Puppy Love....

Honeydew's best friend is Bodine, one of our cats.  The two of them hang out together every night, often following each other around the house in endless circles.  Honeydew loves to give him kisses on his head, and Bodine likes to weave between her legs.  True BFFs.  Of course, every now again Bodine decides that he has had enough and the claws come out...but Honeydew is pretty good at evasive maneuvers (as you can see in the last picture).  

Spring has Sprung!

We got in trouble with Grandma for not posting Honeydew update for over a week...so I snagged this picture of her in the back yard by the plum tree that started to bloom today.

Birthday Girl!

Honeydew turned 1 year old today!  I can't believe how quickly the time has gone.

In celebration, Honeydew brought cupcakes to share with her friends at work (she did the sprinkles herself).  Lots of folks came through to wish her a happy day - lots of wiggles, tail wags and belly rubs!  She is currently passed out on her bed - an exhausting day apparently.

Pictures of Honeydew and her birthday cupcakes...and hanging out chewing on a bone at work.

St. Paddy Dew!

Today our puppy-raising club marched in a neighborhood St. Patrick's Day parade.  It was a great little neighborhood event.  It has been pouring rain all day yesterday and this morning, so we were dreading the outing.  Apparently, they have held this parade for the past 19 years, and it has never rained.  Amazingly, blue sky and sun came out while we walked...only to start pouring rain again afterwards.

Honeydew did fairly well during the parade, but there were a lot of dogs (both in the parade, and as spectators) so she was very geeked up and excited the whole time.  Her head was swiveling so fast from side to side to look at all of the pups that I thought it was going to just spin off her neck!

The photos are of the festivities.  

1) Honeydew looks particularly pitiful in her festive hat.  

2) Glenn helped carry the club banner.  

3) A group of Irish Wolfhounds (I have always wanted one of those) was ahead of us.  There was another large group of Greyhounds.  At one point all of the dogs in both of these groups started howling...it was hysterical.  Of course, the Guide Dog pups aren't allowed to vocalize, so they just stood there looking at these other loud dogs like they were nuts.

4) A picture of Honeydew's parade route view.  

5) Honeydew was so pathetic looking in the hat that I had to wear it instead.  Sucker!  Glenn refused to wear it.

Hundvalp Honung...

...means "Puppy Honeydew" in Swedish (or at least that is what I learned on the Google).  :)  

Tonight our puppy club social event was a trip to IKEA.  We had to wander through the store to discover answers to hidden questions (like how to say "berry" in Swedish, etc.).  It was a great place to visit with the pups because they have so many little rooms set up that it was like walking the dogs into 15 different homes (bedrooms, kitchens, bathrooms, etc.).   

Honeydew was supposed to go home from IKEA with another family, and their dog "Leo" was going to come with us for a few days.   We do these puppy trades every so often so the dogs learn to behave with new people and get different experiences.  

3 of the pups in our club, including Leo, were supposed to go back to the Guide Dogs campus to begin formal training on the 20th of this month, but tonight Leo's mom learned that he needs to go back this Sunday instead (they had a spot open up at the last moment).  So, we decided not to do the swap so that Leo's mom can spend these last few days with him.  Honeydew is stuck with us for now, the poor girl.

Honeydew is going to be 1 year old soon (March 18)!  Tonight we got the a-okay to allow her to sleep on a dog bed on the floor by our bed.  The Dew REALLY wants to sleep on a bed instead of her kennel.  She often runs downstairs to get into one of the dog beds when she knows it is time to turn in for the night - and then gives us this pathetic "Pleeeease can I sleep here? look at what a good girl I am."  So, to celebrate this new development we went and got her a new dog bed on our way home from IKEA. Tonight she gets to sleep in the big girl bed...because, as much as we hate to admit it...she is getting to be a big girl now.

Pictures are from our tour through IKEA.