What We Been Doin'

It's been very chill around here. We got up bright and early for a boot camp class yesterday, then we both did some work and followed it up with a lazy afternoon at home. The night was topped off at Bartlett Lake, where we were invited to join one of Dylan's flying friends and some buddies of his on the boat. Five aviation guys and me...I was surrounded by beer, wake surfboards, and talk of airplanes and women, so even though I hadn't met most of these gentlemen before, I still felt right in my element.

I think the combination of our old age, a beer or two too many, and staying out past our bedtime made for a slow morning, but we'll be on our way soon enough. Today will bring much of the same. Hitting the gym, a Target run, and happy hour with the Kennedys at a new location- Upper Crust Pizza & Wine bar. Can't wait to check it out! 

A few short months ago, all I could do was count down the days to the weekend, starting on Monday morning. Now I am wishing the week wouldn't end. But just know that I'm back to the grind again next week, so it's not all fun and games around here.

Off Day

Finally, a day at home, together with my husband. We haven't had a week like this since mid-June, and I was really starting to miss it. It was as fabulous as I can remember, though none too exciting.

We both had work to do at home in the morning, and then we went and joined the gym. This was a decision we had mulled over for quite some time, but I was really craving a sense of community. So hopefully we can improve our fitness and also meet new friends, since this gym has lots of group activities and fun things to do outside of just counting the miles away on an elliptical. And by no coincidence whatsoever, our friends/family the Palmers also belong to the same gym. Won't that be fun?

Then it was off to Costco to load up on just about everything. Isn't it just the best when you can go to Costco both while you're not in a hurry and also when it is not crowded? And you know the sushi guy that always says "It's happy hour!!" to try to get you to sample his sushi? We always make sure to take advantage of his 'happy hour' (though it's never even close to 5pm), and this time we bought ourselves a package. And then devoured it using our fingers in the food court after making our purchases. So unsanitary, but so worth it.

For me to blog in detail about this rather ordinary day just goes to show that it's really the small things that do it for me. To top it all off, we are going to have an afternoon viewing of Royal Pains, and possibly even a double feature so we can get all caught up. And if we're lucky, we might get back to reading about the adventures of Katniss in Catching Fire after weeks of neglect. Easy living...it's how I could spend every day.

Dreaming of Winter

I keep hearing references to 'Christmas in July' (I have no idea why this happens to be so popular this year), and it has me dreaming of cooler weather. Just in time for me to do a big picture swap with my SIL and find these fun pictures from Aspen. Brrrrr!

Images to Behold

I love when I come across pictures of my nephews, and it just so happens that I made it into some of the recent photos with them. I'm so glad my SIL does such a great job of documenting their lives so that I can swipe her photos from time to time. Thanks, K!

C with his 'pool hair.'

The girls and kids at the Palmers 4th of July party. I borrowed C for the picture!

It has been a very long time since I'd felt that amazing feeling of peace and happiness when you wake up and realize it's a Saturday...until today. I plan to spend at least an hour on the couch reading magazines while Gilmore Girls re-runs play on the TV just because it's Saturday and I can do that. It feels oh so good.

The Ra-Dog is doing so much better. She's supposed to be on cage rest for 4 weeks (!), but she seems to have no problem just hanging out in her bed most of the day as long as it's somewhere near me, even with her pesky brother constantly antagonizing her. So we'll just go with that. I can't believe how many people were concerned about her and continued to check up on her over the last few days. Thanks so much!

Joe, usually the attention hog, is feeling the neglect this week. It was probably good for him.

Ramona always puts the front part of her body out the dog door, so she looks like a big game kill that a hunter has mounted on the wall. 

It's been a family-filled week around here. Pizza night with my parents, Aunt Ange, and Bernz last night, and M&K had me over for dinner the night before that. Today is my dad's birthday, so we'll be celebrating with a pool party tonight. I'm lucky to have these guys around while my husband criss-crosses the country!

Dog in Distress

After Ramona's visit to our kind neighbor and veterinarian, she became even more immobile and seemingly in pain throughout the day. The last location that she followed me to was the office, and she showed no interest in getting up after that. So, when I left for the afternoon, I allowed her to stay there, and I locked up her rascally dog-brother in the dog run.

When I came home a few hours later, she had moved about three feet from where I left her, but she was shivering and making painful-sounding cries and couldn't move at all. If you're not a dog owner, you might not understand how traumatic it is to see your dog in this kind of distress. I could only cry and feel so helpless that I couldn't make it all better for her. I just couldn't believe how quickly she went downhill. After exhibiting some mild signs of being in pain for over two weeks, she became completely debilitated over the course of a few hours.

So I put in a call to our neighbor, Dr. Z. (who had reminded me to call her on her cell phone any time...don't worry, I'm not usually the type to bother a professional on their off hours), but I got her voicemail. I couldn't stand it, so I managed to get the dog in a bed, then I picked her up in it like a taco. It was the only way I could mobilize her without causing extreme pain. And off to the doggy ER we went.

Ramona relaxing with her warm compress.

One shot of morphine later, and Ramona was higher than a kite and resting peacefully. She slept good through the night, too. I couldn't finagle my way out of working today, but I did manage to shift my schedule so that I could take her to the vet to be monitored while I was away for the day. We are home now, and Ra has some pain meds and steroids coursing through her system, and she is almost like her old self again. It's such an incredible relief.

Even though it was terrible to see my dog in pain and wonder if she would be okay, it all ended well. The kindness and caring from my neighbor/vet and the staff at the animal hospital was like nothing I'd ever experienced. Dr. Z called me back while I was waiting for the emergency staff to fix my doggy and kindly explained to me how this could happen so quickly. I guess this is just how ruptured discs go. She advised me to start the prednisone, even though we had originally thought to wait a full day since Ramona had been given an anti-inflammatory that morning. She also told me that even though she wasn't working the next day, I could bring Ramona into the clinic to be monitored since I couldn't be at home with her. Then she texted me a couple hours later to see how she was doing.

Ramona seemed much better by morning but still pretty much immobile. So I took her down to the animal hospital like Dr. Z had advised, and almost as soon as I took her out of the car in the taco-bed, the door to the clinic opened and the staff was saying, "Hi, Ramona!" They knew to expect us because Dr. Z told them we'd be coming and informed them all about our ER visit. The doctor on staff today called me while I was at the pharmacy to let me know how Ramona was doing, and Dr. Z texted me throughout the day to check on her, too. By the time I came to pick her up, she was like a brand new dog. I just texted Dr. Z to let her know that the doggy is feeling so much better, and I think she is almost as relieved as I am. On top of following up with me for almost a full 36 hours after our original visit to the clinic (and on her day off!), Dr. Z also gave me a generous discount for the services provided today and yesterday.

I am overwhelmed by the kindness shown to Ramona and me over the last couple days, and what a great reminder it is of the good that can come of being thoughtful, friendly, and kind to one another. I knew that I loved our neighbors after hanging out with them a few times, but Dr. Z really went above and beyond as a neighbor, vet, and friend. If your dog or cat is ever in need of veterinary services, I cannot highly enough recommend Pinnacle Peak Animal Hospital. Two thumbs up and five stars to those guys.

Sorry for all the mush.

Ra Dog, Sick Dog

I managed to worm my way out of clocking into the pharmacy today, and it's a good thing. The poor Ra-Dog is feeling so sick. We noticed she had stopped jumping onto the bed and couch and would sometimes yelp when we'd pick her up but otherwise seemed fine. I figured she'd sprained something, so I'd give her an occasional doggy anti-inflammatory when it seemed like she was in pain. Well this went on for a couple weeks, and this morning I got up and she was so stiff and uncomfortable so I called the vet straight away. 

We are lucky to have the sweetest vet who's also our neighbor, and she was working this morning and had an early appointment to see Ramona. She got a couple X-rays and and a shot for pain, and we decided she probably has a bad back. So we left with some prescriptions for pain meds and instructions to take it easy and use a warm compress three times daily. She still lets out the occasional painful groan, but I think she's more relaxed, and I hope she makes a speedy recovery!

Ra Dog's resting spot of choice, chilling with her warm compress. She's since moved to a softer location.

So anyway, here are the last few shots from our trip, and that just about wraps it up. What to write about next? I think I should take another trip.

The view from the upper hot tub, where we watched the fireworks on the beach.

Stand-up Paddle Boards.

SUPing on Devil's Lake. If we had a lake, I'd want to get a board. It's so fun and relaxing.

I'm off to the Brio happy hour this afternoon with mom and her friends. It's really second to none- great food and drinks. Happy Hump Day...the weekend is in sight!

Japanese Dock & Golf

The activity in Oregon continued beyond the 4th of July. You may have heard about the Japanese dock that washed ashore an Oregon beach following the tsunami last year. Well, we drove a short while down the coast to Agate Beach to check it out.

Naturally, we followed this up with driving golf balls off a cliff and into the ocean on our way home. Tom had previously been involved in a Craigslist transaction in which he brought home 1000 range balls. I am hoping to find a similar driving range close to home.

And the adventure continued from there, but I'm unable to wrap it up at this time. I project that this is the last week you'll see details from the Oregon trip appearing on this blog. But it's so much better than hearing about how I went grocery shopping, paid the bills, took out the trash, cleaned the kitchen, did laundry, etc., right?

And I wish I cared more about how these photographs are appearing on the blog. The quality is unreasonably poor, and they look so much better in their true form. If I ever find it in me to care and take the time to correct it, I'll direct you to where they can be viewed in their full glory.

Recovery Day

My 48-hour work week may not seem that impressive compared to a typical 40-hour work week, but I've been averaging 3 to 10 hours lately, so I'm beat. I forgot what it was like for your only moments of peace throughout the day to be those few minutes when you go to the bathroom to pee. I think I'm much more cut-out for a life of reading books, taking pictures, raising chickens, blending fresh fruit smoothies, exercising and cooking real food. But I guess at some point it's good to act like a responsible adult.

The only stop I made on my way home yesterday was to Safeway to pick up beer and ingredients for fresh salsa. Dylan kept asking "What should we do today?" As if I really wanted to do anything at all. But we ended up sitting on the patio watching the storm and having chips and salsa and Blue Moon for dinner and then watching Wanderlust. The storm cooled us down so much that I actually had goosebumps. I miss feeling cold. It was a great night at home indeed.

These guys would beg to differ. They were shaking in fear throughout the storm.

I do have a few highlights from the week, actually. The best was the double happy hour. I had planned to meet Jess at Grand Lux on Thursday, all the while some friends from work were planning to get together at Kona Grill next door. So I did Kona --> Grand Lux --> back to Kona--> home. It was a long day, but the socializing was desperately needed. Having Dylan home this week was a blessing and a curse. I didn't like being away every day since it was the first week he'd spent at home since the middle of June, but it was nice to have him around so we could meet up after work or at least eat dinner together at home.

And guess what...I've signed up to do it all over again. But this time I'll be coming home to an empty house every day. Just when we thought we'd extinguished the beast, I fear that Angry Lu might be making another appearance this week. Time to make the most of this solitary day I have to call my own. Hope your weekend was fine and dandy.

Beach Bonfire

On the night of the Fourth, we had a family bonfire down at the beach, so we all helped to haul food and firewood. The beach is a pretty chilly place to hang out pretty much year-round, but on this night there were loads of people flying kites and just having a great time.

Our dinner consisted of hot dogs, potato salad, and s'mores. We bundled up, hung out, set off a few little fireworks of our own, and came home smelling like a campfire. It was so, so fun.

Have you ever heard of the green flash when the sun sets over the ocean? I'd heard about from Tilly since the first time I visited the Oregon coast over six years ago. If the sky is clear and the conditions are perfect, you can sometimes see a small green flash at the last second that the sun sets over the ocean. The girls had only seen this green flash for the first time a few months ago. How perfect that the conditions were appearing just right for such a flash on the 4th of July. So we stood at the top of the road for the last few minutes of the sunset, and as it dipped under the ocean...there it was, the clearest green flash that Tilly had ever seen. And though I was there and staring directly at it, I totally missed it because I wasn't wearing my glasses. Maybe next time?

We ended the night in the second-story hot tub drinking beer and watching amateur firework shows on the beach that, to me, seemed pretty spectacular. It totally beat fighting a crowd to watch any professional show. Yeah, it was a pretty idyllic 4th of July.

The Fourth of July

I just realized that I still have many, many pictures from Oregon to post to the blog, so you'll continue to see images of our trip long past the time that the 4th of July is considered relevant. That's okay. I had fun taking pictures, and I haven't done much with my big camera in a while, so there you have it.

After we wrapped up the skateboarding sesh on the morning of the 4th, we walked up the street to the parade. Dylan and I found a beer garden before anyone else arrived, so we bought some drink tickets and got comfortable. When the rest of the fam showed up, we gathered near the beginning of the parade to collect as much candy from the passing floats as we could. Dylan, Tom, and I also took a break to grab a hot dog, my first of three that day.

The parade was just what you'd expect from a small town 4th of July parade...very cute and fun to watch. My favorite part was the goats. Afterward, we went to a firework stand so I could make my first firework purchase ever. (Living in an extreme fire danger zone is a real bummer when it comes to the legality of purchasing explosives...thank goodness for places like Oregon.) We had big plans for the night, but I'll have to continue with that at another time.

Speaking of irrelevance, here are some interesting links from the past week, if you care to take a look.

NPR News tells us about the champ who ate 68 hot dogs.

Learn a little bit about the Mormon culture from Emily Henderson, just because it's interesting to learn about the way others live and not because I have anything for or against Mormonism.

Why you should cut back on ambition and forget trying to accomplish everything under the moon, by generation meh.

I've always been a big gymnastics fan. Actually, it's the only sport I really watch with any level of interest. So I was glued to the TV during the recent Olympic trials and felt pretty bad for Nastia Liukin when she fell off the bars. Then I was completely shocked that people at work didn't know who she was. Read about her fall and other sad and happy stories from the Olympic trials from The Week.

Some financial speak about why The Gap will never be as great as it was in the '90s, by Daily Finance.

The New Yorker explains why American children are so gosh darn spoiled. I am going to read this and then re-read it several times before I even think about birthing a child because I've always feared having a mean, spoiled kid, and I really don't want to create a monster or impose one on the world. (I know, I know, when I have kids of my own I won't care about any of this, and I'll probably end up with some of the biggest brats to roam the planet.)

I enjoy going to the movies on a hot summer day, but I am not a big fan of action/sci-fi/horror or anything other than movies about normal people. Here are some recommendations from The Week.

...and that wraps up just about everything that I found to be blogworthy this week.

Death By Exposure

Yesterday was a sad day in our family. We lost one of our bird friends. It's my fault, really. Without grasping the fact that I had been the sole caregiver to the hens since the heat set in, I left the house to work all day and said to Dylan, "Be sure to check on the birds."

You see, when it was the normal situation for me to work all day and for Dylan to mostly be at home, my morning routine involved sending long, detailed, annoying emails to him about what needs to get done around the house and exactly how to do it. (I would have just told him, but he was always still asleep until after I'd left). Certain things just need to get done at home...usually the type of things that don't come naturally for a man to do. It seemed like a reasonable way to start the day, as far as I was concerned.

So, last Monday I went to work all day, and the plan was for Dylan, his dad, and his brother to pick me up and then head straight to the airport to go to Oregon for five days. Leaving the house for an extended period causes me major OCD, and the anxiety is multiplied by 1000 when I'm leaving my house in the hands of others to properly close up before the trip. So naturally, I sent a long, annoying, detailed email to Dylan with all the pertinent instructions, including what exact temperature to set every air conditioning unit. To which I later received this text picture in response.

Yes, that is my list reduced to writing, signed and notarized to confirm that all instructions had been followed. This, I learned, is how you ensure things are done to your pleasing.

So fast forward to yesterday. Typically, when I'm at home with the birds, I turn on the fan, refresh the water, put a frozen jug in the coop, and open the coop doors so the chickens can roam free, or more specifically, find shade since the chicken coop is in direct sun for most of the morning. Then I check on them a bunch, give them more water and new ice, etc. I failed to leave my usual, detailed directions for Dylan, mostly because I had gotten used to not being so annoying with my emails every single morning (except on days when we travel and I'm not the one to close up the house). Ironically, I remember hearing the newspeople that very morning warn of the excessive heat and to take care of your pets on this dreadfully hot day.

When I came home, one of the first things I asked Dylan was, "So, how are the birds?" To which he responded, "Oh, they're good. I checked on them earlier." I said oh good, I'm going to go collect the eggs.

Only I didn't find any eggs. I found one dead chicken on the bottom floor of the coop, her feathers blowing in the wind of the fan. Dylan hadn't realized how important it was to let them out of the coop, or that their half-full jug of water would be bone dry by day's end, or that I have several frozen jugs for them, and they probably should have gotten a new one about six hours earlier. It wasn't his fault. I didn't tell him any of this.

So, Dylan respectfully buried the poor, poor hen. I couldn't stay for the funeral...it was too hot outside. The other two birds have since recovered from the trauma, and I found an egg from each of them today.  We will all be okay.

If there is something we can all learn from this sad experience, it is this: always, always send the long, detailed, annoying email. Please, for everybody's sake.

In happier, unrelated news, Dylan and I have seen two movies in the past few days. 'Moonrise Kingdom,' a Wes Anderson film, on Sunday with our Prescott crew of friends, and then today we went to the Camelview theater to see 'Your Sister's Sister' because I have a girl crush on Emily Blunt. I loved both movies.

Skate Bowl

The Miller family boys have long enjoyed skating, as well as other activities involving a board underfoot. A little known fact is that my father-in-law, Tom, is a tow-in surfer who has competed in several competitions, even since I've been a part of the family. Cody has a gift with the skateboard, and Dylan is quite the boarder (wake, skate, surf, whatever) when he's given the opportunity to participate in such recreational activities.

So, then, why wouldn't they build a skate bowl in the backyard as part of the recent home renovations? With two baby grandchildren around and the possibility of more to come, of course it will be utilized.

On the morning of July 4th, all 10 of us Millers (6 original, 2 married-ins, and 2 grandchildren) gathered to clear out the bowl (remember the leaf blower video?) and put wheels to the pavement. Z especially had a great time throwing golf balls into the bowl.

Here we are showing the world a non-conventional type of backyard family recreation. Notice the extensive body protection. Safety first. Dylan even wore handmade hip pads that he tucked into his athletic shorts.

You probably can't tell, but Cody is barefoot in the picture below. I told you, it's a gift.

Thanks to Tuna for shooting most of these pictures!

A Walk on the Beach

On our first afternoon in Gleneden Beach, Dylan, Tess, and I took the brother dogs, Clyde and JimBob, for a walk on the beach. The Pacific Coast is so pretty and dramatic with really big waves, large beaches, and high cliffs. It might be my favorite coast.

I had to organize these pictures into collages because I just had too many. If ever I feel like a shot is worth showcasing in full size, I'll do just that.

Let's Begin With Some Videos, Shall We?

Over the course of the week I'll be posting some of the many, many pictures that I took in Oregon. Which is perfect because I'll temporarily be reverting back to my old, lifeless self for a while and therefore won't have much else to bring to the blog anyways. I'm working six full days in a row this coming week, so unless otherwise noted, you can assume my days will go as follows: work, complain that I'm tired, probably not exercise, eat like crap, sleep, and repeat x 6. I am very thankful for the occasional opportunity to get some work and feel productive, though. So really, it's all good.

Anyhow, I'll start off with some videos of us driving golf balls off an ocean cliff. Tom scored a hot deal on Craigslist for 1000 range balls, and here's how that went...

And for good measure, I've included a video of me operating a leaf blower like a champ.

Oregon at a Glance

We just had a wild time with the Miller fam on the Oregon Coast this week. We couldn't have asked for better weather, and with the house renovations coming to a close in the next few months, our accommodations were tip top. Truly one of the most memorable 4th of Julys for me.

I took hundreds of photos on my real camera, too, but until I can do all the things you do to those before they show up on the blog, here are the ones I took directly from the phone.

Grabbing a Hot Kicker for the ride from Portland to the coast.

That forecast in the heat of the summer? I'll accept.

The skate bowl/construction men view out of the new guest suite window.

Kitchen in the basement/garage until the real kitchen is done.

4th of July parade. It's almost Christmas!

3 hot dogs in one day. Only on Independence Day.

We found a beer garden at the parade.

Skate bowl shenanigans.

A skate bowl and two jacuzzis, including one on the top deck. I think we'll be back again soon.

Assessing his skate strategy.

One view from the backyard (the other has an ocean in it). Lots of beach and parade-goers walking back and forth!

You can't stop a girl from shopping!

Bonfire & hot dogs  & s'mores on the beach.

Three generations of Miller men.

Visiting Agate Beach to see where the Japanese dock washed ashore from the tsunami.

At the tide pools at Yaquina Point.

We made our own driving range!

SUPpin on the lake in town.

Z playing on Uncle Dylan's phone.

Stand up paddle board. A great, relaxing time!

T and me going for a stroll.

We sure do miss our Miller side of the family, so we were so relieved when plans fell into place to visit them for the Fourth. Hopefully, we can swing it again before too long. Thanks, guys!