Ross vs. Dakota

They always have a constant battle going. It's exhausting really. You see, when we brought Dakota home, she apparently chose me as her 'one-and-only' favorite person. Apparently, it's a dachshund thing....they attach to one owner, and ignore the rest. So you can see why Ross feels left out in the cold. I don't blame him...we wanted a dog we could both enjoy, and instead, we got a dog that I LOVE, and he basically just accepts, lol. Which puts me in the middle of their ongoing battles....

Let me explain. Dakota has one VERY annoying habit. One that Ross & I both hate. One that I always end up giving into...every...time. For whatever reason, Dakota LOVES to "accidentally" throw her toys down a staircase. Now, for the first 1 & 1/2 yrs. of her life, she didn't know how to go down steps (only up, but that's ANOTHER story), so she would have no way to retreive her toy, until me or Ross finally got it. Well, there's a really long staircase in our apt. that leads down to the garage with a door at the bottom, that she refuses to go down. I don't blame her, it's a very long staircase, especially for a weiner dog. BUT, she must enjoy it in some way b/c it's perfect for throwing her toys down. It was funny...the first time ....and even the 2nd ....but not the 3rd. The funniest was her tennis ball, you'd see her playing with it at the edge of the staircase (her own fault) and then you'd hear, bum-bump bump bump bum-bump. ha!

So this is where Ross comes in. He finally put his foot down. He has ordered me to not save her toys this time so she can learn a lesson! (Should I remind him again that we're talking about a dog, and not a child?!) So far, at the bottom of our staircase, we have a tennis ball, a stuffed porcupine, and a stuffed bullet (thanks to Ross' brother, haha). SO....I guess we're going to count how many toys Dakota can get down there until the battle is won. I'm not sure how Ross win's...I guess until she runs out of toys....surely THEN I can carry them back up!

But I swear, I get in the middle of more of their fights then anyone else in my entire life. Our house is quite the amusement...

My Hot Dog can Swim...

So I promised on Facebook that I would supply pics of Dakota taking her first swim, and instead of posting them to the whole world, I thought I would share them on here instead :) We went camping this past weekend with the whole family and were located right beside a river. On Saturday, a few of us decided to go kayaking, hence the reason we were in the water, and Ross was anxious to see if his dog could swim (after all she is unusually long for a weiner dog) but I knew she could do it....I mean, really...her paws are huge! She's got weird webbed duck feet....

Anywho! Let's take a look....

Ross is still holding her here, getting her prepared for the water....

At this point, Ross is bent over from laughing so hard. He was still holding her, about 2" above the water, and her instincts must've kicked in, b/c her paws just started paddling in the air! Our dog was ready to go! It really was hysterical.... Her first swim complete! Of course, she swam right to me, begging to be saved....

That was fun! Let's do it again....

pssss - Did anyone notice Ross' extreme farmer's tan?!?! HA! Too bad you couldn't see his legs, those are the whitest.

Anyways, it was hysterical seeing her paddle through that water. I couldn't believe how well she did (of course, she couldn't go long distance or anything like that). But best of all...she dried in about 40 minutes. Did I mention how much I love having a short-haired dog?! Of course, I'm sure it helped when I put her on my lap and she shook it all off on me. O well...I was wet before anyhow :)

Kristin's Working Out? Says who?!?!

Yup...you read it right. For the first time in my life, I'm actually considering joining a gym. I think it's official that I've finally hit that age where my metabolism has slowed quite dramatically, or maybe I'm just eating too many cheese fries and greasy pizza (*yum*).

Alas, don't be worried though, that was not my main reason for thinking about joining the gym here at Westinghouse. I'm actually desperate....desperate for something to do during my lunch break! As most of you know, I work with colleagues who like to take "working lunches" almost everyday, and eat at their desks. THIS is not ok with me.... I'm going stir-crazy sitting at my desk 8.5 hrs. everyday. I used to enjoy reading a book during my lunch break, at my last job, but here...it's different. There's nowhere I can really go to not feel like a social outcast by sitting alone on my lunchbreak....ha! So, I've been dragged down to taking a "working lunch" as well. BUT NO MORE! Not me! I need to get away for a bit!

So why not join the gym and try out a few of their classes they offer during lunchtime?! Why, that's not a bad idea. Of course, the pure thought of even being present in a gym scares the bigeesus outta me. But I need to get over that fear....especially since I can't even fit in my wedding dress from only 2 years ago! Eek! Of course, Ross had to point out that I'll be all stinky and sweaty after working out, but their locker room is very nice. Nice showers, supplied with shampoo, soap, and even towels. SO, I think I'll face that fear too and get a quick shower after working out. Unless I'm only mildly stinky...then maybe I can opt out :P

Anyways, tomorrow is my first day of my week-free trial basis. After that, I can get the rest of June for free if I sign up for 6 months...quite a commitment! So, wish me luck. Tomorrow is Spinning class.....geesh, just kill me now....

3-Days Too Little

Welp, since I'm sitting here at work, on a rainy, miserable Tuesday back from an enjoyable 3-day weekend, I might as well update this blog a little and reminisce about how wonderful my weekend was.

This past weekend was mine & Ross' camping trip with my 2 closest girlfiends and their boyfriends, at a campground near Ohiopyle, which we've all been to before. First off, the weather was nothing short of PERFECT! Nice & sunny, upper 70's/low 80's (but cooler since we camp in the shaded woods), and not a single drop of rain (even though it was calling for thunderstorms Friday night, it somehow missed us). So I guess for scoring such a great weekend, I won't be allowed to complain if we get one rainy weekend of camping later in the season, I guess it's a fair trade?!

Our white-water rafting trip on Saturday was a lot of fun. The best part?! Me NOT falling out of the raft. We all had a great time, and our guide even called us an athletic bunch :) I'll group myself into that category since I was there, even though I'm the least athletic person you'll ever meet! I have so many great stories and memories from that trip, it was so exciting to try something new. Our guide was also perfect for us, he was about our age, and had a ton of experience, so we got a lot of individual rafting time rather than being grouped in with the other 8 rafts who all stuck together. We were also always first into the rapid, or last, depending on whether our guide had to help guide the other rafts through (giving us time to relax on shore and watch the other rafts go through the rapids).

Sunday we explored and walked around the little town of Ohiopyle, checked out the natural waterslide and relaxed on the riverbank. I actually managed to get a little sun on my shoulders....look at me catching up to my Mexican-colored husband!! (haha)

Other than that, we played a little cornhole, phase 10 and Skipp-o, drank a little beer, and ate a LOT of great food. It was the perfect way to relax on a long weekend, and I wouldn't have had it any other way :) I can't wait til our next outing, that has yet to be planned.

But for now, Ross & I have our next camping trip to look forward to in 2 weeks, with Stephen & Betsy, Michelle & Mike, and mom & dad. We're trying out a new campground, about 30 min.'s from Ohiopyle, where we get to tent along the river. Should be great! Or maybe that's when mother nature will make me pay my dues for last weekend's sunny weather....