I'm A Bad, Bad Human!

I've been guilty of it before, but I thought I had the situation under control until this morning. I have in the past, had a tendency to let Lucy get away with something that she's not really supposed to be doing in the interest of snapping a really darling picture. I've worked so hard the last month or so to try to be the "strong human" and immediately correct her rather than running for the camera.

This morning, Lucy and I were on the deck, I was drinking coffee and Lucy was playing with a bone when the neighbor started cutting his grass. The sliding glass door was open and I didn't think anything of it when Lucy went flying in the house. When I went in, I couldn't find her. I figured she had gone upstairs to explore, but upon further investigation, I found Lucy on the couch (where she's not allowed to be), looking out the window, watching the neighbor on the tractor. Lucy's fascinated by tractors, but I never expected her to make this connection between the living room window and the neighbor on the tractor!

I admit, all I could think was "Where is my camera?" I'm living proof that even the strongest willed of people will eventually slip up when there's a boxer in the midst of something way too cute to resist capturing.

To the best of my knowledge, Lucy has never been on that couch before, and I have no idea what made her decide that this was going to be the morning to try it out. She seems to be doing a lot of the "testing the waters" thing, just to see what she can get away with the last couple of days. I don't think I've ever said the word "NO" so many times in one day!

For the last 2 days, Lucy has been completely crazy about playing fetch with her squeaky gator toy and her Daddy! (And her Daddy is quite thrilled that Lucy is taking an interest in fetching- even if it isn't a tennis ball!)

Yesterday morning, she would bring the gator up to the hot tub and her Daddy would tease her with it a little bit and then toss it out to the yard for Lucy to go get it. Lucy would jump down off the step, run out into the yard, and she would come running right back with it and they would go through the whole thing again.

I wasn't the least bit surprised when Lucy appeared on the deck this morning with her dirty little gator in her mouth, and her little butt wiggling. She didn't drop it at my feet, but she did let me take it from her, play with her a bit and throw it out into the yard.

I nearly had a heart attack when Lucy dived off the edge of the deck (it's 48 inches off the ground!) instead of taking the stairs, but she got the gator and brought him back to me- and didn't seem the least bit stunned after her swan dive into the yard. There's just never a dull moment- good thing I hadn't just taken a sip of coffee or I probably would have choked!

We're at work now, Lucy's sound asleep on her dog bed! She had a busy morning, and so did I. Do you think anyone would notice if I curled up right next to my little boxer and caught a few zzzz's? Probably!

Pet Bloggers Pet Blog Hop

Welcome to da Pet Bloggers Pet Blog Hop co-hosted by Two Little Cavaliers, Life with Dogs, and…Baby Patches! Join us every Saturday to meet new and old Pet Blogging furriends! You don’t even have to have a blog to join in da fun. You can join da blog hop to find new furriends by following da links left by bloggers.

Pour Your Heart Out!

I just got off the phone with my fiance... We just had yet another conversation about Texas. As some of you might remember, we've been discussing a move to Texas; Houston to be exact. What I may or may not have said that is while this move is probably definitely the best thing for our future, the way it's going to go down is going to scare the crap out of me, probably cause a lot of anxiety, loneliness, and sleeplessness.

And so after hanging up the phone, I'm pacing the floor thinking about the fact that more than likely we are going to be 2000 miles apart for the better part of 6 months- could be longer, but hopefully not. Granted, there may be occasional weekend visits here and there- but I have a feeling it's going to lean more towards the very rare occasion rather than a regular kind of happening and I'm feeling like I need to either scream or pour my heart out when I stumble upon a Pour Your Heart Out Blog Hop.... Imagine that. I could not help but think "It must be meant to be." I needed to ramble, and here is someone just begging me to do it.

The conversation we just had involved the date for all of this to take place- after all of the conversations in the past couple of weeks, I should have been prepared, should have known what was coming... After all, Rob is taking a trip to Houston in two weeks with the intention of finding retail space and signing a lease. So why did my heart suddenly skip several beats when he said mid September- no later than the end of September. Holy you know what. That's like 4 to 6 weeks away. Okay, this is becoming reality, very quickly. I guess I wasn't expecting it so soon, even though I know there is a definite "rush" to all of these plans.

As if just the idea of the two of us being so far apart for 6 months is not enough on it's own- he's leaving me here to run the business. (Of course, in reality, that's probably the smartest part of the plan, right? I'm brilliant. I'm Superwoman. I have boundless energy.... Of course I do, right? Who better to let take charge than a woman?) So this entails 2 stores, 3 employees + myself.... a couple hundred customers, 18 manufacturers, trucks, deliveries.... Oh boy, I'm getting a headache already. Oh, and I forgot to mention 3 rental properties. No problem! It's taken care of- and I'm sure I'll do it all gracefully and in 3 inch heels, without ever showing signs of stress or even dismay... aha, sure. And it's probably not a big deal that before I leave this wonderful city, I'll need to sell at least one of the 4 houses, preferably two of them... Again, NO BIG DEAL!

Why does this not seem to be that big of a deal to him? Is he just "acting" super cool about the idea of being 2000 miles away from me and leaving me to run his business- or is he really just completely cool with the whole thing? I am freaking out over the idea of Lucy & I coming home to an empty house in the middle of nowhere for the next 6 months... and I just realized that he's going to be gone over Thanksgiving and Christmas. And that's our busy season, how the heck are we going to handle that? Oh my! What am I getting myself into? We have never been apart for more than 3 or 4 days in the 5 years that we've been together. And we're probably going to be apart on our 5 year anniversary.

Where are those aspirins?

Thank you so much to "Things I Can't Say" for dropping onto my computer at exactly the right time. Now do you think you can do something about this serious headache and the massive anxiety I'm feeling?

Bad News Friday... And Friday Blog Hops

I'm afraid that Lucy and I have some very disturbing news to share with you all today. Lucy's new ball has had an accident, or rather a series of accidents and incidents. While the ball still exists, it no longer has a ball like shape or any of the qualities that make it a ball. In other words: there is no longer any air in the ball! This is what happened:

"Hey, Ma. I tink der might be somethin a little wrong wit my ball. I couldn't picks it up this way yesterday."

"Maybe it just needs a little lovin n attention..."

"It's not working..."

"Now whats are we gonna do, Ma?"

With that being said, looks like I'll be searching for another new ball for Lucy. Only this time when I dispose of the injured ball, I'll make sure she's not around because I'm not sure I can stand to see "THE" look again!

Oh boy, it's Friday! Woo hoo! 2 more days of work and then a day off! I'm ready now! Anyway, to continue on with our Friday tradition, Lucy & I are blog hopping and making new friends. Check out all of these great blog hops!:

Hosted by "Still On The Verge"

Hosted by "Kerri's Clutter", "C Mom" and "Life Can't Wait"

Hosted by: "The Life of a Sippy Cup Mom!", "Mannland5" and "The Adventures of Goober Grape and Monkey Man"

Hosted by: "Smart & Trendy Moms"

Hosted by: "The Girl Creative" and "The Trendy Treehouse"

First Edition: Thank You Very Much!

Welcome to my very first addition of "Thank You Very Much". I found this at "I'm Just Sayin" and thought it would be great fun! (You all know how much I love to rant, just every once and a while!)

THANK YOU VERY MUCH to the pain in my neck and shoulder that has given me a headache that makes me feel like I'm dying for the last 7 days. And the nausea that's accompanying it just makes my day so much brighter! THANK YOU VERY MUCH for making it impossible to sleep for the last 6 months. No wonder I want to kill someone!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH Maxwell House for making lids for your coffee cans that come completely loose with just the slightest touch. I have enjoyed cleaning whole cans of coffee grounds off the floor for the last 3 days when your lid came loose while I was trying to make a very much needed pot of coffee- 3 times. And while I'm on the subject of loose lids, I love the new, cheaper lids Nestle is putting on their water bottles. I love that every time I add a packet of Crystal Light to a water bottle, I have a huge mess of what's usually red water to clean up. Those lids are fabulous!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH to the heating and air conditioning guy who parked in my parking space (right next to the door) and then watched as I tried to haul my 25 pound computer bag, my briefcase, a box of envelopes, a boxer baby, and my purse the whole way around the side of the building in the rain and never offered to even help me! And that ladder that was blocking my door- that was wonderful too. It wasn't too difficult to try to hold on to Lucy, keep all of the bags from falling all of the place and get around that ladder.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH to all the people in the last week that have had so little disregard for my very valuable time. I appreciated being made to sit and wait while they carried on conversations of a gossipy nature with other people. I most certainly had planned on dedicating 3 hours to a 1 hour task on my only day off because you couldn't shut up! And I love standing around waiting on you, while you have a long, very personal and insane conversation about your teeth in the middle of my store. I love it even more when you immediately demand my attention the very second that call is over!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH to all those people out there whose job title is "Customer Service" but, they don't answer their phones and they can't return a phone call. I have really appreciated having to call back and leave 6 messages to get an answer to my question.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH to the clerk in Wal-Mart who apparently has never carried groceries from the car to the house. Putting 9 cans of green beans and a 5 lb. jar of mayo in one of those super durable plastic bags, was a great idea, and chasing those 9 cans of green beans and mayo across my driveway in the pouring down rain was more fun than a barrel full of monkeys.

A Pool For Lucy, And Giggles For Her Human

As of Sunday afternoon, the scum pond is officially closed! After locking my keys in the car and getting soaked in pouring down rain while loading 4 pieces of cut plywood into the trunk of my car- we have a permanant solution. (My car is just not meant for these kinds of projects!) I even covered the plywood with some of the decorative rocks floating around our garden to make it look a little appealing. But, the main point here is- there is no pond for Lucy to play in- no more dirty kitchen floor. No more ruined clothes, no more daily baths for the boxer baby!

I have been feeling extremely guilty over the erasure of the scum pond from Lucy's life. I'm not sure in all honesty that she really misses it, I just know that when she used to play in the back yard, she would submerse herself in that scummy, smelly, disgusting water to cool herself down and before yesterday, there was no where else for her to do that. I've been hosing her off when she's outside playing, but I don't think it's the same thing. (And as I mentioned, there is the issue of my guilt...)

So yesterday afternoon, I called around trying to find a kiddie pool for Lucy! It took 3 phone calls (and my getting very agitated over long hold times, and criminally long pre-recorded messages) but I finally found one.

As I have said before, I hate Petsmart- but that's where we found the pool, so that's where we had to go. I needed to return the Gentle Leader anyway, so I killed two birds with one stone.

Let me just say for the 2nd time- I am unimpressed with the staff at Petsmart. Clearly the people working there just needed a job, and aren't really that enamored by pets. How can you meet my little boxer and remain completely emotionless? It just doesn't make sense- unless you don't like pets!

We got the pool- and I was very happy that it even fit in my trunk without any pushing down of seats or squishing of the pool, which was a concern, and headed home to fill it up. Lucy kept looking at me like I had lost my mind.

"Are you sure yous know whats your doin, Ma?"

Of course, Lucy was a big help filling the pool, even though I don't think she had a lot of faith that I had the situation all under control. I couldn't wait to get it full and see what she would do. There was some initial hesitation, and the pool was filled for about an hour before Lucy put all 4 of her delicate little paws into the pool! I was starting to get concerned when I noticed that she only seemed interested in putting 2 paws in, and she was hesitant about that!

"Come on, Lucy! Entertain me!"

Once I tossed a ball into the pool, I had Lucy's undivided attention. For 10 minutes Lucy ran circles around the perimeter of the pool trying to get the ball out.

Finally, Lucy figured out that the only way she was going to get the ball was to get in the pool and pull it out. I had fun watching her get all wet!

" I gots da ball, Ma! Now what? Don'ts you tell me yous is gonna throw it back in der."

"My hooman is nutty! Looks at all dis stuff she threw in da pool! I's guess I better get it all out of here! You makes so much work for me, Ma!"

"I's guess da only option, is to sticks my entire head in here!"

"Okay, Ma! All da toys are out of da pool, I'm ready to be dried off!"

Dog Park Fun & The Welcome Wednesday Blog Hop

We continued this morning with our vegetable experiment! Lucy had French cut (ooh, la, la) green beans with her Wellness dog food, and there wasn't a crumb left when she walked away from that bowl! "Good Lucy!" I don't know what I'm gonna try next, I'm thinking zucchini or squash!

Lucy & I are big fans of the dog park in Cranberry Township. I've been taking her there since she was about 12 weeks old and I think it's a real treat for her. Dog parks are a wonderful place for dogs to get a lot of exercise and interact with other dogs. And Lucy loves to make new friends. We went last night, and there were a lot of new dogs there! It never seems to matter that Lucy hasn't met a dog before, a quick sniff, sniff and they're off! "Good Lucy!"

I had some concerns about the visit to the dog park last night. Lucy hasn't been around other dogs since the day that our German Shepherd cut her eye, and a few people warned me that she could possibly have lasting memories of this event that could hinder her interaction with other dogs. Thankfully that was not the case, although she did seem a bit apprehensive... For about 2 seconds!

"I'm ready to go to the dog park, Mom! Get this vehicle moving!"

Lucy's newest friend, a 10 month old labrador! Look at the size of this pup! I couldn't believe that he was only 10 months old!

"Are you sure you're not a box-aroo, Lucy?"

Another new friend! This pretty boy is a boxer-bull! It's funny how Lucy can spot another boxer from a mile away, and instantly goes insane. She loves all dogs, but another boxer is just too much to resist... Even if he is part bull dog!

"I didn't get da ball, Ma! But, I'm runnin, does that count as fetch?"

"Okay, Dallas- I knows dis is your toy, I'm just gonna pick it up and run wit it, and you can chase me! How does dat sound?"

Dallas is a regular at the dog park and Lucy and he really love to play together!

"So, you's a Steelers fan, hugh? I guess since you're part boxer, I won't holds dat against you. But, it's a good ting you've got some boxer blood in ya!"

"Hey, Lucy! It's time to go!"

"I'm comin ma! Hang on!"

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The Yam Experiment & Tuesday Tag-Along Blog Hop

Lucy and I have been blessed enough to have the last 2 days at home- away from the store. (Notice that I do not say that we have had the last 2 days off...) While I had a ton of painting to do, Lucy and I also managed to sneak in some play time. And I managed to make a quick run to the grocery store. My little boxer was excited to see me come home, and I know that all the smells in the grocery bags peaked her attention, so I humored her and let her help me unpack.

These soup bones are one of Lucy's favorite things. They're relatively inexpensive, but they're pretty tasty and they are very good at satisfying Lucy's urge to chew, keeping those sharp little teeth off of my all ready raw toes, ankles and elbows! I wash em off, put them in the microwave for about 7 minutes, let them cool and then I hand one off to Lucy who will chew, and chew, and chew usually for a good hour or two! They don't splinter like some bones do, and don't get all mushy and gross like rawhide does- and as I mentioned- they're pretty inexpensive. I got a pack of 3 of them for $2.00.

Lucy really loves vegetables, and I've decided that I'm going to experiment with adding different vegetables to her Wellness dog food which she's kind of been picking over lately. (Okay, I accept full responsability for this- she's probably been getting way too much human food- I am guilty as charged!)

At any rate, the vegetable of the day yesterday was to be yams. And I returned home from the grocery store with 4 pretty good sized ones and introduced them to Lucy. I was surprised that my little boxer even paid any attention to this raw yam, but she did. She and I talked about it and played with it for a whole 5 minutes before I decided it was time to cut it up and cook it.

Lucy sat patiently by my feet while I scrubbed and cubed 2 of the yams. (Cutting a yam is not an easy task, and I was feeling like the chances of me getting all of the yams cut without taking off my finger were pretty slim- but I did it! Yams are very hard- I'm pretty sure they're harder than a regular potato- and they make a big orange mess all over the place.)

Lucy was very interested in the pretty orange vegetables floating in the pot, she stuck her little head right in there. I was waiting for her to try to eat one of them raw, but I got the pan out of her reach in time. (Lucy is a good little kitchen helper, and I get a big kick out of showing her what I'm doing, or letting her sniff things. When I load the dishwasher, I let her sniff a plate or two, and she sits and watches as I finish loading the dishwasher. When she was younger, she jumped up on the door of the open dishwasher which was bound to eventually be a disaster. Thankfully, I have broken her of that habit!) She watched as I put the pot on the stove, and then she sat watch waiting for them to be done.

For 10 minutes, Lucy sat there and waited. At one point, Lucy laid down and let out a very deep sigh. I guess she thought this process was taking way too long. I wondered to myself how long this patience would last.

And I had no sooner finished this thought to myself when I turned around and Lucy had decided it was time for her to check on her dinner!

(Notice she's still got paint on her ear!)

"Oh boy, Lucy! You're way too precious! But, it's hot up there and you really need to get 'DOWN' You could get hurt and I would feel horrible! They're almost done, I swear. Just a couple more minutes."

Lucy looked at me, got down, let out a deep sigh and laid down on the floor in front of the stove.

I knew Lucy's patience was wearing thin, so letting those yams cool naturally was out of the question. She was right at my feet, sitting and waiting! I ran them under cool water, and mixed them right in with her dog food.

"Okay, Lucy! Your yams are finally done! 'SIT!'"

Lucy couldn't wait to get at those yummy yams. And she was quick to drag one out of the bowl and into the living room for some odd reason. She abandoned it there, and returned to the kitchen where she pretty much emptied out the bowl- except for about a 1/4 cup of the dog food.

The yams went over so well, that she had them again this morning for breakfast. My fiance thinks I've lost my mind- I'm cooking for the boxer!

I have been trying to clean out our house for the last couple of months. We've got all kinds of stuff that we don't use anymore that's just sitting around collecting dust, and of course, with the impending move- I've got to get cleaning! I had a huge pile of the old USPS boxes, (the ones with the old rates on them) in my study upstairs that needed to go, and I dragged them down to the burn pile, dropping one accidentally on the way. Lucy was quick to jump in and grab the dropped box. She dragged it all over the yard for a couple of minutes before trying to get into the house with it. Of course, the box was too big for her to carry in her mouth and walk up the steps. Lets just say I had a few giggles out of the event!

"Do you need to mail something, little Lucy?"


Without further ado...

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The Best Sleeping Spot In The Whole Darn House!

Last night, Lucy was in bed with us chewing on one of the meat bones I gave her yesterday, when she got thirsty and decided to jaunt into the bathroom and have an ice cold drink from the toilet! When she returned, she laid down by the side of the bed and fell asleep. She still can't jump up into our bed on her own. About an hour later, I woke up realizing that she wasn't in bed with us, and looked down to the floor- NO LUCY! I turned on the light and got out of bed and when I looked over, Lucy was sound asleep in the bottom of our closet! Of course, the flash from the camera woke the poor girl up! She looked so darn cute in there! I picked her up and put her back in bed with us, and she slept most of the night with her head curled up next to mine! "Good, Lucy!"

Lucy's Take... My Second Present of the Day!

"Boy oh boys, today just keeps gettin better! Dis was Mummy's second surprise! I must be a good puppy! Good ting I stays out of troubles n lets my hooman paint! By da way, Mom- I's gots some paints on my ear..."

Lucy's Take...The Return Of The Big Ball

My mums left da house pretty early dis mornin. She put me in my kennel n she tolds me she would be right back. And so I waited... And waited... And I waited. Finallys, I heards da garage door go up, n Mommy came flyin in the house. She didn't looks too happy. But, shes was sure happy to see my little wiggle butt.

Lucy: "What's da matter mom?"

My Human: "You wouldn't believe my morning, Lucy! First I couldn't get into the post office to mail those letters out, then I got caught in the rain, and got drenched, and then I locked my keys in the car and had to call your Dad to come bring me my key, and he was an hour away!"

Lucy: "I'ms sorry Mum! I'm glad you're homes now!"

My Human: "Me too, Lucy! And I've got 2 surprises for you!"

Lucy: "For me? Whats are dey?"

My Human: "I'll show you in a bit Lucy- let's wait for it to stop raining, okay?"

And so I waited... And waited... And waited. And I watched Mommy painting. I trieds to help her, buts she said I was just making a mess n she said something about paint all over my ear. I don'ts tink dats a good ting!

N finally, da rains stopped!

"Wow, Mom! Is dat big ball for me? It's not purple, but I's guess it'll do."

"Okay, maybe it'll be okay. Dis is a pretty color too!"

"I'ms not real sure about da girly stuff on here. Did you have to get all dis stuff on it, Ma?"

"Okay, I'll see what da girly balls got, but I's gotta stretch first. Is dat okay?"

"Whoa! Da girly balls got motion! Kick it again, Ma!"

"I'm gonna get yous stupid ball!"

"Here's I come..."

"GOTCHA!"

"Dat ball was lots of fun! But, it's hot out here!"

"Oh, I feels so much better now!"

...N dat my friends is how you play wit da big ball, n whys I missed it so much! Thanks Mom for bringing me a new ball! N in case yous is wonderin, my second surprise is a big meat bone, buts I haven't gotten its yet, Mummy says I haves to be a good puppy!! Yummy I can hardly waits! Sometimes, it's okays for my hooman to go away!