Dogs & Dads

On Friday the 19th, I worked at home, and Tomkin had an afternoon wedding. I'm making a bit of a shift in my career--for now, at least, I'm going to focus less on editing and shift my attention to premarital counseling and grant-writing. I'm working with a grant writer, and we've got the potential to be really busy over the next few months. It's a little scary, because usually with grants you don't get paid unless the grant is funded (and there's no guarantee...), but I think it'll be a great experience, and hopefully the payoff will be worth it. Tomkin and I took Chloe for a walk and came across a nearby garage sale. Since we had gotten the new leather furniture, it seemed to me like we could use some new dining room chairs as well. But I figured it was no rush--we really didn't need to spend the money. But we found a set at this rummage sale for $25! We made arrangements to pick everything up the following day. Tracy and Wilbur stopped by our house, which was quite a thrill for Chloe. She LOVES Wilbur--and Tracy, too. Later, Becca brought their lab, Dulsi, over so we could watch her for the weekend. I was a little nervous that maybe she and Chloe wouldn't get along, especially since they're both female. But they played well together. I think the fact that they're both old girls (Chloe is almost 9, and Dulsi is 11) worked in their favor. With younger dogs, I think Chloe sometimes gets nervous at their unpredictability. But she and Dulsi are both pretty mellow--though still up for having fun! We went to a nearby park so the dogs could romp around. Then I brought Chloe home, and Tomkin played fetch with Dulsi. Apparently tennis balls are her favorite thing in the world. For the rest of the evening, we all just hung out and relaxed at home. Those dogs were pooped!
On Saturday, Tomkin and I drove up to Guadalajara's in Monticello for an early Father's Day lunch with my dad, Sandy, and Phillip. (Alex was at the beach with his friends--who could blame him?) Dad liked his gifts, and we all had a lot of fun. When we got home, we picked up the dining room table and chairs that we had found the day before. I should have gotten a picture of that table in Tomkin's convertible.... Once we got everything home and set up, we realized that we liked the new chairs but preferred our old table. (The size is better, it's expandable, and it's a lot sturdier.)So we brought the new table and the old chairs outside and attached a "free" sign. (Do people in other places do this, too? I don't remember seeing it before I moved to Minnesota.) With half an hour, the whole set was gone. Tomkin left to officiate a wedding. I went to Borders and picked out some books on CD for my upcoming road trips (Iowa this weekend, Grand Forks in August), then went home and worked. When Tomkin got home, we walked both dogs, and then he read while I researched grants.We slept late on Sunday, and then Omar picked up Dulsi. We were sad to see her go! Thankfully, she'll be coming back this Saturday and spending the week with us. She is such a sweet and good dog! Tomkin and I walked Chloe down Grand to the Sixth Chamber used bookstore (got a couple more cheap audiobooks), the hardware store (where they always give Chloe dog treats), and the DQ (where we all got treats). Back at home, Tomkin worked on fixing up our new dining room chairs. They had some nicks and scrapes, and he got them looking absolutely beautiful. I read my People magazine (can't wait until this whole Jon & Kate thing is over), and then we both watched a couple episodes of "So You Think You Can Dance." I love our Sabbath days!
Monday the 22nd was the first day that Tomkin rode to the office on his new bike. I know that accident kind of threw him for a loop, so I was really proud of him for getting back on his wheels again. We have just about every safety feature on our bikes that you can get, and we're even more cautious riders now than we were before. But we want to focus on the fun and not the danger. I worked at home, then made my weekly trip to Target with a supplementary stop at Kowalski's. It was hot, hot, hot out, so we didn't go for a walk. And while the big event for Tomkin that day was riding his new bike, the big event for me was getting rid of our cable. I don't know that I've ever not had cable TV, even in my poorest days in Chicago. We had a good deal for a while, but since that ran out, we will save $100 a month by not having cable or a landline (which we didn't use anyway). I don't watch a LOT of cable, but it'll still be a bit of an adjustment for me. To ease my non-cable anxieties, Tomkin signed us up for Netflix. I think that will be great! We've already got about 80 movies and TV shows on our queue, and I'm amazed at some of the cool stuff they have. I won't miss cable at all! (I hope.) That evening, we all went over to Syd and Dave's house for dinner. Syd just got back from a three-week Asian Studies conference in Hawaii; Dave had joined her for one of the weeks. It was fun to hear about her trip, and she broke out her new ukulele to play for us. Impressive! Tomkin tried the ukulele, too.Dave grilled amazing steak kabobs and homemade bread, and we ate outside (despite the heat). Chloe and George enjoyed hanging out in the yard but didn't do too much playing (too hot). Tomkin has been talking about how he wants to get a Roomba--turns out Syd and Dave had one they didn't want anymore! So they gave it to us. Tomkin was so excited! We eventually headed back in to enjoy a couple of Dave's fabulous gin & tonics (he even makes his own tonic!) before we headed home.
Tuesday morning I "commuted" with Tomkin, biking down Summit Ave. We split off, and he headed to the office while I went back home. It was another hot and sunny day. I spent the day editing (wrapping up a project) and doing grant-related work. That evening I had a premarital counseling session; Tomkin and Chloe hung out in the nice, cool basement. (I am so, so thankful that we have central air!) Tomkin installed a new food and water dish for Chloe that keeps everything off the floor and helps to prevent bloat. She wasn't too sure about it at first, but once we put treats inside then it was no problem. We all went for a walk--it was nice to go in the evening when it was a little cooler. Then we all just relaxed at home.
Yesterday (Wednesday) we were going to run errands on our bikes, but we ended up driving since it was rainy. Tomkin had lunch with his folks and celebrated a belated Father's Day with his dad, then met with a couple. I stayed home to work and blog. We took Chloe for a walk and went to the DQ (a new favorite spot for us all!). Then Tomkin headed to a Fringe Festival event, where he got to see his college friends Dave Burrows and Robin Gillette. I met with a couple in the evening. Tomkin brought Chloe over to Tracy's house so she could play with Wilbur, and then they went to see "The Hangover." I had a premarital counseling session and then talked to my mom.

Today we'll be helping Helena move into her new house (very exciting!), and this weekend I'll be driving to Iowa to see my friend Lisa for the first time in almost two years--she moved to Hawaii right after I moved to Minnesota, but now she's back in Iowa (phew!). I'll also get to meet her baby daughter, Kaya, and her fiance, Richard! Then one more week of work before we take our "Staycation." I love summer!