where oh where has my little dog gone....

because he is HUGIFEROUS!!!

Yep, Jambalaya turned 1 on November 1st. God, a Scorpio temperament as such as I have never dealt with :)
Actually he does remind me of Leslie in a lot of ways.
He will bring me all kinds of toys. He is protective to a point but pretty happy when on an adventure. He is a tad skittish of strangers...today he actually growled a little at one of my neighbors. She is gay and rides a motorcycle. He did sniff her though. THAT is a start :)
Soon as she tosses a ball for him he will be fine :)

70+ pounds he is now. We were walking yesterday morning. Slow walk because I have been sick as sin since Thursday night. Feeling better today (thank you for asking, by the way)
Anyway... we were walking on the back side of the apartment complex along this retaining wall (Jamba insists on walking on top of it) and POOF* he takes of right and I follow with feet flying in the air.
All I could do was do a push up to get my hips under me instead of being bent on the retaining wall. Sit upright and start laughing.

It has been a long while since A) I was so weak that my dog could pull me that hard B) musta been a sight to see me flying off my feet with Jamba chasing a squirrel and C) I laughed that hard.

I did do a little testing on Jambalaya's pull-ability
HE can do a hard pull of 150 lbs. That is a HUGE amount for me to control at times. I have learned to not have a lead attached to me on my bike :)
Jambalaya does really well following (sorta ziggy zaggy) ...okay, he likes to lead. Trust me when he is tired he will stop. Sit in the middle of the trail and stare at me in my eyes like "you CRAZY old woman! STOP!!!" After a few minutes he is ready to run again. :)

He cuddles me at night safely guarding my feet and knees from hidden night dangers. Sometimes I hear him sigh deeply like I do....ahhh, FINALLY sleeping! Then he gets down and rests on his bed. I think it is so he can look out the window at night to make sure the local area is safe.
Jambalaya LOVES Zephyr very much! Z will chase him and they play tag. So far, Jamba has not knocked him over which WILL be a site to see :) Zephyr will let Jamba kiss him for a little while...then he is off running and chasing the dog again :) Z loves to hug and pet Jambalaya. Jambalaya tries to approach all the kids he sees...looking for a fun time and pets and rubs. He is big though and it scares some little ones that have not been raised with dogs.

Steve and Toni are bring Z home today with them for a little "pre-visit" on the holiday. I hope that there is a way that I get to see him, too. Jambalaya needs his boy time, too. I cannot take Jambalaya over there to Steve and Toni's. They have 3 adorable kitty cats and their home could not deal with Jambalaya's ability to reach ANYTHING he is curious about :)

To look at the previous years pictures of Jambalaya and to see him today. Amazing at how the pup has just gotten swallowed up by a beautiful non shedding coat and need to RUN from sleeping all the time at my feet or on my lap. Oh yeah... Jambalaya thinks he is the size of Grace (Annavee's long haired Chihuahua) so you will find him CONSTANTLY perched on the arms of my couch. Kinda reminds me of the Peanut's cartoons and watching Snoopy hanging off his doghouse.

Jambalaya is a wonderful companion for me. He is excited to see me always. He is willing to go anywhere I wish to go. He loves for me to touch him and love on him. He even understands when I need to just sit and think. All in all I am glad he is in my life for as long as his heart will beat. All he wants to do is play which seems to be a "thinking" of mine. Come on! Let's PLAY!
I do it with my grandson and I can do that with my dog.

Although SOME of the walks don't exactly look like play :)