GROWING UP

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It’s been a busy summer around here, especially with my two best friends from high school. You’ve met one of them briefly on here when I wrote about her gorgeous dog Kenji. Well, she’s getting married! We got to spend some quality time with Kenji yesterday after wedding dress shopping with his mama. It’s been so great to watch him grow up into a lovely gentlemen.

Sleepy

More exciting news – my other best friend just adopted her foster dog from BARCS, Baltimore’s animal shelter! Ilana has never had a dog before and this new addition to her family has got me doing all sorts of happy dances. Dominic is the perfect dog for her, and I am so proud of her for adopting a pup in need of a home. She will be here with a guest post soon about what it is like to have a dog for the first time ever. Stay tuned!

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So we’re busy busy, and so grateful for this time spent with close friends – especially since catching up is usually extra dog related these days!

Are you all doing anything special this summer?

Hangin’ With Torrey Smith

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Yesterday I posted a photo of me and my all time favorite celeb, and many of you guessed who it was (and shared in my excitement!): Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith!

Photo credit here.

Photo from here.

I am a HUGE Torrey fan. Huge. I’m talking Facebook/Twitter/Instagram stalking fan. . . watching Ravens games just for him fan. . . signing up for a meet and greet event the second it becomes available kind of fan. . .  Not only was he a UMD Terp when I went there, he also adopted one of his two pit bulls from BARCS, the Baltimore animal shelter. Amazing, I know. He is always doing charity events and has been a VIP guest at some of BARCS’s biggest fundraisers (which, as an event planner, I am extremely jealous of!).

When I saw that Torrey was doing another fundraiser for BARCS and that it involved him personally greeting everyone who attended, I knew I had to buy a ticket. Support a local shelter AND meet Torrey for the first and probably only time!? Yes please!!! I immediately contacted some friends who are huge Ravens fans and of course they were in right away. I loved that I was able to convince people who maybe aren’t as animal obsessed as I am to come out and support BARCS.

The whole event was really well put together. They had a DJ and great decorations, as well as flashy advertisements for BARCS all over the place (yes I notice these things thanks to my job). The way it worked was that we got unlimited bowling for two hours along with some food and drink. Torrey was going to come around to each lane to greet every single person who bought a ticket. After doing the math of people attending and the event timing, I knew I needed to make the best of our time chatting with him!

As he began making his way towards our lane my girlfriends and I all started freaking out. Obviously. What were we going to say? How do you make yourself stand out to Torrey Smith? What if you do something stupid? Turns out, Torrey is a super down to earth guy.

I guess I should have figured that considering I have done so much, er, research? on him on social media, but it really blew me away how laid back he was. We immediately started joking around with each other and chatted about his dogs. He graciously took pictures with my group and genuinely seemed to want to make this experience great for everyone who attended – he didn’t act like he was rushing to move to the next group or annoyed at taking so many pictures. Really, really awesome guy.

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Just that interaction alone made my whole year! I couldn’t get over how cool he was! That was only the beginning though. Other highlights of the evening included doing the Cupid Shuffle with him (my all time favorite dance) and chatting with him and his fiance about dogs. . . he even pulled out his phone to show me pictures of his pup Prince! If you are wondering if I almost fainted then the answer is yes!

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I know these athletes are just normal people (although, not all of them win the Superbowl, just sayin’!) but I have no shame about acting like a crazed preteen around Torrey  because seriously, how often is it that you get to meet one like him!?

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Thank you, Torrey Smith and BARCS, for putting on such a fabulous event! Torrey swore to me that he is really great at remembering people he meets, so I can only hope our paths cross again some day :-).

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Guess Who!? (Hint: Superbowl)

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I can honestly say I have just one professional sports player that I am totally obsessed with and would love the chance to meet. . . and yesterday night I finally got that chance! Can anyone guess who this guy is!? Check back tomorrow to find out and to hear about how my first time meeting him went! We talked about pit bulls. . . I am still starstruck!

TORREYSMITH

 

 

Superbowl Sundayyyy!

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Even though my beloved Redskins didn’t make it into the Super Bowl, it was still quite the exciting games with the Ravens in it! I’ll take any Maryland team making the big game! Besides, the Ravens has a very special former UMD player on their team, which gives me another reason to happily root for them all season.

Terrapin alum and current Ravens superstar Torrey Smith has two pit bull dogs, one of which he adopted from the Baltimore animal shelter, BARCS! He is constantly on social media spreading the word about adoption, and one day even put out a specific appeal for a group of pups at BARCS who needed help, receiving hundreds of offers from his fans to take them in.

Photo credit to Leo Howard Lubow and the Show Your Soft Side Campaign.

Photo credit to Leo Howard Lubow and the Show Your Soft Side Campaign.

When Baxter was with me last year he supported football and his Terps, so I’m sure he’d be rooting for Torrey & the Ravens as well!

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Meet Joanie

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As evidenced by how many of you guessed correctly on yesterday’s post, lots of you recognize our house guest for the week: it’s Joanie from Jasmine’s House!

Joanie found herself at BARCS, a shelter in Baltimore, this summer. She was in very rough shape, with essentially a hole in her nose all the way down to the bone. The wound was thought to be caused by an infection that ate away at her skin. You can see “before” photos on the Jasmine’s House Facebook page, but warning: they are graphic. The kind folks at BARCS and Jasmine’s House (and probably a ton others, but unfortunately I don’t know the whole story on this one – sorry!) came together to get her into a rescue group and receive the medical treatment she needed. I, like many others, followed her progress on Facebook and cheered her on through many small victories. She has come so far since those first photos from BARCS.

She ended up at my house for the week because her current foster is going out of town.  I am so excited to get to know this girl! So far, this is what I’ve observed: She’s SO sweet – seriously, she loves everyone. She’s got some chunk curves. She’s a bit stubborn, like a typical Elderbull.  She snores very, very loudly. She is crate trained. She will do almost anything for food. She might have some external damage to her nose, but it still works plenty fine. . . she loves to sniff!  She let’s you know when it’s time to play. She snorts like a little piggy while doing pretty much anything.  She’ll snuggle up on the couch with you for a good book and glass of wine any day.

Even though I’ve only had her for two days, I can already tell what an awesome family dog Joanie is. She is available for adoption, and would really love to find a forever home! If you’re looking for a laid back sweetheart, Joanie is your girl.

If you’re interested in meeting this gentle gal, head over to the Jasmine’s House website and fill out an application or shoot me an email at peacelovefoster@gmail.com.