He's Not Very Big

Bentley

6 wks old

Bentley with Lucy

Bentley fits nicely in my guy's hand.

We've had Bentley for a week now. He's so little. So little, he doesn't have the reserves to keep himself going when he hasn't eaten. We had quite the scare Wednesday night. I came home to find Bentley lifeless in his kennel. He was non-responsive to physical or verbal interactions. I phoned the ER Vet and we were on our way! On the way, the poor little guy had a seizure. He was whisked away the minute we arrived at the vet. Turns out his blood sugar had dropped to 19, normal is 100 to 130. They wanted to keep him overnight to watch him. They had fed him human baby food and Karo syrup. When I left him at 9:30pm, he was sitting up and looking around. I called at 12:30am to see how he was doing and they had just re-checked his blood sugar. It was up to 120! I was on my way to pick him back up.

That was Wednesday night. Bentley is doing great now. I've weaned him off the human baby food, onto some high quality puppy food, feeding him every three hours during the day. He's running around with the big dogs, barking, biting and playing like a normal puppy.

Friday I took Bentley to our regular vet for a follow-up to his ER visit. My vet said he was just too cute and frisky to be sick. She really felt he's going to be alright, no major underlying issues to cause his episode other than being so little with no reserves. I feel she's right and hope we don't have any further issues. Bentley goes back in two weeks for his second round of vaccines.

Bentley

He's only six weeks old and he came home with us tonight to meet his new family. The girls were so excited, they all checked him out and they all seem to love this little guy. Below is Lucy with Bentley. Then Sadie trying to figure out how to join Bentley. She'd like to help him eat his food. And last, all the girls, Molly, Sadie and Lucy, checking him and his kennel out.

Front Page of USA Today

My BSU boys are making the big time, showing up on the front page of USA Today in this weekend's edition! They're going to the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona, New Years day! Go BRONCOS!!!

I Must Be Crazy!

Meet Bentley!

He's the one on the right.

In this second photo, Bentley's on the left with another pup from a different litter who's just two weeks old. Bentley is four and half weeks old, and the same size as the baby!

Our Day in Vancouver, BC

It was still snowing in Vancouver the next morning when we got up. We had planned to spend the night again after a day in Vancouver. With all the snow, we decided to check-out of the hotel and see what we could of Vancouver before heading down the road.

We found another IHOP not far from our hotel. Yes, we like IHOP's. It was there that we learned the snow was not usual. One of the servers told us this was only the second time in 12 years that it had snowed like this.

After breakfast we headed back downtown. As we were driving down one of the main thoroughfares we found a very quaint and rich looking neighborhood. The canopy of trees filled with snow made the area even more charming.

Downtown Vancouver was like any other big city. Big. It bustled with shoppers walking in the weather with their packages and umbrellas. Due to the weather, my photos aren't exactly what I had expected, but they do show the feeling of the day. Cold, damp, rainy and snowy. Above is an attempt to photograph the Vancouver Lookout from inside the car as we headed down to Water Street.

We parked the car and strolled along the cobbles of Water Street. The snow turned to rain for just a while. Our destination was the old Steam Clock in Gastown. We didn't realize it at the time, but we had parked just about 30 yards from the old clock, but headed in the opposite direction when we got out of the car. The shot below is just about across from where we had dinner, looking back up towards where we parked. Our car was up on the right, right behind the big white vehicle parked in the distance.

We had dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory on Water Street. It was so good to get in out of the cold. The food was wonderful. They're building an Old Spaghetti Factory in Boise, we'll definitely be dining there in the future.

Photo SNAGGED from Gastown BC website.

While inside the restaurant, I was admiring some of the old "things" they had. The windows behind our table caught my eye. The stained glass was beautiful. My photo does not do them justice. There was an old cable car in the center of the restaurant.

After dinner, we headed back up the street. We still hadn't found the Steam Clock. We had to laugh. We had planned to get to the car and drive a few more blocks to see the Steam Clock, but as we got to our car, the motor home that was initially parked in front of us had left, and there is was! The old Steam Clock was just across the crosswalk, right in front of us! Good thing we were paying attention!

We enjoyed our time on Water Street. It was quaint, romantic and seasonable.

It was getting late, we still had tickets to the Canada Place IMAX, and we wanted to tour the city a bit more. We car toured through downtown. Some of the streets were crowded with film crews. Lights and cameras were everywhere within a couple of blocks. I wonder what they were filming.

One of the sights I wanted to see was the Christ Church Cathedral. The cathedral was built in 1894-1895 and used to be the tallest building around. It's amazing to see such a gothic building amongst the newer skyscrapers surrounding this historical site. We didn't have time to get out and tour the cathedral, so I took this "drive-by" shot.

Photo SNAGGED from websites, obviously not taken in a snow storm. lol

We made it back down to the waterfront to Canada Place. Our intentions were to see an IMAX movie there. When we came through the visitor center at the border, we prepaid for tickets. We had no idea what was playing and thought, whatever it was, it would be good. Turns out the only show playing at the time we arrived, we had already seen. So, we decided to return our tickets and we were on our way, back to Seattle. Yes, they refunded our tickets.

We definitely did not have enough time in Vancouver and have every intention of returning for a longer stay, sometime soon. We'd love to see Stanley Park, go to the top of the Harbour Centre Lookout Tower, visit Chinatown, stroll through the Granville Public Market, walk across the Capilano Suspension Bridge, ride the gondola to the top of Grouse Mountain, do the interactive science museum at Science World - a 47 m tall steel geodesic dome built for Expo '86. There's so much to do, and so little time!

It was dark and snowing. The snow really hadn't stopped coming down since we checked in at Richmond, the day before. Our little rental car plowed through the elements without any trouble. At about 15 km's from the border, traffic came to a complete stop. Snow was deep, ice had capped the surface of the roads. Cars were sliding backwards on the freeway when headed uphill towards the customs check points, three lanes wide. It took us almost two hours to get to the customs gate from where the traffic stopped. Once at customs, it took just a minute to check our papers and ask where we were coming from, and we were back in the US of A.

We didn't have reservations for a room that night. And I am so glad we didn't stay another night in Vancouver as we initially planned. It got pretty scary out there on the highways for this California beach gal. What is normally a bit more than a two hour drive from Vancouver to Seattle, turned out to be more than six hours. My guy did an excellent job maneuvering through snow drifts and stranded traffic. He had only to pat me once on the leg to reassure me we'd be okay as I clawed the arm rests of our little rental car. We saw many slide offs but no major accidents. Traffic was bad, weather was worse.

The weather turned to rain just outside of Seattle. About 30 ml's from Sea-Tac, we found a hotel and snacks for the night, and headed to bed. PBS was broadcasting a Pink Floyd concert which we enjoyed until we fell asleep.

Monday morning we returned our little car and were shuttled to the airport. Our flight home was at noon, we'd be home by 2:30pm. We grabbed some breakfast and boarded our plane. Flying over I-82 across Oregon, we could see the roads below were clear. But, I'm so glad we flew. We had a great time. We were rested and able to enjoy each other, the show and the weather. We definitely got what we needed.

What an Experience

Unusual, heavy snow fall couldn't keep us away!

Photos Courtesy of Vancouver Sun/Stuart Davis

The Rolling Stones

BC Place Stadium

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

November 25, 2006

Can I just say, WHAT A SHOW! And, we made it there, and back, safely! Click here for the Vancouver Sun's review of the show.

We heard the weather was going to be less than desirable for driving from Boise to Vancouver, British Columbia. I got nervous, I do not do icy roads. At least not intentionally. My guy had driven enough with his run from home to California through Utah back to home. So, we made arrangements to fly into Seattle and then drive a rented car to Vancouver, BC.

We arrived in Seattle about 9pm Friday, rented a car, and made our way to our hotel in Kent, WA. The next morning, the sun was peeking out behind a few clouds. Barnes & Noble was just up the road, Starbucks was just inside. After grabbing a book on travel in Vancouver and a couple of mochas, we were Vancouver bound.

The roads were clear through Seattle. The drive to Vancouver would be about 150 miles from our hotel. We stopped in Blaine, WA, for breakfast at IHOP. A man in uniform waited for us to be seated. My paranoid mind began to wonder what we had done, why was this man waiting for us? Turns out he was a fireman collecting donations for families in need.

Just as we were finishing up with our meal at IHOP, my team, BSU (Boise State University), showed up on their muted t.v. up in the corner, across from us! Now, BSU has won every game this season and the game that day was against Nevada at Reno. It was hard to break away from watching this last game of the season, but The Stones were waiting! Later we found out, BSU won 38 to 7! They're going to a bowl game, New Years Day! BSU Photo Courtesy of the Idaho Statesman

We had to get up the road! Doors opened at 5pm at BC Place.

The sky started to get darker, but no snow, no ice. Our drive was good all the way up.

My guy had brought his GPS system and we could finally see the Canadian border! We were getting close. Still a good 40 minutes out from our hotel in Vancouver.

And then, the border was before us. Our excitement was rising. We went through customs and then stopped at the Canadian Visitors Center. Of course, there were brochures on all the attractions to see in the area. We changed out a few US dollars for Canadian money, picked up a city map that had points of interest noted. And we were off again.

Our room at the Ramada Limited in Richmond, BC, was perfect! We had a balcony overlooking a downtown street. I couldn't believe the price, our room was three times nicer than the night before in Kent, WA, and was about the same price.

We rested for a few minutes before getting ready for The Rolling Stones! It seemed as soon as we checked into the hotel, it started to snow. By the time we left for the concert, it was really coming down!

We left in what we thought was plenty of time to make the venue by the time the doors opened at 5pm. The show started at 6:45pm. We like to get to venues early and watch the setup and people before shows start. Well, I forgot our binoculars at the room, so about two miles out, we had to turn back around to get them. Our seats were in the second level, near the top. Binoculars are needed there.

It took us more than 2 hours to get to BC Place Stadium. Snow had practically shut down the streets. We were at a crawl. With the GPS, we were able to see other routes that might be quicker, only to find out all roads were gridlocked. At first we wondered if it was the concert causing the problem. We found out later the snow was the culprit. Vancouver does not get snow normally. This was only the second time in 12 years it's snowed, one local explained to me.

We made it to the venue, found perfect parking not far from the BC Place entrance. It was cold, it was snowing like crazy. The lines moved right along. Our tickets were scanned and we were in! Bonnie Raitt sang one last song as we found our seats and then there was a 40 minute break before The Stones made their appearance. And, the rest is history! What a show!

Updated 01.07.2007

Found the actual play list of songs for our show:

Date: Nov 25, 2006

Location:Vancouver - CANADA - BC Place
Set List
JJ Flash

It's Only Rock And Roll

Oh No Not You Again

She Was Hot

Shine A Light

Streets Of Love

Midnight Rambler

Tumblin' Dice

You Got The Silver

Slipping Away

Connection

Miss You

Get Off My Cloud

Start Me Up

Honky Tonk Woman

Sympathy

Paint It Black

Brown Sugar

Can't Always Get What You Want

Satisfaction