Maiden Voyage - Camping

The first trip out always has it's surprises. We went to Meramec State Park in Sullivan, Missouri which is one of our favorite camping grounds. We pulled into our spot and proceeded to set up, only to discover that the rear trans axle has issues on our truck and trans axle grease was all over the front of the camper. We set things up and discovered we were out of gas. Funny how when we were being shown how to operate everything at the dealers there was gas in the tanks but now they are both empty! I ran to the store for gas (fortunately the gas station is only 15 minutes away). Get to the station, pay for the gas and after 10 minutes of the girl searching for the key to unlock the cage she tells me she has to refund my money - they can't find the key. Off to Lowe's (the new one in Sullivan) which was probably where I should have gone in the first place so I could use Bill's employee discount! By the time we get back it's getting dark. Bill dropped a steak on the ground, came inside to bring the rest of dinner and I went out to throw something in the trash and the steak was gone already! A raccoon had stolen it! The rest of the evening was fine. Saturday was windy and we didn't do too much. Went on a nature hike with Drew, took the dogs for a long walk. While Kipper was trying to kill me at the boat dock, he jumped into the river while I was holding his leash and pulled me into a tree where I hit my head hard enough to see stars and give myself a nice bruise and scrape. During this little outing, Drew was looking for a place to fish when he accidentally dropped his tackle box and it fell into the river. The tragedy of this was that his Ipod was in the tackle box. It was too far of a drop where he lost it to retrieve and it floated on down the river. Good bye Ipod and all the new tackle he got for Christmas. It was a very sad moment in our trip. Our awning wouldn't open and we cannot figure out what is wrong with it. Ellie was a good girl during our trip - Kipper not so much. Kipper cannot stand to be on a leash and he cannot stand to have Bill out of his site. He whined the entire weekend. Kipper - guess what? Next time you are staying at home! Despite the lost Ipod and the near concussion it really was a good time. We leave for our next trip in two weeks to Washington State Park in DeSoto, MO.

In Memorium: Taffy ~1995-2009

I'm writing this today because I'm sure I won't be able to write it tomorrow. Taffy, our oldest beagle is going to dog heaven tomorrow. She will be greatly missed and while this has got to be one of the hardest things we ever have to do in life we cannot let her suffer. She has had a wonderful life. Bill and Michael adopted her 13 years ago from Stray Rescue and she has been spoiled the way only dogs can be spoiled. Taffy could tell a dog person and she was picky about who she liked and accepted as her friend and family. When Bill and I met, she accepted Drew and I as part of her family and we welcomed her to ours. She loved to chase rabbits and roll in the grass. As she got older she loved laying in the sun on the back patio or in the grass. She was fiercely protective of her treats and you could lose a hand if you tried to take one away from her. She was our alpha dog and everyone knew she was boss. She loved to have her belly rubbed and would roll over so you could pet her. If you stopped she would paw at you until you resumed.

Tomorrow morning we will say good bye to our loved pet Taffy. We will cry and be sad but we will also know that she is peaceful and no longer in pain. We will miss her but always remember her. Good bye sweet girl.

Guess who is in town!

Athan and Shannon came for a little visit today so we all headed over to my parents for some dinner and a visit. I snapped these pictures of the little guy before dinner. Isn't he a cutie? He'll be two months old next week. I don't know if I will get over to see him again before he goes back to Louisville or not. They are heading back Saturday morning. I hope to see him tomorrow night after Drew leaves to spend the weekend with his dad.

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Speaking of Drew - the child has grown almost overnight. In March when we went to Louisville he was about an inch shorter than me. Today he is an inch taller than me! Evidently I've shrunk because I've always said I'm 5'3" but now I'm 5'2". Drew is 5'3" and he weighs 126 pounds. At this rate he won't be able to carry the ball in football this season. Not that it really matters because he would rather do the tackling then be tackled!

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The countdown is on for our first camping trip. We are all getting excited. The weather forecast is looking good for our first weekend out too! The 10 day forecast has it at 75 for a high both Friday and Saturday and overnight lows at 50. It might be a little cooler than that because we will be right on the river but it will be perfect for camping. I'm bringing my camera so I'll be sure to get pictures.

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Shannon is suppose to e-mail me more picture of Athan that she took for Easter. Once I get them I will post them.

Good night.

What I learned today.

While I have suspected this for a while, I "googled" it today for confirmation. Chamomile is related to ragweed! This explains why every time I drink chamomile tea I can't breath afterward. I'm allergic to ragweed. So, if you are allergic to ragweed you could be allergic to chamomile too.

Springtime in Arnold

This is what I love most about where I live in the Springtime. This beautiful crabapple tree in my front yard! This is the one time of the year that it is absolutely beautiful. Don't care for the little apples that fall off in the Fall but the flowers are so pretty. I love looking out my front window at God's beautiful tree. The birds and squirrels love this tree too. We have cardinals, robins, sparrows, doves and wood peckers in this tree. I really like watching the different birds while enjoying my morning coffee. I just wanted to share my tree with you all.