"Poor, Tortured" Dogs

Both the boys are super tired and a little sore from our hike yesterday. I guess hiking is harder on them without snow, because it was a short hike compared to our winter hikes. I figured they would be raring to go on their walk this morning, but we got 15 minutes into it, and they were both dragging their feet and ready to go back home. Hobbs acted like the little pebbles on the sidewalk were hurting his feet, so I think his pads need some toughening up. By the time we got home, I was having to walk really slow so I wasn't dragging them.

So much for my plans for agility practice this evening. Hobbs is still snoozing from the walk!

Diabetic

Lol, no I am not a diabetic, but I don't know how!! The past month or so, I have been craving sugar like crazy! I am not talking about things like cookies, or slightly sweet treats. I am talking about straight sugar things like nerds, gummy things, candy bars, and specifically Easter peeps!

I was very worried about my glucose test last week because of all the sugar I had been eating. It was a bad habit of mine for a while before I got pregnant, to eat something sweet after I ate anything else. Luckily I got the habit under control shortly after I found out I was expecting, but now I am actually craving sugar! If you know what a pregnancy craving is like, you know that the food you are craving is something that you HAVE TO have. I have been resisting as much as I can, but I still feel like all I eat is sugar.

To try to control myself, I got rid of all the left over Easter candy and after three days of just not having any sugar to eat thought I was going to go crazy so I bought sugary cereal. I went through a big bag of cereal in two days trying to get my sugar fix. Needless to say, this is on my list of things to talk to my doctor about. I don't want to be unhealthy, but I don't know what else to do! I am also eating real food, and healthy stuff.....followed by some disgustingly sugary treat.

Twilight

I haven't posted about Twilight in quite a while! Unfortunately I really didn't like the movie, and it made it hard to read the books anymore. So basically I was cured of my obsession for the series.

The next movie is coming out November 20th, and I am once again getting excited about it! Hopefully it turns out better than the first one. To tide myself over until then, I am going to try to read the books again. I am going to skip the first one (the movie really ruined it for me!) and this time I am going to read the whole second one! I read it through the first time, but I was so stressed about Edward leaving that I didn't absorb most of the middle of the book. Then the second time, I skipped it entirely. This time, I am going to read it!

Scruff Grabbing?

How do your dogs react if/when you need to grab them by their scruff (the skin on the back of their neck)?

Until today, I thought both my boys were somewhat ok with it. Patriot is, unless he has had a shot that day, because he gets sore. I don't make a habit of grabbing the dogs by their scruff, but if I need to, Patriot will just follow along, and not make a big deal out of it. Today I found out what Hobbs thinks of scruff grabbing.

I had switched is collar in the car last night before class, and just left his normal collar in the car. Then once we were home, I forgot to put his normal one on so I just let him be "naked" for the evening, and into the morning. Then I decided to take the dogs up on the mountain, and meant to put his collar on before letting the boys loose on the trail. Well, silly pregnant me forgot, and half way through the hike I realized Hobbs had no collar on.

It was no problem until we got almost back to the car, and we ran into a whole group of dogs on the trail. All but one was off leash, and the owner warned me right from the start that the leashed dog was unpredictable with other dogs. So I called the boys to me, grabbed Patriot's collar and Hobbs' scruff, and tried to lead them past the dog.

Hobbs immediately flattened himself on the ground and started whining just a little. I thought he was just nervous about the other dog, so I pulled him a little, and he full on yelped. As soon as I let go of him, he crept on his belly down the trail as fast as he could. I was shocked so I called him back to me and there was no way he was going to let me touch his scruff again, even just to pet him. He was really submissive the rest of the way to the car, and sulked in the car all the way home. I feel HORRIBLE!! Hobbs has always been submissive, but never acted scared of me or afraid that I would hurt him. I am planning to work with him on some food rewards for letting me grab him there, so that I can if it is an emergency without destroying his trust in me.

So I am curious how other people's dogs react to the scruff grab?

How does that happen?

How is it that I weighed in yesterday at 174.6, and then this morning I weight in at exactly 172? That is a better number for weight gain this week. I would much rather gain one pound a week than 3 and a half!

Second to Last

Class last night was fun, but it seemed to be a lot longer than an hour and 15 minutes.

We started out by doing some shadow handling and post turns both with the dog on our inside and outside. Hobbs was really good on my left, but had a hard time being on the inside of a turn on my right side. We really need to work on that! But at the same time, Hobbs is getting used to doing moving rear crosses on both sides! They aren't as scary as they used to be (for some reason I was really intimidated by them).

Then we worked on tight turns over jumps with and without wings. Hobbs had a little bit of a problem with this, because he would get stuck turning one way and would continue to turn that way when we switched sides. I am sure with a little practice he will be able to get it right every time. He is not a huge fan of jumping, so I have to do little sessions with lots of playing in between.

Right as we were about to play in the chute with the full sheet on it, it started raining and blowing so much we rushed inside. I felt kind of useless though because I couldn't go help drag jumps inside. They are just too heavy for pregnant little me to carry!

Once we were inside we worked through the chute a couple times, and Hobbs didn't have any problems with it. He was flying through so fast I couldn't keep up with him. Then we did another turning exercise by having them come over the jump straight, and turning so they are parallel to the bar. He did pretty good with that exercise once he understood what I wanted.

Last of all, we had some fun things to get our dog reved up for running. The first was having the instructors hold the dogs back and get them excited while we ran away from them and finally gave our release word so they could run after us. Then we put a target with treats or cheese on it out in front of us, and sent the dogs to it. Hobbs loved this game, and couldn't get there fast enough.

I am sad that this class is almost over, but excited at the same time, because the next one is on more equipment! Hobbs will love having other things to do rather than just jumping. I feel like we have more of the basics down, but I am going to work harder these next two weeks. Hobbs needs some serious work on his end position before we get out there with real equipment! He is only getting there about 50% of the time....which just wont cut it! I am also going to work on basic things like "go", "close" and "side", and the dreaded "get out".

New Addition

We got our changing table today, and it has been added to the nursery. We wont be getting the crib for at least another 10 days :( I really want it to just get here, so I can decorate it!


The table

It has a nice drawer, which will be great for the cloth wipes, and extra inserts for the diapers. It even came with a little changing pad! We are planning to get an contured one, but I think we may just put in on top of this one....maybe.

Another shot of the whole table, without the flash glare

All the furniture in the nursery....so far! You can see the difference in the wood finishes really well in this picture, but it isn't quite so obvious in real life.

The next step is to get baskets to put on the shelves of the table to keep the diapers and accessories in.

9 Weeks to Full Term!!

I just realized yesterday that I only have 9 weeks until I am considered full term!! I am 28 weeks today, and at 37 weeks I am "full term". That is crazy to me! This week has been good, but I am starting to understand how ladies really get sick of being pregnant by the end of the 9 months. Kaylee has had some part of her body sticking out of the right side of the front of my belly. Sometimes it feels like I have a just under the skin because my skin gets so tight over it. She has been moving and rolling around a lot which is really fun to watch. I will have to make a video of it sometime when she is being really active.

• Weight: 174.6 (I am a little embarrassed by the gain this week!)
• Waist: 42"
• Bra size: Maternity Large...or 36 F
• Sleeping Schedule: Go to Bed @ 10:30-11:00pm and wake up @ 6:00-8:00am
• Exercise Schedule: 60 minute walk with the dogs 3 days, strength/balance exercises on fitness ball 2 days.

I was having a really busy day, and by the time I got around to taking the picture I was in my PJ's....so forgive the sloppy picture this week!

Agility Practice

I got out the jumps again today (we played around on them for a few minutes Friday morning) and Hobbs did much better. After missing the last jump once (my fault) he did 8 flawless front cross practices. Then I started adding the weaves after the jumps and he did great! I still have to slant the poles a little or he pops out....kind of frustrating. I need an actual set of weave poles and these would be perfect! Unfortunately they are a bit out of my price range for at least a few more months.

Hobbs and I practiced some shadow handling and actually did some moving rear crosses! He is better on my left side, but he did get a couple on my right side. I need to do some more practice with him on that side. It is going to come back and bite me later!

After the disaster of "get out" at class a few weeks ago, I have been a little lax in practicing it. So today I decided to use a tree to send him around. I got really close, and then pointed past the tree and said "get out". Well little mister Hobbs thought for some reason I wanted him to climb up the tree, so he tried. Needless to say he was not successful. So I left out the word, and after three more tries he finally headed around the tree. I jack-potted him, and now he kind of understands to go around the tree. Though the second to last time I tried it, he tried to climb the tree again....

I am crossing my fingers that it is nice weather tomorrow too so that class can be outside. Then we get to learn rear crosses over jumps. Fun Fun!!

Baby Shower.....

I had my baby shower on Saturday. My little sister did a wonderful job planning it, and I was very happy that she did. My mom was there, and my dear friend Brittney came all the way from Idaho Falls ID to be there. I hadn't seen her in a couple years so it was great to catch up! Other than that, no one showed up. Sadly I had a couple friends who really wanted to be there, but couldn't because of prior commitments, sickness, or jobs. My sister didn't receive an RSVP from anyone, but apparently everyone was busy that day. And I guess a couple of my cousins didn't receive their invitations.

We still had fun playing a few shower games. We all cut a piece of yard to the length we thought would fit around my belly. Brittney won that one by having played the game the weekend before. Even I didn't get the measurement right!! Another game we played was to write down as many baby items as we could think of in a minute and a half. Sadly I only wrote down 16 things!! How can I be a mom if I can't think of baby items lol?!? We also spooned cotton balls from one bowl to another while blindfolded. We all laughed until our stomachs hurt during that one. The last game we played was the baby food game. All the labels were taped over so we couldn't see what kind of food it was. Then we were allowed to smell them to try to figure out what they were. I got a few right, but most of them smelled alike so it was really pretty difficult!

For presents I got:


A wall hanging that says "I am a Child of God"


I am not sure what this is even called. It is a mix between a little blanket, and a stuffed animal. It is meant as a smaller comfort item rather than having your baby drag around a whole blanket.

A cute little outfit with a bib and two hats

A hooded bath towel with two washcloths and three little bath toys

Close up of the toys (they are SO cute!!)

For food my mom had made a very yummy salad with strawberries, nuts, onions, and Bacon with a homemade dressing. It was very good, and we had lots so we all filled up on it. We sat around and talked for a while, and got caught up on each other's lives. Then sadly Brittney had to go home, but it was great to have her come visit!

Night Out

Patriot and Hobbs came down to my parent's house with me yesterday evening, and we stayed until earlier today. Every time we go down, we have the dogs stay outside most of the time or they get to be in the garage (if it was too cold/hot). Then they get to sleep inside with us.

Well, this trip was different. My parents are trying to sell their house, so I didn't want to get a bunch of dog hair in their house. I was fine with that, thinking they could sleep in the garage....but that didn't work out. They were in the garage for 15 minutes and found a box of chocolate Browne energy bars. Apparently they thought it was for them because they tore the box to shreds and ate 4 1/2 of the 6 bars! I put them in the dog kennel (to keep an eye out for any reaction to the chocolate) and tried to figure out what to do with them for the night.

My parents have a nice 6'x8' dog kennel with a wooden house built into the back of it. The floor of the kennel is filled with 2' of clean straw, and their is also straw in the wooden house. So it is very comfortable, and warm. Their dog Cody usually sleeps in there, but he doesn't like other dogs cuddling with him so I was worried. The end result was Cody sleeping in the garage, and Hobbs and Patriot got to sleep outside in the kennel. This was a first for Hobbs and I was very worried that he would stress the whole night.

I left my room's window open so I could hear if he was whining too much or barking (I know I am WAY too anxious of an owner). Amazingly he didn't make a peep the whole night! He was beyond excited the next morning, but he wasn't overly stressed. I am really glad that he made it through his first night sleeping outside!

Fluff Fridays

This week's giveaway is SO great! It is another Gro Baby giveaway. So what you would win is:

1-GroBaby System Sample Kit, which includes (2-Gro Baby Shells with 2 snapa in soaker and 2 boosters and 1-Gro Bab Snap-in soakers 2pk)
1-Magic Stick Diaper Ointment
This week's giveaway is generously given by the manufacturer.

L!!

The fabric store FINALLY got the wooden letter "L" in, and I finished the letters for Kaylee's room. Here is the finished product:



I got some blue paint (to match the elephant on the crib blanket), so I added some more details to each letter. All except one of the E's that is.

Finally, Some Jumps!!

I finally made the plunge and made some jumps! They weren't that hard, but I am definitely glad I had Robert to help me. Now I have 3 jumps with 3 bars each, one fixed and two removable.



I went a little crazy with the blue and black tape.

Hopefully I will get some red and yellow tape for the other jump standards (the upright part). I may get a few more jump bars to stripe with red and yellow (with black mixed in) so I don't just have blue and black jumps.

Eventually I want at least two more jumps....probably more. I can't fit them all in the back yard, but the school yard behind us has TONS of flat grass to set things up on.

Hobbs is really sore from class, and walks and the dog park, and REALLY didn't want to play once we got the jumps put together. It was 8pm so I didn't push it. I am giving him a couple days just to rest, and then we will practice the front cross stuff on Monday.

Agility Class #6

Last night's agility class was great, so much so that it took me a day to process everything enough to post about it.

We were outside again, and worked over some jumps as well as with the tunnel. The first exercise was to get the dogs to learn the proper striding over a jump. It was just two jumps set about 5' apart with the first one really low to the ground and the second one at 12". We were either to call the dogs to us over the jumps, or send them over to a target. I called Hobbs over first, and then sent him. He did both easily, and happily.

Then we got to play with the tunnel, but the first couple times I send Hobbs he went half way down the tunnel, turned around and came back out! Finally he went all the way through, and got really excited about it, like he had forgotten how to run the tunnel. He got to do a curved tunnel which Hobbs did fabulously.

Last of all we worked on front crosses again, only this time over jumps set up like this _ l _ . Hobbs was almost too in tune with my body cues, because he was going around the middle jump because somehow I was telling him to....without realising it. Or he would go through the little space between jump 1 & 2 and only jump 2 & 3! Each time I praised him for following what I was apparently telling him, but it was frustrating to have no clue what I was doing! The instructors were very helpful though, and soon I had him going over the 3 jumps easily, with a front cross at the end.

We were both very tired, physically and mentally, by the end of class! I hope I can get some jumps built this week to practice with. All in all class was very fun! I am sad there are only two classes left! But then we get to start with some equipment yay!!

Being pregnant wasn't helping me move this week, to say the least!

Posting

I have been replacing posts from my oops from a week or so ago. Sometimes the dates get messed up, and they post as new posts. If a post shows up that makes no sense, just ignore it and it will probably go away!

Good Day

Today was a good (if not busy) day!

I got out and walked the boys, but we didn't go early enough to beat the heat. We had to stop and rest in the shade a couple times, and I got a little sun burnt. Once we got home, I fiddled with our sprinkler system a bit so we aren't feeding the lawn every other day.

I had a doctor's appointment and 1 hour glucose tolerance test. That is where they first test for gestational diabetes. Luckily my numbers were good if not great. They even said that my iron levels were great even for a non pregnant person. Yay for me! Kaylee is measuring right on track at 2 lbs 1 oz. I still can't believe that I only have 3 months left! Robert and I were going to go on our hospital tour after our appointment, but they didn't have an empty room for us to see. Hopefully tomorrow night they will!

Last but not least, I got a church calling of co-leader of the primary activity days. I am not 100% sure what that will entail, but I know that I still get to go to Relief Society and Sunday school every Sunday. I am really glad I didn't another primary teacher calling.

Third Trimester!!

I truly can not believe I am starting my third trimester! I don't know if it is just my computer, but my ticker isn't working. It says I have 0 days left but I think as of today I have 9o. I have been getting a little uncomfortable lately, just because I am not as "flexible" as I used to be. I am happy to announce though that I am 7 months pregnant and can still touch my toes when I am standing! This week is my baby shower, Saturday to be exact, and I am very very excited. I have a couple of very good friends coming who I don't see very often.

My 1 hour glucose test is today, but I am not worrying about it. I feel fine, but I don't know anything about gestational diabetes, so I guess I can't judge. Robert and I are also going to try to take a tour of the labor and delivery floor where I am going to deliver. Anyways, here are the stats for the week:

• Weight: 171.0
• Waist: 41 3/4"
• Bra size: Maternity Large...or 36 F
• Sleeping Schedule: Go to Bed @ 9:30-11:00pm and wake up @ 7:00-8:30am
• Exercise Schedule: 60 minute walk with the dogs 3-4 days, strength/balance exercises on fitness ball 2 day. I didn't do so great on the exercise part of the week.

If the pattern continues, I wont be gaining much weight next week but my belly should get bigger! Yay, that will be SO fun!

Success!!

After all our failed attempts at going to the dog park, today we succeeded! I went early in the morning, and surprisingly there were only two owners there. I was afraid there was going to be a bunch of people and dogs (which has not gone well for us lately). Maybe it is because it doesn't get super hot in the middle of the day so people don't worry about coming early. Whatever the reason, I was glad!

I made sure none of the previously offending dogs were there before I even took the boys out of the car. When we got in the park, I was thrilled that all three of the dogs there completely ignored Hobbs....well after the initial "hello" sniffing.


Hobbs with the 7 year old Boxer who was really sweet


And with the other two dogs. A 4 month old Malamute (yes he is bigger than Hobbs) and a 3 year old Neopolitan mastiff, who was a slobbery mess.

Patriot wouldn't come close to me to get his picture taken because he had found a "treasure" and didn't want me to take it away.....

....a mostly torn apart rubbery ball

Patriot with Hobbs and the Boxer

The dogs (except Patriot) played chase a bunch and ran up and down the forresty hill that is half the park. Patriot just sniffed around, and said "hello" to the owners. He was SO happy to be there! I love how happy he gets when we go to the park.

Hobbs

Here are a bunch of pictures of the actual park. This was after everyone had gone home, so it was just Hobbs and Patriot sniffing around.

Ok, this one does have the husky puppy in it

What much of the forest part of the park looks like

But there are a few paths

And the top of the hill has a nice path....full of poop because no one hikes up the hill to clean up after their dogs. Yuck!

As you can see, you can't see down onto the grass, or up onto the hill! The trees are just too thick! I forgot to take a picture of the border collie and horse that live at one end of the park...maybe next time.

Finally I got to take some more nice "set up" pictures of the boys

Hobbs:

I couldn't get him pose for me....or look at me!

Patriot:

I got 4 pictures with him squinting! I think he is doing it on purpose because he hates the camera so much.

And a good picture!

Spring Sprinklers

South Ogden has turned on their secondary water, which means that people's yards can be watered especially if they have a sprinkler system. For the first time in my life I live in a house that has a sprinkler system. Yesterday Robert and I went out and tested and programed the sprinklers, and Patriot had quite the time playing in them!

When the first set of sprinklers came on, they made a weird noise (clearing the air out of the system) and Patriot started to freak out. I am pretty sure he thought there was an intruder because his hackles went up, and he started trotting over to the side gate. Then the sprinklers came on right under him, and he went crazy racing around in them. He kept running up to them, and trying to bite the sprinkler head. They are the kind that actually pop up like 6" out of the ground. Then he would get water in his eyes, nose, and mouth so he would go racing away. Patriot doesn't do labby scoots very often, so when he does we know he is super excited.

Hobbs on the other hand, thought we had ruined the yard, and just wanted to go back in the house.....what a party pooper! I will have to let the dogs out every morning either before or after the sprinklers because I don't think Hobbs will even go out to potty if they are on.

An unfortunate part of spring is that the wasps and bees have come out! Patriot has the bad habit of trying to catch them, and one grabbed onto his lip yesterday. I don't know if it stung him, but it was stuck on his lip for a few seconds. He didn't swell up so I am guessing its nothing to worry about. Right?

Novosibirsk!!

My little baby brother just opened his mission call, and he is leaving on my birthday (July 15th) for Novosibirsk Russia!!

Here is a map of where that is....It is the lowest blue dot on the map.

Some facts:

• Temperatures in summer range from 20 °C to 25 °C (75 °F); in winter -18 °C to -20 °C (0 °F), but can reach from -40 °C to -50 °C (-40 °F) in winter and 35-40 °C (100 °F) in summer.
• Large mammals native to the Novosibirsk area include the brown bear, reindeer, moose (locally called elk), wolf and fox. Also present are wolverine, ermine, marten, weasel and polecat. The predators among them are supported by populations of beaver, hare, mouse, hamster, vole, shrew, squirrel and chipmunk. More than 350 species of birds have been recorded.
• Population: 1,425,508 inhabitants
• Official Website http://www.novo-sibirsk.ru/

And some pictures of the city:

It seems so crazy and scary that my little baby brother is going so far away for 2 whole years!!