A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

20 Days of Chill: The themes

Let’s get right to the point!

Below are the themes and dates for the 20 Days of Chill Challenge, which returns in January after a one-year hiatus. We’ll see how it goes. 

Remember, it’s a simple challenge … take the theme, write a blog post, schedule on said date, and then come back here to link up. My posts, which will include the linkup, will be scheduled to post sometime between 8-9 am EST. 

Also remember, you don’t have to do every one. So if there are just some you want, feel free to join us! Obviously we hope you’ll do the whole challenge with us, but it can be tough as well. 

Here are the themes… and I hope to see you join up!

  • Monday, January 3: Did somebody say cheese?
  • Tuesday, January 4: Movie time
  • Wednesday, January 5: Who am I?
  • Thursday, January 6: Once upon a time…
  • Friday, January 7: What can I cook for you?
  • Monday, January 10: Show me da money
  • Tuesday, January 11: My first job
  • Wednesday, January 12: At the top of the bucket …
  • Thursday, January 13: Four paws
  • Friday, January 14: Thank you
  • Monday, January 17: So I walked into a bookstore …
  • Tuesday, January 18: DIY
  • Wednesday, January 19: When I was a kid …
  • Thursday, January 20: <sigh> Covid.
  • Friday, January 21: Giving back
  • Monday, January 24: Spring?
  • Tuesday, January 25: Let’s get social
  • Wednesday, January 26: Where will you go?
  • Thursday, January 27: Woof
  • Friday, January 28: Plan it!

There you go! Now plan accordingly and I hope you’ll consider joining us! Tell any other bloggers, too, as the more the merrier!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

20 Days of Chill returns!

I’m not sure how well this will go over, but we’ll give it a try. 

The 20 Days of Chill was a writing challenge I ran for a few years. It ran each January and it was always fun. Alas, with Covid and other things, it kind of faded to the back. 

The last time we had the challenge was January 2020. Of course that was right before Covid. But, that didn’t seem to matter anyway as we only had a few participants. 

Last January, I just didn’t feel like it was worth it. 

And hell, let’s be honest, this year might not be worth it, either. But I’m going to try. 

I’m also going to do things a bit differently. On this day, I’m announcing the challenge is back. In a couple of weeks, I will have a post that will outline the whole challenge and all themes. That will give anybody interested time to write, schedule and whatever else they might want to do with it. 

***

Here’s how it runs. 

For 20 days in January (M-F), there will be a theme. You take said theme and come up with your post. Use your creativity and imagination, It could be true or fiction, or something else entirely. But the post should somehow, even loosely, connect to the theme. 

Post said piece on the day of the challenge and then come back here to link up. 

Then rinse and repeat for the other days. 

My goal is to have the post scheduled for sometime between 8-9 a.m. EST each day. If all goes well, I’ll hopefully have things written up way ahead of time. That’s my hope, anyway. It’s also my hope that by releasing the themes well ahead of time, maybe those interested in taking part will have the opportunity to plan as well. 

This always used to be a fun challenge, so I’m hoping it can be that way again. 

***

Choose the ones you want to take part in. 

Nobody says you have to do them all. While I kind of have to because of the linkups, you don’t have to do the same. Now, I’d love to see several people do the whole thing, but I realize maybe you won’t want to. The themes I came up with for this year are rather broad, so it should make it easier for people to find a way to utilize said theme. 

If you are going to take part in this, remember to have fun. 

***

Look for the themes to be posted soon. I have them all set, but I’m waffling on a few. I’ll have a post written and posted within the next couple of weeks, so keep an eye out for it!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Photo Blogging Challenge (October 2021): Get out and play

I imagine most of you know where I’d be going for the most part this month.

But no matter what — getting out to play has been an important part of trying to get grounded. What’s more, on the inside aspect, I’ve actually found time to blog a little. That is hopefully also going to get me back into the rhythm of doing more than looking at other blogs — but actually leaving thoughts!

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One thing is for sure … getting out and doing something fun is good for your mind and body. I’m still not quite where I need to be for health things, but I’m getting back to where I need to be a little at a time.

The weather my way hasn’t been the most perfect, but it’s been decent enough to get out and explore. Playing is also a key with having a growing puppy, that’s for sure.

So that’s where I stand this month.

I actually had the chance to attend a minor league baseball game this month, too. That was all because of how the schedule worked out this year. Who knows if I’ll ever get that chance again, so it was pretty neat to do so.

Here’s hoping you are all doing well, getting outside, smiling and trying to live life to the fullest!

Here are my five for the month!

1. Happy place

I’m starting this post out with a non-Harper shot. For the first time in two years, I had the chance to take my yearly Columbus Day weekend trip to the Jersey Shore. I spend several hours for two days on the beach, walking it, taking photos, having chats with people and just enjoying the slower side of life. Harper was boarded for the weekend, which was nice, but at the same time … I look forward to next year and hopefully being able to bring her to enjoy the beach as well!

2-3. Dock Diving

Harper did her first two lessons of dock diving! I’m hoping she’ll be able to do one more lesson this weekend before the weather really starts to turn. These two images were from her first lesson. The second one I went in the water, so the photos I have are not ones I took, so … no using them here!

4. National Fetch Day

National Fetch Day fell in October and it was nice to be able to get out and have some fun with Harper. The weather got poor in the afternoon, so I made sure she got a lot of fun play in the morning!

5. A good day of play

I have a lot of photos of Harper sleeping. This one isn’t the best, but it’s the one that makes me smile the most (at least of the ones taken this month). This was after a good day of play and she was exhausted at night. Note that she is curled up on my foot (which eventually that means my foot might go numb). Nights like this are when I know her and I are building a really strong bond.

If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully it can be a place where things are discussed and some interaction etc. You can access it here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for October. Make sure you drop your link there. The theme for November is Give thanks! Remember to come back on December 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month!

Photo Blogging Challenge: October 2021 results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Harper is six months!

Six months old.

It seems like yesterday that I brought home this little bundle of floof as my first puppy. In the four months that we’ve had Harper – it’s been quite the process. But oh how you’ve grown.

A dog is quite the undertaking, as I’ve learned. From the lack of sleep at times, to you (and all around you) having to learn so much of the human world, it’s been one hell of a process. Sometimes it’s been good; sometimes it’s not been good.

The financial commitment, too, has been something else. But that was something I had actually planned for coming into this.

Six months is a milestone to be proud of. This, according to the AKC newsletter I get, is the start of the “teenage years.” I’m seeing that a bit already. I’ll look forward to the end of April when you turn one year and hope adulthood soon follows!

I can honestly say you will likely be my only puppy in my lifetime. Depending how long you are with us on this Earth (hopefully a long time), you might be my only dog. I thing we chose a good one, though.

You have personality. You have spunk. Your confidence is growing. You’re loving, kind and playful. You’re a little shit, too, but that’s to be expected.

You’re curious, too. You love sniffing and exploring. You also love grabbing too many things when we are out and about, but I think you are starting to learn that no matter how hard you try and no matter how strong that jaw is, if you get something and I am in panic mode – you will not be keeping it!

It’s funny when I think about you.

After having you for two or three weeks, I was at the end of my rope. I had emotional and likely mental breakdowns with everything. I was ready to give you up as a rehome or to call the breeder back.

But, we plodded along.

I think back to those moments often. Especially as I walk around the house and I see your toys all over the place. You really don’t care where you drop them! But there are certain toys I see and I get a little teary eyed because I know if I had given up on you, there would be a pretty big hole in my life.

And we’ve had the chance to watch you grow!

You are probably around 40 pounds now and you are lean and a mini machine. You dove off the ladder at the dock by yourself not once but three times! You scored not one but two points at toss and fetch (and though it was after the time ended, you actually grabbed a third!)

You are friendly to everybody – maybe too much so! You don’t bark unless you are really playing or when you don’t want me to take you off the couch! If other dogs bark, you sit right down and watch them wondering what they are yapping about!

Harper, you are definitely something else. We believe you were the runt of the litter, but you are far from the runt in our eyes.

You love your treats and toys. You love being pet and scratched. You love your bully sticks and elk antlers. And sometimes you love naps at my feet, even if that means one of my feet goes numb because you are on top of it for too long!

Today, you are six months old. Happy “half” birthday and here’s to many more milestones ahead!

You can follow Harper on her adventures via Instagram at harper_dublin, or she’s also on Facebook!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

National Fetch Day!

Let me preface this to say that I’m a fan of giveaways. I like it even when the big companies do it despite knowing the odds of winning are slim. 

But I also like when there are opportunities to purchase said prizes. We can’t all win, but many of us may like the opportunity to buy. 

Harper is ready!

This past Saturday was National Fetch Day, which is celebrated the third Saturday of each October and is obviously connected to Chuckit brand items. For those who have dogs, you likely know what Chuckit is. For those who don’t, you probably do as well. You’ve seen those ball launchers? Most likely it’s Chuckit.

Now, I’m going to just go through this part quickly … then talk about the day itself. I do want to show my PR side here a little bit, though. 

So heading into this glorious day, Chuckit held a contest where you posted photos of your pooch and you had the opportunity to win one of 250 “party boxes” that were loaded with goodies, including limited edition balls. Those balls were really cool looking and would be fun for Harper to be able to play with. 

Alas, I didn’t win one of the party boxes. 

Following that, I contacted Petmate (Chuckit) to ask about the ball. Alas, you can only get them in these party boxes, or maybe with an upcoming social media contest, or at one of the events throughout the US (note: The closest one to me was like six hours away in Maryland). 

I did purchase the “special” box they released, which had one special ball, but not the one I had interest in. This one was a confetti ball, which wasn’t the best as pieces of the confetti came loose a little after Harper retrieved and chewed a bit on the ball. Not sure it will be used much because of that. 

She’s a natural

The public relations (and marketing) side of me wonders why they didn’t sell more, or have many more ways to win the balls. While I am happy for all who won party boxes, or could attend the events, many of us couldn’t and would have loved the ability to pay for one or three of these balls. Not everybody lives on social media, either, so if you missed the one other contest they gave, you lost a chance there as well. 

I get that they are limited edition. But also remember people buy a lot of items of yours and would love the ability to spend a little more. 

As for the day itself … 

In my area, the afternoon and evening was slated to have rain. So I knew I needed to really do stuff early, including any photos I wanted to take. 

And, if you didn’t already know, Harper’s a bit of a little shit when it comes to photos! I am still working on getting her to sit and stay so I can get the shot. As it is now, she comes right at me when the camera comes out!

I did get some though, especially when it’s action. 

We spent several hours on Saturday playing fetch. The balls, or the cube, or the frisbee – everything I could get her to have fun with. Other times, she’d just sit there and chew on said object. 

So happy!

She dozed a lot and relaxed at my feet that night, so I know we had a lot of fun. 

Some things I know about Harper now, though: 

She prefers chasing tennis balls over most items, especially if they squeak (like Kong ones)

She loves the Chuckit cube, as it’s fun to chase around and “kick” around

Discs are OK, but she loses interest fast

The kick it ball by Chuckit is OK for her, but she seems to like the cube better. 

In the end, we had fun. We mixed in some walking and treats as well, so it was a good day. 

Maybe next year we’ll get a chance to win a party box, or attend an event if one is closer. Or, maybe buy the special limited edition balls … but either way, the third Saturday is marked down in anticipation of National Fetch Day! 

You can follow Harper on her adventures via Instagram at harper_dublin, or she’s also on Facebook!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!