No Work, Just Play!

That was my day today. Today at work I honestly think I busted some blood vessels in my face from laughing so hard. My good buddy Liz is as crazy as me. If you can all beleive that. Well one of the ladies took a vacation day today without telling Liz, Donna and Rosalie. So Cheryl told Liz that something needed to be done. Well good ol' Liz came up with the best idea. Since Joan hates feet she decided to take a photo of several participates in our area and then photograph one of their feet. Then, we blew up the photos of the feet and the closeup of everyone's face and hung it on Joans cube. Now I took some photos but Jason forgot to email them to me so check back on Friday and those photos will be posted then :-)

Today I also worked on my Liz Doll for work. I put a lot of thought into decorating this keg just for Liz. It sits on top of my monitor at work! :-)



Finally, Jason and I have decided to skip out on Agility Nationals in Columbus this weekend. A excavator came out on Monday and told us that if we needed the work done soon we needed to get the deck down so they could start right away. He said they are starting to get very busy and it would soon push our work out late into summer. So no fun for us this weekend.

Too Much Work, Not Enough Play!!!

That's been our weekend. Friday night we headed out to Lowe's to pickup a new exterior door and an interior bathroom door. It fit just perfect in our little jeep. Then we planned on getting up very early and starting our project so we could have time to run to the camper show in Bloom that afternoon. I should have known better than to plan fun stuff around replacing the door. We ended up starting around 7:00am and didn't get done until 4:00pm. We couldn't get the &$*# thing squared. Poor Jason was getting so frustrated and I was feeling useless so I moseyed up to the deck and started removing boards. I ended up breaking 2 bits and stripping who knows how many screws. By then I was so frustrated I ran up and grabbed the sledge hammer and started banging away. After a couple really good swings :-) I was frustrated and laid down on the deck and just looked up at the sky. I had all these bad thoughts running through my head. "Maybe I'll set it on fire", "Maybe I'll attached a chain to my Jeep and to the deck and pull it down" (that was my number one). Finally, back down the hill I went all disgusted. I told Jason I wasn't removing any more screws but that we was going to take the sawzall and saw it down. We did end up getting the door in and squared. After that we both decided we didn't want to cook so we headed to OIP for my wonderful stromboli. Jason had a Philly Cheese steak that he said was one of the best he has had. That night both of us wanted to go to sleep by 7:00 but knew we couldn't because we wouldn't sleep through the night. So, we stayed up and watched Annapolis.

Sunday
Hons was going to meet us at Lowe's so we could get some drywall home for the basement. We was meeting him around noon so we had to skip church. We decided to go to the camper show, which didn't open until 11:00. BLASTED! So, off to Home Depot to pickup a few things. Then we went to Lowe's, got our drywall and headed back to the house. We relaxed for about 30 minutes and then it was off to dog class. Dog class was challenging but as always, tons of fun. Sam and Chase did very well and I'm totally looking forward to the show coming up in a few weeks.

Dilemma.....

Right now we have a dilemma. AKC Agility Nationals is in Columbus this coming weekend. It's normally really far so it's hard to get to without flying. This time it's only 5 hours away. Not only that, we know a few people competing. We had planned on going hiking in the Adirondacks and staying the weekend with our aunt Shirley next weekend but now we're thinking about skipping hiking and heading to Columbus. We cannot do both because the following weekend will be our show in Harrisburg. Being gone 3 weekends in a row and having 3 projects that need to be completed before July just will not work. So, now we're stuck deciding that to do. Agility Nationals, Visit Shirley and hike? Tune in next weekend for the results.

(Photos to be uploaded tomorrow)

Also, Crazy Carie, I am very happy that you've started blogging again. Your words just lights up my life. Not to mention the hilarious photo you created for me. You're the best! Also, I wore the wonderful orange Clemson shirt all weekend and thought of you!

http://monkeys-in-flight.blogspot.com/

A friend of ours back in Memphis is trying to raise 2,000 for the March of Dimes. Just recently her and her husband lost their little Cooper to premature birth. If you would want to donate money to "Coopers Troop" please log onto their website and make a donation. Here's the link. You can also view Melody's slide show of Cooper.

http://www.walkamerica.org/personal_page.asp?w=707491

First off our good buddy Chris had a birthday this weekend. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CRAZY CHRIS

Chris, you're a flying monkey!!!

So I'm not too good at photoshop but I just had to do it. Trump card all the way.

Let's see, this weekend was also my birthday. As Carie stated in her blog, just last year we had a birthday party at Carie's house for Jacob, Chris and I. Good Ol' Carie brought out the slow boiler (I think that's what it's called) and she made us dinner. Not to mention that was the beginning of our Nertz Craze. Way to go Lauren and Chad. That was such a fun evening. The boys all found out about the party before I did. It ended up surprising me totally. Chris's mom came, Lauren and Chad was their, Clarence and Sally, all the crew. Oh, those we're the days. Anyway, on Friday they let us out because some more "BLASTED" snow arrived. Now last week was beautiful. It was in the 50's. We started to work outside, ahh, it was so much fun. Then Friday brought the stupid snow. So, my birthday wasn't all that fun. I had wanted to go hiking but that was out. Jason kept me happy though. We went to Front Street Bagels for breakfast and then drove to Williamsport to look at cameras for me. We ended up finding one that was on sale so I was very excited. Then we went to Quaker Steak and Lube for lunch. Oh how I want a "Lube Tube" but I can't see myself spending 80.00 on a beer bong. Of course I would fill it with Diet Coke but man, that thing is so cool. Then Sunday we went to church and went home and stayed home for the evening. We have too many movies at our house to count right now so we watched a few. One I really liked was The Holiday. I'm going to end up purchasing it once it comes out on previously viewed.

Let's see, Monday Jason worked until, well Tuesday. So I was home all by myself last night with all the furkids. They slept mostly at my feet and on the bed when Prison Break and 24 came on. They are all so good.

Tonight we had agility. It was so much fun. Jason and I thought we wanted to take Kenzie to the next trial but after tonight we realized that Kenzie really doesn't like agility like the others. So I think we're going to take her but not enter her. At least she'll be with us.

Oh, I also spent most of the weekend planning our Family Reunion in July. So much planned so far. Everyone is coming in on Friday. Saturday I'm having a cookout at our house and maybe we'll do some light hiking. Have to be nice to the old folks (sorry mom). Then on Sunday it's off to Gettysburg for the Reenactment. Monday we're heading to Philly to see the Liberty Bell and check out the city. Tuesday and Wednesday everyone is heading to Atlantic City. Jason and I are really not ocean people, at all, so we're thinking about skipping that part of the trip. Plus AC is nothing but casinos, boring. Then on Wednesday it's off to NYC. I booked our hotels at the Hotel Edison. I've also emailed the Sales Manager I worked with at Univar, Tim, to see if he could hook up a meeting with Maggie Gyllenhall (they are related). He said he would see what he can do :-) We're planning on touring the Empire State Building, Central Park, the WTC Memorial and the Statue of Liberty. After that everyone is planning on staying at my house on Thursday and leaving on Friday. I'm trying to convince them to stay just one more day for the annual Bloomsburg 4X4 Jamboree. I've heard it's HUGE and awesome. Since we're all hicks in our family it will be right up our alley :-)

So I'm a bad poster. We have dog class tonight and then I'm planning on updating my blog. Check back tomorrow.

Prayer Request

Everyone say a prayer for us if you remember too. We came home from dog class with a flooded basement. So now we have to redo one side of it. Replace drywall, molding, the ceiling, etc. Pray we keep our sanity and can just shrug our shoulders and move on.

First off Happy Birthday to Jacob! I hope you had a great one!

Now for the weekend events.

Last week Jason and I purchased some new sleeping bags. We purchased 40 degree bags hoping they would keep us warm and allow us to have a lighter bag. Once they arrived Jason and I planned on camping out downstairs. Our basement is extremely cold and we figured it would be the best way to test them out. So, Friday night we set out our camping pads and cuddled up inside our bags. I didn't make it long because I preferred to sleep in my bed however Jason endured a few hours of the frigged air downstairs. He ended up coming back up around 2:00am saying he was cold. So, we decided to keep our current bags and not have to worry about being cold when we camp.

Saturday we went out camper shopping. We had located a camper in Lewisburg that was within our CHEAP budget and decided to check it out. We planned on taking it home. When we arrived and they showed us how to set it up we were both very excited. It was old, however it was in excellent shape for the age. When we inspected it further we noticed that the canvas side of the camper was easily opened for emergency exits. Just one push of a puppy paw and our furkids could easily escape. We didn't want to take the risk so we declined to purchase the camper. After that it was out to Gander Mountain to check out camping clothes. I was happy to find out they had hiking pants on sale for like 15.00. That's a deal too. They unzip into Capri's, and also shorts. They fit my tush too so that was exciting. It's hard to find pants that fit my tush. Then it was off to Bloomsburg RV to check out the new campers. We've decided that if we do not find a nice cheap used camper then we're going to save up money to purchase a new one for our dog shows. Saturday afternoon once we got home it was time to work outside on taking down the deck. The people that built the deck built it very poorly and stripped out tons of nails, needless to say it's been quite a chore trying to take it apart. I was able to use a sledgehammer though and that was fun :-)

Sunday it was off to church and then a Meet the Pastor Lunch. We ended up meeting everyone but the pastor. We just need to take the time and introduce ourselves. I was able to finally meet Colleen, the Pastors Assistant whom I have been talking to through email for the past week or so. It was so nice finally putting a name with a face. After lunch it was off to Ricketts Glen SP for a hike. This happened to be the highlight of our weekend. We disobeyed the signs saying it was only open to Registered ice climbers and the Do not Enter tape but decided we would go as far as we could. The first mile was literally the easiest trail I have ever been on. It was awesome. Then we hiked up a slight hill to run into another flat section of the trail. Since I have trouble breathing when hiking up steep inclines I welcomed the easy trail. We arrived at the first falls with no problem and decided to continue our hike to the second. The second waterfall the amazing. Actually, words cannot describe what we seen, nor does the picture I'm attaching do it any justice. It was something we will probably never see again. We've decided to hike the falls as the same time each year to see the different ice formations. We headed back and then met our friends Stephen and Nikki from our church. I work with Stephen in my department so that's how I met them at first. Then we found out they also attended our church so that was really cool. They invited us to dinner at Mays Drive thru and we stayed for a few hours just talking and getting to know each other. The restaurant was closing so we finally had to leave. They are both really nice and I hope we can get to know each other more. We've invited them on our Shenandoah NP hiking trip. Should be tons of fun.

Anyway, enjoy the photos of our weekend.

Since we have had a really long day and a late night tonight please visit the blog again on Tuesday. I will be posting all our weekend shots and telling you all about our adventures tomorrow evening sometime. We have some amazing photos to share, not to mention a few funny stories.

Crazy Carie, I miss your blog postings. How am I suppose to keep up with what you are doing? Am I making you feel very guilty yet?

Does my face look fat?

Ghetto Madness, Late Night Dinners, Agility Dogs, Broken Camera and Flying Signs

I know you all have been waiting patiently for our agility weekend summary. We had a wonderful weekend on the agility course and some other mishaps. I'll sum our weekend up by day.

Friday

Jason took off work so he could get things ready and drop the other 2 furkids off at the kennel. Our appt was for 9:00am. Jason called me at 10:15 and advised no one showed up and he has been sitting their for over an hour. I told him to stay put and I would scramble like crazy to make a last minute kennel reservation. I left a few messages at some kennels and waited. A few minutes later Jason called back saying the guy had called him telling him him and his wife had a miscommunication. She thought he was going to check us in and he thought she was checking us in. Regardless Jason wasted 1/2 of the day just trying to board the kids. I didn't feel comfortable leaving them at the kennel but we had no other choice. We will no longer be using Meadow Lane Kennels! Jason picked me up at 3:00 and we headed for Philly. We wanted to make a stop at REI (backpacking/camping store). He wanted to look for some hiking shoes since hiking season is coming up. While Jason was looking for his shoes, Chase and I walked around the store searching for a hydration pack for me. After about 1 hour Jason picked his shoes, I found my hydration pack and we picked up a map of Acadia NP. We also found Kenzie a backpack for our upcoming trip to SNP. After we left REI we followed yahoo map directions to the arena. We ended up finding a spot at the arena to set up. I was excited because sometimes crate space is hard to find. After we left, once again, we followed Yahoo Maps to our hotel. Little did we know the map was sending us right through the Philly Ghetto. I was scared out of my mind. Not only was it almost 9:00pm while we're driving through the ghetto but we were lost. We ended up finding an on ramp to 95. We didn't really care that it was only the on ramp for heading South on 95 even though we needed to head north. I called Jacquie frantic because we were lost. She emailed us directions (Thanks Jacquie!) We ended up driving all the way to Delaware just to turn around and come back. Once we made it to the hotel we decided to walk to Dennys for dinner. BIG MISTAKE! Their were several things wrong with this Dennys and I do plan to write the company and complain but, we ended up waiting 45 minutes for our to go order just to take it back to the hotel and it was ICE COLD! By that time it was 10:00. Jason was furious and said he was talking our food back to Dennys for a refund. I called Domino's for a pizza and Domino's had delivered the pizza just as Jason was getting back from Dennys. REMEMBER, We could walk to Dennys!Kenzie loving her new backpack

Saturday
What a beautiful day! It was in the 50's and who could complain. Chase was the first to run at 7:45 but she had to get measured first. Chase ended up measuring 18 1/2 so now she has moved up to the 20" class. This is a good thing though because I feel I have better control over her at 20". Anyway, she had a beautiful Jumpers run. She ran under one of the jumps, totally my fault I didn't call the obstacle in time. Then she knocked a bar, my fault again, I tried to squeeze in a rear cross when I didn't walk one. Regardless, she ran her little heart out and we had the best time. Taylor did a great job in her JWW as well. She didn't Q but it's really hard to Q in excellent. You cannot have any faults. She did a great job though. In the afternoon it was Standard time. Taylor was running first. She was doing a great job and then it was time for the table. Jason was telling her to sit and she was looking around scared like she normally does. Then she sat. I wanted to scream with excitement but couldn't. She finished the course and Q'd with a 4 place. Jason and I was so happy. Needless to say we stuffed her mouth with treats and played frisbee. Now it was Chase's turn. Chase did her contacts, which is unusual. She nailed them actually. Then it was time for the table. I told her to sit and she jumped off. She's never did that before. I asked her to table again and she jumped right off again. It was like she was scared. So we completed the course. I ended up finding out why she didn't sit, she needed to go to the bathroom really bad!

Sunday
Sunday it got really cold. Jason was first to run in Standard and ended up Q'ing again and placing 2nd place. He and Tay also received their Open title. I was so excited and they got the cutest little toy in return for placing. Chase was next. She was back to her normal self. After the first contact she blew I should have left the ring. However, I really wanted to try the table again. So after the second contact she blew it was on to the table. I told her to Table and asked her to sit. It took her a few minutes but she did and stayed seated for the 5 and 4 and 3 and 2 and 1 and GO! I wanted to scream again with excitement and just love all over her but I couldn't. She ended up not doing the see-saw at all but we finished the course. I was excited with her table since this has been an ongoing problem with us. Now it's time to work on our contacts once my A-frame I ordered arrives. Next it was Tay's jumpers run. She started out fine but knocked a bar. Once the bar was knocked one of the girl scouts immediately got up and went to place the bar back on the jump. Now they are not suppose to do this since Tay was still running in that direction. Since Tay doesn't like kids she started barking and going crazy. She was running around the ring barking and scared out of her mind. The little girl started waiving her hands in Taylors face trying to get her to go away. That's another things they ARE NOT suppose to do. Since I was close to the ring I ran up to the gate and called her name. When she saw me she came running toward me into my arms. She was so scared. Jason and I left the ring very angry. Other exhibitors commented to me about how angry they were as well. So after the jumpers class was over Jason talked to the judge just to make sure something was said to the girl. The judge did talk to her and told her not to do it again. I also found the girl and was nice and told explained to her that she wasn't suppose to do that. Anyway, we treated Tay like crazy and played frisbee with her to calm her down. Last but not least, Chase's run. This course was tough and honestly, I had no idea how I was going to run it. I picked the easiest and decided to give it a go. The first part of the course was rocky and she had 2 wrong courses but during the second 1/2 of the course I regained control and finished beautifully. She ran her fastest yet and I was able to work some distance with her. Chase and I didn't Q all weekend but we had a great time. My agility goal this year is to get our contacts and for me to have better control. :-)

Tay with her toy and ribbons

Some other things that happened this weekend:
My video camera broke. It also ate my tape. So now I'm in the market for a video camera. Anyone have any ideas?

On the way home our Jeep was hit by a flying sign. Yes that sounds stupid and we have no idea where it came from but a sign flew at us smashing into the Jeep and the windshield. I was so scared that the jeep had a huge gash on the hood. I inspected it last night and didn't see anything. But, coming out of work today I noticed that it was hit on the bumper and took a gash out of the bumper. I'm so thankful it hit their and not on the hood.