A Joyful Life!

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Lions And Tigers And . . . Camels?

Maddy and Leo the Lion

Remember my summer bucket list?

Guess what - we checked

“RIDE A CAMEL”

off the list!

Yes, we did!

And not in some exotic location as you might expect,

but in sweet little Lincoln, Nebraska!

I had heard our local zoo had camel rides this summer,

but due to the extreme heat,

we were spending most of our weekends checking “swim at the pool”

off the list.

BUT – there was a cool front last weekend and

the temp was only in the 90’s –

so Maddy and I headed off to the zoo.

After we entered, we skipped all other animals and

made a beeline to the camels as we were certain

there would be a long line of riders waiting for a turn.

Nope, not a one.

So, we picked out the best looking camel there, Leonardo,
and we both climbed on.

Ha ha – I fooled Maddy as she didn’t think I would do it!

(Really, had I known that my bottom would be
featured in the photo below

taken by one of the camel wranglers,
I would have insisted on sitting in front!)

You know how I wrote so eloquently that

riding a horse is like riding the sky in an earlier post?

Well, riding a camel is kind of like riding the sky -
a big thunderstorm in the sky --

very bumpy!

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

A Visit from Buddy

Buddy, the crazy, funny, sweet Westie that belonged to my Mom and Dad
came for a visit recently. It was going to be more than a visit and
Buddy was going to move in with us!

However, we quickly realized that having two feisty and fun terriers
would probably be more than we (I) could handle.

Maddy and Muffy loved having him for a sleepover, but truthfully,
two dogs = one too many for me.
It's a good thing sometimes to know your own limitations!

A wonderful home right next door to my Dad's was found for Buddy.

He is happy as a lark and loves being in familiar surroundings.

And we are all relieved that Buddy has found
a good home and wonderful new owners!

Miss you Buddy!!

Be a good dog!!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Riding the Sky

To ride a horse is to ride the sky.

Author Unknown

Mr. Tennis and Maddy experienced riding the sky on the very special Tiarra --

a beautiful brown Arabian.

Tiarra always took great care of my special riders,

and I am so grateful to her for that.

Mr. Tennis said she was a much better horse than he was a rider!

Recently, she was diagnosed with laminitis -

a debilitating and painful inflammation of her front legs.

Extensive efforts were taken to assist her healing and after months

of various therapy and constant pain meds,

it became very clear that her condition was worsening and she was in dreadful pain.

Mr. Tennis and Maddy made her last weekend on earth a happy one --

taking special treats of apples, grapes, carrots and sunflower seeds.

She loved it!

Peppermint candies were offered (as horses are rumored to love peppermints).

Evidently, she had not gotten that message as she spit those right out!

At dawn on the morning of July 16, Tiarra took her final journey.

She was loved and will be missed.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Putt Putt Anyone?

Guess what -- just like the rest of nation,

Nebraska has been baking the last several weeks.

We always have hot and humid summers --

but usually the hottest temps do not hit until August.

Starting out -- 10 AM -- 97 degrees!

Welcome to July this year!

But . . . whenever I start to ~~complain~~ whine about how HOT it is,

I think of winter and freezing temps and snow and ice and messy weather

and that snaps me right out of it.

As you may or may not have read, my sister and her daughter were in town recently!!

They live in Florida -- in hot, sweaty Florida.

Nebraska was hotter and more humid than Florida -- go figure!

Finding a little bit of shade!

But a little thing like 100 degree temps and a heat index of 110 was not

going to stop us from having fun!

No sirree bob (we say weird stuff like that in Nebraska)!

We were going to HAVE. SOME. FUN. or

melt trying.

Amy, Grace and Maddy.
Think I had a "6" on this hole -- oy!!

So, we went and played some putt putt golf! Even starting at opening time of

10 AM was H O T! But, I think I actually played my best game --

Grace and I both got holes-in-one!

She may have had two, but she is on the golf team at her junior high, after all.

And even though it was so hot and so humid,

Maddy said it was the best day of her life -- spending it with her cousin!

After such a rousing game (somehow I came in last even with my best game),

we headed out for tacos and met Mr. Tennis there.

Grace loved seeing him on his motor scooter!!

(He had just popped a peppermint into his mouth

so that's the reason for that silly expression!)

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Makeover Revealed

While not totally finished as we don't have anything up on the walls

(but, I kind of like the clean look!), here's a look at Philip's old bedroom transformed

into our new guest room and/or my or Maddy's getaway room!!

Maddy with Swampy testing out the new bed!

The paint color is Martha Stewart's Cobblestone (from Home Depot)

but we used her secret recipe and got ours mixed at Sherwin Williams

as we are partial to Shermy Williams' paints.

Love it!!

Oooh -- a tv/dvd player in the bedroom!
Nice!

The carpet is a frieze and is kind of a mix of some beige and grays --

so soft!

Bedside table and lamp.

The overhead light is a bit industrial -- but I like it and

that's what really matters, right!

We did manage to get it all done before our first guests --

my sister Amy and her daughter, Grace arrived.

Amy deemed it perfecto

and said it was the best night's sleep she had in months!

While I picked almost everything out for the room,
with some input from Mr.Tennis,
others were so helpful and deserve special thanks!

Connor put the bed frame and the bookcase together, put up the overhead light
and helped move furniture.
Matt, our friendly painter and his assistant did a fab job
repairing the ceiling and painting and there is nothing easy about painting
the walls in a house built in 1924 with lots of so-called "charm."
And Mr. Tennis did a fabulous job supervising!
Moving on to another room soon!!! :)

Monday, July 9, 2012

July 4th Update

Like the rest of the country, we enjoyed super hot temps last week and the 4th of July was no exception. I like summer, but temps of 100 for a week or more were a bit much for me!

Even though the pool is packed,

we just have to be there on the 4th for the fun!