Just gotta keep moving

After a very long and difficult week last week, I started this week completely exhausted.  I woke up for work on Monday already ready for a nap.  While I was tired all day, I was also busy which helped the time pass quickly.  

I decided to take the girls to Soldan dog park during my lunch because I knew that would make them happy and get them some much needed exercise, and it would help make my afternoon a little quieter as I finished my work day.

It was a lovely day, and we all really enjoyed our walk in the woods.  Mina played ball, Peaches explored and sniffed, and I enjoyed the sunshine and fresh air.  As we were heading back toward the entrance to leave, we were all happy to meet a beautiful Vizsla and Peaches was excited to spend a little time playing with her new friend.

The rest of my work day was peaceful and quiet while the girls napped and I had a few meetings.  At the end of the day, I had planned to head to the hospital to visit my dad, but I was just so tired that I decided to stay home and rest instead.  I hadn't taken a night off in over a week, and I was happy that I made the decision to relax and catch up on my rest.  It was definitely a much needed night off.

Tuesday was a full day at work.  After a restful Monday evening and a really good night's sleep, I woke up refreshed and feeling extra productive.  The day was busy and went fast, and the girls spent a lot of time outside enjoying the sunshine.  After work, I made the drive to the hospital to visit my dad.  It was cool enough for the girls to ride along.  I had a nice visit and stayed to watch Jeopardy.  I left later than normal so we drove right home without making a stop for the girls to run.  I felt bad for them, but it was a good visit and I was glad that I had stayed.

On Wednesday, I made sure to get the girls out for a trip to the park on my lunch again to make up for the lack of fun on Tuesday.   It was hot and the girls both spent some time splashing in the water in addition to their normal park routines.  It was a fun visit.

Then after work, I spent my evening at the shelter for our Wednesday Dog Walking Club. 

Whiskey and Good Cheer are my two favorite dogs at the shelter right now and I loved getting to spend some time with them.  The weather was beautiful and we were able to get seven dogs out for a walk.  

Also by Wednesday, my dad had improved enough to be discharged from the hospital and he moved to a rehab facility to continue his treatment.  The plan is to work on regaining some of his strength so he can get back home and restart his radiation and chemo.  I don't know what to expect or how long he might be there, but I think this is a move in the right direction.  

On Thursday, I was excited that I was able to make it out to watch Brezlyn pitch in her softball game against Ovid-Elsie.  She pitched a great game and they entered the bottom of the seventh inning tied at 0, but with 2 outs, a full count, and one runner on base,  but a fielding error by the left-fielder allowed OE to score and win the game 1-0.  What a tough loss.

I had planned to visit my dad after the softball game, but he had such a busy day getting settled in at rehab that he told my mom that I didn't need to visit. He was tired and I knew he needed some rest, so  I decided to head home after the game and get the girls out for a trip to Dairy Queen for a geocaching event.  They were happy to see some of their geocaching friends and to eat a doggy sundae.  Then we took a nice walk before heading home.

Late that evening, we had some pretty severe storms move through the area, so the girls and I had to hunker down in the basement through a tornado warning.  Peaches was sound a sleep through it all.  When the storm finally cleared the area, I finally headed off to bed for the night.  It had been a long night, but thankfully, there was no damage here and we didn't lose power.  Many others in the area weren't as lucky.

I woke up a little tired on Friday due to the late night, but I had a really productive day of work.  After work, I visited my dad at rehab for the first time.  Since his rehab facility is in Durand, I took advantage of the opportunity to pick up the Eagles Friday night walleye fish fry, and took it to go so I could sit and eat dinner with my dad.  He had had another busy day at rehab and was pretty tired when I was there, but I was glad to get to spend a couple of hours with him.  

With all of the warm weather and rain recently, my yard has become quite a jungle.  My landscaping has been taken over by weeds and I haven't had time to do much work.  In addition, my lawnmower stopped working and the cost to repair was enough that I decided it would make more sense to buy a new mower, but I haven't had much time to research and find the mower I wanted.  So earlier this week, I decided that I was going to spend Saturday and Sunday at home to start to catch-up on yard work and get some things done around the house.  I was so looking forward to spending the time in the yard.

After a few warm days, the temperatures over the weekend and into the next week are forecast to drop into the 50s and 60s.  Our Saturday morning was cool, but I was excited for the day ahead.  I started my Saturday at the shelter for our morning dog walk.  We got to walk Good Cheer and Whisky again.  I just love them.

We also walked poor, pathetic Flute.  I love her too.  While we were walking, it started to rain.  I hadn't seen any rain in the forecast, but somehow most of the day was gray and drizzly.  Since it was raining, I stopped to pick up some groceries on the way home from the shelter.  Once I got home, I made lunch, and then did some research on mowers and found the perfect one to purchase.

I took the girls with me to pick up the mower, then we headed out to the greenhouse in Eaton Rapids to buy the plants for this year's garden.  After visiting the greenhouse, we made a quick stop at the dog park in Eaton Rapids before heading home.  Then I emptied the car, got the girls into the house, and headed out for a drive to Marshall.

I drove to Marshall to meet Ruth, one of our ISR foster parents, so that I could pick up her current foster, Sadie, who will be staying with us until Thursday.  With everything that is going on, I haven't been able to do much to help with rescue, so I was happy when Ruth asked if I could take Sadie for a few days.  

The drive home was pretty quiet and the introduction to my girls was quick and easy.  I was happy that the weather had cleared up a bit by the time I got home too, so I put the girls out in the backyard and got to work putting together my new lawnmower, doing some repair to a screen door, and getting my new Ryobi trimmer and blower out of the box and put together and the battery charging.  I was able to do some mowing in the backyard, but stopped because the grass was just too damp after the rainy day today.  

While I mowed, the girls were busy playing chase and having a great time.  By the time I brought them in for dinner, everyone was pretty tired.  Mina and Sadie spent some chewing on the antlers and hooves that I have for them, but eventually everyone settled in for an evening nap.  

I started my day leaving home at 8:45am this morning and felt like I was constantly on the move until nearly 7:30pm, but I didn't feel like I got as much done as I had hoped I would.  But I am happy that I was able to check some things off my list.  I am looking forward to a productive Sunday and spending a lot more time out in the yard tomorrow.  Let's hope the rain stays away so the girls can play and I can have a productive day.