Ding Dong, the SNAKE is Dead...and Updates

You read that right, folks.  That blasted snake (and yes, I'm choosing to believe it was the same one) is DEAD.  I've been inside sick for several days the past week and my precious mom came over Sunday to deliver lunch.  As soon as I opened the door she slid inside with a squeal and informed me it was back.  Just sunbathing in the yard at almost the exact spot it was before.  Let me inject here that the moth ball myth is a hoax! I had the entire neighborhood smelling like a nursing home and this little trickster didn't mind.  We called my precious uncle immediately and he came to the rescue...broke his hoe and all while planning the exact and proper execution.  Hallelujah!  Now, if I see another one- the "For Sale" sign is going up.

Bentley- Well, things have been better with the little one.  He's learning to use the bathroom on his papers and has somewhat began playing independently.  It's still a struggle.  I appreciate all the advice you have given me.  JENNIFER- oh my.  I'm SO sorry I never responded to your fb message.  Between being sick and dealing with the above, it slipped my mind.  So, please accept my public apologies and thanks. :)  I'm not as desperate to get rid of him like I was a week or so ago.  I find myself just content to not make the decision right now.  I love him- mostly when he's asleep (HA), so will allow him to manage my life for a little while longer for now. 

Other than the snake and the dog, I have been battling the worst viral issues ever!  I started running fever and having a sore throat almost suddenly last Tuesday night.  I felt AWFUL and was waiting for my doctor's office to open Wednesday morning to get some relief.  He checked for strep and it was negative, but didn't check for the flu because he was confident it wasn't that.  He said it was viral, gave me a steroid shot, and sent me home with antibiotics just in case.  I felt much better that day (Steriod shots are such precious gifts.) and most of the next, but it started going downhill from there.  My ear completely stopped up on Friday, which is absolutey miserable.  My throat continued to bother me off and on, and I began coughing 24/7.  I called the nurse back and had them call me in some cough medicine.  Lesson learned: Do not take cough medicine with codeine.  It sure helped the cough, but a tornado could have come and completely removed my house from its foundation and placed it in a different state, and I would have had no idea.  The next day I was still out of it.  I went home early from school and stayed home yesterday, too.  I FINALLY feel like myself again today.  My ear is still totally clogged, but I feel much better.  I'm not convinced it wasn't the flu.  I don't ever remember being down for that long with a "cold."

Mom and I get to keep sweet Sarah Taylor this weekend while Cort and Trey go to the Opryland Hotel to celebrate his big 30th birthday.  We are so excited! 

What Was I Thinking?

I don't know what I've done.  It seems as if everything in my life defies all odds and my sweet little puppy seems no different.  Wow!  I knew to expect a lot of work and a lot of "accident" clean ups, but what I'm experiencing is nothing short of exhaustion.  Today marks two weeks I've had him.  He isn't anywhere close to being potty trained.  He thinks his puppy pads are toys and finds it very enjoyable to grab them and run around the house as if he's Superman and has just recovered his cape.  He chews on my one and only plant in the house and bites pieces of it off.  It stands almost four feet tall so there's nowhere for me to move it out of his reach.  He wants to do nothing that doesn't involve me.  His attention span with his toys lasts about 2 minutes before he runs to find me and whines until I give him attention or pick him up!  I feel like he's bored even though I play with him as much as I can and have bought him about ten toys.  I tried to take him out for a walk to release some of his energy and he would.not.have.it.  He didn't want to even get close to the street and I was having to drag him with the leash, so I gave up.  He claws on the couch with his sharp little paws, which I'm afraid is going to result in a rip or tear on my furniture.  I tried crating him and he completely and totally drenched the thing and relieved himself over and over throughout the night.  I feel like he needs me every second I'm home and there's never a chance for me to relax.  I would never compare a dog to a child nor do I think the responsibilities can be compared.  BUT, I feel like I've signed up prematurely to be a single parent and it's not sitting well with me! To top it all off, I'm paranoid I'm allergic to him.  I thought he was supposed to be hypoallergenic.  However, while I have allergy issues each year, it's really bad right now.  When I stopped to think about it, it seems like it started when I got him and has gotten progressively worse.  I woke up this morning with a sore throat and I just outright feel crummy.  What does that leave me to do?  I feel like a failure and I'm not typically one that gives up on something that I really want.  I guess either my dog is extra demanding or I had no idea what I was getting myself into.  Maybe it's the last of the two.  If I'd known it would be like this, I don't think I would have gotten him.  It makes me really sad because he's precious and I do love him.  He's just hyper and unless he's fast asleep, there isn't a time he will let me hold him and love on him without biting the fire out of me or striking at me like a snake! (And you know my issues with those!)  What do I do, friends?  I go back and forth each day.  I'm embarrassed to be honest.  I thought I knew what this would entail and I guess I just didn't.  I want what's best for him.  I really do.  If I'm not that, then I want him with a family with children that will love him and play with him like he deserves.  I guess the issue is to just figure out if that's me or someone else. :(

Finally...

I FINALLY got an iPhone this week!  After talking to Verizon hundreds several times, they finally realized it wasn’t ideal to send me Droid X #6 after almost two years of troubleshooting. Instead, they gave me an upgrade two months early, and I am one happy girl! This iPhone is nothing short of amazeballs.  I’m enjoying lots of new apps that I didn’t have the luxury of using before.  One of them is Instagram.  I know it’s old news to you apple veterans, but I’m just learning it for myself.  I was encouraged by my friend Haley to do the April photo challenge, where you post a photo each day in April of a specified person, place, event, etc.  Today’s challenge is someone that makes you happy.  I not only dedicated Instagram to this special person, but today’s blog post too.  It’s none other than my sweet Sarah Taylor, who has the ability to make me happy in a way that no one else can.  She is my light, my sunshine, and I love her to pieces.

                     

 If any of you "Instagramers" are interested in the April Photo Challenge, here's the list.  Find me and let's be friends. ;)

My Fellow Crafters will Love This!

If you're into crafts like I am and love to make fun seasonal home decorations or recipes, this blog is for you!  Melissa is a friend of mine that lives in Murfreesboro, TN.  She just began this blog and has already been featured in Tatertots and Jello, as well as others.  Leave her a comment and tell her I sent you!

www.daisymaebelle.com

Where Joy and Sorrow Meet

Today has been the long anticipated day that I....wait for it....was due to go pick up MY NEW PUPPY!  Those that know me well laugh and are still in a state of shock that I, the anti-outdoorsy, bug, tick/flea, dirt kind of girl decided to take on the task of becoming a dog owner.  It's something I've considered off and on for a year or more.  Let's face it, I get lonely living alone and was ready for a companion.  If a canine companion is all I can muster at the moment, then I decided to bring it on!  I was very picky about my choice of dog and waited for just the right one at just the right price.  Unexpectedly, I came across a girl I knew from high school selling puppies her dog had.  They are yorkie poos, half mini-poodle and half yorkie.  They are small dogs full grown, hypo-allergenic, don't shed, easy to train, etc.  Pair those traits with the awesome price she asked and I found myself a puppy!  Risking the ridicule of most friends and family, I decided that due to my fear of ticks and allergy to grass that I would paper train this new little housemate.  I've done some research on how to do it best and am determined to make it work.  Since I just got him this afternoon, I don't have much to report as far as that goes yet.

So, I woke up early this morning thinking of all I wanted to do before I brought Bentley home.  I got everything finished early and was literally on my way out the door when I look, as I do very often, out my window to check for snakes.  ***If you don't recall the posts I wrote previously about snake sightings at my house, go back and search my archives if you'd like.  Terrified isn't the word.  Petrified is more like it.  Only in winter am I able to walk in and out of my house without being scared of another sighting.  Today, I saw it.  A snake.  A big black snake.  I.FROZE. and began to sweat...a lot, as in my hair was wet.  I think I would have been less scared had I looked out to see a grizzly bear.

All I knew was that my door was bolted and there was no way in this world I was sitting foot out there.  I called my precious uncle and he arrived quickly with a hoe to attempt the cold-blooded murder.  Do I realize it was only some sort of harmless snake that is actually good to have around to kill mice, insects,etc?  Yes.  Do I care?  NO!  He got a couple good jabs at it before it slithered in a hole underground. This was not my friends, the result I was hoping for.  Our next step was to try and wash it out.  While I was still behind closed doors, my uncle stuck the water hose in one hole and turned the water on.  Nothing.  We then got some ammonia, which is said to work in bringing the little varment out.  Nothing.  Did I stop there?  No.  I went and got three more bottles of ammonia and poured the entire contents of them down the hole. Nothing.  I'm hoping (and praying) the thing died in the hole from the blunt force of the hoe, or from suffocating from the fumes.  Either way, I am now once again terrified to enter or leave my house.  Feel sorry for me.  I'm not in the least bit exaggerating.

Needless to say, the above put a large damper on the excitement I was feeling about getting the puppy.  After running and screaming down the sidewalk to my car, I proceeded to go pick up sweet Bentley.  Let me just say he is THE cutest puppy ever!  He weighs four pounds and is already completely attached to me. I can't go anywhere in the house without him following me.  He doesn't want to be anywhere other than in my lap.  He went to the vet and got his first shot today, along with some oral treatment I am supposed to start tomorrow.  

To top off my day, in typical Amy fashion, I was holding Bentley tonight and noticed a tiny little "something" on my jeans.  I looked closely and noticed it was moving.  UGHHHHHH!  Poor Bentley evidently has worms.  I hear it's very common and I'm pretty sure that's what the oral meds are for I am to begin giving him tomorrow.  But, I don't do well with stuff like this.  Between this and the snake, I'm pretty much spent.  I put sweet Bentley to bed (in which he's sleeping soundly and not crying..thank goodness) and vacuumed the entire downstairs and then got a shower.  I still feel like I need another one.  I'm not a very happy camper right now.  I plan to call the vet in the morning to get specific directions on what to do.  But, those little jokers better disappear quickly and leave my sweet Bentley alone!

How's this for a mix of emotions in a day?  I'd love advice from you dog owners about dealing with worms, tips on paper training, or suggestions in general.  At this point, I'm trying not to regret my decision. 

Favorite Things- Diet Edition

“Favorite Things” posts are by far the most fun to write!  Since starting this diet (update at the bottom of the post), I have learned to adapt my taste buds to all different types of foods.  I’ve found some really great low-carb ideas and some not so great.  I wanted to dedicate this “Favorite Things” post to my new favorite diet foods.

1.      Kangaroo Pita Chips- Technically, I am not supposed to be eating any packaged foods.  However, who has time or even wants to have time to cook three meals a day?  Not this girl.  So, if I find packaged foods that meet my criteria of low carb/high fiber, I snatch them up!  These chips are an example.   There are only 18g of carbs and 3g of fiber in 11 chips, which is plenty.  Most chips have little to no fiber, which helps balance out the carbs.  These puppies are seasoned so they’re good by themselves, or even better with some sort of dip.

2.      Guacamole from ALDI- I'm a new fan of guacamole...especially when it's cheap AND tastes good!  I can't remember what brand it is, but it's the only type I saw at ALDI.  It does have a lot of fat, but it's the "good" fat and is very healthy due to being made from avocados.  To use for dipping, I make my own chips.  I take a carb balance tortilla, cut into thin strips, and bake  on 425 for about 10-15 minutes.  They work perfectly.

3.      Progresso Tomato Basil Soup-  This soup is very high in fiber and tastes like it came from your favorite girly sandwich shop downtown with those cute little crackers and mint leaves on top.  I take string cheese and melt it in the soup.  Perfect combination. 

4.      Life Choice Peanut Butter Crunch Protein Bars- Albeit another packaged food, they have 10g of protein and 6g of fiber, with only 23g of carbohydrates. 

5.       Florida Oranges- I've become obsessed with oranges.  I can't get enough!

6.      Sweet Potato Fries- Sweet potatoes are full of fiber so surprisingly, they are allowed on this diet.  I stick these in the oven for about 30 minutes and they’re crispy and downright tasty!

Update:

The diet is going well, I guess.  It’s sooooo  slow, though, and I don’t do well with that.  I’ve been trudging away at eating protein, fruits,  veggies, and doing without SUGAR for about six weeks now and have been stuck at 7-8 pounds for a long time.  I won’t say there haven’t been times when I’ve eaten things I shouldn’t, because there have been.  However, I am pretty doggone proud of myself for how hard I’ve worked, regardless of what the scale is saying.  This week in particular (cough cough) I have been craving any morsel of sweetness I can find.  I’ve managed to refrain for the most part.  I feel MUCH better physically, and I appreciate the favor I’m doing my body in feeding it all the right things.  I never eat as healthy as I do when I’m on this “diet.”  I am choosing from now on to refer to it as my new lifestyle.  I hope to eat like this from now on.  I owe it to myself and my God to honor the temple He has given me.  Prayers are still appreciated, as I am still learning to transition into healthy eating habits.

Ms. Spontaneity

I'm not sure how I would explain my personality. I am all about having a plan. I don't like surprises. My calendar is my best friend. I have a "to-do" list beside me at my desk 24/7. However, there's a part of me that's very spontaneous. Once I get something on my mind, it's almost impossible to let it go. This happened last Thursday. Around 1:00 pm, I decided I wanted to paint my kitchen....immediately. I got out of school at 3:00 and by 4, I had picked out the color, gone to the store, and had my gallon of paint ready to go. I sought out the help of some friends but was so impatient, I ended up painting the whole thing before they even arrived! I was pretty proud of myself! Here's a shot of the before- I didn't like the green the first day I walked in and saw it being painted.

And, here's the after. I LOVE it and am so glad I followed through with the oh so spontaneous idea of mine.  It looks more blue in the pictures that it really is.  It's more of a blue-gray color.  It's very tranquil- perfect and exactly what I was going for.

-