Report on Tyler!

Tyler called today via Skype! Yay Skype!

He landed just fine in Nice, France. He found his way to the hostel by himself, and met his friends there. He says that Nice by itself was okay, but they took several side trips that were exciting. They went over to Monte Carlo and Cannes, where he reports there were yachts, Ferraris and Lamborgini's everywhere... Awesome.

They are now in Interlaken, Switzerland for the next five days. His plans are to hike, kayak, go canyoning and learn hang gliding - all in five days? And he does have a little bit of an ear infection, but he's taking care of himself.

I am so glad he gets to have this opportunity!

Tyler's adverture planning

This is a fun story in itself.

Tyler has never traveled by himself, and was left to put together a trip to Europe (where he is meeting his friends) on his own. He did get his passport plenty early, but then dawdled and fiddled getting every else ready.

How to carry your money (Grandpa was an invaluable help here)?
How to changed dollars to euros?
How to get from the airport to the hostel?
How to get along in a country where you don't speak the language?

Oh, and the ever entertaining - what do I pack?

And those questions were the ones he was asking two hours prior to when he was to leave for the Bay Area, where he flight was leaving from.

Tyler the procrastinator. Always seems to land on his feet, but WOW! I would end up falling on my butt.

So, he has most of the next two months in Europe (France, Holland, Brussels, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy) - lucky guy! I can't wait to hear of his adventures. He promised to email... HAHAHAHAHAHA! I'll believe it when I see it.

New doggy!!

Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted about our new addition!

My Sparky isn't doing so well - besides being old in general, he's in a lot of pain, can't go for his beloved walks, can't really climb up on to the couch(even using the doggies steps), doesn't seem as interested in eating, is losing weight, losing his hearing, blind in one eye... in general, just on that downward slope.

It doesn't help that Scamp still wants to play all the time, and when he bumps playfully up against Sparky, that hurts too.

So when my friend Carolyn called me after hearing about a young dachshund who needed a new home, it didn't take us very long to decide that this was the right time.

Her name is Molly (her old name was Mani - but that just didn't seem to suit her), and she is a three year old black and tan mini-dox. The best way to tell her apart from Scamp is that her paws are black where his are brown, and she has two substantial scars above her left eye. At first she was pretty shy and nervous, but she has really fit in well. Both the dogs don't mind having a new friend for the most part - except that when Tyler was home, Scamp was INTENSELY jealous. But now that Ty is gone on his trip, Scamp is much better.

Molly has adopted Dorothy as her very own human, and it's really precious to see. She is Dorothy's very own doggie shadow. Sleeps with her. And is even like her in personality - reserved and quiet, but don't even try to back her into a corner, because she can really be fierce! Oh, and Molly has to be tempted to eat! I love watching Dorothy sit with her, coaxing her to eat. LOL.

Scamp and Molly are even learning to play! They play chase around the couch, and may even be learning to doggy wrestle. I haven't gotten to see these yet, being gone so much lately, but have been assured it is taking place.

It takes the sting out of Sparky's health problems for me, too. Poor old guy. I keep him as comfortable as I can.

Our visit with Dad

Dad and Adele have come and gone, but it sure was fun to see them! I was only able to take one day off work, but it was nice relaxing with them, chatting, and of course, getting treated to dinners out! My kids love that especially...

We had two magical meals together - all 7 of us. This is was the first time I can remember everyone being out to dinner together is quite a while. The first was a very fun dinner at McPhee's in Templeton (YUM!). We ate and laughed, and ate some more - it was really a memorable time with everyone.

It still amazes me that my Dad, who looks 70, has turned 90. He just keeps on going!

Our last night together, we took off for Morro Bay. We had a leisurely walk along the Embarcadero store front - stopping in one place (dang if I can remember the name) where we ooo'd and ahhh'd over the arts and jewelry in there for quite a while. There was this one opal bracelet - Dorothy just stared fixedly at it for what seemed like a long time - but in the end she decided against in. The mantra - "Pay for college, pay for college" is what made that decision. Smart girl!

We had dinner at Windows on the Water, and enjoyed banter with a waiter named Lex that enhanced the meal. Oh, and the desserts... I learned a new term (Lex cracked me up with it) - "Strategic Eating" - for when you have the waiter box up that last bit of the meal that you could have eaten, but decided against, so you would have room for dessert.

Tyler left that night to begin his European adventure (I'll leave that for another blog) and Dad and Adele left the next morning. Back to work!

Family visits

You can always tell it's summer in Atascadero when two things happen: the Mid-State Fair comes to town, and so does my father.

Dad and Adele arrived yesterday afternoon after driving from Florida to New York to Colorado (two weeks with Sumner and Kristan, those luckys!) and now here. Of course, lots of friends to visit with along the way. I'm just so glad to see them.

Last night we were treated to dinner at a close-by restaurant (best chicken enchiladas in town!) and a visual tour of Dad's 90th birthday party. He brought a photo album with him and gave me all the highlights. He obviously had a wonderful time!

It's not often anymore that the kids are all in town at the same time as Dad and Adele, so we are lucky to have these couple of days together.

Tyler leaves for a long-awaited trip to Europe on Thursday, and I am so happy for him! It's been really, really nice having him here - even if he is totally distracted most of the time. But that's okay - at least he's here in body...

Hi y'all. Between work and home, not much time for else. I'm trying to work out at the club regularly again - not easy. I find it almost impossible to go at night, so I try to go right after work. That means there's not much time in the evening after dinner and dishes...

So what's new? Here's the biggest news - Dorothy has been cleared to drive by her doctors! You may recall that she had to undergo five hours of testing with a neuropsychologist in order to get finally cleared of the residuals from her accident. Well, the final test results came in and she's CLEAR! Praise be to God for He is good.

Another piece of news is our new dachshund, Molly. My friend Carolyn heard of the plight of a young (4 years) dachshund who had recently been placed in a home that wasn't working for her. Well, my Sparky is getting quite old, and our Scamp needs a new play buddy.

And I think it's so sweet that Dorothy and Molly are such buddies. They are devoted to each other already.

Well, maybe not...

So, I was feeling a bit blue. Life is that way sometimes. But I think I'll keep blogging...

To recap June - a most eventful month...

June 11, Dorothy graduated. June 13, Tyler graduated.

Bob's family (Tom & Marianne Kline, Janet Terry & her son Don) and my family (Otamay and Sumner, my brother and sister) came to town - we had a lovely visit, a great party and it was so much fun!

My Dad also turned 90! We couldn't get out to Florida for his party unfortunately, but he tells me it was huge, and a lot of fun.