Back to the Dog House

I'm calling this post "Back to the Dog House" because that's what Lyndsay (the dairy farmer, Lake View Dairy) calls the kennel. When I call her from Mark and Mary's it comes up on her phone as "Mels dog house", which I find really funny. So anyhow....


I made it back to Grand Marais around 2:30 yesterday. The drive went smoothly with only a little snow between Two Harbors and Tofte. I stopped by and saw Mary at the office to pick up some booties, and vital groceries. Shredded cheese is a MUST up here:) I picked up some other snack groceries for Rob and I and then headed up to see Lyndsay at the farm. First I stopped at the Java Moose, of course, for coffees for both Lyndsay and I. It's a great trade for milk. The problem with making a quick trip to Lyndsay's is that it's never a quick trip. I just wanted to grab cream and milk. Instead I stayed for almost half and hour, gabbing like crazy. The only thing missing was more time, and Aunt Steph.

When I finally made it to the Red Gate, I was so relieved to see Rob. We packed up all our cargo and hit the trail. It was just before sunset, and a great ride. It felt really nice to be back in the middle of no where. It's definitely possible that the city girl in me is slowly shrinking.

After dog chores, and saying hello to all the dogs, we had chili for dinner. Mark started brewing it up just after we arrived home. And once again, he is a chili champion.

Today we did all kinds of random things. After breakfast and dogs chores, we went out to play lumberjack, and cut some dead standing trees for firewood. The trees are dead due to a fire. They were gorgeous. The cedars look like they were spray painted silver. There was a tree that looked normal from one side, but along the back side, you could see that it had been hollowed out from the fire. The black from the fire looked like shiny sequence. The craziest part about all the trees, was that the fire was 9 or 10 years ago. I can't believe so much of the evidence is still there. It was really cool.

After we brought all the wood home, I hooked up a small team of 6 dogs to run around the Moose Loop. I took Ophir and Olive, Honey and Moon, Bree and Valor. It was a good chance to get Ophir, Valor and Honey out. The three of them have had different circumstances for not being run lately. I was so excited to run with Ophir again. As you all know, he is my favorite. Everyone had a great time, including me!

OH!! I'M WRITING IN PINK AGAIN TO REMIND EVERYONE ABOUT MUSH FOR A CURE. It's coming up in March. March 14th to be specific. It hasn't been set in stone if Rob and I will run or not, but either way, I'm asking you all to make a donation. I know times are tight, but this is a great cause. Even if it's five or ten bucks. Every little bit counts. Or if you can't donate money, maybe your time and services. Check out Mary's blog and http://www.mushforacure.com/ for more details!!

p.s. i don't have any new pictures to show because tubbs ate my camera battery charger. yes, i know, he's a pain in the ass.