She's gone, our little Miss Maisie, gone back to charm school.

It's not that she isn't charming already, what with that tiny face and those short legs and that stocky little body. But she was getting a bit rusty with the sitting and the staying and the balancing a dictionary on her head, so she's with Kirsten for a little tune-up.

It's nice there, a warm, rambling house filled with dog beds and dog couches and lots of - you guessed it - dogs. And they love Kirsten, treat her like a rock star. When Maisie comes home next week, she'll be back to her well-trained self, good on the leash, wearing white gloves and a little pillbox hat.

So in the meantime, Jake and I hang out, go for walks, revel in the slower pace (he's six, after all) and rely on pix like this to channel the gleeful spirit of the little dog.