Buster + Brody

How is the new pup doing, you ask? He's doing really well! He's such a little sweetie. We should have named him Shadow because he is always at my heels or laying on the floor below me. He's definitely a lover, which is so different from how Buster was. Buster has always been really independent and curious, nose to the ground exploring everything he could. Brody just wants to be around us all the time. Even if I use the restroom, he wakes up from his sleep and follows me in there. 

We are getting there with the house training, and already we can tell he is smart. He knows how to sit and we weren't even really "training" him yet. Much easier than Buster was so far! Although, Buster seems so much better right now since we are comparing him to Brody who knows nothing. 

What else? He's about 13 lbs now - or he was a week ago when we went to the vet. We are going again tomorrow for his next round of shots and I'm sure he will have gained a couple more pounds since he literally inhales his food.

This is my favorite pic of the little guy. I call it his glamour shot.

How are the pups getting along together, you ask? It was fairly easy when we first introduced them. Brody is so nice and friendly he just went right up to Buster (like I said, opposite of Buster who we think was probably abused before we got him and is a little shy). Buster soon tried to express his dominance with humping and barking when they played. We've gotten him to stop the aggressive barking when they play (unless he is really excited) and now Brody is the one that gets all growl-y when they play (still working on that one - hopefully puppy classes will help). 

They love chasing each other. Rather, Brody chases Buster around the yard and around the living room (Buster does his own parkour off the couch). Brody is pretty fast, but Buster takes him on the corners. Yesterday, Brody was chasing Buster in the yard and couldn't quite keep up with him. He started whining, but kept chasing! So cute!

Other than that, they get along great. They even started cuddling a little bit!

How is Buster dealing with everything, you ask? He's doing fine. It was definitely an adjustment for him, but after a couple weeks he's finally getting used to the fact that this little guy isn't going anywhere. He is sporting more Emo looks than usual these days, but I think he is just tired from Brody wearing him out during the day (mission accomplished!).

We love having Brody around, although it is a lot of work training a new puppy. We are planning on getting him into puppy classes asap so he can meet some other puppies and learn proper manners (we don't want all of Buster's bad habits rubbing off on him!)

He's definitely going to be a big boy! Look at that paw. It's been a crazy new adventure for us, but a lot of fun too!

Today the boys and I are heading down to see my parents for the weekend. Brody gets to meet his Gramma Vonnie for the first time (and his Gpa too)!

Have a great weekend!

Happy Weekend!

As you probably suspect, this week has been a little hectic in the Kane household. Puppy runs the show these days, which Buster is definitely still getting used to. It's a lot of fun watching the two of them figure it all out: Brody chasing after ice cubes like a kitty cat, Buster and Brody fighting over bones, and both of them learning how to play nice with each other. It's hard, but worth it. I'm batting 1,000 as far as puppy accidents in the house go (Zachary cannot say the same)! 

This weekend is a big weekend... the final Batman comes out(!), then Saturday we are going to see Florence and the Machine, plus our first vet visit with the little one! I'm very excited, except that I've been feeling under the weather lately (I am worn out) so I hope I can kick it before the concert. 

Have an adventurous weekend!

What are your plans this weekend? 

photo source

Meet Brody!

Allow me to introduce you to the newest member of our family... Brody!

Isn't he the cutest?!? Those ears. Get me every. single. time. 

We've been thinking about getting Buster a new furry sibling for a while now and Saturday turned out to be the perfect day. It was a little spontaneous though. I woke up at 11:30 Saturday morning (I haven't done that since college!) and by 1:00 we were on our way to get the little guy. 

We adopted him from the Seattle Humane Society through an ad I found on Petfinder. There were actually three separate ads for his siblings that we saw. The pups went up for adoption at 11 that morning so we called to see if there were any left and they said there were a couple, but there was a lot of people looking. So we rushed over to Bellevue, and as our luck would have it he was the last little guy out of his five siblings that was left! We were so happy! 

We quickly filled out an application, got interviewed (where they asked us a bunch of questions about where we would keep him, how long we are gone during the day, our other dog, etc.), and then got to have puppy play time to make sure we were the right fit. I knelt down and Brody came right to me and was so playful and sweet! It was meant to be! 

We then took him out to the car to meet Buster and they got along really well for their first meeting. After waiting a bit, we signed on the dotted line and he was ours! 

He's a lab mix, probably with a boxer or a terrier because of his ears. He has a white stripe from his chin/goatee down to his belly (like a tuxedo - because he wants to be formal but he likes to party). He is super mellow (SO mellow compared to Buster!) but still playful when he wants to be. He's pretty much the sweetest little puppy. So soft and cuddly.

As for his name, we had a little bit of trouble figuring that part out. Since it was a little spontaneous, we didn't have much time before hand to brainstorm. With Buster, we had a day or so to brainstorm our favorite shows/characters and come up with a good fit (he's named Buster after the Arrested Development character Buster, and also after the show Mythbusters). With Brody, we threw around a bunch of different names... Bailey (too girly), Charlie, Indiana (Indie for short), even Darth Vadar (which I'm pretty sure both our Dad's will be calling him anyway). But nothing felt right until we landed on Brody (not from any show, we just liked the name). Plus, we liked the "B" names. So Brody it is! 

I mean look at those ears! So cute. How's he getting along with Buster, you ask? Pretty good considering our first furry child has been de-throned. Since Brody is so tiny (about 11 lbs right now, but could get up to 60 lbs!) Buster is trying to exert his alpha male-ness with a little humping and some rough playing. Buster likes to bark a lot when he plays and is a little rough for a new puppy (he's only 10 weeks right now!), so we are trying to teach Buster to play a little more gentle and nice. Otherwise, they are just getting to know each other and it's going pretty well. 

We are so happy with the new addition to our little family and can't wait til Brody is grown up so he can hold his own while playing with Buster (although I love this puppy phase, besides all the pee and poop:). 

Oh! Brody slept through the night on the first night we had him too! Let's hope this keeps up or else it will be a long couple of weeks... 

We love you so much already, Brody! 

DIY Puppy Silhouette Portrait

Hey guys! I'm back! Do you ever have one of those weeks months where you wish there were more hours in the day? That is my life right now. I'm not complaining, I love being busy but I could definitely use a break. 

On that note, I've been on a major hang-up-art-on-the-wall kick. Creating new pieces to hang as well as acquiring a few more. It's not like we've had bare walls for the past year, but I guess my Goodwill frame addiction started growing a little too big to not hang anything else on the walls. 

Today I want to share with you how to make your very own silhouette portrait! I made it of my sweet puppy Buster (uh, crazy dog lady alert!), but you could make it of your kids, cat, rabbit, anything. It's super easy!

What You'll Need:

1. Photo - Choose your favorite photo and print it out to the size you want (ignore my crappy printer ink... luckily the print out doesn't have to be perfect). I have always loved this photo of Buster I took with my iPhone. It seemed like the perfect fit for a little profile picture.

2. Canvas - I found this five pack of canvases at Michael's that are flat so you can put them in a frame. I didn't even know these existed until I found them! I love it because you can actually put your art in a frame to class it up a bit. Sometimes I like regular canvases, but sometimes I like it a little classier!

3. Paintbrushes.

4. Paint color - I chose Navy (my favorite color as of late).

5. Frame.

What to do:

1. Cut out your picture and trace around the cutout onto the canvas.

2. Get your paint ready and start coloring painting between the lines. Who said those kindergarten skills wouldn't pay off someday? I did about three coats of navy to get a nice even finish. Coat one...

3. Frame it up! You could even paint the background a bright contrasting color (like aqua or yellow) or do stripes too. 

My Buster silhouette ended up in an IKEA frame I've had for a while and now sits next to our mantel.

What do you think? What would you paint as a silhouette if you could? Come on, admit it... are you a crazy dog lady like me? :)

Duuuuuuude. Have a Happy Weekend.

Hey everybody! It's been a couple days hasn't it? A crazy busy couple of days, that's what it's been. Yes. It. Has. I'm so glad it's the weekend! How have you been? Good, yeah? 

The husband had his first big board exam yesterday (his second is June 18th) and he is so relieved it's over! Literally six months of studying has finally come to fruition! And you know what that means... it's time to party! So we're going camping this weekend (even though it's supposed to be rainy) and are looking forward to some much needed de-stressing. Bboy is looking forward to playing with his best bud Chloe and I'm looking forward to s'mores (and s'more cookies!), playing cards, bonfires, beach, and some reading (still need to finish book three of 50 Shades...).

I don't think it's any surprise that we've been watching a lot of Lost lately. We are hooked. Big time. Just thought I'd share this picture the husband sent me the other day. Haha! So funny.

Since this is a very random post, let's also catch up on some random Buster pics. But first, this week Buster has been such a pain! Ever since he was a young pup, he has always slept in his crate in the living room. This week, however, he does not want to go in to his crate when it's time for bed. And when we do finally get him in there (either lure him in with a treat, or force him in there) he whines and yelps and won't go to sleep. Even if he's just been asleep on the couch right before. The other night we even let him sleep in the bed with us for the first time ever (and never again!) just because it was the night before Zach's test and none of us were sleeping well anyways...

We think something in his crate might have spooked him? Or maybe it's the diet with have him on (he's 27 pounds and should be 20!). Or maybe he is just being a teenager and decided he doesn't like it anymore? We will probably never know for sure, but hopefully it is just a phase. Have your dogs ever gone though something like this? If so, please help!

Alright, now on to the cute Bboy pics. Did you know one of his favorite chores is doing the dishes?

This is what I come home to every day in our front window.

Just because he's so cute when he sleeps.

He loves when Gramma Vonnie comes to visit!

Isn't he the cutest? I think so. But I'm just a little biased. :)

Have a great weekend!

Why So Serious?

Yes, my dog looks like the Joker. Kinda creepy, right? 

Hope you all have a great weekend!

P.S. Is anyone as excited as I am to see The Dark Knight Rises this summer?!

Snow Days!

A couple weeks ago we had a huge snow storm here in Seattle. And by huge snow storm, I mean we had about 6-8 inches of snow and ice. It may not seem that bad to those of you that grew up in Michigan, Wisconsin or where you have snow on a regular basis, but to us "rainy" folk here in Seattle, it's a lot! Especially since Seattle is basically on a huge hill and has no infrastructure for snow (i.e., no snow plows). 

Anyways, we got a couple days off to enjoy the snow. It was all great until our power went off on Thursday about 10am and didn't come back on until we got home from work on Friday. Thursday was probably one of the most miserable days - we couldn't really venture out because of the ice covering the snow, no power = no heat, and the big window we have in our front room is single-pane, so we had to keep the curtains closed to keep the heat in, leaving us with less light. Snow just causes problems! But it sure it fun and pretty for the first couple of days. :) 

Of course, Buster was all over the snow. He was our little vacuum cleaner - went around the yard, nose to the snow. He also liked to catch the falling snowflakes and just eat the snow in general. Here's some pictures...

After 24 hours of snow and some freezing rain, the trees were heavy with ice! So heavy, that with the little bit of wind that came, some of the huge trees were losing branches. All Thursday night I heard the smaller branches fall from the trees and I was scared the whole tree was going to fall through the roof! Luckily, we came through with just a big branch leaning against the house. No damage, thank goodness!