Saturday afternoon

It was a quiet week once the Willingers left. The dogs mostly just paced the house looking for Lylah. They were extra happy to see me every evening. Thursday they were crated from 4:30 pm to 10pm and when we got home to let them out, they were so rambunctious! Then we went to bed! Poor boys didn't know what to do.

Friday, they got to go play in Ron & Marilyn's back yard. They love their yard. So much grass and unobstructed open space! Makes me wish we didn't have the pool so they could do the same in our back yard. We met Marilyn's cousin Kathi and her husband Dale. They're from upper Michigan (bottom of the middle finger nail for those of you inclined to hold up your left hand to point to a location in Michigan). They were a hoot. By the time I got there at 5:30, they'd already been drinking for several hours.

We played Flipover Cards, which was a fun game played with some cards, some quarters and some dice. Dennis won some cash at the end when we switched to L-C-R for quarters. There were 7 of us playing, putting in 3 quarters each, and he won 3 pots. He made back what we had "invested" plus a little. For dinner, Marilyn and Ron made a fabulous Prime Rib. It was stuffed with garlic cloves and marinated in Olive Oil. It was fabulous. We also had baked potatoes. Dennis and I were "full" and tired about 10 so we took the dogs and went home.

Today, we watched a movie, then he went outside to wash the buggies, the camping rugs from when we went to Pio Pico, and the front driveway - all with the power sprayer. The dogs were out with him for a while, then I brought them in for some water. I was busy working on tax stuff so that I can drop off the Vendzila LLC stuff to the accountant. I still have to work on the expenses for the Toledo house and once I get the Vendzila stuff back, put that into both of our returns. Then we're ready to file!

I'm leaving for Dallas tomorrow morning to do some more work for ANTHiLL Events. It's one of my favorite things to do. I sure wish it was lucrative enough to quit my day job! I hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend and a great week. I'll blog when I get a chance!

Relaxing Sunday

Yesterday, Lyn & RJ, Dennis and I took our two buggies for a stroll. Ron & Marilyn came as well. We had to find a way to get through the fence, as the way we've been going was sealed up with a fence repair. We met another couple who had a Polaris Ranger 6 seater. Turns out they won it from the radio. They joined us as we finally found a gate that wasn't posted with "No Trespassing" signs, and went through.

We found some fantastic hills - old and new. This was the first time taking our Joyner out as we've mostly taken the Polaris since we got it. Unfortunately, the Joyner doesn't do hills very well - probably because it's a stick shift and is very heavy. Dennis and RJ got into some trouble trying to climb one hill. When they tried to back down, they got into a worse situation. Me and Randy, the guy we met, had to help RJ hold down the right side of the Joyner so that Dennis could put it in neutral and back it down the hill, out of the ravine that it was tilting into. It was a little scary! RJ wanted out of the buggy, but I yelled "don't get out" several times. If he would have, it could have rolled over on top of Dennis! Not good! We had a LOT of fun and relaxed a little in between climbs.

It's been a great Sunday. I slept in for a change. Lyn, RJ, Lylah and I went to Paradise Bakery for lunch a little afternoon. We then went to BevMo to buy some grape juice. Then a quest to find a mailbox for them to mail invitations for Lylah's 1st birthday party. Since we were in the neighborhood, we went to Thunderbird Park and took a walk. It was a nice, overcast day.

We got home and they left to go visit a friend in Avondale, so it's just us and the boys at home now. Dennis' fixing some turkey leftovers and I'm trying to get over my stomach ache. I'm not sure if it's something I ate for lunch or what. I'm starting to feel a little better but can't fathom consuming food right now!

I'm tinkering on the computer, uploading pictures from our trip to San Diego last weekend. I'm going to try to figure out how to link to a Picasa Album when I'm done blogging. Look for it if you are visiting. I am putting a picture of Lylah sitting on the patio at Paradise Bakery. It was truly paradise out there today! Happy Sunday!

Friday Zoo

Today, Lyn, RJ, Lylah and I went to the Phoenix Zoo. It was a very pleasant, relaxing experience. All of the animals were out and there weren't too many people there. Lylah loved the zoo. She spent part of the time in her stroller and part of the time with one of us holding her. The main attractions were the Orangutans, the Squirrel Monkeys (Monkey Village), the Giraffe's and the Lions. Very cool. The highlight of my day at the zoo was that among the people with whom we were 'tracking' at the zoo was 12 News Meteorologist Jerrid Sebesta. http://www.azcentral.com/12news/bios/articles/bios_Jerrid_Sebesta-CR-CP.html

It's been a great visit with the Willingers. I worked at home Wednesday and worked on performance appraisals for my leaders. Friday I took vacation. We've had some great meals, some great sangria (last night) and of course, great company. Tonight, we had broiled marinated tri tips with mashed potatoes with garlic butter, asparagus with garlic and chocolate brownie with ice cream for dessert. Yum! Oh, and don't forget the wine. We're about to go to bottle #2.

Saturday is supposed to be 62 and Sunday 70. What a glorious weekend! Take care!

Visitors

Our visitors from Ohio arrived last evening. Lylah, my 11 month old niece, greeted me at the airport and showed me her certificate from the SWA Flight Crew for her first flight. My sister Lyn and Brother-In -Law RJ said the flight wasn't full, so Lylah got her own seat, slept part of the way, and had another child nearby to keep her entertained. What a great first flight!

When we got back to the house, we had some cocktails and caught up. It was a fun and late evening - I was up until about 12:30, which is why this post is going to be short. I have to wake up and get to work!

Relaxing weekend

Thursday at 5am, we left Bajada Drive for a 7 hour journey via motor home to Jamul, CA to stay at Thousand Trails Pio Pico. We made 2 stops along the way, one at a Rest Area on I-8 and one in Yuma to fill our tanks with gas. It was a great day for travel. The dogs did really well. We got set up and decided we all wanted pizza so we went into town to Filippis pizza. It was delicious! The beer was good, too. Thursday evening, we sat under the Easy-Up around the fireplace to stay warm and dry. That's when the rain started.....

Friday it rained on and off all day. Any dry opportunity we had to take the dogs out, we took advantage of. Each time we brought them in, we'd give them a little rinse on their undercarriage. They tended to pick up a lot of road dirt! Lori, Marilyn, Dennis and I went into Chula Vista on Friday to get some necessities at Walmart and then even more necessities (wine) at Trader Joe's. The rest of the day was spent inside, eating and drinking and eating. Oh, and drinking. We tore up the wine on Friday!

Saturday our friends Dave and Bill stopped by - they lease a spot at Pio Pico and came over for the weekend since we were there. We met them over Christmas up at Verde Valley. We had a margarita brunch, talked, and played Sequence. It was a lot of fun! After they left, we had a sandwich and then watched a couple of movies - Defiance and Alien v Predator - Requiem. I snuck in a few naps, too. As evening approached, Dennis was feeling cold and run down, so he stayed in with the dogs and I went over to Dave and Bill's coach and had a glass of wine with them. It was very nice to spend more time talking and getting to know them. Such fun guys!

Today it was another early rise - 5:15am PST. We were packed up, loaded, and hitched and pulled out of the park at 7am. It was a nice trip home. We drove in snow, rain, fog, sunshine, clear, cloudy/overcast....we saw it all on our 7 hour drip home. We stopped at a Rest Area at the top of the mountain and then in Yuma to fill up with Gasoline. We arrived home around 3pm. It was a very relaxing, enjoyable weekend. It was great to connect with Lori and Dave again as well as Dave and Bill. The only thing that could have made it better would have been dryer weather and about 5 more days!

Lyn & RJ and Lylah arrive from Ohio tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to their visit. Dennis got to see them a few weeks ago, but I haven't seen them since Kate's wedding in November. We're going to have a great time! Enjoy the week! I would love to hear your comments and reactions to my blog. Feedback is always welcome!

Beginning of the week

It's Monday night. Dennis arrived home safely Sunday from Ohio. His flight arrived 35 minutes early, fortunately I knew that from checking online. I left the hood about 7:15 (flight arrived 7:25) and by the time he got his bag from baggage claim and went to the curb, I was there ready to pick him up. It couldn't have been more perfect if I would have tried!

I worked at home today - seems to be a pattern for me on Mondays. I went to take Dennis' car to the airport to pick him up yesterday, and the battery was dead! I knew we'd need to do something about that, so I worked at home so we could get it taken care of. He went to the motor home to get our jumper cables, only to find they were in our side-turn garage. At least he found out that the coach batteries on the motor home were dead, too! So later in evening, we went to the storage lot and brought it home too. The next two nights will be spent getting the motor home ready for our journey to San Diego Thursday morning.

The dogs are SO thrilled that Dennis is home. Drama didn't stop licking him all the way home. They've followed him all over the house today, worried that he might leave again. When he did leave - stepped outside - they were both at the front door, crying as soon as the door closed. They sure do love their papa!! We're all glad he's home!

Have a great week. I'll blog when I can!

Sunday morning bath

I just finished giving the boys a bath. I blow dried them this time and they look cuter than when we let them air dry. Of course, neither one of them likes the blow dryer very much (fortunately I still have one leftover from the 80's) but I managed to get the job done. Just thought I'd share with you how cute they are!

Remember to feel free to leave comments or reactions! Thanks!