I wake very early feeling like I’m in a straight jacket.  I realize Pat is pulling on the blankets on one side and Tisen has them pinned down on the other.  I wiggle my way to the top and crawl out, trying not to wake either of my boys.  I am sweating under two comforters in weather that feels like a summer night.

As I get comfortable and nod off, Tisen makes his way to the top of the bed, laying his head on my pillow.  I am soon awakened by a dog licking my arm.  There is just something disturbing about the notion that my dog has decided I need to be groomed in my sleep.

I roll over, tucking my arm under the cover and attempt to fall back asleep.  Tisen continually changes position, pushing me further and further over.  I decide tonight is the perfect night for him to learn to sleep in his crate.

I get an early start on work while Pat takes Tisen for his morning walk.  When Pat returns, he tells me he tested our new leash–a Wacky Walker.  When Tisen pulls, the leash stretches like a big bungee.  This is surprisingly nice.  There’s no jerk on your arm or shoulder and the leash springs back, teaching the dog that when he pulls, he gets pulled back.

The only problem is that I picked a leash that is only rated for up to 50 pounds.  What can I say?  The color went better with Tisen’s collar.  But, Tisen now weighs 60 pounds. When he encountered an aggressive dog at the park, he lunged at the dog and Pat was sure it would have broken if he wouldn’t have grabbed the non-stretchy end.  So much for fashion.

We move on to crate training in preparation for tonight.  Pat comes up with a great idea.  We call Pat’s phone from my phone and then leave his phone sitting on Tisen’s crate.  We put the phone on speaker and voila!  We have a dog monitor.  We’re gone 10 minutes and Tisen whines only once.  We repeat at dinner, but we’re gone nearly 40 minutes.  Once, I startle a few other diners sitting at the bar when I pick up the phone and shout the “Neh eh eh!” in it, but Tisen gets quiet and settles back down.

After dinner, I take a little time to play with some shots of the “French Kiss” chair (that’s what the designer named it).  Tisen walks through my shot several times, carrying a different toy each time he goes by.  He’s teasing me.

I have a lot of fun manipulating the French Kiss chair shots in Photomatix.

When at last I sit down to write, Tisen curls up next to me and dozes off.  10 minutes later, he wakes up, jumps off the couch and runs across the room.  This is not unusual.  I’m convinced he has awakened from a dream confused.  I hope he sleeps well in his crate tonight.

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