A Fun Weekend at the Blogville Awesome Retreat - Part One

What a weekend and trip we had! 

Little Jester had his first trip by car.  He wasn't so sure as we went north to Iowa. 

He rode in the front seat on the first leg of the trip to Keosauqua, Iowa, where we 

were to meet friend Deb and her girl, Stella Rose Long. 

Lilly had to stay home, she is too old to go so far... and Daddy actually took her to a kennel for three days, since it's hard for him to get up and down the stairs here.  And yes, she really did look this sad when she realized she was staying home. 

He called to tell me she was glad to see her friends she made six weeks ago, and did very well. 

She got to come home before we did, on Sunday afternoon. 

So... off we went. 

We made a stop an hour into the drive.  It was hot, so I walked Jes and then decided I had better run into the restroom myself.  This was the part that scared me the most, putting him back into a van getting hot fast, and someone taking him.  I found two other folks walking their dogs at this stop. 

 This was our second stop... the "Amish" Welcome Center at Lamoni,  Iowa.  I am showing you the Maid-Rite end of it, the welcome center is to the left.  We got a good piece of broasted chicken, some caramel popcorn, and a new Iowa map. 

Keith and I stopped here frequently when we were going back and forth regularly in the past. 

I was getting a little confidence that Jester was going to be a good traveler at this point, and also ran into the same people who had been at the first rest stop.  They were very encouraging to me. 

There were several private rest areas in Iowa... if I were close to a secondary road, I would do this for travelers.  

It had a lovely picnic area, big trees, the little church... and ... a RESTROOM. 

It was a privy-restroom but spotless and plenty of tissue. 

It was a peaceful place to stop. 

Two hours later, we were meeting my friend Deb and the beautiful 

Stella Rose Long, and as you see, Jester got right into the thick of it. 

Maggie and Gussie, the other two pugs, were in the kitchen in prison. 

We also met Mama Weinie and the +Four. 

(the only one who held still) 

Jester had a good stretch as Deb loaded the back of the van... and then we 

set out for LeRoy, Illinois... remember, I forgot Illinois lay in between Iowa and Indiana! 

Does that view of the van from the hatch side tell you anything about 

how much was packed?  

Since I had only driven the van one time, about six weeks ago when we went to Iowa to see Keith's nephew play... can I tell you that it was a learning curve to open the doors with the hand held unit????  We were constantly opening and closing the wrong doors, and Jester sat like a ROCK when we did. 

And off we went again. 

Deb drove us across the mighty Mississippi... thank HEAVENS. 

I'm getting dizzy just looking at it. 

And we ended up that night at the Holiday Inn Express. 

Stella Rose Long had never traveled either, and her sight is fading, unfortunately... but she was also a trooper and adapted to our trip very, very well! 

Ooops... a little blurry, but you get the picture  Jes relaxed immediately, we had no idea he would be so calm about the travel. 

We were fortunate in that there were good places to walk the dogs at each of the three hotels, and... that Jes is used to going to the bathroom on a leash. 

So, that ended our first night. 

Tomorrow I'll show you our first visit at the Blogville Awesome Retreat, 

at Brown County State Park, in Indiana. 

T Minus Zero

I admit we are just about in a state of nervous exhaustion here. 

Now that the world knows I forgot Illinois existed.... I think we 

are ready to jump off the face of the earth in the morning and head for Iowa. 

The van was serviced and cleaned out... and is ready to be on the road. 

I have it partially packed, but of course, I am second guessing what I am taking, so 

there may be changes early in the morning. 

No wild-bird-feeding while I am gone... but Keith is going to keep the 

pots and the straw bale garden watered.  We do have rain back in the picture, but it 

is a week out. 

Last minute pictures of the garden.  I transplanted flowers from the old house 

last summer, I didn't realize I transplanted ditch lilies. 

The yellow asclepias are blooming nicely, and I am thinking the orange did not make it.  

Yes, it's time to do something about this bed, but it can wait five more days. 

Jester does not have a care in the world.  

  I'm am praying he travels well. 

All buckets are now upside down, so we don't find anything else like this. 

We are still working on mouse eradication, and the pest man will be 

here sometime in the next two days.  I HATE KILLING. 

Keith has some big changes coming in the next few weeks for his medications... and it really does mean we need to get the mouse problem under control. 

Even if it means no feeding birds. 

We walked early this morning... but this bathing beauty was already in the pasture pond. 

And this beautiful bird posed for me down the road. 

I am trying to find out what the white things are by it's eyes. 

They were on both sides. They almost look like fly eggs. 

I want to ask everyone to say a little prayer for Deb, me, Jester and Stella Rose as we 

set out tomorrow for the Blogville Awesome Retreat. 

I am going to try to post from Indiana... but if I can't for some reason, 

I'll post on Facebook and Instagram as Mary Ann Yoder (might be Ksredhead1950 on Instagram). 

Hope to show you all what a great time we are having! 

And The Days Fly By

Oh.  My. Goodness. 

I got "As" in Geography in school, really, I did. 

Somehow... I forgot Illinois was in between Iowa and Indiana. 

I am making final preps for the Blogville Awesome Retreat this weekend, 

and am driving not straight over to Brown County State Park in Indiana... an 8 hour drive from where we live... but up to Iowa to pick up my friend Deb and Stella Rose Long, her pug.  

Thence across the state of Illinois. 

All I can say is, I am mighty stressed. 

For some reason I thought we were driving straight across Iowa and into 

Indiana.  Wow. 

Here is something that stressed me out this morning, too: 

This is the beautiful park at Basehor where the dogs and I go 

nearly daily to walk. 

Yesterday, Jester was very sick, and we visited our Dogtor. We did not walk. 

When we got to the park this morning, it was to find the back end of 

the park leveled... and a driveway made around the community garden area at the back, and clear up the west side of the park, under the beautiful trees, some of which will be removed. 

Friends... this made me sick.  This park was pristine at the back... and now the gardeners 

will have to put up with cars making a circle around the park.  I will try to 

take better pictures tomorrow so you can see what has happened.  See that 

beautiful view?  Imagine cars coming up it!  It is only feet from the volleyball 

area. 

I don't know whose hare-brained idea this was, but I don't like it. 

Here is our little doll, who was so terribly sick.  He could not hold anything down. 

The doctor finally gave him a sub-Q dose of anti-inflammatory to calm his 

stomach down.  He was given special dog food and two kinds of 

meds.  He will be going on a diet as soon as we have returned from: 

Where we will meet all our friends in the furs! 

We actually have one attendee coming from overseas... 

and though you see Lilly here, she is staying home with daddy. 

Two of our attendees bumped into each other at a rest stop today, out of the blue... both coming from the west coast, so Murphy and Stanley, the Two Cool Doodz... (goldendoodles top center) met 

Artie and Dory, the two well-dressed Shitzus in the lower left corner.  

Hailey and Zaphod (shepherd types in the second row) are also coming from Kansas. 

Madi, the one cat you see, will be represented by her Mom. 

We are at T minus 1, and Stella Rose Long (the black pug in the first row) will 

be traveling with us, along with her mom. 

This should be good. 

We are going to try to broadcast live from Brown County State Park, Indiana, 

during the BAR. 

I have turned over all buckets so this won't happen again.   I asked Keith to please be aware that 

we are still dealing with baby mice.  I am finding LOTS dead.  You know it hurts me 

to kill anything... and we did try live trapping... but for Keith's medical sake... they had to go. 

I am going to touch base with the exterminator in the morning.   While I am gone, all feeding will stop. 

Keith will fill one water receptacle as he waters my plants daily in the heat, but 

he is not going to feed.  We need to break a little bit of the chain here. 

I just read that paragraph... sorry for the choppy sentences! 

I let that mouse go, of course.  

We did go for a walk very early this morning, and lo and behold, the geese and the turkeys were feeding together in the same field again. 

Back deck feeding will stop, too, while I am gone.  It is supposed to be hot and humid, and I don't want to have to worry about hummingbird feeders. 

Look what I found the other day: 

I had cleaned it two days before.  I had to take a toothpick and clean the individual 

little spouts to the bells, because they were bad.  I soaked it good, cleaned everything with a brush, and have been cleaning them daily, since. 

I have a friend who stopped feeding because she was worried about keeping them clean enough. 

I enjoy seeing the little visitors, so I am going to soldier on for a while. 

Besides finishing packing, I am going to build the trellis for my straw bale garden 

tomorrow, so I will show you that in the evening.  

(If I don't stress out) 

I Missed the Blog Hop

Yesterday, there was a big blog hop in Doggy blogland, and I missed it! 

To all the wonderful bloggers who left comments on our blog, 

thank you! 

I hope I joined all your blogs! 

I have not talked about it yet, but 

I am going to the Blogville Awesome Retreat at 

Brown County State Park, Indiana, 

in early June. 

My good friend Deb (The Three Little Pugs) 

is going with me, along with (I think) 

Angus McConnell Long, 

her male pug.  

This should be fun! 

This is the BAR website if any of you are interested, 

it is not necessary to bring your dog. 

Blogville Awesome Retreat 

I have not made a decision if Jester will be going. 

You see, if for some reason I lost him, I would be heartbroken. 

The sun came back today for a while. 

We walked a full mile at the park, and all the snow and slush from yesterday was gone. 

So much more fun to take pictures with SUN! 

Some were hard to see. 

You can see we were all lapping up the sun.

I guess I'd better wash that door! 

We are having temps in the forties and fifties for 

the next three days. 

However, Lilly goes to see Dr. Tom in the morning at 

10:45, and I am hoping we find out what is causing the problem of the leg dragging.  

When Ranger was her age, he tore an ACL.  The operation was 

hard and expensive, and because of his age, we opted not to do it, 

and maintained him on meds until his death.   I don't know if I 

would put Lil through a complicated procedure, we will have to see. 

IF that's what it is. 

I'll let you all know when we return.