Toyota Highlander

The girls knew that I'd been approved by two banks for a car loan, but I kept stressing that I didn't know when I would buy.  I knew I wanted an SUV that was bigger than my Camry but smaller than my Dakota.  I went Saturday morning to test drive a few to figure out the size of SUV that I wanted.  I ended up coming home with this 2008 Toyota Highlander with 93,000 miles.  It is so clean inside and runs so smoothly!  I love the extra space.  The girls will be surprised when they come home on Sunday!

The girls are thrilled with the new car especially with the 3rd row seats.  They'd like to sit in the way back all the time, but I want it for groceries.  I did leave the middle bench piece out so they have more cup holders.

Pheobe's Toys

Pheobe loves belly rubs and squeaky toys and antlers to chew on.  She does doze but not as much as some puppies do!  She's very active and full of energy.  I'm still working on her being gentle and chewing on toys rather than people or clothing.  I keep buying more toys.  We're at about 25 and she seems to have enough selection to keep her interest depending on if she wants to pounce, squeak, chew, etc.

Summer Reading Program

Mena was done with her 10 hours of reading and Maggie had one hour left.  I made her do the reading on Saturday morning.  She complained but got it done.  We went to the library and turned in their reading logs.  Part of the prize included a coupon to Yogurtini.  While eating, I asked, "Was it worth reading to get Yogurtini?"  Maggie declared, "Yes!!"  Mena enjoyed hers too.

Summer Daze

"Gnomes, Trolls, and Fairies" was the camp that Maggie went to at St. Paul.  This was the end result of all their crafts.  She insisted on leaving it outside because "that's where fairies live."  I told her that fairies were pretend.  Gnomes?  Yep, gnomes are pretend.  Trolls?  Yes, trolls are pretend.  Then how can the Tooth Fairy be real?  Umm, I'm the tooth fairy.  What?  Ya, your dad and I are the tooth fairies and we leave you the dollar.  Really?  Yes.  Oh.  Can you just give me my dollar now for my next tooth?  No, you have to actually lose it and leave it for me.  Oh fine!

Mena's camp was "Terrific Trailers" and they got to make a trailer for a movie they made up.  Mena got to pretend to hit another kid with her cast.  She'd already gotten in trouble for hitting her sister with her cast so she was really nervous about this idea.  The high school girl leading her group coached her through the scene and after seeing it Mena was amazed at how it looked like she really did hit him!  She had fun and the trailers turned out great!

Training Pheobe

Pheobe is a very active puppy and it is hard to get pictures unless she's sleeping.  I took her to the vet when she was 11 weeks old and we started her shots.  The previous owner hadn't done anything for this litter of puppies.  She should have had her first shots at 8 weeks but the vet created a plan for getting her series of shots completed.  Pheobe also has fleas and worms in her fecal sample so she's got meds for both.  The good news is that she's a healthy dog and these are both treatable.  My impulsive decision should be ok!

She's learned sit, down, wait, and come.  I trained on come while we were in the basement.  I was in my craft room and the girls were playing doll house.  Pheobe played near me and then she'd wonder off to see the girls.  When I heard them telling her "no," then I'd call "Pheobe, come!" and she'd come as fast as she could for a treat.  She will wait in a sit for me to exit the door and say "ok."  I'm working on "nice kisses" and chewing on toys rather than people or clothing.  She's got enough energy to walk 25 minutes every morning with me, but I need to figure out how to make her understand she needs to stay beside me.  Overall, we're making good progress.  I've read a puppy book by Cesar Millan which helped.  I'm going to a puppy class beginning August 12th.

Hello Pheobe!

I had been pondering what we'd do if I couldn't get Pollie to obey me.  I knew I wanted another dog.  I was going to go through an organization that could tell me I was getting a dog that was well matched to me.  Two organizations refused me because my yard is not fenced and they think a 10 foot square kennel is too small for a dog outside.  Feeling emotional at giving up Pollie and being told I couldn't adopt, I turned to Craig's List.  I found this cutie and at 10 pm Saturday, I agreed to buy her the next day after church.  She is 10 weeks old and almost 11 pounds in these pictures.  Maggie was excited until Pheobe got her a couple times with her baby teeth.  Then Maggie left the room.

Goodbye Pollie

It was a difficult decision for me, but I had to return Pollie to the Beatrice Humane Society.  In the 5 months we had her, she was great with the girls and I, but she wasn't good with strangers.  She bit my friend Martin who ended up with 5 stitches and jumped/snapped at a boy at the park.  I hired a private dog trainer to come to my house.  I made progress with Pollie, but still struggled to control her.  While camping, Pollie barked and lunged at a boy that ran past me.  I gave a sharp correction and her face slapped my belly resulting in a tooth cutting me right at my waist band.  I then muzzle trained her so she couldn't hurt anyone in public.  Then Presley's dad came to pick up Presley and Pollie got his hand.  She didn't break skin this time, but I just couldn't trust her to be safe around people.  This is the girls telling her goodbye in Beatrice.

We went to Dairy Queen for lunch and ice cream before we drove back to Lincoln.

Mena's First Overnight

Presley spent the night with us.  She and Mena had a great evening and morning.  I found myself thinking about how much they've matured since the girls met in Kindergarten.  They built an elaborate fort together that Mena had to finish since Presley's dad picked her up before they were done.

Shakespeare on the Green

Beth and I took the girls to Shakespeare on the Green this year.  The weather wasn't too hot, especially compared to the last few days.  The girls are getting old enough to follow the plot line and enjoy the plays.  We saw "Much Ado About Nothing."

Pollie & Mouse

The week of July 4th, my friend Ashley went out of town and we dog-sat Mouse.  Polly and Mouse got along great.  The girls thought it was great having 2 dogs, but I said we were absolutely NOT going to have 2 dogs on a permanent basis!

On July 3rd, the girls, my mom, and I went to get pedicures together.  Mom and Dad stayed for supper with us.  After they left the girls and I played Life and shot off fireworks.  We made notes of what we did and didn't like which I saved in the calendar so we can remember next year.  It was super hot so we stayed inside most of the day and evening.