2014 May | The Road Home

Archive for ‘May, 2014’

Out and about this morning

The herbies don’t look to be coming back.

This weekend I may get some starter herbs and get things going on the front porch. It might freeze again and it might snow again but all should be well on the front porch with a helper cover up for a hard freeze warning.

The lilacs…

Mini wood violets…

And the lupins are coming on!!

The rhubarb is close – I might get enough for my favorite rhubarb chutney this weekend. Vidalia onions are in the market and a caramelized onion pizza with a bit of rhubarb chutney just might be on the Memorial weekend menu :) !

Lily of the valley are close to blooming also.

The boys. The wet grass. The TALL wet grass…

Several weeks ago, I was looking at the mower and thinking about how I would start it and not tweak my arm (the right arm with the tennis elbow). My arm is doing much better and I don’t want to set things back. As it happened, Amazon had a lightning deal on a battery mower. No pulling to start it – you push a button.

I didn’t buy on the lightning deal, but it got me thinking and I did some research on the battery mowers. I was in Home Depot looking at them and there was a man looking at the same gas mower I have. I didn’t spend much time thinking…I asked him if he was interested in a 7 years old version. We agreed on price. He picked up the mower that afternoon.

So, I’ve been holding on hoping for another lightning deal. And then last week the vet visits with Bear. I used my mower money for the vet. Oh, darn. I think we’ll enjoy the tall grass!

***In case I’ve never mentioned…I really DISLIKE mowing…I mean really. And I probably only have to mow 8-12 times before things get dry enough that the grass doesn’t need mowing. Mowing wimp – that’s what I am!

Desperate times call for desperate measures…

A rainy day.

All day, mostly raining.

Auggie developed a severe case of cabin fever by lunchtime.

So, I made a fort.

And got out some toys that had been put away…so they seem new…for just such an emergency!

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

My strategy worked for about 40 minutes.

Although it stayed cloudy and the grass and brush was very wet, there was a bit of a break and Auggie went out.

Being so low to the ground, he got VERY wet.

BUT, his double coat, just like Bear…a shake and all is mostly well.

Except for his feet and his stomach.

Both Auggie and Bear spend a LOT of time on feet after being out in the wet.

And then a nap.

On the plus side, it is VERY, VERY green ….AND the yellow jackets do not fly in the rain!

Sunday catch up

Sunday morning sunshine on the front porch…

Waning gibbous hanging over the yard…

Auggie being Auggie!!

At least he can get down by himself now.

What??

The live mint being LIVE. The thing is growing and looking for light and smelling wonderful and it is just a joy to see in the window. I crush a few leaves in my mid-morning tea and have a recipe for a mint pea spread that I will make soon. It seems to be sending new shoots so hopefully, I can harvest and grow and etc.

The Bear boy.

See that pink (shaved) belly ? All is well, but we had 2 vet appointments this week which is why the dearth of blog posts…and you, know the work to pay the bills thing also.

On Wednesday – which was also the 3 year anniversary of the day Bear came to me – we went for some vaccinations and I had some questions about some things I’d noticed recently. We ended up doing a Senior Package: full blood work, other fluid/solid testing, EKG even. The clinic has a new package which makes it reasonable to do EVERYTHING. Bottom line there were 2 blood thingies that were 10X normal and kind of sort of explained what I’d noticed.

We went back on Friday for an Ultrasound which turned up a fairly benign condition, treatable with medication and Bear was noticeably better within 24 hours. We are on the med for 3 weeks and then a blood recheck. Dr. Clark AND 2 vet techs including dear friend Janine – allowed me to be there for the ultrasound. It was good to be with Bear who had to be on his back in a cradle contraption, held by the techs and me…have his belly shaved, the cold gel and then 1/2 hour of the ultrasound gadget going to and fro. He did wonderfully. It was nice that I could be there as Dr. Clark was highlighting things, notating, telling us what he was seeing…to me an ultrasound just looks like the ocean…as in “IN” the ocean. Anyway, it was a relief that it seems minor and also that Bear is feeling better so soon.

And at least his stomach is cool. He is doing the major shedding routine that northern breed dogs do this time of year. That coat that is good to -25 is thinning out for the summer.

Late afternoon

Late afternoon break…

Auggie is barely discernable in the upper left … at the end of the shaft of sunlight…

Bear near me…

Late afternoon: Tuesday.

*** New bait in all of the traps and by lunchtime they each (3 of them) had 6-8-10 captures. I went back to the hardware for some disposable traps. The reusables I have do not actually kill the yellow jackets. It seems a bit cruel to let them die of starvation or lack of oxygen or ??? The disposables have liquid, i.e. they drown. Gah. There are certainly more yellow jackets than needed and I’d like to not worry about any of us being stung…but I’d really like a humane method of dispatching them! And I hope these are queens so that I am preventing thousands of hatchlings…but even with the markings…I am not absolutely sure. It is a bit disconcerting to suddenly be seeing and trapping so many… bleah!