I had a happy birthday again this year. But instead of 35 people at a lodge in Maine, it was 13 of my nearest and dearest at a restaurant in Key Largo. I started the day swimming with friends at Connie's beautiful pool, took Billie with me for a pedicure (for me, not her) and then dinner at Encore. I love my friends.

Lu and Tom sprung for not one but TWO chocolate pianos for the table, the signature dessert of Encore. I am not a big fan of white chocolate but the mousse was delish. And just look at how beautiful it is!

 And of course there was the requisite yellowtail snapper with candle and singing. This is the Keys after all.

A few more shots of my Billie and how cute is she??! She has discovered the joys of an open car window.

blowin' in the wind

 And, frisbee is mos def her game. And an excellent way to wear her out. Which is exactly what I am going to do right now before I leave for Our Lady of Perpetual Mimosas.

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYBODY!

A gift

Such a lovely surprise to see my nephew, Nat, and family for the weekend! I love to spend time with them and since they can't come to Maine this summer, this weekend is all the sweeter. We had some good drenching rain so the pool is cooler and really refreshing and of course, in the AC there are always card games.

Seth hanging out

In other news, Billie got an intro to the groomer and now you can see her eyes. She was a bit of a drama queen about it but Michelle was a great and gentle teacher so I think she is going to adjust easily to it. Weird having a dog that doesn't shed but instead grows all this sweet fluffy hair. And check this out: I'm supposed to "pluck" the hair inside her ears! Say wha ?

Chillin in her big girl carseat

What's wrong with this picture?

My beautiful back yard

I'll tell you what's wrong with this picture: it's beautiful to look at but it's like a bazillion degrees out there and don't get me started on the humidity, so it's impossible to go out and enjoy it. The pool is a steamy 91 degrees in the afternoon! It feels refreshing for about 2 seconds but only because the air is even hotter. Bleh.

So here I am in hot humid Florida while it is cool and rainy and delicious up in Maine. Why you may ask?  Well, because of Billie. That's a long trip for a little puppy and then there is the issue of the springtime ticks up north. It's a lose-lose. Heat and humidity vs blood sucking vampires. There's gotta be a better way but I don't know what it is. 

For now I'm just grateful to have the best of both worlds. But June in Florida? Never again!

New harness 

Billie has outgrown her travel crate so here she is in her new harness which clips in to her new carseat. The seat is elevated so she can see out the window. Here we are driving by the park so she can see it. Because it's too freaking hot to get out and walk in it.  Bad mommy! Bad bad!

It was a slow week at the office as the boss was out of town and we got to come in late and leave early. Here is Billie hard at work by the file cabinet while I'm at my desk. As you can see, she brings her supplies with her. No patients so her position as official greeter (which she excels at by the way) wasn't happening. Tomorrow we'll be busy. We went to the monthly quilt guid meeting yesterday and she was good as gold.

So, remember the big fat Airstream I bought last spring?  Well, here is a little update.

My pal, Wendy, came for a visit this winter and painted the walls and cabinets and sweated her butt off and I am ever so grateful to her. Here are the cabinet doors drying in the sun. She even had me sanding out there for about five minutes. (Not my favorite job.) It was quite the challenge to remove the carpet (called mouse fur - no, really that's what it's called!) from the walls. I spent a good month on that alone.


Now the floors are in and the quarter round on. Look at the yummy yellow walls. The floors are laminate and installed on top of a pad so they feel spongy to walk on, after walking on plywood all this time. This week I'm going to try the peel and stick "tile" I got for the kitchen and I'm thinking of wallpaper on that faux wood that we didn't paint so stay tuned.

Won't it be nice to have your own little place to stay when you visit me in the Keys?

Baby's first frisbee

This here is a happy Billie. I got her a little frisbee and oh does she love it!

I had to take my emotional temperature today. It would have been my 33rd wedding anniversary. A little tug of loss. Nothing major. I'm good yo.