Good Friends = Good Times

I am so thankful for the friends I made while we lived in Ogden! We are still close and get together with our kids, and without, usually about twice a month. We have our monthly Girls Night Out and book club, and we get together to let our kids burn off steam.

Recently we went to a local children's museum called The Tree House. I really love this place! It is up in Ogden so it is quite the drive, but it is well worth it. There are tons of things for the children to do from little ones who aren't walking, up to elementary school age. When we go, Kaylee makes sure I get my exercise because she likes to run from room to room exploring and playing for a few minutes before running to the next place.

I took a couple pictures with my phone last time we were there so these aren't the best quality.

The inside of a tepee

Kaylee loved the horses painted on the inside

The horses in the "Rodeo Arena" - She comes back to these every once in a while just to sit on them for a minute or two.

The music room

Lincoln Log cabin!

All the kiddos eating lunch

Last week we had a pool party! It was so much fun! There were 3 kiddie pools, toys, and close to 10 little ones. Kaylee was thrilled to be able to just play all morning, and played even through the shivers from the cold water. She played really well with the other kids, only getting in a couple of tiffs.

At one point, she got upset at one of the boys and clapped her hands together really hard (something she does when she is upset at someone). That, of course, hurt her hands so the said "Owie" while holding her hands out to the little boy. Then she said "kiss it better!" like she does with us when she gets hurt. He came right over and kissed her hands better. It was adorable, but neither the boy's mom or I had our cameras out at the moment so we missed the picture moment.

The set up

The kids played for two or three hours, and we moms got to sit and chat for the entire time. It was so wonderful to watch our kids all having such a wonderful time. I can't wait for our next adventure together!

21 Weeks - The countdown begins

Pregnancy Highlights: Sooo many things changed with this week of the pregnancy. Specifically since we found out we are expecting twins. If you missed that you can read it HERE

How Far Along: 21 weeks

Size of baby: About 10.5" and weighing about  .75 lb - I am using the singleton baby stats, because I can't find anywhere that specifies a growth pattern for twins week by week. Chances are the babies are slightly smaller than those.

Weight: 191.3

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gain: 8.7 lbs - I can't believe I lost weight this week! That can't happen again. I need to gain for these babies to stay healthy and happy. My outlook on the weight gain has changed a lot, and I feel like I might get reamed by the new doctor for only gaining 9ish pounds so far. I am probably expected to have gained almost twice that by now

Stretch Marks: Only the ones that haven't faded from my pregnancy with Cadence - Lol, I think it would be a miracle if I got through the next 19 weeks without getting a whole butt-load of marks. I have found a new love for my burt's bees belly cream. I know that, for the most part, creams and such wont help prevent the marks, but I also know that scratching them makes them worse, and moisture prevents itching

Maternity Clothes: Yes....preparing myself to outgrow much of it by the end though

Gender: Girl & ?Girl? - I am a little disappointed that we found out. I honestly don't think we would have made it to the end without finding out though. Too many ultrasounds to tempt us! I am also excited to know what is coming our way, even if one of them is still a question mark for now.

Name: The names we choose will remain private (at least on here) until He/She is born

Movement: They are always moving. Now that I know there are two, I can feel heads in different places, and it explains how I am getting kicks almost all the way around my stomach.

Sleep: I have had a total of 1 good night of sleep since finding out the twin news. My brain kind of freaks out at night thinking of how hard/scary/costly/exhausting this is going to be

Exercise: I have been walking with Kaylee and the dogs a bit, but other than that I haven't done much. We went to our last agility class on Wednesday and it was obvious that I need to be done. I have a competition set for Thursday, Friday, Saturday, but I don't think we will go to all 3 days. In fact, I am prepared to drop out after the first day is over. I can't bring myself to just not go at all because Hobbs deserves one last trial before we are done for the season. Don't worry about me though. If I find I can't do it, we will stop

Hypnobabies: I am trying to figure out if I should start the study course earlier than planned. Twins are often born early, and I don't want to run out of time. I started listening to the positive pregnancy affirmations on the way to the ultrasound on Tuesday and have listened to it a couple times since then. I found out there is a specific CD for moms expecting twins and I am planning to order it asap. Some other CDs I am thinking of getting are Baby Stay In, Baby Come Out, and Turning a Breech Baby

Symptoms: My back has been tired as have my hip flexors. Some of my stomach muscles are feeling the stress. In general, I feel like I should be about 10 weeks further along than I am

Throw up tally: Around 25 (I am losing count) - I don't want to jinx myself but it has been 3 weeks since I threw up last

What I miss: NOTHING! I am so thrilled with the idea of having two that every negative thought about "having" to be pregnant again so soon is gone

Cravings: Chipotle burritos and Peanut Butter sandwiches. I am starting to feel slightly hungry all the time. I think it is because I am NOT eating enough to support two plus me. I am burning roughly 600 calories a day just growing babies and I am probably not adding that many calories to my days. I need to start. I want healthy babies!

Aversions: Eggs! This is a complete opposite from the last two babies, with them I couldn't get enough. Other than that, I can't think of anything really big.

Things to do: I feel SO behind on everything now! Before, I felt like there was little I had to do because all we needed was boy clothes AFTER the birth if it ended up being a boy. Here is my list, which will be crossed off as things get finished: Buy the big stuff (crib, carseat, stroller, bouncer), buy a BIGGER CAR, paint the room, make bedding, sew 36 diapers, wash clothes, buy/borrow boy clothes if Baby B ends up being a boy, install both infant seats, paint name letters, rearrange nursery ( I don't know how we are going to fit two cribs), not go crazy, 

Best Moment this week: Finding out there are TWO babies! That was one of the best moments of my LIFE, let alone of this week of the pregnancy.

Looking Forward To: Finding out if the awesome Dr that the birth center recommended will except me as a patient. I really hope he can.

Picture(s) for this week: -

 Week 21 - Quite a difference from last week.....I am scared!

April Fools Pay Back

Do you all remember THIS post from last year that was quickly followed by THIS one? Today Karma came to slap me up side of the head for those.

Robert and I went to what was supposed to be our one and only ultrasound for this pregnancy. We were excited to see the baby and trying hard to stick to our decision to not find out the gender. Things turned out a little differently than we thought they were going to.

The tech put the wand on my stomach, I immediately saw two circles. I wasn't looking closely and assumed they were the head and stomach. Then my heart stopped because I realized that neither circle had a heartbeat. I hadn't asked them to look with the doppler first because the baby had been kicking like crazy all day long. I was SO afraid that I was about to hear that there wasn't a heartbeat. Then came the words

"Well there are TWO babies in there!!"

That is right everyone! We are having twins for real this time! Pay back for that April Fools Joke? I think so. I was floored, but at the same time I KNEW IT!! I told Kaylee that she was right because all along she has insisted that the baby in my belly was "Brother Sister" rather than one or the other. We would ask if she thought it was a girl and she would say "No! Brother Sister" same response if we asked if it was a boy. So, she was right about their being more than one baby.

Our plan had been to not find out the gender. But Twins changes everything. We will now be having who knows how many more ultrasounds. I was struggling with wanting to find out with this one ultrasound! I know that I would not have made it to delivery day knowing that multiple techs and doctors knew the genders of our babies. So we made the leap to finding out what our babies are.

The tech looked for a second and I immediately recognized the three lines that means it is a girl. I said girl before the tech did and he confirmed what I said. Then the second one was a little more difficult. He tried several times to get a good shot and then, not seeing anything, said that the second baby was also a girl. I didn't ever see a clear shot though, so I am skeptical. I know we will be seeing them several more times and can check genders every single time. I will laugh my head off if one turns out to be a boy and Kaylee was totally right about it being a brother AND a sister.

Pictures of our new little ones as proof that this is NOT a joke!

The heads (bright white circles) and spine of baby B (I think). I am not exactly sure which one was baby A and which was baby B, but I think I have it right. 

The for sure girl - This is the one I said was a girl before the tech said it was. 

The iffy one. The tech tried several times to get a better angle, so I won't believe this one until we get a better shot.

And here is the video. They are poking at each other's faces lol!



So far, I am super excited!! I have always wanted twins, and I can't believe I was lucky enough to actually get them. I start to freak out a bit when I think about the work, money, time, and effect on Kaylee that having twins will bring. I feel really badly that Kaylee's life is going to change so much. I knew we could handle adding 1 baby without her feeling neglected, but twins are going to be a LOT of work from both Robert and I and I know Kaylee will feel the brunt of that. I am determined to make it work.

I don't want anyone feeling sorry for us! We are thrilled, and excited, and overwhelmed all at the same time. We will be just fine, even though our lives are about to change in ways we can't even imagine yet.

And, just because I keep saying it over and over:

WE ARE HAVING TWINS!!!!

Let There Be GRASS!!

I am going to start this post by saying that I HATE the new blogger post editor. Especially the photo up loader. I can't seem to label under each picture without making a huge mess. So forgive my posts for a little while because I am trying to figure out the best way to do this.

Now, on to the actual reason for this post. Robert and I have been working almost non stop since the snow melted to get grass planted in the front yard. We are both sick of having dirt all the way around out house, and the "grass" that was in the front was roughly 80% weeds. Last fall we spent weeks killing, digging up, and burning (the fire department wasn't too happy about that lol) the weeks away. I was pleasantly surprised at how little even tried to grow this spring! Little things came up here and there, but compared to the back yard it was an amazing difference.

On Saturday we worked almost non-stop the entire day to get the grass planted. I am talking from 9am to 9pm, with a couple hours "break' to go to the store for grass seed and flowers.

Before we seeded and watered. I am planning to take a picture of roughly the same spot every week until it looks like a lawn. 

A couple weeks ago I saw these growing in the back yard, so I dug them up and put them where the flower garden will be. 

After tilling, raking, and leveling all morning long Robert and Kaylee spread the grass seed and fertilizer. 

You can see from Kaylee's face that she LOVED helping her daddy with this part 

The grass seeds!  

I went a little crazy at the store buying TONS of flowers for the small flower garden. 

I love them all!

I even had extras to take up to Cadence's grave!

I took these the next morning because we were setting this fence up at around 9pm and it was too dark for pictures. The dogs, cat, and Kaylee are all a little upset at not being able to go into the front yard anymore. 

Here is that same spot after being seeded and watered. Next week I hope it will have a little green tint to it.

The watering system is a little over my head, because it is one that Robert rigged up, but I am hoping that once we get it all set up and organized we wont have to mess with it at all.

I seriously feel like it is Christmas morning. Every morning I feel like running outside to see if there is grass growing yet. Then I have to remind myself that it has only been 2 days and I need to calm down! It will be a dream come true to have a nice front lawn! We are planning to work on the back yard through the summer and plant it this fall. That will be awesome! There are plans for the garden too, and I am both excited and overwhelmed at the thought of that.

20 Weeks!

Pregnancy Highlights: What a milestone! Half way to meeting this new member of our family. I am feeling pretty good lately!

How Far Along: 20 weeks

Size of baby: About 6.5" head to bum and 10" from head to foot and weighing about 10.5 oz

Weight: 192.8

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gain: 10.2 lbs

Stretch Marks: A couple of Cadence's marks have turned from the purpleish color they have been to redish....meaning they count as new ones.

Maternity Clothes: Yes

Gender: I have been telling people this week "We aren't planning to find out, but ask me AFTER the ultrasound if that is still the plan." I am SOO tempted to find out on Tuesday! I know if we find out I will be happy and excited, but I will also be disappointed that I ruined the surprise for myself. I HATE when surprises get ruined!

Name: The names we choose will also remain private (at least on here) until He/She is born.

Movement: The movement is getting stronger!! I know it is getting SO close to being able to be seen (or at least felt) from the outside. Luckily, this one seems to not care if someone is touching my belly. With the girls they would kick like crazy and then freeze when someone wanted to feel them moving.

Sleep: The sleep is getting better, with me only waking up two or three times each night.

Exercise: I have been getting in more exercise to prepare myself more for the agility trial the first weekend of May. We worked practically the entire day on Saturday to get the lawn planted. 

Hypnobabies: I am actually thinking of starting to listen to some of the tracks now and then starting the full course at 25-28 weeks as planned. Haven't done this yet lol! I keep meaning to listen as I walk in the mornings, but I forget every time.

Symptoms: My back has started hurting by the end of the day this week. This is the first time I have really had consistent back pain during a pregnancy.

Throw up tally: Around 25 (I am losing count)

What I miss: My lung capacity! This has been the first week where I can feel a big difference when I run agility.

Cravings: Chipotle burritos! Lol, that is the only big one now, but I could eat one every day. I don't, but I could! I can pretty much eat anything, but no other big cravings.

Aversions: Eggs! This is a complete opposite from the last two babies, with them I couldn't get enough. Other than that, I can't think of anything really big.

Things to do: Still everything! Paint nursery, decide on bedding, buy bedding, start hypnobabies, get newborn medical things, wash clothes, buy coming home outfits (both boy and girl)

Best Moment this week: Getting to hear the heartbeat once again! The little stinker was hiding as usual, and it scares me to death every time. If I couldn't feel him/her moving it would make me even more nervous.

Looking Forward To: The anatomy scan!! On Tuesday we will be seeing this little munchkin on an ultrasound!

Picture(s) for this week: -

Week 19

New Horizons in Agility

Last year around this time, I found out that my beloved mentor and instructor would be moving across the country. She didn't move until July, but since then I have felt a little lost. Moving into our house, I knew I wouldn't have any space for agility until we got our yards planted. So, I was counting on having agility classes to go to practice and learn new skills. After Meredith left we, as her students, decided to get together to practice and it was rough. I remember going home and feeling totally discouraged.

A year later, I have found a new instructor and am finally taking some classes again! The first few weeks were kind of an adjustment period because this person teaches differently than my old one. That also makes it more difficult for Hobbs because he expects certain things on a course, and gets discouraged when things change.

Last night though, I felt like we were finally getting back in our groove. The sequences we are running in class are short, and for the most part pretty easy with some tricky parts mixed in. I am still learning a lot! Here are the sequences we ran last night:

Sequence #1

Super straightforward, and meant to encourage the dogs to really drive from 3-6. Hobbs kept thinking we were going to the A-frame, but it turned out I wasn't setting him up at enough of an angle. Once that was taken care of, he did an excellent job. I kept feeling the need to name-check him between 4 and 5 but I should have just trusted him to stay with me and know his job.

Sequence #2

This one was the most difficult for us. The move our teacher wanted us to do at 3 is something that I have never been taught or taught Hobbs. I still haven't decided if I like it, but that may just be because Hobbs doesn't understand it yet. It really does tighten up the turn, and save time when it works correctly. During this sequence I was REALLY having a hard time keeping my breath. Running agility when pregnant is exhausting because your lung capacity (at least mine) diminishes so much. I felt like I was going to die by the end of our turn. Hobbs did fabulously though!

Sequence #3

I really liked this one. When I walked it I thought "I am going to die getting from 6 to 8" I thought I was going to be behind, and have to try to push Hobbs over 8, or I was going to get crashed into by Hobbs on his way out of the tunnel. Should have had more faith in my dog and myself! Meredith used to tell us in situations like this "Decide you are going to get there in time, and then just DO IT!" So, I stopped the negative thoughts and decided I would just be where I needed to in time. The first time through, Hobbs went up the A-frame rather than going in the tunnel, but I didn't cue the tunnel very well so it was my fault. The next times he did it without hesitation. I love my little dog! Oh, and I got to where I needed to be for 8 every single time!

Another big thing that has changed in our agility lately is that I have been training with a toy rather than just treats. It is a tug toy that has treats in it. Hobbs LOVES it! He usually is not comfortable playing tug around other dogs, but with this one he hasn't had a problem. At least at class. We will have to see how well it works at a trial around lots of other dogs.

Our next trial is a 3 day one the first weekend in May. I am really excited and nervous. I am hoping the weather cooperates and we don't have to run in the rain. I hate slick agility courses. It make me worry for Hobbs' sake. I don't want him slipping and getting injured. Now that I am pregnant, I don't want to slip for my sake either! My vibrams with tread on the bottoms don't fit very well (thanks pregnancies) and I don't have the $80 to spend on a new pair, especially in the next two weeks. My options are to borrow some regular shoes from a friend or just squeeze into mine for each run at the trial. I have been wearing my friend's regular shoes at class the past two weeks, and while I have more traction, I am tripping over my feet. They feel ginormous! I don't know what is worse, but I have to decide soon.

21 Weeks 'Til The End!

Pregnancy Highlights: Haha! I am so close to half way it is crazy! I can't decide what I think this little one is. Some days I am saying He and some days I say She. There are a lot of similarities between this pregnancy and the girls' and that makes me think girl. But, there are some little differences (such as how I am carrying) that make me wonder if this one might be a boy. I honestly don't care either way! A boy would be a fun new adventure and a girl would be so much fun for Kaylee. I am trying to embrace and enjoy this pregnancy....but I am just so tired of being pregnant. I am excited for the baby, and feeling great for being pregnant, but it is hard mentally to be pregnant again so soon.

How Far Along: 19 weeks

Size of baby: About 6" and weighing about 8.5 oz

Weight: 192.2

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gain: 9.8 lbs - Seriously scared of the weight gain so far.

Stretch Marks: Only the ones that haven't faded from my pregnancy with Cadence - I am really scared this time for the stretch marks. I feel like my belly is already huge, and I'm not even to the halfway point!

Maternity Clothes: Yes - I found a bunch of nice shirts for really cheap, so I am happy!

Gender: We are not finding out until this little one is born, and I am SO excited for that! I am wavering in my resolve a little because we have the ultrasound scheduled.....but I am hoping that I stay strong!

Name: The names we choose will also remain private (at least on here) until He/She is born.

Movement: This week has been consistent movement, even if it is really light so far.

Sleep: The sleep is getting better, with me only waking up two or three times each night.

Exercise: I tried to do a bunch this week, but the weather hasn't been cooperating very well. Our stroller broke, so walks are difficult. I think I am going to try to find a used one that is really cheap to get us by until we can get a nice double jogging one.

Hypnobabies: I am actually thinking of starting to listen to some of the tracks now and then starting the full course at 25-28 weeks as planned. Haven't done this yet lol! I keep meaning to listen as I walk in the mornings, but I forget every time.

Symptoms: Not much this week. I have been feeling really good. My belly button hasn't hurt more than once the whole week!! It has been so wonderful!

Throw up tally: Around 25 (I am losing count)

What I miss: Sleeping through the night. A solid few hours of sleep would be fabulous!

Cravings: Chipotle burritos! Lol, that is the only big one now, but I could eat one every day. I don't, but I could! I can pretty much eat anything, but no other big cravings.

Aversions: Eggs! This is a complete opposite from the last two babies, with them I couldn't get enough. Other than that, I can't think of anything really big.

Things to do: Lol, everything! At 20 weeks I will actually make a list so I can start crossing things off. I took down Cadence's stuff.....it was really healing, and kind of hard. I am selling her crib bedding set, and putting all of her stuff into a box until I decide if/how I want to display it.

Best Moment this week: The more obvious movements from this little one. This is by far my favorite part of pregnancy, those first obvious movements that aren't painful yet.

Looking Forward To: Another birth center group meeting and the anatomy scan!! On the 24th we will be seeing this little munchkin on an ultrasound! - I do have to say that the thought of an ultrasound scares me to death. The last one I had was the most awful experience. I am going to make a point to have them look for the heartbeat with the doppler before they look with the ultrasound. I never want to see an ultrasound with no heartbeat ever again.

Picture(s) for this week: - Yes, different shirt. I couldn't find the other one lol!

Week 19

Dog Owners -Warning Long!!

I recently have been getting more and more frustrated with dog owners. More specifically, dog owners who also have children. I am involved with a couple of online groups of moms, and there were several discussions lately about their dogs not being tolerant enough of their children. So, I am coming on here to vent. I promise this has nothing to do with anyone who I know reads my blog.

WAKE UP PARENTS!!! It is your job and responsibility as a dog owner to keep your dog safe. It is also your job and responsibility as a parent to keep your child safe and to teach them how to appropriately interact with dogs, which will in turn keep them safe. It is not your dogs job to be "tolerant" and let your child climb, pinch, jump, ride, hug, or pull on your dog!! Should your dog have manners around your child? YES!! Should your dog have self control when and if it gets overwhelmed by a child's attention? YES!! Both of those are a must, but you as a parent are responsible for making sure those things happen.

Many parents are told to get rid of their dogs when they are expecting a new baby because "the dog will be jealous of the new baby and could eventually bit that child." There are situations where the best option is to re-home a dog because it's behavior toward children is a liability. BUT, if you know that your dog's behavior is a risk, you have 9 months to work on improving that to the point where the dog can stay in the home! If your dog is a well behaved, well adjusted, friendly dog to begin with, it should be fine with a new baby entering the family.

Parents, if your dog bites your child, it is almost always something that YOU could and should have prevented!! Yes, there are exceptions to that rule, but you are the one who should be controlling the interactions between dog and child and when that happens correctly, a bite should never happen. When I hear/read about parents who say they can't believe their dog bit their child and that "there was no warning" and that "he is usually really tolerant" I feel for two individuals in those situations....the child and the dog....and yes, I usually blame the parent. That child should have been taught how to interact with the dog. And that dog shouldn't have had to be pushed to the point that it felt the need to BITE someone to get it's message ("I am uncomfortable, leave me alone!" across. I feel bad that the parent/owner didn't take the time to educate themselves on how to foster a safe relationship between a dog and a child.

Parents need to teach their children to LEAVE THE DOG ALONE! Parents also need to educate themselves on dog body language. You need to know your dog, and know that they have their own limits.

You also need to protect your child! Do not trust anyone when they say their dog is fine with children, or if they say their dog "LOOOOVES children". Observe that dog for yourself, and make the judgement of whether or not your child can interact with that dog. If you doubt at all, the comfort level of the dog, keep your child away.

I read THIS blog yesterday and it is SO true! This is specifically about children hugging dogs, but it is true of many interactions between dogs and children. That game of "tag" that your child plays with the dog? It probably is the same kind of situation as the hug talked about in the link. Anyone reading who has a dog and children, PLEASE read the linked blog! I don't care if you finish MY post, read that one!

This is something I have seen in our family. Hobbs is VERY wary of children, including Kaylee. I blame myself for his feelings towards children. When he was a small impressionable puppy, I allowed a pushy, loud, physically aggressive toddler to terrorize him. Because he was a guide dog puppy and I was a "stupid" owner I expected him to just take it. I am convinced that is the reason he is so wary of children. When he was dropped from the guide dog program it was partly because his distrust of children was to the point that the person who evaluated him said she was worried that, given the right situation he could bite a child. That is absolutely 100% still true. Granted, he would have to be pushed REALLY hard to resort to biting, but it could happen. Honestly, I think ANY dog has the potential to bite someone, especially a child. When we brought Kaylee home from the hospital, Hobbs was terrified for a couple weeks! He didn't want to be on the same side of the house as her, let alone in the same room. It took him a while, but he has gotten used to her and even likes her a little bit.

Now, Patriot, I trust him more around Kaylee than I do Hobbs. That is simply because he is more resilient than Hobbs. He is more tolerant. Does that mean I let Kaylee do anything she wants with him and expect him to take it? NO!! Thinking about it now, I think I let her get away with bugging him more than I should. It is usually true that when a dog gets older they get LESS tolerant of things. Their bodies usually hurt, they lose sight and hearing, and just generally are grumpy. That is definitively Patriot lol. He is a grumpy old man!

It is interesting that I trust Patriot around her more than I trust Hobbs. Patriot is much more likely to growl at her than Hobbs is. In fact, if Hobbs were to ever actually growl at her, I would probably snatch her out of the reach of his mouth, because a bite would possibly be coming next. He doesn't growl at much, he is one to try to escape the situation rather than confront whatever is making him uncomfortable. When she was first crawling, he dumped her on the floor many times because she would start to crawl on him and he would bolt. I never reprimanded him for that behavior. I would much rather him leave the situation than feel trapped and resort to worse methods of getting her away from him (bite).

On the other hand, I will admit that Patriot has growled at her. He growls and grumbles about everything from a stepped on foot/tail to the cat walking too close to him. When he growls, I first assess what KAYLEE is doing. If she is over the line, I will correct HER behavior first. If it is something silly, like her accidentally sitting on his leg hairs I tell him "that's enough" because really that doesn't warrant him grumping. 9 out of 10 times a growl from him is because Kaylee is doing something that she shouldn't (sitting on him, laying across his legs, using him as a slide, purposely standing on his tail, etc). Even when it is something little, I explain to Kaylee that she needs to be careful about what she is doing around Patriot.

Just so the Grandparents reading this aren't getting nervous, Kaylee is never in danger around the dogs. I am very diligent in keeping her interactions with them appropriate and safe. So please don't worry!

Best Trial Ever!

This happened all the way back in February and I am just now blogging about it! ** For all of my non-agility readers, I am going to do a post about some common agility jargon so you will be able to understand these posts. But I tried to explain as I went.**

Hobbs and I had an amazing trial in February. It was our first AKC trial of the year and our first full trial being in Excellent everything.

It. Was. Awesome!

We only did one day, so 3 runs. We Q'd in every single one! No titles earned, but a perfect trial! Really quick, a Q means that I had a perfect, Qualifying, run in the class I was entered in. No mistakes.

First off, I got to the site only to find that someone had taken the little secluded spot I usually put Hobbs in to keep him calm and away from any loud dogs. Being around a ton of dogs usually stresses him out and throws him off his game. I had to find a spot that would be away from any loud dogs I could find.....not an easy task as a lot of agility dogs bark when they are in their crates and not playing. Many of them bark when people or other dogs walk past which is constantly during a trial. I put a blanket over his crate and crossed my fingers that it wouldn't affect him.

The first class was FAST - This is a class where there isn't a numbered course, but some of the obstacles have different points value. There is also a distance challenge where the handler can't go as close to the obstacles as they may want to, but they still need to get the dog to do the obstacles. To get a Q, you have to get 60 points AND get the distance challenge, all in under 35 seconds. Do you know how SHORT 35 seconds is??

The course map:

Hobbs was a MANIAC on this course!! I am so glad it was FAST first because I could make up my own course. The send was no problem at all....it was one of the easiest I have ever seen on an Excellent course. After this course I was worried that Hobbs and I were not going to have a good day. I shouldn't doubt my little dog. He is amazing!

Next was our Standard class. This is where all of the equipment is used, and there is a set course and a maximum time allowed to complete it. I think this is my favorite class. It is definitely my favorite to watch, and usually my favorite course to run. Hobbs likes it better as well because constant jumping just isn't as motivating for him.

Course Map:

This run was so smooth and together! I was nervous about Hobbs getting his weave pole entry after the tunnel, but there wasn't a problem at all. The only really scary part was that I was behind Hobbs as he ran down the last line towards the triple jump. I was running as fast as I could but didn't keep up with him. When he went over the triple, he started to drop his back legs (something he does when he isn't sure about where he is going next) and then yanked them back up. His legs went down right between the bars, and it was a miracle that he got them back up without dropping at lease one bar. This Q gave us our first points towards a very big title, and I was ecstatic about it!

Last for the day was JWW (Jumpers with weaves). This is a class entirely made up of jumps, weave poles, and sometimes tunnels. It is the class that has been really difficult for us in Excellent. This was our 10th run trying to get a clear round.....I will be honest and say that I was getting discouraged.

The course map:

When I looked at the map, and waked the course, I basically "knew" we weren't going to be able to get around the course clean. Lol, I have such faith in my and my dog's abilities huh? When it was our turn, I don't think I breathed the whole time on course....It seemed like it was slow motion, and after Hobbs got over the last jump I couldn't believe we had actually done it! We got our first ever Excellent JWW Q!! I don't think Hobbs has ever seem me so happy after a run EVER, and he loved it. He kept trying to do his little labby scoots, but couldn't with his leash on. We ran outside and I let him off leash to run and celebrate.

I learned at this trial that my little dog deserves a LOT more credit than I give him! He does this for ME!! Yes, he enjoys it, but he enjoys my happiness with him more than playing the game itself.

Our next trial is in only 3.5 weeks, and I am hoping we are ready. It will be a LONG 3 day trial, and I love the site it is at.

Happy Easter!

I really love the Easter season! It always seems like a peaceful time of year when everything starts to grow and come alive after winter. I love the Easter bunny tradition, though I like to think of that as a celebration of spring rather than Easter. Church was nice this year, and the lessons and talks/testimonies were wonderful.

Robert and I were working really hard on the yard all day Saturday and both of us completely forgot that it was Easter eve. By the time we remembered there wasn't time to dye eggs. We hadn't bought the stuff for that yet, and didn't have time before Kaylee needed to be in bed. I felt really bad, but next year for sure we will do it!

We had really early church, so we delayed the the reveal of the Easter basket until after Kaylee's nap. She was super excited when we told her the Easter Bunny had come, but I really don't think she "gets it" yet. Next year she will definitely know what is going on!

Coming in to see her basket

We have her reaction on video, but I am trying to weed them down so they aren't 10 minutes long each. Hopefully I will get them posted soon.

The Easter stash! sunglasses, crayons, bunny straws, etch-a-sketch, a bubble gun (turned out to be broken), and CANDY!!

I love her little "cheese" face when we take pictures!

I got her a little etch-a-sketch on a whim while standing in line with the rest of the Easter stuff. Kaylee LOVED it! Probably more than anything else she got.

We waited until my mom and dad came over for dinner to hide the eggs outside and let Kaylee go find them. She loves hunting for eggs and understood exactly what to do this year. Last year she wanted to eat everything in each egg before she looked for another egg. This year she could put them in her basket and immediately look for more.

Her face each time she got an egg was priceless!

When she had found all the eggs she ran over to her slide and sat down to go through the basket. It was adorable!

Her "Oooo!" face after opening each of the eggs

Next year, I would like to take Kaylee to a big egg hunt. It will probably be a learning experience for her, but I think she will enjoy it. We will also actually color eggs!