Rainy Day

It was raining this morning so we drove Noah to school.

I did not go to Camp Gladiator today.

I was at my school from 10 - 2 today.

Then, I came home in time to pick up Noah from school.

Morry and I drove to pick him up since it was still slightly raining.

A few weeks ago, right after Hurricane Harvey, we wanted to help so we signed up with Gold Ribbon Rescue to either be fosters or adopters of Golden Retrievers.   We finally had our in-house interview last Sunday.  During the interview, they told us it could take a few months to match us with a dog.  Well, Wednesday, they called us about a puppy that needed to be adopted.  How can you turn down a Golden Retriever puppy?

Tonight we drove to Georgetown to meet the puppy.  He's adorable and of course, we loved him.

The plan is to bring him home after our fence is fixed next week.  It could be as early as Wednesday.

After that, we got dinner at Pho Phi, a Vietnamese restaurant we found on the way home.

Now the boys are in bed.

Here's a picture of the puppy.

Last Photography Class

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

The rain stopped over night and we were able to walk Noah to school this morning.  After that I worked from home and Rachel went to a different Camp Gladiator and then on to teaching.

I worked from home all day long.  I did run out to Smoothie King at lunch.

We walked to get Noah from school.  He was in a good mood.

When Evan got home, someone came over to look at the mattress we are selling.  Then we left to pick Cooper up and go to practice.

Rachel tutored in the afternoon and went to her last photography class.  It was a 4-week class.  She seems to have enjoyed it.

The boys and I stopped at Tucci's Southside Subs for dinner.

Evan is doing his homework and then they'll go to bed.

Until next time...

No Time To Sit

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

Today was a day that we didn't have much time to sit down.  After walking Noah to school, Rachel and I went to Camp Gladiator.  I started getting messages about work while I was there.  Rachel left a bit early to go to teaching.

As soon as I got home, I responded to the messages. I showered and then had back-to-back phone meetings.  As I was finishing up the second phone meeting, I got in the car to go meet a client for an in-person meeting.

After that meeting, I got home long enough to eat lunch and then have yet another phone meeting.  Rachel got home while I was on that call.

I drove to get Noah because I was taking him to a doctor's appointment.  Rachel stayed home long enough to see Evan get home and then she left to tutor.

Noah and I came home, picked up Evan and drove to Noah's football practice.  As soon as we got there, it started raining so it got cancelled.

We got home and I responded to some more emails and then started making dinner.

After dinner, we went to Tiff's Treats.  Today is the 8 year anniversary of Rachel's cancer diagnosis.  We generally celebrate it together by going to lunch or doing something.  But given how busy we were today, we didn't get to do anything.  So we picked up some Tiff's Treats tonight in honor of 8 years.

Now I'm helping Evan with his homework and then he'll get ready for bed.

Until next time...

Race for the Cure 2017

This morning was another early morning.

Grandma and Papa picked up Noah and me at 6:20 this morning for Race for the Cure.  The walk started at 7:30am downtown.

We had a nice time.  There were 5000 people there.  It was crowded at the beginning of the race but then thinned out some.   We walked most of it.  Around mile 2 Noah wanted to run, so we ran/walked the rest.  Noah really liked getting cheers from the spectators.

We hung out a little bit after the race.  There was a special survivor's tent for survivors and 3 family members.  They had food, drinks, and swag there.

Later the day, we had a woman come over from Gold Ribbon Rescue to interview us to be foster/adopters of Golden Retrievers. She brought one of her Goldens with her.  I'm pretty sure we passed the test.  It was a nice visit.

The boys had Sunday School from 4-6pm.

After Sunday school we met Grandma and Papa at Austin Pizza Garden for dinner.  We ate outside and the kids were able to play on the playground there.  The weather was nice.

Now the boys are getting ready for bed.

Mamma Jamma + Flag Football

This morning Evan and I got up around 6am and left at 6:30 for the Mamma Jamma Bike Ride.  The ride benefits 8 different local breast cancer organizations.

On the way there, we stopped at Donut Taco Palace. Evan got a doughnut and I got a breakfast taco.

We met Papa at the ride.

Evan and I did the 15 mile ride and Papa did the 25 mile one.

At the finish line, Evan and I raced toward the end.  He wanted to race.  The crowd was really cheering and the announcer said that Evan was the first kid to finish.  He was really happy about that.  Then, right after the finish line,  we got a medal.  They placed it around our necks.  Evan was super excited about that.  It was his first medal.  It turned out everyone got a medal, but it was still cool.

While we waited for Papa we walked around and got lots of different swag (food samples, drinks, pens, chip clips, etc.).  Evan saw one of his Camp Kesem counselors there and they hung out together for a while cheering at the finish line.

We really had a nice time this morning.  Evan was loving it.  The event had a good turnout.  But, it wasn't too big.  Everyone was very friendly.

We left around 11:30 so that Evan could get to his flag football practice and then the game.

Earlier in the morning, Morry took Noah to his flag football game.  Even though Noah's team lost, Noah still had a good time.

Morry met us at the Wendy's near our house and then took Evan to his practice/game.

I went home for a little bit to unload the bikes and shower, then Noah and I went to Evan's 2:00 game.

Like Noah's team, they lost, but still had fun.

After the game, both Evan and Noah went with Reid's family to the Pecan Street Festival and then Chick-Fil-A for dinner.

We picked up the kids from Reid's house and then Morry and I picked up dinner at Chipotle.

We ate at home and we all watched Stranger Things.  We had heard good things about that show and watched the first episode.  We all liked it so far.

Now the kids are getting ready for bed.

Here are some pictures from today:

Glad It's Friday

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

This morning, after walking Noah to school, Rachel went to Camp Gladiator at a different location with a different trainer.  She left straight from there to teach.

I had a bunch of work to do before going into HomeAway for meetings.

Rachel stopped at the mall on the way home to pick up the packets for the Race for the Cure that takes place on Sunday.  She got home in time to walk with me to pick Noah up.

Evan is now selling discount cards for school.  He and Noah walked around the neighborhood knocking on doors to sell after he got home.

For dinner, we had leftovers.

After dinner, we went to HEB and got some things for the weekend and next week.

The boys are getting ready for bed.

Until next time...

Clean House

This morning we walked Noah to school and then I left to teach.

While I was gone, the cleaning people came to our house.

Our plan was to meet for bagels after I finished work, but the cleaning people were still there.  So, I picked up our bagels on the way home and we ate on the back porch.

At 1:30 we had an appointment with a potential new psychologist for Noah. We really liked her and he'll have his first appointment on Monday.

As soon as we got home we walked to get Noah from school.

At 3:30 Noah and I went to the community center for a Rosh Hashanah party.  There was a good turnout. I would guess around 25-30 kids were there.  Noah wanted to stay the whole time so Grandma came since I needed to leave for tutoring.

Grandma walked Noah home after the party.

Noah had football practice today and he had a good time.

I got home around 7:30 and we had tacos for dinner.

Now the boys are getting ready for bed.

A Typical Busy Tuesday

This morning we walked Noah to school and then I left for school.

During my break, I went over to Bicycle Sport Shop to get a new bike helmet.

I got home from school around 2:15 and shortly after Morry and I walked to pick up Noah from school.

He went straight to Grandma and Papa's from school.

Evan got home a little after 4pm and shortly after he and Morry left for baseball.

I walked to pick up Noah around 7:30.    He and Grandma had a good time together. They made an apple cake for Rosh Hashanah.  Papa was at a meeting tonight.

Evan and Morry got Tucci's for dinner and then came home around 8:30.

It's been a long day for all of us.

First Baseball Games

This morning we took it easy.

We took a walk and around 11:30 Noah was picked up to go to his friend Ben's house.  He was there until about 3:30.

Evan came with me H-E-B.

When we got back, he got ready for baseball.

Morry and Evan left to go to Georgetown, where Evan's baseball tournament was.

Evan had 2 games.  They lost both.   The other two teams were in a higher division.

Noah and I came to the second game.  Aunt Susan and Lauren's family met us at the game.

After the game, we had dinner together at Mellow Mushroom.

Now the boys are getting ready for bed.

School Dance

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

It was weird walking Noah to school today without a dog. Several people stopped us on the way to talk to us about not having a dog.

Rachel went for a run when we got home.  Then she went to teach.

I left for HomeAway around the same time that Rachel left.

I had a meeting at HomeAway.  On the way home, I met with the guy I was supposed to meet yesterday if I hadn't had the mishap with Adam.

Rachel and I got home around the same time - with just enough time to leave to get Noah.

I had another phone meeting when we got back.

Evan didn't come directly home.  There was a 6th grade social/dance right after school that Evan went to.  He did not dance with any kids.  He just hung out with his friends.

For dinner, we grilled hamburgers.  After dinner we got TCBY.

The boys are getting ready for bed.

Until next time...

After Messy Morning, No More Dogs

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

As I mentioned yesterday, we were taking Adam in to be neutered.  His adoptive family (assuming they were approved) were going to pick him up after his surgery.  I had to drop Adam off between 8am and 8:30.

First, we walked Noah to school.  Then we put Adam in the crate in the back of the van and I left to bring him to Austin Pets Alive.  About 5 minutes into the ride, I smelled something.  I realized that Adam must have pooped in the crate.  I was stuck in traffic so there wasn't much I could do about it.  As I was stuck in traffic, I saw that Rachel kept plastic bags in the van and she had Clorox wipes.  I figured when I got there, I'd use the bag to pick up the poop and then after dropping him off I'd wipe down the carrier.

I parked got out of the car with the wipes and the plastic bag and I opened the back hatch of the van and then I opened the crate to let Adam out and was absolutely horrified at what I saw.  There was poop covering everything.  The entire floor of the carrier.  It was up the walls.  Meanwhile he raced out and jumped out of the van.  I quickly caught the leash only to have the startling realization that the leash was covered in poop as well.  He pulled hard and the leash rubbed against my pants leaving more poop.  I managed to hold him while getting wipes out and I tried to wipe down the leash and my hands but there wasn't a whole lot I could do.  The leash I was using was basically a rope that Austin Pets Alive had given to us and the poop was in the cracks and crevices.  I just closed the van and decided to try to drop him off as quickly as possible and see if they could get me something to clean up.  I walked to the medical center but things were not getting any better for me.  There was a line of people dropping off dogs and cats to be neutered and spayed about 15 people deep.  Adam got so excited and for all 35 minutes (yes, 35 minutes) he pulled and pulled and pulled to try to get to the other dogs in line including one directly behind us.  Meanwhile, the leash, my hands and Adam still had poop on them.  When we finally got in, they wanted to weigh Adam who would not stay still.  Then they took Adam away and wanted to me to write the name and phone number of the adoptive family on the paper.  I didn't want to get my phone out with my hands as they were.  I was able to find hand sanitizer and paper towels and I cleaned as thoroughly as I could and got the information.  By that time, they had taken Adam away.  Unfortunately, I was not able to say goodbye.

If the story is not good enough.  I had a meeting right after I was to drop Adam off.  I had to email the guy and tell him I was covered in poop and could not come despite the fact it was 8:55 and I was supposed to be there at 9am (which is why I told the truth).  I'm sure that's a story he will tell for years.

I got in the car and drove back home.  The carrier was still covered so I had to smell this the whole way home.  When I got home, I had to take the carrier out back to clean it out.  Unfortunately, Adam had bitten the end off of our hose so I was not able to attach a nozzle to the end.

I think I'm going to have nightmares about this morning.

I showered and did some work.  Later in the morning, I met Rachel at Wholy Bagel.

We walked later in the afternoon to get Noah.

Rachel left for tutoring just after Evan got home.  I was on a phone meeting at the time.

For dinner, I grilled a pork tenderloin.

We took a walk after dinner without any dog.  Aside from a handful of nights where we were either leaving for a trip or coming home from a trip and we could not get Lizzy from where she was staying, as well as a few nights where Lizzy went with Rachel to Dallas, we've had a dog in the house every night in the last 14 years.  It's a very odd feeling to be without a dog right now.  It's making it a bit harder without Lizzy.  At least Adam got our mind off of things somewhat.

The boys are getting ready for bed.

Until next time...

Last Full Day with Adam

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

After walking Noah to school, Rachel went for a run.  Today is not a Camp Gladiator day, but Rachel wanted to do something.

Rachel left to go to teach after she finished her run.

I stayed home all day and worked.

Rachel came home in time to get Noah.  She was only home for a little while before leaving to tutor.

Once Evan got home, he got ready for practice and we left.  Noah came with us.  We picked Cooper up on the way.

Rachel had her photography course after tutoring.  Since she was not eating dinner with us, Evan, Noah and I went to Tucci's Southside Subs.  Evan had a cheesesteak and Noah got a sub.

Adam is scheduled to be neutered tomorrow.  We found out today that the family that wants to adopt him was able to move up their interview to tomorrow.  So if they pass their interview, they will pick Adam up from the vet afterwards.  I would think they'd pass the interview so we'll have to say goodbye to Adam in the morning.

The boys will be getting ready for bed soon.

Until next time...

Busy Tuesday

This morning we walked with Adam to drop Noah off at school.

I left for school shortly after getting home and then came back late morning.

Morry went to Camp Gladiator this morning.

I had the Pink Ribbon Cowgirls lunch at Whole Foods today.  I enjoyed it.

We walked to pick up Noah from school.  He went straight to Grandma and Papa's house.

Evan got home a little after 4:00 and shortly after Evan and Morry left for baseball practice.

Rita came over to visit for a little bit and she enjoyed playing with Adam.

I walked to pick up Noah after dinner.

When we got home Morry and Evan had just come home from baseball.

Evan's eating his late dinner of Subway and then the kids will get ready for bed.

First Football Practice

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

Adam pulled so hard on the walk this morning that Rachel I got home nearly 5 minutes before we normally get home.  He just caused us to walk so fast.

We went to Camp Gladiator, though we drove separately.  Rachel had to leave from there to go teach.

Rachel got home in time to get Noah from school.

After Rachel left to tutor, Evan and I took Noah over to his football practice.  He's back with some of the same kids he played football with last fall plus a few more that Noah knows.  Noah seemed to have a good time.

Evan and I left Noah there so we could get to TRPD for a hitting lesson.

We had leftovers for dinner.  Then we took Adam for a walk.

The boys are in bed now.

Until next time...

Sunday School

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

We kind of slept in this morning.  Evan woke me up around 7:30 to tell me that Adam went to the bathroom (both kinds) in his crate.  I took him outside and I cleaned up his crate and then went back to bed.

When we got up, Rachel, Evan and I took Adam for a very long walk.

When we came home we had lunch.

We just relaxed in the afternoon.  I did some work.  Then Rachel took the boys to Sunday School.  A synagogue has decided to make a Sunday School for kids who live in South Austin.  The boys didn't really want to go but they didn't put up much of a fight which was good.

When it was over, Grandma, Papa, Rachel and I went and picked the boys up.  We tried to go to Tarbouch for dinner but the head cook had left or something like that.  In other words, they weren't going to be able to cook anything.  So we went to North by Northwest for dinner.

We took Adam for another walk after we got home.

The boys are now in bed.

Until next time...

Outside Day

The weather was very nice today.

I went to Camp Gladiator this morning while Morry took Evan to a baseball practice.

After they got home, Morry made the kids lunch and then we went for a hike with Adam at the Violet Crown trail.

We took it easy this afternoon.

Evan met some of his friends at Clayton.

For dinner, we went to Rudy's.  The kids were able to play outside there for a while. They have a big grassy area and seating outside.

After dinner, we went to HEB and saw Grandma and Papa there along with a few other neighbors.

We all took Adam for a short walk when we got back.

Now the kids are getting ready for bed.

New Bagel Day

This morning we walked Noah to school with Adam.   Right after we got back I left for school. I have an 8:30 class on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

My class went well.

I stayed at school until around 11 am and then met Morry at Wholy Bagel for lunch.   Since we can't meet on Fridays, we decided to meet for lunch today.

Morry had a meeting this afternoon.

I walked with Adam to pick up Noah from school.  Morry walked and met us there once he got home from his meeting.

On the way home, Noah went over to Grandma and Papa's house.  The plan was for the boys to have dinner there tonight, but Noah wanted to go over earlier.

Evan came home on the bus.

I left for tutoring.

Later in the afternoon, Evan went over to Grandma and Papa's.

It was Back to School night at Noah's school, so Morry went.  I met him there after my tutoring.

Then, we picked up the boys from Grandma and Papa's house.

They both had a little bit of homework to finish.

Now they are having dessert and will soon get ready for bed.

Just Keeping Moving

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

Evan was able to go to school this morning.  He still seemed quite down, but he was well enough to go to school.

After we walked Noah to school, I went into Aaron's for several meetings.

Rachel went to the Austin Tennis Academy for her first day of teaching.  Their first day of school was today.  The last time Rachel taught in a classroom, Evan was not yet born.

I came home after the meetings and ate lunch at home.

Before picking up Noah, I dropped Evan's baseball stuff at Cooper's house.  They were taking Evan to practice today and Evan was riding the bus home with Cooper.

Rachel got home in time to get Noah.

Rachel left to go to tutoring at the same time Noah and I left to go to a doctor's appointment for him.

After the doctor, we went to HEB and got steak to grill.  I also got the stuff I need to make a chocolate creme pie for Evan since he was feeling down.  For Noah, I got bacon and I wrapped his steak in bacon.

We all ate when Evan got home from baseball practice.

Rachel went to a photography course after tutoring.  She's on her way home now.

Adam just peed on the floor.  His reward is being out on the porch.

Until next time...

Still Hurting

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

I think all of us are still hurting from losing Lizzy.  I know that Rachel and I are struggling.  Evan did not go to school today as he was so upset that he got physically sick before school.  Noah was very difficult this morning.  I think there were a lot of causes, but he grieves differently than Rachel, Evan and me, so I'm not sure if that was one of the reasons he was difficult this morning.

Rachel and I did go to Camp Gladiator this morning.  We pushed ourselves to do it.

Later in the morning, I took Grandmom to the airport.

In the early afternoon, a family came by to see Adam.  I think they'd like to adopt Adam, but we're waiting for them to go through the process with Austin Pets Alive.

We walked to get Noah.  He was in a good mood this afternoon.  He went straight to Grandma and Papa's house.

I took Evan and his teammate Braeden to practice.  I don't believe that Evan is contagious.  I think it's emotional.  I wanted him to get back out and do what he loves.  He did well.  I think it's still really tough for him.  He only smiled a bit.  I think he just feels really empty right now.  It's just going to take time for him, as it will for all of us.

Rachel went to tutoring and now she's at Evan's Back-to-School night.

The boys are upstairs and are going to get ready for bed soon.

Until next time...

Goodbye Lizzy

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

This morning, Rachel and Evan were supposed to go for a bike ride with Papa.  Rachel fed the cats and Adam and put Adam outside.  But Lizzy didn't come into the kitchen, which is unusual.  Rachel went into the bathroom where Lizzy has been sleeping and Lizzy was unresponsive.  Evan checked on her as well and then they came up to get me.  They were pretty sure she had passed, although Lizzy was still warm.  I came down and checked on Lizzy and had the same reaction.  I picked Lizzy up to get her into the car when Papa came to the house.  He helped us with Lizzy and then stayed back to tell Grandmom and Noah.  He also took care of Adam while we were gone.

We raced over to the vet.  Deborah, who had been coming to go bike riding with them, met us at the vet.  I rushed Lizzy into the back where they confirmed that she had passed.  They gave us a room where we could say goodbye to her.  It was very very difficult.

We got Lizzy about 3.5 months after our wedding, so she's been with us for almost all of our  married life.  Of our 16 years of dating and marriage, she's been with us for 14 of them.  The boys have never known life without her and she moved into this house with us 13 years ago.  Our whole family doesn't know what life is like without her.  She was the best dog you could ever have.  She never chewed on things or destroyed things.  She was hyper as a young dog, but she still was a good dog.  All day we alternated crying and laughing - telling funny stories about Lizzy.  We were able to give her a very good home, but she was able to give us so much more.

Tomorrow will be a tough day.  It will be tough walking to school without her.  It will be tough waking up in the morning and not feeding her.  But we will never forget her.

As a tribute, I'm including some fun pictures of her and a cute video.

Highlander and Adam

Yesterday we walked Noah to school. Evan walked to the bus stop.

Morry had a 10am meeting up north and we had a 12:15 appointment at Charles Maund Toyota, so I went with Morry to North Austin.  I dropped him off and then went to one of the locations nearby of Austin Pets Alive.

I wanted to see if they had any dogs there to foster.  When I got there it was very chaotic.  I finally managed to speak with someone who told me the dogs there were not available for foster and I need to go to the downtown location.  During this time, I kept hearing them ask for volunteers to transfer donated items to the other locations.  So, I volunteered to load up my car and take some stuff to the downtown location.

We filled the van with litter, food, crates, cleaning supplies and more.

At the downtown location, everyone was busy so I had to start unloading the items on my own. Finally, a woman came over a helped me.

When I was done unloading my car, I went to look at the dogs needing fosters.  There was a cute young looking dog named Adam.  I wrote down my name on the sheet to say I was interested.

Then, I left to pick up Morry from the meeting.

From there, we went to Charles Maund.  I worked out a deal with them.  I will help them some social media and they will lend me a car.  I chose a Highlander and it was finally available for pick up.    We signed some paperwork and I was on my way with a new 2017 Toyota Highlander!

While we were there I got a voicemail that someone else was interested in Adam and they wanted to see if I was still interested in fostering.  I called back and said we could come over now to let them know.

Morry and I went to Austin Pets Alive and played with Adam a little bit.  He was very hyper but seemed sweet.  We could not bring him home yet since he still needed an exam and shots, as well as a meet and greet with Lizzy.  They said they'd call us in a couple of hours when he was ready.

We were home for just a minute or so and then walked to pick up Noah.  

Evan got home a little after 4pm.

Around 5pm we found out Adam was ready.

We piled everyone in the car and headed over there.  Lizzy and Adam met. Although he was jumping on her a lot, he seemed to be learning not to do so.  So, we decided to bring him home.

On the way home we got more dog food at Petco and then picked up dinner at Mi Con Bistro.

Around 8:30 Morry left to pick up Marilyn from the airport.

This morning, Adam started whining around 8:30.  He did well throughout the night.

We took both dogs for a walk.

For lunch, we went to Kerbey Lane.

After lunch, Morry, Evan, Noah, and Marilyn went to the mall so that she could buy the boys some things.

A friend of mine came over this afternoon so her dog and Adam could play together.  They played nicely and wore each other out.

For dinner, we went to Via 313.

We took another walk when we got back with both dogs.

Now, everyone is getting ready for bed.

Here are some pictures from the last few days.