Saturday was short and sweet, which was fine with me seeing as how tired I’ve been the past few days. Sandy wanted to run a walk with Angela, which also means a stroller and Mandi, too, so that’s exactly what we did at 9AM. It was actually warm this morning – like toasty. We’ve plowed through torrential downpours, so a stroll through the neighborhood on a sunny, spring morning felt quite nice, and I think the pups agreed.

Piper handled being at the front of the pack just fine. She led well, wasn’t distracted by the entourage that followed and even aced the mailbox section in the middle of the route. What a dynamite gal! Mandi did pretty good, as well. It was difficult to not think about Larry, as the route felt comfortable and familiar, but it was a relief to know that our little pack, the Romack family, could tackle this new transition together. It definitely made for a good morning.

Sunday threw a bunch of fun stuff our way. Sandy wanted us to run the last leg of our Sonic route, which is basically a long stretch of road with several driveways, some of which being quite busy. On the way to Sonic, we really didn’t hit any trouble, despite the blustery wind that whipped at our ears, which really gave me fits as I tried auditory assessing traffic. We found a better way too get into Sonic, which felt a bit safer this time. Piper found a seat on the patio, which is a cinch with the “find a seat” command, and we sat and chat about the route a bit. Angela and Tyson ended up joining us, and we all grabbed a bite to eat and talked. I practiced “find the button” with Piper, which helped in locating the menu.

After working this part of the route backwards, we drove back to my house, where I started pulling drums out of storage. It was the moment I had been most nervous about – will Piper handle the drums? Larry was a bit scared at first, and rightfully so. The drums aren’t the quietest instrument out there, so it’s impressive how tolerant he was with his first exposure to them up close. Piper was skittish at first, but mostly because of the large cases. The hardware case, which has all my cymbal stands and accessories, seemed to cause her the most stress.

The introduction process is slow. I tapped the drums quietly with my fingers, making sure to give her treats and make the experience calm and pleasant. She was a bit apprehensive when I hit the ride cymbal with my finger, so I did a little work on winning her back. We stuffed a Kong toy full of peanut butter, and I started playing the drums, first with brushes, then with wooden rods and finally at full volume with sticks. She didn’t flinch, but I imagine she was absolutely fascinated with her peanut butter treat.

Bottom line – the drums are not an issue. It may take a few times to completely sell her on them, so I’ll just take her toy and some peanut butter and just repeat the exercise. It’s crazy how close we are to being on our own, which makes me sad to think about Sandy packing up and heading out. I’ve really had a fantastic time with her, too. Tomorrow is Piper’s vet appointment, so we’ll see what the rest of our week looks like once we’ve done that.

You know – I still plan on journaling thoughts about Piper and me even after training is complete. There’s a “settling in” phase that lasts several months, and honestly, it would be good to have an outlet to brag on her when she’s at the tip-top of her game. If you’re not already, go ahead and subscribe to the Daily Wag RSS feed, and never miss a single entry along the way. Thanks for supporting us each and every day – it means a ton.