Fleas On My Dog...

We have a problem.  FLEAS.  In all the years, and all the dogs that have been part of my family, we have never had fleas until now.

Poor Annie,  she is absolutely miserable with itching.  We started to notice a couple of weeks ago that she was starting to shed--a lot.  Like daily, or twice daily vacuuming the entire house.  I thought that she was shedding her winter coat since she (obviously) doesn't need it down here.  But then Matt saw one of the critters crawl on Annie's back.  OMG!  It's not like she goes anywhere. She's only been to the dog walking area of the apartment building and the apartment.  So the only place she could have picked them up is the apartment grounds.

 

I thought I was going to die.  Russell ran right away to the pet shop to buy some flea shampoo.  We filled the bathtub up with warm water, doused her with water and lathered the poor thing up.  She was beside herself with distress. The entire time I was washing her, in my head I was singing, "there's fleas on my dog, there's fleas on my dog..."  set to the tune of Feliz Navidad.  In fact, that earworm was stuck there for several days.

 

While she was drying we deep cleaned everything from carpets to furniture to bedding.  I used my steam cleaner on the floors, mattresses, carpets and furniture. They smelled clean and fresh when we were done.

 

One of the nasty little critters.

You can see them on her back.

At least she is going to smell good, right?

 

The next weekend, she was loaded with them again.  So we bathed her again, and cleaned again.  This week we put on a flea collar.  All that seems to have done is make her stink like old bacon.

 

We are going to give her another bath and good combing tonight. And another deep clean of the house.  If this doesn't do it, we will have to resort to going to the vet for medicine.  

 

If you have any good home remedies that we can try, please post them.  I kinda hate to waste money on vet bills, but I can't sleep at night thinking about those creepy critter jumping around the house.

 

Missing you all...

More Photos and Update on What We Are Up To...

Hi Everyone,

I saw my first alligator today.  I was so excited.  It was across the street from our apartment building in the pond that we walk past on the way to the pool.  Russell came home for lunch and came running in, "Come with me, quick!" 

There it was just sitting on the banks, bold as brass.  Didn't even seem to mind that we were there.  We were so excited. It probably was thinking, "Bloody Tourists!"  HAHA.

Here are some more photos of what we have been doing.

Me and Erica at the Coconut Creek Casino bar.

Boca Raton Beach

Messing around in the pool

 

Christmas Tree??!

 

Anyone have a good banana bread recipe?

 

I'm still hunting for a job every day.  The boys are settling into school and Russell is working long days.  Otherwise it's a pretty normal boring life.

 

We still miss everyone in Minnesota.  Send us your pictures. Let us know what you have been doing.

 

 

New Beginnings in Boca Raton and Exploring Surrounding Area

So we are all settled in in our new home.  Now comes the fun part of our new situation,  discovering all the people, places and things that make this such a wonderful place to live.  :-)

The first thing we did was head to the pool and check everything out.  We have two pools at our apartment complex.  This is the closest and the smallest pool.  The water is crystal clear and warm.  It's gets lots of sunlight, especially in the evening, which makes it ideal for the late afternoon.

The pool is where we saw our first lizards.  They are so tiny and cute.  And they are everywhere! 

Little Lizard

 

Here is a close up of the lizard.

 

Matt and Connor love to chase them.  They are super fast!  But they have caught a couple of them.

Don't let their cuteness fool you.  I've been told by the locals that they can give you a painful nip on the finger if you catch some of the bigger ones.  And that if you pick them up by the tail, the tail will fall off and you will be left holding a lizard-less tail.  Hahaha.

One area of town that we wanted to explore was Hollywood, FL.  This is the area that Russell stayed during the six weeks that he was down here before the family joined him.  Downtown Hollywood is really cute and reminds me a little of Stillwater.  They have shops and restaurants lining the downtown streets that make you want to go explore.  But we wanted to check out the beach and the Broadwalk.  

Hollywood's Broadwalk stretches for 2 1/2 miles.  The east side of the paved walking and biking paths is all beach.  The west side is lined with shops, restaurants and bars.  You can rent bikes for a reasonable rate and ride the length of the Broadwalk to your heart's content.  You can lace up your sneakers and walk it, enjoying the ocean breezes.  You can also do what we did, kick off your flip-flops and take a dip in the water.

Erica and Matt check out the water.

 

Swimming in the Atlantic Ocean

 

 

 

Hollywood Broadwalk.

 

We had so much fun the first time, we had to go back for another beach day.  However the weather didn't cooperate with us.  It was windy that day.  And the wind kicks up a mighty surf that makes it dangerous to swim.  So instead we walked around and stopped at several of the restaurants for a bite to eat and a beer.

 

You can see just how windy it was that day.  The sand whips so hard that you feel like you are being scoured by the sand.  And it makes it's way into every nook and cranny.

 

 

 

 

Connor photo-bombing Erica and Matt!

 

 

Nobody is on the beach.

 

 

 Shopping at Hollywood Florida.

 

Mermaid Mosaic Sculpture

 

 

Ice cold beer

 

We are literally the only brave people this day.  But then again, we are from Minnesota...

Ewww.  What is that?

 

 Another couple of Ice Cold Beers please.

Mmmmmm.... Organic Beer.

 



 Best photo of the day.  Connor found a dead fish.  Just look at the expression on his face.   LOL

 

Are you jealous yet?  I hope so.  I hope you come down here and visit us soon.  You know we would love to have you, right?  I'll post some more pictures soon.  Our love to you all. XOXO

 

 

Relocation to Boca Raton, FL

The Decision:

In August of 2013, Russell was given the opportunity to relocate to the Ft. Lauderdale Florida Area.  After much research, praying and soul searching, we decided that this was a fantastic opportunity for Russell and for our family.

 

We knew we were going to miss our family and friends in Minnesota.  We knew we were going to miss all the holidays with the kids and grandkids.  We knew that we would miss the bonfires and gatherings with our friends.  We knew we would miss riding our Harley with friends in the peaceful Minnesota and Wisconsin farmlands. We knew that the boys and I were going to need to find our place again amongst all the new places and faces we would encounter.  And while it was scary, we knew we were up to the challenge.

Day One:

On October 28, 2013 Russell, Matt, Connor and our friends Randy and Ben loaded up a moving van with everything we owned and we headed south. 

 

Annie was basket case as we headed south.  She panted, drooled and shook the entire three days, poor thing.  The first day we went through Wisconsin, Illinois and into Indiana.  We stopped frequently for gas and to stretch our legs.  We stopped at around 11 p.m. at a Motel 6 in Indiana  as they have a reputation for being pet friendly.   It was dirty, run-down and the beds were like rocks.  But we were exhausted and fell asleep right away.

Day Two:

 

The next morning we noticed this "pool" that we didn't see the night before.  All I can say is "WOW!"  that place was a dump.  We continued on our way heading from Indiana into Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia.  Kentucky and Tennessee were gorgeous.  The autumn leaves were at their peak in Kentucky and the colors were a beautiful blanket that covered the gently rolling hills.  Tennessee was beautiful too with the mountains and valleys revealing vistas that took our breath away over every ridge.  We continued into Georgia and hit the Atlanta white-knuckle traffic around 11 p.m.  We didn't stop until we were clear of Atlanta.

We risked another night in a Motel 6 just outside Atlanta.  Much better experience!  The beds were comfortable, the room spotless and the innkeepers were helpful and friendly. 

Day Three:

We had a great nights sleep and headed out for our destination bright and early.

Kendra and Phil call Georgia the "State that never ends."  They are right.  We got off Interstate 75 in Tifton and headed East through Georgia.  It seemed like it would never end.  But we did see things that we would never have seen had we stayed on the Interstate.  We saw fields of cotton being harvested, trees covered in Spanish Moss and we drove past the Okeefenokee Swamp.  We were almost to the ocean before we headed south again.

Almost there! We drove into Florida and the change was almost instant.  The rural gave way to the urban.  The driving became faster and traffic doubled.  We drove South to Boca Raton and arrive at our new home around 9 p.m.  We were exhausted but unloaded just our mattresses before we fell asleep.

Home Sweet Home:

The first day we knew we needed to get things off the truck and into the apartment.  We were picking Erica up at the Ft. Lauderdale International Airport that night.  It didn't take too long to get everything off the truck.  Now the fun part began.  Unpacking...

When Erica arrived, we had most of the big furniture in place and we spent a couple hours "power unpacking."  Thanks to Erica, we were unpacked and ready to explore by the middle of our second day.

Erica helping unpack.

 

 

Annie started to feel at home

 

The reward at the end of the day.



 

I'll continue the story on another post.  But we are starting to feel more at home everyday.  It still feels like an extended vacation some days.  And other days I get terribly homesick.  However, we are getting more settled into our daily lives, doing some exploring and doing, seeing and learning new things every day.