Weekend Galavanting

Let us start with Thursday, shall we?  Read: Week 2 of school for Pierre.

He's still doing so good with his "watch me" command...we've been going through a LOT of treats while working on his "homework."  I'll have to post a video of him at some point so you can see him in action.

This week, we worked on sitting, leave it, and leash walking without pulling.  For the leave it command, we hold a treat in a closed fist, the dog goes crazy for it, and we say "leave it."  When the dog gives up and leaves our hands alone, we reward with another treat.  Well, Pierre's trainer thought he was doing SO amazing because he would leave our hands alone after only a sniff or two.  I'm not so sure....because in reality, I think Pierre just has the shortest attention span on the planet. 

He did pretty good with the no-pulling on a leash thing, but we have a long way to go. Distractions in the real world take things to a whole new level.

On Friday, Eric's brother was in town for the night, so we took the Light Rail into Uptown to try out Cowbell, a burger bar. It was good, but not the best we've ever had.  But to be fair, we have pretty high standards for burgers, particularly after our Burger Fi experience. I got a salad - good, but nothing spectacular.  Then again, I'm happy with "good" because I feel like I took a risk ordering a salad at a burger joint to begin with.

Saturday,  we were blessed with a cool(er) low humidity morning, so I was able to get a run in even a few hours past the crack of dawn. In June, a small miracle.

Later, Eric and I joined Eric's cousin and his group of friends at the Brew Stache Bash at the US National Whitewater Center. This whole place looked like a blast - Eric and I are looking forward to returning sans-special event to get in some rafting, hiking, and ziplining.  But Saturday was a special treat, because Pierre got to attend and meet some new dog friends too!

One of the couples there was nice enough to invite us over to their house to hang out with the group on Saturday night - white wine Sangria was present, and we had a really good time. Pierre got a bath beforehand and stayed at home to rest...the heat pretty much did him (and all the other dogs) in during the day.

Sunday was a pretty low-key day for us.  We did some neighborhood hopping, trying to figure out at least which area of town we'd like to buy in.  Then we all did some couch lounging and US Open watching.  

Eric and I finally peeled ourselves up to go for a walk around the neighborhood before dinner.  In the corporate park, there are these giant bull statues, so obviously we took advantage of the photo opportunity.  Eric has no idea I'm actually posting this photo today. (Hi Eric!)

And, I found a swingset nearby!!! Seriously, when is the last time you did this? It was even more fun than i recall. 

We found a cute park on the way back, and there was a even a little picnic area with a grill. We'll be returning tonight with Pierre and grilling supplies for an outdoor dinner with a view. Because it's summer, that's why.

These ducks were actually just as close as they appear on camera and hoping for a bread crumb dinner.  

That's a wrap folks!  Our Monday is off to a smooth start, and will likely include a good bit of napping on Pierre's part.  It's been a pretty popular activity as of late, and with the amount of barking he's doing right now in his sleep, it's obviously a pretty good time.

I'll be spending my day editing an article that is set to be published soon, and listening to a live-feed of jury selection in the Zimmerman trial.

As one last random and unrelated tidbit, you should go read this post. And watch the commercial. 

That is all. Have a happy Monday!