Several of you commented on our last post and via Facebook and Twitter, inquiring how Gus is handling all the travels.  We are extremely delighted to report that he’s adjusted extremely well.  He embraces each new adventure with gusto and it appears, like us, that he’s having the time of his life!  Instead of being an anxious passenger in the van, he’s learned to love it and makes his own little nest and snoozes away.  We couldn’t be more happy (or relieved) at how splendid he’s doing.  His well-being weighed heavily on our minds before we departed and we’re ecstatic it’s going so well.

So, without further ado, here is a recap of the three days we spent in Denver and Boulder.  We can hardly believe it, but our travels have already taken us all the way to sunny San Diego, CA.  I hope to get several more posts published over the next week or so.  I’ve been a bad blogger!

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Day 8, Downtown Denver:

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Rock Bottom Brewery on 16th Street Mall:

Due to a Denver city ordinance, Gus was only allowed on the outside of the patio railing.  We were quite bummed to learn that he couldn’t accompany us next to our table, but luckily snagged a table right near the railing.  He was so tired from walking around downtown, that he settled right in.

This was the second of many brewery visits so far on our trip – Mitch enjoyed every drop of his sampler.

Bottoms up!

For dinner, we stopped at McCormick & Schmick’s for the famed happy hour.  We ordered a round of drinks and several tasty appetizers for the table to share.  It was a food-filled day.  Yum!

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McCormick & Schmick’s was kind enough to bend the rules and allow Gus on the patio as long as he was in his bag.  Luckily, we had brought along his Sleepypod Air (review to be posted later) and he snoozed through our entire meal!

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Another microbrewery was on the agenda for the evening…Wynkoop!  Their patio was packed and elevated approximately three feet off the ground.  The dog policy was the same and Gus could only be tied to the outside of the railing.  I took one for the team and sat outside with Gus while the others enjoyed a pint. 

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Day 9, Boulder:

Boulder Falls is dog friendly, free and absolutely beautiful.  It was the perfect way to kick off our day in Boulder.

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Boulder Farmers Market + Hanuman Festival:

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Crazy!

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The Rib House in Boulder – Gus was allowed on the patio!

Katie and I took the free tour at Celestial Seasonings and thoroughly enjoyed the complimentary tasting room.  We are huge fans of Celestial Seasonings (my fav is Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride) and it was interesting to be at the location where ALL Celestial Seasonings Tea is produced!  The tour and tasting room is not dog friendly, but I highly recommend it if you ever find yourself in Boulder.

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Day 10, Red Rocks:

While Mitch, his sister and brother-in-law spent the morning white water rafting, Katie, Gus and I took a short drive to hike at Red Rocks.  Although we’ve both been to Colorado several times, neither of us had ever visited Red Rocks.  It was spectacular!  We hiked the 1.4 Trading Post trail and enjoyed every minute of it.  Gus was happy to stretch his little dogger legs and explore a new park.  Much to our surprise, we encountered a rattle snake towards the end of our hike.  Luckily, we noticed it slithering across the path in plenty of time and made sure to give it enough space before we continued on.  Needless to say, we hightailed it out of there after that!

Red Rocks is free and open to the public and SO worth a couple of hours if you’re in the Denver area.

King Gus!

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We hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July!

Long time, no blog!  We can hardly believe it’s already been a week since we posted last Friday about our departure from San Antonio.  We are happy to report that we made it safe and sound to Iowa last Sunday afternoon and just arrived in Denver about two hours ago.

Let us back up a bit and give you a quick recap of how we spent our last seven days:

• Day #1:  Departed San Antonio, drove through Oklahoma and arrived in Wichita, KS at 2:30 am

We took one last photo of Gus in our now empty living room.

• Day #2:  Arrived in Overland Park (Kansas City), KS late morning.  Gus and I hung out in the lobby at Drury while Katie and Mitch visited their first brewery of the trip.  Boulevard Brewing is located in Kansas City and their wheat brew is one of their all-time favorites.  They came back to the hotel with a six-pack of pint glasses – they better not keep that up, or we’ll be shipping pint glasses back to Iowa every couple of weeks.

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• Day #3:  Departed Kansas City bright and early in the morning, drove through a bit of Missouri, arrived in Iowa and spent the afternoon visiting our extended family.  It was SO nice to see everyone!

• Day #4:  Spent the day unloading the ABF trailer and tucking away all of our boxes and furniture at our parents’ houses.  Thank goodness they’re both empty-nesters and have lots of extra room to accommodate a houseful of our belongings!  Mitch relished being back in Iowa where freshly baked goodies awaited his hungry belly.  Katie and I were surprised that he didn’t turn into a sugar cube before we left.

• Day #5:  Besides eating three, humongous, delicious homemade meals, we also squeezed in a nap (or two) and continued to organize all of our stuff.  It was as overwhelming to find a spot for all the boxes as it was to pack them all.
• Day #6:  We finalized a few last-minute details and spent our last day in Iowa packing up everything we needed for the trip and worked on getting everything in the van.  It was our intention to post our Gus packing list weeks ago, hoping you could all point out anything we might have forgotten, but sadly, we ran out of time.  Hopefully we have everything we need!

We couldn’t resist snapping a quick photo of Gus next to one of my dad’s corn fields.  We will snap another when we’re back in Iowa in a couple of months to see how much it’s grown!

• Day #7:  We departed Iowa this morning at 7 am and hit the open road!  We made a few stops in Nebraska and arrived in Denver approximately 10:30 pm last night.  We were all very relieved to be out of the van!

Seven days, seven states!

Thank you for all your well wishes as we started our travels.  We’ve been offline since this past Sunday and felt so fortunate to see your kind comments on the blog, Twitter and Facebook.  We can’t wait to catch up and see what you have all been up to this past week!

We’ll be back soon with our first hotel recap and some Denver posts!

After a quick few hours at work (so I can out-process), we’re hitting the road!  We originally planned on leaving first thing tomorrow morning, but we decided that trying to leave early in the morning would be too chaotic and stressful.  This way, Mitch, Katie and Gus have the entire morning to load up the last of our things in the cars before we depart.  Our intention is to make it all the way to Oklahoma City for the night.  Which means by the time our heads hit the pillow tonight, we will no longer be Texans!

There are several details we thought you might be interested in regarding our departure.  In order to avoid a terribly long run-on sentence and post (and because we’re still crazy-busy), we thought it’d be easiest to put together a bulleted-list.  Besides, I love a good list.

• We foolishly posted on Wednesday with the title “Finished!”.  In reality, we still had a bazillion things to wrap up (i.e. painting, cleaning, packing up odds and ends, etc…).  While we hoped to have a relaxing few days post-ABF container departing, it’s been non-stop all week.
• No, our house hasn’t sold.  Booo!  It’s sort of our worst nightmare, but it wasn’t going to keep us from leaving.  It will sell eventually…we hope.
• Yes, we really both quit our well-paying jobs in order to travel the country.  Most people are divided over thinking it’s the greatest idea ever OR that we’re completely nuts.  We’re on the fence.
• Mitch, Katie and I are all driving separately in order to move all three cars to Iowa.  Gus (and his car seat) will ride with Mitch.  Although it will be a very long ride to drive individually, we’re hoping it gives us all some time to decompress from the anxiety and stress we’ve experienced the last few weeks.
• The trip to Iowa will be split into three days; approximately seven hours of travel each day.  We plan on spending the night in Oklahoma City tonight and Kansas City tomorrow night.
• We are moving our belongings temporarily to Iowa while we travel.  We have not decided where we will settle.  Our parents are not-so-secretly rooting for Iowa.
• Monday through Wednesday will be spent unloading the ABF trailer and prepping for our departure.
• We’ll depart first thing Thursday morning for Denver!

Again, thank you all so very much for your kind words of encouragement as we’ve gone through this process.  Please bear with us while we navigate our new routine and find our new groove.  We apologize in advance for not being able to blog read as much as we’d like over the next week while we’re in transit to Iowa.

We’ll leave you with a couple of photos we snapped of our now-empty house.  It’s bittersweet to leave the home we’ve lived in the last seven years.  Excuse the randomness of the rooms we photographed and the crappy quality.  We snapped these at 1 am after our last round of touch-up painting and our bodies were screaming at us to go to bed.

Goodbye, San Antonio.  Thanks for the memories!

The moving container is loaded and was picked up yesterday evening.  Our belongings are now on their 1,165 mile journey to Iowa.  If everything goes as planned, the trailer will be waiting for us when we arrive on Sunday.

We must admit, our nerves are frayed, our bodies are fatigued and we’re in desperate need of a cocktail (or two).  Luckily, we left behind a few staples to get us through the rest of the week.  Bread, milk, almond butter, beer, vodka and olives.  You know, the important stuff.

We wish we could report that Gus handled all the ruckus as cool as a cucumber, but sadly, he was quite upset the entire time we were packing and loading.  All of our traipsing in and out of the house with boxes and bags did quite a number on the poor little guy.  To top it all off, he had his annual exam yesterday (we know, terrible timing on our part), and had to endure shots and having his blood drawn.  We’ve done our best to keep him calm and comfortable, but we’d be lying if we said we weren’t worried about him.

Thank you so much for all your well wishes this past week.  We’re so grateful for the friends we’ve made through the blog and it makes our hearts melt to know you were thinking of us.

We hope you’ve all had a great week so far.  This is the first time we’ve been online in days and can’t wait to catch up on blog reading.  We’ve missed our blog friends!

It’s moving time!  The semi trailer arrived yesterday evening and we will spend the next four days filling it up with all of our stuff.  We’re more than ready to finally load all of the boxes we’ve packed.  This time around, we’re using ABF to move our belongings.  When Mitch and I relocated to Texas seven years ago, we moved using a Budget moving truck and vowed never to do that again.  Evidently, driving a 26-ft truck full of all of our possessions was not Mitch’s idea of a good time.

With ABF, they drop off the semi trailer, we fill it and then they pick it up and drive it to our destination.  SO much easier!  It will definitely be a relief to wave goodbye to the trailer on Tuesday morning.  If you don’t hear from us by Monday, send help.  We may be stuck under the washing machine.

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Since it’s Friday (yippee!), we thought we’d share a recent dog friendly dining experience we had with Gus.  In April, we visited one of our favorite Texas cities…Austin.  We couldn’t possibly bid Texas adieu without one last visit.

After a long morning of lake walks, the botanical garden and breakfast at Whole Foods, we made our way to the newish area in the NW part of Austin known as The Domain.  A stop at McCormick & Schmick’s was on the agenda for lunch.  We had a $30 birthday credit on our account that was set to expire and they are dog friendly.  Win-win!

After we were seated, the manager came out to say hello and provided Gus with a treat…a Texas Twister!

Gus is normally really picky when it comes to new treats, so you can imagine how surprised we were when he immediately started chewing on it.

While Gus was occupied with his Texas Twister, Mitch and I moved on to the important task of choosing our entrees.  I am notoriously wishy-washy when it comes to selecting menu items.  Luckily, Mitch is patient and lets me hem and haw over my choice for as long as it takes.

For those of you who live close to a McCormick & Schmick’s, we highly recommend signing up for their Preferred Guest program.  You earn points for every dollar you spend and they load your card with $30 credit for your birthday.  Plus, several locations we’ve visited have outdoor dog friendly patios!

During this particular visit to McCormick & Schmick’s, we learned that if you show your card when you order, they provide a complimentary amuse-bouche to kick-off your meal.  Free sushi?  Yes please.

Mitch opted for the always-tasty fish and chips…

Luckily for me, he’s not a fan of cole slaw.  It was definitely the star of the meal.  Light, fresh and bursting with crunchy veggies!

After an intense scouring of the menu, I opted for the Chef’s Special, the wild hebi.  The fish was perfectly crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.  I seriously could have bathed in the fresh lemon-dill butter.  TMI?

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The Details:

McCormick & Schmick’s:  11600 Century Oaks Terrace  Austin, TX  512.836.0500

• Opens at 11am Mon-Fri & Sun; 11;30am on Sat
• Click here for McCormick and Schmick’s menus

Our Review (+ = positive, – = negative):

+ Dog friendly outdoor seating
+ Gus was given his own special welcome treat
+ Service was quick and very friendly
+ Dined for free using our $30 Preferred Guest birthday credit
+ Located within The Domain shopping area

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- The patio has a limited number of shaded tables – not a good choice for hot, summer days

Fun Facts:

• McCormick & Schmick’s has a fabulous happy hour ($2.95 burger and fries!)
• Preferred Guest card earns points for each dollar spent
• Locations throughout the U.S.

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We wish you all a very happy Friday and weekend!

The title of today’s blog post is a tad dramatic, but at the same time, highly appropriate for our current situation.  We’ve spent the last several days organizing and packing up our house.  To say ”we’re in the weeds” is probably a gross understatement.  We tossed around posting an expletive-laced title, but decided to keep it clean and family friendly.  

Please accept our apologies as we haven’t been able to visit all of our blog friends as much as we’d like.  Our Google Reader is quickly filling up with unread posts and we look forward to catching up next week.  The moving semi arrives tomorrow (!) and once it’s filled and shipped off, we hope to have time to catch our breath before we depart next Saturday.

In the meantime, we wanted to share some photos of Gus during one of our recent walks along the River Walk.  He loves to root through tall grass and weeds and these photos were just perfect for the title of today’s post.

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Popware for Pets Giveaway Winners:

We also wanted to take a moment and announce the two lucky winners of the Popware for Pets Giveaway.  And the winners are…

• Anna
• Steve

Congratulations!  We know you will love your Popware for Pets Travel Cup as much as we do! 

We will send the two winners an email to gather address information so Popware for Pets can send out the travel cups!

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It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…

As you can imagine, the past few months have been a bit chaotic and we’ve been running around like mad people trying to get everything done and in order.  Plus, we’re still trying to squeeze in visits to all of our favorite places one last time before we move.  Although it’s an exhilarating time in our lives, all the details are enough to make our heads spin!

We’ve made good progress on our itinerary and wanted to share part two with you.  As we mentioned in part one, we know this will probably change a million times between now and then, but it gives us a good idea of how long we’ll stay in each city.

Our hotels are all booked through San Diego and we’ve moved on to searching for hotels in L.A. and the Central California coast (Pismo Beach, Carmel/Monterey).  If you have any recommendations for those areas, we’d love to hear them!

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Day 15 (Sat, Jun 25th) Phoenix

• Morning
  • Drive to Tempe
  • Mill Avenue
  • Four Peaks Brewery
• Afternoon
  • FireSky Resort
• Overnight in Scottsdale

Day 16 (Sun, Jun 26th) Phoenix

• Morning
  • Camelback Mountain
  • Sun Devil Stadium
• Afternoon
  • Frank Lloyd Wright Taliesin West Tour
• Evening
  • Run at Tempe Town Lake
• Overnight in Scottsdale

Day 17 (Mon, Jun 27th) Sedona

• Morning
  • Drive to Sedona
  • Bell Rock
  • Cathedral Rock
  • Snoopy Rock (Snoopy, is this your rock?)
• Afternoon
  • Slide Rock State Park
• Evening
  • Drive to Flagstaff
• Overnight in Flagstaff

Day 18 (Tue, Jun 28th) Flagstaff

• Day
  • Grand Canyon
• Evening
  • Drive to Las Vegas
• Overnight in Las Vegas

Day 19 (Wed, Jun 29th) Las Vegas

• Morning
  • Hoover Dam
• Afternoon
  • Las Vegas Strip
• Evening
  • Penn & Teller
• Overnight in Las Vegas

Day 20 (Thu, Jun 30th) Las Vegas

• Morning
  • Red Rock Canyon
• Afternoon
  • Las Vegas Strip
• Evening
  • Fremont Street
• Overnight in Las Vegas

Day 21 (Fri, Jul 1st) San Diego

• Morning
  • Las Vegas
• Late Morning
  • Drive to Mojave National Preserve
• Afternoon
  • Drive to San Diego
• Overnight in San Diego

Day 22 (Sat, Jul 2nd) San Diego

• Day
  • Balboa Park
    • San Diego Zoo
    • Nate’s Point Dog Park
    • Cabrillo Bridge
    • Bea Evenson Fountain
    • Japanese Friendship Garden
• Overnight in San Diego

Day 23 (Sun, Jul 3rd) San Diego

• Morning
  • Coronado
    • Ferry Landing Marketplace
    • Coronado Central Beach
    • Hotel Del Coronado
• Afternoon
  • USS Midway Museum
  • Seaport Village
  • Gaslamp Quarter Walking Tour
• Overnight in San Diego

Day 24 (Mon, Jul 4th) San Diego

• Escondido
  • San Diego Zoo Safari Park
  • Stone Brewing Co.
  • Orfila Vineyards and Winery
  • Fireworks
• Overnight in San Diego

Day 25 (Tue, Jul 5th) San Diego

• Morning
  • Cabrillo National Monument
  • Mission Bay Kayak Tour
• Afternoon
  • Ocean Beach (Dog Beach)
  • Fiesta Island (Mission Bay)
• Evening
  • La Jolla Cove
  • Point La Jolla Beach
  • Muttropolis
• Overnight in San Diego

Day 26 (Wed, Jul 6th) San Diego

• Open Day – Dog Beach?

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In addition to the thanks we extended in our part one post, we also wanted to give a shout-out to Alison at The Other Winnie Cooper, Tiffany at Simply Shaka, Elizabeth at On Tap for Today, Cate at blanketID, Tammy at Vet Wisdom Cafe and Lori at The Dog Park for all the great recommendations and reviews.  In our opinion, the best travel advice always comes from the locals!  Click here if you’d like to add your favorite dog friendly attraction or dining destination.

You can view our full itinerary (through San Diego) on our Travel Itinerary page.  We’ll continue to update our page as we get further in our planning!

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Because this is such a wordy post, we thought today was the perfect time to share a few photos of one of our little family of three’s favorite spots to hang out…Starbucks on the River Walk.

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Mitch and I had just finished running a few miles along the River Walk (after we walked Gus, of course) and decided to plunk down at Starby’s for a refreshing Venti, Non-Fat, Skinny, Caramel Macchiato.  Seriously, we couldn’t have sounded more pretentious placing our order!

Gus’s car makes regular appearances on the River Walk scene.  It’s definitely one of the greatest gifts we’ve ever received.

Per usual, Gus was on his best behavior during this particular Starby’s trip.  Most of the time, he’s content to lay on a chair or on the ground, but this particular day he wanted to sit in his dad’s lap.  Neither Mitch nor I can ever deny his request to cuddle!

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We hope you have a fantastic Friday and holiday weekend!

We welcome you to another stop along our Farewell to Texas tour.  As previously mentioned, we’ve been making the rounds to all of our favorite places in and around the San Antonio area before we move (in just over two weeks!).

We first discovered Enchanted Rock a few years ago after a co-worker of mine recommended it.  Since then, it’s been at the top of our list of things to do when out-of-state visitors are staying with us.  It’s a welcome departure from sprawling San Antonio and suburban life.  It’s also a vigorous hike to the top!

We made a pit stop midway up so Gus (and us) could get a drink of water.  Don’t forget to comment on this post for a chance to win a Popware for Pets collapsible travel cup!

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More Totally Rad Action fun…  Dirty Lovin (L), Sparta (R)

This was my first attempt at playing with the textured actions (Dirty Lovin), and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked the texture.  It gives it a little extra something-something.

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Bitchin B&W (L), Oh, Snap (R):

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Hi!  We tried to get Gus to raise a paw and wave hello, but he refused.

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Once we got to the top, we all sat down to enjoy the view.  In Gus’s case, he took the opportunity to plop down in his dad’s lap for a quick snooze. :) 

Oh, Snap (L), Super Fun Happy No Glow (R):

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It’s a looong way up and a looong way down!

Good thing Katie was there to save Gus.  The giant boulder almost fell on him!

Mitch just couldn’t resist his chance at a silly photo…

Once we reached the bottom, we decided to explore a bit more on the Loop Trail.

Goodbye, Enchanted Rock!  Thanks for the memories!

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The Details:

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area:  16710 Ranch Rd 965  Fredericksburg, TX 78624  830.685.3636

$6 per day, per person (13 and older)

Our Review (+ = positive, – = negative):

+ Dog friendly
+ Heart-pumping cardio on Summit Trail
+ Beautiful views
+ Plenty of places to rest along the way
+ Clean restrooms available in the visitor center
+ Dog friendly shopping and dining available in nearby Fredericksburg

- Limited parking during peak hours (lot closes when full)
- Very warm in the summer – visit in the morning!

Fun Facts:

• Summit Trail climbs 425 and is approximately .6 miles.
• Loop Trail is approximately four miles.
• Campsites are available for reservation.

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It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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and view the entire list of entered links…

So, you might be wondering why in the world we’re talking about this product again…

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We are very happy to announce that two readers will receive the Travel Cup, in their choice of color (turquoise or pink) and size (8 or 16 ounces), compliments of Dexas!  We love being able to share goodies with our blog friends and know the two winners will enjoy the Travel Cup as much as we do. 

You can read more about Popware for Pets on their website or Facebook page.

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Giveaway Details:

Dexas will send two readers a Travel Cup in their choice of color (turquoise or pink) and size (8 or 16 ounces):

• Comment on this post and let us know where you’ll use this with your dogger.  The park?  While traveling?  We’d love to know!
• Giveaway begins Monday, May 23rd and ends at 5 p.m. Sunday, May 29th
• Winner will be selected using Random.org and announced on Monday, May 30th
• Open to U.S. entrants only

Bonus Entry:

• Visit Popware for Pets and let us know what you of their new product line that’s “coming soon”.  We’re swooning over the new color choices and the introduction of a single elevated food bowl and a kennel-attached water bowl!

Good Luck and Thank You to Dexas!

Disclosure:  We reviewed items from the Dexas Popware for Pets line in a previous post.  We were not compensated for this post and the opinions are all our own.

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We hope you all had a fantastic weekend.  We powered through some very productive planning sessions and have all of our hotels booked through San Diego!  Woot woot!

We’re in full-on hotel reservation mode and recently tweeted our excitement of a recent booking:

Just booked a 2-night stay at FireSky Resorts in Scottsdale, AZ, a @Kimpton hotel. We got an amazing deal – can't wait!—
According to Gus (@AccordingtoGus) May 19, 2011

FireSky is a Kimpton hotel and they are known for their fabulous pet friendly policy.  We’re especially excited because we snagged a terrific deal for a 2-night stay.  We highly recommend signing up for their In Touch rewards program and opt-in for the deal-saving emails!

I recently cleaned out my ridiculously large stack of unread magazines and spotted a wonderful article in the January 2011 (yeah, I’m a bit behind) issue of Real Simple.  The article on 5 Things You Can Learn From Your Pet caught my eye and I immediately tore it out to share with Mitch.

1.  Celebrate Everything

I am insanely hard on myself, Mitch can attest to this, and find it difficult to accept anything less than perfection when I’m working on a project.  It doesn’t matter if it’s my job, packing up boxes or working on this blog.  I get caught up on little details easily and have a hard time moving on.

Gus is the perfect antidote for my irrational behavior.  Every day, he greets us as if he hasn’t seen us in ions and showers us with more love and kisses than we could ever ask for.  He beams up to us proudly when he finishes his dinner (a big achievement in our house) and enthusiastically wags his tail after he performs a trick.  Gus’s sunny disposition and adorable mug constantly remind to us to celebrate the small things. 

2.  Just Being Present is Enough

Living so far from our family and friends isn’t easy.  I’ll admit, I cried through the first Christmas we spent in Texas.  I actually managed to hold it together pretty well until I opened a present my parents had sent us.  It was a hand-painted ornament of our Iowa City house.  One look at the ornament and the tears started flowing.

Gus was welcomed into our home about a year and a half later and instantly brightened our lives.  Now, when we celebrate holidays, we’re able to share the joy and festivities with Gus.  Just having him “present” in our lives is more than enough for us. 

3.  (Brain) Size Doesn’t Matter

Although humans are technically smarter than dogs, sometimes we wonder.  Do you know what Gus’s reaction is to something he doesn’t want to do?  He doesn’t do it.  Sounds pretty smart to us.

4.  Don’t Try So Hard

Often while we’re packing up the house, we grow frustrated with all the work and decisions that lie ahead of us.  The same goes for planning our upcoming travels.  Although we try to take things one step at a time, the enormity of it all quickly overwhelms us.  We could all learn a thing or two from our furry counterparts.  When Gus gets stressed out, he snoozes.  Again, we refer to #3.  Sounds pretty smart to us.

5.  You Can Get Along With Anybody

Unfortunately, social skills are not something we hope to learn from Gus.  We’ve yet to address it on the blog, but Gus isn’t a fan of most other dogs.  He tolerates them, but is never going to be the most popular dog at the dog park.  He’s more like the mysterious guy who smokes behind the building.    We’re constantly working on his social skills, but he’s definitely a work in progress.

What do you think?  Do you agree we can learn these five things from our pets?  Click here for the full article.  

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We’ll leave you with a few photos I snapped of Gus this past week.  I had a killer migraine (boooo) and worked from home on Tuesday.  My consolation prize?  This adorable snoozing dogger sitting next to me.  I’d take a headache in exchange for this company any day.

Ahhhh…a dog’s life.

After he grew tired of his mom snuggling up next to him, he moved to one of his favorite spots in the house…his friend, Benny.  Benny is a slipcover (from IKEA) over a floor pillow that we purchased several years ago.  It quickly became Gus’s go-to spot to snooze after he became too hot (or too annoyed) on the sofa with us.  We are not taking Benny with us during our travels and we hope Gus is okay with that.  He’ll miss his best bud!

We’re spending the next few days packing up the house and keeping our fingers crossed for house showings.  Have a great weekend!

We agree!  As we’ve mentioned in several previous posts, we head down to the River Walk every weekend to walk Gus and go for a run.  As a family, the River Walk is our absolute favorite spot in all of San Antonio.  The City does an amazing job keeping the area clean and beautiful and the scenery is stunning.  It’ll be tough, if not impossible, to beat this picturesque view wherever we move next!

You can expect to see several River Walk posts over the next month.  We walk/run on several different areas and one post just wouldn’t do this gem justice!

On this particular morning, we ventured up to street level to stroll around Main Plaza.  The City of San Antonio restored the area in 2008 and it has grown into a fabulous public gathering spot.  Besides being a wonderful place to rest under the shade, the space is also used for a farmer’s market, live music and free (!) Zumba classes.

This is as close as Gus got to the water.  To say he didn’t like to get wet would be a severe understatement.

Clearly, we’re obsessed with snapping photos of Gus mid-yawn.  It’s one of the (many) cues he displays when he’s anxious, so it’s not uncommon for him to yawn through one of our “photo shoots”.  Basically, it’s his way of saying, hurry the hell up!  

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Once the three of us made our way back down to river level, I couldn’t resist snapping a photo of my two main squeezes.

The next photo was our favorite of the day and we used our spiffy new editing program, Totally Rad Actions, to play around.  We also posted the original, unedited, straight-out-of-the-camera photo.  We love seeing before and after shots.  Take a look, we’d love to hear which is your favorite! 

Unedited photo (straight-out-of-the-camera) (L) and Oh, Snap! (R):

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Grandma’s Tap Shoes (L) and Grunge Rock (R):

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Milk & Cookies (L) and Rusty Cage (R):

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Sparta (L) and Super Fun Happy No Glow (R):

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Technicolor Dream World No Glow (L) & Troy (R):

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We find ourselves using the Oh, Snap! action on many of our photos, but we’re also pretty smitten with Super Fun Happy No glow.

What do you think?  What’s your favorite edited version?

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It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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and view the entire list of entered links…

Today’s post is something we intended to blog about months ago.  Several of you have noticed and commented on the yellow harness Gus has been sporting in our recent posts.  We thought we’d share what it is and where we got it.  Plus, it’s an excellent way to publicly express our gratitude.

Late last fall, we entered to win a Buddy Belt from the FIDO Friendly blog.  We had been swooning over Buddy Belt harnesses for quite some time and were excited to see this offered as a giveaway.  Prior to starting According to Gus, we never won anything, so we just assumed our chances were slim to none.  Much to our delight, we were notified by the wonderful Carol Bryant of FIDO Friendly that we were one of the Buddy Belt winners!  Not only were we one of the three, we were also the grand prize winner which included the harness, collar, leash, picture frame and key fob.  Wowzas!

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Once again, our model grew very tired of our photo shoot.  Here is a yawn…in six photos… 

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Gus is now completely decked out in Canadian gear.  Buddy Belt is based in Ontario and blanketID is based in British Columbia.  Maybe Canada should make him an honorary citizen?

A very special thanks goes out to Steve at Buddy Belt for his kindness and patience while we selected our color and size.  We had a difficult time choosing a color and he was so helpful when we asked (a million) questions.

Our Review:

+  The Buddy Belt was designed to reduce stress and pressure on the trachea and throat and it’s worked wonders on our little monster who likes to chase after squirrels during walks ;)
+  Buddy Belts are available for a wide range of dogs – from 2 all the way to 100+ pounds
+  The single buckle closure is sturdy and quick to put on and adjust
+  Buddy Belts are available in SO many wonderful colors – it took us forever before we finally settled on the lovely Honeycomb color

-  Suede (especially in light colors) gets dirty quickly; we suggest choosing a leather option
-  Buddy Belt harnesses are pricey ($40+ and up, depending on size).  After using the Buddy Belt for several months, We definitely think they are worth the price, but the cost was the reason we hadn’t purchased it prior to the giveaway.

In summary, we highly recommend Buddy Belt to anyone who is in the market for a new harness.  The quality and craftsmanship are top-notch!  Thank you, Buddy Belt and FIDO Friendly!

Disclosure:  We won the Buddy Belt prize pack through FIDO Friendly Magazine’s blog.  We were not compensated for this post and the opinions are all our own.

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Before we end for today, we wanted to share some good news this morning.  We put all of the entries into Random.org for The Dogfather Tank from Doggie T-Shirts yesterday evening.  And the winner is…

Minnie and Mack!

We also have one more bit of good news to share this morning.  The winner of the starter box of PetCakes did not respond to either of the two emails we sent.  We decided to wait until yesterday evening to draw again.  We entered all the entries back into Random.org, and the winner is…

Mr. Pip!

Congratulations to the two winners!  We are so happy that we were able to host these giveaways.  Another big shout-out to Lucky Paws PetCakes and Doggie T-Shirts.com for providing the wonderful items.  We love sharing with our blog friends!

We will email both winners for their addresses so we can get their goodies shipped off ASAP!

If you can’t tell already, we’re really excited today is Friday.  Not only do Mitch and I have the afternoon off, we also plan on packing up the kitchen.  There’s nothing we I love more than crossing an item off our ginormous to-do list!  Our afternoon plans also coincide with San Antonio Food Bank’s Stamp Out Hunger Drive.  It’s a win-win.  Our pantry will be cleaned out and we’ll be donating to a worthy organization.  

Side note:  Are we the only ones who thought the lyrics were “zippity” instead of “zip a dee“? 

While we’re on the subject of weekend shenanigans, we wanted to share our recent dog friendly dining experience.  Before our stroll down Main Street, we stopped in at our favorite Fredericksburg dog friendly restaurant, Hondo’s.

We first visited Hondo’s several years ago after making a quick call to the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce for a list of dog friendly dining options.  One look at Hondo’s menu, and we were sold.   Any restaurant that has an entire section of their menu devoted to “Hot Crunchies” holds the key to our hearts.

Once again, I had a little fun with my Totally Rad Action sets.  I used the Oh, Snap action on the left and Sparta on the right. 

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We arrived at Hondo’s just before noon on a Saturday and had the entire patio area to ourselves for the first 30 minutes or so.  It was perfect – Gus was able to explore while we snapped photos.

Hondo’s onion strings ($4.95) and chipotle dipping sauce are ah-mazing.  I’m not exaggerating when I say I lay awake at night dreaming of these.  Mitch isn’t a huge fan of onions, but even he cannot deny the deliciousness of Hondo’s onion strings.  Ughhh…I’m salivating just looking at these photos! 

Their homemade parmesan potato chips ($4.50) are equally drool-worthy.  They’re perfectly crunchy with just the right amount of salt + pepper + cheese.  Yum-O!

Because we knew we were going to indulge in lots of fried goodies, Katie and I both ordered the Kid’s Donut Hole Burger + Curly Fries ($5.05).

Mitch opted for the man-sized Bacon Cheddar Burger ($7.75).

Gus was such a good boy throughout our entire meal.  He cozied up in between me and Katie on the picnic table bench and didn’t make a peep.

Although we consumed enough calories for the entire weekend, it was soooo worth it!

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The Details:

Hondo’s on Main:  312 West Main Street, Fredericksburg, TX  830.997.1633

• Opens at 11am Wed-Sun
• Click here for Hondo’s menu

Our Review (+ = positive, – = negative):

+ Dog friendly outdoor seating
+ Plenty of shaded tables
+ Counter service is quick and friendly
+ Hot Crunchies are plentiful and inexpensive
+ Located on Main Street near all the shops

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- The bathrooms are a little scary – avoid if possible
- Drinks are self-serve which means several trips inside for refills

Fun Facts:

• Local musicians perform at Hondo’s several nights per week
• Donut burgers are made with egg as a binder
• Reviewed favorably (4*) on Yelp

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We wish you all a very happy Friday and weekend!  We have plans for a quick road trip to Corpus Christi for some fun-in-the-sun on the beach.  Gus is tagging along for the adventure, obviously, so prepare yourself for an insane amount of photos in an upcoming post. 

We hope you are having a great week.  We’ve been busy bees lately, tackling fun tasks (trip planning), and not-so-fun tasks (researching health insurance).  The good news is that we are FINALLY done with our rough itinerary for California.  As of right now, it looks like we’ll be spending a whopping three weeks in The Golden State, with an entire week devoted to both San Diego and San Francisco.  Whee!

Today’s post definitely falls under the “fun” category…a review and giveaway!

We’re suckers for cute (and witty) dog clothes and were thrilled when given the opportunity to review a couple of items from Doggie T-Shirts.  As soon as we opened the package, we knew our normal photo shoot location, aka our kitchen windowsill, wouldn’t do these items justice, so we took our show on the road.  We decided to let Gus model his new threads at the most picturesque location in San Antonio…the River Walk!

Psst…doesn’t his blanketID tag looks adorbs with his fur?  We’re so happy orange gingham won in our poll.  Click here to see an oh-so-cute photo of Milly with the same tag.

Doggie T-Shirts was spot-on with this selection.  Gus is definitely a lover, not a biter. 

Yellow Hydrant dog clothing is manufactured in the U.S. and Canada and prides itself on taking “sweatshop free to a whole new level!”.

Did you notice their logo and yellow tag?  Adorable!

Uh-oh.  Our model grew restless mid-shoot.

Although it’s already too warm in San Antonio for hoodies, we can’t wait to take this bad boy on the road with us.  We can already picture Gus strutting his stuff in this hoodie while strolling through The Castro in San Francisco.

Doggie T-Shirts also offers blank hoodies and tees in a variety of pleasing colors.  We love that these items could be customized with a logo or print of your choice.  As we mentioned in a previous post, we often daydream that we’ll hit the jackpot while we’re in Vegas.  If that happens, we promise to purchase According to Gus hoodies for all!

To learn more about the products offered at Doggie T-Shirts, you can visit them on their website, Facebook page and Twitter account.  Their sizes range from XS all the way up to 5XL!

Now to the most exciting part…the giveaway!  See below for the details.

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Giveaway Details:

Doggie T-Shirts generously sent us The Dogfather Tank Top (size medium) to share with one lucky reader.  Here’s how to win this hip (and hilarious) tank:

• Visit Doggietshirts.com and comment back with one item that tickles your fancy!
• Giveaway begins Wednesday, May 11th and ends at 5 p.m. Sunday, May 15th
• Winner will be selected using Random.org and announced on Monday, May 16th
• Open to U.S. and Canada entrants only
• Finally!  A giveaway for our friendly neighbors to the north!

Bonus Entry:

• Visit Doggietshirts.com and answer the following question:  Who sits on their board of directors?  Hint:  The answer can be found on their About page

Good Luck and Thank You to Doggie T-Shirts.com!

Disclosure:  Doggie T-Shirts kindly sent us the hoodie and t-shirt photographed in this post for us to review on the blog.  We were not compensated for our post and the opinions are all our own.

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It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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Click here to enter your link
and view the entire list of entered links…

I hate to admit this, but the first time we visited The Alamo back in 2004, all I could think about was Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.  What!  There’s no basement?!

Although Mitch and I are downtown every weekend, we rarely take the time to walk up to street level.  We take Gus for a walk along the River Walk, and then after he’s tuckered out, we put him in his car and we go for a run.  This past Saturday, all four of us finally made our way up from the river level to snap a few photos. 

Excuse our workout clothes – after Gus’s walk, we went for our normal Saturday run.

Editing these photos also gave me a chance to play around with the two Totally Rad Action sets I purchased a couple of months ago.  If you have Photoshop (CS2 or later), I highly recommend these action sets.  They’re incredibly easy to use and oh-so fun!

The following actions were used for these four photos: Grandma’s Tap Shoes, Rusty Cage, Super Fun Happy (No Glow) and Super Old Skool.

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We want to wish all the moms a Happy Belated Mother’s Day!  Gus showered me with extra hugs and kisses and once again, reminded me how lucky I am that he’s in my life!

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We also have some good news to share this morning.  We entered all the comments into random.org and the winning comment for the Lucky Paws PetCakes is…Smoochie Poochie!  Congratulations!  We will email you for your mailing address and get the goodies sent out to you ASAP!

We know, we’re hijacking Gus’s blog space…again.  Feel free to skip to the bottom for Gus photos.  You won’t hurt our feelings if you do.  Okay, you’ll kinda hurt our feelings – just don’t tell us you skipped to the bottom.

WHO:

M = Mitch.  In the beginning, we thought it would be best to hide his first name.  Mitch is a middle school history teacher, and teenagers can be real…turds, to put it nicely.  We figured the less his real name was out there, the better.  Now that there are only 18 days of school left, we think it’s safe to reveal his real identity.  I comment on your blogs as Lori, but thought we’d put a face with the name.

Katie is Gus’s aunt (Lori’s sister).  She is accompanying us on our journey and we couldn’t be more excited to have her along for the adventure.  She absolutely adores Gus and he feels the same about her.  There are many places we plan on visiting that are not dog friendly (museums, some national parks, attractions, etc…) and having three humans ensures that Gus will never have to be alone.

We were inspired to create a blog of our own while researching Gus friendly travel.  Who knows, maybe we’ll inspire someone else to drop everything and travel the country! 

WHAT:

In just over 30 days, we are departing on a cross-country road trip with Gus.  Here are a few facts about our trip:

• Mode of  transportation:  Minivan (generously on loan from Mitch parents – thanks G&C!)
• Hotels:  As much as we wish we were the camping type - we’re not.  We will be staying in dog friendly hotels.
• Luckily for us, we have family members in Denver, San Diego, San Francisco, Eugene and Minneapolis who are graciously taking us in.  aka, we’ll be squatting at their houses – for free!
• Food:  We plan to seek out the best dog friendly dining establishments in each city.

WHERE:

As we’ve mentioned in previous posts, we intend on visiting each of the lower 48 states and several Canadian provinces.  We will continue to post sections of our proposed itinerary as we go through the planning process.  Once we depart, we intend to update the blog daily to record our travels.

WHEN:

We leave San Antonio on Saturday, June 11th.  We estimate the journey will take five or six months. 

WHY:

Life is too short and you never know what’s around the corner. 

Mitch and I never intended on staying  in Texas as long as we have.  We moved down here seven years ago for a job and assumed we’d only stay for two or three years.  Two or three quickly turned into five or six and we finally decided last spring that 2011 was the year we were leaving.  We both love to travel and haven’t had the chance to nearly as often as we’d like.  Living 1,000 miles away from your family means that most of your vacation time is spent traveling to visit them – which we were always glad to do, but it also left little time to go anywhere else.

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Thanks for reading a little a lot more about us.  We can assure you we are not taking over the blog and will resume our Gus-filled posts soon.  Although, be prepared to see a few more photos of us in future posts.  We quickly realized that because of the blog, we were only taking photos of Gus and oddly contorting our bodies to make sure we weren’t in the shot.  Not cool. 

Feel free to ask us any questions if there’s something you’re dying to know.  Believe us, we’ve been asked every question in the book by friends, family and co-workers over the past 15 months.  We’d be happy to share with you anything you’re interested in.

We’ll leave you with a couple of recent Gus photos.  These were taken right after his DIY summer cut, so ignore the jagged edges!

We wish you all a fabulous Friday and weekend!  Mitch and I are both off this afternoon and plan on tackling the ginormous task of packing up our closet.  We only have 20-something days of work remaining, which means we can pack up the majority of our work clothes.  We cannot wait to say goodbye to the trousers, dress shirts and blouses – bring on the sundresses, shorts and tanks!

After working nearly seven years for the same company, I submitted my “official” letter of resignation on Monday.  It was oddly liberating to turn in the letter – making it official sent a jolt of adrenaline through my body.  Our 15 months of researching, planning and saving are about to pay off!

To continue with Monday’s excitement, we also called and reserved our ABF moving date.  In less than one month, a semi trailer will be dropped off in our driveway.  Does anyone want to come over and help us pack?  No takers?  Come on!  We’ll provide Shiner Bock for you and homemade dog biscuits for the furry-ones!

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We only have 38 days (yes, we’re counting) until we bid Texas adieu, and we’re so glad we had time to make one last trip to Fredericksburg.

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We always make a point to stop into Spunky Monkey Toys.  The sign alone is cute enough to pull you in!

Miraculously, we restrained ourselves from buying Gus one of these sock monkeys.

Dogologie is another store we always visit while in Fredericksburg.  Gus is always greeted with an enthusiastic rub behind the ears and a piece of jerky. 

Will you puhlease buy me one (or three) of those beautiful cookies?

We were so tempted to buy this cute little tee.  Gus is definitely a mama’s boy!

If you’ve followed our blog for awhile, you know we’re fans of craft beer.  We couldn’t possibly leave Fredericksburg without sampling the local brew.  Plus, sidewalk consumption is legal and encouraged.  Yes please!

For a mere seven bones we scored a souvenir pint glass filled with Pioneer Porter.  Mmmmmm.

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For those of you lucky enough to have tried Blue Bell ice cream, you will understand our love for the frozen delight.  It is sooooo good and we will miss it terribly when we move.  We better eat a couple of cartons before we leave, don’t you think?  

We saw this cutie right before we headed to the car.  She was one of many dogs we saw throughout the day.  People flock to Fredericksburg from nearby San Antonio and Austin on the weekends.  It’s a great place to shop, dine and stroll with your pet!

Speaking of dog friendly travel, you might have seen on Facebook that the Go Pet Friendly team was also in Fredericksburg recently.  M and I had the pleasure of meeting Rod, Amy, Buster and Ty during their stop in San Antonio.  It was so great to visit with them and they gave us lots of great advice about our upcoming trip.  We hope to bump into them again this summer during our travels.

We highly recommend you follow them on their website and blog.  Go Pet Friendly is a fabulous resource for anyone who travels with their pets!

It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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Click here to enter your link
and view the entire list of entered links…

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Psst…don’t forget to enter to win a box of Lucky Paws PetCakes.  It includes the reusable tray and two mixes.  Click here to enter!

We hope you all had a great weekend.  As planned, we managed to cross several items off our “Farewell to Texas” list.  It’s odd to think we visited some of our favorite places for the last time.  We also snapped another 300+ photos and can’t wait to sort through them and post about our adventures.

Until then, we have something very fun to share with you today.  We recently discovered Lucky Paws, creator of PetCakes, an all-natural, organic, microwaveable treat for dogs.  Here’s what we love about PetCakes:

• All-natural, organic ingredients
• Wheat, soy and preservative free
• Starter kit includes adorable bone-shaped treat pan
• Total cook time is only 2 1/2 minutes
• Treats can be decorated/customized to your choosing

We were amazed at how quickly these treats came together.  In less than 15 minutes, including clean up and cool down time, we had delicious, wholesome, organic treats ready for Gus to devour.  Would you like to score a box of Lucky Paws PetCakes for your furry loved one?  Scroll down to the bottom for the deets!

From the Lucky Paws website:

Original Carob PetCakes

• Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir thoroughly.
• Spray pan with a non-stick spray and pour blended mix in pan.
• Cook in microwave for 2½ minutes.
• Remove pan and let it cool for 10 minutes before removing pupcakes.

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We love the limited and organic ingredient list.  It’s so comforting to be able to pronounce and recognize every item on the list.

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We kept the cakes entirely organic and used organic peanut butter in the recipe.

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Ahhh!  They are so cute all puffed up!

As usual, it didn’t take long for Nosey-Noserson to come see what was going on.

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Although you can’t tell by his disgruntled expression, Gus thoroughly enjoyed his PetCake.  What he didn’t enjoy was that we took 1/2 of it away to save for later.   We know, we’re so mean!

PetCakes are such a unique twist on DIY dog treats.  Let’s face it, no matter how much we’d love to, we don’t always have the time to whip together a batch of wholesome biscuits for our loved ones.   With PetCakes, all the time-consuming work is done for you.  Just add water, peanut butter, fill the mold and microwave.  Voila!

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Giveaway Details:

Lucky Paws generously sent us an additional Original Carob PetCakes Starter Kit to share with one lucky reader.  Here’s how to snag yourself a box of these wonderful cakes:

• Leave us a comment on this post - that’s it, easy peasy!
• Giveaway begins Monday, May 2nd and ends at 5 p.m. Sunday, May 8th
• Winner will be selected using Random.org and announced on Monday, May 9th
• Open to U.S. entrants only

Bonus Entry:

• Visit the Lucky Paws website and answer the following question:  What award did PetCakes receive at the 2010 Global Pet Expo?

Good Luck and THANK YOU to Lucky Paws!

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Disclosure:  Lucky Paws kindly sent us two boxes of the Original Carob PetCakes Starter Kits.  We were not compensated for our post and the opinions are all our own.

Is it just us, or does anyone else’s heart flutter a bit when the alarm goes off on a Friday morning?  There’s just something magical about all the possibilities a weekend holds.  Of course, if you’re us, you only manage to squeeze in about 25% of what you plan, but still.  Ahhhh, the possibilities.

We are down to six weekends left in San Antonio…only six!  We are starting to drift into full-out panic mode.  We’ve managed to stay pretty calm up until a couple of weeks ago when reality began to set in that our house was not selling.  It’s super frustrating, but there’s not much we can do to move the process along any faster.  We don’t want to worry about the house when we’re traveling, so we are really hoping it sells soon.  Wendy of i wuv wes suggested Gus should be our realtor.  What do you think?  Should we don Gus in a mustard-yellow Century 21 jacket and let him hold open houses?

Okay, enough with the boring house babble.  We want to share a product with you we discovered several months ago and are quite smitten with.  We first spotted the Popware for Pets line during a visit to The Container Store last fall.  We were shopping for travel gear to add to our trip wish list and were giddy with excitement when we started browsing around the pet section.

Side note:  To be honest, I was the only one giddy with excitement.  M was enthusiastic, but he definitely didn’t join me in an impromptu Container Store happy dance.  Boys.  Pfft. 

Dexas, maker of Popware for Pets, generously sent us the Expandable/Collapsible Pet Feeder and a Travel Cup to test and review.  We’ve been consistently using both the feeder and the travel cup for the past four months.

The verdict?  We give both products an enthusiastic two thumbs and four paws up.  We know what you’re thinking.  Of course they love it, they got it for free!  We understand your skepticism and admittedly would probably be thinking the same thing.  We can promise this – we love it so much that it is absolutely being brought along on our trip.  And considering our space is limited, you know it’s gotta be good.

You can find our full review after the plethora of photos.

We are posting these photos in the order we snapped them, which leads to the next question.  Where did Gus go?

On an unrelated note, we’d love to get any tips or tricks from all of you photogs on taking photos of moving subjects.  We’ve tried adjusting shutter speed, but the photos always come out very dark.  Help!  This next photo is cute – but so blurry.

We are suckers for cute design and love the turquoise paw print accent on the base.

Just like the other winnie cooper did yesterday, Gus decided to photo bomb this next one…

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The Details:

As mentioned, Dexas generously sent us the Expandable/Collapsible Pet Feeder and Travel Cup.  More information on these two items and the rest of the product line can be found online at the Popware for Pets website and can be purchased at various major retailers including, Petsmart, Petco, The Container Store, Entirely Pets and Amazon.com.

• Small pet feeder’s capacity is eight ounces (each bowl)
• Small pet feeder dimensions:  7″x13″x1.375″
• Small travel cup’s capacity is eight ounces
• Small travel cup dimensions:  5.25″x4.5″x.5″

Our Review (+ = positive, – = negative):

+  Small pet feeder collapses to less than 1.5 inches and travel cup collapses to less than 1/2 inch
+  The bowls are removable which makes cleaning a breeze
+  All bowls are dishwasher safe – expanded or collapsed
+  Travel cup includes a carabiner that’s easily attached to belt loops, backpacks or leashes
+  Dishwasher safe
+  BPA free

-  This particular model does not have adjustable legs (Dexas does sell a different model that adjusts from 8″ – 13″)

We highly recommend the Popware for Pets line for anyone looking for durable, stylish travel dishes.  We take the travel cup with us every time we take Gus to the park and it easily attaches to our belt loop or slips into a pocket in his car.  Both of these items are on our Gus packing list for our travels and we’re so glad to have discovered it.  Thank you, Dexas!

Fun Facts:

• Dexas was founded in 1969 and is best known for their kitchenware (check your cabinet – we bet you have at least one cutting board made by Dexas)
• Headquartered in Coppell, TX

Disclosure:  Dexas kindly sent us the Expandable/Collapsible Pet Feeder and a Travel Cup to review on the blog.  We were not compensated for this post and the opinions are all our own.

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We wish you all a very happy Friday and weekend.  For the first time in months, we are not posting tomorrow for the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop.  As our time winds down in San Antonio, our to-do list continues to grow.  We have a chock-full weekend planned and can’t wait to get a few more items crossed off our massive list.

If we can get our act together, we have something fun to share with you all on Monday.  See you then!

We are huge fans of Orderup, a local dining chain in San Antonio.  It’s a great place to stop for a quick, casual meal with Gus, and their eclectic menu (pizzeria, taqueria, burgeria) ensures that everyone can order something they love.

We stopped here one weekend for lunch during a house showing (no, the house hasn’t sold yet!) and we walked away satisfied, full and possibly a few pounds heavier.  But it was worth it.

Ahhhhhh – I miss his long hair so much!  As I mentioned in our last post, M loves him short and sleek, but I am so looking forward to when it grows out again.

We may have done a little happy dance when we noticed cheese fries were on the menu. 

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If you’ve read any of our previous dog friendly dining posts, you’re probably thinking all we eat is pizza, burgers and french fries.  Contrary to what we’ve posted about, we’re actually quite healthy.  We exercise six times per week and eat boring, healthy meals like homemade vegetable soup during the week.  So, we feel no guilt when we splurge on the weekends with some grease-laden yumminess.

You can see that Gus’s patience was wearing thin in the next couple of photos.

Either share some of your good eats, or let’s get the hell outta here!

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So, we obliged with a few napkin-pressed (to remove some of the grease) hunks of hamburger.

Nom.

If you find yourself in San Antonio and are looking for a quick, inexpensive bite to eat with (or without) your furry loved one.  We recommend stopping in at Orderup.  We’ve dined here for breakfast and lunch and it’s a great alternative to the run of the mill fast food chains.

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The Details:

Orderup:  3 San Antonio Locations:  Stone Oak, The Colonnade and Lincoln Heights

• Breakfast:  Mon-Fri 7am – 11am; Sat-Sun 8am – 12pm
• Lunch & Dinner:  Daily 11am – 9pm

Our Review (+ = positive, – = negative):

+ Dog friendly outdoor seating
+ Free wifi
+ Live music on the weekends
+ Convenient locations
+ Counter service is quick and friendly
+ Inexpensive menu items (see below)

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- Although tasty, we’ve yet to find a menu item that wasn’t overly salty

Fun Facts:

• Earn reward points for every dollar you spend using an Orderup gift card
• Live theatre events currently in the works
• Ice cream, pralines, and chocolate chip cookies are all made in-house

Click the menu to enlarge and be routed to Orderup’s website.

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It’s Wednesday and time to head over to BlogPaws for their Wordless Wednesday Linky.  We will update our post with the code when it’s available.  Happy Hopping!

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