Makes My Day Award

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Angela at Where Angels Blog has given me this award. Thank you so much, Angela! I'm always surprised and grateful when people read my blog and let me know that they enjoy it. It's fun to get feedback, too.

I'd like to pass the award on to Karen at Nine+Texans. I enjoy her posts about her beautiful family, as well as other issues that are close to her heart. Her life is full and busy, but she still takes time to encourage others and rescue puppies from the side of the road. :o) You gotta love a warm hearted redhead like that.

Jake and Sister

Jacob has been such a good sport with the puppies. He does not like for them to nip at his hands and feet (we are trying to teach them not to do that), but he endures it because he wants to be near them.



















Sister, giving him kisses.






















Oh no, not the ears.





















Okay, get off me now!
















Somebody, help!!

My World

Six of the seven grandchildren spent part or most of the afternoon in the pool today.

Here, from left to right, are Ahlyssa holding Jacob, Reece held by Lily, Caelen, and Aubrey in the float.

There are lots of pics of Lyssa in the pool in the previous post.




Lily and Caelen



















Aubrey



















Reece, deliriously happy because his cousins are here.


















Jacob floating.














Caelen making faces.










And finally, precious little Camryn who slept through all the fun.



We are so blessed!

The Many Faces Of Our Little Mermaid

Big bubbles.
















"Why are you laughing, Gramma?" (I was laughing at the big bubbles).















I have no clue what caused this horrified expression. Shark in the water?













She hates to have water in her eyes. Go figure.











Puppy love.
















More puppy love.
















Sleepy mermaid?










Water in her ears?

















Peacefully floating.















Enough pictures already!








The End

Saturday Smiles

We've had a nice Saturday, mostly in the pool. Reece spent the night Friday night, as usual, and stayed with us most of the day today. His daddy picked him up late this afternoon. Josh was surprised that we were all still in the pool, but it's too hot to do much outside unless you're in the water.

Reece is so happy to have Lyssa here. Sometimes he will just laugh out loud for no apparent reason, other than that he is happy. He's going to be thrilled when the rest of his cousins get here! They will be here late tonight, so he will see them tomorrow.

Lyssa, Papa and I have been cleaning out underneath the stairs to the deck. It's the area where she and the other kids have their "Pixie Club," so we decided to clean it up and make it roomier and nicer. I was worried about them being bitten by spiders or snakes under there. So Lys and I cut down the cana lilies, dug up the roots and bulbs and got rid of the long grass and anything that didn't belong. Papa is relaying the concrete blocks to make the floor of the "club house" more even and bigger. This evening Lyssa and I made a quick trip to Lowes for flowers to plant in one of my window boxes, which we'll put at the side of the "club house." She is so excited for Lily to see what we've done!

The puppies have settled into our life almost effortlessly. They sleep well in their kennel all night. I let them out about 7 AM, they do their numbers, eat breakfast and play in the yard while it is still fairly cool. They usually play really hard, then crash for a few hours. I feed them again between 1 and 2 PM. They don't like to be outside for long then because of the heat, but if we're outside, we will get them wet and let them stay out longer. They have another long nap in the afternoon. They eat again at 7 PM, and play in the yard until dark. They go out one final time at 11 PM, then settle in their kennel for the night. They are eating well and doing great. The kids enjoy them, except for the nipping at fingers and toes.

Sweet Summer Days

Ahlyssa loves the puppies. I knew she would. But I don't think she expected them to be so time consuming. :o)

We had a good day. After I went to Mom's, I met Kelly and Lys at a thrift store. We shopped a little bit. I got some baskets for the homeschool cabinet, Kelly found some pretty household things, and Lys got some small surprises for her family. Then we said good-bye to Kel and headed home to let the puppies out of their kennel.

After some puppy time, we got fast food from Freddie's for a late lunch, then picked up Papa at the airport. He was glad to be home, even with the 100° temps we're having this week.

He thinks the puppies are cute, and they were already following him around as if they knew him. They probably recognize his scent, even though they had not met him.

After changing his clothes, Ron got right to work. I wanted him to get rid of the two overgrown bushes at the side of the patio--the ones where the dead squirrel was and where every dog that comes into the yard wants to go. When the puppies went under them, I couldn't reach them, and they wouldn't come out. So now the bushes are gone. We're going to put some lattice up and plant a pretty flowering vine. I didn't mean for Ron to tackle the job as soon as he got home, but he wanted to. He always has to have something to do.

Lyssa and I got into the pool, then Josh brought Reece and Aubrey over. They had so much fun playing in the water with us. Aubrey was a little shy with Lyssa at first, but she warmed up and loved playing with her after awhile. Reece went from the pool to the spa and back again, playing with Lyssa and his cars.

I held Aubrey and she kept wiggling around, watching Lyssa and trying to get into the water, so I asked her if she wanted to do 1-2-3. It's a way to get little ones used to going underwater. I would count 1-2-3, then dunk her quickly into the water. When I brought her up, I'd say, "Oh that was wonderful! You did so good!" and smile at her, so she thought she was doing something really neat. Babies always look so surprised, but as soon as they realize they are okay and did something that everyone applauds, they don't mind doing it again. After awhile I sat her on the side of the pool and held her hands. I would say 1-2-3 and pull her into the water. She really thought that was fun! All of our grandchildren love the water.

It was so hot today; we stayed in the water for over an hour with them. When we took them inside, Aubrey played on the floor for just a little while, then got so sleepy. I held her and covered her with a snuggly blanket and she went to sleep. Just a few minutes later, her daddy came to get them. Reece didn't want to go until his daddy told him that they bought M&Ms for him at the store. Then he agreed to go home. :o)

Papa and Lyssa had Whataburger for dinner. I made a big spinach salad with some of my patio tomatoes, some big yummy blackberries, sliced almonds and homemade olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing and that was my dinner. I didn't want fast food again.

The puppies played outside the whole time we were in the pool and working in the yard. Ron watered the grapevines, and they got up into the planter boxes and dug around, then lay down. There is (was) a layer of sawdust on top as mulch, and they were covered in it! I looked over at them one time, and sawdust and dirt were flying as they both dug holes. They love the yard and run and chase each other all over it. They explore everywhere. They were exhausted tonight, and I didn't hear a peep out of them when I put them in their kennel and turned off the light. They usually whine a little bit, but tonight they were ready for sleep.

Lyssa watched the Disney channel tonight, and I watched with her for a little bit, then fell asleep on the couch. I wasn't at all impressed by the programs--very silly and probably a bit too old for her, but she said she is allowed to watch them. She didn't protest when I told her it was time to turn off TV and go upstairs. She was reading in her room, which I think is much better than wasting time watching those goofy shows. She's such a sweet little girl.

Wonderful Wednesday

It's quiet here tonight. My girl is spending the night with her Aunt Kelly. I'm sure they are having a wonderful girly, crafty time. :o)

(Jacob decided not to come with Ahlyssa. He will be here this weekend with the rest of the family).

Reece came and spent the night last night, delighted to have Lyssa here. She is wonderful with him, very sweet and patient. They played all evening, and both of them slept with me last night since Papa is still out of town and there was plenty of room. This morning when I woke up, Reece was curled around Lys' head. So cute!

After taking Reece home this morning, Lys and I took the puppies to their vet appointment. They got their distemper/parvo vaccine, a flea treatment and started on their heartworm regimen. The vet pronounced them very healthy. Sister, who was the smaller puppy when I got them on Friday, is now the larger one. She eats better than Katy, who would rather play and chew on things than eat. :o) Sister weighs 10 lbs. 2 oz., Katy 9 lbs. 5 oz.

Lyssa went with me to see her Great Gran and meet Teddy for the first time. She thought he was adorable, but after we had been there for about 20 minutes, she fell asleep on the couch with Teddy snuggled at her feet. Gran thought that was the cutest thing ever! They took quite a long nap. I had to wake Lys up so that we could go back to the house to get her things and meet Kelly.

Josh called late in the afternoon to see if I wanted to go to Costco with them. I did. I pushed my three grands around in the store while Josh and Cyrise shopped for a new phone. Then we came back to my house and Josh went and picked up Chinese food for our dinner. Reece was looking for Ahlyssa. We went outside and he was calling, "Wyssa! Wyssa!" :o) I told him that she was spending the night with Kelly and he would see her again tomorrow.

Ron will be home tomorrow. He is looking forward to meeting the puppies, and is happy that Lyssa is visiting. It will be so good to have him home again!

Please Forgive Me

I can't resist the puppy pictures; I need an intervention!

Here's Sister, sneaking up on Katy.

















Who will attack the other first?
















Oh, and I love the flying ears, too. :o)















More flying ears.

















But at the end of the day?

BFF

:o)

A Simple Woman's Daybook

Monday, June 22, 2009

Outside my window...
blue sky, white clouds, green trees, another hot day.

I am thinking...
how excited I am that my grandkids are coming! I am meeting our oldest son halfway tomorrow to get Lyssa and Jacob. The rest of the family will be here this weekend, and Ron will be home. I love, love, love it when all three of our kids and their spouses and all SEVEN of our grandchildren are here. Whoo Hoo! Jason and his family have not yet met Camryn (or the puppies).

I am thankful...
for our blessed life. It's a scary, mixed up world out there, and I am so thankful to God for the stability and blessings in our life.

From the kitchen...
waffles for breakfast this morning.

I am wearing...
still in my PJs--soft blue pj pants and a pink and green striped pj top that doesn't match. And I was wandering around my backyard with the puppies earlier. Hope I didn't scandalize any neighbors with my chic fashion statement.

I am creating...
boundaries. Literally. I have things lined up all along one side of the breakfast room to keep the puppies off the carpet and on the tile. They keep figuring out how to break through. Also have things lined up outside on one side of the patio to keep them from going under some bushes on that side where I can't reach them. It's a struggle keeping them away from there because I think Darcy and Banzai may have killed a squirrel and put it under there when they were here. I'm going to ask Josh to look when he is here.

I am going...
to Mom's, then to run a couple of errands.

I am hearing...
a lawnmower somewhere, the hammering of the guys across the street building a pavillion in my neighbors backyard, my AC running. Puppies are quiet for now.

Around the house...
lots of laundry--sheets, towels and puppy rags, my clothes. Seems like a big pile of laundry for only one person, but I haven't been doing it as often as I usually do.

One of my favorite things...
dimples.

A few plans for the rest of the week...
I'll pick up Lyssa and Jacob tomorrow. Aubrey has PT on Wednesday. Ron will home on Thursday. Mostly I'll be playing with grandkids and puppies!

Here is a picture thought I am sharing...
From my back yard:

Hot Texas sky.














Hot Texas flower--Pride of Barbados















Very hot Texas pepper--habanero.



















Ahhh, cool grape arbor.





Go here to see more daybooks by other bloggers. Thanks to Peggy for hosting!

Mass, Puppies, and Fathers

It usually takes us 3 to 4 hours to pick up Mom, go to Mass, take her out to eat and back home, and get home again on Sunday. I didn't want to leave the puppies home alone in their crate for that long today, so I'm going to go to the NO Mass at our old church tonight. It's only a one hour Mass, and is 5 minutes from my house, so they won't be alone for long. But I hate that I made Mom miss Mass. She was very sweet about it, though. Missing my High TLM to go to the hippy dippy John Denver Novus Ordo Mass will be my penance. :o\

The puppies are doing great. I've learned to open the back door before I let them out of their crate, so that they run right outside. Sometimes they didn't want to wait for me to open the door to do their business, so the little rug beside the door was being used for a potty. They have never peed or pooped in their crate. I'm so proud of them.

The little pansies don't like to stay outside in the heat for long. They run out, do their business, get a drink and play for a couple of minutes, then they want to go back inside. I've been keeping them out for awhile anyway so that they will get tired and sleep in the crate.

They like to explore, but if they hear or see something alarming, like a big dog barking in the distance, a siren or a loud bird, they will run back and push against my legs. It's so cute. :o) I'm enjoying them so much.

Happy Father's Day to all the daddies, especially my boys, Jason and Josh. It doesn't feel like Father's Day because Ron is out of town and we aren't having a big family cook-out today. But he will be home next weekend, and we will celebrate then. Ron, if you're reading, Happy Father's Day!

A prayer for my Dad and all of your dads who are no longer with us:

Lord, hear our prayers; in your mercy, bring us to your place of peace and light the souls of your servants, John C and the fathers of all readers of this blog, whom you have summoned from this world. Call them to be numbered in the fellowship of your saints. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

The Puppies Have Names!

Introducing Katy and Sister. Katy is named after Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha and Sister was named by Reece. They are just precious.

I didn't want to name them until I met them, and even then it took awhile to decide. Because they were found by a member of the DCF board, all of whom are wild about puppies, I think of them as the DCF puppies. I thought Catholic names would be good, but I wanted them to be simple and easy for my grandbabies to say. :o)

Reece named Sister last night. I thought I heard him call her "Sister," so I picked her up and said, "Reece, who is this?" And he said, "Sister." It fits her on several levels. I was looking for a Catholic name. "Sister" is very Catholic. It's also very "Texas." :o) And the puppies are twin sisters. Perfect!

When I asked Reece what the other puppy's name was, he said, "Camryn." (His baby sister's name). I laughed and said we couldn't call the puppy Camryn, what else should we call her, and he answered, "Doggie." :o)

We had a sort of tradition of naming our pets Cherokee names. My daughter's cat was Usdi ("baby" or "little" in Cherokee), and our black lab was Chooch, which is a phonetic way of spelling the common pronunciation of the Cherokee word for boy, "atsutsa." I figured we were sort of following the tradition, although Kateri was not Cherokee, she is Native American. And it fits my criteria--Catholic, simple and easy to pronounce. And it sounds good with "Sister."

In the top two photos, Katy is on the left, Sister on the right. In the bottom two, that's Sister on the patio and Katy in the grass. Different lighting makes one look dark, the other light, but they are both coal black.

I've been really busy with them and other things, and didn't get any pics of them yesterday with Kelly's dogs or with Reece when he was here overnight. But it was amazing to watch Darcy and Banzai, who are usually extremely high energy and excited by other dogs, calm down and gently get to know the puppies. They were so sweet with them! And today at Mom's, Teddy was the same way. It's as if they instinctively know that they are babies and need to be treated gently.

Reece loves them. The first thing he wanted to do this morning was get them out of their crate. It's so cute to see how he watches them and wants to be with them. We slept downstairs on the sectional last night so that we would be close to them. They were very good. I woke up about 3:30 AM because they were whining. I took them outside to "do their numbers," and put them right back in the crate when we came inside. They whined for a minute, but as soon as I turned off the lamp, they went right back to sleep.

Of course Kelly is crazy about them already. She went with me to pick them up, and held them on her lap all the way home, even though we brought a box for them. She stayed with us into the evening, giving them lots of love and attention and bonding with them. We had left her dogs here in the yard, so they got to know the puppies, too. Her husband got to meet the puppies when he came to pick up Kel and the dogs.

Josh came by after work, and the first thing he did was pick them both up and put them up to his face, nose to nose. It was so cute. He brought Reece and the rest of the family over later, and Aubrey and Cyrise liked the puppies, too. Camryn doesn't care yet. :o)

Of course Mom loved them! Josh picked Reece up this morning, and after showering (I smelled like puppies) I took them over to see her. Teddy was so sweet with them, and Mom couldn't get over their cute factor. :o)

I finally had a few minutes when we got back from Mom's this afternoon, so I took them outside and took a few photos. They were tired, though, and wanted to go inside. Now they are snoozing in their crate, which they already know is their "den." They seem content and happy.

The only one who is not happy with the newcomers is Maggie Cat. She is seriously ticked.

I'm Probably Crazy.

It's not as if I don't have enough living beings to care for, so I'm bringing these two little cuties home tomorrow! :o)

My friend K from Nine+Texans found them and their mama on the side of the road near where she lives and was looking for a home for them. Their mama is a golden retriever, but she thinks the daddy is a black lab. I think so, too. These puppies look just like our beloved Chooch when he was a puppy. (He was a big black lab).

K has already taken them to the vet to have them de-wormed, but they will still need a check-up and their rabies shots. She said the vet thinks they are 6 or 7 weeks old, and ready to leave their mama. They are eating puppy food.

We've considered getting another dog since Chooch's death, but I just never felt ready. I told Ron that if we did get another dog, I wanted to get two, so that they can keep each other company. Lately, seeing Kelly with Darcy and Banzai, and Mom with her Teddy, I would sometimes feel a longing for another dog, and when K posted this picture of the puppies and said she was looking for a home for them, I just knew they were supposed to be mine. I contacted K and she said I could have them, and I've been on Cloud 9 ever since. :o) I can hardly wait to see them in person!

Summer Days

I was with Cyrise and the kids yesterday afternoon, and then Reece came home with me to spend the night. Although he wanted to spend lots of time playing with his Legos and Thomas the train and track (birthday gifts), we also got into the pool for awhile. He will probably be swimming by summer's end.

Then we got into the warm water of the spa, and he got a little sleepy. I love these sleepy eyes, sunlit ears and crazy hair. :o)








Here he is in Papa's hat. Usually he won't leave a hat or cap on his head, but I asked him if I could take his picture wearing it, and he agreed. I have a similar picture of Caelen wearing one of his Papa's hats. I'll have to find it and compare. :o)












Side view. What a cute profile.

















And hatless.























Wearing size fives. He's getting so big. :o(