Pictures and a Giveaway!

Hey pals!

Twenty-five-teen words: Best. Weekend. EVER!!!! I have lots to tell you about, including a parade, Grandma, and some amazing news. But for now, I just want to focus on Friday, known around here as Mommy/Mister Fun Day. I call it that because it's the day Mommy is off work ALL day, so we get to snuggle and have adventures and I love it. This Fun Day though wasn't completely fun because Mommy left me in the morning to go to school and pick up her graduation stuff. I guarantee I was a lot cuter in my graduation stuff than she will be, but I'm still mad I don't get to go. Anyway, after she got her stuff, she went to CVS to do one other thing:

Ms. April contacted me to see if I'd be interesting in trying out Kodak's picture kiosk. They have some cool features for pets and neat products. She even said she'd send a gift card to off-set expenses. Mommy had been thinking we needed more pictures of ME around, so she said, "Oh Mister, please say yes!" And I said, "OK Mommy. Whatever you want. And you have boogers in you nose. I'll clean them up."  Here's the downside to agreeing to it: I'm not allowed in CVS (or any place else with Kodak kiosks! Species-ism I say. But I have the greatest Mommy ever and she said she'd test it out for me and help me with the review. So I'm going to turn this post over to her.

Thanks Pup-A-Lup. Mooooooom, o-nay icknames-nay. Sorry. As Mister has already said I went to CVS to try out Kodak's picture kiosks. I've used something similar before to print pictures from my memory card, back when I actually used a separate camera, so I was a little familiar with the process. I've also used CVS to print pictures when I got home from study abroad and had roughly 500 pictures I HAD to print (remember those days? Even digital pictures had to printed because...I don't know why) and they were super cheap. 

So, I go into CVS and pretty quickly find the photo area near the check out. They had two Kodak kiosks and stools for each one. The first kiosk I tried had a weird screen issue which made the touch screen less responsive. Since I knew I had editing to do on some pictures, I switched machines and everything was much easier.

I read up ahead of time and knew you could print pictures from Facebook or via your phone's bluetooth. I had a complete brain-fart on my FB password and it never would let me sign in, but I'm pretty sure that's user error and not Kodak's fault :) Phone it is! I had to download an app (it was free) and the kiosk displayed a password to connect to Wi-Fi (no data charges. It actually won't work UNLESS you connect to Wi-Fi) and I was off. The app allows you to select pictures from your phone or for the kiosk to display all your photos and you can select from there. Again, user error resulted in me using both. I was just trying to get the full effect for the review. Sure Mom. Hush.

Once I finally got my pictures selected it was time to edit. The part I was most excited to try was the pet-eye correction. You know the laser eyes most animals get when you use a flash? This is a correction tool for it, similar to the red-eye corrector for humans (they have that one, too). It allowed me to zoom in and apply the corrector more precisely. He still has a crazy glow around his eyes, but I really think it's partly the coloring of the picture. If I had been more patient in completely fixing it, I think I could have gotten it all. It's still much better. My baby has beautiful dark eyes again instead of glowy yellow.

I also played with the human editing tool: face softener. I couldn't tell a huge difference when I applied it, but I'm a little photo-dumb. I rarely see a difference when everyone else is like "Oh, that's sooooo much better. It didn't recognize my husband as a face since his eyes were squinty, so I couldn't apply it to him. 

I also edited this one to black and white

Finally came time to print. I decided to do 1 8x10 of me and my husband at the Statue of Liberty, 1 5x7 of all three of us at a baseball game, and two regular 4x6s. My idea is to hang them as part of a gallery wall. The kiosk printed a receipt, which I took to the printer right behind me, scanned the barcode, and they printed right there. The overall quality is great. The 8x10 got cut off just a little bit, which was displayed before I actually printed so it wasn't a surprise, but still annoying. The display also said my resolution on the 5x7 was low and may result in decreased quality, but again, I can't tell a difference.

Printer

Pictures print to here

The 8x10. The photo wasn't great to begin with, but about half my torso got cut off by printing it so large. I knew this when displayed and decided cutting me off was better than cutting off the SoL's torch. Also the spots in the corner are from the overhead light, not the picture itself or the print job.

All of my photos.

Overall, I had a good experience and would definitely use them for printing more pictures for the gallery wall.

Thanks Mom! Here's the best news: Ms. April said she'd send a lucky reader a gift card to print pictures for a gallery wall (whatever that is) or other cool products you can get like albums, calendars, and cards. I'm thinking Christmas cards with yours truly on them since Mommy didn't quite spend all the monies on our card. All you have to do is leave a comment and I will enter the total number in my high-tech raffle-helicopter thingy. Only US residents are eligible since that's where the kiosks are. Winner will be picked Thursday!

Disclaimer: I was provided a gift card for use at CVS Kodak kiosks in exchange for my our feedback. All opinions are 100% my mommy's.

Picnic

Hi friends!

Yesterday was the BEST day EVER! Yesterday, my mommy had the whole day off work and nothing on the schedule. She's had a bad habit lately of scheduling appointments on her off-day, but had nothing yesterday. We took a super extra long walk (which was just heavenly since the humidity has been usually low, so it felt nice and cool) and then went adventuring. Mommy's dog taxi needed gas and we got a little extra the feed the lawn mowing monster so it didn't attack me. Then we went to my favoritest place ever: Starbucks! I worked my wiles, but the lady didn't offer a puppy latte and Mommy won't ask for one. Boo. We came home and relaxed though.

Mom did a few chores around the house and when Daddy got home, he suggested we go on a picnic. I didn't know what one was, but when they asked if I wanted to go, I went crazy and said, "Yes. Yes Yes. Oh please can we go?!?!?!" So we went on a little walk around the block, packed up dinner, and drove to a park near our house. Apparently a picnic is where humans take food and eat outside on the ground. Weird, but very easy to beg from and steal drippings, so it's basically the greatest thing EVER.

Me on a picnic. It's delicious!

Apparently this is what a picnic is. Weird, but tasty!

Me and my people. I had to stand guard with all the birds and bunnies.

Once we were finished eating, we walked around the grounds a bit. I even got to ride a horsie! Then my dad got another great idea. He asked, "Mister, would you want to get Fro-Jo's?" I love Fro-Jo's so I said, "Oh Daddy, please can we? It's the greatest thing ever!"

Dad helping me ride my first horse.

Fro-Jo's was having their Friday Night Live where a band plays in the parking lot. I let a little boy pet on me while Mommy got her cup ready and Dad sat with me. Then Mommy came out and Daddy came back with TWO Fro-Jos. Except I forgot Mommy didn't come out with hers, so the extra wasn't for me. Boo. 

Watching the band and waiting on Fro-Jo's

But when we got home, my people got a Frosty Paws out of the freezer and let me eat on it while they ate their Fro-Jo's on the patio.

"Um, Dad, I ate all my Frosty Paws. Can I have your Fro-Jo's?"

And that's why yesterday was the greatest day ever! Except after we came inside, the Frosty Paws and
barbecue sandwiches didn't agree with my tummy, so I puked a few times which made me lose sleeping in the big bed privileges. Boo on that, but it was worth it for picnics and Frosty Paws!

Picnics are exhausting.

Gotcha Day #3

Hi friends!

Today is the best day ever! Today is my most specialest of all days and the second best holiday in the whole world. Today is my Gotcha Day. A Gotcha Day is kind of like a birthday or adoption day. It's the day I came to live forever with my people. They took me home with them three years ago. They've been pretty great parents so far, except for all the abuses I suffer like not getting all the French fries or when Mommy leaves me or not letting me sleep every night in the big bed.  

I wasn't too sure about That Daddy Guy at first, but this week especially, I've been greeting him with a wagging tail and asking for ear scratches. He's been happy to oblige. I guess I'll keep him.

Anyway, to celebrate my specialest of all days, I got an extra long evening W-A-L-K. I also got a very special treat from The Bluegrass Barkery. I didn't even know Mommy bought it! She sure can be sneaky!

Darn right I'm a stud! But at least this one's not pink like last year's treat.

Torture I say! Mommy had to hold it because she knew I'd never wait long enough for her to snap the picture!

Yum!

Can I have a Gotcha Day every day?

Supposedly I have a present coming, too, so I guess that means it's from Santa Paws. Since it's summer, he must be a little behind because it isn't here yet. Mommy assures me I've been a god puppy dog though and will be here soon.
Now I'm all snuggled up on Mom because some yahoo decided it'd be fun to shoot those terrible firework boomies and I don't like it! Still the best Gotcha Day ever!

I Survived!

Hi friends!

I survived the 4th of July! Mom and Dad were very proud of me since I didn't shake at all! And I wasn't even wearing my Thundershirt! Since last year was a free-for-all with firework boomies, my city outlawed anything that "goes up or blows up" which is apparently anything that's not sparklers. They even made people pay lots of monies of they got caught going up or blowing up. That rule combine with the all.day.rain made my neighborhood not want to celebrate loud. Yay!!!!!

So basically, I had the best 4th of July ever!

I snuggled on Mommy's shoulder

And sat like a human while Daddy gave me pretzels! Deeee-licious!

My people did torture me just a little by putting skapetti noodles over my snout, but I figured out gravity pretty quick, so my mommy couldn't blackmail me with pictures!

I hope everyone else had as good of a 4th of July as me!

Staying Safe

Hey Pals,

Sorry I've been missing so much lately. Mommy's new job takes a lot more time than I realized and so when she's home, I'm snuggling instead of blogging. She hopes once summer is over, things will calm down, but I'm pretty sure she's lying.

Anyway, I wanted to make sure I do due (tee hee) diligence about the worst thing ever. The most terriblest holiday is coming up in less than a week. That holiday is the 4th of July, or Independence Day in these parts. The humans celebrate by shooting off ridiculous firework boomie things that sound like thunder and look like colorful lightning, but they're really just doggie torture devices. More pets are lost on the 4th of July than any other day.

Last year was totally awful since neighbors were shooting off their firework boomies for weeks before and after the holiday. This year, my city has banned firework boomies completely. Yay!!! But Mom's still expecting neighbors to be celebrating. Boo. At least terrifying children won't be ringing the doorbell all night.

Anyway, PetFinder put together a great infographic on keeping us pets safe for the firework boomies.

Since I'm afraid of the firework boomies, my people usually stay home instead of fighting crowds at the different displays. Since they're home, they do a few other things like putting my Thundershirt on me. That helps a LOT. Your people may also try Rescue Remedy, a natural solution for all kinds of stressful things. Mom doesn't think that helps quite as much as the Thundershirt (at least it didn't do much for my separation anxiety), but lots of other people and their pets have had success. They have a pets version, but my trainer said the human version is just fine also.

So stay safe pals, and remember to use the puppy eyes to guilt your people into snuggling you all night!

Pee S. I didn't receive any compensation from Thundershirt or Rescue Remedy. I just thought those things might help.

Fathers' Day

Hi friends!

I'm back with a recap of the best weekend ever! I didn't think this weekend would be great, since it started out terrible. My people left me ALL ALONE for two evenings IN A ROW (Thursday and Friday)! Can you believe? Something about going to see movies, date night, blah blah blah blah. Luckily, I guilted them into letting me sleep in the big bed Friday, so it wasn't a total loss. And they enjoyed both movies. I still don't understand why I wasn't invited. Something about "not being allowed." I say dogs should be allowed with their humans. Always. Will you join my #speciesrights movement on Twitter?

Anyway, my people and I woke up on Saturday. And then fell back asleep. And then woke up again. And then dozed off again. Then we woke up one more time and the people decided we had to get out of bed because we were going someplace important: Grandma's house! I jumped out of bed as fast as I could once I heard that news! Mom and Dad still had a couple of chores to do, so we got a later start than we meant to, but we still found time to swing by my favorite place--the drive-thru! I didn't get a puppy latte though. Boo.

We arrive at Grandma's and the WORST thing happened--she wasn't there!!!! I thought maybe she forgot I was coming. Apparently she and Grandpaw were at a family reunion that I wasn't invited to (#speciesrights). But she gave me treats and let me help make a pretzel salad. Don't let the salad part fool you. It's pretzels and cream cheese and whipped cream and deliciousness.

The Thing showed up, too, but I was actually very nice to him. One of these days, Mom hopes I start using his proper name. But then he does something like running his head into the table leg and she understands why he's The Thing and I say he has Skittles for brains.

Uncle Ryan got me and The Thing to do tricks for treats. The Thing did every trick he knew: sit, lie down, roll over, spin...all at the same time.

Hey Uncle Ryan, give me that treat now, please!

Grandma also brought us a surprise--kitten treats kittens! They were the same size as the rabbit I found last year, so I thought they were treats. Mommy wouldn't let me eat them though. Boo. The Thing freaked out. I was curious, but know to let cats run things. Guess which one the kittens liked more (Hint: it's me). Since Mom said the kittens were not for eating (boo!), Grandma took them back to their house in the garage. Then, I got a special treat: I got to sleep in the big bed with my people AGAIN! They didn't even bring my jail crate.

The kitten treats kittens

The littlest kitten really liked Mommy's lap. I let her.

I'm not to sure about sharing Mommy, the couch, AND Grandpaw, though.

Watching the other treat kitten

We did have a special treat that evening. For my night w-a-l-k, we went to lake and walked around the trail. We took a small break though. This is Uncle Ryan, The Thing, and Grandpaw.

The lake had geese and I wanted to take one home. My people said no. Drat!

The next day, we went to my favorite place: Mawmaw's house!  She has a huge yard, even though there's a huge puppy dog in the yard. She has her own pen though (don't get Mom started). Anyway, Mawmaw's house is also filled with treats and suckers people to feed me. I accidentally on purpose pottied on the couch (again), so I got in big trouble with Mom. Mawmaw forgave me pretty quick. Plus, The Thing pottied on purpose (not accidentally), so I'm still better than him.

Daddy and The Thing roughhoused.

Mawmaw, I'm sorry for accidentally on purpose pottying on your couch. I think she forgave me!

The trip home was also eventful. We hit a big storm and it was raining crazy heavy and there was lots of hail (which I don't know what it is, but it's LOUD). We tried to pull off, but everyone else had our idea and got to covering first, so we just pushed on. Luckily, it was all over soon after. Mom and Dad were very proud because I just napped. There weren't thunder boomies, so what did I have to be scared of? Soon, I was napping on all my pillows in my corner of the couch and all was right with the world!

But that's why this was the best weekend ever! There was something about Fathers' Day, so I should probably mention That Daddy Guy. I've been really nice to him lately. Maybe one day in a 100 millionth years, I'll like him as much as Mommy...but probably not. I still like him though.

Me and Dad in the big bed. I love weekend morning snuggles!

FLAF

Hey pals,

I have had the best weekend ever! I will talk more about it later since I'm still recovering from all the fun.  And there's lots to catch up on!

 But for now will everyone do me a favor? One of my bloggy/Twitter pals, Benny from Two French Bulldogs, just found out he's really sick. His Lily and people are very worried. Will you keep paws crossed that he will get better and feel like playing with his Lily again? And if you feel so led, his human created a page where you can donate to help with expenses. Just thinking about it gives Mommy the leaky eyes.

And just so this whole post isn't sad, here's a preview of my weekend: