Just got back from lunch at the mall. So far, Shanie does well on short outings. He us plumping up nicely, too. Weighs 10 lbs, 1 oz as of yesterday!

Hubby just poked his head in and declared "Vampire potato beetles!" then left.

"What?" I said after a moment.

"It just wandered through my brain."

Glam, I need picture proof of the plumping boy!

We ordered an appetizer platter and tamarind duck. I hope it is good.

Mmmm, that sounds delicious. All y'all's dinners sound good, but appetizers and duck is our standard order from our Thai place, I love it.

I went to Fisherman's Wharf, then on a bus tour, then wandered around Chinatown. Now I'm sleepy, and definitely don't want to walk any more, but I do want to see more stuff. Maybe nap, then figure out what to do next.

Barb Can you tell me how you transported your pets during your move?

We used PetRelocation.com. Not at all cheap, but they really provided peace of mind, especially considering we had three large dogs and a cat to consider. They did use Continental because they consider them the best in terms of domestic pet transport and in fact, worked with the airline to develop their pet transportation standards. Since we had left the pets boarding during the entirety of the move and while we flew out here, they picked them up at the boarding facility in Jax, drove them to the airport, made sure they had all the necessary paperwork and had food and water, and stayed with them, outside their crates, up until the moment they were loaded. During their layover in Houston, they walked them and made sure they had a chance to go to the bathroom and stretch their legs and then once in Seattle, picked them up and delivered them right to our door. During the entire trip, we were able to track their progress on the Continental website, so we knew that the pets had landed safely and were on their way to us.

Everyone made it just fine-- the only thing I'm dealing with as an aftermath is Jasmine has a UTI, exacerbated in part by the fact that she apparently didn't really go to the bathroom during their breaks and of course, didn't soil her crate. Vet also thinks that just all the disruption in her routine helped usher it along. But otherwise, everyone's healthy, happy, and glad to be back with their people.

I've had good experiences with United

As a counterpoint, when I sent the cats on United, they managed to lose them between getting them off the plane and getting them to me. It only took an extra 45 minutes, but that was after they made me wait until they were sure they weren't showing up, and it was a very long 45 minutes.

One advantage of crockpot: it does not necessarily take tough man to make a tender chicken.

A local sporting goods store is working with a Haitian relief org. and is collecting shoes to be organized and shipped next month. We gathered up shoes from us and some friends and took them over. Since we were at the mall, we ate a glam lunch at the food court and bought some crap at BB&B. We rushed home, bitching all the way because we were supposed to go to dinner and a movie with friends and are both feeling more like doing nothin'. Luckily, we got home and they canceled on us, which means we get to stay home and keep mainlining Doctor Who.

The food is nummy as is the bottle of prosecco.