Vincent's First Christmas

Vince had a very fun first Christmas with Paula and Eric! He received all sorts of presents.

One of his new toys is a squirrel that almost looks like the real deal...we're not sure yet whether this was a good idea. LOL

Vince also received a Booda Bone from Grandma and Grandpa Wlos. He played with it all day on Christmas.

Playing in the snow with my Best Friend Eli!

It's the most wonderful time of the year....snow time!! Vince absolutely LOVES the snow. He likes to play in it, run around in it, eat it, and making it yellow - but not eating the yellow snow! There seems to be nothing more exciting than the snow. If Vince had his way, there would be fresh snow to run around in and eat every day.






Yes, Vince has a best friend. His name is Eli, and he lives across the street. Eli is the same age and size as Vince, so they are a perfect match for Puppy Plaaaaaay! Not to mention they look alike and were both rescued pups.

Unfortunately, Eli doesn't like to run around at top speeds like Vince does. Whenever Vince starts running around at top speed for several laps around the park, Eli sits down and watches. That is just too much effort to expend for Eli. If you can't tell, Vince is on the left.

Happy Birthday Vince!

Vince turned one year old on Thursday the 29th of November and we of course celebrated. We didn't bake a cake or have a puppy birthday party like some websites describe (http://www.amazingmoms.com/htm/party_dog_puppy.htm) but we did give him a little treat with dinner.

We chopped up an all beef organic hot dog and mixed it in with Vince's normal food. Oh, I should add that he's switched over from puppy chow to adult food in the last few weeks, he's all grown up! Vince snarfed down his food, fell into a food coma, and eventually got a little sick. We're not sure if it was the hot dog itself or the fact that he ate it in 1 minute that lead to his upset stomach.

Vince got a new bed and a puppy stocking (Christmas is coming after all) for his birthday gifts this year. I'm sure he didn't have any idea WHY he was getting new stuff, but he does seem to like the new bed!

Post Thanksgiving Hangover

Well now that Purdue's football season is over it's time to move back to blogging on Vincent's site! The football season didn't just end poorly, it was a mess with the Boilers dropping their last three including the bucket game. GUH!!! I've decided that even if Purdue goes to a bowl we will not be attending. I can't take this team anymore this year.

Hope everyone had a wonderful turkey day, Paula and I had a great weekend. We went to Missouri to visit with Paula's family then met my parents in Chicago for lunch and shopping on Saturday.

Vinny enjoyed his time at a new puppy camp. (I was negligent in making his reservations at his normal puppy camp.) He surely had a good time, he came back with the stink of puppy play all over him. It took an extra long bath to clean him up!

After three days of sleeping off the after effects of puppy camp (I swear he doesn't sleep while he's there) Vince is back to normal. We took a long 3 mile walk and then came back to play fetch at the condo in the MC. The long walks are a little tougher now that the weather is breaking to the cool side. The night here was cool and clear, so much so that when we were walking along the lake you could actually make out the lights of the towers in Chicago almost 30 miles across the lake!

Kissed by A GIRL!

So after Vince and I dropped Paula off for the start of her trip to Argentina, we went to Lincoln Park for a walk. It's been a while since we went for a walk in our old neighborhood, it's always interesting to see the changes that happen. One example would be the Blockbuster which is now a coat store.

At any rate, the boy and I were going into the north pond entrace to Lincoln Park when a chocolate lab puppy was coming out. It was a femaled named Sadie and she was very affectionate! When Vince bent down to sniff she just started licking him all over his snout! I don't think Vince really knew what to do. So now Vince has had his first kiss with a girl!

New Friends!

While Vinny partied it up with the Puppy set at A Dog's Day Inn over the weekend Paula and I jetted off to Purdue for Homecoming weekend. It was a great time, you can find a link to the photos and updates on our Stone Cold Tailgating Blog.


While at the game we got to meet a new puppy friend! Jen and Tony (the guy playing tug of war with Vince below) got a new puppy and they brought him up for the game. The puppy's name is Sanders and he's also got his own blog: http://www.goodsanders.blogspot.com/.










We look forward to Sanders and Vince meeting each other once Sanders is big enough to defend himself against Vince in the puppy play department. Vince's frequent trips to open kennel have made him a very skilled puppy player. He has learned all the tricks needed to "win" his puppy interactions - though we're trying to train that out of him!

My First Tailgate

Vince got to go to his first Purdue Football tailgate yesterday! He seemed to really enjoy himself, there were plenty of new things to smell and lots of people to shower with affection.

Unfortunately the heat still has not let up for us here int he midwest and Paula ended up heading out to the tailgate to let Vince out during the third quarter. It was probably cool enough in the car, but we were worried and thought it best to let him out.

I Made It Home!

As you see in the Oktoberfest post, I had a problem with a bike in Munich. This evening for the first time since the "incident" I summoned the courage to crawl back on a bike! I made it 12 miles with no problems. My wounds are healed - mental and physical!

Real problem was after I got home, I managed to get lost while walking the pooch. The wooded neighborhoods around here are really difficult to navigate in the dark with only a flashlight. After an hour we managed to wander our way back to a main road and found our way back but it was a bit worrisome for a while.

Boys Weekend

Paula's off trotting the globe again so it was just the boys hanging out for the weekend. Today was great, we spent most of the day at the vet. (Vince picked up a little something at the puppy camp.) We spent the weekend in the MC because I was working all day on Saturday.

The most excitement we had all weekend was our long walk tonight! We headed out to take our walk a little later than usual tonight. What I forgot is that the sun is now going down earlier and a 7 p.m. walk is now in the pitch black. I know that I'm a total city dweller because it was so dark I was shocked! Luckily I had a flashlight with me or Vince would have been acting as a guide dog.

Oktoberfest!!

As Eric said, we were in Munich for the opening of Oktoberfest. We had a great time. Here is Eric giving Prost with our first stein. Our fantasic server Brigitte was fantastic; she could carry 8 of these at a time! I will post a picture of her on the new picture website. http://picasaweb.google.com/PurduePaula



There were 8 of us who met up in Munich. We had a nice table outside for the day, and the weather was absolutely perfect. We also found our way inside the Hacker-Pschorr tent later that night to listen to the band. They were a LOT of fun...those Germans really know how to throw a party.

Greetings from Germany

Paula and I are in Munich this weekend for Oktoberfetst. We had a great time yesterday at the tents and pictures will be coming shortly!

Zoom - Zoom!

I got the chance to go and check out the Indy Car Race in Chicago on Sunday and had a great time. I went with a couple of band alums - Andy Bauer and Jimmy O (who goes by Jim now, thank you very much.) Anyway, we had a great time.

Andy invited me over for lunch beforehand (great burgers) and I even got to play "duck, duck, goose" with Andy's daughter Anna. I've never played the game with 5 imaginary players before so I didn't do so well.

I'll try to get a few photos posted of the race when I get a chance this week.

Cruising in Alaska

Hey All-



As many of you know, we took a cruise with Dawn and Brendan to the Inner Passage of Alaska. We finally posted some pictures. In fact, we had such a great time we booked our Mediterranean for next summer while we were onboard in Alaska!!


Here is a shot of us on the glacier after getting off the helicopter. As you can tell, it is a LITTLE cold and windy.

Eric and Vinny Nap

I just couldn't resist putting up the happy napping couple.

Anyway, we just got back from our Alaska Inner Passage cruise, so I will have photos of that online soon.

I did finally post my Canada pictures (Montreal and Toronto), so check them out. I was there for work, and Eric came to visit me. We went for a Toronto Blue Jays game and walked around town.

Weekend in the Country

Last weekend we went to visit my parents down at their place near Brookeville Resevoir in southeast Indiana. Vinny of course went with us and just loved his time out of the city. We basically put his 25 foot leash on him and let him roam around at will. To Vince this was a little slice of heaven especially when he discovered that the neighbors had a puppy to play with!

I've helped Vince compile a photo essay of his weekend:

I got to hang out on the deck and run around the yard and all I had to do was pull the blue rope with no owner attached!

I got to Visit Purdue on Friday when we were driving for a loooooong time.

I let Eric's Dad know that you don't nap if your ears are within licking distance of a puppy

I Waited patiently at home while my owners went to a baseball game (OK, so maybe not so patiently, I chewed through the mesh cover on my travel bed and had a little prison break so to speak.)

And though they left me alone to go to the ballgame, I did get this cool hat!

With all the heat and excitement I finally decided it was time to find a cool breeze to nap in; I gotta see about getting one of these vents installed in my bed at home!

What Kind of Drunk Are You?

So Vinny wound up hurting his leg somehow and he needs to rest in order to heal. The doctor suggested we dose him with 50 mg of Benadryl in order to keep him calm and encourage him to nap.

We have been following doctors orders and consequently Vince has kind of been acting like he's a little drunk! He's been a little uncoordinated and tends to lounge around on his back with his legs splayed out. (See our posts from March, you'll get the idea.) Mostly though Vince has been dopey sweet with us proving that Vince is a lovey drunk!

Two days to go and Vince will be off the DL and will be ready to get back in the game!

Junior Police Dog

I forgot to post last week that Vinny became a junior police dog. When we were out for our walk last Friday we saw a "police incident" after leaving the dog park and Vinny got involved!

As we left the dog park we saw an unmarked cop car turn left in front of us, then reverse course and rush up the street. Turns out that the two cops saw two young kids attempting to break into a house!

The cops got out of their car and told the kids to freeze. One stopped immediately but the other one started to walk away at a trot. The cop told him not to move as he started moving towards him but the kid of course started to run.

At this point all the screeching of tires, doors slamming, and cops yelling set Vinny off and he started barking. Well, the kid that was starting to run must have thought that the barking was from a k-9 unit because he paused running just long enough for the cop to grab him by the collar. Excellent work Vincent! (I don't expect a commendation from the Mayor any time soon.)

Yes Emily, There is A Santa Claus

This is proof for my friend Emily that there is a Santa Claus and he delivered a Police Reunion Tour!

Emily turned me on to the Police while we were attending Center Grove Middle School in Greenwood, IN in 1986 and they quickly made my list of bands I wanted to see live in concert. Problem was, they broke up in 1984 and vowed to never record or tour again.

As most of you know they have been touring the country this year and we were lucky enough to attend last night at Wrigley with our friends Anna and Grady.

I thought the show was great for what it was - a tour de force of the classics that made them great. The reviews have been luke warm because the "music snob" reviewers want to compare the shows to when they saw The Police in 1980 at some 3,000 seat club. You're never going to get that experience again so be happy that they're touring at all!

I've been so lucky in the last two years to see three bands/performers that I never thought I would get to see; we saw Prince two summers ago (best funk band I have EVER heard), The Who last October, and now The Police!

We closed out the night by staying until closing time at our favorite dive bar Parrot's. You know a night has gone well when you're being told that you have five minutes to get out of what can only be described as a last resort bar!

European Travels

As previously promised here is a small summary of our trip to Europe. Paula was in Poland for business and we both had to be in Switzerland for a Geberit event in St. Moritz. We decided to meet up in Poland before heading down to Switzerland.

We began in Warsaw; a city best described as Cleveland without baseball. Old Town in Warsaw was completely destroyed and rebuilt after WWII. The Town square was designated as a World Heritage site by the UN in recognition of the efforts of the Polish people in rebuilding the area to it’s pre-war appearance. There is also a great museum that steps through the history of the Warsaw Uprising.

We took a day trip to Krakow, which has to be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. The architecture was incredible and the people were great. Krakow was described to me by one of my coworkers (he is first generation Polish immigrant) as the spiritual and cultural capitol of Poland.

Warsaw and Krakow photos including Paula's work photos: http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2090203202

After Warsaw we were able to spend 3 days in St. Moritz, Switzerland as guests of my company. We had a three day management conference that our spouses were asked to attend. While Paula spent most of her time relaxing or being indoctrinated in “Living Geberit,” I was in management meetings where the course of the company was discussed.

We had some great events in the evening including a trip to the top of a 10,000 ft mountain! We spend the day Friday hiking in the alps, a truly amazing experience.

Following the Swiss excursion we spent two days traveling through the Alscace region of France. We visited the Maginot line which was the defensive structures that France built after WWI to prevent another German invasion. (Whoops, guess they should have built it all the way up to the North Sea huh?) We also made a run up into Belgium (via Germany and Luxemborg) to visit Bastogne before returning to Basel, Switzerland. For those of you keeping score at home that’s 5 countries in 1 day!

France and Belgium pictures:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2090199485

Happy Birthday Eric!

A fun night out with friends at Las Tablas, a tasty Columbian steakhouse. Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate.

Too Cool for Obedience School

Just before I left last week for my trip to Europe (post and pictures forthcoming) I decided it was time for Vinny to take a ride in the convertible. I bought a seat cover to put over the passenger seat and then strapped him in for the ride.

Most dogs love the idea of sticking their heads out the window so I figured a ride in the Mercedes would be doggy heaven; I'm thinking that Vince doesn't necessarily agree however. Vince isn't much of a "head out the window" kind of pooch anyway and I think he was actually a little cold with the top down. He seemed fairly indifferent about the whole affair, didn't hate it, but didn't love it either.

He did seem to enjoy the ride a lot more once I flipped on the seat heater for him. What a spoiled dog huh? I can just hear him now at puppy camp: "why do I need to finish obedience school I've got a seat that heats my rump and two humans that spoil me rotten?!"

Greetings from Eastern Europe

I am currently on an Eastern European extravanaganza! (Say that 5 times fast). I started out in Riga, Lativa, and now I am in Warsaw, Poland. The picture is of me along the Daugava river with old town in the background. The old town area is quite charming and fun to wander around. I have posted my pictures of Riga on my picture page. See the Paula's photos link on the bottom right.

Going back to April when I was in Bratislava, I thought I would post a couple fun pictures. In 2006 went up to the castle for a great scenic view in Bratislava. Then when I was back in 2007, I thought I would take the same photo. Due to some technical difficulties, I was unable to retrieve the photo until just now. Thanks to Michal for taking multiple pictures to finally get the same angle, and mad props to Jakub and his recovery techniques!! So the 2006 photo is the first one, and the second is from 2007. Too bad I wasn't wearing the same shirt. ha

Too Funny!

Normally forwards don't do much for me but I've gotten a few in the last few days that crack me up!

Vince is a tail chaser, so this is really appropriate!

My Cub Friend Fans, I Give you:

Is That Real or Memorex?

I know I'm showing my age with that tagline, but it seemed so appropriate. (For those of you that have forgotten Memorex was a cassette tape.) Anyway, Vince has been increasingly interested in what is on the television. This is partially driven in Michigan City by the size of the television. As you can see from the photo, many of the things on the screen are "life size" to Vince.

This started last year when I was watching the Purdue basketball game and Vince tried to snatch the ball when it was being passed between two players. Guess he couldn't tell the difference between 2d and 3d huh?

While the chases of balls and intense study of moving object are funny, the funniest episodes are when a dog or cat appears on screen. A few weeks ago a dog was on the Fox morning program during their "adopt a pet" segment. Vince just couldn't seem to figure out why he couldn't detect anything when he attempted to sniff the other dogs rear end! I nearly laughed my butt off watching that.

Memorial Day

We went to our friends Grady and Anna's place for a Memorial Day cookout on Monday. We had a great time hanging out on their roof drinking beers and eating hot dogs and hamburgers. Even Keith managed to make it back from Michigan for the occasion!

Joel and Julie came in from Suburban Iowa for the cookout. Luckily Julie's sister now lives in the Bucktown area so they were able to come in the night before, thus eliminating the need for camping gear! (We tease, we know that you don't live that far out Joel and Julie. The most amazing thing happened while Joel was on the deck; we actually got a picture of him where he's not making a goofy face and is relatively sober!

The biggest news from our point of view though was that Anna invited Vince to come over for the party. This is a big deal because Anna and Grady have not one but two cats! Vince loves cats, he views them as playmates to chase around and have fun with. Cats however do not seem to view Vincent with the same adore. Most of the cats that we have come into contact with have hissed and quickly moved away. This however does little to discourage Vince he still says hello with that dopey grin and wagging tail of his.

We never did get Max or Dirk to interact with Vince. Dirk was in the living room when we left and he ran like hell when he saw Vince coming. I guess they just don't see Vince as being friendly!

Vince got all the attention he could handle at the cookout and by the end he was pretty worn out. He's been pretty much sleeping all day on Tuesday, isn't that the life?

Vincent Expands his Domain

In between our job demands and travel Paula and I have managed to start setting up our rooftop deck for the summer. We added a new tent for coverage (great for rain or shine) and have planted a few of the flower pots.

Well, I should say that Paula is handling most of the planting as I am living in allergy hell right now. This is far and away the worst allergy season that I've had in years! I'm not the only one at least, the people at my plant have all been having issues - must be something in the northwest Indiana air!

Since the roof is open and we tend to spend a lot of time up here (I'm posting to the blog from the table now) we decided that Vince should be allowed to come up as well. Our townhouse is connected in a row of nine and we're trying to contain him to three roofs so we have had to block the fire escape steps.

We had friends over for dinner on Friday night and spent the whole evening out on the deck. Once he settled in Vince was a good boy who just sat at my feet under the table enjoying the "great outdoors."

Paula's Glorious 3-Way

People, get your mind out of the gutter! I am talking about the fantastic Skyline Chili 3-way of course! I am currently working in Cincinnati…home of some great food including Skyline Chili. Props to Jason for the introduction into the Skyline experience that’s been rocking my taste buds since summer 1994. My mission (that I have chosen to accept): eat my fill of Skyline. Right now, I’ve got a full count going on (3-2)…3 3-ways and 2 cheese coneys eaten. I’m thinking I can squeeze in one more 3-way while I am here, but we shall see if the pant seams burst first.

Of course, no trip to the ‘nati is complete without a trip for some legendary black raspberry chip ice cream at Graeter’s. The picture shown above is KM, myself, and Jenny after out trip to Graeter’s in Fountain Square (after dinner at Zips for the best burgers in town). That is why we all look sooo happy.

I also managed a trip to the Cincinnati Art Museum as well as a Reds game. Yes, the Reds actually won too. It was quite a home run derby as Ken Griffey, Jr. hit his career 572 home run. The weather has been perfect, but I am looking forward to the holiday weekend at home.

Next up for June: 20 day trip to Riga, Warsaw, and St. Mortiz. I am looking forward to this trip as it will be my first time to each location!

Check out all my Cincinnati pictures.

My Owners Went to Switzerland......

.....and all I got was this lousy bell!!! Yes, as posted earlier Paula and I were actually on the same continent for a weekend, and we met in Zurich. We figured that Vince needed something from Switzerland, and this mini cow bell fit the bill! At least he won't be able to sneak downstairs when he's wearing this.

Vince had quite the long stay at the kennel while we were gone, and he grew sooo much! He was very happy to see Eric on Sunday afternoon, but we're sure that he was just as happy having puppy friends to play with all day long.

Greetings from Zürich

Eric and I happened to both be on work trips to Europe. Since we don't seem to be togther in Chicago very much, we thought we would meet up in Zürich for the weekend! It was nice to walk around town, and we spent an afternoon in Rapperswil enjoying the sunshine.

I have been working in Prague, Brno, and Bratislava, and Eric has been busy with a multi-city tour of his own around Switzerland and Germany.

We've been wondering if Vinny will want to come home after spending a week with no rules and playing with his friends.

Check out our pictures from Zürich. Click on the Paula's Pictures link in the links section or click here! I have posted some pictures from Prague and Bratislava as well.

New Bed

Paula and I went to the Art Institute today to see the Vollard exhibit, it was quite interesting. Vollard was a French art dealer that showed (and sold) the works of the French Avante Garde. The exhibit was made up of works of art that Vollard either owned or sold through his life. There were some very nice Van Gogh, Renoir, and Gauguin paintings.

After the institute and a walk in the park with Vince we went shopping for new dog bed/kennel. We've found that the open top cage just didn't provide the "den" that Vince wanted. At the condo in Michigan City he has a tendency to crawl under the couch with his head sticking out to take his naps, so we were fairly certain that he wanted a roof over his head. With that in mind we have replaced his old cage with a new "big boy" bed. Provided that Vince doesn't get a lot bigger this will be his home for the rest of his years with us.

Vincent likes his new den very much. He was very, very excited to take his first nap in the new den. I decided that every home needs an address plate, therefore Vince got one of his own: