Back Home in Atlanta to the Groomer and a Busy City

Me and Miss Daisy (and hubby) arrived home yesterday evening after traveling 1,200 miles from Amarillo to Atlanta by van.  Our three-month deployment there has come to an end.  The humidity hit us in the face along about Alabama.... a "welcome back to the Southeast" gift.

I immediately began sorting through the mail while Daisy sniffed her way through the rooms of our home.  Hubby began unpacking and then re-packing for a saltwater fishing trip to the Gulf with his fishing buddy, Doug.  He left out early this a.m. for a few days of deserved rest and recreation.

Daisy and I headed for Griffin to see her favorite groomer Destiny at the beauty parlor at PetSense.  I turned on the radio to listen to my favorite gardening show hosted by Walter Reed.  At the commercial break I learned what was going on in Atlanta today.  There is a GA Tech game at Bobby Dodd Stadium, a free Sheryl Crow concert at Centennial Olympic Park before the Chick-fil-A Kickoff at the GA Dome (Alabama & VA Tech), a Dragon Con parade before an at home Braves game, Toni Braxton at Chastain, and the sixth Celebrate Freedom Concert Fest (free) put on by 104.7, The Fish (Christian radio station) where Third Day, Switchfoot, Francesca Battistelli, among others, are performing at a Marietta park.  Can you imagine the traffic we avoided this weekend by getting back when we did?  Hubby intuitively chose back roads off I-20 so that we did not come through the heart of Atlanta.  There are 55,000 alone expected at the Dragon Con events this weekend.  Also two soccer events.

Oh, I didn't mention it's the big weekend at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton.  When I pulled into the parking lot at PetSense, there were NASCAR cars on display in front of Walmart with food vendors preparing food on the grill for sale.  While I shopped at Kroger while Daisy was getting primped,  I noticed several employees dressed in honor of their NASCAR favorites.   I am so glad to be back to my home in the woods, a nice little distance from all of the above activities.

Here is Daisy before and after her beauty appointment.

Before

After

This is how we roll in hot weather--shortest puppy cut

 Me and Miss Daisy discovered Destiny when Daisy was just a pup.  She gave Daisy her first haircut.  We further bonded with Destiny when she told us she had just rescued a Maltese named Piper.  Now her mom has a Maltese named Sophia. 

Destiny is one semester shy of getting a degree in Forensics.  She just completed a summer intership requirement, so we can soon say we know a real CSI!  Me and Daisy are crossing our fingers that we will not lose her as our groomer, but we want the best for her as she pursues her dreams of working at crime scenes and in crime labs.  We love you, Destiny!!! 

New haircut and new dress.

  

Driving Route 66 Through Amarillo, TX

Historic "Get Your Kicks on Route 66" runs for one mile along Sixth Ave. through Amarillo, TX.

Daisy was welcome here.  Most restaurants have outside seating.

Antique shops and restaurants line Sixth Ave.  Several of the antique stores are (or seem) a block deep.  We ate at The Golden Light Cafe (great hamburgers).  It has been in continuous operation since the 1940's.  Cowboy Gelato and Bracero's Mexican Bar and Grill also serve delicious food.  They have outside dining so Daisy was with us.

Cowboy Gelato's

Worth the wait for the food

 Bracero's

Antiques

The Big Texan Steak Ranch, home of the free 72 oz. steak, moved from Rt 66 to Interstate 40 in the early 1970's.  We ate there several times.  (Once Daisy was with us in her bag.)  There is a wonderful gift shop, shooting range, maze, hotel, swimming pool, and candy shop all in the same complex.

 

Here you can "swim across the state of TX"

Many businesses have kept their original bones (paint & structure).

Please visit!

All Around Amarillo, TX

Me and Miss Daisy (and hubby) have lived in Amarillo, TX, since June 2.  A hailstorm on May 28, 2013, damaged many roofs and cars.

Ready to go!

Daisy barked down the calf at the Amarillo Welcome Center.

$500 Million Estimated in Damages

35,000 cars damaged

The hail came in from the West.

Daisy's first friend here.

Shopping in Cavender's

Everything is bigger........

Amarillo Sunset

Cadillac Ranch, a tourist stop

"The Peddler Show" at the Civic Center

Daisy's First Days in a Residence Inn

Daisy's birthday is June 7, 2011.

I first met her when she was four weeks old.

One month old

Three close girlfriends went with me to pick her up in Charleston, SC.  Maltese stay with their mothers until they are 12 weeks old.

Terry, Lynn, Amy, Daisy, & Jerri

So cuddly

Her first road trip was to White Plains, a suburb of NYC, where we lived in a 15 floor high-rise Residence Inn, a former condominium complex, for several weeks.   (Hubby was deployed to a storm there.)  Situated on the 11th floor in a corner suite, Daisy had lots of square footage to play.

Situated at 5 Barker Ave., this was city living for all three of us and provided great instruction for our new puppy.  Daisy learned to stay in a Sherpa bag while traveling by train, as we ate in restaurants, and as we walked.   She was already 95% potty trained, so we regularly made lots of trips up and down the elevator to avoid accidents, and she experienced a variety of bathroom surfaces that have served her well since.  (There was little grass in a city setting.)  There were many opportunities for social development. One in particular was a friendly Italian cab driver who frequented the reservation desk waiting on customers.  Daisy also attended the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Five months old
Bryant Park

Palo Duro Canyon Jeep Tour

Me and Miss Daisy (and hubby) explored the "Grand Canyon of Texas" by taking a three-hour jeep tour through a privately-owned section of Palo Duro Canyon.  Our destination was located 25 miles south of Amarillo, TX.  "Palo Duro" is Spanish for hard wood (as in trees):  mesquite and juniper are prominent there.

 A working cattle ranch with thousands of acres of rugged range and scenic canyon land, it is owned and operated by Elkins Ranch.

 Daisy loves to travel.  She has logged many miles in her young life by car, truck, plane, train, golf cart, bike, and now....open air jeep.

 Nicole was our guide early one Sunday morning in late June. She clapped her hands before entering the teepee in case there were sidewinders or other rattlesnakes hiding there.

Nicole & Daisy

Mountain Boomer

Prickly Pear Cactus

Ancient Hoodoo

Triangular slopes of yellow, gray, & lavender mudstone and sandstone also known as "Spanish Skirts"

Spanish Skirt

The canyon is 120 miles long, 20 miles wide, and 800 ft. deep.

Rim

Legend Falls (dry)

Blanket Flower

This area is a "must do" if visiting the high plains panhandle of TX.    Also, be entertained by college students and learn about the settling of Texas by attending "Texas," the outdoor musical drama.  It is performed in the summer months from the Pioneer Amphitheatre in Palo Duro Canyon State Park.  This year (2013) completed their 48th season.  Daisy remained at the hotel while we enjoyed the show.

*Amarillo Botanical Gardens

Me and Miss Daisy visited the gardens the last week in July.   We were the first visitors of the morning to enter the compact, flower filled 4.2 acres.  Daisy and I leisurely explored the interesting pathways and artwork.

 

Xeriscape Garden

Attebury Amphitheater

Several volunteers were working their individual areas and offered tidbits of info on the flowers they were tending.

Upon entering the conservatory, the scent of orange blossoms filled the air.

 As we were exiting, two groups of children came in and greeted Daisy with smiles and pats to her head.  She, in turn, gave kisses.

Kaleidoscope

*A late night hailstorm on May 28, 2013, damaged much of the gardens  (6" deep in some places).  An employee informed us that a bride-to-be was married on her scheduled date that week due to tremendous    volunteer help.  Residents brought in plantings from their homes in order to get the gardens prepared in time.