And get an update on here. I'll start in order:
February 15th: Carrotcake starts walking. He took his first, multiple unassisted steps to the dog. He was so proud of himself!
February 25th: Was my first 5k run of 2012. I was one of just over 15,000 runners! It was crazy how many people were there. It took a good 4 minutes or so for me to even GET to the start line once the start gun went off! So many people lined the streets to cheer the runners on, and there were at least 4 bands along the route. Once I saw the final landmark by the finish line, I ran with a smile on my face because I had pushed myself to keep going, no walking, and I did it! Now, there was no official time on the 5k run, so I don't have the exact numbers. But the finish line clock said 37:58... keep in mind that I wasn't able to move anywhere for a few minutes or so when the clock started. So I estimated I came in under 34 minutes. I knew I reached my goal for that one!
March 14th: I was laid off. My company was in the process of closing, and we were told that Monday. Wednesday was my last day, as they said they couldn't guarantee they could pay people. I am still searching for a job, but am pretty optimistic as these last 2 years boosted my office experience and opened more doors for me. The economy in my area is looking up as well. A lot better than 2 and half years ago when I was unemployed.
March 17th: St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Strut 5k! Official time: 32:06. A full MINUTE better than what I thought I might have hit. There wasn't a clock over the finish line, and they didn't post accurate results right away due to an oops in the timing chip system. So I had to wait a few days. It was still fun though. I'm thoroughly enjoying this running thing :)
March 21st: Carrotcake's 1st birthday. We had a doctor's appointment first thing in the morning (I know, birthday shots?! Boo!). He was 20lbs 4oz, and 30.25". He received 4 shots and a finger prick. All his blood levels are perfect, so he's all around healthy! He was knocked out for over 2 hours for his morning nap, but luckily the shots didn't leave him crabby for the day. We went to lunch where he had some fried pickles and a grilled cheese sandwich. Then the 3 of us went to the zoo and had a blast looking at the animals. Afterward, he got his birthday dinner at McDonald's and had his first ice cream dessert. Carrot cake was knocked. out. when we got home. A great day!
March 24th: 1st birthday mini party. My brother and his 4 kids came over, and the cousins all had fun playing, eating spaghetti and cake. I made Carrotcake's smash cake, it could have turned out better, but oh well. I won't use that recipe again, the cake was too dense. I won't even mention the site I got it. I made my own frosting and carved up his cake in the shape of his Tonka dump truck. It got destroyed (of course!). That was another day where he was just knocked. out. He fell asleep downstairs on the floor.
And fast forward to now. We had a VERY productive weekend. I guess Don and I got infected with the Spring Cleaning bug. Don trimmed down the bushes on our front sidewalk. They were seriously the height of the garage, he trimmed them down to about half. I started going through the garage to clean out some boxes that have been just sitting there. My goal was to be able to get to our camping gear so we can go through that without having a bunch of things fall on us. We put out a bit of "free stuff" on the curb and cleared a lot. It's not completely done yet, but what I have to do is just bring in some music books, and organize the camp gear. Don mowed the lawn and cleaned the car, inside and out. It was a very long 2 days, but in a good way. We enjoyed our productive time as a family, since Carrotcake was out front with us too (until his naptime), and Daisy pup enjoyed the shade of our tree while we worked. I LOVED this weekend!!
Currently in progress:
Reading: the final book in the Earth's Children Series: Land of the Painted Caves. I believe I'm about 40% done. I'll review the series once this book is done.
Prepping: dehydrated foods for camping. It's our effort to reduce the space we use to pack for camping trips. That will be touched on once I get it in order.
Planning: a reorganization of my house. De-cluttering is needed!
Training: 5k on April 7th. As stated above, my March 17th time was 32:06. I'm hoping to be in the 32 minute range for this one. A small portion is on a trail that has some incline and possible mud, if it rains. But I'm looking forward to it! My running has improved so much that a steady pace for 30 minutes doesn't kill me and is quite easy to achieve.
Til next time!
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Money saving...
I just recently read a couple of "Money Saver Tips" blogs to see about shaving off some more dollars that we spend.
HOWEVER, I was truly disappointed that none of the tips I read sparked an "Oh wow, that's a great idea!" fire. Why? Because we already do most of what is on there. I'll go through some of what we do that I saw as a "tip".
Cut cable: we've been cable/dish free for a year now. We subscribe to Netflix (streaming only now, since that ridiculous price increase for DVDs). Do we miss it? Not really. Because just about everything is on the internet nowadays. We do have basic cable, but that's free with the digital antenna. I sometimes go days without watching something I like. And often, we'll go an entire day or longer on the weekend without the TV on, and enjoy each other as a family: reading, playing, going out to a park, window shopping, etc. I mean, TV is still a fairly recent invention over the history of modern humans. I don't recall reading anything about our ancestors dying of boredom. There's other things to do, you just have to think on your own!
Bring your lunch: I'd say a good 3 out of 4 weeks at work, I bring my lunch. Paydays, I'll buy something, and then there are days where it was too hectic the night before or morning of to toss something together. This also keeps that thing called "trying to eat healthy" in check. Because I'll admit, while I'm trying to be healthy, I don't make a healthy choice when I purchase lunch. It's just delicious that way.
Switch to "CFL" bulbs: we've been using these light bulbs for at least 5 years now. It was one of the first things Don did to our house when we first moved in: replaced all the bulbs with those energy efficient ones. We moved in just over 3 years ago, and JUST NOW had to replace ONE. I honestly can't say what difference this makes in the electric bill, as we never had a bill for a house full of regular bulbs. But given that I remember changing out light bulbs a bit in the pre-energy efficient bulb days, I'd say we've saved some money not having to buy bulbs every few months. We also shut off a light whenever we leave the room, and use as much daylight as possible before turning on a light in the house.
The All Important Smartphone: I did have a Sprint Crackberry and paid $70/mo for unlimited data, text and 450 minutes. I then switched to Virgin mobile and pay $25/mo for pretty much the same carrier (Virgin works off Spring network). I only get 300 minutes, but I don't talk on the phone that much. I text more than talk, and I get unlimited texts and data. Even still, their unlimited talk/everything plan is $55/mo. $45/mo for 1200 minutes. Yes, their phone selection is limited, but when it comes to saving money, or having the hottest new phone, I'll save the money.
Laundry soap: We have a front load washer, so we save some water money there. But I also make my own laundry soap. 1 cup of borax ($4ish a box, which holds more than a few cups), 1 cup of washing soda (a few bucks as well, multiple cups), and a shredded bar of Fals-Naptha soap ($1.09, I believe). Mix well. It lasts a few months of at least 3 loads of laundry a week (that's an estimate of loads). We were just using this soap for our son's laundry, until Don bought some soap he started itching horribly from, so all loads get the homemade soap. It works just fine in the front load washer. I also make cloth diaper soap with 1 cup each of borax, washing soda and oxyclean. They don't smell like diapers when they're done!
Rechargeable Batteries: Ever since I lived with Don, any purchased battery has been a rechargeable. It's not even thought of as a "money saver" in our house, it's just a fact. We maybe replace SOME of them once a year. It's a nice thing to not have to always be thinking about regular batteries, if we need to buy some.
"All in the pot" dinners: This refers to halfway to the next grocery shopping trip, but I don't see an obvious meal from these food items left in my fridge/pantry dilemma. Don's creative with this one. Instead of going out to buy something on a whim for dinner, he'll look at the leftover rice/potatoes/veggies/etc in a new light and do a combo of things that will go bad in the next couple days, and things that have been sitting in the pantry that needs to be rotated out. It saves money from those between grocery trip shops, AND saves on food waste. We hate tossing food, and always try to keep a good rotation in our fridge and pantry, no matter what dish may come of it.
Those were just a few of some things we do to save money. For the most part, we are pretty good at being conservative, money-wise. We're always looking at ways to cut some cost somewhere, and really do try to think out bigger purchases before making them. I do feel lucky that 99% of the time, our marriage is free of the money issues, because we're on the same page, and don't live beyond our means.
I do owe an update on some things, but that'll be this weekend. Had an exhausting last couple of weekends, that I just didn't get a chance to really reflect on here.
Til next time!
HOWEVER, I was truly disappointed that none of the tips I read sparked an "Oh wow, that's a great idea!" fire. Why? Because we already do most of what is on there. I'll go through some of what we do that I saw as a "tip".
Cut cable: we've been cable/dish free for a year now. We subscribe to Netflix (streaming only now, since that ridiculous price increase for DVDs). Do we miss it? Not really. Because just about everything is on the internet nowadays. We do have basic cable, but that's free with the digital antenna. I sometimes go days without watching something I like. And often, we'll go an entire day or longer on the weekend without the TV on, and enjoy each other as a family: reading, playing, going out to a park, window shopping, etc. I mean, TV is still a fairly recent invention over the history of modern humans. I don't recall reading anything about our ancestors dying of boredom. There's other things to do, you just have to think on your own!
Bring your lunch: I'd say a good 3 out of 4 weeks at work, I bring my lunch. Paydays, I'll buy something, and then there are days where it was too hectic the night before or morning of to toss something together. This also keeps that thing called "trying to eat healthy" in check. Because I'll admit, while I'm trying to be healthy, I don't make a healthy choice when I purchase lunch. It's just delicious that way.
Switch to "CFL" bulbs: we've been using these light bulbs for at least 5 years now. It was one of the first things Don did to our house when we first moved in: replaced all the bulbs with those energy efficient ones. We moved in just over 3 years ago, and JUST NOW had to replace ONE. I honestly can't say what difference this makes in the electric bill, as we never had a bill for a house full of regular bulbs. But given that I remember changing out light bulbs a bit in the pre-energy efficient bulb days, I'd say we've saved some money not having to buy bulbs every few months. We also shut off a light whenever we leave the room, and use as much daylight as possible before turning on a light in the house.
The All Important Smartphone: I did have a Sprint Crackberry and paid $70/mo for unlimited data, text and 450 minutes. I then switched to Virgin mobile and pay $25/mo for pretty much the same carrier (Virgin works off Spring network). I only get 300 minutes, but I don't talk on the phone that much. I text more than talk, and I get unlimited texts and data. Even still, their unlimited talk/everything plan is $55/mo. $45/mo for 1200 minutes. Yes, their phone selection is limited, but when it comes to saving money, or having the hottest new phone, I'll save the money.
Laundry soap: We have a front load washer, so we save some water money there. But I also make my own laundry soap. 1 cup of borax ($4ish a box, which holds more than a few cups), 1 cup of washing soda (a few bucks as well, multiple cups), and a shredded bar of Fals-Naptha soap ($1.09, I believe). Mix well. It lasts a few months of at least 3 loads of laundry a week (that's an estimate of loads). We were just using this soap for our son's laundry, until Don bought some soap he started itching horribly from, so all loads get the homemade soap. It works just fine in the front load washer. I also make cloth diaper soap with 1 cup each of borax, washing soda and oxyclean. They don't smell like diapers when they're done!
Rechargeable Batteries: Ever since I lived with Don, any purchased battery has been a rechargeable. It's not even thought of as a "money saver" in our house, it's just a fact. We maybe replace SOME of them once a year. It's a nice thing to not have to always be thinking about regular batteries, if we need to buy some.
"All in the pot" dinners: This refers to halfway to the next grocery shopping trip, but I don't see an obvious meal from these food items left in my fridge/pantry dilemma. Don's creative with this one. Instead of going out to buy something on a whim for dinner, he'll look at the leftover rice/potatoes/veggies/etc in a new light and do a combo of things that will go bad in the next couple days, and things that have been sitting in the pantry that needs to be rotated out. It saves money from those between grocery trip shops, AND saves on food waste. We hate tossing food, and always try to keep a good rotation in our fridge and pantry, no matter what dish may come of it.
Those were just a few of some things we do to save money. For the most part, we are pretty good at being conservative, money-wise. We're always looking at ways to cut some cost somewhere, and really do try to think out bigger purchases before making them. I do feel lucky that 99% of the time, our marriage is free of the money issues, because we're on the same page, and don't live beyond our means.
I do owe an update on some things, but that'll be this weekend. Had an exhausting last couple of weekends, that I just didn't get a chance to really reflect on here.
Til next time!
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Starting the seeds...
So not much gets done during the week. I didn't do all I wanted this weekend, but it was a bit colder than I had expected. We hit the Home Depot so I could get supplies for my herb garden and tomato & bell pepper plants.
I made beef stew which turned out mediocre so that's not even worth sharing what I put in it. It was good, but not as delicious as I made before. Oh well.
While it was a bit chilly today, it was still sunny so I wanted to get those seeds planted. It should start warming up mid week here. I zipped my little Carrotcake up in his winter jacket, put down a blanket and let him enjoy a sunny day on the patio with me.
Here he is with my finished products:
Weeding the backyard is also on our list. Maybe next weekend will be a little nicer. That's Daisy in the background. I tried to get her to sit pretty behind the pots, but she was too busy apparently.
I also want to show off our cactus (er, cacti?):
The one on the right started off just one little cactus, not much bigger than the one on the left. It was purchased on our 1st anniversary trip to San Antonio, specifically from the Alamo. Supposedly, it was a part of the Alamo Gardens. Now, almost 3 years later, it's quite a bit bigger. The little one on the left was a replant of an "arm" that just broke off the main cactus.
Currently in progress:
Reading: still Plains of Passage, by Jean Auel. About 31% done (thank you, Kindle, for that info), didn't get much reading as I hoped this week. But I'd like to be about halfway done this time next week. The book is about 1100 pages.
Prepping: a dinner and lunch menu to make a grocery list from by the weekend, as we do our grocery trips every 2 weeks.
Planning: installing a gate/fence in the wide opening between the living room and kitchen. The plastic bins just aren't doing it to keep a certain Mr. Curious Hands out of the kitchen. If we arrange them in a way so he can't push or pull them, he's starting to try and climb on them.
Training: 5k on Feb 25. Fastest time hit this past week was 35:19. I'm confident I can shave that extra 1:19 before then. But, for the actual 5k, I may be slower, as my running buddy is my co-worker, so I'm not sure where her level is at yet. But if I can just hit 34:00 or faster in my trip to the gym, or around my neighborhood, I'll consider it goal achieved.
Til next time!
I made beef stew which turned out mediocre so that's not even worth sharing what I put in it. It was good, but not as delicious as I made before. Oh well.
While it was a bit chilly today, it was still sunny so I wanted to get those seeds planted. It should start warming up mid week here. I zipped my little Carrotcake up in his winter jacket, put down a blanket and let him enjoy a sunny day on the patio with me.
Here he is with my finished products:
Weeding the backyard is also on our list. Maybe next weekend will be a little nicer. That's Daisy in the background. I tried to get her to sit pretty behind the pots, but she was too busy apparently.
I also want to show off our cactus (er, cacti?):
The one on the right started off just one little cactus, not much bigger than the one on the left. It was purchased on our 1st anniversary trip to San Antonio, specifically from the Alamo. Supposedly, it was a part of the Alamo Gardens. Now, almost 3 years later, it's quite a bit bigger. The little one on the left was a replant of an "arm" that just broke off the main cactus.
Currently in progress:
Reading: still Plains of Passage, by Jean Auel. About 31% done (thank you, Kindle, for that info), didn't get much reading as I hoped this week. But I'd like to be about halfway done this time next week. The book is about 1100 pages.
Prepping: a dinner and lunch menu to make a grocery list from by the weekend, as we do our grocery trips every 2 weeks.
Planning: installing a gate/fence in the wide opening between the living room and kitchen. The plastic bins just aren't doing it to keep a certain Mr. Curious Hands out of the kitchen. If we arrange them in a way so he can't push or pull them, he's starting to try and climb on them.
Training: 5k on Feb 25. Fastest time hit this past week was 35:19. I'm confident I can shave that extra 1:19 before then. But, for the actual 5k, I may be slower, as my running buddy is my co-worker, so I'm not sure where her level is at yet. But if I can just hit 34:00 or faster in my trip to the gym, or around my neighborhood, I'll consider it goal achieved.
Til next time!
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Make it happen
It's been well over a year since the last post. I just haven't gotten around to posting, mostly because there's not a whole lot that was going on in our lives.
DO NOT get me wrong. Being pregnant with our first child, giving birth in March 2011 was amazing. Watching our son grow is our world, there isn't a dull moment with our little boy. However, as much as we enjoy seeing the same goofy face he makes for the 100th time, or still get a kick out of him babbling, I know most people outside of our little household would get sick reading the same thing, just a different day of the week. A combination of that, and just couldn't find much time to collect thoughts for a blog.
But, things are different now. If you don't do anything, well, then nothing is new to share in your life. Don and I had a chat last week, and we put together a list. A "House Wish List", things to buy or do for our house to "complete" it for our home. We've been here 3 years, and we've painted 3 rooms. That's about it. We won't be in the market to leave this house for a few more years, maybe even 5 or so. There's a lot we'd like to happen for this house.
We also are going to make more of an effort to get out on weekends, stop being hermits. We renewed our Texas State Parks pass, so we're going to attempt more day trips, and try to go camping at least 1 weekend a month, possibly starting in April. Hopefully we'll get a membership to a museum or 2, and the zoo. Just in general, we want to start going out and about as a family.
I have some personal goals I'd like to accomplish this year, along with the house and getting out goals. I want to aim for at least 1 5k run a month. My first one is February 25th. I'm excited. I also have a certain goal to hit weight-wise. Aside from the health and fitness area, I want to sew at least one thing, and finish my cross-stitch I started while pregnant. One other goal I can think of right now, is read at least 2 books a month. I received a Kindle for Christmas, and it's more attached to me than my phone now! So far, I finished 4 books since Christmas. But to be fair, 3 were Harry Potter, so it was a fairly easy read, and I was already so into the books, I forfeited some sleep to get those read.
So, I'm going to try and make the point of this blog to document checking off things on our lists and anything exciting that comes about from doing so.
Now that's established, here's what's going on now:
Currently in progress-
Reading: Plains of Passage by Jean Auel (#4 in the Earth's Children series)
Prepping: our garden area that hasn't been used for anything more than a food scrap compost garden the last 2 and a half years. I tilled up the area last weekend, and will probably do it 1-2 more times before planting at the end of this month.
Planning: my indoor herb garden. I'll be looking for pots in the next week. I have a good idea of what I want to grow
Training: for the first 5k of 2012. My time today was 35:55. My goal by the actual run (not a race, more a fun run) is to be under 34 minutes. When I did my first one ever July 4th, 2010, my time was 34:52. I'd like to beat that. I've been seriously training since 1/2/12. I didn't focus much on running at the gym before the New Year. And prior to 2 years ago, I HATED running. With a passion. It's now pretty enjoyable for me. Daisy pup enjoys it too when I run her around the neighborhood.
That's it for now. Hopefully we actually get on the ball with our lists, and then I'll have a reason to update.
Til next time!
DO NOT get me wrong. Being pregnant with our first child, giving birth in March 2011 was amazing. Watching our son grow is our world, there isn't a dull moment with our little boy. However, as much as we enjoy seeing the same goofy face he makes for the 100th time, or still get a kick out of him babbling, I know most people outside of our little household would get sick reading the same thing, just a different day of the week. A combination of that, and just couldn't find much time to collect thoughts for a blog.
But, things are different now. If you don't do anything, well, then nothing is new to share in your life. Don and I had a chat last week, and we put together a list. A "House Wish List", things to buy or do for our house to "complete" it for our home. We've been here 3 years, and we've painted 3 rooms. That's about it. We won't be in the market to leave this house for a few more years, maybe even 5 or so. There's a lot we'd like to happen for this house.
We also are going to make more of an effort to get out on weekends, stop being hermits. We renewed our Texas State Parks pass, so we're going to attempt more day trips, and try to go camping at least 1 weekend a month, possibly starting in April. Hopefully we'll get a membership to a museum or 2, and the zoo. Just in general, we want to start going out and about as a family.
I have some personal goals I'd like to accomplish this year, along with the house and getting out goals. I want to aim for at least 1 5k run a month. My first one is February 25th. I'm excited. I also have a certain goal to hit weight-wise. Aside from the health and fitness area, I want to sew at least one thing, and finish my cross-stitch I started while pregnant. One other goal I can think of right now, is read at least 2 books a month. I received a Kindle for Christmas, and it's more attached to me than my phone now! So far, I finished 4 books since Christmas. But to be fair, 3 were Harry Potter, so it was a fairly easy read, and I was already so into the books, I forfeited some sleep to get those read.
So, I'm going to try and make the point of this blog to document checking off things on our lists and anything exciting that comes about from doing so.
Now that's established, here's what's going on now:
Currently in progress-
Reading: Plains of Passage by Jean Auel (#4 in the Earth's Children series)
Prepping: our garden area that hasn't been used for anything more than a food scrap compost garden the last 2 and a half years. I tilled up the area last weekend, and will probably do it 1-2 more times before planting at the end of this month.
Planning: my indoor herb garden. I'll be looking for pots in the next week. I have a good idea of what I want to grow
Training: for the first 5k of 2012. My time today was 35:55. My goal by the actual run (not a race, more a fun run) is to be under 34 minutes. When I did my first one ever July 4th, 2010, my time was 34:52. I'd like to beat that. I've been seriously training since 1/2/12. I didn't focus much on running at the gym before the New Year. And prior to 2 years ago, I HATED running. With a passion. It's now pretty enjoyable for me. Daisy pup enjoys it too when I run her around the neighborhood.
That's it for now. Hopefully we actually get on the ball with our lists, and then I'll have a reason to update.
Til next time!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Update! A lot has happened!
First, since the last post, I started a job. I started March 22, and still there. Not the most challenging job, but it's something.
April 4, Don and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. We did a nice trip celebration a couple weeks later by going to SoCal and Vegas. We had such a great time and saw beautiful scenery. It was a blast. I'm so glad we were able to go.
Then a little bit of life went by, and on July 8, found out I was pregnant! I was pretty sick since about a week and a half after finding out, til now. The morning (all day) sickness subsided a bit in the last week, but at the moment am battling a cough and cold. It's no fun. But I'm 12 weeks 2 days at the moment. We went to the doctor yesterday, and heart the strong and loud heartbeat.
We are so thrilled. It's so exciting. I think I'm still in a bit of a shock. This was planned and wanted, but it's still so shocking to me that it's actually happening.
So, the countdown until March 2011 begins!
April 4, Don and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. We did a nice trip celebration a couple weeks later by going to SoCal and Vegas. We had such a great time and saw beautiful scenery. It was a blast. I'm so glad we were able to go.
Then a little bit of life went by, and on July 8, found out I was pregnant! I was pretty sick since about a week and a half after finding out, til now. The morning (all day) sickness subsided a bit in the last week, but at the moment am battling a cough and cold. It's no fun. But I'm 12 weeks 2 days at the moment. We went to the doctor yesterday, and heart the strong and loud heartbeat.
We are so thrilled. It's so exciting. I think I'm still in a bit of a shock. This was planned and wanted, but it's still so shocking to me that it's actually happening.
So, the countdown until March 2011 begins!
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Finally! Something happens in our life!
I haven't updated in a while, well, because there was nothing to update. I was starting to hide away, since I had nothing going on.
Well finally, some new things are going on!
First, (now this is a little overdue) but we have a new family member. February 8, I was home and so was my brother-in-law. He went out to his car, then came back in saying there was a dog running around and tried going up to him. I looked out my window and saw this skinny, skinny dog running confused from house to house. I went outside to get a better look at her, check to see if she had tags since I saw a collar on her. I whistled and she came over to me, laid on her side and was very jittery. She had no tags, so I tried to coax her in my backyard and she ran off. I figured, ok, well I'll try if she comes back.
Let me take a moment to say here, that I often see dogs running loose in my neighborhood. Most of them have collars/tags, but they all seem to "know" what they're doing. Kind of like they belong somewhere in the neighborhood, but are just making their rounds for the day, and seem to be well fed anyways, which is why I don't bother them. But this one was different, she was obviously lost, confused and scared, so I felt compelled to get involved.
I saw her circle back around so I went outside with some dog treats. I was able to take her back into my yard and immediately took a picture of her to post on Lost and Found on Craigslist. I gave her some water and food while I waited for just a bit to see if anyone responded. After she got a chance to drink some fresh water and munch a little bit on food, I took her to my vet to get scanned for a microchip. She did have one, and they looked up her info to try and give her owner a call. The number went straight to voicemail, so they passed on her info to me to try at a different time.
We went back to my house, and I gave her a bath, since she was caked in mud on her belly and legs. I kept trying the owner phone number with no luck. I posted on many sites about this found dog. She settled in and stayed with us for the rest of the week. She took to me immediately, and as much as I tried to resist, I did to her as well.
She seemed to have been scared of the cats at first. Her first look at Rocky was him all puffed up and glaring at her through the back door glass while she was outside. Rocky really was all bent out of shape that this random dog was in the backyard, and he made that known through the window to her. When I brought her in for the bath, she did not want to be near either cat. It made me think she never was around cats before.
Don didn't want to keep her. He just didn't want a dog at this point. We had no luck trying to find her owners, or a new home. But neither of us wanted to drop her at a shelter. Don had given me a deadline to have her somewhere else by that Friday. Well, Friday morning came around and I was bawling my eyes out in the shower thinking about having to drop her at a shelter. I just couldn't do it. Finally, on Valentine's Day, Don agreed to let her stay. I went and bought her a new collar and bowls immediately. A week later, took her back to the vet to get her updated on her shots. She's about 1.5-2 years old. She is spayed, and a lab mix. Through the microchip, we found out her name, which she responds very well to.
As these past few weeks have passed, she's revealed a little more about herself every week. She got used to the cats fast, and now play chases Rocky, and corners Buster to give him lots of kisses. Rocky gets kisses too, but he's too fidgety to get more than one. She's a sweet girl, with great energy and a desire to please me and Don, which results in her listening to us (most of the time, haha). She fetches, catches a frisbee, rolls in the grass and does well as my jogging partner. With almost everyday that passes, I truly believe that I didn't find her, she found me, and Don. She knew what she was doing running around my house ;) She's now a spoiled, well-loved dog who filled a hole I didn't know was in my life.
Here's our newest family member on the day she found us: Daisy
And here she is "officially" ours, sporting her bandanna and enjoying her tennis ball:
Well finally, some new things are going on!
First, (now this is a little overdue) but we have a new family member. February 8, I was home and so was my brother-in-law. He went out to his car, then came back in saying there was a dog running around and tried going up to him. I looked out my window and saw this skinny, skinny dog running confused from house to house. I went outside to get a better look at her, check to see if she had tags since I saw a collar on her. I whistled and she came over to me, laid on her side and was very jittery. She had no tags, so I tried to coax her in my backyard and she ran off. I figured, ok, well I'll try if she comes back.
Let me take a moment to say here, that I often see dogs running loose in my neighborhood. Most of them have collars/tags, but they all seem to "know" what they're doing. Kind of like they belong somewhere in the neighborhood, but are just making their rounds for the day, and seem to be well fed anyways, which is why I don't bother them. But this one was different, she was obviously lost, confused and scared, so I felt compelled to get involved.
I saw her circle back around so I went outside with some dog treats. I was able to take her back into my yard and immediately took a picture of her to post on Lost and Found on Craigslist. I gave her some water and food while I waited for just a bit to see if anyone responded. After she got a chance to drink some fresh water and munch a little bit on food, I took her to my vet to get scanned for a microchip. She did have one, and they looked up her info to try and give her owner a call. The number went straight to voicemail, so they passed on her info to me to try at a different time.
We went back to my house, and I gave her a bath, since she was caked in mud on her belly and legs. I kept trying the owner phone number with no luck. I posted on many sites about this found dog. She settled in and stayed with us for the rest of the week. She took to me immediately, and as much as I tried to resist, I did to her as well.
She seemed to have been scared of the cats at first. Her first look at Rocky was him all puffed up and glaring at her through the back door glass while she was outside. Rocky really was all bent out of shape that this random dog was in the backyard, and he made that known through the window to her. When I brought her in for the bath, she did not want to be near either cat. It made me think she never was around cats before.
Don didn't want to keep her. He just didn't want a dog at this point. We had no luck trying to find her owners, or a new home. But neither of us wanted to drop her at a shelter. Don had given me a deadline to have her somewhere else by that Friday. Well, Friday morning came around and I was bawling my eyes out in the shower thinking about having to drop her at a shelter. I just couldn't do it. Finally, on Valentine's Day, Don agreed to let her stay. I went and bought her a new collar and bowls immediately. A week later, took her back to the vet to get her updated on her shots. She's about 1.5-2 years old. She is spayed, and a lab mix. Through the microchip, we found out her name, which she responds very well to.
As these past few weeks have passed, she's revealed a little more about herself every week. She got used to the cats fast, and now play chases Rocky, and corners Buster to give him lots of kisses. Rocky gets kisses too, but he's too fidgety to get more than one. She's a sweet girl, with great energy and a desire to please me and Don, which results in her listening to us (most of the time, haha). She fetches, catches a frisbee, rolls in the grass and does well as my jogging partner. With almost everyday that passes, I truly believe that I didn't find her, she found me, and Don. She knew what she was doing running around my house ;) She's now a spoiled, well-loved dog who filled a hole I didn't know was in my life.
Here's our newest family member on the day she found us: Daisy
And here she is "officially" ours, sporting her bandanna and enjoying her tennis ball:
Monday, November 9, 2009
Crafty
In the last week, I completed a couple of craft projects to give as gifts. They were started with the anti
cipation of welcoming my new nephew November 6th! Cooper Charles was born, and rounded out my niece/nephew list to 6. A long, long time ago, I had bought a few cross-stitch projects, one with the intention of giving to my first nephew... unfortunately I was young, busy with other stuff and just a procrastinator, so it never got done. Finally, I got a chance to complete the cross-stitch bib for little Cooper!
The project I finished before this bib was a latch hook project for Cooper's new big sister, Olivia. She
loves butterflies, and I thought this would be a good "yay you're a big sister!" gift. It took a while, because while I started it quick, it was set aside and picked at, until a week and a half ago when I finally just got determined and finished it. I bought the frame which was unfinished at Michael's, then painted it, and added the foam sticky letters. I was really pleased when it was all put together.
I definitely enjoyed doing these, and hope to do a lot more of the kind in the future. I have a few unopened cross-stitch projects in my bag, and I haven't decided which one to do yet. I hope to better my skills and be able to do some cross-stitching freehand.
cipation of welcoming my new nephew November 6th! Cooper Charles was born, and rounded out my niece/nephew list to 6. A long, long time ago, I had bought a few cross-stitch projects, one with the intention of giving to my first nephew... unfortunately I was young, busy with other stuff and just a procrastinator, so it never got done. Finally, I got a chance to complete the cross-stitch bib for little Cooper!The project I finished before this bib was a latch hook project for Cooper's new big sister, Olivia. She
loves butterflies, and I thought this would be a good "yay you're a big sister!" gift. It took a while, because while I started it quick, it was set aside and picked at, until a week and a half ago when I finally just got determined and finished it. I bought the frame which was unfinished at Michael's, then painted it, and added the foam sticky letters. I was really pleased when it was all put together.I definitely enjoyed doing these, and hope to do a lot more of the kind in the future. I have a few unopened cross-stitch projects in my bag, and I haven't decided which one to do yet. I hope to better my skills and be able to do some cross-stitching freehand.
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