Beautiful Arizona

Let me start by saying that Abby and Taylor, sweet as they may be, will never, ever be traveling again, save trips to the vet.  We've always known they are terrible travelers, and how we got lucky with two that hate the car I will never know, but I do know that any kennel fee is cheaper than taking these two along.  As soon as we got to Mom and John's, Abby christens the floor with her dinner and takes a couple days to recover.   And we've always known that Abby has a love for hunting but usually goes for the small helpless creatures we might find on walking trails, like baby squirrels and injured birds, but I guess I figured she had outgrown that in her old age.  The chickens made their way into the yard where the dogs were and Abby thinks it a good idea to chase them and have one for dinner.  I often found myself counting the chickens every time we went out to their coup.  So during one chase, she catches her nail in a rock and rips it almost out, requiring an expensive surgery and new medication for a newly diagnosed thyroid problem.  But the good news is the AZ vet says she has many good years left in her, which will all be spent in our backyard!  So as Abby recovers, Taylor becomes sick, we think due to nerves of missing her own backyard, and remains sick until we get home at the end of the week.  In feeling sympathy for Abby, she catches her nail on a grated step on the way to the car the last day of our trip and bleeds all over the hotel parking lot.....this after leaving a not so nice present in the hotel room overnight.  By the time we drove into our driveway, we were ready to be done with the dog drama.  

On a happier note, we, the humans, had a wonderful time hanging out, playing o

n the tractor, eating yummy food and watching movies.  Kevin and I went out for a hike while Grandma and Papa watched Leo, and

 even had a date night.  The weather was much cooler there than we expected and I ended up wearing my one pair of jeans every day.  A couple hours south of there in Phoenix, the sun was really heating things up when we spent an afternoon at Terri's.  The girls are huge and very excited about their little brother on the way, today in fact!  We drove along Route 66 and stopped in a cute little town that reminded us of Radiator Springs, and watched the trains leave the station, Leo loved this.  He loves all things that go.  Leo also had a good time terrorizing the neighbor's goats and feeding the neighbor's donkey, and loved to visit Grandma and Papa's chickens every day to gather the eggs.  Nothing better than fresh eggs!  But Leo had to compete with Kevin for the egg gathering as it was also his favorite thing to do.  Perhaps someday we'll have chickens!  Maybe when Abby passes on.  Thanks for a 

wonderful visit, Grandma and Papa.....