Installing Doors and Windows

One of the more interesting discoveries inside our walls was this old door. Some prior owner no longer wanted a door to the back yard, so they sided and framed right over the door, as well as an old window next to the door. Although it was a cool find, it had to go.  The wood was rotting and the paint, almost surely lead-based, was bubbling and chipping off in a disturbing manner. I did take some time to salvage the cool hardware, however- an old door knob and a very cool latch that still works great.  We'll find another use for them soon, I'm sure. 

Lexi's recovery

My garden and mountain bike buddy has made a pretty incredible recovery.  After her five-day stay at the vet, she came home and turned a corner.  Her appetite came back and in about a week, she was back on the road to recovery. We're still not sure what the problem was- it may have been acute liver poisoning, or it may be a condition a bit more chronic in nature. We have her on these horribly smelling but highly effective liver supplement chews, and they definitely seem to be working because she's back to her normal, spunky self. 

Last weekend, we took a trip to the Methow to do a little mountain biking, hang out with friends, and enjoy a sunny Eastern Washington fall weekend.  I was especially aware of how grateful we are to have this dog (as well her dog brother Chase) in our lives.  Their goofy antics really enrich our lives. 

Lex and Chase keeping watch on the porch

Chase and Lex cuddling with Tye and Achilles

Get better, miss Lexi!

Miss Lexi Lou has been at the vet's since Monday with a bad case of vomiting.  We were initially thinking she might have eaten something that was blocking her intestines, but it turns out that the problem is with her liver.  For now she is stable, and might even get to come home today, but we're waiting to find out whether this is a short term problem that will resolve itself, or something more chronic.  We're crossing our fingers for short term/ easy resolution, and hoping and hoping she gets to come home for the weekend. 

Lex has been my number one garden buddy since the first day she came home with me on a "trial foster period." We were living in Ballard at the time, and I was just starting to get to know this little dog.  I was digging up some turf in the planting strip to make room for a vegetable bed.  Lexi watched me intently as I fought with a particularly stubborn clump of grass.  After a few minutes, she walked over to the clump of grass, grabbed it in her mouth, planted both feet, and pulled as hard as she could.  It popped out of the soil, and Lexi was so excited she shook it all over the place, dirt clods flying everywhere.  I laughed and laughed, and knew right then that the foster period was over, and that I had found myself a great garden helper. Indeed, she's been a constant garden companion to me ever since that day. She is always by my side, whether I'm planting, weeding, or harvesting (particularly when I'm picking, ahem, peas.)  Because she's on my mind today, I rounded up some of my favorite garden shots of her. Get better, Lexi-Lou, our dear bubeleh!  Chad and I are thinking of you today and sending you all of our healing, loving thoughts.  

4 legged Pea Eater

Our peas started out quite slowly this year, and for awhile it didn't look like they were going to do much.  In late April they finally started to climb the trellis, but looked quite skinny.  

The heat and moisture combo of June this year, though, really inspired them to grow, so by late June we were in full-on pea-harvest bliss.  

Sugar-snap peas are a cherished treat in our home- we love to make stir fries, risottos, or just eat them straight out of the garden.  My loyal garden buddy has picked up this habit too, it seems.  

For a little while I thought about busting her for this, but it completely charms me, maybe because she finds so much joy in eating them.

June Methow weekend - rattlesnakes and mountain bikes

The last weekend in June, we headed east on Highway 20 for a quick Methow getaway.  The objective of the weekend was to put the dogs through a rattlesnake aversion training class, so that they could learn to steer clear of rattlesnakes on our many Eastern Washington adventures.  

Though we had intended to do this training for quite some time, it was an encounter with this guy over Memorial Day weekend, on a hike in the Tieton River Valley, which solidifed our decision:   

Dogproofing the garden

Let me introduce you to two of my biggest garden nemeses:  Lexi and Chase.  

While I adore these monsters, they can be horribly destructive in the garden.  Here's some evidence: 

24 hours- Spokane Round and Round Part I

I spent Memorial Day weekend with four teammates at Riverside State Park in Spokane, doing our first ever 24 hour mountain bike relay race.  This particular race has been on my radar since I learned how to ride a mountain bike, and I was thrilled to finally have a critical mass of people in my life who are crazy enough to undertake this kind of madness.  The format was to ride as many 15-mile laps as possible in a 24 hour period, from noon on Saturday until noon on Sunday.  We were nutty enough doing it on a team of five riders, but there were 50+ other uber-nuts who signed up to do the race SOLO.

Approximately three fifths of our team, dubbed the Boadcious Booties and Bulging Beer Bellies, departed Seattle mid morning on Friday, packing Tyler's Volvo station wagon to the tippy top with gear. We even had a four-bike hitch rack on the back.  JillyB's fancy Indy Fab went on the outside slot, which made me a little nervous, being the nicest of all our bikes by a factor of at least 5, and considering how low the wagon was riding.  Luckily, all the bikes (and riders) arrived unscathed after a smooth, uneventful, sunny drive across eastern WA.  We rolled into camp around 3:30pm to find an expansive scene of RV's, tents, bike racks, camp chairs, and very fit, muscly people packed in tight like sardines. Like burning man, but with Gu and Nuun instead of acid and magical cookies (and spandex instead of fuzzy mini skirts and kilts). The race directors directed us to the back of the camping area, and because Tyler boldy wove the Volvo between the trees into the woods, we scored a huge wooded area with virtually no one else around (great for letting the dogs loose, and for tired racers trying to catch some quiet time between laps).

Lupines and Arrowleaf balsamroot were in full bloom.

JillyB getting ready for a pre-ride

Entiat Epic

Chad and I spent Labor Day Weekend exploring the  Entiat River area of the Wenatchee National Forest.  We camped along the North Fork of the Entiat River, then headed off early Sunday morning on a mountain bike / fly fishing/ hiking adventure.  We parked the car at the North Fork Entiat River trail and took off on our mountain bikes for about 6.5 miles, just to the edge of the Glacier Peak Wilderness.  We ditched our bikes and hiked up to Fern Lake (another steep 1.5 miles) where we spent the afternoon fishing, eating lunch, and lounging.  Below is a video of our adventures at the lake and our return trip to the car.  Apologies for the rookie video footage- this is my first attempt at a video, and also my camera broke part way through the day so I used some video footage from my cell phone video cam.

Buck Mountain trail ride (and a crazy coyote encounter)

We recently headed to the Methow to celebrate our friends' Morgan and Casey's wedding at Spring Creek Ranch, the same amazing venue where Chad and I got hitched. We rolled into town early Saturday morning and set up camp at Buck Lake Campground, a beautiful quiet spot about 14 miles northeast of Winthrop.

After the tent was assembled and air mattresses/ sleeping bags rolled out, we still had a few hours before the wedding.  We set off to explore Buck Mountain Loop, one of the more famed Methow Valley mountain bike rides in the area, heading out along a forest service road which followed the edge of Buck Lake.