Road trip to Oregon and Washington State

I had a great time seeing my friend, Pilar. It was like old times and I was so happy to see her after so many years of not seeing her. I enjoyed time spent at her house with her family and had a lot fun playing and goofing around with her kids.

Washington was nice too, although my former college roommate and I didn't get into downtown Seattle until Sunday, so many shops were closed for the day, not to mention it was July 4th. I missed the magic of Pike's Place in action, but enjoyed being there when things were calm so I could see and take pictures without feeling like I was a sardine. I was happy to see a big fireworks show in downtown Seattle, it's been a long time since I've gone to a show.

My one claim to fame in Seattle was a celebrity sighting...although I have no photo to prove it.  ;-)  While walking through the streets of Seattle, I glanced in a window of a cafe and did a double take. I exchanged a look with the actor, Ron Livingston from "Office Space" and HBO's "Band of Brothers". I was shocked to see him and wanted to badly to sneak a picture or meet him...however I pride myself on not interrupting or invading other's privacy...so my only proof is my memory. No worries.  :-)

I did a lot of driving in a short time, but the trip was worth it.

***I'm having issues getting my slideshow to post....so it's in the next blog...it took me a while to get it put together...I've been so busy with work and just too tired to deal with it...I'm not liking some of the changes made to Blogger and I'm not used to it...can't quit figure out  how to get it to do what I want....whatever....at least the slide show is up....I'm such a perfectionist and it's hard to let go.  LOL

Visting my man in SD

After my road trip to Washington State and Oregon, I drove down to San Diego to see Ryan and deliver his bed. We had a short time together, but enjoyed ourselves. I gave him a new haircut while I was there...the faux hawk was his idea.  :-)

 Behind us is the house from the movie, "Top Gun"

Day trip to the snow!

I had two weeks off work for the winter break. It was my hope to get some things done and get to the snow as much as possible......Sadly, I only got to go one time. However, it was a good time. My friend Jessica, her two young kids and their dog Dylan joined Timber, Jade and I for the day trip. Jessica was generous to drive and risk her van to my two furry beasts since I woke with a sinus headache and had to take some sinus medicine that causes drowsiness. She offered to reschedule the trip....I said no way! It had been such a struggle to make the trip happen, I was not about to disappoint her kids and another kid: yours truly. Ha Ha!

This trip was Baby Jade's first time in the snow and of course, she loved it. Timber was exposed to the snow very early on, at about 4 months of age in the same area as well as the extreme winter conditions of South Dakota and Montana.
see posts: http://melanialynn.blogspot.com/2009/12/day-trip-to-snow.html, http://melanialynn.blogspot.com/2009/01/more-snow-january-12-2009.html, http://melanialynn.blogspot.com/2009/01/wyoming-south-dakota.html

I can't wait to take them up again. I love the snow and it's fun watching the dogs enjoy themselves. Timber likes to eat the snow and Jade couldn't stop running. I would eventually like to move a little closer to the Placerville area. I love the mountains and it's a great place for the dogs too.

I'm hoping before the snow season ends this year to experiment having the dogs pull a light sled. Jade isn't full-grown, so she can't pull me despite the help of Timber. However, if I can trust the dogs enough to be cautious, I might have them pull around Christian or Patryk. I will start out with just the sled to see how they react. So far Timber is not particularly fond of his harness. I made him wear it all day and through the night and he was restless almost the entire time. Perhaps a more custom harness for sled dogs with padding would be less annoying. We'll see.

Wyoming & South Dakota

I spent my New Years Eve and New Years Day on the road with my friend, Royal, his dad, his dogs Tsavo and my pup, Timber. We drove two days through Nevada, Utah and finally into Wyoming to drive Royal's dad back home.

The dogs and I spent the day on the ranch on the third while Royal went out on the ranch to hunt deer. Timber was in heaven running around in the snow and following around Joe and Tsavo around like an annoying little brother! I'm grateful for the opportunity to see a part of Wyoming and South Dakota for the first time and for my little guy to get a fun experience with other dogs.

January 3, 2009

Royal's Ranch in Northeast Wyoming near the border of South Dakota

January 2, 2009

Utah

January 1, 2009

Driving Highway 80 towards Wyoming

Joe, Tsavo and Timber along for the ride

Highway 80 in Nevada