SNOW....SNOW....SNOW....SNOWWWWW!

Last night we went to bed with about three inches of snow and woke up to 7.5 inches. Storm Nemo has come and gone, but left us a nice layer of powder for Brie to play in! I'm grateful for all the snow because Jeff has been complaining that we haven't had much of a winter (To Jeff winter = snow). I find his complaining funny since it has already snowed a couple of times this winter. Apparently there is an snow inch requirement in order for it to count (aka...enough for him to use the snowblower). Silly Jeffrey.

We bought a snowblower a couple years ago (after the terrible storms of 2010/2011) and haven't really had the chance to use it. Jeff said when we bought it that we probably wouldn't get another storm. I told him I was fine with that. Sounded like good insurance to me! I was glad that he got to use it this morning. Boys and their toys!

Also, this storm gave us the chance to learn that Brie loves water in . She has been going crazy outside in the snow. She will eat a little snow, then go for a crazy run, then eat a little more snow, and then go jump on Jeff. It's been a good morning for her.

Preparing for the storm....

Yes, another storm is going to be hitting our area. We won't be getting the worse of it, but we should get a few inches of snow.

Here's Brie preparing for the storm. She's such a big helper.

Take a Hike...@ Huber Woods Park

Jeff and I decided that we should spend more time hiking. There are just so many places to hike in New Jersey and we should be taking advantage them! One of the first places we went was Huber Woods. It was so lovely! We got lost a couple of times (there are a lot of trails!), but enjoyed it! We just kept wandering around until we found our way back to the car.

Brie had a good time too! She was totally exhausted after we were done and according to Jeff, "A tired puppy, is a happy owner!"

Huber Woods Park

25 Brown's Dock Road, Locust (Middletown Twp.) , NJ 07760

(732) 872-2670 - Environmental Center

(732) 872- 0336 - Ranger Station

Playing in the Waves at Sandy Hook

Jeff and I took Brie to Sandy Hook a couple weeks ago for a walk. They only allow dogs on Sandy Hook beaches after Labor days, so we didn't waste anytime getting out there and letting Brie play in the waves! She just LOVES water!

Queen of the Rock!

The Patriotic Pup!

Playing with Jake at the lake...

Jeff and I spent a weekend up at a lake house in upstate New York with a couple of friends. We spent a couple of days lying by the lake and soaking up the sun! And Brie made another friend, Jake! I don't know if Jake would consider Brie a friend, since she spent most the time jumping all over him and chasing him around. Brie is such a little flirt! Jake is a 100 pound golden retriever and is much calmer and maturer than Brie. He was totally a good sport and let Brie walk all over him.

BFF: Mia and Brie

Brie made a few new friends last month! Brie just loves making new friends! Especially ones that color her nose with chalk like Mia!

I've been really nerves about Brie playing with kids, since she's still a puppy, but is huge and doesn't really know her own strength! (example she jumped up on Mia the day before these pictures were taken and totally knocked her over). So, I'm kind of stressed out when kids are around her. Well, Mia went outside where Brie was tied up to play with chalk. Of course I was nerves so I kept looking out to check to make sure Brie wasn't licking her to death (which Brie is known to do). After stepping away from the door for a min, I came back to see Mia sitting right next to Brie. Brie was just sitting patiently while Mia was drawing a "house" around her. It was just the cutest thing ever!

The pictures are a little weird since I took them through a glass door, but I just had to take pictures.

And I'm back....for a little bit

Sorry I have been so MIA lately. Things have gotten really busy over the past few weeks and I haven't really had time to blog. I still have pictures from the Palmyra trip I want to share and I'm hoping I can get those up sometime next week before I leave for Girls Camp! Yes, that's right...Girls Camp! I'm only going for two days, but I'm still really excited. Busy, busy busy! I hope to get some good pictures while I'm up there, so I can show you what I have been working on.

Also, I have been investigating some fun New Jersey diners with the lovely Sarah. I hope to share pictures from those adventures real soon!

Until then...here's a picture of Brie :)

Lazy Brie

I'm not sure if this is a Labrador trait or just my dog, but she is so LAZY! I thought puppies were supposed to be full of energy 24/7? Don't get me wrong, she is really hyper when people come over or someone walks by her at the park, but when it comes to day to day activities she just can't stay on her feet!

A few months ago she wouldn't (notice I didn't say COULDN'T) get on the couch by herself. She would put her front two legs up on the couch and then look up at us with sad eyes until we lifted her back legs up for her. Well, that didn't last long. Jeff and I decided to not lift her up anymore, because we knew she could do it on her own (she use to run around the coffee table and then lung onto the couch). She whined at first, but now she jumps up on her own like a champ. :)

What's her new lazy trait? Well, currently Brie can't be bothered to stand while she drinks. She used to always stand while she ate food or drank water, but not anymore! She takes a few licks of her water and then plop! She's down on the ground going to town on the water.

Brie has always liked to play with her water (she likes to paw at it repeatedly until the water is all over the floor), but now she likes to put her nose in the water and blow bubbles. Is this normal? Jeff and I tried to get her to stop playing with her water, but knew that we were going to lose that battle, so we just moved her water dish outside so she didn't make a mess in the house.

I think we need to buy her one of those plastic kids pools. I think she would love it!

 We sure love our little baby :) She's just so entertaining.

Now for more Brie

Remember Thompson Park I wrote about a few weeks ago? Well, one of my favorite things is going with Jeff on his walks with Brie and taking pictures. It's nice having such a willing model. Jeff is never willing to have his picture taken, but when the dogs around he doesn't seem to put up much of a fight.

And Then They Came to See Us...

A few weeks after our visit to Minnesota Jon and the kids came out to spend some time at our house. They spent half of their time with us and half of their time down at Bob (Jeff's oldest brother) and Noramah's (Sister In-law).

It was so fun watching the kids play with Brie and Brie loved having such willing playmates.

Simple Things Sunday: Brie is home!

For the last two weeks Brie has been at the breeders. She was suppose to be there for three weeks, but Jeff and I missed her so much we went and picked her up early. I couldn't believe how empty our house felt without her. She is truly part of our family.

 

4 months of Brie

Our "baby girl" (as I like to call her) is growing up so fast. She hit six months at the end of April and she won't stop growing! :( She was doing really well with sit, down, stand, and come, but has recently decided that she doesn't want to listen anymore. We hear this is common. Jeff and I both love her so much! She's made a great addition to our little family...we're now thinking about getting another one at the end of the year, but we shall see.

A Walk in The Park with Brie

A lot of things have happen over the past month and a half and I haven't blogged about any of them! Shame on me. And now when I have a free min to blog I'm not going to fill you in but show you more pictures of my puppy! Hahah!

One of many reasons we wanted to get a dog was to encourage us to get outside more. Well, today we took Brie for a walk in Thompson Park. It was her second outing in the park, but this time Jeff went with us (even with his bad knee) so I could take pictures :)

Jeff has been working with Brie on fetch. She's getting the basics (get the ball and bring it back), but there is still room for improvement. First, when Jeff throws the ball she follows it with her eyes and then slowly wanders over to it. No pep! No Excitement! What's up with that? Then she slowly brings it back to Jeff (if no one else is around to distract her). Sometimes she gives it Jeff....and sometimes she's not so giving. I'm sure she will get better with practice :)

A New Addition to the Family...

Jeff and I have been debating about getting a dog and then later which kind to get for the last year. I wanted a small dog...he wanted a big dog. I wanted an inside dog...he wanted an outside dog. And on and on. I didn't think we would ever decide on one. After what seemed like a never ending debate we decided on a Lab. We looked into Chocolate Labs, but never actually went to get one. Jeff is kind of picky when it comes to purebred, registrations, and certifications of dogs.

We got the inspiration needed when my parents bought a puppy while we were home staying with them for Christmas (They got a Golden Retriever). We ended up coming home and buying a little Yellow Lab from Ark Angle Labradors and we LOVE her. We've had a couple of sleepless nights, but she's starting to settle into our home and we're so happy she's here.

Luckily we didn't have as had of time naming our puppy that my parents did :) but it was still hard. I really don't know what's going to happen when we have kids and have to come up with names. It totally stressed me out. After we went to see her for the first time we started brainstorming names: London, Crumpet, and Brie. It wasn't until we went to pick her up the next day that we decided on Brie. It just seemed to fit her. Jeff continues to call her "Puppy," or "Pooch" and I'm working hard to remind him that her name is Brie and she won't learn it if he calls her other names. Jeff is really good with her and it's fun watching him take such good care of her.