Bean visits the Burbs

As I mentioned in the last post, we spent the 4th of July weekend at Bryan's parents' house in VA. They live in a very nice house in a very polished subdivision. It is a very different place than where Bean has spent most of her life, and she really enjoyed investigating it. One of the most striking differences, from her perspective, had to be the immaculate condition of the sidewalks and lawns. She really loved her walks there!

"This is niiiiiice. Do you think they wash these sidewalks? I mean there is NO trash whatsoever! Although, I do miss the fun of looking for a stray chicken bone or an old piece of gum, like we do at home."

"Just look at that curb! It looks bleached. It's clean enough to eat off of. Of course, I also will eat out of the trash. I'm not really picky."

"The grass is still green here! It looks so comfy! I just want to roll around in it and scratch my back! Don't you?"

"Mom, we have GOT to do something about the landscaping situation at home. Seriously."

Sorry Bean! Until your Mom graduates and gets a J-O-B, we'll just have to live with weeds and dead leaves.

(By the way, we move into the new house this weekend. I will be sure to take pictures of Bean's first moments checking out her new digs!)

Well, I am so glad that's over!

I took the boards on Thursday! The entire ordeal was much, much worse than I had anticipated. But it's all behind me now! Now I just have to wait 6 weeks before I find out how I did...

As soon as I finished, we drove to VA to spend the holiday weekend with Bryan's parents. I took lots of photos. I think some of the best are a few that don't even have Bean in them. I'm sure you will agree that they are still cute, though.

We were all in the car on the way somewhere when the traffic stopped to let a rather large group of geese cross. They just went right out like they do this all the time. The leader made sure they all got across before they regrouped on the other side and waddled up the hill.

I wonder where they were going...

I would not dare post without including at least one photo of Bean. So here she is, completely worn out on the way home. As I have mentioned before, Bean finds it especially comfy when she can wedge her extra large head into an extra small space. She slept for about 45 minutes with her head wedged in between the car seats.

"This spot is taken. You'll have to find another place to wedge."

I especially like this photo because it shows how floppy her lips have gotten as she has grown up. Here her left lip is draped over Bryan's armrest. You can also see the crumbs of sleep in her eyes. Definitely not her most becoming photo, but I think it's so funny!

Over the River and Through the Woods...

The whole family (Me, Bryan and Bean) went to stay with Bryan's parents in Virgina over Mother's Day weekend. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous about how it would go. Bean has only been to their house once, and that was when she was recovering from her surgery, and was therefore confined to a small pen. This time she would have the freedom to explore the whole house as she pleased. And it's a nice house. With nice things. I had visions of crystal vases, throw pillows, and floral arrangements scattered in shreds and pieces all over the nice wood floors.

Bryan had more faith in Bean's ability to "act right" when needed. In preparation for the visit, I took her to get a mani/pedi (nail trim) so that she would not leave claw marks on the wood floors. I bought half a dozen plush squeaky toys for emergency use, and we packed a Super Jumbo bag of rawhide chews. We were ready.

On the drive up, she was a perfect angel. She is very good on long car trips. She alternates between napping and checking for other dogs in the cars that pass by.

Clear...Clear...Clear...Cle-WAIT! Is that a CAT in that car??? Oh..It's just a Chihuahua...OK Clear... Clear...

Where'd Dad go? Oh, he's filling up the tank.

WHAT??? Gas costs HOW much??!!

Later on, after the sun set, she slept for the rest of the trip. When we slowed down to get on the exit ramp, I snapped this photo.

Huh? What? Are were there yet?

I'll have to split the rest of the trip into a different post. I really should at least pretend to study!
Stay tuned...

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming...

...because I am studying for the boards. I have 5 weeks left to study. It seems impossible!

Anyway, I may not be able to find much time for the blog. I will try to post photos at least. Bean is pissed. She is considering firing me and hiring a professional biographer to take over the site.

Wish me luck!

Mystery at the Friday Night Movie Fest

Last night we were watching the last few episodes of the final season of Gilmore Girls. (Fans of the show will understand how distracted and emotional we must have been...for those of you who don't like the show - where is your heart???)

After the last episode, when we were done crying about how inevitable it is that your children will grow up and stop needing you and break your heart (and how do you even begin to deal with that anyway?), Bryan got up to go pee. From the bathroom he yells, "Hey, did you shower today?"

Given that yesterday morning I took the last exam of my second year of medical school (Whoohooooo!) and have been very busy this week, this was a totally reasonable thing to ask. So reasonable, in fact, that it took a minute for me to recall when I had last showered. After a brief sniff of the pits (sorry, I'm gross), I responded "Yeah, why?"

Bryan: Um, ever hear of a towel?
Me: What are you talking about?
Bryan: The bathroom rug is still wet. Did you just stand here and drip-dry?

I get up to go see what he's talking about (yes, Bryan is still peeing during all of this. He is a World Champion peer.) and sure enough, there is a big wet spot smack dab in the middle of the rug.

Bryan looks up at the ceiling: Maybe there is a leak from upstairs.
Me: This is a single story house. How is that even possible?

Eventually, we pieced it all together. Somewhere during the episode where Luke takes Lorelei car-shopping, I noticed Bean sitting by the front door staring at me. Knowing that this means she wants to go out, and having no intention of getting up myself, I told Bryan to take her to pee. "Sure, just after this episode." Three episodes later, he found himself standing on a wet bathroom rug....

Yes that's right. Once she ascertained that we were not going to take her out to use her bathroom, she decided she'd just use ours.

I was actually impressed. She is clearly smart enough to have figured out that the bathroom is to us what the backyard is to her. That's pretty awesome. A lesser dog would have just peed by the front door. I'm not sure why she picked the rug. Maybe it reminded her somehow of grass? I can assure you she has never seen me take a leak on the rug (though, I can't speak for Bryan).

So, Bryan washed his feet in the tub and I hauled the rug off to the garage to wash it. Then we all snuggled in to watch The Heartbreak Kid. Looking over at Bean, who was wedged in between us snoring, I took Bryan's hand and said, "You know what? Bean will never grow up and leave us."

"Nope. I ain't going nowhere."

Bean is a Daddy's Girl

I took this photo on Saturday night, from my tiny corner of the bed. You can see my pink-pajama-covered knee in the picture. Why was I smooshed into a corner of my own bed? Because of this:





Aren't they precious? They were so cute I didn't have the heart to shove them over. Bean loves her daddy.

Bean Ignores Mom

Yay! Another video!




Here, you can see that I am making a fool out of myself trying to get Bean to do something (anything!) for the camera, while she is obviously just trying to go back to sleep. It's shocking how she can be perfectly still when I want her to move, but turns into a ball of pure energy when I want her to be still. If you look closely, you can see that she blinks her eyes once. Other than that, it is pretty much the most boring 17 seconds of your life.

I hate having to work with moody celebrities.

Bean Gets Comfy

On a recent ride in the car, Bean got tired pretty quickly of looking out the window and settled in for a quick nap. Or at least she tried to settle in. It took a little repositioning before she could find a comfy position.

"This won't do at all."

"This is even worse."

"Ah, yes. I forgot about the Dog Nose Holder. What a neat invention. How thoughtful of Toyota to put one of these in all their cars. All that shifting around wore me out. I'm...so...sleeepp....zzzzzzzz"

Just a note. #1 Yes, my car is filthy. Bean and I are the only ones who ride in it, though, and she doesn't mind. #2 She is still wearing her head-collar because it was a short trip. For longer trips, I take it off and let her get really comfy!

Once, Bean got to ride in her Grandma's SUV. She got the whole back section to herself, and she loved it! Windows on three sides, a nice carpeted area to stretch out on, and no chance of sliding onto the floor at stop lights! She is really lobbying hard for me to get an SUV when my car dies [Updated to Add: My car may be dead now. It stopped working yesterday. Rest in Peace, 1994 Toyota 2 door Camry with the paint falling off, RIP.]. I think the best I can do will be some sort of hybrid station wagon thing, though. She will just have to ride with Grandma when she wants to ride in style!

Bean is Busy

I took this yesterday. Bean and I are on the bed, waiting for the start of the Friday Night Movie Festival. Well, I'm waiting. Bean is busy concentrating on the window behind the bed, scanning the yard for squirrels. Those are her "concentration ears." Bryan is busy returning phone calls.

Can't pose now Mom. I'm busy.

I suppose I'm busy too. Busy watching them both and giggling.

Wake Up Sleepy Head!

This has been a rainy, lazy weekend. It's one of those rare weekends when I don't have an exam on Monday. It was so hard to get out of bed! Some of us (Bean) decided just not to try. When I attempted to wake Bean and get her out of the bed so I could make it, it went like this:

Me: Bean. Time to get up now!

I'm invisible. I'm invisible. If I can't see her, she can't see me. I'm invisible...

Me: Bean, I know you are in the bed. I am looking right at you.

Okay. I'm in bed. But I'm soooo sleeepy. And sooo cute. You don't really want to get me up, do you? Look at this face...

Me: If you get out of bed, I'll make you breakfast.

Breakfast!? Did you just say "breakfast"?? I love breakfast!

And then she got up to eat. Within ten minutes of breakfast, we were both back in the bed!

Baby Talk

Congratulations to Shelby the Pug, another dog-who-blogs, because she is getting a new (human) baby brother! Many blessings to Shelby and her family. It will be interesting to see how Shelby adjusts to having another baby in the house. I know she'll be a great big sister.

We have often wondered what kind of a big sister Bean will be. She hasn't really been around very many babies, simply because we don't know that many (aside from the ones I babysit for). Of course, we are years away from introducing a new little brother or sister to Bean, but I think it would be good for her to have some exposure to them beforehand.

Well you know what? It is surprisingly difficult to get anyone to let you borrow their child for use as a "practice baby" to see how your dog reacts. Can you believe that? I even asked the parents I babysit for. They said no! Some people are just selfish, I guess.

So, we will just have to practice with dolls for now. Although, considering the fate of Bean's other toys, that might end in a gruesome mess!

You know they just aren't as much fun after the stuffing is gone...{sigh}

Bean Goes Multimedia!

I got an awesome new camera for my birthday on Monday (thanks Mom and Dad!) and decided to play around with it after Bean and I got back from the vet on Wednesday. It has the ability to take short (1 min) videos, and thought "Finally! I get to show Bean in action!" So I taped the destruction of the fleece toy I gave Bean in reward for not killing any cats in the waiting room.

I taped it in three parts. Unfortunately, the last part (which is the most thrilling) is kind of blurry. I tried to get fancy and mess with the settings without actually reading the manual first. Oh well. There will be many more toys for Bean to destroy I am sure!

So without further ado, I present to you:

Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part I



Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part II




Bean vs. Squeaky Toy - Part III




Notice in that last clip that she is able to remove the stuffing and the squeaker in less than 60 seconds. Now that is impressive!

Close Call in the Cat Room

Yesterday we went to the vet for some routine blood work. Our vet, like many others, has separate waiting rooms for dogs and cats. In the dog waiting room, there is a selection of toys for sale. The proceeds go towards the clinic's Stray Fund. We always buy Bean a toy on the way out to reward her for being a good girl at the vet.

Well, yesterday, I stayed in the waiting room while they took her back (it was just a quick lab visit). I had already picked out a toy for her (a pink fleece squeaky horse, more on that later) and stashed it in my purse. I don't like to give it to her until we get home, because she tends to make a mess with her toys. Well, there I was, thumbing through the latest issue of Dog Fancy, when the door from the lab bursts open and Bean comes tearing out of it, dragging her leash along, and followed closely by a vet tech. She had gotten free from the tech on their journey back to the waiting room. And her destination?

The cat area.

Oh yes. Bean decided that instead of the usual plush toy, this time she wanted a living, breathing chew toy to take home. One that meows instead of squeaks. She was caught before she could make it there, and no cats were harmed during this ordeal, although there was some hissing and back-arching. When they brought her to me, I wasn't sure if she still deserved a toy. Should I reward this behavior?

OK. I know how that looked. But let me just say... the cats started it.

I ended up giving her the toy once we got home. How can I resist that face? Besides, she looks sorry, doesn't she? Man, I am a pushover.

Profile shot

Here is a nice shot of Bean in my back yard scanning for squirrels. She is lovely in profile, isn't she? As you can see, there is a huge old tree in the middle of the yard. There must be hundreds of squirrels that live in that tree. And every one of them has tormented Bean at one time or another. Their newest trick is to climb out to the end of a branch and fall. That's right. They just fall to the ground with a loud thud! and then tear off for the tree trunk as fast as they can.

Uhhh. Where'd he go? Where'd he go!!! Let me at 'em!!!

As you can imagine, this drives Bean absolutely insane. By the time she focuses on one of them, it is already too close to the tree for her to get it, and in the meantime, the next one has jumped. It's pretty much the craziest thing I've ever seen squirrels do. Kind of like a real-life version of Whac-A-Mole. Either they have a death wish, or they are confident in the knowledge that Bean is the Worst. Hunter. Ever.

She doesn't so much as glance at me during this, even when I open the gate. Like this past weekend, when I needed to go inside and grab a sweater. Nothing. I did not even exist to her. But when I came back? It was a whole different story.

Hi mom!! I missed you!!! Don't ever leave me again, OK?

Dog Years

I saw this posted on dooce yesterday, and just had to post it here. It is so funny, and so well done. I also kind of teared up at the end. It is surprisingly moving.

I give it 4 paws up, which is the equivalent of "2 thumbs up" in human, because you only use two of your paws correctly. Just one more reason why I pity you poor, confused creatures. But that is a topic for another day. You'll laugh. You'll cry. Just watch it.

Coworkers

Both Bryan and I have desks in the office, each of which are in front of a window. That way we can stare out the window, which greatly enhances our ability to procrastinate. The downside of this is that Bean can't see out of these windows like she can in the others in the house - by standing up and putting her paws on the windowsill. Her solution is to just stand up and put her paws on our desks instead. Occasionally, she will do this while one of us is working, and it looks like we are discussing some very important project. The other day she did this with Bryan.

See, if you move this sentence here into the conclusion, I think it makes the whole piece flow much better, don't you?

It can be very distracting when you are trying to study or grade papers and there is this gigantic dog head in your peripheral vision like that. But we love her anyway!

In other news, it seems that we have found a new house, and will be moving in August. There are 2 windows in the office at the new house as well, so Bean will be able to continue to "help" us with our work.

Objects in Mirror are Closer Than They Appear

We spent some time this weekend driving around town with Bean. Mostly, we were all enjoying the lovely weather. We were also looking at houses, as we are considering a move. Since Bean will be spending more time in any house we take than we will, we thought it best to bring her along so she could give us her opinion.

See, this one is big enough, but there aren't many trees around here. That will seriously impede my squirrel-hunting. Also I'm not sure I like the widows. They are too high for me to see out of. I like the porch, though. Is this a Cape Cod or a Bungalow?

I kept getting distracted by this scene in the rear-view mirror on my side of the car:

Is that Christy's car? That looks like Christy's car. Where is she anyway? I miss her.

And when I tried to talk to Bryan about what we were seeing, I turned my head to face this:

If you take this next left you can cut across town without having to take the freeway.

This whole process could take awhile....

Gizmo has been found!

Thanks to the help of volunteers and the media, Gizmo has been found and reunited with her foster family! All the dog-nappers in this town had better pay attention. This is just not acceptable. Congratulations Gizmo!!

Another stolen dog!

I can hardly believe it, but another dog has been stolen in Durham. Her name is Gizmo and she is a 12 year old Pekingese female. More info and pictures at Animal Protection Society of Durham. The weird thing is that Gizmo was stolen from her foster home. That's right, she was up for adoption! If anyone wanted her that badly they could have adopted her for the $120 fee. Ugh! Humans!!

Bean't first fashion accessory.

We went out of town this past weekend to visit Bryan's parents in Virginia. Bean stayed at the Doggie Spa and Daycare. This was her first time staying there and we were very impressed. When we picked her up, she was so happy! She clearly had a good time. Earlier today she got a bath with the works (nail trim, ear cleaning, teeth cleaning, and anal gland maintenance...don't click on that link unless you really want to know). After her bath, they dressed her in this shamrock bandanna, in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Bean has never worn a bandanna before. Doesn't she look so pretty?

Give me the cheese, I want the cheese, give me the cheese, I want the cheese, give me the cheese...

To get her to sit for this picture, Bryan stood off to the right and held up pieces of string cheese, which she got after each shot. I was able to take like twenty shots! I can never get her to sit still for that long by myself. Bryan may just have to become my official photographer's assistant!