Week 21

Welcome back!  I hope everyone had a nice long holiday weekend as we honored those who gave their lives to protect this country.  We here had some great family time together and a lot of good food.  This post is also full of some great summer vibes as we head into a new season.

Here are the pictures from the last week:

Day 139- Monday, 5/19/25

Someone is more than ready for her afternoon walk and look at us matching in our chocolate colors.  Outside on that walk as I was admiring trees in the park these two in the same row caught my eye with their interestingly adorned trunks.

 

 

 

 

Day 140- Tuesday, 5/20/25

Due to the heat puppy class for today was moved to a nicely shaded park in Woodland and much appreciated.  We were practicing stay at a distance and Bailey is not great at that which is why my distance from her is so short.  Then when she was finally released from her "stay" she was so happy and excited that she sprung up like a reindeer ready to take flight.  LOL!  I love that one of our spectators caught her perfectly springing into action.  She does the same thing bounding for a spot on the couch after being put outside for a good bit.

Day 141- Wednesday, 5/21/25

 

When I got home from work today I still needed to follow through with a couple emails in our home office and Rusty was not too happy about that.  He came right to me and started demanding attention. Ok, I get it.  Enough with the work, and yes, we can cuddle for a little bit. Later, the season finale of Survivor was on. The guy in the middle here is Joe and he's a Fire Captain in West Sacramento where we live.  He played a great game and ended up in third place. It was fun watching one of our own play.

Day 142- Thursday, 5/22/25

Ugh!  The road construction going on here is so crippling especially if you are a commuter. This morning I sat just under this overpass waiting a really long time to get to the on ramp on the other side.  Thankfully once things started to move it was smooth sailing the rest of the way, but I was still late for work.  When I got there it was straight into the bio-safety cabinet for me to test out some bacterial plates that were waiting.  Speaking of the construction and our city at least this new walking overpass was put in with a great sign showcase us.  We are not part of the city of Sacramento, not even in the same county or on the same side of the river so it's great to start to have signage that helps distinguish that.

 Day 143- Friday, 5/23/25

This week, weather-wise, has been up and down with hot days and cooler days.  Today is hot and full of sun so we were happy for some good shade on your walk under these pretty trees.  Because of more an more hot days we also put up Bailey's shade structure in her dog run.  She gets a little shade from our yard trees but not quite enough and that cement can be super hot on the pads of her feet especially if there is nowhere to escape. She wasn't sure about the structure as we were putting it up but now she's a happy camper.  TGIF!

Day 144- Saturday, 5/24/25

Yay--a nice lazy slow start to a long holiday weekend.  I did get some chores done later today but at least I could enjoy a light breakfast and relax with Rusty first.

Day 145- Sunday, 5/25/25

John spent most of this day slow cooking some ribs out back and just before we ate I took Bailey on a walk through a new area.  It was a little breezy out so this tall summer grass I have been seeing more and more recently caught my eye as it swayed in the wind.  It's pretty and adds some whimsical interest with it's movement here and there in our neighborhood.  Dinner after the walk was yummy and a good feast had by all.  Justin made some potato salad that helped round out the meal and start our kickoff to summer.  Unfortunately it was too windy and a bit chilly to open the pool.  Next weekend is looking promising though.

 

That's all for now see you next week as we take a look at how we wrapped up May and started a new month.

Week 20

Welcome back!  May is flying by and it's unreal to think I'm already looking forward to Memorial Day weekend coming up which is the unofficial start to summer.  It is actually starting to feel like summer around here when mother nature is not throwing a random storm at us for no good reason.  We'll take what we can get and just hope summer doesn't come in too hot to handle too quickly.

Until then here are the pictures from the last week:

Day 132- Monday, 5/12/25

 After temps in the 90's last week and a beautiful weekend we unexpectedly started this week with cold temps and rain--a lot more rain than you would think too!  It was nice to clear all the allergens from the air but disappointing to have bring back winter clothes.

 

 

 

Day 133- Tuesday, 5/13/25

Today was at least sunny but still a little cold.  The weather was actually perfect for puppy training class in the country.  We got to walk the olive orchards and then ended with some more structured exercises in the outdoor horse arena. Bailey and I are towards the end of this line in front of those yellow cones.

Day 134- Wednesday, 5/14/25

 

Wednesday at work I'm bulking up my protozoan cultures to make new antigen slides which means a lot of flasks to feed.  Back at home Bailey was happy to see me return and quickly settled down on my lap for an afternoon nap with her new blue rubber stick--the only kind she cannot destroy.

Day 135- Thursday, 5/15/25

This is my second health appointment this week.  The first was for a regular mammogram check and this one is for an ultrasound to check on a possible hernia.  Speaking of health, our work's May fitness challenge continues and today we were encouraged to get outside and really enjoy all the new signs of spring in nature.  That's an easy one so Bailey and I did just that on our nice long walk this evening. We're also loving the longer light hours spring brings.

  

 

 Day 136- Friday, 5/16/25

After dusty travels last week and rain earlier this week my car really needed a good wash.  Justin also vacuumed out the inside of it for me which was much appreciated.  I also appreciate all the pictures Justin takes and shares with me on a weekly basis.  They are mostly of the pets plus he also gets a few of me especial if I'm with one of those pets.

Day 137- Saturday, 5/17/25

Today after doing some weekend chores we crossed the bridge and headed into the big city for dinner and a movie.  This one kept us on the edge of our seats for sure.  We've seen most the past ones in this series so it was fun to experience a newer version especially since it's been a long while.

Day 138- Sunday, 5/18/25

    Despite it being SUPER windy out the rest of the weather conditions were nice so we braved the wind gusts and headed out for a wine pickup at the Old Sugar Mill. Later Tyler and Lupe came over for dinner where we all enjoyed one of the new wines to pair with our meal.

 

      Thanks for stopping by and hope to see you back next week.

 

 

Week 19

Welcome back!  This should have me caught up.  It was another very full and long week.

Here are the pictures from last week:

Day 125- Monday, 5/5/25

I had to say goodbye to this sweet girl because today was a travel day which also means I missed celebrating Cinco de Mayo with the family but I did get to try out my new sunglasses on the road.  Not sure how but the last ones cracked right on the nose bridge.

Day 126- Tuesday, 5/6/25

This is my go to travel style breakfast especially when I'm on my own. We also started a fitness challenge at work so even though I'm traveling I'm still trying to get my steps in and recorded on a tracker.

Day 127- Wednesday, 5/7/25

Feels good to be home again even if I have laundry to do on a weekday.  This girl missed me and Justin who is now back from Humboldt.

Day 128- Thursday, 5/8/25

Back at work I was over in my old building and took the stairs that I miss having to climbing everyday--all 5 flights of them!  Makes me dizzy looking up but was a great addition to my fitness challenge.  In other news we have a new Pope and he's the first ever American one originally from Chicago!  That's pretty cool, and he seems to be a great choice with his compassion, grace and will to serve.  We can use a good example of what a great leader looks like right about now.

 Day 129- Friday, 5/9/25

TGIF!  We hit the 90's this week so when we walk we make sure to stay in the shade at all times.  Thankfully there are a lot of good trees lining the sidewalks in our neighborhood and good refreshing drinks to be had.

Day 130- Saturday, 5/10/25

Speaking of trees, all our backyard trees are sporting nice full leaves that are a pretty beautiful green.  Hopefully the higher temps won't stress them too soon into the season.  Back inside Bailey was being super good waiting for me to give her something from this month's Tokyo themed Bark Box.  I think this is her last one. They are fun but pricey and she already has enough toys and treats to last her a good bit.

Day 131- Sunday, 5/11/25

Happy Mother's day! We're missing Brandon who's at school prepping for finals, but at least this year I have 2 at home celebrating with me. For the past few years it's only been 1.  Earlier John and Justin made me a wonderful brunch and later Tyler joined us for a wonderful dinner plus dessert.

That's all and hope to see you next week see you back next week.

Week 18

Welcome back!  The last couple week's have been overly booked for me so I am running behind on this blog and trying to play catch up.

Here are the pictures from the last week in April and the start of May:

Day 118- Monday, 4/28/25

 

There is a lot of planning  and hard work going on in this little cubicle right here. This side is nice and tidy while the other side is a complete mess so when I need to clear my head and take a breath I turn this way to help me refocus and remember why I do what I do.  In other news John had his final physical therapy session at SCI-FIT today.  From now on he'll work on his own at our local rec center to continue to stay strong and healthy.

Day 119- Tuesday, 4/29/25

With so much going on this week I have a few really LONG work days coming up so I decided to skip making this day long as well by passing on puppy class tonight.  We still went out for a really nice walk and practiced her sitting and being patient with distractions but didn't have to rush to head out or deal with getting back super late after a long drive.  It was the right decision for sure because something just had give this week.

Day 120- Wednesday, 4/30/25

Day 1 of our Annual OHI system-wide meeting.  It was really great to see and hear about all the amazing work we and also our collaborators currently have going on and coming up for future efforts--very inspiring.  Later we had a fun showcase fair followed by a cocktail hour to end the day.  We started at 8:30 am and finished the day around 7pm.

Day 121- Thursday, 5/1/25

OHI Annual meeting day 2 was thankfully only a 1/2 day and was basically just working groups on how we can sustain our efforts in the given economic climate.  Not nearly as inspiring or fun as yesterday so no picture of that--LOL!  But today is also May 1st so welcome to a new month and also Justin headed out on the train so he can attend "ideaFest" at Cal Poly Humboldt and visit his friends for a nice extended weekend.

Day 122- Friday, 5/2/25

Justin is having a grand time in Humboldt.  He really does love it there and is working on a plan to maybe move back and live there for good providing he can find work.  Meanwhile back at home John and I streamed this new release movie.  The 1st one was better--this one was a bit far fetched but gorgeous location and scenery

Day 123- Saturday, 5/3/25

John may be finished with sessions at SCI-FIT but we still attended one last event which was super fun.  Since the Kentucky Derby happened today it seemed only fitting that the for this fundraiser was Derby Day. Everyone dressed accordingly, listened to some great speakers, ate a wonderful dinner, and participated in some fun auctions.  We won 2 gift baskets--one for our dog Bailey filled with toys and pet essentials plus one for us--a picnic style backpack filled with food and tickets to ride the Skunk Train.

Day 124- Sunday, 5/4/25

What a week! And today I try to catch up on chores and relax with my cat who is great at forcing me to just chill.

 Thanks for stopping by and hopefully I'll have the next week up soon.