Hang Time

Not only were the kids having a blast swimming, the dogs were going nuts in the pool.



Mia is quite the leaper and it only takes the smallest of splashes to get her going.



I loved having the SLR & getting some great captures of the dogs.



Mia got lots and lots of lovin'.



Zoe even made a few jumps into the pool.



Mia was unstoppable and an energy-machine.



She has a bad habit of jumping and then twisting back towards the splashes.



It was great entertainment for all involved.



Check out that ear-action!



And Haley's beautiful smile.



Cause it's awesome to watch a GIF in reverse...whoops!
Even the brother got some hang time.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Office is painted pink & ready for floors next weekend.

The Hermitage Hotel

There aren't too many hotel choices at Mt. Cook Village & The Hermitage has several different types of rooms/lodging. I'm sure these decks are a wonderful place to dine when you have the stunning views. We upgraded to the very top floor & the corner room on the left, which was worth the upgrade.



We had a giant picture window & a coach to relax. One thing that surprised me is that there is NO room service. We also upgraded to include a bottle of wine & cheese tray- I thought it would be perfect after our hike through the rain. However, this is intended to be consumed in their bar/lounge area & I had to go pick it up downstairs and bring it back to our room. No big deal, but I was frustrated at the time nobody explained that to me.



We enjoyed the side lights and the great view they provided. I was slightly annoyed that there was no Internet in the rooms & we had to go purchase intervals of 30 minutes a time and sit in the lobby to check our work email.



There are several trails that start out right at the main hotel & we drove to the Hooker Valley Track, which was just a few minute drive (you can easily walk if you wanted to do so).



I was fully prepared to treat this as a *resort* hotel- special place, inflated prices, large groups of tourists/buses, etc. It's fully worth the increased price for the views & proximity to Mt Cook and Lake Tasman (we did the glacier boat ride the following morning).



On our way out of the park, we caught an elusive glimpse of the actual Mt. Cook. Typically there were snow/clouds/wind/fog that covered much of the mountains.



In the hotel, is the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Museum, which is worth spending an hour looking at some of the history of the area & his climbing feats around the world. We caught a very short IMAX film explaining some of the Maori legends about the mountains which was enlightening.



On a clear night, I'm sure the star-gazing out there is also quite spectacular. We only stayed 1 night and departed after the morning glacier boat ride. I'd highly encourage others to forget about the price, hope for good weather and enjoy a stay at the Hermitage Hotel.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Seafood dinner on the Seawall in Galveston watching the sunset over the Gulf.

All Swim

Last weekend, I headed over to the pool to cool off & the kids wanted to join me and the pups.



Mia swims like a champ- she could literally go for hours in the pool burning off energy.



Zoe finally got in too. She was very leery a few weeks ago about swimming with Mia, but Mia has since learned better pool manners and to NOT swim on top of Zoe.



Hunter drove himself over... :))) He's officially done with his Sophomore year of high school and is now a Junior.



Both dogs love the splashing game & wait impatiently for more splashes- Zoe even points as she waits.



Silly silly puppy....I've got so many stories to share.



The kids played King of the Mountain- a game where they attempt to throw each other off the float.



Haley rarely won, but she made Hunter take her on a victory lap. Her float-by include "Toodles!"



Lots of underwater wrestling & wrangling involved, but they were cracking up the entire time.



And the dogs were quite entertained with all the mayhem and splashing.



Hunter's turn to be king.



The end of Haley's reign was a problem for Zoe here.



Zoe is always queen! The kids had moved into throwing Nerf balls and shooting water guns.



They practiced their chicken fighting, even though there was no other team to wrestle with.



Whenever the goggles came off, Zoe's favorite game was to try to steal them.



I have no idea what they kids were trying to coax Mia into doing, but she was loving all the attention.



Haley & Mia played the splash and jump game endlessly.



Hunter hung out and was too cool for school as he thought about all the finals he was exempting.



Back to wrestling...

Zoe sneaks into get the goggles.

This is pretty much classic pool time- wrestling, splashing, swimming, laughter.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Headed down to the beach in Galveston for a mini-getaway tonight.

Dogs & Crawfish

While we were getting set-up for the party & as the guests were arriving, we kept the pups inside. They were glued to the backdoor & doing their best to look pitiful enough to lure somebody into letting them out.



We let Zoe out first since she wouldn't be too obnoxious & she quickly assumed her throne after checking to make sure none of the guests were passing out treats.



The rain kept them a bit confined, but Zoe was still checking out the outdoor kitchen.



She was very curious about the crawfish- I'm sure they both smelled good to her & looked like something to play with.



She made a few attempts to paw at it...



...but quickly resorted to just barking and posturing at it.



It was a pretty funny exchange...



...luckily I had my iPhone handy and caught it on video.



She was not too sure about the itty bitty critter with big claws.



Zoe kept a watchful eye on the cooking.



Mia finally came out to play & she did pretty good around the guests. She was curious about everything & we were curious to see what she'd do with a lemon.



She wasn't too fond of it ;)

She did enjoy watching all the birds come out once the rain had stopped.


GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: My office is going to be pink by the end of the day.