Penny's learning to share

This is what happens when Daddy's in charge.

Preparation

I think our dogs are trying to prepare us for what is ahead.

Let me rephrase that~ Penny is trying to prepare us for what is ahead.

Every night for the last month or so, at 3:30am, she sits at the side of our bed and cries. "Go lie down." I say. And she does, for about 2 minutes. Then she comes back and paws at the bed. "Go lie down." Then she goes out to the living room and wakes up Rex. He in turn growls at her, and gets up off the couch. He sits in the door way of our bedroom and I say "Go lie down." And he does, because he's a good boy. But Penny continues to cry and paw and be a pain in the rear. Finally L says, "Should I take her out? Maybe she has to pee?" And I say that I don't like this habit we are getting into with her. He'll lay in bed for a minute longer and then finally gets up and takes her out. She pees and everyone goes back to sleep.

I don't like that a 30 pound dog is dictating our sleep habits, but I do love my dog.

I also don't like that my husband is enabling our 30 pound dog to dictate our sleep habits. But that's a different story all together, isn't it.

Sunday Self Indulgence

Yeah, I know I said I'd post videos on Sundays and today is Monday. Yeah, I know I haven't blogged in over a week. But I've been super busy. Saturday we went on a tour of the Labor and Delivery section of the hospital. Sunday my brother came over for breakfast with his furry baby and then I had a really awesome concert with my band. Today I was busy having a two hour delay from school, only to get to school and find out my school laptop was stolen over the weekend along with 11 others. And all during the past week I was busy stressing over a school concert, a school talent show, my baby shower in a week, and oh yeah, we're having a baby in 7 weeks.

And now that you're all caught up on what I've been doing in the past week, take a look at how cute my furry babies are. Take note please of how awesome my Penny is playing with my brother's Bella. They are new BFFs.

Your welcome.

So, so thankful

I have so much to be thankful for.

Let's start with this guy...

He doesn't always say the right thing, he doesn't always do the right thing and he eats in the middle of the night and gets crumbs all of the floor and counter. But he's my best friend. We laugh together everyday and he loves me, loves me, loves me. And I love him, love him, love him. I watch him with our furry babies and I know that he is going to be a wonderful father. I have never been more thankful for anything, as I am for him coming into my life.

Speaking of furry babies...

there's these two. The only thing that rivals how happy and thankful I am for my husband is how happy and thankful I am for these two. Lordy, I love 'em. They make me smile, they make me laugh, they make me cry. They are our family.

Speaking of family...

I am thankful for them as well. I wish a lot of things about them a lot of the time. Wish they were happier, wish they were healthier, wish we were closer. But they are our family and I am thankful for them. I mean, who and where would we be without our family? I love them regardless of everything else.

Speaking of everything else...

I've said it before, and I'll say it again; I've never had friends like I have right now. I can't explain how lucky I feel to have found a group of girls that I can trust and count on. Tell things to and know it won't be repeated. Go out and have fun with and laugh and laugh. They make me laugh, they make me smile, and they certainly don't make me cry.

And speaking of being thankful...

(I hope to have a picture on Tuesday. He was very uncooperative at the last ultrasound)

I don't know if I can explain how thankful I am for this Beaner in my belly. I love him already and we haven't even met yet. I am thankful for every little kick and punch, I am thankful for the big basketball belly I am sporting these days. I tear up with I think about how this was our last Thanksgiving just us. That it will be our last Hannukah, last New Year's. Tear up because I'm so excited, and tear up because I'm a nervous wreck. I think about how hard we tried for this Bean. How long we wanted it and how we really were beginning to think it wasn't ever going to happen. And now here we are just about eight weeks away from meeting him. And I am just so, so thankful.

Happy Halloweiner!!

I'm in love with this picture. Damn I'm good.

Being small and cute is really going to work to her disadvantage this time of year. It's suppose to be a spider on her head. Instead she looks like a Rastafarian.

Mi Familia

Lucky Charms

Dear Blog,

It has been 2 weeks since we have seen each other. I know that you have felt neglected and for that I am sorry. But I've been so busy! Busy dreading work, busy being exhausted and busy eating Lucky Charms.

Things have been seriously busy over here in the land of preparation. We stripped wallpaper, got new carpet, put up primer, picked out bedding, ordered a piece of the bedding to match paint to, got refunded for said bedding piece because the company was a pain in the ass, picked out and settled on new bedding that may be just right, picked out paint and put two coats of paint up. We have also been semi successful in getting Rex to not jump and almost completely successful in getting Penny to not bark at inanimate objects. (They will be great a big brother and sister!) We've been busy reading up on car seats and high chairs and strollers and onesies and monitors and and and.

I have also been busy having a love affair with Lucky Charms.

Monday morning with Rex and Penny

What will they do without me next week when I am back at school?

Better yet, what will I do without them??

By the way, this is my 100th post!! Can you believe you've wasted your time reading a hundred of these things? Haha, joke's on you.

There's no food in this post!!

Last night I had a dream that I was "with" Bret Michaels. You know, with him. I have no idea what brought it on, except maybe for those crazy pregnancy dreams I've heard so much about. It was... different and not something I'd want to re-live again. Bret Michaels? Really?

I also had a dream that when my mom came to visit and go shopping yesterday she was so nice and understanding about the house Gordo and I live in, the size of said house and the size of the nursery. In this dream, she was very understanding of that fact that we are not rolling in dough and cannot afford a new house right now. In this dream, she was very excited about the new carpet we just had installed and about the prospect of helping me pick out furniture for the baby's room. In this dream she did not harp on how small the baby's room is and how she isn't sure how we are going to fit all the necessary furniture in there. In this dream, she didn't make me feel like we live in filth and that we are some sort of family embarrassment. In this dream, she also didn't make a face and laugh when I said that I thought I felt the baby move the other day. In this dream she smiled and said "that's wonderful". In this dream I didn't actually have to say to her "Are you even excited about this?"

*****

Did I tell you that I haven't had coffee in over 4 months? Coffee, my bestest friend in the world who's been there for me through thick and thin?? I just can't do it. Just the thought of it and I make a face that says "Eh". I just don't like the taste anymore. I feel as though I have turned on a dear old friend. I'm sorry coffee, someday we will be reunited and we will be BFFs again, I'm sure.

By the way, if my dear Penny Lane doesn't stop chewing everything in our house that isn't bolted down (and some things that are) we aren't going to last too much longer. I woke up this morning to Gordo's slipper in a million pieces in the living room. Really, Penny? Really? What about all those toys we've bought you? She's so damn lucky she's so damn cute.

This is just not right

This was at 1:20 in the afternoon. OMG

And yet in a strange turn of events, my doopey dogs wanted to be outside. I made them come in after about 30 minutes because it was just that ridiculous. Good grief.

OMG

Last night I took Rex to Petco to get his nails clipped, something I've done at least a hundred times in the 3 years we've had the mutt. They cut his nails and all I have to do is stand there and tell him he's a good boy and pay them 10 bucks. Totally worth it. So I take him, and the groomer's got this little Yorkie looking thing on the table. She tells me, no problem just give her 5 minutes or so. No problem, I say, we'll go walk around the store and come back. We walk out to the store, past a new display of collars and leashes, and Rex pulled me to a stop. To sniff I presume. I look down, and like an out of body experience, he lifts he leg as high as he can, and pees on a pillar in the center of the store. I looked around, thinking, this couldn't have just happened. There's no way Rex could have done this. Then the annoying cashier girl yells to me from 1oo feet away "There's paper towel and cleaner over there on the left." I can't believe he did that, I said. They all do, annoying cashier girl yelled. Not my dog! Not my Rex! Now, Penny, Penny does shit like that. Penny I would expect it from. But Rex? Not Rex. I was mortified to say the very least. I still am. And I just said to him, "Remember last night when you peed at Petco?" I swear he smirked at me. He's acting out. Its a cry for attention. He's learning bad habits from Penny. That must be it. Her devious ways are rubbing off on him. Cause Rex just would never do something like that.

Tuesday

I will be eternally jealous of people who are not affected by what others think of them. Are there even such a people? People who aren't bothered by what their mother, friends, co-workers think of them. Does such a person exist? If they do exist, I know that I will never be one of those people. You can say whatever you'd like to try to convince me otherwise, but I know that it will just never be.

***

The days are long and exhausting when you are constantly wondering if that thing you said was said to the wrong person, and will then be repeated to another wrong person, resulting in everyone thinking you are a not a good person.

The days are long and exhausting when you are upset about thing A, which then makes you upset about thing B. And then thing C becomes you getting frustrated and yelling at kids for which it is certainly not their fault. Then that of course turns into thing D, E and F.

But then I get in my car for the 30 minute trek home and Dave Mathews tells me "Sometimes its easy to be myself. Sometimes, I find it better to be somebody else." And I think he's the smartest man alive, and I start to feel better. Then Sheryl Crow say "I wanna soak up the sun. I wanna tell everyone to lighten up." Yea, Sheryl, yea.

And then I get home. And at the top of the steps, my big, black, furry baby smiles and wags his tail at me. And my curly tailed little girl wimpers and jumps at my knees. And I feel a little bit better.

Oh, and my crocuses are blooming.

My Little Penny Lane

So we're trying to figure out our little Penny Lane.

She's cuddly and cute as all get out. Rex loves her. Let me rephrase~ Despite having to share his toys, his couch and his people, and despite her hyper tush waking him up at all hours of the night, Rex loves her. And she loves Rex. And we love her. She's going to be a great dog.

She's afraid of everything. Let me rephrase~ She's. Afraid. Of. Everything. People, dogs, birds, garbage cans, shadows, cars, storm drains. We were told that she was in a "foster home". How lovely does that sound? We thought so too. When we found worms in her poo we were surprised, but the "foster mom" wouldn't email me back. Coincidence? I think not. And now the more people we talk to~ vets, trainers, others who have adopted like this~ she probably lived in a crate for the first 7 months of her life. Hence the fact that she's afraid. Of. Everything. We found a trainer thanks to my great friend B from band. If Cesar Milan is the Dog Whisperer (and he is), than this guy is surely his side kick. He first amazed us by getting Rex to walk, by his side, without a harness in mere seconds, a feat we haven't accomplished in almost three years. He then assessed the Penny Lane situation, and deemed her scared (duh). But instead of being scared and submissive, she is scared and dominant, bordering on aggressive. (Did I tell you about how I brought her to get her nails trimmed at PetSmart and she almost took the groomer's hand off?) She's never been aggressive with us, and she stopped growling a Rex over bones and toys weeks ago (because he put her in her place). But she freaks when people come into the house and anytime she's in a new situation. I don't want a dog who's scared and I certainly don't want a dog who's potentially dangerous. The Dog Whisperer said we have a lot of work to do, but Penny is trainable. He said she definitely doesn't want to bite, doesn't want to fight, but if she's in a situation where she feels threatened enough, she'll do what she needs to do. (ie, the groomer situation) She can relearn and with The Dog Whisperer's help, we can teach her that the world isn't the awful scary place she thinks it is. (Going forward our trainer will be known as The Dog Whisperer, and Cesar will be known as Cesar.)

Right now these two, Dogasaurus Rex and Penny Lane, are literally, our furry babies. They are our family. And we are committed and determined to do whatever we need to do to make our family healthy and happy.

Monday

Gordo and I went to an adult dinner party over the weekend, with actual ADULTS. Holy crap did we have to be on our best behavior! I made these yummy chocolate covered pretzels. They are so easy to make and yet they are so pretty that it seems to give the impression that they were slaved over for hours. They were a hit, but little did I know one of our hosts isn't eating sugar for health reasons. So we had to take them home with us. Boo hoo. So yummy.

And here's your doggie update, because I know you were dying to know about the ins and outs of Dogasaurus Rex and Penny Lane. Rex successfully had his nails clipped tonight by his favorite Petco groomer. He was a complete baby about it. Partly I feel bad because I get him all excited about riding in the car (which he loves) only to screw him with the nail clipping (which he loathes). Penny is continuing to snuggle into my neck as I sleep which, *sigh*, I love. She's getting the hang of 'sit', not that I think she'll actually do it in class Wednesday, but who cares. She also has an affinity for trying to bury things. Rawhides, biscuits, toys, socks, etc. She likes to bury them behind couch cushions and under pillows. More than once now I have laid down in bed and had a rawhide under my pillow. If you've never experienced this, and I can't imagine that you wouldn't have, it is an interesting experience.

A second dog means buying a little more food, cleaning a few more hair balls, dealing with a few more quirks. It also means a lot more love and cuddle in our home. I love it.

Accomplishments

In the last week I~

*saw The Lion King with my mom and lived to tell the tale.

*went to the airport twice, neither of which was for myself, which makes me sad. I need a vacation. I'm looking forward to Washington DC in April.

*had band rehearsal where I learned of yet another person who has struggled with infertility. I learned, again, that I am not alone in my quest. Her pain has been much great than ours and I can only pray we never go through what they did.

*took Penny Lane to her second week of puppy class and she did so much better! She didn't do 'sit' and she didn't do 'down', but she didn't hide under the chair either! Progress! I was so proud!!

*ate a really awesome, homemade Valentine's Day cupcake with my lunch today. It had Pepto colored frosting. It was awesome.

*ate at a resturant for dinner that had pictures of dogs all around. My kind of place for sure.

Positives, however big or small, are all around.

Happiness

Everyday I have to stop and remind myself of my New Year's Resolutions. Especially the one about staying calm and not getting worked up about stuff. You know, like how my job sucks ass and how everyone around me is pregnant and having babies and how Penny has an intestinal parisite *again* and how I've had a headache everyday for the last ..... days. So what I've been trying to do is to search out the positive. More specifically, to really notice and acknowledge things that make me happy. Especially the small things, things that I never realized make me happy. And you know what? It's actually working a bit. On top of which, it's interesting. Such small seemingly stupid things.

You know what makes me happy? Matching pajamas. Pajamas where the top and bottom match. For years and years I've been wearing random t-shirts with random bottoms, and then I recently found this awesome pj set in the bottom of a drawer. They are light blue with penguins on them. What a great find! So cute! So fun! When I obtain some more money, I shall buy myself some more. (Tina Fey was wearing these awesome ones on "30 Rock" recently that had cupcakes on them!)

You know what else I love? Stew Leonard's. Sometimes I get really wrapped up, comparing Gordo and my relationship to what I think it "should be" or what other people have. We love to go to Stew's. We walk through, we see the new food, see the weird people, sample the awesome samples. Some people have fancy resturants, we have Stew's. And that, my friends, is okay with me.

Nail polish makes me happy. Looking at pretty painted nails is nice! Warm and fuzzy. It makes me happy.

I've also realized that on days when I dress nice for work, I usually feel better about myself. Granted, on days when I'm just khakis and long sleeve tee I'm comfier, but that's not what we're talking about here. I guess I feel like more of a "professional adult" when I've got on fancy shoes and pants. Which is all well and good, but let's be honest here, it ain't gonna happen often.

My husband's stupid jokes make a happy.

Rex wagging his tail when I walk into the room makes me happy.

Penny sleeping between my legs, resting her head on my shin makes me happy.

Going to Washington DC over April vacation makes me happy.

The best part of my day

We walked a different route today. An older guy was standing outside his house, and I smiled and said Hi. He said, Hi and then said "You've got two good looking walking partners there." I sure do, my friend, I sure do.

Trash Burgler

So we've got this guy in our neighborhood who goes through everyone's trash on garbage night. We call him the Trash Burgler. Its like the Hamburgler, but way less cool.

I think it was during the summer that we first realized this. First, our friend's iPod was stolen out of her car. Then, Rex would start barking~ no~ howling in the middle of the night out of the big window. We would get up and look, and there he would be. Sometimes driving his car and stopping at every garbage can, sometimes walking with a flashlight. Initally we were more annoyed that our dog was waking us up at midnight or one am. So when we realized that he was only going through the recycle bin, we kept it up by the house and brought it down in the morning. Gordo actually called the police to inquire, because he was going through our stuff, and they said that once the garbage is at the curb, it isn't really ours anymore. I felt kind of bad for the guy, I mean, who goes through people's garbage? And I figured, we threw it away, we obviously didn't want it. So up by the house the recycle bin stayed, and we didn't hear from the Trash Burgler (or Rex) again.

Until last night. Having Penny means that we are getting up at all hours of the night to take her outside so that we don't have accidents in the house. At midnight I took her out to pee. And there he was. Flashlight in hand, pajamas on legs he went house to house. And then I saw it. He went to a house diagnol from ours that didn't have their garbage can at the end of the driveway. He walked straight up their driveway to where the garbage can was~ leaning against their house. Wow, that's balls, I thought. Penny peed and I went back inside. I yelled to Gordo that our friend had returned and he came to look out the window. Rex caught sight of him and started in with the howl. Rex alerted Penny and she began to bark and howl. Did this stop the Trash Burgler? No, of course not. We lost sight of him for a minute, but then we saw the bounce of the flashlight. Again, we saw him in a driveway, right at someone's house. OMG, my friends, OMG. All these months that we've had our recycle bin by our front door; was he walking right up to it? I mean, has he no shame? Is nothing sacred? Not even our garbage?

I'm trying to understand the Trash Burgler, put myself in his shoes. He's a forty-something guy who lives with his parents. Lives with his parents three houses away from us. I want to understand him and feel for him, but I just feel kind of weirded out.

At one thirty when we finally went back to sleep, I may have told Gordo that if I ever get to the point where I am going through people's garbage, to shoot me in the foot so that I can't.