Where have we been?

We've been lazy, that's where.

Making a July 4th resolution to post more, so let me catch you up.

Connie's been undergoing her treatments every three weeks, and she's hanging in there.  She's not as mobile as she'd like to be, but we're hoping recent visits to the spine doctor, an epidural next week and PT to follow will be a help.

Pretty much a season and a half have come and gone since our last post.  We've relocated in Texas to Port Aransas (Pioneer RV Park) as a home base for the entire season, not just a couple of months in the fall.  Our Ohio base is still Timber Ridge Campground south of Vermilion.

Our grand daughter, Kingsley, is now two years old and cute as a button, just like her mother.

We lost Carmen in February of 2016 to cancer that got into her spine.  In June of 2016, we welcomed Tangy (Tan-jee, like "Olentangy") to our home.  She's ornery, very loving, and can be, well, batsh*t crazy at times, but she's a welcome addition.

I lost my Mom at age 91 this past January.  It was a pretty stressful time since I was in Texas and she was in Ohio.  She fell the day before Christmas Eve and I talked to her from the hospital.  She was upset that she fell, didn't really know how, and they were keeping her there because some enzymes weren't right on the tests.  She had actually suffered a heart attack, had another one shortly after I talked to her, and literally lost the will to live.  She passed away January 23rd, almost exactly a month later.  We had her ceremony on her birthday (May 24th) when we returned to Ohio.

That's pretty much the (real) short story.  I'm hoping to wean myself off posting everything on Facebook and putting things here where they belong.

Thanks for reading.

The Right Breed for Us

 Sloopy is our Boston Terrier.  Almost five years ago, we lost our "JoBu" and decided time had come to start thinking about our fulltime future.  Narrowed down our breeds to a Boston Terrier and a Boxer with the Beastie winning because of their size.  Didn't want shedding, barking, and wanted a dog that would be a good "apartment dog".

 With the wedding, we offered to keep Tucker, our daughter and son in law's Puggle.  He's 8 months old, all boy, and a lovable little guy.  But we realized early we would need to really ramp up his exercise in order for him to be balanced.  We've enjoyed having "the boy", but he's been a handful.  Finally starting to get him into a regimine, but it's been a challenge.

So, if you're thinking about full timing, think about your pet.  Not fair to the dog to get a breed that won't easily adapt to the lifestyle.  But "our house" wouldn't be "a home" without a dog.

Wedding Week is Over!

 Hard to believe how much has gone in this past 10 days.  Being fulltime RV'ers, giving away our "used to be little" girl in a wedding on the other side of the state, entertaining everyone, coordinating everything.

All went off without too much of a hitch, we've now gained a son-in-law and we can get back to a somewhat normal life, albeit with one addition -- we're dog sitting the wedding couple's puppy, Tucker, a puggle.


He's a lovable little guy, but we made the right choice when we decided to fulltime to go with a Boston Terrier.  More on that tomorrow!

Lessons I'm Learning from the Dog Parks

Not everyone knows how to raise a dog.  Our dog is by no means "well trained", and often has some bad leash aggression.

Sloopy & a park full of Beasties

That being said, she loves the dog park.  You can water ski behind her if she thinks she's going there.  She will figure out every possible way to get there and lead you there on a walk.

I'm learning some clues, though, when it's best to not take her in there.  We're a big Dog Whisperer fan, and if you know who "Cesar" is, you know what I mean.  He is constantly talking about owners who transfer their fears through their leash.  I'm getting to the point that if I see someone leash there dog at the sight of ours coming into the park, I'm not going in there.  They don't have a clue and there's no sense in trying, in the short time we're in there, to change their mind.

Sloopy & Misha

Dogs work things out, and dog parks are wonderful examples of that when owners can take a deep breath and let dogs play, sniff, and pee everywhere.  It's what they do.

Sloopy & Lola

The other thing is certain breeds with "their" balls.  If I see a Jack Russell in the park doing retrieves with their owner, I'm out.  Those little guys are incredibly possessive, and our poor little Boston just sees "a" ball, not "their" ball.  That took two times of her getting scraped up by those little maniacs to learn that lesson.

Dog Parks are two things, the dogs and their owners.  Make sure you can get a feel for them both before you put your baby at risk.