Independence Day and Mother Nature

 

Happy 4th of July

It may be Independence Day here, but it's July 4th all over!  I can wish the whole world a happy 4th of July!

Ember and I went walking early on the 3rd, and the neighborhood fireworks fanatics were already starting up.  She did not seem to be bothered by them, most of them were "in the distance".  The booms and pops continued throughout the day.  A few of them were loud enough or close enough to merit a head whip, but the recovery time was short.  My scared puppy has become a confident adult.

We had a big storm blow through Friday evening the 3rd.  This was when the big community fireworks display was scheduled, with the "Uncle Sam Jam" festivities located in our minor league baseball venue.  They ended up cancelling it because of the lightning danger, but intended to go ahead and set off the fireworks at 10 p.m.  I'm assuming they did, as I heard big booms and woke briefly between ten and midnight, but I had already gone to bed, since it was pouring rain and rumbling thunder at 8 p.m. when I would normally be taking Ember outside for "last call."  

In any case, I woke to the rain on the roof and found a wet deck with a kitty sitting on the rail.  He had done a vanish on me, outside, while the booms were going off early in the evening.  I was glad to have the kitty ready to come inside as it was time for his every couple of months flea and tick medication.  

The forecast did not predict rain until noon, but it was actively raining in the 7 a.m. hour, so we went to the coffee drive-thru, instead of on a walk.

It finally quit dripping about 11 a.m., and Ember and I set out to review the neighborhood.  There were pops and bangs going off, but they did not seem to bother her much.  We got home around noon and had a quiet afternoon.  I left her outside the crate while I went upstairs to take a shower, and she handled it well.  When I came downstairs all freshened up, she was laying on the cool tile at the foot of the stairs.

I put the fruit for the party together, and after Ember's supper at 4 p.m., I headed over to "the kids".  The birdie that I wrote about before, that had gone to the vet last week, unfortunately passed away on Thursday.  Blessedly, in his final hour, he was being held by my daughter in law.  This sweet bird (Scout, named after the character in To Kill a Mockingbird) had been in her care for 21 years, half her lifetime!  FGC was quite heart-broken and the whole family had to adjust to this loss.

They decided they to have a funeral pyre for the little guy.  In a cardboard box on which we all wrote messages and prayers and wishes, his body was burnt in the chiminea.  We all shared memories.  FGC couldn't watch it all and went to help set up fireworks watching chairs on the front side of the house.  

His ashes will be spread on the garden, but a small amount added to the bird cremains urn the family has collected over the years.  

The party moved to the front of the house, where a few daylight fireworks were set off before the grill was fired up.  The fruit I brought, burgers, hot dogs, chips and buns comprised the holiday meal.  Dessert came in the form of cake pops, baked by DIL's mom.  She is such a great baker, desserts being her specialty.  These were moist and flavorful.  Banana flavored as requested by FGC, and vanilla for those who were not banana flavor fans.

Then it was back to the fireworks.  Carl, their dog, was on his calming meds.  The remaining cockatiel, Kiwi, was not only grieving the loss of his roommate, but also bothered by the booms and pops and smoky air.  DIL took him to his room and covered his cage to help him calm down.  

There were smoke ones.  Seemed like some inventive marketer rebranded a gender reveal firework pack for July 4th.  In the two pack, one was pink, the other blue.

The Millenium Falcon put in an appearance, shooting sparks.

Then dissolving into sparking pops!

About the time several "screech owl" style fireworks went off; I decided I'd best get home to Ember.

It wasn't yet full dark when I navigated through the five parties on the streets that intersect where my house sits.  Ember was quite happy to be let out of her crate, but not happy with what was going on outside.

Ember decided she would remain "on alert". She did not want to return to the crate for the night, so we just chilled on the couch, watching out the window.  

Ember stood guard while I went upstairs and got ready for bedtime.  About 10 p.m. I gave up and sacked out on the couch while she stayed on alert.

She woke me with a cold nose on the back of my knee about midnight.  The bangs and pops were dying down, and she was ready to take a crate entry bribe.  

Sunday, July 5th

I awoke feeling every day of my over seventy years.  Fed the cat, greeting Ember, and took her out in the backyard.  Doesn't seem like any of the debris from the night's activities made their way into my yard.  Ember took care of business, and a little while (and a mug of coffee) later we went out on leash to survey the neighborhood.

What a difference two years makes in the lifetime of a puppy!  I well remember the first time I took her for a walk after a fireworks night, when she was about 5 months old.  She wanted to eat everything (or at least mouth it, discover it).  This year?  Most of the time, a quick sniff meant "move on".  Toward the end of the walk, where the debris field hadn't been stacked up yet, she was more curious.  We made it through our rounds and through the coffee drive-thru for our mommy-and-me day ritual.

In short, Life is Good.  Spark on!

Ten days later...

 

Going backwards through time, here.  This photo is from the Mothers' Day outing on Saturday.  FGC was with, but as usual, he's being left out of photographic evidence for program reasons.

Said FGC was behind the camera, taking the photo of foster mom and foster grandmas (both of us).

One of the appetizers that we shared around was called Tot-chos, a tater tots version of nachos.  It was really pretty good.  Other offerings were flatbread pizzas and chicken and shrimp on sticks.  Nonalcoholic "fancy drinks" work for both FGC and for me.  One was a strawberry concoction, and we both had that.  There was also one called something like misty dew.  Son was avoiding alcohol for his own reasons that evening and he said it tasted rather like lemon meringue pie.

This has been our mothers' day outing for two years now, with a child involved, so it's kind of locked in as tradition.  The bar has outdoor seating on a balcony on the 6th floor and you can see a whole lot of the University campus from that roof spot.

Saturday morning Ember and I met a former co-worker of mine and her dog Zoe to have the two canines meet and try a parallel leash walk at a nearby park (neutral ground for both dogs).  It went pretty well, for a first meeting between dogs that don't know each other.  As is generally the case, they take their cues from their humans and once they both figured the two humans were OK with each other, they would be OK with the other dog, too.  We will try it again next Saturday, weather permitting.

Back up a day from that and we have Friday May 8th.  Ember and I started off as usual, with our morning rituals, down to poo patrol and the coffee run.  

Then a message popped up from DIL.  My son was headed for the ER.  Didn't matter that it was probably a small thing, just needed attention sooner, rather than later, mom genes kick in.  I spent a couple of hours keeping him company while he languished in triage.  The good thing about boring ER visits is it means the big scary things have been ruled out.  DIL showed up shortly after I did.  She could not concentrate on work.  In the end, they discharged him, sent DIL off to the pharmacy, and the day continued for me in a more normal fashion.

Ember and I went on a longer than usual walk when I got home, then she was ready to collapse in a puddle of warm puppy.  

Backing up to the middle of the week, and we have the setting of a start date for the deck work.  First week in June is the plan.  The contractor would have been OK with starting on the 18th of May, but since I will be getting Carl for a two-dog weekend plus on the 23rd, I did not want to risk something going wrong (bad weather, delivery delay, or any number of things that can happen with house projects) and not having access to my back yard by a simple opening of the door to the deck during my two-dog time!

Also mid-week:  a new fitness watch arrived, and I got it all set up.  I had been wearing the new "cheaper" smart watch for about a month. I have decided the integration of systems does mean something to me. I traded in my Google watch for the new Google 4 version.  The trade-in process was pretty smooth.  They sent packaging, and as is normal these days, there are YouTube videos showing step by step what to do.

Now we get to the "just for fun" photos:

Lap Kitty.

Google Assistant fail.  It got activated accidentally.  It volunteered to "take a selfie".  I spotted the countdown on the screen, 4... 3.. 2, and started to say "Nooooo!"

I thought it was a funny shot, so did not erase it at once, and now it's your giggle for the day!

It would not be an Emberville post without a glamor shot of the star.

Life is good.  Keep on Sparking!

Two years of dog-mom!

 

Happy "Gotcha Day" to Ember, who joined my household two years ago March 31st.  We celebrated with a drive-thru kiddy cone at a nearby DQ, a day early, because the thermometer was telling us our town broke the record high for the day.  Ember polished off her half of the cone and then was leaning over the seat of the car, staring at MY half! 

Artemis II launch lifted my spirits.  So much not hopeful in the news, great to see something long planned pulled off.

I am definitely feeling overpeopled.  

We had rain on Thursday.  Misty morning on Friday.  I was kind of out of it and ordered the wrong thing at the coffee drive-thru.  The crew "caught it" and questioned at the window if that was what I really wanted.  "Was that what I said?  I guess I'll take it."  But they fixed me my regular drink anyway, and gave me the milkbone for the puppers.

I filled my Dexter's gas tank, too.  Ouch!  Would you believe under six gallons for almost 20 bucks?  

Seriously, I am bummed about the state of the country.  I am bummed that we are getting into another of those wars that is oh, so hard to get OUT of.  While my son is hopefully past the "let's go sign up phase" having a wife and child who need him, having veterans who rely on his assistance... there are other mothers, other sons and daughters, other husbands and wives, fathers and mothers.  

Artemis II was halfway to the moon as I got up on Saturday morning.  Onward!

Speaking of Saturday morning, The Prisoner decided he did not want to go outside, nor did he want to return to his "safe zone" in the laundry room.  He perched on the kitchen counter and showed no signs of wanting to move.

I let Ember out of her crate, just to see how they would interact.  We had a ballet dance of "let the kitty get away", that involved Mom putting the harness and leash onto Ember while she was mouthing the cat.  The Prisoner appeared to be putting up zero resistance to the dog's attentions.  Eventually, I managed to get them separated, and the front door opened to let The Prisoner retain his dignity by going outside while Ember stayed in.  Good exercise for both their brains.  Good confidence builder for Mom in terms of both animals letting her intervene.  Detente continues.  

When it came time for Ember's morning nap (after the usual rituals had been observed), she didn't even ask to go out to chase the kitty, but went on in to her crate, accepted her cookie, and let me open the back door for The Prisoner and escort him to his luxury suite in the laundry room.

Saturday was very own Ember's Easter Egg hunt.   

12 plastic eggs loaded with doggy treats.  She did manage to find all the treats, and she enjoyed cracking the eggs.  Only about half of them got destroyed in the process. 

Easter Sunday I packed up a fruit tray to take over to the brunch at the Mythical Son's house.  Ember went down for her puppy nap in time for me to have a quick shower before heading over.  I left her napping in her crate for the duration.

Since Ember did not come, they were able to hide the eggs and shift the egg hunt in the backyard before the meal.  This was a great "burn off some energy" for both foster grand kiddo and the grand dog, Carl.

A scene undoubtedly repeated over and over across the land.  Yes, the kiddo climbed a tree to retrieve an egg.  He managed to rip his pants getting down.  Fortunately, the "other grandma" says she can mend them.

DIL served customized mini-quiches, to suit the varied preferences (some folks don't care for peppers, some like hotter, we all are good on cheese and sausage, etc.), asparagus tips, tater tots, the fruit tray, and coffee cake.  Oof... didn't eat again until suppertime!

That's about enough for a weekly blog.  Here's hoping you all had the holiday that your own tradition holds dear, and that it was good.

Life is good.  Its renewal in Spring is good.  Peace is good, and we pray for that, worldwide.  Keep the spark shining in your hearts and with your actions!

Carl turned 7 years old!

Time flies.  Carl was adopted by my son in 2019.  He was such a cutie!  I puppy sat every Monday when my son only worked from home four days a week.

They celebrate his birthday on Pi Day.  Irrational?  Regardless, this was his puppy photo with me, in May 2019.  Adorable!

The celebration this year was an outdoor romp at the neighborhood dog park near my son and DIL's home.  I drove Ember over so that they could have an hour of play time, along with a whole bunch of other dogs who came and went while we were there.

The mythical son, watching over the playing canines.  Added bonus of a dog birthday party?  Human hugs.

I was ecstatic to have DIL's dad join the outing, as he'd missed several due to recurring colds.  He was in good shape today.  You don't see DIL because she's behind the camera.  

Second bonus:  Pets other than your own.  A great group of dogs paraded by the bench full of "elder humans" (all us grandparents) particularly because the grandmas were packing treats.  This photo just shows our two dogs (Carl in foreground in a blue collar, Ember in the pink harness).  But there were half a dozen (or more) others who came up to say hi at one point or another.  A couple of huskies, a pair of Bernadoodles, a clearly full-on poodle, a beagle, several mixed breeds.  All well behaved.  One had a collar that read "Emotional support animal".

Sunday is supposed to plunge us back into Winter, so this hour in sunshine was much appreciated.  It was about 50℉, and while breezy, not too horrid.  Note we're all in sweats or light jackets.  The kiddo is even sockless in crocs (his favorite and most frequent footwear).

After the outing, both doggos napped in their separate homes.

Sunday morning, we are in a "weather watch" day.  Brrr.  Gusty winds and snow predicted for later.  Ember and I went through the coffee drive-through early, and she put herself down for a nap a little early, too.  So I'll post an early blog to document the special event of Carl's birthday, and start accumulating the next week's entry with whatever the weather does today.

Life is good.  Keep Sparking!

Happy New Year from Emberville

 

New Year, new toy.  That's a fuzzy pink tail on a green monster toy that jiggles and moves.  It was a big hit, and Ember chased it all around the x-pen and the dining room.  I did take it away for a bit to give it a rest.  And she got a New Year's Eve afternoon walk in the neighborhood, which is a blessing in Winter when it's warm enough and not slick.

Video of toy in action.

There were fireworks in the evening hours, starting around 7 p.m., which did not coincide with either ringing in the New Year or a football celebration... so... I was once again grateful that Ember doesn't seem to be bothered much, if they aren't right next to her.

New Year's morning, The Prisoner decided he did not want to go either outside or down to his luxury suite, and he planted himself at the top of the stairs.

Ember whined a bit at the gate, but settled down and played quietly, lifting her head and keeping a sharp eye at that staircase every so often.

I settled in on the couch with my coffee, and Ember joined me, napping for a while.  Eventually, though, Mr. Prisoner decided he was ready to return to his domain and he came down those stairs.

Ember hopped off the couch and followed him to the laundry room door, where I had to briefly intervene.  "Let the kitty get away, remember?"  I opened the door a crack, while holding Ember's collar, and The Prisoner slipped quickly into his safe space.  I'm thinking we will survive the Winter!

New Year's Day Ember napped in her crate while I drove over to enjoy the family pasta fest.  My son was the chef.  He cooked something called cascatelli, a big pot.  It's a custom pasta marketed by a pod-caster that my son found.  He slow cooked an incredibly meat-heavy sauce, while his wife grated parmigiano reggiano.  The meats were beef and Italian forms of sausage, diced finely.  Onions, garlic.  You get the idea.  My son married into an Italian family, and he grew up in a neighborhood heavily populated with an immigrant population from both Italy and Poland, so has an affinity for both cuisine arts.

Carl was a very happy fellow to have lots of grandma and grandpa attention... two grandmas and a grandpa... and my son gave him a "naughty bone" that some clever pet store sold to pet-parents who wanted to distract their dog while the family did holiday things.  Ember gave me a good sniffing over when I got home, and she even got a few tiny bites of the gingerbread cookie that came home with me.

Homemade gingerbread... yum!  DIL, her mom, and FGC decorated the cookies.  That's the whole platter, before a couple of them were fished out to send home with me.

One of the Lego sets that came to my son at Christmas time.  I had heard that he'd completed it but on New Year's Day, he brought it upstairs to show off.  It's Gandalf fighting the balrog on the bridge inside the mines of Moria in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

I am so confused... I thought it was Monday, but it's Friday... January 2, 2026

Friday was a planning and making appointments day.  I made reservations for the lunch with my niece and my son, daughter in law and their foster son.  I dug out the appointment slip for my annual physical, and I see my January calendar filling up fast with medicalizing things.  Dental, another eye appointment, and the blood draw and Medicare "wellness check".  I booked three extra day care days for Ember, to allow for all my own human stuff!

I was overfilled from the pasta feed on New Year's, but pretty much skipped breakfast and was ready for the leftovers by noon.

Saturday, January 3, 2026

The kids were going to Zootopia 2 at the movies, but I opted out of this family outing.  I originally was going to opt out just to have some cave time, then I realized, "oops", the 3rd was the date of the memorial service for my childhood friend who passed away November 29th.  Ember cooperated nicely, settling in for puppy nap #1 in time for me to shower and put on "human event" clothing, and drive over to the church where it was being held.

This was a childhood and a workplace friend.  The workplace was well represented.  I can't vouch for how many of our grade school friends might have been in attendance as well; that was 60+ years ago, and, well, we've changed our appearance just a tad since then.  I complicated matters by having moved away during the mid-section of my working life, post college.  But it was nice to see a few others of the retired from there crowd.  I did not stay for the luncheon, so I did end up with at least a partial cave day.  

I was very glad that I went, though.  The service fit in well with the way the whole family focus of the holiday season has gone.  Relationships, family, photos of the time periods through which both she and I lived.  I think I was even in one of the photos (of a biking group).  Some of my favorite Bible verses were referenced.  The music was just right.  I know that my friend helped to plan this "Celebration of Life" which it truly was.  She had known, and had time, to prepare her loved ones and to plan for this day.

Life is good.  It is short, though, even when it's 70 or more years!  Spark on and hug your loved ones.

Halloween in photos

 

It was a cool but not freezing night, with a waxing moon peeking through the clouds.  Felt very Halloween!

Ember started the evening as a quiet girl in her crate but as the activity began she got restless and I let her out and put her in her "walking clothes".

Not a puppy to sleep through the whole thing in her crate, Ember was a good girl in leash and harness, content to let mom know when trick or treaters arrived.  She knew before I did.  She knew before a doorbell would ring.

Naturally, I overbought the candy.  Should have started out the evening having the kids just "grab a big handful" (as I did with the final group).  I let them take 3 to start with and didn't complain if they couldn't count and got five or six.

Now, of course, I have plenty of leftovers!

One family as it was starting to get dark.  Total trick or treaters:  9.  This matches last year's count.

Across town, "the kids" had about a hundred, maybe a little more, but they are in a section of town with younger families.  Ours is starting to skew a little younger now.

I could not resist... son's costume:  Clark Kent changing into Superman.

Hope everyone had a good Halloween!

Labor Day weekend - the end of Summer

Socially speaking, this weekend is the end of the Summer season.  Even though school started a couple of weeks ago, this is the "end of the Summer" blast.

Ember came along, and she and Carl wore each other out. FGC played video games while DIL's dad watched the Husker women win their volleyball match.

The dogs stayed out in the back yard the whole time.  Except for the couple of times they broke inside, then got sent right back out.  They definitely stayed out while people were eating!  Grillmaster made sure of that.

Highlight of the day was when FGC came back into the kitchen and told Ember to stay and to sit... and she did!

A really sweet mom - daughter hug!  

DIL's mom brought cookies that she made especially because FGC had been asked to name his favorite kind, and he said simply, "Yellow cookies with yellow frosting" (Yellow is his favorite color).  I didn't get any photos of them, but they were very good!  Everything that lady makes is outstanding, and desserts in general are her specialty.

I brought the classic Greek salad, undressed.

DIL contributed salsa and fresh produce from her carefully tended garden.  I got to bring extras home, including the season's "gold"... homegrown tomatoes!

Mythical Son was the grill master.  He had brought the grill up onto the deck because of predicted rain but we got really lucky with the forecast changing and rain start being put off, then put off again, and again.  In the end, we did not get rained on at all!

The dogs strategically stayed near the grill while playing but did not crowd the grill master.  Carl shared his toys like a good boy.

Everything was yummy, and I got some good chill time on the deck with my son after the meal.  The VB game was over and FGC, DIL, and her mom were playing a video game inside.  The dogs were happy.  The people were happy.  It was a good day.

As it got close to Ember's supper time, I snuck her out the gate and she hopped up into the car just like after day care, and we had a smooth ride home.  She had her supper, and we chilled together on the couch until time for her after supper nap before "last call".

The dynamic canine duo, keeping the deck safe from squirrels and flies.

Hope your Labor (or Labour) Day observance was as good.  

Life is Good!

Spark on!

Perfect fourth, rainy morning following

 

My classic Greek salad, almost ready.  I added some sliced hard-boiled egg after I had taken the photo.  It went over well with the hot dogs and chips and stuff at the family gather.  We topped the day with water gun fights (the young folk), fireworks, and root beer floats.

Setting up dad - son water action.  Mom & dad got into a water gun battle that spilled over onto grandma taking the video.  

Again, no photos of the FGC, due to the system rules, but he was off-screen in that photo, to the left, standing in a bin of water with a refillable water shooter.  By the end of this action everybody had to go change clothes!

The spectators for the fireworks.

Classic family Summer gather.  I haven't done one of these for the fourth in a while.  Having a kid in the mix makes all the difference!

As for the pets?  Carl was medicated and mellowed out.  Ember stayed home in her safe space.  The Prisoner hung out in his luxury suite.

With the Holiday landing on a Friday the weekend was pretty "normal" for a holiday weekend.  Ember and I hid from the heat, choosing to walk outdoors in the mornings.  It was a good weekend to catch up on movies.  I had never seen Titantic, the movie, which came out in 1997!  At least not all the way through. It was not what I expected, and instead of being "icky" it felt pretty "normal disaster movie" for the most part.  As long as I was on the theme of disaster movies, I also took on Dante's Peak.

My heart aches for the folks down in Texas Hill Country!  * rant * One thing I hate to see is all the finger pointing that seems to take us over when something bad / tragic happens.  No amount of blaming or defending is going to bring those people back.  Each one of them has people grieving over their loss.  Is there a place for planning to prevent the loss of life in future?  Absolutely.  But arguing over "who let these people down and let the system erode", well there's plenty of blame to go around, and to spin on a disaster?  Roll up sleeves and go to work, instead!  * end of rant *

I remember reading about the similar flash flooding in 1987, when I was mom to a young son.  The stories of kids swept away in that earlier era, clinging to trees, saying goodbye to one another, and strong faith that the youngsters were hanging on to.  The feeling of deja vu that came over the news sent me to Google to look up the time frame of the earlier flood.

On a Spark note, I had a moment at the grocery store over the weekend.  I lifted my 20 pound box of cat littler onto the belt, and as the 20-something bagger had to lift it back into my cart, she said, "You've got good muscles."

Yay!  That's why I pay a trainer, right?  Hearing admiration from a young person when you're over 70 will keep you working out!

Tuesday night's giggle has to do with the flyswatter brigade.  I think I may have mentioned in a prior blog that I bought several manual fly swatters.  I am trying to train targets (for Ember's nose to touch) and flyswatters not only swat pests, but they are also inexpensive dog training targets!  Since Ember has a history of destroying these things, I bought six.  I keep them atop the 'fridge until I'm ready to train with one of them.

But they are also functional fly swatters, and Tuesday during "last call" a fly got into the house.  I snatched one up and used it.  I got the fly!  And two seconds later, a furry dark blur brushed by me while leaping onto the dining room table.  She had it in her mouth (if you expand the photo, you can see the teeth marks on the handle).  I could not help myself; I laughed!  She looked a bit confused to find herself atop that table, as it's not a normal place for her to be.  

Ember exited the tabletop and took her prize into her x-pen.  I was careful to be casual about my request to give it back "Mommy needs that".  But she dropped it, and accepted her "thank you" treat.  I put it back atop the 'fridge and just kept on smiling.  My only regret is missing getting the photo of the look on her face when she was on the table.

On Wednesday morning, I had a trip to the dentist.  X-rays and fluoride, and I'm good until next January.  Ember seemed happy to have an extra day care day.  The Prisoner was happy to have another dog-free day, and he came up for extra pets.  

That's how quickly a week zooms by!  Hope everyone is surviving whatever life's throwing their way.  And that we can all breathe and accept that Life is good, by definition.  Keep on sparking!