Icemageddon and Bridget

Here in the Dallas area, we are just starting to get out of the ice storm called "Icemageddon!"  It started raining freezing rain/sleet on Thursday, December 5 and we got several inches by Friday morning.  On top of that, the temperatures didn't go above freezing for a couple of days - so we were iced in.

My mom came over on Thursday and stayed with us during the storm.  We enjoyed having her and it was nice to all be stuck in the house together.  We did a bit of cooking over the weekend, but mostly we stayed warm under blankets.  It was heaven.

Here's our house a couple of days after the storm hit.




I thought these ice crystals were pretty.



Our street is looking more like an ice rink.



The bushes in front of our house collected lots of ice too.




And now on to Bridget.  She has grown so much.  Just to remind you of what she used to look like -



Here she is now. Bailey still likes to pick her up, which isn't easy. She's 6 months old and about 45-50 pounds now.



Bailey actually took this picture, but I love it, so I'm using it.



Here's Bridget running in our backyard.
She.  Loves.  To.  Run.


What do you do when you are tired from running? You cuddle up in a blanket made especially for you by Bailey.




And here's a good size comparison to our fireplace for you.



She is resting on her second dog bed.  Someone chewed up her first one already.



I originally told you in my first post about Bridget that she was a Newfoundland puppy.  Well, she wasn't growing as quickly as a Newfoundland should, so we had her DNA tested.  Turns out that she is mostly Lab, with parts Chow and Shetland sheepdog. 

Basically she's a mutt. 

But that's ok, we have gotten quite attached to her.



I didn't think she was really sleeping.



Here's her full body.  She often looks like a wolf to us.  Her fur is curly in areas and straight in others. 



And here's her Bridget smile. 

2013 Dog Bowl

Hello.  How are you?  I'm good.  It's been a long time since I've posted, and much has gone on, but I thought I'd start with something fun that we recently did.



The Girls Scouts and I helped out at the 2013 Dog Bowl which was held in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. 

Basically the Cotton Bowl is turned into one big giant dog park.  The Girl Scout's role was to keep the kiddie pools and buckets filled with water. It turned into a full-time job, but it was fun. Here's two of my favorite men - Rominal and my brother David. They came along too.



The girls job was to keep kiddie pools and buckets filled with water for the dogs.



This turned out to be quite a job. Bailey clearly loved being around all of the dogs.



This little white dog went to every pool and scratched at the side of it - as though he would find a hidden bone. The other dog didn't seem to mind.



It was so neat to see all of the different dogs. We didn't see any fighting, just lots of running around.

This dog reminded me of the dog I grew up with, Tim.



What do we think of this dog?



Here's Bailey and David, loving on a nice dog.



How's this for a face?



And no one told this little dog how little he was. He chased the Frisbee all over the park.



While some dogs chased the water.



All over they chased the water.



Look at these faces.



And then there was the drool.



So much drool.



Lots, and lots of drool.   Ewwwww.



How cute is this?  This woman carried her dog out of the park - he clearly loved her.



It was neat to see a handicapped dog, doing quite well.



And another dog with three legs - who seemed to have a great time.



Can't leave out a picture of a well-dressed dog.



Overall it was a great day.

Downtown Dallas

It's been warm here in Texas. 

I mean really warm. 

Like not right for the first of December kind of warm.  I'm ready for hot chocolate and snuggling, but our air conditioner is humming away and I actually got a bit of a sun burn on Saturday! 

Every December, there is a fantastic parade in downtown Dallas.  We try to go whenever we can and this year it worked out. 

We have new neighbors who are new to Texas, so we woke them up early and dragged them along. 

Meet Liza and Ulysses - very adorable newlyweds and good sports for getting up so early to go on our adventure.



We left the house at 7:30am and road the light rail to downtown to hopefully get a good spot for the 10:00am parade. It was so crowded but we ended up on a nice ledge that made for a good seating area.

It was perfect for crowd watching. I loved this little girl's jacket.

And here's my little girl, who is not so little anymore.


Here's another cutie.


Grambling State University was in the parade this year - it was great to see the well-known band. They were fantastic.

After the parade, we walked around downtown Dallas for a bit.

I love to capture people from behind, and Rominal and Bailey know this so it is sometimes difficult to get their picture without them knowing I took it.

But if I wait long enough - they forget about me.


Here's the old Red Courthouse which is now a museum.





The clouds parted a bit just as we got up close to it.




We then walked over to the John F. Kennedy memorial - or the Sixth Floor Museum.

There are always a lot of people around there - you can see the "X" on the spot in the road where JFK was killed.

This building is still under construction, but I liked how it sparkled in the sun. It's a new church.


Here's a random building.



We eventually made our way to a new park that just opened up in downtown Dallas, the Klyde Warren Park.

Another perfect spot for people watching and enjoying the beautiful weather.

One of the things that makes this park different from others is that it was built over an existing highway. It's located in the arts district of Dallas where a bunch of museums are close by and it is a nice addition to the area.

Here you can see the highway going underneath the park.

There was a little fountain area for young kids who seemed to be having fun playing in the water.

Luckily for us, the park is an attraction for food trucks. We ended our great day with personalized ice cream sandwiches. Yum!