We switched foster dogs this week. Jasmin was finding Willow a bit too much work to keep abreast of while working on her university courses. And Honey, an older German shepherd, has been waiting for a foster placement for months and really needed a place. We couldn't take her before because she was slated for hip dysplasia surgery and there are too many stairs in our house. But now she is post-surgery and limber enough to get herself up and down stairs, so we have her with us until she is healed enough for her second surgery. The difference is incredible! Willow scarfed down her food and spent the rest of the time seeking and stealing food. Honey turns her nose up at all food offerings until she is good and ready. Willow wagged all of herself at any sign of attention. Honey gives us a lazy wave of her tail. Willow wasn't happy unless her walks were long and exciting. Honey is happy with a slow jaunt around the block. But I think for the most part we're all happy with the new experience.
On Willow's last walk with us, the kids came home with a fledgling bird they had fished out of the river! It sat in a box on our kitchen shelf overnight and then in the morning flutter-flopped to the floor. Aiden picked it up and held it out the door and it flew off. Way better an ending than trying to find a wildlife recue place near enough for us to take it in.
Aiden went to VBS this week. Since the last one he went to he was 3 or 4 and next year he'll be too old, it was more for the experience than anything else. It was an amusingly old fashioned VBS with very few bells and whistles, Bible memory and Sunday school songs that Mom and Dad sang as kids, but Aiden enjoyed being occupied with other kids every morning - though we missed Monday because we simply forgot to go until it was over for the day!
We tried out a small group meeting of our church last night. We think it will be a good fit for us as a family, so we look forward to getting to know the group better. It was made all the more memorable with the excitement of yet more severe weather and tornado warnings and rescuing our bikes mid-meeting from the fierce wind and rain. Thankfully storm was over by the time we had to bike home.
We've also done yet more travel planning lately. So much travel for us in such a short time! Highly unusual for us. A airfare promo email triggered us to start thinking about our visit to Halifax in October and Christmas in Edmonton with Dad's family. And a call for volunteers for children's program workers from SAFE for the Family Education Conference in February triggered dreams of the girls taking a friend along as volunteers (Mom go as a consultant).
We tried to get the girls into youth camp, but we were a bit late in following up so it looks like its too full now.
