Six Happy Weeks With Our Puppies

Six Happy Weeks With Our Puppies

3.26.2022

Sharing is caring. 🥰  I'm just trying to soak in all of this chaotic cuteness for the limited time we have them.  We're all in love with these fluffy babies.

The fur balls have been moved outside to the back porch indefinitely.  They are just too active to possibly stay inside!  Bron set up a temporary fence for the puppies so that they can have free reign of some of the yard.  We moved the old couch onto the grass too; the puppies love to hide out and sleep underneath it.  The weather has been mild.  They have endless access to water, food, toys, and each other.  It's basically a little puppy paradise!  Conrad and Ezra spend every spare moment out there they can.  Seeing the puppies is the first thing Ezra wants to do when he wakes in the morning and after a nap.

I just updated their "mug shots" to post on KSL for sale.  Look how much they've grown in just two weeks!  I'm hoping that since we're getting closer their eight week mark, we'll have more interest.  Who wouldn't want a super cute puppy -- possibly with BLUE EYES -- for a steal of a price in this economy?  In fact, Clover was the first to be spoken for.  A sweet family in the Salt Lake area put a deposit down on her.  She's the puppy I would keep if we chose to keep one!  Good choice.  I am simultaneously thrilled and relieved that she is going to a family who will undoubtedly love and spoil her.        

In other news, I just bought Levi two new pairs of jeans... in March.  Not my favorite thing to do when we're so close to spring, but it had to be done!  A boy can't be wearing holes in his crotch to school.  Also, Conrad had pink eye last week and Ezra had an ear infection.  Thanks to a little medicine everyone is feeling better now, so we're all much happier.

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St. George for Spring Break Part II

St. George for Spring Break Part II

The sun came out to play after our rainy exploration of the ghost town.  So we went out to play too!  We rounded out our second evening at the pickleball courts.  I'd never played before.  But we had a lot of fun!  I can totally see us playing all summer long together.

On the morning of our third day, we headed out to the Warner Valley Dinosaur Track site to see some real life dinosaur prints.  It really does blow my mind that these are REAL tracks.  It was a windy day, but we were protected from the gusts down below where we were, so we took our time hiking around and killing some time in the sunshine.  Afterwards, we explored the 19th century Fort Pearce.     

Ezra was so thrilled with himself for making it to the top (with help, of course)!

That afternoon, we struck out at three different restaurants for lunch; they were all closed!  It was the strangest thing.  Then we went swimming at the Washington City Community Center pool.  Conrad's favorite part was the slide that went outside the walls!  It felt extra fast this trip too.  It took Ezra a solid 90 minutes to warm up to the waterpark, but once he did, he was a belly flopping laughing fish!

When we were all dried off, the kids climbed the rock wall and played some air hockey.  Suddenly, Levi's face went white and he said he didn't feel good.  Then he threw up in the gutter right outside the front door of the community center.  If I had to choose one kid to get sick on a vacation, it would definitely be Levi.  He's a tough kid who doesn't want any attention and will push on regardless of how he's feeling!  Levi threw up once more out of the truck window.  But he was game for some sodas and a trip to Pioneer Park.  So that's what we did.  Pioneer Park is one of my favorite places to hike around!  There are so many nooks and crannies hidden amid the red rock.

    

That night, I didn't feel good either!  I went to bed early and tried my hardest not to throw up.  Lol.  It was a legit bug that stayed with me for a few days.  So Tuesday morning, Bron and I decided to call it a trip and head home a day early.

But first, Bron took Jed and Levi on one final bike ride down Deadringer, Goosebumps, and Kryptonic.  It was a super windy ride!

Then it was off to the park to make one final dream come true for three boys: renting an electric scooter!  Jed, Levi, and Conrad took turns riding laps around the park while I tried to feel better by soaking up the sunshine.

Finally, we ended the trip on a high note with Nielsen's Frozen Custard.  Delicious!

Until next time, St. George!  You're always good to us.      

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St. George for Spring Break Part I

St. George for Spring Break Part I

3.25.2022

When Bron and I arrived home from our trip to Mexico, it become obvious that Jed and Levi were a bit jealous and ready for their own fun and adventure.  So we booked a last minute place to stay in St. George, Utah for a long weekend getaway full of hiking, biking, and swimming.  Honestly, we could have stayed home and done many of the same things and had just as good a time.  Perhaps we will do that some day, but this year, it meant a lot to the big boys to do a little traveling.

Are you ready to read all about our family's vacation ups and downs?  Read on because the hills were high and the valleys low.  Balance, I guess.  I prefer to remember the highlights through pictures though.

We packed up the truck to begin our spring break adventure late Friday afternoon and arrived in Nephi, Utah a little after midnight.  The six of us squeezed into one budget hotel room for the night.  Jed, Levi, and Conrad slept in one queen sized bed while Bron and I attempted to sleep with Ezra in the other.  I didn't bring the pack 'n play because I did not think there would be enough room in the camper trailer we rented.  That was a mistake.  Ezra had napped a few hours in the truck and would not go to sleep!  Sitting up between us, he would gently touch my back and my face.  Then he'd touch Bron.  And then back to me again.  We hardly slept that night.  But I was awoken by five firm long kisses to my lips from Ezra, so that was nice!

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Our Idaho Shag Puppies | One Month Photos

Our Idaho Shag Puppies | One Month Photos

3.14.2022

The puppies are four weeks old.  Their eyes are open!  They're nibbling on puppy food.  They're walking, stumbling, sniffing, exploring, whining, napping, and playing.  They are the cutest fluffiest bunch -- and though they pee everywhere -- have won my heart.  

Four weeks old also means it's time to start thinking about procuring forever homes for these sweet balls of fur.  I really hope we can find good families for these dogs.  Each would make a fantastic indoor companion or hardworking cattle dog.  Their DNA test came back.  They are, of course, 50% Australian Shepherd.  But they are also 26% Border Collie, 18% Australian Cattle dog, and 6% Super Mutt.  In other words, these puppies are a classic and super cute Idaho Shag.  Who wouldn't want them?! 

Right now the puppies have free reign of the back porch and part of the lawn, but spend most of their time in their whelping box where there's a heating pad and a rotating set of dry fresh towels.  Misty still nurses them.  When I peer through my window, I notice the puppies seem to operate in waves all day long.  Some hours they're all curled up together in the whelping box, fast asleep.  Other hours, they're all over the place eating, exploring, walking through the dog dishes, falling off the porch steps, and wrestling one another.

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Five Days in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Five Days in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

3.09.2022

It snowed today.  It was so slick going down our hill that I CREAMED the stop sign with my car.  Yikes!  Fortunately, we are all just fine and no real damage was done.  The county was able to stand the sign right back up.  Thank goodness.

So on that frigid note, that's rewind time to last week when Bron and I visited Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for his annual Progressive Dairy Solutions business retreat.  It was such a warm sunny dream! We stayed at one of the fanciest resorts I've ever laid eyes on, The Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal.  It was like one of my boys drew it up: situated right on the ocean, every room had its own heated private pool.  On two mornings, I was up before the sun to watch it rise over the ocean.  We spent hours out on that balcony, eating fresh guacamole and chips, watching for whales (they were as numerous as deer are here at home!), and just soaking in the tub.  It was wonderful.   

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What Conrad Said

What Conrad Said

3.01.2022

Conrad is a very articulate kid who never quits talking!  It's as amusing and entertaining as it is frustrating being interrupted every few minutes.  His immature high pitched voice is quite literally a stream of five year old consciousness.  I never have to wonder what's going on in Conrad's head!  I wish I was in a better habit of writing down what he says.  So here is what Conrad said this month:

:: "Alexa is connected to the internet.  But Mom, did you know that people are not connected to the internet?  People are connected to Heavenly Father!"  Melt my heart, Buddy.

:: "Do you know why potatoes make such good da-tectives?  Because they always keep their eyes peeled!"  "Why do ice cream cones carry umbrellas?  Because there's always a chance of sprinkles!"

:: To ANYONE who would listen: "I won the no cavity club at the dentist office!  Do you know how you don't get cavities?  You brush your teeth.  And floss.  And you don't eat too much sugar.  So I won the no cavity club!  And you know what?  They gave me ten dollars to Target.  That means I can choose something that is ten dollars -- or less -- at Target!"  He bought an electric top that was basically a flightless drone.

:: While climbing into bed, Bron noticed a light on in the house.  I went to investigate and found Conrad watching TV at 11:15 PM, two and a half hours after he went to bed!  The kid thought it was morning.  Lol.

:: "When I'm a dad, I'm going to have three rules.  One, no kids on the roof.  Two, no kids driving a car.  But then this is the good one.  I'm going to have stairs in front of my front door.  Then I'm going to open the door and get a sled and call my family.  Then the kids will take turns going 'wheee!' 'whooosh!' down the stairs and out the door!"  I think I know Conrad's favorite part of Home Alone now.  

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