Hello and I hope this finds you enjoying your weekend. I’ve been hanging out with Finn and the pups, staying close to home and spending as much time outside as possible. We are having the best weather – low 80s and low humidity. I’m trying to soak it up before a week of rain heads our way.

Finn is down for a nap so I wanted to check in with a quick life update.

ITCHY ZOEY

We were up bright and early on Friday morning to get Zoey to the vet at 8a. She has been struggling with allergies and really itchy lately. I wanted to make sure she didn’t have a skin infection and to see if there was a safe medication that would help with her itching. The vet prescribed a 2-week dose of Apoquel, which is an allergy medicine specialty formulated for dogs. We’ll see how she does after the two week loading dose. Hopefully it gets her over the hump but it’s also safe to take at a lower dose for an extended time.

I am very much in the camp that less is better when it comes to medications for my dogs (just like I am for myself!) but I am very pro using them when necessary and this was a necessary situation. She was miserable.

She’s only been on the Apoquel for 2 days and I have already seen a marked improvement! On a related note, if you guys have any suggestions for supplements that you use for itchy dogs or skin/coats in general, I’d love to hear them!

BREAKFAST DATE

Zoey’s vet is close to Sunflour so we popped in there after her appointment to grab breakfast. For years I was a regular at Sunflour but I’ve fallen out of the groove lately. It was really nice to be out early on a pretty day and to see people grabbing breakfast and coffee.

WELCOME HOME BENJI! 

Benji came home from his three-week training immersion with Keen Dog Training on Friday! They brought him home around 6p and we did an in-home lesson. I will write a full blog post in the next couple of weeks about our experience with Keen Dog and my thoughts on and experiences with dog training. Let me know if you guys have any specific questions/topics you’d like for me to address.

Here’s Benji holding his place while Finn ate dinner on the night that he came home! Go Benji!

SATURDAY FARMERS MARKET

Our outing for the day on Saturday was a trip to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market. I had Finn and I up, fed, dressed and out of the house by 8:30a so that we could be there early for the best selection.

Finn had a great time at the market and was Mr. Social. He was saying hi to everyone and singing the whole time while I pushed him around in his stroller. (I need to write a review/do a round up of toddler gear but this is the compact stroller I use when we are out and about and I love it.)

It was such a great market and I probably bought more produce than Finn and I can realistically eat this week but I am going to try! I also bought a dozen eggs and hot Italian sausage.

I already used the Italian sausage in homemade spaghetti sauce, ate two eggs this morning for breakfast along with strawberries and blackberries, had a tomato sandwich for lunch yesterday and a salad for lunch today with the cucumbers, carrots and radishes so I am off to a strong start!

BACK YARD LIVING

I am grateful every day for my fenced in back yard. It is a lifesaver to have a safe place for Finn and the dogs to run around unrestrained. We basically live out there on nice days. I think we spent 4-5 hours in the back yard on Saturday in addition to an evening stroller walk.

Look at this little man! (Officially obsessed with these Native slip on shoes for summer. So easy to get on and off and to clean!)

He’s in two different pairs of shorts and shoes because one photo was from our AM play session and the other from our afternoon. He gets so sweaty and dirty…as he should! 🙂

This is a totally normal scene. Finn loves to lie on his back (especially when he starts getting tired) and watch the trees and sky. Biggest jackpot is when an airplane flies over.

REMEMBERING SULLIE

Last Wednesday marked one year without this perfect angel here on earth. It was an emotional day for me. While I feel so incredibly blessed to have had Sullie in my life for just shy of 13 years and remember her with so much love in my heart, it is difficult for me to see photos of her towards the end and to remember that day.

Here are the words that I shared on Instagram.

My two first babies. ❤️ I said goodbye to my Sullie girl one year ago today. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of her with a smile on my face and an ache in my heart.
_
I got Sullie when she was 10 weeks old and I was 23 years old. We shared nearly 13 years together. Sullie saw me through marriage, new cities, many job changes, divorce, the loss of my brother, break ups, pregnancy, childbirth and my first year of motherhood. She was my constant through a period of life that was full of ups, downs and changes.
_
How blessed was I to be the recipient of such great love and devotion? She was sweet, patient and steady and when I looked into her eyes I felt she met me at a soul level.
_
Despite knowing the depths of our love, I was rocked by the intensity of my grief in losing her. I received messages from people telling me to get over it, she was just a dog and that I needed to get some perspective. But I received more messages from people who understood and honored this love and the grief that accompanied it.
_
Grief is a journey that can only be navigated by the one experiencing it. Your feelings are your feelings. With great love comes great loss. It is all real and valid.
_
Sending spooning snuggles, peanut butter bones and lake swims up to my girl in heaven. I was so lucky to be your mama.

I can look at this photo and remember exactly what it felt like to be in this moment with her. I will hold onto all of these sweet memories forever. There will never be another like my Sullie girl.

Go give your pups some love and a treat from me, Sullie, Zoey and Benji. Wishing you a beautiful week to come.