This year, I celebrated my birthday in the way that came most naturally to me. I took Bailey to the dog beach.

Okay, to be completely honest, I stopped at the studio to return a few emails first. But THEN we went to the dog beach!

For no particular reason, I decided on going to the Ocean Beach Dog Beach that day. Bailey also loves Fiesta Island, and she’s been to Coronado before, and she’s used to doing more than just running around at Del Mar, but we hadn’t been to Ocean Beach in a while – so off we went.

The dog beach is a wonderful place for Bailey. I say that not only because she has fun; she psychologically relaxes. We’ve gotten into a few negative social situations in the past, unfortunately, when she’s on her leash or in a stressful environment. But the dog beach? It’s a place of happiness. A place where she doesn’t feel stressed, or crowded, or defensive, or like she needs to guard me from other dogs. She’s never gotten into a disagreement with another dog there – never. She just runs around wagging her tail, with a smile on her face, perfectly content for hours. So I know it’s a place that makes her happy, on every level.

Happy – and SANDY! This girl loves to rolls around and pack on the sand as much as she can. All over her body. As often as possible. (Thanks Bailey.)

I love this photo – check out her intensity!!

But of course, a nanosecond later, the goofy face comes back.

What’s on her priority list at the beach? Runningrunningrunning…

She is FAST! Really – I’m not just bragging – I’ve never seen a dog outrun her in an all-out sprint. No mommy goggles here, she’s quick. (Okay, to be fair, I’ve never seen her race against a greyhound… but I’m sure she’d be up to the challenge!)

What’s better than taking your dog to the beach? I mean, really… it’s a happy place, a pretty place, and a total escape from everything else life throws at you. In the time it’d take you to send an email at your office, you could have been throwing the tennis ball for your dog a few times, while they haplessly crash through the oncoming waves to retrieve it for you, meeting dogs on their way back into shore and putting “fetch” on hold while they go for a quick race up and down the beach.

I don’t know about you, but I choose the beach.

Sometimes she slows down. Just sometimes. I like to think she’s being pensive when this happens.

So that was my birthday! Well, that, and my husband took me out wine tasting that night too! So, yep, it was a pretty good one! :)

Thanks, Bailey, for the relaxing mid-day excursion. I hope you convince me to do it more often.

Tags: San Diego, San Diego Dog Photographer, San Diego pet photography