Lilacs

One of Will's favorite things to do right now is walk around and touch all the different plants that are growing and blooming and changing every day all around our house. I think his favorite is the Japanese Maple that is right outside our side door with it's soft, almost furry leaves. He giggles every time he swipes his hands through the branches and even leans in so that he can feel the fine filigree with his face. (Just once, he tried to show the neighboring Holly bush the same love but quickly learned his lesson.)

My favorite right now are the lilac bushes blooming along one of our retaining walls. I can see them from Will's room and from the breakfast nook, two places in which I spend a lot of time each day. I even cut some over the weekend to brighten up the inside of our house. (You might have seen on Instagram.)

I don't think I realize it until things aren't going so great, but so much of my mental health is tied up in Will's behavior... and he has been especially volatile lately. But when we're outside, we're both happy, which is why even today, when it didn't get out of the fifties, we spent most of the afternoon and evening out walking through a few different neighborhoods, pushing around the cozy coupe, and feeling up a few trees and bushes. Our cheeks might have been cold when we finally turned in for dinner, but they were also rosy from running and giggling. I'll take that any day over being warm and whiny. 

Also, ever since she escaped into the woods a few weeks ago, I had been making Lola wear a bright blue bandanna, but someone felt that she needed a girlier color, so we picked her up a nice lilac one this morning. I took this picture to send to Jason right after I tied the bandanna around her neck. Will turning on the fireplace blower in the background and Lola's face pretty much sum up our time spent inside the house lately.

A Perfect Way to Start the Week // Zuke's Dog Treats Giveaway

We adopted Lola old from our local rescue organization, Partners for Pets. She was already three months old, but we were still amazed that it only took a day to crate train her with only one real accident in the house. A few months later, we signed up for obedience classes, and she learned sit, down, off, and heal (kind of), but she has never fully grasped the concept of "come." When it's really cold or hot outside or time for her to eat, she happily comes when I call her, but any other time, she ignores me or takes her time. Shortly after bringing Will home last year, I realized that I needed Lola not only to "come" but also "leave" much more often, so we slowly started trying to teach her those commands. Now, she knows that when we say "out," she needs to leave the room, and I've learned that all I need to do to get her to come is shout, "Do you want a treat"?

A few weeks ago, Zuke's sent us their new line of Hip Action treats. The great thing about all of Zuke's products is that they are all natural and healthy for your pup (or kitty), so I don't feel bad giving Lola a treat every single time she comes inside the house. Lola loves all three flavors of the Hip Action treats, and I really appreciate that even though they are moist and chewy, they don't have that funky dog treat smell.

If you want to try out Zuke's, you can order them online or find them in this area at Petsmart and local pet boutiques, OR you can enter to win some treats! Just visit Zuke's and choose a line of treats that you'd like to try out with your pup or kitty and enter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Also, don't you think Lola looks like the pup on the packaging?