Kalea's First Vet Visit

Today we took Kalea to the vet. It was her first vet

trip since she came to us.

Boy, do I feel like a failure as a pet owner. Well, not

really. First let me start by saying, this is a new vet for

us. He's closer to our home. We used to take
our animals to a vet about 40 minutes from us. They were closer to us before

we bought our house. Now, we want someone that's closer.

This new vet is a bit like the "House" of veterinarians.

I guess you either love that type of person, or hate them.

I'm not sure which side I'm on yet.

He was full of interesting information,

with a dose of everything

that we could be doing differently.

NO treats. NO Iams. NO Purina.

Must feed the puppy three times a day, and only a quarter of a

cup per feeding.

Must weigh her to make sure she's not gaining too much, but also isn't losing

too much. Now, about weighing the dog. The only way

to do that is for one of us to stand on the scale holding the dog

after weighing ourselves. Frankly, I'd rather not know

how much I weigh. Unless, of course, I can blame

the weight gain on the puppy.

That just doesn't seem right.

Back to the visit. No shots yet, in two weeks.

Feed Science Diet. Clean ears regularly. Squeeze anal

sack (WHAT?!)

Only fresh veggies and pumpkin for treats.

Now I tried the pumpkin and veggie trick with the cat.

Not such a hit.

I'm not sure how I feel about the visit.

Jon calls it information overload.

Kalea is just sleeping the visit off.

I guess he takes his job seriously.

That's not such a bad thing. Look at that sweet puppy.

I'm off to break out the green beans. Perhaps

I'll dip them in pumpkin.

A Morning Walk

This morning was beautiful. I decided to take the dogs and

the kids for a walk before school. Before we bought Kalea

I researched Basset Hounds on line.

I found out that they're really good with kids.

I also found out that bassets love food and rest, and they're

not big fans of exercise.

One trainers recommendation was that

you train the puppy from when they're young to walk

on a leash. They have to learn that you're the boss.

Sounds good. Until you see how cute the puppy is.

Those eyes, that whimper.

DOMINATE THE DOG.

I AM THE ALPHA DOG.

Kalea started out liking the walk, but then she was done with

it. She laid down. At which point I was dragging her.

She gets back up, walks some more, drops, gets dragged, gets

up walks, drops. You get the picture.

As we're walking, a car stops along side us.

I try to pretend that I don't see it, don't know who the lady inside is.

She parks. Rolls down her window. Starts to call to me.

Wow, she's persistent. "Is that dog all right?" she asks me.

I try to explain that we're trying to teach her to walk on a leash.

As if what I'm doing is her business, but my mom did raise me to be both

polite and kind. "Oh, you should let one of the kids carry her."

I try to explain that we won't be able to carry her when

she's full grown, and that she needs to learn. The lady continues

to stare at me, and then at the kids. I see her thinking,

"Should she really have those kids?"

I feel this need to justify what I'm doing, but then stop myself.

It's not her business. Kalea is my dog. I look at Kalea, laying on the ground,

sad eyes looking up at me, pleading, "Oh the pain. Please don't drag me."

"Nice girl." I say. "You can do it. Not much further."

I reach to pick her up, the lady drives away. I put Kalea back

on the ground and continue to drag her along. "Dog" I say, "You'd

best start walking before we have anyone else stop us."

She looks at me, wags her tail, and continues the walk

home.

Cancer Sucks

Please pray for my mom. She was

given the results of some blood work today.

Her cancer levels are high again.

The doctor doesn't know why.

They're going to draw more blood in two weeks and then

check them again. I hate this.

This Can't Be Right

The dog and the cat have finally become friends.
At first Lucy, the cat, was scared of Kalea. She would follow her around
from a distance. Then she pounced.

At first, I thought it was a fight. I broke it up.

Then they ran back together. This is what the

two of them do all day long.

Jon thinks it looks like a cock fight.

I guess it's fun as long as no

one looses an eye.

The Things That Change With Time

This weekend was hot. It felt like summer.

In the spirit of soon to be summer, we packed

up the kids and took them to the park that

Jon and I were married in almost eight years

ago.

The park has all sorts of trails and a stream.

We enjoyed a dinner outside.

Everything tastes better outside.

Then we started hiking.

First, please enjoy this picture twice. I couldn't

figure out how to remove it.

Aren't those kids cute? Don't they look

like they're having fun.

Take a second look.

We took the kids down to the stream where

Jon and I had some of our wedding

photos taken.

We, Jon and I, reminisced about

our wedding day.

Hard to believe that it was almost eight

years ago. The time really has gone quickly.

The day of our wedding was really hot and humid.

Jon was in his tux, I was wearing a heavy gown.

I couldn't wait to hike back to the creek to get

some pictures.

Our photographer was lots of fun. He was

all into hiking.

Jon was melting.

One of my favorite wedding pictures is a picture

that was taken in this field as

Jon and I were walking

towards the gazebo. The kids were walking

ahead of us, and I couldn't resist the picture

of the two of them with their arms around each other.

The dogs also enjoyed the view from the field.

I think Kalea was enjoying the view of Bailey.
The park has lots of hills. What kid can resist
the fun of rolling in the grass.

The kids loved rolling down the hill.

They probably did it 100 times. Maybe I'm exaggerating,

but they did it a lot.

After rolling down the hills, we took the kids

to "our" gazebo. The place that we

took our wedding vows almost eight years

ago. Who would have guessed

then that we would go through infertility

and the Lord bringing us the children

that He chose for us. Of course, while in

the gazebo, we had to re-enact our

wedding kiss. Instead of wedding music and cheering

like we heard the first time we did it, we heard,

"Oh gross! Do you have to do that?!"

Oh, the things that change with time.

Who Needs A Bed

First it was a paper bag. Now Lucy has discovered

a bowl. She loves that bowl.

It's right in the sun. I can't bring myself to

move it to put it away.

Crazy Cat.

The New Addition

After loosing Tyler, we knew that we

would get another dog.

We just didn't know it would be quite so soon.

The newest addition to our family is

Kalea LeiLani.
She is a seven week old Basset Hound.

Here she is with our dog Bailey. Bailey is not too

interested in the puppy. How could she resist

that face?

"Please be my friend."

"I'll even share my toys."

I think they'll be friends soon.

We hope for many happy years with little Kalea.

One Really Great Dog

Before we had kids, we had pets.

Shortly after Jon and I married,

we went to the local shelter.

We met a stray. He'd been found wandering.

No one knew how old he was, where he'd

come from, what he'd been through.

They did know that he was easy going. Loved to eat, sleep,

and play (we were told). They knew that he was

part black lab. They knew that he needed a home.

We fell in love with him. His name was Tyler.

We brought him home.

We figured he was old, he wasn't quite as playful as a

younger dog. He did love to eat and sleep.

He loved us. He endured the addition of

children to our family.

Accepted them, loved them. He was loyal and kind.

His favorite thing to do was to lay outside, in the sun. Imagine

how he must have hated the shelter, locked indoors in a cage. How

happy he was to hike, camp, and spend time with us.

He was a wonderful dog. On Friday, April 17, Tyler

passed away unexpectedly. He has left a hole in our hearts.

He is missed.

We still look for him out under his favorite tree. We still see the holes

he dug in our yard. We miss his happy face.

We love you Tyler.

A Very Fun Easter Weekend

For Easter this year, we went down to visit my parents. We

had such a fun visit.

Last fall, it was our hope that my mom

would still be alive on Easter. How thankful we all are

that she was.

One of her goals was to be able to go to Joe's Crab Shack.
She'd seen all sorts of advertisements for
the restaurant chain while watching
Food Network during her recovery.
How fun to make that goal a reality. It may not seem
like a big deal to most, but it was to us.
My mom hasn't been able to travel, and for
a while she wasn't able to eat.
On the Saturday before Easter, we loaded up the car and drove
to Lawrencville, NJ. What a beautiful drive
we had through Princeton.
We enjoyed a delicious, and fun meal of crab, shrimp, fish, and
chicken for my dad (he doesn't like seafood).
I wish that the day, and the time, could have lasted forever.
Hard to believe, a few months ago, I would have been rushing
the kids, and hurrying on to the next thing. My mom's illness
has changed my perspective. Now I savor the time
that I have with my family, that my kids
have with their grandparents. I enjoy the celebration
of a goal achieved. A cancer battle being
fought. Small steps back.
It was a really great day.
You can't have Easter without decorating eggs. Notice
the beautiful eggs that Doodles made.

Three years ago, we brought our children to meet my

parents for the first time. They had never

celebrated Easter before. They'd never made eggs, had Easter

Baskets or enjoyed a time with extended family. They were four and five then.

Hard to believe that they have become Easter pros in three

short years. Easter is always a fun time. Not only

is it my mom's favorite holiday, the

basis of our faith, but it is the time

that my children celebrated their first holiday with us.

Easter morning, after the Easter breakfast. What did the bunny bring us.

I forced them to pose on the stairs for some pictures. Jon was

video taping, I was snapping pictures. Our children's

lives are documented!!

Oh, the joy of Easter morning. Look at that loot!

We enjoyed a beautiful service at my parent's church. The singing

and worshiping was wonderful. How great to

know that Jesus lives, and that we have

the confidence of knowing we

will spend an eternity with Him.

After church, it was time to hunt for eggs. I love

this picture of the kids running.

They were having so much fun.

That bunny, how clever he was to hide those eggs.

K. finding eggs. He loves the egg hunt.

Another egg, waiting for a child.

Doodles, looking for some eggs.

"Oh Mommy! The Easter Bunny brought us candy!"

Finally, a picture of our Easter spread.

The reason it was such a big deal? It's the first

holiday meal that my mom has been able to cook

since her diagnosis and surgery.

Another mile stone met. Another

memory to share. I'm so thankful to

see these steps towards recovery.

I'm so thankful for another holiday

that I can spend with those I love.

A Fun Night and an Exciting Morning

Friday night, we took the kids to see

Michael W. Smith and Stephen Curtis Chapman

in concert. First, this is the only picture I have, because I listened

to my husband and didn't bring the camera into the theater! This

is the kids in the back of the van at the restaurant.

We went out for dinner first. We took the kids to

The Hook. It's a yummy, nice restaurant that Jon and I used to go to

before children. I was nervous about taking the kids, but Jon assured

me our kids would do great. He was right. These kids are

certainly not the two children that we had to remove

from an Uno's after being thoroughly embarrassed

by their behavior three years ago. That is a whole different story.

Back to the concert. It was fabulous. It was the United Tour, and it was

so moving and powerful. Our kids are very shy about singing,

but they sang and danced their little hearts out on Friday night.

After the show, we went out for dessert. We didn't get the kids home until

midnight. We all had so much fun. Did I mention they did a great job.

All through the concert I was watching them singing to the Lord,

and I just kept praying that the Lord would continue to

grow His love in their hearts, and they would grow to

love and serve Him. It was a fun night.

Now, our kids usually go to bed about 7pm, so midnight was

very, very late. We told the kids not to wake us up, we were sleeping until noon.

They promised they wouldn't, and they didn't. They slept

in. We did not. You can't see the bird too good in this picture,

but it's wrapped in the towel. That little black head and beak

are part of a bird that was in our house.

Saturday morning, I stumbled to the bathroom. I had to go so bad, I didn't have my glasses

on. I didn't have my contacts in. It was still darkish. I walk into the bathroom

and here this swishing sound. Then I see this blurry

black thing flying around. I screamed. Wouldn't you?! Mind

you, I was half asleep. Anyway, I screamed. At

first I thought it must be a bat. Out of hibernation early,

rabid, I don't know. I ran to the bedroom, put on my glasses,

went back to the bathroom, and took

another look. It was a bird. Then I did

what any self respecting wife does, I woke up my

husband and told him to PLEASE, PLEASE take

care of the bird, because I had to really, REALLY

pee.

Jon is not his best in the mornings, but I think

that the idea of a bird in the house made him wonder if I'd had more than

dessert the night before. "A bird?" he asked. "Are you sure."

"Yes! Yes!" I insisted. This time jumping up and down and trying

not to hold myself. I really had to pee.

Jon went to the bathroom, there was the bird. Flying up and down, but

not flying out. Jon was convinced that he could

catch the bird. He tried, and tried.

The bird go trapped in the cabinet in the bathroom, at which time

I peed.

Finally, Jon was able to catch the bird with the towel.

After taking the bird's picture, we set it free.

It flew to the tree behind our house. I swear

I heard it say, "Thank you". We spent

the rest of the day trying to figure out

how a bird got into our house, without us noticing.

How it managed to stay the night in our house

without our cat or two dogs noticing.

We still don't know how it got into our

house. Do you know, the kids slept through it.

All we could do was show them the

picture. They looked at us like we were crazy when

we insisted that yes, there had been a bird in the bathroom.

I'm still not sure they believe us.