Work, walk, sleep, repeat

I started this week off with a plan.  While I didn't fully stick to the plan, I think I came close.  I needed a way to keep the dogs happy during the day while I worked, and I also needed to find a way to force myself to take breaks to keep my energy up throughout the very busy days I knew I'd have this week.  I was determined to break our walks up throughout the days to help accomplish both things.

On Monday, when I had a work call get cancelled, it gave me the chance to get out for an early lunch.  I took advantage of the opportunity to take the dogs down the road for one of our random neighborhood walks.  

Since it was a spot we've not walked before, they were distracted by all the new smells so we only finished three-quarters of a mile in the 20 minutes we had for our walk.

Despite the shorter length of the walk, everyone was really happy when we headed back home to have lunch before my next call.  

After a very busy Monday at work, I wanted to take the dogs somewhere fun for our evening walk.  

We headed to the Lewis Landscape Arboretum and Horticulture Gardens on campus.

We thoroughly enjoyed our lovely walk on campus, although the dogs were a little extra crazy.

I always enjoy walking there and the dogs seemed to love it too.

After our walk, we headed back home for dinner.

After dinner and a little rest, the dogs were all restless, so we took another quick walk around the block.  Then we headed outside to enjoy the beautiful summer evening.

Tuesday started with a dentist appointment.  I left the dogs with frozen Kongs to keep them busy while I was gone.  Then I had a long, exhausting day of work while keeping the dogs busy with some brain games and collagen chews.   Of course Bumble and Mina also had a busy day of wrestling.

It was such an exhausting day that I decided to pick up take-out for dinner using a gift card I have.  I fed the dogs dinner when we got home and  then sat down to eat my own dinner.  After dinner, Peaches was happy to find part of a collagen chew that Mina and Bumble had left behind and settled in to spend some time enjoying her special find.

We all relaxed for a bit after dinner, and then it was finally time to get out for a nice long walk atound the neighborhood. 

We enjoyed another nice evening outside after we got back from our walk.  It was a such a beautiful evening. 

Wednesday morning, we got out for our random neighborhood walk to start our day because i knew my day was going to be busy again.

While it was a busy work day, it was an exciting day because it was day one with my new boss.  Having David come back to the team as my boss was definitely a best-case scenario for me and I am so happy he made the decision to come back to our territory team.  We've got lots of work to do to get him fully up and running in his new role, but I'm happy to do the work to help him and our team succeed. 

The day went quickly, and I was happy that I was able to get the dogs out for a afternoon walk around the neighborhood after a late lunch.  Then we took another quick walk at the end of my work day.  Then I fed them lunch, grabbed a quick dinner for myself, and headed out for a three hour training for my upcoming election day work.  The dogs were settled in with a Kong when I left and Bumble was extremely excited to greet me when I got home.  

I sat outside with the dogs for about 20 minutes after I got home just to relax and enjoy watching the lightning bugs. 

Thursday morning started with a doctor's appointment.  The temperatures this week have been mild, and the temperatures overnight were cool, so I decided the dogs could ride along for the drive to my appointment.  Then after my short appointment we were able to get in a morning walk in the neighborhood by the doctor's office.   That was a really nice change of pace for all of us.

When I needed a mental break mid-afternoon, we took a 10 minute walk around the block and I came back feeling refreshed.  After work, we made a stop at the South Lansing Farmer's Market, took a walk around Feeder's Pet store, and then walked around the neighborhood there. Then we ran a few errands before heading home.  

Despite all of the walking, there were multiple wrestling matches throughout the day.  When I decided that I wanted some peace and quiet, we all headed outside to enjoy the beautiful summer evening again.  

Finally Friday arrived, and I just didn't have the energy to get out for a morning walk.  Thankfully, the dogs were well-behaved most of the day while I worked, and I had a productive day.

When my day was finally done, I had to drive to the shelter to pick up some supplies for Bumble.  I decided to bring the dogs along and take our evening walk around Mason.

We took a slow, leisurely walk around downtown Mason for our first mile.  Then we drove down the street to get in another 1.5 miles along the Hayhoe Trail.

It was a really nice walk to start our weekend.  Honestly, it was exactly what I needed that night.

We were up early on Saturday with a full day of fun planned.

We met up with Vanessa and made the drive to Wauseon Ohio to Midwest Geobash 2026, a big annual geocaching event.

I was so excited to be out for some fun.  It was something I really needed.  I knew the dogs would be happy with the adventure too.

We got in some good walks, met up with some other Lansing area goecachers, had some yummy food from a food truck for lunch, and found lots of fun geocaches. 

I was really proud of how well all of the pups did.  Bumble loved all of the people and wanted to meet all of the dogs, Peaches was a trooper on our long walk through the woods, and Mina proved what an all around good girl she is, always.

We all came home dirty, hot, happy, and tired.. I'd call that a successful day! It was an excellent day for all of us, and the drive home was a quiet one.

After feeling like all my days consisted of was work and walking dogs this week, our Saturday adventure followed by a lazy Sunday at home have really helped.  I am hoping to start the new week relaxed and refreshed.

While we didn't take any walks today, the dogs kept themselves entertained with toys and chews, plus there was much rough-housing fun.  We did.take a drive so I could fill up the gas tank, but mostly we have been lazy, and that's okay.  We all need days with no to-dos and no agenda.  It was the perfect end to another busy week.  

July challenges

This has been quite a week.  It started with a visit from an Air Conditioning repair technician on Monday morning which led to an appointment with a salesperson to discuss replacement of my old A/C unit.  Between that and my work day, along with the temperatures in the 90s, it was a long day.

The heat and humidity continued on Tuesday and I had an extremely busy day at work.  The dogs were stir crazy, so I took them out for a walk around the block mid-day, and tried to keep them occupied with brain puzzles, Kongs, and chews.  But none of it was enough, so I finally took them out for a walk just before sunset.  It was so humid!  But they were very happy to be out getting some excercise. 

Wednesday morning we were up early and out the door for a walk to burn some energy before the heat of the day.  While it was humid, it was nice to be outside and getting in a good walk.

We made a drive so I could get a Mt. Dew and then did another loop around our neighborhood.  It was awesome to be able to get in just over a 3 mile walk as well as a car ride before 7:45.  Once we were home, I fed the pups breakfast, got myself ready for work, let the dogs outside for a bit, and got my work day started before the guys showed up to replace my air conditioner that morning.

Kongs, chews, and a few treats helped keep everyone happy while the repair guys were here.  Bumble did bark on several occasions as they came in and out of the house, but for the most part, the A/C repair went smoothly and was finished before the house got too warm

Bumble was pretty happy once the guys left because he got lunch, a quick trip outside, and then could settle in to relax for the afternoon while I continued my day of work.

Despite all of the fun and busyness of the day, everyone got restless after dinner.  Mina and Bumble wouldn't stop wrestling, and Peaches kept staring at me, so I took them out for a really quick walk after 8pm.  That seemed to make everyone happy, and they settled down after we got home.

Thursday, I had to travel to Livonia for work for a few hours, and we were up early that morning so I could get the dogs out for a walk before I had to leave.  Luckily the smoke and bad air from the Minnesota and Canadian wildfires had just started to move into the area, so we were able to get in a quick walk.

I gave the dogs each a Kong before I left for the day, and I was surprised at the amount of smoke I found just outside of Lansing.  The rest of the day the smoke and dangerous air quality remained in the area.  Once I was home from work, the dogs went out for a potty break, and Mina was so frustrated that I wouldn't let her stay out to lay in the sun.  They only got quick trips out for the rest of the afternoon. 

After work, we made a trip to Feeder's so the dogs could walk around and sniff all they wanted.  Then we made the drive over to Preuss for a walk around the store there too.  It was the best I could do to help them burn some energy and work their brains.  Mina was not satisfied!

There was a lot of wrestling to end the night.  So much wrestling!

Friday morning started with Peaches' monthly vet visit.  We are doing what we can to keep her happy and mobile for as long as we can.  She is still getting around pretty well for an old lady, but standing still has become more of a challenge for her.  Overall, though, I think she's doing well.

She probably hated me Friday because after her vet appointment, we stopped at Amanda's Grooming for a nail trim.  The groomer was so sweet and gentle with her...I gave her a 50% tip.

It was a long hard day because of the terrible air quality.   But we made it through.

When Saturday arrived with much improved air quality,  I knew we had to get out of the house.   It was a hot day, so there were no long walks, but we still had a nice little adventure. 

We had a nice drive around some fun back roads and I did some geocaching along the way.

Then we found a little park along the Flat River in Greenville where we got out for a short walk.

It was a beautiful spot, and I will definitely go back in cooler weather to enjoy it more.

I tried hard to get a picture of everyone together, but they wouldn't cooperate!

After our walk, I let everyone take a quick dip in the river, which Peaches and Mina really enjoyed. 

After our little adventure,  we headed toward home, but before we got there, we made a stop in Old Town to check the Chalk of the Town chalk art.

These two were definitely my favorites, although there were lots of amazing pieces of art.

We had a nice walk, and Peaches came home with a colorful reminder that we had been there.

After a late dinner, we went outside to enjoy the cooler temperatures and a nice breeze while the air quality was still okay.  

Mina was so happy to just sit in the yard and watch the world.  I enjoyed the lightning bugs. 

The air quality for our Sunday was still safe enough to get out for some short walks and the temperature was perfect.  It was really a beautiful summer day.

With the lovely temperatures,  I decided on a walk at Fenner.  It was so nice to be able to get into the woods.  We had a really nice walk and the dogs were definitely happy to be able to get outside. There were still a few rounds of wrestling this evening, but I think that we did a good job of burning some of the excess energy from the crazy weather we've been having.  I'm hopeful that all of the exercise will lead to a quiet start to my work week.

Who knows what the week ahead holds. But I'm hopeful for some better weather and air quality so we can continue to get outside more.  I'm alelrady starting to notice the shorter daylight hours with later sunrises and earlier sunsets.  It is so hard to believe we're already a third of the way through summer and less than two weeks from August.  I'm never ready for the arrival of August.