puppys DNA results

i earned enough points online to get a free doggy DNA test. i meant to use it on molly but it arrived too late. so puppy got tested.

turns out puppy is NOT a flat coated retriever. (they do test for that breed).

instead he is a big ole mutt! predominantly a golden retriever and chow chow mix.

of 8 great grandparents, 3 were golden retriever, 2 were chow chow, 1 was labrador retriever, 1 was white swiss shepherd, and 1 was american staffordshire terrier.



here's a picture of puppys body and curled up tail.




his face and fluffy neck

canning luscious pears

took my luscious pears out of the fridge to warm up for canning


even though they werent that big, there were a lot of them


hauled them to moms for canning


slicing and dicing and filling jars


one of the jars cracked in the canner. some of our jars are quite old and do this occasionally.


after we filled all the jars we had left, we cut up the remaining pears and cooked them down for pearsauce


yummy yummy pears


got my state fair blue ribbons in the mail


and the check, i won $30 for winning two first place ribbons

mollys last day

these are the last pictures i have of molly, taken on her last day.

she laid in her crate and was done. refused to eat or drink or move.


puppy went into his crate and laid down too


i tried to make a paw print using the only ink pad i had, a purple one. it didnt work. but she ended up with a purple paw.


i had to carry her to the car. i sat in back with her. my mom drove and the neighbor came along too. molly sat up for about a block.


then leaned back against the seat and i helped hold her steady.


i carried her in and laid her down on a blanket at first


then carried her to the table.


you can see how skinny she was getting at shoulders and hips, and how much her liver pushed up her rib cage.


she just laid there


they took one last picture of me and her, but my face was all red and swollen from crying so i blocked it out.


then we said goodbye.

the vet made a pawprint for me, which i'm extra grateful for since i had tried and failed.


and its extra special because of the purple. (all the hairs brushed off after it was baked/hardened)


i will be making a shadow box in her memory, with the pawprint and her collar. and i have a photo album and pictures of her i want to put together too.

basement floor drain replacement

the floor drain in my basement was a nasty rusted piece of crap. flaking off, the clean out was rusted shut so it couldnt be snaked. and it was backing up worse and worse despite anything i poured down it.


they jackhammered the concrete basement floor away and sawed off the old ancient metal drain


i think thats cast iron


sawsall


gaping hole


jackhammer


new plastic/pvc drain that wont rust, and wet concrete


the next day it was dry, and then i had a different company come out and snake the drain. it was as i suspected, mostly lint from the laundry sink, and hair/dog fur. no tree roots or anything worrying. so two separate plumbers later (and the involvement of the BBB to knock off padded billing on the first plumbers part), the drain is new and clean and draining perfectly.


puppy does not appreciate being denied access to repairmen. he thinks he should be able to love on everyone. and his idea of love is enthusiastic greetings where he jumps up and nails the men in the nuts. understandably most people dont appreciate that. so puppy gets kept away from repair people and delivery people. (he also likes to squeeze out open doors and go for a wild neighborhood run)

outlet snag

i had to replace two old outlets. new next to old.


the kitchen outlet was wired in a way i've never experienced before. and because of the extra deep backsplash, they wrapped it in electrical tape to prevent it from shorting out on the outlet box that it couldnt sit at proper depth in.


the wires werent cut, but rather stripped in line and wrapped around


on both sides


one of the uncut/wrapped around wires


i wired it up exactly the way i found it, and wrapped it in electrical tape just in case.


with all those wires, and THICK wires, it was difficult to squash back into the outlet box.


looks good. unfortunately it kept tripping TWO separate circuits. which confused me. i'd never heard of that.


so i emailed my dad and undid the wiring. covered the exposed wires so i could turn the power to the kitchen back on in the meantime.


turns out the problem was this tiny little piece on the side of the new outlet. dad explained to me how that outlet was set up for heavy power drainage the way it was wired, and it was indeed connected to two separate circuits. but this new outlet, it had this tiny little piece bridging/connecting the two screws together. my dad told me to take a screwdriver and break this piece out and i'd be fine. its designed to break away if its not wanted, like in situations like this. wired it back up, and everything worked great. i'm so glad to have my dad to help when things like this come up.

happy dogs

another puzzle. i found the missing piece on the floor after i gave the puzzle to my dad. i was able to get it to my dad and he got it back into the box.


happy puppy


molly laying on the a/c vent


molly


happy molly


spot thief molly