I am living with mini zoo animals.

This video is of Griffin hanging out in my office. 

On Thursday of last week, the bullies and I went to camp for a few days. The minute I brought the cooler out of the basement, it was OVER. Olivia was barking and whining and wouldn't let me out of her sight. She was SO excited to go to camp. She was driving me INSANE.

A few cute photos from the weekend-

Snuggling

Snuggling

Olivia and Abby hanging out at camp

Last night, I was sitting on a chair in my room, watching
a show on my computer. Griffin cried until we traded. He was happy
once he had the chair and I was on the floor...

Snuggling Sunday

It's a cold rainy Sunday and we're being lazy. The four of us are spending the day snuggling on the couch. Nate and I have just started watching Breaking Bad on Netflix and we're hooked. There's nothing better than a lazy day wearing sweatpants, snuggled under a blanket on our new (super comfy) couch. We've got two fat bulldogs to keep us warm and life is good.

The new ottoman is very big, which is perfect for all of us...

Olivia is tired and looks annoyed that we woke her up.

Grif is also tired.... 

Guess who woke up and decided that we should be done watching....

More Random Videos

The wagon has been an excellent addition to our walks. We are able to go much longer distances (which is so good for Olivia) and Griffin only has to walk about half the time. Last week though, Olivia had been at daycare all day and was super tired. But it was really nice out and Nate and I wanted to go for a walk. If Olivia had been going any slower, she would have been stopped, so I gave in and let her ride too. She was a NATURAL and enjoyed her neighborhood tour immensely. Since then, every time we go for a walk, she's looks at the wagon like, "put me in there!"

The videos below are just random everyday bulldog life experiences. Anyone who is considering bringing a bulldog into their life should watch these videos, because THIS is just your average day with bullies.

Video 1- Griffin cries when we aren't touching. Nate and I were playing Scrabble and Griffin pretty much cried the entire time. When we eventually sat down on the couch, he stopped.

Video 2- I've been trying to catch a FULL blown Olivia tantrum for 5 years. She flings her body at the couch, screeches like she is being ripped limb from limb, and wiggles around dramatically. I assure you, she is not injured, in pain of any kind, sick, or being harmed. She is just being dramatic. However, as soon as the camera comes out, she calms down, so I've never gotten a full tantrum. I'm confident there will be another one soon, so I'll keep trying. 

Videos of the Puppies

Here are some random videos of Olivia and Griffin in the last week-

The first video is Griffin in the office. Some people take coffee breaks or stand at the water cooler (do people still do that?). Grif comes to the office 2-3 times a week, so for Abby and I, our "break" times are usually because Griffin needs some attention. Abby and I have offices across the hall from each other and Griffin usually wanders between them throughout the day. Sometimes, we will both hear, "thud, thud, thud" and we'll look at each other and both get up and run towards the stairs because Griffin is taking himself out by leaving.... or my darling boy is distracting us like the video below. 

At home, Griffin and Olivia spend a lot of time playing together. Sometimes the wrestle, sometimes they lay on the floor and barely move (see the video below for their lazy playing). They just lay on the floor and bite each other. I didn't know anything about dogs before I had Olivia and Griffin. It sort of looks like they are fighting, but they are both completely content, relaxed, happy and playing- despite the amount of biting going on. 

Danny came over the other day. Danny is BY FAR, Griffin's favorite person in the world. Grif gets SO excited when Danny is at our house. Unless Danny is literally touching Griffin, Grif wails. He just wants to snuggle Danny nonstop. 

That's all for now. The bullies are lovin' life and chillin' until the weather cools down a bit...

Relaxin' at Home

We're back in our school year routine and have adjusted to being home from camp. Olivia is back at daycare two days a week and on those days, she is EXHAUSTED and very quiet all evening long. There is nothing better than a calm, easy going bulldog. On Olivia's school days, Griffin comes to the office with me and he has been VERY easy going. We go outside very now and then and he likes to greet the mailman and check out anyone who walks down the hall, but mostly, he just chills. 

When we got home from daycare, Olivia walked into the yard
and basically collapsed. Apparently it was a busy day!

Nate and I have been busy with a million different things, but we finally had time to relax a few nights ago. Naturally, all 4 of us had to be close enough to touch. 

When we aren't relaxing, Olivia and Griffin enjoy playing. They make a lot of noise, but there is nothing cuter than bullies playing...

In the Name of Fitness!

In 2010, Griffin had palate surgery (remember this story?!) which changed his life! He had been sick constantly and could barely breathe anytime he walked. A week after surgery, he was running- I almost burst into tears of joy. He was a brand new dog and aside from a few episodes, has been mostly healthy since then.

However, Griffin has a windpipe the size of a straw and despite the improvements after surgery, he will always have limitations. His breathing is noisy and he gets winded much more quickly than Olivia. And when he exerts himself for a long period of time he usually gets sick. He went to daycare a few days a week for about 3 weeks and then he got pneumonia. The vet told me that because of his compromised breathing, any situation where he exerts himself would lead to him getting sick.

I should have known better, but when we got to camp in May, the bulldogs and I started taking daily walks. Olivia has a lot of energy and I needed something to tire her out. And really, all three of us can always use a little extra exercise. But after about a week of daily walks, Grif got sick again. Since then, I have been MUCH more careful about letting him exert himself. He needs to exercise, but I try to keep a close eye on him and slow him down before he gets too out of breath.

Now that we are home from camp and the bulldogs aren't as active, getting enough exercise is important to making sure they don't gain weight. Often, I take them for a walk and after a few blocks, turn around, drop Griffin off at home and then take Liv for a MUCH longer walk.

But I've been thinking that I would like to find a way to take long walks without being stuck going around the same 3 blocks near my house.

Ta dah!!!!!

Check out our new WAGON!!

After Grif tried it out, Olivia was VERY
curious and eager to get a turn!

The wagon can hold up to 150 lbs, but it might
be tight if I have to squeeze both of them in it... 

So now Griffin can walk for a little while and then, once he gets tired, he can ride the rest of the way while Olivia and I get a good walk.

When I emailed these photos to Danny, his response was, "What the F is wrong with you?" but I want to point out that this wagon is in the name of fitness!

More walks for the bulldog brigade, starting now!

Nate humored me and agreed to join us on a walk, despite the fact that he was a little apprehensive about the new wagon.

We started out with both dogs walking and me pulling the wagon. Nate happened to lead us down a very quiet street that we don't usually walk down (I think he was a little embarrassed to be seen with us).

Griffin was not entirely cooperative when I put him into the wagon. It was really hot outside tonight and we hadn't walked very far, so Nate thought Grif wasn't tired enough yet. But it was hot and I wanted to see how he would react to the wagon. 

Nate was completely amused....

But eventually Griffin cooperated and he stayed in the wagon for the entire 2 blocks home and I think he liked it. 

I think that the walk/ride system is going to work well and I am excited for the weather to cool down so we can go for long walks!!

From Camp, Back to City Life

A miserable bulldog, stuck inside the house all day...

We've been home from camp for 3 weeks already and I'm not sure that the bulldogs have fully adjusted. I was gone for 8 days volunteering at a camp in Michigan, so I missed most of their first week home (and the tantrums that go with the adjustment). My boyfriend Nate took excellent care of them, taking them to the park and spoiling them. My mom also spent a lot of time with them, taking several days off to spend dog sitting.

However, for the past few days (and what's looking like the rest of this week at least), the weather has been HOT. It was 100 degrees today with HIGH humidity. Anything over about 71 degrees is TOO HOT for a bulldog, but this weather is ridiculous! Every time I open the door to let them outside, the blast of heat feels like opening an oven door.

At 6:45am this morning, we went to the park, but it was already in the 80s, so we were only there for 10 minutes. It's too hot for them to even lay around outside, so right now, I have two miserable prisoners.

Tomorrow Olivia is going back to daycare and Grif is going to go with me to the office. I am hoping that both places are cool enough for them, otherwise, they are going to be stuck inside for the rest of the week....

Poor bulldogs.

Summer Fun

The summer has come to an end and it is bittersweet as we leave camp and head home. Well, it is bittersweet for me as I love camp and I also love my life at home. I think it is just sort of bitter for Grif and Liv as they would choose camp life 100% of the time.

They love the constant attention, play times every few hours, going to the beach, hanging out in the office or out with the kids, roasted marshmallows, exploring the woods, chasing the bunnies that live right outside of my house, lazy days lounging in the sun, and then falling into bed, completely exhausted at the end of the day.

Here are some random camp pictures-

Griffin and Leilani had an "I love you"/
"I sorta wanna knock you down" type relationship

Olivia at camper break time. She likes to
be in a populated area while she lounges.

Gaga is a super popular camp game. It's sort of like dodge ball, but you have to stay inside the octagon and can only hit people below the waist. If you get hit, you are out. Whoever is left standing at the end, wins. Griffin and Olivia can't be around the gaga pit because they desperately want to pop the ball.

Attempting to get in and "play"- we had
to keep reminding him to get down.

He circled the gaga pit several times. 

And then the ball flew out and it was a race
to get it first. Grif won this round and gaga was over...

Tired after a long day.

This is how we wake up every morning. Olivia likes
to be spooned while she sleeps. She sleeps with the
 covers up to her chin and her head on the pillow. 

In the morning, I get up, run, shower, go to the
dining hall for breakfast, and then come back
to find bullies still completely asleep.