We had a pool party

 

 

Luci had the pool party.  Rocky still isn't interested in the pool.

 

 

He thinks the pool is a giant water dish.  He'll drink out of it but he won't get in.

 

I started reading my new book.

 

 

I worked on my cross stitch

 

 

We lounged on the deck.

 

 

 

It was a good day.

 

 

 

 

 

I can't remember the last time I had a "Do Nothing" Sunday.  No errands with MIL.  No birthday parties.  No housework.  I have laundry to do, but then there's always laundry to do. 

 

I think it might be time for a pool party with the puppies.

 

Or maybe reading the book I bought last weekend but still haven't started.

 

Wonder where my cross stitch is?  I might drag that out.

 

Maybe all of the above. . . .

 

All spring, I've been wondering how Rocky would react to a serious thunderstorm.  Luci takes them in stride - loves to be out in the rain unless the wind is blowing in her face.  Blacky, however, was a different story.  He was always horribly afraid of thunderstorms.  He would start pacing and panting sometimes up to an hour or two before the storm hit.  If it was a particularly bad storm, he'd either stick to our sides like he was attached with Velcro or he would go upstairs and hide his head under the bed.  He was a little to big to get his whole body under the bed.  I always thought he figured if he couldn't see the lightning, then it couldn't hurt him.  If I knew it was going to rain while I was at work, I'd turn the TV on for him to give him some background noise and distract him from the storm.  It was nice to have the advance notice that the storms were coming, but it always bothered me that Blacky would get so upset about the storms. 

 

Rocky has a lot of Blacky's personality traits.  Rocky is loving, very smart, obedient, and a bit of a tenderheart.  Even though he tries to boss Luci around and he acts like a big bad boy dog, he's got a very loving personality.  I've wondered if that loving personality included an anxiety disorder and a fear of loud noises (thunder and lightning).  We've had a couple of thunderstorms so far this spring, but they've usually hit while I'm at work so I haven't seen how Rocky reacts to a storm.  Tonight I got a first hand look.  Except for trying to figure out where the loud noise was coming from and wanting to go outside to splash in the mud puddles in the back yard, Rocky didn't pay any attention to the thunderstorm.  In fact, both he and Luci slept through the worst part of the storm.  It was a pleasent surprise. 

 

It was also a little bittersweet, too.  When I was debating whether to go for the walk or not, I knew that if Blacky were here I'd be able to tell if it was going to rain.  Then when it did finally start raining, I kept expecting to trip over Blacky every time I turned around.  It's been four months since Blacky left and I'm still surprised at the things that will get me teary eyed.   

Even though puppy class is over, I'm still working with Rocky to make sure he doesn't forget everything we spent 8 weeks teaching him.  During our nightly walks, I reinforce all the things we learned.  

 

Since Luci goes with us on the evening walk, she is getting a refresher course on her obedience commands.  That's a good thing because I didn't follow up with her training after we finished her puppy class.  I can't tell if the problem with Luci is just a stubborn cuss or if she has doggie ADD.  She sees what Rocky is doing and she wants to do it too.  Sometimes it's a competition to see who can obey the command the fastest.  It really warms my heart to see him teaching his big sister. 

 

She's returning the favor by teaching him some of her favorite tricks.  Her lesson for Rocky tonight was Digging 101.  I caught the two of them digging in a hole by the service door to the garage.  They haven't figured out that I can see them from the window in the dining room.  They're always surprised when I tap on the window to get their attention.  You should see the contrite little faces when they come up to the back door.  

 

She's also teaching him how to knock and run.  They'll scratch at the back door to be let in and when I go to the door, they run out into the back yard.  They want me to play with them.  I do get annoyed when they do it, but I have to admite that it's pretty smart of them to figure out a way to get me out there to play with them. 

 

Of course they make up for all of their mischief when they fall asleep in my lap.  How can you be mad at sleeping puppies? 

 

See this happy couple?

 

 

They are celebrating 25 years of wedded bliss.

 

In case you haven't figured it out . . . that's Hubby and me.  We actually celebrated our anniversary last month, but the official announcement was in the local paper this weekend.  Yes, that's the picture I put in the paper.  Hubby would have gladly posed for a formal portrait, but we're not really posed formal portrait people.  This is us.  This is the picture that will be in the silver 25th anniversary photo frame. 

 

And to think his ex said that we wouldn't last 6 months. 

Hubby and I were channel surfing yesterday and it became very apparent to me that I need a hobby. 

 

Something other than watching TV.

 

I can recite the entire history of The Young and The Restless from the beginning of time.  Except for a few years when the whole Mac, JT, Kevin, Sharon, Nick, Colleen, Lilly, Daniel era started.  Some of the characters from that era are back on the show and I'm a little lost trying to figure out who everyone is and what their story line is. 

 

For some odd reason, the old Nair commercial was on the other day.  You know the one.  "Who wears short shorts?  We wear short shorts.  If you dare wear short shorts, Nair for short shorts."  Yes, I know the dance steps too. 

 

VH1 is having an 80's marathon this weekend.  They are showing classic videos from the early days of MTV.  I just recited the entire lyrics to "Parents Just Don't Understand" by the Fresh Prince.  Luci and Rocky loved it but I think I freaked Hubby out. 

 

In my defense, the noise of the TV is a comfort thing for me.  I remember either the TV or the radio being on at home when I was growing up.  When Hubby was an over the road truck driver, I kept the TV on so that I didn't notice how quiet the house was all the time.  I've even corrupted the dogs.  I would leave the TV on for Blacky when we were gone during the day if I knew it was going to storm.  The noise of the TV drowned out the noise of the storm and kept Blacky from being so nervous.  Then Luci came along and she watches TV with me.  When she was a puppy she started watching football and NASCAR with me.  Rocky doesn't pay much attention to the action on the screen, but he'll perk his ears up if he hears a doorbell or a dog barking.   

 

Yes, I realize it might be a bit odd that I know the days of the week by what TV show is on.  I look forward to certain things throughout the year.  Big Brother in the summer.  American Idol. So You Think You Can Dance.  Hell's Kitchen.  Bridezillas.  Football.  Drag Racing on ESPN.  Twilight Zone Marathon on the Sci Fi Channel on New Years Day. 

 

Hubby said maybe it might be time for me to get back to working on my cross stitch or my knitting . . .

That rhymes with "G"

 

and that stands for . . . Golf

 

Hubby has taken up golf.  He bought a used set of clubs on a whim - and I must admit they were a heck of a bargain!  He's never touched a set of clubs before in his life except for the occasional game of putt putt.  He appears to be a natural at it.  Went to the driving range yesterday and was knocking the balls out of the park. 

 

His buddy was so impressed that he invited Hubby to join their foursome on Monday morning.

 

Bowling, fishing, darts, golf. . . . I guess that makes me an offical all season sports widow.  

Weather turned colder last night.  I had to bring in my hanging basket so that it wouldn't freeze.

 

Turned on the furnace last night for the first time in a couple of weeks.  By the end of the day, Hubby had the windows open and had turned on the fan.  Yes, he forgot about the furnace being on when he opened the windows.  Good thing I reminded him. 

 

Had my "girlie" check up today.  Got a script for the wonderful hormone pills . . . very important!  Got an order for my mamogram.  The Imaging Center will call to schedule it.  Heard the "as you get older" lecture about how important calcium supplements are to menopausal women with a family history of osteoporosis.  I still have problems with the words "menopausal woman" applying to me. 

After looking at the pictures Hubby took of me last week and seeing a rather distressing number on the scale at the doctor's office today, I've decided to get a little more exercise.  It's either that or buy a new wardrobe since nothing fits right these days.  Can't afford the new wardrobe, so I guess it's diet time. 

 

I'll get Luci and Rocky to help me . . .

 

 

 

I help Hubby with his paper route on the weekends.  Friday Night and Saturday Night I'm at the newspaper office helping him get the inserts ready for the Sunday paper.  It's a lot more involved than you might think . . the TV listings and part of the ads are one set and the comics and the other part of the ads are the second set.  You put them together on Friday night.  On Saturday night you get the classified ads and the Sunday paper.  Add those two parts to the two parts you did on Friday night and you have a Sunday paper.  Pretty labor intensive and having a second body means that Hubby gets the papers delivered and is back home before daylight. 

 

Another part of the job is the Shoppers Extra - a free set of grocery ads for customers that don't get a Sunday paper.  These have to be delivered by 12 noon on Sunday.  I usually deliver these on Saturday morning.  As a matter of fact, I just got home from this weeks delivery. 

 

I've been helping Hubby with this for about 3 months now.  It's not too bad now that the weather is nice.  It was rough when it was really cold outside.  

 

But the most interesting part of the job is seeing what's going on in Smalltown after midnight.  I never realized there was so much going on after dark.  The bars are all doing a booming business . . . and they seem to be much busier now that the weather is warmer. 

 

Then there are the people that are up at all hours of the night.  You'd think that most people would be asleep at 2 or 3 in the morning.  Nope, they're up.  Watching TV.  On the computer.  Going places.  I pass a McDonald's on my way to deliver papers.  I know that McDonald's is open 24 hours a day but I wondered how much business they really did.  There's always a line at the drive thru and it's not a typically busy part of town. 

 

I love to people watch so this is a great source of amusement for me.  Makes it almost worth getting up in the middle of the night to throw papers.

 

I might have mentioned that Princess is moving back home in June. If I haven't, then let me announce it now.  She's moving back to Ohio after the grandkids get out of school in early June. 

 

She's patched things up with Hubby so they're on speaking terms again. 

 

I, however, am still on her s*&t list.  Or she's still on mine.  Either way, I haven't spoken to her since Easter weekend. 

 

And I'm fine with that. 

 

Honest.  Makes for less drama in my life that way.  Hubby gets to hear all the details and the drama and then passes what he remembers to me.  And he usually doesn't remember much.  

 

But he did pass along one interesting tidbit of information . . . Princess and the grandkids will be living with her Ex when they come back to Smalltown, Ohio.  (Ex Husband #1 is the father of the Big Man, Sporty, and Smarty - the grandkids).  EH#1 and the GrandKids think that the move back to Smalltown is so that EH#1 and Princess can get back together and they can live happily ever after as a family.  Princess has other plans.  She told Hubby yesterday that she's only moving in with EH#1 to get out of her bad marriage to Hubby #2 and once she gets back to Smalltown and gets on her feet, she's going to dump EH#1.  She figures its the least EH#1 can do since he owes Princess a lot of back child support.  Hubby gave her one heck of a lecture and told her that nobody deserves to be treated like that.  If that's really what she's planning, then she owes it to EH#1 to let him know the truth up front.

 

When Hubby told me about it yesterday, I thought he was joking - that she was kidding.  He said he thought she was joking, too, but she's really serious.  I'm stunned.  Totally, absolutely flabbergasted.  How can anyone be so cruel to another person?  Especially a person that they claimed to love at one time?  The father of her children?  And if she has no qualms about doing such a thing to someone, what kind of person admits something like that to their own father?  If she's capable of doing that to him, what else is she capable of?  And this person wants to be closer to her family?  It's enough to give me nightmares. 

 

I just knew that this whole moving home thing was going to be a disaster . . . . she's not even here yet and she's proving me right!

 

Rocky passed with flying colors!

 

 

 

He's now a puppy school graduate. 

 

He did the "down, stay" and the "sit, stay" and even pulled off the "stand, stay" the one thing he struggled with the most.  I'm so proud!  I even have pictures to share - like any proud momma! (I finally figured it out!) 

 

After class, Rocky got to play with all his puppy school friends while Mommy and Daddy had punch and cookies.  The doggies each got a box of Milkbone treats as a present. 

 

It's been a good day. 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm spending some extra time tonight working with Rocky to make sure he "graduates" from puppy class tomorrow night.  I can't believe that eight weeks have zipped by so fast.  Come to think of it, I can't believe that he's going to be six months old next week.  That means that Blacky's been gone almost 4 months.  Is that possible?  It seems like he's been gone way longer than that . . . but I digress. 

 

We have to weigh Rocky every month to make sure we get the right dose of heartworm medicine and flea medicine for him.  Last month he was maybe 40 pounds.  This month he's hovering around 50 pounds.  I confess that we aren't using the most scientifically accurate way to weigh him.  I get on the scale and weigh myself.  Then I pick up Rocky and weigh the two of us together.  Up until about a week ago, he didn't seem to be any bigger.  Then all of a sudden he looks huge to me.  Still smaller than Luci by a smidge but bigger than he was.  Do dogs have growth spurts?  Where did my baby puppy dog go?  The cute chubby little thing with no coordination at all when he ran.  The little puppy that could walk under Luci when she was standing up.  He tried that the other day and crashed into her.  Darn near knocked her over.  I darn near laughed myself silly. 

 

He's a very obedient dog.  Comes when he's called.  Understands the "drop it" command and obeys it!  Knows that when I make my "mom" noise that he better stop whatever he's doing and look at me.  My "mom" noise is a cross between a bark and the word "no".  I use it whenever they are doing something they aren't supposed to be doing and I want them to stop immediately.  Rocky will come running when I make that noise.  Luci comes running, too, but only because she wants to see why he is running.  

 

He's a little hesitant to eat table scraps, but his whole attitude will change when he finds something he likes.  He likes lettuce.  I've never had a dog eat lettuce before.  He likes to eat June bugs.  yuck.  He loves to chase squirrels and birds out of the yard.  Since Fluffy (the cat that thinks he lives here) tolerates him, he thinks all cats are his friends.  He loves everyone and thinks everyone loves him.  He has these droopy eyes that just tug at my heart.  And he wrinkles up his forehead most of the time like he's worried about something. 

 

When he's playing with Luci, he's a typical little brother.  Very playful.  Snapping at her feet to get her attention.  Chewing on her ears.  Trying to take her toys away.  I can't tell you how many times I've had to hose him off because Luci's rolled him in the dirt.  I've had to hose Luci off a few times, too, because the little guy can give as good as he gets.  But when I put that collar on him and we start working on his obedience commands, he's a totally different dog.  Listens to everything I say and obeys every command.  

 

He was supposed to be Hubby's dog, but he's turned into Mommy's little boy.  He follows me everywhere.  If Hubby wakes up early, Rocky and Luci both will stay in the bedroom with me until I get up.  If they do get up to go potty, they'll come right back to bed and wait for me.  I have two shadows now.  The other morning I was getting ready for work and they were both in the bathroom with me.  Quality family time!  And between the two of them, nothing I wear is safe.  If I'm not covered in either black hair (Luci) or white hair (Rocky) then I have a muddy paw print on at least one shoe.  Kind of like a new mommy leaving the house with baby spit up somewhere on her outfit.  But it's a joyus thing for me. 

 

They make sure we still have our nightly cuddle time.  Every night before I go to bed, I sit on the floor and they sit on my lap.  Before I know it, we're all snoring in front of the TV.  I can't think of a better way to end the day. . . .

 

Seems like I'm running in a circle and can never catch up . . .

 

My day job, my weekend job helping Hubby deliver papers, the work I do for Hubby's fishing rod repair business, taking care of MIL, training Rocky for puppy school (graduation is this week!), laundry, housework, blah, blah, blah

 

I'm a busy lady.

 

I did get to see my Mom today for Mother's Day.  Bought her the traditional hanging basket - I've been buying her hanging baskets for as long as I can remember.  I also buy her a little something from her little dog Baby . . . this year it was one of the little candles by Yankee Candle. Hubby went to see MIL while I was visiting Mom.  MIL gets a hanging basket, too.  Rocky and Luci bought me a hanging basket . . . anybody see the theme here?  We have a wonderful local greenhouse that sells beautiful plants.  I buy from them every year.  Jr. came by and gave me a card and lovely bottle of lotion from Bath and Body Works.  I love that place as much as I love Yankee Candles . . .

 

Rocky's puppy class is going very well.  He's such a smart dog.  He catches on quickly to whatever we need to learn and never forgets any of his lessons.  Even when the other dogs in class are not being obedient, he'll look at me like "uh, Mom, how come they're not listening?"  Those droopy eyes and that wrinkled forehead are so expressive.

 

Laundry, dishes, and housework never seem to end.  No sooner do I get the laundry caught up and the hamper is full again.  Same way with the dishes.  And housework . . .well, if we don't talk about the dust bunnies maybe they'll go away.

 

MIL is as well as can be expected health wise she's just a contrary old woman and won't listen to anyone.  We're looking at the possibility of getting a scooter for her to help her get around.  Who knew that it was such a complicated process.  And she has a defeatist attitude about the whole thing.  If I hear, "I know I won't get approved for it." one more time I'm going to scream. 

 

Hubby had a great time at the bowling tournament and I had a great time home alone last weekend.  It seems the guys had their hands full with some drama on Saturday night.  So much for a relaxing weekend away.  Proves my theory that we can't let the guys go without the wives  . . .

 

Time to get ready for another exciting week.

I'm mowing the grass.

 

Because I'm a good wife and because Hubby asked me polietly before he left.

 

I'm 45 years old.  I've cut a few lawns in my time.  I did it at home growing up . . . Dad made sure all us girls knew how to cut grass.  'Cause there are things a man has to teach his daughters.  I learned using a good old fashioned Sears Craftsman gas powered push mower.  I was good at manhandling that big old thing. 

 

Hubby bought an electric mower last year.  Easier to push around the yard.  Better for the environment.  Cheaper than gas powered self-propelled mower.  blah.  blah.  blah. 

 

I hate that &$%@*! electric mower.

 

I have to be careful not to run over the power cord.  It cuts out if I take my hand off the handle.  If I tug on the cord too hard it comes unplugged.  I worry about being shocked if I happen to hit a patch of grass that's not completely dry.   

 

If they're so wonderful, why did man invent the gas powered mower first?

 

I'm just sayin . . .  

 

Hubby's at a bowling tournament.

 

It's just me and the dogs . . . and the laundry . . . and the housework . . .and the newspaper route . . .

 

Somehow I think I got the short end of the deal.

 

I've been doing the newspaper thing with Hubby on the weekends for a couple of months now so I do have an idea of what I'm supposed to do.  But that didn't stop him from giving me training seminars all week.  I half expect him to call tonight with more instructions.  I won't be delivering the papers alone, though.  Jr. is going to help me.  

 

Right now I'm tiding up the house.  Hubby is the biggest offender in the messy department.  He never puts stuff where it belongs.  Grrr.

 

Three days with a tidy house and control of the remote . . .

 

Maybe I didn't get the short end of the deal after all . . .