The other day she did something that made Hubby and I both chuckle.
It was lunchtime. I was on a teleconference and Hubby, who’d just made himself a couple of tacos using leftovers from the previous evening, was in his office eating.
About mid-call, K started whining. Every now and then she’d bark, too. Whine. Bark. Whine. Whine. BARK!
Finally, Hubby got up to see what was going on. I heard him saying “bad dog!” and “go lay down.” I was wondering what the deal was because it’s usually Meg who get’s the “bad dog” bit. But it was definitely K who’d been making the noise. (Yes, us dog owners recognize our dogs’ voices.)
After my meeting, I asked Hubby what had happened.
He’d left all of his taco fixings spread out on the counter while he was eating. Having lived with Meg-the-delinquent for many years, we know enough to never, ever leave food close to the edge. The second no one is watching, she’ll sneak in and steal the stuff in a heartbeat.
When Hubby came out of his office, he saw K in the kitchen with her front feet on the edge of the counter stretching her neck as far as she could to reach those tacos. They were just out of range.
She could smell them. And she could see them. But she couldn’t reach them. And she was getting pissed. Hence the whining/barking.
Most days here at the ToadMama abode are pretty uneventful. Notice I said “most” days? Yesterday was no different.
Actually, there was some excitement yesterday. Eric came over for dinner. That’s my youngest child. One of the things we talked about was whether I had anything exciting planned for his 21st birthday. Yep, my baby will be 21.
Gasp!
More on the visit and what I cooked later. But first, some doggie pics. I couldn’t resist snapping this shot of the dogs yesterday morning.
All three dogs asleep while I work. Notice the biggest dog in the smallest (cat) bed again?
I’m not sure why Meg likes the cat bed so much, but she does. She likes to lay in some of the strangest positions in it, too. (Remember my infamous Meg’s Dilemma slide-show?)
Check out yesterday’s position…
Meg under the pillow.
She’s one of those dogs that likes to fluff (i.e., scratch loudly at forever) her bedding. Whether it’s her dog bed, a pile of sheets waiting to be washed, a pile of bras, a scatter rug (our rugs in WV are always a mess) or the carpet, she’s a scratcher. She stayed like that for a long time, too.
Once she got up, I moved all of the dog beds out into the hallway so I could vacuum. And this is what happened MINUTES later.
Princess Belle
Yep, she’s laying on all three dog beds.
Now back to Eric’s visit. I don’t have any pictures of him to share. Sorry. I’ll have to work on that, too. I’m way better at taking pictures of inanimate stuff and nature than of people. In case you hadn’t noticed.
Anyway… for dinner last night, I made Garlic Lime Chicken Fajitas. Hubby and I have been in search of the perfect fajita recipe for the longest time. We’ve eaten fajitas in a lot of different places, but our favorites by far have always come from Plaza Garibaldi right here in Glen Burnie / Pasadena, Maryland.
Last night’s attempt? They were “good, but still not Garibaldi’s” fajitas. Hubby said they tasted too limey. Eric and I both liked them. Hubby said I should have served them with insalata (he actually said that). That’s lettuce, which I did not have.
The point of this whole story is not to tell you about my good-but-not-Garibaldi fajitas, but about the recipe I used. It was one of McCormick’s new Recipe Inspirations, which I just had to buy because the packaging is way cool (unlike me, as evidenced by the fact that I still use terms like “way cool”).
McCormick's Recipe Inspirations come in way cool packages.
If you follow the Recipe Inspirations link you’ll see they have six different flavors. I bought the Quesadilla Casserole one, too, but we haven’t tried it yet.
Not only is the packaging fun, but there’s an index card-sized recipe card on the back that lists all of the ingredients as well as the preparation instructions so you can easily replicate the recipe without having to buy this pre-measured spice pack again. Although, for folks that don’t keep stuff like cumin on hand (we always have cumin on hand), this pre-measured pack is the way to go.
So… that was our excitement yesterday. I hope your day was just as much or maybe even more fun!
The skies were clear, the air was cool. Spring trees are still in bloom.
Beautiful WeatherRedbuds Still in Bloom (notice the heart-shaped leaf?)Blooming Redbud and Dogwood with Blue Sky BackdropNew GrowthMore New Growth
Flowering trees. New Growth everywhere. Peace. Quiet.
I just love living in the middle of the woods.
A Glimpse of Our Woods
Temps were a little cool for a motorcycle ride. We could’ve maybe done a bicycle ride, but we had to unclog a culvert instead. Fun, right?
“Fun” is not always about what you’re doing, or where you are doing it, but about who you are doing it with.
Hubby Clearing the CulvertA Lot of Dirt and Gravel was Clogging the Pipe
Of course there are no pictures of me working, though I did help. Really. It was my job moving the muck Hubby dragged out of the pipe.
“Fun” might not be the right word to describe the endeavor, but it was still a good day. Because we were together. And togetherness is especially important when it’s your 17th wedding anniversary.
Old Couple, Odd Couple or Happy Couple? You be the judge...
The only thing that might’ve made it better would have been to have some kids or grandkids around. At least we have our furkids.
Mama Posing with the Girls
We capped the day off with a drive to our favorite Hampshire County restaurant, El Puente in Capon Bridge.
Driving into Downtown Capon Bridge
It really was a LOVEly day.
Our 17th anniversary.
Wow.
Time really does fly.
We’re both thankful for all the good times we’ve shared over the past 17 years and look forward to more togetherness in the future.
The second weekend in April has us back at the WV place. Temps this week are significantly cooler than last week. It was in the low 40s when we woke up this morning. The high is only supposed to reach 60. That’s MUCH more Spring-like, which is fine by me.
Although cooler, things definitely got more green over the past week. And the redbuds, which were just starting to bloom last week, are now in full bloom.
Redbud Tree at the End of Our DrivewayRedbud Close-up
Are you wondering what this has to do with K? Bear with me. I thought I’d give you some nice, pleasant, soothing images first.
I shot these pics this morning while I was out walking with the girls. Thanks to Google Maps, I can give you a satellite overview of our walking “trail.”
I labeled the map so I wouldn’t have to describe each marker in too much detail. Our driveway is 500-600 feet long. It bends in the middle. A typical walk takes us “down the hill” to the end of the driveway at Turkey Hollow Road. From there, we turn left and walk to the top of Turkey Hollow Road and then round the bend and continue to the cul-de-sac at the end of Turkey Hollow Road. The closest public road is at the bottom of the ridge behind our house. All of the roads on the map have a dirt and gravel surface, which means not a whole heck of a lot of traffic.
This morning, K disappeared into the woods opposite the end of the driveway at Turkey Hollow Road. I knew she wasn’t far away, so I continued walking to the top of Turkey Hollow Road, which is about 300 feet from the end of the driveway. After a minute or so, she reappeared. I called her once and she ignored me. She was busy sniffing at the ground. From that distance, I couldn’t tell what she was sniffing.
When I called her the second time, she came running.
K Comes A Runnin'
It was only on the way back toward the house that I discovered what she’d been sniffing.
K's Prize Carcass
Yep, she’d drug a carcass out of the woods.
K won the prize for first bit of grossness discovered this weekend.
Upon closer inspection (I had to look), I realized it was a possum. It was no baby either. This lovely bag of bones was at least a foot long. Of course, I couldn’t just let it lay there. Would you want your dogs eating (and potentially puking up) this nice treat?
Closer Shot of K's Treasure
I made K leave it lay so I could return to the house for a bag. (It was far too spread out and loosely assembled to just pick it up with my hands.)
She was not happy to leave her treasure behind.
Not Happy to Abandon Her Treasure
She was even less thrilled to see me bag it up upon our return.
Can I Have My Bone Back?
It’s a good thing I have a strong stomach.
And guess what? Mere minutes after our return to the house, Meg reappeared with a bone of her own.
Bone Envy
It was much larger, and older, so I’m guessing it was one of the original pieces from the infamous bone collection, which you can read more about if so inclined.
Meg’s bone is now in the bag with the possum carcass hanging high up on one of our porch columns where it will be safe until we dispose of it.
Why not just put it in the trash? Because our trash can is in the garage. And bones like that tend to smell pretty bad.
Hubby and I plan on taking a bicycle ride a bit later today. Hopefully tomorrow’s post will be a little less grisly.
Sorry, but that’s the reality of life in the woods…
A week ago, I was happy to see temperatures in the 80s. It made for great motorcycling weather. Actual sunshine and warm temps were nice for a couple of days.
But it’s April, people. April. And that means it is way, Way, WAY too early in the year to get hot! So enough already.
Although heat does have its perks…
"Searchin' for my lost shaker of salt..."
Like margaritas. What a great way to beat the heat (if I do say so myself)!
But I can’t be beating the heat midday while I am working. I just can’t. It’s against the rules, of course, and would render me pretty ineffective, which can be very bad when working under a tight deadline trying to balance 400 lines of Excel calculations.
Anyway… by Monday, I was tired of the heat. It actually got downright hot. I don’t remember the exact high temperature for the day, but it was close to 90. By Tuesday, it was in the 90s for sure.
Now, the thought of turning on the A/C in April is appalling. Sort of. Mainly because A/C = higher energy bills. But as I lay sweltering in bed on Tuesday night (sort of) struggling to get to sleep, I kept thinking of the little thermometer in my office. The one that said the high temperature on Tuesday IN MY OFFICE was 92. And that’s with the ceiling fan on high and the window wide open.
There’s a frugal gene in Hubby’s bloodline. He really hates turning turning the A/C on too early in the year. I do, too, but I also hate to be hot. Wednesday morning I was all ready to go check into a hotel if Hubby wouldn’t let me turn the A/C on. But when I told him it hit 92 in my office the previous day, he said something to the effect of “quit whining and turn the air conditioner on.” It took me all of about three milliseconds to close all the windows and slide the thermostat switch from OFF to COOL.
Ah… sweet relief. It was so much easier to work that day. And the next day. This morning, however (Friday), I turned the A/C off. It was 49 degrees when I let the dogs out. And today’s high is only supposed to be 60.
Spring is back. Thank. GOD.
Seriously, I hate to be hot. Although it was a great excuse to whip up a blender full of my famous blue margaritas. (Not that I need an excuse, really.)
I imbibed happily on Wednesday afternoon while grilling some chicken for dinner. Is this a great summer image or what?
Grilled Chicken with Baja Citrus Marinade
Yum. My favorite way to eat grilled chicken is very thinly sliced, marinated, cooled, cut into small strips and sprinkled on a fresh garden salad. Double yum.
One of the best improvements Hubby has done here at the MD abode was to run a natural gas line out to the patio for the grill. So we can use it anytime, year-round, without ever having to worry about running out of propane. Whenever we get a hankering for something grilled (or “barbecued” as my Belgian friend would say), we can have it. I’ve cooked out there in all kinds of weather, too. Rain, sleet, snow, ice. Really.
The girls like to hang out with me while I am cooking outside. (They like to hang out with me inside, too, but I always kick them out of my indoor kitchen because then tend to get under foot.)
Meg with the Grill in the Background
Meg is my most faithful “guardian” (i.e., most diligent dog when it comes to waiting for droppage).
Belle Hoping for Droppage, Too
You can’t see K in the above image, but she wasn’t far away. She was waiting on the top step.
K... She's Actually Smiling for Once (she smiles a lot, just not often in pictures)
It doesn’t take long at all to grill chicken that is very thinly sliced. But then I had to let it sit for a while so it could cool thoroughly. There’s nothing worse, to me, than hot meat on a cold salad. Ew.
ToadMama's Famous Blue Margarita (aka Kick-ass Blue Margarita)
The REAL reason I took pictures of the margarita the other day is the strawberry. I’d never thought to garnish my margarita with a strawberry. But that’s probably just because I never had fresh strawberries on hand before while drinking margaritas. It’s pretty, isn’t it?
I just may have started a new trend…
While I am totally not ready for Summer yet, I must say that I’m glad the grill no longer looks like this.
The Grill As It Looked on February 13
Here’s something earworm-inducing to get your Friday started.
The weather was absolutely gorgeous this past weekend. Sunny and in the 80s. Unreal for early April. But we’ll take it!
Hubby and I covered just under 300 miles on our motorcycles on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday was the longest riding day.
I don’t have any pictures to share because riding a motorcycle requires two hands and full concentration. Besides, while the weather was gorgeous, for the most part things are still pretty brown. In the higher elevations of Western MD and PA that we rode through, there’s still some snow in spots. There are lots of trees and flowers in bloom, but they’re sort of confined to peoples’ yards.
Since I didn’t get pictures of our ride, I’ll share a bunch of pics I got of the dogs this weekend.
First up, K…
Her face is much more expressive when we’re at the WV place. Like all of the other dogs who have ever lived there with us or visited, she LOVES it. It’s quickly become her favorite place in the world, too.
Coon Dog 1
For whatever reason, Belle was obsessed with her stuffed raccoon this weekend.
Coon Dog 2Coon Dog 3 (take note of that pretty, white fur)
She carried that coon on pretty much all of our walks. It waited at the end of our driveway as we explored beyond that point. But she always picked it back up on the way home.
Speaking of walks… since we left the dogs home alone all day on Saturday, I took them on an extra-long walk when we returned.
"Are you coming, Mama?" (notice Belle still has the raccoon?)
All of the girls get very excited when they realize we’re going down the hill. K was excited, but after I abandoned her earlier in the day, she wanted to make sure I was coming along. She is quite the Mama’s girl.
Meg After the WalkK After the WalkBelle After the Walk
Sorry for the blurry shot of Belle, but she runs everywhere she goes when we’re off exploring. So getting clear shots of her can sometimes be challenging.
Speaking of Belle… all of the girls enjoyed the long walk, but I think Belle enjoyed it the most. She was in rare form, too. She gets that way periodically. What I mean by rare form in this case is running through a swampy ditch like a crazy dog. I think she likes the way it sounds as she splashes through the water. She runs as fast as she can in one direction, then stops, turns around, and runs as fast as she can in the other direction. It’s quite comical to watch. It’s almost like she downed about 15 cups of coffee and has all this energy to burn off NOW. She’s done it in the little wet-weather stream at the end of our driveway before, too.
The only problem with the swampy ditch is the way she looked when she was done.
So Much For That Pretty Liver-and-White Princess
She looks a bit like K there doesn’t she?
I could make her stay away from the swampy ditch, but she was obviously having such a blast. Besides, once she dries she doesn’t look nearly as bad. (NOTE: I do have more pics, but they’re not very good. They do, however, give you an idea of how goofy she looked running around . Even K thought she was weird! CLICK HERE if you want to see the rest of Belle’s Swamp Dog pics.)
Our walk tired all of the girls out.
Later in the Day, After She'd DriedMeg Catching Her Breath After the WalkK Was Catching Her Breath With Meg, Too
