Happy Holidays

Today was a pretty good day. I was a little bummed knowing we all left Mom and Dad alone for Christmas, but the gift we gave Dave's parents, was well worth it. Our drive to Twin on Christmas Eve was good, and had no problems when we checked in to our hotel. We looked at the few lights that were around town, then went back to the room and put "family" presents together.
Christmas morning we got up, had breakfast and then got ready to go to Dave's parent's house after a short nap. When we were about a block from the house, counting on nobody knowing we were coming but Jacob, Dave called his father. We told him that we were on my way to my Grandma's house and wished we could be there with them. He parked down the street, and I told him I"d see him "inside" and then walked down to their house.
To make a long story short, we surprised them all, and even put my father in law in tears. I think it was the best that we've done for them all year. Everyone seemed to have liked their gifts, the kids were a bit rowdy with theirs, and the food was good. I tried to contact all my siblings to wish them a Merry Christmas, and hope that they all had a good day. I also hope my parents had good time alone, regardless of the dogs. I have been blessed to have such a wonderful family, and love them all dearly.
For the past month, I've noticed that I had gotten into the Christmas spirit, and was really looking forward to surprising Dave's family with our presence. I am really happy that this has been the best Christmas I've had in 5yrs, aside from when Dan and Chrystal surprised us with their visit. Since my grandpa passed away, I've had a struggle with Thanksgiving and Christmas, and to have this one be a good, positive experience, it's a blessing for me. I hope that this is a start of Christmas to come.
For those of you who don't talk much with us, we're doing good. Dave's now got Sundays and Mondays off, and I am still watching kids. With problems in the house and stress over my Dad's health, I've started focusing on my workouts at Inches A Weigh. I still don't follow the menu I'm supposed to, but I've gone from barely being able to do 2min on the exercise bike, to 35min, and I do it 3 days a week. Starting at the beginning of the year, I'm going to try to workout on my Wave in the mornings for about 30min, and then go to the Center and do my workouts, including the 35min on the Exercise bike, each day. I will then, once that's 2nd nature to me, start on my menu and see how it goes. I am hoping that I lose what I need to, and noticed that I've not eaten as much stuff as I have in the past.
I hope this entry finds everyone happy and healthy. MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!!!

A Fresh Start

Well, as a lot of you know, we're overwhelmed with our "brood" of pets. I like animals, but never thought I'd own 4 dogs and (now) 2 cats. For years we've had Dante' and Tika, and have tried everything to find a "Forever Home" for Tika. Well, one of the families that I babysit for, who was also in our ward when we lived in our own house, saw her and decided to give her a try with their 2 Shih Tzu's.
Last Wednesday, we took her and her crate up to their house when we played games, and jokingly I told them that we'd bring her Kennel in and just leave her there. Stephanie, the mother, said that she thought that was the plan, so just before we left, we brought in the Kennel and told them to call us if there were any problems or if they got tired of her. Expecting to bring her home the following day, I asked Stephanie when she picked the kids up, but she said they'll still keep her there, and are enjoying her being there. I told her that we'd drop off some food and her bowl, that they could feed her how they liked.
On Friday, we took her leash to them, and were told that they absolutely love her, but haven't decided for sure if she was gonna have a permanent home there. Then came today, Stephanie showed up as usual to get the kids, then looked at me and said " So, looks like we're going to keep Tika." I just about jumped out of my skin with joy. The first time I saw the family with her, I felt that it was just a right fit for them, and was even evil enough to get her out while the kids were here so they could quickly get attached to her. The 3yr old that I watch, Grant, fell in love with her instantly, and followed her around the yard whenever she was out.
When we took her up to see how she did with their dogs for an hour, I wanted to leave her there because it felt so right. When we left her there last Wednesday, I didn't really look back, my heart leaped for joy, I had a very good feeling that she'd found her "Forever Home" and just let things ride. It took her a while but she warmed up to Steve, and that's when it became official. As the agreement goes, since they decided to welcome her into their family, we've agreed to pay to get her bathed and brushed, and to wash and sanitize her kennel.
The last attempts to re-home her, I cried like a baby, didn't feel comfortable leaving her at the houses, and really worried about her. I didn't shed a tear when we left her with the Wozniak family, I know she's in good hands, a loving home, and will be well taken care of. I also know that I will see her often, and that if they have any problems, they will talk to us about them. This is a blessing for Dave and I because it'll be a little easier to get into a place now, it's just a matter of finding one within our budget.

My Boys

Since I live in the house with Heather and "Monroe", I get the privelage of watching Troy when they need to go somewhere. Right now Troy is going through the "I'm really tired but don't want to sleep" stage. The only way I can get him to go to sleep, or even settle down, is to sit at the computer and play Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook, with the volume up loud. I was doing this while waiting for Dave's cake to cool down enough to frost, when Tucker came in and poked me in the rear. I turned to look at him, and as to be expected, I hear "Up".
Well, you know the results of his sweet little request, as seen here in the picture. My siblings have some pretty awesome boys, and I can't wait to meet Josie, and watch her wrap me around her little fingers as well. Tucker is my little man. He hunts me down in the house every time he comes over. I can't take 2 steps without him being right there, hugging my leg and wanting me to hold him. The other day I was combing out Duster's matts, and Tucker walked up to my back, put his arms around me and hugged and kissed on me for about 20 minutes.
Troy is my little man as well. Heather gets so frustrated at times because he can scream and cry, but the second he sees me or I hold him, it's all smiles. It always makes me smile when my boys are around. I can't help but smile when I hear Tucker's giggle of delight, or Troy's hugenormous smile when he sees me. They're such sweet little ones, and I just love when they're around. Heather often tells me she doesn't want me to feel like I have to watch Troy, I tell her that it feeds my baby hunger and that I'll let her know when I'm being run down or burdened by it. Anyway, I just thought I'd share one of the special and fun moments I have with my nephews. Hope you all have a good day.

Only in Idaho

Last month, I was sitting on the couch just doing nothing more than looking out the window when I saw this picture. The neighbor had taken his car onto the lawn, up to a gopher hole, and stuck his irrigation hose down the hole, then duct taped it to his exhaust pipe. This was their 2nd attempt at "exterminating" the gopher that had decided to take up residency in their yard. Their first attempt: Glue traps down the hole. At the time I took this picture, between chuckles, I had heard the woman on the phone, suddenly tell her husband "Honey, they say that Road Flares work real well too!". At that time, I had to put the camera down and walk away. I had begun to laugh so hard, it just killed me. Half their day was spent with an irrigation hose hooked up to their car, tryin to gas out a gopher, and entertaining me and the other people in the house at the time. I guess it worked though, because NOW we've got the Gophers in our back yard, and it seems like a new one pops up each day.

A Tragic Situation

Back in August, my friend died of an apparent heart attack, a few weeks after his funeral, his wife posted on Facebook that they got the toxicology reports back. It was not a heart attack after all that took his life. It was a mistake by the VA doctors and Pharmasists. What took his life, was an overdose of the medication he was on. One of them was too high of a dose, the other, shouldn't have even been mixed with the first one.

That's all I know, but seriously, somebody should have caught it before it got as far as it did. Mike was a excellent man, and had a big heart. He loved everyone he came into contact with and was like another brother to me. I didn't really get a chance to get to know his widow, but we both have agreed that Mike would have liked for us to become friends, so we're gonna give it a try. I pray for her and the kids every day, and know that she'll see him again.

It's tragic that his life ended so abruptly, and though there is rage for how he went, I keep reminding myself that the Lord wanted him for something much greater and he's watching over us. I'm sad that I didn't get to talk to him before he went, but I will one day.

Sunday Stroll

Sunday, Dave and I decided to conserve what little gas we have in the sonoma and walk to church. We put Troy in the stroller, made it down for Sacrament, and as we were sitting there, listening to the talks, Troy decided to fill his britches.
By the time I was done changing his diaper, we had used all the wipes I brought, and so when Sacrament was over, we decided to get him home in case he decided to do it again as he was notorious at it.
As we were almost home, I stepped down onto a part of the gutter where the asphalt from the road didn't quite meet the gutter, and rolled my foot. I thought that I'd rolled my ankle, and immediately went into the house, elevated and iced it, and decided to wait and see how it went. It got so bad that I couldn't put any pressure on my foot or even move my toes, so I dug the crutches out and began to use them. After an AGONIZING stroll through COSTCO, I realized that it took a LOT to use crutches, something I'd forgotten since I used them 5yrs ago. That Monday morning, though the swelling had gone down a little, I decided to get it checked out.
After an hour and a half in the doctor's office, and the doctor poking and prodding, taking X-rays, he came back and said that my foot wasn't broken, ankle wasn't sprained, but my foot was. I couldn't wrap my mind around spraining my foot instead of my ankle, but have been following doctor's orders for the most part. There are times when I don't ice it, it swells up and the toes barely move so I stop what I'm doing and elevate and ice the foot. As soon as it's comfortable for me to wear it, I'm back to the boot brace for a while.....YAY ME!

Quality Time

Lately Merlyn has been looking pretty shabby. Since the lady I take him to is usually pretty busy, I decided to bathe and groom him myself. It still takes me a few hours to shave him completely, but now he's beginning to deal with me shaving all the hair off of him, and enjoys it in some parts.
I use to just jump right in with the clippers when he's dry, this time, I "scissor" him as much as I can, then just go over it with the clippers. It works a lot better that way, but the tiny hairs are unbearable when they work their way into your undies. Because it takes so long when I let his hair grow, I've decided to groom him every 2 weeks. He loves being naked, and it's so fun watching people when they see him. I took him to the park with the kids for Lunch, and all the looks everyone gave him, it was just a ball. Lately, with how hot it's getting here, we've been having the AC on , his kennel is next to our vent, and when he gets really cold, he climbs up in bed with me and sleeps under my blanket.
I have a lot of fun with Merlyn, and look forward to many more years of torturing him. I'm thinking of dying his hair again the next time I groom him. He's also doing really good with the kids, lets them crawl on him and pull his hair. He doesn't run much from people anymore, lately he lunges at them, but that's a habit we're going to work on fixing.

Troy Parker

The other day when I got lunch, I got these sun glasses in the kid's meal. Sitting at home, watching him in his swing, I got this brilliant idea to put the sun glasses on Troy. He didn't seem too fussy, but he really wouldn't cooperate with taking the picture, I got lucky on this shot.
I have decided to hang on to them for when he's a little older, let him grow into them and what not. I have a lot of fun with him and Tucker.

Who'da Thunk It

Well, tonight we celebrated our 6th Wedding Anniversary. We didn't do anything extremely special, just dinner and a movie, but it was nice just spending time together and reflecting on all the years we've had together.

I've known Dave for almost 9 years, and though we have had many ups and downs, I know that I wouldn't be happier with anyone else. I look around at some of my friends, how some bailed when times got tough, others struggled to keep a dying relationship alive, and am so blessed to have my best friend at my side, in good times and bad, for time and all eternity. I'm truely blessed to have Dave in my life. We've put up with each other for almost 9 years, and are just as in love with each other as we were at the beginning. I look forward to many more years with Dave, he's my other half, my best friend, the love of my life. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY HONEY!!

Something Fishy

The other day, as they were preparing for Dan and Chrystal to come visit, Marsh called me from his house and said that he had a gift for Dave and I. It was more a "Loaner" than anything. I said ok, bring it over, not quite expecting what it was or looked like. The following day, he came over with this big wooden fish in his arms and handed it to me. It is a "Fertility Fish" and he said that it's the reason they have Tucker and another one on the way. He thinks it'll work for Dave and I, so we'll see. Note the carvings in this fish. I got to thinking and realized that I need to cover it up when the kids come over. It's quite the "Loan" and we put it on the headboard just because we didn't know where else to put it. Today Kaitlynn saw it covered with a towel, and asked me what it was. I told her that it was a big wooden fish, and when she asked if she could see it, I said NO because it was a naughty fish. I explained to her that it had naughty pictures on it and she couldn't look at it. She understood and has left it alone and not asked about it since.
Marsh says that if this really works, he's going to lend it to Dan and Chrystal. It's now a joke in the house and we're asked often if it's working. I think Marsh first thought he offended me when he asked if we wanted to borrow it, so I told him that my chuckle was more in the thoughts of he was funny, not insulting. I think at this point, Dave and I are ready to try ANYTHING!!

The Day From HELL

Tuesday, Dave took the day off to finally go riding with Marsh, Monroe (Chas), Andy, Tyrel and Emily. While they were gone, Dad came in from the shop telling me that one of my cats were in horrible shape. I was watching Kaitlynn and Tucker, so I took them both back with Dad and I, and was totally appalled at what I saw. Not only was the litter box SOLID with stuff, but all 3 cats had at least 1 eye shut and full of goop, and Angel, the kitty that was born just before Grandma Wanda passed away, was nothing but a skeleton with fur stretched on it, barely hanging on to life.
I immediately told Dad that he'll have to be put down, picked the cat up, took him into the house and called the vet. Me, Dad, Kaitlynn and Tucker then took him to the vet, where they examined him. He wouldn't move much during the exam, and they couldn't get his temperature to register on the thermometer with how bad he was.
After the exam, the Vet told us that we could have them hospitalize him and rehydrate him so they can run more tests on him to find out what was wrong, or I could put him out of his pain. He said that if I chose euthanasia, he'd back me 100% which I took as that's what he would prefer. As hard as it was to do, we opted to put him down, so me, the tech, and the Doc went to the back room to do it.
Normally when they Euthanize an animal, they find a vein and inject the chemicals in it, but with how bad off Angel was, they injected the chemicals directly into his kidneys. Before they even pulled the needle out of his body, I felt his head go limp in my hands, and knew right away that he'd passed away. It was not an easy thing to do, never really is, but I know that he's happier now, and not suffering anymore. I will miss watching him sit in the window sill of the shop with the window partially open, meowing at me across the yard. We'd "talk" back and forth like that for hours, and I loved it.
The other 2 cats are doing a little bit better though it breaks my heart to see Luna wandering around looking for her nephew. She meows all the time and rubs against everything she can. Jeriko is super thin in the hind end, but with lots of food, water and TLC, I'm sure he'll bounce back just fine.

Never Use Public Urinals

So yesterday was my Dad's 64th birthday. Though money is real tight for Dave and I, we decided to treat Mom and Dad to dinner, and went to Golden Corral (Dad's choice.) It was Date Night for Marsh and Emily so Tucker came along with us, Heather and Chas went to Idaho Falls.
We ate, played with Tucker and his food, and then when all was said and done, took Mom, Dad, and Tucker home. Dave and I then went to Wal-Mart to walk around and pick up some Toilet Paper for the house. When we got to the Electronics section, Dave decided he needed to relieve himself so he went to the bathroom. I walked around the area and waited, then after a few minutes or so, Dave came out, saw me and then said "Jess, he's dead meat!"
I looked at him, wondering what and who he was talking about, then I asked him, and got the response I wasn't really expecting: "I'm gonna kill Marsh!" At that moment, I saw Marsh poke his head around an aisle with a crap eating grin on his face.
Dave proceeded to tell me that while he was standing at the urinal, conducting his business, somebody walked in and patted his bottom. He told me that he stopped in mid stream and almost decked the person, until he realized who it was. After he told this to me, I began laughing real hard. I couldn't stop laughing and laugh every time I think of the story. I told Marsh that it was a good one, and we all went our separate ways. Dave and I beat Marsh and Emily to Mom and Dad's and didn't hesitate telling them, getting the exact same reaction that I gave.
I don't see Dave living this down anytime soon, and when Marsh is around, I tell Dave to cover his butt. Before they left Mom and Dad's, Marsh told Dave not to have any "good dreams". Oh to be a fly on the wall in that restroom at that time. It was the perfect ending to a good day. I love my husband for being a good sport, and I love my family for loving my husband.