Rainy Dog

Several days into the month of December, we received the first big rainfall of the season. Temperatures have dropped, clouds have formed, and our walks with Palmer have become quite soggy! This morning was the first time we pulled out our doggie's raincoat since last winter and I was immediately reminded of how adorably silly Palmer looks. Thanks to Auntie Alyssa and cousin Oreo for the raincoat as last year's Christmas gift.

on 3 photography

A few weekends ago, Genessee took some pictures of us around Pasadena. They were mostly of Johnny and me but this morning, she emailed me a preview of this adorable picture of Palmer.

Genessee does great work and if you're interested in her services, visit her at http://genesseequizon.blogspot.com/

Still a lazy dog...

When we first adopted Palmer, he had a relatively low-energy and slow demeanor. He never barked and never jumped and always seemed to find his way to the corner of the room to sleep. We thought he was just a lazy dog and that was that. Fast forward to today... 2 years after his adoption. We have since learned that his behavior during the first several days at home was really only a transition and that soon enough, his true personality would shine! Today, we know Palmer as happy-go-lucky, silly, cuddly, sweet, mischievous, a food monster, a major lovebug.... all of that... and also still, at times, a very very lazy dog. Here are some pictures to prove it:

I walked into our bedroom the other day and this is what I found. I promise.

Is... he... really... sleeping???

He is knocked out! Take a picture with him!

Head on over!

Yes, yes, its true! We've posted a new entry to our personal blog... head on over. Do you remember the url? And because a post is always better with a picture, here is a picture of the Palmerpie on Thanksgiving morning.

Palmer's 5th Birthday

Palmer turned 5 on September 8 and to show our love for the pup, I baked him a doggie cake and had guests over to celebrate! Menu was pretty simple for the dog... a cake made from dog-friendly ingredients and treats galore. For the guests, it was pizza and sammys to go with the cupcakes Ninang Cher made and Uncle Brandon decorated. Here are some pics of the celebration:

Palmer is such a blessed doggie -- he received so many gifts for his birthday, including one from his newest doggie (girl)friend, Cassie Maniago! I have to say, though, I've never seen him love anything as much as the gift Uncle Brandon gave him -- a rawhide bigger than Palmer's own head!! If we put it away, he will sniff every nook and cranny in the house to find it and if we tell him its bedtime, he'll drag the rawhide with him to bed. Thanks Uncle Brandon, I wuv it!!!

Updated: Wedding Blog

For our dear friends and family who follow this Palmer blog -- we updated our wedding website with pictures from our most recent vacation. Be sure to check it out. [link not included for privacy]

Life with Daddy

Since we've been married, Palmer's quickly adjusted to having Johnny at home. Here are some cute pictures of him napping while Johnny plays some video games.

See? Hasn't changed one bit!

With Daddy

Since the last post was a picture of me and Palmer...I thought I'd add this ADORABLE one of Palmer and his daddy. We just got the rest of our pictures from our photographer and as I was skimming through all of them, this one jumped out at me! It's just before the wedding ceremony and it looks like they're praying together, doesn't it? So cute.

A Wedding Pic

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of events and tomorrow, I'm back at work. I haven't posted on the blog since before the wedding so I thought I'd take the opp to post this adorable picture of me and Palmer. I'm so glad our photog captured this moment! Check out the rest of our wedding pics here: http://jnpstudiosblog.com/2009/07/kim-johnny-the-langham-in-pasa.html

Loving him!

He is just so darn cute, I've been kissing and cuddling Palmer big time!! I will miss him so much when we're on our honeymoon!

Ready for the Wedding!

Even if Palmer wont' be walking down the aisle, he will be present for pictures and to greet all of our guests. We had to be sure he looked his best on our wedding day so I finally brought him in for his grooming. I asked for the Puppy Cut and made sure to specify that I wanted to keep the 'feathers' at his legs and on his tail. 2 and a half hours later, I took home the cutest dog in the entire world! (They forgot to keep the feathers on the tail, but I'm over it - still super cute!) Here is a before and after picture and a picture of him leaving the groomers. He looks sad in the pics because he always gets stressed from going to the groomers!! Poor pup. :(

In desperate need of a grooming

We meticulously planned Palmer's haircut so he would look his finest on our wedding day and unfortunately for him, that meant a few extra weeks without his grooming. If you've seen him lately, you'll definitely notice he's a lot fluffier looking and even has a few knots because of how long his hair has grown. I think my entire family is looking forward to this Saturday when we finally bring him in for his 'puppy cut but leave the whispies on his legs and tail'. The best part of it all is when you are patiently waiting to pick him up after the cut and he comes rushing out from the back, all fresh and clean, with a red bow tie around his neck. So cute....can't wait!

Memorial Day BBQ

I know Memorial Day was several weeks ago but I figure a late post is better than never! Johnny's family had a BBQ on Memorial Day and guess who joined us! Well, no...not really. These pictures were taken when I stopped by with Palmer in the morning. This was well before the BBQ was fully underway but because these pictures were taken on the same day, it counts! Haha. The weather was pretty nice that day, from what I can remember -- much much better than the past couple of weeks. I am depressed from all this June gloom and am keeping my fingers crossed for brighter days ahead...

Doggie Supervisor

Rach, Ann, and I were at Janet's house this weekend working on a wedding project. We used her handy-dandy gocco to customize a few things for the wedding that I would like to keep a surprise (in case any of my wedding guests happen to follow this blog)! :)

What's a gocco, you ask? According to the all-knowing Wikipedia, gocco (プリントゴッコ, Purinto Gokko?, "Print Gocco") is a self-contained compact color printing system invented in 1977 by Noboru Hayama. Yes, my friends, it is the craftiest thing in the world and my BFF owns one! Check her out in action:

I didn't know how long this particular wedding project would take, so I took Palmer with me to supervise. He wasn't the best supervisor, to be honest with you. He started by begging while we ate the delicious dinner Janet cooked for us. After he realized he wasn't getting any handouts, he wandered over to Janet's kitchen and started sniffing around for some scraps. When he sniffed everything out, the poor dog meandered over to the living room and fell asleep. Here's a good picture of him snoozing while we were working on the project.

Meeting my buddy, Kobe

In honor of the NBA playoffs, I thought it most appropriate to blog about Palmer's play date with my BFF's dog, Kobe. It sort of happened spur of the moment but I'm glad it went the way it did because now Palmer has a friend!

Palmer has always had issues with other dogs. He came from a rescue group who saved him from the Santa Monica Humane Society so he has a tendency to be a bit defensive when other dogs are invade his 'territory'. We decided to introduce Kobe to Palmer on neutral ground and walked them side-by-side to the nearby park.

They haven't actually 'met' (read: sniffed each other intimately) in this picture but you can see the tension:

Thankfully, after a few minutes of walking peacefully within a few feet of each other in the same direction, Palmer calmed down and they were able to greet each other sans drama.

It was a huge relief to know that Palmer can actually make nice with another dog. It gives Johnny and I hope for a second dog one day!

Here's a nice 'Happily Ever After' picture of the doggie meeting, courtesy of Janet.

A Sweet Tooth

We seem to learn something new about Palmer with each passing day. In the past, he has mischieviously found his way to a tray of sugar cookies, has wandered into Cher's room to devour 1 bag and 1 box of chocolates (and subsequently sent himself to the doggie ER), and a few weeks ago, made a mess of some red velvet cupcakes. Palmer certainly takes after Johnny with his sweet tooth! Here is a snapshot of the red velvet cupcakes that were cooling on our kitchen counter. Thankfully, there was only a small amount of cocoa in the cupcakes.
I came home to a turned over cooling rack and a handful of cupcakes on my kitchen floor. I cleaned up the mess thinking that was the last of it but, later that day, I found this tucked between the cushions of our living room couch:

Here is the crazy dog who thought I would never find the cupcake he was saving for later!!

A Night Out

There was a few days that I was traveling for work and had to leave Palmer at my Mom and Dad's. My brother was on Spring Break and was home at the same time so he decided to take Palmer with him for a night out with his friends. I have to admit I was a little worried when I called him at 11 pm and he was still in LA at a friend's house with the Palmerpie but it eased my fears when he told me that he brought Palmer's treats, his pillow bed, his toys, and a water bowl to be sure he was comfortable.
I don't think I have to tell you that Johnny was a little freaked to find out that his beloved son was painting the town red with his Uncle...and at such late hours of the night! But from the pictures, it looks like it was a night of innocent fun.

Marley & Me

What's on the agenda tonight? Cuddling on the couch with Palmer and this movie:

Yes, I've read the book and I know how it ends but I've wanted to see the movie since it was in theaters and couldn't pass up the opportunity when it finally came out on DVD! Can't wait!!

Retire the Crate

I had a thought yesterday... Palmer rarely ever uses his crate anymore. If you look back several months and think about his growing pains... we started off with confining him to the bathroom...and then expanded his borders with a baby gate to the area just outside of my bedroom...and then had to build a mini-fort with a second baby gate. Now, we just give Palmer free reign over the entire condo. We are always sure to close the bedroom doors but really, he has no use for the crate since during the day he is frolicking around the living room and at night, he sleeps on his pillow bed in my bedroom. Palmer is growing up so fast! I think I'm going to retire the crate...

Loves of my Life

I was feverishly wedding planning the other night and when I looked up, found this on the couch:
Yes, the loves of my life.

Champagne and Chocolates

It seems like its been decades since my last post... my life is a whirlwind when you combine planning a wedding (countdown: 110 days) and taking care of a crazy, crazy dog! In wedding news, we reached a major milestone this past weekend; we placed an order for Johnny's wedding band. We walked into the store expecting to try on a few rings, fill out paperwork, and leave a deposit, but instead were presented with champagne, chocolates, and some of the best customer service we've ever had! It really made the experience fun and celebratory. Here's a picture taken with my camera phone:

He did it again...

I've been meaning to post pictures from my brand spankin' new camera (from Christmas) but I've never gotten around to it. Several months ago, when it started raining for the first time, I found Palmer curled up in my laundry basket. I suppose it was because he was cold... or because he was drawn to my smell in the clothes. Either way, he did it again tonight!! This time it was clean laundry!

And after a few minutes of posing for the camera...

It's cold!

Even Palmer thinks it's cold! Ninang Cher had to wrap him up in a blanket to keep him warm.