And the award goes to....

Lots of good news to share today! First of all, Brutus is feeling pretty much back to normal, having beat the nasty poo sickies he suffered from all of last week. He's bouncing off the walls as usual, so glad to see him acting normal! We have a few more days of medicine to get through, but other than that I think he's in the clear!

Brute's recovery was also timely, as I had entered him in an agility trial (which I thought we might have to withdraw from). I'm happy to report that not only well enough to compete, Brutus had his best weekend yet! We completed our first title (CL1, for those of you who know CPE agility-speak), not to mention a nearly "perfect" weekend - out of 8 classes we entered, got qualifying scores in 7 of them (mostly Level 2 classes). Too bad for a pokey Standard run (which included Brutus pausing on top of the A-frame for a while, apparently enjoying the view), as we NQ'd on time faults (over by 12 seconds, which is like an eternity in agility-time). But on the other hand, one of our Q's came from a Level 3 class, which I'm thrilled with since it was the first time we had competed at that level!

Enough of that technical stuff (boring for most of you I suppose). I had a blast, and I really think Brutus did too! He was much more relaxed, so we were not plagued by the zoomies like at the last trial. Brutus did basically everything I asked of him all weekend... granted sometimes at his own speed, BOL! For a dog who had been under the weather just a few days before, he was really a trooper to last all weekend. It was great to spend a few days with our friends, celebrating their successes and laughing with them over the more bizarre moments that happen to the all of us out there in the ring. I do have it all on video, although this building makes it hard to see much due to the big support poles running down the middle of the ring. I'll get some editing done, maybe try to post some clips later in the week (although they won't be nearly as funny as the last set!!). Suffice it to say that it was a successful weekend in too many ways to list!!

While I'm on the subject of awards....

I've been meaning to get some other awards from our friends posted, but embarrassingly kept getting sidetracked. The first is from a fellow agility trainee, Sam over at MargeBlog.

I am particularly proud of this award, since it relates to the blog itself. I've always enjoyed writing, and Brutus' blog has become an unexpected source of enjoyment & creativity for me. Thanks, Sam, for all your compliments!! I'm tickled that so many people enjoy what I "produce", and also thank all our regular followers who comment on so many posts, both short & long!!

This is an award that is intended to be passed on, but there are so many blogs that we love to read. I love how each blog has it's own personality (just as the dogs they are about do!) - adventures shared, stories told, things to learn, making us laugh, and sometimes even make us cry. I can't begin to single out only five... So please feel free to pass on this award to anyone whose blog makes your day like so many of yours make ours!!

Next is an award from Brutus' main squeeze, Stella (Living With Stella & Gunther blog). This award asks Brutus to list 10 things which he love, and then pass the award on to 10 friends.

So, the top 10 things Brutus lives for (in no particular order) are as follows:

1. Playing with his big brother, Mason.

2. Making public appearances - anywhere, anytime!

3. Eating

4. Napping with his momma

5. Doing agility

6. Getting treats for doing obedience (notice I did not say the obedience itself!!)

7. Going for walks & car rides

8. Dreaming about his sweetie, Stella

9. Snoring (although this is a close tie with farting)

10. Sending pressies to his blog buddies & getting fun surprises in the mail from them!!

Brutus is fortunate to have such a full life, it was hard to single out 10 things he loves!! I actually am hard pressed to think of things he doesn't like... unless you count things that make noise (vacuum, blender, the ice maker on the fridge). Gotta think he's a pretty happy little guy!!

If we have any friends out there who haven't gotten this award yet, we'd be honored if you'd accept it and post your favorite 10 things on your blog!!

And finally...

I'm really embarrassed about this one, since I saved it in such a way that I can't remember who gave it to us!! If the thoughtful doggie who sent this our way can remind me, I'll properly thank you! Otherwise I'll just give a shout out to the award's originator, Cocorue (Love Being a Chihuahua blog), who is also one of our good furiends! She was also our dance partner once (don't tell Stella, it was before she & Brutus met...). Thanks, Coco, for being our pal and always having such nice things to say about Brutus!!