Our 2 Princesses

The adventure that began 3 weeks ago with the acquisition of a pup followed by bringing an 8 year old into the picture for the Summer 10 days ago is trying to find some stability. Warning: If you are in your early 50s and have been independent for a couple years, do not try this at home. Yes, "what we were thinking" moments have abound, more so with the canine creature than the human. Brynn has really been a doll.

The last couple of weeks have been about structure. Unfortunately, Sadie has been abysmal about keeping up with her chore chart, unless gnawing at every animate and inanimate object counts, at which she has excelled. My right arm looks like a pin cushion at an old folks home.

Brynn, on the other hand, is very compliant. A little manipulative at times as she thinks her I-phone desktop screen counts as reading time, but overall we agree she has transitioned very well. Whether outdoor or indoor, she has been very willing to help.

Teaching Brynn the art of chicken herding.  I keep telling her she needs to bob her head and pick up bugs from the grass, but she is not buying my training.

 

The Chicken Whisperer. Perhaps because of her size, they easily come up to her and eat from her hand.

 Diving right into the chicken coop poop cleaning detail. When I told her we did this on Mondays, she admitted "Yes, my mommy told  me I had to help with cleaning up poop". What a team player.

Was wondering where my Taylor  Swift poster went.

Painting a homemade chalkboard for her bedroom. I told her I had painted her head shape  on the board. I think she figured out it was her shadow.

Mid-90 degree day and her and I the only one for 1.5 hours at our free splash zone park. Perhaps others drove by and saw this old guy with this young girl and thought it was creepy and kept on motoring.

Evidence everything is not bigger in Texas. Brynn was beyond exuberant when she exclaimed she had spotted her first frog ever. You would have thought a kangaroo had  just hopped out of her dresser drawer.

Mon-Fri we have theme days which include "Service", "Adventure", "Baking", "Craft" and "Library". For the "Adventure" day, she gets to draw out of a jar and on this day selected Picnic--in Texas--in June. My favorite day is "Baking".

I lived with her the Summer she was six--boy does two years make a difference in courage. She stayed  in the big pool the entire time where we worked on beginning swimming lessons. I just get behind her and make shark sounds and nip at her heels--speeds up training time.

 "What it takes to be an awesome wife" training day.

Her first rodeo! Or as she inquired, "What time are we going to the radio?". Watching team calf roping where one lasso goes around the head and the  other snares their heels, I loved her panicked response when she saw the animal motionless-- "Is the calf dead!". Told her BBQ started in 30 minutes. Her favorite parts per her-- the rodeo queens and the rodeo clown's magic show of 5 minutes. Humm.

3 weeks ago.

The other Princess in our Summer adventure. And she is 100% as ornery as the pix suggests. Although her parents look like Pyrenees, I am thinking she was adopted and is a cross between a mule and a piranha--stubborn, biting fur ball! She is definitely identity confused thinking she is a pit bull and her master is Tinkerbell. That WILL change.

The final project complete before Texas unleashes is full Summer fury......Before, with plain vanilla trim.

...to a more robust black along upper trim, garage door and porch supports...and if you zoom into the 4th garage window, you will discover somewhere in Texas a mental health home is missing a patient.


That about summarizes our past 10 days. Next weekend, I become a bachelor for 3 days as Teri and Brynn travel down to the Rio Grande Valley to celebrate Teri's grandma's 96 birthday. They still make Ramen noodles, don't they?

And oh yea, as temps and humidity rise to challenge the best deodorant,  there has been more than one discussion about having an RV parked at 5,500 feet elevation for the months of June-Sept. And while we never complain about rain in Texas, the mosquitoes that follow are a different story--going to have start charging them blood suckers rent.

Til next time.