Things have been Crazy!

Head on over to colliebrookcrossing.com to find out. That's my new blog. It's updated on a regular basis and more fun than this blog!

New Blog Update & Pictures of Ranger

I know I said the new blog will be up and running by September 12th, but it might be sooner. I'm having an easier time figuring out how to set it up than I thought I would. I think that by next Friday the new blog can go live!


Ranger and I have been having fun lately, just hanging out in the sun and shade and enjoying the beautiful New England weather. Here are a few pictures from the past week:

 

(Above: Ranger has his own space in the garage for when we're all out there hanging out or working on the trucks. All but one of his toys ended up in the garage. And that one other toy is in the backyard. He has been so happy since we moved to New Hampshire!)

 (Above: I was trying to take a few photos of my old Kodak Vigilant Junior and Ranger decided he wanted in on the action. Yes - he got jealous of a camera.)

 (Above: "Do I see a cat in that window?! Ranger loooooves kitties! All he wants to do is play with them and cuddle them and chase them. But these kitties want nothing to do with him!)

(Above: Ranger just chillin in the garage with me while his Future-Daddy was at work. He loves hanging out in the garage, unless it's too hot. Then he wants to lay in the shade out back.)

Heads Up: In the Works

I'm going to be abandoning this blog within the next couple weeks. Don't worry, I will direct you to my new blog once it's up and running and I'm happy with it's appearance. I have a few other things to get ready for the new blog as well (like a Flickr account, maybe twitter, pinterest, etc.)

You can count on the new blog being ready by September 12th, 2013. That gives me two weeks to get it ready and start posting. Until then, I will be working double on this blog and the new blog.

Ranger and I thank you for your patience while we make this transition!

Things Have Been Crazy! {Part 3}

I know, I skipped a couple days. Sunday was insanely busy, and Monday was a nightmare, and Tuesday I hit the Save button instead of the Publish button. But today I'm going to publish this post while I sit here in the garage hanging out with Ranger, before I get too far into my day!

This should be the final post to catch you up on what has happened since Ranger and I moved 1400 miles from Missouri to New Hampshire. I have left out a lot of things, but I really don't expect anyone to want an extremely detailed play by play of the past month.

Let's review!

First - an interesting road trip with plenty of mishaps.

Second -a party, the groomer, working on trucks, momma breaking her foot, sour skittles, hot dogs, energy drinks, and a ride in a big truck

And now: Third - spending a weekend at a local Animal Inn, moving in with a friend, and a second new truck!

Ranger spent a Friday and Saturday night at an animal inn. Originally, this was so that I could go up to a friend's lake house for their end of summer BBQ, but that didn't happen. Between my broken foot and my little brother needing rides all around town for parades (he made drum line as a Freshman!) I just never made it to the lake house. I thought Ranger would at least get a chance to socialize more, and to do it without me there. I want him to learn that it's perfectly fine for him to play and have fun with people even when I'm not there. When I dropped him off they asked if I wanted Play Time. I guess that every day for a certain amount of time a person takes the dog out in a yard and plays with them. At least he wouldn't be stuck in a cage.
I also chose this one place because he isn't stuck in a cage. The way this place is set up, he can be inside or outside whenever he wants, because he has his own private yard. It's not very big - it's more like a long hallway outside, but there were dogs on either side that he could run up and down the fence with. It seemed perfect!

Sadly, I probably won't be bringing him back there. When I picked him up he was shaking his head like something was in his ears, so when we got home I looked. His ears are covered in nasty bug bites! I checked his stomach, too. Same thing. Some of the nastier bites were bleeding. I don't know if they are ant bites or flies or what, but he is not going back there. I'll try their other location next time. I'm sure it wasn't something they did on purpose, but because he has an outdoor run as well I'm sure that insects get inside, or he fell asleep in the sun like he usually does and the ants made a meal out of him. Hopefully another location wouldn't have the same insect problems. After a week, the bites are still scabbed over and they seem bigger. There may be a vet visit in Ranger's near future.

 (Above: Exploring the bed of the truck)

 (Above: Being a snuggle bum)

(Above: When we're outside he sits next to me and just watches the world go by.)

A week ago Ranger and I moved out of my aunt's house. We moved in with The Man. So far things are great! We figured it would be easier for my aunt since she already has a full house, and it'll be easier for him and me too since we were 25 minutes away from each other. We saw each other most every day when Ranger and I lived with my aunt, and that is a lot of wasted fuel.

Our new Sleep Number bed is supposed to arrive tonight, and we got our new truck last Thursday night. Things are coming together. Now we just need a place of our own. We're fine living where we are while we house hunt and save up, but we definitely need our own place where we're not surrounded by people constantly.

Did you notice I mentioned a new truck? I guess I really caught the truck fever, because last month I bought the 1993 F250, and this month we purchased a 2007 F350 6.0 Powerstroke, King Ranch edition. It's absolutely gorgeous! Here, let me give you a preview of my beautiful new toy... I mean our new truck...

Now, Ranger won't be allowed in this truck until his dog bed is completed. The Man's mother and I went on a shopping trip to Jo-Ann's Fabric and got everything she would need to make us a dog bed. Neither The Man or myself want to risk Ranger's nails damaging the leather in the new truck, so if he ever rides in it the back seat will be put up and the fake floor will be put down with his bed.Otherwise he will ride in the '93 or '89 most of the time.

Whew! It only took 3 posts but I think I'm just about caught up on what has been happening in the life of Ranger and his human.

Things Have Been Crazy! {Part 2}

We made it to New Hampshire on a Thursday evening. On Saturday my aunt was having her summer BBQ. This meant Ranger was going to get socialized real quick. Leading up to the BBQ I did a few things to prepare Ranger and myself for all the people that would want to pet him. There were a few people bringing little dogs, too. So I got Ranger a 25 foot lead made for dogs up to 90lbs, and we found a nice shady spot in the yard to use. Unfortunately, all this means Ranger would be pretty far away from everyone. And at the same time it ensured that there would not be a 65lb dog running full speed around the yard trying to play with kids or dogs. I had this horrible image of Ranger accidentally knocking somebody down and hurting them.

The party started Saturday afternoon, and in one's and two's people would walk over to Ranger to say hello. I would see them heading his way, and I would jump up and get there first, to help Ranger emotionally. He barked at everyone that got within 50 feet of him for the first couple hours but then he got the idea and instead of a mean "stay away!" bark it was more of a happy "Hi! I'm a dog! I like treats and butt scratches!" kind of bark. By the end of the night when people were getting ready to leave and went to say goodbye to Ranger, he was rolling over when he saw them coming for belly rubs, checking their hands for treats, wagging his tail a million miles an hour, and the only time he would bark was when they were walking away from him. Almost as if he was saying "Hey! We're friends! Come back and rub my belly!"

Sunday morning I woke up to take Ranger outside to potty and he looked at me like I was crazy... then he went back to sleep.

Over the next couple weeks ranger met more and more people, and experienced a lot of new things. He went to the groomer and then got to hang out in the garage while I got help fixing my truck. Poor dog... the groomer put a Care Bears bandana on him. I made him wear it for two days. Does that make me a mean mommy?

Then there was the night I broke my foot.

I was walking with Ranger through a dark back yard, holding him by the collar, and I stepping in the only hole in the yard. I went down, pulling Ranger with me. Poor Ranger. He thought he caused me to fall! He was crying and giving me kisses and trying to make me feel better. This all happened at 10 o'clock at night. I thought maybe I just jammed my foot and decided to wait it out until morning.

Every time i got up and tried to walk, Ranger would get in front of me and look straight up at me and whine deep in his throat, like he was saying sorry I hurt you mommy, but I'll catch you if you fall again! By 3:30am I was in extreme pain and I couldn't sleep, so I left Ranger with my friend and went to the hospital.

About 10am when I was leaving the hospital with a confirmed broken foot (broke it in 2 places!) and a cam boot I got a text. "Guess what we did?!"

They went for a ride. In this:

To give you an idea of how big this truck is... Ranger had to be picked up and put in the cab because he can run circles under the truck without ducking. And I can sit cross legged under the truck with clearance. It's not a monster truck, but it's close. The tires are 37" and there's a lift on it too.

So then I get another text. "Ranger doesn't like Sour Skittles." I'm in my truck driving back thinking oh jeeze he's feeding Ranger candy... And then I get a third text: "He doesn't like energy drinks either." And one final text: "We had hot dogs for breakfast." At least he tried to feed Ranger while I was gone with all Ranger's food in my truck.

Up Next: Things Have Been Crazy {Part III}

Things Have Been Crazy! {Part 1}

Wow! So much has happened since my last post! Ranger and I moved to New Hampshire (and what an interesting move it was!) We bought a second truck. Ranger has learned a lot about meeting new people, and he is gaining weight and looking healthier. And for some reason, he suddenly LOVES stuffed squeaky toys!

So first of all, Ranger and I live in New Hampshire now. It took us 3 very interesting days of driving to get here.

The issues started at U-Haul when I went to pick up the car dolly. They had to rewire my truck. So I was stuck at U-Haul for almost 2 hours. It only got better from there...

Before we even got to the highway to start the trip we met the local fire department. I filled the front gas tank of the truck (old Ford trucks have front and rear fuel tanks) and when I looked away from the little screen telling me how much money was being stolen from my bank account I noticed I was leaking fuel everywhere! So I ran inside to tell the attendant. They called the fire department because we didn't know how much fuel was going to leak out. I had put over 19 gallons in that tank. It was possible 19 gallons of gasoline would end up on the ground. This set us back about an hour and a half. Thankfully I only lost 2 gallons of fuel.

About halfway through the trip we had a pretty scary mishap. The tread on the back tire on the driver's side of the truck blew off and wrecked that whole section of the truck. And I mean wrecked it. I couldn't put fuel in the truck, I couldn't drive, I was stuck on the side of a highway in Ohio.

I called Roadside Assistance through my insurance company and after a 20 minute battle finally managed to convince them that the 2-wheel car dolly I was towing was NOT a trailer. So they agreed to come out to help me change the tire. I didn't have a jack otherwise I could have done it myself. Once I got off the phone with my insurance company a van pulled over behind me. I go out and asked if the man was my roadside assistance. He said he wasn't, but he was roadside assistance. Apparently Ohio had amazing people drive the highways looking for stranded motorists to help! I love you, Ohio!

He got my spare tire out from underneath the truck and put air in it (that van was seriously equipped for ANYTHING!) and as he was working on getting the spare off, my roadside assistance showed up. Talk about awkward. The guy my insurance sent leaned down and said "Um, I was sent to help her." and the guy under my truck looks at him and says "oh, I know you were. But I've got it covered. You can go."

Oh. My. Gawd. I about died. I had told the Ohio highway guy that the tow company had cancelled on me twice because of the "trailer" I was towing. He was not impressed with them, because the dolly didn't affect anything. We didn't have to disconnect it from the truck or anything.

Here's what I was towing:

 

That's obviously a trailer right? Right... sure. If they say so. 

Here's the ruined tire:

And here are a few pictures of the damage the tire caused:

Oh what a nightmare. So the guy my insurance sent ended up putting my spare tire on the truck and then leaving. I was so upset... I couldn't put gas in my truck because the filler neck was wrecked! What was I going to do?! I still had 10 hours of driving left and my front fuel tank leaks, so I couldn't put fuel in the front tank without risking blowing up or losing all my fuel. I just kind of stood there for a minute and the Ohio Highway Guy said "I can fix that. I can't make it perfect, but I can make it so you can still gas up. You'll just have to go slow." I could have kissed him! 

After our two hour delay because of this, Ranger and I were back on the road. About 30 minutes later we stopped to use the bathroom and I noticed something REALLY bad.

The car was coming off the dolly. 

This is the point where I said "I give up. I'm going to live at this gas station forever." I somehow managed to get my car off the dolly and back on correctly. For some reason the straps and chains weren't holding my car in place on the passenger side so I had to keep fixing it for the rest of the trip. I just kept tightening the straps more and more until my tire was almost flat from all the pressure. I didn't care. I just wanted to be done with the trip.

We finally made it to Massachusetts, dropped the car off at a dealership for some work and then dropped the dolly off at U-Haul. Then we headed to New Hampshire. Once we got to New Hampshire we realized the spare tire was going flat, so we aired it up and moved on to our final destination.

I am never making that trip again. EVER!

Up Next: {Part II}

Truck Dog & Moving North & Paisley

Ranger is now a "truck dog!" We got a truck! He'll be riding in my new (old) 1993 F250! Look at it! Do it! Look!

She's so pretty! 

Now that we have the truck we will be packing up all our things and moving 1400 miles to New Hampshire either Tuesday or Wednesday. Let's hope I can tow my car on my own, since it's just Ranger and me making this trip with the truck and the car. 

It will probably take us 3 days to get there, but I'm hoping it only takes 2. I really don't want to have to stay the night in New York State and that's about the only place we could stay between Ohio and New Hampshire that is a good halfway point. I guess it depends on how far we get the first day. I'm not 100% sure how the truck will do towing my car. It should be fine- the truck has a LOT of power- but it will all depend on how the truck feels after towing the car for a day. Our trip is also an extra 4 hours longer than last time I made this trip in just my car, so we might not make it all the way to Medina, OH. There is a Motel 6 there and they have a free pet policy as long as you don't leave your pet in the room alone for hours on end. We'll be there long enough to eat dinner, sleep, shower, eat breakfast, and get back on the road.

Once we get to New England we will stop in Massachusetts and Ranger will meet his grandpa, we'll drop the car off for some work and a full detail, then we'll drop off the car dolly (which we will rent from UHaul) and then we'll make the last hour of the trip to NH. 

So far we have about 80% of our stuff packed. We have a short to-do list to complete before we hit the road. 

1) oil change on the truck

2) buy Ranger's dog food

3) get Ranger's nails cut

4) buy at least 1 ten-gallon gas can for the truck

5) rent the dolly

6) finish packing my clothes (and a weekend bag for the trip)

7) make sure I have everything- go through the house at least twice

8) find some ratchet straps for the bigger things going in the truck bed

9) vacuum pack blankets and fill the blanket box with clothes and blankets, wrap in plastic in case of wet weather

10) pack everything into the car and truck

I'm excited. Ranger really has no idea what is happening. All he knows is momma is putting all her stuff in a corner of his room for some reason. 

Tomorrow we're all going to a creek to test of the 4x4 on the truck and to swim. Thankfully I got an extended cab truck so the dogs will have plenty of room.

So now about Paisley:

Ranger and Cricket stopped eating. In the first two weeks we had Paisley Ranger lost 7 pounds even though I was hand feeding him almost twice as much as he usually eats at each meal. I'm trying to put weight on Ranger, so him losing weight is unhealthy. He was just stressed out so much by the puppy. The two girls got along great, but they either ganged up on him or ignored him completely. He was more timid than before around the puppy, and he was extremely jumpy and needy. We decided it would be best for Paisley to go to a different home. 

I found someone. Her new daddy is a middle aged man living alone without any family. He needed and wanted a friend, and when Paisley met him she immediately went to him and sat down next to him facing me, like "yup, this is my human." She wouldn't even come to me when I tried to say goodbye. She was more worried about staying next to him where she could lean on his leg or stretch up to lick his hand. Her whole attitude changed the moment she saw met him, like she had made up her mind and nothing was stopping her. Since she seemed to want to go with him and since she wanted nothing to do with me I let him take her home with toys, her bowl, crate, blanket, and food.