Beautiful weekend

This weekend was one of the first we've had with absolutely beautiful weather. We were also dog sitting for my mom's two dogs, Brandy and Coal. We decided to seize the opportunity to spend some time outside with all four high energy pups by taking them on a long walk in a nearby reservation area. 

Ash has weaseled his way out of just about every harness we've put him in, so we recently purchased this Houdini-proof harness made by Ruffwear. Its been difficult to help Ash adjust! He doesn't seem to like the extra strap around his waist, and when we put it on him in the house he almost immediately lies down into the position you see below. If he's out for a walk he does fine. It's kind of sad! We are giving him lots of treats and trying to associate the harness with positive things. You can see Pepper's on alert to see what's about to happen. 

Once in the car Ash didn't seem to mind the harness at all, he was excited to see where we were going and to try and reach a taste of fresh air from the open window. Sorry for the blurry photo, he was moving all over the place! 

There was a wooden tower of sorts that we climbed to the top of, and were rewarded with a nice view of the Boston skyline. The stairs were pretty steep going up so we (read: I, Caroline) were a little unsure how the dogs would do - but they were of course fine. Pepper doesn't seem to like walking on wooden boards though, and just as he does on docks at our family's lake house he did the army crawl. Here is a picture of Coal taking a rest. 

And proof that the dogs didn't walk themselves :) 

Later that day, this happened. Left: Before (Pepper). Right: After.