A little outing

July 16

We decided to drive into Burlington tonight for ice cream at Cold Stone Creamery.

Chris' glasses fogged up when we got out of the car!!! The humidity is definitely present, and different but obviously doesn't bother us too much.

And rain again!

July 11

Taking a break today, to sit and enjoy the rain while reading my book. It is pouring outside, I love it!

First rain

July 6th

It is raining today! So amazing, we are soaking it in. 

Our backyard

 

The rain smells different here.  In AZ, it smells like wet dirt and desert plants.  Here it smells musty like moss. The thunder is loud and echoes in a strange tin can kind of way. I could sit at my window and watch it for hours!

Happy Independence Day

July 4

I am so amazed by the views we have from our windows, even from the bathroom!

We can't get our act together to figure out what events are happening around here for the 4th, so we end up staying home alone.  I begged Chris to get some fireworks that we could just set off ourselves at home, but he said the neighbor's wouldn't appreciate that.  I had to laugh when later than night Karen and Hendel were setting them off in the street! Pretty boring, no firework show - bummer. :(

Meeting some people

July 3

Cassie and I went with Jan to her Thursday morning Bible study, and I have been going there ever since.  Tonight, are invited to go with Jan and Rocky to the Wednesday night meeting.

We enjoy meeting new people, and hearing a good message from Pastor Bruce.  Afterward on the way home we stop for ice cream at McDonald's. Good day!

1st meal

July 1st

I can't believe the whole month of June has flown by so quickly! July is truly a beginning, since I can now cook!

Of course I make C's favorite, spaghetti, but it doesn't hurt that this is the easiest meal to make either.  

Basics

June 30

Our appliances are delivered today! So nice, can't wait to use them and the new stove. A beautiful, wonderful lady that Jan introduced me to, Pat, offered to come help me unpack.  Yesterday she and Jan came and we worked on the kitchen together.  They are both wonderful ladies, and I am so appreciative of their help, and we got all the kitchen unpacked! Hooray!

Things are a little different here, we are in the county, so we have a well for water, a septic tank and we have to pay for trash services.  Most importantly is trash, since we are accumulating so much of it right now.  I work on getting that arranged, but they won't be picking up for at least a week. For the time being, we pile all trash in the sun room, which is where all these empty boxes will go.

I've had so many visitors! Peggy from directly across the street came by with some "pimenta" and cheese sandwiches for us since we haven't been able to cook without the stove. Karen, who lives next to Peggy has brought some beautiful food from her garden for us.  Just amazing - they are all so sincere.  My wonderful neighbor right next door is the best.  Jan and her husband Rocky have been helping us so much, we lots to learn!

Goodbye

June 29

When coming to the house, Cassie had some specific goals she wanted done before she felt she could leave. We got the furniture in place, the bathrooms scrubbed, and all the boxes are sorted into rooms and neatly stacked.  Now she feels she can go home, having accomplished all that she could.

We cry all the way to the airport, and cling to each other in the unloading zone.  What can I say? Watching her leave is like watching a part of me walk away.  There are so many words to say, but we can hardly get anything out, so we will try another time and just make it quick, like ripping off a band-aid.  I don't even go in with her to wait.  She takes her bags inside and then I drive away. I don't even know what to do with myself.  Going back to the house, it feels empty.  She has left an enormous vacuum, where her presence filled to the brim.

Chris and I are truly on our own.

Home!

June 28th

Hard work today, getting the pod unloaded into the house.

We shopped for some curtains and stuff for the house.  I never put curtains up in our other house, so I'm just so thrilled with how beautiful they look!

Our first goal was getting the beds set up so can spend our first night in the house! The guest room is easy, but our bed is an entire "issue." More on that later.

Cassie is leaving tomorrow - I can hardly believe it has all happened.  We rented the phx house, packed our stuff, drove across country and have moved into a house in North Carolina.  It doesn't seem real, how are we going to say goodbye tomorrow? We decide to sleep together in the guest bedroom on our last night together.  It is comforting, familiar to have her there.  She is such an important part of my life, has always been.  We giggle in the dark and talk until we are too tired to keep our eyes open any longer.

Making it official

June 27th

Now that the house is ours, all the real work begins!  Today we have to open an local checking account, so Cassie and I go to this really amazing old house converted into a Bank of America.

David has given us the names of some guys that can come help us unload the pod and get the fridge and heave stuff into the house.  We call them, and they will come help us tomorrow.  We spend today packing up the apartment in Grahm.

Its in the bag!

June 26th

Cassie is suppose to leave tomorrow, and since we are stuck at this apartment in Grahm we haven't been able to do anything.  I look for a dog boarding facility, and find out it will only cost us $30 to board the dogs all day!  Soo is feeling much better and I decide that today we are dog-free and going to do something!!! We first go to Lake Cammak, we thought we might be able to rent bikes and go around on those.  There's nothing there except ramps to launch your own boats.

We snap a picture and then leave to find Lake Mackintosh, which is suppose to have rentals there.  We stop on the way and get some lunch items to take with us, we are told there are not bikes but we can rent boats.  That is better, we are looking forward to being out on the water.  When we get there, we find it is only $15 to rent a kyak - perfect! Neither of us has done that before and we think it is the perfect thing to do together today.

She is laughing because I almost tipped the boat trying to turn around and get her picture

We have a blast tooling around on the lake.  We stop to eat lunch in the boat under a bridge, and drift in the wind. The day is perfect and sunny, not too muggy.  This feels like heaven! Cassie skypes Tom and he gets to see us in kyak on the lake.  We all laugh at that - is that really right, to skype from remote nature?

Just as we are pulling back to shore, my phone rings and it is Norma.  We have the house! She wants to know if we can make it to the lawyers office to sign papers by 4:00.  What a relief, and just as we started to have fun.  Immediately we start thinking of all that is going to need to be done, and that Cassie is suppose to fly back home tomorrow.  I can't even believe we sat together in that apartment for two weeks and now she is leaving just when I get the house.  Last week we had gone over to the house to get an estimate for fencing, and met our new neighbors.  Jan who lives right next door was so excited to meet us, and had come running over when she saw us there.  We got to talking with her and discovered she is a  Christian, and that made us all cry.  She has been praying for two years that God would bring her good neighbors to this house.  Cassie said she felt she could leave then, knowing I would have Jan. They hugged each other and cried.  Then Jan invited us over for dinner, and we are suppose to go there tonight.  Jan is having over all the neighbors to meet us, and a few folks from her church as well.  Cassie and I just can't believe that when we go over there tonight, the house will be ours!! 

David calls, and is super excited about the house closing.  He asks if I want him to come pick me up and we can meet Chris there.  Cassie and I rush home so I can get showered.  It feels surreal when we arrive and start signing all the documents.  Can this really be happening???

We are late getting to Jan's for dinner because of the signing, but when we get there we are able to tell her that we are officially neighbor's now.  She is thrilled! We get to meet her husband Rocky and neighbor's across the street, Lolene (87), Peggy (78) and Karen and Hendel - who have a special needs son who is 24 and in a wheel chair.  There are also friends from Jan & Rocky's church, and we all have a great time. Chris and I are so annoying, watching after the dogs in the yard, trying to keep them from getting out or getting into things they shouldn't.  People probably think we are nutz!!  The whole group of people want to go tour our house, so we take them all over and show them around.  Karen and Jan had been helping David with suggestions for renovations, so they tell us what all their input had been.  

What a day!  That night at the apartment in Grahm, I ask Cassie if she would consider staying with me until Friday, and she agrees.  I know Tom is disappointed, but I really need her help.  I know she hates the thought of leaving right now too.  I am so grateful we don't have to say goodbye yet.

Memories from the apartment in Grahm

June 19-25

We stay relatively quiet in the apartment this whole time, as Soo was quite sick when we arrived.  Also, we are stuck in the apartment all day long since we can't leave the dogs alone and Soo can't really travel anywhere right now.  The first few days our routine was mostly just figuring out food for meals, and taking the dogs out to walk so they can do their business.  We see Soo perk up about the second day we are there, and we think that riding in the car was making her so ill.  She starts eating the bland canned food Dr. Jones gave us, and we are giving her the slurry meds that are suppose to be "patching:" up the ulcer.  It seems to be working, and while we still see runny and bloody stool, she is doing it more often and eating more.  We find after the first night that Cody is leaking pee everywhere because of the meds he is on, and after that I am up most nights 2-4 times to keep him from getting it all over the floor.

Grahm, NC - the children's museum had this amazing statue out front

We were able to take the dogs into Replacements and take the tour!  When we walked in, someone said "they brought wolves in here!" my response: these are pretty well-behaved wolves!

There was a deer out on the lawn at replacements! It was a baby - so cute

After all these years Soo finally warmed up to KC and was giving her hugs like she does me.   After so many weeks of KC helping to take care of her, she is appreciative.

Having a hot dog cookout in the parkinglot

We played cards alot, and took many naps!

We would take off when Chris got home from work, feeling cooped in the apartment. Here we ended up at Alamance battle ground late at night! But it was something to do, so we weren't complaining.

One day after Chris got off work we loaded up and had a picnic dinner and short hike at Ceder Rock park

Cedar Rock Park, going back down after our little hike up the hill

Cedar Rock Park: This is the most beautiful place, and it its just a park! Amazing

Cody wearing his diaper to help with nighttime leaks!

Day 7 - end of journey

June 18

Our last day on the road! We hardly know what we will do with ourselves when we finally get where we are going.  For now, we enjoy the scenery, which is looking more and more like familiar North Carolina.

We stop for lunch and are getting so tired of the deli meat and cheese we've eaten this whole trip!

We make it across the boarder from Tennessee into the beautiful North Carolina mountains.  Just beautiful!

Cassie is in a Bible study with friends at her church and is a little behind, so we are working through the book about personal revival. It is a great study, we really enjoy it.  I was mesmerized by the image of the Bible in the window, with beautiful NC mountains in the background.

And not much later, we finally make it to the extended stay hotel.  We were told there would be a key and envelope for us in the lock at the office, but when we get there it is empty.  We sit on the lawn out front waiting for the guy to come let us in.  The weather is not too bad, so we enjoy the out-doors after being cooped up in a car for the past week!  We are finally let in, and start moving in all our stuff and getting settled.

Now we aren't sure what will happen next.  We have to pay for a week at a time, and we are given assurances that the house will close soon.  For the time being we will wait.  And wait. And wait some more!

Day 6 - troube is our middle name

June 17th

We wake up unsure about today.  Cody's meds make him pee every five seconds, and Soo is not feeling better after throwing up last night.  We haven't heard anything yet from Chris' employer, so we decide to stay put in Knoxville in case we need to print or fax something.  It turns out to be a good idea because later that morning Soo throws up again.  I noticed when I was cleaning it up last night that it smelled coppery.  Today I see why.  She is throwing up blood and is very lethargic.  Chris isn't sure it's blood, and he wants to see if she will get better.  I wait, worried, until she throws up again.  I tell Chris I'm taking her to the vet.  We find one that is close, and get her there as quick as we can.  Dr. Jones is so nice, but he tells us later that when he met us walking into the lobby that morning he was not happy to see my Akita.  He was nervous about her, and dreaded doing her exam.  He tells us that his little finger was bit nearly off by an Akita hew as trying to sedate to neuter.  Dr. Jones went through with the procedure even with a bandaged finger, he says he was glad to do it.  My Soo is helping change Akita reputation everywhere and by the time we leave, Dr. Jones is telling us what a pleasure she has been.  He gives me his cell phone number (a new fangled thing for this vet's office, and in telling us that shows us the pager he's worn since the place opened, complete with duct tape holding it together).  It is thought that Soo has developed and ulcer, and that when I gave her ibuprofen it caused it to bleed.  This is the first I've heard that ibuprofen is not good for dogs, and I feel terrible that I'm the reason she is so sick.  She is not eating anything and barely drinking at this point, and we are so worried about her.  Back at the hotel she lays in lethargy, her brown eyes usually so alert are sad and telling us how bad she feels.  That first night, I am so worried I don't think I will be able to sleep.  I am sure she will be dead when we wake in the morning.  One of the medicines we have to give her is a slurry that we shoot down her throat with a syringe.  Soo is very well mannered, but this is just really terrible and she hates taking that medicine.  I imagine it must make her so sick to her stomach, but she doesn't throw up again, so we take it as a good sign.  She's still not eating, and when she tries to poop it is runny and icky and almost impossible to clean up.

Cassie and I let Chris hang out with the dogs and I take her to some real BBQ, I know she's been wanting that since we came into the South.  We are introduced to real southern sweet tea.  Yum!

Later than evening, Chris gets a letter from his boss at HP. It is more than we could have hoped for, in it he tells what a great employee Chris is and how the plan is to bring him on permanent in a year (even though HP isn't technically hiring), and that even if this contract at AmEX falls through, they will keep him on and assign him to another HP contract.  We are so relieved, it feels like a miracle to get the letter so quickly.  Norma will forward it to the underwriters, but she is confident it will be enough for them to move forward again.  We are only about a day's drive to Greensboro from here, so if we leave tomorrow we will have no where to stay once we get there.  David (the developer who is selling us the house) has told us of a long-term apartment-like hotel in Grahm.  I make the arrangements for us to stay there until the house on Clapp Farms closes.  Tomorrow we will make the last leg of our journey!

It occurs to me much, much later that had we not had this hiccup with the house, we would have been too far down the road to find help for Soo in time.  The same thing also dawns about the truck accident on the freeway - we would not have been close enough to a vet for Cody if we had been much further down the road.  What an amazing God we serve, and prayers by so many family and friends were ringing in His ears I'm sure!

I've never seen her eyes look so lifeless - she scared me something terrible!

Day 5 - Homeless

June 16th

We leave Memphis and head out toward our next pit stop, Knoxville.  Cassie and I are getting a little quieter in the car, and as we start seeing the scenery change and become more "southern" we cry a few times.  We are getting closer, and we can feel it.  Rest stops in this part of the country are wonderfully beautiful.  We enjoy our lunch at a picturesque picnic table, after going through a little bit of rain in Nashville.

Thankfully the pretty drive to Knoxville is uneventful, and we arrive at our hotel safely.  Things are starting to look familiar to us, and I'm wondering if we are close enough to Gatlinburg or Pigeon Forge to take  Cassie there for some sights that we saw on our vacation there last year.  As we are getting the dogs and all the luggage into our - yes second floor - hotel room, I drop Herman.  His bowl flips in the air and lands on the lid.  I can't believe he has made it so far on this trip, documenting it for us on Facebook and now I may have killed him.  I quickly get him inside and on the sink.  He is swimming, looking none too worse for wear.  Thank goodness. Today I'm a little worried about Soo because she hasn't eaten hardly anything and now isn't drinking much either.  Later that night she throws up.  Maybe she was just car sick.  I get to work cleaning, luckily I have some carpet cleaner with me.

While on the road, Chris had found out that our mortgage company was no longer agreeing to the terms of the loan. When we get to Knoxville, he is really stressed, saying we have no home to move into when we get to Greensboro.  When we finally reach the hotel, we find out that the loan had been approved based on Chris' contract with the company he had been working for in Phoenix.  We were supposedly approved and all we had to do was sign the papers once we got there.  They decided to do one last credit check before we arrive, and found out the Chris had already started the job in Greensboro for a different contracting company.  They consider this a new job, and want at least 30 to 90 days of pay stubs when starting a new job.  We explain -again- how technically he is still doing the same job he has been doing since 2005.  Norma is the mortgage broker and she is telling us that she understands, but we need to get the underwriters to understand.  She tells Chris he needs a letter from his new employer at HP.  We feel we are back at square one again, and now are worried - will this all fall through at the last minute??  Chris sends a quick email to the HR guy that hired him, and then we drink beer and play Parcheesi, trying to relax. Cassie and I paint our toes, and use some flower stickers that I bought.  We love it!!! 

Day 4 - what no laundry??

June 15

We wake in the morning, and I find out that Chris tried to take the dogs out but couldn't get Cody down the stairs.  Yes, once again we are on the second floor.  This hotel has an outside entrance, and the stairwell up to the second floor is dark and very long and steep.  Cody was terrified the night before, but we were able to coax him up.  Now, I try to ask Chris how patient he was with the dog - manhandling him just doesn't work.  You have to be kind, because he is scared.  Chris is frustrated and impatient, I can tell that it would never have worked, he would never have gotten him down those stairs.  I say I'm going to try with Cody alone, and Chris is telling me as I walk out that I'll never get it done.  The dog is just too scared.  I walk him to the door, and through it down the hall instead of straight to the stairs.  He stalled for a moment when he saw the stairs, but came right with me when he saw I was going past them.  We walk a little ways and then I turn him and go back, we round the corner and I take the first step down the long flight of stairs.  Cody immediately belly-flops to the ground, nails digging in.  He isn't going anywhere near that death trap.  He is almost 100 pounds, so forcing him is never going to work.  We figured out the last few times that he has never seen the individual stairs, all he sees is one long leap to the bottom, which is how he usually gets down.  Normally when I work with him, he is to my left and heels there.  I realize he still hasn't figured out the individual stairs, and I have to figure out a way to show him.  I move in front of him this time, as he shakes and seems to beg me not to make him go forward.  I pull him forward with a little tug, and then release.  He inches closer, but will not put a foot over that first "ledge."  I grab his foot and place it on the first stair and quickly let go.  Holding him also makes him more afraid.  He realizes there is something there, not just empty space and with a quaking fumble, stands on the first stair with one foot.  I give him another gentle pull, and he has both feet forward now.  I move down one step, keeping right in front of him to block his view of the rest of the way down.  I tug him, and he sees the next step.  His legs are shaking, but he's doing it.  We move all the way to the bottom this way, one step at a time.  Good boy!!  I knew you could do it!!

I make a decision that the dog beds have to be washed.  The throw up is so disgusting, we can't take the smell anymore.  Every other La Quinta we have been at has a laundry room, but this one doesn't.  We have to drive down the street, what a pain! Between getting that done and more groceries for the road, we are checking out of the hotel at the last minute.  While trying to figure out lunch before we head out, our property manager in Phoenix says we forgot to sign a form.  We have to find a FedEx office to print, sign and fax it back to her, all in an area where traffic is really heavy.  Pulling the trailer is a big pain, so we decide to get on the freeway and find a gas station farther down the road where we will have more room.  We are exhausted already before we even get out of town. We are watching Cody closely, and he is feeling better so he drinks a bunch of water.  This was a little too much too soon, and he throws up again.  But that is all, no other symptoms, so we plunge on, our next pit stop outside Memphis, TN.  I miss the sign going into TN!!

It is late, and we want some local BBQ flavor in Memphis, and find only one place that is still open.  It looks deserted and not in the greatest part of town.  I am unsure about leaving the cars and trailer in the back parking lot where it is dark, and Chris is afraid of the food.  We are all frustrated with each other and end up leaving.  We drive way out of our way to find a Checkers, which we feel is like Rally's in Phoenix.

Day 3, in a panic

June 14, 2012

Oklahoma City isn't eventful, other than the room we first got smelled really bad.  Chris was able to switch us, so we were more comfortable, but this hotel isn't the best.  Cassie and I finally figure that Chris isn't getting around in the morning because we are there. We decide our new routine is to get ready first and then go out to get our first starbucks of the day while he has the room to himself.  This seems to work better, but we still don't leave very early.  We wonder why the road we take to starbucks is called Tinker Diagonal, when we know it is the I-40.  We realize why as we drive right by Tinker AFB!   On the road, we see a sign that says Chekota, and I have to play Carrie Underwood's song "I Ain't In Chekota Anymore."

Not long after we get into AK, we have a scare on the road.  There is a black pickup truck in front of us and we are boxed in by semi's behind and beside us.  The truck we are following blows a tire and starts swerving radically.  The rubber flies at us, and Cassie is quick to react, dodging even with the trailer in pull.  It is a miracle none of the debris hits us.  The driver of the truck is desperately trying to keep from veering into other lanes, and keep it on the road.  It swerves parallel to the lane we are in, and I am terrified it is going to roll and come right at us.  The driver corrects quickly, and then it is facing us for a split second before he is able to steer it to the shoulder.  Once out of the lane, the truck is off-balance because of a steep grade in the median and the vehicle looks as if it gently rolls to its side and then on the roof and finally comes to a complete stop upside down.  Cassie quickly pulls over, and we are the closest ones to him.  This all happened going about 70 mph, in the space of a couple of minutes.  I know I have to try and help, I don't see anyone else closer.  I jump out of the car and run in my flip flops back to the truck, it seems like it takes me forever to reach him.  Just as I get there, two truckers join me who had pulled over behind us.  The driver of the pickup is climbing out of the window, which is facing the sky.  Two men help him out, and we don't see any blood or scratches.  I ask if he hit his head, he says he doesn't think so.  More men show up, and I figure he is good hands and we need to get as many cars off the road as possible.  I run back and get in the car.  Chris has pulled over in the truck, but on the opposite side of the freeway and can't cross.  We sit there a moment, clutching hands, hearts pounding as Cassie starts to cry.  I tell her what an amazing job she did, keeping us out of the debris, that her quick reactions saved us from a disaster.  We get back on the road in a few minuets.  We don't say much, just trying to process and urgently thanking God for His protection and safety.

We don't go far before we see Cody is retching.  We knew one of the dogs had thrown up on the dog bed in the back of Chris' truck, and so we had put them into the car with us after a rest stop in OK.  We thought it was just the heat, but right now he isn't looking good at all.  We have to pull over off the freeway at a sign that says Ozark, 2 miles.  He walks back and forth, trying to throw up but has nothing in his stomach.  He won't drink water, and that is worrying us.  We remember he hasn't wanted water the last time we tried to give him some either.  His legs are shaking, his head seems too heavy for him to hold up.  Chris and I decide we have to find a vet.  We are fortunate to be where we are, there is a vet not far from there in Ozark.  Dr. Moom is a country vet, so very nice and sweet.  He's trying to get Cody's attention, but the dog is lethargic and non-responsive even when he tries thumping him on the head.  Cody can't seem to stand.  I am terrified he will die right there in the office.  I think for a fleeting moment that I can't do this.  I can't sit here and watch the life drain out of him, it's too much.  I want to run away, and for them to fix him right now, but I swallow down the impulse to flee and wait for a course of action.  They discover he is running a fever, and we tell Dr. Moon we haven't seen him poop in a couple of days.  After a thorough examination, Dr. Moon guesses that Cody has an infection in his spleen.  There is an enlargement there, and with the fever, he suspected Cody had it before we left Phoenix.  They give him a shot to reduce the fever and reduce pain.  We are given steroids for him to take, along with antibiotics and a stool softner if we don't see him pooping soon.  Within just a few minutes of the shot, Cody perks up and starts pacing the room.  We are all encouraged by this. Dr. Moon is very busy today, so we are led back out into the waiting room. Cassie is waiting with Soo, and her face is stricken.  We find out that a man has brought his aging Pomeranian companion in to be put to sleep.  The man is a stoic farmer, sitting in the chairs by himself trying to hold back tears.  Cassie is not so successful, and as Dr. Moon tries to comfort the man, her tears are falling.  We have to wait a few moments to pay, during which time a family brings in their older dog, wheezing and coughing and struggling to breathe.  We can't take any more, we need to get out fast and let Dr. Moon tend his patients.  We find peanut butter in the car and give Cody his first dose of meds in the parking lot.  We lift a drowzy Cody into the car, and pray that he gets better fast. 

Drugged Cody!

He clings to Soo for comfort, and keeps trying to practically lay on top of her.  She is patient, but she doesn't look to happy either.  She hasn't been eating well, and we know she hates car rides.  We get back on the road again, all of us exhausted.  Our next pit stop is Little Rock.  We are so relieved to make it and hope we can relax and get some rest after such an emotional, scary day.