So, I saw the pictures of Ana’s pups getting a bath in the baby pool. What a great idea! I’ve been waiting for Mike to get paid so that I could get the dog groomer over to the house. I’m going to have him shave DJ’s hair off again. It is getting hot and the poor thing is starting to shed all over the house. Anyway, he was getting a little stinky so I figured I would try washing him myself. BIG mistake! We don’t have the baby pool anymore, so I used a saucer that we take to White Sands. It was way too small, but it didn’t matter because the dog went CRAZY. I had to tie him on the leash and ended up holding him in my lap while the kids dumped water on us. I was soaking wet… He wouldn’t let me wash him. He wouldn’t let me dry him. He wouldn’t let me brush him. It was a huge mess. Needless to say, I didn’t get any cute, soapy pictures. And he still stinks.

This picture was taken the first time we took DJ to the river. As you can see, he is much more interested in us that he is in the river. That is the way it works with him. People first. I don’t know why or how he ended up in the pound, because he is a wonderful animal. He is housebroken. He is VERY affectionate. The only time I’ve seen him bark or growl is when a dog walked by our house. DJ choked himself he pulled the leash so hard chasing after him. I couldn’t believe it because we pass dogs all the time and he never so much as gives them a second look.

One of the big reasons I haven’t wanted to get a dog is that I didn’t want to end up doing all the dirty work: feeding, bathing, walking, etc. So far, things have worked out well. One of the older kids walks the dog at night. Butterfly takes him out after school and feeds him. I walk him in the mornings. Our morning walk is turning into one of my favorite times of the day.

No matter how long we are gone or how far we walk, he always stops to do his business in the same spot. There is a house with a huge yard surrounded by an iron fence. A beautiful tree grows next to the fence and between the fence and the sidewalk is a strip of grass, aka DJ’s toilet.

I’ve always liked the idea of taking a picture of the same place over time. I joined the photo a week flickr group ages ago but haven’t posted any pictures yet. In her photowalking episode, Heather Champ talked about some of her favorite spots in the garden and the way they looked at different times of the year. In particular, she pointed out a section with a statue in the background and talked about using depth of field.

What does this have to do with walking my dog? I decided to create a set on flickr of photos taken while giving DJ his privacy. The same place, different times, different light. I’m excited to see how this set develops over time.

daily on flickr: set | slideshow

The verdict on DJ is that we love him and he’s already a part of the family. It feels like he has always been here. I’m a little relieved and a lot excited. This is going to be good…