Spring Travels! Part 1

I've been absent from here lately, but it is only because we've been bouncing around this spring! I was in Florida for a month when Jenny had her baby AND had to move at the same time! I was home for 2 weeks before Larry and I left on a road trip to North Carolina, Florida and A CRUISE!! It was wonderful. Getting away together is always great because we spend so much time apart. It is always special to me to see how well we get along when we go on road trips. Spending all that time in a car can be an instant compatibility test. Somehow, we always pass!

We went to North Carolina over Easter to get to know the area we think we want to retire to, a little better. We are looking at Murphy, NC which is 10 miles from Blairsville, GA and 10 miles more or less, from the Tennessee border. It is a beautiful area in the Smoky Mountains. We like both Blairsville and Murphy. One is newer and has a little more to do, while the other has a more quaint, small town atmosphere.  We actually went to Easter services in BOTH towns. One was at 9:00 and Contemporary while the other at 11:00 was more traditional, so we had a chance to see the differences and get a feel for both congregations.

After 5 wonderful days in Murphy, we headed to one of my other favorite places...Jen's... for a couple of days so Larry could meet Zachary. Men are rather funny with babies. While women instantly reach for a newborn baby, most men will gladly wait until the kid can run around before getting down to their level. However, at one point we were all busy and Zach started to fuss. Jen went to get him, and there was Paberry, and a very calm Zachary.

While at Jen's we repacked for the next, very special, part of our trip! (This might be a good place to mention that 1) Larry and I have never been great at packing light, 2) When you have a car, you can just add more stuff, and 3) From the mountains of North Carolina, to suburban Florida, to the Caribbean, it is safe to say, we had plenty of stuff and lots of repacking to do.) Saying goodbye to Jen, Dave, Nicholas and Zachary is always hard, but Nicholas made sure we left prepared. Just as we were getting into the car he said, "Wait!" and ran into the house. He came back with ...

a little box of raisins! (Don't you just love kids?) "In case you get hungry," he told me as he handed it to me. Does he know me or what? I carried that little box everywhere I went, because anyone who knows me knows when I get hungry.... well, let's just say it's not always pretty!

From there we headed to Tampa and had dinner with some old friends before leaving Monday morning on our cruise.

I worked with this group when we were all teachers at McDonald Elementary and it was great seeing them all again. (It would have been even better if SGD, Heather, Abby and Terry were there!)

And then it was time! To celebrate (belatedly) our 40th anniversary, Larry and I booked our first cruise. We embarked from Tampa and cruised to the Grand Caymans and Cozumel, Mexico. We have wanted to do this for awhile but after a previous experience on a day cruise, I was worried that I would feel claustrophobic or sea sick. There are times when my head can play games with my equilibrium and I didn't want to be captive on a ship if that happened. At any rate, I am going to leave the cruise for the next post, but I won't leave you in the suspense. We had a blast!

Details coming!

Happiness is a Warm Towel--and a Curry Comb

Bath time is not Maggie's favorite thing. I try to wait until the weather is kind of warm, but a warm day does not mean warm water!

This week, the weather broke and it was time. Maggie watched as I collected things. When I changed my shoes and put on my jacket, she started to get excited."Walk??" her eyes and ears asked. "Sorry, girl. Not yet." I answered.

We headed downstairs and I opened the garage door. She ran out and waited hopefully. Then I found her 'bath' leash and shampoo and threw them in the grass. I noticed a curry comb hiding under some stuff. It was left over from Janice's equestrian days. We had used it on Maggie sometimes but I had forgotten it.

The 'comb' is actually a hard rubber disk with a hand-hold on one side and rubber 'fingers' on the other. Ours is like the pink one in the top right corner of this picture. When used on a horse it picks up the dirt embedded under the coat. It feels like a massage for a horse...or a dog! I picked it up and laid it next to the shampoo.

When I started to pull out the hose Maggie stood in the corner of the yard and watched. I called her over. She stood in the corner of the yard...and watched. I gave her my cheerful "Come on!", excited voice. She stood in the corner of the yard...and watched.

Now I don't really know what it is about a bath for a Lab. It could hardly be the cold water. I've known Labs to jump in a stream in the middle of winter, even if they might break through a thin layer of ice! Perhaps they see it as some sort of humiliation--tied to a leash and hosed down. Whatever it is, I AM the boss. Time to exert some authority!

"Maggie, Heal!" The tail drooped. The head went down. But slowly she walked over. She finds it harder to ignore some commands than others. "Heal" almost always works.

I attached one end of the leash to her collar, and stepped on the other end. I turned on the water, and lightly sprayed her coat and added the shampoo. She leaned away from me. I picked up the curry comb and began to rub her back with it. Suddenly Maggie changed direction. She leaned into me. Her tail went up in a slow wag. She stretched out her neck. I couldn't see her face, but I'm pretty sure she was smiling. This was way better than my fingers. It made the shame of a public bath well worth it.

After her bath she raced around the yard and rolled in the grass. Then I held up the towel. Joyfully she galloped over to me and threw herself broadside against my legs and into the towel. (She has always loved the towel rubdown!) I rubbed her down, turned it over to the dry side and she turned around so I could rub her other side.


Every time I've watched a baby get his first bath he cried miserably. As soon as it was over and he was wrapped in a warm towel the sigh was audible. He hadn't learned to smile yet, but if he had, it would have spread across his face.

Yep...nothing like a massage and a warm towel to take away your troubles!