Week 2

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  Last week was all about getting back into work for the new year and being in shock over the LA fires. At least it ended with a fun girl's trip for me to kind of escape it all.

Here are those pictures from last week:

Day 6- Monday, 1/6/25

The extended holiday weeks off were nice but now back to reality. I have my new calendars set at my desk and in the lab I'm currently working on 3 new projects so no time to waste.

Day 7- Tuesday, 1/7/25

We need to board Bailey for a couple days toward the end of the month so I have been searching for the best place to leave her where I can also condition her to be familiar with them before doing so.  Thankfully we have this place locally and they have daycare as well as boarding.  We even get 2 free daycare days as new clients and 50% off our first 2 days of boarding.  I used those 2 free daycare days as a tryout to see how she liked it and would do. She is an anxious dog with separation anxiety but made it through her first day last week and seemed happy to go back today for her 2nd day.  It sure wears her out and is good for helping to continue to socialize her to new people and new dogs different from her puppy class pack. We'll do one more daycare day before her actual 2-day boarding stay just to to keep her familiar with it all.

Day 8- Wednesday, 1/8/25

Sadly my favorite brown boots started to disintegrate and I had a hard time finding a good replacement but these ones turned out to be great.  In other news, our hearts go out to the LA area with all these devastating fires spreading like crazy because of dry conditions and powerful Santa Ana winds.  Entire communities are being destroyed.  Thankfully, so far, Brandon is not affected in the Fullerton area.

Day 9- Thursday, 1/9/25

I got this cute name initial necklace for Christmas and wore it for the first time today getting a lot of complements at work.  Back at home John cooked up some additional lobster tails not used for New Years and made lobster roles for dinner.  Later, as we watch the evening news, we continued to be shocked by footage of the damage from the LA fires.  So many people lost homes, businesses, and schools but it's also encouraging to see how they are working together to help each other. LA's landscape is forever changed. (photo credit Getty Images)

 Day 10- Friday, 1/10/25

Time for an escape and a break from the news.  After work I headed to the wine country in Windsor near Santa Rosa for a girl's weekend getaway.  Back at home John and Justin went our for dinner and drinks together.  Some of the husbands will join them tomorrow at our house for a hangout as well.

Day 11- Saturday, 1/11/25

We lucked out and had a beautiful sunny day with no wind which was perfect for a picnic at La Crema winery.  After that we ended the day with a tasting at Hook and Ladder before enjoying a nice dinner we pulled together back at the condo.  I heard it was super windy at home so I was glad that was not the case here.

Day 12- Sunday, 1/12/25

I got home this afternoon and I think somebody really missed me.

Done for now and hoping all fires get contained in the LA area ASAP.

Week 1

Hello!  Time to start another year full of pictures hopefully all of great things to come.

Here are the first pictures in this first short week of 2025:

Day 1- Wednesday, 1/1/25

Happy New Year!  This was our first group picture taken in 2025 right after ringing in the new year and right before going to bed.  LOL!  Later we had a mellow and relaxing day that ending with a nice dinner complete with a cake Justin and I made.

Day 2- Thursday, 1/2/25

Here are a few gifts I got for Christmas that I'm looking forward to trying in 2025.  Otherwise, today was a nice sunny day so I took Bailey for walk to a local pond she's never been to before.  The timing was perfect right near sunset so it was very pretty out and Bailey liked watching the ducks in the pond..

Day 3- Friday, 1/3/25

When Bailey sleeps very soundly Rusty has gotten brave enough to feel comfortable joining us in the family room area.  This is the first time in a long time where he actually came this close and just chilled for a good bit.  We were watching a new series called the Tourist set in Australia.

Day 4- Saturday, 1/4/25

Umm- a chocolate orange I ordered from Amazon that I just opened had a piece missing and super old looking chocolate that had turned.  Seems like it was a return that just got shipped right back out to me so I returned it as well.  Yuck!  This afternoon we had another puppy group walk on campus.  This time it was through the arboretum and I was able to get Justin to join us.  Back at home while waiting for dinner the boys were playing catch the ball in the air with Bailey and she's quite good at it.

 

Day 5- Sunday, 1/5/25

I made pancakes and sausage for brunch which we all enjoyed just before taking Brandon to the airport.  It was nice having him for 2 whole weeks but now we won't see him again until spring break in a few months.  At least I know he's happy where he'll be and thriving at work and school.  Later I noticed that the bully stick Bailey got as a treat tonight was shaped like heart on one end.  How sweet it that?!--never seen one like it before.  It is a great sign to see as we end our first week in 2025.

All done and thanks for continuing to stop by.  Hope to see you again next week.

Week 52

Happy New Year!  This post will be all about our final extended week in 2024.  It was, as expected, super busy and full of fun.  Hopefully everyone was able to end 2024 on a good note.

 

Here are last week's pictures:

Day 358- Monday, 12/23/24

We spent a lot of time baking today and have a few more things to pull together tomorrow so we can share cookie plates with the neighbors.  At least we were able to relax in the evening and enjoy time by the tree with our pup who is being very good with all the new things the holidays have introduced to her Also since we're all on break and not working the rest of the week we got to watch a movie on a Monday night for a change.  This was a great true story that was totally worth the watch and important to be out there as part of history.

Day 359- Tuesday, 12/24/24

Happy Christmas Eve!  Justin and I finished baking and he delivered the cookie plates.  We made our traditional pizza dinner to enjoy and then drove around looking at Christmas lights before opening one gift and heading off to bed.

Day 360- Wednesday, 12/25/24

Merry Christmas!  We had a nice late and slow start  to our day which happens when the kids are older and value sleep more.  Then we watched a new Jack Black Christmas movie that was actually much better than expected before enjoying a wonderful prime rib dinner.

Day 361- Thursday, 12/26/24

Brandon already put together one of his new Lego sets he got for Christmas which is the large black and white cat.  It's cool and very life like--so much so that it kind of freaked our cat out when it was sitting on the floor just after he finished it.  Others walking by it also have to do a double take.  LOL!  Other than that I started putting decorations away and scouted out some doggy daycare/boarding places for Bailey since she'll need a place to stay for a couple nights mid January.

Day 362- Friday, 12/27/24

Today we tried out Justin's new Nespresso machine by making espresso martinis and it worked perfectly.  They were yummy!  I also continued putting away decoration by getting everything I moved to the pool table packed in boxes to put up in the attic.  One new decoration this year was a Bailey ornament to go with our Bella one we have.  I was so happy to find the same one in a chocolate color too.

Day 363- Saturday, 12/28/24

Speaking of Bailey, we were able to meet up with her puppy training group for a nice long walk around campus in Davis.  This was a much needed and fun outing since we've been cooped up in the house most of the week.  The dogs all loved it.

Day 364- Sunday, 12/29/24

And we are not done with Bailey yet-- Today is her day.  Mixed in between Christmas and New Years this pup has a birthday.  Happy 1st Birthday Bailey!  We celebrated her this morning and then while she was resting after lunch we went to a movie.  Afterward she got to have a nice birthday visit with her sister who lives across the street. Kalie is a silver lab (diluted chocolate) which is a new color for the breed and very interesting to see.

Day 365- Monday, 12/30/24

Only 2 days left before the new year and we are trying to rest up and regroup for more fun to come. We've been binge watching the new Squid Games season and should be able to finish it tomorrow evening while waiting for midnight.

Day 366- Tuesday, 12/31/24

It's NYE!  This was a leap year so we had 366 days in this year. To celebrate John and Justin made us some drinks and we had party appetizers for dinner plus fondue for dessert. We also did finish Squid Games season 2 (there has got to be a 3) and of course watched the ball drop as we rang in the New Year!  Poor Bailey was not a fan of the fireworks but at least they did not last as long as the ones for 4th of July.  Good bye 2024--it was a fun and fast year especially while raising a new pup.

All done!  See you next Tuesday hopefully as I share our first week in 2025.