Koda Remembers Kira

Since Kira went to Rainbow Bridge, we have slowly been donating her stuff; we donated her bowls and beds to the shelter in Florida where we got her.  We tried to donate her medicines to the shelter, but they wouldn't take them (it is against the law here in NC).  We did kept her leash (Jeff couldn't bear to get rid of it) and a couple of her bandana's (which she loved to wear)...especially her Clemson one and the one with her name embroidered on it that I got her as a puppy.  Those things will be placed in her keepsake box that we are going to create for her (when I feel like I can work on it without breaking down and crying).

That is why this post is so important...one of the only things that we still have in the house is one of Kira's orthopedic beds; it has a lot of cushioning and was still pretty new when she passed.  I couldn't bear to get rid of that, since there are times (I cannot lie) that I lay on the bed just to remember her scent.  For the longest time, Koda would not go near that bed; he would walk past it, look at it, but not get on it. 

But that has all changed lately.  The other night we watched him walk over to it, jump on it, dig in it for a bit, and then lay down.  The first he did it I didn't think much about it, but as time has gone on, I am beginning to wonder if he is trying to bring up her scent so he can remember her.

Whatever he is doing, it is the sweetest thing and makes me appreciate the special bond they shared together.  I know Koda will never be the same without her, but he is doing so well finding a new normal with CoCo.  It couldn't have been easy for him (it certainly wasn't for any of us), but I think she told him that he was in charge now; I see how protective he is of CoCo and I know that getting another dog was the right decision for our family.  Koda is not supposed to be an only dog....although he misses his big sister greatly.

We miss you too, Kira, but know that you are in a more peaceful place now with no more insulin shots and Cushing's disease pills.

Heading Home

On Sunday, we left the cabin around 6:30 am and started the four hour drive home back to Durham.  Before we left, however, we got some pictures of our home away from home the past 5 days.



The dogs were amazing and we didn't have to stop once with them; they just slept quietly in the back.  Every once in a while we would look back at them and see them in some hilarious pose.  Some of our favorites include...

We also saw hot air balloons in the air.  They were amazing back lit with the rising sun.  The pictures do not do them justice, as it was difficult to get pictures of the amazing colors of the balloons as we had to fight the sunshine.

Before we knew it, we were home.  It was a great quick getaway and we are already looking forward to going back.







A Saturday Spent Hiking

On Saturday, our last full day in the mountains, we decided to load up the dogs and head out to the French Broad River for more exploring.  The river is so pretty at any point; it was just too hard not to take pictures of it.  We were going to hike a trail up for a scenic view of the river, but the trail was very narrow and steep and we turned around not long after we left.  So, to make it worthwhile, we decided to walk the dogs along a good stretch of the river.

We took the dogs down to the river to see if they would get in...Koda wanted to, but was just a little too timid.  CoCo acted timid and then as soon as we weren't paying attention, she jumped in!  What a hot mess that girl is!

After some time in the river, we loaded up the dogs and headed down the road for more exploring.  We eventually found a park for camping and hiking.  It was way too hot for camping (plus, I just don't camp), but there were tons of people out there camping for the holiday weekend.  We got to see some incredible sights though.

And finally,  Jeff trying to successfully execute a three point turn on a narrow park road.  It was time to turn around when we thought we might hear banjo music at an given moment!

I had to get out of the truck and help direct, but he executed it nicely.  We then headed back to the cabin for our last night on vacation.

Back at the cabin, we started to pack up, as we had to leave early the next morning so I could pick up a work friend from the airport that was returning from Orlando.  We did manage to get the following cute picture.

A nice end to a very relaxing, albeit way too short, vacation!









Spending Friday in Hot Springs

On Friday, we gave the dogs a reprieve and left them at the cabin so that we could drive into Hot Springs and explore.  Hot Springs can best be described as a a tourist town; although there are residents who live there year round, it is basically open in the summer months for the tourists.  For example, the shops in town are generally only open April-November and have short hours like 11-6.  I wonder how they make money and what they do the rest of the year?  My guess is that they hole up in their homes for the winter and don't come out until spring.  The roads there are so twisty and have no guard rails; it definitely would make me think twice before venturing out in snow.  Plus, they are about 45 minutes from Asheville, and that is the closest place to shop for anything; Hot Springs doesn't even have a grocery store, only a small general store.  Crazy.  Definitely not the life for me.

Here are some pictures we took on the windy 6 mile drive to Hot Springs...





We had lunch at a small ice cream shop and then headed out to see what kind of trouble we could get into...turns out, with a town this small, not a lot.  But we still managed to get a couple of cool things.  I bought a retro lamp for my office at work from a fun consignment shop and a candy dish made out of an old record.  Cool!  We also bought some candy and sweets for the ride home and some treats for the puppies. 

After the town, we decided to keep driving and check out the scenery.  It was beautiful as we crossed over the French Broad River.

We also saw this amazing house high up in the mountains looking over the river...although I can see why they would want to live there, I have no idea how they get up to their house.  Either way, pretty cool.

Another nice day in the Blue Ridge Mountains!







Fun Antics back at the Cabin

After that hot hike, we headed back to the cabin to cool off, take a nap, and relax.  The dogs were completely out, as evidenced by their positions on the bed...

After a nap, we headed out to the porch to enjoy the weather and hang with Jeff while he smoked a cigar.  The dogs were so cute and I got some really great pictures of them.



After the cigar, we headed up to the Meadow, which was up the steep road and near the other five cabins that can be rented.  The dogs absolutely loved the Meadow and would only go to the bathroom there (my poor legs usually protested to having to walk up a pretty steep road numerous times a day so the dogs could pee), even though they had a perfectly good fenced in yard attached to the cabin.  I couldn't be upset for long...look at how happy they were in the Meadow.



By the time we were coming back from the Meadow, the storm clouds were building and we could hear thunder in the distance...so we hung out on the porch and watch the storm roll in.  The cabin had a metal roof, which was cool to hear the rain fall on.  I could have sat out there forever.  It was relaxing and the only rain we had our entire time in the mountains.



We loved every minute of our Thursday in our mountain retreat!



Rocky Bluff Nature Trail Hike

On Thursday after the holiday, we headed to the Rocky Bluff Campground to hike the trail.  At first we had a little trouble finding the trail, but before long, we were on our way.  The trail was a little scary at first; it might have had something to do with the fact that there were signs all over the park that talked about the dangers of bears or the fact that we didn't see a single person on the trail for a really long time, but we decided to keep with the trail anyway...



After about a half mile we passed some kids on the trail, so I started to feel a little better.  We also saw the French Broad River and decided to stray off the trail and down to the water.  The views were absolutely beautiful...we even got Koda to brave the water (which was cool and refreshing)!



The sun was really hot this day and I worried about the dogs, but they were troopers and we kept going.  We started hiking up, never losing sight of the river.  We even managed to get some really cool pictures of it peeking out from the trees every once in a while.



We passed some amazing rocks and uprooted and twisted trees and even passed a church youth group that was out in the river and panning for gold (or some other precious metal).  The dogs were excited about the presence of people and kept trying to get down to the river banks, but we managed to keep them focused on the trail...until we tried to cross a metal pipe bridge, which Koda was not liking at all.  He hemmed and hawed, but finally decided he just needed to walk across it.



After we finished the trail, we hung out and cooled off under a large oak tree that provided shade for a little while.  It was so hot on this day; we all needed a shower when we got back to the cabin.  But the dogs were amazing and seemed to enjoy being out in nature.  P.S. Although there is some speculation of Bigfoot sightings in this area of the Pisgah National Forest, we didn't see any on this hike (much to Jeff's dismay).  Looks like we won't be making any appearances on Finding Bigfoot any time soon!