Space Poodle and Other Updates

Charles and I officially apologize for neglecting this blog. Both of us have been pretty busy lately, but we have a few updates to post.

Berlin's Paw: It is totally healed. He spent almost 12 weeks in a splint and was limping for a good portion of time thereafter, but he seems to be doing well.

We recently took a few short trips (with poodles) to Portland and San Francisco...

Portland: This is really a beautiful city. The public transport system is a lot better than Seattle's and the restaurants were fabulous. We stayed at the Hotel Monaco, which is extremely trendy and also very dog friendly. Other highlights of the trip were a trip to Powell's Books and Voodoo Doughnut. I have been loving my Kindle lately, but Powell's made me appreciate the value of a good book store. Voodoo Doughnut sort of just made me feel gluttonous and bloated. Photos from our Portland trip can be seen here.

San Francisco: I took some CLE (continuing legal eduation) at the PLI Center so Charles had some time to himself; however, we did manage a few days of vacation. We ate some fantastic food (oysters, shabu shabu, and Moroccan ) and saw a Thrillpeddlers show. Remus also got a fantastic Halloween costume at Best in Show in the Castro District...



The rest of our San Francisco pics are located here. You can also check out a few pictures of Remus modeling his new costume at a little Halloween party in Seattle.

Poodle Injury and Vaughn Gathering at the Colorado Cabins

Charles and I just returned from a four day trip to the Vaughn cabins near Mancos, Colorado. This was my first trip to the legendary cabins and although it was a bit rustic, the view was wonderful even if it did rain a bit...

In addition to the gorgeous surroundings, we had great company. All of the cabins were packed and there was even spillover into a friend's cabin. Here is a somewhat candid shot of most of the clan on the porch after a tasty dinner...

Will someone please Photoshop Ben into this picture?

One snafu = Charles reserved a VW Beetle as our rental car. It had some issues with the trail...

Another problem we ran into is that while we were gone Berlin broke two bones in his paw. No one is really sure what happened, but the vet says he could have fallen, accidentally stepped on, or had his paw pinched in a door. As soon as we found out, we rushed home and ended up cutting our time in denver short. The good news is that the little guy has a stylish splint...

For the rest of the pictures of our short trip to Colorado (including Durango and Mesa Verde) see here.

When Seattle weather was nice...

It is miserable in Seattle right now, but last weekend for one entire Saturday it was gorgeous. Luckily, Charles and I have a friend with a sailboat so we took advantage of the opportunity. For some beautiful pics of the Puget Sound see out photos here.

A video present for one of my coworkers

One of my coworkers celebrated his 50th anniversary with my company this month. I was able to dig up some old photos and make this celebration video for him. Sharing a cube wall with someone who has been a patent attorney for longer than I have been alive is definitely one of the best things about my job.

Texas Report

For the 2009/2010 holiday season, the Vaughns traveled to Texas. We didn't take very many pictures, but I thought some people might enjoy them...

Berlin and Remus flew with us to Houston and received doggie sedatives to make the flight a more pleasant experience. They're well traveled canines and are pretty used to this routine, but they can still be a hassle. While Remus took the usual cocktail, the vet in Seattle prescribed human xanax for Berlin because of his tiny poodle syndrome. This did not work out very well.

While Berlin was "tripping" he was very interested in my wine and the salmon rolls at Vino Volo in the Sea-Tac airport.


A quick drink before getting on the plane...


While staying in Dallas, the poodles ended up getting us a room upgrade at the Westin. They were particularly whiny one night while we were having dinner at a friend's house and the night staff picked them up "so they would not be lonely." We came back to find our dogs well cared for and our room upgraded to a suite. Here is a pick of the poodles with the night staff...


While Berlin and Remus were making trouble, we hung out with Charles' friend Big Jon and his Star Trek tree...


We also played magic with his adorable new daughter Brook...


As many of you know, it snowed in Dallas over Christmas. During Christmas lunch, Charles' uncle Mike found an innovative way to keep beverages cold which Remus felt the need to investigate...


The poodles also enjoyed the farm where Uncle Mike and Aunt Deb live...


After driving back to Houston, the poodles relaxed at Charles' dad's house while humans went shopping. I finally purchased a real pair of cowboy boots at this fine establishment...


While in Houston I also got to meet up with the HP Meetup group and eat good Mexican food...


I also got to see a number of great friends whom I miss very much. You can see the whole set here.