About Me

My photo
Hello! I'm a first time boston terrier owner and our little Meatball will be going on lots of fun adventures with this active family! I'm a teacher, wife, and mother of a smartie pants little girl. I love working out, taking pictures, reading, scrapbooking, crafting, trying out new restaurants and exploring the outdoors with my family. I'm in love with Meatball and love making memories with him. I hope to learn more about Boston terriers and interesting places to connect with other fun loving people.

Monday, July 25, 2016

Personality

Meatball has such a funny cute personality. He is completely different from our previous dog so we are learning and adjusting to the differences. It's so interesting but true that dogs really have unique one of a kind personalities just like people do. 


Cuddle bug

Almost 7 months old!


Meatball hides under the picnic table at the dog park and watches the dogs.
He cracks us up with his funny expressions and wiggly bottom. He loves to cuddle up and he's so curious about everything. There's times when he thinks he is so tough and then just a little scaredy wimp also. I am still working on getting him to like water more and socializing him with other dogs. He tends to be really shy and submissive towards most dogs but then every once in a while he gets all "tough guy"with some dogs. Meatball will be visiting doggie daycare soon to help with getting used to other dogs in a good environment. I take him to dog parks but sometimes that can be tricky to make it a positive experience. We are so happy he's done really well with our daily routine and he's super smart. It only took him a few days to learn "lay down" and "roll over", of course that's only if you have a treat!  

He loves green beans …or any food really!!
 

I've had 2 people think I was holding a cat while out with my Meatball! 

HaHaHa! Yes- I know i'm crazy about my Meatball! 



Monday, July 11, 2016

Arch Adventure: St. Louis

Have you ever seen the Arch in St. Louis Missouri? It really is amazing and has a great story about how it was made. You can even go inside and ride to the top...if that's your kinda thing! The Gateway Arch is undergoing renovations to become an even better area for visitors to enjoy. It will be completed in spring and will include a new visitors center, riverboats, a museum and improved green space, bike paths and walkways. Come check it out if you get the chance! Okay so not too many of Meatball's adventures but fun family memories! As always I try to leave links to the places we visit so you can check out their websites for more info. My favorite thing about St. Louis is that it is very kid friendly and Forest Park is a great place for riding bikes, having picnics and so much more. Most restaurants were dog friendly on their patio and Meatball had a great time playing in Forest Park. We stayed at St. Louis RV park which is mostly just a parking lot with a nice pool and clubhouse but the location is perfect for doing all the fun St. Louis downtown activities. (We also stayed one night at the Casino Queen RV park which surprisingly had great amenities and had the best views of the Arch.)




Kid friendly things to do in St. Louis (not necessarily pet friendly):
  • Zoo, free admission,pay for parking or free parking along streets
  • Science Museum, free unless you buy snacks/souvenirs/Imax, pay parking or park along streets
  • City Museum, not really a museum but a huge play, crawl, ride and let energy out-fun place
  • MO Botanical Garden, pay a little extra to go to children's area-it's worth it
  • The Magic House- 10$ a person,maybe for younger kids, indoor play fun in an old historic house
  • Forest Park- ride bikes, play in fountains, feed ducks, paddle boats, picnic, 
  • City Park- free,meter parking, outdoor splash park and fountains, bring water shoes, drink/snacks
  • History Museum,take them to the Kids Clubhouse- Free, kids area is hands on, right amount to keep their attention
  • Lots of fun restaurants such as Fitz soda company and Baileys Range, best pizza-Pie pizza, lots of great coffee shops(known for their Kaldi's Coffee) and try their gooey butter cake (famous in St. Louis) and frozen custard!
Just hanging out at Forest Park! Meatball is one cool dude…
(and I can't believe they are pink sunglasses!)




On the look out for squirrels and birds to chase! 

Penguins and gorilla's are some of the best to see at the St. Louis zoo. The sting ray cove is our favorite and if you get to the zoo within the first hour it's open you get in the stingray and children's area for free.




We went to the Missouri Botanical Garden which was really beautiful, lots of walking so bring water. Pay a little extra for the children's area. It has a splash park and jungle like playground areas to keep kiddos entertained for hours.





Meatball enjoyed walking around downtown St. Louis 
and got a little wet in the splash park at City Park. 


After a hot day we cooled off with the BEST frozen custard ever! This is Ted Drewes Frozen Custard  and it's been around since 1941. This place was super busy and popular but they have fast service. There's limited seating but people sit around the building, across the street on benches, in their truck beds and some bring their own lawn chairs. They have a lot of great flavors you can get in a sundae,shake,malt, float or concrete. 
                                  
                                 Meatball thinks it tastes pretty great! 



Of course we made a few coffee stops in St. Louis such as Kaldi's coffee in Clayton, Kayak's Coffee and Park Avenue. Park Avenue coffee is locally owned and located in a historic area-Lafayette Square.  It was featured on food network just recently too. They have a gorgeous patio with comfortable seating. This place has a ton of different flavors of gooey butter cake to pair with that perfect latte. My favorite was the red velvet ...or maybe the chocolate turtle gooey butter cake! 


Notice the gooey butter cake is already gone! 
 Also in the same area we stumbled upon a great little pet boutique called Four Muddy Paws, the Healthy Pet Market. What a cute little pet shop and spa! They have lots of top brands in dog and cat food and treats as well as grooming and wash services. They gave Meatball treats and took his picture. We even walked away with some popcorn and lemonade to snack on.



Meatball shopping and checking out the toys


Check out this doggy spa! Fancy!

Ready to head home! This is how they travel in the back seat(at least for a little while), pretty comfy (both are spoiled kids)! 









Thursday, July 7, 2016

Pensecola Beach Adventure

Our last stop is our favorite vacation destination in our Florida coast RV road trip. We traveled north to Pensacola Beach. Our family has taken vacations here many times before but never with an RV and a boston terrier puppy so it felt different but it turned out to be a great time! I remember walking past the Pensacola Beach RV Resort last summer thinking "wouldn't it be neat to have a camper and stay here? " and…this summer we had that opportunity! It's a great place and I love how close it is to the white sandy beach then behind it is the sound side which is just as beautiful but calmer,darker water with more fish and boats. Everything in Pensacola is in walking distance so we can park the truck and not worry about having to get back in it. This is the place for lots of beach or pool time with maybe some fishing and shopping in between. You can walk(or run) and bike to many restaurants, the Boardwalk, the Pier and a few parks. We did spend one day at the dog beach which we had a short drive there but it was worth it! If you ever get a chance to travel this way stop and visit this beautiful beach and eat some great seafood! 



Funny thing about this picture: in the distance the tall building is the old place
 we would stay on vacation then a view  of our new place to stay "The Wolf Pup"!  


White sand + Seashells + Clear water = Love 
This year they had more algae in the water because of storms but it was still beautiful! There was no getting away from the sun so lots of sunscreen, floating in the waves, and relaxing under the umbrella.





Pensacola Beach

The famous beach ball water tower in Pensacola

A girl and her puppy- love it! 

Trying out the water at the dog beach

Meatball trying to swim in the bay, He's got the kicking down but
still has a panic face as  he tries to get back to the sand.

comfy on the sand...

Naptime! Looking for a good spot for a nap.

Handsome beach babe





Playing with friends at the beach!


Just relaxin and frog leggin it on the beach, so tough being a puppy! 























Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Destin Ft. Walton Adventure

Okay, stop number 3 went by quickly but it's a great place too! Meatball and his family headed a little more north to Fort. Walton/Destin Florida. We stayed at the Destin West Rv Resort which was puppy friendly, clean and lots of fun. It was on the bay side but we walked across the street to the beach. Unfortunately there was not a dog beach around here for our puppy to swim but Meatball walked around with us whenever he could. If you ever get a chance to go to this area it is beautiful and The Harborwalk is a fun area for eating, shopping, and catching a boat ride or fishing charter. There is lots to do in this area also one of the things my daughter always enjoys is the Gulfarium where you can see and touch sea life and watch dolphin shows and it's right on the beach.

back view of the Harborwalk area, sorry didn't get pics of inside Harborwalk ! But I learned they ARE dog friendly after someone told me on the phone they were not.


This RV resort was great! It  is owned by the same company that owns the Ramada Destin Hotel so we got to use all their amenities also, like their awesome pool with swim up bar and waterfall! 

Can you spot the little Meatball? I know you were looking at our new Yeti cooler right?!

Smores on the beach?!
Yes Please! No chocolate for meatball though…


Feeding the fish!
Meatball's keeping a safe distance just in case they try to get him to go swimming again! 

Found a great chew stick

Our first time seeing fireworks on the beach! Such a pretty view and Meatball wasn't too scared of the booms!