A good couple of days

The past two days have been really good.

Yesterday I decided Bertie and I were going to have an adventure.  I needed to go to Ikea to get clothes pins (they have the best and cheapest ones).  I looked up parks in Palo Alto, and parks with water features in Sunnyvale.  It was still fairly early when we left (before 10), so I thought maybe we could hit the water feature on the way back.  But I read about this cool park in Palo Alto called the Magical Bridge. We drove over there.  And I was disappointed.  

As you can see, it was fine.  But certainly not magically.  And while helping him on the slide, I socked him in the eye with my ring.  After we played there for a bit, we walked around.  It was a big park, and they were setting up for 4th of July festivities.  At the far end of the park, we found it: the Magical Bridge.

Slides, swings, spinning things, a little kid area, it was great!  Bertie took a tumble and bumped his head (on one of the few un-padded surfaces).  But he recovered quickly.  He loved the slides!  Two of the three are in the picture above.  The other one was made of a bunch of rollers.  He thought they were all fun.  And he went down the blue one by himself!  (That was the fastest slide).  We had so much fun.  He probably could have played longer, but I was sweaty.

You can see where I hit his right eye, and if you look close you can see the bump on his left forehead.

We continued on to Ikea.  We got lunch: Swedish meatballs.  And then Bertie fell asleep.  I got my clothes pins (and nothing else (a first!)). I was able to transfer him to the car and have him stay asleep.  I was going to take him to the water feature park on the way home, but opted not to wake him. We drove back, and went to the grocery store.  At the grocery store, he pulled a jar off the shelf when I wasn't looking, and broke it.

I made burgers, with corn and watermelon for dinner.  We had a nice night.

Today Aaron had the day off, so we decided to go to the boy scout camp for the day.  I could not wake up, so we left around 7:30, instead of 7.  We didn't hit any traffic (amazingly).  Bertie did pretty well.  I sat in the back with him off and on.  He napped on the way up.  We got to camp without incident.  Met up with a lot of people from the year Aaron worked up there.  We also had lunch there.

Now we always have to take a picture with the sign.

We stayed about two hours, and then drove up the road a little further to Pinecrest Lake.  It was really crowded.  But we lucked upon a good parking spot.  Bertie and I changed (Aaron didn't think to bring a suit).  It was hot there, and the water was chilly, but we got in and waded around for a while.  

 
We got dressed, Bertie had a little nurse, and then headed back.  We got some McDonald's (ice cream and soda).  We got behind a car whose roof carrier was open.  They were losing clothes, towels and pillows.  So we got close enough to honk, and flash the lights and wave.  Eventually they got it.  But I was bummed they lost a bunch of their stuff.  Bertie slept for a while. We stopped at a fruit stand, not knowing it was one of the lamer ones (oh well). Later, we stopped in Tracey for gas (and got 31.4 mpg!)  We only hit a little traffic on the way home.  And we saw license plates from 16 different states!

We had a quick dinner, and took the dogs for a walk.  I wish we could have bathed Bertram, but he was too tired.  It's getting late, and I'm tired.  Fortunately, there haven't been many fireworks tonight.  (We medicated Yoie, so she is calm and sleeping).

Three weeks later?

It's been three weeks since I last posted?  Yeesh.

It's been kind of a tough week.  My depression has been creeping back in.  I've been really tired and disinterested.  Last night, for example, I went to sleep a little before 11:30.  I got up around 8 for a bit, and Bertie and I laid back down around 9.  We then slept til 12:20.  And I was still tired.  I ate a little, since I hadn't eaten yet.  Then I decided I'd better go for a walk, before I fell asleep again.  Bertie and I walked to Dollar Tree and back.

I've been really bad with exercise.  I haven't exercised (aside from walking) since last Wednesday.  I've felt so tired and unmotivated.  Sluggo.

We found out that Nanny is going to have to move from the farm in the Spring.  It's really sad.  The property owners said she could stay as long as she wanted (after my grandpa died).  Apparently, that wasn't true.  It's like the remainder of my childhood is over.  My mom grew up there.  And us kids spent every summer (and occasional Christmases) there.  It's one of my favourite places in all the world (maybe my favourite).  It's beautiful, lush, secluded, and quiet.  There are different wild woodland animals.  Growing up there were cows and a horse.  They always had various farm dogs (Gidget, Tanya, Black Jack, the other girl I can't remember).  We'd catch lightning bugs, go fishing in the lake, make mudslides at the red clay canyon, and climb in the giant magnolia tree.  Huge family dinners, and sitting with my cousins at the kids' table in the kitchen. Yeah.  There are a lot of memories.  It's sad to think that the last time I was there will probably be the last time.

Bertie has been his usual awesome self.  I just love him so much.  He's still a great sleeper at night.  His naps are hit or miss.  I think teeth are coming soon,I can see the outlines on his bottom gums.  He likes food. So far he's had rice cereal, oatmeal, quinoa, carrots, and sweet potatoes.  He really wants table food, but obviously isn't ready for it yet.  He's a very happy kid most of the time.  We're still working on sitting up, but he's not there yet.  Also, I still haven't seen him roll front to back.  

Aaron is going to be the camp director again next Summer.  I'm not sure how I feel about this.  I'm not thrilled about this.  But we'll get through it.

Our goings on, as of late.

A week an a half ago, Colleen asked me to feed her cats while the family went camping.  "No problem", I said, "I even still have a key".  I put Bertie in the stroller and we walked over there (it's about 3 miles round trip).  I pulled the stroller on to the stoop, put the key in the lock, and it didn't turn.  I took it out, and tried again.  No luck.  I called Amanda to see if she had a key to her sister's house.  She did not.  I walked to their neighbours (who are acquaintances of ours).  They had had a key, but gave it back recently.  I texted Brian, to see if he had a key to his brother's house.  He did not.  I looked around and saw the bathroom window was open.  So I decided I'd come back and see if I could get in through there.  We walked back home, and talked to Dennis.  I asked it he could hold a ladder while I climbed in.  He and I drove back over.  I showed him the window, and he suggested we look around the back.  He looked at the back door, and said he could pop the lock; which he easily did.  I went in, and fed the cats.  Colleen left a quilt that she made for Bertie.  It is so pretty.  I still need to take a picture.  I was nervous that one of her neighbours would call the cops since we looked pretty suspicious.  

A few weeks back we had a 50th Anniversary party for Janet and Dennis.  It turned out really well, and I think everyone had a good time.  It was supposed to be really hot that day, but the temperature was actually almost perfect.  Aaron called in and did his toast over the phone.

We didn't do much on the 4th of July.  We had a BBQ at Aaron's folks house.  But that was really it.  We gave Fiona a sedative.  The last time we tried this (and followed the dosing instructions from the vet), Fiona was practically catatonic.  She could barely walk, and was leaking urine as she did.  I cut the dosage by more than half.  She gets really nervous about the popping and banging.  The meds seemed to help this time, she as still nervous, but she wasn't trying to crawl under everything, and she didn't have any accidents.

We found out that the camp that Aaron ran last summer was having a lot of issues.  And they asked Aaron to come up for a couple days to help try to fix things.  Originally he was going to drive up with a co-worker on Sunday morning, but we decided it would be better to go up on Saturday, to get more time with the staff.

First on Saturday, we went to the flea market (as we do the first Saturday of every month).  We got up early-ish and went over there.  There weren't as many vendors as usual, maybe because it was a holiday weekend.  But we found some good books for Bertie and Aaron found some pulp sci-fi.  I got a silver chain to put my Boy charm on, and a cell charger for my car.

We came home, and got ready, and hit the road again to make the 154 mile journey to camp.  Bertie did ok.  We stopped in Tracy so I could pee, and baby was fussy.  So I rode in back with him for a while.  He's such a funny baby.  I love him so much.  He actually took a pacifier for about 20 minutes too!

We arrived around 3:30.  We got to camp and wandered around for a bit.  Most of the staff was in town.

Bertram was asleep when we arrived.

Aaron and Bertram in nature.

Feeding Bertie in the great outdoors

 A good family portrait.

Bertie and I left a little after 6 to make the drive home.  (Aaron is going to get a ride home with the co-worker on Monday night).  Bertie didn't do as well on the ride home.  He was fussy and awake.  We stopped in Oakdale (the first town in the valley) so I could pee.  I meant to get food there too, but I missed my opportunity.  Then I needed to wait til Escalon (the next town in the valley 20+ miles away) to get food.  When I was waiting at the drive through baby started screaming.  Once I was able, I got him out, and fed and cuddled him.  He really wanted cuddles, as he was overly tired.  But I couldn't cuddle him for too long, since we needed to go home.  He proceeded to cry from Escalon, to Manteca, to Mountain House.  (33 miles).  Fortunately, he slept for the last hour or so.  

Today Bertie and I went to church.  We sat in the cry room.  He did pretty well.  A couple came in with their 18 month old boy (who was full of energy).  He hugged Bertie a couple times, and tried to play with him.  18 month olds don't know the meaning of gentle.  But he did ok.  I tried to go to Sunday school, but Bertram was really tired, so we came home.  Once we got home, I found ants in his room!  They were on his bed!  I set him on my bed so I could vacuum and spray.  Once I was done, I went back to get him, but he was already asleep!  I pumped 5 oz!  We had a relaxing afternoon.  I napped too.  

Tomorrow is Bertie's 4 month appointment.  Janet is going with me since Aaron got called away unexpectedly.

Road-tripping (with Dogs)

Aaron is up in Sonora running the boy scout camp, all Summer.  It's about 120 miles away, or 3 hours, with no traffic or stops.

We (the dogs and I) have traveled up to see him twice now.

I made a lot of mistakes the first time we went.

• We left at rush hour on a Friday.
• I didn't take the girls for a walk first.
• My Adderall wore off part way through.

We left right after I got home from work, and hit the road at 4:10.  We hit major traffic in Fremont.  Then, while we were stuck (the traffic was crawling a long), Zelda announced that she needed to go to the bathroom.  She started whining and didn't stop until I was able to pull off about 20 minutes later.  And then it took her a long time to find the perfect spot.  The whole excursion took up 20 minutes.  Then it took a long time to get back on the road.  By the time we'd been on the road for 2 hours, we'd only traveled 40 miles.  It was a long day.  We were stuck on 680 a long time, then on 580 for a long time too.  

We stopped in Manteca for another potty break.  There wasn't any traffic after that, but I still had to stop a few more times for Zelda to pee more.  That was pretty annoying.  We didn't get to camp til after 10, so I 3 hour trip became a 5+ hour trip.  

The first trip home was more or less the same.  Lots of stops, lots of whining.  It's all Zelda.  Fiona is a great travel dog.  She's quiet, and she stays in my lap the whole time.  Zelda whines, lays down, gets up (has jelly legs) whines, lays down and repeat (ad infinitum).  It's frustrating.  Anyway, the trip back took about 4 hours.

Last week we went up again, this time on July 3rd.  Still a bad travel day.  But this time, we didn't leave until 6:30, in hopes of missing most of the traffic.  Also, I got a sedative for Zelda.  We still got stuck in traffic, but not nearly as badly as the previous week.  The trip still took 4 hours.  But the sedative seemed to help some.

Today's trip home was much better.  Zelda slept most of the time, and we made the trip in 3.5 hours.  

Zelda at a happier moment.

Fiona's standard riding pose.

Zelda sat in the from seat for about a minute while we were stopped.

This week

• Aaron was gone to Camp High Sierra (a boy scout camp) for the week, so I was on my own.  Sometimes I enjoy the quiet, but I miss him.
• I managed to take the dogs hiking twice this week, because it wasn't too hot.  One day we did the short loop at Quicksilver.  The other day we hiking part of Sierra Azul with my dad.  Zelda was dragging along.  I'm not sure if she wasn't feeling well, or if she's just getting old.
• Janet and Dennis got the tree in front of our house cut way back.  It looks great.  And I'm no longer worried about its limbs breaking off into the street.  The pile for street pick up was huge!

• I took my Humira yesterday.  It always smashes me after I take it.  And I made a mistake: you're not supposed to take it if you're sick.  If you feel ill, you're supposed to take your temperature before taking it, which I didn't.  Usually after I take it, it kicks my butt for a couple days.  No exceptions this time around.  Also, it knocks the immune system down a little, so I usually stay home; avoid the germ playground that is church.
• I want to revamp my wardrobe.  I hate most of my clothes.  I went to the outlets in Gilroy yesterday.  It was largely a bust.  I found one shirt I liked.  I really hate the clothes for this season.  A weird combination of neon 80's and fringe/hippie/gypsy.  Bleh.  I want basic, but cute, with maybe a vintage flare.  My follow up was to shop more today, but I'm sequestering myself to avoid germs.
• I made a couple things off of Pinterest this week.  Homemade Frosty Paws (dog frozen yogurt treats), and marinated baked tofu.  Both turned out great.  Yay me!
• I miss my sister and my mom.
• I dragged myself to Safeway this morning.  I'm trying to make the house inviting for Aaron's return.  (If I were returning from a week at boy scout camp, I'd want a big choice of food, a clean house, and a nice bed).  We now have a well-stocked fridge.  I don't like going to Safeway, it's expensive and crowded.  But I didn't want to drive far, and Safeway never closes.  I went at 8.30, thinking I'd beat the crowds; I didn't.  And I forgot how expensive it is.  Trader Joes and Sunflower are specialty, but they're way cheaper!  But I did get things that Aaron will like: lunch meat, Mexican coke, diet soda, frozen pizza, bread, apples, baby carrots etc.  Oh and cereal!  I was actually able to buy cereal by his specifications (which is don't pay more than $2 a box).  There was a sale on Kelloggs for $2 a box.  And I bought myself two lobster tails on a whim, they were also on sale.  But they didn't have lima beans.  I've been wanting them lately.

Misc.

Due to an error in communication, Aaron and I were no together on our anniversary.  It was pretty lame.  He was volunteering at camp.  Maybe we can take a day when Summer is over and do something.  But he'll be back and forth to camp a few more times and then to Dallas for 2 weeks.  Plus, the boss and I need to get the billing department situated, before I can schedule time off.

So here's what I did on our 7th anniversary:

• Woke up at 7, cleaned the house and started laundry
• found a HUGE cockroach in the garage, and trapped it under a cup
• Cleaned more, due to cockroach-induced paranoia
• Went to rest in bed, and read my new Marie Claire, only to find ants.  Then I continued cleaning, and then sprayed bug spray.
• Then I showered
• Saturday was also the company picnic, and since it was at a park, I decided (very stupidly) to bring the dogs.  
• The dogs did ok, until another dog showed up (usually they do ok on neutral territory).  Actually, Zelda did fine, Yoie was the problem
• Thought walking them around would calm them down, so I could tie them to the table and socialize.  
• Ended up sticking them in the car for a few minutes (it was a cool day, but I still hated doing it).  And ended up leaving before getting to eat.
• Came home, ate cookies and a banana and took a two hour nap.
• Watched several episodes of Taboo on Netflix, and then decided I didn't have the perfect pink nail polish.
• Went to Target, bought said polish.  Stopped at Panda Express to buy myself a fancy anniversary dinner.
• Ate, painted my nails, and watched more Taboo, before switching to an Auschwitz documentary.
• Aaron called to get directions to a Walmart in Livermore, to keep a ladder from flying off of the truck.
• 11pm, went to bed.

So it wasn't really what I would have wanted.  And there were way too many bugs in the house.

I ended up staying home from church today.  I haven't been feeling well for a week.  And I took Hurima this week.  So the idea of being exposed to 100+ people's germs was not too appealing.  And I took a nap, which was nice.