a day outdoors....

Yesterday Gary, Bentley and I set out for a great outdoor adventure. There is a state park not far from our house, and Bentley was in great need of some extended exercise. We started our hike, a 3.5 mile loop, excited for a day outside. The great heat wave had finally lifted and it was just an average 95 degree summer day. At first we had Bentley on the leash (rules of the park) and he was just sniffing away at everything, tugging, pulling, wanting to run everywhere. So of course we let him off the leash, and like a perfect little pup he stayed right on the trail next to us the remainder of the hike.

So we had been walking for what seemed like a super long time and we come up on a post marking the mileage... not even half way. And Bentley had already begun his usual; laying down in the middle of a walk. haha. Soon after that our shoes started to give us blisters... I never can understand why I ever wear my chacos... I get blisters every time. Long story short, we were only half way, Bentley was getting too tired for the long walk, and Gary and I both had blisters! But we kept on... come to find out the 3.5 mile walk was actually 4 miles. 



We did it though, and got some great pictures!!

around the house...

A few updates since the last post...

A few days ago I was able to go with one of my friends to her 23 week ultrasound. This is something I have never seen before and let me tell you it was pretty cool. You can see the baby's heart so well that you can see all the chambers of the heart. It is crazy. Then of course we got to see the little feet and hands and a 3D image of little Lexi's face! So cute! The appointment was in Annapolis, so after we took the opportunity to go get lunch downtown. So pretty near and on the water! We both got fish and chips. :)

The shock collar we purchased as an investment in Bentley's education has turned out to be a good one. He is already learning from his mistakes and is just generally more calm. He still likes to jump up on us when we first get home and such, but he is of course still a Labrador!








Up in our part of the world, and probably a few others, there has been quite a heat wave! Temperatures for the past few days here have hit over a hundred, and with the heat index areas have gotten up near the 120s!! Yikes, it has just been so hot!! Well, our air conditioning unit is as old as the house is, which is about 13yrs. It has been running in overdrive the past month, and the past few days have pretty much done it in. It is still kind of working at this point, but in the heat of the afternoon it can't keep up. It gets to about 80 degrees in the house. We have gotten someone to come look at it and they think we pretty much need a whole new unit/system. Hopefully our home warranty will cover the cost, or at least the majority. Once the technician makes his recommendation to the warranty company, they will have to decide if they will cover a new unit or if that just want to replace parts. We of course are hoping for a new unit!!

In the mean time the ceiling fan in our bedroom died and we have been sleeping in the guest bedroom. Well today that is no more!!! We got a new ceiling fan, installed it,  and it looks great! I'm ready to be back in my own bed for sure!!

until next time....

shocks of parenting...

There comes a time in every parent's life where you just have to face the facts to realize your child (or puppy) is out of control! As the responsible parent, it is your job to make sure you do all you can to raise your child (or puppy) in a manner that is suitable to society's expectations. Using such parenting skills as leading by example, putting your child's needs above your own, and on an extreme occasion, tough love can all be helpful in your parenting endeavors.

Well, I have tried leading by example. I refrain from jumping on the counters, peeing on the floor, and biting other humans. So far Bentley has not caught on. Although he is doing very well with not peeing on the floor, which he is praised for. As a parent you should always praise your child (or puppy) for behaviors to which you approve and are proud of!

I have also tried putting his needs above my own. When it is my day off and I would like to sleep in but his internal alarm clock goes off at 4:30am, I reluctantly, but definitely get up to let him out! When he was (and still is) teething I make sure he has all the proper chew toys, including on occasion his favorite, my arm. This sacrifice has gone unnoticed to him, and he has failed to learn certain good behaviors as a thank you! As I am certain some children do. ;)

Which leads me to the last of previously mentioned parenting skills, tough love. Today, Bentley became the proud (or not so proud) owner of a "training collar." For those of you parents who don't believe in spanking your children (or puppy), please read no further, my post is no longer helpful to you! Now, for those of you who aren't aware, "training collar" is really just the politically correct term for SHOCK COLLAR. And this collar comes equipped with 10 "levels of correction." If you are dealing with children, this would be the equivalent of what degree of strength you are using to spank your child.

So far, Bentley is doing well with the collar. He seems to be responsive to tough love! Mostly the skill we are working on is jumping. Jumping on people, the counter, the couch. Now, for those of you dealing with some ADD/ADHD issues, this may help. It is best to teach only one quality/trait/skill at a time. Children (or mostly puppies) can really only pay attention to one thing at a time and correcting their every move is really more confusing and instructive!

Updates to follow... feel free to leave any parenting advice...

Here is a picture of my sweet sweet baby!

on call...

I was supposed to work today, but I got a surprise call this morning and it was the hospital requesting that I take call! Basically I got to stay home today, get paid a nominal hourly rate with the possibility of having to go in at any second. Usually taking call is not anything I would want to do because, yeah, you get the day "off" but at any minute the hospital could call needing you to come in.

Luckily, I never got that call. I was able to stay home all day with Gary and Bentley! The day wasn't a complete waste though, waiting around to be called in. Gary and I work on our bedroom closets. When we moved in, Gary's closet didn't have any hanging racks for his clothes, so he has been using the guest bedroom closet. Well people, no worries, he can now dress in our own room!! My closet was slightly more "move in" ready, but it needed some work too. Now both of our closets can hold all our clothes without the risk of the racks falling off the wall at any second!!

Anyway, I know that is not exactly the most interesting story to tell, but that was our day!!

p.s. --- Bentley continues to do well after his castration. He has one of those cones for his head, but it is really really huge for him. He can barely walk around with it on, so we don't make him wear it. Well the first night we put it on him overnight since we wouldn't be able to watch him and when we came downstairs the next morning it was just laying in his crate. Somehow he had gotten it off. So since then he hasn't had to wear it. He doesn't really pay much attention to that area though. He is still mainly worried about how to best chew off my arm. So much for the neuter fixing his love of chewing me!

p.s.s.--- Countdown to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part II, July 15!! Already have my tickets!!

the luck of the Irish....

 Today I found a four leaf clover in our backyard!! The first one of my lifetime! As I now bare an Irish name, I thought I would look up the importance and tradition behind the four leaf clover.

The four-leaf clover is an uncommon variation of the common, three-leaved clover. According to tradition, such leaves bring good luck to their finders, especially if found accidentally. According to legend, each leaf represents something: the first is for faith, the second is for hope, the third is for love, and the fourth is for luck. Ah ha, so that is why only the four leaf clovers are lucky! Although it is the four leaf clover that is considered lucky, the "Shamrock" which is the trade marked symbol of Ireland is only the three leaf clover.

I also found that clovers can have more than four leaves: the most ever recorded is 56 discovered in Japan.







In honor of finding such a rarity today, I guess I will touch on each leaf and discuss faith, hope, love, and luck in my own life.

Faith: I have faith in many things, but the most faith I have is in God. I have to believe and want to believe that God watches down on all of us and has meaning and direction for us all. Faith is about believing without seeing, and my experiences, family, and friends are all indications to me that God has a plan for me and has put certain people in my life to lead me there. Now, I'll be honest, I've not been a "good Catholic girl." I don't go church as much as I probably should, but at the same time I know I have God in my life and I talk with Him everyday. He hears, He listens, He answers. I can't see it, but I believe it! :)

Hope: Hopes and Dreams right.... sure I have them. But most of my hopes are for this world we live in. Everyday there are horrible, terrible things being reported in the news. New wars sparking up between countries everywhere. Land, oil, food, religion... humans have been killing each other ever since our creation. We are a deceitful, selfish, intolerant race. My true hope is that somehow the world can get back to basics. Start living our lives not only for ourselves but for others. I know this kinda falls along the lines of "World Peace," and I know that honestly that will never happen. I guess I just hope that the world could relearn how to be nice, to truly care about their neighbors.

Love: Well this is easy because I have so much of it! The first love I ever knew was of my family, ALL OF THEM! Parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, the whole lot! I have a great family!  Then I found Gary! My husband who shows me all the love in the world. He is a constant support, a protector, not much for cuddling, but pretty much all around best husband ever! He listens to my rants and raves, makes jokes when I need them the most. Everyday is a smile! I have the love of my puppy Bentley. He bites me a lot, but I think it is all in love. When Gary and Bentley wait for me on the front porch as I drive up from a long day at work, that is pretty much the best!

Luck: Luck is a fickle thing. Some days you feel on top of the world, the luckiest person. Other days you can pretty much find a way to complain about everything, pretty unlucky. I haven't thought too long on the subject, but I think for the most part you make your own luck. Maybe there is a small degree of actual luck, like winning the lottery, you can't really plan that. But I think if you're smart, resourceful, level headed you can find a way to turn something bad (unlucky) into something good (lucky). The luck of the Irish can be for everyone!!