#DogThanking

The Purina National Dog Show on Thanksgiving was encouraging people to post pictures of their dogs with the hashtag #DogThanking. I am certainly thankful for Morey and the many wonderful dogs that have been part of my life!

Morey is thankful for tennis balls and for getting to spend so much time with his grandma!

 Morey is also thankful to get to have so many dogs to visit when we come home. Roscoe enjoys tugging and playing with Morey and the challenge is finding a toy that can hold up to their vigorous tugging!

 Sadly this toy did not survive long because instead of tugging the very durable rope parts they decided to tug on the bear's tender tummy. Sorry, Mr. Bear!

Morey and I have a great life that has a balance of work and play, friends and family. We have plenty of toys, tasty treats and a warm place to sleep. It's a good life and for that we are thankful!

Welcome to a Winter Wonderland!

Morey and I traveled back home to Indiana for Thanksgiving and we were greeted at the Indy airport with snow! Quite a change from the 70 degree weather we had left behind in Austin! I dug my coat, hat and gloves out of my suitcase and braved the cold which Morey didn't seem to mind at all.

Northern Indiana and the Chicago area had gotten 7-12 inches of snow while we had only gotten flurries that didn't really accumulate. My grandpa was singing in a Christmas concert the next day and since the roads were clear by then we decided to make the drive to northern Indiana to attend his concert. An added bonus was that Morey got a chance to play in the snow for the first time in several years!

The drive was beautiful because the snow had fallen and then frozen so everything was white and sparkling. Trees were covered with a layer of snow and it looked like a winter wonderland. I didn't mind experiencing winter that way at all!

Once we arrived I waited in the warm van, while my mom suited up in her snow gear and went out to play with Morey (no wonder she is his favorite grandma!). He loved romping through and eating the snow. He doesn't understand that tennis balls don't bounce in the snow so he played with the Wubba instead.

The concert was in one of the assisted living areas so we made quite a scene when we went in (not sure if it was my wheelchair, Morey, the fact that my sister and I were about 40 years younger than anyone there, or a combination of all the above!). Morey slept right through the concert and then we got to meet a lot of people afterward. People had lots of questions about Morey and he got a lot of compliments.




My mom is currently furloughing a golden retriever named Roscoe who needs some time out of prison and he came along as well. Since Rosco is still in training he isn't quite as settled as Morey but he did very well during the concert. People see Morey and assume that he is just naturally that well behaved- they don't often realize all the effort and hours that have gone into training him to be unnoticeable in public places. Morey is such a pro now that he takes pretty much everything in stride and it was fun to see Roscoe still learning what it takes to be a future service dog.

Nothing like snow and a Christmas concert to kick off our holiday season! It is hard for me to get in the holiday spirit in Texas when the weather is so warm but thanks to the midwest weather now I am all ready!

Metal and Muscle Tournament

Although I miss rugby a lot, Morey doesn't exactly have the same feelings. He likes all my teammates but doesn't miss the noise, chaos and cramped quarters that usually accompanies rugby. I still go to practices on occasion but I usually leave Morey at home to sleep on my bed instead of the hard gym floor.

Houston hosts a big Metal and Muscle tournament each year that includes numerous adapted sports events and clinics. This year they had rugby, basketball and power soccer and clinics for tennis, sitting volleyball, rowing and racing. It is fun to watch all the different sports and try out new ones.

This year I went to watch and since my roommate (usually Morey's dog sitter) was going as well, Morey got to come along for the weekend. Everyone was glad to see him since he has been an honorary member of the team for several years. Morey and I also got to catch up with a lot of the teams who were also competing which was fun because I hadn't seen a lot of them since last year. A lot of people in the rugby world have service dogs and unfortunately a lot of them aren't very well behaved but Morey is very well respected by many of the athletes and team volunteers.

Each team has an equipment area where we store all our equipment and chairs and that is where we spent a lot of time hanging out. At game time however, we bring our extra tires, water, etc. to the court and Morey got to come along for that as well. I brought him a rug to lay on but although he looked like he was sleeping I could tell he was still alert and aware of everything going on around him. When we finally got back to the hotel the first time he jumped straight on the bed and went right to sleep!

Hotels downtown can sometimes be a problem because there isn't always grass available for Morey to "hurry". Thankfully the hotel where we stayed had a nice landscaped area near the entrance that served as a very nice area for Morey to do his business. There was also space inside the convention center for him to play ball and get some exercise. One of activities happening at the tournament was a wheelchair obstacle course set up with different obstacles- such as steps, ramps and different surfaces- to navigate over and around. One evening after all the events were over Morey and I borrowed the course and turned it into an agility course. He had fun running up the ramps and enjoyed jumping on the mattress and stepping through the bungie cords stretched across a wooden frame. I can tell his agility training has given him more confidence in navigating new situations and it was fun to see him figure out how to move through each obstacles. There were also a few little kids playing on it so it turned into an event for dogs, kids and wheelchairs!

I am glad I wasn't the only one who got to try new things at the Metal and Muscle tournament!

Trick or Treat

I always enjoy having trick or treaters at our house because it is really the first time I have lived in a neighborhood where more than 5 kids come by. It's fun to see their costumes and how they take the candy- whether they carefully pick one piece or reach in and grab a handful.

Last year Morey came to the door with me the first few times and then quickly lost interest when no one came in or gave him attention. This year I decked him out with his hat and bandana and he came with me to answer the door. It was fun to see his reaction to the costumes. One kid had a giant horse head on and Morey couldn't figure what it was. He stood in the doorway and stretched out sniffing the person and looking at the head, obviously trying to figure out what he was seeing. Other costumes that interested him were a gorilla and werewolf.

Morey was a good sport to put up with what he thought was a Halloween trick but I gave him plenty of treats in return!

Happy Halloween!

Morey has a tradition of impressive Halloween costumes so this year I felt pressure to maintain the standard we set in prior years. I didn't have any good ideas but thankfully Grandma came through and gave Morey a very impressive cowboy hat. Paired with a black vest, bandana and badge, Morey became the rootin'-est, tootin'-est sheriff around!

At work, one of our staff members was very excited about Morey's costume and when I told him earlier in the week what Morey was going to be he began his own search to be "costume buddies" with Morey. Michael found his own bandana, badge and hat and even wore some spurs to complete the look. Everyone in the office was on their best behavior with these two sheriffs on the job!

Yard Work

 It was beautiful weather while my family was visiting and so in addition to all our fun, they graciously agreed to help with some outdoor chores. Morey agreed to supervise just to make sure we all kept on track!

 One of Morey's outside chores is carrying the hose. We have a very heavy duty hose but that makes it really heavy to drag around the yard. It's especially challenging when you need both of your hands to push your chair so that doesn't leave any hands left for the hose. Thankfully Morey is happy to lend a paw (or really a mouth) to help carry the hose wherever I need it.

Our garden was in full production with tomatoes, jalapenos, okra, green peppers and the last of the zucchini. We also had planted some lettuce and cabbage that will be ready in a few months. Despite all these tasty vegetables, Morey just prefers to nibble on the grass!

Family Weekend at UT

UT hosts a Family Weekend in October every year where students can invite their families to come and participate in a variety of events around campus. It just so happened that my mom and sister were visiting that same weekend and although we didn't participate in any of the formal activities we did spend some time on campus showing off some of our favorite places.

 For my graduation gift my family bought an engraved brick for me that is in front of the building where I work at UT. I get to see it every day as I go to work but it was fun to be able to show them "our brick" in person. What a special way to remember my time at UT as both a student and a staff member!













I had recently purchased a frame for my diploma but hadn't put it up in my office yet. Since hanging pictures is not my best skill I asked my mom and sister to help. Together they did a great job of centering and hanging my diplomas so now my office accurately reflects all my degrees and accomplishments!

 Morey was a little confused about why we were at work. He went under my desk to his usual spot but he could tell that it was not a typical work day. He thinks work would be a lot more fun if Grandma and his aunt came everyday!

I spend a lot of time on campus but most of my time is spent in very functional ways- going to meetings, checking out accessibility problems, etc. It was fun to spend some time showing off campus to my family and taking some pictures of the places and scenes I see every day.












I am grateful for the many opportunities I have had at The University of Texas at Austin! Hook 'em!