Brighten Up

As I was looking through my computer at some old (and new) pictures of Sage, my eyes were instantly drawn the ones with the brightest colors. Since Sage is so dark in color, everything else around her seems to brighten in her presence. It seems she has this effect on people too, not just color.


She has an extraordinary ability to put a smile on anyone's face, especially mine. I know that when I'm having a terrible day, all I need in order to cheer up is spend a few minutes hangin' with Sagey. Whether it's a big sloppy kiss on the cheek or a 65 lb "lap dog" sitting on your face, a smile is inevitable when Sage is around.


It's not just me that she has this effect on either, it's anyone she meets. A brief encounter with someone at the park leaves the passerby with a grin spreading across their face.


Aren't all dogs like this too? They aren't prejudice or selective; they don't care about appearance or intelligence; they love with everything they have, it's all they know how to do.


So I'm going to take a lesson from my four-legged friend on how to love with my whole heart, not just part of it.

Tin Foil the Sage

So the other day, after an entire afternoon of studying, I decided that I desperately needed some warm chocolate chip cookies to boost my spirits. I got out the package of cookie dough and found my cookie sheet. Instead of using my non stick cookie pan liner, I decided to try tin foil so I wouldn't have to wash it. Well, after I lined the cookie sheet with tin foil, I began to worry that the tin foil would stick to the bottom of my delicious cookies! So, after much debate, I decided to go with my nonstick cookie sheet liner instead.

So what do I do with this extra sheet of foil...? The moment I looked up from the piece of foil I was holding in my hand, Sage raised her head and our eyes met. "Come here Sagey..." I said in the sweetest, most innocent voice I could muster up. Wearily she got up from her warm spot on the carpet and came over to me. I took the piece of foil and wrapped it around the middle of her tail. Sage must have been wondering what in the world I was thinking, but she just stood there while I secured the foreign material around her tail. Much to my surprise, she didn't seem that bothered by it, just confused. She began to walk around the house with her tail sticking straight up, holding it as still as possible. Every once and a while she would turn around and just look at it. (Meanwhile, I was laughing uncontrollably...)

So then I decided to outfit her other extremities with foil (typical procrastinating behavior). I got four other pieces of foil and wrapped them around her front and back legs. This time Sage stood statue still. Finally she made a little circle around the kitchen. When she walked she picked up every paw carefully, raising it about 5 inches higher off the ground than normal. (If you have ever put booties on your dog, you know what this looks like.) I was on the floor laughing...she looked like she was preparing to go to space!

I then, knocked on my roommates door in order to share this joyous occasion with somebody else! "I'm sleeping," is the response I got from the other side of the door. I open the door and Sage busted in with the tin foil crunching loudly as she made a circle around the room. "Erin, you're so weird," is the response I got for all my creativity! After some pictures I freed Sage from her tin foil bondage.

Then I gave her a bone for putting up with such a weird Mom!

Not Much Has Changed

Sometimes I wonder if this big, grown up dog I have laying at my feet is the same little puppy I bought a year ago. Besides the fact that she is the same color, little else is the same, appearance wise. The puppy teeth have been replaced with grown up teeth, the puppy breath has disappeared, and there is about a 65 lb difference between the puppy I bought just about a year ago today, than the dog I have now. However, there are times that the little puppy shines through and I realize not much has changed.

Sage's first trip to the beach...

...she still loves to get sandy.

I was frantic to capture this picture because I was certain Sage would never just lay in the baby pool again...

...I was wrong.

Nothing better than chewing on a toy while laying on your back!

Still nothing better...apparently.

Sage loves to carry around and chew on a good stick.

You know, having a puppy is pretty great. They are little and cute and people stop you to tell you how little and cute your new pup is. But honestly, I’ve had more adventures with Sage since she’s entered adulthood. I can't wait to see what this next year brings...I just hope I can keep up!

Sage's Favorite Things

For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Sage in person, here are some conversation starters if you ever get the opportunity. Ok, you can't really have a conversation with Sage, but here they are anyway (if you're like me and DO have conversations with Sage). These are some of Sage’s Favorite things…you can read this list out loud or sing it to the tune of “The Sound of Music” (not really, but I was singing it while writing this). Ok, here they are...in no particular order.


1. Nothing gets to Sage’s heart (or stomach) more quickly than rawhide bones. Bring one of these and you’ll be an instant hit.


2. Sage is a hunting dog. Although she doesn’t get to show off her ability as often as she would like, she is a natural.


3. If you can’t see the little tail sticking up from the middle of this massive, award-winning splash, it’s there and it belongs to Sage. Swimming is definitely one of Sage’s top 3 things to do.

4. Her tennis ball. Those words (and picture) speak for themselves. You can hardly catch Sage without a tennis ball in her mouth. She loves ‘em.


NOT the cone of shame.


5. Meet Hawk. When Sage was a puppy she lived with my boyfriend for a couple of months because I lived in an apartment. Hawk is one of John’s dogs. He put up with a lot from Sage when she was little (and still now). She would steal his toys, kiss his face, chew on his skin, and bother him ruthlessly. He is the sweetest boy and Sage loves him to pieces.


6. Sage loves digging. She’ll dig at the beach, in my backyard, in my dad’s backyard, and anywhere else with some soft, cool dirt. She tries to hide the fact that she loves to dig, but I have a sixth sense that tells me when she decides to get dirty.


7. It’s always fun to take Sage to the beach on a beautiful day. She gets to swim in the water, chase sand crabs, and go exploring all in one place.


8. Ever since Sage was little little she has loved her toys. She prefers stuffed animals with a squeaky inside, but any toy will do. If you come to visit Sage at her house, she will most likely greet you with a toy in mouth.


9. Sleeping. Sagey loves sleeping, especially with her old friend Rita. (Notice the ball close by...)


10. Last, but definitely not least, is me! I would say that I am one of Sage’s favorite things, not just because I am the one who feeds her, but also because I love her back. No matter how big of a mess she makes or how much money I have to spend on her behalf, I will always be her biggest fan….and I think she likes me ok too.

Spring Break Adventures...Part 2

Well, Sage and I are back in College Station after finishing up our Spring Break on the Texas Gulf Coast. We had a blast hangin’ with the family and catching some rays. Sage spent the majority of her time working on her suntan. The weather was awesome. The first three days were perfect. The first day we drove down, Sage showed off her Frisbee skills in front of the whole family.

My little sister captured some pretty solid pictures of Sage in mid-air (upcoming photographer like her sister…hope so). Unfortunately the Frisbee didn’t last much longer after this picture was taken (may it rest in peace) because Sage slowly chewed a hole through the middle. It was pretty funny to see Sage trotting back with the Frisbee in her mouth with her bottom teeth sticking through the hole in the middle. The Frisbee took a turn for the worst when Sage delivered a fatal bite to the center, which caused it to sharply veer to the left whenever it was thrown. I guess that means I might need to invest in a new Frisbee! So after the death of the Frisbee, Sage needed another way to be entertained. Since everyone was getting tired of throwing the slobbery tennis ball, I went rummaging through the closets and found a tennis racket to use to hit the ball instead. Then, my little sister further modified the sport…

She found one of my mom’s socks to use as a slobber protector for her hand. Sage (as you can see in the picture) loved playing with Marie! We would play until Sage stopped bringing the ball back and instead took it with her to lay in the shade under the trees. That’s when we knew she was finally tired! Yesterday, we went to the beach. The water was not its usual green-brown color, but an aqua blue, which made me feel like I was in Mexico. It was beautiful.

The beach definitely didn’t stop Sage from doing what she does best…retrieving stuff. I brought her tennis ball, but I guess she didn’t like the carrying around the sand covered ball in her mouth so she opted for a good water logged stick instead.

After some good retrieving and digging, Sage was super tired and slept in my lap wrapped in a towel all the way home.

We rounded out the day with a good kayak ride across the canal.

Yes, I am wearing jeans and a long sleeve shirt in this picture, and yes, I am soaking wet. Here is what happened. I had just gotten back from riding dirt bikes and Sage wanted to go swimming. Since it was a pretty low tide, Sage would have a hard time getting out of the water so I thought it would be a good idea to put a kayak in so she could use it to get out. Not thinking I would get wet, I decided to hop in and paddle around so Sage could swim a little bit. I definitely didn’t anticipate Sage wanting to paddle around with me. Needless to say, she did. I got in the water and immediately Sage wanted on. We almost flipped over as she tried desperately to climb on with me. But once I got her safely on board and sitting in my lap, she was fine. What a big baby! Unfortunately, Sage and I have to leave the beach tomorrow. This is been a great and much needed Spring Break and we’re not really ready to go back to school, but who is?

Thanks for reading!

Spring Break Adventures...Part 1

Well, Spring Break started in the car, and I really don't like riding in the car. Sage, on the other hand, was a really good sport, as she was smashed in the back seat with all the suitcases, pillows, sleeping bags, and all my MCAT study materials. We were heading towards Marble Falls, TX to ride dirt bikes at this really cool place in the hill country. We were packed to the tee, and Sage's kennel barely made it...


The 4-5 ish hour car ride became immediately worth it once we made it to our destination. The weather was perfect...sunny skies, 65 degrees during the day and 40 degrees at night for three days. We did some camping, dirt bike riding, swimming, Frisbee playing, hiking, and lots of exploring! It was a great start Spring Break. Here are some pictures to prove it...

I was really glad I brought my camera along on this morning walk with Sage. I just love the hill country!

As it turns out, Sage is a really really good Frisbee player! But the bad thing is, she is now addicted. I had to hide the Frisbee so she wouldn't get overheated because she would just go and go until she couldn't go any longer!

The sunsets were beautiful! If you look closely you can see Sage's outline in front of the fire.

So this is Sage sleeping, which is nothing unusual in the middle of the day. What is unusual is that she is sleeping in the fire pit. I looked up from my physics book to see Sage glance over her shoulder at me with a look that said "yes I'm sleeping in the fire pit, so what?" I quickly fished her out of the ashes and laughed as she emerged with a gray coat!

Besides the rain that fell all night long on Monday night, we had a great trip! The best part is...Spring Break isn't over yet! Stay tuned for Spring Break Adventures Part 2.

Splashes of Color

It's been a weird semester weather-wise. One day it's 65 degrees and sunny and the next day it's 30 degrees and snowing! Don't get me wrong, Sage and I have enjoyed the snow, but we're ready for some color! It's a bummer when you look in your backyard and it's completely dirt, especially when I have to shove Sage in her pool before she comes in the house! But today, as Sage and I were at the park, I noticed something I didn't notice yesterday. As I walked across the field to my ideal sitting spot, I could see little flowers starting to bloom. I dropped my book and got down on my hands and knees to check out the flowers. Sage came tromping up behind and pushed me out of the way to see what I was looking at. After I pushed myself back on my knees, I saw the little flower sticking out from between her teeth! As, I tried to get over the fact that Sage had eaten the very first flower of Spring and that we were probably cursed for all eternity, I noticed that there were little splashes of color all over the field!


Sage and I were very excited and we enjoyed the rest of the afternoon frolicking through the field. After Sage was all tuckered out, I studied. (Yes, I learned my lesson yesterday.) Here are a couple of other reasons why we are excited for Spring...


1) Bluebonnets. I love bluebonnets (so does Sage).

2) Swimming after a long day at the park to cool off.


3) The beach. Ok, ok...this was taken in the summer. But summer comes after spring, so that counts!

Anyway, the point is, Sage and I are ready for the spring. Spring break is in two days and we are anxiously anticipating some time to relax and recharge. Thanks for reading!

Winter paws. See you next year.

Spring paws. Are here.

Summer paws. We can't wait.