A Wet Bottom

Friday, my parents 15 year old standard poodle passed away this winter.  Her absence has been rough on my folks and a bit of a tough adjustment.  Normally Fri drives across country with my dad and keeps him company for a (usually chilly) month before my mom joins them. Jen and I were invited to come along this year for the car trip back to the boat; coincidence?  I think not.  We were upgraded to ride shotgun and needed fewer potty breaks tho.

My sis and dad drove in last Friday for a quick two day stay over here.  Always a good time with lots of laughs and always too short.  Jen flew home Sunday while dad and I headed to St. Louis where we stayed the night, then drove six hours Monday to arrive in Wisconsin.

Grampa arranged a date for Linc with imaginary Ava, complete with phone messages,
so Linc surprised him and rang the doorbell dressed as her.

Over the winter, the boat is stored in a barn (I mean garage, sorry dad!) so naturally we stayed one heat-less night on board in the garage. Actually, not naturally...he's the only person who stays on his boat prior to being in the water. First thing the next morning the behemoth was easily loaded on a trailer and towed several miles down main street Port Washington and gently backed into the water and got her bottom wet. Quite a sight.

Friday used to be carried up and down this ladder umpteen times a day!

No thanks to this job!

Tight squeeze: the anchor light on top actually touched and the trailer had to be adjusted

That afternoon we made a smooth 2.5 hour ride amid pea soup fog to their slip in Racine, got settled and had heat! Wednesday I flew home.  Love time with my daddy and it was a real pleasure taking Friday's spot.

Despite Scott saying he goes into 'survival mode' when I leave, he did a great job holding down the fort. Only one frog died in my absence.