Summer - Part 1 (Texas)

Summer - Part 1  

We spent the first part of summer preparing for our big move to Costa Rica, so we stayed close to home bouncing between Austin and Houston. There was a lot of work to do on the house in terms of getting it ready for rental, packing our lives away, and getting rid of the rest. We spent most days trying to balance all that work with doing fun things around Austin. 

Our Kealing family threw an amazing going away party for us. After 16 (C) and 10 (M) years at Kealing, it was a bittersweet goodbye and we're going to miss our friends there so much. 

Sadly, the Natenberg's are selling their almost-by-the-lake house in Canyon Lake. That house provided lots of comfort and fun for our family and friends over the years. We used it as a jumping off point for trips to West Texas, a place to hunker down during COVID, a quick weekend vacation spot, and a reunion spot. Above the cousins are bravely holding a tarantula they found in the yard.

Tubing! We rented a pontoon boat and got stuck in the middle of the lake and had to be towed back, but they gave us a new boat and extended our rental so we got to stay out the whole day. 

Cousin fun on Canyon Lake

We sure will miss this place and are grateful to the Natenbergs for all the good times we had there. 

One of our favorite Canyon Lake activities was floating down the empty part of the Guadalupe River from the damn to Hwy 306. The water is always cold and the cypress trees along the bank are beautiful. 

Move over baby Reid! We welcomed another cousin to the family in May, baby Russell! 

A favorite pastime at Nana's house, TV time with cousins! 

Syb is very sad to be leaving her school friends so she made sure to get some good swim and play sessions in. Here are two of her besties, I & H. 

I had an Austin bucket list, and one of them was running the whole Greenbelt. It was awesome to get one last trail run in with my trail besties (missing Tina). I'm really going to miss trail running with them and our annual trail race where we pretend that we are laid back about it but end up being try-hards.

Parker and I went to see Frozen the Musical, it was awesome!! 

Syb and I did a DIY Austin summer camp and went to a museum and outdoor activity each day. Here she is on Lady Bird Lake with the Austin skyline behind her.

We made sure to spend lots of quality time with Hudson since we knew his time was short (see post). 

Hud got lots of cuddles and treats the last few weeks. 

We spent a week in Sugar Land with family and celebrated Fourth of July with a neighborhood bike parade and BBQ. 

Bonus that I got to see Kris and Scott! 

We went back to Austin to wrap up some house things and for a few appointments. While we were there Mike and his friends did a crazy relay to try and beat the 2 hour marathon. It was touch and go at times but they did it in 1:59:49!! Very impressive for a bunch of middle aged dads.

Remembering Hudson

On July 11th, we said goodbye to Hudson. His back legs were giving out multiple times a day, his walk had turned to a crawl, and he was showing signs of pain and doggy dementia. When I told our vet we were having a hard time trying to find a way to get him down to Costa Rica, she advised against it and also advised against us rehoming him since he was so old. In our hearts, I think we knew the most humane option was to euthanize him, but it took us weeks to come around to finally accepting it.  

Hudson was our perfect dog, and came into our lives at the perfect time. We were both ready to retire from ultimate and eager to get a dog to take on adventures and join our family. I remember beginning our search on the Austin Animal Shelter website from a couch in Italy where I was sidelined with a broken fibula during Worlds in 2014. The prospect of a dog gave me hope and joy during that sad and frustrating time. We were specific in our needs and wants in an adopted dog so even after a few visits to the shelter, a drive to Bastrop with 4 of my high school best friends to check out another dog, and some insider intel from the shelter we still hadn't found the one. 

We got an email from our inside connection that there was a dog that she thought we would love, so we went up again to visit it. After meeting that dog and running it through the rigorous tests that the book about adopting an adult dog told me to do, we both decided that dog wasn't for us. As we begrudgingly walked around the shelter "just in case", Mike got excited about a very hyper black lab that we passed and wanted to walk him. I said "no way,"  knowing that a black lab would be way too much energy, but thankfully he ignored my negativity and decided to try to walk him anyway. A minute later Mike came out of the enclosure sans dog because he couldn't get the leash on the lab because it was jumping up and down so excitedly. While he was in there trying to lasso the lab, I watched the other dog in the enclosure sit calmly looking up at Mike with a stoic confidence. I suggested we take that dog out for a walk, and that was the first time we met Hudson. He had heart worms, which was a big 3 month treatment commitment, and we weren't sure we were prepared to take that on so didn't take him home right away. Instead I came back to the shelter days later and brought along my aforementioned high school friends (all excellent judges of canine character) to get their opinions. It was then that he imprinted on me in the gravel off leash area. With a single look in his caramel brown eyes I feel like I could see into his soul and felt him radiating his kind, wise, intelligent, playful, and loving character.  

I'll miss his beautiful eyes, but luckily S & P also have beautiful brown eyes that remind me of Hud's.

The first picture we took after Hudson came home with us

Hudson was a well traveled dog. Mike wrote that he was an amazing road trip buddy and trusted us to take him all over this corner of the world with us. Below are pics of some of our many adventures and travels together. 

Hudson on the Llano River

Hudson on a segment of the Appalachian Trail in Vermont

Hudson and Mike on a hike in Maine

Un cherre tres elegante in Quebec City

Hudson on a beach in Oregon

Hudson in the bluebonnets, a rite of passage for any Texan canine.

Hudson on a tributary of the Snake River in Idaho

He was happiest and most himself when off leash on a trail.

Hudson in adventure mode, ready to take on a trail. We soon realized that he needed a backpack to make him feel like he was working and less likely to go rouge chasing deer.

Hudson's best friend was Patsy, Fran and Leslie's dog. He rarely (almost never) wanted to play with other dogs. But Patsy brought out a side of Hudson that no other dog ever managed to bring out. They played like puppies for hours running, play fighting, tackling each other, and cuddling afterwards. 

Patsy and Hudson at the SNIT in Long Lake, Wisconsin.

Patsy and Hudson always shared a bed even when two separate ones were available.

Hudson taught us all so many important life lessons: how to love unconditionally, how to forgive, how to manage our tempers, how to take care of and provide for someone you love when it runs counter to your own wants or needs at times, and that love is a verb. He wasn't happy about the girls arriving, but he was always gentle with them, and tolerated their noise and shenanigans. He especially liked Parker for dropping lots of food and Sybil and him definitely built a connection based on cuddles, tricks, and treats.  

I used to lay down with Hudson when I was pregnant with the girls. This pic was Sybil.

Hudson gently tolerating Parker trying to eat him

Bat ears! We all loved it when his ears would do this.

Sybil and Hudson in New Mexico on one of our crazy summer camping adventures.

One day I walked outside and found Sybil just laying in the sun in the driveway next to Hudson, which was one of his favorite places to lay.

Sybil took on many of the Hudson responsibilities as she got older, and loved walking him the last year. This is them walking together on a beach of Lake Huron on our Upper Peninsula road trip.

Road trips with the Bug. He was so great in the car, except when you hit the rumble strips!

Hudson and the girls at Turkey Creek, our favorite place in Austin to go hiking off leash together. 

We had a memorial for Hud at Red Bluff (below), another one of his favorite places to hike and go off leash. We decorated rocks, collected flowers, said a few words, and ended with a jingle we would often sing, "Who's the bestest doggy in the worrrrrld?? Hud-son dog!" 

Hudson at Red Bluff recently with the Austin skyline in the background

Our memorial rocks and flowers for Hud

We're grateful for the time we had with Hudson, and for how he made us all better humans. 

Hudson 

A.K.A. "Hud", "Hudson the Wonderdog", "Legs McGruff", "Hud-bug", "Bug", "Huddy Buddy", "Hoodson Boodson"

 adopted in 2014 - died 2024 - loved forever

The Twin Cities & SNIT IV

Just an 8 hour drive from Marquette, MI and we arrived to St. Paul/Minneapolis.  Caleb and Holly were kind enough to host us for the week.  After settling in and unpacking, we headed over to Fran and Leslie's for dinner.  We were so excited to see Lyle (Caleb and Holly's son), and Freslie's kids, Emma and the twins Calvin and Josie!  Maybe it's the summer weather or the awesome neighborhoods that both Holly and Freslie live in, or just good memories from the past, but I always feel so stress-free and happy to be back in the twin cities during summer time spending time with awesome people.

Patsy and Hudson had a great reunion.  While Hud is a step slower these days, Patsy has not lost a bit of energy and immediately showed how pumped she was to get to spend time with her best pal Hud.

The next morning I hopped on a flight to Denver to meet up with Kiran and Johnny Walker to play at Grand Masters Nationals.  Kiran and I have been training this past spring to get back into Ultimate shape (relative to our age and opponents).  What a great weekend!  Kiran and I did our part to help our team achieve our goal of winning a national championship.  Along the way, we lost to Chuck's Burnside (Portland) in pool play, but eeked out an ultimate point win against Natalie's Shadows (Bay Area) in the quarterfinals.  Crazy to think, I wouldn't be at that tournament almost 25 years after I first started playing if it wasn't for Chuck.  Seeing old friends and opponents is a fun way to turn back the hands of time and give you a surreal feeling of timelessness.

Highlights: Dar and Mitch's hospitality all weekend long and staying with the other out-of-town players.

Running and having fun with new frisbee friends!

Time with Kiran

Seeing old friends

National Champs Johnny Walker after our win in the finals against Surly GM.

Cara and the girls picked me up from the airport the next morning with Queen's "We are the Champions!" blasting from CK's speakers, a handmade gold medal (see above), and a surprise confetti shower when I sat down.  I love these ladies.

From the airport, we went straight to the Como Zoo with Holly and Lyle and then to the nearby pool for the afternoon.

The next day, Fran hooked us up with some company tickets to the Twin's game.  We had great seats in foul ball territory and even some money to spend on hot dogs and snacks for the girls.  We lasted through the 7th inning stretch.  The girls can confidently say they are not fans of baseball, but they at least have had the cultural experience now.

To say thank you for my weekend ultimate coverage, Caleb and I offered to watch all the kids while the ladies had a night out to watch the US Women's world cup match.  The night went smoothly, and it was nice having time to get to know the kids better.

Let the SNIT begin!  This year marks the 4th time, we've gathered a group of friends to Leslie's family cabin on Long Lake, WI for a weekend of friendly competitions, Blime (Bud Light Lime) drinking, and overall merriment.  10 adults and 10 kids this year!

One of the highlights of this year's SNIT was how well all the kids got along and played with each other.

In between competitions, we mostly played on various water crafts (SUPs, kayaks, tubes, floaties, Lily Pad, Pontoon, ski boat) and just enjoyed the perfect weather and water.

Everyone boarded the pontoon boat for the traditional bog walk and dark lake swim.

Our final morning of the SNIT was Cara's 41st birthday!  She celebrated in the morning with an incredible display of athleticism by immediately popping up on water skis and taking a tour of the lake at 30 mph.  

I also took a turn with water skis and actually got up this time, but bailed out after ~7 seconds feeling like I was going WAY TOO FAST!  

Team Fran!  You know what they say, "history is written by the victors."  In this case, I'm hoping this picture will muddy everyone's collective memory about the outcome of this year's SNIT. 

Team Fran was trounced, only winning one event.  Here is Team Leslie taking their celebratory shotski of Blime.  The overall record now stands as a tie with 2 wins for Team Fran and 2 wins for Team Leslie.  Guess we'll have to come back again!

Road Warriors!  After lunch, we hit the road with the plan of getting as far as we could and possibly driving through the night and making it home in one final push.  With school looming on the horizon and feeling surprisingly good after a weekend of celebrating with friends we decided to push on.  

It was thankfully an uneventful night, except for a brief scare when Cara was looking for a gas station in the middle of the night after a huge thunderstorm had blown through in front of us.  With the warning light on in CK, the gas station we pulled up to was dark and had no electricity so we were forced to push on to the next station about 25 miles away in the middle of nowhere Kansas.  It was a tense few minutes there, but we made it before running out of gas and swapped drivers.  

The photo above is our crew the next morning having a breakfast at Starbucks just south of Dallas.  Just 2 more hours and we'd be home!  ~1,200 miles and 22 hours later and we arrived just before noon and started unpacking.  The girls slept through the whole night and made the most of our park stops along the way.  We can only hope they will continue to be this flexible and tough during future travels.

This was an incredible month exploring new places, living the camper trailer life, and escaping the heat.  Let another school year begin!