Parting is such sweet sorrow

Jackson hates, Hates, HATES being dropped off at the sitter when we leave town.

I just can't stand to have him upset with me so I bribed him with his favorite treat, McDonald's white meat (cuz I'm a good mama) chicken McNuggets.

Now he's is such a McNugget haze he'll forget to feel abandoned and I'm in the clear. I'll just have to deal with Rob's teasing me about treating our pup like our kid.

I don't care, it's SO worth it.

Communication. What's that?

Dinner prep last night was a weird time at our house.

~ I wondered why Rob was seasoning the chicken with tabasco and cumin.
~ He wondered why I was making plain white rice.
~ I wondered why he wanted me to add red and green peppers to the green onions I was chopping.
~ He wondered why I was heating up the wok instead of the grill pan.

With all this 'wondering' floating around, neither of us piped up and said anything though...we just kept right on doing what we were doing, all the while thinking the other was bonkers.

Turns out we were on two totally different pages. For what is still an unknown reason, he thought we were making chicken fajitas and I thought we were making orange chicken stir fry.

Needless to say, we didn't really have either of those...it was more of a southwest orange stir fry in a tortilla.

Whatever.

Another season down

Last weekend we headed down to Emerald Downs again to close out the racing season. There was rain, mud and luck in the air.

My fav jockey held up his end of things a won me a pretty little pile of money...that will now fund my flight to NYC next month. See, gambling does pay off. Sometimes.

I'm trying to get Rob to go in on a horse. He says no. I'll keep working on him. ☺

It's hip to be a square

Last Saturday we found ourselves wandering through what is normally a beautiful park along the Seattle waterfront. I say normally because this trip it was a little less than lovely. Seattle Hempfest had taken over the park and it was pure chaos, but in the most laid back of ways, of course.

We been to Hempfest once before, you know - just to say we'd gone, but apparently we've turned into complete squares since then. It was really crowded and super smelly (I got a wee bit nauseous and Rob was feeling a tad 'affected' by the surrounding odor) just by walking through the park.

The place was covered in garbage and there was an abundance of parents who thought it a good idea to bring their children. Way to go! It was a good place to people watch though...always a plus.

We snapped a few pictures, did a little bit of walking around/shoving our way through the park, dared to buy and drink some bottled water and then made a beeline back to the safety of our neck of the woods. I can confidently say we've been Hempfest-ed out. For good.

Jam-Packed Weekend

Saturday morning started out bright and early with the Seafair Pirates landing at Alki Beach. The sun was out, but there was a bit of a breeze so it was nice to be outside.

We did the pirate thing and then wandered down the rest of the beach. There was a pole vaulting competition going on and a bunch of kids were taking advantage of the low water and doing trick on their boogie boards. It made me want to play in the water, but after glancing at the murkiness of it, I quickly changed my mind!

On the way back from Alki we stopped in Mercer Island and spent a few hours at a street fair there. Rob was into the 3 on 3 basketball tournament, while I was enthralled by these two little poodles that were dyed green and purple. From Mercer Island we headed down to Southcenter for dinner and then back home to rescue Jackson from his boring day at home.

Dog in tow we headed down to Lake Sammamish where Jackson had his first swimming experience. I thought I was going to have to pull him into the water but he walked right in. He didn't stay for long though...maybe next time.

Sunday was a camera free day, but pictures would have been great! We'd signed up for a 5K that was sponsored by a local community club. It was a little odd but we had a good time and met some very interesting people. They were 'courting' us to join up with them, but I think our one visit there was enough.

Post 5K we hit IHOP (of course!!) to get our carbs on and did a little house hunting...then went home to collapse.

Gators!

After we left the cruise ship we picked up a rental car then made a quick stop in the Everglades to check out the gators at Gator Park.

We arrived there with enough time to check out the baby alligators before the feeding show started. These little gator babies were so still that they seriously looked like little toy alligators all thrown in together.

There were coin operated food dispensers near their enclosure, so we bought some, tossed it in and they went absolutely wild. It was really a strange sight to see! They had them separated into the different ages...these two were the smallest two sizes, I believe. The ones on the left were probably a foot long, the others were maybe eight or nine inches.

On our way to the feeding show we came across this huge alligator skin that was on display. Yeah, it looks big in the first picture, but in the second picture you can compare it to Rob and then it seems even bigger! Seriously, that was a big ol' gator! His name was Grandpa.

We came across another stuffed gator or two along the way. Oh, and there was a live alligator that they'd restrained his chompers and you could have your picture taken while sitting on his back. Crazy, I know...but there were plenty of people doing it. I have to admit, I was a little tempted (just a little), but Rob was looking out for me and kept me safe...you know, on the other side of the fence, with all the other sane people. ☺

We got to the feeding area/breeding pond just in time for the show. All the gators knew what was going to happen so they were all slowly creeping up out of the water. It was surprising how many of them there were! They would just walk all over each other too...stepping on the bodies, tails and faces of the other alligators without any hesitation.

The feeding was really neat to see, but I only caught about 23% of it. You see, the feeder guy had big buckets of rats that he was feeding them. And me, I don't do so well with vermin of any nature. I just kept my eyes elsewhere and relied on Rob to tell me when it was okay to look. Big baby, I know.

The feeder guy was luring the alligators up on the fence and even got a few to climb up it with all feet. He had them jumping for their snacks too. It's amazing how much air they can catch! There were several alligators that were missing partial or full limbs as well as tails. Apparently things get pretty violent out there!

As we were heading towards the exit we saw a few geese (or maybe they were swan?? I am glad that my brothers don't really read this blog. They'd be ashamed that I cannot differentiate between a goose or a swan!) and I foolishly thought that they'd be safer than the alligators we'd just observed. Well, they weren't. One of those vicious little birds attacked me. Seriously, it did. It reached it's long neck through the fence and bit my leg...then it kept following me around and taunting me until we left. Good thing Jordan wasn't around or that little birdie would have been dinner to someone. ☺

Belize

We were so un-Belize-ablely lazy this day. Lame pun, I know, but I just couldn't resist!! We'd scheduled an excursion to Altun Ha, a smaller grouping of Mayan ruins, but we decided to skip it.

At this port we couldn't walk right off the boat onto the dock, we had to take a 20 minute tender in which would have required us to be up and at the tender spot around 8:00 in the morning. Yes, that is too early for us...especially since we'd stayed up in the karaoke lounge until 2:00 the night before!

We slept in a bit and made our way into Belize City a little later in the morning. Apparently we were still pretty groggy because the lady that took our picture told us that we looked bored in the first one and demanded we smile for another picture. So this is us, cheesin' it up on the tender into Belize. We look excited to be there, right?

We did a bit of sightseeing near the port, then we headed straight for the shops. We got a lot of fun things there. We may or may not have picked up some slingshots for my nephews, which I am sure their parents will be thrilled about them receiving. ☺

All along the shops they had pillars that had the neatest carvings in them. Not many of the pictures I took of them came out too clearly though.

We'd stopped into a pharmacy and saw that they offer nearly every kind of perscription medication imaginable over the counter. Lipitor, Prozac, Lunesta, Viagra, Retin A, Amoxicillin...everything! No prescription needed! Crazy, right? I was a little tempted to pick up a few dozen things, but then I wasn't too trusting in the quality/safety of the pills. Come on, I have more smarts than that!

After we'd shopped and saw the sights for what seemed like days hours upon hours we were pooped and ready to head back to the ship. Looking back, we both wish we would have sucked it up, risen at the crack of dawn and gone to Altun Ha, but Rob just says that now we have a reason to head back to Belize. Really, I wouldn't mind that!

Ears and all

Happy Easter, from us to you.

I won't try to pass the blame of this onto Rob. These bunny ears were all my doing.

I am awesome. ☺

We'll be spending our Easter brunching at Barking Frog, doing the dog park thing and wandering Alki Beach. Hope you all have a wonderful Easter.

Snoqualmie to Sammamish

Yesterday was a bea-utiful day so we decided to grab our pup and head up to Snoqualmie Falls to do a little nature walk/day hiking. We got all the way up there to discover about a million and a half signs posted that said NO DOGS ALLOWED.

Great!

We drove all the way back home and scouted out a spot down by Lake Sammamish that seemed like a fun place to trek around. The boys were happy...Rob and Jackson had a great time...as you can tell...

I on the other hand, really need to practice my taking-pictures-of-myself-with-a-camera-phone skills.

There ya have it. Another completely relaxing and absolutely unproductive Sunday, courtesy of us. ☺

Canada for Christmas

We are trotting up North for a few days to do Christmas Canadian style.

This will be our second take at celebrating a holiday together in Canada. Our first 4th of July together we thought we'd take advantage of the day off and head up to Vancouver, BC for some shopping and then evening fireworks.

It wasn't until we were waiting to get through the border that in donned on us...Canada probably doesn't celebrate the United State's Independence Day. Oh well, you can't call us stupid, we were still in the lovey-dovey-clouded-from-reality phase.

But this time we've got our heads on straight and are certain that they celebrate Christmas in Canada.

My new specialty

My stitches are supposed to dissolve, but instead came loose/untied and they had been bothering me all weekend!

While I was at Target yesterday I picked up some manicure scissors and alcohol wipes with full intention of taking them out myself.

As soon as I got into my car I busted the goods out, along with my tweezers set I keep in my make up case. I proceeded to pull down my visor mirror, clean off my 'tools' and take out what stitches I could see.

I guess this was weird enough, because the man who pulled in next to me gave me the weirdest look. I think that I am ready to be a surgical intern...or at least on the cast of Grey's Anatomy, don't ya think? ☺

Not to worry, I didn't take them ALL out...just the loose ones that were bothering me. I am not completely stupid...I'd seen my Dad take out stitches before. That ought to count for some clinical hours, right? ☺

I have a post op appointment tomorrow to have things checked out and I am a little hesitant to reveal my parking lot 'procedure' to the Doc when he inquires about my missing stitches.

Hmm...how can I put a spin on that??

Non-stop weekend

We spent this last weekend in our home away from home, Portland. We took Rob's younger sister and cousin down there to celebrate her 18th birthday.

We did lots o' shopping. And I mean lots. Sure, I can shop with the best of them, but those two teenage girls sure WORE. US. OUT.

Rob says he got a taste of what it would be like for us to have girls, 'following them around the mall, opening his wallet every time he turned around' and he 'hopes for boys who like to stay home on the weekend and watch sports'. Ha!

There was a big figure skating competition going on in the mall's skating rink so Rob and I spent a good chunk of time resting/watching it while the girls ravaged the mall. The younger skaters was so cute! There was a little guy that did a pirate routine that I thought was adorable.

Nordie's had a New Moon party going on, so of course we had to stop by and blow a kiss or two to Edward and Jacob! Oh, and on that note...I can't wait to see New Moon this Friday!!!

In keeping with Portland tradition, we caught a late movie. I was bummed that there weren't a lot of kid friendly movies in the theaters, but luckily 2012 was age appropriate for them and, we all thought it turned out to be pretty good.

A short drive later and we were back home, just the two of us, loaded down with lots of new goods, full of tasty grub and ready for a three day long nap! We had such a great time with the girls, even though they made us we aren't that young anymore. ☺

Never thought I'd see the day

Ever since being a pet owner I swore that I would never be one of those people who treats their pets like they are their kids by dressing them up and taking pictures of them.

Well, it looks like I might be veering a little in that direction. And I don't like it. Not at all. But my friend tells me that it's happening, so I just need to embrace it.

While at Target I got talked into buying this pumpkin shirt for Jackson. At $5 I thought 'Why not? It'd be good for a laugh.'

Turns out Jackson loves it and doesn't like it when we try to take it off him. Total goober!

Then as I was walking him the other afternoon, I thought it would be cute (ugh, I know!) to take a picture of him in the pretty fall leaves.

At this rate, we'll be doing holiday photos with our pets wearing Santa hats. Don't worry, I won't let it go that far. I've got to put a stop to all this nonsense!! ☺

This week...

My mane got a big chop last night. It makes me a little sad.

My bangs look like they were cut by a right-y kindergartner...with left-y scissors. I am trying to make do. :)

All I keep hearing from people is 'they will grow out soon'.

Thanks.

Oh, and I got walked in on by my boss while taking pictures of my new do.  He laughed at me.  Charming guy he is. :)

On a more positive note...we are heading off to Sin City this weekend to meet up with some friends and family and we are so stinkin' excited!!

Nothing big on the agenda so far...we're crashing at Caesar's and plan to take advantage of the pool.

I am hoping to convince Rob to take me to Phantom, but I am not holding my breath. Apparently, if you've seen it once, there is no reason to go again. I think that's debatable.

Oh, and a Happy Birthday to my bestie (and new neighbor!!!) who turns twenty-something tomorrow!!

Weiner dog

Last week Rob called me from his Mom's house and told me to hurry over, he had a surprise for me. I was puzzled, but bored, so I drove on over. I was greeted by this darlin' little gal, Maggie.

Turns out she wasn't my surprise though. Rob's Mom bought Maggie for herself and the 'surprise' was that Rob was bringing Jackson home to live with us. Sure I was surprised, but not necessarily the good kind of surprised, but I thought I'd roll with it.

It's been quite the adjustment dealing with him at our house. I wasn't raised with pets and I think it's an understatement to say that I am not an animal person, but I am trying to stay positive about the little guy.

Over the weekend wandered down to the lake (which this blah cell phone picture doesn't do justice) to test him out around other animals and all was well. He didn't even chase the ducks that were wandering all around. I think he might be a sissy kind of dog, but don't tell Rob I said that. :)

The two love birds

There have been a couple of times over the past few days when we have been ready to send him back, but for now he is still around...we'll see how long it lasts!

Don't believe everything you read

I've been sick the past few days and thought I would be proactive and change the sheets/pillowcases so as not to pass my icky germs onto Rob.

As I was changing the pillowcases yesterday I noticed that the pillows were machine washable. I always knew there were tags on pillows, I just never took the time to read them. I usually just toss out bed pillows when they have done their time and then purchase new ones. I probably should have done the same with these ones, but I thought I would do a little extra work to make sure that my pillows were germ free.

I read the instructions and followed them to the letter. I'd started the washing machine and headed downstairs. A few minutes later I heard drip - drip - drip and looked up to see the ceiling leaking. I put something under the drip to catch the water and ran upstairs in a panic to see that the washing machine had flooded all over the floor! I turned it off and took off back downstairs to attend to the drips...only to find the ceiling dripping in three more places!!

Luckily Rob got home soon after that and took over for me. Turns out that even though the instructions say that washing two pillows at the same time in a full size washer is acceptable, it really isn't. I think it's safe to say I won't be buying anymore Laura Ashley pillows...those liars. :)

Camping vs."Camping"

This is how normal people camp...

...tents, fire pit, outdoors, the whole thing.

This is how Rob and I camp...

...spending the days being outdoorsy with the family and then drive down the canyon to the Econo Lodge for the evenings.

At least for the first night. We wussed out and moved to a nicer hotel after the first night.

Hey, we tried!

Fun camping pictures to come soon...