Let me introduce myself

Hello! Welcome to a blog about a dog. My name is Rocco, and I live in Rexburg, Idaho, with my family. Brittany is my mom and Taylor is my dad.

It's winter right now, so I've been a bit cooped up in my house most days. Mom decided I needed to create a blog to pass the time, so I thought I'd give it a try. She helps me type up the entries because, well, let's face it: dogs can't spell.

So let me tell you about life in Rexburg. It snows a lot here, as many people know. In fact, when Mom takes me for walks, most of the snow piled up on the sidewalks is taller than I am! At first, I wasn't sure what the white stuff was. Being a native Vegas dog, I'd never seen snow before. My paws had to get used to how cold it was. There were a couple days when I'd be outside walking around, and before I knew it, my paws were frozen! I couldn't move! I tried lifting two legs at a time when I was standing in it to thaw my paws out, but it was no use. My mom had to come pick me up and take me back inside the house. (It's embarrassing when your mom has to save you from the snow.) But I'm more used to it now. Mom hasn't had to save me in a long time.

Mom and Dad's cars get stuck in the snow sometimes. They always manage to get the cars unstuck, but it might take a couple of minutes. Then they come inside all tired and pet me with their cold hands---good thing I have lots of fur!

Besides the snow, Rexburg is a great place to live. Mom introduced me to walks once we moved here. She didn't take me for walks in Las Vegas because we lived in a neighborhood with lots of troublesome kids and big scary pitbulls behind low, questionable fences. So I'm glad we live in a place now where we feel more safe.

Mom works at BYU-Idaho in the Student Records & Registration Office. She's the Registration Specialist, so she gets to help students register for classes. She also tells Dad about all the name changes she has to process when students get married. I guess she does hundreds of those every semester. But she always comes home in a good mood. She even comes home for an hour during lunch! That's when she plays with me and takes me for walks (and sneaks bits of people food to me).

Dad works at Petsmart, the greatest place in the world! He's the expert on fish down there, and lots of customers will only want to talk to him, because he's so helpful and friendly. And when he comes home, he always exclaims, "P-P! Oh boy, oh boy!" as he reaches down and pets me and hugs me. Then I get to sniff him all over because he smells like other dogs. Ahh, Dad's the greatest. I'm glad he likes working at Petsmart.

Dad is also going to school right now at BYU-Idaho. He spends quite a bit of time at the kitchen table where he does a lot of reading and typing on his laptop. I usually just curl up by his feet when he's doing homework. He told Mom he wants to be a physical therapist, so she spent a lot of time at her computer one day typing up a school plan for him so he can graduate with a degree in Exercise Physiology and a minor in Health Science. Maybe when he's a physical therapist he can buy me more treats!

Speaking of treats, I've been eating too many lately. I'm a bit on the chubby side right now, so Mom and Dad have got me on some diet dog food. (Little do they know that the diet stuff tastes better than the regular! Mwuahahaha! But don't tell them I told you that.) But I've thinned down a bit since the holidays, at least. Mom takes me for walks when the temperature outside isn't too cold.

So here are some quick facts about me:

∙ I am a purebred beagle, tri-color, as you can tell by my photos. I am sometimes caught sporting a red collar (with bling, mind you) and a matching red leash.

∙ I am two years old, and I'll be three on September 23.

∙ Some of my favorite things include going for walks, going for rides in the car, and hearing the words, "Treaty-treat! You wanna treaty-treat?"

∙ The only people food that I don't like very much is Jell-O. The texture of that stuff is just too weird. Other than that, I'm game for whatever is dropped on the floor.

∙ I hate when the train comes by. The railroad tracks are just down the street from my house, and I just don't understand why the train has to blow its whistle so loudly. I always bark at it, but it doesn't listen to me.

∙ My favorite spot in the house is on Mom and Dad's bed. Sometimes they don't let me in there, but when they do, I like to burrow myself under the blankets and nap for hours. That's the best!

Well I think this is a good introduction for now. I hope you enjoy my blog.