We've been skunked... literally

I was hoping that we would be lucky enough to leave here without having any problems with skunks. Unfortunately, Brady and I both have horrible luck.

The other night we came home fairly late from running errands. As we pulled into the driveway we could smell a skunk. I was certain that it wasn't near our yard since we have an electric wire that usually keeps all the critters out, and my lunatic dogs in. As I started to climb out of the car I saw the little culprit headed straight for me. I jumped back in the car and in doing so, scared the skunk. He of course sprayed my car and ran off.

When we walked inside and looked out the back door, our poor dogs were blinking, spitting, coughing, and smelling awful. After 5 baths, we decided it was too late to keep trying to get them to smell nice so we went to bed. It has now been nearly a week, and the car and the dogs still have a faint hint of skunk stench. If you have any suggestions, I would definitely appreciate them!

Look how sad they are!

Santa Cruz

Although we are a thousand miles from home, we have been so lucky to have visitors come often. I think it keeps us from getting homesick, and it is always so fun to see friends and family. Last weekend our friends, Ryan and Amy, were able to come down and spend some time here. The weather is usually nicer in Santa Cruz, so we packed our stuff and headed north Saturday. We spent the morning in "Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park', with our own personal guide. The Redwoods are a must see if you ever come to this area (be sure you ask for Edgar as your tour guide!). After our tour, we headed to the beach for a picnic and to play in the water.

All the boys jumping in. Dan is deciding if he really wants to get in....

Amy, Ryan, Brady and Me...

A new obsession

Actually, I guess this is just a temporary fix for an old obsession. If you know Brady well, you know that he plans his life around hunting season. It is no coincidence that we got married in June, right in the middle of absolutely zero hunting seasons. The last two years have been a little rough for Brady because he has missed hunting almost completely. Luckily, he has managed to forge through this drought with a little help from the Wii. If your not familiar, there is a game called "Cabelas Big Game Hunting" and it is the closest that we have gotten to the deer hunt, the elk hunt, or any other crazy hunt that we usually go on. I know that it is a little strange to have a nearly 30 year old man playing video games, but it is quite possibly the one thing that has brought him sanity, so you wont hear me complain!

Look how happy he is, and he is only watching someone. Imagine when he actually plays!