Tomorrow I'm heading up to Grand Forks for a few days--my mom and my aunt Candy are arriving there today. I know I'll have a lot to blog about after the weekend, so I thought I'd catch up before I go.
Last Saturday, August 8th, Tomkin and I braved the hot, muggy weather and finally made it to the farmers market (we've been meaning to go all summer!), where we got some wheat bread with walnuts, kohlrabi, big juicy tomatoes (one of which I dropped--splat!), chunks of pork, and a gorgeous bouquet of flowers.
Back at home we took a nap, and then Tomkin headed out to officiate two weddings. I stayed home and worked on the grant. Later, we both took Chloe for a walk--it was lightly raining out, but it actually felt kind of nice.
At the Caribou Coffee on Grand, we ran into Chris and Hannah, out for a walk. Hannah (
Heidi's 16-year-old daughter) just left yesterday to spend a year in Japan on a Rotary program. We made our way home, and Tomkin read while I worked on the grant. (There is definitely a learning curve, and I still feel like I'm on the incline!)
I was really grateful for our Sabbath day on Sunday. We started by taking Chloe for a nice long walk down Snelling and Grand. We stopped in a vintage clothing shop, and Tomkin found a cool shirt and hat. Then Tomkin took Chloe to the hardware store while I did some shopping in
Avalon. By this point we were pretty hungry, so we ordered a couple slices of pizza at the
Italian Pie Shoppe and ate outside.
Once we got home, Tomkin worked in the yard, and I read my
People magazine on the front porch. (That has become one of my favorite Sabbath traditions!) Then Tomkin read while I wrapped presents to take along to Grand Forks. Tomorrow (Friday) night, my mom and I are hosting a combo birthday celebration for
my aunt Candy (who turns 60 on the 19th!), my friend Brenda, and her mom, Barb. We exercised to part of the movie "
Fame" (Tomkin had never seen it!) and watched the rest of it upstairs on the couch. We decided we're going to see
the new version on opening night in September. Even if it's not very good, it'll still be fun to see it and how they've updated it for 2009.
Monday morning we were back to the grind. Tomkin had a dentist appointment and then worked at the office. I made my weekly shopping trek to Target. We both took Chloe for a walk, and we tried using her new "cool bandanna," but it didn't really seem to cool her off much.
That night I finished wrapping presents while Tomkin read. Then I tried to work on the grant, but it was making me so miserable that Tomkin suggested we watch a movie instead. (Hooray for Netflix and the instant queue!) We ended up watching the documentary "
Helvetica" about the font called
Helvetica. It was fascinating, thought-provoking, and really well done.
Tuesday I actually did work on the grant, and I also did some shopping at Trader Joe's. Tomkin met with a couple and then worked at a restaurant. (Love the freedom of laptops!) We both took Chloe for a walk, and I kept her Gentle Leader headcollar on the whole time. (She wasn't thrilled about it, but she eventually got used to it.) That night Tomkin met with a couple, and I had my first
therapy dog training session with Chloe at the
Golden Valley Humane Society.
I was so proud of her! She really did a great job. First of all, she was fearless going into the building and the training room. There were six or seven other dogs there, and she seemed very comfortable with everyone, both human and canine. We and one other team (handler and dog) were new to the class. We started out by just walking around the room and getting Chloe used to the wheelchair, crutches, and walker. We practiced the down-stay, meeting new people, moving out of tight spaces, "watch me," and "leave it," which was no problem for her until we got to the Kong. (
It might have peanut butter in it!) They tried to stress out the dogs with a bouncing ball, a stroller, and a funny waddling duck toy, and we talked about calming signals dogs use (such as licking their lips, yawning, or looking away). Chloe was good and mellow the whole time, and she got lots of praise and treats, so I think it was a positive experience for her. We've got reading and homework assignments for next week--I'm already looking forward to the next class! If all goes well, we should complete the training in October, and she'll get evaluated and be ready to start volunteering by November.
Wednesday morning we brought my car in because the "Service Engine Soon" light has been on for the last week or so. Turns out the oxygen sensor needed to be replaced--for a total cost of about $400. Ouch. Tomkin had lunch with his folks and then worked at the office. I worked on grant stuff at home. We took Chloe for a walk and picked up the car.
Tomkin got the results of his MRI--turns out that nothing is torn; his elbow is just inflamed. Basically, he should have started treating it right after his bike accident but since he didn't the injury was exacerbated. He's going in for a cortisone shot soon, and we're really hoping that will do the trick. Tomkin brought Chloe along to his weekly poker game, and I led a premarital counseling session, talked to my mom, and did more grant work. I am definitely feeling a little overwhelmed right now with all that needs to get done in the next couple weeks. I have a lot of fun things to look forward to (this trip to Grand Forks, Jenny & Allison coming to town, dog training, hosting some parties), but having the grant work on top of everything else is really stressing me out. Some of it's starting to come together now, but I'm just getting started on the Project Narrative, which is the real meat of the proposal. I know it'll all get done, and it helps to have such a wonderful and supportive husband, but I'll be really glad when the grant is finished....
This morning (Thursday) Tomkin and I exercised while watching the documentary "
Wordplay," about the
New York Times crossword puzzle and related tournament. It's a really fun movie. Tomkin headed to the office, and I ran some errands and started preparing for my weekend trip. We took Chloe for a short walk, and then Tomkin worked while I packed. I was supposed to have a grant meeting tonight, but it got canceled. Just as well--I had plenty of other things to keep me busy. We were able to get together with JimDog, which was fun.
He came by the house, and then we all walked over to Pizza Luce. He took the bar exam a couple weeks ago, so we haven't gotten to see him much lately. It was good to catch up. And now I need to finish getting ready so I can hit the road to Grand Forks in the morning! Have a great weekend everyone!
Last Saturday, August 8th, Tomkin and I braved the hot, muggy weather and finally made it to the farmers market (we've been meaning to go all summer!), where we got some wheat bread with walnuts, kohlrabi, big juicy tomatoes (one of which I dropped--splat!), chunks of pork, and a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. 
Back at home we took a nap, and then Tomkin headed out to officiate two weddings. I stayed home and worked on the grant. Later, we both took Chloe for a walk--it was lightly raining out, but it actually felt kind of nice. 
At the Caribou Coffee on Grand, we ran into Chris and Hannah, out for a walk. Hannah (Heidi's 16-year-old daughter) just left yesterday to spend a year in Japan on a Rotary program. We made our way home, and Tomkin read while I worked on the grant. (There is definitely a learning curve, and I still feel like I'm on the incline!)
I was really grateful for our Sabbath day on Sunday. We started by taking Chloe for a nice long walk down Snelling and Grand. We stopped in a vintage clothing shop, and Tomkin found a cool shirt and hat. Then Tomkin took Chloe to the hardware store while I did some shopping in Avalon. By this point we were pretty hungry, so we ordered a couple slices of pizza at the Italian Pie Shoppe and ate outside. 
Once we got home, Tomkin worked in the yard, and I read my People magazine on the front porch. (That has become one of my favorite Sabbath traditions!) Then Tomkin read while I wrapped presents to take along to Grand Forks. Tomorrow (Friday) night, my mom and I are hosting a combo birthday celebration for my aunt Candy (who turns 60 on the 19th!), my friend Brenda, and her mom, Barb. We exercised to part of the movie "Fame" (Tomkin had never seen it!) and watched the rest of it upstairs on the couch. We decided we're going to see the new version on opening night in September. Even if it's not very good, it'll still be fun to see it and how they've updated it for 2009.
Monday morning we were back to the grind. Tomkin had a dentist appointment and then worked at the office. I made my weekly shopping trek to Target. We both took Chloe for a walk, and we tried using her new "cool bandanna," but it didn't really seem to cool her off much. 
That night I finished wrapping presents while Tomkin read. Then I tried to work on the grant, but it was making me so miserable that Tomkin suggested we watch a movie instead. (Hooray for Netflix and the instant queue!) We ended up watching the documentary "Helvetica" about the font called Helvetica. It was fascinating, thought-provoking, and really well done.
Tuesday I actually did work on the grant, and I also did some shopping at Trader Joe's. Tomkin met with a couple and then worked at a restaurant. (Love the freedom of laptops!) We both took Chloe for a walk, and I kept her Gentle Leader headcollar on the whole time. (She wasn't thrilled about it, but she eventually got used to it.) That night Tomkin met with a couple, and I had my first therapy dog training session with Chloe at the Golden Valley Humane Society. 
I was so proud of her! She really did a great job. First of all, she was fearless going into the building and the training room. There were six or seven other dogs there, and she seemed very comfortable with everyone, both human and canine. We and one other team (handler and dog) were new to the class. We started out by just walking around the room and getting Chloe used to the wheelchair, crutches, and walker. We practiced the down-stay, meeting new people, moving out of tight spaces, "watch me," and "leave it," which was no problem for her until we got to the Kong. (It might have peanut butter in it!) They tried to stress out the dogs with a bouncing ball, a stroller, and a funny waddling duck toy, and we talked about calming signals dogs use (such as licking their lips, yawning, or looking away). Chloe was good and mellow the whole time, and she got lots of praise and treats, so I think it was a positive experience for her. We've got reading and homework assignments for next week--I'm already looking forward to the next class! If all goes well, we should complete the training in October, and she'll get evaluated and be ready to start volunteering by November.
Wednesday morning we brought my car in because the "Service Engine Soon" light has been on for the last week or so. Turns out the oxygen sensor needed to be replaced--for a total cost of about $400. Ouch. Tomkin had lunch with his folks and then worked at the office. I worked on grant stuff at home. We took Chloe for a walk and picked up the car. 
Tomkin got the results of his MRI--turns out that nothing is torn; his elbow is just inflamed. Basically, he should have started treating it right after his bike accident but since he didn't the injury was exacerbated. He's going in for a cortisone shot soon, and we're really hoping that will do the trick. Tomkin brought Chloe along to his weekly poker game, and I led a premarital counseling session, talked to my mom, and did more grant work. I am definitely feeling a little overwhelmed right now with all that needs to get done in the next couple weeks. I have a lot of fun things to look forward to (this trip to Grand Forks, Jenny & Allison coming to town, dog training, hosting some parties), but having the grant work on top of everything else is really stressing me out. Some of it's starting to come together now, but I'm just getting started on the Project Narrative, which is the real meat of the proposal. I know it'll all get done, and it helps to have such a wonderful and supportive husband, but I'll be really glad when the grant is finished....
This morning (Thursday) Tomkin and I exercised while watching the documentary "Wordplay," about the New York Times crossword puzzle and related tournament. It's a really fun movie. Tomkin headed to the office, and I ran some errands and started preparing for my weekend trip. We took Chloe for a short walk, and then Tomkin worked while I packed. I was supposed to have a grant meeting tonight, but it got canceled. Just as well--I had plenty of other things to keep me busy. We were able to get together with JimDog, which was fun. 
He came by the house, and then we all walked over to Pizza Luce. He took the bar exam a couple weeks ago, so we haven't gotten to see him much lately. It was good to catch up. And now I need to finish getting ready so I can hit the road to Grand Forks in the morning! Have a great weekend everyone!
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