How to bathe a Sheltie

 So this is how I bathe Quinn (she hates it!)

Take off the jewelry, and the glasses, put your phone down

Dog shampoo, towels and the small step stool for my aged knees!

Sheet across end of bed-or Quinn will rub her wet face on the quilt and dust ruffle!

Get out her leash but put it where she can't see it!

Call the girl in!  Look at that mud!  She's looked like this off and on for a couple of weeks.

Put her leash on--for two reasons:  no muddy dog all over the house and NO way she's going happily once she figures out a bath is coming!  She digs in!

From here on out it takes two hands!

Take your pants and shoes off and both of you get in the shower.  Turn the water on coolish and use the handheld to get her wet (watch the mud run off) DO NOT take the water away as she will dry in a heartbeat-I usually hold it with my knees.  Then soap her up in sections,head to tail, more the mud runs off.  Rinse out the soap, more mud.  Keep rinsing until no more brown stuff runs down the drain!  Turn off the water and start drying.  She shakes, I dry, she shakes, I dry-you get the idea.  Finally, you let her out of the bathroom and take a shower yourself, making sure the floor of the shower no longer has mud on it!  Takes 30 minutes total, she'll be dry tomorrow-maybe.

Rain and progress

Well, the rain is a sure thing it seems.  Here in the Kansas City Metro we have had only 5 days without rain the entire month of May! (I think we are at the 7th wettest May on record.) I know that later this summer I'll be wishing it would rain - so I don't have to water - but right now I'm totally sick of it!  My yard sloshes when I walk on it and we won't even talk about what my long-haired, lovely Quinn looks like at the moment.  (She will be unhappy when I give her a bath in a bit!)  On top of that all the cloudiness and raindrops negatively affects one's mood, all I really want to do is crawl back under the covers and sleep!  Sadly, I have pages and pages of things I wish to have finished before Friday!  I don't think it's going to happen, sigh.  I am making progress but I'm having to fight my lethargy for each and every task.  After Friday, I'll be using wearing an orthopedic boot on my left foot and using crutches.  The crutches for maybe two weeks, the boot for 4-6 (or longer) weeks.  Recovering from having a hammertoe fixed, this does not sound like any kind of fun but the toe hurts and rubs on the inside of my shoes which isn't any fun either.  What's a girl to do?

I have a long list of things to do while I'm recovering and will use all the tricks I learned from the knee surgeries - like using an office chair to get around the house instead of crutches.  I may even be able to do some of the things on the pre-surgery list (or talk my sons into doing some of them) but some things will have to wait until after.  Also, I can't leave town for a trip to Montana and other points west until after.  I can't even ride my bike-well I can probably ride it but putting it on and off the truck may be beyond me. (Not that it matters with all the rain I've only been on it once this year.) I'm putting it back on it's inside lift and I bought a rower so I can get some exercise, poor Quinn won't be getting any walks for a while.  Maybe I'll at least get some stitching done!

On a much happier note, I'm driving the 120+miles to Scott's house tomorrow to see him along with Bri and RYAN!  I haven't seen them since February so I'm really looking forward to it!

Remembering the Lost.

Today is Memorial Day in the US, a day to remember the fallen men and women of our armed forces.  Just a thought from me--not all the casualties occur on the battlefield and some occur many years later.  Even if a service member comes home from battle they may have other battles to fight because of their service.  Vietnam era veterans are still dying from their exposure to Agent Orange, Iraqi war veterans suffer fibromalgia from exposure to nerve gas, today's veterans suffer from PTSD in huge numbers (and are committing suicide because of it in record numbers.)  War never stops, pray for peace.

Garages

What is it about garages?  Designed to hold your car out of the elements, instead they hold everything except my truck!  Also prove to be the most difficult room in the house to clean!  From that you must guess that I've been working at cleaning my garage.  Which my truck would not fit in if it was empty and it is not.  So instead of a car it holds all the "stuff" from the rest of the house that has no home, sigh.  I need to have the doors and door openers replaced though and that means it has to be tidied up and re-arranged so the installers can get to the tracks etc.  I haven't ordered the doors yet, mostly because this moving about hadn't happened.  I spent a good part of yesterday and a couple of hours today in there and I probably have another day's work to go.  Some of the problem is that I have donations to re-home, I'll take at least one load on Tuesday (if it isn't raining.)  Also discovered that the cat hadn't been doing his job (not that he ever has) and I have had a little mouse in there and into the "pantry" shelves.  I don't have a lot of storage in my kitchen so I was keeping excess on shelves, all that had to be brought upstairs and put away.  Well, I'm still looking for a spot for the pasta.  Also thanks to the little squeaky guy the grass seed bag had holes in it so grass seed had to be spread and cleaned up.  Never did see the mouse so perhaps he vacated when the weather warmed up.  Or maybe he caught a glimpse of the cat!

I have managed some sewing though--there are 10 burp rags finished.  Need to get them done as he'll be home Wednesday!

Big News!

Ryan is bringing his Mom and Dad HOME on Wednesday!  I'm crying, so so happy!

Spring?

Remember last post when I told you I'd turned on the a/c due to humidity?  Well, it's still humid-actually it's still raining-but now I'm seriously considering turning on the heat!  It's been a chilly, damp day.  I even had to make a Starbucks run for a Cafe Mocha!  (I'm developing a real Starbucks habit!)

Continuing on my organizational kick:
          All Dvd's have been entered onto the computer spreadsheet (I once used a database but found it cumbersome.)
         All Cd's have been organized into the new case and entered onto a spreadsheet.  Next up there is to get them on iTunes and synced to by phone.
         I've spent several hours scanning and inputing material into family files.  I think tomorrow I will reach the end of the big scanning projects there.  When all the checking and scanning is done I can move the "Keep" stuff from the second file cabinet into the empty space I create and there will be one file cabinet to leave the house!  Photo scanning will take FOREVER but it's ongoing, forty + years of photos don't just scan themselves, sigh.
          I cut out burp rags tonight as Scott and Bri have requested more.  I bought more fabric than I'll need for them but I cut it up for burp rags and will donate the rest to the Quilt Guild for the boutique at quilt show.
          I even did a bit of cleaning today!
         
I have a very long list of things I need to get done before June 5th when I'm having surgery to correct a hammer toe.  I'll be crutching and gimping along for a few weeks again.  When the crutching and gimping are over I'm going on VACATION!  (or die.)

Warning, long post grab a drink first!

My glorious peonies!  Along the east side of my house.  I took this photo last week before the deluge hit.  Since Wednesday it has rained every day, the humidity has been horrid enough that I turned on the a/c just to keep it at bay.  Last night sleep was interrupted by rounds of thunder, driving rain, dog barking and head scratching "Is that the tornado siren I hear?" followed by hitting the local weather app on the iphone to see if there's a tornado warning.  (There was but apparently east of me and I basically slept through that. Think I need a weather radio with the alarm built in as I am pretty far from the poles with the sirens on them, add in the house being closed up, thunder, driving rain and said dog barking-yep I need to go buy one.  I have two crank up weather radios but they don't have alarms in them and they don't plug in.)  Needless to say my peonies don't look this mag now!

I've been reading Gretchen Rubin's book on habits (Better Than Before) which at the very least has made me think.  For example, I CAN NOT keep the top of my desk clean. Sigh.  So, I had to identify the problem, which in this case turned out to be shopping receipts.  Then, I had to figure out a solution to that problem-enclosed file folder in upright file holder on desk for temporary storage as well as an envelope thing for my purse,  that done I simply had to USE those two things!  So far-so good!  Following another of Gretchen's Rules of Adulthood-Outer order creates inner calm - I determined to "Get Organized" (I've been trying to do this for what seems like eons but following the identify the problem, identify a solution approach is helping.  Although, it's too soon to tell.) Also, to streamline my possessions for the move.  So for this week I have been working almost exclusively in my office.  Done so far:
                            Desk drawers purged-hey there's actually room in some of them!
                            Books inventoried, spreadsheet updated as I've added and removed books since I moved into my office-also added a location for each book as there were some I KNEW I still had but couldn't find, not true now!
                            Ordered DVD case, moved my many dvd's into it (only to discover I'll need another one soon!) Updated the DVD spreadsheet.
                            Ordered CD case for my music cd's, in the process of locating and ordering the cds into the new case-I don't think it's going to be big enough either, sigh.
                             Three and one half bags of shredding done.
                             Began a purge of the two 4-drawer file cabinets.  This is going to take a while, but I'll be able to eliminate at least one cabinet.  It does make a temporary mess though!
                             Began scanning material in family history files into Family Tree Maker-also had to learn the scanner software.  Once scanned the paper is being recycled or shredded but it's outta here!  Also going to take a while but should get faster as I get farther back in time, also creating a temporary mess.

Also for fun, I Beta read Suzie O'Connell latest book Forgotten Angel  which I loved AND I have a cameo appearance as a character!  My alter ego can ride a horse (I can't but it's on the bucket list) and got to see the Northern Lights (also on my bucket list)!  How cool it that?

Then Ave Miles released a new book as well The Bridge to a Better Life,   Had to read that one and it was another great one from her-I swear she writes heartache better than any other author I've read (And I read, A LOT!)

Not much sewing but I'll get there this week.

Ryan had his second dilation this past Friday.  They stretched him to 9mm this time, at least one more.  Scott and Bri have had him out shopping and he has new toys!  Normal.  So blessedly normal.

Ryan Update!

The photos sort of says it all!  Ryan is out of the hospital!  They still have to stay in Boston for a few more weeks as he must still have at least  two more dilations of his esophagus but they can be together like a real family!  In other good news he is taking all his food by mouth and they've increased the amount of food he gets to 5ozs every 3-4 hours.  He is blowing all the "all EA babies do this" and "Ea babies don't do this"  away.  Oh boy, I think this guy is going to be a handful!  And I can not wait to get my hands on him again!

Ugh, I'm stiff!

For at least part of the past four days, and most of three of them, I've been working in the gardens.  On Friday I drove to Columbia and cleaned up Scott and Bri's place so that they don't come home to a complete disaster after having been gone 7 months!  There was actually less to do than I expected as the company that is mowing for them has been doing a great job with trimming.  A little retail break at Appletree Quilt shop - bought some fat quarters as I am always looking for neutrals.  Then We drove home, I say we as Quinn was along for the ride!  She's such a good traveler, if she just talked she'd be perfect!

Saturday, I had one of my not so great days when the ALONENESS of my life gets overwhelming.  I generally enjoy being alone but sometimes the fact that I do most everything alone gets me down.  I still mowed the lawn here.  Not much else.

Sunday, I spent cleaning up the flower beds in front and on the east side and picking up gum balls.  Thank goodness the neighbors had that tree taken down!

Today, I finished the flower beds, tilled the veggie spaces and planted tomatoes, peppers and some flower seeds.  Spread lime, time release fertilizer and treated the rose bushes and watered.  I had an oops moment when I caught the extension cord with the tiller, sigh.  Sparks were flying and the breaker in the house blew.  So now I get to repair that extension cord!

I am still not finished with yard work, sigh.  I have weeds in the cracks in the drive, etc and I really need to sweep up all the junk falling from the oak trees.  Plus I need to trim along the fences, drive, etc.  All that will be waiting for a bit.  I am so stiff I can hardly move!

Tomorrow is going to be filled with errands and the Trails museum.  On Wednesday I'm having my upper eyelids trimmed as they are drooping enough to be affecting my vision.  I've known for some time that it would need to be done, my Father had his done, his mother's were horrid and at least one of her sisters had it done.  Should be fun, not.  At least there will be a point in wearing eye makeup again!

There has been NO sewing or creating of any kind.  I'm just too tired after all that yard stuff.