One year ago today, a cute little ball of fluff joined our family. Rory has had an amazing first year with us, and I can't wait to find out what the next few years will bring. In just this one year, he has:
Passed two levels of training classes (we are now on a waiting list to get started at a new place with more complicated training, and eventually get into agility).
Marched in two parades.
Been on vacation in Indiana.
Been on vacation in Florida.
Raced at the local International Racecourse of horses in their first ever "Corgi Classic."
Hiked multiple times in several different state parks.
Been to the beach.
Gone to the drive-in movies.
Been to our town's concerts in the park.
Made friends pretty much everywhere he goes.
And so much more, that I'm sure I'm forgetting...
Rory has changed so much since we first brought him home. See him grow up in a few of my favorite photos of him.
The day we brought him home. We hadn't even gotten in the house yet (trying to make sure he went potty first), and the neighbors on each side of us immediately came over to check him out. How could you not? Just look at that face!
12 weeks old.
3.5 months old.
4 months old.
4.5 months old.
Almost 5 months old.
6 months old.
7 months.
8 months.
The kids went through a paper airplane stage, and Rory went through a stealing paper airplanes stage.
At the bungalow we rented in Indiana. It was Rory's first trip and he traveled wonderfully.
9 months
Hiking at the state parks often results in a bath after we get home.
Traveling on our way to Florida. We really lucked out that he loves traveling so much. I feel like he could go along to anywhere we drive. He had just recently passed his first birthday in this photo.
Just over a year old.
He has certainly changed a lot since his little fluff ball stage, but he's still fluffy, and adorable, and lovable, and we are happy to be his people. Here is to many more years of fun with you, Rory! (We already have something super fun planned for November, and I'm sure many other adventures await this little guy.)
The kids had a half day of school yesterday, so we hit the apple orchard in the afternoon. A couple of weeks ago, this seemed like a good plan. We haven't made it to the orchard in a couple of years, and I hate going on a crowded weekend. Unfortunately, even though it was the first day of Fall, it was over 90 degrees, and a bit too warm for spending a few hours at the orchard (and having hot apple cider).
I probably broke a few child labor laws when both kids decided that they were done picking apples with their baskets about 3/4 full. Since I had already paid, and it is by the basket, not by the pound, by golly, they were going to finish filling those baskets. Originally, they did not want my help picking apples, but both agreed to let me help them finish up.
I insisted on one photo right when we got there since it was so hot, I was sure they would be uncooperative later. Originally, they said that they didn't want to play first, but that didn't last long. We only did about 15 minutes of climbing and running through the maze before heading out to pick apples.
Before we went picking, I tried to convince them to sit for one more photo, with the orchard sign, but they were already getting over heated and crabby. Only one kid was willing to sit and smile.
Malcolm perked up during the picking; at least for a little bit.
Evidently, everyone was wanting only the Honeycrisp apples. They guy showing us where we could pick was shocked when I said we wanted a variety. We ended up with Honeycrisp, Empire, and lots of Gala, because Malcolm says those are his favorite. Before heading out to the orchard, we sampled a few apples inside the barn, and I now have a new favorite; Pixie Crunch. They rarely show up in grocery stores, and they don't allow them to be picked here, but I bought a small bag to bring home. I had one for breakfast the next morning.
He's tall enough to reach much higher than in previous years. There were a few times where I saw some nice apples up high, and instead of picking them myself, I could just show Malcolm, and he could get them.
Dorothy is no slouch in the reaching department either. Both kids are getting very tall.
It wasn't too hot to be goofy.
Our haul. I'm so glad I brought the wagon. Those baskets get heavy, and the wire handles can really cut into your hands. We had to walk a good way down the rows because the varieties that were ready to pick had been stripped clean on the trees closest to the parking area.
Once we had our apples, it was time for cider and doughnuts. I talked Dorothy into a quick picture on the pink tractor though. That cold cider was very good, and I'm not really a cider person.
The heat was tough, but we still had a fun time. We would have stayed longer and lingered a bit if the weather was more Fall-like, but we have lots and lots of apple now. I'm going to make an overnight caramelized apple oatmeal for Monday morning (I love being able to just spoon up breakfast on school days), there are plans for some apple pies, and we have caramel for dipping our apple slices in. Once it cools down a bit, I'll probably can some applesauce too. Yum!
Dorothy did a week long dance and cheer clinic through the local high school, where the high school girls teach the local kindergarten through eighth grade girls a short cheer and a dance routine. It was about as chaotic as you would expect, but she seemed to have a lot of fun, and even got to reacquaint with a good friend from her old school who also happened to be participating. What a nice surprise!
On Friday, the girls performed at halftime of the Freshman football game. It was cute and fun, and we stayed for the Varsity game, which was immediately after.
At the entrance to the field. The team is the Chargers.
Walking out for halftime.
Lining the little ones up was a bit like herding cats. Dorothy stood out there and was just waving and waving. We assumed that she was waving at us, but when we told her we saw her waving at us, she corrected us and told us that she was waving at Gage (a boy from her class at school - his older sister is on the high school dance team).
Here is a video of her performance. This is just the kindergarten through third graders. The fourth through eighth graders performed after the little kids. They started quicker than I anticipated, so I missed the very beginning. Oops!
After the performance, she wanted to pose for photos.
More posing, and this is where we realized that she had retied her shirt much high than I had it originally. She had also rolled her pants over a few times, so there is a lot of belly showing here. High school is going to be a fun time with this one.
Back in the stands, Dorothy begged to be able to sit with her friend she had been waving at from the field.
Kevin and I were interested in checking out the high school band. Things we learned:
1. There are 132 members of the band (not a bad size).
2. The dance team is not part of the band.
3. There were only 3-4 flag/guard members. It was a bit confusing because there were four at pregame, then three for the first song at halftime. Then those three left the field and the fourth one rejoined them on the sidelines. Then all four went back out out on the field, but one did a solo (not the one who had been MIA earlier) while the other three did something else. It was not executed nor choreographed well, and I was less than impressed. Hopefully, it's just early in the season, and something better is in the works.
4. The band did some basic formations, but is not drum corps style. That bodes well for Dorothy potentially being allowed to twirl, if she wants, when she goes there.
The kids were getting antsy in the stands, so we let Malcolm, Dorothy, and her friend all go down in the grass next to the bleaches to run around a bit. They did things like tossing a tinfoil ball back and forth (foil hamburger wrapper from dinner) to playing hide-and-seek. While playing hide-and-seek, Dorothy ran her head into the underside of the bleachers. Malcolm and her friend, ran up to the stands to tell us, "Dorothy is bleeding!"
Well, that could mean anything. Malcolm has said the same thing, in the same way, for a paper cut, so we assumed that she had scrapped her knee or something. Kevin went to investigate and while he was on his way down, the guy sitting behind me tells me, "There she is! With the medic."
Yep, Dorothy ended up out on the track, being tended to by the team medical staff. Kevin even had to talk to the school athletic director for a bit. They stopped the bleeding and checked her for a concussion, and she was fine; just embarrassed and worried she will have a bald spot. It was just a small head cut, but it did bleed like crazy.
She was upset to get blood on her new shirt. Since I hadn't washed it yet, it still had a coating on it, and all the blood washed right out.
Other than our rough ending, it was a fun night, and our first real experience with the local high school. We were impressed with their student section, in that there were a fair number of students there, and they were actively involved with cheering for the team. Hopefully, she will only remember the fun parts and will want to do the clinic again next year.
It's the first day of summer break, and we really did it up right today!
Our first stop was for our annual "1st day of summer break" doughnuts. Malcolm had a jelly filled and Dorothy went with Boston Cream. I really hoped I wouldn't regret my choice to have them eat them in the car, because we had a 2 hour drive in front of us to get to Starved Rock State Park. Amazingly, no one made a mess (that I know about). I was boring and had a cider cake doughnut.
It was the kids' first trip to Starved Rock State Park. Kevin and I stayed at the lodge for our second (I think) anniversary. Our 19th anniversary is in just four days, and it seemed right to be back. Unfortunately, Kevin couldn't be with us. He's been out of town for a little bit, and I felt like the dog was being a bit neglected. Until he left, I hadn't realized just how often one of us is home. Poor Rory has had some extra time in his house and was getting a bit stir crazy. I thought he could use a good day of hiking as much as the rest of us.
At the top of Starved Rock. I wasn't sure how Rory would do with the stairs, but he was a real trooper. He was so excited he could barely contain himself.
The kids loved looking through the viewer and checking things out. I appreciated that it wasn't one that took quarters, so they could keep switching turns for a long time.
After climbing to the top, we then went down into a couple of the canyons. Rory loved the hiking part, but wasn't so sure when we were trying to get into the base of the canyon. Malcolm scurried right over the sandstone rocks and disappeared around the corner, out of sight. Dorothy climbed up, then got stuck. Meanwhile, I was trying to convince a reluctant Corgi to climb through some running water. He started in, then though better of it and came back down again. He did climb up to this little shelf, and seemed pretty pleased with himself. After a while, everyone did manage do climb up, and get to the base of the canyon. It was totally worth it.
Sometimes, there isn't much water coming over the canyons, but we were very lucky. Today, there was lots of water running in all the canyons we made it to. We have agreed that we want to come back in different seasons to see how different they look. In the summer, there is no water at all, and in the winter, some of the canyons have ice falls.
Rory was very popular at the park today. Lots of people stopped and asked to pet him, and a Japanese family took a ton of pictures of him. A British family stopped to talk to us for a bit, and he made friends with the tiniest beagle puppy I have ever seen. I definately talked to more people than we would have without a dog.
Rory had a hard time climbing in and out of the canyon. As we were waiting for a bottleneck to clear on our way out, and other dog, with much longer legs, came up. The other dog made it look so easy, and poor Rory looked a bit envious.
Every so often, the kids would feel the need to climb up on something as we walked along.
We got a little turned around, so we hiked longer than planned. Lunch was a much needed break. I was happy to find a picnic table near the visitors center (indoor restrooms) and away from the large school groups.
After lunch, we walked around and looked at some of the chainsaw sculptures near the lodge. We really like the "Fox Ridge" area.
Each kid picked a favorite fox, and wanted me to take "an alone" photo of them.
This is how Malcolm would like to spend his day with a cat.
We started another hike to a different set of canyons, but turned around when I heard thunder. I had check the weather, and it said 0% chance of rain. However, we ended up in a picnic shelter waiting out the thunderstorm. The rain slowed a bit, so we ran back to the car, then I popped into the cafe because they carry the kind of coffee I really like. The kids had been troopers, so I hot them each a hot chocolate. Rory was muddy, wet, and tired out. That was enough treat for him.
We have decided to go back soon to finish our rained out hike. I wasn't sure how having two kids and a dog by myself would go, but they all did great.
Today, Malcolm turned 10! I have no idea how that happened, because it seems like he was a preschooler just yesterday. He's also seeming much more grown up lately, so I guess he must really be 10.
This year, we kept the "party" very simple. We stayed local, walked everywhere, and I had zero planning, decorating, or baking to do. YES!
This dog wasn't sure what was going on, but he was certain that he had to be a part of it. I took this photo while Malcolm was opening gifts, and did not have to move or do anything special to get sure a close-up photo of his face. I think the dog is in every single picture I took this morning.
Malcolm had to wait until we were all awake, and I had breakfast in the over before he could open presents. It's a miracle he didn't explode. He lined them all up by size, and opened them in descending size order.
His "big gift" (read, only) from us was his own computer and permission to, finally, play Minecraft. He is beyond excited.
It's hard to see because of the sun, but he just stared, open mouthed, at the Lego Millennium Falcon that Grandma & Grandpa sent. He started putting it together, but didn't quite finish it in one day.
It was hard for Dorothy to watch her brother open gifts, but she did better this year than in previous years.
They actually got along pretty well today. They even hugged a couple of times, and I heard Dorothy tell Malcolm that she loved him (and he didn't grumble in reply). I love when they get along.
To kick of the friend celebration, we met at a local restaurant for a pizza lunch. The kids put away more pizza than I thought they might, especially considering the amount of popcorn they ate before the pizza arrived.
Up next was the Underground Retrocade, which is all vintage video games. Malcolm loves this place, but I'm never sure what his friends will think when we invite them. I shouldn't have worried because they all had a great time trying out lots of different games. Because it was early afternoon, we had the place nearly to ourselves.
Malcolm and I raced on this game too. I won the first race, and he came in last. On the rematch, he just barely beat me.
I liked that the kids paired up in all sorts of different groupings while playing the games. Sometimes they played alone, other times in pairs, and once all four of them played together. It was nice to have so many choices.
Malcolm loves Road Rally, but the other two boys found it a little hard to control.
Kevin and Dorothy played lots of games together. Here, they are playing X-Men, and Dorothy really knows what she is doing. I played with her earlier, and she was telling me what I needed to do.
He focus wasn't always so great. They had Star Wars playing on TV screens, and she was trying to watch the movie and play games at the same time.
Possibly not the least appropriate game for kids, but the concept of them pouring and serving beer is funny. Dorothy really liked Tapper, and was pretty good at it, once we figured it out. Kevin and I don't remember this particular game from our youth. It was referenced in the Wreck it Ralph movie and we hadn't realize that it had been an actual game. It was fun to play it after seeing it in the movie.
After a fun afternoon playing video games, we walked down to a little frozen custard place and waited for the parents to pick up their kids. They were a very good group, and hopefully everyone had a good time.
The birthday boy, on our walk home.
Once we got home, he collapsed on the kitchen floor. I'd say it was a very good day, turning 10.
