Thankful

Today I am thankful . . .
*to my wonderful husband that came to help me in my classroom but saw I needed to just go home so he took me home.
*for delivery Chinese food.
*my dad got to say goodbye to his father before he passed away this week.
*my teaching colleagues are so awesome.
*my husband got a job.
*I have a warm bed to sleep in tonight.
*we carpool to work.
*I have almost all my boxes unpacked in my classroom.
*my best friend is flying in on Friday.
*"Lost" is coming back in a few weeks.
*kids don't come back to school until next Wednesday.
*my favorite blogs exist.
*Oprah reruns at 8:00pm.
*today was payday.
*for my cuddly cat.
*for the lavender growing in our front yard.
*life.

I'm sad

My grandpa died today.

I actually ended up going to PAX both yesterday and today. It was fun because I got to hang out with two good friends of mine (their husbands were at the expo also) which was nice because I didn't really feel like I fit in with the other 7,000 dorks there. 7,000! In other news, I didn't work in my classroom at all this weekend. I'm seriously getting stressed out. I only have this week (four out of five days I have meetings/classes ALL DAY) and on Friday, my best friend is flying in from Arizona so I won't get much done next weekend. Then school starts on the 7th! HELP CLASSROOM FAIRIES WHERE ARE YOU?

School Daze

I went back to school today for six hours to work on the room. I unpacked quite a few boxes with the help of Rex. Okay, he didn't really help at all but he layed in his bed and looked really cute! I'm exhausted now and my feet hurt.
In other news, two of the Husband's college buddies are staying with us this weekend. They got here Wednesday and I think they are leaving Sunday night or Monday morning. The reason they came? To play lots of computer and video games and go to PAX. What is PAX you ask? See http://www.penny-arcade.com/pax/. I don't know how to put links in my post so I'll just give you the address. I have seen the Husband for about fifteen minutes today. I have no idea when they is coming home but he did send a very cute I Love You text message. They're pretty busy at the convention because they're Enforcers (the people who help out). We went out to Mongolian for dinner a few nights ago and the three of them proceeded to talk about comics and other nerdy things THE ENTIRE TIME. They seriously had a seven minute conversation discussing how Superman is one of the only comics written by a number of people versus one person. I ate my food in silence and thanked God I was a girl.
Tomorrow I will be going back to school for yet another day of unpacking, moving furniture, and organizing the mess that is Room 9.

Goodbye My Sweet Summer

I went into my classroom for the first time yesterday. We moved into a temperary building for two years while our new school is being built. All our boxes (I think I had 55 or so?-how did I accumulate that much stuff in one year???) were moved on Monday but I didn't feel up to visiting until Wednesday. I walked into my room (Room 9) and immediately felt terror. Why terror you ask? Pure terror because THERE ARE 55 BOXES TO UNPACK AND A CLASSROOM TO SET UP! I'm not a visual-spatial person. I score SO LOW on those tests that tell you what kind of "learner" you are, it's off the chart. So I have a really hard time *imagining* what my furniture will look like when it's moved. I have to actually move it to decide if I like it there or not. Those of you who don't know me, I'm a pretty smallish person with not a whole lot o' muscles. So me moving bookcases, file cabinents, and computers around is pretty darn hilarious. Let's just say there were a few words uttered that have no place inside an elementary school building. Needless to say, yesterday I accomplished. . .nothing. I stood around staring at the room for awhile and decided it was too overwhelming.

Today was better. It started with a 3 1/2 hour meeting about assessments in reading and then I headed over to school. My principal mentioned at the meeting that I should bring the dog over to school to introduce to everyone. He was a hit! He always is. It's almost embarassing how popular this dog is. Two people have actually stopped their cars in parking lots to tell me my dog is cute. It's beyond ridiculous. So, I figured if my principal says the dog can come, the dog can come. I still felt like I was breaking multiple laws and would be fired immediatley but alas, I am still employed. I felt bad because I didn't bring his bed (the dog-thought I should clarify that) so he didn't really relax the entire 5 hours we were there. Tomorrow if he comes with me I will try to remember it. One of my students from last year was there today with her mom setting up the library/helping around the building and she took Rex for a walk around the playground. I'll be sad to not have her as a student this year, she was a true joy to teach. Such a sweetheart. So the dog sniffed every inch of my MESSY classroom, spilled his water dish, whined and barked when I was hidden from him behind a bookcase and he thought I had left him, and charmed his way into every person's heart in the building. My principal said he's welcome to come to school anytime. Sweet! My grade-level partner and I spent 2 1/2 hours today making class lists for this year's fourth grade teachers. It was so stressful and time consuming! We had to consider the # of boy/girls in each class as well as academic needs, behavior needs, special ed needs, and keeping particular students separated. We tried our best to "even out" each class which was harder than I ever thought it would be.

I just got off the phone with my mom. There's some stressful stuff going on in the family right now so it was nice to chat with her and get updated. She's a teacher too and flew down here last year when I got my job to help me set up my first classroom. How great of a mom is she? The best. On the phone I told her how many times I thought of her today and how I wished she could have come down to visit again this year. She's super busy as well, moving into her new school building. She has an additional drama going on though-her district might go on strike soon. The weirdest part? Even if they go on strike, the teachers HAVE to teach on the first day of school. Meaning, they would teach for a day, go on strike, and who knows how long that could go on? I'm so glad I don't have to deal with that right now.

YIPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

The Husband got the teaching job! So happy! So relieved! So excited! He will be teaching seventh grade math, his third different position in as many years. We can pay our mortgage!

I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried

In the car on the way to the movies tonight (Red Red Wine is playing on the radio):

The Husband: You know, in high school I knew a girl with the last name Redwine.
Me: No way. Are you serious? What was her first name?
The Husband: Anita.
Me: Her name was Anita Redwine? She had mean parents.
The Husband: I never really thought about it.

SAY IT OUT LOUD PEOPLE. Anita Redwine? That's good. By the way, Must Love Dogs is a very cute film.

Names

Alrighty, it's time to vote. Let me know what you think should be my new screenname. C'mon-I need your help!

C-Rex: My first name starts with C and Rex is my dog's name. Also, it sounds like T-Rex when you say it outloud. The Husband came up with this one.

Panzon: In high school my good friend Amber and I read a story together for Spanish class-something like "Pepino and Panzon do something" and you guessed it-I read the part of Panzon. We actually called each other these names for awhile and still do occasionally. She's even labled as Pepino in my cell phone.

Sparkplug: The Husband use to call me this because when we first met I was a "little hyperactive girl who use to keep pursuing him all the time." His words, not mine.

BOOOOORING

I had to outdo you DesertJade-so I added a few more "O"s to my boring. I know how you feel-my life is nothing interesting. I mean, I'm very happy with it but it's not jaw-dropping laugh-a-minute exciting. And I'm okay with that! I am happy to just spend time with the Husband, the cat, and the dog, reading a book or watching a movie. Speaking of movies (nice seguay, no?) I finally convinced the Husband to take a night from WoW (World of Warcraft) and watch a movie with me. While I made dinner he went to the video store and picked up Kung-Fu Hustle. It's was pretty funny if not very strange. We were dog-sitting my in-laws' dog for the afternoon/evening so we didn't really watch the movie in peace but we did finally get the dogs to lay down and chill out.
I know you're just DYING to know what today has in store for C (still haven't thought of another name. . .) and her lovely husband? Well, we're enjoying the last few days of summer we have-I just got my "beginning of the year" letter from my principal and I'll go to my first meeting on Thursday. Yikes! Where did the summer go? I'm in total denial about going back to work. I love the kids and I get along with my fellow teachers but there is just something so SAD about letting go of the summer. Maybe it's the sleeping in (hey-8:00am is late for some of us!) maybe it's the Today show every morning, maybe it's the random walks we get to take, mabye it's laying in the backyard with the dog and reading books, maybe it's spending each and every day with the one I love. Maybe it's all of that and more. What was I saying? Oh yeah-today. We got our registration notification/experation/whatever in the mail and it expires-crap-tomorrow! So today will be spent driving around the freaking state trying to find the DEQ place (do you have to do that in other states or is Washington just anal?) and then a Liscening office to change our address/get our tags. We also need to stop in to visit our niece-cat in Seattle seeing as her parents (bil and sil) are in Canada for a wee little vacation.
Now that I'm done rambling and Regis and Kelly is on, I will go and actually start my day.
PS I stopped allowing annonyms comments because I got a bunch of advertisments the other day in my comments. It was bizarre! I think it's because I commented on LittleRazz's blog and they were all over her comments. Any info on her? I miss reading about her and Sasha.

So boring

I haven't been home much lately so I haven't had the chance to post. I also have a killer headache so I'm heading to bed at
9:42 pm on a Saturday night! I am lame!

A little of this, a little of that

Today I drove down to Tacoma, with Rex in tow, to scrapbook with Amber. I had a great time which is not a surprise since I always do with her! I organized all of my dance pictures from the time I was three till I was about seventeen. It took about three hours and I put together three pages. I hope to finish it before I have to go back to work. In other news-the Husband has a job interview on Friday! It's for a math position at the school he worked at last year. Please please please keep him in your thoughts. I have a good feeling. Nighty-night blog world.

Nikki

Apparently, we went to preschool together. I don't remember it but my mother says we did. We went our separate ways for quite a few years and met up again in junior high. We sat at the same lunch table but really bonded during second period P.E. class. With another friend, Kate, we would play tennis and "accidentaly" hit the ball over the fence and out of the court and of course it took three adolescent girls to get one ball. The reality? We would hid behind the portables for the remaining portion of class. We'd talk about boys, make-up, friends, classes, and every other silly thing twelve-year-old girls talk about. Other times, when we actually did play the required sports, we would beg her to sing for us. She'd belt out songs with the most beautiful voice I'd ever heard. After each song, she'd burst into a fit of laughter which was also a beautiful sound. That's how I like to remember her, laughing. She did it so often. Her favorite song to sing was "The Rose." Fast forward a few years to high school. She was the one I called the night before ninth grade started, terrified I'd get lost the next day or at least stuffed into a trash can. Luckily, she was as scared as I was. Somehow that made me feel better. The next morning we met up according to our plan-at the locker we were sharing-to help each other find our first period classes. We both had our first "real" boyfriends that year, and over the next few years we went to school dances, had slumber parties where we stayed in her room for hours listening to music, sat in her parents' garage in her dad's sports car (we weren't suppose to), wrote notes to each other in school, got in trouble in history class for doing our own version on sign language across the room, learned how to drive in a friends' car, dyed our hair with kool-aid, made up silly names for each other, and confided in each other. We went through some major ups and downs as only girls do in friendships (why can't we just duke it out like guys?) and honestly, we weren't close by the time we graduated high school. We were hanging out in different groups and as much as I tried, we never really came back together again. It saddened me to loose such a close friend but in the end, I honestly knew we would reconnect later in life. The last time I saw her was the night we graduated high school, at a friends' house party. Her boyfriend was with her and she seemed really happy. I remember we hugged and wished each other good luck at college, which should have been awkward but wasn't.

Fast forward again-It was the summer before my Junior year in college and I went home to Alaska to visit my family. The day I found out, I had gone out shopping with Amber. I can't even remember where we had gone or what we had been looking for. It was the most normal day. She pulled into my parents' driveway and before I had my seatbelt off, my dad was walking out to the car. I remember thinking, "Why doesn't he have shoes on? Why is he coming to the car?" He told us he had bad news. All he said was, "Nikki died. She was killed in a car accident in California." I can't remember if he told us all the cicumstances then or if I learned about them later. The whole night is kind of a blur. I asked him if he was joking (I know-like anyone would joke about this) but I guess I just could not understand how it was true. I asked Amber if she was alright to drive home and she said she thought she could. I made her promise to call when she got to her house to make sure she was okay. I went inside the house and started the phone calls. I hate calling people with bad news but since I figured I was the first to know in my group of friends (my dad found out the news from a friend of his that worked at Niki's family's bank) I knew I had to. I called about four or five people before it actually hit me. I started crying and didn't know if I could make any more calls. What are you suppose to say? "I have bad news" or "I have something to tell you" or do you just say "Nikki died"? And to have to say it over and over again. I don't remember much about the few days in between hearing the news and when her funeral took place. I do remember going to various places around town and seeing people from high school and either having to tell them or being consoled by their hugs. I was feeling so confused, like a fraud in a way, because we weren't in touch when she died. Did I even have a "right" to be sad? Was that minimalizing everyone else's sadness? I realize now that it didn't matter when we were or weren't friends-we had a connection and I was sad she was gone.

My mom always says bad things happen on Thursdays. Nikki was exactly 20 years and one month old when she died on Thursday, August 16, 2001. She was driving her younger sister and herself to college from California to Washington. After they stopped to eat lunch and call their mom to check in, a drunk driver jumped the median and struck them head on. Her sister suffered a broken jaw and nose but survived. Nkki didn't. Her sister's jaw was wired shut at the funeral so Nikki's boyfriend of six years read for her. He also sang a song, "It Is Well With My Soul" that was beautiful and he was so calm and collected the whole time. He amazed me. There were so many people there, friends from high school, teachers she had had, cousins, aunts, uncles, people whose lives she had touched. I was so pissed off that all her obituary said was she was killed in a vehicle accident. I don't know if her family couldn't or chose not to write it was an irresponsible selfish drunk driver that really killed her. I thought the truth should be there, in black and white. It was the middle of the day. Why is someone drunk in the middle of the day? It just seems so unfair. I'm angry that this man made a choice to drink alcohol, get in his car, and kill her. We didn't just have to deal with the sadness of losing a friend, someone so young and full of life, but we had to deal with the way in which she was killed. At her funeral, the Reverend (Niki's grandfather) talked to the hundreds of people about how it was so unfortuante that all of us young people suddenly had to grow up so fast, to deal with not only her death, but the cause of her death.

"When a friend, neighbor, lover, co-worker or an acquaintance doesn't die of natural causes, but is killed by the senseless preventable behavior of an impaired person, grief can be strong, so intense that it goes beyond what can be described in words." (www.madd.org)

Today I will try to remember her for her, not the terrible way in which she was taken from the world.
Here's what was written on the back of her funeral program.

Nikki was our wonderful daughter, sister, and friend.
She lived life so very fully.
She cared so much for others.
She was the clown and a bit messy.
She brought sunshine energy, and enthusiasm into any room.
She made ordinary events fun and exciting. . . and happy.
So much life.
She loved her family, her friends and her God.
We love you Nikki.
We will miss you so very much.

Poll

The Husband's been on me about changing my "screen name" from just the initial "C." Will he help me think of something? No. So we discussed what other people have done. I told him some people go by their real names and some make up names. I told him about Erica, DesertJade, DesertUndine, LittleRazz.

So here's the poll. I'm leaving it up to you.

SHOULD I..........

A) Keep using "C"?

B) Find/think of a screen name that seems more like a name?

I don't really care one way or the other but I need some help deciding-so ladies-it's up to you!

I lead such a damn exciting life, no?

Conversations

The Husband on the way home from visiting friends today; "Sometimes I wish we lived on one of those planets that has a bunch of moons so there would always one out."

Me: "You know I have to post that, right?"

The Husband: "You make me sound like an idiot."

Me: "No I don't. You sound silly and you are."

Busy Little Bee

Busy week here. . . my good friend from junior high/high school, Amber, came to visit on Thursday. We had a whole day of scrapbooking (yes, we're dorks) planned but that was quickely tossed to the side when we went to the farmer's market, found raspberries, and decided to make raspberry jam. Needless to say, it took FOREVER. Couscous tacos also took up some of our time too of course. We did triple the recipe which might have something to do with the time-consumingness of making the jam. We stayed up late watching chick flicks while the Husband was out visiting friends. All in all, a great girls' night in.

Friday I went shopping with my sister in law in Seattle. We had a grand ol' time. She found some cute maternity clothes and we had a delightful lunch at a brewery in Pacific Place. The waiter was so cute-he forgot to bring us our water and then he had to ask us again what we ordered for lunch so the third time he came back (saying-"I was out WAY too late last night) he also said, "You're getting free dessert for this!" And alas-chocolate cake was ours!
The Husband and I went to the drive-in that night and saw Wedding Crashers and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Down in Auburn (about 20 minutes from us) there is a six-screen drive in theatre that only charges $7 a person and you get to see two movies! We ate way too many Sour Patch Kids and we snuck in the dog. . .he had a great time sleeping in the back seat.

Yesterday we went to Lake Cavanaugh to visit friends at their family cabin. Rex had never been in water so we were a little curious how he would take to it. Yeah, he didn't. At all! He hated it. The Husband took him (basicaly CARRIED him) into the lake and tried to get him to swim around. The dog swam alright-straight to the sand and up to the chairs! Not a fan. Can't say I blame him-me not being a water person myself. The Husband had a great time wakeboarding the whole day. Me? I sat in an adorondak chair (my favorite) with the dog in my lap. Drumroll please........because I actually did get into the water up to my neck for about five minutes. This is a big step people-usually I barely wade in lake water. This is a picture of what I saw from my comfy chair.

Today, you ask? Well today we will be traveling up to the dog park of all dog parks-Marymoor Park in Redmond, Washington. Apparently it's the shit. I'll post my review later.

On a totally different note-you know when you start thinking about something that happened in you life around a certain time of the year and you just can't get it out of your head? I'm experiencing that right now, I'll probably post about it later in the week if I can.

I Am

thankful for:

the massage I finally got today-very worth the money!
the dog running for the door when he had to puke.
the Husband cleaning up the dog's puke.
the two walks we took today.
the overcast 65 degree weather today.
the omlets the Husband made for dinner.
talking to my mom on the phone.
silly reality television like Brat Camp.
realizing LittleRazz over at Little Yellow House has my blog under Blogs I Love.
all the awesome people I've "met" online.
my brother-in-law posting on our family blog about being in Germany and my other brother-in-law posting about how we can now post pictures!
DesertJade doing the survey/meme thingy-those are so fun to read!
the new motion sensor light the Husband put up in the backyard so now when we take the dog out to "do his business" we don't trip over things.
life.

Don't you wish you were a fly on the wall?

Husband: I've had a piece of fuzz stuck in my mouth for days.
Me: Gross! The same piece?
Husband: No, probably a few different pieces.

Another one

of those Meme things!

LAST…
Movie you watched: Lost in Translation
Movie you bought : Napolean Dynamite
Song you listened to: I can't remember!
CD you bought : Well, I bought The Future Embrace by Billy Corgan on itunes. . .does that count?
CD you listened to : I listen to itunes on our computer, not cds really
Person you’ve called : Probably my mom-I can't remember!
Person that called you : My mother, last night
TV show you watched : Friends rerun

DO…
You have a crush on someone : Does my husband count?
You wish you could live somewhere else : Not a different house (I love our house!) but I wish we were closer to my family
You believe in online dating : With some safety precautions!
Others find you attractive : Um I guess? That's a weird thing to say
You want more piercings :Nope, I like the ones I've got
You like roller coasters : NO
You write in cursive or print : a mixture of both

FOR OR AGAINST…
Long distance relationships : For but they are hard!
People : Uhhhhhh for?
Gay/lesbian relationships : Absolutely, why wouldn't I?

HAVE YOU…
Ever cried over a boy : Oh lord yes!
Ever cried over a girl : Friends, yes
Ever lied to someone : Yes
Ever been in a fist fight : Unfortunately yes, with a guy! He didn't touch me but I kicked his. . .well it's a long story!

WHAT…
Shampoo do you use : Herbal Essence
Shoes do you wear: Dansko (best shoes ever!), Reef flip flops, low-top Converse, New Balance tenny-runners
Are you scared of : Losing people I love, spiders, bad people, bears!

NUMBER…
of times I have been in love? : Hmmm this is a tough one. Once, the other times I *thought* I was in love. . .
of times I have had my heart broken? : I don't really want to count! A few.
of hearts I have broken? That I know of? One?
of times my name has appeared in the paper? : A few times for being on honor roll in college
of things in my past that I regret? : Just a few, most of them weren't too serious

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE…
Pretty : Most of the time :-)
Funny : Yes, I know I am!
Hot : Hmmm-can be
Friendly : Yes
Amusing : Yep
Ugly : Occasionally
Loveable : Absolutely!
Caring : Yes
Sweet : most of the time
Dork: Yeah baby!

FAVORITE…
4 letter word : I can't type it!
Actor/actress : I use to have a huge crush on Joshua Jackson! I like Halle Berry.
Cartoon : Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends-SO FUNNY
Cereal : Kellogg's Smart Start Soy Protein, Frosted Flakes
Chewing gum : Only chew it on the airplane-Trident White I guess?
Color(s) : Blue and Green
Day of the week : Saturday
Least fave day : Monday-ugh
Flower : Calla Lilies and Forget-Me-Nots
Jelly flavor : Raspberry
Jewelry : Silver/diamonds
Summer/Winter : SUMMER

WHO LAST…
Slept in your bed : Me!
Saw you cry : The Huband
Made you cry : My sister-in-law when she told us she was pregnant!
Yelled at you : No one that I can think of for a long time. . .
Sent you an email: One of my closest friends, Amber

HAVE YOU EVER…
Said I love you and meant it? : Yes-I say it everyday!
Kept a secret from everyone : Of course
Cried during a movie : Yes
Planned your week based on the TV? Hee hee hee. . .No comment!
Been backstage : When I was in dance recitals and plays
Been to New York : Nope
Been to California :I was born there!
Hawaii : Yes, five times I think
China : No
Canada : Yes
Europe :No
Asia : No
South America : No
Africa : No

What time is it now? : 9:18pm

This or That?..
Apples or bananas? : Bananas
Blue or red? : Blue
Walmart or Target? : Target
Spring or Fall? : Spring
What are you gonna do after you finish this? : Read a book
Was the last meal you ate? : Boboli Pizza and salad YUM
Are you bored? : No
Last noise you heard? My dog yawning
Last smell you sniffed? : Dishwasher detergent althought I didn't SNIFF it persay

Friendship/Love…
Do you believe in love at first sight? : Possibly
Do you want children one day & if so, how many? : Yes, two or three
Most important thing to you in a friendship is : Trust

Other Info …
Do you speak any other languages? : A little Spanish
Last book you read? : My Sister's Keeper, Harry Potter #4 at about the same time
Thing in your bedroom you like? My comfy bed
Your Nickname(s) : No comment
Initials : CE
How old do you look? : Oh jeeeeez! I hate this one. Usually people say I look like I am about 16 or so.
How old do you act? : I guess my age-24? Some people would say older since I am married, own a house, and have a career. Then again, I wasn't ever really into going out and partying.
Glasses/Contacts : contacts during the day, glasses at night
Braces : nope
Do you have any pets? : Yes, a cat and a dog
You get embarrassed : yes
What makes you happy? : Being silly with my husband
What upsets you? : When someone I love is hurting

Finish the sentence…
I Love to…relax
I Miss… my family
I Am Annoyed by… rudeness
I Want to be… happy
I Would Never… say never!
I Am Tired of…my neck hurting
I Will Always…love to read

Today

We took Rex to the park/beach today and he had a grand old time walking around and checking things out. He doesn't really like walks in our neighborhood but he LOVES to get in the Jeep and go other places.


I'm reading this right now. Yes, I know, I'm behind everyone else. I'm not in a big hurry to catch up really. Just enjoying myself. Anyone else think it's crazy how whinny Harry is in this one? I know he's suppose to be a teenager but the boy complains about everything!







We watched Napolean Dynamite for the one-hundred and fifteenth time. Only a slight exaggeration.

Rex worked with us in the yard yesterday. Doesn't he look helpful?

I am

Eating pita chips
Reading I Am A Pencil by Sam Swope
Watching Punkd
Writing a letter to a little girl I use to nanny for
Yelling at my dog to stop eating the cat's food
Looking at blogs
Going to work in the garden tomorrow
Thinking I should go get a massage soon
Wanting to sleep through the night
Wishing the summer was longer
Hoping the Husband gets a job soon
Loving my family and friends
Wondering if I can pry the Husband away from his computer games

I'm just not doing them all at once.

Cute as a

That's what Rex's uncle said about him yesterday. Nothing exciting to write about really, just the same old, same old. We're teachers with the summer off, what more can I say? We picked up Rex yesterday morning from the vet and we're trying to keep him calm. I didn't know dogs couldn't run around/jump/play/be wild for 7 days after being neutered?! Wowsers. So of course, what does he want to do? Jump after a tennis ball which he barely EVER wants to do normally. I tried to take him for a walk today (the Husband was playing video games so I was solo) and it was pretty bad. He walked fine for a bit, heeling like he was suppose to but then he heard a weed whacker and freaked out! He wouldn't heel well at all and I was ticked off at him by the time I got home. I need to remember he's still a puppy and he didn't get the most consistent training like he should have when he was really young. I wish he wasn't afraid of noises and going out the front door-what's that about? If he could, he would stay inside ALL DAY LONG. I guess he just needs more exposure to the outside in a positive way. We're trying-we really are! I feel like a bad doggie mom.

Overseas and Under Anesthesia

We just got an email from the Husband's brother and his wife that they made it to Berlin safe and sound. We're really excited to hear about all their adventures over the year. In other news, Rex is at the vet overnight for his surgery. I miss him already.

Weepy Weepy Jonathan

I just watched the Blow Out Season Finale/Reunion show. Jonathan is so ridiculous it's. . . well, ridiculous. I've been watching the show on and off (mostly the past month or so) and laughing OUT LOUD when the Husband mocked Jonathan as he acted like his weepy self. Well, on the reunion show, he and his gf announced they are having a baby-yeah, that's nice. Then, his gf surprised him by telling him the gender of their baby-male. Yeah yeah yeah. Still sweet but I actually just thought that was sad-he didn't get to be at the appointment to find that out that information himself? How involved is he? The gf mentioned, "it's so hard that he's gone so much." Then (of course I saw it four MILLION times on the previews on Bravo) Jonathan proposed to his little lady friend. Sweet but I still just puke a little in my mouth when he talks about how difficult it is to be him when he's talking to his therapist. Would you let a camera tape you while you're talking to your psychologist? I wouldn't. My rant is over. Period.

Dogs and Doogie

Maybe one day they will be like this. Guu has swatted at Rex more than once today and I feel like I've been too hard on her because he is sick. He is sick! My poor little puppy is sick! He had his first trip (well, with us) to the vet and he did great. By the way-anyone have an EXTREMELY young vet? I'm talking Doogie Howser young. I thought a vet-tech had come in to talk with us but then she introduced herself as "Dr." She oohed and aaahed over him (everyone does-he's so flippin' cute!) and said he was healthy but has a viral infection (hence the sneezing and nasty green snot we've been dealing with). She also got er....um....a sample and found out he has intestinal parasites.
Right now he's chasing pine cones in the backyard with the Husband so I guess he's not that sick. I'm just a worrier-and officially a puppy mom I guess.

Maybe this other guy isn't SO bad

Guu

Here's our cat-her name is Guu. (Rhymes with Boo!) So far she thinks Rex is interesting to look at and sniff. We'll see what comes of that since right now he doesn't seem at all concerned with her. He did live with five cats in his foster home though, which could have something to do with his nonchalant attitude toward cats! She's a great kitty-affectionate and playful.

Rex

I'm proud to introduce the newest member of our family. This is Rex. We are in love! He never barked the whole ride home (about a 45 minute drive) and has thoroughly sniffed everything in and outside of our house. The cat is much more curious about him than he is about her which works nice. I just got home from buying his dog food and some doggy shampoo. I've never given a dog a bath before-this could be interesting! Right now he's sitting next to the Husband and watching TV. I think he'll fit in just fine.