Oh what a week!

Oh what a week it has been!  While everything started out great with a three-day weekend, a beautiful sunny Sunday, and a subsequent short work week, our week was not without it's issues.

While we enjoyed a quiet Monday morning at home, the afternoon was full of errands and appointments.  One of those appointments took us out to Eaton Rapids, which offered us the opportunity for a fun little adventure after my appointment was done.  Eaton Rapids is a nice little small town with some interesting history, a small river walk, and a Mooville for ice cream!

It's been quite a while since we've done much walking around town, and this may have been Ruby's first trip to Eaton Rapids other than a brief visit at Christmas.  The girls really enjoyed themselves.   We had a great walk, there were lots of interesting smells, and they even made a few friends along the way.

Ruby found this phone both very intriguing.  I was intrigued by the fact that it had a rotary phone and looks like it could still be in working condition.

Peaches was just mad that I made her stop exploring so I could take her picture.  

After our Eaton Rapids adventure, we headed to Mason for Peaches annual check-up.  I tried to get a cute picture of the girls waiting in my car, but all I could get was this dark and blurry shot.  

After Peaches went inside for her appointment, Ruby and I took a walk around the parking lot as we waited.  Ruby was really sure that she needed to go inside too and kept walking up to the door.  

Peaches' appointment went well.  She's a healthy old girl, which is always great to hear.  Ruby was excited that she got to make friends with Amber and Haley, the vet techs, when they brought Peaches outside after her appointment.  It had been a good day and we headed home for the night.

We weren't even half way home, when my car started to act up.  After just having if repaired recently, I was not expecting to have the same issue occur, but that's exactly what was happening.  Luckily we were able to make it safely home for the night, but I was definitely a little stressed knowing what was ahead of me during the week.  I was going to need a car to get through the week.

I was happy to find out that the parts that were recently replaced were under warranty and that the car could be repaired, but I wasn't sure how soon that would happen.  I attempted to rent a car for a few days, but with the current state of the world, I was told that there is a 3 to 6 day waiting period on car rentals.  So that wasn't going to work for me.  I was stressed and concerned about how I was going to get through my upcoming appointments for the week.

Lucky for me, Vanessa came to the rescue and let me borrow her car Wednesday night so that I would have it for the day Thursday to get Ruby to the vet's office for her spay surgery bright and early that morning.  We were up early and on the road to Mason to drop her off for the day.  Ruby was so excited to be able to go inside and see all of her friends.  She was a hit!  It's hard to meet Ruby and not love her. 

Her surgery went well and I was able to get to may own doctors appointment and get some work down before I picked her up that afternoon to bring her home.  She was groggy and tired the rest of the day and while I was able to get her to eat a little, mainly she just wanted to sleep.  That's one of the best things about the day of surgery...it's always so quiet in my house afterwards.  I always enjoy the peace because that is definitely not the normal life of a GSP owner.

Thankfully Ruby has been on Trazadone since her surgery in order to keep her calm for the next few days and that has been working well.  While she is calm and sleeps most of the day, she was excited to see Vanessa and to take a ride in the car when Vanessa came over to take us out after work on Friday for a quick geocaching adventure.  As an added bonus, we made our first stop of the season for ice cream at Twisters before heading home.  We don't always need a big adventure to make us happy.

While I have been hoping that my current car could keep me on the road for a bit longer while the car market improves, I've made the decision that I need to get something a little more dependable.  I hate that I'm trying to find a car during one of the worst times ever to buy one, but I feel like it's necessary at this point.   I have some work travel coming up and I really want to be able to get out for a few road trips this year.  So I've spent a lot of time this week searching the used car market for something that won't break the bank.  

I'm thankful for Nicol coming earlier this week to take me out to look at several used cars. We had no luck then, but it was a good start.  I just can't believe the price of used cars right now, even with high mileage.  It's crazy!  Today I spent the afternoon with Nicol and Tyler again doing some car shopping, and looking at the possibility of leasing a vehicle, something Tyler really thinks I should seriously consider.  Hopefully I'll have a final decision in the next few days.

Monday is the beginning of 2 months of craziness for me at work, but I'm also hoping to start getting back out for some more fun as well, as we quickly approach Spring.  Next week should be eventful and I should have plenty to share next week.  I hope you all have a great week!

The Winter doldrums

We have reached the point in Winter that I am officially ready for Spring.  This week was tough!  I don't know about you, but the weather has made me want to hunker down in the house and hibernate until warmer days arrive.  But when you have GSPs, hibernating is not an option.  So instead, I have to find interesting ways to entertain and exercise them.

I'm glad that we've had some sunshine during the week, and we even had a day where temperatures nearly reached 50 degrees, but the snow and ice and frigid, windy days have been killing me.  Top that off with some long days of work, and I've got the Winter doldrums.  If I could get out into the woods for a nice hike or if the sidewalks in my neighborhood were not unpredictable, I'd probably feel a little better about things, but that just isn't the case.  I think the girls have even been feeling the Winter blahs too because they've been sleeping in and have been pretty lazy during the day.  One morning they didn't even leave bed for breakfast until almost 9am.  That is unheard of in my house!

We have made a point of going somewhere different to get out of the house every day, but many of our adventures have been inside.  On Valentine's day we headed out for a drive after work and made a stop at the Soldan's in Dewitt for a change of pace.  I got the girls each a special treat and tried to get a picture of them...but they weren't willing to cooperate. 

Some busy and exhausting days of work have been made better by lunchtime snuggles.  Ruby is always more likely to relax in the afternoon if she gets some time on my lap, and some days Peaches doesn't want Ruby to get all of the love.  I really enjoy these snuggles and they help me get through the work day.  A good lunch and some puppy love help keep me going when things get busy in the afternoon and when I'm putting in extra hours.

Most nights this week we visited some pet friendly stores, like Home Depot or Lowes, for our nightly walk because by the time I was able to get the girls out for a walk it was nearly dark and the weather was too cold to spend much time outside.  Plus I had errands to run almost every night.  Lucky for us, Home Depot is close by, and we are about half way between two different Lowe's locations, so the smells and experience for the girls is different and they love the attention they get from all of the staff.  They even got to help me pick out and purchase my new washer and dryer one of the nights. 

With a Winter storm moving in on Thursday, we took time over my lunch to head out to our Soldan's for a visit.  I had hoped to get the girls out for a walk, but the sidewalks were slippery, so the visit to the pet store made up for not getting in a real walk.   They each picked out a special treat which they then got to have when we got home.  They then settled in for the snowy evening at home.  

By the time Saturday arrived, I was ready for a lazy morning watching the Olympics.  Peaches was extra snuggly and I enjoyed a nice morning watching the Pairs' Figure Skating competition. I love quiet, relaxing Saturday mornings at home.  It was also a great way to start my long weekend.

More errands, some shopping, and a trip to the Home Depot on the other side of town completed our Saturday afternoon.  We have gotten our visits down to a fine art, walking up and down every single aisle in the store while the girls say hello to employees, look cute for treats, and sniff everything that they can.   While we aren't walking far, we are spending a good hour in the store which offers lots of opportunities for mental stimulation.  But it just isn't the same as getting out in the great outdoors!  I'm just glad that they seem to have been happy with these visits as their main exercise and entertainment each night.

I have some things to do around the house this weekend, but with temperatures promising to be in the 40s on Sunday, I'm hoping to get out for a little bit of fun with the girls too.  We really need to find a way to kick the Winter blues!  I will say that one thing that gives me hope is that it was still light out at 6:35pm tonight and we're just a few weeks away from daylight savings time.  I can't wait until we have more daylight in the evenings!  

We have a busy week ahead of us with doctor's appointments, vet appointments, Ruby's spay surgery, and plenty of work, but the forecast is looking promising for more chances to enjoy some fresh air and maybe even to beat some of our blues!  I hope you all have a happy Sunday and a wonderful week.  Hopefully I'll have more fun to share next week.

February Adventures

The weather this week has been up and down with snow and cold followed by temperatures near 40 which started to melt the over a foot of snow we got a week and a half ago.  Then the temperatures dropped into the 20s with wind chills near zero which froze all of our melted snow, creating an ice rink on my sidewalks and some slippery roads.  When the weather is like this, some days it's hard to get out for much adventure with the girls.  Lucky for us, each day brings us more daylight in the evening, so that helps me feel a little more confident about walking on potentially slippery sidewalks since I can actually see the danger ahead!  So we were successful in getting out every day for at least a little fun.  

Last Sunday, after a quiet morning at home, I was inspired to get out for a little walk on one of our local trails at Hunter's Orchard Park.  Despite the snow, we were able to get in a good walk and a little geocaching.  It was really a beautiful time to be outdoors and enjoying nature.  I love capturing snowy pictures in the woods and along the river in the late afternoons as we near sunset.  

The girls found plenty of good things to sniff and Ruby, who isn't usually a fan of the deeper snow, was even having a great time.  She was really excited in a couple of different areas, sniffing and wagging her tail a million miles an hour, and I think she completely forgot about this snow.

I always find benches covered in snow interesting and these two were too pretty not to capture.  It was just a great walk for us all and we all got a good workout because of the depth of the snow.  I was so glad I had made the choice to get outside!

When I can't get the girls our for a long walk, I like to take them places that give them plenty of mental stimulation.  I'm thankful for stores that allow dogs because they are great places to do just that.  This week we made visits to several places that allow dogs, like Tractor Supply Company and Home Depot, as well as a few different pet stores.  We practiced walking nicely next to a cart at both Tractor Supply and Home Depot, and I like to walk up and down each aisle, stopping occasionally to allow them to explore and sniff as much as they want.  Our visit to Home Depot was especially fun for the girls because they were very popular with all of the employees we passed.  I stopped to look at the washing machines there and I was immediately surrounded by four employees... all of them just wanting to get some love from the girls.  Tiny little Ruby with her very loving nature was especially popular!   

As you can see, Ruby was pretty excited about our trip to TSC, and Peaches was enjoying smelling everything!  Luckily I was able to bribe them to sit and pay attention long enough for a good picture!

Tuesday, after a long busy day of work, I was happy to be able to get the girls out again for a nice walk at Hawk Meadows.  We arrived very close to dusk, so we didn't have a lot of time to spend there, but we were able to get in a pretty quick 1 1/2 mile hike around the park and to get back to our car before the park closed.

It was a marvelous walk at sunset and the girls spotted plenty of deer which always adds to the excitement of our walks.

They decided to "help" me make dinner after we got home that evening.  They were rewarded with some veggies for all of their good help.

Wednesday was one of our warmer days this week and I knew we had to get outside to make the most of it.  We got a late start getting out the door, so we headed to campus for our walk because the sidewalks are generally clear and it is well lit.    It feels like a pretty safe place to take an early evening walk and I always enjoy walks there.

In addition to our adventures this week, we have been watching the Olympics every night.  I love the Olympics.  I know we all love to celebrate medal winners, but I also love the stories of people who are just happy to make it to the games; the stories of hard work and determination and sacrifice that people make just to be there competing.  I love the way it brings people together to celebrate all that they have accomplished.  There are so many touching moments and it gives me hope for our world.  Peaches just wishes I wouldn't interrupt her sleep by cheering!

Thursday we took a drive out to Dewitt to pick up a geocache and decided to take a walk around town for a little change of pace.  Peaches was pretty excited to be out for a ride in the car.  

The temps were falling, making some spots on the sidewalks here pretty slippery, but we were still able to get in a nice walk.  It is always interesting to take a walk around small towns and somehow I had never spent any time in downtown Dewitt before, so we enjoyed exploring.  

Saturday morning was cold and icy, but we were excited that we were going to get out for some fun.  The morning started with a visit from our friends Bonnie and Duke, although I didn't get any pictures of Duke and the girls out playing.   After their visit, we had some down time at home before Vanessa arrived for our afternoon of fun.

Our first stop was a visit with Barb, Tom, and Sherman.  Sherman and the girls had a good run around the yard, and then we headed inside for a bit to warm up.  I was trying to get one picture of all three pups together, but that was unsuccessful.  At least I was able to get individual pictures of each of them!

We then headed out for short hike on a portion of road walk on the NCT between Lowell and Ada.  We parked the car at Seidman Park and then Tom drove us to our starting spot a few miles away.  The first half mile of our hike was on a paved road, but we were quickly off of this road.

Most of the walk was on gravel road or paved trail.  Boy were we glad we brought our cleats to keep us safe on the icy roads! 

Despite it being in the low 20s, we were in a wooded area and, therefore, protected from the wind.  This made for a pleasant walk.

We finished our hike at the trailhead at Seidman park, a total of 4.35 miles hiked for the day, bringing our year-to-date total miles on the trail to 17.1 miles as we work our way through Kent county.  Both Vanessa and I agree that we were a lot more motivated on our Winter hikes last year, but we're still enjoying getting out there and making progress.  I am really excited for some Spring hiking this year!  I can't help but think that we're really only a month away from some nicer hiking weather.   We'll be back out there next week making more progress.

We hiked a smaller section on the trail yesterday because we had plans to spend some time in Grand Rapids doing some geocaching and exploring the World of Winter, an annual event in Grand Rapids that celebrates Winter with art installations and some interactive displays. 

We arrived in Grand Rapids, parked, and bundled up...but boy was it cold out there still.  The wind was biting and we quickly realized that we weren't going to spend as much time geocaching as we had planned.  Our first stop was at the Gerald and Betty Ford burial site at the Gerald R Ford Presidential Museum.  It's crazy to think of all of the Presidential sites I've visited, I've never visited their gravesites before this.  Peaches sat nicely, but paid no attend to me because she was distracted by a squirrel.

We quickly walked around some of the art installations, but it was so cold that we didn't stay long in any one spot.  We had a nice 1 1/2 mile walk around downtown, but that was all we could handle with the cold.

We enjoyed some of the displays and I'm happy that we stopped.  Maybe we'll make it back to explore more on a little warmer day before the event ends on March 6.

We left the event, picked up dinner at Fish Lads, and then headed home from our day of fun.  The girls settled down nicely for the drive home.  They had had a really good day!

It has been a quiet day here today.  Surprisingly both girls slept in and, after a late breakfast, settled themselves in the living room for a morning nap.  They made a couple of brief trips outside this morning, and happily watched me as I did some cleaning and meal prep, but spent most of the day relaxing and napping.  

I decided that I'd give them a mid-afternoon Kong, and they both seemed to enjoy the special treat, but once finished, they quickly settled back in for the afternoon.  I didn't get as much done today as I had planned to do, but I was pretty happy with what I did accomplish and at how relaxed the girls were all day.  I was also happy that we didn't have to go anywhere today and could just watch the snowfall.  

It's been a snowy, cold, dreary day, and the perfect day to stay home.  I got some meal prep done for the week, Kongs are filled and in the freezer, and the house is clean, plus I feel relaxed and refreshed for the week to come.  It was a good way to spend our Sunday.   The sun is finally shining and we're currently rooting on the US men's curling team.  The girls have had dinner, we've played a little fetch, and we are now preparing for an evening of watching some Olympics and rooting on Matthew Stafford in the Super Bowl.  

I hope you all have a relaxing Sunday evening and enjoy the week ahead.  

The Winter Storm

Hello friends!  I hope that you all had a great week.  For us, things were a little crazy around here this week, but overall it was a good week.  I had a busy work week, so the girls spent a lot of their time in the office with me, mostly napping, but with the occasional wrestling match thrown in whenever I needed to be on a Microsoft Teams meeting.  Honestly, it never fails.  They will be quiet and relaxed almost all day, but suddenly, within 5 minutes of me joining a Teams meeting, World War III will break out behind me.  Thankfully they are pretty quiet, except when Ruby decides to stop playing and Peaches needs to bark at her to get the wrestling match started again.  

We had a great walk Monday after work.  The temperatures were mild for this time of year and the sidewalks were pretty clear, so we made good time.  When we arrived home after 6pm, I had to capture this shot in the backyard which proves that they daylight hours are slowly growing longer.  As we enter February, we have made it through the worst of Winter, in my opinion, because I think the worst part of Winter is all of the darkness.  Today, in Lansing, is our last sunset earlier than 6pm until daylight savings ends in the first week of November this Fall.  I can tolerate snow and cold; I cannot tolerate darkness, so this makes me very happy!

We spent a lot of time cuddling this week every night.  Ruby requires her lap time and she was sure that I ignored her far too much while I was working every day, so this is how I had to make it up to her.

Tuesday was gorgeous with temperatures near 50 degrees.  I couldn't let that beautiful sunshine and warmth go to waste, so I took the girls for a lunchtime walk.  It was the perfect break in my day.  It felt like Spring when I walked out the door, and I even think I could smell a little spring in the air.  But I knew that this was going to be short-lived.  So we took full advantage of the time we had to spend outdoors.  It was amazing!  I even indulged myself with a walk by myself after work to pick up a few snacks from Quality Dairy in preparation for what was to come.  

After the Spring-like weather on Tuesday, we awoke to the beginnings of a major snowstorm on Wednesday.  By the end of the storm, we had received over 13 inches of snow here.  

I got out on my lunch to do some shoveling, and we had already gotten  6 to 7 inches by that time.  It was coming down pretty fast, and I knew I'd be out there again shoveling before the end of the day.

The girls spent some time outside while I was shoveling, but they got cold so I let them inside so they could watch me from the front windows. 

After work, I headed out again to shovel another 3 to 4 inches of snow at that point, but it was still falling.  I had to take some pictures from the backyard, because even though it was cold and all that shoveling was hard, the snow really is beautiful.  We don't often get over a foot of snow in one storm, and for the most part, this amount of snow forces the world to slow down a bit, so I actually enjoy these storms, especially when I don't have to drive!

We continued to get more snow through the night, but before I could get out to finish my shoveling on Thursday, my amazing neighbor was out  with his snow blower clearing the sidewalks on our block...and he even cleared out my driveway!  I was extra happy to not have to go out to shovel because the temperatures were frigid with wind chills in the single digits.  

Thursday evening, I got my car back from being repaired.  It's great to have it fixed so we can take some adventures farther from home.  Friday, we had furnace issues early in the day, and I was pretty concerned that I might have to have the furnace replaced.  I love my furnace.  It's an old workhorse and has been so dependable, but I know that it is aging and will need to be replaced some day.  Luckily it was a minor issue this time and the repair was quick and inexpensive.  Whew!  

Saturday morning, I was up and out the door early to do some volunteer work with the Ingham County Animal Shelter.  The thing I love about the shelter community and rescue work is the desire to help others who are in need of assistance.  So last week, when the Grand Traverse County Animal Control had a seizure of over 160 animals, our local shelter put out the call for help.  Donations of food, towels, blankets, and so much more poured in to the shelter this week.   I was lucky enough to be one of four volunteers to make the drive to the Cherryland Humane Society in Traverse City, where all of these dogs are currently being housed, to drop off the donations from our community.  Luckily the trip there went safely, although we had a slippery start in the Lansing area.  The roads cleared nicely as we got farther North and the sun was shining brightly.

The staff and locals at the shelter were so touched and grateful for all of the support.  It was amazing!  We were able to take a tour of the shelter to see many of these dogs and to talk to the staff there.  They are hard at work medically caring for these animals, bathing and treating for fleas, and just trying to help socialize them as much as possible.  

After our tour, they fed us lunch and then we were back in the vans heading home.  It was a quick trip, and I am bummed that I didn't even get a chance to see the Lake when we were so very close, but it was a good reminder of why I love volunteering.  I hope to get back to helping out more at the shelter this year.  It is always so rewarding.

I arrived home to two girls ready for some fun.  They haven't been left alone that long since Ruby came to me, so I wasn't sure how they'd handle it.  They did well...but they had lots of energy to burn.  We spent some time outside for a bit before loading up the car and heading out for some fun.  Instead of trying to find a trail with less than a foot of snow, we headed out to visit several pet stores in the area.  They were so excited as we walked up and down every aisle.  They got to sniff and explore, and they got to make friends too.  And at the end of the day, we headed home with a few special treats for them too.  All of that sniffing and mental stimulation was pretty exhausting, so after a late dinner for them, they crashed for the night.  

After my crazy week of work, repairs, and volunteering, I was ready for a quiet Sunday at home.  Ruby and I spent the morning snuggling and watching the Olympics while Peaches relaxed on the couch.  It's been pretty quiet most of the day, although when I got up to do some meal prep, the girls decided they'd had enough relaxing.  They now have spent some time outside, had a bone, wrestled, and played fetch, and after a couple hours of activity, are sound asleep again, while I watch Curling.  

The sun is shining and it's above freezing, so we'll probably head out soon for a little late afternoon  adventure before settling in for a quiet evening at home.  I hope you are all enjoying a nice Sunday and have a wonderful week!