14 posts tagged “vacation”

Vacation & Independence Day

Jul 6, 2009
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The time off last week was much needed and wonderful! The best part was that we really didn't do much of anything. The plumber came Wednesday and fixed the exterior faucet/pipe leak - can I tell you how awesome it is to finally have a hose on that side of the house again???

Thursday we sort of puttered around - I think it was Thursday that we got some pressure washing of the porch and front walkway done...and then the washer ran out of gas. I also got some Sevin dust sprinkled on my crape myrtles to deal with the bad Japanese beetle problem. Later we went into town and did a little shopping for random things (like a new hose for the new outside faucet!) and a headphone amp for Neil. Friday there was a BBQ at Neil's house - much fun was had, and WAY too much alcohol was consumed by moi. Seriously, maybe I was thinking I was 21 all over again or something? At any rate, that ended poorly in the wee hours of the morning.

Saturday, we really lounged around and did a lot of nothing. Neil was tired from entertaining and (I am sure) taking care of me and just generally being up so late. And I was hungover like I haven't been in a long, long time. I did see some fireworks when I took dogs out for their night-time potty breaks...Sadie is totally freaked out by them and wouldn't even go outside at one point (Bandit is also terrified by them, I discovered). Moo, however, didn't seem at all phased by them. Thunder makes her much more upset. She just sort of looked in the direction of the noise and then continued about her business. I think the thunder scares her because it doesn't seem to come from any one point...it is just sudden loudness all around.

Yesterday I was pretty productive. I got the overspray from the pressure washer rinsed off the front door and siding. I watered plants. I flicked more beetles off the vitex (I didn't use the Sevin dust on it because I wasn't sure if it would also kill the bees which are VERY happy with the flowers on that bush!) I scrubbed down my BBQ and sprayed bug spray in the propane tank cabinet where it was scary. I also dismantled the dog crate that was in my bedroom that never got used and then vacuumed the whole house. And I sprayed the inside of the wall and underneath the base of the wall board in the garage with bleach water where the leak had been.

Today, I have to get away from posting here and go do some actual work stuff...I have to prepare for my trip tomorrow morning (WAY too early a flight, but it saves me from being gone two nights). I have a couple con calls today and I also need to clean out my closets and dresser to get everything put away that had been piled on top of the old dog crate so I can find the things I need to pack. Heh. Oh, and laundry. That seems to be a given, though.

Happy grass...

May 26, 2009
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an update on my mom's visit and the holiday weekend.

My mom's visit was fantastic. She loves yard work....adores it. Personally, I don't share quite the same level of enthusiasm, but I do enjoy it. Out first project - extending the patio with a 4' by 5' pad made of concrete pavers so that I could get my grill off of the patio (and more specifically, so that it was no longer sitting directly in front of my living room window). We dug out the grass first. Not as easy as it sounds like it should be...with the drought over the past several years, the grass and weeds that did get established had some serious root systems to contend with! Once that was done the smoothing and leveling began one paver at a time. It took 2 days to get the pad completed (really only about a day total - 4 hours each day with a total of 12 eighteen inch pavers). I have one that settled more than the rest with all the rain we've had, so as soon as the weather gets a little nicer I will pull it up and put some more sand under it to bring it back up to the same level as the rest. With the grill moved, I also relocated the patio furniture so that now there is plenty of room for folks to sit outside and still have room to walk around the patio without ending up in the grass.

Next project - planting beds and bird feeders! A trip to Lowe's got us many bags of lava rock to finish the front bed, a concrete bird bath, bird seed, and the thought that we should later bite the bullet and go get pine needles to create the rest of the planting areas. Since it was sweltering that day, we did the easy stuff first - put up bird feeders and got the bath put out and leveled (smart mom - we used left over sand from leveling the pavers to make a little spot to put the bath that could be adjusted to keep it upright). We then dumped and spread the bags of rock and realized we were going to need more. But, before that, we decided to tackle the edging that I had purchased last year. The stuff is cool - it is the inexpensive black PVC stuff, but instead of the kind that you have to dig a trench to install, this has tabs along it that you just pound stakes through as needed. SO much easier to get in straight and even. Exactly two lengths of it completed the front bed! A little digging was needed here and there to get the ground under the edge level, but all in all, it was as easy as advertised! Someday I will replace it with larger stones to edge all of the beds, but for now this helps keep the rock where it belongs and give the bed a nice finished look.

Off to get pine needles. I learned that my truck holds exactly 12 bales (we ended up needing 14 - good thing the materials place is close to the house!). We bedded along the entire garage end of the house and also extended a couple areas around trees and finished around the holly bushes since the lawn guys never did. It looks amazing! While we were outside, a random neighbor from up the road stopped by to offer us two azaleas that she didn't want and was going to throw away...cool! So we planted those too. When we went back to Lowe's for the remaining red rock, we also ended up getting a couple bags of grass seed and some starter fertilizer/mulch to throw down on the bare areas in the front yards and one more bird feeder - I needed a new mesh one for the thistle seed.

Last but not least for the week - we installed the solar lights that I have had since I moved out here and also the copper tiki torches that I had purchased last year. The lights went in all along the house where we made the beds and also out under the trees and shrubs in the side and back yards. They don't give off a ton of light (they have amber LEDs in them) but they do make for nice delineation of the yard at night and offer enough light to see the shrubs and trees that they are near. The torches went around the patio and will be filled with citronella oil to help keep the flying, biting, creepy-crawlies away while we are outside.

This weekend it ended up raining about half the weekend (Sunday and Monday and more today), which was OK. I got a little housework done, watched the entire first season of Dollhouse, and mostly just vegged out with the dogs. The best part was that I haven't had to water the front lawns where we seeded. The rest of the established grass also seems to be very happy with the warmer weather and the water. It is already looking like it needs another trim and will be very ready by Thursday when the guys come.

If and when the weather clears up a little, I will get out and take some photos of the yard and house and get them posted. I am thrilled with how 'finished' it all finally looks! This fall will really be the icing on the cake when the lawn guys do a proper seeding of the entire lawn - it should really grow in well.

Black Mountain, NC and the toilet...

Jan 18, 2009
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Black Mountain was very nice (as always). We puttered around, had tasty sandwiches and soup at the deli, lounged around the hotel room and read books, and then ate pizza and had some beer. It was crazy cold...thank goodness for warm jackets, scarves, and gloves!

This morning was too gloomy and overcast for any photo taking - yesterday was simply too cold!

The toilet issue seems to have been a frozen pipe. When I got home this afternoon the reservoir tank was full and it was working just fine. Luckily, I am not seeing any water damage in any of the wall board so unless there is a very slow leak, disaster seems to have been averted for now. The bigger issue now is, how do I prevent this from happening again (short of piling pine straw against the outside of the house each winter)? It is the ONLY area in the house (except the outside spigots) that has plumbing in the exterior wall.

Marly and Sadie got to go to the dog park yesterday with my friend who was watching them. The report is that the park is a complete zoo now that it has been opened up to the public (you used to have to pay an annual fee to get a pass to get into the park - they monitored dog vaccinations and such). Last time I was there it was starting to get bad with no one picking up after their dogs and such. This time, some dumbass brought treats or food into the park for his dog and apparently Marly thought that sounded good and jumped on him. Heh. I hear he got a little upset, however, if I had been there I would have pointed out that the park rules specifically prohibit food, treats, or personal toys in the park because of the risk of dogs getting jealous, over-protective, etc. So, in my opinion, go Moo!

The best Christmas ever...once I got there.

Jan 2, 2009
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Sorry for the lengthy entry...lots of rambling after being gone! :)

Getting out west this year was a nightmare - as noted in my previous entry regarding US Air. I did finally make it a little after midnight on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. My luggage even got there too!

I got the best Christmas present ever as soon as I got into the truck with my sister and mom...my sister announced that she is going to be a mommy!!! Which means I will be an aunt (duh!) - due date is August 20. I am SO thrilled I can't even express it properly. And the funniest part was that the silly sister of mine was sorry she couldn't drink beer with me while I was there! *laugh* Aside from it being a darn good reason for not being able to, it was better all around because I didn't drink as much as I probably would have otherwise.

So, though I had already planned on going back out at the end of August for my sister's b-day (I want to make that time of year my annual trip home time...this holiday travel thing is for the birds), now I will for sure be heading that way so I can help out with the new baby. And it will be convenient, because I can celebrate with both of them each year. Who knows, maybe Nugget (my sister's name, not mine - based on the current size and shape of the fetus) will be late and will have a birthday right next to or on my sister's (Aug 27)! Hehehe! Personally, I think that would be kind of cool since my birthday is the day after my mom's.

Aside from all that excitement, Christmas was nice. My dad was still there because his flight to TX was cancelled as well. I got to see more snow in the harbor than I have ever seen on all the years I lived there. I know it was annoying to the folks having to deal with all the ice on the roads that came with it, but it was also beautiful. I got to hang out with my mom. And I got to spend lots of time with my sister and BIL (they are some of my favorite people on the face of this planet). I got to see Dad's new boat (I forget if I have mentioned that he now lives on a boat?) - it is gorgeous for a boat...but man is it small for everyday living! And as always, the trip was way too short.

UPS got way behind in deliveries because of the crazy weather nation-wide so my sister's presents didn't arrive until after the holiday, but at least they got there. And I made out like a bandit and had to ship a box back home to myself because it wouldn't all fit in my bag.

The trip home was uneventful other than I couldn't sleep - I got into Charlotte around 6:00am on Wednesday and then picked up dogs (who were both beside themselves when they saw me), dropped Sadie at the house and took Moo to the vet for another check-up on the ears (see below).

I slept through new year's eve...no Times Square for me. And yesterday I spent the day reorganizing my china cabinet, kitchen cabinets, and shelves - I am still trying to find space for everything that is useable and accessible. I think I am finally getting there! Today I am going to tackle my bathroom and maybe even my closets. And tomorrow I will work on the office here (which is on hold somewhat until I can afford additional shelving for the closet) and also the refrigerator (I need to go through all my sauces and stuff and see what is outdated, etc.)

First, though, the dogs need a bath. They stink after being at the kennel...I could have gotten them groomed there, but that gal charges an arm and a leg for her services (she does the all out doggy spa stuff...massages and such with the bath).

PS Cats were all fine and happy, happy, happy that I was home. :)

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Moo's Ears:

Her ears are still boarderline OK. Way too much ear wax/goo building up in there which is requiring daily and sometimes twice daily cleanings on top of drops and other medicine. The good news is that the eardrum looks to be healing itself well and there is very little redness. So, the vet changed up the ear drops and put her on the food elimination trial. I knew the prescription food would be expensive, but seriously...$85 for a 27.5 lb bag of food?!? Even worse, she needs 6 cups a day (vs the 3 cups of Wellness). And we have to do this for 12 weeks. *sigh* I am also doing this with Sadie for two reasons: 1) Marly likes to steal food from Sadie sometimes and I really want to do this right to see if her problems are indeed food related and 2) Sadie has such itchy skin and it has been seven or eight years since I've seriously taken a look at the problem, I feel this is a good place to start.

This means, including Sadie, I am feeding 10 cups of food a day. I will probably end up buying four bags of this food before it is all said and done...and then, I will also end up buying some canned to make treats with since they cannot eat ANYTHING other than this food during the 12 weeks. I also need to ask the vet when we go back next week what I do for heartworm medicine during the trial - right now they get liver flavored pills which they aren't supposed to have because of the liver in them. I went ahead with this month's dose since it was given on the same day the trial started.

I will be very interested to see what happens with both of their coats during this trial - they currently get salmon oil which I am suspending during the trial. I think it is one of the primary factors in their pretty, shiny fur. We shall see! And once we are done, I am going to go on a hunt for another distributor of the Nature's Variety food. I really liked their salmon kibble and would like to get the dogs back on it. I wish Wellness made one for dogs...they do for cats.

10 days!!!

Dec 11, 2008
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Only 10 days until I leave for vacation to visit my family! I can't wait!!! This week has been insane...next week I only have a 2-day review so that is good. It will be busy, though, with getting the house ready to be empty (relatively) for about a week and a half.

Tomorrow Marly goes to the vet for a follow-up to see how her ears are doing. I am a little concerned because the right one seems to be red and irritated, but I am hoping that is just left over irritation from the procedure.

Also, tomorrow I get my hair cut. YAY!

This weekend will be spent cleaning the house and packing up doggie items for both Neil's house and for their kennel stay.

Tonight I must get gifts packed up so I can take them to be mailed tomorrow. Thank goodness the UPS store is right next to the vet's office so I can do all that in one fell swoop. I can also hit up the pet store near there for some Nature's Miracle* and cat food.

Nothing else new happening here - work this week has been icky. I will be glad when today is over.

*Someone has been marking again...Mr. M. So, he is going to be relegated to the outdoors while I am away. He seems to do alright inside as long as someone is home, but if left alone inside he starts marking out his territory (which is apparently the entire house now). However, I ran out of the good enzyme cleaner stuff yesterday so I will be grabbing more tomorrow while I am out and about.

Survival and other things...

Jul 7, 2008
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I survived my dad's visit. Unfortunately, it was a refresher course on what my sister has to deal with all the time. It wasn't a bad visit, but it definitely had its moments.

I finally got my photos uploaded from the PhotoWILD! shoot that we participated in last fall. So, to those of you who have me on their Flickr contacts list, sorry for the sudden influx of photos. And for those not on Flickr...you can see the entire set here.

Honeysuckle - Red-tailed Hawk (partial albino)

There are more photos to follow shortly...I still have our GA vacation pics and the photos I took when my dad and I went to the Biltmore last week. I figure I should have those up sometime later this week.

Time to go do some more laundry and think about getting stuff ready for dinner.

Back...

Jun 15, 2008
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Survived the trip to GA. By the way, anyone looking for a pet friendly vacation spot should check out the Sliding Rock Cabins in Ellijay, GA. We stayed in a very nicely furnished cabin that was stocked with all the utensils and linens and bedding and such...including necessities for the dogs (bowls, towels, a dog bed, and even dog toys and treats!). The cabin was on a gorgeous lot back in the woods with a creek running out back. The dogs (even Sadie) had a blast back there...it was shallow enough to wade all the way across but deep enough in a couple places that the dogs could swim.

Friday we rented a pontoon boat and puttered around Carter Lake (I think that is the name). We stopped a few times and went swimming (the water was devine!) and I got a bit pink, but no one seemed to come away with any serious sun which was good. (Of course, we were all pretty well covered with sunscreen and when not in the water we were under the canopy on the boat.) Neil got some great photos of some nesting Great Blue Herons. It looked like mom, dad, and three young ones. I took some photos too, but didn't have a very long lens so we will see how they turn out. You can see Neil's photos from our trip on Flickr.

Saturday we went horseback riding. It was a blast...just an hour trail ride. Nothing extreme, but a ton of fun. It was Chloe and Neil's first time on a horse and they both did great. Beth and I both have ridden in our youth so once we were back in the saddle as it were, things came pretty naturally.

Then today was the long trek back home. Marly is being a pill now that were are back in our own house (dumped the water dish in the kitchen, got out and ran into the neighbor's yard across the street - the lady was a bitch about it and I told her to go jump in a lake...I was already pissed enough as it was without having to deal with her). I was going to bathe the dogs, but I think that will wait until tomorrow...after I haul them over to the dog park. I think I am going to try to get up and over there right at 7am when it opens so it isn't too hot and I can get back here to work during normal office hours. I also need to soak my plants again in the morning...some of them were about dead when I got home this evening. *sigh*

I had a blast on this trip, but I am still annoyed at having to go...there is SO much to be done here and no time to do it. Tomorrow I have to cram a ton of work stuff in while doing all my laundry. Then I am gone Tuesday and Wednesday (Pittsburgh....blech). Thursday and Friday are filled with all sorts of meetings and then I fly out at the crack of dawn the following Monday and will be gone until early Friday morning (by early I mean 2am or so)...while still being expected to put in a full day Friday which will be crammed with finishing up a ton of things before my dad gets here Saturday. Gah. Somewhere in there, I need to get the dogs groomed, my car into the shop for 30k maintenance and oil change (and probably new tires soon too), and also get it over to the car wash place to get cleaned inside and out before my dad comes. God knows when any of this will happen...oh yeah, I need a haircut too. SO low on the priority list, and yet SO needed.

Hump Day

Jun 11, 2008
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okie dokie then...

Today I work and then we head out to Ellijay, GA for our little vacation. I am not looking forward to the driving...an hour and a half to the branch I am reviewing, another hour to the meet-up spot and then another 4 hours to the cabin. I put in five hours of driving yesterday already. Bah.

And it is still hot. The weather forecasters keep calling for cooler weather (back down in the 80's) but thus far it doesn't seem to be happening. So, I soaked all the plants outside this morning - hopefully they will survive four days without water in this weather. Maybe we will get lucky and have some afternoon rain storms?

The dogs are already with Neil...my car is loaded with all kinds of stuff. You'd think we were moving there permanently to look at it all, but I am discovering that traveling with two dogs and a small child (Chloe is going with us) requires lots of extras.

I think it will be fun...I just don't want to go. *sigh* We get back Sunday sometime and then Monday it is right back to work and more travel for me. My idea of vacation is staying home these days.

Random updates

Jun 3, 2008
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Sunday Nail and I went into the city to take pictures of stuff. I just wasn't feeling inspired. I think I snapped about three shots. He got some good stuff though. In the afternoon we took the pups to the park to burn some energy and then over to the lake where they splashed around for a bit.

Yesterday I had to work just during the day, so the dogs stayed home. Holy cow! They were actually OK last night, but this morning Marly has been a pain in the ass - eating books, dumping the water dish/fountain all over the kitchen, stealing the kitchen towels, eating shoes, etc. I know it is because she was locked up all day yesterday...but unfortunately today, we won't make it to the park until later this evening. I am not sure I am going to make it until then without killing her! (It would help if she would quit whining, but she won't. She is desperate for attention and her sister is off sleeping right now.)

It is hot. Summer showed up with a bang...it is already 81 and humid. They say the high today is only 84 - I don't believe it since it is already so warm. Tomorrow is supposed to be 94. *sigh* At least I got all the plants watered this morning.

I also scheduled to have my HVAC system serviced next Monday. I have lived here two years (as of August) and haven't had it done. I suppose I could read up on how to do it myself, but I just don't have the time or energy...and it is one of those things that I want to be sure is done right. I also need to pull out my fridge and clean the coils on it. Maybe I can get my dad to help with that when he is here.

Speaking of which...he is coming to visit at the end of the month (June 28 - July 5). He is still pretty gimpy with his broken collar bone so most of this trip will be light projects (read: he will watch TV while I paint) and sight seeing. It will be good to see him though.

Next week we are headed to GA for some vacation time. The dogs get to go which will be very fun - we are headed to some cabins up in the mountains that cater to having the four-legged family members along.

I have been taking on the huge project of digitizing all of my DVD collection so that I can download movies from the server here at home when I am on the road. It is slow going, but so far so good! Really, the fact that the Xbox360 is out of commission right now is what sparked this move to get the movies onto the server. The Xbox was my DVD and HDDVD player...without it I wasn't able to watch any of my DVDs.

I had planned to work on painting this week, but I think right now the focus is going to move back onto just getting this place clean. It is really, really gross. I am embarrassed.

Right now, though,I have to get some stuff done for work. The rest of the week is full of projects - my Q3 schedule, finishing up a couple files, completing a couple proposals, and I think a few con calls. My 1:1 with my manager is today so we shall see how that goes and what pops up that needs to be done from that. My goal is to be completely caught up this week so that next week on vacation I can just relax and enjoy without worrying about what still needs to get done.

Bad dog...

May 14, 2008
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Today Marly decided to make a dash out the front door and chase Bandit all the way across the cul de sac, through the neighbors' yards and into the woods back behind those houses. I finally got a hold of her and brought her home. I just hope Bandit recovers and comes back too.

This week was just an overnighter in Raleigh. My schedule is sporadic over the next few weeks. Though, we are taking a nice little family vacation in June with the pups which will be fun! Some cabins in Georgia that cater to having the four-legged kids along. Special treats, beds, bowls, and towels all provided - along with gated front porches. I am really looking forward to it! I even have enough PTO left to take two days off so I don't have to work.

Now, if I could just get my dad to tell me when he plans on being out here. Unfortunately, I will probably have to work half days while he is here, but even that won't be too bad. Hopefully, with the time change he can sleep in while I work.

I have not been feeling well the past week or so. Major body aches, but more than that, random fever that comes and goes. When it comes, it hits me hard! Sweats, chills, the works. I also want nothing more than to just sleep when this happens. And that too is an immediate need. I go from being wide awake to freezing to death and nodding off in no time flat. My tummy has not been happy with anything I put in it recently, either, but it doesn't feel upset. Stuff just goes in and runs right through. I suppose I ought to go see a doc soon if this doesn't stop. Though, I think most of the achey stuff is from all the yard work I have been doing and is mostly unrelated to whatever else is going on with me.

OK wait, I do take some of that back, or rather I should specify - the muscle aches I think are due to the yard work. I am unsure of the joint aches that have come up this year. Unfortunately, I think some of those are from the added pounds I am carrying around on my frame these days. I really, really need to loose some weight. Serious weight. I am giving myself until December 22nd to lose 40 pounds (which, for the record, puts me at a weight that is still significantly more than all the charts say I should weigh). 31 weeks at a safe 1.5 pounds a week would allow me to lose 46.5 pounds...and knowing that I won't actually lose a steady 1.5 pounds each week I think it is still doable. We'll see. But I have to start NOW! I will be trying to regularly track my progress here - and will label those entries with "health" or some other such thing so feel free to skip if you aren't interested.