#2 Dog Sitting 1/31/16

Good day, eh! Ours began with Robs & Bee outside on the top deck for 10 minutes while I started washing water bowls ... two come inside ... Cabby & Ella outside on the lower deck ... Puppies Chief & Hannah on the upper deck! Time to finish water bowl washing ... refilling water ... make 7 breakfasts ... bring everyone in to eat ... 

1/2 hour later, repeat the in/out routine and wash food bowls. FUN EH?

6:45 sunrise ... from the upper deck. 57F 

Cabby & Ella playtime ... with us both. 

Mark painted the baseboards in the dining room and moved the furniture back while I cut in the staircase & upper hall with blue. 

At noon, we took a drive to get a few things at Lowe's. Both Robbie and Belize came with us. They were absolutely perfect in the car together! We are amazed at just how perfectly they are getting along. I guess it was meant to be.

On the way home from Lowe's, we spotted a Braum's ... A favorite store from our time in Oklahoma City. Mark went in to see what they have. We used to buy the best steaks and dairy products from them. Yum. 

So today was a big day for Alex Tawns ... he cut off his mile long dreads! 

Like father, like son. Alastair & Alex. 

We tidied up the front room painting stuff and took all the doggies out at 4ish. Broccoli was cooked in "ol' sparky" (Bon's microwave) for the kids ... along with a taste of Wellness Turkey wet & dry kibbie. Everyone cleaned their bowls ... the 2 puppies had seconds! Mark and I found cooked pork chops in the freezer ... and sweet potatoes! Thanks guys! (We're too tired to go out tonight but plan to see Timichael on Wednesday for lunch!) 

Now it's TV time ... Ta ta til the morrow. 

Work Day / Cruise Day 1/30/16

It's officially our first workday here, dog sitting Bonnie's & Roger's five, and now our two, plus painting. I guess you could say it's a bus man's holiday! (It's an old English expression my Nan used to say.)

Our TWO! (YAY!!!) Robbie and BeeZee are on varmint watch at the front door. 

(They just scared the pants off the postman!)

Mark began painting the dining room ceiling today.

Meanwhile, there's a story to tell about last night. Bonnie and Roger had trouble on the road. Big trouble! First, the dear little puppy Addison had a poop in her crate before they even got out of the neighborhood. Ha ha. They stopped to clean that up, but she shortly had another poop. Then, the poor little pup threw up. Car sick! While Bonnie was comforting and cuddling with Addie, Roger was driving. A huge chunk of metal was sent airborne from the car in front of them on the interstate through Dallas, Texas. They blew out 2 tires on the driver's side!

There they sat, unable to get off the highway with cars whizzing past on either side!!! Fortunately, the tow truck arrived quickly and got them to safety. It was tense!

Unbelievably, there was no other damage visible to the car. They were towed to a tire place that was open until midnight! New tires were installed ...

while Roger held Addie. They were underway again by 11:40 pm. Great service!

By early morning, Addison was delivered safely to her new mom!

Happy day! Addie kissed her new mom and took control of her new household. LOL

While we painted and played with Scotties, Bonnie & Roger boarded the Norwegian Jade ...

And ordered up some Johnny Walker Red!!! Yes, we've intro'd them to Scotch. Haha. Cheers!

Meanwhile "back at the ranch", the puppies joined in our happy hour!

Ah, the wine box ran empty. (It is their fav toy!) LOL

At 5 o'clock, the kids enjoyed their dinner of chicken, broccoli and kibble. Everyone ate everything! Everybody had an hour of solid playtime. Miss Ella loves to play with the spinning top that chucks out food occasionally. LOL. Then, Mark finished his box of Merlot wine. We put some kibble inside the box and she played for another hour and a half. Finally, the box was destroyed and the kibble gone. Now she's sound asleep. Sweetie. Cabby has really warmed up to me; my black shadow. 

Chief & Hannah loved chasing Mark's Minnetonka Moccasins (pricey gift from his sweet sister Pam)! Problem. Mark's toes were being chomped. Haha. 

It was a fun-filled (poop picking up) day. Ta ta til tomorrow!

1/29/16

Mark and I were up extra early to do all the dog chores and let Bonnie and Rogers sleep in. We were up late last night, playing Mexican dominoes.

With a cacophony of shrill yips from the 3 little rascals, they were up soon enough. 

Mark and I needed a few things and headed to Walmart in Sand Springs. I saw some dishes I liked that aren't available in our Florida region. It's a darn good thing we're NOT here with the RV or I'd have bought two sets that clearly I don't need. LOL

As you can see, Robbie and Belize are getting along quite well. 

Last night, while we were playing dominoes, they snuck upstairs together. Hahaha. We put BeeZee's crate/bed in our guest room and she slept there. Sweet!

Randy and Scott were laying pipe this afternoon in the Florida sunshine. (Sprinklers, not what Mark says is "laying pipe!") LOL. RanDawn's new driveway was poured last week so now the sprinklers need redoing. One job leads to another, always!

Sue & Wayne are enjoying a Prevost Liberty rally in Stuart this weekend.

Bonnie took Belize through her paces and Robbie followed along! 

When treats are involved, Robbie is a quick learner. 

Mark put out a spread of chicken, potato salad, Caesar salad & garlic rolls for "linner" at 3 o'clock. By this time their car was packed and Miss Addison was in her finest pink fluff ready for the 8 hour drive to Houston. She's a darling, gentle Scottie and will make a lovely pet. Good luck sweetie. 

Bonnie and the last pup to go ... Addie.

Roger had to be torn from his laptop as it was in update mode! Ha! Bonnie overruled and they were off for Texas. Bon Voyage. Don't worry about a thing! (Actually, 1/2 an hour later, all critters were in snooze mode!) Guess we've been exhausting them. Ha! 

Rick Moir sent us a pic of Daisy. She's relaxing in K's Prevost with Julius & Shorty. Cute!

L-R Shorty, Julius & Daisy. 

At 9 we took the kids out for a last walk ... gave them cookies & fresh water ... and off to bed. We'll be up early to start again ... and to begin a little painting! Ta ta. 

1/28/16

Good morning! It's going to be 62F today! After Roger & Bonnie left for work, we straggled downstairs to feed Robbie and have some toast. 

A dog food delivery arrived via UPS ...

And the wee ones thought they'd open it.  We let them play with it awhile! LOL. Better they bit the box than my pant legs. Hee hee. 

It takes a while to get all 8 dogs outside, in specific groups, several times a day. Tomorrow, Addison goes to her family in Houston, Texas. That'll leave us with "just 7". 

Mark assembled Robbie's puppy crate for Belize ... with his watchful eyes. 

On the other side of a short fence, Mz B watched too. 

Belize (sporting her new collar) & brother, Cabby. (Their mother was Robbie's too.)

Well, I need to get this blog finished because it's now a new day. We went for dinner to Chimi's, a terrific Mexican restaurant with Bonnie and Roger. The food was great! It's in a really neat area of 15th St. There are a lot of shops to walk around and plenty of restaurants. 

Scottieville - 1/27/16

Good morning! Bonnie and Roger left for work by 7:30. After that, Mark and I unpacked, fed Robbie then took he and Belize for their first joint walk. They did just fine! Oddly enough, Mz B seems to have accepted Robs straight away. Robbie is a bit jealous sharing us. It'll take a few days, but we think they're a great pair! 

Tiny Mz B and Robbie Square Pants with Mark. It's a bit frosty for we Floridians but going to 54 this afternoon. 

Back to last night's news ... Bonnie arrived home from work at 5 and got her 6 outside for potty & sunshine. Mark and I unloaded the car and hauled everything upstairs to the guest room. Then, it was intro time for Robbie. Straightaway, he and Percy sniffed and wagged tails. Perfect, they remember each other from 2012! Amazing, right? Percy stayed home with the 3 Scottie shark puppies while we walked. Mark walked Robbie, I with Belize and Bonnie with Cabby & Ella (THE wild one!) LOL. All went very well. Amazing, eh? 

Back home, we poured wine and caught up on events. Bonnie married her sweetheart, Roger, last February in a beautiful Native American ceremony and we hadn't met him yet. Perhaps a 2nd glass of wine happened before Roger got home from his Choctaw language class. 

We all asked what new word he remembered from that class. Of course, under pressure, he couldn't recall any! LOL  You KNOW we had to bring up the "glitter palace" story that Randy always says Mark allegedly visits (instead of deer hunting!) That broke the ice. Roger is a wonderfully kind man who just fit right in. We could see right away that Bonnie married a wonderful husband. 

Mark opened chilled champagne and we toasted to their good fortunes. 

Tonight, we met Vickie & Dick at TiAmo's for dinner. Fabulous! Their lobster bisque was spicy and delicious! 

The 6 of us after dinner. Dick was flying out at 4:30, so they headed home. We 4 went to snuggle doggies and play Mexican Dominoes. Roger is in the lead ... to be continued! 

Finally off to bed at 11:30. Hey, they have jobs! Ta ta. 

Travel #2 1/26/16

There's light rain falling in Tupelo Mississippi early this morning. Both Mark and Robbie are sleeping while I begin repacking. Why do 2 people need this much stuff? 

I slept pretty well. The room got too hot with the typical guess-the-temperature heater/A/C unit. Both times that I was up, no one else seemed bothered. Mark left the bathroom fan on all night to cover machinery noise as our room backed onto the ice maker and vending equipment. (There's no place like your own RV for travel.) ;-)

We were on the road at 6:15 ... same time as yesterday! "Somehow", we've lost our crummy atlas. LOL. Oh well ... Driving I78 through Holly Springs, Mississippi we saw the swath of trees down where the 12/25/15 tornado struck. (It's very close to Olivia's new family in Middleton where we attended her wedding last September.) A 7:15 fuel stop at Flying J took 45 minutes ... no lineup for fuel, just coffee! 

Over the Mississippi River and into Arkansas!  Although flood waters have receded, the mighty river is still high!

At 12:20, we stopped in Clarksville to eat a sandwich and walk Robbie. It's a good thing we weren't a day later leaving, as a very big storm is working its way across the Midwest. We have 176 miles left to Bonnie's. She won't be home until 5 o'clock, so there's no hurry. 

The Ozarks are pretty ... even in winter. Who knew they made wine here! 

We passed by the marker "Trail of Tears" ... Andrew Jackson's miserable idea and process. 

Well the day got away on me! We arrived in Tulsa about 3, found the new liquor store for champagne then went to Sonic for eats. 

At Sonic! Robs likes their grilled chicken but Mark balked at $4 for his sandwich. Ha. 

Bonnie arrived home at 5 and the fun began. More tomorrow!

Travel Day 1/25/16

Good (frosty) morning! It's 6:20 am as we leave home for Tulsa. Later it'll be 70ish. Traffic was light. At 8:10, we stopped at the Lake City rest area & took Robbie for a walk. It was pretty darn chilly.  Well, here we are at 10:05 stopped again. LOL. We're not great car travelers ... but we needed fuel. $18.81 to fill up. 

Well, we are still going through damn Atlanta. Our GPS took us from I75 to I475 loop to I675 which put us on a 10 mile tour through a most scenic area. 

We finally made it to I75N and got onto I20W. Yikes. (FOOL ME ONCE, SHAME ON YOU.)

So we're cruising along I20W through Birmingham when the GPS directs us to I78. Screw you GPS! We're stating on I20 ... It was correct! Drat. I20 ends there and we had to detour back to I78. (Guess I should have brought the big atlas, not this small one. LOL. (FOOL ME TWICE, SHAME ON ME!) 

Oh no!!!  We were told, yes, by our GPS, to get off I78 onto I44 for the last 15 miles to the hotel. Since we DIDN'T OBEY last time, we followed the GPS direction this time. Well, Podunk here we come! Yes, really! Once we arrived at the hotel, we were a stone's throw from the main highway we'd gotten off! LOL. )So it turns out, President Dubya Bush, that you get fooled again!) LOL

When we finally checked in, we fed Robbie then ordered a pizza and poured ourselves wine! We now remember why we didn't want to drive this I20 route. Ha. 

Fortunately, Ancient Aliens was on TV and we relaxed with some we'd not seen before. 

Robbie & Giorgio Tsoukalos. Two favorites!

Ta ta til tomorrow. 

We're PACKED - 1/24/16

Baby it's cold outside ... and Robbie is in no rush to go potty!

Can you see our packed Scottie? Haha. 

This morning it's warmer in Tulsa, Oklahoma than here in Grand Island, Florida. 

The car is loaded, the house-sitter on duty ... we're ready for our T-Town adventure. 

Yes, Mark. We have to drive through Alabama! LOL

Tonight, Randy, Dawn & Scott came by for happy hour and then we were off to Stavros for dinner. 

Everyone made a fuss over Robbie and wished him well meeting Belize. Awww.

Pictures that recently missed the Blog. 

This is a pineapple that Randy grew, and it's standing beside a huge bottle of rum! Wowsa! 

Another Blog miss was "El Diablo" ...

but I have no idea what we were up to! Hi-jinx, obviously. LOL

Well, we're settling in to watch some TV before early bedtime. We hope to be on the road by 6 AM. Ta ta. 

RV Show 1/23/16

Good day! It's sunny, windy & nice this morning...perfect for browsing Giant's display at the mall. No, we're NOT in the market but RanDawn are!

Robbie was sleeping in the Sunroom when Mark looked for him this morning. Maybe the house was too warm last night? We did have the small heater on this morning. Mark cooked turkey sausage and eggs for our breakfast. Aren't I lucky!!! Yes, I am. When I looked at the calendar today I realize that yesterday, January 22, marked 30 years since I moved to Florida. I have good memories of living in Canada, but these United States are fantastic! Florida, in particular, is a tropical paradise to me. For 90% of the year, you just step outside ... no jacket, no boots. Now today, I will probably need a fleecy because of gusty wind. But hey, it is winter in Florida. LOL. A big thank you to my dad and mom who immigrated, and enabled us girls to follow. It was a good family move!

Brrr ... We walked around the RV show for an hour but the wind was relentless = cold. Randy & Dawn saw the TREK that we thought might be ideal for them.

At bowling, Lane 21 was tough! There seemed to be a crest in the center ... even Mark contributed to the fund today! (Mark pays a dollar to the gutter ball fund if he doesn't make three strikes in a game.) Everyone contributed today. LOL

Mark, parting with a buck. Haha. 

We came home ... Mark to build a great roaring fire ... and me to check our packing and close the suitcases. We're 95% ready to travel. The dog beds were washed and readied to welcome our new girl. I'm excited to be on our way!

Dawn's son Brandon celebrated  his 31st birthday yesterday. Tonight, they are getting together with dinner out. Fun! Afterward, everyone is going back to RanDawn's. Happy Birthday Brandon!

Sue & Wayne are off to the Elks for dancing tonight. It's chilly in Pompano tonight with strong winds too. 

We have a nice fire going and we're snuggling with Robbie. I think he's feeling better! Ta ta til tomorrow. 

Vet ... 1/22/16

Poor Robbie! It was off to the vet first thing for a check on his ear. He had a tilted head and looked miserable. Our vet  packed his ear and wants a recheck in 2 weeks. I called later and spoke with Sandy at Animal Medical Services in Eustis. Sandy explained the treatment and said it wouldn't matter if we weren't back in exactly 2 weeks. Maybe we will have Robs checked in Tulsa while we're there dog sitting. 

This afternoon, I worked on filing paperwork while Mark got his packing organized. Canadian paperwork that I filed last April was finally answered. Of course they need more paperwork. Why on earth does it take nearly a year to answer? Frustrating. 

This evening, we are meeting Randy, Dawn and Scott at Guadalajara Mexican restaurant. RanDawn have been raving about it, so we must try it. Afterwards, it's Bowling.

Good food ... Good times!

Randy & Dawn spent their afternoon shopping for phones & a new plan. Scott helped them sort things out and they negotiated a good deal. Because they had to go back and pick up the phones at AT&T after we ate, we decided it would be too late to go bowling. (We didn't want to leave Robbie home alone that long.)

So, at home we're snuggled up with our boy and watching TV. Tomorrow morning, we're going to meet everyone at the Giant Recreation's RV display by the mall. After that, we will go bowling. 🎳

So, ta ta til tomorrow. 💤

1/21/16

Wow! What a good sleep I had. At 6:30 I was ready for my DSO.

First on our list was Mike & Alice's garage sale. I bought 6 Williams Sonoma Ramekins for $3 ... which should sell on eBay for $18-22 ... That's a good profit for shopping at our local humane society store! Heehee. I also scored a bag of hangers for them.

Today's excitement was cleaning the Sunroom windows. All the sheer curtains came down for washing; Mark washed the outside while I worked inside. What perfect weather for that job!

At 5:30, Lew arrived home from his part-time job and joined us for happy hour on our front porch. Eventually, Lynn arrived home from work and came over for a glass of wine as well. Meanwhile, Robbie was sitting on a highchair joining in. LOL - we're officially nuts. Haha. 

I talked to Bonnie tonight, confirming our travel plans to T-town. Timichael (OKC) called to bring us up to date on his divorce proceedings. We feel bad for him in this predicament. 

That was our day. How was your Thursday? 

Luncheon 1/20/16

Good morning. It's ladies luncheon today at 1884 in Eustis. Sharon picked me up at 11 o'clock along with Carol and Anita. We noticed a strange white Chevy car driving up and down my street. We were suspicious and stopped to ask them if they needed help finding an address. They said they had just found it and we're parked in front of Helen's. Well we continue to talk about it and the subject came up of the person who came to Carol's door so weeks ago at 1 o'clock in the morning. Anyway, we arrived at 1884 and went in and met everyone for lunch. Our waitress Tracy?, was fantastic. The food was excellent and she took a cute picture of us all. The Horshoe shaped table set up was perfect for us. 

Of course, we were the noisiest group there. The lady on the front left of the photo reminds me of my sister Sue ... and her name is Julie. Can you believe we have a group with two redheads! 

On our way back from lunch, we spotted the same car in the neighborhood and grew more suspicious. Anita tried to jot down the plate as we slowly cruised by, eyeballing them. They were talking to a woman in a white pick up truck. We drove further down Pine Island and then decided to turn around and get the entire plate number of the white Chevy. Just as we did that, the white Chevy took off around the corner heading to the highway. Then, about the same time, the white truck started coming towards us. Sharon turned her car around and we began to follow the white truck. Hell yeah! We were for detectives on a mission. Well, we cornered the white truck driver on Cedar and asked what she was doing in our neighborhood. She said she ran a cleaning service. Then Sharon asked how she knew the people in the white Chevy. She explained that they worked for her. Mystery solved? We really weren't buying the whole story because the man, in the passenger seat of the white Chevy, reminded Carol of the one who came to her door that night! "See something - say something." We

do. LOL

Meanwhile, Randy and Scott arrived to look at a lawnmower for sale at our neighbor's. Mark walked over with them and Randy bought it along with the dock box that Mike and Alice had for sale. Mark and I will go over there tomorrow for their garage sale! So, Randy and Scott have gone to take their loot home and then come back here to use our Internet to set up his "fit" watch. So far, it's been a busy day. 

6:30 and we're sitting by the fire with Randy & Scott. They're working on loading the Fit App onto Randy's phone. Mark and I are just chilling tonight. No plans for us. Dawn is at work til 8 ... Sue & Wayne went to the Elks for their dinner tonight. 

So that's it for today. Ta ta. 

Microwave 1/19/16

Good day! We're feeling spry at 10 o'clock this morning. LOL yes, we are later than usual getting up. It was 130 before we went to bed last night.

Our first stop of the day will be to our post office to mail a shower curtain I sold on eBay. $24 Ka-Ching! Actually, the month of January has been pretty good for eBay sales. (December was dreadful.) After that stop, we are on our way to Orlando to install the over the range, microwave. That shouldn't take long at all.

At the post office, we saw our neighbors Linda & Alice. They were off on a shopping trip while Jack & Mike went golfing. Alice said Cheri removed the metal tabs from her brown mailing envelope as it saved 22 cents. It's a discount the post office gives ... so remove the metal tabs!

This evening, we're invited to Randy and Dawn's for pizza. We're bringing a key lime pie ... yummy!

When we arrived at the Orlando House, I checked for leaks; Under the cabinet sinks etc. and this time I found one! The faucet in the guest bathroom has been leaking when it is turned on. Of course with the main water off, we haven't seen a leak. But, when the granite and kitchen cabinets were installed, the crew was  washing up in the bathroom sink. Well, it was wet underneath. So, Mark was off to Lowe's for a new faucet. Meanwhile, I finished the painting around the cabinets where Mark had repaired a kitchen cabinet install ding with drywall mud, and along the side of the dishwasher where they had dinged the molding. After that, it was a thorough vacuuming of the entire house. 

It looks as if water has been leaking for years!

The microwave oven install went very well. In fact, we got it on the back bracket first time. Yay!

It was a very snug fit ... and looks fantastic!

We were completely finished with the Orlando house by 230. On the way home, we stopped for chocolate milkshakes, a rather celebratory event. Ha ha. 

When we arrived at Randy's and Dawn's, Randy was half in the bag from pouring his own bloody Caesar. Pizzas were slightly delayed, as cheese had been forgotten! Ha. Dawn saved the day by looking in the fridge before everything went into the oven. We may do with more wine and beer. While we were waiting, Dawn made baby beers for everyone! That was just what we needed. The pizzas were excellent ... Hawaiian with turkey ham and vegetable with extra cheese. We also had a Caesar salad and Keylime pie for dessert. It was perfect. Scott asked a few questions about eBay which brought us around to the topic of Randy's Harley Davidson overalls.  Randy had donated them to Shih Tsu rescue, and they sold. Well, of course, Scott had to hear the entire story. After that, we phoned Sue with a funny ditty about selling them. Actually, it ended up being a video to her. We had more fun doing it.

Red headed Scott & crew. LOL

Monday 1/18/16

Hello sunshine! Yes, it's in the 50's but still a good start for a mid-January morning. 

Lew phoned quite early ... barking dogs woke him at 3:30 but we didn't hear anything (Robbie isn't a barker!) Another side to Lew's phone call was that our neighbor, Bill, IS ALIVE!  Last week, another person with the same name and even the same middle initial passed away in the same city. What are the odds? Anyway, Lynn phoned Carol to give her regards and Carol said, "Bill is alive!" LOL  She had numerous calls, sympathy cards and emails. 

It was a very busy afternoon. Mark tidied the side yard from all our assorted projects and put away his hunting equipment. I had just finished putting three new listings on eBay when Randy called. We decided on dinner at IchiBan and Mexican Dominoes later. 

Mark gave Robbie a quick haircut and bath, as I vacuumed and made ready for company. 

Randy, Dawn and Scott arrived for a drink about 5, then it was off to supper about 6 o'clock. Dawn and I played a trick on Randy with his fortune cookie. When he was getting dessert for Dawn, I read my fortune and then passed it over to Dawn. When Randy came back, he opened his fortune cookie and Dawn offered to read his fortune for him. I said that I bet I knew what it said. Well when Dawn read out what I had said, Randy thought it was great that I knew. LOL. We had to tell him I wasn't psychic like his auntie Glady. 

Mark was the big winner tonight, with Scott in second place. We had plenty of laughs, and a couple of drinks. Of course Robbie sat on a high bar stool, table height for him, and watched. He's such a good boy! We hope he will enjoy having Belize in our home. 

Mark, Robbie & Randy ... Mexican Dominoes night. 

Everyone left at 11 and we tidied the place then made ready for work in Orlando tomorrow morning. The microwave arrived today, 3 days early! Sweet. 

Birthdays 1/17/16

Good morning from sunny Central Florida. LOL ... Our weather radio alarm sounded at 12:30 AM. It sits on the lower shelf of Mark's nightstand. He abruptly awoke, not knowing where the sound was coming from! So, he rolled over and tried to go back to sleep! I put my nightstand light on and tried to coach him to push the "bar". Well, that didn't make much sense. Finally, I turned the TV on to find there was a tornado warning for everywhere EXCEPT Lake County. We did get heavy rain, apparently, and wind. This morning, we were laughing about it and Mark said he thought it was the alarm clock and he had to get up for work! I suppose the weather radio needs to be on my side of the bed. 

Today is my cousin Elliott Tawns' 20th birthday. We wish him the very best for the coming years. Also, it is my late sister Linda's birthday. Sad that she's gone too soon. We miss her every day. 😢

It was the final day to remove hunting equipment from the Ocala Forest. Lew and Mark left at 9 to pick up their tree stands. On the way back from that task, Randy called to ask Mark to help with a project. Dawn had an opportunity to acquire a curio display cabinet from work. It was the perfect color scheme for Randy's garage, orange and black. Randy popped in for a visit (mainly to see Robbie!) about noon, and then the two of them took the Mounty to pick up the cabinet. Scott was supposed to arrive last night, and would have been pressed into service for the pickup. Randy was quite sure Scotty would come in before 3 o'clock as Gator Harley has a 30% off sale on that ends today. Apparently, Scott has a laundry list of things he wants for his bike! 

I saw this picture online and it made me think of our Candy Bear. Actually though, she was a very good girl. Another English Springer Spaniel that I had, Freddie Farkle, was "the" escape artist. 

Freddie could scale any fence! I nicknamed him Houdini Hound. LOL. 

It's evening now and the fireplace is lit ... just a small fire tonight. Ha! Mark doesn't do small fires. Stay cozy. Ta ta. 

 

Orlando Delivery -1/16/16

It's an early start to our Saturday. The clock radio woke us at 5 ... and Mr. Bear was wandering our street. Mark and Robbie saw big wet tracks all about our road. 

Minutes after we arrived at the house, the delivery truck pulled up ... even before Home Depot's warning call. Good service. Mark began the install while I sorted the paperwork for the future homeowner. 

The dishwasher install went as easy as one could expect through the new garbage disposal. The icemaker water line wasn't so simple. The new fittings didn't match with the old fittings in the house. Mark went to Home Depot, but they didn't have the right part (sold out) so he was off to Lowe's. Meanwhile, I had touch up painting to do around the cabinets after John's install.

The stainless appliances ... all hooked up and looking great! The over the range microwave is on back order until next Thursday. So we tidied up and headed home at 1:30. I had a coupon for Hardees so we stopped and ordered two - 1/2 pound steak burgers for lunch/supper. Wow, they were awesome! Yes, we ordered fries to share with Robbie. He also had some lettuce and a little bun from our burgers.

Randy called about 330 and came for a pop in visit on the bike. He had just put a new battery in and wanted to test it. We sat on the front porch to wait for him, Robbie and I. 

Robbie with his uncle Randy on the motorcycle. Cute cute cute! Both of them, LOL. 

The house in the background behind Robbie's ears should be up for sale very soon. Our neighbor Bill passed away after spending 4 months in a nursing home. It's a canal front property with a fenced lot and boat dock. (I know the neighborhood is a fun place to live!)

Mark had two football games that needed to be watched. LOL  Then we got into Dateline, a two hour special. Somehow, that ended up being our entire evening. Not too exciting was it? Ta ta til tomorrow. 

Mid-January 1/15/16

How're your new year resolutions? Mine are on track ... 

Today was forecast with 50 MPH winds, possible tornadoes and heavy rain. So, we planned a hunker-down kind of day. ⛈

That didn't last. Once the rain moved out, we felt restless and ready to do something fun. I phoned Randy, knowing Dawn was at work. The storm had been a non-event there too. We decided on practice bowling at 1 o'clock today. Practice bowling means, try anything, there's no gutter ball fund box to pay. LOL. Today, I shall work on form, and nothing else. What I have found in the past, if my form is good, my bowling improves. 

January 6, we had Robbie in for a dental. All was well, but here we are a few days later treating an ear infection. When he was in for the dental, they cleaned his ears and apparently didn't dry them properly! The poor guy was trying to tell us something was bothering him. Mark discovered crustiness in his ear while brushing him last night. Fortunately, we had Panalog on hand. I don't think it's available in the United States, but Canada uses it. He was quite comical, with his head tilted sideways and feeling very bad for himself ... and mad at both of us. Poor guy. We tried all the usual bribes, but Robbie hid behind the recliner chair. Today, he was fine, but we had to treat his ear again. We know ear infections aren't cured in one dose. 

I just read online that Rick and Ruth had terrible weather at the boat. Here, the sun is shining and it's 74F. Soon the front will be offshore and kaput.  

We had a blast bowling, as usual. Randy and I shared the big "L" but we all had very good games.

Just look at Randy's grimace. Hilarious! LOL

Not only do we have a gutter ball fee of $1 ... but we pass around the "L" ... "Loser!" LOL. Rough crowd. (Scott E arrives late Saturday ... so it just might be breakfast out Sunday, followed by bowling!)

We've all had better bowling games but felt we did okay. If you base it all on fun, it was a winner-day. (Dawn didn't need the practice ... she was ace last Wednesday night!)

After dinner of pork fried rice, Mark and I played 3 rounds of Rummikub ... to be continued another evening. 

Robbie came into the Sunroom and stood up ... wanting to join us. Mark sat him on a high barstool. Sweet guy. 

That's it for today. It's time to watch the evening news and chill out. It's going to be an early morning as we're meeting the appliance delivery at the Orlando house. Ta ta.