Hey, now! I don't mean that kind of nature calling! Get your mind out of the potty. I'm here to tell you about some real time spent where nature calls. I just recently learned how exciting a road trip can be, so when the family loaded up the truck one more time last week, I was pumped for another trek to the beach - only we didn't end up there! Imagine - road trips end in lots of different places!
This trip ended at the end of a long dirt road on a hill high above the Shenandoah River. The first activity was a walk into the woods. You know what the woods is full of? That's right - trees. And you know what falls from trees? Ok, yes, leaves do fall from trees, but you've got to know by now that I'm talking about sticks! Mom was pretty quick with the leash management, but I got a few "welcome to the mountains" nibbles in.
Speaking of nibbles, as we settled in to our home away from home and waited for Aunt Lisa and Uncle Will to arrive, there was a lot of hub-ub about turkey. I thought that meant maybe we'd see one of those, but the only one I saw, sadly for him, was stuffed the next day with some little pieces of deliciousness that started off as bread and ended up in the poor fellow . . . minus those few little pieces Mom dropped while executing the stuffing maneuver. I'm not normally allowed people food, unless I'm opportunistic with my skulking about in the kitchen, but that next day brought many skulking opportunities, as there was a lot of food prep happening all day. And on what was apparently National Turkey Day, Mom said, because this day was about giving thanks, and she was thankful for me, I could have a legitimate taste of the turkey. She and Dad high fived over the final turkey product, and Mom said my Grandma would have been real proud of it, so don't tell them my review is that it was just ok. I think maybe I was distracted, though, because the whole time I was tasting turkey, I was wondering why Mom is not thankful for me on National Ice Cream Day.
After turkey eating apparently comes one of my favorite missions - finding a good nap spot before the game playing portion of the evening (no, games are still not for dogs). And since Mom brought my favorite blankie, I was able to curl up on the sofa and drift off dreaming about the ice cream - I mean the turkey - just like everybody else.
Our next day brought an entire agenda of relaxation. Mom was not as into watching soccer as the rest of the vacation crew, and between us, she told me that - World Cup excitement aside - it was an abomination that no American football crossed our TV path on Turkey Day/Turkey Weekend. As Mom is keen to do, we went walking to check out the neighborhood. Turns out there was a lot of nature calling! Big brother spotted a massive woodpecker wearing a bright red hat, and we were visited by a few deer who literally crossed our path.
When we weren't walking, we were doing a lot of back porch sitting, soaking up the view. Mom and I were also happy to spend some quality time curled up on the swing under the back deck, although I can only take so much of the swinging motion. Some of us also appreciated the view from the outside looking in (bottom of right pic).
Mom and I did a lot of star gazing on my potty breaks in the dark, and they were amazing - the stars, not the breaks. That said, Mom insisted on waving around her flashlight every time we heard some leaves rustling, so I'd say Mom's nocturnal nature enjoyment could use a little work. 🙄
When it was time to go home, I was a little bummed. This mountain nature thing had been as much fun as the beach but in a different way. We took one last look at our cabin's view and loaded up. While we were waiting in the truck for Mom to do the final check of the house, Big Brother whispered, "Don't worry, Gus. When we get home, all our movies will be Christmas movies, and we can start decorating for Christmas! The most wonderful time of the year." I'm not sure I remember too much of last year's wonderful-ness, but I'm always happy snuggled up with the fam - especially on our new couch.
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