After our fabulous bike ride on Sunday, September 13th, we relaxed on the front porch, napped, took Chloe for a walk, and ate dinner outside. That evening we watched a DVD about
calming signals in dogs (related to Chloe's therapy dog class). It was fascinating! We learned about calming signals such as licking, turning the head away, yawning, "doing something else," and other things that dogs do to either calm themselves or another dog. We also discovered that you can try these same techniques to try to get your dog to relax (for instance, yawning repeatedly). The expert on this is a Norwegian woman named
Turid Rugaas. For anyone who owns a dog, I highly recommend doing some reading/research on this. You'll be amazed at how much better you understand your dog!
Tomkin and I also watched the movie "
2 Days in Paris," which was written and directed by Julie Delpy (who also stars in it). Very funny! We both liked it a lot. We also did a crossword puzzle together. Such a nice Sabbathy thing to do!
Monday morning we took Chloe to the vet. She had been licking her, um, "backside" a lot lately, and we thought we should get it checked out. Turned out she needed to have her anal glands expressed. The vet brought in a second person to help keep Chloe standing (she kept wanting to sit or lie down). Expressing the glands was NOT a pleasant job, but as soon as it was done Chloe started wagging her tail. She seemed to feel immediate relief! And she's been fine ever since. Phew! We then headed down to the liquor store and picked up the ingredients for grasshoppers. (Chloe got to carry them home.)
Then Tomkin headed to the office, and I went grocery shopping at Target and did some grant research. I've been looking at the poverty level in American school districts--there's one in Arizona at 85%! Wow. Tomkin met with a couple that night, and I had a premarital counseling session. One of the things I love about being self-employed is that our time is flexible--in fact, we often end up working in the evenings. I think if it were up to me, we would sleep in every morning, run errands and walk the dog in the afternoon, then work at night. Chloe, of course, prefers to sleep at all times of the day.
Tuesday morning Tomkin biked into work, and I went with him down Summit Ave. then turned around and headed home. What a wonderful way to start the day! Chloe hung out with me on the front porch while I did some grant research. That afternoon Liz, the woman who's going to house/dog-sit for us while we're in Hawaii, came over so we could show her where things are at and give her some info about Chloe. She's really nice (a friend of Helena's and fellow yoga instructor), and we feel confident that we'll be leaving Chloe in good hands. Tomkin and I walked over to the nearby polling place to vote in the primaries.
Then we took Chloe for a walk. That evening I had a nice chat with my friend Carrie before taking Chloe to her therapy dog class. This week we ran through the entire evaluation process to see what we still need to work on. Chloe did pretty well overall, but I could tell she was getting a little overwhelmed when she couldn't even get the "sit" command right. Really, though, I am very proud of her! She's doing a great job.
On Wednesday I had a premarital counseling session during the day, so Tomkin took Chloe along to have lunch with his folks and then brought her to the office with him. At first the office cat, Muscles, was none too pleased to have a dog around, but eventually they both hung out on Tomkin's couch.
We took Chloe for a walk and let her run in a nearby park. That night Tomkin went to see "
Inglourious Basterds," and I talked to my mom and did some blogging.
Thursday morning I biked halfway to work with Tomkin (we're both so happy to be bicycling again!), and then I did some grant research and started getting ready for Third Thursday. Tomkin had a wedding rehearsal that afternoon. Then we finished getting the house in order and preparing the food and drinks.
This month's featured cocktail was the grasshopper. To match the drink, all the food was green, too, and we even listened to the music of
Green Day.
And of course Chloe wore a minty green bandanna.
I honestly wasn't sure if anyone was going to show up--all the RSVPs we'd gotten were from people who were busy or going out-of-town. But we ended up having ten guests, and we all had a really nice time.
Tracy came by with a sugar-free chocolate cake he had baked and topped with raspberries from his garden.
We spent a long time catching up on news and gossip about the neighborhood. Fletch told some great stories, and he and Jim talked movie festivals.
We all just had fun hanging out, eating and drinking, and chatting about whatever.
Tomkin kicked everyone out right at 10:00 because he had a 9:00 rehearsal the next morning. Otherwise I'm sure we would have kept right on talking!
While Tomkin was off performing a wedding rehearsal and then working at the office Friday morning, I slept in until 10:00. I'd only had a couple grasshoppers, but I hadn't slept well the previous couple nights, so it was nice to catch up on a little snoozing. I did some work and blogging, and then we both took Chloe for a long walk down Grand and Summit. We are really getting some beautiful weather now--it sure doesn't feel like the middle of September! We came home and took a nap, and then Tomkin left to perform a wedding. I did some blogging, and then we all hung out on the front porch and relaxed. It's really nice to have a low-key weekend with almost no plans. I realized I don't have another one of these until after we get back from Hawaii in November!
Today (Saturday, September 19th) Tomkin had a noon wedding. I did some blogging, and then I drove out to Hopkins to "shadow" some therapy dog teams at the public library. They volunteer with the
READ (Reading Assistance Education Dogs) program--I probably won't end up doing that, but I thought it would be get to check it out, observe, and ask some questions.
I spent about an hour watching two of the teams and chatting with the handlers. They had some good advice and suggestions. I was really impressed with their dogs! Both were incredibly mellow and well-behaved. I'm not sure Chloe would sit still that long....
I got home about 3:00, and then Tomkin, Chloe, and I drove down to River Road and walked along the Mississippi. It's so beautiful!
We veered off into a residential neighborhood and marveled at the gorgeous (and huge!) houses. There were squirrels all over the place, so we let Chloe chase a few. She was so happy!
We came home and hung out on the front porch--I've been blogging (I'm finally caught up!!!), and Tomkin has been reading. I'm looking forward to a computer-free Sabbath day tomorrow. And coming up in the next few weeks: a visit from my friend Carrie Mc., a couples counseling conference, my 40th birthday, and our trip to Hawaii! So many fun things to look forward to. Thanks, as always, for reading my blog!
Tomkin and I also watched the movie "2 Days in Paris," which was written and directed by Julie Delpy (who also stars in it). Very funny! We both liked it a lot. We also did a crossword puzzle together. Such a nice Sabbathy thing to do!
Monday morning we took Chloe to the vet. She had been licking her, um, "backside" a lot lately, and we thought we should get it checked out. Turned out she needed to have her anal glands expressed. The vet brought in a second person to help keep Chloe standing (she kept wanting to sit or lie down). Expressing the glands was NOT a pleasant job, but as soon as it was done Chloe started wagging her tail. She seemed to feel immediate relief! And she's been fine ever since. Phew! We then headed down to the liquor store and picked up the ingredients for grasshoppers. (Chloe got to carry them home.) 
Then Tomkin headed to the office, and I went grocery shopping at Target and did some grant research. I've been looking at the poverty level in American school districts--there's one in Arizona at 85%! Wow. Tomkin met with a couple that night, and I had a premarital counseling session. One of the things I love about being self-employed is that our time is flexible--in fact, we often end up working in the evenings. I think if it were up to me, we would sleep in every morning, run errands and walk the dog in the afternoon, then work at night. Chloe, of course, prefers to sleep at all times of the day.
Tuesday morning Tomkin biked into work, and I went with him down Summit Ave. then turned around and headed home. What a wonderful way to start the day! Chloe hung out with me on the front porch while I did some grant research. That afternoon Liz, the woman who's going to house/dog-sit for us while we're in Hawaii, came over so we could show her where things are at and give her some info about Chloe. She's really nice (a friend of Helena's and fellow yoga instructor), and we feel confident that we'll be leaving Chloe in good hands. Tomkin and I walked over to the nearby polling place to vote in the primaries. 
Then we took Chloe for a walk. That evening I had a nice chat with my friend Carrie before taking Chloe to her therapy dog class. This week we ran through the entire evaluation process to see what we still need to work on. Chloe did pretty well overall, but I could tell she was getting a little overwhelmed when she couldn't even get the "sit" command right. Really, though, I am very proud of her! She's doing a great job.
On Wednesday I had a premarital counseling session during the day, so Tomkin took Chloe along to have lunch with his folks and then brought her to the office with him. At first the office cat, Muscles, was none too pleased to have a dog around, but eventually they both hung out on Tomkin's couch. 
We took Chloe for a walk and let her run in a nearby park. That night Tomkin went to see "Inglourious Basterds," and I talked to my mom and did some blogging.
Thursday morning I biked halfway to work with Tomkin (we're both so happy to be bicycling again!), and then I did some grant research and started getting ready for Third Thursday. Tomkin had a wedding rehearsal that afternoon. Then we finished getting the house in order and preparing the food and drinks. 
This month's featured cocktail was the grasshopper. To match the drink, all the food was green, too, and we even listened to the music of Green Day. 
And of course Chloe wore a minty green bandanna. 
I honestly wasn't sure if anyone was going to show up--all the RSVPs we'd gotten were from people who were busy or going out-of-town. But we ended up having ten guests, and we all had a really nice time. 
Tracy came by with a sugar-free chocolate cake he had baked and topped with raspberries from his garden. 
We spent a long time catching up on news and gossip about the neighborhood. Fletch told some great stories, and he and Jim talked movie festivals. 
We all just had fun hanging out, eating and drinking, and chatting about whatever. 
Tomkin kicked everyone out right at 10:00 because he had a 9:00 rehearsal the next morning. Otherwise I'm sure we would have kept right on talking!
While Tomkin was off performing a wedding rehearsal and then working at the office Friday morning, I slept in until 10:00. I'd only had a couple grasshoppers, but I hadn't slept well the previous couple nights, so it was nice to catch up on a little snoozing. I did some work and blogging, and then we both took Chloe for a long walk down Grand and Summit. We are really getting some beautiful weather now--it sure doesn't feel like the middle of September! We came home and took a nap, and then Tomkin left to perform a wedding. I did some blogging, and then we all hung out on the front porch and relaxed. It's really nice to have a low-key weekend with almost no plans. I realized I don't have another one of these until after we get back from Hawaii in November!
Today (Saturday, September 19th) Tomkin had a noon wedding. I did some blogging, and then I drove out to Hopkins to "shadow" some therapy dog teams at the public library. They volunteer with the READ (Reading Assistance Education Dogs) program--I probably won't end up doing that, but I thought it would be get to check it out, observe, and ask some questions. 
I spent about an hour watching two of the teams and chatting with the handlers. They had some good advice and suggestions. I was really impressed with their dogs! Both were incredibly mellow and well-behaved. I'm not sure Chloe would sit still that long.... 
I got home about 3:00, and then Tomkin, Chloe, and I drove down to River Road and walked along the Mississippi. It's so beautiful! 
We veered off into a residential neighborhood and marveled at the gorgeous (and huge!) houses. There were squirrels all over the place, so we let Chloe chase a few. She was so happy! 
We came home and hung out on the front porch--I've been blogging (I'm finally caught up!!!), and Tomkin has been reading. I'm looking forward to a computer-free Sabbath day tomorrow. And coming up in the next few weeks: a visit from my friend Carrie Mc., a couples counseling conference, my 40th birthday, and our trip to Hawaii! So many fun things to look forward to. Thanks, as always, for reading my blog!
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