Not nearly enough time

Aspen takes a break after a busy weekend with company.

I had a blast hanging out with Tracy and visiting with my mom. They arrived on Friday so we dined at Tyler's restaurant. On Saturday, Tracy and I went skiing and snowboarding all day, but we forgot our cameras. Then on Easter we hung out, watched basketball and attempted to cook a ham. Tracy left on Sunday night, but my mom stayed until Wednesday morning. All in all, the stays were too short, but were much needed.


Tracy spoiled Aspen as much as she could in her brief 2 1/2 day stay with us.


Tracy would bury treats in the snow so Aspen could perfect her digging skills.


For Easter, Tracy and I made an interpretive ham, which we thought made for a good a piece of modern art.


This is the ice formation right outside our home. It used to be one solid column.


Mom and I pose for a photo op at Tracy's request.


This is our new ride — check out the sweet turning signal on the left side.


Another awkward picture my mother can add to her collection. We actually are having a picnic on the West Shore.


We stopped to play fetch at a beach in Incline Village on the North Shore.


One of the many areas Aspen waited patiently to dive into the water.


A smart car in Tahoe with a "Foo Dog" license plate.


Aspen preparing for a Dumbo-esque lift off from a pier in Tahoe City.

Aqua dog

While watching television, I heard a strange noise coming from the kitchen. I just filled Aspen's water bowl and I didn't hear her normal hurried lapping.

When I entered the kitchen, Aspen had her whole face in her water dish, blowing bubbles. She persisted with this activity for five minutes, then moved her attention elsewhere.

And I thought she'd explored everything in the apartment, but apparently deep dish water exploration was still on her list.

An account of the last two weeks

Last weekend it warmed up to 65 degrees so Tyler and I decided to take a break from the mountain and explore the rest of Lake Tahoe. Aspen was happy with the decision because she likes road trips.

We drove all all the way around the lake (which is about 70 miles), stopping here and there when things looked interesting. We had a picnic on the lake while Aspen went swimming on the West Shore, and then walked around Tahoe City, hung out at Kings Beach and then hiked down to the lake by Zephyr Cove on the way back home.



At every stop, Aspen had to jump in the water. Some of the deeper areas were colder so she was shivering by the time she got out of the water (a quaking aspen, some say). But even though she was freezing, the stubborn puppy kept going back in the water. We finally had to restrain her to prevent hypothermia.

As far as I'm concerned, all the snow can melt in April because I'm almost ready for summer. Snowboarding is fun, but I'm ready for disc golf, sailing, Frisbee, hiking, camping, backpacking, running and all the other fun things the warm sunny days bring.

In other news, I am super excited my ol' roomie Tracy and my mom will be here on Friday! Tracy is here until Sunday night and my mom is here until Wednesday. We are going to have so much fun — I can hardly wait.