Dogs days of summer

It was a great week to get out and enjoy the first full week of Summer here in Michigan.  Early in the week, we had some really great weather with low humidity and temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s.  Knowing that a heatwave was headed our way, we decided to get out and enjoy the great outdoors while we could.  

Our adventures last Sunday took us to Battle Creek to get in some miles on the North Country Trail.  We are working on our 100 miles on the trail again this year and are a little behind schedule, so it seemed like a great day to get in a few miles.  

The trail follows the Battle Creek Linear Path through town and has some nice views of the river.  It also has a great park with a little history of the Underground railroad and some great places to catch the girls exploring.  Peaches loves to jump up anything she can so she can see more.

After forcing them to pose for some pictures, it was back to the trail.  We met several friendly bikers along the way and enjoyed our time together on the trail.  We completed just about 4 miles on the trail that day, but we are still a little behind schedule (I would like to have 50 miles completed since we're at the end of June and we're about 5 miles short), but we have some time on the trail planned for this week, so I'm hoping to get back on track!

Once we finished our hike, it was back in the Jeep to head home and partake in a charity dog wash being held by a Lansing area rescue.  All three girls were troopers, but I can honestly say none of them enjoyed the experience.  

Maddie getting soapy

Imke being pampered 

Peaches post bath...I don't think she was happy with me

Even if they didn't enjoy it, I love that they were clean and we were able to support other dogs in need.  We always like to do our part to help where we can.

Peaches first State Capitol visit

Since we were already downtown for the dog wash, I decided we should take a little walk around the Capitol Building and see if we could get a practice session in with Peaches.  She did amazing!  Although she loves to scoot forward every time I take a step back, we finally got a good sit and stay out of both Peaches and Maddie while Imke was laying down very nicely.  I was pretty happy with our first attempt-even if I cut the dome out of the picture!

Best Co-pilot ever!

Monday was just as nice as Sunday, so it seemed like a great night to take the top off of the Jeep and take a drive, after all, half the reason for having a Jeep is so you can take the top off!  This was Peaches first ride with the top off and she had the best time.

Peaches enjoying the ride

Mom and Maddie!

We had no destination in mind and just took our time and enjoyed the fresh air and sunshine. Who doesn't love just going for a drive?  I know the girls and I love it!  It was a great way to spend the evening with the girls.  

Fun with the girls

Tuesday night I took the girls to watch my niece, Brezlyn, play softball.  I've got a whole other blog post planned to talk about our love of the game, but here's one picture of all three of them to hold you over until then!

Thursday, Peaches had her 6 month check-up and chest x-ray for  her cancer.  I am happy to report that the cancer is growing slowly and the doctor was very happy with how well she is doing.  Although we know our time with her is limited, she's become a big part of our lives and it's nice to know that we've still got some good times left!  

Waiting patiently at the Vet

Since Thursday was the last day of nice weather before the heatwave hit, and in celebration of the good news from the vet, we decided to get out and get a couple of miles on the North Country Trail in Marshall.  We really like the Marshall River walk, mainly because it's one of closest parts of the trail to us.  But Maddie and Peaches like it because they can splash around in the River.

After a nice dip in the River and a good drink, it was back on the trail so we could finish up our 2 miles and head home before sunset.

I'm so glad we went because it was a gorgeous night and we got to spend some quality time together, but most importantly, I had three happy girls by the end of the walk!

We finished our week with a trip to Midland to visit our dog loving friends, Shauna and Eddie, who are moving West in just few days.  They always have the best dog-friendly parties!  

While the heat (and food) kept Imke and Maddie close by, Peaches had the best time exploring their yard and hunting for critters.  A few times she was joined be her new hound friend, Ricky Bobby.

I was only able to get one picture of Peaches with Dylan...and it took some good venison as a bribe to get this one! Joey, the Beagle, joined in on that fun as well!

Imke and Maddie stayed close by on the deck most of the night.  I'm sure the heat and the proximity to food were contributing factors to that.  And Imke was happy to make people friends that let her lick their plates. 

Dylan was happy that  Auntie Trisha was willing to spoil him!

 Jesse and Joey enjoyed the air conditioning most of the night.  I can't blame them!

All of the dogs had a great time!  We were so happy to be able to see our friends before they leave.  We're going to miss having them just down the road, but now we have a reason to make a road trip to Washington!  It was a great way to end our fun first week of summer.   There's nothing better than a life surrounded by dogs!