Dog Days of Summer

It's only July, but it's definitely the dog days of summer! It was 107 today at the weather station on our house when I got home from work. Kendall doesn't like the heat one bit. She and I didn't get much sleep last night. It was still 92 outside at 11:30 pm and it was 86 in our bedroom. Unfortunately, we don't have air conditioning. It never gets that hot in the Pacific Northwest. (Yeah, right!)

For some reason, Kendall thinks she needs to bark at the oscillating fan. Between the heat and the barking, I gave up and made a reservation at the local pet-friendly hotel. Hopefully, we'll get to stay cool over the next couple of days.

Kendall spent the day at Pup-a-Razzi, at doggie daycare, so she stayed cool all day. Tomorrow she'll get to hang out with Clyde at the hotel. She's got an appointment with the groomer and will be getting her summer/camping haircut.

Here's Kendall checking out the bed. She doesn't get on the bed at home, so this was a treat.




Here's Kendall after her trip to the groomer for her summer haircut. It's hard to tell, but the hair on her body is a lot shorter.


Here's a great way to stay cool.

Pedigree Million Dog Mosaic

I stumbled on a really cool mosaic picture that was made from thousands and thousands of individual dog pictures uploaded by their owners. It's worth a visit.

Million Dog Mosaic
(Click on the words in green to take you to the picture.)

Silver Falls State Park

We spent the weekend camping at Silver Falls State Park near Silverton, OR. We attended the annual Chalet meet. There were 16 trailers and 30-some people in attendance. Kendall got to meet lots of people and had a great time.

It was really hot this weekend. We took Kendall to the Upper North Falls to cool off. It's the only falls at the park that dogs are allowed to go to. The Trail of Ten Falls is off-limits to dogs. If it weren't for a park volunteer letting us know we could go up there, we never would've known.

It was much cooler in the woods and close to the falls than it was in the campground. Our camp site had zero shade. Luckily, our Fantastic Fan did a great job of keeping it cool inside the trailer.

Birthday Party - Part 3

It's not a party without party hats! Here are some of the dogs posing in their party hats.

Amy and Haddie, Kendall's sister


Zena, their mom


Riley, Kendall's brother, did not want to wear his hat at all.


Bailey, from a previous litter, happily posed with his hat.


Jen and Buffy. Don't they look happy?


Woobie, one of Julie's dogs. He's part Cocker Spaniel and part Cavalier.


Kendall and Haddie

Birthday Party - Part 2 - Puppy pictures

As I mentioned in the previous post, Julie brought some of the 3-week old puppies to the party. We were in a private area, so there were no worries that other dogs would bother them. They were adorable!

Birthday Party - Part 1

Today was the birthday party I put together for Kendall and her littermates. I rented the private area of the Hazeldale dog park, and nine Cavaliers, four three-week old puppies, and their owners got together. The weather was perfect. It was sunny and in the low 80s. The Cavaliers included Kendall's littermates, Riley and Haddie, as well as their parents Zena and Zorro. Their older brothers, Bailey and Martin, were there too. Julie, their breeder, also brought along Woobie and the new puppies. They are adorable! Jen, from Pup-a-Razzi, stopped by with Buffy.

I put together some party favor bags filled with liver treats and peanut butter treats from New Seasons Market and duck breast chewies. I put it all in disposable poop bags from poopbags.com and gave them an extra bag inside, just in case. Here's a picture of the bags all ready for the party.




I'll post more pictures of the party tomorrow.

It's a Cavalier Party

First, I have to apologize for the lack of posts. I've been traveling for work - to some wonderful places like Quebec City and San Antonio, and haven't had a lot of time to take pictures and post.

I'm home again on Sunday, and I have a party planned for Kendall, her litter mates, her parents, her siblings, and some Cavalier friends at the local dog park. I've rented the private area of the local dog park so that the Cavaliers can get together and do, well, Cavalier stuff. I promise to take lots of pictures. My original plan was to put together party bags full of doggie treats for the guests, but I've been on the road for two weeks. We'll see what I get together on Sunday morning. At least I've got party hats.

I promise lots and lot of pictures.

If you live in the Portland area and would like your Cavalier to join us, please email me for details. The party starts at 2 pm at Hazeldale dog park.

Summer Concert Season is Here

One of the great things about living in the Pacific Northwest is all of the free summer concerts that take place in the communities around us. This was a picture from the first concert we attended this summer. The weather was great, and Kendall was very well behaved. It was her first concert and we weren't sure how she'd do. She did great.

We were able to go to the first Sunday concert in Lake Oswego last Sunday, but less than ideal weather has kept us from their Wednesday night concert and tonight's concert. This is the weather we were supposed to have back in June - cold and rainy. I want my summer back.

Manzanita Parade

Manzanita held a 4th of July parade that drew lots of people. I read somewhere that the small town of 500 people were expecting up to 5000 people in town for their parade and fireworks. Here are some pictures from the parade:

4th of July at the Oregon Coast

We spent the holiday weekend camping at Nehalem Bay State Park on the Oregon coast. While it was in the 90's in the valley, it was a nice cool 65 at the coast. It was really windy when we arrived on Thursday afternoon. The clouds rolled in and it cooled off. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings the marine layer was present and didn't burn off until late in the day. BUT - no rain!

The park was surprisingly quiet. It was almost full every night. The interesting thing was that most people around us didn't come and stay for the whole weekend. We had a lot of one-nighters. There were some big groups camping together that had the potential for lots of noise, but nothing ever came of it. When I was talking with the ranger, he said that he made sure that they knew that the beach was available if they wanted to party. There's a huge dune between the ocean and the campground and they couldn't be heard.

We were a bit worried about the fireworks. This was Kendall's first 4th of July and we didn't know what to expect. She wasn't bothered one bit. The park was really strict about not allowing ANY fireworks in the park. The police were even camped in one of the spots. The town of Manzanita was very strict about no illegal fireworks. Overall, it was a very quiet and enjoyable holiday weekend.

Kendall met two other Blenheim Cavaliers staying in our loop. Believe it or not, they were both named Max! One was camping right next to us. We didn't see them at all on Thursday, and when we got up to go for a walk on Friday morning, there he was. He was a 10 mo. old cutie. They left on Friday and another Cavalier moved in around the loop. He was a 2 yr old Cav.

It's a Party!

As mentioned in a previous post, we were all in Manzanita for Kendall's first birthday. We rode into town on our bikes pulling Kendall in her bike trailer, and we found a dog store there that had Happy Birthday dog biscuits. Of course we had to have one.


It's not a party without party hats. Kendall was more interested in getting to the dog treat than wearing the silly party hat.



It's somewhat hard to keep a party hat on a 1-yr old puppy. Does she look like she's having fun, or what?





...and she's got it.


I can only imagine what it tasted like, but she seemed to enjoy it.

July's Yappy Hour - Update

Yappy Hour at Bridgeport


Wednesday, July 15
5pm to 8pm
Paradise Bakery & Café, Bridgeport Village
Benefiting the Oregon Humane Society


Spend a little wine time with your pup at Yappy Hour... every THIRD Wednesday of each month through October.

At Yappy Hour, you and your pooch will enjoy wine, delicious deli Yappy Hour selections and goodies from Paradise Bakery & Café, special doggie treats, activities, games, and more!

Happy Birthday, Kendall!!

Today Kendall and her litter mates turn 1. It's hard to believe she's grown into such a wonderful little dog. She's spending her birthday at the Oregon coast camping at Nehalem Bay State Park. She and her litter mates are having a birthday party on July 19th. There will be lots and lots of pictures!

Here's Kendall and her litter mates when they were really young.




Here's Kendall at 11.5 months. She's become quite the little lady.




Meanwhile, she's having fun frolicking on the beach. Happy Birthday, little girl.