Christmas Things

I can't believe it's almost Christmas? It feels like this Christmas season hasn't been the same as the others! I've been so busy with grad school we haven't done much of the "typical" Christmas things, but we have done some fun things still! And today I plan to make allllllll the gingerbread cookies. 

Ok so first of all apparently Connecticut gets a lot of snow? I had no idea. Last winter was super mild, and then this winter we are getting SO MUCH snow! The other day we got literally like 7" probably. It was amazing. I took Tucker to the dog park the next day to play in it and it was so fun lol. 

Ok so also we made gingerbread houses! We weren't planning to but we saw this little village at Michael's for $7 and were like, why not? Then they were just sitting on the table and I felt weird about it, so I made them into cute little ornaments for the tree. I'm v proud of this burst of creativity that comes around about once every 5 years lol. 

But in all reality I want to make these little gingerbread houses from a kit and make them into ornaments every year, because it was so fun and they are so cute on the tree. Tucker keeps going up and licking them lol. He doesn't try to eat the whole thing, he'll just lick it a few times and move on haha. 

Speaking of Tucker, here are some random, cute pictures of him that I felt were appropriate for this post. Enjoy. 

Beach Day With My Dog Child

Ok first things first. You guys have been asking about this sweater EVERY time I post about it on Instagram, so here's the link! It's under $20 and the softest thing ever! I am not lying when I say I have worn it every day for the past four days (since I got it). 

Ok, so! We have been working so hard to teach Tucker to "come" and be off leash. Since it's October, dogs are now allowed at the beach, so we decided to put him to the test and see how good he is. I was SO NERVOUS because how horrible would you feel if you took your dog off leash and he ran away and never came back?? My worst fear.

He honestly did pretty good! We basically just had him chase us, which is all my anxiety can handle at this point, but I am pleased! 

It was a nice change of scenery from the dog park, the lake, and our neighborhood. I read once that pup's like Tucker need a lot of physical and mental stimulation, so we are always taking him everywhere in hopes it's "mentally stimulating". It's nice for us too because we get to get out more! #prosofhavingadog

Tuck's first time at the ocean <3 He didn't like it as much as the lake (I think the waves coming in and out scared him) but we'll have to see how he does next time! I think since he's a shelter pup, he takes a few times to get comfortable with things. Seeing him become his "true self" has been my favorite thing about rescuing! He wouldn't go up stairs when we first got him (or jump on anything really) and now he is a pro! Also within the past few weeks he has learned that he can chill on the couch while we are on there and it's my favorite thing. As I write this he's curled up next to me and I'm like !!!!!!

Also Connecticut is in prime leaf season right now. I'm not mad about it. (Am I the only one who always types "made" when they try to tap "mad"? Wonder what that means unconsciously...)

On the way home we were talking about what our favorite geographical locations are. I like the beach, but I don't feel like I appreciate it as much as some people. I just feel like it's busy in the summer and you have to pay for parking (a lot, in Connecticut too!) and it's so windy! For me, I love the mountains (not hiking though) and lakes. They are both so quiet and secluded and peaceful and have beautiful open views. It's been fun to live somewhere without them, because I feel like we've been able to get to know ourselves better. My list of what I need and like has definitely changed in the past two years, and I'm excited to see how it changes when we move to the northwest, which is vastly different from the northeast and Utah! I predict I will miss being close to everything but love food options haha. We will see.

Puppy Halloween Party!

So my dog's dog park had a Halloween party hahahahaha. It was BY FAR the most amazing experience I have ever had.

They had a little treat table where you could make a treat bag for your dog lol. 

The pups were like this during party setup lol. I'm sure that treat table smelled like all the smells. 

They also had a human treat table with candy and clam chowder. (Very much New England lol.)

They had a costume contest and 7 prize bags for best costume. Sadly, Tucker did not win anything. The dog costumes were good though! Idk why but this chubby lab dressed as a clown is like my favorite thing.

(That beagle's face ^ cracks me up!!!) 

Ok so this other dog's costume fell off and Tucker totally stole it!!! These pics crack me up haha. He's got a lot of personality, that's for sure!

We used to see bulldogs ALL. THE. TIME. when we lived in New York, but this is the first we've seen a while! He won an award for being dressed as a giraffe lol. 

This dog also won an award for being a Shiba Inu (a Japanese dog) being dressed like a sushi lol. I love it. 

I took pictures for people in this little photo booth! It was definitely the most interesting photography job I've ever had!

Even though Tucker is a handful sometimes, having a dog definitely makes our life more fun! The people at the dog park are such a weird community themselves lol. I don't know where we would get our social interaction if we didn't go there every day lol.

J.C. Appreciation Post

Just stopping by to post these cute pictures of J and Tucker. I was taking too long to get into the car, and when I came down I saw J scrolling through these photos choosing one to post on Instagram lol. Tucker is very annoying and a lot of times we hate him, but looks like J is becoming a proud dog dad after all lol. 

Weekend Links

I am constantly shouting this from the rooftops, but it's because IT'S IMPORTANT!!! 

I'm curious to see if anyone has tried this and if it works? I am worried it would absorb the smell of strong foods and transfer it to other foods? Let me know. 

SO HOW CAN I GO TO ONE OF THESE IN THE STATES?!?!

Haha I loved this. My new philosophy is to go with whatever I'm craving, but try to stick with vegetarian for the most part. So if can sub for fake meat, I do. If I can't, I don't. Another cool idea I've heard is just eating vegetarian for certain days of the week. Or, if you can, just buy free range meat/eggs/milk, so you're not supporting a horrible industry!

I didn't hear anything about this in the media. I'm curious, what do you guys think about it and why do you think we didn't hear about it a lot??

Omg I always think about this and wonder what it says about my personality!! Because Tucker and Trixie are very different. But I do think Trixie is like my mom, so maybe there is some truth.

I am not in the mommy blogger world as much these days, but I still can't help but to giggle at these videos.

XOXO
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