Another Good Day

Monday evening we were both beyond weary–the Cowboy laid the tile in one half the larger bedroom.  I removed all our belongings from the toyhauler trailer making multiple trips to and from the house with the CanAm.  We could hardly put one foot in front of the other last night–so today was a day of rest!

Taking a cue from Nina and Paul  we’ve started taking Emmi with us to Tucson and Sierra Vista.  We’ve always made it a habit to not leave Emmi alone for more than 4-6 hours and six hours is pushing it.  It takes an hour and fifteen minutes just to get to Tucson–two and one half hour round trip.  So, if we left her at home we were rushing through our errands, eating fast food in the truck–very stressful!  So, Nina and Paul leave their Polly pooch alone for less time than we do Emmi but they make it work.  They sometimes travel/sight see separately but take Polly along if at all possible.  They seek out eating establishments which are pet friendly–usually with outdoor seating.  Home Depot allows you to bring pets inside but Costco doesn’t.  If the outside temps are cool enough we will leave Emmi in the vehicle to shop at Costco–we both go in, the Cowboy looks at what he needs then goes back to the truck to sit with Emmi while I finish the grocery shopping.  If it’s too warm to leave her in the truck one of us stays with her, usually me as the Cowboy doesn’t grocery shop! 🙂

Finding decent restaurants with outdoor seating is a challenge, especially in our travel path.  It’s usually fast food such as Five Guys or Culvers.  I’m going to do some more research–I’m weary of hamburgers!

Today we arrived in Tucson right at 11am and our day went like clockwork–Costco was a zoo but we persevered and got it done–did you know you can buy toilets at Costco???–we did!!:) Next step was Five Guys for lunch–I go in and order for both of us while the Cowboy sits at an outdoor table with Emmi.  Our last stop was at Home Depot and for once, it was a pleasure.

When the Cowboy installed the security door on the front of the house he made a small measurement oops.  The door knob on the security door came in contact with the door knob on the steel entry door–the security door wouldn’t close.  Oops!!  Once those security doors are installed with the special bolts they cannot be removed unless with a grinder–the Cowboy had to put his thinking cap on and came up with the idea that a lever handled door knob/lock would not be as “thick” allowing the security door to close.

We found a lever handle today but of course it was keyed differently than ALL the other locks in the house.  The Cowboy read that Home Depot could re-key a Defiant brand lock and I thought, “yea, right!”  But, we happened upon a helpful gentleman who did exactly that!!  And we found everything else on our Home Depot list–amazing!

At home we found Sergio and crew finishing up for the day–they had started to apply the “color” coating to the window and door trim–we love the color and were excited to see him here a couple days early!

And, to top off our good day there was a box at the door–my sweet sister Ann and her husband Danny sent us a Christmas bouquet–the flowers smell so good and are beautiful.  I have the best-est sister!

So, see, it was just one of those good days!  Oh–and remember the wonderful clam chowder Ainslie made for us–he gave me the recipe and I’ve been looking for clams.  He uses a 51oz can of “sea clams.”  Ainslie said clams labeled “ocean clams” don’t taste as good but once I saw the price for “sea clams” on Amazon ($21/51oz can!!!!) I was ready to try the “ocean clams” at $13/51oz can but hadn’t pushed the “buy” button yet.  Today while searching for something else in Costco I spied a package of two 51oz cans of “sea clams.”  Can you guess the price–$17 for TWO CANS–I bought four cans!!  Life is good!