Travel With Mel

I'm way behind in blogging, but Memorial Weekend (May 25-29) Richard and I took Tapas on his first flight.  Traveling with a dog requires some extra planning and considerations, but our little one was a dream.  We kept him busy with a bully stick (don't ask) and he didn't make a peep during the 2 hour flight.  The smoky dog treat and flying seemed to make him quite thirsty so next trip we may try a different approach. 

The trips was a jam packed weekend, but a terrific one.  We flew into Orange Country so Richard and I could bring out our inner child at Disneyland.  Disneyland has a kennel club where pets can be boarded for the day for just $15.  They put food and water in the kennel (in paper dog dishes almost the size of Tapas!) and you can visit as often as you want.  Richard and I dropped Tapas off, hit Adventureland for several rides and met up with Tony and Andrea to enjoy the rest of the day.  Disneyland is so much fun as an adult and way more fun with friends!  After an exhausting day, we turned back into adults for a wonderful gourmet dinner at Napa Rose in the Grand Californian. 

The next day we drove out to La Quinta to spend a couple days at my parents house in La Quinta.  There Tapas took his first swim.  He's a natural but doesn't seem to like the water!  Richard and I enjoyed time at the pool, caught up on our reading and some work and spent evenings enjoying grilled dinners and wine with mom and dad.  It was a fun and relaxing weekend but we were on our flight back home and to the weekly routine far too quickly. 

Tapas' First Swim

Tapas Ready to Fly

Yesterday, April 26, was Tapas' first birthday.  A first birthday deserves to be recognized, so Richard and I decided to have a little party for Tapas.  Fortunately, Rachele and Bill were on hand to join us in a celebratory drink.  I picked up some special treats for Tapas, a party hat and puppy cake making supplies at this terrific new pet store on Queen Anne called Mes Amis.  They've only been open a couple months but we've made several trips already!  The cake was made of ingredients that could have been consumed by people, but we only tried the frosting - a blend of cream cheese, banana, honey and cinnamon.  Tapas seemed to like his cake once he figured out it was for him.  He did not, however, like his party hat!

Tapas digs in to his cake.

Tapas trying to figure out his cake.

Richard trying to get Tapas in his party hat.