An Update and "The Dog Hoarder's Convention"

Around here life is settling back into normal routine. After spending 3.5 weeks at home, A returned to work Monday. It was nice to have her home, especially since we had extra furry house-guests for a couple weeks. I guess I've just been feeling quiet and last week I was swamped getting the silent auction together for our rescue's annual get-together (also called the Dog Hoarder's Convention by A's sister). This is the third year I've been in charge but got a late start so I was just happy to pull things together in time.

Saturday morning we woke to a cool, windy day. A had spent Friday getting the RV ready and packed for our trip. The plan was to drive it to the rescue event and then camp along the Redwood river that night. We were running late...as usual...and after getting all the dogs loaded in to RV it wouldn't start. Seriously?! After working on it for over an hour, we just had to load the essential stuff and the dogs into two cars to go. We were both in pissed off moods but after we got there, it was hard to stay mad with all this cuteness running around...120 cute little dogs in attendance to be exact!

 Tawny

 The old man Gizzy looks down on the commoners from his stroller.

 How can you tell which one is yours?

 Love the teeth!

 Suki

 Buddy had the best seat in the house.

This is what happens when you try to give one dog a treat.

We ate too much food, visited and spent all my money at the silent auction. Since I run it and bid for others who can't attend, I don't bid for myself. The last two years A has bid for me and I've come home with a load of stuff and an empty purse.

This is the first year we decided to pose for a group photo. Obviously, this isn't every volunteer in our group but there are people here from Minnesota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Iowa and even one person who planned their trip north from New Mexico to coincide with this event. 

This year my offer to the silent auction was a custom pet portrait by fellow blogger Rocket. I had her do one of our dog Gizzy to use as an example and the winner could then submit a photo of their own pet for a portrait. It was a big hit at the auction and I'm ecstatic it raised quite a bit of cash. I just LOVE this picture and she completely captured the Old Man. 

I have it framed and proudly displayed in my living room. THANK YOU ROCKET!

A and I had a lot of things planned for this fall but haven't accomplished much. Mostly I've just wanted to stay close to home and be with her. We were disappointed to not be able to camp this past weekend, but now the RV is up and running again (a bad battery is an easy fix) and we still have a weekend trip planned mid-October near the Mississippi river/Wisconsin before putting it away for the winter. We've had time to re-connect with each other and re-prioritize our lives. A seems to be in a better state if mind about her job and has decided to go back to school (online) to expand her degree. I'm so happy she has finally made that decision and I'm hoping it all works out. This coming weekend, I'm excited that my brother is bringing my nephews for a visit. I haven't seen them in over a year already!