We snuck away from the boxes for the weekend and headed up to the Hood River area of Oregon. We stayed at the Mt Hood Hamlet B&B in Parkdale. It was a lovely, friendly place and since it’s off season, we practically had the place to ourselves. In the mornings I would bring my books to the little sitting room upstairs and watch the quails eat their breakfast with a great view of Mt Hood in the background. Our goal was to do as little as possible and catch up on some sleep but we ended up going out on a few easy excursions anyway. Friday night we ate at Celilo in downtown Hood River. Saturday we went on a little walk at Catherine Creek, then a joyride out to Trout Lake and back. We had some world class pizza at Double Mountain Brewery in Hood River, then a nap, then wine tasting (for Tom, I did a lot of wine sniffing). I had an absolutely insane huckleberry shake at Apple Valley Fruits. We went back to Double Mountain for sandwiches, beer, and music. The music wasn’t up our alley but it was fun to hang out at the bar and just be out in the world.
We put Mississippi in boarding all weekend, thinking we’d actually get some decent sleep for a change, but we ended up missing her all weekend and I couldn’t sleep anyway. We saw a “doggy camp” just up the road from where we were staying so maybe next time we’ll bring her and then we can have hikes together during the day without stressing over her barking all night at a dog friendly hotel. Judging from how difficult it was for her to settle into our new house, I don’t think she’s going to do well sleeping in strange places. She always wants to go ‘home’ to her couch.
When we picked Mississippi up from boarding, she was so happy to see us, she sat in my lap a good part of the way home. She’s never done that, the front passenger seat was a little crowded but I hugged and squeezed her. I know she had a great time at boarding, but we missed each other. It’s getting harder and harder to stand leaving her behind. I wish she was easier to travel with. She’s still so rambunctious and barky. We want to try camping with her, but we know that first night is going to be horrible. She likes to sleep with us but she gets so squirmy, she can’t settle in. She’s so spoiled.
The days of ‘just the two of us’ are long gone. We feel a void when she’s gone so it makes it harder to have fun. Believe me, we still manage to have a good time, but we want her with us. Soon there will be four.