Sunrise Sunday

I talked with the little human about joining Hazel and I on a sunrise hike. The last time I took her at sunrise was last year, and it was winter, so the sun came up much later. Sunday morning, I woke them both up at 5:45am so that we could hit the road. I admit, it was tough waking them..we had a "slumber party" in the living room floor. The little human was snuggled right against me, and Hazel was snuggled against D. I was so full of the warm fuzzies and didn't want to disturb the moment, but the sunrise wouldn't wait!

We hit the trails when it was still a little dark. I promised D, (who is a little afraid of the dark), that you really can see; it was more like "dusk". We waited a few moments while our eyes adjusted, and then were off. The first thing we experienced was a hooting owl..little D thought that was pretty darn cool. The smell of the desert so early in the morning was awesome. There is nothing like it.

Taking in the view

I loved sharing this with both of my girls. The time right before the sun rises is my very favorite part of the day. There is something about it that gives me such peace. I feel lucky to experience it and feel sorry for those who miss this special time of day. (Though they are probably really enjoying their sleep!)

Hazel is looking forward to this week. Sissy is off for Spring Break, and I am taking the rest of the week off, so we will have lots of adventures!

The only down side is that the temps are climbing already, so anything active and fun needs to be done early, or in the evening. I am sooooo not ready for the heat!! Boo.

Weekend Roundup

We had a fun packed weekend! I was feeling soooo lazy Saturday morning and if I'm honest, wanted nothing more than to snuggle on the couch and drink coffee. However, I knew I really wanted to get in a sunrise run, and I've never regretted a run once I'm out. It's hard sometimes to shut out the "let's stay home" voices but as always, I'm glad I did.

This is what it looked like when we got out of the car. I like to go when it's still a little dark so that we are on top of a mountain for the sun rise.

Because we got an early start, we were rewarded with some off leash time. Hazel loved jumping up on huge boulders to take in the view.

The Queen of her Queendom ;)

I had a different route in mind, but when I saw the beginning of intended trail head already getting crowded, Hazel and I took a detour.

We ended up taking another detour because for the first time in FOREVER, we saw a coyote on top of a mountain. You would think that would be common, but it's really not! I see more coyotes in my neighborhood than I do here. So, our detours ended up leading us on a killer route. MANY steep hills for miles...We ended up hitting three different trails, the last being a blast from my past..one I had not been on in years, so it was the first time sharing it with my girl. It included about 1 mile that was all down hill. Whooo hoo! This is where the little kid in me comes out. There is nothing more exhilarating than running down hill,leaping over boulders, side stepping rocks, and letting out "whoo hoos!"

Sunday brought a new experience...D, Hazel and I attended a large rescue event. Several rescues had booths set up with their animals up for adoption, lots of vendors, and fun activities for the dogs. Among the activities was the chance to try the lure course. I have been thinking about trying this with Hazel anway, and found a club that offers it that I am checking in to. I thought this was a great time to get her paw wet to see if it was something she was interested in. We had to wait in line for a bit, but when we got closer to the "start", she saw what all the dogs were so excited about. The squirrel. It.was.on. It took all of my strength at times to keep her in check. Thank GOSH for the freedom harness!

Of course true to our luck, when it finally WAS our turn, the time keeping clock went out. (I could have cared less) but the guy running the show was on a mission to get it fixed. Hazel lost all excitement.

Waiting to start

She did "ok". She handled all of the hurdles well, but did trip at one point. I thought she would shred this course because she's so fast. She was running at a decent pace but then came to a screeching halt when faced with a "hoop" that she was to jump through. Everyone laughed, and finally, our girl jumped through and finished.

I was really excited about the prospect of this sport for her, but now I'm unsure. It has nothing to do how she did, but rather the worry wort in me coming out about potential injuries...I dunno, we'll see.

Saturday night, we had a girls "slumber party" in the living room floor. We plop the mattress from our Murphy bed down, watch movies, eat yummy snacks in bed, and get lots of cuddle time.

We ended Sunday with yet another dog friendly outing, (no pictures), that included romping with dogs, and more off leash zoomy time.

A great weekend indeed!