September 20, 2009

Long Overdue Update!

Wow! It's pretty obvious that I'm not the best at keeping up with Paz's blog! It has been almost a month since I've added anything! With the start of school and the start of Kate's college soccer season, we've all been pretty busy, including Paz!

In the last 3 weeks, Paz has spent time in the kennel twice while Phil and I traveled to Memphis, TN, and Austin/San Antonio to watch Kate' team play. There's a great new kennel in town that we checked out, and we felt very comfortable leaving Paz, Jed and Ding with the staff. Both times, Paz came home healthy and happy. The staff reported that she was a great guest and had fun meeting some of the other dogs. Jed and Ding also came home happy and somewhat rested, as the kennel staff gave them a break from Paz's antics!

We continue to take Paz out and about to explore. She made a couple of long trips to Walmart where she "hupped" up on anything she could! She also did a pretty good job finding her favorite "stinky sock" when we hid it in different places in the garden center! Her favorite part of Walmart continues to be the pet section; she discovered the fish tanks the last time she was there and was completely mesmerized by them! Better than tv!

Paz's new favorite place is Wolfe Pen Creek Amphitheater. The long lead is great here so she can run up and down the amphitheater over and over. There are LOTS of steps there too, so it's great practice. She has a really good time on the playground; it has several slides and tunnels. She is big enough now to go down and UP the slides! I thought the tunnels might bother her, but she had no trouble running through them. The hardest part this time was keeping her out of the pond and creek! She truly loves the water! Since we recently had some RAIN!!!!! she got pretty muddy... must remember to keep towels in the trunk!

Paz has also enjoyed 2 trips to Dallas to see Kate play soccer. She has been very well behaved both times. All she does in the car is sleep (Yahoo!) and she explores the stadium on the long lead during the games. We have to watch the out of bounds balls pretty carefully or she tries to steal them! After the last game, Paz had a great reunion with Kate :) Paz must miss her more than I realized!

We're really enjoying our time with Paz! Things are a little easier now that she's housebroken and sleeping later! Being a foster family continues to be a blast!

September 2, 2009

A Typical Friday Night in Texas!

Yep! That's right!  On Friday, August 28, we took Paz to her very first high school football game!  No true Texan ever misses a chance to cheer on the local team (unless there's a soccer game!) and Paz is definitely a born and bred Texan!  She was dressed for the occasion, proudly wearing her TSA vest; unfortunately, the visiting team was also wearing red, so she looked like she was supporting the wrong team!

Paz did a great job while we were at the game.  She really had a blast exploring the entire complex.  She checked out the restrooms, the stands and outside the pressbox.  She was eager to "hup" up onto benches, some training equipment and the spirit trailer.  She REALLY LOVED the concession stand.  We had a little trouble keeping her from eating everything that had been dropped by customers!

Paz did not seemed fazed by the loud noises, the crowds, the bands or all of the curious kids and adults.  We decided to stay for the first half, and went home with one excited puppy!  Phil and I were thrilled that she didn't jump up on anyone or try to grab their food!  Paz was extremely well behaved.  Way to go Paz!

The next day, we took Paz back to Houston to visit my mom.  Paz wore her "seatbelt" in the car and once again slept the entire trip.  What a good puppy!  While in Houston, Paz got to spend another afternoon in the swimming pool.  She picked up right where she left off, running and jumping as far as she could before splashdown.  From the looks of things, Paz would make a fabulous dock dog!  She also got along much better with my mom's 2 dogs this time.  They spent more time playing and less time being territorial, which made for a much nicer trip.  It wasn't too long before we were back in the car, headed home with a sleepy puppy.  

We certainly had a busy couple of days and Paz was up for the challenge!  Things will slow down a little bit before the heart of Kate's soccer season starts up.  In the meantime, Happy 5 month Birthday Paz!