Vacation for a Day... Installment #2

In yesterday's blog I showed you the beginning of our day trip through the Big Horn Mountains and beyond.  I kept making Mike stop to take pictures.  At one point he commented that he missed the days of film when I only had 21 photos available and so had to use them carefully.  On the other hand, he pointed out good shots for me.  He has a good eye!

So, after we left Meadowlark Lake we headed out the East side of the Big Horns along Hwy 16.  As we headed down we noted that there was some transitional scenery.  That is, the mountain vegetation was mixed with sagebrush and other prairie vegetation. 

 Then, we turned a corner and Ten Sleep Canyon was before us.... so beautiful!



The canyon seemed to go on and on.  It was lovely.  Eventually, though, we were out of the canyon and out to an area that had its own beauty but was really quite different.  First, we stopped in the town of Ten Sleep, population 304.  It was kind of charming...

We stopped at a place called "Dirty Sally's".  Mike went in while I walked Bode.  He came out with a cold snack, which was especially appreciated since it was 98 degrees!

I walked Bode around some more.  We stopped and walked Bode a LOT throughout the day but he only went to the bathroom ONCE!  Strange dog...he really doesn't like to potty away from home if he can help it.  Maybe it is because he saw signs like this one...  I'm hoping thye only meant on that lawn, not the whole town.



We continued on out of Ten Sleep just a few miles when we saw a sign to Castle Gardens.  I'd read that it was an interesting place with cool rock formations.  It was so hot we probably should not have gone but we were having an adventsome day, so on we went.  I think the only traffic we saw were guys working on the road.  Eventually they were far behind us as well.  Twice we approached antelope napping on the road!  They didn't look like they were expecting any travelers.  Can you see this one?

The scenery was beautiful, although very desolate. 

But this photo was my prize!

We made our way back to the highway and on to Worland.  I thought Worland was a sweet town as well.  We walked Bode around in a park where he again did not go to the bathroom.  We left Worland and made our way to Thermopolis.  I can't wait to show you those pictures tomorrow!  It is one of the weirdest places... with a very unusual (and smelly) kind of beauty!

Rest up!

Vacation for a Day!

Monday Mike had the day off so we lit out on a lovely day trip through the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming, down through Ten Sleep Canyon, over to see the Castle Gardens, checked out the towns of Worland and Thermopolis and left through the Wind River Canyon, passing by Boysen Lake.  It was almost too much for one day and DEFINITELY too much for one blog post (I took nearly 300 pictures) so I will sprinkle it out over several days... and yes, I will edit. 

These pictures are all from the Big Horn Mountains and Forest,

 including Meadowlark Lake.  The beauty surrounding us was breathtaking.  Getting to have Mike to myself the entire day made my heart happy.  He's been so busy, today was a real gift...

  

I have had a few people ask how they can comment on my posts if they do not have their own blog or URL.  All you have to do is click on the comments on the bottom of the blog; where it says 2 comments or whatever, click right on that.  A box will appear where you can write your comment.  It will ask your name.  You don't have to put your last name.  When it asks for your URL just leave it blank and submit it.  Give it a try!  I LOVE comments!

Bode Update

So, where did I leave off?  Oh yes.  Saturday morning, VERY EARLY, we awoke to a really really disgusting smell.  Bode was sick in his kennel, which is in our bedroom.  Eewwww!  I won't go into details but he was showing some signs of an intestinal blockage (pretty much the same stuff coming out both ends) so I ended up taking him to the vet.  The vet agreed wtih my worries and x-rays showed that he had a partial obstruction.  We could not tell what it was he'd eaten, but it was NOT food.  That did not come as a surprise to me as he is ALWAYS trying to chew and eat anything he can find.  You wouldn't believe some of the things we have found when we scooped poop in our yard... like an entire, freshly pooped out, plastic shopping bag!  I will be so glad when this phase passes.

Anyway, since he wasn't totally obstructed the decision was made to just give him fluids, as he was already dehydrated, and treat his symptoms while watching for signs of further distress.  Instead of IV fluids, he was given subcutaneous fluids.  That means they just put a lot of fluid under his skin, between his shoulder blades, and let his body absorb it from there.  As the tech said when they brought him out to me, they installed a camel hump!

Doesn't that look weird?

Can you see those streak going back from the hump, where it looks wet?  Well, it was wet!  As time passed he squished fluids out his skin.  It was like petting a sponge!  He slept most of Saturday but livened up by evening.  I was directed to hold his regular food and cook some easily digestable foods for him.  I cooked rice for him and gave him just small amounts... no problem.  Hours later, I boiled hamburger for him.  The vet explained to me that boiling it would get the grease off it.  So, after boiling and draining it I gave him a little of it mixed with rice.  That seemed to go well also.  I was glad that I took the time to avoid giving him all that grease. 

Not long after this I heard him in the kitchen and it sounded like trouble so I went to investigate.  This is what I found...

See that suspicious stuff on his chin?  I found him with his face buried in a margarine container, a previously FULL container!  Like I said, I'm so glad I went to all that trouble boiling the hamburger for him so he wouldn't get all that grease!

Sunday, Bode seemed to feel fine and was C-R-A-Z-Y with energy!  He was running from one naughty adventure to the next.  I spent the afternoon chasing him from one thing he was chewing...

...to the next...

I'm so glad that he is feeling better but I am really exhausted!  Did you see the movie, Marley & Me?  Well, we are LIVING it!  When I am chasing him down, pulling yarn from my current crocheting project out of his throat while screeching at him that he needs to show me more respect, I imagine that I look just like Jennifer Aniston, so it's not all bad.

Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies

Christ, whose glory fills the skies,

Christ, the true and only light,

Sun of righteousness, arise,

Triumph o'er the shades of night;

Dayspring from on high, be near;

Day-star, in my heart appear.

Dark and cheerless is the morn

Unaccompanied by thee;

Joyless is the day's return,

Till thy mercy's beams I see,

Till they inward light impart,

Glad my eyes, and warm my heart.

Visit then this soul of mine,

Pierce the gloom of sin and grief;

Fill me, radiancy divine,

Scatter all my unbelief;

More and more thyself display,

Shining to the perfect day.

Text: Charles Wesley, 1707-1788

Tune: J.G. Werner, Choral-Buch, 1815



Bode Buddy

Bode woke up sick today.

There is nothing quite like the smell of a sick dog at 4:30 a.m.!

It's probably something he ate.

He eats ANYTHING!

I am constantly grabbing items out of his mouth but sometimes I am just not quick enough and all I see is the tail-end of something colorful slipping down his throat, something that doesn't look like dog food.  He also grabs at anything growing, like flowers, and tries to eat them.  When I walk him I try to keep his leash short, in part to avoid pulling things from his mouth.  A few days ago, however, I didn't even notice that he'd managed to grab a stick until I walked by some people who were chuckling and looking at him.  I glanced down to see he was chewing on a fairly large stick while keeping pace with me.  He's pretty talented that way.

I don't know what is causing his trouble today but I hope it ends soon.  He's resting now.  I hope that is a good sign.

In the meantime, I thought I'd share some photos of Bode's week...

Bode and Bumblebee monitoring the neighborhood.  They are best buds!

Bode had just jumped up onto a chair but he did it while twisting and bouncing.  Somehow his back end flipped clear over the edge.  He tried to act like that was his intention all along and actually rested in this position for awhile.

Bode trying to snuggle while Maria is trying to crochet.

He's a lot of work, especially when he is sick, but he sure has added and element of fun and adventure to our family.

Get well soon, Bode Buddy!

How Did That Happen So Fast?

I think it was just a few months ago that Mike and I had our last baby.

He's now 18 years old, a legal adult.

He's 6'3" ...... at least!

How did that happen so fast?

Sam was a baby named by committee.  At the time he was born Ben was 8 yrs old and Maria was 12.  They had a lot of opinions about names as we discussed them.  When discussing a boy's name, there were lots of vetoes.  With many of the names Mike or I suggested, the older kids were very good at making up sassy nicknames or irritating rhyming names for the baby.  OK, I admit, I did the same with some of the suggestions.  Anyway, it helped us avoid names that would give future bullies a better chance at irritating him.  However, it also took a looooooong time to figure out what we'd name him if he were a baby boy.  Just a few weeks before delivery I said, "What about Sam?"  We were all riding in the car and all I heard was silence, no complaints, no annoying nicknames.  So, Sam it was.

Sam was also raised by committee.  His siblings helped us a lot with our parenting responsibilities.  Maybe they thought we were too advanced in age to manage it ourselves.  I'm sure it was fun for Sam to have everyone bossing him around and giving him advice.  That really hasn't changed.  Actually, I believe Sam always has and hopefully always will know that he is surrounded by those who love him.

Sam has been a quirky and delightful child to raise! He was great at "imaginating".  This was Sam acting out the moves from characters in video games.  I sometimes received strange looks while walking through Walmart with a 2 yr old boy following me making laser sounds or something, while kicking and hacking the space around himself.

Sam is smart and fun and has a sense of humor much like Mike's, dry wit.  It is as though they compete for the joke that elicits the biggest groans.  Sam can definitely hold his own in any groaner contest!

But at a very young age Sam also demonstrated the ability to understand human nature.  He often noted people's sadness and fears when he was just a preschooler.  He offered a quiet kindness toward others that I often felt was astonishingly sweet.  He's always had a soft spot for the "underdog".  He always tried to avoid hurting others. 

Sam will  probably be mad at me for telling this story, but at the end of Jr. High we received a letter stating that he'd been nominated for an award, to be announced at an award ceremony the next week.  It is a good thing we received the letter first as Sam wanted to avoid the ceremony altogether.  We forced him to attend.  He actually won 5 or 6 awards that night.  He was called to the stage so many times he was embarrassed.  The award that really made us most proud, though, was, the "Kindness Award".  The recipient was chosen by the student body as well as the teachers.  Sam had been absent the day the voting occurred and did not even know there was such an award.

We could not have been more proud!

Now, at 18, Sam is a college student with many paths opening up before him.  I think it is probably a stressful time, with many adult decisions suddenly upon him, but I know Sam will live a life of integrity. 

Sam will continue to make us proud.

Happy birthday, Sammer!



Teach Them Young!

Maria and I are crochet addicts.  Actually, it is all part of a bigger problem. 

We are craftoholics.

We need help.

It is a genetic thing, though, and we came by it naturally.

Now, we are passing it on to our youngest.

(Grandma and Cordelia)

She's already like a crocheting savant. 

She can even crochet while walking!

(Cordelia asks for "Cordy's yarn?")

If that's not bad enough, we are leading our pets into addiction as well.

(I don't think Bode asks permission but he is more than willing to help Maria.)

A few of yesterday's finished products...

Until a cure is found, I guess we will just keep on having a great time together!

Compassion

 Compassion...

There is NOT enough compassion in this world.

Why are some people so very caring and others only interested in themselves?

At what age does compassion begin?

Is it a learned trait?

Genetic?

Do we all develop compassion and then some lose it?

Or do some just never develop compassion?

What do you think?

I don't know all the answers but I do know that it can begin at quite a young age.

Cordelia is not quite 22 months old but she seems to have a sense of compassion. 

Remember my wounded shin?  It's not been all that painful and I often forget that it is there.  Cordy, however, has been quite concerned...perhaps even obsessed.

(Just in case you've forgotten)

Cordelia also found a little scratch on my other leg.  She'd point to that one and say, "Little Owie."  She'd then move to the leg with stitches, point and say with a bigger voice, "BIIIIG Owie!"  Then, she'd look me in the eyes with her face sweetly concerned and say, "Be careful!"  Or maybe something more like, "Be caowful!"

On the Brink of Relief

It has been really, really hot at our house over the past few days.  It reached 102 on Sunday.  Because our swamp cooler died we've been absolutely wilting!

However, Saturday we got a new furnace with an air conditioning unit!!!  Yippee!!  They are finally here!  Aren't they pretty?

To our great disappointment on Saturday, when the air conditioner guy was here to install it all, we were told the electrician couldn't come that day to hook it up.  So, we could SEE our relief at hand, but still, we were wilting.

I was so disappointed, not only because we were miserable, but my Mom had come to visit.  This doesn't happen very often.  She brought her two dogs and we were all ready for some fresh air.

This is Whitley

This  is not a great shot of Sophie but isn't my Mom pretty?

Bumble bee and her family were there as well.

Mike has always been kind of a dog whisperer.

As you can see, we had a lot of hot dogs (not to be confused with hotdogs) around.

I think Cordelia was onto a good idea.

She'd spray herself with the sprayer I use for ironing as well as for correcting Bode.  Then, she'd get a drink.

Well, Saturday during the night my Mom got sick from the heat.  By morning she was pretty miserable and so she loaded up her "girls" and headed home to her cool house (a few hours away).  By Sunday afternoon I was wishing I'd gone with her!

Yesterday (Monday), we were happy that the electrician showed up pretty soon in the a.m.  :-) but disappointed when he said he thought he was just coming to give a bid. :-(  Thankfully, he realized our distress and agreed to come back that afternoon with "some guys", which he did. :-)  The air conditioner guy said he'd come back as well, to get it all going.  :-) Yippee! 

Of course, with all this coming and going one of us had to stay home to facilitate all this.  The electrician did indeed come back.  He worked his magic and then he left.  And then he came back again because he realized he also needed to hook up the thermostat.  Then more guys came because apparently hooking up the thermostat required drilling and more guys to help.  Then, they all left.  We waited for the furnace/ac guy to return, as promised, to get it all going.  We waited.

I made an evaporative cooler of my own...

We waited.

This is my hair up OFF my hot neck.

We waited.

This is me trying to even keep my "growing out bangs" off my face.

I know, I know.... fancy, huh?

I won't show you the picture of me crying when the air conditioner guy called and said we'd have to wait another day as he was tied up with some other jobs.  All right, I didn't really cry but that was probably because I was too dehydrated.

He must have heard the sobs because he promised to come as early as we'd get up today.  I told him to come at 6:00 a.m.  He said that he would.  I set our alarms for 5:47 and we got up promptly, ready for the air conditioner guy. 

It is now 6:55 and he is

NOT here. 

I will not whine.

I will not whine.

I will not whine.

OK, who am I kidding, I'm whiny.



Transformation by Spray Paint

A number of years ago, maybe 13-15 years, a friend gave me this old glider.  She mentioned that it has some tiny rust spots and warned me that I should be sure to spray paint it from time to time to keep it in good condition.  I had expected I would do just that.  However, it seemed to be a project that keep being put on the back-burner. 

This Summer, though, I finally got the urge to get it done.  So, I drug it out onto the lawn, scrubbed it down, and sanded on the rust spots.

Then, I started spraying.

I ALMOST forgot to spray paint my little love message to Mike.  I managed to put a heart around our initials and that was about all I had room for.

I spray painted all I could from the top and then let it dry so I could flip it over to finish the job.  OK, here's the truth.  I let it dry for at least one month before I got back to the job!  What is wrong with me?  That last part took about 15 minutes at the most.  I guess I just don't want to rush things!

When all was said and done, I was pleased.  The fresh green color makes me happy.

That's a good thing, as I also ended up with a fresh green finger!  As you can tell by the bare spots in the lawn, a green finger does not have anything to do with a green thumb!  Maybe I should have spray painted the lawn...

Does anyone else procrastinate like I do?  Please, tell me I'm not the only one!