Hot Dogs

We're here in Palm Springs and I just had to check in with bloggerville. (Besides, it's tough to catch up if I really stay away for a whole 2 and half weeks!) 

AND, I couldn't resist posting some funny pictures of my dogs and how they reacted to the major temperature difference here.  It is about 35 degrees warmer than at home.

So, here is my Hailey and her maxin' and relaxin' attitude:

Ah, if only we humans could actually relax to such a level.  She didn't even have enough energy to finish her chew stick and that dog loves any kind of food or treat.

Now remember that my Parker is a bit scatter brained these days.  Keeping that in mind, all he could do at first was wander around in an effort to find a cool spot and in 106 degrees there really isn't much of a cool spot to find.  So he wandered for a long time.  What he did find though was that this place has several large mirrors.  And in those mirrors there was this other dog that looked just like him.  Hmmm, imagine that.  At first he barked at the dog in the mirror and tried to growl and sneak up on him.  Then, when he did finally figure out there was actually no other dog, he decided that the mirrors were holding an extension to the room that he just could not figure out how to get into.

I may or may not have laughed so hard that I choked.  Yup, Parker is still providing free entertainment after all these years....

Extending The Summer

My husband and I have taken the reigns on this whole 'summer skipped us here' in the Northwest thing and we have decided to go back to Palm Springs.  After his trip out to San Antonio and how very close he got to finding a job out there, we are not ready to settle into the grey mist that is already parked over our house as I write this.  So we are leaving at the end of the week and we won't be back until early October. 
I will be taking the tomatoes that did not ripen and laying them on the dashboard in my car window on the way down to Southern California, giving them one last chance to become what they were meant to be.  (They are oh, so close.)  Yesterday we picked up a couple of cruiser bikes that we will be taking with us, including one that is a wee bit smaller that fits my 5'4" frame just right.  I am so excited.  We decided these are our Christmas presents for this year.  I'm headed to the Goodwill to see if I can find a basket to put on the front. Even my dog is not ready to give up on summer yet.  He will be taking his favorite baseball along as our dogs will be joining us on this trip and enjoying a nice fenced back yard at the condo we rented.
We are not ready for summer to end.  We are not ready for going back to more stringent routine.  We are not ready to let go of the spontaneity that summer is.  So we are going away to where summer is not over yet and really won't be for months to come.

Normally, we go on vacation to 'go, see, do'.  This will be the first time in a very long time that we will be going away to unwind and just experience a place as if we lived there.  I may check out a few things, but there will be no set schedule.  I will take the time to soak up some more of the sun that helps to keep me feeling alive.
Then, when I come back, I should feel a little less like the Fall season has some sort of personal vendetta against me.  Hopefully I will be able to embrace it, after having pushed it off for just a little while longer... 

It's Been A Roller Coaster Ride...

To those that have been hangin' in there waiting for an answer about the job for my husband in Texas, I will get right to the point.  It ain't happenin'; at least not for now.

We really did believe that this time was it, but apparently it's not.  I won't bore you with the details, but let's just say that my husband was definitely given a lot of reasons to think that this time he was a front runner for this job.  And the powers that be say that he could still be in the running for a future position, but we're not holding our breath.  My husband feels it is time to take a break from the job hunting and get geared up for his next test in October.

In the meantime, I got a whole bunch of yard work done by my nephews Dad and it all looks so great that I feel like we could actually hold an outdoor party in our back yard and I won't be worried about having to test out my homeowners insurance policy! 

After all that work, we also got to take my nephew to a Mariners game where he got to run the bases at the end of the game.

Then we took a couple of days and went to an indoor water park.  Nathan loves the place and he got to spend time with his good friend who also has red hair.  I love the connection that they share.

Overall, we had a wonderful week and it made waiting for an answer on this whole job question a lot more bearable.  Now that we're not going to be doing any moving right away, the next thing on my agenda is spending two weeks at the end of September in Palm Springs.  I am looking forward to some hot, sunny weather, and some real relaxation.  We're taking our dogs with us and we plan on doing not a whole lot!

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I have also made a decision for myself during this time of waiting and wondering.  I am going to be cutting back on my work schedule after January 1, 2012.  I started a small business several years ago that I use to express my more artistic side and haven't done much with it over the past year and a half.  It's time for me to get back to what I really love to do and stop worrying so much about what we'll do if money gets tight.

So, if you're going to be in the Palm Springs area for any reason within those last two weeks of September, I'd love to meet you.  Seriously.  You'll find me on a bike or in a pool or on a golf course...

All The Disney Details- California Adventure

Have you ever been to Disney's California Adventure park?  It is right next to Disneyland in Anaheim, California.  It is a smaller park that has had a fairly checkered past as far as some people loving it and others hating it.  My husband and I have always been on the 'love it' side as we have enjoyed the fact that it has been a nice homage to the state of California and a good variation on the Disney theme.  Currently the park is undergoing a huge renovation and I hope that this will make for some more reasons to love it.

There was a lot to love for Nathan as he headed straight for the one part of California Adventure that I definitely do NOT love:  the Grizzly River Run ride.  It is one of the river rafting type rides in which some people get to laugh and enjoy it while others ALWAYS get soaked to the bone.  I'm sure you can guess which category I fall into for that...  Here's Nathan and his Dad yucking it up after just missing being blasted by a huge geyser:

Nathan really proved his love of the wildest rides when we were over in California Adventure.  He even liked my favorite:  The Tower Of Terror.  A lot of people can't handle that one as it is a drop tower type of ride that is actually not just a drop, but is pulled down with so much force that you actually rise up out of your seat!  That is my favorite part as your stomach also does that flip thing, like when you go down a certain type of hill really fast.  It makes me crack up laughing every time.  Nathan was also a fan of the Soarin' Over California ride, which is like being in a hang glider over different scenes of California and he loved California Screamin'- a roller coaster that takes you on an inversion loop and goes from zero to 55 miles per hour in 4 seconds, right at the start.

I like the fact that this park is often a lot less crowded.  It gives me time and space to stop and enjoy the flowers, like these ranunculus that grow wild and beautiful.

I also like the way that the characters in California Adventure are usually dressed in non-traditional outfits.

Nathan seemed to enjoy a day with a bit more of a relaxing pace as well:

 

We finished off the evening with a viewing of 'World Of Color'.   It is a show that involves synchronized water fountains with colors and images projected onto them.  Pretty neat.  Here's a little preview for you:  (You might want to pause the music player.)