Leilani at 1 Year!

Birthday Party!

It all started with dad and mom.  Hana Boy and Izzy had five puppies on July 9th 2009; Leilani, Kalo, Benji, Ipo and Bolt.  All the puppies except Bolt came to the party at the house in Lanikai where they were born.

The extended hanai family also came, her aunties Kokai and Ipo and Ms. Michael, and Mike McKenna.

Kokai is the one with a gray beard on the left and Mike is the one with a gray beard on the right and of course Hana Boy is in the center.

Just a couple of days before the party, Mike and Ms. Michael and Hana Boy were featured in a cover story in the MidWeek Windward edition.  Mike McKenna's Windward Ford won a President's Award from the Ford Motor Company.

Ipo, Leilani's sister, as opposed to Ipo the auntie, looks most like a Labrador Retriever.  Izzy is part German Shepherd and part Labrador Retriever.  Ipo has short hair and is the smallest of the puppies.  Here she is in a sweet pose with her people companions Ella and Jon.

Someone suggested that we try to get all of the dogs to pose together.  Well it did not work out that well, dogs will be dogs!  Above is a shot of Leilani, Kalo and auntie Ipo.  Kalo has short brindle hair and is the biggest of the puppies.  Before he left Lanikai for his new home in Kaneohe Kalo, then known as Mandingo, can over for a play date with Leilani.

Before the food could be served Hana Boy and Leilani decided to cool off in the water.  Leilani was the only puppy to jump in the pool with Hana Boy. 

We brought some doggy cupcakes from Lanikai Tea Room.  The cupcakes got a bit jostled up on the walk over to the party but the dogs did not seem to mind.  The cupcakes were made with shredded carrots, peanut butter and honey and were topped with a spread of cream cheese and a number one made from a very thin slice of carrot.

Regrettably the camera ran out of space on the memory card before Benji arrived.  Benji looks the most like Leilani. He has long black hair and a bushy tail.  Benji was featured in a portrait with Leilani and Percy at lanikai green house when we announced the start of the Leilani of Lanikai blog.

Maybe there will have to be another doggy party next July!  Bark, bark!!

Leilani at 52 Weeks

Birthday Week

Leilani's BFF, Molly, came over for a visit to start off the birthday week celebrations.  They had a long play session on the deck at lanikai green house.  Molly was in charge but Leilani gave her a work out in the process.

This photo is a brief recess in the action.  Look at the size of Molly's tongue: that big red flapper hanging out of her mouth.   

Leilani did not get off so easy.  She got pinned down on the deck as Molly stood above her.  They softly bit each other on the legs, neck and jaw.  

The result was that Leilani's head was all wet with dog slobber.  The smell was just, je ne sais quoi, eau de chien!  

We went for a swim at Lanikai Beach and then came home for a dog wash with her favorite shampoo Buddy Wash.

Now Leilani smells like lavender and mint.  Much better!

 

Leilani at 51 Weeks

Now that Leilani is almost a year old, we decided to replace a seat cushion that she chewed up when she was just a little puppy.  Well one thing leads to another.  The fabric on the rest of the cushions was looking a bit worn so we went ahead and ordered new covers.

We selected a green Sunbrella fabric that goes with the color scheme at lanikai green house.  This fabric is very durable and will not stain or fade. 

A local firm Kiri Covers Hawaiian Canvas took care of everything.  They ordered a replacement cushion and fabricated custom covers for all of the cushions.  The new covers have zippers so that we can remove them if they need to be washed. 

The new cushion covers should last for years provided that Leilani does not slip back into her puppy chewing habits!

Leilani at 50 Weeks

It is hard to believe that Leilani is going to be one year old on July 9th!  It is time for a celebration with lots of dogs and dog lovers.  Her parents Izzy and Hana Boy are hosting the party at a home in Lanikai and we have invited all of their puppies (and human companions as well).

It is easy to spot Izzy in the collage of pictures above.  She is full of puppies in the photos at the top center and on the right side.  She has a happy face in the center photo just a short time after giving birth to 5 puppies. The photo of Hana Boy is at the lower left.  He is holding a toy just like Leilani's Rag Doll.

We could not decide which of the three black puppies is Leilani but we are pretty sure she is the one on the left of the cute shot with two black dogs in the top row.

Leilani has two sisters.  One is black and the other is brindle.  The black one is named Ipo.  Izzy has a hanai sister also named Ipo.  Ipo, Hawaiian for sweetheart or lover, is the small blond dog in the top row.  The brindle sister is named Bolt.

Leilani has two brothers.  One is black and the other is brindle.  The black one is named Benji and the brindle dog is named Kalo.  Kalo is Hawaiian for taro. 

The folks at Lanikai Tea Room have promised to whip up some special dog treats for the party.  It is likely that Leilani's favorite peanut butter treat will be included.  Arf!!

Leilani at 49 Weeks

King Kamehameha I Day

This a big deal here in Hawaii.  It is a state holiday!  200 years ago, in 1810 Kamehameha the Great unified the Hawaiian Islands. There is a parade and they drape the bronze sculpture of King Kamehameha with 30 foot long floral lei.

Even our native son, (yes, he was born in Hawaii), President Barack Obama proclaims today as Kamehameha Day!

Leilani is not one to let a chance to celebrate get past her.  This morning she dressed up in her only lei.  It looks a bit worse for wear but it is very special to her.  This unique garland started with a sash from a Halekulani Hotel bath robe.  We attached various toys and most have fallen or been chewed off.  Froggy is the long time survivor.  He still has a squeak button inside if you know where to push.

Leilani's name means heavenly garland or royal child.  Today she is both!

Leilani at 48 Weeks

Playing it Safe

We were so sad to hear that just a day after we posted the story about the photo shoot for Jorge Garcia that his dog Nunu was killed by a car.

Since then Molly escaped 8 times from her yard and came over to visit Leilani.  She got to play in our safe fenced yard for a while before I took her home.  We have, with a bit of anger and frustration, told her people that they should not allow her to escape and roam the streets.  All we can do is hope for the best.

So this week we have a photo of Leilani behind a new gate that I built for the deck at lanikai green house.  It has the same "X" brace design that we used on the carport.  The opening is large enough for her to look out at the birds on the hill but not large enough for her to crawl through.

When we leave her, we make sure that either someone is here to keep her company or she is in our yard that has a 6 foot high solid fence.  It is always better to play it safe especially when it concerns your pets.

Leilani at 47 Weeks

I was trekking around the "loop" in Lanikai with Leilani this week and I realized that while the scenery was familiar I was Lost!

Actually I came across an outdoor photo shoot.  Jorge Garcia, a k a Hurley, from the hit television series Lost was due to arrive in moments.

He had an appointment with our friend Dana to have his picture taken.

Jorge has been living in our neighborhood during the past few production seasons.  Everyone has respected his privacy and on occasion you could see him walking his tiny dog Nunu.

One of his friends in the neighborhood asked if he would be willing to pose for a photograph for the American Library Association's "READ" program.

He was due any moment and Dana needed a light check.  He told me to stand on the canvas and pop, pop, pop the strobe went off.  He told Ginger that he needed Phil and I asked "Who is Phil?".  Not Phil but fill.  Ginger knew what was needed and she grabbed a large piece of poster board and held it to my left side to balance the light.  Pop, pop, pop and Dana had a few more test shots and it was over.

Leilani and I were no longer Lost and no longer needed on the set.  We left the scene before the star arrived.

The following day Dana send the results of his test shots with me and Leilani.  Being the stage parents that we are we offered to sit in whenever Dana would need a test subject again.  You never know when another star or director will be in town and Leilani could have her big break!

Leilani at 46 Weeks

Introducing...KING!

On the same day (a few weeks ago) that Leilani received Flippy from her hanai grandmother, she got her own Kong, aka King.

Down at the beach she has made off with a Kong toy belonging to Lucy, a Aussie, who lives in the neighborhood. That Kong had a rope attached to it and was meant for chasing.

King has another duty at lanikai green house.  King's sole purpose is to keep Leilani focused and busy for a while. 

The length of time is determined by the nature of what we stuff inside King.  Today we first spread a teaspoon of her favorite peanut butter, Skippy, and then topped it off with a few thin slices of turkey breast.  Sounds like a balanced meal, doesn't it?

It did not take her long to clean out the inside of King.  We will have to think of more challenges to keep Leilani busy at work in the future.   Maybe bananas from our garden?

Leilani at 45 Weeks

 A couple of days ago I bought a new stand up paddle board from C4.  We decided to wait until this morning to take Leilani for a ride.

Leilani could hardly wait to get to the beach.  I too was eager to get into the water with the new board.  I left the paddle on the sand and got on my knees for a paddle.

Little did I know that Leilani jumped right in after me.  I stopped and gave her a chance to try out the new board.

Leilani had a chance when she was just a few months old to ride for a while on Dana's board.  She must have remembered the good times.

 

After a few moments I pushed her forward on the board a bit and we both had a chance to paddle.

I will have to get a deck pad up front for proper balance so we can both stand up for a paddle along the white sands of Lanikai Beach!

Leilani at 44 Weeks

Recently Leilani received two packages in one day.  This post will focus on a toy that came from her hanai grandmother.

Flippy is a small stuffed dolphin that came from Howlistic, a "Natural, Holistic, and Organic Dog Wellness Center" located in San Diego. 

We named her after Flipper. 





Flippy the toy has a little squeeze device inside that "almost" sounds like the real Flipper.

We have seen the photos of the plight of the dolphins in the Gulf due to the massive oil BP oil spill and read about Flipper's suicide. 

Maybe we should all do something to improve the lives of dolphins such as making a contribution to the National Wildlife Federation.

Leilani at 43 Weeks

She's Back

All was quiet at lanikai green house this morning.

Then Leilani started barking and looking at the back door.  She used her radar ears and detected the jingle of the tag on Molly's collar.

She was right, Molly arrived for a visit.  She once again escaped her yard and made a beeline to our house.

After a brief meet and greet session with Leilani I put a leash on her and took her back to her home.  It was not clear how she escaped this time.  The front gate was shut but no one was home.  I put her in the side gate and made sure it was secure and came home.

To no avail, however, by the time I got back upstairs, Molly was there to greet me.  We decided to make it an official play date.  Leilani and Molly romped around the house and deck.

Molly had the upper position during most of the play time.  After about 20 minutes of running around both of them slowed down a bit.

I took Molly back home and put her in her yard again.  I hoped that she would take a nap...

No such luck.  This time we put her downstairs in our fenced yard below the deck.  Both Leilani and Molly finally took their morning naps.

After an hour or so Molly's owner came to pick her up.  It won't be long, however, before she is back to have a play date with her hanai family.

Leilani at 42 Weeks

BREAKING NEWS

Leilani Lost Her Head 


Leilani woke up from her morning nap without a head.  We looked everywhere  and could not find it. We called the Honolulu Police Department and their response was immediate.

They have been questioning the potential witnesses including: Percy, One, Five, Rag Doll, Pinky and Gingie Man.


Everyone but Gingie Man had a good alibi.  The detective, Charlie Chan, quickly noticed that Gingie Man was headless as well.  Could this be a case of love gone wrong or revenge?

Then Charlie Chan looked closely at the scene of the crime and said, "Eye easily deceived.  Same leopard can hide beneath different spots."

Just then Leilani stuck her nose out from under the sofa.

All is well in Lanikai again.

Leilani at 41 Weeks

 Leilani has a new toy basket.  Her collection of toys can now be organized.

Each of her toys has a name.  There is One, Rag Doll, Cecil, Froggy, Gingie Man, Five and Pinky.

If we are lucky she retrieves them by name from her basket.  She loves to stick her nose in the basket and roust around for the correct toy.

Sometimes she comes up with a two-fer.  That's when she holds two toys in her mouth.

Here she is with One.  One is almost fifteen years old.  We bought it for our yellow lab for her first birthday in 1995.  It was one of her favorite toys to take to the beach.

Here she is with Gingie Man.  He started out looking like a gingerbread man.  Leilani has given Gingie a work out.  She loves to chew so much  that the poor toy has lost his head :-( 

There are special days when Leilani will take one toy out and play with it for a while and then put it back in the basket before she takes out another toy.  She is learning that everything has its place.

 

Leilani at 40 Weeks

Post Palm Sunday Post

Leilani already had her Easter Sunday egg hunt.   She reminded us that we did not do a blog post for Palm Sunday.  So here it is, two weeks late!

Palms of all varieties are a big hit at lanikai green house.  Leilani loves to chase, retrieve, shred and chew all parts of palm trees.

The celebration this week was with a palm frond of a Macarthur Palm tree. It fell on the  staircase to the street.  She picked it up and ran on to the lawn for a good romp.

She danced across the lawn shaking the palm frond left and right.  The palm frond began to slowly fall apart.

After all the action Leilani settled down in the cool shade for a good session of chewing on the frond.

She is not religious in the traditional sense but she has a St Francis statue in her garden and she had her own Palm Sunday celebration!

Leilani at 39 Weeks

Easter Sunday in Lanikai

Leilani enjoyed her first Easter egg hunt.  We used the same hollow plastic eggs that have been a part of our family tradition for over 10 years.

Each Easter we have filled the eggs with a variety of tasty treats.  The eggs have been hidden behind rocks and trees and cacti in Borrego Springs, San Diego and Lanikai.

Since this was Leilani's first hunt, we made it relatively easy.   Lead mostly by her nose she found the first egg "hiding" behind a root.  Inside was one half of a Fig Newmans, which she quickly ate. 

She located the next egg behind a rock.  This one had a peanut butter sandwich made with Wasa Sourdough Crisp Bread and Skippy Peanut Butter.  Again, gone in a flash.

She then found the next two eggs in a blur. No stopping her now.  Gone was a piece of a Candy Apple Banana from Hawaii and a handful of Kashi Heart to Heart cereal.

The last egg was hidden in plain sight on the lawn. Now Leilani was really into the hunt.

She decided to have some fun with this one.

 She carefully picked up the egg.  She must have known it was fragile.  Then she took it across the lawn.

 Just a second after this last photo, she pushed on the egg and it popped open to reveal a Sandy Dog Biscuit.

What a nice way to end Easter Sunday in Lanikai.

Leilani at 38 Weeks

It does not take long for Leilani to get wet at Lanikai Beach.  A few looks up and down the beach to see if there is any other dog to play with or a stick to chase and then into the water she goes.  She does not need to chase a stick or ball.  She just likes to run in and start swimming.

She has perfected the dog paddle.  She keeps her front paws  below the surface for maximum power.  This morning, in early Spring, I walked along the wet sand and Leilani just kept swimming.

Leilani reminds me of the German Shepherd we had over 30 years ago who would jump in Lake Temescal and swim for the fun of it.  Why shouldn't she, it is fun!

Leilani at 37 Weeks

It is the beginning of canoe racing season here in Lanikai.  The Lanikai Canoe Club is in the middle of registration and some teams have already begun to practice.

The keiki of Lanikai are encouraged to participate as soon as they can hold a paddle. They have their own division and will race later this year in the annual George Perry Memorial Na Keiki O Na Wa'a Race.

Of course, Leilani wants to be a part of the action.

The first part of getting ready for any sport is to buy the right clothes and equipment.  Leilani thinks she looks like a real paddler in her Lanikai Canoe Club t-shirt.

If she keeps paddling, someday she could take part in the 35 mile long Na Wahine O Ke Kai race from Molokai to Oahu.

In the meantime, go LCC!

Leilani at 36 Weeks

Before we ever met Leilani we received this photo of her father, Hana Boy.  Hana Boy works as the mascot at Mckenna Ford.

Hana Boy has a rope toy that is well loved.

Leilani has her own rope toy.  Every evening before dinner she wants to play with her rope toy that she knows as Rag Doll.  When we say "go get Rag Doll", she will select it out of her collection of toys.  She likes to play tug of war and fetch and then tug of war and... with her Rag Doll.

She has a rhythm when she shakes Rag Doll and soon we will introduce the music to complete her Rag Doll act.

Leilani at 35 Weeks

We have never lived someplace where the public utilities are so fragile.  We have become used to the power outages that shut down part of, or all of the island of Oahu.

This past weekend, after a tsunami warning at 6:00am, we brought out our emergency supply kit and recharged our battery operated lights from Vector and OXO.  No one knew what to expect but we were prepared to run or drive to higher parts of Lanikai if needed.  Well, nothing happened.  Chalk it up to good training. 

As usual Percy started today off before daylight and I knew something was wrong.  Our Toto toilet would not flush.  (It does that automatically, neat huh?) At first I though the power had gone out but then I realized that there was no water pressure.  It was dark and I used one of our OXO lights to get a water bottle from the emergency supply to brush my teeth and make the coffee. 

Daylight came and I called the Board of Water Supply. They expected at least a couple more hours before there would be any water pressure in Lanikai.  It could be that the road paving crew had broken a water main at the entrance to Lanikai.

Leilani however had her own plans on how to overcome the lack of water.  She spotted a coconut fresh from the tree on our walk in the neighborhood.  When we got home, Leilani had the end of the coconut open in about 5 minutes of focused chewing.  She then lapped up the freshest coconut water to be found in Lanikai. 

So, if we have another prolonged water outage, here is the plan.  Pick up a coconut in the neighborhood and let Leilani chew the end off and then try to get her to understand the concept of sharing.  We have a bit more disaster training ahead of us!

Leilani at 34 Weeks

Leilani gets in the "zone" when she gets to finish the bottom of a container of Yoplait yogurt.  She is focused on the moment, the moment of bliss. 

Her eyes are either closed or open just half way as she licks the yogurt and then uses her paws to rotate the container for another taste. 

Since her tongue is not long enough to get to the bottom of the container, she puts her lower jaw directly into the container.  If you listen you can hear the muffled slurp of her tongue. 

Then it is gone...  Well, there's a good chance there will be more tomorrow!  Yum!

Leilani at 33 Weeks

Poi Dog.  That is what they call a mixed breed dog in Hawaii.  Nowhere does it show more than on Leilani's feet.  We are not sure which breed is going to take control here.  Her paws are a true brindle mix.  She has started to grow tuffs of fur between her toes.

One website suggested a process to trim the fur that grows on the paws of breeds like Golden Retrievers.  Maybe we should just let Leilani go natural and see what happens.   If the fur on her paws grows long enough to braid then it will be time for a trim!

You may wonder how I got her to pose for this photograph.  Actually she was taking a nap.  Just after she realized I was on the carpet next to her taking the pictures she jumped up on me and knocked me over backwards.

Leilani is always ready for a little play action!

Leilani at 32 Weeks

A wet dog can be a stinky dog.  We try to limit our trips to the beach to twice a day.  Otherwise our home takes on that "Eau de Wet Briny Dog" fragrance.

We have found something that helps: Buddy Wash dog shampoo.  It makes her fur nice and soft and the lavender and mint scent is very pleasant.

So at least once a week we shampoo her  after her morning dip at Lanikai Beach. She highly recommends the combination of swimming and shampooing.

Leilani at 31 Weeks

 

Brr, winter has come to Lanikai.  For the past two days the low temperature has been below 70 degrees.  It got all the way down to 69 degrees in the lanikai green house!

Percy and Leilani both huddled on the bed this morning and let us sleep until 6:20am.  Much better than the 5:00am ritual.

We do not get to wear our winter clothes very often in Lanikai, Leilani took the opportunity to dress up for the occasion.  Here she is with a cotton scarf from the Gap.  (No, not the Canine Gap, but maybe they should wise up and start one.)

We will have to remember these days when the Dog Days of August roll around.  Instead of curling up on the bed, Leilani will stretch out on the air-conditioner vents.

Leilani at 30 Weeks

It started out in an innocent way.  A little peanut butter on a cracker, Sandy Dog Biscuit or slice of banana.  Now it is fair to say that Leilani is obsessed with peanut butter.  Hopefully she won't have to join PBA, Peanut Butter Anonymous!

No, she did not eat all the peanut butter in this jar of Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter but she could have, with a few breaks to unglue her tongue from the roof of her mouth.   We used to wash an "empty" peanut butter jar before putting it in the recycling bin.  Now we let Leilani lick it clean.  It takes her about fifteen minutes of focused effort to get all the peanut butter that her tongue can reach.  She is very good at holding and rotating the jar with her two front paws.

Her favorite after beach treat is a Vibrac Hextra Chew, with a schmear of peanut butter.

Mmm tasty!

Leilani at 29 Weeks

Some days Percy starts the morning early by jumping up on the bed next to my head.  For the past few days he licks his fur for a few moments before he jumps off the bed to throw up.  Ah, what a way to start the day!

After cleaning up the mess, it is time to make coffee and prepare breakfast for Leilani.  We could go to the beach early, but a flashlight does not seem to fit the Lanikai beach dress code.

So, Leilani waits until it is just light enough to see our way down the staircase (53 steps if you are counting) to the street on the way to the beach. 

Once we get to the beach, I check to see if anyone would be offended by a wet and sandy puppy.  Most of the time, the coast is clear and I let her off the leash and she runs for the water.  Its a dog's life, someone has to live it!