There is just so much to get done, and taking the weekend to relax was amazing. The inaugural camping trip of 2022 was incredible. The pups did absolutely amazing! We are fairly certain at this point that as long as they are with us they will go and do just about anything. They are definitely explorers and adventurers.
They really enjoyed being free range pups and sitting out front enjoying the sunshine with us. They had their first winery experience and were fabulous, although Belle might have got an attitude with her Daddy when he was teaching her to sit calmly like a lady. That girl packs powerful attitude when she wants to.
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| I'm not talking to you dad... and no kisses! |
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| You are being unreasonable dad! |
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| I'll save you sis! |
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| I don't want pets either... this is stupid |
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| I'm gonna sit on mom... leave me alone |
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| I'm your little baby mommy |
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| Mommy save me... |
If you are up near Hannibal, MO I strongly recommend the Mark Twain Cave Campground and Winery. We loved it when we went for our final trip of the year last year, so much so that it had to be our first trip this year. And we couldn't have been happier. They have done so much work during the off season, you could simply tell they care and want it to be exceptional. They are leveling all the spots, clearing out the access to the beautiful creek that flows through the property, putting in so many more full service RV sites it was wonderful. They current owners just purchased it a few years ago, and have been working so hard to make it into a can't miss location. Some of the sites are a bit smaller than I am comfortable with, not being as much of a people person as Hubs I prefer a bit of space. I just don't choose those sites when I book us.
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| Mom, I thought we were ready to go, what's Dad doing? |
And the winery is fantastic! They have a port that is extraordinary and I will admit that we brought home several bottles. Hubs has even fallen in love with it. The brandy notes blend so nicely with the white wine base, it's heavenly. And our new friends convinced me to try the pinot noir, I am not usually a fan of the drier reds, but they were delightful friends and the winery let me taste it first. WOW! I didn't bring any home, thought about it, but we'd already bought enough and when it came down to deciding between another bottle of the Gilded Page Port or the Mark Twain Reserve pinot noir, well... I went with the one I love the most. Besides it gives me a great reason to return sooner, rather than later.
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| Beau made a friend... Jack... |
So my sweet fur babies led to us making some new friends. They are kind of people magnets and the other two couples fell in absolute love with them. I was semi-afraid a dog napping was liable to happen. Not okay, they were sure making an effort to lure them to going home with them. I decided since they loved my babies so much I should tell them that I knew where they could get some just like them.
Many bottles of wine and lots of chaos and confusion later, my girlfriends delivered two of Belle and Beau's sisters to my house yesterday and our new friends each have their own baby girl to love. My babies are so bubbly compared to these sweet girls. But in all fairness these little girls have only been with their fur mom and dad, and remaining siblings and we had just put them in collars, in a strange car and brought them to a strange house and let them meet more strangers who then put them in harnesses and tried to walk them (they'd never been leash trained). Those babies were traumatized!
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| Faith is Belle's little twin their coloring is different but they are the same pup |
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| little sis (don't know her name yet), she's a mix of my babies |
One of them got her name by the time they left our house yesterday. Faith. It's perfect. She is almost Belle's twin, although she is a bit smaller than Belle. She has a small cross on her nose. She perked up a bit quicker than their other sister.
The pups were excited to have playmates, and warmed up to their sibs pretty darn quickly. Their sisters were not so quick to warm up, but I have a feeling if we had already had our fence they would have all been running and playing in no time.
Later in the day, long after their sisters had left and we took the clean camper back to our site, we took the pups to the dog park. Our little Beau was having a fantastic day yesterday, he had three sisters to play with and then they made a real dog friend at the dog park. Indy was a two year old golden, still very much a puppy himself. They ran, played, tumbled, chased a ball and had a blast. It was wonderful to watch and they were so happy. Beau has been absolutely dying to have a puppy friend to tussle and run with. He loves his sister, but wants to be friends with all the dogs. Belle isn't usually so quick to warm up, but she definitely did last night. It was like long lost friend night at the dog park. Even though it was the first time they met. My 10 year old boy (Hubs) had a blast throwing the tennis ball for them. All around a win.
It was so nice to step away from reality for a bit this weekend. To simply stop and enjoy the simple things in life. To play and laugh, to not really have any responsibilities or plans. Hubs insisted that we take in the quilt show that happened to be going on while we were there. I mean is was only 10 minutes from our campsite, and there were quilts. They were fantastic. And he even found a vendor that had some great backings for sale at an even better price. I was needing to shop for some so that I could finish a few of my quilts, but hadn't gotten around to it. We bought three, so after this week is over I will get back to work on finishing up a few quilts.
He also insisted we do the cave tour. I love caves, he loathes them. I've known it since the first one we did way back in 2003, in fact that was when I knew it was true love. The boy and I really wanted to go into the Meramec Caverns, so he took us. We didn't know until afterwards that he'd never been before. That he'd refused to go with his ex, waiting outside while they were in there. Since that time he's taken me in many of them, always holding me close to keep me "safe". Last year I wasn't physically ready to walk the cave, I was still so fresh from my knee replacement, but boy did I want to. I hadn't decided to go this time, didn't want to put him through it, and darn it's pricey, he simply didn't listen. For an hour we explored the caves made famous by Mark Twain. We walked the paths the fictional Huck and Becky got lost in and where Injun Joe hid out from the law. We learned the history, we stayed a healthy distance from the section where the mad doctor from St. Louis preserved his 14 year old daughter and enjoyed seeing all the signatures written over the 100's of years.
Poor guy had his heart rate up there, but he made sure that I made it safely through the walk on uneven stones and through the small passages that actually stressed me a bit. He took pictures of things he was sure I had missed and asked all the questions that I was thinking but never ask. It's like he reads my mind, and becomes my voice.
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| At Lovers Leap |
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| My sweet card shark |
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| forever 10 |
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| Sunset at the winery |
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| come on mom... we want to explore pretending to be Huck & Becky |
It was bittersweet packing up to come home yesterday. We'd come earlier than planned to help Faith and her sister find new loving homes. Sometimes you have to do the right thing. And my dear friends helped us get those sweet babies to their new families where they will be spoiled and loved, maybe not as much as my babies, but I am a little "special" that way. The only thing that made it okay, is knowing that we already have our next trip booked and paid for. In just three short weeks we are heading back to Paducah. Another spot that I feel great peace and joy.
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| ahhh... home... |
I've sat here far too long. I have so much to get done, this house is trashed from unloading the camper and just stopping to enjoy wine on the deck and with our friends. It's time to get back to adulting and doing the stuff that I have been ignoring.
love and peace...
Good one! 381+
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