Tips for Surviving the First Month with a New Puppy

Hops loves fall just like her mommy!

Meet Hops.

She's 50% beagle, 50% bulldog, and 100% awesome. 

Hops is also the first puppy I've ever had. I've had adult dogs before, but a puppy is a whole new ballgame. With the help of some friends who have survived puppy-hood with their own canines, an experienced dog trainer, and a TON of research on my part - I feel that Hops and I are faring pretty well. Therefore, I would like to pass on a few nuggets of wisdom to all you new puppy mamas!

Hops was wore out after a particularly hellish day

1. You WILL have bad days... And that's ok.

There are some days that I feel Hops and I have it all figured out. She naps on cue and always seems to make it outside to go potty. Aaaaaand then there's days that I'm 100% convinced that my dog is a demon sent to test me (just kidding... kind of). Even on the worst days, it's important to not take your puppy's behavior personally. Remember that he or she is primarily motivated at this point to get his or her needs met. If she's gotta poop, she's gonna go!

Hops has sit down to a science!

2. Start training ASAP

Studies show that just like kids, puppies can absorb new information faster than their older counterparts. Take advantage of this by starting obedience training as soon as you get your puppy. I can't stress enough that formal classes with a qualified trainer are a god send. Not only will your dog get the training that you desperately want, but they also get to socialize with other dogs their age. A bonus is also that you get to talk to other puppy mamas about the furry babies. It's a great way to get advice!

Hops getting to know another dog at puppy school

3. Socialize, socialize, socialize

Getting a puppy is super fun, especially because you get to witness so many of his or her firsts! Although this is fun, it's also crucial to your puppy's development. Puppies young than 16 weeks are in the prime stage to introduce them to new things. Socializing your puppy during this time period means that your dog will be less anxious or aggressive when approaching new situations. For example, if as a puppy your dog never saw a man with a beard - he or she may be anxious when they meet their first bearded man. It will be easier on you and your dog if you take the time to introduce them to all kinds of situations and people as a pup instead of waiting until they're older.

The offending toad

4. Don't believe everything you read online

This sounds like a no brainer, but it's something that I've had to remind myself several times. the most memorable example would be when I walked outside to find baby Hops licking a toad. I know what you're thinking, it's just a toad right?? WRONG! Poor Hops started foaming at the mouth and acting very bizarre. I knew my vet was closed, but instead of calling the emergency number like I SHOULD have done I googled "dog licked toad." Holy moly. Every post I read said that the foaming was just the beginning and that my poor puppy was going to get much worse and probably die. Of course I became absolutely hysterical and called that emergency number I mentioned earlier. Thankfully, a very calm vet tech explained to me that we do not have poisonous toads in this area and that Hops was just foaming because toads taste really really bad! Hops was fine and I felt stupid. So yeah, don't believe Google.

Hops was pooped after her first vert appointment!

5. Get to know your Vet and their staff

Having a vet that you trust is absolutely essential. You love your fur baby and you need to have full confidence that his or her vet will be taking the best possible care of your pet. However, it is also very important to get to know the staff as well. Often they will be the ones who will be doing the preliminary assessments of your dog and talking to you about your pet! My vet hosted an open house and I made sure to be there. I felt better about Hops getting spayed after seeing the kennels and sterile rooms that are used for surgery. 

Those are my top tips, but I would love to hear from you guys about tips that you may have for me!!

Hashbrown Waffle

I love waffles. I have always loved waffles. I will always love waffles. 

That being said, I'm always looked for new unconventional ways to use my waffle iron. I saw this idea on Pinterest but most of the posts were uber unhelpful. Most just said, "put shredded potatoes in your waffle iron and Voila!" I experimented a little and the following recipe(ish) was the tasty result! This recipe is super easy and inexpensive. Perfect for a thrifty twenty-something! The following are the ingredients that I used, but the spices could be altered to suit your individual taste.

For One Waffle:

1 cup frozen shredded potatoes

1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pepper to taste

Rosemary to taste

Cooking spray 

1. Preheat your waffle iron, then place the shredded potatoes in a mixing bowl.

2. Add shredded cheese

3. Add Olive Oil

4. Add salt...

and pepper...

and rosemary.

5. Mix all the ingredients together, I like doing this part by hand!

6. Spray your waffle iron with the cooking spray.

                

7. Place the potatoes mixture in the preheated waffle iron and cook for approximately 15 minutes. The finished product should be a nice golden brown like the picture on the right.

I topped my waffle with a slightly runny egg and it was delicious! I'm trying to figure out a yummy sauce that I could put on my next batch. Any suggestions??

Enjoy your yummy waffle!!

What I'm Watching Now

Image: Google

I have a confession, I don't have cable. Crazy right?! Let me explain... As a thrifty twenty-something that has an ample amount of other bills, cable just didn't make sense for me. Instead, I invested in a Roku for my bedroom and use my Xbox One and Smart TV in my living room. I subscribe to Netflix and have an amazon prime subscription. That means I pay about $20 a month for my TV entertainment. So here are the shows that I'm loving right now:

Image: Fox

I am obsessed with Bones. I've loved this show for a while, but lately I've been binge watching seasons at a time (literally). If you're not familiar with the show, it involves a FBI agent and a forensic anthropologist who become partners in solving murders. It's reminiscent of other crime shows like NCIS or CSI, but I find it a little quirkier and more fun to watch.

Image: Food Network

Another show that I've been binge watching like crazy is The Next Food Network Star. I love cooking shows and I love reality TV competitions, this is the love child of the two. Chefs from around the country complete cooking tasks in the hopes of winning their own show on Food Network. It is addicting y'all. I just wanna know who wins!!! 

Image: TBS

I am an avid family guy fan, but sadly I have seen all episodes on Netflix. Massive sad face. However, The Cleveland Show is a Family Guy spin off written by the same people. It follows Peter's friend Cleveland after he moves back to his home town. It's ok, but Family Guy is definitely the better of the two.

Image: Food Network

Soooo funny story, I used to make of my boss hard core for watching The Pioneer Woman. I thought it was just some back country lady making a bunch of beef with butter (not my style). I decided to watch it since my boss was so gaga for the show, and I freaking LOVED it. Ree Drummond is a goddess in the kitchen and her cooking style is very balanced. She cooks balanced meals that always look delicious. I'm always starving after watching her show!

That's what I'm loving right now, tune back it later for updates! 

Sunday Funday Pt. 1

Coffee always comes first. Always.

 Sunday is my favorite day of the week. Seriously. It seems that on Sunday I usually have the day to myself to go do all the things that I love to do! That's why I'm going to do a series called Sunday Funday where I fill you in on all the fun stuff I do with my Sundays!! This Sunday I took the metro into DC and spent the day wandering to all my favorite shops and restaurants. I started in Georgetown and worked my way over to Columbia Heights for lunch.

First Stop: L'occitane, I needed a new hand cream for my purse. I went the shea butter because it has a nice neutral scent. Love it!!

Second Stop: Sephora. It makes my week when I get the chance to go to huge Sephora. I love looking at all the big brand beauty products. I bought the Giorgio Armani Fluid Sheer (I'll do a review on this later) and a Sephora brand face mask in rose. It's my birth month so I received my birthday gift from Sephora, two mini Nars velvet lip colors. AND I had 500 points so I got to pick out a gift, I chose a Bare Minerals contour kit. #Score.

Third Stop: Lush. Who doesn't love lush?!?! The closest lush to me is about an hour away so I rarely get to visit one. This time I bought some Honey I Washed the Kids soap (my favorite!), Aqua Mirablis body butter, and the Mother's Day gift box (love you mom).

Fourth Stop: Olivia's Macarons. Definitely the best macarons in DC, hands down. The seasonal flavor was cherry blossom and it was absolutely wonderful!! Th salted caramel is also the bomb.com.

Look at those beauties!!

 Fifth Stop: Home Goods. I bought a rolling pin. Not that exciting.

Sixth Stop: Pie Sisters. I tried the chocolate pecan pie. It was pretty good, but I was hoping for savory options.

Then I headed over to Columbia Heights to my favorite lunch spot, STICKY FINGERS!!

Sticky Fingers Bakery is this wonderful vegan restaurant that I have been going to for years. Even though I am no longer vegan, I still LOVE their food. I had the Asian burger and sweet potato fries. The burger was absolutely delicious, although a little hard to eat! The sweet potato fries were a bit lacking, they weren't seasoned which was disappointing. I ate outside in the wonderfully sunny weather!

Then I headed home and the fun continued:

Looking hot in my sephora face mask!

Enjoying my almond macaron from Olivia's!

And that was my Sunday Funday!!!