Enchanted Rock SP

This past Labor Day weekend, the pack decided to take a trip out into the "wilderness" of Texas. Julie had been wanting to see the Llano Uplift, so we went to see a part of it at Enchanted Rock State Park north of Fredricksburg, TX. We hiked about 3 miles around the large granitic batholith that has been on the crustal surface even through the period when Central Texas was under the waters of the great inland sea. Since it has been so wet, there were plenty of bajadas and water catchment areas that the dogs enjoyed finding and playing in. Julie even brought home some samples of the pink granite (high in potassium) for her rock garden and Geology class.

Kevin

Sacramento

Last Weekend I visited Jenny, Marc, Sofie, Stella and Tanner in Sacramento. I got to meet my niece Stella for the first time. She is very easy going and sweet. I also got to see Sofie and Tanner again. Sofie had fun at Funderland in Sacramento! She also enjoyed a chocolate cupcake. I had a good time!

Julie

Guiseppe

Meet Guiseppe!

He is a Sicilian donkey who lives at the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation near Kendaila, Texas. He is now part of our pack as we are sponsoring him at WRR. Guiseppe is from Oklahoma, and has a companion, Mary. To learn more about the WRR, visit:
http://www.wildlife-rescue.org

Our Cousin Mercedes!

We would like to introduce our cousin Mercedes to everyone. She lives in South Dakota, sorta near North Dakota where we are from (Moses was actually born in Minnesota).

"Cedes" lives with her humans Sandy and Doug, whom we have never met, but they are welcome to visit any time. Cedes is German like Moses and would like visiting New Braunfels, where we live now, because they have a sausage fest. The mascot for Schlitterbahn, the water park, is also a Dachshund!

We are jealous of Cedes right now because it is so hot here in Texas. Luckily we get to go to the river again now that all the rain has stopped. We can only play ball outside for a few minutes at a time, and we walk in the morning before the pavement gets too hot! Also, we think we'd really enjoy riding in that fun car. We wouldn't have to hang our heads out the window to get all the air!

Well, we hope you enjoy the pictures of Sandy and Cedes.

Sincerely,
Laz and Mos

My 1st Oriole Game

On Tuesday night, I attended my first Baltimore Orioles game. When I walked through the gate, they were handing out a free Jeremy Guthrie t-shirt. I love free stuff! Kevin showed me around the stadium and reminisced about times he had been to Oriole games with Jim. Kevin coaxed me into an Esskay hot dog which was great! The game time temperature was 95. The Orioles lost to the Seattle Mariners, but it didn't matter that much. This weekend is dog day at the Rangers part 2 in Arlington. I hope that it cools down a bit or Lazie and Mosi might only make it about 2 or 3 innings! I'm sure Dad will want to stay the whole time...

Julie

Trip to Maryland

We had a nice trip to Maryland last week. My friend from high school, Jim, married his new bride, Tessa. It was nice to see them and participate in this celebration of marriage! Two days before the wedding, some of the guys played home run derby at a field in Laytonsville. My team was an all-star team from the Texas Rangers. I even got a second fence homer from Sammy Sosa. While it was very hot, we all had a great time. Julie even had a grand slam by Jose Canseco. The second photo is of Jim and Tessa after the introduction of the couple at the ceremony. The third picture is me in the tuxedo. Julie's grandpa used to call a tux a monkey suit. So I am posing in my monkey suit.

Kevin

Lazie's 3rd Birthday Party

I had a great party over the weekend. There were 25 people and 11 dogs. Because it was hot and humid, we were mainly inside. I had a great time and ate a lot and visited with many of my friends. Dad made a cornbread cake and Mom made yogurt and blueberry icing. Mom also made some other treats for us dogs. I even got some human cake that I licked! Thanks to all who made my party so fun!

Your pal,

Lazarus

Moses' Bandage

Last night we got another 2 inches of rain and we had a personal river in our back yard. Laz and I swam around and I especially enjoyed romping and mucking through the water. While I was gallivanting around, I cut my paw really bad. It is between my toes where my paws are webbed. Mom, Dad and Laz took me to the vet today. Laz tried to take my place for me, but Mom and Dad made me go into to the exam room. I really don't like going to the vet. No offense to my vet, but I don't like getting poked and prodded. Anyway, they put this dumb bandage on me and now I have to work at getting it off. Humph!

Moses

da nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh nuh BATRUN!

On Friday July 13th Mom and Dad participated in the BATRUN in Austin to benefit the bats that live under the Congress Street Bridge.

Each evening around sunset the Congress Avenue bats emerge like a black cloud from the crevices of the bridge. Covering the countryside in search of food, it is estimated that the bats consume from 10,000 to 30,000 pounds of insects.

They waited to see the bats but they waited until after dark to emerge from under the bridge. We'll have to wait to see them better another time (when we can come). Mom and Dad finished the race and it has motivated them to run in future 5Ks. Hopefully, in the winter we can take us too. Our friend Dave finished the race in under 30 minutes and did a great job! Maybe we can run at his ranch again soon.

Lazarus and Moses

(pictures courtesy of Kreutz Photography)

Happenings

I have a few photos to share. The first two are from Pawverbs. Pawverbs is on a month long hiatus until September, but two weeks ago I got a few good shots. First is Daisy, a 3 year old Weimerianer and her humans are Jason and Brenda. On the couch are Xena, Sky, Pudgin and Laz with humans Linda and Nancy. Sky, Pudgin and Laz all competed for Nancy and Linda's affection. Finally, I got a picture with Moses and his favorite toy, a Kong "Wubba." He absolutely LOVES the Wubba. When we say, "Where's your Wubba"? He comes running and squeaking it. It lasted a good 2 weeks and was well worth the money!

Julie

Beachgoing and rain, rain, rain

On Friday, we went to the Gulf of Mexico at the Padre Island National Seashore. I loved it! It was a long stretch of beach where I was able to run and chase birds all day. The ranger even gave me and Laz a treat when we got there. We drove down in the morning, and were able to go to a pretty secluded place because we had a 4 wheel drive vehicle. I even learned how to leap over the waves. While the beach was great, we came home that evening to find our area not like the way we left it. It rained all day in New Braunfels (not a drop at the beach) and we had to take 2 detours to get home because of flooding. We got about 9 inches of rain on Friday and it made our stream in the backyard flow! The water was cool on my paws, but we had no damage to the house and had no water in the house, garage, or shed. I got a little sick driving home from the beach, but I am getting better. I just got a cold, but my appetite is returning and I am sneezing less. I am hoping to play with my pal Gunner tonight.

Mosi

New Cousin Estella!

Lazie and I are so excited to have a new baby cousin. I hope I can play with her soon. Mom said we would have to wait a few years though! A FEW YEARS!! I was ready to play right a way, I just know I was. I think she'll be ready to play with me soon! I love her and her sister Sofie very much.

Love,
Moses

My 3rd birthday party

You all are invited to my birthday party. It is on the 28th of July this year. I love parties-- especially mine because people always give me extra treats and cake.

Lazie

I survived the fireworks!

All:

I want to thanks you all for all the good wishes and prayers as I made it trough July 4th. Sarah and Gary came over for dinner which was fun. I got some extra chicken and rice plus Dad let me lick his cake plate. Then, I went out to tell Sarah and Gary goodbye and I heard them-- the fireworks. I jetted into the closet and hung out there for about 40 minutes. Dad coaxed me out and I got to sleep up on the bed. Then, this morning, Mom took the truck to work, and Dad and Mosi went out to take her picture. Mosi left his food bowl so I got 2 breakfasts! It's been so rainy lately that I have not been swimming in about 2 weeks! Way to long!

Lazie

Our new truck

Hello, it's Mosi again. Wow! What a weekend. On Friday, Mom and Dad took us for a long walk and then went out for a long time. When they came back, they smelled a bit funny and kept talking about Chevy this and Toyota that. I had no clue what they were discussing, but we got some BBQ scraps for dinner. Then, we washed and vacuumed the Pathfinder. On Saturday morning, we went for a run, and then Mom and Dad left with a calculator and a folder and came home with this awesome truck! I love it! I love the cab, the bed, the smell, and the 4 wheel drive capability. Laz likes it too. Dad and Mom took us for a ride around New Braunfels. Then, last night Dad made some homemade dog biscuits with garlic salt and Old Bay seasoning. I love 'em! Then, we delivered some to our friends and walked around the neighborhood. We got to go into Jack's house! I wanted a piece of Sneakers the cat, but Jack kept me away. Then we headed over to Skye and Pudgin's and hung out in their backyard. Then, we dropped some off for Ginger and then came home. It was so fun! If you see me in the pickup with my head out the window, give me a wave!

Take it easy,

Mosi