The Cooper Bridge Run - Charleston, SC

Battery Park at Sunset

Why do I not live in Charleston? That is a great question and I am determined to live there one day, I guess you could say its on my bucket list. Two of my best friends, Cynthia and Lauren, and I made our annual journey to Charleston for the Cooper Bridge Run 10K in April. It is such a fun run and we never need an excuse to take a road trip to the coast. It also happens to fall on Cynthia's Birthday weekend - so what better way to celebrate. The highlight this year....Penny got to go! We always have such a blast. Since we go at least twice a year, we never do the tourist things so look below for some awesome local spots that are both fabulous and dog friendly.

We loved watching her figure out all of the new sites, sounds and places. She was such a trouper and loved all of the adventures! One of my biggest goals for her is to be able to go into any environment while being calm - she did so well and is learning not to jump on everyone she sees. She is always the bell of the ball and people run up to see her - we are trying to teach her to find cute single guys with that talent, not that we don't love meeting new people, but somethings are more important than other ;). Needless to say, it's still a work in progress....

Sullivan's Island is still her favorite place and she couldn't get enough of the beach. She was one salty mess, but it was totally worth it! Enjoy the pictures!

Penny watching the sail boats in Battery Park

Chasing Banana Leaves in Battery Park - This pup has ups!

Taco Boy - Best Mexican in Charleston, Margaritas were also amazing! Apparently, they made Lauren jump for joy...

Plus, they have an awesome outdoor patio that is dog friendly.

Penny enjoying the sunshine at Taco Boy

Morning of the run, it was early, rainy and cold! We still had a blast though!

Sullivan's Island - Beaches are dog friendly and Penny loved it! She had a blast chasing other dogs on the beach. The waves took her by surprise but it didn't take her long to figure out what they were all about. Hint Hint Sam and Jean Anne- its time for a beach house!

One Salty, Wet Mess!

Poe's Tavern on Sullivan's - Dog friendly and so much fun. They have a great beer list, fish tacos and the Bloody Mary's were so yummy! The tavern is inspired by Edgar Allen Poe, who used to write here.

Cynthia, David, Lauren at Poe's. It was raining so Pen had to wait in the car, sorry Pen!

Red's Tavern at Shem's Creek - Fun water front bar, dog friendly and great boat watching. We sat out and watched both the boats and storm roll in. It was so beautiful to watch the thunder clouds move in. Penny loved it!


Penny at Red's - she loved catching peanuts and watching the sea gulls. What can I say, she is a bird dog!

Shrimp Boats off the docks at Red's

Cyn's Birthday Dinner at Hall's Steakhouse. Hall's is AMAZING and family owned. The owner's great you at the door and it is such a welcoming atmosphere. The steaks are incredible, wine is fabulous and if your lucky enough to have a birthday you can order a mega cupcake from Cupcakes, Inc - a yummy bakery across the street. We had just run a 10K so we got two - emmmm!

David and Lauren's at Hall's. Watch out all, David has his game face on!

Cyn and I at Hall's

P.S. Lauren - I am so sorry you didn't win this round. Better luck next time!

Better Late Than Never....

Okay, for the record, I apologize - this blog is way overdue and I am way behind on posts. To catch up this will be a hodge podge of updates, Penny grows so fast (she weighed in at 40 pounds a few weeks ago!) that it is hard to keep up with all of our many adventures and successes. Lauren and Linds, stop complaining - here it is!

She is pictured above with her favorite Grandma at a recent Agility event. Doesn't she look like she is having fun! Her Grandma looks pretty proud as well.

2010 has been a great year thus far, Penny has traveled like crazy and is quite the car dog. She loves nothing more than to jump in the car and see where the trip leads. We have gone to Atlanta several times to see her Aunt Lauren and Niece Lily, not that Lily is excited to see Penny. (You will know why when you see the picture below). Lily and Penny chase each other endlessly. Lily's favorite game is to stalk Penny while she is asleep - she is shown below checking out Penny's crate while she wasn't looking.

She loves exploring new places and does so well on the city streets, don't be fooled though - she is a country dog at heart. We are headed to Charleston in two weeks for the Cooper Bridge Run, so she will get her first look at the Ocean. Sullivan's Beach has several dog friendly beaches and I just know she will love the water!

The beautiful weather has allowed for many outdoor adventures and Penny loves being outside. We have spent several lazy Sunday afternoons reading outside while she got the pleasure of chewing on every stick in sight! Have I mentioned that everything she sees goes in her mouth?

We have also starting walking around Athens on Saturday mornings. Penny loves these walks as each walk is different and we always stop for brunch or coffee downtown at the end of our walk. She just adores people watching, probably because know one can walk by her without giving her lots of love. Today we did 5 miles - impressive.

Sandy Creek Park has some awesome hiking trails and Penny LOVES them. It offers her a chance to be off lease and explore new areas. She loves to tag along with Kris and her dog Wilson. They run wild and even get to take a swim.

The first time we went I was so nervous that she would run off and never come back but she totally surprised me. She will run ahead a few yards and then race back, always staying within sight. I think our bond grows stronger each day and she is always making sure I am near by.

My favorite adventure so far has been the Atlanta Golden Retriever Club's Agility Fun Day. It was Penny's first experience with Agility and she went nuts! She did so well and was not scared of any of the different equipment. The A Frame might have been her favorite out of the bunch but you will just have to ask her.... We got to work with both Terri Everline and Elizabeth Downy who are both amazing! Elizabeth has a Speaker son so Penny also got to meet one of her family members! She was the youngest dog there but did so well and her obedience training really showed.

Penny graduates from obedience class next week and has done so well in class. She is such a fast learner and trys so hard to do what you ask her to do! I am not sure which class we will take next but there are definitely more to come.

We are still struggling with her mystery bouts of diarrhea....Her vet thinks that it may be caused by an intestinal organism that causes Coccidia but her cultures came back negative. She has taken the dewormer and has one day left on the antibiotic - please say a few prayers that the treatment worked. She never is in pain, still has her appetite and doesn't act sick but the diarrhea isn't healthy!

I will try and do better about posting pictures, there are just to many adventures and not enough days! Stay tuned....

SNOW IN GEORGIA!!!!!!

It is snowing, yes snowing in Georgia! It is so beautiful and I can say I love to look outside and see all of the pretty snow covered trees. However, it needs to go very soon! I love the snow but it is nice to know that it will be gone soon. Lets face it, I am a southern lady. Penny however seems to be in love with the snow - must be that Indy Dog coming out in her.

We played in the snow after work today and she just went nuts. She rolled and romped like she was in heaven! That fur coat must come in handy, her mom was freezing!!! Check us out - so cute! She is getting so big, I can't believe it. Her coat is also turning such a gorgeous red color. What a cute snow bunny she is.

What can I say - she gets cuter every day, learns more and becomes more confidant with herself with each step and new experience. I can't wait to see what the future holds for her!

Around the State and Back

Penny has been around the state and back this month!!! I know I owe you pictures, boy has she grown a ton! We have been traveling like crazy and there is only more to come. Penny has gotten to experience so many new things! She was a city dog in Atlanta two weekends ago and had a blast, all of those heel lessons really paid off and she did great on the city streets. She got to take a road trip to Covington to see the entire Means family today and will be back in Atlanta next weekend. Her cousin Lily ( Lauren's kitty) has become her new source of amusement and she just can't figure out why Lily won't play with her.

Later this month we are headed to Norcross for an agility fun day hosted by the Atlanta Golden Retriever Club! I am super siked, we are just starting to explore the world of agility and I am excited to learn more at the event. It will be the first time that Penny will get to explore agility so she should have a blast.

We started obedience classes last week and I am really excited to see how those classes go. Penny is very good at sit, stay, come and heel while working with me but when other people or dogs appear she forgets she knows anything! The class has 16 other dogs so she should get a big dose of behaving in public.

I will post pics soon. More to come as we progress through the obedience class. Lots of Love, Penny and Jess!

Sleeping Zombie

Okay so I know, I am way behind! There are some great pictures of Penny on our hike Memorial Park but those are on my camera, and some how connecting the camera to the computer is just to much work tonight...yes, I know I am being lazy.

What I have to share with y'all is this hysterical picture of Penny sleeping. First let me say, she has the option to sleep on my bed, or her super nice dog bed, but for some reason she loves to sleep in her crate. Some where in the middle of the night she will move to a more comfortable spot but I can't get her out of the crate when we go to bed. Anyways, now that you know I am not the prison warden, here is the picture of her SOUND asleep on Sunday. She didn't move when I turned the light on at 2am to take this picture and then she stayed like this for atleast 30 minutes.

I hope you enjoyed this picture as much as I did! I am still laughing three days later.

Teething.....4 Months Old

Penny is teething and everything in the house seems to be fair game! She has only gotten the furniture once and luckily it was the yard sale coffee table. She has already lost four of her small front teeth and her big dog teeth are poking through.

She apparently got spoiled over the holidays since Cynthia and I both had alot of vacation days in December. This was our first full week of work without one of us being home and boy did Penny hate being couped up all week. I decided to try out Pawtropolis and she LOVED it!!! http://www.athenspetropolis.com/daycare.html They have doggies day care and she got to run around with other dogs all day. When I picked her up she was completely worn out and all of the staff was gushing over her. Apparently she was a crowd favorite that day. I am hoping to take her back at least once a week so she has time to run with other pups and not be in the crate while I am at work. (P.S. they have web cams in the daycare rooms, totally addictive!)

Any who, heel training continues, sit stay and come are a daily exercise and retrieving is on hold until she is done teething. She loves to barrel after the dummies but has decided its way more fun to chew on them after she retrieves it then it is to bring it back to mom! I am also going tomorrow to observe an obedience class taught by one of the Atlanta Golden Retriever Club members to see if it would be a good fit for Penny and I. Puppy Boot Camp has begun.

As promised, pictures from Christmas are below....

Christmas Morning in her Christmas Collar

Waiting on Santa Christmas Morning

On her new big dog bed from her Grandparents with her mallard duck - better get used to that duck call Penn!

Hello 2010!

It is officially 2010 and it is so hard to believe that this year is over. Some great things have happened this year, I finished my MBA at the University of Georgia, Penny arrived in my life, both of my parents turned 60 (hello senior citizen discount!) we had a wonderful family Christmas and I brought in the new year with 3 of the best friends a gal could ask for! Having Penny has been such a great way to spend time with my parents and I am so blessed to have them in my life. They are both a wealth of knowledge and teach me something new about dog handling every day.

Alot of things have happened since the last blog, sorry about that the holidays were a bit busy this year. She is shown above at Graduation in mid December - I won't be able to hold her much longer :( she is growing so fast! She has started teething and her big dog teeth are coming in - they can't come fast enough those puppy fangs of hers are brutal!

Penny LOVES to retrieve and goes nuts when she even sees a dummy. Dad and I have been working with her and she has made some great long retrieves. I wish I had a video for you to watch, she takes off with so much speed and force. It is impressive to watch. After she got comfortable with long retrieves I added doubles to the mix. Doubles are a great mini lesson for her and something I can do at my house without alot of space. You chunk one dummy while holding Penny back and then chunk another dummy the other way and send her after it. Once she brings the 1st dummy back you take it from her while she sprints to the 2nd one. She has such great eyesight and makes the drill look easy.

I made a great new contact and found out that several Speaker kids and grand kids live in the metro Atlanta area. Sandy lives near Athens and has been so wonderful to invite me to come and train with her and her dog Chili. I can't wait!!! She is training agility and also does field work. She introduced me to two trainers in the area, Terri Everline and Elizabeth Downey, both of which own the only two MACH Goldens in Georgia. Terri has been a wealth of knowledge and is going to work with me so I can learn a few things that Penny can do to get ready to train agility once she is fully grown. I also learned more about the Atlanta Golden Club from them and recently joined - hopefully it will be a great way to meet other people in the area.

Heel lessons have also officially begun full force! Thank Goodness!!!! Penny has gotten so strong and I don't know if my shoulder could have taken many more walks. She is doing great! Mom (who is awesome at handling puppies) decided it was time for puppy boot camp to commence while I was gone for New Years Eve. Two mini lessons later and I have a heeling machine. I am constantly amazed at how fast she learns and how eager she is to please. Today we took the basic heel up a notch and we worked on heeling at varied speeds and she caught on so quick. We are also working on sitting from heel, especially as we cross the road so she stops wanting to dash into the street on walks. Plus it will be a great thing for her to know when we are in city areas. It has made our walks much more pleasant for us both and I make sure to add in times for her to "be a dog".

I wish I had pictures of her working but we haven't had the opportunity to have a "photographer" yet since I am busy handling Penny. I will do my best to get a video of her on the retrieve - it is awesome to watch. Happy New Years Everyone - Hopefully this will be the best year yet!

Stay tuned for Christmas pictures......