Adler Turns Two

It was Adler's birthday today. So how did we celebrate, you wonder. Well, first we hired a dog walker. Today was Adler's first official day with someone coming in halfway through the day and taking her for a walk. Tom's not working from home anymore so we thought hiring a dog walker to take her out three times a week would be a treat for her. More on that though in a future blog.

When we got home, we gave Adler lots of treats and took her for another long walk. Tom stopped at a doggie store during lunch today and picked her up her very own birthday cake plush toy that plays happy birthday. He also picked her up some vanilla ice cream from McDonalds. After lighting the candles and Adler backing away from them (she's a big chicken), we blew them out and let her enjoy her birthday treat. We capped off the evening by giving her another toy that has little stuffed squirrels in it that she has to work to get out. You know how Adler loves squirrels. Especially those furry little tails.

We can't believe she's already two. Time sure does fly by when you're watching something grow up right before your eyes. I'm glad we took lots of pictures.

The Dynamic Duo

"Who are they?" I'm sure you are wondering. No, the baby hasn't arrived yet - it's Adler and my dad. Whenever they are together at my mom's house, something gets broken.

It was Thanksgiving Day, we hadn't even been at my mom's house for more than an hour when we decided to go outside and enjoy the nice 60-degree Chicago weather. We were sitting on my mom's patio watching Adler run around the yard with her cousin, Clarence. My dad was sipping his Coppola Pinot Noir wine in my mom's fancy Mikasa wine glasses and chatting about the day. All of a sudden Adler comes running by, my dad wasn't holding his glass tight enough and the glass flew out of his hand and shattered in a million little pieces all over the patio. "That's why I asked for a plastic cup," my dad said.

Needless to say, amazingly, no red wine got on any of us and after a few quick sweeps of the broom and some water, the patio was as good as new.

Next time him and Adler are together, we'll give him one of my neices' sippy cups!

Where Does Adler Sleep?

Well, it's different depending on the season. It's like she instinctively knows when fall/winter has arrived because she changes her sleeping location. Dogs must be able to sense that coolness in the air. Although you think they wouldn't know the difference, especially in summer when the air conditioning is on.

Anyway, last year for Adler's birthday, we bought her a big dog bed, she loved it and slept on it all winter and into the spring. But one day in the spring, she decided it was too hot and moved to alternating between the carpet and the bathroom floor for the next six months. We didn't know if she'd ever use her big dog bed again. But recently, Adler knew it was time for a change and went back to sleeping on her pillow all snug on my side of the bed.

Can't wait to see if she moves back to the floor and the rug in the spring. Maybe by then she'll be sleeping under the crib.

Adler's New Room

Tom and I just finished setting up the crib for the new baby. I wanted to get some pictures of it to send to my aunt since she was generous enough to purchase it for us. As I was taking the picture, guess who shows up in the shot?? Hard to guess that it was Adler! She was curious about the crib. Wasn't afraid to go under it (she fits by the way) and she almost jumped right up and into it!

Can't wait til the baby gets here and she gets driven nuts because she won't be able to see over the crib bumper to see the baby in the crib! I guess you're not supposed to leave those on anyway when they are infants because it contributes to SIDS. But they are so darn cute.

Adler's Report Card

Well, she did it. Adler completed her third and probably last class of training at Call of the Wild School for Dogs. This class was all about getting dogs to sit and stay; coming when called; and more off-leash training.

Adler looked forward to her class every Wednesday especially after we purchased a Costco-sized bag of string cheese which is a great training treat. Anyway, see Adler's certificate for completing her intermediate obedience training class and see how she rated below on her report card:

Sitting and Staying: B
Adler grew much better at sitting and staying throughout the 8-week class. It was easy when there were no distractions, but throw in a few toys, some food, various dogs and other people and it was a lot more difficult for her. We'll continue to work on her sit and stay, but she improved greatly and was one of the better dogs in class.

Heeling: A
Adler was definitely the best in her class with the heel command. No matter where she was even if she was off leash, once you said "Adler, heel!" she would find the right side of your body and walk closely by your side.

Coming When Called: A
Again, Adler was the top dog. No matter how many treats or distractions lay between her and I, once I called her, she would sprint toward me.

Responding to the Down Command: A-
Adler was very good at this command as well and one of the best in the class. We could either use a hand signal with Adler or the verbal "down" and she would go down - all 80 pounds of her! Of course, Adler grew tired of this command being a big dog, as it was quite a workout and after about 20 downs, she'd had enough.

Next up - possibly agility class. Maybe that will be my night out with Adler after the baby!

Adler's World Begins to Change

It seems like Adler doesn't know her "fort" (the place between the wall and the bed of our second bedroom) is gone. Or maybe she does know and she doesn't care.

We have a pretty much empty room now and she still goes in there and sleeps up against the wall. I'm trying to figure out what is so special about that wall.

I think that's the wall that our baby crib is going to go against so I wonder if she'll be sleeping under the crib! Come to think of it - I don't think she'll fit!