OMG - I really have to blog

I really should have been blogging over the last 2 weeks while I've been relaxing out here in Northern Idaho.... sitting on the deck, looking at the lake, looking at the mountains surrounding the lake, watching the Osprey pluck fish from right in front of our dock, watching 2 Osprey chase down a Bald Eagle.......
Hmmmmmmm........
Maybe that's why I didn't spend the last 2 weeks blogging. It was too, too perfect to do anything but sit back, relax, and enjoy!
*sigh*
Tomorrow is our travel day. Over 12 hours of a combination of security checks, flights, layovers, baggage claim. Won't be fun, and the weather will be barbarically hot when we return, but we will be home. I will have some time to blog before my next life adventure begins. I've got to finish up my "really crappy day" story, and do some catch-ups here and there. I also have some profound thoughts to ponder.
SO.......I'll catch ya after we return and I've had time to smooch & snuggle with my pups!
C'ya!

Skunk Encounter

During our lovely and relaxing vacation in Northern Idaho, we had an incident with a skunk. We knew it was nearby because a musky breeze wafted through the house one lazy afternoon.
That's often the case with a skunk....you smell it, but you can't see it. The stink passes by and you continue on with your business.
The question is, what happens when you come face to face with a skunk? Well, Lacey did just that. They were nose to nose under the dock when the skunk sprayed its stank so it wasn't a direct hit. But, it did lead to one smelly puppy!
We pulled her out from under the dock, along with the strong, gamey scent which took 6 washings to remove. Did this upset Lacey? Was she bothered, did she run? No, she wanted to get back under the dock and play with her new friend. Much to her dismay, we chased the skunk out from under the dock and it scuttled up the hill into the empty, wooded lot next to us. Even the next day, Lacey looked under the dock for her most recent acquaintance.
Why is it that we can be so trusting?
That we allow someone to emit their stank on us, whether direct or indirect, and we still look to spend time with them. We wash off the smell, we cover it with a perfumed scent, and continue on with the business at hand.
I recommend going another direction at the first whiff of the waft!

BLOCKBUSTER Summer Escape Rentals

Well, BLOCKBUSTER has done what they could to stay in the game with the movies On Demand, the Tivo partnership with Amazon, Netflix and all of the other deals out there. This is a really good one!!!!

You can rent 2 movies and tell them you want the Summer Escape. You will get the 2 movies for $15. You can keep them out for 1 week.....BUT....during that week, you can turn them in and exchange them for 2 others for FREE..... You can do this as many times as you'd like or as often as you can during the week. I managed to get 2 for $15, exchange them for 2 others - watch them, then exchange them for 2 more....that was 6 movies in 24 hours (it has rained NON-STOP in Maryland!!!!) for the $15.... AND, I wasn't done.... I exchanged them a couple of more times during the week.

I'm on my second round of this. Here are some of the movies I've seen, recommend, DON'T recommend - BTW, none of this is based on Oscar-level, movie critic or other knowledge....just on what I liked (or didn't like), and what cracked my ass up:

MY LIST:
Tropic Thunder
The Departed
Taken (OMG - Amazing! I love Liam Neeson, I will buy this to watch over and over again)
Bolt
Hotel for Dogs
Night Train (really bad, don't bother!)
Crossing Over (amazing, thought-provoking, straight to DVD [with Harrison Ford] movie about immigration...reminded me of CRASH, but for immigration issues v. racial issues)
Nothing But the Truth
Traitor (Don Cheadle is THE BEST!!!! Get this movie, it is amazing and worthy of many kudos!)
Nights in Rodanthe
My Mom's New Boyfriend (REALLY funny movie with Meg Ryan & Antonio Banderas + others...cracked me up)

Use the comments to recommend more....I've got the following:
Out of Sight
Noises Off!
Rumor Has It
The Family Stone

Wow...I suck!

Has it really been since November? I posted nothing in December? That was the month I finished my first semester in the Adult Learning Graduate Certificate at Hopkins, went to London (England, that is...), and then there was that little thing called Christmas...and New Year.....
So.....quick recap......
Relief
Amazingly fun, special, father-daughter bonding
Family, hysterical, food....foood......food....
alone....shocker!

Okay, there it is! I'll add some real posts coming up. I'd love to say it was because I was so busy, but I must blame it on the Wii. I am now addicted and feel that I may need to quit my graduate studies, and possibly my job in order to keep up with the Wii in the way that I would like to.

Stay tuned for fun info and awesome pics....maybe I'll even look into using some of the Web 2.0 tools I'm learning more and more about.

The moose, the fish

Quick Idaho update:

No fish. When I told Ginny I couldn't catch any of the stupid fish, she said that might actually make them smart.

I only saw moose clumping through a meadow as I was driving across Route 90 between Montana & Idaho. They were too far to see very well, and they were on the opposite side of the road so I didn't get to stop and take pictures.

100 degree days to start the trip, big storm came through with 2 days of rain, temps dropped to 70. Wild weather patterns!

The vacation was amazing! Ginny had a blast with her cousin Amanda. They are the same age, going into the same grade, and can talk on the phone for hours. They are sisters at heart! I spent 10 days in Idaho. Prior to the trip, I was worried and thought to myself.....What am I going to do in IDAHO for 10 days???? I'm always worried I'll be bored. I read 3 books, fished a bit, hung out with family, went out for great dinners, and woke up to the most beautiful view every day.....even in the rain.

Pictures above: View from the deck, Drew at The Smetheram Wheel

Pictures below: Idaho on foot :)

Please God.....Oh, Please...

Please let me see a moose on my vacation. This I pray to you, my Lord.

For the last 3 years in a row, I have seen moose while vacationing in Idaho. The first year, we went out searching for them. Our neighbor drove us up a logging road, and there along the side of the road, was a bull and a cow. The bull's face was so big! And we were so close to them.

Year 2, the moose came to us. My father and I were out in our little boat (rowboat with outboard motor) fishing (we left at approx. 6:00am). We'd had a rough morning with a slight wind, and no luck catching anything. Another boat (same type) was coming toward us. The guy yelled "There's 2 cows to your port." Now, when I hear cows, I think.....cows....as in ....Moo!" Not in Idaho. That means female moose. Sure enough, we look to our left and there were 2 moose swimming in the lake. They were maybe 5 car lengths from us, we could hear them grunting. We were close to the mountain side of the lake, and they headed over to the shore and disappeared into the mountain forest.

Last year, we saw a couple of moose. The first one was swimming across the lake. She got out near some houses farther down from us. I ran to the road (Lane 4), to see if I could meet her on the path. Alas, that did not happen (maybe for the best since they are HUGE!!!). The final moose was seen amongst the lily pads. He was shoulder deep, munching, eating his lunch. We were in my cousin's motor boat, there was another boat, and a jet ski hanging around watching him eat. In the picture below, the moose is in between my 2 kids eating his lunch.

So, God, if you are so inclined, I would be very happy if you would send a moose my way while I'm in Idaho. For some reason, Lord, this very large, odd-looking creature brings me much joy, excitement, and even peace. (Not to mention the fact that all my sister saw when she was out there were Quail.....hehehehe).

Fun In Florida

So, you've seen some of the pictures of the fun we've been having. Now, let me tell you about some of the other happenings.

Drew was going to spend the week in Tennis Camp at Heathrow Country Club. He had a couple of 1:1 lessons before the week started. He was invited to attend the Advanced Tennis Class instead of the regular camp. He's being worked so hard, he's come home exhausted each day, but has really learned a lot.

Ginny has turned into a mermaid. She swims non-stop, and has been loving it. She and Mimi have gotten to spend some time together. They went to see the American Girl Movie, shopping for books at Target. She picked out a book called "If I have a Wicked Stepmother, Where's My Prince?" Wow.....don't know what to say.....didn't know she was that interested in finding her Prince....

Me, I've had a cold and have been doing a lot of snarking, sneezing, and coughing. Oh well! At home in Maryland with a cold, or in the sunshine, by the pool in Florida with a cold??? I'll take it!!!!

The Fairy Godmother

Here we are, back in Orlando at my parents' house.
Tomorrow, we will go to the Magic Kingdom. After hanging around the park, we will attend a wonderful show at Cinderella's Castle. The kids will get their picture taken with Cinderella, but to us, there is only 1 star of the show........!

The Fairy Godmother! When speaking with her, be it in person or over the phone, there is an immediate sense of wonder and amazement! She can give you hope just by saying that she is there for you, as the Fairy Godmother. Not only is she the Fairy Godmother, she is my sister!

And, your sister does ...what??... for a living???

Not exactly swimming with the dolphins....

We arrived in Orlando on Sunday after visiting a most exciting place to eat. It's an old Sugar Mill at DeLeon Springs State Park http://www.planetdeland.com/sugarmill/sugarpage2.htm. The tables have a griddle in the middle and you can make your own pancakes...and eggs. They bring out 2 different kinds of batter, stone ground and all purpose flour. You order toppings as desired. We ordered bananas, blueberries, and chocolate chips. It was a fun thing to do with the family!!!!

Drew has spent the week at tennis camp at Heathrow Country Club where my Dad is a member. He's been the man to beat this week and I'm sure that's been great for his ego! He's sooooooo tan, and looks really great as he builds his muscle and "hot guy" status.

Ginny and I have been hanging out by the pool, swimming, reading, relaxing. I did get a manicure/pedicure.......ya like?????

What? What is that you say? It looks like a lizard on my hand? Well, yes....yes, it is. There are many, many lizards around my parents house. The baby ones are very cute and much fun to swim with. We named this one Maddie. We've caught her a couple of days in a row to take swimming with us. She seems to be responding to her name now.

Swim with the Dolphins - Part 2 & 3

So, after riding the dolphins' noses across the pool, we snorkled around the cove with them. I don't have pictures of that, but it was a weird experience. I am not proficient with the snorkel. It made me gag and feel suffocated so I wasn't able to swim face down for more than a minute or two at a time.

The third part was interacting with the dolphins. We learned a lot of information from the trainers as we touched them while they swam by. We avoided the blow hole when they swam by, and learned where on their bellies to touch and where not to touch as they rolled over. Note: Avoid the genitals....always good advice.

It all culminated with hugs and kisses. Julian was the kissing dolphin seen in the pictures below. The hugging dolphin was a female whose name escapes me at this time.....I'm sure Ginny will remember.

Swim with the Dolphins - Part 1

We signed up to swim with the dolphins while we were in the Bahamas. The experience was divided into 3 sections. For all sections, we wore a wetsuit, and had mask & snorkel gear on hand.

First, we were pushed across the cove by dolphins. We had a kickboard which we rested our upper body on. At the trainer's command, 2 dolphins came up quickly behind us and connected their noses with our feet, and propelled us across the cove!!!! WOW!!!! It was fast, the noses were harder than I thought. I struggled to aim myself, Ginny screamed with glee the whole way across, and Drew was cooler than cool!!!!

Bahamas Time

Okay, Let's cheer it up a bit....it's time for the Bahamas!

We arrived on Tuesday evening. It was windy, but sunny, and perfectly palm-treed. Ginny and I went exploring while Drew fell asleep.
There were tons of pools of lovely sea life. Most with underground walkways, tunnels, and viewing areas. We saw some really cool stuff!

On Wednesday, we woke up and headed for the wave pools, slides, tube rides, and amazing fun around the Atlantis resort. The kids went on a ride called "The Leap of Faith". This is a slide which drops straight down into a tunnel which goes through a pool of sharks!!!! See the picture? That's Ginny on the slide......... Drew went too fast!!!! That ride was at the Mayan Temple which also had a tube ride which went into a tunnel in a shark tank. I tried that one because I'm not much for leaping!!!

More Bahama fun to come!

I am here! I am here!

Okay, so it may seem as though I have disappeared over the last 2 weeks. I have not, I promise. However, I do have much to catch up on. Be looking for the upcoming topics which have happened since I posted at the beginning of the month:

The Kidney
The Transportation
The Funeral
The Gala
The Recovery
The Appointment
The Birthday Party

Did this catch your attention? If so, check back over the next couple of days as I recal the wild events of the last 2 weeks.

PLUS - COUNTDOWN: 8 Days to Bahamas!!!!!!!!!!!!