Do you have a minute?

it has been a while. And like a shaken champagne bottle, I have a lot to release! I am finally back in the saddle. My laptop is new and wine-free and I have download a million photos from the past month of my life. So if you have some time to sit and listen to my stories, let's get started.
So..2 days before closing,, the appraiser decides to actually appraise our new house after much prodding by all parties. And of course, he comes in WAY low out of spite and horrid economy. So the seller's won't take this stupid appraisal and we are left to sell our house and move our stuff in to storage while we wait out the political bull crap. We leave the old house on Friday with NO idea when or IF we are going to purchase our new one. So..what does any homeless person do..head to the comfort of friends and dogs. We head to Kristen's to await our fate.
and pretty much do this for 3 nights..

The kids lay around a lot..
I am not sure if Stella is more disgusted by the slobbery squeaky toy or Dante himself
Regardless, she forces herself to lay on the soft bed
naps were had by all

Shiloh shows us her best smile!
While not sleeping, the helped Stella guard the yard.Besides our anxiety about where we might live, our fish were probably getting the shortest end of the stick. this is how they spent 5 glorious days. But alas, on Monday at 7PM we finally closed on our new house. We spent the first night on an air mattress as the movers could not bring our storage unit until the next day. But the first morning of our house..was sweet victory! Jason surveys our back 40 while waiting for the movers. And I take a look at all the flowers in bloom
Kristen and gyeong graciously bring our kids back to us after we had a chance to unpack a little. Dana needed her bowl and bed in a spot to prevent meltdowns!

I think the kids love their new yard!
The squirrels are a new nuisance that the previous treeless yard lacked!As well as our neighbor..meet Frick..it might be Frack..i can't tell you.
We spent every waking hour unpacking..Cali and Dana show off their probably favorite winter spotDante shows off his new deck!
and without fail, we get a foster pretty much immediately after moving. Par for course, i would say! We had him before, meet Skiddy Urban. he is a very good boy.

I decide to paint the 1/2 bathroom and Urban 'helps'Finally, after about 3 weeks, we are finally able to cook our first meal in the new house. And I might add that this is my view as I type minus the food :-)And of course..we throw a small party. This is only foreshadowing the massive one to come. But it was July 4th! Stanley says "Jaime..succomb to my power" or "I squish your head"

So that is my last few weeks in a very long nutshell. Now you are caught up and I am now devoted to providing fun shots with my new back drop. I have missed you all!!!

Stay tuned...

It will be a few more weeks before I catch everyone up with my move and all that it entailed. You can get an idea from Gyeong's blog, but as luck would have it, I stupidly spilled wine (ironic?) on my laptop. So I am now using Jason's computer until my new one comes in. I can scan the internet on my broken one, but occasionally the down arrow sticks and the 'r' sticks, so that makes surfing a little difficult. Only about 1/3 of the keys work.
So please stay tuned, I promise a lot of photos, stories and a return to normality. But until then..enjoy this photo..
Cali's last night at the old house..stupidly we forgot to close the pantry before going to dinner. Will the guilty party please raise her hand (and the tart's antics continued at Gyeong's house..check out his blog) Be back soon..new laptop arrives in 2 weeks.

We've come a long way..

As I sit here on the last day in my first 'real' home (there was one before this..but I choose to forget that one), I can't help but be nostalgic. At the present moment, the closing on our new house has been delayed by who knows how long. We may or may not close today. But I supposed that is a story for another day. Regardless of if we close or not today, we are moving tomorrow. So as my anxiety levels maxes out and I ponder the unknown..I will show you some pictures 'pre-blog'.
In June of 2005, the market was booming and we wanted in. You had to act fast and bid high at that time. Appraisers would say whatever you wanted (not so much the case today). We look at lots of houses and come across our favorite. She was rough and had been neglected a bit..but we saw the potentialThe backyard resembled nothing of what you are used to seeing today.
And quite frankly, the inside resembled nothing of what you see today. The paint scheme was interesting to say the least and the dirt was thick. (notice the 'contrasting' color of green in the main room and peach in the living room?and let's not get started on the high gloss yellow the stretched down the hall in to the kitchen. I have nothing against yellow..but there was a lot of it.So we jumped in with all our feet and painted every square inch of the house.And then we turned our focus to the back yard. Let the fence building begin! Jason rents a big man machine!And cuts a main power line (to his credit Miss Utility didn't mark correctly). I was never so happy for rubber tires in my life.But the fence must be built or the future as you have seen would not have been possible.
A few months later we adopt our first greyhound. I think you've met.
and almost 3 years later, we adopt the 2nd one....
The countless parties and numerous fosters have all been documented here pretty well. I considered posting recaps of a few of the better ones, but you can look back through the logs. Wish me luck as we go through this day of unknowns. I hope to post with photos from my new house soon..

Urban's Journey continues...

Skiddy Urban's road to retirement was started on Hound Life and continues here. Due to multiple people moving, traveling, etc..Urban is making his way to his forever home via multiple foster homes. But along the way, his story gets more and more interesting.
Urban arrived here with as you saw on Hound Life, a rather peculiar nose 'issue'. It was an old injury, and didn't really seem to bother him. We called it character.
Let's remind you of Before:
So, I take him to my vet to get his teeth cleaned and vaccines updated. As I explain his nose 'issue', they say "you want us to fix that?". But..in all his paperwork...his stay at a Veterinary university..it all says..his nose cannot be fixed.
To which they respond "sure it can".
So after a little consultation, we realize there is no reason not to give it a shot. Watching him lick oatmeal out of his nose at night's was loosing its humor.
So I picked up a brand new Urban tonight!
Check out the AFTER!The vet assured us the 'dimpling' will settle and there will be minimal scarring. CRAZY! Urban will recooperate here for a few days before heading to his next foster home, Beau and Belle. There he will meet his new forever mom (the owner of Beau and Belle's aunt) and continue his journey. So check out his blog for the completion of Urban's crazy GUR.
I think he will be happy to be away from the flashbulbs and frenzy of the paparazzi here with GPA-Richmond.On my front..nothing to report but Boxes..and whole hell of a lot of boxes. We move in 8 days.
My house:But rest assured..there is a path to the important things
And stay tuned for a look back at life on Brant lane ...the good times and bad...as we head in to the next chapter on Rose Bowl.

On top of old Smokey...with wine

Kristen, Stanley, Cali and I packed up and headed to Gatlinburg for Mountain Hounds.
Our friend Lin (who owns Smokey seen frequently in this blog) has a cabin in the woods that we used.
Stanley and Cali played Tetris in the back of the sedan for the trip down.
Little doggie porn..
Where's MAH DADDY??
And of course, Kristen and I didn't just drive straight there..c'mon! We stopped at every winery on the way! We took our time. We liked the wineries that allowed dogs inside.
We stopped at Davis ValleyAnd said a brief goodbye to the Blue Ridge MountainsThen on to Abingdon Winery, which is about 2 miles from my Alma mater and was our favorite winery of the trip!Then..we crossed in to Tennessee, a state that isn't known for its wines.
But yes, Tennessee does have ONE good winery that we could fine (and we looked). The Corey Ippolito winery in Blountville. If it weren't for this one..we would have written the whole state off!Ok..now on to Mountain Hounds! One day one, we played greyhound games, ran against the radar, ate great food, ran around a lot and laid in the sunshine!
Cali waits in line for the radar run..the squeaky was taunting her!Stanley runs and clocks 25 mphCali takes 2 turns..the first was 26mph and the second was 29mph.

Brakes!
The pavilion of other greyhounds owners and we got to meet Treasure What You Have as well.Who can eat treats out of a water bowl fastest? Cali was 2ndNotice the bubbles..hysterical. Then she claimed her bowl while waiting for everyone else to finish.Cali wants to go running some more!Ok..now it is time to run!Anyone else notice that big mud puddle in the bottom of that photo? Cali did..Group photo (this wasn't everyone but everyone who had lined up as I walked to the photo)
This was all just too much for one little girl who didn't pace herself
So Kristen and I went back to Lin's cabin for the afternoon to relax a little before the evening's activities. Lin's cabin has a great deck with a beautiful view of the mountains. It is STRAIGHT up to get there, but well worth the trip.and as if you didn't already know..we enjoyed some wine and homemade chips and guacamole from a local Mexican place as well.The cabin and location is great..but there were a lot of creepy bugs. The REALLY creepy ones did not make it to a photo...
We head back down the mountain to Gatlinburg for the night time walk. 100+ greyhounds walking. We wait at the bottom of the hill.And join in as they walk byIt was quite the site.Now, for those of you who have never been to this little part of the world..it is a little different. I can definitely say it isn't my kind of town, but it obviously is someone's! This T-shirt summed it up wellLots of quirky shops with random..stuff. Like this one..you can get breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert..all at once!But the town welcomed the greyhounds with open arms, hotels and restaurants. So we thank them for their hospitality!
Oddly...as we were walking..I hear "Trina?". It was GreytBlackDog! So we got to meet Seka and Roxie. Cali enjoys her ice cream tooRoxie was stinking cute (so was Seka!)So after a long walk, Stanley and Cali were EXHAUSTED! The next morning, Stanley asked if he could stay in bed a while longer.
But..no. We had a nature hike to do! We walked along the river for over an hour. It was really pretty.
Cali dipped her toes in the cold water, and yes tried to lay down even though it was easily 65 degrees outside.
Then as if they weren't tired enough..to the vending area. Cali got a new collar but I didn't photograph it ..yet.
Kristen, Cali and Stanley pose with GreytBlackDog (aka heather) and Seka!
Needless to say, after this..they pups were done. So we went to a local restaurant and sat outside with them and ate some lunch. Then called it a weekend. We hit a few more wineries on the way home but they only confirmed our first impressions further. ;-(
So 7 hours later, we were home and Cali got what she had been asking for all weekend.
It was a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who put this great event on. Cali had a wonderful time. Next up..Beach Bound!!!
But first..I must move in 2 1/2 weeks.

Picnic at the winery

It has become a tradition for us. Cooper Winery has an SPCA benefit event every year around Memorial Day. Kristen, Gyeong, Jason and I have started packing a picnic (our style) and enjoying the weather!
this year, my parents came along as well. Kristen and I love this festival b/c we get to use our wine picnic totes! This year we had many different kinds of gourmet cheeses, salamis, bread, crackers, olives, tapenades and fruit...oh and of course Cooper wine and dogs!
Here we are..my dad is on the far left and my mom is in between Kristen and I. The event was bigger this year than in the past, which is a great thing!
we had a great view of the winery.
Here is shot of my tote and the goodies it held!
The goodies brought beggers..The whole ordeal of walking to the blanket, watching people, begging for food and being awake..wore the greyhounds out! Stanley, Jaime and DanaWant to know where Stella is?
Or Cali?Eventually Cali joined the ranks on the bed and sacked out!
Shiloh gets some ear scratchesMy mom brought Truflz
Jaime snuggles with Stanley
Ever notice Dana's white eyelashes? they are so cute. They are especially noticeable against green grass
We had a lot of fun. My parents have learned if they want to see me..they have to come to a greyhound or wine event. ;-)
So..Kristen, Stanley, Cali and I are off to Mountain Hounds in 3 days. I feel sure we will have loads of stories, photos, greyhound loot and two VERY tired hounds when we return!

Fowl weather

The weather has been yucky lately. It is either pouring down rain (constantly) or oddly hot and humid. GPA's picnic had to be canceled this spring. We postponed it once, but then it got rained out completely. we will have something in the fall, but it did suck we weren't able to have it this spring.
But yesterday we had our first ever yard sale. It went really well and we actually made quite a bit of money for a mornings work. I was up at 4:30AM..which is too early. Dana and Cali hung in there with me all morning!
The crew takes a break between customers. Cali gets her snuggles even when Jason isn't there!
and remember Sawyer? He is now Possum and here he is with his new brother, Howard. They are like Mutt and Jeff!
We also had a haul on Saturday. I got one foster for the night and she was adopted today. Her name was Judy Lee Walker. Pretty cute. She has stockings like Pippi!Dana looks thrilled to be sharing her bed, don't you think?
We are also watching Ana and Blue..Amanda and Kenney are on vacation but when they return they will be moving to Pennsylvania. ;-(
The queens share a couch..
What greyhounds do when it is raining and cold outside..Ok..they do that when it is pretty outside too!
But now your are asking..why did Trina misspell Foul..is she loosing it? (or you are going "she misspelled it?" as you look back at the title)
No, I didn't..I was alluding to our new friend at work. Met Gwendolyn the Guinea Hen.

She is one ugly bird. And she someone has managed to take up residence outside my lab. Of all the places, she now lives at the VA hospital research loading docks. We feed her. The hawk is a bit of a nuisance, but she is hanging in there. She is big, VERY loud and we can't seem to catch her to take her to a nice farm. She is one UGLY bird...
I hope to see some people at Mountain Hounds!