The definition of trim is NOT shave...

Brody and I have two beautiful dogs. Well, not anymore. We are not happy with our recent visit to the Petsmart groomers and have no intention of going there again. Below you will see a nice portrait of our dogs taken one day after Emmitt went in to get groomed at the beginning of May. The guy did a pretty good job. Emmitt is a handsome border collie/Australian shepherd mix who is very vain and knows he looks good. We always get compliments on how beautiful he is and how soft is long coat of fur is. He'll prance around with his nose in the air (the little snob) because he thinks he's pretty hot. Bostyn, of course, is cute as a button, but all we have to do is throw her in the bathtub at home and she's in heaven.


This is what Emmitt looks like now...


He is heartbroken and his dad is furious. Brody and I might get into fights now and again, but I know I've never made him this mad. I am certainly glad I am not the one who pissed him off in this situation or I wouldn't have gone home for a few days. They butchered our beautiful dog and made him look like a sick, mangy stray who has gotten in one too many fights. Emmitt's entire demeanor has changed. He hid under the piano the first night he was home and wouldn't even play with his favorite puppet toy he usually goes ballistic for. I miss his beautiful mane most of all.

I wrote a very detailed letter explaining what had happened and printed out a lot of before and after pictures and took into Petsmart. Long story short: they refunded our money (which we were also overcharged by a lot and without so much as a phone call asking our permission), but the store manager tried to blame my instructions as part of the problem in the same breath that she said her groomers didn't handle the situation right. When I said "general trim," I did not give the idiot groomer permission to shave five inches of long, silky hair off of our dog.

Girls: How would you feel if you went in for a trim of your nice long hair and they cut your hair up above your ears? And left patches of long parts and other patches of shaved sections? NOT HAPPY, I tell you!

The next step is the regional manager of Petsmart. This happened on Tuesday. It's Thursday and we're still upset, especially since the store manager handled it the way she did. The Petsmart grooming salon has lost our business as well as some of our friends' business. They better hope Emmitt's shiny coat grows back. Time will tell. But we want the regional manager to know how poorly the situation was handled and Brody wants nothing more than to have the groomer fired.

On a happier note, at least we're going to have a baby soon! That'll pretty much be awesome.

Thankfulness

As Thanksgiving approaches, I decided my next blog post would be a few things I am thankful for. These are just a few of the things I am thankful for. There are so many other things, but these are the ones that came to mind. Since I will be gone on Thanksgiving, I wanted to do it now. Happy Turkey Day everyone!

*My hubby for being so amazing and working hard to take care of us and for all of his patience during the pregnancy so far. I'm also thankful that he will get me what I'm craving. (He has also learned that pulling the pregnancy card works for him, too! All he has to say is, "I have a pregnant wife in the car!")
*Bostyn and Emmitt for being so cute and having great personalities and keeping me company all day and being so excited to see me when I get home from work.
*Being pregnant, even on the bad days. It happened so fast and I know we are lucky for that.
*Being pregnant with my sister (and four other family members and friends). I'm glad our baby will have a cousin close in age.
*Having a job that I love and Brody having a job in this economy.
*Having a place to live and food to eat.
*Getting to go to Denver for Thanksgiving and take the dogs. Brody is happy for the chance to spend some quality time with his brothers, Josh and Charles.
*Thanksgiving! One of my favorite holidays. Probably because food is involved!
*My mom for cleaning our kitchen for my birthday present.

Life is good.

Baby Brody

Emmitt and Bostyn are proud to announce an addition to their family. Brody and Jen will be welcoming a baby into their happy home next year at the end of June! Jen is just over 5 weeks along and learning about all the wonderful pregnancy symptoms one by one as they slowly creep into her life, which, in turn, gives Brody the opportunity to experience them as well, bless his heart. We are all very excited and freaked out of our minds! But this new adventure will certainly be fun.

To celebrate our happy news, we went to our favorite restaurant last night and ate the delicious food at Capital Grille. We decided that we'd wait until we found out we were pregnant before we ate there again. We requested the same waiter who made our engagement night so enjoyable and he was nice enough to take our picture.

How I Am I So Behind?

Brody and I have been married for over 3 months now and it's been fabulous. He made me quit half of my jobs - haha. I'm kind of teasing, but kind of not. He didn't like how stressed out I was working so much. I didn't realize how my stress levels could affect someone else. But I suppose that's what happens when you get married. You care about someone so much that everything they do can affect you. But anyway, I am grateful that I have more time to relax and be at home. I like the company of our "kids," Bostyn and Emmitt. I enjoy my time to get normal things done (laundry, vacuuming, bills...) and also have time for other things.

This being said, I am still flabbergasted that I feel so behind! My To Do List keeps getting bigger, even though I cross things off every day. One thing I still have not gotten to is Thank You cards from my bridal shower (in June!) and the wedding. It's so weird to me that I can constantly be working on something and still be behind on things, even with all the extra time I have away from working! So this will be a short post (amazingly enough) and I must get to work and be productive!

And I love my husband.

My Kids

Here's a picture of the loves of my life. They just adore their dad and if they had to choose between us, he'd win every time. That's okay with me, though. They are good, loyal dogs, which is what they should be. And I know I'll always be ahead of them (just barely) on Brody's list.

Here is Bostyn showing you one of her tricks.
She likes to do this right before we go inside.

A Tornado Has Hit My House and More About the Dogs

As you can tell by my background, I have felt like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. I got caught in a tornado and that Wicked Witch just flew around laughing at me! It picked up my house and shook it until everything got taken out of it's proper place and randomly landed throughout each room.

My house is a disaster.

To get ready for my sister's visit/baby shower/birthday party next month, I had to (finally) gut the spare bedroom so she wouldn't have to sleep on the couch. It has been filled with wedding stuff and wedding presents for quite some time. (I haven't even started Thank You cards - aaahh!) So all the presents got hauled out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. They stayed there for quite a while until I stacked them in the hall so we could actually use the kitchen. We took the duplicate presents back to Target and bought a few more things from our registry that we didn't get for the wedding.

I started cleaning and rearranging the spare bedroom so I can move Brody's desk out where the kitchen table is holding the computer so the kitchen table can go in the garage. (We don't sit at the dinner table - that's why we have TV trays!) Then I'll move my desk from the laundry room to the spare bedroom, and the bookshelf from the master bedroom to the spare bedroom. I also need to clean both bathrooms (deep clean - they are gross) so I can put away all the new towels and rugs and hang the new shower rod and curtain in the guest bathroom - I'm sure Lindsay would love to be able to have her own bathroom and I would love to have a functioning guest bathroom instead of a dog room. Once the bathrooms get cleaned and my desk is moved, I can move the dog kennel into the laundry room along with both dogs' bowls and water dish. When we bring Brody's fridge over, it will take the place of my fridge in the kitchen and my fridge will get moved into the laundry room to become the "Drink and Storage Fridge" and I don't know where we'll put the dog kennel.

So basically, I have a million projects and most of them require another project being done before I can get to the one I really want to work on. So I'm just trying to keep my head about water and get all the regular things done as well as everything else that gets thrown at me on a daily basis, on top of all the projects I have to do. Thankfully, my hubby got working on his "Honey-Do" list this week and I sure am grateful he is such a handy man. He put a light in the living room, backed up the computer and yesterday he tried to put the new curtains up over the sliding glass door. That has been put on hold until we find curtains that are long enough - the ones we bought are too short.

Since Brody thinks this is more of a Dog Blog (maybe I should start one just for them...), I have to mention my two adorable and energetic kids. I substituted on Wednesday and Thursday of this week and got wonderful "Why did you leave us for so long, Mom?" greetings upon my return. Emmitt usually isn't so needy, but I think he's been spoiled having me home during the day whilst Dad is working and he demanded my attention for quite a while. Bostyn is her usual psychotic self; the giddyness of seeing me again just lasted a little longer than normal.

They are getting better at listening and doing what they are supposed to do. Today Emmitt had an appointment at the groomers so we went for a fun ride in the car to drop him off. They were so excited to go for a ride in the car. They love to put their heads out the window and feel the air go up their noses. Haha. Bostyn wasn't happy about being at PetSmart cuz she didn't want to stay and it was Emmitt's first time at that location so he was a little hesitant. But he went in all right and Bostyn then proceeded to get upset that her friend was leaving and she couldn't go with him. As soon as we got home, she searched the house for Emmitt and when she didn't see him, she decided to just be lazy for a while and went to lay down.

My latest goal is to teach them to hold things in their mouth when we want them to. That way they will learn to bring us things and, ultimately, maybe throw things away for us when we don't want to get up. This might take years. Haha. Emmitt doesn't like holding things in his mouth upon command and Bostyn is a little slow when it comes to learning something new. They are both stubborn, just like their parents.

I have now spent entirely too much time updating the blog, but it needed to be done. I only have a few hours to work on the tornado before my hubby comes home to give me his weekly paycheck. I just love him for that. And I'm pretty sure he just loves me for taking it and getting all his bills paid so he doesn't have to. That's just how we roll when it comes to money.

Wetting the Bed... And Losing Weight

The two "titles" of this post don't have anything to do with each other, but I didn't want to do two separate posts. That being said, here goes nothing...

We've only been married for a couple of months, so we don't have any kids who are toilet training, so naturally I don't ever worry about waking up in the middle of the night feeling wet and having to change the sheets because someone wet the bed.

I was wrong.

Poor Bostyn. I couldn't be upset at her. Yesterday morning I dropped the kids off at Petsmart so they could get their teeth cleaned (their breath was awful) and Emmitt could get his shots. Brody had to pick them up in the afternoon whilst I was teaching. They were still a little woozy from the anesthetic they were given and, upon arriving home, just lounged on the couch all afternoon with their Dad. Even when I came home from work and Brody was already in bed, the usual hyper Bostyn kind of strolled out of the bedroom to say hello to me and get some loving and then went back in and laid down. Emmitt came out a minute or two after Bostyn.

Once I was ready for bed, we invited the dogs back up on the bed and settled in for the night. I mostly slept in the middle of the bed, probably crowding my husband; but what could I do? The dogs had claimed their space and it's a pain to move them so I enjoyed the warm bodies all around me. I got a little too warm a couple of times in the night, but I wasn't going to complain cuz usually I'm freezing.

Suddenly Bostyn decided she'd head down to the floor and Emmitt followed suit. Happy for the extra room I was given, I rolled over a little to spread out. Huh? It felt wet. More confusion in my mind. I looked at the clock - 12:30 am. Growl. I'm so tired! Can it really be pee? I half sit up in bed, completely awake now, and Brody stirs. "I think Bostyn peed on the bed," I said. "She probably just drooled," a half awake Brody says. "Ya right," I'm thinking. "She doesn't drool THAT much." No wonder she didn't want to be on the bed anymore.

So I stay crammed in the little space I have - between my heater of a husband and an invisible wall that shouldn't be knocked down for fear of soaking up pee/drool/wetness into my pajamas. I don't sleep well. Is it ever going to be time to get up?

Finally the alarm goes off and even thought I've been waiting for this moment, I hit the snooze twice before I stagger out of bed to make Brody's lunch for the day. Into the kitchen comes Bostyn, much more enthusiastic than last night. I'm happy for the change in her demeanor. I bend down and give her some attention and ask her why she would pee in mom and dad's bed. She just looks at me with those eyes like, "I couldn't help it. I was drugged and so out of it. Love me anyway." And I do.

They didn't get anything to eat at all yesterday and I know Bostyn was confused about that and missed her food bowl - she kept going in the bathroom and sniffing around the spot it usually sits in. She especially missed her wonderful water bowl which she frequently visits during the night since we sleep with the door open. So before I finish making food for my husband (who DID eat the day before), I went to fill up their food bowls.

More pee.

This time I stepped in it. Right next to the door leading out to the garage. I sighed, went in the wash my foot off and told Brody she peed in the laundry room. "Really?" he asked. I still can't be mad at her. At least she was kind enough to pee on the linoleum instead of the carpet. But I wondered if there was more. Fingers are still crossed that I don't find any more wet spots.

So now everyone is up. I REALLY don't want to be up and want to crawl back into bed. I go back in the bedroom and Brody states matter-of-factly, "It's pee all right." I'm thinking to myself, "Duh. I knew that last night when I said she peed on the bed." Sigh. Not looking forward to the clean up I had ahead of me, I said, "I know. I slept in it all night." I have to laugh at the face Brody makes when he's totally amused yet feels bad for the situation as he apologizes for something that wasn't his fault. "I'm sorry."

So as of right now I've taken the sheets of the bed and put them in the washer and soaked the spot on the mattress with water and some laundry detergent. Luckily the pee only got on the top part of the mattress and not down into the foam. (We have a sleep number bed.) I just pray that the very potent girl dog pee doesn't cause horrible aromas in our bed or burn a hole in the mattress. Haha. She's killed many patches of grass outside in our "backyard" with that pee. I'm thinking that Bostyn should probably get one of her very desirous baths today. Dad is good at giving her one of those. Anyway...

I still love our dogs.

And I will still love our kids when I have to take care of all the messes they will make when they come along. Heck, I still even love my husband when I pick up dirty socks or empty Pepsi cans cuz he forgets where the laundry basket and the garbage can are. :o) (Hee hee, just kidding dear. Aboout you forgetting where dirty clothes and garbage goes, not about loving you.) I don't mind picking up after my husband if he's going to get up at the buttcrack of dawn and go to work and deal with stupid people all day cuz every Friday he hands over pretty much all of his paycheck so I can pay the bills. He's a good man.

I'm also proud of him (though I mostly act annoyed that he's doing so much better than I am) because he's lost 27 pounds! One good thing about his stubbornness is that when he makes his mind up on something, he sticks to it. He decided to start eating better. So he cut out fast food, some of his Pepsi intake and eating late at night and the pounds have just melted away. I like to think it was that gym membership we got for him, but he hasn't used it yet. That'll be for the toning and to built muscle and such.

Since I see him every day, at first I didn't notice, but one day I was watching him as we were outside walking the dogs and I realized that his clothes are definitely looking looser. He had to go buy new work pants cuz his old ones were practically falling off him! He's still in need of some new belts - you can only make your own holes in your belt so many times before it's just time to fork out the money for a brand new belt that fits right. I look back at our engagement pictures and realize is has made a difference.

Of course I loved him with that extra weight the same as I love him now, but hearing that his blood pressure is down and that his knees and back don't hurt as much, I'm glad he's taking care of himself and wants to be healthier. He's a good man and I probably don't deserve him, but I'm pretty lucky that he puts up with me.

Last, but not least... I found this on dogsonshirts.com as I was looking for Christmas stockings for the dogs. (Yes, I'm really going to get some.)

YOU KNOW YOU'RE A DOG PERSON IF...
1. You and your family haven't had your annual check up in two years, bu the dogs are medically up to date.
2. You start barking at your children to "Sit! Stay!"
3. You snuggle closer to the dog than the person with whom you are sleeping.
4. Your mom calls and asks how the grandogs are.
5. Your first concern when planning a vacation is whether or not the hotel will take pets.
6. First time visitors wonder aloud: "Do you smell something?" and you really don't.
7. You break down and buy another pillow so you have one to sleep on.
8. The instructions to the dog kennel are longer than the instructions to the house sitter.
9. You kiss your dog more than 10 times per greeting.
10. You call long distance and talk with your dog.

#1 is true.
#2 will probably happen.
#3 - Brody got a talking to about that one as he was cuddling with Bostyn on one end of the couch and I was on the other. :o)
#4 doesn't really happen.
#5 - Brody already knows all the hotels that take pets.
#6 doesn't happen cuz our house doesn't smell.
#7 - I think that happened to Brody before we got married.
#8 - Audrey would know. She dogsat for us once and most of the instructions were for them.
#9 - Not actual kisses, but they do get a lot of attention.
#10 - I may have tried to say hi to Bostyn and Emmitt whilst I was in China.
WE'RE DEFINATELY DOG PEOPLE. :o)

Play time & Cookies

Sometimes the dogs get bored with being indoors. As I was talking on the phone to my sister, the "kids" (as we like to call them) were taunting each other by taking a toy they knew the other one liked out of the toy basket and throwing it around in front of each other. Of course, this led to a little play fighting. I wanted to get some video of them taunting each other, but I was too late for that. So for now, here is a little clip of them playing together. At least they're quiet. Can't say that for any kids we have who will be fighting a few years down the road. We'll probably just sit calmly by and let them fight whilst we videotape them too. Hee hee.


The kids love their cookies - and they know that word when they hear it. They will prance around and sit down quickly and be on their best behavior cuz they just love those things. About a month ago, I taught them how to shake. It took Bostyn a little bit longer to learn than Emmitt, but she got it. One thing she does better than Emmitt, though, is holding still (pretty much the only time she will...) with a cookie in between her eyes until we say "okay" and she can flip it off her face and catch in midair in her mouth. Emmitt HATES that and won't hold still so he has to shake instead. We have to give Emmitt his cookie first and watch Bostyn cuz she scarfs (sp?) her down and tries to get his. Pardon my heavy breathing. I've been way congested and sick since last night. I can't really breathe or talk very well.

Proud Parents - Bostyn & Emmitt

Bostyn and Emmitt showing off their new neckware after their annual check-up with their doggie doctor.
It's amazing how you can get married and instantly become the stepmom. Grandma Little always said I would marry a guy with kids - I just didn't know they would be dogs! I already knew I liked Emmitt when I dated Brody the first time, but Bostyn was a new addition when we got back together so I had to get to know her. Just in the past few weeks, I have come to realize how much I love my kids. They are always happy to see me and even happier when I ask them if they want to go outside. Their ears perk up and Bostyn goes berzerk (more than normal). Emmitt, on the other hand, prances around and get that gleam in his eyes. Of course, their hearts will always belong to their dad - they only have eyes for Brody when he's home, no matter what I do to get their attention. Such devotion.

I realized last night that I was becoming one of those "parents." You know the ones. Always talking about how adorable their kids are and showing pictures of them. Ya, I do that. I have tons of pictures and videos of them on my phone and as soon as anyone asks what kind of dogs we have (which I can remember - finally), I whip out my phone and bore everyone to tears. But that's okay - I just love them! I talk to them all day and boss Bostyn around to do all the things I should be doing. One day I'll come home and she will have cleaned the house for me, right? Ha. Just teaching her how to "shake" took quite some time and lots of cookies, dog cookies, that is.

The weird thing is, Brody added Bostyn to the canine team at a time when he thought he would be a bachelor forever. He also wanted someone Emmitt could hang out with. Both dogs are rescue dogs and have some of the most interesting personalities. The most interesting part of it all is that the saying "owners are like their pets" is VERY relevant here, which is quite amusing. I marvel at the way our little family has come together. Emmitt (or Brody) tries to be the alpha male and is calm, loyal and steadfast. He can also be somewhat of a creep, with his shifty stare or his slow crawl when you're not looking. (Okay, Brody doesn't creep up on you like Emmitt, but he can look at you with those beautiful eyes of his in a creepy kind of way sometimes. It's cute.) Bostyn (or Jen) is always on the move, wanting to know what's going on with everything, extremely curious, yet cautious and fearful, and pretty much psychotic and needy.

We enjoy taking the kids out to the grassy area behind our condo and letting them play with their new friends. I always remember the names of the other dogs, but as much as we talk with the owners, I have no clue what their names are! Bostyn doesn't care how small the puppies are (like 5 month old Abby) or how big Bella and Czar are (they outweigh her by 60 & 95 pounds), she enjoys playing with them all - and we enjoy watching them. It's also great because they sleep through the night and don't stir too much when we're up at 4 in the morning to get Brody off to work. Emmitt will be a great big brother and Bostyn will be a great big sister when the time comes to add a human baby to our family!