More Agility....Finally!!

Today is the first day this week I have felt good enough to practice agility with Hobbs. So we worked on some shadow handling, which has gotten a bit rusty, and then a sequence of jumps and weaves. I got the idea to try some weaves with distance from Ricky's blog. But unfortunatly by the time I set it all up, I couldn't for the life of me remember how she handled the sequence!! So I did my best, and Hobbs was very excited to get to play! Here is a look at how I set things up....or not because my free trial of the course designer expired :( You can watch the video on Ricky's blog if you want to see how it was set up!

Along with the sequence, I really worked on getting Hobbs to weave with the poles upright. He did it quite a few times and only popped out once in a while. I know I need a better set of poles to teach him with....too bad I am not super rich! Anyways, he did a great job trying to get it right.

Patriot got to play a little too, and is kind of getting better at "Touch" which I hope teaches him how to work with the clicker. He just doesn't seem to get it! But he has fun trying, and definatly loves to get the treats! I took pictures, but Blogger is being retarded so look for another post tomorrow....or whenever it lets me upload them.

Puppy Pool.....

Ok, maybe not quite a puppy pool, but I added a poll to the side of my Life Blog so feel free to add your opinion of what I am growing inside me! I will have a due date pool later down the road next year, once I have an actual due date from the doctor.

Poll

I added a poll to the side of my blog. I will be finding out whether or not we are only having one baby on the 17th, but feel free to guess on the number/gender! We won't be finding out the sex of the baby until the first of next year (not literally the first!) so I am leaving it open until January 6th which is when the gender is supposed to be distinguishable. My guess is that it is a boy. I dont' know why, but I do feel that we are having a little boy. All the little chinese gender predictors say it is a boy too!

Ugh! Week 6 Day 4

So here are my pregnancy stats for the week....I am not so thrilled with them....

• Weight: 158.4!!!....I am really really having a hard time with all this weight gain!!
• Waist: 33 1/2" - Measurement taken at belly button (how is it that I can gain 4 pounds in a week and go down almost 2" around my waist?)
• TP square measurement: 8 1/2 sq
• Bra size: VERY Full 34 DD - Sorry if TMI
• Sleeping Schedule: Go to Bed @ 10:30pm-11:30am and Wake Up @ 8:00am-8:30am.
• Exercise Schedule: 45-50 minute medium walking with dogs 3-4 days a week, 60 minute easy canyon hike 1x a week

So this week has been a bit rough. I have been really nauseous most of the week, so much so, that I canceled my riding lesson on Tuesday. Luckily I haven't had any food aversion yet, and was able to eat my thanksgiving dinner on Thursday. My only food related problem is that I am sick of eating! I get nauseous and I know that it is because I need to eat something, but I am really tired of finding something to eat. Snacks aren't enough now to satisfy the nausea so I have to actually make something! So I don't eat, or I only eat a snack, and then just hope that I will start to feel better....but I only feel worse. I have been feeling poorly enough that I haven't taken the dogs out to walk regularly, and they hate it. When I walk them I feel great afterwards, but just can't find the motivation to get out to begin with. I really just feel like a lazy bump-on-a-log!

Other than all those complaints, I am still very in shock that I am actually pregnant! It just doesn't seem real to me even with all the symptoms....I am sure it will get more really when I start puking my guts out every 5 minutes sometime in the next week or two. I am excited that Robert and I get to go to our first doctor's appointment in just over two weeks!! Robert is going to Chicago on Monday for two weeks and then we will be going in! Hopefully we will get a sonogram picture, and I will be able to put it up on here. I can't wait!!

Here is my picture for Week 6 Day 4 to me I look a lot bigger....may just bloated.

Thanksgiving

I can't believe it is already after Thanksgiving!

We had Robert's family over for dinner on Thanksgiving day, and had a wonderful dinner! I was thankfully feeling well enough to actually eat, but ate too much and felt really sick for most of the evening. We then sat around and talked and watched a movie for a while. Neither Hobbs or Patriot got any turkey or other thanksgiving foods, and they feel very neglected and un-loved because of it!

They were on their way to a wedding in Idaho the next day and needed us to watch their new puppy. Mauchen (or little mouse in German) is a Boston Terrier Yorkie mix. I couldn't find a picture of one anywhere, so here is a link to a Boston Lhasa Apso mix. Mauchen looks a lot like that puppy, the only difference is she is darker brown, almost black, and isn't quite as fuzzy. She was a typical little dog and was VERY needy and attached to anything human. She stayed on tie-down most of the day she was here, and was very good until someone would leave the room. Then the screeching and screaming would start until she would get a couple corrections. Hobbs liked her to begin with, and would play with her, but after a while he got really sick of her constant moving and nipping and would stay out of her reach. Patriot hated her from the beginning but would allow her to sleep next to him in the living room.

That night I wanted to let her sleep in our room with us in the little tiny cat crate. She wasn't screaming but even after an hour and a half of corrections she wouldn't stop her whining. So she went to the other end of the house in our family room, and I really believe she screamed for the entire night. When we woke up she was still barking and shrieking. Luckily we didn't hear a sound back in our room, so the walls much be thicker than we thought! Watching her confirmed it even more in our minds that we absolutely do not want to ever have a little dog! I can't handle the neediness! Sorry if I have little dog owners reading this! I know they have their place in other's hearts, they just aren't the ones for me!

Body Worlds

Robert and I went to see the Body Worlds 3 display in Salt Lake City last Saturday, and it was amazing! If you don't' know what body worlds is, I will try to explain.

It is where cadavers have been plasticised(sp?) and the skin removed to expose the muscles, nerves, veins, organs, and bones. Each displayed body has different parts exposed. Their are display cases of bones, and hearts. There were descriptions of everything there, and it was very informative! My favorite part was the emryo room, were they had plasticised empryos from week 5 all the way up to week 32....I think. It was AMAZING to be able to see exactly what my little one looks like right now! The most suprising of all of them was the 9 week old empryo! It was so very detailed and the baby had each finger and toe formed with only a little webbing between them. I had no idea the babies had that much of their anatomy that early. It was wonderful to see.

Here are some pictures I found online. They absolutly did not let anyone even take cell phone pictures while in the exibit.


This one was really creepy! They had left rings of skin on the body which was really leathery and gross.

There were many many action bodys set up to show how the muscles react Some had less muscle than others

Yes this is a camel, and it was really cool, our exhibit also had a baby camel

This one wasn't at our ehibit, but it is a horse and rider! I really wish I couldn't have seen this one!

Another Visitor

Meet baby puppy Nell!!

Here are some cute pictures of her:

She is about 4 months old, and is a little cutie! Robert and I have her until tomorrow early afternoon. Her parents are Cabby and Parkay and she was born August 20th. Today she has been really good! She came in and immediately tried to wrestle with Patriot and got growled at. Patriot was really upset that I brought such a "horrible thing" into his house. He really doesn't like baby puppies. Hobbs on the other hand, was very happy to have a buddy to play with. We went out into the yard and they chased each other for quite a while. I think that is an ok thing for her to do.....They weren't slamming into each other, or wrestling, just playing chase. If I am wrong, I am wrong!

I purposely kept her awake for the first two or three hours she was here because I was going to go to Twilight, and wanted her to be able to sleep in her kennel. She was exhausted when I finally put her in there, and she immediately laid down and relaxed to sleep. The boys were VERY naughty while I was gone!! They got my package of ritz crackers off the top of my dresser and ate them all!! In order to get to them, they had to jump up on the bed and then go through the things on the dresser! And one of them (Hobbs I believe) got up on top of Robert's medal shelves and got a plastic cup and shredded it all over the room! Needless to say one of them may be staying in a kennel next time I leave! Then if bad things happen, I will know who the culprit it!

There is one thing this little girl has done during her stay! She has made me realise that if I wasn't pregnant, I would be turning in an application for another puppy ASAP!! Robert and I both want another puppy, but know that it would't work with me pregnant and then trying to deal with a puppy while we have a new baby.

Hobbs and Miss Nell

The three puppies. Patriot is the one this time that doesn't want to be in the picture. Poor cranky old dog!

Week 5 Day 2 - 243 days to go!

Wow, I can't believe it has been over a week sense I found out I am pregnant! Things have been going pretty well. I defiantly feel pregnant, but it comes and goes. The first couple days I was nauseous a lot of the time, and completely exhausted most of the time. This week has been better. Sunday, again, was hard but I got through it. I don't' know what it is about church that makes me feel like I am going to puke, but it does. During one meeting I, all of the sudden, smelled some child's snack food, and it made me so nauseous! It really smelled like someone had shoved that nasty smelling stuff in my nose!

Most days this week I have been pretty energetic in the mornings, and then by 1 or 2 I am tired and want to take a nap. The trouble is, I haven't been able to fall asleep during the day lately. I sleep pretty well at night, and only wake up some nights to open the window to cool down. As for the stats this week:

• Weight: 154.2....I am NOT going to gain a pound every week of my first trimester!! I really was hoping to be one of those girls who loses a few!
• Waist: 35" - Measurement taken at belly button
• TP square measurement: 9 sq
• Bra size: VERY Full 34 DD - Sorry if TMI
• Sleeping Schedule: Go to Bed @ 9:30pm-10:30am and Wake Up @ 8:00am-8:30am.
• Exercise Schedule: 45-50 minute medium walking with dogs 5-6 days a week,90 minute easy canyon hike 1x a week, and 50 minute riding lesson 1x a week

It is so hard for me to be ok with gaining weight! For some reason I feel like going out and exersizing every day just to keep at my same weight. I know you have to gain weight during a pregnancy, but I am determined gain no more than 30lbs....unless my doctor says I have to gain more. This first trimester I only want to gain a maximum of 10 lbs. I am sure I will eventually get used to the idea of gaining a ton of weight, but it is really hard right now.

Week 5 Day 4 picture! I don't think much has changed!

Dog Park, Hiking, and Good Owners

Today was a great day! I had a lot of energy so I wanted to give a dogs a bunch of exercise. I finally found out there is a dog park just a mile from our house! I got the dogs all hyped up to go play, and then drove over to the park. Well apparently it is CLOSED from November 1st through April 1st! What kind of city dog park closes for half the year?!? I am still looking for other dog parks up here that is hopefully open all year around!


Sense I had gotten the boys so excited about going to play, I decided to try to find a trail to take them on (off leash). After a short drive, I got to the foot of the mountains and off we went. It turned out to be a great trail! The boys ran ahead and then would stop and wait for me before going again. There was a little man made pond for them to drink out of, and plenty of would be shade for in the summer. We were up there for at least an hour! For some reason Patriot threw up after a while of running, so I think he either ate something bad, or he got over-heated. I am leaning towards the first one because it was pretty cold today.



This is what a lot of the trail looks like. The rest is the same just a wider trail.

We ran into another owner with a couple off leash dogs, and for the first time EVER it wasn't a horrible experience! The lady called up to me (her trail was coming up the mountain to mine which was going along the mountain) before she was even in sight, saying that she had two dogs and asking if it was ok that they were off leash. I asked if they were friendly, and she said that they were, so I yelled that it was fine. The dogs came into view and calmly greeted the boys, and off the four of them ran, like best buddies! I walked along behind the other lady (she was jogging, and there was no way I was going to do that) and watched the dogs enjoy each other's company. Hobbs completely forgot I existed because he was busy doing labby scoots with one of the other dogs. Patriot would still stop and wait for me, but would take off after the other dogs as soon as I got close. After a while I wanted to turn around and go back so I called the boys to me, not expecting to see Hobbs ever again (just kidding). To my utter surprise, both boys came barreling around the corner and were happy to go back the way we came. It was a great day!


These aren't the best because they were taken with my phone, but next time we go up there I will take an actual camera to get some better pictures.

Guide Dog Day!!

Today is California's official Guide Dog Day!

Everyone hug your puppies and tell them just what they are destined for! If you have guide dog handler friends congratulate them on the achievement of having these wonderful dogs in their lives!

Pre-Pregnancy Stats

Ok, I thought I would write a post about every pre-pregnancy stat I can think of. So here it goes:

• Weight: 153.8
• Waist: 34 3/4" - Measurement taken at belly button
• Bra size: 34 DD - Sorry if TMI
• Sleeping Schedule: Go to Bed @ 11:30pm-12:30am and Wake Up @ 7:30am-8:30am. Occasional nap during the day.
• Exercise Schedule: 60 minute rapid walking with dogs 5-6 days a week, Pilates 3x's a week, 50 minute riding lesson 1x a week, lifting 5lb dumbbells 2-3x's a week.

Ummm I think those are the only ones....for now! And here is my week 4, day 4 pregnancy picture:

No, that isn't baby belly! That is just belly belly! Now is the moment where I regret not acheiving my New Years resolution weight of 135 because now I am not allowed to try to lose weight! That is going to be the hardest part for me!

Hopefully the next 35+ pictures will be better because Robert will be home to take them!

More Genova Pics

All three dogs; worn out after a long day of playing in the yard


Genova

Hobbs

Patriot


She has such a cute little face


I was going to get a picture of all three of them at their dishes, but little Genova decided to bother Hobbs right as I got the camera out and ready.




Yummmy Breakfast!


Hobbs got jealous of all the Genova pictures so he put himself in front of the camera and "begged" to have his picture taken. Spoiled, fame-hungry dog!

Genova!

Ah little Genova, she is such a cute little girl!

I went to a puppy meeting on Tuesday, which was fun. The club up here just got three brand new puppies! Two little yellow girls and a black girl. I think their names are....Nell-FBLB, Sakari-FYLB, and Teesha-FYLB. They are all adorable, and I am hoping I get to puppy sit some of them before they get too big. I need a baby puppy fix! Anyways at the meeting I got to handle Genova, while we worked on FIR, grooming, and talked about problems. She was very happy to be with me, and would look back at me and lick my chin if I leaned forward.

Today I went to pick up Genova from her raiser at work. She is a groomer and had just bathed and dried miss Genova. I had to go to the store right after, so I got to enjoy having a dog with me again. Genova is so cute when she walks! She almost prances! She was good at the store, and pretty ok in the car. She just didn't know where she was supposed to be, and I didn't have my tie-down in the car....it is lost in a box somewhere.

When we got home, I had all three dogs go out in the yard to get to know each other. I was out with them of course. They did the obligatory sniffing routine, and then ignored each other! After all three had pottied we went back inside and I shut all of us in the family room. Patriot laid down in his spot and Hobbs and Genova started a game of mouth wrestling. I brought the toy bucket in for them to use, and picked up all the non guide dog toys that were looking very tempting.

The three dogs. I am amazed how much more comfortable Hobbs was being in this picture compared to the one with Onterio.

Hobbs and squinty little Genova

The difference in their coats is AMAZING!!

Stand up mouth wrestling

I think that is Hobbs with his mouth open!

Yep thats him!

Hobbs having a "scared of dogs moment" He can be playing just fine and then will freeze and stand there looking scared like he thinks the other dog is going to swallow him whole or something!

A nice shot of miss Genova...and Patriot

Looking down on her

I have plans to go grocery shopping tomorrow, but I don't know if I will take her with me. Lately when I have to leave the house, I just want to get what I have to do done and get back home. I am very excited for the weekend though because Robert finally comes home from his business trip! He has been gone the whole week and it has been horrible! It will be nice to have him home soon. I will update with some more pictures before she goes home on Sunday!

Agility Practice

I finally was feeling well enough today to get out the weave poles and made a couple jumps out of plastic shelves that hadn't been put together yet.

Hobbs was SO excited about the weaves being out! He got every single entry I sent him to, and only popped out twice! Its good to know how much he really likes this game. He also was happy to jump anything he thought I was pointing to. That included jumping in and on the many flower pots in the yard. I tipped over one of the big wooden pots (it was empty) and used that as our "Table" obstacle. I also got a ladder out of the shed to do some hind end awareness practice with. That didn't go very well, because he was trying to go so fast that he couldn't get his feet in and out of the rungs fast enough.

I had him going over jumps and then through the weaves, and visa versa. I worked on shadow handling him past the weaves so he learns not to take them unless he has permission. He is not so good at that....he loves them too much. At one point I had Hobbs on the table, and led out to beside the weaves. I reliesed him, and sent him to the weaves. He was going so fast that I thought he wouldn't get the entry, but he slowed himself down and did them perfectly!!

I also worked on "go" where I send him around a tree from both sides. It took him a minute to remember that one, but he eventually got it. I am kind of bummed that It will probably be hard for me to do Agility classes with him while I am really pregnant in May. Hopefully I will have an easy pregnancy and feel well enough to still take him to class.

Worried

I think the wart on Patriot's tongue is growing. He is starting to notice that something is on the end of his tongue and will lick a lot, on that side, as if he is trying to get it off.

I am scared to take him back to the vet. They have to put him under anesthesia to lance it and/or take it off. Patriot's illness insurance starts the first of December, so I am going to keep an eye on it and take him in sometime during the first of the month. I am just praying that it turns out to be nothing, and that it isn't a cancerous growth.

Photo Prints

I just wanted to share with everyone a great deal on digital photo prints. I get my pictures sent to me through a website called Wink Flash. Until the 16th of November (so Sunday) they are selling their 4x6 prints for 6 cents a piece...plus shipping. Usually they are around 12 cents so I am taking advantage of this right now! Their prints are great, and they rate the printed quality of your digital picture before you even order it. Usually they only give a bad rating if you have altered the picture in some way. I love this website and check it all the time to find the sales!

Photo Prints

I just wanted to share with everyone a great deal on digital photo prints. I get my pictures sent to me through a website called Wink Flash. Until the 16th of November (so Sunday) they are selling their 4x6 prints for 6 cents a piece...plus shipping. Usually they are around 12 cents so I am taking advantage of this right now! Their prints are great, and they rate the printed quality of your digital picture before you even order it. Usually they only give a bad rating if you have altered the picture in some way. I love this website and check it all the time to find the sales!

Colorado Raiser?

I was talking to my friend who lives in Denver, and she said that a while ago (she couldn't remember how long ago) she saw a puppy raiser at her work in a medical office. When she talked to the raiser, she mentioned that she knew me. This particular raiser knew me, and asked my friend if I had raised Patriot....no mention of Hobbs (that or my friend forgot).

Would anyone in the blogger world happen to be this raiser?

Exciting News!

I have a couple of exciting pieces of news!

For the first, check out my other blog! That is by far the more exciting of the two, and it will change things very much around here!

My second piece of news is that I may be puppysitting this weekend! If I am it will be a little FBLB named Genova! I am not sure when she was born, but her mom is Mango, and dad is.....crap I forgot! So expect, FINALLY, another puppy raising post this weekend with lots of pictures of the sweet little girl. Tomorrow night is my first puppy meeting in this new club which should be interesting and fun!

Hobbs and Patriot are very slowly relaxing here in the house. It was supper rainy today, so we didn't get to go on a walk, but hopefully tomorrow will be better. I think a good walk will help both of them adjust more quickly. I haven't gotten to do any agility practice with Hobbs for what seems like FOREVER!! Hopefully I can get the weave poles out tomorrow and practice a little bit. Patriot is still doing wonderfully on his prednisone, and I am hoping the itches will stay away after the pills are all gone.

Has anyone else noticed that Blogger is being completely ridiculous today? Like when I view my blog it cuts off half of some posts, and the bar up at the top is set up as if I weren't logged in. I am so frustraited with it!

Week 4!!

That's right folks! I took a pregnancy test this morning and I am preggers!

Robert and I have been trying to get pregnant for about four months, and we are both thrilled that it happened so quickly! I was expecting it to take much longer! My estimated due date is either July 21st or 23rd so that makes me 4 weeks along. This means that there is still a chance of a miscarriage, but I have all my fingers crossed that this little thing sticks!
So far I feel...pregnant! My list of symptoms includes:

Lack of motivation (I am not really tired, just don't have the motivation to do anything)
Thirsty all the time!
Nausea (I have had to eat something every two hours today to keep it at bay)
Mild "pulling feeling" cramps
Overwhelming excitement
Dry throat
Stuffy nose
Increased appetite

Some of these symptoms I have had for almost a week without even guessing they were pregnancy symptoms! Especially the dry throat and thirst!
I am so excited, and nervous all at the same time! Be prepared for at least weekly updates and pictures!

We are here!

Well yesterday was a LONG day, but it is nice to finally be moved in. Some guys from church and a friend of Robert's came to help us load up the moving van, and then my parents came to add some much needed extra vehicles. Then we all caravaned up to the house. Once we were there we unloaded the cars and then waited for Robert to come with his family and the moving van. Then we all unloaded like crazy! We had all the cars and the van emptied in about an hour!

It seems weird to be living here, I keep expecting to go home. So do the dogs. They are very restless, and keep jumping up and going to the front door to get in the car to go home. I am very tired and ready to be all moved in, but it is taking a while. We have most of the bedroom set up, and the tv/living room. I have a lot of the kitchen dishes put away, and our bookshelves are nearly full again.

We went to church today, and it seems to be a good ward. Sadly we had the most amazing ward ever in Midvale, so I can't imagine anything topping it. Especially the Sunday school teachers in the old ward! They were both amazing! The teacher this Sunday was good and had planned his lesson well, but it wasn't anywhere near as amazing as the old ward. I am trying to just appreciate the good things about this ward.

Here are some pictures of the move in process:

The front room

The kitchen....and poor stressed Hobbs

The family room

The pile of boxes in the living room!

Patriot snoozing...really just trying to shut out the world

Hobbs a little happier

Handsome Patriot

Turtle, who thinks this is crap! She wants outside so badly! She did escape into the yard once already, and we thought she was gone. I need a better bribe to get her to come to me!

Hopefully I will have some more exciting, non moving, posts in the near future!

Yard Work Pictures

I went up to the house today for a last time before we move up there DAY AFTER TOMORROW!! I am so excited! So here are the pictures from the work today.

The back of the house

Half of one of 6 piles of leaves! Only one of which was raked up on Monday!

Jenetta, I know you said that January was the best time of year to prune apple trees, but I figured these little branches were ok to clip off now.

I couldn't resist, they just made it sooo much better looking!

Some of the leaves from one of the willows....there are going to be millions more of these!

The yard after I was all done raking...at least for today!

The trash can full of apples, that we picked up on Monday

Yes, that is almost full!

Our little garden shed

Two wooden buckets....Mom, let me know if you want one or both!

This is the space between the school sidewalk and our wood fence.

There is soo much to do with this space just to make it presentable!

The garden after all the grapes have been clipped away. I have a lot of raspberries!

And a few small strawberries!

Jenetta, this is a tree/bush along our fence. Do you know what it is and if it is poisoness at all?

This is the corner of the yard that I "conquered" on Monday!

This is what I cleared out of that corner! Haha it was so empowering!

Jenetta, this is another, more concerning vine thing along our fence. I tried to look this one up, but couldn't find it.

Here is the corner of the yard after I drug all the vines out to the trash.

Hobbs and Patriot looking for apples

Hobbs in one of the buckets

Patriot pretending to sleep on one of the lawn chairs....really I had him get up there and lay down...but he looks comfortable!

Hobbs looking for pieces of apple leftovers

Patriot looking out the back door at me

Hobbs and Patriot looking out the back door at me

Our handsome boys!