Happy 3rd Birthday, Adler!

My puppy turned three today. I can't believe she's three! I guess that makes her a dog and not a puppy anymore! She still has a lot of puppy left in her though - especially when she sees people she likes. I'm not complaining - I'd rather have her act young, especially when the life expectancy of this breed is so short (7-9 years).

Turns out admist our busy morning trying to get ready, Adler walked and Austen ready and out the door, we forgot to say happy birthday to our special girl. We made up for it this evening though. Adler got a walk with just me before I picked up Austen at daycare and she got some new toys and a nice bone for her to chew on. She also got lots of leftover turkey!

I can't believe how fast the time has gone. It seems like only yesterday that I got the email that she was born and we were getting a Berner! I remember how excited we were. Little did we know how much joy she would bring us. We couldn't have asked for a better, more perfect dog for us.

Happy birthday, Adler. I'm hoping that you have many, many more birthdays to celebrate!

We love you.

Austen's First Thanksgiving

Well, Austen managed to stuff himself for his first Thanksgiving. He not only ate his baby food turkey and veggies but also has some big people butternut squash, mashed potatoes and stuffing. He seemed to like it that's for sure and even topped off the evening with a few good licks of whipped cream from one of his grandmas. Not much longer til he'll be eating lots of whipped cream from a big 1-year-old cake!

Anyway, Adler got to come with us too for Thanksgiving at the grandparents so she enjoyed a little turkey too. She also got to see her cousin dogs - Clarence and Bosley so she's been trying to catch up on her sleep all weekend!

Check out our two "babies" on Thanksgiving - both looking like they just got done with a big Thanksiving day meal!

Adler Laying, Austen Playing

One of Austen's favorite toys is his alligator on a wire. I bought it for him when we went to Lincoln Park Zoo earlier this fall with one of my friend's and her daughter. There really wasn't a big selection of toys for infants aside from various stuffed animals. But, like any kid, Austen already has enough of those. So I settled on this Alligator on a wire.


Austen loves it and knows how to use the handle and make it walk. Adler likes it too and likes to pounce on it when Austen isn't looking. In this video, she's pretty tame but she still manages to sink her teeth into Austen's toy.

Austen Gives Adler a Kiss

Austen is learning how to give kisses....well, his version of kisses which means that he opens his mouth as wide as it will go and then plops a wet one on you.

It really is very sweet, especially when he kisses Adler and winds up with a mouthful of fur. He doesn't seem to mind though and neither does Adler - even when he grabs onto her ear to pull himself up to give her a big kiss!

Check out Austen in action through this video (I love that blogger has video now!).

No Torturing Adler this Halloween

Last year, we decided to dress up Adler for Halloween. She was a ghost. The easiest costume that would probably be the least uncomfortable for her. But, she didn't love it.

So this year, we decided not to torture her and instead dress up Austen for Halloween. He was a dinosaur for his first Halloween and had a great time with his cousins and his grandpa pulling him around in his wagon.

His cousins were nice enough to get candy for him (well, okay, for Tom and I), and he enjoyed trying to eat their candy that they left unattended in the wagon when they weren't looking!