Inu

So Bob and I are adjusting well. Most of the boxes are unpacked and Bob's room is starting to look more like someone lives in there! We've been hanging up his paintings and re-arranging the basement to make a studio for him. He's been learning his way around town and applying for jobs. Some of the prospects look pretty good so hopefully he'll have a job soon!

And now for the big news: yesterday Bob and I got a puppy! We've been talking about it for a while, even before he got out here, and yesterday the Colorado Puppy Rescue had puppies at the pet store for adoption. There were 4 left when we got there - a scary-looking boxer mix, a huge black retriever, a blue heeler and our little red heeler. We think she's an Australian cattle dog mix and she's super cute! We named her Inu (e-new) which is Japanese for "dog".

She's been doing really well with the housebreaking, too. Only one accident (so far!), and she's learning to go to the door when she needs to go out. She doesn't bark very often and is very cuddly. Now, we'll see how she does at the vet on Tuesday... The best part is that she was found in New Mexico! We knew then that she was meant to be a Bosscher dog!

In other news, Mom and Dad's visit was short, but nice. Jake, Megan, Joshua, Jessica and Benjamin came over for dinner Friday night, and Mom got in some quality time with Joshua. Yesterday he turned 1 and is quite the ham!


Mom and I got some fresh Colorado fruit on Saturday and made 4 batches of jam. Cherry and strawberry, two of them sugar-free and all very tasty! And much easier with 2 people, I must say.

Then Sunday we went to church and did some yardwork in the afternoon. Dad helped me pick out some plants for along the back fence and now I have a spirea, 3 raspberries and a burning bush. It's really starting to look like a yard! Now Bob and I have to put up some smaller fencing to keep Inu in, but that's pretty easy.

After some great Chinese on Sunday afternoon, Mom and Dad took off for the next leg of their summer whirlwind tour on Monday morning. But it was so good to see them! Can't wait for Christmas, when everyone can meet the new "grand-dog"!

Playdates

Meet Benjamin.

Benjamin is 2 1/2 months old and shares a birthday with little Erin.

Benjamin has a weekly playdate with me and Joshua.

Benjamin's mom and I used to work together at the hospital, and I worked with his dad in the ER too. Now we all go to the same church together. I may be just a babysitter for Joshua, but I love getting together with the babies and taking walks and going on picnics and finding garage sales, and being "Auntie Beth".


I get to play with Benjamin and Joshua every Friday.

I like Fridays.

The Smell of Earth

Two weeks ago I started planting some Boxwood shrubs along the south fence of my backyard. I bought some for the north fence, too, but the blizzard last week derailed the plan to plant them for a couple days! Today's 80 degree weather, however, was quite conducive to yard work. Plus, all the moisture in the ground from the melted snow made digging holes in the clay that is my backyard much easier!

Now no laughing, I know they're little. They were actually on sale at Home Depot and will eventually grow to 3 feet high, which will be a nice hedge along both fences. Plus, it'll be cool to watch the house and yard change with time. I know I'm not going anywhere...


And what a great day today was! I got off work this morning - we all got our butts kicked last night. 1 ATV fatality, 3 stabbings and 2 gun shot wounds. And that was just in trauma! The rest of us (I was in peds) spent all night trying to empty the ever-refilling waiting room. Anyway, I got home and slept for a couple hours and then planted all 8 shrubs on the north side. I even got the lawn mowed and the garage cleaned out.

I've decided that my favorite smell of all time is earth. Especially after rain. And I really got to inhale deeply while digging all those holes. There just nothing as natural as nature.

Weather

Monday I slept with the windows open.
Monday night I drove to work in rain and hail.
Tuesday morning it took me 3 hours to drive home in a blizzard.
Tuesday night I called in to work because I-25 was closed all the way down to the Springs due to snow.
Tomorrow it's supposed to be 60 and sunny.
Gotta love Colorado.

Snowy Birthday

My Happy 26th turned into a very Snowy 26th! But it was good nonetheless. The Beeneys and Michelle came over for dinner - we had steak and potatoes and salad and strawberry shortcake. Yummy!
Joshua found the spoon especially tasty.


Although it wasn't the big party I had last year I think I liked this birthday better. Good food, good conversation and good friends are my favorite. And I got the best birthday present ever! Michelle made me a book full of pictures of Colorado wildflowers that she's taken over the years. It's beautiful! And the clothes from the Beeneys will of course come in handy, too!

We've been having weird weather here in Denver. It's nice for a couple days and then it gets nasty and snows again. And it's always different down in the Springs at work than it is at home. I was driving home this morning in rain that turned to snow that turned to bad wind, and ended up at home in Denver to sunny skies. Keeps me on my toes!

And speaking of work, the new job is going well. The ER is the biggest in Colorado - 68 beds! And we're the 7th busiest in the nation by numbers alone. The first night I worked was the night of the tornadoes in southern Colorado. We got 4 choppers in an hour and ended up with 6 trauma alerts. Not to mention the 3 people I sent to the cath lab for heart attacks and the 2 we had to intubate for respiratory problems. Whew! I was told that we daily see anywhere from 3-4 hundred patients! But with that many rooms and lots of nurses it doesn't seem too bad. And these guys are so well-staffed! The nurses complain about being short, but they have no idea how good they've got it! :) So far I kinda like it. I think I might stick around for a while...

Me Next!

After 5 great weeks working down in Orlando, it was time to see the rest of the family! And what better reason than Bob's BFA show! His work was fantastic and it was amazing to see how many friends and family came out to see him. I think over half the gallery visitors were just for him! I've already commissioned him for a tea set like the one he had on display. I guess that
means I'll have to pay for his work now... It's definitely worth it!


The weather in GR was nice, but Dad and I couldn't resist a snowball fight. I think that all of us had a little kiddo in us - probably because we were so excited about Katie's new baby! It was nice to celebrate Erin's birth while we were all together. Nice timing, Kate!


A great bonus to this trip was seeing all my college roommates. Missy and Erin live in GR and Jenn and her family drove down from Canada for the weekend. What an awesome opportunity to catch up! We went shopping, had dinner at our favorite restaurant - Seoul Garden, drank chi at the Fish House and played Wii sports. (There's a video that may still end up on U-Tube. Sorry, Erin and Missy!) The amazing thing about this group of friends is that even though we only get to see each other every couple of years, and we don't email very often because all of us are horrible at it, whenever we're together we pick up right where we left off. We all know each other so well that it just works, no matter where we all end up.


Oh, and I didn't forget the next tonsil picture! Although this one is less vocal cords and more just silly. Love you guys.

Another week in Florida

Saturday Mom and I had a girls' day. We went and got manicures and pedicures and went out for coffee. Fun! And then Mom and Dad had their "Mane Event" fund raiser auction for school. They looked so cute!Sunday we drove down to Nettles Island to visit Uncle Hank and Aunt Merideen. We walked on the beach and had lunch. It had rained in the morning so the sky was cloudy, but the water was very warm. Mom and I got our toes wet and looked for shells.

And last night was my last night at Fish Memorial. We had a potluck and weren't too busy, which was nice. This is Robyn, one of the nurses I became friends with. And the director said I could come back whenever I wanted, so maybe I'll have to do this again next year! But for now I'm just so excited to go see Bob's show and hang out with the family!