'Tis the Season!

...for spending money when you don't want to.

So, Lulu isn't allergic to the dog food she came home on, but she had an intolerance to it that led her to have less than cleanly-pick-up-able poo.  I switched her to the food Pooh King had been on (Blue Buffalo's "Taste of the Wild" Bison) and she loved it, the gastric symptoms got much better, and things seemed to be going okay except for the bumps.  Oh yes, the bumps.  And she started smelling funny.  Like, her skin was weird.

Then the potty breaks started.  You know, the in-the-middle-of-the-night kind of potty breaks.  Ugh.  I knew something was up and was planning on taking her to the vet.  Then on Monday, when I picked her up from daycare, she was COVERED with welts.  Poor bulldog!  I popped her in the car and started down the road, and... she peed in the car.  ACK!  Well, at least I use a seat cover (especially since she had gotten stinky).  So, I called the vet's office and let them know I needed to bring her in.  2 minutes later, there we were!  (It's a benefit of living a mile from the office.)

We hit the door of the office, and poor little Lu started to shake!  I guess she remembers her hysterectomy visit quite well.  :(  $200 later, Lulu's been diagnosed with a food allergy, given a steroid injection, put on hypoallergenic food, and is on antibiotics.  She is taking it all in stride and is looking much better already.  She doesn't eat people-food at all.  No, really, I learned my lesson with Pooh King... but she does get a wee bit of cheese to take her pill in, and that is like Christmas.  EVERY TIME.

Lulu, Otis and Oz have been good about not getting in the tree so far.  So far.  The more bows and shiny things that show up under there, the more curious they become.  But still, it's nothing like this...

From the road...

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!  Jason's driving while I play on the phone.  Life is good.  We're headed back to fabulous FarmVegas after a whirlwind weekend at The Farm.  Had "Thanksgiving" (cold turkey and no gravy, for which I was decidedly ungrateful) with his parents and The Force, then jumped in the car and headed South (where turkey is served hot and there's ALWAYS gravy).  Along the way my 2 week-long head cold turned into a lovely case of sinusitis, and some would argue bronchitis.  Booooooo, hiss! 

Friday morning we went to see Ma King's award winning quilts hanging at the show at the museum.  A good time was had by all, until I fell out the door.  Seriously.  The sign said "STEP DOWN" and had a big finger pointing to the step you were about to miss.  Me?   I chose to look the other way and fall instead of step.  You know, 'cause I'm all classy and shit.  Banged up my knee and twisted my back, but overall hurt my ego more than anything.

Later that day, Mom convinced me I needed to be at Urgent Care and I quit protesting... mostly because I couldn't breath.  2 hours, a bottle of Nyquil, and one prescription for Augmentin later, I was on my way.  Not a bad experience, overall.

Mom and Dad got a new puppy on Friday.  "Cracker Jack" is a "mini" australian shepard, and will likely top out around 20 pounds.  Let me gell you, 7 week old puppies are fun until 2am.  He's super cute and very sweet, though, and the 'rents seem happy with him.

Now we're on the way home and traffic is really chapping my ass.  I can't wait to snuggle with the bulldog on my own couch and finish coughing out the infection.  Nice, huh?  Just in time for a short week of work before I head to see Megan and the crew in TX!!!

Here I am, with time and motivation to write, and I have nothing to say.




Well, it's not that I have nothing to say, but I so wanted to write a funny post, and I've got nothing.

We had a wonderful family gathering (see pictures below) and bid farewell to my grandparents ashes... well, half of them (half of their combined ashes, that is).  We went to Helton Falls in Dalonega, GA, and let some of them go.  Then we went back to our cabins at Scottish Woods, and scattered the other half of the half of ashes while a piper played at sunset.  It was exactly as they would have loved it, and it was magical.

Lulu

Lulu!  Yes, I do realize these pictures are a month old... and yes, I do realize that I need to write some stories, but this is going to have to do for now.  Besides, isn't a picture worth a thousand words?

A day at the zoo...

And the beat goes on...

Fall soccer, baby, it's the real thing!

1 month

 Well, Lulu's been with us for a month.  Time sure is flying with our little dog.  She's growing, though not as dramatically as a little puppy would.  I took her yesterday to be weighed, and she's up to 33.5 lbs from 29.  Her head is broadening out, and her wrinkles should be coming in over the next few months.  Apparently 10-12 months is the magic age for bulldog puppies to really start looking adult.  She is a very sweet puppy and we're loving having her.

And here's the real beef.  Lulu goes to daycare.  Seriously.  Every morning I drop her off, and every evening I pick her up.  Just.like.a.child.  I feel bad leaving her in a crate all day, and I don't want her potty training to regress (read as, she wasn't potty trained when we got her).  Mostly, though, she is benefiting from the socialization of being around kids, cows, chickens, cats, children, and other dogs.  Did I mention that Doggy Daycare is on a farm?  Oh yeah, my awesome petsitter has a farm, and that's Doggy Daycare!  It's totally cool to take her there.  Lulu loves it, Maddie (the almost 2 year old) LOVES her, and she gets to run and play all day, and frankly, she's not AS wild when she comes home.  It's great.

Of course, there are the funny things about having Lulu.  She has more toys than one could imagine.  She's a chewer by nature, so I figure if I keep her chewing on toys, she's less likely to chew on stuff I don't want teeth marks in.  Then there's the crate (1), the plush dog  beds (2), and the elevated dog bed "couch".  The dog couch has come as a result of Lulu wanting to be on the leather sofa all the time.  We're still working on the dog couch being the preferred seating choice.  She uses it like a trampoline whilst chasing any of her million toys. 

The funniest thing so far has been giving her Pepto Bismal.  I tried by spoon.  Fail.  It wound up all over the cabinets and floor, but the best was her pink lips.  I tried to give her Pepto in a bowl- straight up.  Fail.  But put it on food like gravy?  Ate it right up.  Weirdo.

Well, maybe not...

So, it turns out THAT wasn't my dog... THIS is my dog!

I got the okey doke, but that's okey-dokey with me.  She's kind of awesome.  And there's no such thing as a beauty queen in the bulldog world anyway.

Meet Lulu

So really, I didn't think I was going to get another dog for a long, long time.  The absence of Pooh King is like having a giant hole in the living room.  A giant 75 pound hole.  You have to walk around the hole to get from point A to point B.  You have to look at the hole all the time.  You can't really avoid the hole.  Ever.  It's a sad, sad hole.  Some days, you feel like the hole is as much a part of your home as the couch or the television.  You're resigned to living with the hole because you know the hole is not as painful as it used to be, but it's still as big and as noticeable.  Some days the hole still makes you cry, but most days you just step around the hole in polite acknowledgement of its existence.

For several weeks I didn't look at pictures of dogs.  Definitely didn't read stories or watch videos.  Then someone posted a YouTube video of a bulldog dragging around a plastic kiddie pool and ultimately figuring out how to dump the water so he could pull it in the house.  It was awesome.  I laughed so hard I almost cried (the almost happy instead of mostly sad kind this time).  I was in love with Gus the English Bulldog.  I made Jason watch.  He found it equally funny (but not in the crying way).  Turns out he's always wanted a bulldog.  Seriously. 

And thus started my quest.  My mission.  My softening of the hole.

Oh, the hole will always be there.  I don't think that a new puppy will fill in the hole.  But, there is room for new memories and there is definitely more than enough time and love.  And the hole?  Well, I no longer feel like I will fall into it if I stand too close.  The slope is a little less steep and the bottom a little more shallow.  It seems as though it's filled with fluffy goodness instead of something cold and hard.  I still see the hole, and feel the hole, and step softly around the hole in polite acknowledgement of its existence.

And I will start taking Lulu for walks on Saturday after I pick her up in Maryland.

T

Miss me?

I didn't think so.

Not much is going on over here.  Just livin' the life.  No, really, it IS true.

The summer's been hot, blah blah blah.  I've been working my ass ON.  I'd like to say I'm working it off, but I just keep finding more of it hanging around lately.  (I don't know what that's about.  Maybe being in my late 30s.  Boooooooooooo.)  We've been at the pool a good bit.  See?  It's "life", and we're busy living it.

Last Sunday was Jason's birthday, so we fulfilled all wishes and did a 3 day road trip to Jacksonville, FL, to see the Dexter Jackson Classic.  That's right, people, a body building competition.  Good times.  We stayed with his friend's family.  Did I not mention they're Filipino?  Good times.  His mother kept telling Jason, "Good luck!  I think you will win!"  She just couldn't grasp the idea that he wasn't IN the competition.  When we got home with pictures from the competition she said, "Hold on, all those muscles!  LET ME GET MY GLASSES!"  (Really, I hope you're imagining this in a Filipino lady accent, 'cause it's way funnier that way.)  We spent a day at the beach, then it was time to haul ass back to FarmVegas.  Next time we need to go to Jacksonville, we'll FLY.

We've decided to get an English Bulldog.  That's right, we've got Bullie love.  The apartment complex isn't quite on board with us yet, but we're working on them.  Somehow they've got the impression that a dog that likes to sleep, fart, and snore should be grouped in with pitbulls and other aggressively-natured breeds.  Seriously?  I mean, yeah, Bullies might look like they've been punched in the face a few times, but they're anything but aggressive.  They need to go for one walk a day.  They're couch potatoes.  They're the dog version of me.  I asked them to review the policy, and they'll get back to me by next week.  How long it will take to get a dog?  Well, that's another story altogether.

The Force continues to grow by leaps and bounds.  He's a wild little reader, and started Kindergarten last week.  That is crazy.  He's so stinkin' smart and growing up every day.  So this is what all you parents keep talking about, you know, how it goes so fast.

Otis isn't the only one who enjoys playing in a box...

And I just realized I could upload more than 4 pictures at a time now. Funny trick Blogger. Real funny.

This was just before we left for vacation, and Pooh King was feeling just fine. :(