1-31-14

 Martin: Very windy this afternoon - no birds sitting in the trees today!

Me: After breakfast we strolled across the street to see the ocean. Cloudy & cool but lovely on the beach. Then we were off for a tough day of biking Mt. Palomar. 60 miles, 6800 ft. of climbing & 33 degrees at the top. We all had to dig deep to cycle through the conditions. It helped that we got hot chocolate & apple pie at the top of the mountain!

1-30-14

Martin: It was the Australia Day long weekend and we had our annual street party held at the end of our road - it's only 200m long. About thirty-five people were there which isn't a bad turnout as there are only twenty houses in the road and some people are still away as the summer school holidays have not ended yet. Not all that warm and it had been raining in the morning.

Me: One of these guys is a lot like another! ;-) Hint: the guy(s) on each end. 

Had a great 70 mile ride in San Diego today. Overcast with a high of 60, hills, the coast + friends (perfect!). Started the day with breakfast at The Mission (morning tradition) and ended it with dinner in La Jolla at Karl Strauss. 

1-29-14

Martin: Piece of abstract art. This is actually an advertising leaflet that had settled to the bottom of a rain puddle. The sun had come out again but rain was still falling and disturbing the surface of the water. Neat idea to experiment with more shots.

Me: We are on our way to San Diego! We'll be having fun cycling along the coast & in the mountains! We're gonna miss our Macy Dog and Harley Girl!

1-28-14

Martin: Hot and very humid today.

Me: Bob's girls!

1-27-14

Me: Dog Yoga.

Macy demonstrating Downward Facing Dog.

Happy Baby Pose by Macy.

Harley and Macy back on the yoga mat. Harley in Child's Pose and Macy doing Tree Pose (she needs a little more practice on Tree Pose).

Namaste.

1-26-14

Me: Bob flying into Toronto, Canada Friday night (Brrrrrr).

Bob flying out of the Bahamas this morning (Beautiful).

Bob flying to Phoenix tonight (Home)!!!!

1-25-14

Me: I led the Lifetime Fitness ride this morning. We biked in Scottsdale. Here's a view of The Praying Monk on Camelback Mountain.

This is the new Echo Canyon trailhead & parking area for Camelback Mountain. It's been closed for construction a LONG time. The finished area is pretty with nice restrooms & a larger parking area. However, still a line of cars were waiting to find a spot. Popular hike!

1-24-14

Martin: From our back garden. Lucky if the we get to them before the possums.

Me: Dog Selfie

Macy figured out how to take a "selfie". Now she's into Instagram. Next will probably be Facebook. Harley says "Puppies these days!"

1-23-14

 Martin: Third cloudy day after a fine hot spell. Rained a bit overnight but the garden still needs watering.

Me: Chaos with the Kids! …

I took Mom and the dogs out for lunch today. Macy needed a little practice in the car as she gets some anxiety about car rides, not bad but we want her to be more comfortable. Einsteins Bagels has a nice patio for dogs so upon our arrival I leashed the dogs and had them jump out of the car. Within seconds Macy got out of her collar and trotted away. I chased her and quickly got her by the front door of the bagel shop. I left Harley in the parking lot and she drug her leash to a nearby stranger's table to search for food. Mom was between me and the car with doors wide open and my purse, keys plus Macy's leash & collar on the ground. I asked a stranger to grab Harley and another stranger to bring me Macy's leash. In time we recovered, found a place to sit and while I was inside getting bagels Macy tangled herself up under the table. Geesh! :-/ We did manage to eat our egg sandwiches and finally had a chuckle about the chaos. :-)

Mom and I then babysat Kavan and Riley all afternoon. We watched them at Mike and Abbie's since James is jackhammering at our house (you can't be there without ear plugs) and it's a HUGE mess (thick dust over everything). The good news…tile floor installation starts next week!!

Last night's pic. How cute is Macy's head laying on Harley's bed?! Macy just loves Harley and her admiration is rubbing off on Harley who needs a little more time to be 100% sold on Macy. :-) They really are GREAT together but Harley just sometimes has that look that says, "Why did we have to get a dog?!" Spoken from a dog who thinks she is a people!

1-22-14

Martin: Had a total of seven Kookaburras in the garden after pieces of stale bread. Incredible racket as they are very territorial and some of these were uninvited visitors.

Me: Dog Training 101…

"Lay down"

"Stay"

Bob says "Lay down"

Macy says "What?"

Harley says "Easy peezy!"

1-21-14

Me: Mom working out with us at the gym. She biked 3 miles!

We left our two furry kids alone at home for the 1st time together. They did great; phew! Nothing chewed up or out of place. Good doggies!

Then I gave our working dogs a job. While I drew pictures Harley was on lookout for intruders. Macy was blocking the craft room door from unwanted guests. Thank you!

I love this photo from yesterday!

Great-grandma and baby Riley.

1-20-14

Me: Took Carol, Paul, April & Jason (April's boyfriend) on one of our favorite hikes: Tom's Thumb. Mom enjoyed the scenery at the trailhead while we were on our trek.

 April and Jason approved of Macy! Harley too of course. :-)

Made it to Tom's Thumb!

Such a beautiful 5 mile adventure. Enjoyed talking with everyone while we walked.

Check out this view!

 Heading back down through a plethora of boulders. So pretty!

Macy and Harley had a great morning too.

1-19-14

Last night's walk on the golf course.

This morning's walk on the mountain.

Two good dogs and a pretty sunrise!

Not surprising…we are keeping Macy! She's a perfect fit in our family.

Harley & Macy are two of a kind: sweet, calm, smart, athletic and our good pals. We already took them shopping at the pet store and bought 2 new beds, 2 squeaky toys, 2 bones, 1 water & food dish stand, and 1 tag with the name MACY on the front and our phone # and address on the back. 

Welcome Home, Macy!!

1-18-14

Martin: This guy walked in the back door looking for more biscuits. Lucky the cat wasn't around.

 Me: In their first 24 hours they… 

SLEPT TOGETHER!

Let sleeping dogs lie, right!? :-) Both dogs had a bed in our room & were good sleepers all night.

ATE TOGETHER!

Both had good appetites and didn't bother each other.

RAN TOGETHER!

This was going to be a hard test and they passed with flying colors. I took both of them on a run by myself. We jogged 5 miles on the trails with no issues! Amy stayed by my left side the whole time and Harley ran just ahead of us on her retractable leash. They are athletic dogs!

POSED TOGETHER!

Harley has the modeling thing down and she's already showing Amy how to strike a pose.

BOB LIKES HER!
Amy truly is a nice dog who has already had some training. This helps tremendously. She is gentle, doesn't annoy Harley but they do like one another (we think). We get to keep Amy on trial for a couple weeks but so far she is fitting into our life pretty well. Hmmm? Harley is the ultimate judge so if she passes Amy, we will too.

Amy is a good name but IF we keep her we plan to give her a new name. We have several ideas. Here they are in order of our favorites. Macy (after a favorite breakfast cafe' in Flagstaff called Macy's. Since Amy is a rescue dog from Flagstaff this name has a special connection!), Sammie, Ace, Trek (Joan's idea), Rasha (April's suggestion - means gazelle). Any others?