This is how I picture Heaven...

Yesterday, Nessie went on her first "Golden Retriever Meet-Up" outing to Camp Bow Wow in El Cajon. From 1030-1230, the playground was open free of charge to anyone who showed up. There were Goldens of all size, shape, and color! The playground had three indoor rooms and three outdoor play areas, each with their own baby pool, which Nessie LOVED!

The Beach is Open!!!

Now that labor day is over, Nessie can finally run around down at the beach. Here are some pics of her enjoying the California life!

Nessie Catches the Fashion Bug

With longer hours and increased commute times now that we are in San Diego, Nessie has more time to herself during the day to do some of the activities she likes to do. She is fitting in well on the West coast and her number one activity is napping.

She also has access to the backyard during the day and enjoys the 70 degree weather by sunning herself and chasing lizards. Nessie has also taken an interest in clothes and has been eyeing one of Jessica's blue tank tops. She recently modeled it for us.

Making weeknight dinners easier!

In an effort to make weeknight dinners a bit easier to handle, especially now that Sean and I are back to work, I borrowed an idea from Real Simple magazine. There were several recipes and the included instructions for freezing each dish (for up to 3 months!) and how to reheat it when ready. Since we had a long weekend, I decided to try two of the recipes. I had to modify the chili one and use veggie crumbles instead of ground beef, but all in all they came out well.

Veggie Chili (LEFT)

Penne w/ Spinach & Sun-dried Tomatoes (RIGHT)

I ended up making two nights worth of chili and two nights worth of Penne Pasta with Spinach and Sun-dried Tomatoes. Now, I didn't actually try them out yet, but they smelled good. It will make coming home from work a lot more peaceful!! Here's a picture of our nicely organized freezer with our ready-to-go dinners!

Nessie's Big Surprise

Nessie has been such a wonderful dog recently! Her new medication is working, along with her special food, so that means no accidents! Aside from the two times she decided to go swimming in the community lagoon (which is a big NO, NO), she's been almost perfectly behaved.

During our trip to Target yesterday, we found a big surprise for Nessie - a 2 foot long rawhide bone! It was hilarious watching her try to move it around. She immediately set about trying to devour the entire thing in one sitting, but her mean parents took it away after a few hours so she didn't get sick from eating too much.