(Not Quite) Wordless Wednesday

It was a bit chilly yesterday, but that didn't bother the pups. The pool water was still 78F, which is certainly warmer than the ocean water, and they don't mind that, so, I figured a little swim with some friends would be good exercise, and an easy way for me to wear them out, without a lot of effort on my part.

I'm fighting a rotten head cold, and I'm not up for doing much. Yesterday my family abandon me planned a fun day without me to Magic Mountain. It really didn't bother me at all, and I was able to do some catch up work on the computer, among other things. But the dogs certainly missed their exercise time and long walk that I simply didn't have the energy to give them. So into the pool they went! It worked splendidly if I do say so myself! They spent about 45 minutes frolicking, and the rest of the afternoon snoozing. It was just what the doctor ordered!
The red ball is always the favorite toy!
Kona and his little sister Kealani. She lives across the street, with his brother Joey, from his same litter.

It's a Kona sandwich!

Joey and Kona being typical brothers and showing off their teeth.

"Mine are bigger!" "No! Mine are bigger!!"

"Boys! What are you doing?"

"Who? Us? Nothing...nothing at all...." (Don't Harley and Jill look like little tattle-tails sitting there watching?)

Kona and Jill looking a bit water-logged.

Kona finds a comfy spot.

Chow time!

Not long ago I was telling someone about how all four of our dogs will sit and wait for the OK to start eating. They didn't believe me.

So, you little skeptics you, here is the proof.

This is Slick!

This is a really random video that was sent to me by my friend Don. It's something anyone who enjoys technology will appreciate. Click on the link to see what I mean. It's a little long, but pretty darn-tootin' cool! (I've always wanted to use "darn-tootin'" in a blog post! ha ha!)

The Budapest Multiparker

A-Z Mondays- the Foodie Version, "W" is for Water!

Well, water (get it? well water... Ha! there I go again....funny, right? No? Maybe it's the cold medicine...) may not be a "food" but it's something none of us can live without consuming, so I figured it would fit right in with the theme.

And I'm not a watermelon eater, so that wouldn't work for a post for me today. I'm not particularly feeling inspired today because honestly I woke up feeling rotten. Both of my girls have had colds for the last couple of days, and as much as I've been trying to avoid being around them as much as possible (go ahead, call me "mother of the year!" ) I've managed to catch a little something from one of them..

Anyway, when I thought of today's letter (W), the natural choice for me was water. I am a BIG water drinker. I'd say that I drink water probably 95% of the time I consume anything liquid, with my morning protien drink and my daily very rare McDonald's Frappe making up the majority of the other 5% and a very rare diet soda thrown in on occasion. It wasn't always that way...I used to be a big soda drinker, and would go through a lot of diet soda...more than I care to admit to. But not anymore! No sirree Bob! Now I am a big time H2O fan !

Every once in a whie I will think of one of the funniest thing that happened when Hubby and I were at a Christmas party years ago. We were sitting at a table with an older couple. The waiter came around with a pitcher of water, filling up everyone's glass. He came to the older gentleman sitting next to Hubby and started to pour water, the gentleman quickly put his hand over the glass and said, "No thank you! I don't drink water - fish shit in it." I just about fell off my chair laughing so hard.
For those of you that don't drink much water (and you should) here are some random interesting facts for you.

1. Roughly 70 percent of an adult’s body is made up of water.

2. While the daily recommended amount of water is eight cups per day, not all of this water must be consumed in the liquid form. Nearly every food or drink item provides some water to the body.

3. Soft drinks, coffee, and tea, while made up almost entirely of water, also contain caffeine. Caffeine can act as a mild diuretic, preventing water from traveling to necessary locations in the body.

4. Water dissolves more substances than any other liquid. Wherever it travels, water carries chemicals, minerals, and nutrients with it.

5. Somewhere between 70 and 75 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water.
The earth is a closed system, similar to a terrarium, meaning that it rarely loses or gains extra matter. The same water that existed on the earth millions of years ago is still present today.

6. By the time a person feels thirsty, his or her body has lost over 1 percent of its total water amount.

7. The weight a person loses directly after intense physical activity is weight from water, not fat.

8. Water is absolutely essential to the human body’s survival. A person can live for about a month without food, but only about a week without water.

9. Water helps to maintain healthy body weight by increasing metabolism and regulating appetite.

10. Water leads to increased energy levels. The most common cause of daytime fatigue is actually mild dehydration.

11. Drinking adequate amounts of water can decrease the risk of certain types of cancers, including colon cancer, bladder cancer, and breast cancer.

12. For a majority of sufferers, drinking water can significantly reduce joint and/or back pain.

13. Water leads to overall greater health by flushing out wastes and bacteria that can cause disease.

14. Water can prevent and alleviate headaches.

15. Water naturally moisturizes skin and ensures proper cellular formation underneath layers of skin to give it a healthy, glowing appearance.

16. Water aids in the digestion process and prevents constipation.

17. Water is the primary mode of transportation for all nutrients in the body and is essential for proper circulation.

Now get up and go get yourself a nice tall glass of water!

If you'd like to see what other bloggers are drooling over this Monday, be sure to stop by Jen's blog here.

A Walk and some Stats

Hubby and I, along with our gaggle of Goldens, started off the day with a nice long walk around the lake. We didn't get the early morning start we'd hoped for, and got a bit warm, but we all made it around the whole lake just fine.

On the home stretch
Only a 1/2 mile more to go!

Pooped after 5 miles!

I brought my pedometer along with me and thought it would be fun to share some statistics with you.

It was a total of 11509 steps,

and of those 11509 steps, 10571 were aerobic steps...meaning my heart was pumping nice and hard. It took me one minute shy of an hour and a half to walk 5 miles.

During that 89 minutes I burned 511 calories, the equivalent of 31.4 grams of fat.

And then I went to McDonalds and had a Frappe. But only a medium.

The end.

(I hope you had a great weekend.)

Triple Pack

It was a busy, busy kind of day today...some community service, house cleaning, catch-up work on the computer for me to get done, and a graduation party for one of our neighbor's daughters.

Hubby is a sweetheart and doesn't mind helping to pitch in with the housework. While I was getting some work done on the computer, he mopped the floors for me. With all of the tile we have, we have to get it done in stages....we block off part of the house, mop it, let it dry, then switch off.

The poor pups feel like they are in puppy jail when they are blocked off from part of the house. They finally got tired of whining about it, and took a nap.

Harley, Jack and Kona make up this triple pack. Jill was laying on her bed in front of the fireplace, enjoying the peace and quiet. Smart girl!

Super Cool

Don't we wish!

Talented Pickle

Today was the last day of school for Pickle and AJ....AJ's class spent the day at the beach (rough, isn't it?) and Pickle's school held a variety show at the end of the day. Although I wasn't able to go, Bear was able to attend, and take this video for me. It's Pickle, on guitar, with a friend, singing a song called "On the Bright Side" by Never Shout Never. It's a shame you can't hear the guitar very well, and the students were loud and acting, well, they were acting like a bunch of high-schoolers getting ready to be out of school for the summer. But anyway, I am very proud of Pickle for having the guts to get up in front of everyone like this, I certainly could not have done it!

When the Folks are Away, Bear and the Pups will Play

...in the pool, that is.

This is what happens when I leave the house for a couple of hours and leave my water proof camera laying around. Who's complaining though, I love to come home to tired, happy dogs! Thanks Bear!
Harley playing "underwater fetch!"

The nose knows...

Suggestions Please!

Where in the world should Hubby and I go to spend out 20th anniversary? It is rapidly approaching - (October 20th) and we've been giving it a lot of thought, but we haven't locked in to any certain place yet. We are leaning towards one place, but I don't want to mention it yet.

I'll fill you in on a couple of things from our past...we honeymooned in Hawaii and have been back a couple of times since then. Although we love it there, we would like to go someplace new....

For our 15th anniversary we spent a week in London and Paris. We actually dined on the Eiffel tower on our anniversary day! That will be hard to top! So, although we love both London and Paris, we've been to both places several times, so we don't want to go back to either of them right now.....

We were trying to decide between a tropical, relaxing, snorkeling type vacation (and giving some serious thought to the Great Barrier Reef) but, I think we are probably only going to have a week, and we both agree that when we make that long of a trip to Australia and New Zealand (yes Chris, eventually, we really want to come and see you!), we are going to need longer than a week....so that is out. SO....we are giving up on the relaxing, tropical destination, and we are going more for a sightseeing destination.

So....where do we go? Germany? Been there, spent two weeks traveling all over...loved it, but again...we are ready for someplace new. I've been to Ireland and Scotland, but Hubby hasn't. I'd jump at the chance to go back. Egypt? Maybe...dining under the stars in front the pyramids for our anniversary sounds pretty awesome, but we are a bit concerned with the politics and how welcome Americans are over there right now....Tuscany? Rome? Hong Kong? Venice? Barcelona? Seville?

Here's where you come in. We need suggestions!

A-Z Mondays - the Foodie Version, "V" is for Very...

Very late, and very good. Ok, so sue me. I couldn't come up with anything fantastic to write about for "V" and frankly, I felt like cheating and telling you about the VERY awesome dinner we had this past Saturday in honor of my Mom's birthday and Father's Day. It was a perfect evening, other than we were missing Pickle. She's been fighting a horrible head cold, and didn't feel well enough to join us.


We went to our all-time favorite restaurant, Morton's. Morton's specializes in steak, and my, oh my, what a job they do.


Here are all of the very delicious menu items we gorged ourselves on.


We started with a loaf of freshly baked onion something or other bread.
I had a crab cake to start...
Hubby had some jumbo stuffed shrimp. (Jumbo-shrimp, I love a good oxi-moron!)

Next came the house special salad-full of fresh bacon bits, heart of palm, tomatoes, artichokes, etc. and topped off with a house special bleu cheese dressing. I don't even like bleu cheese dressing, but I LOVE Morton's bleu cheese!

The girls - taking a break from the feast for a minute.

The birthday girl with the best waiter ever! We love Rudy-he always takes the very best care of us!

Mom and Pops!

Pops and A.J.

Rudy listening to one of Pops' stories...(no, AJ is not praying for it to be over, ha ha! He was closing his eyes to the flash.)

Hubby and Bear
Ah, the perfectly cooked fillet

and some of the side dishes - garlic green beans, grilled asparagus, hash browned potatoes, and creamed spinach

Oh, it just doesn't get much better than this.

Rudy sent the Maitre'D over to offer us some after dinner drinks.

Yum! Have you ever tried Sambuca and Bailey's over ice? Give it a try, you'll thank me. Seriously.

Last, but not least, came a little birthday celebration.

Freshly baked chocolate lava cake.

with the melty chocolate oozing out of it. YUM! VERY good indeed!

It was an absolutely vantastic dinner!

If you'd like to see what other bloggers are drooling over for A-Z Mondays, please be sure to stop by Jen's blog here.