This past weekend I was able to hang out a couple times with my cousin Matt. He's so much fun. 
I taught him how to suck his thumb -- he is a fast learner!
And here is Caroline getting ready to make her stage debut! She is the prima donna in her four year old ballet class. They danced "The Magic Tu-Tu".
Encore! Encore!
For the next 10 days I am going to be relaxing in the country! Mom has a wedding to go to and then a business trip so she thought it would be a perfect time for me to kick it with Mutti and Pappa-dino in scenic Bethlehem, PA.
Mom has brought all my food, toys and treats so that I won't even know she's not there. She even left one of her stinky t-shirts (how sweet!) just so I'm comforted when I am home alone.
I told her not to worry because I am going to have fun hunting bunnies, eating grass (Mutti and Poppa-dino were nice enough to CUT the grass and leave it for me to munch on!!!) and the indoor plants, going for long walks, and playing with Caroline. Pappa-Dino even said he wuld teach me how to catch a frisbee. I am very excited about seeing my cousin, and I am sure Caroline is excited about seeing me!
Happy Birthday to Ms. Stacey,
You've turned 30 just like my mom,
Sometimes you can be racy,
but it'd be worse if your name was TOM!
I wuff you, Ms. Stacey!
Sometimes my mom reads my blog. I wuff it when she reads my blog, but sometimes she feels the need to tell me what I am doing right and what I am doing wrong. 
She has recently reviewed Urban Mutt and is appalled at my extensive use of exclamation points, both in my stories and in the photo captions! Can you believe it?!?!!
I mean, I am a Vizsla!
I am a puppy!
I am excitable!
What is she thinking?!?!? If I don't use exclamation points how will everyone know how I am feeling? How will my fans know when I am happy or outraged or surprised? What other possible punctuation can convey my emotion as readily as the exclamation point? I wuff exclamation points!
I challenge anyone to find something as good as an exclamation point!
But, if it makes mom happy, I will try to use them less...
My visit to Great Grandma Spinney's was so much fun! 
I better explore this hotel room!
Not only did I go nose to nose with Mica the cat (and tried to with Pepper but she stayed up on Great Grandma's dresser!), but I got to see the Friendship of Salem, The House of the Seven Gables, and downtown Salem, too! 
Great Grandma and Uncle Hank made me feel so welcome. They gave me ice cubes and let me get up on the couch. Since I was on my best behavior, Great Grandma also gave me a few delicious treats. Yummy!
Mica thought he had me cornered, but luckily mom distracted him with the flash of the camera and I escaped!
All of this was really fun, but the best, most exciting part of the whole weekend was my new toy. It's a puzzle!
There is a cylinder with large holes in it. Also, there is a pink ball inside, and that is what you have to get out of the cylinder. The ball goes round and round no matter what I try to do to get it out. I can stick my tongue through the holes and push the pink ball, or I can bat at it with my paws, but nothing. It just goes round and round.
It used to be Mica and Pepper's toy but Great Grandma decided that I would enjoy it more so she let me take it home! I am still working on the puzzle because it so challenging, but I'm determined to solve the riddle.
Glenn brought me a T-Bone steak from his leftovers.
I wuff steak! 
I wuff T-bones!
I wuff Glenn!
My mom has often mentioned my Great Grandma Spinney. For Christmas she gave me an AKC pheasant stuffed toy -- which I still am enjoying! I wuff Pheasants. 
Great Grandma Spinney lives up north of Boston, also know as Beantown, in a tiny town called Salem. Some of you may heard of this place. Mom says that is where bitches burned their steak. Or was it "witches were burned at the stake"??? Well, regardless, that is where I am going to be spending my weekend. 
Poppa-dino and Christine will be picking up my mom and me on Friday night. Mom says that Poppa-Dino can just slow down the car and we'll roll right in.
Originally, I thought mom was taking me out to Long Island to visit Mr. Eddie, Ms. Jackie, Marley, Dillion and a new pup named Chatter. Mom was going to take a couple photos for the VCLI, but she was able to postpone the trip so that we could go up North instead. Mom hasn't seen Great Grandma Spinney in a couple years, and I have never met her at all, so we figured it was time to go.
I'm also going to be meeting my Uncle Hank and Great Grandma Spinney's two cats, too! What fun! I wuff cats. They are so funny when they hiss and scurry under fences to get away from me. I will really enjoy playing tag with them in close confines of Great Grandma's house.
We're going to be staying in a hotel for the very first time too! Mom says the Sheraton is pet friendly, but that I must be on my best behavior. I plan to be, since I usually am, and will most likely fall right to sleep once we get to the hotel each night. There will be so much action this weekend that I know I am going to be tired!
keep falling on my head...
This morning was rough. Mom, as we all know, is not a morning person and once she heard the ping, ping, ping of the rain falling on the air conditioners outside the window, I knew I had my work cut out for me. I went straight into whinny puppy "I really desperately need to go outside now!" mode. No cuddle time at all. Not today.
Once we left the building, even I had second thoughts about going to the park. It was going to be a real soaker of a morning. The cacophony of the rain hitting leaves drowned out even the garbage trucks and ambulances screeching by. The puddles formed thousands of bubbles, as rain drops pounded into them. Maybe they were trying to form a protective barrier from the deluge.
Only a few of the strongest, most insane runners were out picking their way along the muddy paths. Even the most hard-core dog owners who ventured into the park didn't stay long. It was a virtual ghost town and I loved every minute. I was able to run through every puddle, leaping and frolicking. I had to give the leaves and branches that I picked up an extra shake or two so that they weren't dragging me down!
Mom's "waterproof" rain slicker permitted every drop to soak her shirt and she looked like a drowned rat, not that I looked any better. My DMI (Drool Mood Indicator) was even off because the lines all blurred into one slobbery mess on my nose.
So I have met a new buddy in Riverside Park! His name is Boone and he's a five month old American Pointer. He is cute, white with tan patches, and hasn't found out where his feet are yet, but I think he has a crush on me! Mom and I talked with him and Mr. Curtis about going bird hunting together. Mom even gave him Mr. Rich's email so that they could maybe join us at one of our Vizsla training days. Boone may not be a Vizsla, but I am hoping mom and I can do more bird work with these two new friends!
Mr Curtis, being from Iowa, knows all about bird hunting and has already begun work with Boone in Riverside. Sure they get up at 5 in the morning to go catch pigeons, and I have to forcibly get mom out of bed each day, but that is not going to stop this pup from getting her own bird time in!
I also just wanted to do a special Birthday Shout-Out to my sisters Rozie and Ivy, and my brother Owe'n! I wuff you guys! Let's hunt birds together soon, ok?
And another Birthday Shout-Out to my cousin Kyle Devenney!
A while back he sent me a Vizsla calendar on which I write all of my show dates and activities. Thank you!!! And I hope your birthday is terrific!
Yes, that's right! For my first birthday, Mom surprised me with a pool party this morning. She arranged for the normally grassy area at the 99th street entrance to be flooded by the rain last night so that my friends and I could romp and play in the water! It was so much fun.
When we got there, mom was nervous that no one would show up, but pretty soon her fears were put to rest. 
First Dugan came with his dad, and then Laika and Ms. Jane showed up. 
Emma and Ms. Lea even came even though mom didn't see them all week to give them an invitation. That was another surprise!
Mom had put together some goody bags for my guests for me to hand out. There were cookies from Canine Ranch, some mini cookies and a rawhide twist. I think everyone enjoyed their goodies!
We all had a great time wrestling in the mud, eating grass, chasing each other and splashing in the pool. 
Laika gave me a bunch of presents too: a Barbie Bone, a can of puppy stew, a pressed rawhide bone and big bag of liver treats! Yummy! It was perfect. Thank you, Laika!
Once I got home, mom had another surprise -- a new collar and a donut! 
The donut isn't a real one, but a cookie with pink yogurt on top! Delicious. The collar on the other hand I am not so sure of. Love my beaten up, dirty, torn old collar. It smells so good! The new one she got me is chocolate brown with pink-hued pokadots. She thinks it matches my coat very well. I think, since I love my mom so much, I will humor her and wear it.
What an amazing day and it isn't even over yet!
In an effort to support Tom Cruise's whirlwind PR efforts for MISSION:impossible 3 and David Blaine's attempts at escape from his human aquarium, I have decided to make a PR escape attempt of my own to garner support for my birthday party tomorrow morning. (7:00 am at the Riverside Park entrance!!)
The Goal
The goal is to break free from the confines of the crate (aka the cell) and wreak havoc in the apartment for as long as possible. I'm quite positive the that local news media will want to run coverage on my attempt. I can see the headlines now: "Pup Celebrates First Birthday with Wild Day on Town!"
Mom is gone from the apartment from approximately 8:30 am through 6:30 pm, so I must time my plan to be executed after the dog walker comes at noon but before mom returns home. 
The Plan
When Mr. Omar the dog walker comes for me in the afternoon, I will wedge a piece of towel that I have meticuously chewed off my crate bedding during the day into the lower hole that the gate's securing prongs slide into. This will render the gate weak and it can be more easily forced open. I will also do my best to slow down the dog walker while we are outside so that he is running behind schedule and will not pay attention to the aforementioned crate rigging. Once he has left the apartment and I am sure he is gone, I will use all my strength both physically and mentally (that is what I learned by watching Mr. David's "Drowned Alive" special) to make my escape.
The Execution
It sounds like a great plan doesn't it? Well, all went according to plan, however I didn't remember that once I got out the the crate I would still be in the apartment that has double locks. So my feat wasn't fully recognized by the world at large.
While I waited for mom to get home I got busy ripping up a plastic bowl that mom uses for our Al Fresco dining experiences in the park. That was fun! But if she asks me about my escape and the bowl, I am going to deny, deny, deny!
In New York City, it's common for dogs of a certain set to have birthday parties. And I mean real, full-blown, taking the dogs to the pool birthday parties. There are several locations that host these canine carousals.
The Pampered Puppy suggests locations, activites and what to serve for food. One of the locations to have an indoor birthday party is Canine Ranch. They can orgainze the entire party! Some dogs even want themed parties. And to coordinate with the theme, there are custom doggie cakes.
Other dogs feel like getting out of the City, so they go to Gasport, NY for the Fort Hyde Kennel birthday party experience.
As for my birthday party, mom has slotted a fifteen minute window (that is almost two hours in dog years!!!) for the whole Riverside Canine Club to assemble and romp. She might even have some favors for my guests! That would be terrific. Here is the invite she created:
So if you happen to like getting up at the crack of dawn, you are officially invited. Join me and my friends!
You can always tell I've had a good time by the number lines of drool running across the bridge of my nose. This past weekend I had a LOT of fun.
This past weekend I went down to the Jersey Shore to visit my good friend Jade. You all might remember her from classic blog entries such as "A Weimeraner Named Jade" and "Jade's Surgery" from this past August, and as usual we were up to our old shenanigans.
Jade, Mom, Glenn, Stacey, Jason and I hit the beach early on Saturday morning. We walked up and down the North Shore of Brigantine Beach, chasing clam shells, and frolicking in the waves. Jade is a really great swimmer and once mom went in, I entered the surf myself. Brrrr! It was about 50 degrees, but once you got used to it you couldn't even feel the pain anymore! I even put my face in!
We encountered a couple dead skates and crabs, too! They smelled yummy!
Jade's Digging to China!
I hear the call of the sea
That little spot out in the surf is Jade!
Let me just dip my toes in...
After our long walk, Jade and I decided it would be nice to sun ourselves on the dock outside of Jade's grandparent's house. 
Once we were there, I noticed something funny in the water. 
It was some sort of cage that had dark green blobs moving around inside.
I thought it best to have someone come over the check it out with Jade and I, so I ran to get some help!
Jade's cousin, Shaun, who was visiting from a place called Hawaii, came over and we pulled up the cage.
Oooooh! What are these marine creatures?
I am the conqueror of sharp, pinching crab claws!
After work on Thursday, mom and I met Glenn for a Pre-Cinco-de-Mayo celebration with some tall cool ones and some short hot ones (also know as beer and wings).
I met a new drinking buddy, watched the sunset and came home a happy pup! Hiccup!
