A birthday, a holiday, and fun with Fiona

Happy Easter!  Somehow, we have reached the last day of March.  It is crazy for me to think that we are already a quarter of the way through the year.  Life really needs to slow down!

Monday was a beautiful sunny day.  It was also a typical busy Monday at work.  I took advantage of the nice weather and took the girls to the dog park for a good lunchtime run.  It was the perfect break from my busy day.  It was also the day I found my first tick of the season.  Yuck! I hate those little things.  On a more positive note, it was the day that my dad left the hospital again for a new rehab facility.  Overall it was a good day.

On Tuesday after work, I took the girls with me on the drive to visit my dad at rehab.  On the way there, we stopped at a park near the facility that had a nice 1 mile looped walking trail along the Flint River.  The girls really enjoyed the walk.  

We also made a stop at the Veteran's Memorial at the park before we got back into the car and headed off to see my dad.  I had a really nice visit with him.  It was clear that this rehab facility was better than the last one, and boy was that a relief.  Now we just hope that he stays healthy so that he can get strong enough to get home again.  

On Wednesday, I had a great time at our shelter dog walk.  We had a great group of dogs and they were all happy to be out for our walk  I walked Isabel, a 5 month old hound mix.  She is so cute with a personality to match.  

After I got home from the shelter, I was able to get the girls out for a nice walk too. I love that it stays later this time of year so that I can walk them before the sunsets.  Then after dinner, Mina enjoyed her new carrot treat toy.  She really loves this thing and has used it frequently this week.  

Thursday, work ended up busier than I expected.  When I finally got a mid-afternoon break, I decided we'd visit the dog park so the girls could get in a good run and I could enjoy I little time in the woods before my afternoon calls.  They are always so fun to watch and I always feel better after we get out in the woods.  Because of the time of day we were there, we nearly had the whole park to ourselves.  It was wonderful.

While it was a quick visit, it was a really great break and really helped me get through the end of my workday.

I had planned an afterwork visit to my dad, but before I left town, my mom called to tell me that she had visited him so I could take the day off from visiting him.  We took advantage of this extra found time to explore a couple of parks near Haslett that we had never visited.  I was so happy to see the forsythia in bloom.  That is a sure sign of Spring.  We really enjoyed our free time and the unexpected Thursday adventure. 

Friday was Good Friday and Nicol's birthday, and I had the day off from work.  I was glad to take advantage of the free morning to go into the shelter to take a couple of dogs out for a walk.  Marietta and I had a very nice sunny morning walk.  She is a very sweet, but shy, girl.

Nicol and Tyler had tickets for the Sweet 16 games in Detroit, so Friday afternoon/evening, I got to watch Fiona.  I left home mid-day to drop the girls off for an afternoon of doggy daycare, got checked into my hotel near Nicol's house, and spent about an hour doing a little geocaching before heading to Nicol's house for the rest of the day. 

Fiona and I spent our time reading several books, listening to music, and playing inside.  Then we went outside to play in the yard for a bit before we had to leave to pick the girls up from daycare.

We got the girls and made the drive back to the house.  I spent the rest of the evening juggling dogs, getting everyone dinner, and then getting everyone settled in for a quiet evening.  I followed Fiona's bedtime routine, we read books, sang songs, and rocked until it was time for her to go to bed for the night.  I then spent some one on one time with Picasso before he went upstairs and settled into bed too.  Then the girls and I watched tv until Nicol and Tyler got home...really late!

It was after 1am when we got to our hotel room, and the girls were ready to hog the bed.  When we all finally got settled into bed, it was after 1:30am.  It had been a very long day!

The girls woke me up at 8am on Saturday morning, ready for a potty break and breakfast.  With rain in the forecast after 8:30am, I decided we'd take a nice walk to ensure we burned off some energy before the rain started.  We got back to the hotel, I grabbed breakfast, and then we headed up to the room so I could get the girls their breakfast too.  By 9am, we were settled on the bed with the girls watching me eat my bacon...of course I shared with them.

I decided to take full advantage of the 12pm checkout on a rainy day, and I was glad that the girls were ready to lounge around too.  It was a quiet morning as they napped and I relaxed and watch the rainfall.  We all dozed off for a little nap just after 10am, but I was up by 11:15am to make sure I was packed and ready to go by checkout.  It was a wonderful way to start our day.

The rain had slowed down enough when we left the hotel that we were able to take a quick 1/2 mile walk before getting in the car.  Then we made a few short stops around the Farmington Hills area to pick up a few geocaches and let the girls stretch their legs.

We then made the drive North to visit my dad.  I had a really nice visit with my dad.  While he is still not strong, his strength is improving and he was in good spirits.  I continue to enjoy these visits with him.  While I wish he weren't going through all he has been, I have been blessed to spend so much extra one on one time with him over the last few weeks.  After our visit, I took the girls for one last walk.  While there were a few sprinkles, it was a nice way to end our day.  

We were still catching up on our sleep from our late Friday night and we all slept in a bit this morning.  After the girls had breakfast, they wanted to spend some time out in the yard enjoying the day.  Of course the girls had an Easter visit from the Easter Bunny with lots of fun goodies in their basket. I decided I'd take them outside for a picture. They were so good!  I fed them an early lunch, and then got them settled in for the day with Kongs and their carrot treat toys, and then headed out to spend my day watching Fiona while Tyler and Nicol went to the Elite Eight game in Detroit.

Picasso also got a basket of goodies from me for Easter and he was very excited to see me.  While Fiona played quietly with her kitchen, Picasso and I had a good round of fetch...and I earned several kisses from this handsome boy.

After some play time at home, Fiona and I headed out for some fun adventures around Farmington Hills.

Our first stop was a visit to Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum.  I've heard a lot about this quirky spot and so I thought we'd check it out.  It is a really weird spot with a variety of vintage coin operated machines, arcade games, and other oddities.  There were lots of noises and fun things to see.  

Then we stopped across the street for tacos.  This picky little girl spent all of her time licking sour cream off of one chip.  She's at that fun age where she doesn't really eat much.  But that's ok, we still enjoyed our time together here.

When I asked Fiona what she wanted to do for fun, she kept mentioning going to the Zoo and getting groceries.  She loves animals, and I knew we weren't going to go to the zoo, so I decided to see if we could find a Nature Center nearby.  Looking at the map, Heritage Park was close and had a Nature Center that I thought she'd enjoy.  Sadly when arrived, I discovered that the Nature Center Building is still closed on Sundays(they haven't switched from Winter to Spring hours). but fortune was on our side when Fiona pointed out a painting of owls and was overheard by a lady near us.  The woman proceeded to ask us some questions, and then asked if we wanted to go inside the Nature Center to see more animals.  I didn't realize we had been talking to an employee of the park, and she was so impressed with Fiona's knowledge identifying animals, that she offered us a private visit.  What a fun experience as Fiona saw all of the fish, turtles, snakes, and other fun animals.  We even got to visit the classroom bunny.

  

Afterward, the lady offered to show us a fun nature trail which was perfect for Fiona and led us to the playground.  We had such a nice visit with this woman, and I was so grateful for her hospitality. 

Fiona and I spent quite a bit of time on the playground as she climbed up to several slides over and over, played in the swing, chased a ball, and ran around in the grass. 

On the way back to the car, she insisted on stopping several times along the nature trail to sit and enjoy the sound of the birds and all that nature had to offer.  I wanted to walk the Storybook path before we left, but we had done a lot of walking, and Nicol and Tyler had gotten home, so we decided to leave that for another visit.  I had such a fun day with Fiona.  I can't wait to do it again!

It was after 7:30pm when I got home and I was exhausted from my busy weekend, so I reheated some leftovers for dinner, fed the girls, and then we snuggled up to watch the U of M vs MSU hockey game.  I'm so glad that the girls settled in so well for the night.  It was a quiet night at home, much needed after this crazy weekend.  

Tomorrow we head into April, and hopefully, this month will allow us more opportunities to enjoy some Spring weather and fun adventures that aren't always just side adventures lumped on to other duties or obligations.  I really need a break from everything that's been going on, and I'm hopeful that better days are ahead.  Hope springs eternal.

Have a great week everyone!