Dipping Our Toes

Sunday afternoon, Mr. Taleteller surprised me by sending Bunny out on the front porch with a note attached to her harness.  It seems that he had the idea that a walk would be fun.  He even had all the stuff packed up in the van and ready to go.

So, off we went to the East Peoria Bike and Walking Trail.  It's a pretty nice trail, and it's paved.  We saw a lot of bicycle riders on the trail since it goes all the way to the next town over.  There were also a few walkers, too.  The part of the trail that we were on wasn't the most scenic.  Actually, it turned out to be quite a bit hotter out there than it had been at home.  The girls were troopers, at least, on the way out they were.

On the way back home, a funny thing happened.  As soon as Mr. Taleteller turned around, Blueberry immediately started her tired, exhausted dog routine.  She was as far behind him as her leash would allow.  Bunny's pace slowed down considerably, too.  She was still easier to motivate than Blueberry, though.  I now suspect that for several years we've been hoodwinked by her on our walks.  We had an interesting chat about it all.

Me:  Blueberry, what are you doing?

Blueberry:  (tongue hanging nearly to the ground in dramatic fashion)  The heat!  My God, the heat!

Me:  You were fine ten seconds ago when we were going the other way.

Blueberry:  No I wasn't!  Weren't you watching?

Me:  Yes I was!  You were walking just fine!

Blueberry:  There was a tailwind.  It was blowing me along.  Now I have to walk into the wind!  I'll never make it!  Dad, carry me!

Mr. Taleteller:  There is no way I'm carrying you all that way!  Your legs work just fine!

Blueberry:  If you loved me, you would carry me!  I'll die of heatstroke!

Mr. Taleteller:  Do you know how hot it will be if I carry you back?

Bunny:  Blue, he's all sweaty and that is NOT a good stink coming off him!  You don't want that on your blue brindle furs!

Blueberry:  I must have been adopted!

Bunny:  Come on, it's an adventure!

Me:  You were all adopted!

Blueberry:  Hmph!

Still, it was pretty hot.  Even I was feeling the heat.  The girls were panting and moving slowly.  So, we decided to stop and go down to take a dip in the creek.  The girls were both decidedly happier.  Actually, I was, too!  I took off my shoes and waded in with them.  After we'd cooled our jets, we headed back to the van.  Bunny thought about trying to hitch a ride on the train, but the caboose wasn't going anywhere on its own.

They were both pretty happy to get back to the van and feel the air moving on them.  When we got home, they both took decidedly long naps.  I think we'll try the trail again, but probably on a slightly cooler day!