You don't bring me flowers anymore

Well, it had to happen.  The love had to tarnish a little.  Today I am officially a bit less in love with Louie the puppy.  And, honestly, I think the feeling is mutual.

True story:

Since we are heading into our last few days before school starts, I suggested we take a little field trip today to a farm/state park in a neighboring town.  It has trails, ponds, woods, a working dairy and ice cream stand.  Good mommy, right?  And since there was going to be so much to sniff, I thought we'd bring the puppy.  I was impressing myself with my awesomeness right about then.

Oh, pride. Why do you go before the fall?  Why not hang around a little longer? At least until we get home maybe?

We got there, traipsed all around, even let Louie off the leash for cute, playful running around the field with Sam. It was like a sunny 1970s movie, fuzzy around the edges and warming of the heart, with lots of humming and "la-la" music in the background.

Lauren hung onto the leash and Louie as the rest of us went and got drinks and ice cream at the dairy.  Then we all headed to the car.  Lauren says something about Louie squatting earlier and acting funny.  Huh.  That's weird, I think.  As we continue to the car Louie, bless him, keeps sitting down.  Over and over again.  We start noticing that he's leaving behind marks every time he sits down.  Skidmarks, if you will. Very smelly ones.

NO. nonononono. I lift up his tail.  Yes. Absolutely yes. Somehow he hadn't quite finished his business enough to leave a present.  The present has mushed into his fur and tail and legs.  A very big present. Cartoon-like, I look from Louie to our car, Louie--->car.  So here's a MacGyver situation: in the car, I have a pad of flipchart paper, a glass mug from our kitchen, my textbooks recently purchased for school, and two little plastic sandwich baggies.  No towel, no bathtub, no fireman's hose.

I take Louie and the mug and the baggies over to the pond.  Although he WILL NOT APPROACH THE POND.  He vehemently opposes the pond idea.  So I take little mug-fulls of water to his behind, over and over again, which frankly doesn't help much.  Now it's just a wetter mess than before.  With Lauren's help, I finally get him into the pond (and he manages to get me in, too) for a little dousing. It's a little better but still not up to the trip home.

We return to the car hoping that someone magically produced a crate and deodorizer while we were gone.  Still just the paper and the books...which (hello?) are in big plastic bags!  Yay, us! With one are-you-thinking-what-I'm-thinking glance, we craft a makeshift plastic diaper out of the bag, tearing two holes in the bottom for his legs and pulling it up around his tummy.  It works.  We spread the flipchart paper on the seats just in case. It doesn't take care of the stink but it protects the car, thereby protecting Louie from eternal shunning by the man of the house.

Poor boy, he's subdued and embarrassed all the way home.  We have definitely insulted his doghood. His expression says what the heck, people?! Is there no pleasing you humans? First the elizabethan collar and now this?  

Oh, but don't cry for Louie too long.   When we got home, he got cleaned off with the hose, escaped through our open gate and got back into the car all muddy.  Touche, Louie.

p.s. Have a great Labor Day weekend!  G and I are heading to Boston's North End tonight for a little pasta and cannoli, then tomorrow we're taking the kids to Fenway for a little Red Sox baseball  (hopefully not in the rain and lightning, please.) Goodbye, summer!

One of those welcome signs on the overpass would have sufficed

We're here for less than 24 hours and guess what?

We got robbed in Utah! In my own growing-up hometown! What's up with that?

Our rental car was parked in front of my parents' house last night and someone broke in and took:

- Greg's Garmin navigation system that I brought from home (the one he always puts away but I left out in plain sight on the front window)
-Lauren's ipod, left in her purse, along with...
-Lauren's digital camera AND
-$100 of Lauren's hardearned babysitting money she wanted to use for school clothes

Yeah, Lauren didn't come out of it so well, poor thing.

Oh the irony!  Lauren is the one who considers Utah to be nirvana: where we waterski, play, see family, sleep in...the land of fun + relatives + cute boys + vacation + Hire's cheeseburgers + no chores.  And this valley here? Literally the land of milk (Aggie ice cream, creamies) and honey (Cox's). 

Sorry, Utah, you just slipped a few notches.

We'll give you some chances to show us your good stuff in the coming days though...

Finishing

In honor of the Olympics starting this week, I wanted to post one of my favorite Olympic moments: Derek Redmond's try for a medal in the 400 meter, Barcelona 1992.  Do you remember this one?

{the clip isn't in English but it's the pure footage of the race}

I love this on so many levels.  I love Derek's determination to finish, no matter what. Disappointed, not what he planned, but he perseveres.  This tenacity is not my default setting--I don't know, maybe it's not anyone's default setting?--so I marvel and am inspired.   

In 1992, I wasn't yet a parent.  Now I also identify with his dad, determined in his own way to get to his son + wrap his arms around him, to walk next to him through the pain.  Love the moments where he tears away from the security (1:00) and later hollers at the guy who tries to get him to leave.  "This is my son!" (1:29). I get that.

Here's an interview with Redmond about the race:

And here's a new  visa commercial  saluting Redmond's courage.

Go world!

We'll be watching + cheering... 

Opening ceremonies are on 08/08/08 

(What a great date.  Also Sam's 10th birthday).