Making the most of our Michigan Summer.

How can it be that we have come to the end of July already?  The Summer days we've been enjoying seem to be flying by and, before we know it, the school year will start and Fall will arrive.   I'm in no hurry for those days though and plan to take full advantage of all of the Summer that remains.

We had a warm and very humid week filled with stormy weather starting with last Sunday.  Since we couldn't really get out for a walk Sunday afternoon, I took the girls with me to run some errands.  Luckily the weather started out cool enough that I could run into a couple of stores quickly while they waited in the car.  

Eventually the temperatures got too hot, so we visited a couple of dog friendly stores.  I think the highlight of the afternoon was outr trip to Lowe's where we walked up and down every single aisle both inside and outside.  The girls sniffed to their heart's content and several people stopped to say hello to them.  The best part is that we were able to get in a 1 1/4 mile walk just walking around the store.

We also took a short walk on the East-West Connector Trail and found some delicious blackberries for a quick snack.  Overall it was a good day.

Tuesday I had the day off from work so I could head to Ludington to complete a home visit for ISR.  Of course that meant beach time for me and the girls too.

We made the drive early so that we could get in some quality time at Ludington State Park before heading to the home visit.  The girls had the best time chasing sticks and playing, and we were also able to get in a nice walk.  Luckily as the beach started to get more crowded, we headed off to meet the potential adopter. 

We had a nice home visit with a very nice lady who let the girls come right into her house while we talked.  Mina found the stash of dog toys and made friends with both members of the family.  I think she enjoyed her volunteer work very much.  

After wrapping up the visit, we hit the road to start our slow journey home.  We stopped for a quick lunch along the way and then made our way to one of our favorite Lake Michigan beaches- The Norman Kruse Dog Beach in Muskegon.   

This is an off leash dog beach which makes it so much more fun because the dogs can run and play without being tethered by a 6ft leash.  I don't fully trust Mina off leash so she was on her long line, but Peaches was free to roam and she was happy to be able to explore.   Mina played endless rounds of fetch and Peaches even got involved in the fun a few times too.  

After about 90 minutes, of running and fun, it was time for us to head toward home.  Mina had an appointment with our Vet and I didn't want to be late.

We arrived in Mason with about 25 minutes to spare, so we took a quick walk along the Hayhoe Riverwalk starting at the cemetery and heading through downtown Mason.

This stick library sponsored by our local library made me smile.

We finished our walk and drove quickly down the road to Patterson's for Mina's appointment.   It was too hot to leave Peaches in the car, so she came in with us.  She wasn't very happy about the situation, but she survived. 

Mina had bloodwork done to ensure that it would be safe for her to move forward with her spay surgery scheduled for the next morning.  Thankfully her numbers improved since her last bloodwork, and while her red blood count is still slightly low, we were told it would be safe for her to have surgery. 

After a long and busy day, we headed home for a late dinner and some snuggle time. 

Wednesday's forecast was hot and humid with the chance for some severe storms later in the day, so I brought Peaches along with me when I dropped Mina off for her surgery.  It was early and cool enough for a nice walk so I figured it was the perfect time to get outside. 

 

We parked near the Courthouse in Mason and headed out for some more time on a different portion of the Hayhoe Riverwalk 

Peaches was so happy to be out as a solo dog and we had a really nice 2 mile walk before we had to head home to start my work day.

While I worked, Peaches happily napped the day away and we were able to get out for another short walk before eating lunch.

Some crazy storms moved in mid-afternoon and there was even a tornado warning in Ingham County, not far from our Vet's office.

I was worried about Mina since I hadn't picked her up, but was happy to hear that the staff and animals at the clinic were all safely in the basement while the tornado warning was active and everyone said Mina handled it all very well.

A stormy Wednesday night led to a humid Thursday, but we were happy to stay home in the comfort of the air conditioning.   Mina was pretty pathetic all day and I felt pretty bad for her.  

We did get out for a quick trip to the South Lansing Farmer's Market on Thursday afternoon just so the girls could have a little adventure.   I even found one vendor that still had a small supply of Strawberries...so I bought a pint.  So good.   They are definitely the last of the strawberries for the year.

Friday was another uncomfortably humid day and with Mina recovering from surgery, we had no plans for the day.  So when I needed to run a quick errand on my lunch, I decided to bring the girls along for the ride.

 

Not far down the road my low tire pressure light came on and we ended up at Discount Tire for a tire repair.

First, we walked around the property in the shade while we waited.  Eventually we all sat down to relax in the shade.  It was an unexpected delay in our day, but the tire was repaired pretty quickly and free of charge and I was grateful that we hadn't had issues on any of our other trips this week. 

After staring my day walking shelter dogs on Saturday morning,  I came home to get the girls out for a little fun.

Our first stop was Soldan's for their ice cream social.  For a small donation to the Ingham County Animal Shelter, each girl got a bowl of frozen yogurt which we were able to top with a nice selection of toppings.  Of course they both thoroughly enjoyed this special treat.

We then took a drive to Preuss Pets to pick up a few things.  The girls always love a trip to Preuss.   We also took a walk around Old Town since we hadn't been there in awhile.  Both girls had a great time.

As we drove home through REO Town, I saw a sign for an event with the BWL and decided to stop to check it out.  It was the 10th anniversary celebration of the power plant in REO Town.

The girls got to join me on the self-guided tour of the plant, and then I enjoyed some ice cream while they shared a hot dog from Clint's Hot Dog cart.  We met some nice people and the girls were so good.  I was really glad we had made the stop.

I couldn't resist getting a couple of pictures on our way back to the car.  I think they were both pretty happy with their adventures for the day.

While we have gotten out for some small adventures and short walks this week, I have carefully been limiting Mina's exercise as she continues to recover from her surgery.  Today we needed a little more adventure, so we met Vanessa out at Sleepy Hollow to do a little geocaching.   While our geocaching day wasn't very successful, it was still a good day.  We enjoyed some really nice weather and a nice walk.

After getting home, this was my view for most of the evening.  It was a good day.

As we enter the month of August, we have some fun plans ahead, but this should be a fairly quiet week with Mina's exercise still very limited for the week.  The weather looks nice, though, so I'm sure we'll get out for some fun.  We've got to make the most of the Summer while we can!

I'll leave you with this picture of the cutest little USA Women's Soccer fan.  Hope you all have a spectacular week!

Making the most of our July

Last Sunday, after a quiet start to our morning, the girls and I got in the car and headed toward Dewitt for the Doggy Ice Cream Social being held at that Soldan's location.  This was a fundraising event for a local rescue and there was food and activities and I knew that it would be fun for us all.  We had invited Vanessa to join us, and she met us there.    

Boy was I surprised by the number of people there when we arrived! It was bustling.  The girls were registered for the ice cream eating contest, and while we waited for their names to be called, we walked around the event. 

They had their picture taken at the photo booth.  It is always an effort to get both excited dogs to look at the camera at the same time, but I thought this one turned out pretty well.  

Mina enjoyed bobbing for tennis balls.  She would have spent a lot more time here if I had let her.  They competed in the timed frosty paws eating contest, we all got an ice cream sundae from the ice cream sundae bar, Vanessa got herself a hot dog and got one for the girls to share too.  They did paw print painting, we bought some treats from one of the vendors on site, and they made lots of friends.  Both girls were so good, but I was especially proud of Peaches.  She sure has come a long way since I first got her.  What a fun start to our day.

Once we had partaken in all of the fun offered at the Ice Cream Social, we had plans to do a little geocaching with Vanessa.  Since we were so close, we decided we'd visit Sleepy Hollow State Park to pick up some of the caches there.  

We had a nice 4 mile hike and picked up several caches.  I had never hiked in this area of the park before and I really enjoyed it.  While it was a warm day, there was a nice breeze, no bugs(which is unusual for Sleepy Hollow), and lots of black raspberries along the trail for some snacking along the way.

The girls had a chance to get their feet wet in Lake Ovid and we enjoyed some pretty views.  It was a really nice way to spend a sunny July Sunday afternoon.

After we finished our hike, I was starving and needed to find somewhere for lunch.   Luckily I remembered PDP Pizzeria in Laingsburg wasn't too far away.  I was just going to get a small pizza for carryout, but they had some nice seating on the patio and no one else was there, so the girls and I found a shady spot, I placed my order, and we enjoyed a nice lunch outside of this historic former train depot.  The pizza here never disappoints and I splurged for the breadsticks too, so I had plenty left for a couple additional meals.  It was the perfect spot to end our fun for the day.

Monday morning started with my trip to the Endodontist to finally get to the root of the probably with my toothache.  After x-rays, the doctor shared that there was still quite a bit of infection in the tooth and that a root canal was the next step.  He examined the tooth for a crack or cavity that may have caused the issue and found nothing, so we have no real idea why the tooth became infected, but I was just happy to get it fixed.  Almost a week post root canal and I think I'm finally back to normal.  

On Tuesday, the Summer tradition of the Famer's Market on the Capitol grounds returned for another year and I decided that I'd take the girls for a walk downtown on my lunch.  This was the first of three Farmer's Markets that will be held this year.  It was smaller than it was when we visited last year, but there were still plenty of things to see, lots of things for the girls to sniff. and plenty of people who wanted to say hello.

I picked up some donuts and a cider slushie from Pete's Donuts truck and then grabbed lunch from the Picnic truck.  With my sandwich in hand, we walked over to sit near one of the memorials so that I could eat lunch and listen to music from a couple of members of the Lansing Symphony Orchestra.  Both girls were very good, but Mina really made herself right at home near the violinist.  It was a great way to spend my lunch.  Hopefully I can make it to the remaining markets later this Summer.

Wednesday was dog walking night and I got to walk this cutie.  Yung Gravy (the shelter is currently naming dogs after musicians) is just 7 months old, but he already weighs nearly 90 pounds.  He is a nervous puppy, but he did really well on our walk.  He is super sweet and his fur is so soft.   I hope he finds the right family soon.  I think he's got the potential to be a really great dog with some love and patience. 

We had some storms move through the area Thursday afternoon and I was worried it may derail our plans to visit the South Lansing Farmer's Market.  After a brief delay, the vendors were able to set up and the Farmer's market was on despite the weather.  Thankfully the rain stayed away after everyone was set up and we were able to make our normal visit.  Not all of the usual vendors were there, but we still enjoyed the walk around and I got a few fruits and veggies from a couple of vendors as well as some veggie egg rolls and fried rice from the Ming Dynasty booth.  After a quick walk around Soldan's as well, we headed home and I made a yummy stir fry to combine with the rice and egg rolls for a delicious dinner.  

In addition to our short adventures throughout the week, we also got out for plenty of walks around the neighborhood and spent quality time outside every night.  Mina has become quite the lover of a good game of fetch and I spent lots of time throwing a tennis ball for her to chase.  Sometime Peaches will get involved in those games, other times she doesn't, but she's always out there with us enjoying the wonderful Summer evenings.  

Friday night I decided we should take a drive to visit Crandell Lake near Charlotte.  I had never spent any time there, but based on what I had heard from another friend, we needed to make the visit.

There is a nice loop trail the goes around the lake that has nice views.  There are lots of grasslands and a small part of the trail also goes through some woods.  As we were finishing our walk, I enjoyed watching the late evening sun.  

The girls loved all of the smells and Peaches enjoyed rolling in the grass.  We walked along the beach in a couple of spots and I was reminded how much Peaches likes water if it is in a river, stream, or small inland lake.  She really loved her beach time.  I have also discovered that Mina prefers the big lakes.  She barely even put a paw in the lake here.  

There were lots of pretty flowers and I think both of the girls really just enjoyed the adventure.  So did I.

Just look at those happy faces.  We were able to get in a good 3 mile walk with lots of sniffing, some geocaching, and a little training too.

And to start our weekend off right, we made a visit to Tasty Twist for a little treat on the way home.  The girls definitely knew where we were!

Saturday I had lots to do and several errands to run.  Nothing required me to spend more than a few minutes away from the car, so I brought the girls along for the ride.  They waited patiently for me to recycle styrofoam and ink cartridges, make a quick return, and do some other odds and ends, but the waiting paid off for them because we stopped at three pet stores while we were in the Okemos area-Soldan's, Pet Supplies Plus, and PetSmart.  We had not visited the new Soldan's location in Okemos, and we rarely visit the Okemos Pet Supplies Plus or PetSmart, so they were very interested in checking things out.  Mina especially liked the birds at PetSmart.

There were some good deals at both Soldan's and PSP, so we bought a few things at each location and I was surprised that we were able to get in nearly a half mile walk just walking around those three stores.

Before heading home for the day, I grabbed a quick lunch and drove to campus to find a spot to sit outside and eat.  Of course I had an audience.

After finishing my lunch we headed out for a walk around South Campus and ultimately took a walk around Spartan Village.  It was a nice quiet spot for a walk and another place the girls don't go often, which always makes for a better adventure.

We got back to the car just as some rain drops began to fall.  Perfect timing!  It had been a productive but also relaxing afternoon, but I had things to do at home.  While I did some work around the house, the girls spent time outside, and after dinner we all settled in for a quiet Saturday night at home.

Earlier this week, Fiona reached 15 months old.  I can't believe how big she is getting and how much she is learning.  She loves music and you should hear her cry if her music gets turned off when she's in the car if I happen to call Nicol.  She would much rather listen to music than to grandma talking.  She's using sign language to communicate more and also learning to say lots of words.  I didn't get a chance to visit her this week, but hopefully I'll see her again soon.  She's growing up so fast!

Summer is quickly moving along.  We've officially finished one whole month and I can't believe we are just a little over a week from August and nearing the mid-point of Summer.  I was hoping to do some work in the yard today and get the girls out for a little more Summer fun, but it looks like we're expecting stormy weather on and off throughout the day, so we may have to settle for a couple of short walks and a quiet day at home.  It is raining currently and the girls are napping after having spent some time outside  and then having a collagen chew this morning.  As I sit here finishing the blog, I think that a rainy day at home might actually be just what we need.    

We're having a great Summer and I just want to make the most of every minute.  We have lots going on this week and look forward to sharing with you next Sunday.  I hope you all are enjoying your Summer too and that you have a relaxing Sunday and a wonderful week ahead.