Happy Anniversary Molly!

After Jackson and Brandi had left, we were discussing Molly and realized - it's been a year already! I find it hard to believe our spoiled, outgoing, hoodling dog arrived here just one year ago, head hung low, standing and trembling - so afraid of us. It has not been easy at times, after she backed away from me and defended a corner of the kitchen when I went to put a leash on her, when she went darting off to the neighbors with us in merry pursuit - David said he had some second thoughts as to the wisdom of this decision. But he got over it, and so did she. We moved gradually with her training, she eventually allowed me to leash her, (thank goodness!), stopped darting off into the road, and learned to leave the cat alone. sort of. From there she's transformed into my hiking buddy, hitting the trails with great anticipation and joy. She enjoys seeing her pal Libby and even though she won't allow anyone she doesn't know to touch her, she doesn't freak out either. Adopting a dog from a rescue group is almost like having a child - you get so much joy from the happiness they radiate on a daily basis. Molly takes nothing for granted, not her food, not her bed - but she is so delighted at meals it's hard not to smile as she does her great leaping and bounding. That is not say she walks around like a refugee, she believes she deserves everything she gets and if you're not performing up to standard, has no trouble letting you know it. With all the guests we've had and friends over, she has been gradually getting better. With Brandi and Jackson I gave them her favorite stinky treats - a rather hideous concoction of  little round things that are made of fruit and bison - and that warmed her up. Anyone that would hand that over has got to be a friend. In the spring we'll be back out on the trails again or if a warm weekend should happen. Pearl will be forever missed but Molly fills the hole she left behind quite nicely, doesn't she? She loves her Reuben and the two of them spend most of their days raising merry hell. Fetch has turned into a complicated game which involves very little fetching and a lot of chasing, barking, and rolling in the mud.  She often sleeps with her head resting on Reuben's  back, the face of contentment. So Happy Anniversary Miss Molly, we're sure you're grateful for the home, but not as grateful as we are for being allowed to host you.

Arrgh.

Sorry about the delay in posting, I'm having a lot of trouble with this blog. Posting pictures has become near to impossible - I can't seem to use the ones on my IPad and the downstairs computer refused to post them at all. I have managed to get one on and it seems to be sparkling for whatever reasons the Internet Gods have determined. Anyhow, Jackson and Brandi arrived last week after a miscalculation of time. They thought it would take them six hours and it actually took eleven - oops! But they managed to get here a day ahead of the bad weather which we were grateful for. They both look great and we were so happy to see them. We left the Christmas tree and decorations up for them - it was not a stretch since we hadn't put them up til New Years Eve anyhow. Molly was doing her usual noodling and carrying on, but after a day or so decided she enjoyed the guests, going so far as snuggling with Brandi on the couch. She has come a long way, hasn't she? Reuben is a Guest Slut and does not have to be asked twice and will sleep with the guest if the opportunity arises. And if the opportunity doesn't arise, he'll sleep with them anyhow.  We've been doing stuff of course, we've been out to dinner, I took Brandi shopping and David took Jackson to the WV Gun Club for his friends to see him. Adam has been very much enjoying spending time with his brother and new sister in law.  On Sunday we set out for Pittsburgh to the Phipps Conservatory - what an amazing place. It was established in the late 1800s and has grown over the past century of course. We were there for a couple of hours and then struck out for (mecca) a yarn store down the road. At that point there were varied complaints but Natural Stitches turned out to be housed in a strip mall that also had a Gamestop and a Chinese buffet so everyone got something and we all got lunch. While we were eating I was using my Yelp to see if there were any malls but we had passed the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History which was immediately voted for our next stop. It was GREAT. We were there for hours and managed to tour the entire facility. The modern art display got a few laughs - there was a stained couch cushion leaned up against the wall, Brandi accidentally stood on a piece of "art", there were two buckets of what appeared to be dirty water but it was actually filled with clear resin that imitated dirty water, etc...And there really WAS a blank canvas that has been on display since 1965. The gem room got my attention, there were dinosaurs, sculptures, paintings, it was unbelievable.  And Pittsburgh, it turns out, is not so far away after all, it took about an hour and 15 minutes, very do-able. Monday was a lay around day and we finally made the Turkey Dinner with all the trimmings which everyone enjoyed. Yesterday was a loss, the temperatures at 6 am were I believe about -7 and I don't think it every got up past 4 degrees, way too cold to do anything. We ended up letting all the dogs sleep with us along with the cat, with the low temps and the wind blowing like a freight train it was impossible to stay warm!  Today is a bit better, David is going out to check on the Bridgeport house and then will be back as Jackson and Brandi will be leaving either tomorrow or Friday to head off to see the aunts for a few days before going home.

New Year

 I  try not to make serious resolutions - they generally don't pan out, do they? Why on earth would it be more beneficial to start my diet now as opposed to July?  I think this time of year I try to sort out the past few months and see where I'm going, what's working and what is not. I'm on call again - most jobs one person works the eves of Christmas and New Years and someone else works the actual holiday, this job one person works both. I am mulling over my job situation of course, I try not to make decisions while I am being a crabby pants but the call policy of this outfit is not what I had signed up for - and it is beating me down, quite badly at times. But that is on the back burner for now - I'm on vacation for a week or so and Jackson and Brandi will be arriving here around ten pm tonight due to a slight misjudgement of travel time. I've got the guestroom made up and  did a bit of dusting, so we are ready I suppose. They want to go to the asylum and then on Sunday we are venturing into new territory - Pittsburgh! to go to the Phipps Conservatory and just do some general Peeping and So Forth. On the home front I continue to battle the woods, the briers for the most part are getting on my last nerve. I cut and throw them, they bounce back and stick to everything, I bleed like water spout some days. But we are making good progress and it's good for the dogs to be outside so much. That gets to be a chore some days, between my work schedule and David's plus it getting dark so early I have gotten into the habit of rushing home. I race in, throw the e collars on them and we race out the back so they can get a least a half an hour or so before night falls. We have been barbecuing at least once a week so that helps- we can cook while they race around the yard - and it jazzes up a blah menu in the winter. The weather continues to seesaw, it was so warm on Saturday I was running around without a coat, then it was a sheet of ice the other day - I slipped on the deck and really bruised my knee quite badly, still smarts. Then today it is a little cold, but warm enough for a mid weight jacket, the mud is spectacular. I'm stuck home today on call so not much going on, my knitting is not going so well - the pattern is complicated with no charts and little direction so it's a bit of a forced march. It will not look like the pattern but that's OK, it should look OK, unless you knit and know what your looking at, then you might get a bit snippy about it. So back to the musings of the new year - my job is on the list of considerations, I am staying in this house because I really like it here, I will continue to Battle The Woods and of course I will knit. Happy New Year!