Bucket List: Homeowners

On Thursday Hubby and I were called into the title company's office to sign all the paperwork for the house. Overall, it wasn't as long or difficult as we expected. The only glitch we encountered was that the mortgage company had calculated some of the figures incorrectly so we ended up getting some money back at closing. Awesome! On Friday we met up with our realtor who handed us the keys to our first home. Crazy! Today we will spend the day cleaning, measuring and otherwise trying to get the house ready before the fuzzy family members come home too.

OSU Field School

Yesterday I briefly referred to going down to Corvallis and the OSU campus. The reason for this trip is that I have been accepted to the OSU summer field school. The archeological dig I will be joining will run from the beginning of July until the end of August. There are two areas of excavation, first is Fort Yamhill and second is Champoeg (sham-poo-ee) State Park. The purpose of a field school is to teach you, hands-on, how to conduct a proper dig and give you experience beyond book knowledge.

For those of you unfamiliar with the process, potential archaeologists are required to have both a degree and a field school on their resume. It is my sincerest hope that this is just another step towards finding my forever career!

I have already tendered by resignation to the mansion, who was amazingly supportive of my decision.

Being an archaeologist is not glamorous, nor do we carry whips

Newport, Oregon

Last weekend I wanted to drive down to Corvallis to the OSU campus to get a feel for the area and the parking situation (more on that later). Once in Corvallis Hubby realized it was only another 45 minutes to the ocean, so we took off for the coast.

Yoda went too!

Gloomy Oregon coast

Random day trips are the best kind of getaways!

Historical Yaquina Bay Lighthouse

(We also toured the inside)

Lilies

I planted a single lily this time last year and it died relatively soon after. So, I plucked the lily out and allowed the pot to stay vacant for an entire year. In March a tiny green stalk appeared. Hubby and I referred to it as our "mystery plant" since we weren't certain what had decided to take root there. It wasn't until it actually bloomed that we confirmed it was lilies once again.

Blackhawk Visit

A little over a week ago we received a call at Evergreen to expect 3 Blackhawk helicopters from Fort Lewis to be landing behind the space building. The 45 men landed, toured the museum, had lunch and were photographed in the Spruce Goose. It was a pleasure having them there and we welcomed the once in a lifetime opportunity to see these amazing helicopters in action!

This is the video I shot of all 3 helicopters leaving. It was the first time I had ever been that close to  the rotor wash of such a large helicopter. I was almost blown over! What you can't see from the video is all of the guys waving to us!

Memorial Day 2013

Over the Memorial Day weekend, Hubby and I attempted to get out and see some sites. First was the World Forestry Center (located right next to the zoo) and than we walked through the Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Truly beautiful and peaceful.

Silly Schnauzers

It has been awhile since I have done a 'silly schnauzers' post, so here you go! 

Lily is doing really well (albeit a little chunky) and Trudy is on the mend after a really horrible month. Between her back and teeth problems, the poor thing has been through the wringer. Yesterday Trudy had surgery to remove almost all of her teeth. She didn't have that many when we adopted her, now she only has her two bottom canine teeth left. That tongue of hers should be hanging out of her mouth permanently now!

Yes, that is a sock wrapped around Lily's head. Why? I have no idea.

Trudy when she was at her worst...

and Trudy now that she is feeling better.

This should be meme. 

Hepcat Model

I have made some progress on my Hepcat remote controlled airplane model:

Underside of the wing

There will be a white stripe between the red and blue parts

I made this "decal" from scratch using 3 layers of monokote.

It will go on the top of the wing once it is covered!

Happy Mother's Day

Wishing all of you beautiful Moms out there a very happy, belated Mother's Day!

A Mother's Day gift from my girls

My very first flower basket!

House Hunters: Part VII - Buying a House

In the midst of the chaos regarding Trudy, Hubby and I put an offer in on a house. This is the fourth offer we have submitted in the past year. Needless to say we didn't hold out much hope. This offer was countered by the seller, and we agreed to the new offer, which was a good thing because two other families wanted to put in an offer if ours fell through. So, we put the necessary money into escrow this week and the inspection process begins next week. This property requires a septic, well and traditional home inspection. If all of that turns out satisfactorily, than the process will continue until next month with a closing date of June 21st. While I think that this is outstanding and exciting, Hubby and I agree that with all that is happening with Trudy it has tempered our enthusiasm a little. On that same note, however, it also hasn't stressed us out the way it might have if it weren't for Trudy.

House Stats:

2 bedroom

1 bathroom

1000 square feet

1 car garage with shop

1.02 acres

Built in 1970

Front

Living room

Master bedroom

Second bedroom

Only bathroom

Kitchen

Back of the house

Yard for the dogs

Cabin in the woods

Trudy: Back to the Vet -- Again

While I recognize that veterinary medicine is a challenge due to many factors, most of all -- your patients cannot speak -- I am finding it difficult today reconciling why we cannot find a cocktail of approaches which will help Trudy. 

For every good day we have, we have 5 bad days.

I haven't slept in two days, neither has Hubby. Trudy screams (no exaggeration) at least 3-4 times a night for the past few days and at least that many times during the day. The heating pad no longer provides comfort and when she has an episode she has taken to biting us. I think this is the hardest part. We treat our animals like they are our children, but I realized today that she is -- in fact -- an animal who acts on instinct and lashes out at any other animal or human in her attempt to flee pain. It is absolutely the most heartbreaking situation I have encountered. 

I cannot comfort her, I cannot hold her, I cannot kiss her head. I am her "mother", yet I am not because she is a dog, but try telling my heart that.

Wilderness Weekend

I had last weekend off, so Hubby and I decided to get our portly dogs out for some exercise and sunshine. Trudy is on a new pill which seems to be working well for her and exercise is supposed to help keep her mobile. We didn't attempt anything strenuous, just some easy to moderate walking/hiking.

Mount Hood from Pittock Mansion

Downtown Portland from the Pittock Mansion

Edward Grenfell County Park in McMinnville, OR

Lily ran straight for the creek with no apprehension!

Trudy was uninterested in the water

Trudy: Back to the Vet

You might remember that Trudy hurt her back again back in March on my birthday. We have since massaged, heated, cooled, kenneled, comforted and lost sleep trying to get her back to normal. It didn't work, so after 30+ days of constant attention and love, I am taking her back to the vet for medical intervention. Everyone has their breaking point and Hubby and I reached ours today. Hopefully the vet will have medications/suggestions on how to get her back on the road to recovery. Poor thing has been through a lot, I just want her to not hurt all the time.

Can you see the hunched back?