Did you know...
...that I cut 4 inches off my hair last weekend on a whim? It's now to my chin in the front and shorter in the back.
...that Steve and I are making homemade pizza tonight and I'm so excited to eat so many sauteed mushrooms that about 1/3 of them will actually make it on my side of the pizza?
...the Colorado Avalanche is my favorite professional hockey team?
...Vancouver Canuck's are my least favorite team? Technically, the Avalanche's hated rivals, the Detroit Red Wings should be, but I can't help it.
...I got a cheap-o bubble gum dispense as a white elephant gift at my office Christmas party? It's on my desk and I put salted peanuts in it.
...I also have 2 mugs of candy on my desk? One is Miss Chatterbox and contains Kisses, the other is Miss Sunshine and holds Skittles. Steve gave me the mugs.
...I'm going to school for a Masters of Taxation? It's the only such program in the state of Utah.
...I recently went to San Antonio with Steve? You should if you read the blog regularly. :)
...we're planning a trip in May and may go to Disney World? I've never been to Florida - it's the big selling point as I'm not really big on amusement parks.
...I'm slowly losing the weight I put on at Christmas? I'm down 4 lbs!
...yellow is my current favorite color? It's so friendly and sunny and hopeful.
...I miss my mom? Luckily, she's coming for a visit in February!!!
...I'm currently suffering from seasonal depression? No sunshine for weeks on end does that to me. (And possibly lingering effects from a miscarriage???)
...I have a greyhound named Sadie? She's a crazy, wonderful, silly dog who always makes me feel loved when I get home from work. She is at the door even before Steve to welcome me home.
...I love mushrooms sauteed in butter? Mmmm. I can't wait for dinner tonight!
...I'm a Ute, a Thunderbird, and a Wildcat? Someday, I'll probably add to that list.
...I want to be a professor when I grow up? Most likely an Accounting professor, but maybe Economics.
...that we're planning on going to a Denver Broncos game this fall? They used to be my least favorite team, until they signed Peyton Manning, my football crush. Now I cheer for them because I want him to do well. Yes, Steve knows and doesn't care. He's a good man.
...I used to like the 49ers until the coach was a big, fat jerk to Alex Smith (a fellow Ute alumnus). That said, I can't cheer for Ray Lewis and the Ravens, so I guess I hope the 49ers win the Super Bowl this Sunday. Lesser of two evils, I guess.
...my husband is cheering for the Cowboys this weekend? He doesn't believe in cheering for any other football team. That's loyalty, people.
...I've never owned a pair of cowboy boots? Are they comfortable? They don't look comfy, but I wouldn't know since I've never even worn a pair. Maybe someday...if we move to Texas?
...that as I saute sliced mushrooms I'll also be dipping raw mushrooms in ranch and popping them in my mouth? Mmmmm. Good thing it's time to go home, so I can eat me some mushrooms!!
Have a good evening, everyone!!
Showing posts with label Sadie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sadie. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Wednesday, May 09, 2012
Cheerful Sitting Room
One of the things I liked about our current home when we were considering buying it was that it was move-in ready. The carpets were nice, the walls were an acceptable color (not white!), and everything else looked good. As we have lived here, though, I've grown to not appreciate the color of our sitting room walls. The color itself was nice, a warm chocolate brown, but not in such a small room with just one window.
The individual who spent the most time in there was Sadie. She has loved laying in there ever since last summer when she discovered the joys of having a ceiling fan. The second most frequent visitor of the room is my three year-old nephew who likes to play in there a) because of the foot rest (he likes to hide inside it) and 2) no one else goes in there so he has free reign.
The people who lived here before us hadn't just painted the walls chocolate brown, the ceiling had been painted the same color! It was a cave! Fortunately, there's pretty crown molding and faux trim that are white, which helped but not a lot. A few months ago, Steve painted the ceiling white for me. It helped...but not a lot.
A couple weeks ago, I sat in there (trying to make more use of the room) doing a puzzle. I kept looking around thinking that it was a good room but too dark and cave-like. I suddenly had an idea. I'd paint the room! I'm not going to school or working, so I have plenty of time to do fun projects. After about 2 milliseconds, I decided to paint the room yellow. I love yellow. It's so cheerful and welcoming. At first, I thought I'd paint it a very faint yellow - white almost, with just a hint of yellow. I wondered if a brighter yellow would clash with my very red couches. While looking at paint chips, though, I tended to go for the brighter yellows. I decided to go with the color I liked best and move the couches into the living room if they ended up clashing.
They don't. The colors look great together!
It took me three days of off and on painting and I was tired but proud when finished. I listened to the the horrible advice of the paint guy at Lowe's and didn't use a primer (what???) because he said the built-in primer in the paint we had bought would be sufficient and I'd only need one quote. What was he smoking? Luckily, I ignored both him and Steve and bought as much paint as I wanted, 3 gallons, instead of what they suggested, 2 gallons. Good thing because I ended up painting 3 coats in order to effectively hide the brown from under the yellow. (Seriously, covering a dark brown with a bright yellow and only needing one coat?? Why didn't I ignore him and use a primer??) Anyhoo, I figure that even had I used a primer, I would have probably painted two coats of yellow anyway, so I would have had to paint those walls 3 times either way. And it looks great. No harm no foul. And lesson learned, I know what I'm doing and shouldn't listen to the paint guy at Lowe's if I think he's wrong.
Sorry, I ranted there for a bit.
With new paint on the walls, I suggested getting rid of the horrible window treatment (sorry, forgot to take pictures) and Steve said okay. Throughout the process, whenever asked his opinion on anything, he said it was my room and I could do whatever I wanted with it. He'd help whenever I needed/wanted, but I got to decorate it however I wished. Yay! He took down the brown, dated, bamboo-esque wood blinds and I went shopping for something new, something simple. I bought the curtain rod at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and the curtains at Target. They weren't what I was planning on - I wanted white curtains with red poppies or other flowers - but when I saw them I loved them! I knew they'd go wonderfully with the pillow cases my cousin made me and would tie in the candles on the fireplace mantle that my mom had gives us.
I love my new cheerful sitting room and sit in there every day now. The only thing it needs now is art on the walls and repainted ceiling fan blades (yellow, maybe black - opinions?). I already have a print that I love (the inspiration for the red couches) and just need to get it framed so it can go in there. It will be fun to look around for other pieces to add and to watch the sitting room truly become my room, my oasis.
Oh, and Sadie's. She still loves laying in there...even more so now that I'm in there, too!
The individual who spent the most time in there was Sadie. She has loved laying in there ever since last summer when she discovered the joys of having a ceiling fan. The second most frequent visitor of the room is my three year-old nephew who likes to play in there a) because of the foot rest (he likes to hide inside it) and 2) no one else goes in there so he has free reign.
The people who lived here before us hadn't just painted the walls chocolate brown, the ceiling had been painted the same color! It was a cave! Fortunately, there's pretty crown molding and faux trim that are white, which helped but not a lot. A few months ago, Steve painted the ceiling white for me. It helped...but not a lot.
 |
| I wish I had a picture with the furniture, but this is a good representation of the color. |
A couple weeks ago, I sat in there (trying to make more use of the room) doing a puzzle. I kept looking around thinking that it was a good room but too dark and cave-like. I suddenly had an idea. I'd paint the room! I'm not going to school or working, so I have plenty of time to do fun projects. After about 2 milliseconds, I decided to paint the room yellow. I love yellow. It's so cheerful and welcoming. At first, I thought I'd paint it a very faint yellow - white almost, with just a hint of yellow. I wondered if a brighter yellow would clash with my very red couches. While looking at paint chips, though, I tended to go for the brighter yellows. I decided to go with the color I liked best and move the couches into the living room if they ended up clashing.
They don't. The colors look great together!
It took me three days of off and on painting and I was tired but proud when finished. I listened to the the horrible advice of the paint guy at Lowe's and didn't use a primer (what???) because he said the built-in primer in the paint we had bought would be sufficient and I'd only need one quote. What was he smoking? Luckily, I ignored both him and Steve and bought as much paint as I wanted, 3 gallons, instead of what they suggested, 2 gallons. Good thing because I ended up painting 3 coats in order to effectively hide the brown from under the yellow. (Seriously, covering a dark brown with a bright yellow and only needing one coat?? Why didn't I ignore him and use a primer??) Anyhoo, I figure that even had I used a primer, I would have probably painted two coats of yellow anyway, so I would have had to paint those walls 3 times either way. And it looks great. No harm no foul. And lesson learned, I know what I'm doing and shouldn't listen to the paint guy at Lowe's if I think he's wrong.
Sorry, I ranted there for a bit.
 | |||
| Comparison shot - brown walls |
 |
| Comparison shot - yellow walls |
With new paint on the walls, I suggested getting rid of the horrible window treatment (sorry, forgot to take pictures) and Steve said okay. Throughout the process, whenever asked his opinion on anything, he said it was my room and I could do whatever I wanted with it. He'd help whenever I needed/wanted, but I got to decorate it however I wished. Yay! He took down the brown, dated, bamboo-esque wood blinds and I went shopping for something new, something simple. I bought the curtain rod at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and the curtains at Target. They weren't what I was planning on - I wanted white curtains with red poppies or other flowers - but when I saw them I loved them! I knew they'd go wonderfully with the pillow cases my cousin made me and would tie in the candles on the fireplace mantle that my mom had gives us.
 |
| Shows the curtains and candles, but not what the color really looks like |
I love my new cheerful sitting room and sit in there every day now. The only thing it needs now is art on the walls and repainted ceiling fan blades (yellow, maybe black - opinions?). I already have a print that I love (the inspiration for the red couches) and just need to get it framed so it can go in there. It will be fun to look around for other pieces to add and to watch the sitting room truly become my room, my oasis.
Oh, and Sadie's. She still loves laying in there...even more so now that I'm in there, too!
 | ||
| I love this room!! |
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
April Updates
I had a good April. It's always such a lovely month. I enjoy watching the flowers pop through the earth and for color to be re-introduced into my world. I love the cessation (hopefully) of snow and enjoy the rain as long as there are a few days of sunshine in between storms. Even if it does snow, at least I know that it won't last long and the snow will melt quickly, if it sticks at all.
I didn't have the best of months as far as goals went, quite frankly, but I'm still pleased with how my month turned out. Here's the rundown:
School. Is over! My last day of classes was Thursday, April 12, since I only had Tuesday/Thursday classes. The final for my Auditing class was actually the weekend before that, so after class on the 12th I was done with that class. I took my remaining two finals on Friday the 13th (scary?!) so was completely done with school by 10:30 that morning. It felt great! It feels even better now that I know that I earned straight As for the semester. Woohoo! I worked 4 hours a day the following week with Friday the 20th being my last official day until Fall semester. I have agreed to work a few days here and there up until June to cover my coworker's vacation days, which will be nice. I'll get a little extra income, will get out of the house, and can read for 6 hours because I imagine it's going to be pretty slow. In other school news, I received a letter on April 30th announcing that I have been accepted into the Masters of Accounting program! I'm not overly surprised because I get good grades and had a good test score, but it's still nice to get the confirmation and can now move forward with registering for classes. Yay!
Summer Trip. We accomplished the two big things I wanted to get done with regards to our trip. We booked our shore excursions and we applied for passports. My passport didn't actually expire until next year, but with getting married, I needed to get it updated. Steve has never needed a passport, so he had to get a brand new one. We finally were able to get into the post office (by appointment only) and get everything turned in. I'm actually quite pleased with my passport picture. I figure that anything now would be tons better than my old one! I'm also really pleased about the shore excursions we have picked out. I really didn't want to sit in a tour bus/truck/train for hours on end to look at pretty scenery. That's all okay for a bit but gets old quickly. We're going to go on a zip line over a forest, go to a salmon bake, tour a salmon hatchery, river raft, and a couple other things I can't recall at the moment. It's a good mix of active and not-so-active. I'm really excited.
Journaling. Fell apart this month. I'm totally out of the habit. It's sad because there were a lot of things that I would have liked to record, silly things that don't mean a lot but that I'd like to remember. Like the time I was so tired and jokingly asked Steve to carry me into the bedroom. He picked me up and carried me all over the downstairs turning off lights, shutting blinds, locking doors before finally depositing me on the bed. It was so silly and fun and I was laughing the entire time. It's moments like this that I want to capture and that don't get captured if I don't write daily or close to it. So, I'm recommitting to this goal. Now that I'm not in school and not working, I may try switching the time I write to the mornings instead of at night. We'll see what works.
Exercise. I'm bummed that I didn't meet my goal of exercising 100 miles in April; however, I know I still exercised every day, sometimes twice a day or more, so it's not as bad as it could be. Seriously, having a dog and not having a yard is good for my health! That's why my mileage is down - I walked most of the month and only rode my bike a couple times. It was either too chilly to ride my outside bike or I ended up going for the evening stroll with Steve and Sadie instead of riding my inside bike. No matter, I know I got in a lot of exercise, so I'm okay. This month, I'm going to get back into a routine of riding my bike every morning. The past two weeks have been crazy (plumber, painting, etc) but starting tomorrow I'm going to ride my bike every week day. That should really help out my mileage numbers. AND I really enjoy it.
April exercise totals: 1775 minutes (29.5 hours), 82.5 miles - mostly walking
Second dog. Isn't going to happen. In a way, I'm disappointed because I was really excited about getting another greyhound. However, I'm very proud of myself for recognizing that I couldn't do it and accepting it instead of feeling guilty and doing it anyway. And being miserable. It was hard for me to admit that I wasn't happy with a second dog (it totally wasn't the dog, it was me), but now we know that two big dogs isn't a good idea for us. Other people do it easily, not me. And you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm really enjoying having Sadie and that's good enough.
Summer To-Do List. Since I'm not in school and not working, I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish this summer. In April, I accomplished three things - I planted a garden (with Steve), put together a puzzle, and painted the sitting room. Technically, I didn't finish painting until today, but I started on April 30th, so I'm counting it for both months. :) Some of the items are really easy, quick things and others may take more time, but all of them are things I've wanted to do for a long time so am happy to have some time to work on them.
Other. We took a trip to Cedar City for Easter and had a great time seeing my family. Wish Jason would have been able to be there, though. I finally managed to hook up with my cousin, Cassie, and heard all about her trip to Peru. It's always fun to hang out with her. And, I heard wonderful news about one of my best friends getting engaged! I'm so excited for her!
The highlight of the month was my one-year anniversary of being married to my wonderful husband, Steve. In a way, I can't believe we've been married for a whole year. In a way, I can't believe that I haven't been married to him all my life. He's my best friend.
Yep. It was a good month. I love this time of year.
Hope everyone has a wonderful May!!
I didn't have the best of months as far as goals went, quite frankly, but I'm still pleased with how my month turned out. Here's the rundown:
School. Is over! My last day of classes was Thursday, April 12, since I only had Tuesday/Thursday classes. The final for my Auditing class was actually the weekend before that, so after class on the 12th I was done with that class. I took my remaining two finals on Friday the 13th (scary?!) so was completely done with school by 10:30 that morning. It felt great! It feels even better now that I know that I earned straight As for the semester. Woohoo! I worked 4 hours a day the following week with Friday the 20th being my last official day until Fall semester. I have agreed to work a few days here and there up until June to cover my coworker's vacation days, which will be nice. I'll get a little extra income, will get out of the house, and can read for 6 hours because I imagine it's going to be pretty slow. In other school news, I received a letter on April 30th announcing that I have been accepted into the Masters of Accounting program! I'm not overly surprised because I get good grades and had a good test score, but it's still nice to get the confirmation and can now move forward with registering for classes. Yay!
Summer Trip. We accomplished the two big things I wanted to get done with regards to our trip. We booked our shore excursions and we applied for passports. My passport didn't actually expire until next year, but with getting married, I needed to get it updated. Steve has never needed a passport, so he had to get a brand new one. We finally were able to get into the post office (by appointment only) and get everything turned in. I'm actually quite pleased with my passport picture. I figure that anything now would be tons better than my old one! I'm also really pleased about the shore excursions we have picked out. I really didn't want to sit in a tour bus/truck/train for hours on end to look at pretty scenery. That's all okay for a bit but gets old quickly. We're going to go on a zip line over a forest, go to a salmon bake, tour a salmon hatchery, river raft, and a couple other things I can't recall at the moment. It's a good mix of active and not-so-active. I'm really excited.
Journaling. Fell apart this month. I'm totally out of the habit. It's sad because there were a lot of things that I would have liked to record, silly things that don't mean a lot but that I'd like to remember. Like the time I was so tired and jokingly asked Steve to carry me into the bedroom. He picked me up and carried me all over the downstairs turning off lights, shutting blinds, locking doors before finally depositing me on the bed. It was so silly and fun and I was laughing the entire time. It's moments like this that I want to capture and that don't get captured if I don't write daily or close to it. So, I'm recommitting to this goal. Now that I'm not in school and not working, I may try switching the time I write to the mornings instead of at night. We'll see what works.
Exercise. I'm bummed that I didn't meet my goal of exercising 100 miles in April; however, I know I still exercised every day, sometimes twice a day or more, so it's not as bad as it could be. Seriously, having a dog and not having a yard is good for my health! That's why my mileage is down - I walked most of the month and only rode my bike a couple times. It was either too chilly to ride my outside bike or I ended up going for the evening stroll with Steve and Sadie instead of riding my inside bike. No matter, I know I got in a lot of exercise, so I'm okay. This month, I'm going to get back into a routine of riding my bike every morning. The past two weeks have been crazy (plumber, painting, etc) but starting tomorrow I'm going to ride my bike every week day. That should really help out my mileage numbers. AND I really enjoy it.
April exercise totals: 1775 minutes (29.5 hours), 82.5 miles - mostly walking
Second dog. Isn't going to happen. In a way, I'm disappointed because I was really excited about getting another greyhound. However, I'm very proud of myself for recognizing that I couldn't do it and accepting it instead of feeling guilty and doing it anyway. And being miserable. It was hard for me to admit that I wasn't happy with a second dog (it totally wasn't the dog, it was me), but now we know that two big dogs isn't a good idea for us. Other people do it easily, not me. And you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm really enjoying having Sadie and that's good enough.
Summer To-Do List. Since I'm not in school and not working, I made a list of things I wanted to accomplish this summer. In April, I accomplished three things - I planted a garden (with Steve), put together a puzzle, and painted the sitting room. Technically, I didn't finish painting until today, but I started on April 30th, so I'm counting it for both months. :) Some of the items are really easy, quick things and others may take more time, but all of them are things I've wanted to do for a long time so am happy to have some time to work on them.
Other. We took a trip to Cedar City for Easter and had a great time seeing my family. Wish Jason would have been able to be there, though. I finally managed to hook up with my cousin, Cassie, and heard all about her trip to Peru. It's always fun to hang out with her. And, I heard wonderful news about one of my best friends getting engaged! I'm so excited for her!
The highlight of the month was my one-year anniversary of being married to my wonderful husband, Steve. In a way, I can't believe we've been married for a whole year. In a way, I can't believe that I haven't been married to him all my life. He's my best friend.
Yep. It was a good month. I love this time of year.
Hope everyone has a wonderful May!!
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Sadie Lou
Sadie Lou. Next month, we'll celebrate our one-year anniversary with our beloved greyhound. I hadn't planned on posting this until it was closer to the anniversary date and until I had taken some pictures to go with it, but tomorrow we're getting our new dog and I wanted to get my post about Sadie done first. And, quite frankly, if I waited 'til I had pictures, this post might never happen!
It's been a hoot having Sadie as our pet and seeing her change throughout the year. When she first came to us, she was very timid and mellow. She followed me around everywhere, driving me nuts honestly. If I got up to get a snack, she got up with me. I couldn't go anywhere without my little shadow, that is, until Steve got home. She quickly figured out who she loved most - the tall man who gave her lots of treats and spoiled her. She actually took awhile to figure out what treats were. She went right to the peanut butter-filled Kong, but when we offered her a dog biscuit she'd sniff it and walk away. It wasn't until after a visit to the vet's office and he gave her meaty, soft treats that we figured out that those were what to get for her. After she got used to those, we were able to re-introduce the hard dog biscuits and she gobbled them up joyfully. Now, she'll eat practically anything we give her (we don't give her human food except as a very rare treat).
It was good to have figured out what kind of treats to give her because we were finally able to help her know her new name. We'd had a hard time getting her to realize that we were talking to her when we called "Sadie!" One day at the farmer's market, we ran into a woman with two greyhounds who taught us how to teach her her name, but it entailed using a lot of treats. So we stocked up and did what she had told us and it worked! While I watched tv during the day, at every commercial I'd call Sadie's name. If she came, she'd get a couple bacon flavored treats. Every so often, I wouldn't give her treats when she came, just lots of loving. Within a couple days she was coming when she heard her name even if there wasn't the possibility of getting food.
Teaching her to recognize her name by using food inspired me to start teaching her a "trick". We'd been told that greyhounds didn't like to sit, so I decided to try to get her to lay down on command. I waited until she was really comfortable with her name and would come every time, without food. Then I started having her come to me. I had food in my hands and would let her smell the treat but not eat it. I'd knock the floor with my treat-filled hand and say "Down". Her nose would follow my hand and eventually the rest of her body would too. When she was down, I'd repeat the word and give her the treat. I was surprised that within two days she was doing it easily every time I said "Down". Again, I wouldn't always do the trick with food in my hand but would lavish her with praise and love each time. Nowadays, she'll go down without food, we just say "Down" and tap the floor.
Steve loved that I was teaching her this trick and wanted to take it further. Doing the same thing I had down with "Down", he taught her to sit. Who said greyhounds won't sit? She loves it! Oh, and she totally knows it's what she has to do before we give her any sort of treat. So, when she wants to eat something, she sits. One day, we were grilling steaks outside. She'd been sniffing around the grill and obviously was interested in what was going on. When Steve put the steaks on a plate and turned to carry them inside. Sadie ran in front of him, turned, sat down, and looked up at him with an expression on her face that seemed to say, "Look at how obedient I am, I'm sitting! Now, please give me some steak!"
Now that she has "Sit" and "Down" more or less mastered (she sometimes chooses to pretend she doesn't know what we're talking about), I've started working on "Roll Over". It's a toughie. I'm starting with "Over" and having her just roll over on one side. I haven't been very consistent but last night when I tried it with her, she did it the first time. She's so smart. Once she's really good at "Over", I'll work on the "Roll". I imagine it's going to be pretty humorous. *smile*
As the months have passed, we have gotten to see new sides of our Sadie's personality. She's definitely not shy and mellow, at least not as mellow as she was. She's still lazy, which is great, but she loves being active and playing, at least until she gets tired (5 - 10 minutes top). It took us quite a few months to get her to play with us. Taking her to the dog park was really helpful as she learned from the other dogs that balls were fun to play with. Now she loves to play catch with a tennis ball, play tug-o-war with the rope, and her special favorites are the toy ferrets and foxes with the squeekies at the tail and head. She totally spazzes when we bring out one of those.
She loves people, especially kids. When we take her walking and she sees a person walking towards us, Sadie's tail starts wagging slowly at first then increases in speed as the person gets closer. By the time they are by us, her tail is wagging so hard her whole back half is shaking. Also, her teeth start chattering. This only started in January and really took us by surprise. It's the cutest thing! She chatters anytime she's really excited about anything. Like seeing my mom. After Steve and myself, my mom is probably Sadie's next favorite person in the world. She also has a special attachment to my nephew and niece. They stayed with us last summer for a week, shortly after we got Sadie. Poor Sadie was really depressed for a day or two after they left. I think she feels like they are a part of our pack and is happier than ants at a picnic when we're all reunited.
After months of taking her to the dog park, Sadie has finally accepted that the other dogs are worthy of her attention. We were told that greyhounds, having been raised solely around other greyhounds, didn't recognize other breeds as fellow dogs at first. For a long time, Sadie would completely ignore the other dogs at the dog park and go straight to the humans for what she deemed her rightful love and admiration. Eventually, though, she started playing with the dogs, too. She is especially interested in other black dogs. Sadie rarely barks (unless Steve is provoking her or I'm teasing her by not throwing her beloved ferret when she wants me to), but if she wants to play with a dog (especially a black one) and it isn't responding to her, she'll start barking at it, urging it to come run with her. She's become quite a friendly, outgoing animal.
Before we got Sadie, I was kind of nervous about getting a dog, especially a bigger dog. I knew it would change our lives and I sometimes panic when given too much time to think about changes. There have been some annoying moments in the past year (when she started eating our chair rail around the kitchen, etc.), but I wouldn't go back to our life without Sadie. She is part of our family, our pack. She has brought us a lot of joy and laughter, and when Steve was working late into the night or gone for work, she was such a comfort to have around. We became snuggle buddies. I love that dog.
Like last year, I'm kind of nervous about getting a second dog, but if he brings us even half the joy that Sadie does, he will be a great addition to our home. We found out yesterday that we'll get him tomorrow night! I'm excited and nervous but am really interested to see how Sadie handles the new addition. Fortunately, he's male, so it should help alleviate any dominance problems, and he's black - her favorite color! Yep, we're going to have two black greyhounds! I'll let you know how things are going once we've had him for a bit.
Wish us luck!
It's been a hoot having Sadie as our pet and seeing her change throughout the year. When she first came to us, she was very timid and mellow. She followed me around everywhere, driving me nuts honestly. If I got up to get a snack, she got up with me. I couldn't go anywhere without my little shadow, that is, until Steve got home. She quickly figured out who she loved most - the tall man who gave her lots of treats and spoiled her. She actually took awhile to figure out what treats were. She went right to the peanut butter-filled Kong, but when we offered her a dog biscuit she'd sniff it and walk away. It wasn't until after a visit to the vet's office and he gave her meaty, soft treats that we figured out that those were what to get for her. After she got used to those, we were able to re-introduce the hard dog biscuits and she gobbled them up joyfully. Now, she'll eat practically anything we give her (we don't give her human food except as a very rare treat).
It was good to have figured out what kind of treats to give her because we were finally able to help her know her new name. We'd had a hard time getting her to realize that we were talking to her when we called "Sadie!" One day at the farmer's market, we ran into a woman with two greyhounds who taught us how to teach her her name, but it entailed using a lot of treats. So we stocked up and did what she had told us and it worked! While I watched tv during the day, at every commercial I'd call Sadie's name. If she came, she'd get a couple bacon flavored treats. Every so often, I wouldn't give her treats when she came, just lots of loving. Within a couple days she was coming when she heard her name even if there wasn't the possibility of getting food.
Teaching her to recognize her name by using food inspired me to start teaching her a "trick". We'd been told that greyhounds didn't like to sit, so I decided to try to get her to lay down on command. I waited until she was really comfortable with her name and would come every time, without food. Then I started having her come to me. I had food in my hands and would let her smell the treat but not eat it. I'd knock the floor with my treat-filled hand and say "Down". Her nose would follow my hand and eventually the rest of her body would too. When she was down, I'd repeat the word and give her the treat. I was surprised that within two days she was doing it easily every time I said "Down". Again, I wouldn't always do the trick with food in my hand but would lavish her with praise and love each time. Nowadays, she'll go down without food, we just say "Down" and tap the floor.
Steve loved that I was teaching her this trick and wanted to take it further. Doing the same thing I had down with "Down", he taught her to sit. Who said greyhounds won't sit? She loves it! Oh, and she totally knows it's what she has to do before we give her any sort of treat. So, when she wants to eat something, she sits. One day, we were grilling steaks outside. She'd been sniffing around the grill and obviously was interested in what was going on. When Steve put the steaks on a plate and turned to carry them inside. Sadie ran in front of him, turned, sat down, and looked up at him with an expression on her face that seemed to say, "Look at how obedient I am, I'm sitting! Now, please give me some steak!"
Now that she has "Sit" and "Down" more or less mastered (she sometimes chooses to pretend she doesn't know what we're talking about), I've started working on "Roll Over". It's a toughie. I'm starting with "Over" and having her just roll over on one side. I haven't been very consistent but last night when I tried it with her, she did it the first time. She's so smart. Once she's really good at "Over", I'll work on the "Roll". I imagine it's going to be pretty humorous. *smile*
As the months have passed, we have gotten to see new sides of our Sadie's personality. She's definitely not shy and mellow, at least not as mellow as she was. She's still lazy, which is great, but she loves being active and playing, at least until she gets tired (5 - 10 minutes top). It took us quite a few months to get her to play with us. Taking her to the dog park was really helpful as she learned from the other dogs that balls were fun to play with. Now she loves to play catch with a tennis ball, play tug-o-war with the rope, and her special favorites are the toy ferrets and foxes with the squeekies at the tail and head. She totally spazzes when we bring out one of those.
She loves people, especially kids. When we take her walking and she sees a person walking towards us, Sadie's tail starts wagging slowly at first then increases in speed as the person gets closer. By the time they are by us, her tail is wagging so hard her whole back half is shaking. Also, her teeth start chattering. This only started in January and really took us by surprise. It's the cutest thing! She chatters anytime she's really excited about anything. Like seeing my mom. After Steve and myself, my mom is probably Sadie's next favorite person in the world. She also has a special attachment to my nephew and niece. They stayed with us last summer for a week, shortly after we got Sadie. Poor Sadie was really depressed for a day or two after they left. I think she feels like they are a part of our pack and is happier than ants at a picnic when we're all reunited.
After months of taking her to the dog park, Sadie has finally accepted that the other dogs are worthy of her attention. We were told that greyhounds, having been raised solely around other greyhounds, didn't recognize other breeds as fellow dogs at first. For a long time, Sadie would completely ignore the other dogs at the dog park and go straight to the humans for what she deemed her rightful love and admiration. Eventually, though, she started playing with the dogs, too. She is especially interested in other black dogs. Sadie rarely barks (unless Steve is provoking her or I'm teasing her by not throwing her beloved ferret when she wants me to), but if she wants to play with a dog (especially a black one) and it isn't responding to her, she'll start barking at it, urging it to come run with her. She's become quite a friendly, outgoing animal.
Before we got Sadie, I was kind of nervous about getting a dog, especially a bigger dog. I knew it would change our lives and I sometimes panic when given too much time to think about changes. There have been some annoying moments in the past year (when she started eating our chair rail around the kitchen, etc.), but I wouldn't go back to our life without Sadie. She is part of our family, our pack. She has brought us a lot of joy and laughter, and when Steve was working late into the night or gone for work, she was such a comfort to have around. We became snuggle buddies. I love that dog.
Like last year, I'm kind of nervous about getting a second dog, but if he brings us even half the joy that Sadie does, he will be a great addition to our home. We found out yesterday that we'll get him tomorrow night! I'm excited and nervous but am really interested to see how Sadie handles the new addition. Fortunately, he's male, so it should help alleviate any dominance problems, and he's black - her favorite color! Yep, we're going to have two black greyhounds! I'll let you know how things are going once we've had him for a bit.
Wish us luck!
Friday, January 20, 2012
Yellow Stripe
Yesterday, after arriving home from work, I took Sadie on our daily afternoon walk. The weather was warmer than I had expected, and I enjoyed the walk immensely despite the rain.
Actually, the rain helped make the walk so enjoyable. Sadie and I walked the path along the Weber River, and the smells of trees, grass, dirt, undergrowth, and water seemed magnified by the rain. I felt peaceful, energized, and happy while we walked along, soaking up the sights, smells, and sounds of the river and its surroundings.
The rain was probably light enough to warrant not using an umbrella, but I've fallen in love with my most recent, so gladly brought it along. It is the kind that curves down enough to actually protect my head from precipitation - if I hold it down so my head almost hits its top, its tips go past my shoulders - and it doesn't threaten to blow away or go inside-out with every gust of wind.
Now, you may be wondering how I'm able to see where I'm going if the umbrella curves down so much. Good question. It's clear, see-through, I mean! So, my head/face is nicely protected and I'm still able to see everything around me, which on a beautifully rainy day such as yesterday was quite a blessing.
The cherry on top, though, is the yellow stripe around the bottom of the umbrella. What a great color to contrast with the gray, rainy day. It brought me simple pleasure as I looked through my umbrella at the world around me.
Yes, that's Sadie peaking in underneath.
Simple pleasures are the best and easiest to enjoy - have you ever noticed?
Friday, January 13, 2012
2012 - The Year of...
...School. It takes up pretty much all my time, and I feel like I live on campus. I go to class. I work on campus - the Student Health Center. I exercise at the university gym. I do homework practically all evening every evening, except for Saturdays and Sundays. I manage to get enough done during the week so I can have a break on the weekend. This semester, I have three classes, all Accounting classes. I really enjoy my professors and am learning a lot. I'll take the summer off and then will have one undergrad class left to take in the fall. I'm also hoping the department will let me take one or two Masters classes to help speed things up a bit.
...England. Steve and I are talking about going somewhere this summer and are leaning toward England. We live in such a way, and are blessed with a good enough income, that we're able to put a good chunk of money into savings every month. We're going to assign a healthy portion of those savings toward a fun trip. I've always wanted to go to England and am so excited to start making plans and figuring out where to go and what to see. If anyone has suggestions, please email me, leave a comment, text, call, whatever. I don't Twitter.
...Journaling. One of my resolutions is to write in my journal every day. I realized that one of the reasons I haven't kept up with my journal like I used to was that I'd go so long in between writing that it would take forever to catch up. I'm also too detail-oriented when I write it would take a long time to write, so as part of my resolution, I'm only writing a page each day. I have to decide what I really want to record; whether it's a funny thing that happened in class, how I felt about my hair, or what Steve and I did for date night. I'm really enjoying writing in my journal again.
...Running. A couple years ago, I had a resolution to run in a 5k. I kind of accomplished it. My friend Kyle and I walked a 5k that February, and then I ran the last little bit in order to finish before him. (teehee). This year, there's a 5k on May 19th that I want to participate in. I may not run the whole darn thing, since I haven't run in over a year, but I'd like to run as much of it as I can. To that end, each week I'm working on running a bit more than I did the week before. And, I'm back to recording my exercise. My goal is to exercise 100 miles a month, every month.
...A New Car, 2nd Dog (maybe), Camping, and Lots of Fun. We bought a new car on December 30th, 2011. I swore I'd never buy a brand new car, too much money and too much immediate depreciation, but we found a good deal on a car we really like and that we plan to have for many, many years so depreciation isn't as important as it could be if we were planning on selling it sooner than later. It's a 2012 Subaru Outback, red. I love it. It has seat warmers. *big smiley face*
We got it so our greyhound Sadie would have more room and so that we could have passengers in our car at the same time as our dog. And because we're thinking of getting a second dog. We're looking at dogs online, no puppies and nothing for hundreds of dollars (really, people?! $2000 for a puppy that will pee all over my carpets??). We may get another greyhound since Sadie is so awesome. We definitely want a male this time.
With the new car, we also have more room and capability to do more of the things we like to do that we didn't do last year (partially due to lack of time last year). More fishing, more camping, more hiking, more exploring. My brother gave us his old tent and a really cool camping table that we're excited to finally use. I'd also like to give snowshoeing a try this year. Lots and lots of possibilities and I look forward to making the most of all of them!
I hope everyone has a very wonderful 2012!
...England. Steve and I are talking about going somewhere this summer and are leaning toward England. We live in such a way, and are blessed with a good enough income, that we're able to put a good chunk of money into savings every month. We're going to assign a healthy portion of those savings toward a fun trip. I've always wanted to go to England and am so excited to start making plans and figuring out where to go and what to see. If anyone has suggestions, please email me, leave a comment, text, call, whatever. I don't Twitter.
...Journaling. One of my resolutions is to write in my journal every day. I realized that one of the reasons I haven't kept up with my journal like I used to was that I'd go so long in between writing that it would take forever to catch up. I'm also too detail-oriented when I write it would take a long time to write, so as part of my resolution, I'm only writing a page each day. I have to decide what I really want to record; whether it's a funny thing that happened in class, how I felt about my hair, or what Steve and I did for date night. I'm really enjoying writing in my journal again.
...Running. A couple years ago, I had a resolution to run in a 5k. I kind of accomplished it. My friend Kyle and I walked a 5k that February, and then I ran the last little bit in order to finish before him. (teehee). This year, there's a 5k on May 19th that I want to participate in. I may not run the whole darn thing, since I haven't run in over a year, but I'd like to run as much of it as I can. To that end, each week I'm working on running a bit more than I did the week before. And, I'm back to recording my exercise. My goal is to exercise 100 miles a month, every month.
...A New Car, 2nd Dog (maybe), Camping, and Lots of Fun. We bought a new car on December 30th, 2011. I swore I'd never buy a brand new car, too much money and too much immediate depreciation, but we found a good deal on a car we really like and that we plan to have for many, many years so depreciation isn't as important as it could be if we were planning on selling it sooner than later. It's a 2012 Subaru Outback, red. I love it. It has seat warmers. *big smiley face*
We got it so our greyhound Sadie would have more room and so that we could have passengers in our car at the same time as our dog. And because we're thinking of getting a second dog. We're looking at dogs online, no puppies and nothing for hundreds of dollars (really, people?! $2000 for a puppy that will pee all over my carpets??). We may get another greyhound since Sadie is so awesome. We definitely want a male this time.
With the new car, we also have more room and capability to do more of the things we like to do that we didn't do last year (partially due to lack of time last year). More fishing, more camping, more hiking, more exploring. My brother gave us his old tent and a really cool camping table that we're excited to finally use. I'd also like to give snowshoeing a try this year. Lots and lots of possibilities and I look forward to making the most of all of them!
I hope everyone has a very wonderful 2012!
Wednesday, June 08, 2011
Sadie
Steve and I have a new addition to our family. Her name is Sadie and she's a 4-year old greyhound we rescued. She raced in Florida for 2 years and won 7 of the 30-odd races she was in. Her career ended with a fractured bone in her left leg. Fortunately, she was given to a rescue organization called Greyhound Rescue & Adoption and eventually ended up in our home.
When Steve and I first started dating last summer, we talked about getting a dog together someday. He wanted a doberman and I wanted a boxer. One Saturday at the Salt Lake farmers market, we came across a group of greyhounds and were impressed. He researched them online and read up on their personality, health, and general traits. They sounded like a good fit with our lifestyle. Despite their racing genes, greyhounds are couch potatoes. They don't need a lot of exercise to stay happy and love lounging around for hours at a time. Perfect for two people who work.
Last November, we started the adoption process. I've never tried to adopt a human child before, but I compare adopting a greyhound to that process, though probably slightly less intense. We sent in an application then were interviewed over the phone by Sher, the local adoption rep. A couple weeks later, we went over to her house to meet her 3 greyhounds and to get a sense of the dogs and for her to get a better idea of how we are with dogs. Steve had a busy work schedule through the first part of the year, so we told Sher we wouldn't be ready to get a dog until after the middle of March. Also, we wanted a smaller female, since we don't have a ton of space and our HOA has size restrictions on dogs. Well, it took a little longer than we had thought, but we finally got our girl the end of May.
I'm going to be honest, I had my reservations before we got her. I knew it was going to change our lives and wasn't sure if I was ready for those changes. No more sleeping in, no more being able to go wherever we wanted whenever we wanted. We'd either have to plan to take the dog with us or find a place to keep her whenever we wanted to go somewhere. Also, I knew it would be a financial commitment. I don't know if it was these reservations or what, but I didn't adjust well to having a dog our first week with her.
Part of the problem was that I am no longer working and am home with her alone most of the day. That isn't an issue now, but that first week, she stayed glued to me. Steve and I have joked that he's part dog and I'm part cat (for various reasons), and I realized the cat in me needed a break. I have never been good with needy people and a needy dog was definitely trying my patience. That wasn't all though, I got jealous. I know it's stupid, and it's not like I thought Steve loved Sadie more than me - I'm not that ridiculous. I actually enjoyed watching him play with her, or at least try to, as a racing dog, she's never been taught to play. It was nice to have him there to take her attention off me. However, when we were in the middle of a conversation or making out or whatever, and he'd suddenly interrupt it to pay her attention, yeah, I didn't like it. We'd go for a walk and I actually felt like a 3rd wheel. I realized it was silly and did my best to hide my feelings until one night I got pretty annoyed and totally let Steve know it. We talked and he's been really good to make sure that when we're having us time, that he stays focused on me. He talked to his buddy about it and received some excellent advice. I was a little peeved at first that he told his friend because I didn't want him to think I was stupid, but actually am glad he did because a) Steve got good advice that has helped and 2) I learned that I'm not the only wife to feel this way.
All that has passed and I'm really enjoying having a dog. She's unlike most dogs because, like I mentioned earlier, she's been raised as a racer and so is adjusting to being a house dog. She doesn't play but we're working on that. Also, she is experiencing so many new things. So many smells, sights, sounds, and tastes that she has never been exposed to and now is discovering. Also, as a racer, she has a highly honed prey instinct. This means that she views small animals as prey, so we have to be very watchful when she's around cats and small dogs. Of course, we always keep her on a leash when we're out and she's been pretty good to not shoot off trying to get a small animal when she sees them, but you sure can see her perk up when she sees a cat or small dog. Steve once let her get pretty close to a small dog and she nipped at it. *sigh* Men.
Last Saturday, we went to the monthly Meet N Greet for the rescue organization and it was a lot of fun. They meet at the pet store down the street from our house, so it's very convenient. It was good to talk to owners of rescued greyhounds, to get pointers from them, to see how their dogs have adjusted to home life. And I think it was good for Sadie to be around other greyhounds. She's never been alone without other greyhounds. It was also kind of sweet because she would always come back to my side like she was making sure I was still there. I think we're getting a sweet bond.
Don't worry, though, I am NOT going to become one of those obsessed dog people. After all, I'm part cat. *grin*
When Steve and I first started dating last summer, we talked about getting a dog together someday. He wanted a doberman and I wanted a boxer. One Saturday at the Salt Lake farmers market, we came across a group of greyhounds and were impressed. He researched them online and read up on their personality, health, and general traits. They sounded like a good fit with our lifestyle. Despite their racing genes, greyhounds are couch potatoes. They don't need a lot of exercise to stay happy and love lounging around for hours at a time. Perfect for two people who work.
Last November, we started the adoption process. I've never tried to adopt a human child before, but I compare adopting a greyhound to that process, though probably slightly less intense. We sent in an application then were interviewed over the phone by Sher, the local adoption rep. A couple weeks later, we went over to her house to meet her 3 greyhounds and to get a sense of the dogs and for her to get a better idea of how we are with dogs. Steve had a busy work schedule through the first part of the year, so we told Sher we wouldn't be ready to get a dog until after the middle of March. Also, we wanted a smaller female, since we don't have a ton of space and our HOA has size restrictions on dogs. Well, it took a little longer than we had thought, but we finally got our girl the end of May.
I'm going to be honest, I had my reservations before we got her. I knew it was going to change our lives and wasn't sure if I was ready for those changes. No more sleeping in, no more being able to go wherever we wanted whenever we wanted. We'd either have to plan to take the dog with us or find a place to keep her whenever we wanted to go somewhere. Also, I knew it would be a financial commitment. I don't know if it was these reservations or what, but I didn't adjust well to having a dog our first week with her.
Part of the problem was that I am no longer working and am home with her alone most of the day. That isn't an issue now, but that first week, she stayed glued to me. Steve and I have joked that he's part dog and I'm part cat (for various reasons), and I realized the cat in me needed a break. I have never been good with needy people and a needy dog was definitely trying my patience. That wasn't all though, I got jealous. I know it's stupid, and it's not like I thought Steve loved Sadie more than me - I'm not that ridiculous. I actually enjoyed watching him play with her, or at least try to, as a racing dog, she's never been taught to play. It was nice to have him there to take her attention off me. However, when we were in the middle of a conversation or making out or whatever, and he'd suddenly interrupt it to pay her attention, yeah, I didn't like it. We'd go for a walk and I actually felt like a 3rd wheel. I realized it was silly and did my best to hide my feelings until one night I got pretty annoyed and totally let Steve know it. We talked and he's been really good to make sure that when we're having us time, that he stays focused on me. He talked to his buddy about it and received some excellent advice. I was a little peeved at first that he told his friend because I didn't want him to think I was stupid, but actually am glad he did because a) Steve got good advice that has helped and 2) I learned that I'm not the only wife to feel this way.
All that has passed and I'm really enjoying having a dog. She's unlike most dogs because, like I mentioned earlier, she's been raised as a racer and so is adjusting to being a house dog. She doesn't play but we're working on that. Also, she is experiencing so many new things. So many smells, sights, sounds, and tastes that she has never been exposed to and now is discovering. Also, as a racer, she has a highly honed prey instinct. This means that she views small animals as prey, so we have to be very watchful when she's around cats and small dogs. Of course, we always keep her on a leash when we're out and she's been pretty good to not shoot off trying to get a small animal when she sees them, but you sure can see her perk up when she sees a cat or small dog. Steve once let her get pretty close to a small dog and she nipped at it. *sigh* Men.
Last Saturday, we went to the monthly Meet N Greet for the rescue organization and it was a lot of fun. They meet at the pet store down the street from our house, so it's very convenient. It was good to talk to owners of rescued greyhounds, to get pointers from them, to see how their dogs have adjusted to home life. And I think it was good for Sadie to be around other greyhounds. She's never been alone without other greyhounds. It was also kind of sweet because she would always come back to my side like she was making sure I was still there. I think we're getting a sweet bond.
Don't worry, though, I am NOT going to become one of those obsessed dog people. After all, I'm part cat. *grin*
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