You're never too busy...

If there is one thing I know about, it's the woeful feeling of dealing with distance. For as long as I can remember, distance has been a part of my life. Dad traveled every week growing up, I went to the greatest school on earth -IU- which was three hours from my hometown, I moved to Europe for awhile, and then finally settled in Arizona - roughly 2,000 miles away from my solid midwestern roots. While I can't deny that all of these experiences have been rewarding, incredible, and have shaped who I am as a person, being away from important people and significant places can and has really put a damper on things at times. How does Alfredo fit into all of this? He's serving as a metaphor in this blog post. One of my best Alfredo stories involves him and I randomly meeting one of his brothers (yes, from the same litter), at the dog park. Since then, he has been able to enjoy hanging with his brother from time to time. In fact, I recently had the opportunity to babysit him. Here are some highlights..

Playing around in the living room...

 Enjoying "yum yums"...

 Laying down patiently for treats...

Playing some more (with Alfredo's beloved soccer ball)...

 Going "bye byes" in the car...

Passing out from "bye byes" in the car...

Unfortunately, Alfie's brother will be moving to Iowa soon, so I guess it's nice they were able to spend some time together before the big move. I'm not sure Alfredo will ever see his brother again. With that being said, it initiates self-reflection on dealing with distance a bit. My greatest takeaway:  We really need to appreciate the time we spend with others, and even when significant people are far apart, it's so important to put forth the effort in terms of keeping in touch. I really dispise the words, "I've just been so busy," because in reality, we truly never know what will happen in our lives. I find it exciting that we are uncertain where life may lead us and what the future holds, but regardless of where we go, it's so important to maintain the relationships we have so that wherever we end up, our significant loved ones are always with us no matter wherever it is we go. I can't imagine thinking about never seeing some of my favorites again, and it totally bums me out that this may just happen to Alfredo.

Here, there, everywhere...

Well, Alfredo and I have certainly been busy. This is stating the obvious, because if we hadn't been busy, clearly we'd be spending more time blogging and less time going bananas! So, what have we been up to? First and foremost, we've been taking lots of trips to Tucson. The Aggie House, where we stay, is becoming our second home. When we aren't partying it up...

We are relaxing. Okay, DISCLAIMER: Clearly I would never introduce Alfredo to beer (unlike our favorite Wildcat). He is really drinking water out of that cup, but because this picture just happened to be taken in the middle of a house party, I just happened to make him look like he was partying with us...because in fact, he was. The napping pic, in my opinion, is just too adorable, so I had to give it a black and white look (thank you, instagram).

ANYWAY, The worst weekends are those in which Alfie and I are apart. Last weekend, I had a surprise 50th bday party for mom. Unfortunately, Alfredo can't fit underneath the seat in front of me on the airplane, so he stayed behind in AZ. You can see how happy he was the night I started packing...

 "Mom, you're not going anywhere!"

He was even less happy when I attempted to stick on sombrero on him. I bought of a bunch of these and other great items for mom's southwestern themed party. As you can tell, Alfredo was NOT digging the hat.

As difficult as it was to leave him, he sure had a delightful time with his Auntie Noel. She took him on bye-bye trips (his favorite), among other things. She's even luckily enough to work at a place that implements "take your doggy to work day!" If only I could bring Alfredo to work with me!

 On the way to work with Auntie Noel!

I love my Auntie Noel!

Chillin' in the office!

The best part about take your doggy to work day is that there is another person in the office with two Boston Terriers. I haven't met this fabulous person (of course they are fabulous - they are a Boston parent), but our dogs kids sure got along!

Maybe they'll even be reconnected. I'm off on another trip next weekend for bridesmaid duties. Auntie Noel will be babysitting again. You'll have to stay tuned!