New Experiences

Jon and I, mainly Jon, have done quite a bit of reading on how to take care and properly train a puppy. One of those items is to introduce the puppy to a variety of animals. So on Saturday, we headed up to North Branch. Jon's dad knows quite a few people from his church with farms, or animals, that he thought would be a perfect experience for Eko. So off we went.

Thank you so much for letting us visit!

We were at times overwhelmed by the noise these chickens, roosters, and ducks can make. Wouldn't you know that as soon as I pulled out the camera, it got quite!

We definitely did our job this weekend, he was tuckered out!

Tickle Teeth

Ahh, testing out the toothpaste sample that came in the puppy pack from the vet.

Rude Awakening

A friend forwarded this to me. You may have seen it already...but it is HILARIOUS!

Revolve

So we were trying not to inundate people with our puppy pictures, but since there has been a request...here you go! He came home 2 weeks ago weighing 14 pounds. He is now a healthy 20 pounds and is very comfortable around us and his new home.

Housebreaking and kennel training are our top priorities right now. We also go on short (I mean short) walks around the yard and neighborhood. We have a hard time making it very far due to his incredible curiosity and constant desire to sniff EVERYTHING...AND put it in his mouth. He is learning new things everyday and we are trying to expose him to as many new experiences as possible with our busy schedule.

His favorite thing is to simply be right by our side. He loves taking naps right next to us, sitting right by us, and playing with us. As I am writing this blog he is stretched out right next to me! He is awesome! I'd take a picture, but the camera battery is charging.

A tired puppy is a happy puppy!

By my side

See what I mean...he loves to be by us!

Long day

Eko decided to crash right next to me after playing around. He is a cute little guy!

Position is Everything

We trust ourselves a little more after getting to know Eko's habits over the weekend. So we rolled Eme's shaggy rug back out on the living room floor. Eko laid down as soon as the rug was unfurled.

Then he just couldn't decide which position was the most comfortable. Finally, after a few adjustments, he made it to the other side of the rug!

Eko

Over the past few months we have been pondering, reading, stopping by the Humane Society and most importantly...praying. Yesterday we put a little 10 week old Black Lab/German Shepherd on a 24 hour hold. This gave us time to pray, think, and shop for puppy supplies. And today after work we picked him up from the Society!

After a quick and reserved car ride home he was busy checking out his new home. After a meal, a few outdoor "banyo" breaks, a couple indoor mishaps, and a couple hours of roaming/exploring he crashed into Eme's arms.

He is SO cute!

Jeff and Shelley even stopped by for a surprise visit as they were in the area celebrating their 14th anniversary. Happy anniversary Jeff and Shelley! (Insert Jeff into this picture. He was sitting on the chair adjacent to Shelley)

Notice the dog books from the library on the ottoman...this is our first puppy! We are getting ready for sleepless nights.

You're welcome to come on over and meet Mr. Eko!!

It's funny how you read some things and you think to yourself that it sounds kind of weird or crazy. Take this yellow towel for instance. Some of the books said to wrap your new puppy in a towel or blanket that has been in your house so he gets your scent mixed with his scent. That way he gets to know you and is comforted at the same time. Well, we didn't wrap him in this towel but we used it to wipe the snow off his feet. Later on tonight he walked over to the patio door and nuzzled up right next to the yellow towel.

We thought this was great because then we could place the towel in his kennel and he would want to go in there without coaxing so he could curl up and sleep next to it. He did for a little bit, but wanted to get out of the kennel soon after. When we let him out he went to the patio door, looked around for the missing towel (it was still in the kennel), and curled up to sleep. Incredible!

So we brought the towel back out to him so he would associate it with bed time. Then after a while we picked him and the towel up and put them both in the kennel. He went right to sleep! Awesome!

K.O. - O.K.

Eme and I both had a pretty busy week at work. So Friday around 1:30 we decided to take a spontaneous trip up north! We had a great drive up Friday night and enjoyed an absolutely perfect Saturday and a nice drive home on Sunday. Except for a minor concussion at Lutsen everything went great!

We were both glad this was not our gondola!

This IS Minnesota!


Almost at the summit of Carlton Peak


Eme soaking in God's beauty on top of Carlton Peak (I would have taken the picture towards the lake, but the sun wasn't quite in the right spot)


No snow in the Twin Cities? No problem up here!


Eme and I both love being outdoors and just sat on a rock for about 20 minutes to soak in our surroundings. It was about 30 degrees and the suns warmth coupled with the beautiful landscape was energizing and rejuvenating.


After a stroll around downtown Grand Marais and (it goes without typing) a wonderful eating experience at THE best pizza place on earth (at least the parts of earth we have explored)...Sven and Ole's, we headed up the Gunflint trail to go moose hunting.


We did not see any moose this time but we did see some great scenery and even saw a fox trotting across a lake.


On Sunday we stopped to take a look at the historic Split Rock Light House, a Minnesota icon. I know this picture is gray and cold but it carries power as the lighthouse stands guard over thick clouds and the ice covered Lake Superior. The wind was bitter cold and we have seen this image hundreds of times either in photograph or in person, but it was a powerful site nonetheless.

Listen closely. It sounds like waves or wind. From this vantage point you can see there is ice (so no waves) and the wind is not that audible. We realized it was the waves under the ice and the ice shifting that was making the almost clockwork or trainlike machine noises. It was pretty crazy!