I remember seeing Cheryl Strayed speak about the release of her book Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail at the Seattle REI a couple of years ago. Cheryl and her book are in the limelight again due to the release of the move Wild, based on her book. Cheryl found herself alone on the Pacific Crest Trail - inexperienced and desperate to reclaim her life after the loss of her Mom … [Read more...]

Last month I took part in a survey of influential pet bloggers about where they shop for holiday gifts for their pets and how much they spend. I usually spend between $100 - $200 on Chester and Gretel for Christmas and try to shot at local, independent pet stores. I often find the most high quality, and unique gifts there and it makes me feel good to support small businesses. I was really … [Read more...]

Sometimes I wish Chester and Gretel knew how to speak human-ese so they could tell me what they are thinking. Instead I am left trying to infer meaning from their body language. It's totally a guessing game. Do those kisses mean that Gretel loves me or just that it's dinner time? Does Chester's starting and grumping mean he wants you to cover him with blankets or that he needs to go potty? And … [Read more...]

We're getting some nice winter sun in the City today but snow has already dusted the mountains and soon it will be so deep that we will need snowshoes to hike anywhere. I was reflecting on our great summer full of adventure this morning in the "goodbye, we won't see you until next year" kind of way. If you haven't read about them all, here are the highlights: In May I drove 3,000 miles from … [Read more...]

Fall has landed and winter will be here before we know it. It's time to start thinking about gloves. I love to snuggle my hands in my favorite pair of gloves when I am out walking the dogs in the cold. I often use a fitness app, or an app that tracks my mileage and donates money to animal rescue, so I need to be able to use the touchscreen on my smartphone. A lot of gloves on the market … [Read more...]

Gretel and I are flying to Knoxville, Tenn for the PetSafe Paw Print Blogger Summit Wednesday and our flight reservations were set but then the fire happened, making our trip an adventure before we even off of the ground. Friday, before we left for our weekend-long camping trip, I caught the news about the Chicago flight tower.  A disgruntled communications contractor assigned to the Aurora FAA … [Read more...]

I just signed Gretel up for a 6-week nosework class. I've been wanting to try it with her for a long time. We did sort of try it once at the Portland Pet Expo last year. They needed some dogs to help demonstrate nosework on the stage and I volunteered Gretel. Now she will get to try it legitimately. She is so food motivated and has a good nose. However, I think this will honestly be a challenge … [Read more...]

Wednesday, I made an announcement on our Facebook Page that I had just found out that Gretel would be flying to Knoxville, Tenn. with me on October 1st (thanks to everyone who gave me great advice for flying with a dog). I have never flown with a dog in cabin before (or at all) and Gretel has never been on an airplane. I never brought either of the dogs with me to a conference that wasn't … [Read more...]

In case you haven't heard, our blog has been nominated again for the Best Active Living Blog in the Petties pet blog awards. The coolest thing about it is that I never asked for one nomination this year. It was you, our loyal fans and readers, that took it upon yourself to nominate us. I appreciate that so much and I am honored to make it to the finals. Then it became a moral dilemma First, … [Read more...]

Having no mudroom causes a problem for me when I come home from a rainy walk or muddy hike with my dogs and they are caked with dirt. If you opened our front door, you would walk right into our living room. Our house is not unique. Many classic, early 20th-century Seattle homes lack and entryway.   If I let my dogs go right inside, they track dirt all over the house. I am making … [Read more...]

I sleep with Chester and Gretel. It's my "comfort food". You know, that meal you had as a kid that, when you eat it now, takes you to your happy place.?When I was a kid, I slept with my cat Jack every night and sleeping with a small dog is similar. I recently bought a FitBit Force (which has recently been recalled due to "rashes"...which I have not had an issue with) that tracks my activity and … [Read more...]

This past year feels like it drug along. When I recap it in my mind though it feels like a blink in time. I have been doing some reflecting lately about this blog and I thought I would share with you what the 10 most popular blog posts were for 2013. 10. The Cozy Hound Fleece Dachshund Jacket Review 9. Inside the Soul......of My Hiking Backpack 8. 6 "Unknown" Dog-Friendly Trails Near … [Read more...]

So there I was, fawning all over like a giddy teenager in front of her crush. A couple of weeks ago I was at Superzoo - a huge pet product trade show - and visited the Ruffwear Performance Dog Gear booth. I had a special mission. My hubby and I were going to Bend, OR for a vacation with the dogs in a couple of weeks and that is where the Ruffwear headquarters are located. It was a dream of … [Read more...]

Three years ago I had a good, steady job. My life had settled into a predictable routine. I was doing what I was "supposed to". I was also miserable. I had been searching for some sign of the "right direction" for years but nothing was making sense. Little did I know that things were about to change in a big way. One day I was browsing Petfinder on my lunch break. I was looking at Dachshunds … [Read more...]

Tomorrow we leave for a 5-day road trip. We are headed from Seattle to Bend, Oregon. This will be Gretel's longest road trip and the maiden voyage for my new car. In 2012, Dog Fancy Magazine named Bend "Dog Town USA" - the nation's dog-friendliest City. The city was selected based on Bend’s abundance of canine-friendly recreation opportunities, businesses, restaurants, and off-leash … [Read more...]

I heard once that some people don't let their dogs on their couch. If it is happening, it's in a land far, far away from our house. I admit that I am in middle age and I have never owned a couch that was not bought on Craigslist (for cheap) or handed down by a friend or family member. While appreciated, these couches have never been a perfect match for our household. Don't get me wrong, I … [Read more...]

They say that exercise clears your head. We've been walking a lot more for K9 Kamp and it's working because I have a serious case of writers block! I want to tell you how Kamp is going for us but don't expect it to be witty, funny or particularly interesting...not that all my posts are like that anyway :) We've been sticking with our commitment to exercise 30 minutes extra 3 - 4 times a week by … [Read more...]

It's been a crazy whirlwind for the blog over the last month. The redesign was a huge undertaking but I am happy with the results (mostly anyway. I am still making small tweaks). Now that things have calmed down in that respect, I want to share some things that have been going on outside the blog. Imagine my shock when my Spring 2013 issue of Modern Dog Magazine arrived and inside, on page 17, I … [Read more...]

I don't consider myself a novice with a camera but I don't consider myself an expert either. I am constantly learning and striving to improve. I have taken several introductory photo classes. A lot of the basics get covered over and over again but I appreciate it because I need to hear it several (or many, really) times for it to sink in. Even "basic" settings can be really complicated. What … [Read more...]

Gahhhhhhhh! I am not going to bore you with personal details. I will just say that I have been REALLY busy with some very important stuff that had to take priority. We haven't gotten as far as I had hoped by this time - the halfway point of the Idita-Walk challenge. We've barely made it a quarter of the way. In MY defense, I have done a lot more walking than us as a team. When I signed up … [Read more...]