What is normal?

The past few weeks have been crazy!  I am a big fan of having routines.  Even the smallest changes can make me nervous and uptight.  As we started the school year I was already a little out of sorts because there were so many changes.  I knew everything would be fine as soon as I had a routine.

As school started, Sadie started acting really strange.  She was really lethargic (even for her), wouldn't eat, and would yelp in pain when we touched her or even when we didn't touch her.  We took her to the vet and found out she had a neck injury.  We have no idea how she got the neck injury!  Mike was given a list of instructions, three medications, and told to get her to eat as soon as possible.  Since a hot dog was recommended, he stopped by Sonic and bought Sadie lunch.  A few days later I was rushing home because we had friends who were suppose to arrive any minute to spend labor day weekend with us.  The combination of medication and wet dog food over the past few days caused an explosive situation all over our carpet.  When I took Sadie outside I realized she was also bleeding.  Vet visit number two brought the dog's medication count to seven!  I am so glad Mike took most of the responsibility for that because I there was a lot to keep track of.  Over the weekend we managed a fun trip to Galveston but were still somewhat concerned about Sadie.  We put in a call to Bethany who sweetly listened and made us feel better.  Vet visit number three got Sadie back on track and she has been doing better and better.  We knew she was back to normal when she became mischievous again!

Just as the dog was getting better Hurricane Ike came through the area.  Having never experienced a hurricane we figured things would be back to normal in a few days.  Fourteen days later we are happy to report we have power!  We learned a lot in this experience.  We did well and definitely have a few ideas for how we would do things different if this happens again.  Our apartment had very little damage and we only suffered from boredom and hot weather.  We spent the first week visiting friends during the day and sleeping with our windows open at night.  After a sleepless hot Saturday night we moved to Camp Curry.

Sometimes it is tough not living near our families.  One of my prayers before the hurricane arrived was that we would do what we could to help others and that we would have friends who would be willing to help us if we needed it.  It was such a blessing for Sean and Katie to let us crash at their house.  It is so easy to offer help but it is so tough accepting help!  We were there for six nights and Katie reassured us almost daily that they weren't tired of us yet.  Katie put me to work as her secretary and then as her kindergarten book fair helper.  

School started again while we were still living at the Curry house.  My beloved twenty minute drive to work from our apartment topped out at almost two hours from Camp Curry partially because of distance but mostly because of hurricane related traffic issues.  I didn't like getting up an hour earlier than usual, but it was nice to see Mike in the mornings.  He usually leaves for work while I'm catching my last few Zs.  I might start getting up a little earlier for a more relaxed morning routine unlike my traditional fireman on the way to a fire type of morning routine.  

Today was our first day back at home and we managed to get some things done.  We put the furniture back where it belongs (it had been moved to avoid a small leak), bought some basic groceries, did some laundry, and took some time to relax.  I'm so glad we were somewhat able to maintain our sense of humor and a basic level of mental health.  We can't wait to sleep in our own bed again...with the covers on!

Sing Along with Sadie!

Sadie is a little nervous about this hurricane business.  How do you soothe a nervous beagle...you have her act out Winnie the Pooh weather theme songs!

Little Black Rain Cloud

I'm just a little black rain cloud
Hovering under the honey tree
I'm only a little black rain cloud
Pay no attention to little me
Ev'ryone knows that a rain cloud
Never eats honey, no, not a nip
I'm just floating around over the ground
Wondering where I will drip

Oh, ev'ryone knows that a rain cloud
Never eats honey, no, not a nip
I'm just floating around over the ground
Wondering where I will drip

The Rain, Rain, Rain,
Came Down, Down, Down

The rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
In rushing, rising, rivlets
'Til the river crept out of it's bed
And crept right into Piglet's

Poor Piglet he was frightened
With quite a rightful fright
And so in desperation
A message he did write

He placed it in a bottle
And it floated out of sight

And the rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
So Piglet started bailing

He was unaware atop his chair
While bailing he was sailing

And the rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
And the flood rose up, up, upper

Pooh too was caught and so he thought
I must rescue my supper

Ten honey pots he rescued
Enough to see him through
But as he supped up his supper
The river supped up Pooh

And the water twirled and tossed him
In a honey pot

And the rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
So Piglet started bailing

He was unaware atop his chair
While bailing he was sailing

And the rain, rain, rain, came down, down, down
And the flood rose up, up, upper

Pooh too was caught and so he thought
I must rescue my supper

Ten honey pots he rescued
Enough to see him through
But as he supped up his supper
The river supped up Pooh

And the water twirled and tossed him
In a honey pot.......

A Rather Blustery Day

Hum, dum, dum, dee, dee, dum
Hum, dum, dum
Oh the wind is lashing lusterly
And the trees are thrashing thrusterly
And the leaves are rustling gusterly
So it's rather safe to say
That it seems that it may turn out to be
It feels that it will undoubteadly
Looks like a rather blustery day today
It seems that it may turn out to be
Feels that it will undoubteadly
Looks like a rather blustery day today

A good sing along makes everyone smile!  :) 

08-09 School Year...

08-09 School Year Theme

"Rock What You Got"

One of my favorite bands is a christian group called Superchick.  I have all of their albums and I am going to use their newest one as my theme for this school year.  Staff development this week has been very interesting.  There are many things I am excited about but also a few things I am not so excited about.  I spoke up but things didn't end up they way I wanted them to.  After going through some negative emotions I have found myself in a reflective state of mind.  I'm so stubborn that I've let a few things ruin the past week or two.....I'm done with that!  I want to take what I've been given and really glorify God!  Things aren't perfect in my eyes but I'm sure there is a reason.  I think this is going to be a long term lesson.  I'm going to choose to be positive about things.  Honestly, I think it will be a great opportunity to really impact the students at my school in a positive way that could really change their lives.  That is what education should be!

"Rock what you got

Rock what you got

Don't ever let them make you stop

Rock what you got

Rock what you got

Light up the lot

No one can rock the way you rock"

Creatures Living In Our Home...

I think most people know we have a beagle named Sadie but very few people know about the other creatures that currently inhabit our home.  It all started when a friend of mine introduced us to a funny website with "The Llama Song" (www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/llama).  It ended up fueling Mike's love of llamas.  He says that they are "happy animals" and I have never quite understood the fascination.

As we were planning our wedding my father thought it would be funny to offer Mike three mangy goats as my dowry.  No, my parents don't actually have goats or any other animals...it was just a joke.  My father accepted Mike's counteroffer asking if he could stack his three mangy goats and upgrade to a mangy llama.  One day while we were shopping with my parents at one of our favorite stores Ten Thousand Villages (www.tenthousandvillages.com) my father found a little llama figurine from Peru and purchased it.  The llama was ceremoniously presented to Mike at our rehearsal dinner.  Llama made the move to Houston with us after the wedding and spent most of his time claiming our possessions as his own.

After a few months we were concerned that Llama would be lonely so we went back to the store and carefully selected a wife for him.  Llamaette joined our household and that was it for a while.

A few months after that, the llamas decided to adopt a baby penguin named Henry.  Since he is just a baby they have yet to explain to him that he is adopted.  This also means that Henry thinks he is a llama.

As if the family wasn't already unique enough, our Baylor gnome has taken on the role of grandfather to Henry.

Our random find at IKEA (www.ikea.com) has also been taken in as their pet.  We think Nessie looks like the supposed Loch Ness Monster though she is quite tame.

Our souvenir squirrel wreath from the Austin Zoo (still partially decorated for Christmas) has become Uncle Nutmeg.  He greats us as we come and go each day.

There you have it!  These are the other creatures that live in our home.  We have plenty of other interesting things to share but we'll save those for another day.  If you didn't know before, you now know we are slightly...I don't know...just love us anyway!

Water Heater Poetry...

I don't know if it is unique inspiration or just the fact that I went to sleep really late and then unexpectedly woken up really early.  Yesterday the water for the entire apartment complex was off all day.  This morning, Mike woke me up to tell me the water heater had hot water flowing from its top making our garage into a low cost hot tub and sauna.  Nothing important to us was damaged.  Now I just have to wait a few hours for maintenance to go purchase a new water heater and install it.  (For the record, the water heater pictured isn't ours...you don't want to see that.)

Water Heater Haiku

Old water heater,

Flowing joyfully and hot,

You will be replaced!

Beagle Bath Time!!!

We love our dog dearly but she absolutely refuses to take care of her own personal hygiene.  We spend all week reminding her to file her nails and take a bath but she never does.  If you are not an expert beagle washer the following information will enlighten you.  Sadie's nails looked pretty good this week so we will save the beagle manicure and pedicure tips for another day.

To start, you must catch the beagle.  It is easier to do before she hears the water filling the bathtub.

Always remember to remove the collar.  It is very difficult to wash the dog's neck if you don't.

A very important step is to soothe the beagle before the bath.  She looks pretty grumpy because now she knows what is going on.

Hopefully, it is obvious that you need something to hold the bath water to make bath time successful.  We personally prefer our extra bathtub since Sadie is fairly small.

Soap is always very necessary for a successful bath.  Sadie's shampoo smells like oranges.  According to the back of the bottle, beagles are one of the breeds that tend to have a body odor problem.  Luckily for us, we have given her a bath once a week since we've had her and have not had to find out if this is true.

Our rinsing device of choice is our cherished plastic MacArthur Cardinals cup.  It has a tiger and viking on the other sides.  We didn't go to those schools so we didn't feel the need to advertise for them.

Sadie attempted one last crocodile roll to make her get away.  Mike didn't fumble the dog.

She also tried one last emotional plea.  That didn't work for her either.

Once you finally have the beagle in the tub, you can start washing.

She actually doesn't ever try to get out of the tub.  Once she gets in the water she is pretty well-behaved.

She always wants attention and someone to pet her so I think the actual washing is her favorite part.

We have done this enough times that she actually lifts each of her legs up to be washed.

To avoid doggie dandruff we typically rinse the shampoo off at the end of bath time.

Always make sure to drain the beagle over the bathtub for a few seconds.  Most of the water runs right off of her sort of like a duck.

We like to lay out a towel as a beagle landing strip.  I'm not sure if it really helps with anything but it does give us another towel to wash.

Before the beagle runs off, it is usually in our best interest to dry her off.  I think they test dog intelligence by timing how long it takes the dog to find its way out from under a blanket.  Our dog just sort of stands there and licks her feet.

Mike helped her out from under the towel.  I think she likes being toweled off because it is kind of like petting.

No bath time is complete with out the classic violent dog shimmy to fling every remaining drop of water all over the surrounding area.

Finally, after much licking and rolling on the carpet, Sadie is back to her original post on her doggie bed.  (Disclaimer: The information in this post was meant to portray the hygiene habits of one dog.  Using this bathing ritual for other living things is solely at the risk of the bather.  Please use good judgement and discretion.  If questions arise, please consult a professional.)

Road-Trip Day 10, 11, 12, & 13: Back In Houston!!!

I'm a little late posting this but it is so great to be home!  We spent a few days in Dallas before coming back to Houston.  (Shout-out to Katie's Mom!  Please excuse the bulldog picture...you know I have love for the Gators!)

Gas prices in Tennessee were pretty good!  This was in a small area though.  Definitely avoid buying gas in big downtown areas when possible.

Arkansas is so close and yet I had never been there before.

On the way to Little Rock.  I was surprised throughout our trip that many of the big cities really didn't seem that big.  The main highway also seemed to avoid going through the middle of most of the big cities so that might be part of it.

My grandparents were dairy farmers in Wisconsin so farm equipment strangely has a warm place in my heart.

I liked the pretty yellow airplane.  Then it started spraying chemicals all over the place.  Then I saw a truck full of chickens that looked cramped and were sticking their heads out.  I took a picture but didn't post it.  (You're Welcome!)  Definitely not my favorite stretch of road.

I was excited to make the highway change that would take us to Texas!

I would like to take a moment to endorse and highly recommend this Road Atlas.  It was very useful on our journey.  As a trained social studies teacher I have seen many maps and this is my new favorite!

More scenery...I am going to miss all the pretty trees along the interstate.

Gas prices in Arkansas didn't fit the pattern.  I guess they didn't get the memo that gas prices were suppose to go up as we went north and down as we went south.

There wasn't a 'Welcome to Texas' sign!  How can my own state not welcome me back?  After going through Texarkana.....I kind of don't blame the state of Texas.  Wow!  What an experience!  (Sorry if you have ties to Texarkana.....)

This kind of frightens me so we didn't stop to eat at TaMolly's.  It makes me think of an Irish pub blended with a Taqueria.  I'm just not prepared for that.

East Texas gas prices were better again but still not as good as Houston.

One of many lakes in North Texas.  I've never been much of a lake person but they sure are pretty!

I know...I've already shown a picture of the American Airlines center in Dallas.  This time it has a circus poster on it!  I really like the circus and Mike took me a few years ago.  I like driving past here when the circus is in Dallas because I can always see the elephants who are outside from the highway.

We finally made it to Dallas!  Avert your eyes if you don't like seeing a precious beagle cuddling a bulldog.  Sadie is a fan of schools with a canine mascot.  It does kind of look like she is strangling him though so I think the picture could make almost anyone happy.

While in Dallas for a few days we finally remembered to pullout the one year-old wedding cake.  As you can see, the bow on top and the fondant didn't fare so well over the past year.  It still tasted pretty good.  I forgot how huge it is!

We missed Sadie so much while we were gone!  She is sweet and so much fun to play with.

When we saw Sam Houston we knew we were getting close!  This statue kind of puzzles me but we'll save that discussion for another day.  I don't know if anyone really wants to hear me rant about Texas history.

Sadie didn't even see Sam Houston because she was busy napping.  You can kind of see her Hard Rock Cafe bandanna from Niagara Falls.  It has little pink hearts on it.  We had a great road-trip but we are happy to be home!