Winter has arrived!

We've had snow here in Denver about once a week since the end of November. Lily wasn't sure what to think at first, but she's grown quite fond of it. She and Caesar play in the backyard and they have a great time! The biggest obstacle lately is how to keep her little paws from hurting her when it's SOOO cold outside. She tolerates the dog "booties" but they're $40 for the heavy-duty ones and she'll outgrow them in a couple of months... we decided that that's just too much to spend. Our other dilemma right now is how to get Lily to slow down when she eats. She literally inhales the food... I don't think she chews it at all! We tried spreading it out on a cookie sheet and that helped a little. After doing a little research on the internet I found a website where other dog owners had discussed this topic. One person suggested trying a muffin pan and so we decided to give it a whirl. It definitely helps... she went from eating 1/2 cup of food in ten seconds, to it taking her about a minute. (Note the pictures!) Still fast, but a big improvement!

Today, we braved the 3 degree tempertaures and snowy roads and we went to buy cat and dog food at Muttz. Just our luck, they were doing pictures with Santa! We couldn't resist having their picture taken and it turned out really well! We will be sure to share it as soon as it's emailed to us. We also picked up a couple of toys to keep Lily's busy mind occupied. That's one of the challenges with Cattle dogs, they're too smart for their own good!

Caesar is doing very well and he is getting more and more tolerant of her. It's really sweet when the two of them play together! Lily would love to sit next to Caesar every moment she's awake, if only he would let her. :) Don't let Caesar fool you, he gets more treats, more walks and more love... so he's enjoying this as much as we are!

We'll be driving to Chicago in about a week and right now we are keeping our fingers crossed for good driving weather. As the day grows closer, Ryan and I will figure out exactly which day we're going to leave and the weather will be a big part of that. We can't wait to see our families!