One Last Video of Titus and Constance

Constance went into a hyper barking fit and Titus decided to join in- you may want to turn down your volume!

Titus and Constance discover a snake skin

So we occasionally come across a snake skin on our property.  Titus always reacts the same- like it's going to bite him if he touches it.  Constance didn't seem so intimidated at all.  In fact she quickly lost interest and found the nearby plant and dirt much more intriguing.  Titus stuck with it for another 10 minutes after these videos (when I finally took it away from him) while Constance and I watered some plants and played with sticks.  Titus could not understand why Constance wasn't more interested in his great find.
(Again, not great videos, but it's fun to see how differently these dogs act.)

Meet Constance

This is Titus' new girlfriend, Constance.  She's a 5 month old golden retriever that we're getting to puppysit right now.  She's so full of energy compared to our boy, but he's hanging in there.  They like to share Titus' nylabone, but only a certain one (he has 3).
This is how it goes:

Constance tries to sneak in from behind and steal the bone- no luck, Titus is on to her.

Constance tries a more forward approach, but she's not too sure about those 2 big paws she has to get past.

She moves in closer while he's distracted and...

... steals it right from under his nose!

Titus is really quite good with this youngin'.  He gladly gives up whatever toy she wants.  Even when they have a good game of tug-of-war going, he eventually lets her win.  What a gentleman!  Just don't jump in his face or bite his ears- his patience only goes so far.
These 3 videos are just of them playing tug-of-war.  Nothing too funny, I just think they're cute.

Productivity...

You know I've been productive when the craft room looks like this:

I can't say what all I've been working on just yet; it will be a few more weeks before I'm able to share.  Just know that I've been having tons of fun playing with my Grandma's sewing machine.  It can do all sorts of things my other ones can't.  Plus, I feel extra crafty having 2 sewing machines out at the same time! 
Other than working on secret projects, I've also done less exciting things like replacing elastic in shorts and turning jeans into capris.  Nothing photo worthy there, but it's nice to have some of those maintenance projects done too.  I've got a list of 16 projects that I'm slowly checking off.  It feels great!  Have a wonderful, productive weekend!

7 Years Ago...

... this adorable little chocolate morsel was born.  *sigh*  Of course we didn't meet him until a few weeks later, and the rest is history.  He has been one wonderful pup.
Prepare yourself for some serious cuteness!

When was he ever this small?

Titus learned what the kitchen was very early on.

Still Titus' favorite part of the day

His dog house seemed so huge when we first got it.

I don't know why other buyers didn't want this droopy-eyed pup.

We learned pretty early that the camera flash + Titus' eyes = crazy yellow-eyed dog.

Total sweetness!

After his very first swim ~10 weeks old.

"Just hanging out with some toys"

And my absolute favorite Titus pic of ALL TIME...

Homicide puppy- anybody have any chalk?

Happy 7th birthday to Titus, Mr. T, T-pot, Stinkpot, Mr. Merryweather (Titus' middle name), Trail Blazer, Little One, Bub, Poochy Pooch, T, Bud, Pig, Horse, Cow, Silly Willy, Arthritis Titus, Old Man, Sweet T, and officially (according to AKC) Brokaw's Titus.  It's been a fun 7 years!

6 days in NM

I just got back last night from 6 wonderful days in NM.  Josh was on a research trip and missed out on all the fun.  The main reason for the trip was a friend's wedding, but we also celebrated a belated Mother's Day.  Here's a breakdown of my trip:
Thursday- drove to NM, dinner with Mom, evening at home
Friday- Picked up my brother at the airport- a total surprise to Mom!!  We had been planning this for a few weeks and were so excited to pull it off.  We ran a couple of errands, relaxed most of the day, then had dinner and a family walk.
Saturday- breakfast out with a few girlfriends, back home to relax, then a super fun western wedding
Sunday- church, lunch at Dion's, trip to cemetery, more relaxing
Monday- brother back to airport then I spent the whole day with my dear friend Becca and her daughter Bailey.  I attended my first Gymboree class and enjoyed sweet songs from a 2-year-old as we drove around town.  We also met our friend, Kendra, at Dion's for lunch.  (Yes, I ate there 2 days in a row- it's that good!)
Tuesday- a little shopping with Mom then I blew home in a cloud of brown dust

A bunch of pics from the trip:

Lynette and Beau's wedding

Such a sweet couple

Family shot- love all the denim and cowboy hats!

Bailey being silly during the awesome brisket dinner

Super cute cake topped with a tractor.  Notice the groom's cake is a dart board- fun!

A few members of our church youth group from the '90s.  It was like a family reunion!

Father/daughter dance- hard to watch, but so sweet

First dance as husband and wife

Zach (bride's nephew) charming the ladies

Papa Tom and Bailey dancing

Me with Mom and Adam.  Being with these two makes me smile very big!

Lifetime friends- ignore the guy in the background :)

Me with Becca and Adam

Me and Becca with the bride

Doing a little dance we made up decades ago!

Party crashers!

Who invited this guy?

Bailey at Gymboree

Exploring

The theme for the day was "cowboys and cowgirls," so here they are on a chuck wagon ride.

Bailey riding the "bull"- Yeehaw!

I had a really great trip- what a great way to kick off summer!

Snake Year

The year that we moved to TX (2009) was a snake year.  We saw several snakes around our property including one baby rattle snake, a ringneck snake, a huge bullsnake, and the snake in our bathroom.  Last year was much different.  I saw one in the garage and Josh found a couple when he was digging around with his tractor.  We never saw any on the road or trail around our house, and we walk the property nearly everyday.   
I think this year is going to be a big snake year again.  I've already seen 3, nearly stepping on 2 of them.  Last night I came within 1-2 feet of this one while walking around the yard.  

Fortunately, the snakes around here don't seem very aggressive (unless you have them cornered in a bathroom).  Usually they lie perfectly still or slither away very quickly.  Still, last night reminded me again to be more aware of the ground as I'm walking.  The hard part is finding a balance between being alert and jumping every time I see a stick lying on the ground :)