7 Weeks Old!

Yesterday Mallory and Marina turned 7 weeks old, so here they are. The two most precious puppies of 2009! ;) I posted more pictures on the puppy blog, in case you'd like to see more. C'mon, you know you want to take a peek.

Thank you Trying2StayCalm

I'm so excited to have won something again from Trying2StayCalm. First was a giftcard to Jamba Juice, and now I've won a pair of cute little Spa Booties (just warm in the microwave and wear)! :) I highly recommend you guys to check out Shauna's blog, it's all giveaways over there- really neat stuff! She gets the opportunity to review so many things, and then has these giveaways (like almost everyday, it's great). Thanks again, Shauna! Keep em coming....;)

Puppies in a Sleigh

For those who haven't visited Maya's puppy blog (or already seen them on facebook), I thought I'd post these on my personal blog. I just want to make sure EVERYONE sees them, lol. :) They're now 4 weeks old- anyone wanting a puppy in January??? ;)

Mallory

Marina

Updated Videos

I invite you to head on over to our puppy blog to view some just posted videos of this past week. Our little puppies are growing up so fast! Just click here to view!

Mallory

Marina

Hiya Charlie!

I'm sure maybe a few of you remember big bad Charlie boy. I've neglected him in recent posts, so I feel I must make up for it today. Maybe a couple of videos, pictures, and that should suffice for the time being. :) Charlie is just as much of a handful today as he was when we first got him- still a brat, that is. lols Prairie dogs go through what is known as rut. Rut is basically mating season, and their personalities are drastically altered due to hormone changes within their little bodies. We failed to fix him before his season hit (and you can't fix them during rut), so now we have an even bigger little monster on our hands. Oh wellsy! He certainly doesn't get out as much, since he's pretty cranky these days, moreso than usual. When spring arrives, he should be back to his calmer and less irritable self. He's still my sweet little boy though, and I love him regardless.

I'm going to be absolutely honest here, but these pictures (I have several like this) always make me a little sad for him. He almost seems as though he's yearning to be out there- outside. I was told he came from a breeder, but after reading more about prairie dogs (after the fact) I highly doubt that was the case. He was probably taken as a pup, young and frightened away from his mom and friends. Of course, this is just speculation, he could have come from a breeder, though I think it unlikely as they're difficult to breed in captivity. The only comfort that I have, is thinking that maybe he was taken from a farm or an area that his life would have been in jeopardy. Maybe his life was spared in capture, rather than to have been shot due to his family causing destruction on a property that couldn't have that. I'd like to think so anyway. In efforts to save the lives of prairie dogs, they have been sold into the pet trade vs. being killed. I guess it's a better alternative though I do have mixed feelings.
I'm sorry Charlie, but there's no way you can go back. A domesticated prairie dog can not go back, he would die and/or be killed. These are the thoughts I have when I see him staring out the window like this; it saddens me.

And then he makes these silly faces and it makes me smile again.

My b-i-l asked me today (after I'd taken these videos), whether he liked the dogs. This video should answer your question, lol. But for those who can't decide whether or not he seems happy to see her, trust me, he's not happy at all. He thinks he's pretty tough apparently; it's a good thing Chloe can keep her cool. ;)

Chloe's Birthday Bash

Okay, so we didn't do anything big this year, just something small to recognize Chloe's big 11th. I stopped by Petland and picked up some birthday cookies, aren't they adorable. I think she (and Maya) must have thought they were just too pretty to eat, so they licked them a little and let them be. Oh wellsy! :) Chloe rarely gets to have wet food (too much upsets her tummy and the fact that she is long-haired and white makes for quite a mess), but on her birthdays we make an exception. She was in doggy heaven! She got a new toy, which she really likes too. When I pick out new toys, sometimes I try to pick things out that are similar to socks in shape and texture. She LOVES socks, just ask my dad. She used to run into his office as a pup (back when we lived at home with the parents) and steal his socks, lol. If his sock(s) were missing, we always knew who the culprit was. Chloe! That funny dog; she still has that obsession, too. The way she acts when she has a sock in her mouth, you would never guess she's 11 years old now. That's my girl!

If these had been labeled "cookies for humans", I think she would have loved them. Sometimes I think she knows how to read. :/ BTW, I should have tried one of these, they actually smelled really tasty.

Chloe and her new toy. It's actually a really long squirrel, with no stuffing in it. Light-weight and perfect for flinging around the apartment while in a state of pure bliss and contentment.

New Puppy Photos!

I know what you're thinking, "Will she ever stop posting puppy pics?!?"; the answer is NO. muahaha! I think our girls' eyes are getting close to opening. I think I see a tiny hint of it. Yay! I can't wait to see their little eyes! The first three pictures are Marina, and the last three are of Mallory (9 days old). Enjoy!

Marina

Marina was saying, "ENOUGH ALREADY! Get that thing outta my face!". lol

Mallory

Mallory had just about had enough, too. She was a big ole sleepyhead after pictures.

Computer problems! Ugh!!!

My internet browser will not load. I click on Firefox and nothing. :( I've even tried to go to Internet Explorer (which I don't use), but still nothing. Looks like my computer may have to take a trip to a computer doctor. :( This is a total bummer, considering I so wanted to post new pictures of Mallory and Marina on some pretty pink fleece with white polka dots. Darn! Does anyone know of anyway of trying to restore your computer? I'll mess with it some when i get home, but I'm so afraid of something happening and then losing all of my photos. Maybe I'll go get another flash drive and transfer them over to keep them all safe. And then just go crazy on that computer. :/ We'll see...
BTW, I'm at work now using my work computer.

Happy Birthday Chloe!

Today my sweet Chloe bear turns 11 years old. Fortunately for me, she still has that spunk and energy that I've always known and loved, though she's definitely mellowed out since puppyhood. Thank you Chloe for bringing me nearly 11 years of happiness, and I know you've got several more years to give. You're very much loved! Happy b-day baby girl!!!

Clean bill of health

Our puppies went into the vet yesterday morning to have their tails docked and dewclaws removed. The vet told us the puppies and Maya looked great! So we're really happy. Babies are gaining lots of weight, almost 2 oz within three days. :) Little Mallory is just as chunky as her sister now, making it more difficult for me to tell them apart, lol. Just wanted to update everyone on their progress. This is going to be difficult for us to part with them; maybe we'll have to keep one. ??? We'll see...;) Oh, and if you're looking for more pictures, I post most of the puppy pictures on the puppy blog. Just click on the link "Maya's puppies" on the sidebar to view the page. I'll probably just post pics weekly, maybe a few in between.

Our Vet Delivers

For those who don't know the dilemma we faced earlier this morning, here it goes. Maya went into active labor around 2am this morning, she was pushing for over two hours when I thought it was probably too long. I called an emergency vet, they told me to give her more time- another hour or two. I thought about that for a while, didn't feel comfortable with it and then called a different emergency vet and they told me to bring her right in. So, after much deliberation, we brought our Maya in to get checked out. She received some much needed calcium and a shot of oxytocin and made a little progress. They repeated the process but she didn't improve any. They told us the first little one was probably already deceased and that Maya needed an emergency c-section to have any chance of saving the other. At this point it is 8am, I'm already crying but have to make a decision.
We decide to take our Maya from this emergency clinic and transfer her to our veterinarian (since now the office is open) to do this procedure for our girl. We trust them with our pets, and though this may seem a stupid idea, I think it was an inspired one. Both of our little girls and our Maya have pulled through just fine. And fyi, we saved $1400.00 by taking Maya to our vet. We are so happy! I want to thank everyone for your prayers, every one of them counted. Thanks again everyone!!!

Don't mind the ugly incision on Maya's belly, it'll heal soon enough. Here are our lovely angels climbing on their mommy looking for food. They'll get it down pat eventually. Well, let's sure hope so.

And this is our chunky little girl, though she actually weighs less than her sister. I would have taken a picture of her sister, but she was asleep and I didn't want to wake her. Plus, Maya needs her beauty sleep too. :)
I'll be sure to post lots more pictures when they aren't so fragile and I'm not so tired. Seriously, I only got 10 minutes of sleep, 15 at the most. I'm kinda dozing off just typing this.

Still Nothin'

Last night Maya showed several signs of pre-labor, but not all of them. This morning, she's showing some other signs of pre-labor. ??? So, we don't know what the heck is going on now. :/ She's definitely not acting like herself, she's been digging alot (nesting), and her temperature is still down from yesterday. So, it could be today that she has puppies, but it's not for certain. I sure did want the puppies to make their debut today though. :( If not today, then tomorrow. I don't want to have to go another day on Monday worrying about Maya while I'm at work. I'm already not getting any sleep. Seriously, I've been waking up every hour it seems to check on her. Come on puppies, get out already! Here's another even better video of her puppies kicking the doo doo out of her, lol. It doesn't get good until about 20 seconds in, fyi. :)

Pansit Canton

I had a craving last night for something delicious and homemade, something tried and true, something that would take me back to when I was a kid, so I decided on Pansit. My mother used to make this Filipino dish every now and then when I was growing up, and I always have just loved it. It's so flavorful, so tasty, and you'll love it too. I didn't bother my mom with the recipe for it last night, so I looked it up online and found one similar to hers. Now this recipe wasn't the same as my mom's, so I edited it to be as close to my mom's recipe as possible. If you wish to see the whole version as it was before I changed it up a bit, click here. I HIGHLY recommend this, it was delicious!

Pansit Canton Ingredients:

• 12 ounces pansit canton noodles (rice noodles)

• 4 cups chicken broth

• 1/2 pound pork, sliced in small pieces

• 1/2 lb.-1 lb. pound shrimps, shelled and deveined

• 4 tablespoons cooking oil (I used some EVOO)

• 1/2 cup chopped onion

• 2 tablespoons garlic, minced

• 2 cups cabbage, sliced into strips

• 1 cup celery, sliced

• 1 carrot, sliced

• 1/4- 1/2 cup soy sauce (to your liking)

• 1 tablespoon sesame oil

Pansit Canton Cooking Instructions:

• In a big pan or wok, sauté in oil the garlic and onions. Then add sliced pork until cooked.

• Add 2 cups of chicken broth and add shrimps, cabbage, celery and sliced carrot. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until cooked.

• Add the remaining 2 cups of chicken broth, soy sauce, and the pansit canton noodles. Let simmer until noodles are soft.

• Add the sesame oil and serve hot.

***Note: Preparation and cooking time takes approximately 1 hour (I'm slow so it took me a bit longer).

Maya's x-rays

I know my intention was just to post the puppy stuff on Maya's blog, but I just couldn't help but post this here, too. We finally went in to the vet this morning to get a puppy head count, and sure enough, there are TWO puppies. I was beginning to think three because of how big they're now getting, but nope, just two. Which, by the way, I think is the perfect number. If only they could have told us the sexes of both; that will have to be a surprise. :) I'm also really happy that we got to spend a lot of time with Dr. Turner (who is just amazing, btw), asking lots of questions and listening to his advice. I feel really good about things now, and completely prepared. I'm sure the next post about Maya will be about her newborn puppies; wish us luck! They should be here by Saturday!

And here is the same x-ray just closer so you can see the details. I don't think it's too hard to see, so I won't bother trying to point out the puppies. But yes, you can clearly see the two little skulls and their spines. Those are just the cutest alien-looking things I've ever seen, lol. :)

Halloween at Work

Every year at work, we all (well, most of us anyways) dress up in costume for Halloween. It's a lot of fun! This year I wasn't sure I was going to dress up; I even went to look at costumes one day but couldn't find any that I liked. Lucky for me, my co-worker offered to lend me one of her costumes that she'd used one year, and I loved it! Here are just a few pictures I had taken throughout the day-

This is Jaylie, aka THE INDIAN

Jaylie and I

Lynda and myself. I kept forgetting to put my hood on; no one knew what I was without it. :(

Again, I am hoodless. But here I am, with Charlotte (a pirate) and Bethany (Minnie Mouse).

Our group photo! You can kinda see the whole outfit I had one if you look closely; at least I remembered to put on my hood. :)
I hope everyone had a great and safe Halloween last night. And I also hoped you remembered to set your clocks back an hour this morning.

Blog Update

I recently posted a video on Maya's puppy blog that is pretty neat. If you're interested, go check it out. Just click here to visit her page. :)
And of course, a Happy Halloween to everyone today! Be safe and have lots of fun!!!

Extra 50% off at Payless, thanks to Oprah

Today (after Oprah airs) and tomorrow, Payless is offering an additional 50% off of Payless accessories and shoes. I actually went in last night, tried on, and placed a few pairs of boots/shoes on hold for today. So, I'm all set! All in all, this will come out to about $55.00 plus tax for these four pairs. I'm sooooo excited; I LOVE my shoes! And what a bargain, considering you can use this additional discount off of sale merchandise. To acquire your coupon, head on over to oprah.com and look for the link that she has on her website. The store that I shopped at won't honor the coupon until later today, but the actual coupon says you can use it as early as 10am this morning. I'd check with the store you plan on shopping at to see when they will accept it.

These are already on sale for just $39.99, meaning I'll only pay $19.99.

These boots are currently on sale for $29.99, which means I'll pay $14.99.

These awesome pumps are $14.99 now, but will be $7.49 later today.

These may look metallic, but there aren't; they're just brown. :) They're regularly $22.99, and I can't wait to get them for only $11.49. Whoo hoo!!!

Arthur's New Project

Arthur and I have talked on several occasions about making a little porch potty for our dogs. Now I think is the perfect time to finally get this project moving, as the weather has just been awful. Living in an apartment is sometimes just terrible when you have animals; being on the second floor isn't any better. It's not that we hate to walk the dogs, but when the weather isn't being kind to us, walking them in rain, ice, sometimes sleet is not always an option. So the idea came to me that we needed more than just potty pads indoors to help out with this. The girls have never liked to use the potty pads, so I figured if we constructed something that was most like the great outdoors (like turf, for instance), they'd be more inclined to use it. Hopefully, this is something Arthur will get started on in the next couple of weeks; below are a few ideas we plan on using to get started. Wish us luck! And I sure hope the girls will use it. Also, I want to add that with Maya's puppies on the way, I also thought this would be a good tool in helping to potty train them. Since they will be susceptible to contracting diseases from other dogs/animals in general, I won't be able to take them outside or get them near anything that could harm them. Basically, they can't go outside until fully vaccinated. I think this would be an awesome way to help them learn to use the potty appropriately. We'll see...

I really like this idea of a pull-out tray (in plastic) for easy cleaning. :)

Our Jack-o-lanterns

For the past several years I have always made sure to have a carved pumpkin or two. Arthur was kind enough to be sure I didn't forget. Yesterday he brought home two pumpkins, and we got to work on them. I think they turned out well; of course, I always think mine is better. lol

Arthur's artwork

Mine. Do you know what movie this is from? That's a little Tara Trivia for ya!

And check out the amazing glow of my lil' pumpkin man. :) Cute and a bit creepy all wrapped into one.