Slowly Understanding the Baby Need

Everybody that knows me knows that I have never been a fan of babies. I have never understood how a pooping, peeing, puking and crying machine can be so adorable and so wanted. I have also heard over the years many times that “Once it’s your own it’s different.” I still don’t get it; however as I get older I am slowing starting to understand the want of a baby…very slowly. Our friends had a baby last weekend and we went to visit them last night. Baby Ella is only a week old and she is so tiny, cute and she looks like a doll. She also looked very breakable and that is why I didn’t hold her at all last night. I have never been one to hold babies, so why start now? No, the reason for anti-baby-holding is because they are pukers and because they look so breakable and I do not want to be responsible for breaking my friend’s baby. I will leave that responsibility up to the parents. I did see how precious that little baby is (which is something new to me) and I saw she has her dad’s nose and her mom’s skinny legs. That is all new to me as I have never seen parent’s qualities in babies. I could never see that until the baby was a toddler. See how I am changing at my old age? Maybe there is a possibility that I will want (and have) a baby someday. It could happen! Until that day Andy and I will just enjoy our babies Izzy and Madison. They are easy to take care of and I am not worried of breaking them as their solid 50 pound bodies could break me.

Izzy Loves the Sprinklers

Andy had told me how Izzy loves running and playing in the sprinklers when they are on in the backyard, so today I finally got to see the crazy show. It is so funny. She runs through the sprinklers out of control and she jumps really high as if she is a two year old enjoying the cool water on a hot day. She also likes to put her head right up to the top of the sprinkler and shake her head feverishly back and forth. She also bites at the water towards the top as if she is drinking water. Once she was done with her playtime she came running hard into the kitchen and slid across the floor and slammed her butt into the gate. This puppy was soaking wet, but she had a great time with the sprinklers. Madison doesn’t go crazy over the sprinklers; rather she thinks they are large drinking fountains just for her. She just likes to put her head to the top of the sprinkler and drink it all. Here are photos of Izzy up close with the top of the sprinkler and one of Madison neatly taking a drink.

Andy, Welcome to Facebook!

In the world today everything revolves around social networking. If you are not on the dreaded MySpace then you are a Facebook addict, tweeting on Twitter, or posting and reading blogs. It seems as if people can’t go one day without catching up with who’s doing what on your favorite social networking site. I am no exception to this latest rage…or I guess I wouldn’t call it the latest thing since social networking has been around for a while, but it’s the latest because it’s in the news and people of all ages and backgrounds are now participating. It’s not just for teenagers anymore. I have not attempted Twitter…not yet anyway, but as you know I have been blogging since last summer and I love posting blogs and letting my family and friends know our latest updates on our life. I especially love writing about the animals crazy antics. I have also been on Facebook for the last year and a half and can we say ADDICT? I am definitely an addict. I cannot go one day without checking my Facebook account to see what everyone is up to. It’s a good thing I can log into my account on my phone that way I won’t miss a thing. I see why Facebook is so addicting and it’s because we live in a world today where everything is based on reality. The majority of the television shows are a form of reality TV now. Everyone is nosey and everyone wants to know who’s doing what, when and why. As long as your friends update their Facebook pages, then you can definitely keep tabs on your friends this way. Plus it saves me a phone call or email when I can just check a friend’s page to see what they have been doing for the past few days. Now that I ranted on about Facebook I will say that after a year and a half I finally got Andy to sign up for an account. Forever he has been saying how lame and dumb it is; however, he would always (on a daily basis) ask me to log into my account to see what his friends are up to. I would tell him to create an account and he would always say that Facebook is stupid. Well, I am happy to say that Andy has finally conformed to the rest of the social networking addicts and joined Facebook. Congrats Andy for leaping into the 21st century!

Today Was A Good Day

Besides the Badgers losing round two in the NCAA tournament, today was a good day. First, our friends, Josh and Kim, gave birth to a baby girl today. We have been anticipating this day and I am looking forward to going to see baby Ella Grace. We would have gone tonight, but we are so exhausted from today that all we want to do is go to bed, so hopefully tomorrow after work. Another reason it was a good day is because we spent the day with good friends at the Cubs spring training. We did not end up in the Ho room with all the Ho’s like last weekend, but we had lawn tickets and it was a gorgeous day outside…a sunny 80 degrees with a nice breeze. I had SPF 15 all over and I still managed to get pink on my legs and arms, so now I have a nice WI farmer tan. I ended up driving us home just like last weekend; however, there was no Chatty Carl in the car like last weekend. After the game we went to Trader Joe’s to do our grocery shopping. Yup, we did not order online through Safeway this time, but instead we went organic and went to Trader Joe’s. I recently decided I want to eat organic and healthy and I asked Andy if he would join me on this adventure. I was surprised to see that he was willing to go grocery shopping and stock our kitchen with organic food and cook healthy from now on. I am sure he is thinking this is just a phase and this will pass, but he is wrong. I think it’s important to eat healthy and to know what’s in your food because you can damage your body simply by what you put in your mouth. Trader Joe’s was extremely busy and filled with moron’s, the same moron’s that you find at all grocery stores that got Andy and I to start ordering our food online two years ago. Of course when we left I did hear about how miserable Andy was shopping with all the idiots and he doesn’t know if he can do this every weekend. I am just happy he is giving it a try and maybe next weekend we will hit up Whole Foods instead. I wasn’t a big fan of Trader Joe’s. I like a big selection of produce and fruit and that is definitely something Trader Joe’s is lacking, but Whole Foods doesn’t. We will see how long Andy lasts grocery shopping and on a healthy eating lifestyle with me.

The Madness of Christmas

Today starts the 2009 March Madness, or aka Andy’s Christmas. When I first met Andy over five years ago he explained to me how much March Madness meant to him (he calls it Christmas time) and don’t expect him to do anything else during the three weeks. At first I was glad that he was up front about his obsession and then I decided that if I wanted to see him during those three weeks I need to join this crazy basketball festivity called March Madness. My first year, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, but Andy liked that I at least tried, and was joining him during his favorite time of year. It is now five years later and I look forward to filling out my brackets. In fact, I am in three pools this year and I pay close attention to every game and all the scores. Andy finds this funny because it is the only time of year I get into these games, but at least it’s something we get to do together. It’s only day one and I am not doing too shabby in my brackets…which is pretty impressive from my brackets five years ago. I think that first year I was out of the running after round one, and now I am doing fabulous. Well, it’s day one of Andy’s three week long Christmas and it’s been fun. I am not necessarily trying to win all three pools, but I am just trying to do better than Andy. A little competition between us is great!

A Good Cry For Marley

So, I recently finished the book Marley & Me by John Grogan. I am sure you have heard of it because there is a movie out starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. I decided that I wanted to read the book before I saw the movie because the book is always better than the movie. It’s about the world’s worst dog and the love between the dog and his owner. I figured I would get a kick out of the book because I felt like I could possibly relate to the dogs antics since we do have Madison. Boy, could I relate. Almost everything Marley did in this book I checked off my list because it is something Andy and I have experienced with Madison. It was pretty funny and it was nice to know that someone else out there has dealt with a very intelligent dog that is also extremely naughty. I was warned by many people that the book is sad at the end and definitely a tear jerker. I am not an emotional person so I definitely don’t cry at movies, reading books, or just for the heck of it. It takes a lot for me to shed a tear so I thought I would be fine, especially if the dog died of old age then I knew there would be no tears here. I look at it as old age is a part of life and when it’s your time to go then it’s your time to go and say your goodbyes. Boy, was I wrong on this one. I got to the last ten pages of the book and I cried like a baby and I am not talking just a few tears, but it was an all out bawl. I went to the bathroom to wipe my face and tears so I could continue to finish up the book. Once I calmed down and reminded myself that the dog had to die because it was his turn I returned to the couch to finish the book. Two more sentences in and the waterworks came down faster and harder this time. It was crazy! Again, I went to the bathroom to wipe my tears away. I decided the ending was just too much for me and when I returned to the couch I had to skip a few pages to the very end of the book. I would recommend this book to any animal lovers out there, just don’t forget your box of Kleenex when you get down to the last ten pages or so. I am now ready to see the movie, but only on rental. I know I will bawl watching the movie and I only want to do that in my house. I really don’t feel like joining strangers in a movie theatre as we all sit there and have a moment together as we cry for Marley. I will wait for the movie to go to DVD.

Spring Training Saturday = Great Day!

We have been in Arizona for almost four years now and this weekend was the first time we made it to a Cubs spring training game. It was tough to go before because I was in school and my weekends were spent studying or writing papers. Saturday we went to the game and it was bright and sunny while being a fabulous 75 degrees, so I would call that a perfect day. We had seats where we noticed we were sitting amongst the tourist hicks, so we moved our butts out to the lawn sits. That was definitely more comfortable. We sat with my coordinator, her boyfriend, his mom and another friend of theirs. I must say that besides all the little kids running around the lawn was much better than having an actual seat. After sitting there for a little bit the group invited us to the Hohokaum room where there is free beer and free food. Of course we took up the offer. My coordinator’s boyfriend’s dad is a Hohokaum and that is the connection and how we got invited. Once in the Ho room, as they call it, Andy took full advantage of the free beer. It was a good thing that he had a driver…me! After a few hours of a “free for all” of beer we headed home. The forty-five minute car ride home was filled with entertainment by Andy as Chatty Carl cracked jokes about the “Ho” room and repeated stories. Andy is hilarious when he has had too much, but then again you know that since I have blogged about it in the past. The best thing about Saturday is that after leaving the dogs home alone for such a long day we came home to no messes and no damages to the kitchen. It was a great day!

All We Could Do Is Laugh

When I got home from work Andy was hard at making dinner for us and he was even making biscuits from scratch. These are not the Pillsbury biscuits that pop out of a cylinder; they are homemade from scratch with Andy’s love. I went to the bedroom to figure out a couple bills that needed to be paid. I hollered to Andy to ask him a question and he left the kitchen for approximately 30 seconds. Once he made it back to the kitchen I hear him yell in a laughing manner “You have got to be kidding.” He told me I have to come see this, so I made my way to the kitchen and he told me to check out the biscuits and this is what I saw.

He said when he left the kitchen there were nine biscuits on the pan and when he came back there are three biscuits and no dogs to be found anywhere. I looked out the kitchen window and no dogs. I walked outside and there they were looking all sweet and innocent against the retaining wall with the look of “What?” I called the girls inside and when they came in they looked like this.

Now, when investigating the kitchen there were no crumbs to be found anywhere. There was also no evidence on the porch or in the grass of the six missing biscuits. Now, these dogs are good. They managed to inhale six biscuits without leaving a trace in mere seconds and then disappear outside as if nothing ever happened. All Andy and I could do was laugh. It was pretty comical. They mystery is which dog stole the biscuits?

An Accomplished Weekend

I accomplished a lot this weekend and I am pretty happy about it. I cleaned the house, did the laundry, finished the book Marley & Me, trained the puppies to stay off the bed (two nights in a row with no problems) and we painted the retaining wall in the backyard to match the house. That was the biggest accomplishment. It was a task that we have been putting off since last May. Since we live on the side of a mountain our backyard slopes so we had landscapers come in and put in a retaining wall in our backyard to level out the yard, plus it acts as a supporting wall for the pool. Anyway, the landscapers finished the wall and the yard and all we had to do was paint the wall. This was to cut the cost. We had purchased the paint last May and figured we would do it right away; however, it’s such a task that is far from fun so it only took us 10 months to finally do it. It was a beautiful 70 degrees on Saturday so it was a perfect day to do this. We locked the puppies in the house so we could begin. We were only at it for about ten minutes when we realized this was a bad idea and we should have just paid the landscapers extra to paint the wall. The stucco on the wall made it more difficult to paint. Andy suggested we should buy a spray painter so I went online and found out they are a minimum of $150 so after we discussed it we decided that it’s not worth it just for a one time deal. So, we sucked it up and got to work. Only a few hours and two aching backs later were we done. Once the paint was dry we let the puppies lose thinking it was safe. However, we made sure the wall was dry, but we didn’t think about the spots where I dripped paint on the grass. We realized this about an hour later when Izzy came running in the house with dried paint on her cheek and behind her ear. It was pretty funny. I am happy that I got a lot done this weekend and I am ready for next weekend.

The Girls Are Free and Trustworthy...So Far

Andy and I decided it was time to get rid of the dog’s cages in the bedroom and train them to sleep on the floor at night. When we discussed this idea we were a little worried that we would not be able to keep Madison off the bed. We know Izzy can’t get on the bed herself, well, not really can’t but more that she is chicken to attempt the jumping up on the bed. She still hasn’t figured out jumping yet as she still climbs on the couch and chairs. They are both potty trained now and it’s just time to get rid of the cages and get our bedroom back. After dinner and drinks last night we came home and Andy took down their cages while he had a very curious audience. The girls seemed a little confused and lost as they watched him collapse Madison’s cage and then moved Izzy’s out. We did their usually nightly routine of taking them outside to the bathroom and then giving them a treat and telling them to go to bed. We put their soft beds at the foot of our bed in hopes Madison would stay there all night and Izzy wouldn’t cause any problems either. I must say both dogs were very impressive last night. They both stayed on the floor on their beds. Only twice did they wake us up. First Madison stuck her nose in Andy’s face almost asking for permission to come on the bed. Andy just told her to go lay down. Madison then decided to come to my side of the bed as if to ask me for permission to come on the bed. Of course I told her to go lay down, and that is exactly what she did. This was pretty impressive of the dog who never listens and does whatever she wants to do. The other time we were woken up was when Captain decided to jump off the bed (Captain was on the bed sleeping with us for part of the night like he always does) and Izzy was aware of this and went after the cat. This caused Captain to yell out a scream. After telling Izzy to go lay down all was quiet yet again. We are very impressed with our girls as this is something we can very rarely say since they (meaning more Madison) are normally very naughty and very rarely ever listen. So, we are going to attempt night two of the girls’ freedom tonight. We will see if they continue to impress.

Battle Over the Fan Level

Some couples battle it out for the television remote control, but not us, we battle it out for what level the bedroom fan should be on at night. I like to be warm (aka borderline roasting hot) at all times of the day and night. Andy on the other hand does not like to be hot and prefers to sleep with the fan cranked on high so he can wrap the comforter all the way up to his nose. It has been warming up here in Phoenix as yesterday it was a beautiful 90 degrees, which is perfect for me. It did get a little warm in the house, but I thought it was a nice temperature of 78 degrees in the bedroom when it was time to go to bed. I of course put the fan on low and walked away, but when I came back I found the fan blasting on high. Andy walks away and we are basically playing games with the fan to see who is going to win and get their way and who is going to lose. Over much bantering and playing with the fan I finally gave into Andy and let him have his way. I mainly did that because I could hear Izzy was breathing hard and she was hot. It wasn’t fair to my baby girl that she had to sleep hot covered in all her fur. I guess I could have put on warmer pajamas and avoided the games with the fan, but now what fun would that have been?