Puppy Training, Bike Training

The month of May has been almost exclusively dedicated to training of two types: puppy training and cycling!

We had a wet, chilly May, so we just hat to get our training miles in whenever we could as we prep for the big June rides like Little Red, Huntsman 140, and Bike MS.

Here are some Team C4C friends at the Front Runner Century. The forecast called for nasty rain, so I rode my commuter and bundled up (two years ago I did this ride and froze!) but the weather stayed mercifully clear and we enjoyed a beautiful 100k.

Unfortunately the beautiful weather meant I had ridden my 30+ pound, belt-driven, 32 cm tired beast for nothing, but we'll just call it resistance training.

Also, in the shot before this one I staggered under the bike's weight and knocked down the flag. It was awesome.

And puppy training is going great. ChenXing is 11 weeks old today and she's a doll... except for the times when she's making trouble... which is basically all the time. And Chorney takes it all with grace, dishes it out when needed, and puppy-dog-human harmony mostly prevails.

I particularly like the look on Chorney's face in this shot: "Why me?"

ChenXing at 9 weeks

Sasha and I are in hard-core tandem training for Little Red Riding Hood next weekend. It's a women's only ride up in Cache Valley to raise money for the Huntsman Cancer Institute and it's one of my all-time favorite events.

Our goal is to complete the 70 mile course on the tandem, so we've been training hard! And, of course, choosing matching outfits for every ride because you can't be uncoordinated on a tandem.

ChenXing at 10 weeks enjoying the Qualtrics gardens

ChenXing wouldn't sit for a portrait, so I had to snap one of Chorney looking so pretty in the peonies

And, of course, the gardens were planted in the middle of all of our puppy and cycle training

Steve and I completed the 60 mile course in the Salt Lake Gran Fondo a few weeks ago with more Team C4C friends. It was a tough, windy ride and I'm grateful we dropped down to the 60 from our planned 100 mile ride.

Almost done!

Team C4C, hair blowing in the wind

And... more puppy training! My workplace at Qualtrics is a dog-friendly campus so I've been bringing ChenXing in a few days a week for a couple of hours, just to get used to the office. Being not-quite-trustworthy in the potty department, she spends most of her time either outside running out her energy or in her crate, but she did pose for this cute shot on Chorney's bed.

And here we are commuting to work! The puppy, the dog, and I definitely get some double takes as we ride to the office and home again, but the arrangement works for us. ChenXing was very unhappy riding in her crate with the top closed, but once I opened the top (tying her leash securely so she can't jump out, of course), she was much more amenable to the commute.

She'll get too big for this crate, let alone to lift into this crate, soon, but for now we are a happy commuting trio.

And more bike training! Over Memorial Day weekend, Sasha and I completed two 50-mile rides, so we're feeling ready for Little Red's 70 miles next weekend.

3 generations looking good in Kaz colors

And now ChenXing is 11 weeks old, almost potty trained, and starting to work on obedience with sit, stay, and down.

And she's growing like a weed - holy cow! We already had to get her a new collar and crate.

I'm glad Chorney can still keep her in line, even when she pulls stunts like this pic.

Mom, will you release me from my "stay" now?

A Mother's Day Safari

After church today we spent a rainy Mother's Day at the zoo. The rain was a bit of a bummer for us, but it turns out that the rain was just perfect for the afternoon's special surprise - Rhino Encounters!

It turns out that Hogle Zoo has these super cool programs where you can meet a keeper and help feed or train animals. I think Steve chose the very best one - rhino feeding.

The rhinos were especially frisky given that their world was a giant mud puddle (their favorite!), which made for great entertainment for all.

Grammy feeds Princess from a distance (she was exceptionally slobbery)

WanYing gives George a treat

Sasha gives George his lettuce palate cleanser

The keeper said I could feed George by hand, so we tried out a banana

It was quite the experience!

We had a superfun time feeding the rhinos...

...and giving them scratches.

Happy Mother's Day to all!

Puppy's First Week

ChenXing's first week as a Morningstar has been an overwhelming success!

Chorney and ChenXing are getting along super well, the kids have all pitched in on puppy care (albeit in their own unique ways), we've only had a handful of potty accidents, she's figured out how to climb up and down the stairs, and we're (almost) sleeping through the night!

Sure, we've had some sleepless nights as the puppy gets used to her crate. Steve's been a total champ with the midnight potty breaks and ChenXing now gets up only once at night if at all.

And Chorney's done a marvelous job correcting ChenXing when needed, teaching her valuable life lessons such as, "No, my tail is not an acceptable chew toy." Chorney is such a trooper.

If ChenXing grows up to be half the dog Chorney is, we'll have done very well.

It's been fun to see ChenXing's personality come through even in just our first week together. As she's gotten older and more comfortable with us she's gotten much more fun - playing, running, and chewing more. More fun and more challenging... isn't that the way of all children growing up?

Laps are the favorite napping spot.

The pup and the dog regard each other.

I love this pic - I'm working with ChenXing on coming and Chorney just can't resist showing off that she's already perfected this trick.

Like I said, the kids all help in their own unique ways. Here Sam "plays" with ChenXing by getting her to chase his remote-control Sphero Ball.

We spent a few hours getting used to the office and hopefully ChenXing is an excellent office dog soon.

ChenXing supervises as Sasha reads her dog training book.

Everybody gets into a game of Chasing Chorney - it's good for wearing out all the puppies!

We're so grateful that our first week was such a good one!