Living in the Pacific Northwest means living with 10 months of rain and gloom…this, we have become accustomed to (well, I don’t know if Dustin quite agrees with that statement). Either way, we’ve become experts at gearing the dogs up in their raincoats, layering them over their harnesses and hoodies in just a handful of minutes, and walking the dogs as usual. Even the dogs have learned that rain is the norm, and walks happily in their rain gear.

One thing I have NOT, and will NEVER, become accustomed to is the horrible mud that gets tracked in by their paws. Despite the box of baby wipes we keep by the door, mud balls appear like clumps of Casper hair. Just looking around the living room now, I can see tiny balls of poo-looking mud laying around, much thanks to Casper since he hates to have his paws cleaned. Seriously, this winter mess is driving me crazy…and the worst part is, there’s always mud, even when it’s not raining!

So while his parents are running around the house cleaning up after his muddy paws, Casper jumps on the couch and cuddles in the blanket to sleep through his winter blues