Zater

"We derive immeasurable good, uncounted pleasures, enormous security, and many critical lessons about life by owning dogs." - Roger Caras

IS THAT FOOD???  I LIKE FOOD.  WELL, NOT MY OWN DOG FOOD...
BUT I DO LIKE PEOPLE FOOD!  WANNA DROP A LITTLE PIECE????
I WILL TASTE IT FOR YOU!  I'D HATE FOR YOU TO GET SICK BY
EATING BAD PEOPLE FOOD!  YOU SHOULD JUST GIVE IT TO ME!
PLEASE???

MAYBE THEY WON'T SEE ME. 

So, as you probably guessed, this blog is pretty much a photo dump of our favorite pictures of our beloved and fiercely loyal pup.  We are so sad he is no longer with us, but so fortunate to have had 10 awesome years with him.  These pictures are a small snapshot of MANY wonderful memories.  

PURE HAPPINESS

COMPLETE RELAXATION

HIS FAVORITE.... CAR RIDES!!!!!!!  

HE RODE LIKE THIS ACROSS THE ENTIRE STATE
OF NEW MEXICO DURING OUR MOVE ACROSS
THE COUNTRY.

He was such a cool dog. 

He made us laugh. 

He was ALWAYS ready for an adventure! 

MOM, THIS IS HUMILIATING.  

WILL SHAKE FOR CAR RIDES. 

TOO MUCH ICE CREAM.
(just kidding.... we did not give him chocolate ice cream)

WHAT?  WHY ARE YOU TAKING MY PICTURE?  I'M JUST LAYING
HERE WITH MY LEGS STRAIGHT OUT.  NOTHING WEIRD ABOUT THAT. 

HE WAS SO KIND.  IF YOU GOT OUT OF BED, HE WOULD KEEP
YOUR SPOT WARM. 

He loved swimming. 

He was spoiled from the very beginning. 

 He was well traveled. 

DON'T ALL DOGS LIE ON SLEEPING BAGS INSTEAD OF THE DIRT?
BACKPACKING TRIP TO ROUND TOP LAKE.

CRATER LAKE, OREGON

LAKE ALOHA, DESOLATION WILDERNESS

ECHO LAKE, CALIFORNIA

FALLEN LEAF LAKE, CALIFORNIA

HE LOVED DUCKS... AND CHIPMUNKS. 

INDIAN CREEK RESERVOIR

CAPLES LAKE

JUNE LAKE 

REDWOOD NATIONAL PARK

SAN FRANCISCO

SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK 

KINGS CANYON NATIONAL PARK 

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK 

 He's been to many other places but this post is getting pretty long so, we won't go over ALL the places he's been. 

He's been skiing... mountain biking... paddleboarding... hiking... and camping.  

DID I MENTION THAT HE WAS SPOILED??? 

I WILL SWIM WITH YOU DAD... 

NEVERMIND... THAT WATER IS TOO COLD!!!!

"I want to love like a dog, with unabashed devotion and complete lack of concern about what people do for a living, how much money they have, or how much they weigh." - Oprah Winfrey

He was excellent at snuggling.  

WE ARE FEELING A BIT SLEEPY....

"Those who teach the most about humanity, aren't always humans."  - Donald L. Hicks

"If I could be HALF the person my dog is, I'd be twice the human I am."  - Charles Yu

Sorry for the long post, but he was deserving of a nice, long tribute.  And Mike and I want a place we can quickly refer to when we miss him, and this post gives us that.  

I Won The Lottery!

Just kidding.  We didn't even buy a ticket.  We had absolutely no chance of winning at all. Who needs a billion dollars anyway??? Not me.

Not when I have this:

Beautiful foggy morning.

KIRKWOOD SKI DAY WITH FRIENDS

HEAVENLY POWDER DAY

It was a WONDERFUL MLK Jr. weekend.... where I did NOT get a concussion (unlike last year)!  

If you're reading this, I hope you also had a wonderful, long, restful, and joy filled weekend! 

Yep... I don't need a billion dollars.  

Disclaimer: We will NOT object if anyone wants to give us some money... say, a couple hundred thousand? Just to pay off some debts???  If you were strongly considering giving us a boat load of money, please don't let this post deter you from doing that.  

First Post of 2016!

Welcome to 2016!  I hope your first day of the new year was SPECTACULAR!

I love starting a new year.  At midnight, the previous year is OVER!  You can't change anything about it.  It's another year in the record books.

This blog is inspired by a Brad Paisley song, and it seems only fitting to include some more inspiration from this fabulous country artist...

"Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book.  Write a good one."  - Brad Paisley
So, imagine that you read that quote last night.  But seriously, if your life became a book, would anyone want to read it?

I love the new year because everyone reflects on their previous year, and we all make goals to become BETTER!  How awesome is that?

Before I delve into my hopes and goals for 2016, let me reflect just a little on 2015.  It was a great year and it deserves some acknowledgement.

I absolutely love this blog because it allows me to go back and read stories/look at pictures of our year.  Without it, I would forget so many little things (and sometimes those little things are important memories).  This blog seems to solidify our memories.  Instead of keeping them to ourselves, and trying our BEST to remember what those adventures felt like, we can relive a little piece of it by re-reading the blog.  I honestly didn't think I would like blogging this much (or have time to keep up with it) when I started it 3 years ago.

You can go back and re-read our posts from 2015 if you want details but overall here's what we learned from the year:

1) Helmets are important during all adventurous activities. The Pursuit of the Trifecta and the Importance of Helmets. 

2) Mother nature does what she wants (sometimes it snows... sometimes it doesn't... and meteorologists have a very tough job). This is discussed in practically ALL blog posts!

3) Our planet is breathtakingly beautiful!  Ditto to the above!

4) When you write your goals down, it gives you TONS of motivation to complete them! Well, I'm 30... 

5) I can run 13.1 miles!!! Another One Bites The Dust

6)  We have the best friends and family EVER. We already knew this, but we are just confirming it.

7)  We have the most amazing dog. Again, we knew this, but now we really appreciate it.

8) We are ridiculously blessed!

2015 was a fantastic year but I'm happy to see it go.  There was not blog post at Christmas for a few reasons... first, we were feeling a little scrooge-like because we honestly thought our beloved dog was dying and second, Christmas kinda snuck up on me this year!  I know it's the same time every year but I usually get really motivated around Thanksgiving to start shopping and mailing cards, etc.  Thanksgiving was busy this year (which was AMAZING) but it threw me of my game.

So, I apologize for our bah-humbug attitude this past Christmas.  We will do better next year.  Please know you are all VERY loved by us!

I welcome 2016 and the new, fresh start it brings!  This year, instead of "New Year, New You," I'm striving for "New Year, True You."  I want to just be myself (whether fat or skinny), and I want to live simply.  I just spent the last few days de-cluttering my house and donating a BUNCH of stuff and I sincerely hope NOT to replace any of it.  We don't NEED it.  We have every single thing that we NEED and that's a huge blessing.  2016 won't be PERFECT or FLAWLESS... there will be ups and downs just like every. single. year.  That's what keeps it exciting!!!  So, I will just live each day simply and I will be content with who I am and what I have in life.

And because this blog has consisted of mostly words so far, here are a few pictures of how 2016 is starting in Tahoe...

I CAN'T PUSH THE SNOW OFF THE DECK ANYMORE!
NOW I'VE ACTUALLY GOT TO SHOVEL IT OVER THE RAIL. 

I WONDER HOW MUCH THAT WEIGHS.

THE BASEMENT DOOR

SNOW BANKS TALLER THAN A SUBARU...
ON OUR STREET!

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE STREET SIGNS
GET COVERED UP???
I HOPE WE FIND OUT!

10 DEGREES AT NOON

BEAUTIFUL VIEW FROM OUR DECK! 

BEAUTY.

I feel so blessed that I get to live this life.  

We wish all of our friends and family the BEST health and UNIMAGINABLE happiness in the new year!  I hope it is a spectacular year for anyone and everyone reading this!

2016: We welcome you with open arms!  Be good to us please!!!  

My BEST Friends

Let me tell y'all about my best friends...

Well first, there's this guy:

And then... there's this guy:

I literally can not put in to words how much they both mean to me.  And the best part?  They love each other too!  Together, we are a family.  And that is amazing.

Tomorrow, Mike and I will have been married for 5 years.  We've been together for 15 years!  Let me tell you a little bit about him...

He is kind.  He is adventurous.  He is SO funny!  He cares about me.  A lot.  He motivates me.  He pushes me outside of my comfort zone sometimes and that's a wonderful place to live!  He supports me in everything I do.  He has a good heart.  He's strong.  He's incredibly patient (unless he's driving).  He has the strongest work ethic of anyone I've ever met.  He's amazingly handsome!  He's the best friend a girl could ever ask for.  And he's mine.

We've made the most incredible memories together in our 15 years together.  I am blessed beyond what I deserve.  I get to spend the rest of my life with him. I jumped up and down on our wedding day as the preacher announced us as husband and wife and not a single thing would change if we got married today.  Mike, my life is so much better because you are in it.  I love you.

Lately, my other best friend has been a little under the weather.  He's injured, and we aren't totally sure how or why.  The vet gave us some meds to try, but it's unclear right now if they'll help.  He's pitiful and it's breaking our hearts.  Please say a prayer for a full recovery.  We know he's getting older but we aren't ready to let go of him yet.  We want the last years of his life to be the BEST years of his life.  Let me tell you about this best friend of mine:

He's the most lovable, snuggable, 4-legged companion.  He had a rough start in life.  But, God put him in Mike's life and they both were healed.  He filled a spot in my husband's heart in a way that no human could.  He's faithful.  He loves unconditionally.  He's protective (especially of his momma).  He will MELT your heart with his puppy dog eyes.  He absolutely loves his orange ball above and beyond any other toy on the planet.  He's a SUPER picky eater (but he'll eat the molding from around a door if we leave him at home when we go out of town).  He's ours.  He will always be our "furst" baby.  And we love him (probably beyond what is normal between a pet and it's owners... whatever, no shame here).

WHAT DO YOU MEAN THIS IS NOT MY BED????

The two of them have a ridiculously strong bond.  The three of us... we're a family. Thank you Mike for being the amazing person that you are.  And thank you for bringing Zater into our lives.  My life is immeasurably better with you two in it.