End of July!

The end of July has been full of fun and interesting activity!
At work, the summer reading program ended with a bang with the "Carnival Day" on the 19th. Jim helped us set up and tear down the many tables and games that were provided in the Library yard. I was on desk duty in the basement with Dawn, so i didn't get to witness the outdoor festivities, which actually wasn't so bad, since it was a humid day in the upper 80's! AC is a good thing in Ohio!

The next day (Sun. 20th) we drove to south Dayton to meet the family at a Red Lobster for Mom O's 86th birthday. We decided on this location, so that mom and dad could use their RL gift card from Christmas! It was a nice afternoon.

On Tues. the 22nd, we had an afternoon visit from our godson, James. His dad dropped him off at the library at the end of my shift and we went to the grocery, then home where we rode bikes in the neighborhood and got out the squirt guns. When Jim got home from work James was ready for a water gun duel!

On the 23rd, i drove south to Piqua where "Group Work Camp" was in full force. Teen church groups from all over the US were helping to repair homes of elderly or low income families all over town. I had the fun job of taking pictures of the workers at many sites to be included on a complimentary CD our church was providing as part of our hospitality ministry to them.
Here are a few of the groups:

On Thursday the 24th, Leah flew safely from Berlin to DC to be reunited with her husband, Julian. She also got to meet his sister, Monica, who is working in DC for the summer. They had a fun day at the Chesepeake Bay Beach on the weekend. See L's blog for more pics!

We enjoyed a short visit from James and Stephanie Keefer on Friday evening. They were on their way back to Baltimore from Iowa where they attended S's 30th school reunion & visited family!

On Saturday the 26th, Jim and friend Randy Howard had an adventure kayaking down the Great Miami River from Sidney to Piqua. They got a late start, and took a spill mid way - where Jim lost his glasses to the swirling waters; they returned home wet, tired and sunburned around 4pm.

Ahh, Sunday the 27th.... our day of rest. Well, maybe next week. On this day we traveled to the south of Dayton with 5 other adults, and 16 'Power House' kids to Splash Moraine, where we enjoyed the waterpark there. The Lazy River, wasn't so lazy when i was chasing my group of 3 very speedy girls! The slide was fun and the wave pool was amusing!


On Tuesday the 29th i observed a wild canary eating seeds from the cat nip blooms under our blue spruce tree in the front yard! I took the pics from inside with our great zoom!













Finally.... July 31st... today! Bryan came over last night to visit us and friend Nick T. Today, our former exchange student from Spain came to visit. Hector arrived in the states on Tues. - late... and today his friend Peter drove him up from Dayton. We went to lunch at CJ's where Jim joined us.













Frpm CJ's resturant, we drove by SHS and were pleased to find B & H's high school counselor, Barb Kerr was in her office - they recognised her blue volkswagon! We waited a bit for her to finish up with a student, and had a very nice "reunion." She was very gracious to let us interupt her day on her 2nd day back at school after summer break.


We called Peter from the car and he had his taxi waiting to take H back to Dayton when we got back home.

Bryan and i decided to take the bikes to the new trail which begins at the back of Graceland cemetary near the 'Big Four' bridge. B pumped up Jim's old red bike tire, and we were off. When we got to the trail, the bike tire was flat, so we decided to walk part of the trail. It was very hot and sweaty, but a nice time. On the way out, just under the railroad bridge, B spotted a very small salamander. It was about 2.5 inches long head to tail.... and WHAT a tail. Brilliant blue!












Whew! So that was July..... i wonder what August will bring?

Remembering Ruby

Ruby joined our family in April 1994 when we lived in Columbus. We rescued her from the animal shelter in Delaware just north of there. She was very shy to the point of shaking when we brought her home. But slowly she warmed up to us. She was meant to be part of Bryan's birthday gift that year, but she attached herself to me, and over her lifetime was not very comfortable around men in general.

She was born Nov. 1, 1993, so she was 6 months old when we adopted her and we think she suffered some abuse as a puppy. She had been a stray before being brought to the animal shelter.

When we moved back to Sidney in the summer of 1995, she endured the drive back in the packed van with grace. We lived in a 2 bedroom apartment for over 3 months before moving to Charm Hill, and she even did well there with 2 cats and our "new" cat Taz... a stray from the neighborhood.

Over the years, Ruby accompanied us on trips to Michigan and in recent years, on camping trips to nearby Ohio State Parks.



Island Trail
Ludington


Ceasar Creek SP


Right after my last entry - bike hike - Jim left for the bi-annual Andreatta reunion in Uhrichsville OH. He was driving his parents to the party location. Ruby had been slowing down for the last month... not eating ... and lately having a hard time breathing. It was so bad on Thursday night that i decided to take her to the vet on Friday afternoon. He said the trouble could be a mass in her lungs or an enlarged heart. He gave some meds to get her thru the weekend, and suggested a blood test and chest x-ray on Monday. I knew in my heart that the tests would not be happening.
It was a very emotional weekend for me dealing with a dying dog and with Jim gone. I decided Sat. to make an appointment to have her put to sleep on Monday, not wanting her to suffer any longer. That Monday, July 14, I took half a day off work so i could spend the last hours with her. She wanted to be in the back yard, so i lied beside her under the shade of the maple trees and rubbed her ears. Jim finally got home after 3pm and we took the sad drive up to the Anna vet office for a teary goodbye.

The first week was really hard - coming home to an empty house. I have to say it has gotten better.
Ruby was with us for over 14 years. She loved her walks in the neighborhood greeting her favorite friends (Sammy, Muffin & Cheyenne) along the way. She led a good life and is now at peace. We remember her fondly.

Bike Hike

This morning i decided to get off my butt and take a short 'bike hike.' I rode past the Sidney airport down a country road a couple miles. I had brought a Kroger plastic bag along "in case i saw some trash to pick up." HA ... of course there was a ton of trash along the roadside and in the ditch... I barely scratched the surface, but managed to collect 22 aluminum cans of varying sizes.
I passed by LOTs of plastic, which wouldn't fit in my small bag. Besides, carrying several bags of recyling stuff on a bike is precarious at best. I was doing well to spot the cans, hop off & smash them, then get back on and keep pedaling without being run over by the various trucks and tractors that whizzed by. I was wearing my bright orange top and a fluorescent yellow armband, so i felt relatively safe!

Here's a look at what i collected:


Notice how the cans are separated... the beer cans out-number the soda cans 2 to 1! Big Red, Bud Light, and Mountain Dew seem to be the favorites. The Shelby county youth haven't wised up much in the past 5 decades or so... OK, ok, so some of the plastic that i passed by might have been Gatorade bottles...

If you're counting, there are only 21 cans shown. The last one was a special limited edition featuring Indiana Jones (and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). My DH did the dishes when he got home and finding the can in the sink drainer, crumpled it and put it in the recycling bin! I have attempted to un-crumple it for the photo...


The bottom of the can says: "Indy and Mutt visit Peru... in search of a friend who holds vital clues." I thought it would be a keepsake for our son who is a Dr. Pepper and Indy fan.... oh well.

NOTE: before i go out on the bike again, it will need some TLC, as i noticed the bike cable is a bit 'frayed' around the edges. The gears seemed to work after a fashion. I suppose it was bound to happen eventually. I believe it's the bike i used to carry Bryan and Leah on in the baby seat... 25 years ago!