Lots of sunshine around here, but still cool enough to wear jackets when out walking. I'll take it!!

I got suckered by a bowl of dark chocolate covered roasted almonds sprinkled with sea salt - Ouch, I think those should be outlawed with cocaine. All my efforts to avoid excess sodium, then I simply ingest it straight, LOL.

I am all fired up about it being spring and nearly good weather (we're supposed to see the Wed.) after many, many days of rain. At least I haven't had to do any watering of all the budding shrubs and/or the few flowers that struggle in my shady garden. There's that light, green/yellow colour of new growth everywhere.

My "growth" : will be down this week. I've been hovering just over my red line for close to a month and this is the week I cross downward!

I am off to a long dog sit starting Thursday but this will be a good thing. I need to get away from DH. For some reason he's grating on my nerves and making me feel totally drained . 16 days at another place should fix that!

They have a marvelous porch where I can sit and read every evening while the dog plays with the cats and his toys, and chews the bones I've got ready for him. Every time I don't watch TV every night for a stretch I lose weight .

This is my first "Cesar Millan" puppy and he's now a very good 1 1/2 year old dog.

I have the run of a 6 bedroom house with parking and a yard, and permission to use the gym. It contains an elliptical, a Bosu ball, and a TV and DVD player, all of which don't fit into my home gym. Looking forward to a change in routine as I'm deep in a rut in so many ways.

Good Monday all!

Dagmar

Wow, nice "vacation" Dagmar!

Our weekend was nice. We played golf Saturday morning and I lazed about most of the afternoon. I started a new book which I had a hard time putting down! Sunday was spent running errands and shopping and more reading!

I got an email from my SIL regarding my Dad. She "found out" that he was driving (he's not supposed to, but we're really having a hard time convincing him of this). While out on the interstate, he rear-ended another car and got a ticket for following too closely. Damage to his car could be over $1000 and this is the car we were trying to sell. We're hoping that the insurance company decides not to renew his policy...It's so hard having stubborn parents. Oh, and since his housekeeper found out about his driving, she told his nurse (they both work for the same home health agency). Now both cannot work for him. He can only get HH benefits if he can't drive. So now he'll have to go in weekly for his blood tests (coumadin level) instead of the HH nurse coming to him. No idea yet about the physical therapist and whether or not he can still come to Dad. I don't think he understands this part of the whole situation. Kind of a Catch-22.

On another thread I mentioned that DH and I are going to try medifast for a month. The box arrives Thursday so I think we'll start next Monday. We have the 5k run Saturday morning and it's Mother's day Sunday (not that we do much of anything special for that). Until then, we'll be getting into the "lean and green" dinners. Oh, and I bought a beautiful leg of lamb to roast next weekend and the leftovers can go in salads. Yum.

Oh Bill--- those sound evil!

Dagmar-- that does sound like a delightful dog sit! Enjoy time away from dh while you sit on the porch reading books and enjoying the gym.

Allison-- what did you read that you couldn't put down? I'm always looking for good reads. So sorry about your stubborn father. I believe my dad was the most stubborn man who ever lived but I'm sure there are many other stubborn parents out there. Taking away my dad's car was difficult too but we just did it. Boy was he mad. He kept asking when we were bringing it back. I think we told him we were fixing it or something to get it away from him. I guess you could take his car to do the work on it and not give it back-- sell it!

We got our puppy on Saturday. Oh my... it's like having a baby in the house again. We can't do anything... 10 hour drive Saturday to get him (5 hours each way) and then introducing him to our house and pets. He had never been out of his house, never been in a car, never been away from his siblings. Our big dog Jozi (125 pound Great Dane) loves him-- she drooled on him quite a bit at first and only growled a little when he tried to get on her bed-- she didn't mind him stealing her toys. The cats are still hating him-- growling and hissing! We tried to put him in the kennel the first night and gave up after his torturous screaming and crying-- we kept moving the kennel to the bathroom, to downstairs, to try to drown him out but it wasn't working and he wasn't stopping. So I guess we have one more pet in bed with us! He is doing great but the true test is today as I had to go to work and leave him in the crate. Dd left home last, put him in the crate and said he is making god-awful sounds. I'll go home at lunch to let him out, feed him, etc. His name is Dewey and he is adorable!! Only one potty in the house so far (not on my watch!)....

Michele~I'm reading one of the DD Warren books by Lisa Gardner. I had read her latest, Love You More and loved it. This one is Hide. I just downloaded the other three (and kind of wish I'd started them in order now). If you go to Wikipedia and put in her name, it lists all her book in order.

Thanks Allison! I just ordered the first one from paperbackswap.com

Allison, take those keys away from your dad ASAP!

Dagmar, have fun on the dog sit.

Bill, I don't even like nuts, but if they're covered in chocolate I will eat them.

Michele, I am laughing at the thought of Jozi drooling on the puppy. Was Jozi okay after the incident you posted about a couple days ago?

Speaking of dogs, I was laughing at Carter today. Saturday we took him with us to visit DH's grandma, then Sunday we took him to the track for the Mutt Strut (short course, but he was still out for a while). It must have upset his usual schedule of sleeping 18 hours a day because last night he was super sleepy, and this morning he was extra sleepy too. Usually he gets out of his dog bed when I get up to take my shower and lays by the door of the bathroom, then hangs around the bedroom door while I get dressed. This morning he didn't move an inch from his dog bed until I opened the door to go downstairs! Then as soon as he'd had his breakfast and been out to do his business, he curled up in his downstairs dog bed and went straight to sleep. What a sleepy dog. Hopefully he will be refreshed by sleeping all day today.

Jessica-- yes-- she seemed fine later in the day when I got home from work. I still don't know if she had a seizure or something else. Wish they could talk sometimes!

michele The puppy will stop crying in the kennel in about 20 minutes if you all ignore him. I'm kinda scared about something that small sleeping with a great dane - not that Jozi would intentionally do anything to him but she might accidentally roll onto him. Dachsies don't have the best spines, as I'm sure you know.

I have a bit of progress with the bike buying. I got an email from someone and they will assemble the bike for free if I order it online. Now I have to figure out what size I should order and get them to accept the bike at their store, rather than having it sent to DH's office, brought home, and then taking it to the store myself. This is starting to sound like a Monty Python skit.

Why the heck can't the retailer just order the darn thing for me and call me when it's in and ready to go?

Dagmar

Dagmar-- Jozi (the Dane) doesn't sleep with us! Good Lord-- that would be a crowded bed. Jozi sleeps downstairs on her doggy bed and we are not leaving them alone together for even a second. The cats sleep with us-- or wherever they choose to-- so it is just one more addition. Not sure about the 20 minutes either-- he has cried and barked nonstop when I put him in the kennel. When I came home from work both times I could hear him a mile away. I sure hope he was hearing me come home but I don't think he's figured out our coming and going noises. When I got home and put him in my lap he passed out!

Dewey is missing his mom and littermates. He'll slowly adjust. I agree with letting him cry it out, as cruel as it seems. Put some of your clothes (things you don't care about but have worn) in the kennel with him so he'll know your scent. It also helps if you really wear him out first so he's tired when you put him in. Also give him a small treat when he goes in. Making sure it's dark will help, covering it with a blanket if necessary. Dogs really do like the enclosed space and eventually he'll adjust. It's just heart wrenching to deal with it at first. Best of luck (but you're a fur mommy so you know!).

michele Allison's advice about the kennel is spot on. It's been a long time since I dealt with a tiny puppy (except to visit during the day). I forgot about the scent on the clothes. What I sometimes do is get a fuzzy doggie stuffed toy, "wear" it inside my clothes during the evening, and then put it into the kennel with the puppy for the night. If Jozi has a stuffie with her scent on it the puppy might appreciate doggie scented things if dogs are what he's been used to sleeping with at the breeders?

It sounds like Dewey's lost right now and vocalizing it all out. Like any new baby he needs to establish new routines and then he'll calm down. The two puppies I dealt with most recently were quiet ones. About 3 years ago my clients had a loud little golden Seamus, who was promptly nicknamed "Screamus" for his vocal talents. It took about a week for him to adjust to the kennel - a very looong week.

Dagmar

This is why I don't "do" dogs! Cute little buggers, but sooo much work. Fortunately, The Boy hasn't started pestering us for one, even though many of his friends have dogs. Or, maybe, *because* many of his friends have dogs: backyard kickball isn't quite as much fun when you have to scoop poop first.

I've been lurking off and on, mostly. Glad to see Bill has stopped decluttering ... I was beginning to think he was going to start decluttering spare body parts! (Appendix? Nah, who needs one. Gall bladder? Haven't used it in years. Kidney? I can get by with just one...)

//b. strong,
Kim

My mom's voice saying "puppies are like that!" is ringing through my head when I read your post, Michele. I think it came from a book we had as kids (perhaps a book called "Puppies are like that"?). Whenever I hear of dogs/puppies misbehaving, that's what runs through my head. Sounds like you are your new fur-baby are just getting used to each other, Michele. Thank goodness we have Dagmar for our dog advice.

I've been working such strange hours this past month I'm so confused about what day it is. I had to work Sat & Sun, so I took of last Thursday and yesterday as my weekend. What day is today? Weeks and weekends should go back to more normal schedule now.

I am in a serious calorie counting/regular gym visit rebellion right now. I so easily slipped out of the habit when I literally could not go to the gym in April for two weeks (driving out of the county for work before the gym even opened, straight to 4 hour long play rehearsals that lasted until after the gym closed, etc. - you all heard it already!) that I'm having trouble getting back into it. I hope if I can just do it a few days in a row I will slip back into the habit, and things calming a bit at work should help. A few visits combined with frequent dog walks have helped me maintain, but I need to get back to the higher intensity workouts. The summer parties and constant social events are starting here in this beach town I live in, things will not get any easier!

Food choices are ok but I just need to get a slightly closer monitor on amounts. I've been maintaining my weight just fine (actually have lost 4 lbs since the holidays) but I need to cut out a bit to get to losing levels, and really just don't feel like writing down any calories right now. Ok Megan, no more shenanigans.

I'm full of discontent, having returned to work after a full week off. Remind me again, please, of why companies are entitled to the majority of our daylight hours, our thoughts, our energy -- and everything else in our lives is a "nice to have" & fit in during the time left over from work.

Given time, I'll stop whining in my crate all day & will readjust, but the re-entry is always difficult.

Yeah, I so relate to little Dewey. Hang in there, Dude. Change is hard, but you will be well-loved. Heck, everyone on this board loves you already & wishes you well in your new home.

This morning, walking back to my apartment from the gym, I walked over our front lawn & garden, past the budding lilacs, a weeping cherry already dropping its petals, azaleas rioting, and lots of tulips still hanging in there, along with flowers that I don't even know the names of. And past my car, covered with a fine chartreuse dusty green film of tree pollen. This time of year is downright miraculous. I don't mind if it's wet & a little chilly for a little while longer. I have no desire to hurry through it straight to summer.