At Home

We don't let our dogs on the furniture or our beds. We have large dogs with lots of fur and it gets everywhere as it is. I don't want a mouth full of fur on my pillow. We could tell the first night we got Rocko that he was allowed on the sofa and beds. We've been getting him down every time he tries to get up there.

I was on the treadmill for 25 minutes this morning. The kids were on the chaise lounge watching Scooby Doo.

Apparently, Rocko's has no problems making himself at home.


So, did I get him down?

Nah...

A Time To Dance

For 15 years of my life, I was a dancer and I loved it.

Now, I am a nurturer. A dog trainer. A waitress. A chef. A baker. A bus boy. An organizer. A maid. A painter. An artist. A lover. A negotiator. A disciplinarian. A peace keeper. A parent. A friend. An accountant. A photographer. A videographer. A writer. A blogger. A gardener. A nurse. A singer. A storyteller. A wardrobe stylist. A problem-solver. A nail technician. A handyman. A chauffeur. A hair dresser. A shopper. A time keeper. A personal assistant. A task manager. A teacher.

Basically, a mom and a wife.

Emily had her first ballet class yesterday. She was excited. I was excited.

She loved it.

Last night before bedtime, Emily asked me to go over some of the new moves she learned. We reviewed the 5 foot positions of ballet. We did a few plies and releves.

Together, we each became a dancer.

I had come full circle. My daughter's journey is just beginning.








Ben, on the other hand, is clearly not a dancer.

Tea Time

I was hoping Santa would bring Emily a tea set for Christmas. He must have forgotten that every 4 year old girl needs a tea set. I got one for her the other day. She was so excited and could not wait to host a tea party when her Dad got home from work.


David showed Emily how to properly drink tea with your pinky out.


Emily got it down perfectly.


After tea, it's always a good time for a double decker shoulder ride. I was panicked he was going to drop one, but luckily, nobody got hurt.


My husband deserves a father of the year award.

Another Member of the Family

When we had Forest, we always thought it would be nice to get him a friend. Then, he died and we got Roxie. Roxie was with her brother at the Humane Society. Somebody adopted only him. How could someone leave her behind in a kennel? We knew we'd get a friend for her one day. We knew we wanted another big dog and a male as to make sure we avoid any fights. We were keeping our eye out on Craigslist and petfinder.com.

A few days ago, there was an ad on Craigslist for a AKC golden retriever. Almost 1 1/2 year old, male, well behaved and absolutely gorgeous. It turns out we were one of many families that inquired about him. He was meant to be with us as we met him today and brought him home.

His name is Rocko, which Rocco is also my nephews name. We have Roxie and Rocko. It's actually getting really confusing and we may change his name later. We call him and she comes. We call her and he comes. We can't keep it straight. He is a total love. He's still a little excited and unsure tonight as I'm sure he's confused, but I know in a few days, he will settle into his new routine.

His previous owners needed to find him a new home as they also have a Doberman who was starting to dominate over him. The husband wanted to keep the Doberman. Score for us. Rocko is just so sweet. He's our third retriever and we finally got one that fetches! Roxie is fine with him. We thought she'd be happier to have a friend, and she probably will in a few days when they get used to each other. Roxie is a lot older and their energy levels are quite different. David said it was like night and day walking them.

On a side note, on our way home from getting Rocky, we were turning onto the main road (highway) in Chino Valley. We had a green arrow and green light. The car next to us went a little faster than we did as David was going slower as Rocky was standing up. A car plowed right through the red light and the car next to us T-boned it. It was like slow motion watching the truck swerve in front of us and then correct itself. It was a pretty bad accident and we were all a little shook up. Literally, half a second later and we would've been hit as well. If David had been turning, Emily would've got the brunt of the entire accident. Me too, but I was in the back with Rocky instead of the passenger seat. As it turned out, not a single piece of flying debris even touched us. We stopped to make sure that nobody was seriously hurt and then the police and ambulance got there. We drove off breathing a sigh of relief and thanking God that we were spared.

Here's Rocko playing ball with David. It looks like he is playing football with Ben and runs right by him only to fumble, retrieve and then score a touchdown

The Zoo

We woke up on New Years Day and asked the kids what they wanted to do. Emily decided that she HAD to go to the zoo. We have a very small zoo, animal sanctuary really, here in Prescott. It's small, cheap and perfect for kids under 5. I thought about driving to this great zoo that is about 45 minutes away until I looked up prices. $36 for adults and $20 for children. Seriously, are you kidding me? $112 for a family of 4 to get in. I wondered if I should e-mail them and let them know they aren't Sea World. It's a pretty cool zoo though, so I will wait until we get a buy one, get one free admission and then we can go.

We went to our little zoo for $21. It was perfect.


Watching the black bear nibble on a bone.


Being silly.


More silliness.


They also have a playground and free roaming peacocks. Apparently, this peacock enjoys the slide as much as the next kid.


Daddy had to go up and scare the peacock away.


I love watching the kids and taking pictures when they don't know they are being watched.






We had a great time and it was a nice way to start the new year.

Nighttime Gifts

My best friend, Pam, came up for a short visit last Friday. She wanted to bring the kids their Christmas gifts. She always buys a themed Chrismas gift. Pajamas and books, the perfect nighttime combination. After all the noise, batteries and putting together, it's nice for the kids to get gifts that are lovely and practical. Pam buys the kids books for almost every holiday. I can honestly say that we have probably 200 books, and she has bought the majority of them. Emily loves her bed time stories. She would have her Dad read 10 books if he would. It's also another one of many stall tactics. Ben, on the other hand, likes stories during the day. Because he won't nap, he's often so tired by 8:00 that he just wants to hide under his covers and go to sleep.

Thanks Aunt Pam for the new PJ's and books! They are a big hit.

You can't read it, but Ben's PJ's say "Tough Guy" and have a monkey on the front. PERFECT as Ben tells his Dad, "Oh yeah, tough guy!" when they wrestle.

The Neti

Not to be confused with The Yeti.

It's a new year and time for better health. Tis the season for colds and sinus infections. We all get them. We all feel miserable.

I used to rarely get sick. Then, I had Ben and something in my body changed, or maybe I'm just getting old. Emily goes to preschool and brings home every germ known to man. She gets a little cold, Ben gets it, then, I get it. David usually escapes it. Maybe because he's not here with them all day while they insist on drinking out of his cup and eating his cereal.

Emily and Ben are usually over it in a few days with sometimes a lingering cough. I, on the other hand, get the gift that keeps on giving. A cold, followed by a secondary sinus infection. It never fails. I can't get just a cold anymore. I always get the sinus infection that goes with it. I used to think it was allergies. I went to an allergy specialist who poked me 78 times and found nothing. Then, he decided to give me 20 more shots, still nothing. I'm allergic to absolutely nothing. After a CT scan of my face, I was diagnosed with a sinus infection. Seriously, 98 shots and all I needed was an antibiotic? Couldn't we have tried that first?

Now I know that I will get a sinus infections with every cold. On the one occasion that I actually went to the Dr. I was hit with a $20 co-pay and $20 for antibiotics. Nice. I can't afford that every month during the winter. Not to mention David had to take 4 hours off of work, so that I could go.

In steps Dr. Oz on Oprah. Okay! I watch Oprah...daily...and I like it! He introduced the world to the Neti Pot. I little device used to clear out your sinuses. I bought one, two actually. David uses it twice a day now. I use it at least once a day. When I get a cold, I will sometimes use it 3-4 times a day. I truly believe that this is helping me with my sinus infections and pressure.

Here's a lovely demonstration.


I'm not sick right now, so this is strictly maintenance. Sometimes, the gunk that comes out of your nose is pretty impressive. When I have a bad cold, I sometimes can't even get water to pour through my nose. If you keep at it though, it will eventually open up and give some relief.

You can purchase a neti pot at any Walgreens or drug store. My Mom got one at Walmart. The neti usually comes with a few solution packets. Then, they want you to buy more for $10. The solution that you use is 3 parts non iodized salt and 1 part baking soda. We found the solution online, so we just mix up a cups worth at a time. David uses 1/2 teaspoon per nostril. I think it's too much for me, so I go with maybe 1/4 teaspoon. Do what works for you.

Honestly, this is the best thing for sinus infections. I get over my colds faster and I feel better while I have them.

Let me know if it works for you.