We have been able to sit on the bench in the evening with the dogs, and the weather was pleasant through Saturday.
We didn't leave them unattended in the yard, so when Sandy escaped (as he did several times) we were able to retrieve him. Here you can see his escape route. We anticipated that this place would be a problem, so we had blocked it off with wire fencing. We have a temporary solution, blocking it now with an old baby gate and a large work bucket, but we're working on a permanent solution.
It looks rather nice. The wood will eventually weather to a grayish color.
The Portland kids were coming on Thursday, so we spent a good deal of time during the early part of the week straightening up, cleaning and putting the sheets on the beds, and then making a large casserole for when they arrived. We had a luncheon to attend on Tuesday, and Wednesday we took Dusty to the vet for his annual physical.
One of the first things the boys did after they arrived was let me read them my new book (which they already have at home). It was fun to hear what their answers to the "Reader's Challenge" questions were.
Johan helped me practice the bells. He reads music and plays the French horn fairly well. I gave him one bell and I played the other one. We went through the piece I have to learn. Then we switched bells and went through again. We got a lot of them right. There was no bell practice this week, because so many people would be missing on Sunday.
On Friday we all went to Good DogTrail off-leash area and hiked a little over three miles with the three dogs (our two and our granddog Louis). Here you can see Sandy and Dusty, but that isn't Louis in the water. Maybe Louis is camera-shy. I didn't find any photos of him from this trip. I didn't realize that until after they had left on Sunday.
Sandy loves going into the water, and it was warm enough on Friday to be pleasant.
Sandy and dusty really loved chasing sticks. Louis not so much. He seemed more interested in the other dogs who came and went while we were enjoying the little beach on the river.
It was nice to have a place to sit down right there at the beach. It makes a good break at more or less the hike's halfway point.
We spread out a bit, and Sandy kept tabs on everyone, running back and forth along the trail, from the first person to the last. I thought about how I could make a jacket for Sandy that had a pocket in it where my phone could be fastened in securely. Then, when I started the Walk for a Dog app, the mileage would be Sandy's, not mine. It would be interesting to see what his mileage was. It had to have been easily three times mine or more.
We met a couple of ladies who were intrigued with our poodles. One of them said she was interested in getting a miniature poodle and asked for the name of the breeder we got them from. I was happy to tell them about Ash's Mystical Poodles. When we left them, the one woman was looking up Marie's website on her phone. I wonder if we will have another Mystical Poodle in Bend. We had one, but the family has now moved to Eugene.
We had a tuna hot dish Thursday night, Poblano Chili Soup on Friday night and a stir-fry with rice on Saturday night. I didn't have to do all of the cooking, which is always nice. I basically just made the casserole for the first night and then put salads together, while Peter and Alexa did the rest. Our visitors brought a lot of vegetables with them and left some behind.
We also have leftovers.
We played "Screw Your Neighbor," one of our favorite card games. Johan is old enough now, that he can make reasonable plays without help.
We had some Madroña wines with our dinners, and a couple of times we had some scotch, which the kids bought because of the name.
Elsie's Christmas doll has arrived at the Portland Stuarts' home. Her name is Emily. I had her shipped directly there, because the box takes up a lot of space in the car, and they had four people and a dog. Here's a photo.
She needs more clothes that just what she comes with, so I'm putting together a wardrobe. I cast on for a little cardigan.
Here's a photo of the things I've collected to send for the doll. To go with the cardigan, there's a purple T-shirt, sparkly silver tights and a piece of fabric to use for a pleated skirt. The red pinafore and blue blouse came with the Ayelet doll (my Olivia). I added some shoes and tights to go with it. The T-shirts will go with the stretch capris I plan to make out of the dark navy fabric with the dots on the far left, so just two things to sew. Every doll needs some pajamas or a nightgown. I have ordered pajamas with slippers. That should be here soon.
LAIKA's "Wildwood" is getting good reviews so far. The film comes out on the 23rd. It's rated PG-13, and reviewers are saying, as impressive as it is, especially considering that it's stop-motion, not computer animation, this is not a show for small children. For one thing, it's too long for young kids, but besides the scary topic of kidnapping and going into a creepy forest world, there's the depiction of war and death. Here's a trailer:
https://youtu.be/bJQGtSeLPII?si=kw7OCugPYeI2xMOG
For some cuteness, here's Daphne in a number from her show choir performance. It's both singing and dancing. She has regained her normal weight and has been able to add back physical activities like marching band and tap. Soon she should be able to go back to ballet.
On Saturday, we took the dogs to the playground near the senior center. They went two other times, but I didn't go along. I went to church on Sunday, and it's starting to get cold here.
The plan is to go camping at La Pine on Wednesday. Jim is planning to go on Tuesday. Our visit will overlap with his. We're taking the electric space heater, as we will have electricity. They turn off the water on Thursday, so we will have to fill up Wednesday and then use the dump station on the way out.
It will be time to winterize when we are home again.
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What's in The Doll's Storybook: We look back at the days when Billy and Emil first got their wigs in A Hair-raising Adventure, this week's story from The Doll's Storybook.
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