24 August 2007

Mount Rainier

Renee, I give you Mount Rainier.

This monument is NOT dedicated to the victims of September 11th. It's just where people met to recognize the victims. (Flowers were laid for a soldier, who was recently killed in Iraq. His widow is one of Dan & Jess's neighbors. He was on his way to the "safe zone," one month away from returning home.)

23 August 2007

First Day

Yesterday was Ryan's first day of work. I couldn't resist a photo.

There are some little girls in the nighborhood that are always passing through Dan & Jess's backyard. We've been having loads of good laughs watching Lucy bark and chase them. Yesterday, while Dax was outside, I heard the girls passing through. Some of them had already made it to the other side and were coaching the other girls to run. One of them said, "NO. I've been around wolves before. If you run, it'll only provoke them." Dax wasn't even paying any attention to them. So we put Libby out next, thinking she loves to play; maybe she'll chase the kids. She was curious and paid attention to them. But she was more interested in the blackberries they were throwing at her as a distraction while they sprint through the yard. Then we put Lucy out. (There was a much funnier video, but it's too long to post and I can't edit it. This one'll still give you an idea of why we laugh.)



21 August 2007

REWARD

The day before Renee and I started the long drive to Washington, my two dogs did what they do best... they ran away. Normally, they come home right before bedtime. This time they didn't. Luckily, Dax made his way home sometime during the wee hours of the morning and we were able to take him with us as planned. Libby, however, spent about three days gallivanting Melber. Randy decided to post flyers to find her.

When "Ryan" started to unpack and organize his stuff, I came across one of the flyers. Looks good, very detailed. But my question is this... WHY did my father-in-law feel the need to put not just one but three arrows specifying who was lost? I am "very friendly." But do I look like a dog? Do I answer to "Libby?" Am I only worth $100? Seriously. Anyway, Libby was picked up on that third day just a few miles from home. Yay. And... Randy, I look forward to your trip out here in October.

This is Libby. She likes to "hide" in the trees. Maybe this is why she wasn't found for three days.

Dax and Libby both like the bed and try to bully one another out of it. Lucy will even squeeze in with them. She's so funny. When Dax and Libby are wrestling, Lucy has zero reservations about joining in. She thinks she's a big dog.

19 August 2007

Furniture

Ryan & I have been searching for good deals on furniture we really like. We finally found a store (and sale) that was appealing. This is what we purchased.

The table is wood and the seats are leather. VERY GOOD BUY.
Here's a close up of the chair.
It's a sleigh bed but the footboard is not like a "sleigh." The only downfall is that there aren't any "hidden" drawers, which I REALLY like. And this set would have been PERFECT for them.

We purchased the sofa, chair, ottoman, and loveseat (Ryan was insistent upon the loveseat... to COMPLETE the set). The color is actually a deep sage green. The coffee table & end tables are also part of the Living Room furniture we purchased.


18 August 2007

Pirates!

If you're on facebook, click this link to become a pirate and join my army against the ninjas.

11 August 2007

Banner Day

Jess and I attended Fort Lewis's Banner Day for the 4th Battalion 23rd Infantry. One of the main events was Combatatives. We were able to see just what our Army's men can do. There were certain rules. A few of them were that you weren't allowed to stand in the ring; no eye-gouging, ear-pulling, or nose-yanking; and you had to stay within the taped area. I'm sure there were other rules that I'm not aware of.


This is a bunch of random guys.

Dan's on the top. This shot was taken JUST before one of his own men accidentally pulled him off an opponent who had pinned a third member of their team.

More random guys.

This is a video of the "Combatatives Battle Royale" as Jess puts it.

And these were the prettiest girls at Banner Day.

Here's the Stryker that was on display. (We weren't allowed to take any photographs of the interior. So you can't see me sprawled over a little girl who was HOGGING the driver's seat. She only let me borrow the helmet if I promised I would give it right back. You can see her grubby little hands next to mine.)

For some bizarre reason, all the little boys in Washington have mohawks. I'm not kidding when I say all of them.

08 August 2007

New Address

Ryan & I have accepted an on-post house offer. It won't be available until 09/13/2007. Here are some pictures. There aren't any of the inside because we can't go in. It has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The front and back yards are of decent size. Jess and I drive by it periodically to check on it. It appears to have a very similar floor plan to her house. Any suggestions on what to do about the over-grown rose bushes? How about the weeds and landscaping?

06 August 2007

Bangor

This photo of the Cascade Mountains was taken during our Sunday drive. Then we took a ferry across Puget Sound to Seattle, WA. Our mission was to see a submarine on Bangor Naval Base... but that didn't work out. We weren't permitted access to the wharf, so we walked Downtown Seattle instead. Here are some ferry and downtown photos.

It was real windy.

We aspire to one day be on TV.

I was just kidding... the guy behind me is picking his nose FOR REAL!

Like I said, it was a real windy.

These pigs are everywhere! Seriously.





04 August 2007

Dax & Lucy

Dax has finally realized that it's okay to play with Lucy. Last night, though, he got irritated at her pestering him and snapped at her... she didn't learn her lesson. This morning, she woke up on a mission to annoy. Luckily, he woke up ready to play. She literally runs circles around and over him, nipping as she goes. The size between the two makes no difference to her.



The dining room table is "base." But Lucy still attempts to elicit his attention to play.

Here's a video of them. It's pretty dark, but gives you the idea of what they do all day.

Yay

Great News! I contacted Housing today to better understand the application process. My phone call was returned with two house offers. The Madigan neighborhood is undergoing renovations-- installing carpet instead of the "grocery store floor tiles." Both have three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Both have decent-sized backyards, neither are fenced. The picture were taken this evening after watching Bourne Ultimatum, so they're not that great. I'll have to take more tomorrow.

One house (which is really a carport-duplex) will be ready on 08/15/2007. It will not include renovations. And... It's PINK.

The other house (renovated, single home) will be ready on 09/13/2007. And it's NOT pink. My vote's on this one.

Before we went to see the movie, we had a Puget Sound picnic. That island is actually a prison.
(
Now we know where Dax gets his "surprised" expressions from.)

At a street fair Renee, Jess, and I attended last weekend, there were these awesome birdhouses. They were made from driftwood and looked oh-so cool. We each wanted one, but the guy was selling them for over $75! So today, we picked up some driftwood and we'll just make the blasted birdhouses ourselves... I'll keep you posted.



02 August 2007

Oakes Home

Here, Ryan. This is Dan & Jess's home, to give you an idea of what the houses are like.

This is the front of their home.

This is the side/angle view of their home.

This is the backyard.

First

Second


Third


Last

01 August 2007

Voila!

Okay, here it is. Since Ryan and I are in Washington, I suppose this would be a great way to keep yall updated. (But I have no idea what I'm doing, so Mabry News is really up to the mercy of Jess.)
Well, Ryan's not here yet. He's still in the Scout Leadership Course at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He graduates 08/10/2007 and will head out here shortly after. Renee and I left EARLY Wednesday morning with Dax stowed amongst luggage, finally stopping at North Platte, Nebraska. We toured Buffalo Bill's manor and think we even found some photos of her great-grandfather, who was in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show.


Renee had a lot of fun...
...I did too.


We survived the switch-back passageway between Wyoming and Utah and stopped at a friend's home in Providence. But we couldn't find the home and enlisted the help of some locals. (It took them quite awhile to figure out their own instructions on how to find the house.) On our way to Washington, we stopped in Oregon at the Horsetail, Multnomah, and Latourell Waterfalls. They were gorgeous! We attempted to hike up a few extremely steep and switch-back trails... that didn't last long... Dax was disappointed.
Another long day of driving and we finally made it to Dan and Jess's late Friday night. After a good night's sleep, Jess gave us a tour of the surrounding communities. Later, Dan gave us a tour of Fort Lewis, complete with the buildings where Ryan will probably work. We were able to take lots of pictures. Renee especially liked Mount Rainier. It was great having her drive out with me and sad to see her off Sunday morning. We're already looking at airline tickets for Thanksgiving.
Dax and Lucy (Dan & Jess's weiner dog) are getting along. Lucy harasses him endlessly, trying to get him to play. He usually tries to ignore her attempts to get his attention. When he doesn't respond, she retorts to THROWING herself up against, on, under, and over him. It's hilarious. She also thinks it's okay to take his bed, bones and toys for herself. She tries to hide his things when he's not looking. When one of us catches her, she plays it off like she's not even in the room or like she was busy doing something else. Of course Dax doesn't care when she takes his things, but it becomes a problem when he wants something of hers... typical girl.

I've submitted our Housing application and we're the last of 15 applicants. Jess and I stalked the neighborhood late the other night, scoping out empty houses. There appeared to be several, so hopefully our wait won't be too long. Jess states she was given a three month wait time and they were offered a house in one. Hopefully, we'll have the same luck. Ryan will be here soon. I've very excited. But we haven't lived together since the end of January, so pray that one of us doesn't kill the other!