It's here

Our new dishwasher has been delivered and installed!

The installer said we picked a good one. He has a Bosch dishwasher and loves how quiet it is.

The installer also said that there has been a large slow down in installations as fewer people buy new appliances.

Once we fill the dishwasher up, I will get to see just how quiet this is.

Thanks IAMS

Bev, an IAMS representative, left a response to the blog entry about Danny not eating his IAMS food. Bev said there was a satisfaction guarantee and to call IAMS for a refund.

I called and Bev was right. IAMS will refund the cost of the food and also send some coupons for dog biscuits.

I was pleasantly surprised by their willingness to refund my purchase. Sandy,the IAMS customer representative, was very pleasant. We have used IAMS for a long time and it is great to see such excellent customer service.

Thanks IAMS!

Dog Food

Danny decided that he no longer likes his chicken based IAMS dog food and stopped eating it. I thought Danny was sick, but Jeff pointed out that he eats everything else.

Before going to the vet, we decided to try a new dog food. We went to the pet super-store and asked for samples. Unfortunately, they don't carry samples, so we headed down to the dog food section.

I was amazed at all the choices. I first spotted duck with long grain rice. It sounded interesting, but I wondered what if Danny acquires a taste for duck ? Would he attack Maddy and Paddy ? On to the next option....

Salmon and wild rice - I am not a fish eater, so I could not subject poor Danny to that.

Next was turkey and barley. Turkey has upset our previous dog's digestive system, so we immediately passed on that.

Beef with vegetables was a possibility, but we kept looking.

We eventually found lamb and rice. Not just any lamb, but New Zealand lamb. We decided to give this a try.

We threw out the IAMS and put some lamb and rice in Danny's bowl. Danny gave it a sniff and started to wander away. I coaxed him to take a bite. He ended up eating the entire bowl.

We are keeping our fingers crossed that he continues to like this food.

Hummer Feeders

I received two new hummingbird feeders as an early birthday gift.

I put this one out last night and wondered how long it would take before hummer discovered it.

This morning, 12 hours later, I saw hummer going to each "flower", taking a sip and then trying the next one.

It looks like this feeder is a big success!

Tennesse Gold

We spent Memorial Day weekend with family in upstate NY. While we were there we met two Golden Retrievers who were visiting from Tennessee.

Miss Lily and Sean Patrick were both larger then Danny, with beautiful red coats and sweet faces. Sean Patrick seemed to be a little concerned when Miss Lily and Daniel said hello, but he quickly settled down and all three enjoyed lots of pats and hugs.

It turns out that Lily and Sean were both rescued in TN. Danny is an Alabama rescue and you could tell that all 3 dogs were full of Southern charm.

Lily and Sean's Mom and Dad not only adopt rescued Goldens, they travel to disaster sites to rescue abandoned pets. When people are fleeing their homes and leaving their "best friends" behind, they are rushing in to save these defenseless animals.

I don't think Lily or Sean could have found a better forever home!

To all the wonderful rescue volunteers, Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

Bosch

Our Maytag dishwasher has major problems and needs to be replaced.

Those who regularly read the blog will know that this was the last remaining kitchen appliance. Who would think that in 2 years, you would need to replace a refrigerator, stove , oven and dishwasher? I don't think this is a very positive statement about the quality of today's manufacturing.

After looking at numerous dishwashers online I called our appliance industry expert and asked for suggestions. What dishwasher would you buy I ? The answer: Bosch - they are the best.

I didn't know much about Bosch, so I did a little research. It turns out they are the highly rated, known for superior quality and super quiet operation. I never doubt our expert, so we decided to check this dishwasher out.

Luckily, Lowes carries Bosch. Even better they are running a holiday special - 10% discount and free delivery and installation.

The new dishwasher should be installed at the end of next week.

Hummer

Hummer was at the feeder early this morning!

I was surprised that he spent about a minute drinking at the feeder. After a long cold night, he was probably glad for the sweet meal.

Fetch

More than anything else in this world, Danny loves to play fetch.

When I get home and grab the chuck-it he immediately races down the driveway and waits for the ball to be thrown. Danny will chase the ball until he is exhausted.

However, it seems as if every day this week, it has either been raining or started to rain just as I get home.

Danny has had enough. I threw the ball twice today and that was it.

After the second retrieve he headed into the garage and sat by the door waiting to get in. I picked the ball up and said don't you want to play ?

Danny looked at the rain and tried to nudge the door open with his nose. Enough said!

It can only get better

You know it is a Monday when....

You are walking the dog at 6:45 am and you hear a loud BOOM.

There goes the power I said and I was right. We called the electric company and they estimated the time to fix the blown transformer was 2 hours.

Knowing we had to get to work, we threw some items into our gym bags, drove to the gym and took showers there.

Wouldn't you know when we got back home at 8:10 am, the power was on!

I figured the day could only get better from there.

Hummer is Here

Jeff spotted the first hummingbird at the feeder last night.

By the time I got to the window the bird was gone.

Now I know to keep an eye on the feeder and should see this little visitor soon!

Stargazer Lilies

Stargazer lilies are one of my favorite flowers. They were part of my wedding bouquet and I still love them.

With their wonderful scent and exotic beauty, they always make me stop and take a second look. I tried to grow Stargazers in NC, but had no success.

When we were at Home Depot, they were selling these lilies. I immediately grabbed a pot and put them into the cart.

Now they are sitting on the kitchen table and you can smell their sweet scent immediately upon entering the room.

Karma

Last weekend we gave Danny a bath outside and I mentioned how cold the water was. I thought Danny might be uncomfortable, but focused more on how cold my hands got in the water.

Then fate stepped in today when I went to the salon to have my hair done. After driving 45 minutes, I arrived and was told that the water heater was not working.

There were two options either cancel the appointment or have my hair washed in cold water. I thought how bad could it be, so I stayed. The water started out cold and then turned freezing.

When it was over, the stylist asked how bad it was. I said, I now know how my dog feels after getting a bath outside!

Waiting for Hummer

It has been a month since I put out the hummer feeder and we are still waiting for our first siting of these little birds.

Last weekend, I went to Stew Leonard's and bought some beautiful annuals. These are now in hanging pots near the feeder. I am hoping that the extra color will attract hummer.

TUMI

We had bought a Tumi laptop case a few years ago. Unfortunately, we never registered the bag with Tumi and did not save the receipt. All we knew was the bag was now 2+ years old.

The laptop case was used daily and received a lot of rough treatment. The case itself looked great, but the two plastic clips that held it closed both broke.

We thought it was time to throw out the bag and get a new one. However, the laptop case had been expensive and I thought it might be worth contacting Tumi to see if we could purchase replacement clips.

I was pleasantly surprised when the Tumi representative told me to send the bag to their service center. Tumi would determine the age of the bag and if it was still under warranty it would be fixed for free. If the warranty had expired, they would let me know the cost of the repair and I could decide what to do.

I packed up the bag and for $12 shipped it to Georgia.

Two weeks later there was a Tumi box at the front door. The laptop case had been repaired at no charge!

I am so impressed by this, that I would consider purchasing other Tumi pieces in the future.

1st Bath of the Season

Danny's playing in the compost pile lead to his first Spring bath.

It was sunny outside and fairly warm, so we decided to bathe him in the front yard.

We forgot just how cold the well water would be. After a few minutes, our hands were frozen.

Danny was great - he didn't cry or try to escape, but it was clear that he was not enjoying the process.

Mrs Fox

We had not seen the fox in a few weeks and I was starting to wonder if the fox had found new hunting grounds.

Then the other night during dinner the fox appeared, slowly strolling across the yard, stopping to sniff as he went.

I do not think this is the same fox we usually see. I think this fox may be a female. Her frame was much smaller and thinner but her tail was incredible. Without exaggeration, the tail was twice as wide as her body. She was gorgeous.

Compost

We have a compost pile in one corner of our yard. It has leaves and weeds that are slowly rotting and smell terrible.

Danny discovered the compost pile today. Danny leapt into the compost and happily rolled back and forth. He ignored my commands to stop and come here.

When Danny decided he was finished, he stood up, gave me a Golden smile and happily walked off.

Needless to say that a bath will be top on Saturday's chore list.

Relay for Life

St. Luke's youth group is raising money for the Relay for Life by selling these beautiful roses.

What a great way to raise money in the battle against cancer.

Tulip

A previous owner of our home must have enjoyed gardening.

We had a single tulip spring up along side the driveway.

I decided to bring the flower in, before the deer enjoyed it as a snack.