Looking for a home

This is Besta:

He is a four year old mix breed dog (hound and ??).  He is good with other dogs, cats and kids.  He loves the dog beach, going on walks, playing fetch.  He is not so fond of water and he is scared of thunder.  He is house trained and can "sit", "laydown" and "stay".  He favors his back right leg because of an accident a few years back.  It doesn't hurt him...he doesn't whine or anything when you touch it.  When he's hanging out at home he'll hobble around on three legs but when we take him to the dog beach he runs just fine on all fours.

But we've learned over the last 18 months that city living just isn't his style.  He would rather have a yard to run in than chilling out in an urban 2-bedroom apartment all day.  Hanging out for long hours with Winston while mommy and daddy are at work is boring to him.  We do not want to just pass him off to strangers...we need to find him a home where he'll be happy and loved and taken care of.

I realize we don't live near most of you...but we'd be willing to travel quite a distance to make sure he ends up in a home where he'll be loved.  We end up in Utah at least once a year and we'd be happy to fly or drive him out the next time we come out.

If you could open your heart and home to this lovable, floppy eared, long tongued, happy-go-lucky doggy, please let us know.

Gettin' me down

I mentioned before that I have been blue. That is the reason behind my lack of posts; and there are a few reasons for my aforementioned mood.

First - It is winter. I am not a fan of winter. I hate being cooped up inside. I hate not being able to wear 90% of my shoes. Yesterday was a beautiful day so I took Besta on a walk...which brings me to the second reason.
Second - I saw a dog get hit by an SUV yesterday. Besta and I were on the last leg of our long walk and I heard a dog barking and growling. The dog was across the street and I assumed on a leash. (Because come on people...we live IN A CITY on a busy street...leash your dog!) I turned just in time to see the dog start to run across the street. I watched as the dog was hit, then drug by the car. He screeched and howled in pain as he was run over by both tires. The dog got up and ran back to its side of the street...pretty sure it did not live. Besta was a bit shaken up. I thought he would come in after our walk and take a nap...but he acted weird all afternoon. I pet and cuddled him more than normal to try to help him. I have always had a soft spot for animals, and seeing one get hurt makes me sad.
Third - This job search is getting me down. It was hard the first time around...and this time is proving to be no different. I have had one interview...obviously didn't get the job. Sigh.
Fourth - We had a potential adoption situation fall through yesterday. It was a long way from being a sure thing, but it still got both of us a little excited. (We tried not to get our hopes up...but even a slight glimmer of a speck of a hope is enough to get us excited...those of you in the infertility/adoption world know how that is) A guy who went to high school with my mom served a mission for our church in Chicago. He had a connection to someone here who is pregnant and seriously considering adoption. Our information was passed along...but in the end she decided to keep the baby. It felt like reading yet another negative pregnancy test.

So there you have it.

To help lift my mood, I went grocery shopping earlier in the day (I'm a freak, I know) and then tonight me and the hubs went to see the new Alice in Wonderland movie in 3D. It was fantastic! (although truth be told, any flick with Johnny Depp in it can't do much but lift your spirits...am I right ladies??) Verdict?: Mood lifted.

Our little swimmer

Land of a Thousand Lakes

Nathan had a three day weekend (which NEVER happens in the Navy Band in the summer) so we decided to pack up the dog and head up to see his sister in Minnesota. The drive was six hours and isn't too bad, but it isn't something I would want to do often! One of Nathan's other brothers was also visiting so we got a nice double dose of family. We hung out, talked, ate, played games, gave Nathan a mani/pedi, went to church and went to the Spam Museum. Yep, I did say Spam Museum...I swear I did not throw that in to just see if you were paying attention. Overall a great time was had by all...and most importantly, many calories were burned laughing.

Here is a plethera of pictures. If you want to see more, (because lets face it, I am freaking adorable and so is my family...not to mention there are lots of pictures of the Spam Museum should your curiosity be peaked by what magical mysteries might be hidden behind those Hormel walls) you'll have to check out my album on facebook. Not my facebook friend?? Well, whose fault is that?!?

Besta. So happy to be out of the concrete jungle. I know he doesn't look happy...in fact he looks like he could jump up and bite my face off. Maybe he's just feeling a little anxiety over doing this to me:

To tell you the truth, I am not exactly sure what happened. I was throwing the frisbee for him to fetch and one time when he brought it back to me he misjudged where I was standing and ran into/bit my leg right on the back of my knee. I am pretty sure it was on accident. Only one semi-puncture wound...my pants didn't even get a hole in them. But man oh man does it hurt! The flash washed it out a bit, so you'll just have to take my word that it is WAY more purple in person.

The girls and I took Besta on a nice long walk to a park. I was mean and made them pose for lots of pictures.

Nathan getting the full spa treatment.

Pedi. Right

Pedi. Left. I think the hairy feet and toes add to the look, no?

Uncle Nathan and all the nieces...pretty sure he clenched the favorite uncle title with this.

Showing off the mani.

Horse face. It is funny, I promise. I guess you just had to be there.

Grant hoisting away to get Spam to the troops.

Michael and Andrew packing Spam.

The whole crew at the Spam Museum. (I hope Cindy or Janus' picture turned out better, I think the tour guide lady sneezed or something when she took this one)

Lard. Yummy.

Hormel's newest Spam Recruits.

Spam Head.

Spring

You know how I can tell for sure that warmer weather is here and Spring has finally sprung?

Tulips blooming? .......nope
Buds on trees? .......nope
Birds chirping? .......nope




Sweeping up enough cat fur dust bunnies in one day to make a cat? ......yep

This beach has gone to the dogs!

We took Besta to the dog beach this afternoon. He was (as always) content enough to ride in the truck and take a little walk, but when we got to the gate and walked through and he saw all those other dogs and then we TOOK THE LEASH OFF (because he's always leashed outside). Oh man, he took off and ran and ran and ran. You could just see the grin on his face. I tell you what, if you are ever sad, go to a dog beach. Watching those guys all running around and playing with each other with their big goofy tongues hanging out the side of their mouths...good as Prozac. Seriously.


I love this picture of Nathan and Besta...isn't it just sweet?

The Great Outdoors

Each of the condos in the building has their own private deck up on the roof of the building. Right now it is a bit too cold, but we have set up the hammock and put the grill up there...and this weekend is supposed to be 75 degrees so hopefully we'll get to use it! Here is our little section. It is nice because we are next to the wall for the stairwell, which gives a little relief from the wind (if it happens to be blowing the right way!) Once the trees all leaf out it will be pretty up there. I'll have to post some more pics. Sara and I want to do a container garden, once it warms up we'll get started on that.


Here is the view from the deck. You can see the city skyline in the distance....at least for now. Once the trees are all bloomed (is that right? Do trees bloom? or leaf? spread? hmmm..) it will make it a bit more difficult to see.


There are LadyBugs EVERYWHERE! We get them in the house and it works out ok because they provide free entertainment to my furry kids. I can always tell when one has gotten in because they kitties are running around all crazy trying to get it.

Besta likes the deck...don't let this sour puss face deceive you.


Here is our condo's newest tennant. Mr. Bat. He showed up the day after we did and has been in that same position ever since. Not sure if he flies away at night and comes back or if he is dead. I'm not going to poke him to find out.

Viva Chicago!

We are half way through our insane (I'll clue you in on that later) trip to Chi Town...this may be long...but it WILL be good for at least a few giggles.

The moving company came and packed us up on Monday and then loaded the truck on Tuesday. More than once we heard them say something to the effect of 'You have a lot of stuff'. Don't we know it. After the truck was loaded on Tuesday my mom came up and helped us clean the house, then we went to a farewell dinner at a great Thai place. (Thanks mom, I really appreciate your help and you not crying...because if you would have, I would have totally lost it instead of just partially losing it)

Winston was really freaked out by the whole thing. He has been through a move before and wasn't sure he liked what was going on. This is where he 'hid' after all the boxes were gone.

We woke up Wednesday morning to snow. Utah wanted to send us off in style!


I was fine until I knew I was walking out of our house for the last time. I had so many hopes for that house. I had planned on bringing a baby home from the hospital to that house, raising children in that house, having many Christmas mornings in that house. To leave without fulfilling those wishes was hard. I love that house. I love my scrapbook room. I love the plaster paint job in the Master Bedroom, I love my flower beds. I am sad that I won't be able to see my Daffodils and Irises come up this year. Nathan was great and allowed me a bit to cry, then gently pulled me out the door.

Unfortunately the storm Utah decided to send us away with caused quite a few problems. We already had the car packed to the gills, on a dolly, hooked to the truck (which was also packed to the gills)...we didn't need to add snow to the equation. We didn't make too bad of time until we hit Rawlins, then it got ugly. We got back on I-80 and shortly after we did, they closed the road because of the weather. We had to SLOWLY (read: So slow sometimes I forgot we were moving) make our way through the ice and snow and wind. They had closed the freeway going West so there was a while where we didn't see another car for almost an hour. It was kinda freaky. We got to Laramie and wanted to push on to Cheyenne for the night, but fate had other ideas. I-80 between Laramie and Cheyenne was closed...which was probably good because the roads were getting slicker and we fishtailed more than once as we got close to Laramie. We got my mom to work for us and found us a hotel that had rooms open and would also allow us to bring our entourage (Besta, Winston and Frank). We got the circus unloaded and went to bed. (This hotel would be the source of much laughing today...the bathroom light didn't work...the shower was VERY testy and wouldn't hold a steady temperature...the front desk person didn't know how to let me connect my Mac to the wifi and I'm sure the floor hadn't been vacuumed in weeks. By the time we got there we were so tired we didn't want to go find food so we ate two left over tacos from lunch...cold tacos. yummy.).

We got up this morning fully aware that we were HUNDREDS of miles behind schedule. Speaking of waking up...this is what we woke up to:
We had wanted to make it to Grand Island, NE the first night...we were 412 miles off. So we took off. What should creep up on us? More weather:


The truck seemed to get slower and slower. It wasn't pulling the load as fast as we'd like. (We were lucky to get to 40mph). I called my dad (who has owned more than his fair share of trucks over the years and so has extensive truck-fixing knowledge) and he thought it was our Catalytic Converter. All we needed to do was punch a hole in the pipe that leads into it. Sound simple? Now factor in that we are in sub-freezing temps, in the snow, in the middle of nowhere Nebraska. We pull off the side of the road, under an overpass (seriously...) and Nathan climbs under the truck with a screwdriver and a rock and works for 30 minutes before he gets one hole. (Turns out there were TWO pipes leading into it...so we had to punch two holes).


He can't get the other one so he climbs back in and we keep moving. It helps a little, so we stop at the next truck stop, Nathan goes in and asks for a hammer and gets back under the truck. He worked for almost 40 minutes, then some random kind stranger asks if we need help. He is a mechanic or something, offers a HUGE hammer and a tool that will punch the hole better. Four swings with the hammer and there is a grand canyon size hole in the pipe and we can now go 65mph. I can't believe how nice that guy was! (Oh, did I mention the side-effect of punching the hole in the pipe? The truck is now LOUD. I mean LOUD, like a truck with no muffler...so conversations in the truck are now not held unless necessary because we don't want to yell)

So we are now in a hotel in Kearney, Nebraska. (I know, where??!?) It is clean, the bathroom light works, it has internet, and a working heater. The dog loves being inside, Frank loves having a new room to discover every night and Winston is doing better tonight than last night. (See Winston under the blanket on top of the pillow? He wormed his way up through the blankets to get himself there...we woke up to find a very interesting lump on the pillow...and that lump turned out to be him)


I am trying not to be frustrated. We are still not where we hoped we would be on the first night...we had actually hoped to be in Chicago tonight...but storms and truck trouble have held us back. I'm not sure when I'll be able to update again. If you're on Facebook, you can keep tabs on us there. I can get on Facebook on my phone. I haven't had time to read any blogs, but I promse to get caught up once I get settled in Chi Town.

Crimson Trail

A few weeks back Nathan, Besta and I did another hike for our Summer of a Million Hikes.  We hiked the Crimson Trail, which I heard was not as hard as the Wind Caves, but I felt like the climb up to the rock wall was just as if not tougher.  The Crimson Trail is cool because it winds up to the top of the China Wall...which is a huge shelf of rock situated about 2/3 up the mountains in the canyon.  The first part of the trail is hard and then once you're on the rock it is nice and the views are spectacular!  In fact, if you look at THIS pic from our Wind Caves hike you can see the rock wall behind us.

This was at the beginning of the hike - the river ran right past our campsite. Nathan almost got swept away while wading out with Mitch. 

Another view...looking west just a wee bit up the trail from the pic just above. 

Nathan and Besta the Trail Blazer.  He LOVES hikes.  He will run up until we can't see him, we'll holler at him, and he comes trotting back only to repeat the process over and over.  So in the long run he actually hiked the trail 3-4 times in one shot. 

Incredible view looking east at the rock crest.

Besta WOULD NOT cross this little crevice...and it was only 4' deep.  Nathan picked him up and carried him over it...(the pic of Nathan above is just over this crevice).  He probably would have stayed there - but he got the balls to cross it once we began to walk away. 

There's no adventure like a snow adventure

A few weeks back we took Besta up the canyon to play in the fresh fallen snow...this is a shot of the beauty we encountered up there. (well, minus the impending storm clouds that hung in the sky)


Look at Besta's 'careful feet' ... He and Nathan are standing on the Logan River, he could probably feel the water flowing under his feet but it was sure funny to watch him walk all super careful.


We stopped off at Rick Springs and we tried to get Besta to hold still long enough to take a photo...alas, he is a VERY energetic dog so you get me trying to keep him from licking my face.



We threw the frisbee out but the snow got pretty deep and Besta had a hard time getting to this one so Nathan had to wade out and get it...

And no play time in the snow would be complete without a snow angel...I tried my best - which was a bit difficult with Besta trying his best to help me....

And if all the above wasn't enough...here is a video of our 'puppy' fetching in the snow.

Poor puppy

So while we were gone this weekend, we got a TON of snow. Our house only got about 14 inches, but my parent's old house got several feet. Anyway - we dropped Besta off at my parent's old house where he was to be 'dogsat' by Cindy, my parent's dog. Well, he and his sister Princess decided to sneak out and go for a walk. I guess they were missing for a while and when my mom finally found them they were trotting along the middle of the road about 2 miles from their house...nerd dogs. Mom had them jump into her car and when she got them back home she noticed Besta was bleeding - we think he cut it sneaking over the chain link fence drifted in snow.

We finally got him into the vet this morning and nothing is broken - (I would have loved to be in the room when they did the x-ray...holding that little bugger still...hehe) but he did have to get stitches, and they had to sedate him to do it because he is a little squirmy.

Look at this goober...he is milking this injury for all he can get. But doesn't he look cute all wrapped up?


When we got home Sunday night we brought him in and made him a bed...we couldn't leave him outside :( Winston, of course, had to observe the whole situation and make sure everything was ok with him... Frank was more curious to see if Besta's food was better than his own.


Here Frank is checking out the foot.. When we did get home the kitties were so excited to see us so they came tearing down the stairs and Frank ended up about 6 inches from Besta's head...which didn't bother the dog, but little Frank Rat puffed out every last fur, arched his back and hissed at him...and then promptly 'deflated' and checked out the food...

Here he is giving us his sad face to draw out more sympathy...


Here is his foot...so sad. I forgot to ask how many stitches he needed...but I can ask when I go back in 10 days to have them taken out.