Saturday, May 2, 2009

Sophie is Growing Up and Other Unrelated News

Puppies grow so fast. Take a look at how big our little Sophie has grown.







That's Maddy beside her. I do not know how to get rid of those eerie eyes. Maddy weighs about 20 pounds, so I am guessing Sophie is over 10 by now. Sophie is chewing on my lambswool duster, which I no longer own. It had to go directly into the trash by the time she finished with it. The joys of having a puppy in the house!






We now have a hidey hole! This is the shelter before it was surrounded by concrete and topped with its sliding lid. I tried to take video for you, but the little video camera needed a charge. Two guys arrived at 7:00am and immediately began to work.






They promptly removed a big chunk of garage floor using a wet saw and the tiniest backhoe I've ever seen (you can just see it in the background). Then the digging commenced. A trailer full of dirt was hauled away and the wonderful guy in this picture began to clean up the mess they'd made. By this time it was only 10am. While waiting for the concrete to arrive, he proceeded to pressure wash my entire driveway, saying, "Well, ma'am, I'd rather stay busy than sit here and twiddle my thumbs." After the concrete was poured and finished and the top set in place, we ended up with this:





There is room for all five human members of the family, three dogs, two cats, and a fishbowl. Actually, we could probably get two or maybe three more adults inside in a pinch. Inside, you can latch the lid with chains. If the worst happened and we ended up with a car, or parts of the house on top of the shelter, a come-along (or hand winch) is installed to save us from ending up trapped in a shelter. We also registered the shelter with local authorities, so in the event of a tornado in our neighborhood, the firefighters ought to know where we are. All in all, I feel a bit safer.

11 comments:

Babaloo said...

Sophie is SO cute! Puppy eyes just do it for me, every time. :)

And, congrats on the hidey hole. Now you're sorted. Hope you never actually have to use it.

willowtree said...

That shelter looks bigger than I thought it would be from the brochure.

I think there should be a red-eye setting on the camera (even though theses days they end up green for some reason), but I usually just use photoshop if bothers me.

Sophie's looking good.

Jen said...

I want one of those shelters, but I wonder if they are feasible in the sandy soil here. No one has basements because of the high water table :( The only place we have to hide is a small interior walk-in closet!

ped crossing said...

Do you have time to move the car if it is parked in the garage? Or do you just not park there.

And she is just too cute!

Pamela said...

a very nice fraidy hole too

I would get claustrophobic

Kim said...

Thanks, Babaloo. We think she's pretty cute, too. I hope we never use that thing, either. Too scary to contemplate.

I was surprised how roomy it is inside, WT. It's still claustrophic if you're down there long, though.

You know, Jen, we don't have basements here, either as they tend to get wet. You ought to look into one, especially with the little ones.

Ped, the shelter is situated toward the back of the garage. When I pull my car in, you can access the shelter with the car in place. It's pretty cool, actually, how they install them.

It's FEMA approved, Pamela. I think we paid for that bit, too. :)

Cait O'Connor said...

Congrats on the shelter. I hope you don't ever need it though.
Puppies are wonderful aren't they?

Faye said...

How do Sophie's siblings like her? She's pretty hard to resist, I imagine.

What a wise move you all have made to install the hidey hole--even though it probably did take some getting use to if you have close quarter issues. And, isn't it heartwarming to encounter a worker who's agreeable to be around? Recently my neighbor had trees taken down and the crew, on their own initiative, ground up some big logs for me that I was dreading dealing with with just a handsaw. Once hired a painter who walked the dog if I was late getting home from work.

wakeupandsmellthecoffee said...

I love the puppy pictures. They do grow up so fast. And congrats on your hidey hole. It's Aunty Em's cellar for the noughties!

Manic Mother Of Five said...

Impressive bit of kit there....

Time you told us if you've had to use it

xxx

laurie said...

how did i miss this post? somehow i did.

that hidey hole! man, it's like a.... coffin!