June 27, 2004 - Sprinkler Fun

Growing up, one of my favorite things to do was run through the sprinkler on a hot summer day. Erin discovered the joy in doing this during the summer of 2003. On a hot, June afternoon, Jim set up the sprinkler in our side yard, and Erin, dolled up in her bathing suit (and old sneakers, because she hated walking in the grass barefoot!) blissfully dashed through the spray.  These days, what with water restrictions and the lack of a decent-sized back yard, sprinkler-dashing isn't really an option for us. But I'm really glad that got to enjoy this time-honored tradition on the East coast.  I guess these days, if we want to cool off, our best bet is to take a 5 minute drive to the ocean. Bummer...  ;)

August 3, 2003 - A Pillow of Portia

After yesterday's post of Erin with Portia, one of my friends asked me to post more pictures of the two of them together. This is the first one that came to mind, and truly, it's one of my all-time favorite pictures of Erin. She was not quite 3, and Portia was showing us just how sweet and tolerant she could be, letting Erin drape herself over her without so much as a peep. Do dogs get any sweeter than this? I don't think so!

November 23, 2002 - Nose-to-Nose

Big dogs have always been a part of Erin's life. We had our own (Uno, who weighed around 80 pounds or so when Erin was born), and my parents had two Akitas as well. One, Breyer, was not-so-fondly-but-quite-appropriately nicknamed the Man-Eating Beast, and nobody but my parents ever got near him. (That was actually a good lesson for Erin, in that she learned early on that not all dogs are friendly.) Portia, on the other hand, was a sweetie. She was incredibly gentle with Erin right from the beginning, and on the rare occasions that she'd come inside (Portia, not Erin), she'd allow Erin to lay on her, etc. When Erin was two, the two of them were just about nose to nose, and it was always cute to see them together. Erin adored Portia and would try to shower her with ear scratches and kisses. Portia, for her part, tolerated Erin's affections with a wag of her puffy tail. What sweeties... both of them!

June 16, 2009 - Mishpucha

We'd waited six LONG months for this day... the day my Mom arrived for her first visit to our new home in California. We didn't waste any time getting to the fun parts. The very first night she was here, we drove to the beach to watch the sun set and to get Mom her daily dose of "water feature." (And let's face it, there aren't many more impressive water features than the Pacific!) I just love this picture. I think you can really see how genuinely happy we all were to be together. And the really nice thing was that after two weeks together, we were still smiling like this!  Now if only we didn't have to still wait so long between visits. But at least, as I write this, I know Erin and I only have 63 days until we fly to Pennsylvania for our next dose of Formans!

November 22, 2001 - Wrapped Around Her Finger

Meet the main men in Erin's life. From a very early age, I think she realized that these guys would be the ones that would always be there for her, and also be the ones to spoil her rotten.  ;)  They were the ones who made her laugh, who played with and sang to her, who wrote her poems about practically-mythical dogs. They were the ones who were always happy to see her, who always smiled at her, and who always snuck her pieces of chocolate chip cookies. I'm pretty fortunate... They're also the men in my life! But I don't much remember the sneaking of cookies part...

June 16, 2006 - The Graduate

Erin was very proud on the day she graduated from Kindergarten. It had been a challenging year, and she'd learned so much that we were all amazed. On that day, she donned her cap and gown and joined her classmates in a demonstration of some of their new skills. Erin's part was reading a book to the entire group of parents and friends that were there - a huge group of people! She did great! She actually still has the cap and gown in her room, and each time I ask her if it's time to get rid of it, she gives me a look like I'm asking her to get rid of Lucky. I guess even all these years later, she's still really proud of that day!

October 16, 2000 - Swingin'

When Erin was an infant, one of her favorite places to hang out was in her baby swing, facing out the big windows we had in our kitchen. She'd hang out with me for a long time, gently swinging back and forth, happy as a clam. Even at a very young age, she seemed cognizant of the world around her, and sometimes I'd look at her and wonder exactly what she was thinking. I like this picture because she looks so peaceful, but still looks like she's about to say something. Or maybe she's just wondering, "What's with Mommy and that camera!?" Somethings never change...