Thursday, January 27, 2011

Changes for 2011

We went to visit my parents this year for Christmas. It was wonderful to get away from the cold and regular routine here for a bit. Although I must say, the St. Louis area was actually colder than what it has been here in Anchorage! It must have something to do with there being more wind chill there and also they are not near the ocean at all like we are here in Anchorage so the moisture is quite lacking. Still, I had a wonderful time visiting my parents and getting to see a part of the country I really hadn't seen much of yet. I spent an extra two weeks after Christmas there while Dan returned to Anchorage so he could return to work. He had to put in his 2 week notice at Tekmate! He started a new job on January 17th. He is working now at NBS, not to be confused with NBC :) He is still a network engineer and does the same thing he did at Tekmate, just with higher pay and benefits!

Even though I loved being with mom and dad for those two and half weeks, I missed home and missed my furbabies! Now that I am back home, it is back to life as normal. Sophie's hyperness, Mac's mopeness and Cassie's bossiness was something I actually did miss. My mom came back with me to help out for a week. On the flight home, we were discussing my writing skills and she was the one that has encouraged me to write/blog more. When I mentioned that I have a hard time "blogging" because I don't know what to write about about in my life as I have no idea who would be interested in hearing about my day to day boring life. She quickly reminded me my life is not boring and writing would be therapeutic for me. So, that is what I am going to do. My postings for this year and hopefully for years to come will be about not only my photography, but also about the day-to-day antics of the dogs....and even the cat I suppose! I'll throw in some stuff too about Daniel and I when it sounds interesting.

For example, now that I am back home, I have to get used to the barking again....the almost constant barking! Yes, we do have bark collars and use them frequently. The first week I was home wasn't so bad because my mom came back with me for a week. That week was a bit unusual for the dogs because mom was back, but their normal routine wasn't quite back yet as Nana was here! Sophie LOVES nana....the feeling is not quite so mutual! They were all so happy to have me home and someone "new" in the house that they forgot to run in and out of the house as much, barking! Week two is now here and things are back to normal. Sophie actually has settled down and stays right by my side again and sleeps more than she did last week (thank goodness!). Then there is Mac. Today he decided to pull a "mommy I'm sick,stay home with me today please" routine. He threw up something this morning. It's just that, something, as neither Dan nor I can identify it yet. I was very worried about him as he was a bit lethargic and not eating that well this morning. I cancelled all my plans including a lunch with Nina, a fellow photography buddy and decided to stay home to monitor him.

For most of the day he was fairly mellow, but then about 4 o'clock decided to perk up more. There was some noise outside that had them all riled up and barking. I looked out the window and saw nothing. About 5 minutes later, same thing. I figured I would just peek out the front door and show Mac that there was nothing out there. Just as I was showing the dog nothing was there...there it was, a couple walked by with their chihuahua. There was no holding him back at that point. I tried to shut the door as fast as I could, but his pent up energy that he'd been saving up all day won out and by that I mean, out the door he went! He went right up to the couple and their dog greeting them friendly and all. Now, you would think that me sitting in my wheelchair right there at the door calling him back would have just grabbed his collar and walked him back to the house. NOPE! They did ask, but I guess they misunderstood me as they kept on walking! I stayed at the door for a few minutes calling him back. When I realized that that he wasn't going to come back immediately, I went out into the garage of which Sophie and Cassie were not happy about being kept inside. I opened the garage door to see if I could see him. He was just right next door sniffing the roses so to speak. He ran across the street to that neighbor's yard all the while snubbing me as I was calling him. Then he looked at me with that total 2 year old toddler face he sometimes has as if to say "nope, I'm not listening to you" and then ran down the street. I raced to get into the van to see if I could get him back. As soon as I came down the driveway and looked down the street, there he was...at NANA's old house! As soon as he saw me coming down the street he came running up to the van. I stopped, opened the door and made him get in.

Now what amazes me is that every time he pulls such a stunt, he knows that he has gotten away with it for a bit and ends up having the biggest doggie smile on his face! Who can stay mad at him for being so happy!


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