Back To Normal

Now that everyone is home and settled in, I can continue with my everyday dulldrums reporting. Dad scampers around town. Ellen and Lee wrangle children. Mom and I look for a purpose in life. Brett taps away at his keyboard and spontaneously leaps through the living room to excite Pippa and scare off Ferguson. Brett has decided that Ferguson doesn't bring anything to the table.
We've had a couple Sunday Dinners, one much needed rainstorm, and Nick received a harrowing haircut from his mother. A true right of passage in childhood.

Here is a grainy photo of the UniBartonHauers after a Top-Golf birthday celebration for Papa U. Popples U isn't a big fan of his birthday. We find this absurd, because what a human to celebrate, you know? But he doesn't want to make a big deal of things, so we all played it cool this year and did some family golfing. This was Ellen's first experience wielding a golf club and my first experience watching Lee's sense of competition. As the less experienced players, it was fun for us girls to watch the fellas really whacking the balls with masculine intention.

 

Watching the very tense Champions League final. 

Ellie's Etsy shop has made it through the busy season, so my precise packing practices are no longer required. I have enjoyed spending time over at their house when it has not been polished the way we do when friends come over. They always have spotless floors and few knickknacks laying around, but not in real life. In real life they don't fold their couch blankets or wipe down the island after breakfast. Its nice to be reminded that we are all slovenly when left to our own devices. 

Look at that rainbow!

I do have pet and occupational news but I don't have time to type it right now. We've had a bustling few weeks with lots of moving parts and I haven't had time to sit and consider them for storytelling purposes. I know everyone says time goes faster as you age and it's no joke. I didn't really even realize it's June already. I thought maybe it was April.

As you may know, it's World Cup season so we've had the tv on constantly, which is particularly luxurious in the daytime. You feel like you're breaking a rule. It's been fun to have the TV on while Brett and I are in our offices and when we hear the announcers' voices get loud, we both come rushing into the living room to watch the replay. I've always thought soccer was a fun sport to watch, but since hooking up with EisenEars who tells me the back-stories of all the players, well I always fall in love with them and then can't look away. What lovable (and sometimes loath-able) characters. 
I understand why you might watch other sports if you were rooting for a particular human.

We've been just standing here a lot lately.

My last tidbit for now: When I was working over at the pet shelter, there was one dog in particular that I adored. He is big, strong and has "scary" eyes, so no one ever wanted to meet him or take him for a doggy-day-out. Most of the staff assumed he was difficult because he was surrendered to the shelter for growling at a kid that would come mess with his food bowl. So sure, maybe he's not great with kids, but that's no reason to treat him like a risky, bad-apple.
I like a big meaty dog, so I went out in the yard and wrestled with him right away, and that's how I found out that he loves really high bouncing bouncy balls and ticklish belly rubs. He is THE sweetest and I would sit in the yard with him during my breaks and he'd just snuggle up next to me. 

The whole time I was there, only two people wanted to meet him and even though both of them said they'd come back to get him, they never did. It sincerely crushed me both times. As the shelter got more and more crowded, I worried about him being sent to the county shelter (where you only get so many weeks) to clear space for puppies and "more desirable" dogs. I'll tell you that I spent a lot of time advocating for him. Everyone on staff heard my plea, so when I left earlier this year, I had to hope that they'd keep giving him a fair chance. 

Today, after eleven months, bored and overlooked in the shelter, my sweet baby boy Jasper was adopted - and my coworkers made sure to send me this picture of him headed out to start his next chapter. 

I love this dog and I love those women. It made my whole day.