Back from our wonderful trip to the great state of Maine! We got on the road around 11:30 Friday AM and ran into light traffic, although there were some hairy moments going through construction zones. We arrived at our campsite with plenty of daylight left to set up the site inside and out, have dinner and take a hike down to the pond with the dogs. We had a nice level, shady, hillside site, with very few "neighbors" around us.
Sandy sprung for five bundles of wood...they are small bundles...and it looked like that would be a mistake because we were too pooped Friday night for a campfire. We did, however, have fires going every other night and some mornings the rest of our stay.
Saturday I got up and made breakfast, then had to go back to bed, didn't feel well at all. I don't know what it is, but frequently after I eat I feel quite ill. Fortunately that wore off, as did the clouds, in time for us to meet Gina and Andy at the diner. We ate outdoors on the patio in the sun. Sandy and I both had a big bowl of seafood chowder. YUM!
Then we went to Gina's house, where we met up with other "Jack Pack" folks and their dogs. After a quick tour of Gina's lovely home and great backyard, we all piled into our respective vehicles and drove to Parker's Pond, a little distance from the house. We went to a swimming area on one side of the road and all the dogs took dips in the pond, chasing toys.
We tried Rocket in this environment. HE DID IT! He went for a swim, even though there were five other JRTs milling about on the shore and in the water. It was a couple of firsts for him; playing with so many other dogs around and first time he has been for a swim in a pond. He has only been in the pool up until now. He even went after a toy in the water that two other dogs were swimming to get! Amazing!
We waited for the other JRTs to exit the water, then brought Bub and Truman out for a dip. They loved it, as usual.
Then we all paraded across the street to the the boat launch area, where there is a dock. We wanted the dogs to practice jumping off the dock. Another first for Rocky. He, like some of the other dogs, did NOT jump off the dock this time, but Sandy would lower him towards the water over the edge of the dock and he would "leap" to get the toy. Then he got into the mode where he doesn't even care if there is a toy to be gotten, he just wants to get into the water! We really think that someday he will get to the point where he will jump off the dock...it's a matter of time.
Bub and Truman came out and had another swim when all the rest were being dried off and loaded into their respective vehicles. They had fun playing in the water, Bubbles "fishing" along the shore, looking for frogs...which we know she loves to kill!
Then we drove to Readsville to a nice cafe for dinner. I was feeling pretty yucky, starting at the boat launch. My guts were in an uproar and I had to keep going to the porta potty while the dogs were swimming and then made a few visits to the restroom at the cafe. It had gone on too long and I got to my "cranky place" which, if you know me, you know that place ain't pretty...or very becoming to me. I ran out of patience with everything after dinner and couldn't wait to get back to the RV and the friendly confines of my own "john."
Once we got back though, Sandy gave me some stuff from her homeopathic remedy kit, which settled my guts right down and I felt SO MUCH better. We had a campfire and I was able to enjoy the evening. We even heard loons on the pond while we were sitting out by the fire! LOONS! My favorites!
Sunday the sun was shining and I was feeling about 80% better than the day before. Some more of that homeopathic stuff and I was ready to go for the day. We lazed about in the RV and outside until later in the day and then we took the dogs back to Parker's Pond to swim. The three of them swam at once this time as there were no other dogs or people around. They had a ball.
We brought them back to the RV, totally bushed. It's so nice when Jack Russells are all tired out. They sink like logs into the bed, chair, couch and don't move. They are so happy to be sleeping. We love it.
We burned up the last of the wood and sat out for a long time, listening to the loons and the silence that surrounded us. We were practically alone at the campground, most everyone else having moved out by noon. It was a great decision to stay the extra night and head home on Monday to avoid the Father's Day traffic.
We had a great time in Maine, loved the campground, so that's another place we can add to our list of nice places to stay in Maine! The Belgrade Lakes area is so damned beautiful. We can't wait until our next trip north, which I believe is on Labor Day Weekend, when the Jack Pack gets together again. We also have a separate trip to Wells planned for sometime in September. And the big trip to Acadia at the end of Sept-beginning of October. All of this is if we can work around my new schedule of weekly chemo sessions.
We had an uneventful trip back home on Monday, although we swear we saw a RV on the other side of the road sideswipe a truck carrying a half of a modular home!
Oh, on Sunday Maria called on her way home from Bob Miller's house. She, Phil and Steve went to see Bob for Father's Day. I'm glad they did. I haven't seen him since my last "session" with Wini. I can't be around her, it makes my blood pressure go up too high. I miss my Dad, but it's better that I don't go. Maria says that not much has changed for the better since I was last there, Wini is still stubbornly refusing to accept more help in the home. Someone comes in to bathe Bob twice a week and that's it. It would drive me nuts to be there.
Bob doesn't remember me. He did note that "someone was missing" from the group though...he kept asking who was missing and they kept telling him "Ann." Maybe they should have said "Ernie" because EE wasn't there either and maybe that's who he was thinking of. EE hasn't been home to see us in so many years, we forget to list him as a family member! I think he likes it that way...he must, otherwise he would have been out to visit.
Now we are making plans for the great bathroom do-over. Jeremy came up while we were gone and removed the carpeting and some of the tile. Jim, the contractor, is coming over Thursday to go over last minute details. We have to pack up clothing, food, etc into the RV to move to Ross Hill Campground on Sunday. We may or may not come back some nights to sleep here...we just won't use the bathroom. We'll also be back daily to feed Murphy, who will be our on-site supervisor and I'll bring the dogs over some days to run in the back yard and to swim in the pool.
It's going to be a scorcher tomorrow, Sandy took the solar cover off the pool, so I can take the pups swimming. We hope to get to Denise's at Beach Pond tomorrow with Rocky, to practice dock diving. Hopefully his experience of the weekend, with all the people and the other dogs, will help him with being in an unfamiliar place--Denise's. She has been so nice to offer her facilities up for his training purposes. I hope he is nice to her in return.
Oh, Sandy went grocery shopping and came home with a jar of Nutella. I have seen this stuff for years...first time was back in the early 80's when I was in the Netherlands with the National Guard and we went into a Dutch mess hall...they had a jar of Nutella on every table. So, Sandy is allergic to nuts, which is what nutella is made of, so I assume she got it for me. Yes, she did....and today when I texted her and told her that I felt really ill again she prescribed NUTELLA! I did as she said, I made a piece of multigrain toast, spread with nutella...and VOILA! I felt better within a few minutes. So odd that something that tastes so sinfully good could actually be good for you!
I don't know why I keep feeling so ill...maybe it's the chemo leaving my body, or maybe it's the chemo period and this is going to be something I'm always going to have as a result of taking chemo. I'm reading more and more about the long term effects of chemo on the body. Anyway, which ever it is, I do have to learn to handle feeling so ill a bit more gracefully. I can't be so impatient and so grouchy, with Sandy and other people. They don't know what it feels like and it isn't fair to them. Sandy is so good to me and I need to be a LOT nicer to her, particularly when I don't feel well.
It's not right I tell you. Not right at all.
Okay, off to bed. Big day tomorrow of hauling a poop sample from Rocky to the vet in Mystic, then hopefully getting to the gym for a workout, drop off the tile samples at Colonial and then home to take the pups for a swim. Then we can all take naps...the JRTs and me.
Later....
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