Busy, but uneventful

While life remained busy this week, it was a fairly uneventful week.  Old Man Winter finally decided we'd had enough of the the frigid temperatures, but rain, freezing rain, and slushy snow defined the start of our week.

Monday and Tuesday were lazy days spent mostly inside due to the weather, and I had to find ways to keep the girls occupied while I worked.  We did lots of puzzle games and they had to work for all of their meals.  I also prepped a bunch of kongs and bones for the freezer.  That allowed the girls to partake in one of their favorite activities - helping  clean out the empty peanut butter jars.

By the end of my work day Tuesday, we were all going a little stir crazy, so I decided to pull out the AKC list of Intermediate tricks and start working on some new skills with Mina.  Of course Peaches is always included in these fun training sessions too.  

We started with a little refresher course on some everyday skills and then worked our way into some more difficult tricks.  I think we were all happy I had made the decision and we all had fun.  We then settled in for a quiet night.

Wednesday the weather had improved so I was back to my recent routine of working in the morning then driving to the hospital on my lunch in order to spend the afternoon visiting with my dad while I work from his hospital room.  He seemed extra tired that afternoon, but I could definitely tell he'd made progress. 

I drove home from the hospital in time for our Wednesday night shelter dog walk.  There were only two of us coming in to walk that night, thankfully, because I arrived to find only one dog available to walk with us.  So Idril got a walk all by herself in a light rain, and then we returned to the shelter to give her some play time inside.  She was a fun little girl and had a great night.

Normally I would have visited my dad on Thursday, but my work schedule that afternoon wasn't conducive to working from the hospital, so I stayed home for the day.

That allowed me to get the girls out immediately after work for a fun walk on the East-West Connector Trail at Sharp Park.  We hadn't been here in quite awhile so the girls were thrilled to be somewhere different and the best part was that we got in a 3 mile walk before it got completely dark.  It seems like forever since we walked that far and it felt great.  It also led to a very quiet night and a slow start to our Friday morning. 

Since I hadn't been to the hospital Thursday, I worked from there on Friday afternoon.  My mom took the day off from visiting, and I was glad I could give her a break.  I worked on some of my tedious end of week work tasks while having a nice conversation with my dad.  He had definitely made progress since I saw him on Wednesday.   It was a great visit. 

I left the hospital just after 5pm to make the drive home in the rain  When I arrived home, it was raining pretty steadily, but I knew I had to do something with the girls, so we headed out for a visit to Preuss Pets.

I'm sure the girls thought that this was the most exciting thing we did all week.  They love Preuss and dragged me all over sniffing everything.  They especially loved watching the fish and the small furry critters.  I bought a few small items and left with two happy girls.   

We then took a quick walk in Old Town in a light drizzle so that they could explore, potty, and expend some energy before heading home.   After eating dinner from their treats balls, they settled in nicely for the night. 

Saturday I had a full day planned.  While I was originally supposed to help on two separate rescue transports, one was canceled late in the week leaving me with just one, but I was pretty excited about this transport. These three puppies came from Roscommon County Animal Shelter where they were surrendered with two others last week.  All five boys were surrendered when the lady who bred them couldn't sell them and could no longer handle caring for them.  Lucky for them, the shelter was able to find breed experienced homes for two of them and ISR was able to take the remaining three.

This transport started in Lansing where I met the volunteer from the shelter and then helped get them to Battle Creek.  From there they were off to foster homes in Indiana and Illinois, and I headed back home.  

Since I no longer had a second transport, which would have taken me from Lansing to Flint, I  decided I'd take the girls along on my drive to visit my dad.  I thought we could make a stop along the way so that they could have a little adventure, and then they could nap in the car while I visited with my dad.

We ended up stopping at Bicentennial Park in Grand Blanc which is just a couple miles from the hospital.  There were plenty of new smells and a nice paved trail.  We had a nice walk and even did a little geocaching. 

After a great visit with my dad, we started our trek home.   I decided to take some backroads instead of the Expressway and I am glad I did.  When we came upon this little strip mall with Magoo's Pet Outlet, of course we made a stop.  We walked up and down every aisle, made friends with an 11 week old Great Dane puppy, and found some great deals.  We took a walk around the plaza before we left and even got to pick up a geocache.  Then we got back in the car and slowly weaved our way home making some quick stops to pickup a geocache here and there.  

The girls had dinner in their puzzle toys when we got home, and then we settled in for the night.  It had been a really good day, probably one of the best days we've had all month.  Even though I had been busy, it was a refreshing change from our recent routine.

It has been a rough Sunday morning for the girls and they've been good while I try to get some things done, including the blog.  But Peaches' whine tells me that it may be time to get moving. 

I was excited for today because it is the only day of the week I have no commitments and nowhere i have to be.  But I have so many things I need to get done and so many fun things I want to do with the girls, I just don't have enough time.  

So today I will spend some time doing some much needed cleaning, I will get some tasks done, I will get the girls out for an adventure, and then, I am going to sit down, relax, and watch the Lions play in the NFC Championship game.  

Now I'm off to be productive.   Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and Go Lions!!!

The Arctic Blast

It was another long, busy, frigid week for us here.  I was thankful to start the week off with a day at home.  Due to the MLK holiday, I had the day off from work, and Nicol had planned to visit my dad at the hospital, giving me a day off from traveling.  I was grateful for the ability just to stay home.

The morning started quietly at home with the girls napping, which gave me a chance to relax too.  It was a frigid day with negative wind chills, so I had plans to keep the girls entertained inside and just have a lazy day at home.  Peaches had other plans.

By early afternoon, I was sick of being stared and whined at by the old lady, so I decided to take a drive and get them out for a brief walk.  Peaches was so excited that she immediately started rolling in the snow.  Mina wasn't quite so happy about the freezing snow on her feet.

After a short walk, we were back in the car to make a stop at Soldan's.  I decided to walk a loop around the parking lot, since it was clean and dry, before making our way into the store.  We made a second loop around the parking lot after our trip into the store which added up to just about a half mile walk.

Since the sun was shining and the wind had calmed down, I decided we'd make a trip to Benjamin Davis Park to see if the paths were clear enough for a walk.  I was pleasantly surprised to find them pretty clean.

We made a couple of loops and enjoyed the beauty of the sun shining on the snow as well as the fresh air and excercise.  It was nice to get outside for a change.  The girls were probably even happier than I was to be outside.  We definitely all needed it.

After working all morning and then working from the hospital while visiting my dad in the afternoon Tuesday, I arrived home after dark.  It was too cold and dark to get out for a walk by the time I got home, so the girls got to eat dinner from their treat balls and we played a bit.  Thankfully they settled in pretty quickly for the evening. 

I barely had time to breath on Wednesday.  My day at work was full of meetings and lots to do.  When I finally had a moment to take a break late in the afternoon, I took the girls out for a ride in the car.  Unfortunately they didn't get out for a walk because I just didn't have time.

After work, I headed out to the shelter to spend some time with the shelter dogs.  When life is crazy, I appreciate my volunteer time even more.  

I was joined by two other volunteers, but because the weather was so cold, we didn't hold our normal dog walk.  Instead, we set up a loop to walk them around inside the shelter and had the community room set up for playtime.  I took each dog outside for a short walk around the parking lot for a potty break, and then they went inside for a walk inside with one volunteer and playtime with the other.  It was a great set up for the cold weather and they all got out of their kennels which always makes me happy.

Luckily these girls of mine are good to me, because without much excitement all day, they still just settled in for an evening of cuddles after I got home.

Thursday was the longest day of the week.  As I was getting ready to head to the hospital for the afternoon, I got a call from my dad telling me that they had decided to take him in for a second surgery that afternoon.  I rushed off to the hospital to be there with my mom and brother before dad went into surgery, and I stayed until the surgeon came out after surgery to tell us all had gone well.  The picture above was taken when I got home long after dark.  It was a long, exhausting day.

Friday afternoon I drove to the hospital again to see my dad since I hadn't talked to him after his surgery.   He was in good spirits, but tired.  I worked while he slept and finally left just after 5pm.

As soon as I got home, I got the girls in the car and off we went for a walk around Lowe's.   We walked up and down every aisle and did a little training.  It was the best walk we'd had since Monday and was much needed.   Dinner was served in one of their brain games when we got home, and then we settled in for the evening. 

I had planned on staying home on Saturday, but no one else in the family was going to make a visit for the day, so I adjusted my plans and drove to the hospital for a Saturday visit.  

Dad was sound asleep when I arrived and still sound asleep an hour later.  I took a walk around the hospital and when I came back to his room, he was still sleeping.  I spoke with his nurse and decided that I'd just head home and let him get his rest.  He really needs it for his recovery.

Before driving home, I headed down the road to drive through the National Cemetery in Holly and do a little geocaching because I really needed a mental break.  It was a beautiful, cold, sunny Winter day.  I love our National Cemeteries.

When I got home, I had a couple of quick errands to run so I loaded the girls into the car and off we went.

I got the girls out for a walk around PetSmart, a different Lowe's than we had visited Friday, and Tractor Supply.  We spent lots of time walking, and they got lots of love and treats at each of the stores and spent lots of time sniffing.   It was a good way to get us all some excercise.  

I picked up a Pizza on the way home and we had another quiet night.

Knowing that my mom planned to visit dad on Sunday, I decided to take the day off and stay home.  We had a quiet morning and I was able to do some cleaning and laundry  as well as prep lots of kongs and other brain games for the girls for the week.

Eventually Peaches made it clear that she needed an adventure, and with the sun shining, we headed out to find some fun.  We ended up at the Capitol for a little over a mile walk.  Afterward I stopped for gas, and then took the girls for a visit to Soldan's on the way home.  Mina was fascinated by the guinea pigs today.  We walked around the store and made two loops around the parking lot for another 3/4 of a mile before heading home.

The girls had a late lunch in a brain game and I heated up some leftover pizza before sitting down to watch the Lions game.  Mina and I played fetch during the game while Peaches napped on my lap.  

Picasso also rooted on the Lions with Tyler while wearing his cute bandana that I gave him.  I think we were all happy with the Lions' win.  It's been a great season to be a Lions fan so far.  Hopefully they keep playing well next week!

My little Fiona turned 21 months old this week.  With everything going on, I haven't seen her since Christmas Eve, and I can't believe how big she's getting.  I'm hoping maybe I'll get the chance to see her next week.  

I am hopeful that with warmer temperatures coming back this week we'll be able to get out for more fun.  I've noticed the sunset getting later and I'm excited that we're quickly nearing the end of the month.   I hope you all have a great week.  

The January Storm

Here we are, half way through the month of January already.  I'm not really sure hope that happened so quickly.  Weren't we just celebrating a new year?  Honestly the last 12 days have been a blur.  January is one of my least favorite months of the year, so in some ways I guess its good that it is going so quickly.  And every day brings us one day closer to Spring!

Monday was a very long day.   It started early, and I spent most of the day at the hospital with my mom in the surgery waiting room while my dad was in surgery.  His surgery went well, thankfully, and they moved him into surgery ICU for a few days to start his recovery. 

I stayed at the hospital until he moved to recovery, but I wasn't able to wait for him to  wake up and be able to see visitors because I had to get home to the girls.  It was nice to get home and to take them for a walk before it got dark.  I needed to stretch my legs and get some fresh air.  It had been a long and exhausting day.

I was also thankful for Mina's snuggles that night.

After spending many days at the hospital, juggling work and the dogs and life, I made the decision to stay home on Tuesday.  

After a full day of work, I was excited to meet up with our friend Tom who was in town for a conference.   He'd never visited Lansing or the Capitol before so we made sure he had the appropriate escort around downtown.  It was rainy miserable weather, but we had a great walk around the entire Capitol complex and made sure he got the obligatory Capitol picture. 

After our walk we drove around showing him some of the highlights of Lansing and finished the night with Mexican for dinner.  I'm so glad we got see him while he was in town!

Wednesday I spent the morning working and then drove to the hospital during my lunch.  I spent the afternoon visiting with my dad while working from his hospital room.  He looked great and was in good spirits.  It was so good to see him, and his recovery was going well.

I drove home in time for Wednesday night Dog Walking Club at the shelter.   We  were able to get 5 dogs out for a walk.  I was glad I had decided to hold the walk despite everything going on because it's always good for my heart to spend time with these beautiful dogs.  Winky loved his time out of the shelter!

The girls had ridden to the shelter with me so as soon as we finished walking the shelter dogs, I got them out for a quick walk too.  I needed it as much as they did.  

I woke up to a fresh layer of snow on Thursday morning.  I did a couple of hours of work at home  before making the drive to the hospital, and I spent the rest of the day working from the hospital room.  It was nice visiting with my dad.  My mom came later in the afternoon and we got to talk too, while my dad napped.

When I got home, I had a nice walk around the neighborhood with the girls after dark.  Then we made a trip to the grocery store to pick up a few things I needed since I hadn't been to the store in a couple weeks.  It was crazy how empty the shelves were.  I guess no one wanted to run out of tomatoes and blackberries during our impending storm. 

Friday's forecast called for snow and blizzard conditions so I had made plans to stay home for the day.  Not knowing exactly when the wintry weather would arrive, I wanted to make sure to get the girls out early, so we took a 2 mile morning walk.

When we reached lunchtime and the snow still hadn't started, I thought I'd take a break from work to take the girls for a run through the woods at Soldan Dog Park.  Mina found a tennis ball and enjoyed a good run through the woods, while Peaches was busily sniffing every log and stump looking for critters.  Mina also discovered the fun of watching leaves blow across.the ice forming on the pond.  It was so nice to get a break from everything going on in life and just watch the girls runs and explore. 

The snow finally began to fall around 3:30, and after I finished work for the day, we just enjoyed a quiet Winter evening at home.

The storms weren't too bad, but we did get about 6 inches of heavy snow.  I was glad that we hadn't gotten the bad winds they thought might accompany the snow so there was no tree damage or power outages for us.  I was excited to have a peaceful day at home.

For the most part, the girls cooperated.  We had a quiet morning of snuggling which I really enjoyed.  Mid-day the girls went outside for a bit, then came in for some fun brain games, lunch, some play time, and then a nap and more snuggling.  There were several rounds of time outside, playtime inside, chews, and snuggles through the afternoon while I did word search puzzles and watched the Game Show Network.   

 

I finally decided to do a little work around the house before heading outside to shovel.  The house is the cleanest it's been since Christmas Eve.  The girls played outside while I was shoveling, and then I cleaned up and started a load of laundry before we all had dinner and settled in for the night.  

My dad called me to talk, and he sounded great.  I was happy to learn that for the first time since January 2 he finally got to eat real food.  It was just broth, jello, and a popsicle, but he was pretty excited about it.  It was a great way to end a really good day.

We woke up to a new layer of snow, blue skies, sunshine, and frigid temperatures this morning.  It was glorious to see the sun.  It always makes the snow look so pretty.

The girls went out for a potty break, ate breakfast, and quickly settled in for a morning nap while is sat down to write.   I suspect this will be the scene for most of our day.

With the condition of the sidewalks in the neighborhood and the temperatures in the teens with windchils below zero, the girls and I probably won't be able to get out for a walk, but I've got some indoor fun planned for them to help pass the day along with brief trips outside so Mina can zoom around the yard.  Mostly I just want to allow my body and mind some rest after all I've been dealing with over the last  two weeks.

If I can make it out of my driveway and down the ice rink that is my street, I was hoping to be able to visit my dad today, With more snow in the forecast for the next several hours, mother nature may have other ideas for me.  Another quiet day at home wouldn't be so bad.

I hope you all have a wonderful, relaxing day.  Keep warm and stay safe!