Three T's Go To The P in Spite of the 3 H's

The summer weather in Cincinnati can be just obnoxious, as it is many places. While we're not suffering like those poor people in California, it has been cookin' hot here over the past few days. The weather forecasters (now there's an oxymoron) have begun using their three favorite words over and over again during the news: Hot, Hazy and Humid. They go on and on about heat emergencies, staying inside, and not mowing your grass until late in the day. Very predictable.

Well, the 3 T's have been begging to go to the Park for weeks, and I do mean weeks. We haven't had the time or energy to take them on a romp recently - Chris has been working long hours including Saturdays, so our free time is scarce. The weather hasn't been co-operative much either - too hot or rainy. Anyway, the 3 T's can sense when it's the weekend and they just know there's a chance we might take them to the P. Tandie in particular will follow us around with a hopeful look on her doggie face, raising one eyebrow then the other as she wags her tail really fast. I swear, she really is asking to go to the P in best way she knows how. Then the other two pick up on her vibes (seriously), they all start barking and racing around the house, from door to door hoping it's really true, that it's time to go to the P - absolute chaos. This was finally their lucky weekend - we had the time and the energy (and felt guilty enough) to go for a walk in the P. It was a steamy hot day so we waited until after dinner to go - I packed up the leashes, the water dish and water bottle, my camera and we were off.

Though it was a sunny day the park didn't seem too busy - the heat was keeping people inside, I guess - granted, it's no fun walking the trails or picnicking when it's so humid. The dogs didn't seem to mind the heat at all - they were just happy to be there, leaping out of the van and immediately sniffing, running, sniffing, running ... dog heaven. We walked down the road, up the hilly path into the woods, following our favorite trail. The woods were lush and green, the canopy so thick that the woods were dim with only momentary splashes of sunlight breaking through to the ground (off with the sunglasses). When we crossed over from the woods to the big field the sun was bright (sunglasses back on) and the grass was tall and dense where it wasn't mowed - a big change since we'd last walked there early in the summer. The berries were almost ripe (Chris was taste-testing as we walked), the summer flowers were in full bloom around every bend, and the direct sunlight was so hot after the comparative cool of the woods!

We managed one lap around the field (we usually go for 2 laps), stopping only when we got to the shady side by the RC area (a group of radio-control airplane enthusiasts have a complete set-up with a paved runway and a few work tables for their equipment). We decided we'd had enough and the dogs had too. Tandie noticed a big plastic jug filled with water under one of the tables and just stood there by it, looking at us, looking back at the jug, looking at us again ... we don't usually carry their water with us, but keep it in the van so they can have a long drink at the end of their walk in the P. We had to convince her to keep walking, come on, girl, you can have a drink when we get back to the car.... I thought we might have to carry her the last little bit. The 3 T's were all panting hard and moving slowly by the time we finished and they lapped up their water with gusto!

I vote we wait until the temperatures are back down in the 60's before we go to the P again! We were all a hot mess by the time we got home - the panting was loud and long as the dogs cooled down in front of the fan. Chris and I, on the other hand, stayed home just for a few minutes before heading down the road to St. Bart's Frestival - another way-too-hot activity for a day like yesterday. We should have stayed home with the dogs! There's something to be said for laying on a cool floor in front of a fan ...

Twenty

This past Monday, July 24th, my baby boy had his 20th birthday. TWENTY. How did that happen? Time has been spinning faster and faster. One my customers once told me, "Life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes." He was a wise old guy and I think he has it right.

Here are some pictures of my little boy through the years. Now I don't have a scanner, so the quality of these "photos of photos" is sorely lacking, but you can see him growing up, year after year .... six weeks old, his first birthday, three years old, 3rd grade, 5th grade, 6th grade, high school.






We had a fun dinner at The Olive Garden on Tuesday evening to celebrate the beginning of his new decade. Both Grandmas and a couple of crazy cousins joined us. Abby (22) and Erika (19) are going to be sharing an apartment at Ohio State this school year, Abby to start work on her Masters degree and Erika to continue on into her sophmore year. Very scary, those two.

Later in the week his girlfriend Emily tried to "trim" his hair for him and it got a little out of control. He came home a bit miffed that the trim had not gone well, so he grabbed our clippers and had his friend Joe give him a buzz. Well, Joe is no expert barber either, so let's just say Matt now has a really short hair cut, very much like the cut in his 5th and 6th grades photos. Not shaved, but darn close. It could use a professional clean-up, but it's really not a bad look for him! I'll try to sneak some pictures of him so you can see what it looks like :) .

Niagara Falls

Three weeks ago today we were on the way home from Maine. We started out on Friday night at about 10:30 and Chris drove all night long. We stopped at a rest area sometime around dawn so we could both doze for an hour or so. Then onward, west through New York until about 9 a.m when we arrived in the Niagara Falls area. It turned out to be perfect timing on a beautiful morning. We woke up the girls to let them know we were at the falls - we all pulled ourselves together and trooped into the beautiful building that serves as the starting point for any of the Niagara Falls tours. The "Maid of the Mist" boats depart every 15 minutes for the ride up the Niagara River to the base of the falls, and we just made the 9:15 departure.



We rode an elevator down - way down to the dock area at the river. Everyone donned the mandatory blue ponchos and we were herded into line to wait for the next boat. In short order the pushing and shoving began as the horde of people shuffled onto the boat, everyone hoping for the best possible viewing area. We lost track of the girls in the process; we found out at the end of the ride that they had gone to the upper level of the boat. Chris and I took a spot at the side of the boat - we figured there wouldn't be a bad view anywhere, and we were right.



The observation deck off to our left looked like a huge high-diving board - you couldn't have paid me enough to go out there! As we pulled away from the dock we could see a beautiful rainbow - a permanent feature at the falls as long as the sun is shining. The wind picked up as we got closer and closer - those blue ponchos were flapping like crazy as we approached the base of the falls. The light mist turned into a cold spray, making it hard to snap many pictures when we were at the closest point. The water was churning, the boat was rolling and the roar made it impossible to talk. Everyone was clutching whatever railing they could, and I noticed a couple of little children crying from fear - it really is a scary and powerful experience to get that close to the falls.

I don't know which view I liked better, the close-up roaring in-your-face experience, or the view from above as we walked back to the visitor center. The people in these pictures were going to the "behind the falls" tour, I think - that would have been an awesome experience, too. Anything but the mile-high observation deck!! (It's not really that high, but you get the idea.)

One of my favorite moments of the boat ride was towards the end, as we pulled away from the incredible roaring of the falls. I overheard a scared little boy ask his dad, "Daddy, did we go through the waterfall already?" The poor little guy didn't really understand what was happening on the ride - he was so overwhelmed by the whole experience that he thought we had actually gone through the falls and come out on the other side. I imagine it really did feel that way to him!

On the way out we stopped at the gift shop (of course) and then found a Denny's for some breakfast. We were back on the road by 11 a.m, finally arriving at home at 7:30 p.m.

Out With The Old

Our utility bills have been climbing and climbing, same as everyone else's. We've been wondering about our refrigerator - it seems to run a lot, it's 9 years old, used and abused by the kids and animals in our household. (Yes, the animals. The Queen Doggie, Tandie has opened it in the past and helped herself to leftovers. We had to put a latch on the door to keep her out. She has a weakness for poultry.) Anyway, we're thinking it's been sucking up a lot more electricity than it should.

In hopes that we may be able to reduce our enegy bills just a teensy bit, we shopped for refrigerators last Sunday and bought a new one. Nothing too fancy, we were limited by the opening in our kitchen - a side-by-side model wouldn't fit the space, so we still have the upstairs-downstairs variety. A couple of new features for us, though: an ICEMAKER and WATER DISPENSER - and get this, the freezer even has its own light! Cool. Let's hope it's more energy efficient than the old one.

We'll be giving away the old refrigerator - it still runs well, and I didn't want Sears to just haul it away (how kind of them to offer) when I know they just sell the used appliances and make a fast buck (at least I would think that's what they do). We'll post a note on the bulletin board at church tomorrow morning - free to a family who really needs it. In the mean while, we have 2 refrigerators - one in the kitchen, one in the living room!

Young's Dairy Farm

Last weekend Chris and I took a field trip up north to Young's Dairy Farm, just outside Yellow Springs, Ohio. It's a working family farm that's become quite popular because of its incredibly good ice cream, sold in a restaurant on the property. Over the years they've added a play area for the kids, a gift shop and a miniature golf course. Chris is always in search of the world's best ice cream so we don't mind driving up to Young's a couple of times a year for a cold treat. There's always a long line, but they must have at least 20 kids working behing the counter taking orders, scooping ice cream and explaining all the choices on the menu board. So much ice cream, so little time!

We don't go just for the ice cream - we love going over to the barn to watch the antics of the goats kept in a large fenced area. They've learned to work the crowd and they also have learned to nibble on peoples clothing and purses when they're not looking. They're smart, smelly and playful. And don't they have the strangest eyes? Kind of creepy. I don't know what breed these goats are - they come in every color, many of them spotted or blotchy. One of the larger black-and-white goats in particular was comical - she would put her front legs up on the fence and reach out with one leg, swatting at whoever was close by, trying to get attention (and food).

The goats really are nimble - they know how to "walk the plank" up to small platforms, and I noticed a number of them stretching around to itch or sctatch in ways that looked impossible.

They've also been trained to use a big opening in the wall of the barn to go in and out as they please. Not too dumb.

I'm posting this to draw attention to "Cow Appreciation Day" (tomorrow) as noted on my calendar at work. Thanks to all the dairy cows of the world for the milk, cheese and ICE CREAM that we enjoy!