Tests

Rick and I were talking last night and I mentioned the tests that I had to pass before Rick and I became serious.

Test One: I had to like his dogs, "The Boys", and they had to like me. That is why Rick brought the dogs with him to our first date. If I didn't like them or if "The Boys" didn't warm to me, there would have been no second date.

Test Two: I had to love the missile base as much as he did. It's not easy living here and Rick was looking for someone that could hack it, as well as someone who would be willing to live in a hole in the ground. The first time I was here at Corinth West was March of 2005 and I had no problems with the plans for his home or living underground.

Test Three: How I would handle rattlesnakes. On that first trip here, Rick and I were walking back from the Quonset Hut to the missile site at night. I was point man with the flash light and I happened to swing the beam of light to the side of the road. Lo and behold there was a rattlesnake, and my third and final test. I didn't scream. I didn't run. I held the flashlight while Rick shot it with his 45. Per Rick, most women would have screamed and ran and he was impressed that I did neither. However, Rick's rattlesnake test had a flaw. It was pitch black, I didn't know the lay of the land, so running willy-nilly wasn't an option. Also, I was no fool and was going to stay with the person who had a 45 strapped to their side. A bonus test that I passed was when Rick shot the rattlesnake and I was not rattled by the gun blast. I merely commented, "Wow, you're a good shot."

So I passed the tests with flying colors and the rest, as they say is history. We have been married for 3 1/2 years. However, what Rick doesn't know--which he will after he reads this--is that he had a test to pass too. I never trusted a man that did not like dogs. The man could like other animals, such as cats, but not liking dogs was a trait I could live without. When I saw how Rick was with "The Boys", I knew he was a man that LOVED his dogs and spared no expense in training those dogs and caring for those dogs.

Which brings me to now being dogless. All day I tried to put my finger on why I was so depressed over Eric's passing. I know that it was the best thing for Eric for he was no longer enjoying life. He was losing his spark and it was not going to come back. However, when Max died, we still had Eric. We still were a family of a mommy, daddy, child, dog and cat. Now our family dynamic is forever changed and I will never again see my husband interact with his Boys, which was a beautiful thing to see. Furthermore, Eric was an important part of our family and today is not like yesterday or the day before that or the life we knew. I do not do well with this type of change, so bear with me as I mope around the house and write posts about the heartbreak.

Eric Von Brock

This morning we put down Eric. Rick and I were by his side until the end. Matter of fact, Rick had his arms around Eric and had his forehead pressed to Eric's until Eric's heart took its last beat.

If you read this blog regularly, you know I often got choked up with tears when I thought about today. This morning I realized that Rick was busy soothing me, but in reality the loss of Eric cut as deeply if not more so for him. I felt so selfish and self-absorbed for forgetting that Rick had known Eric longer than he has known me or has been a father to Katie. Rick and "The Boys" have been from one end of this country to the other. They have experienced numerous good times and a few bad times together. "The Boys" were his partners in crime; always there for him and with Eric's death a major chapter closed in Rick's life.

The picture below is one that I took this morning. Last night I put his "Death Before Dishonor" scarf around his neck. Max, Eric's brother, was buried with his "Death Before Dishonor"scarf tied around his neck. The scarf says it all.


We may no longer be dog owners, but Eric and Max still own us. I personally will never be able to shake Eric. Despite my tears, I know it was the right time to let him go and I also know that I will once again walk with Eric. Til then, Max and Eric will be chasing squirrels and who knows, maybe they will actually catch one.

The Can Countdown

Yesterday I ran to the grocery store to pick up a few staples. One item that I needed was canned dog food. A few weeks ago I started mixing canned/wet dog food into Eric's dry kibble. His appetite was starting to wan and I began feeding him the combo to make sure he ate, which he did. Back to yesterday, I bought two cans of food because that is all I needed to get him through to Monday, the day we are putting him down. Right in the middle of the dog food aisle, I felt tears coming to my eyes because those two little cans look so pathetic in my cart compared to the large number I usually buy. Also, those two cans were like a clock counting down to his death. He had only two cans of life left. Once home, I put the two cans on top of the microwave, but each time I walked into the kitchen my eyes immediately went to those two cans, so I moved the cans into a cupboard. Now there is only one full can left in the cupboard for his breakfast tomorrow morning, his last meal.

Enquiring Minds Want To Know.....

To celebrate Rick's first day home, I made a large breakfast consisting of scrambled eggs, bacon, waffles and juice. We all stuffed ourselves so we were still not hungry at lunch time.

Now for a Katie story. When Rick is out of town and you ask Katie where her Daddy is, she will reply, "On an airplane." To her young mind when Rick boards an airplane, she does not realize that he doesn't stay on the plane the whole time he was gone. However, she is starting to question that theory because this morning while they were talking about airplanes and Rick being gone, Katie asked him, "What do you do all day?" Rick and I started laughing and Rick did answer her. He told her that he flies in airplanes, eats candy and plays with toys. My fear is that now when she is asked the whereabouts of her father, she will say, "He's in an airplane eating candy and playing with toys."

Homeward Bound and Running Away

Rick is on his way home after being gone for two weeks. I have been checking his flights online and surprisingly they are relatively on time. He should be home at about 6:30 pm.

Today I cleaned and did laundry and Katie was naughty. Rick and I have noticed that there is a correlation between Katie's naughtiness and my schedule. When I am busy and cannot give her the attention that she craves, she deduces that if she is bad I will pay attention. She doesn't seem to mind that that attention is me reprimanding her. I knew today was a challenging day for her because she got quite blatant in her need for me to be totally into her. I took a break from my chores and sat on the bed to watch a little TV. She responded by standing on the bed right in my view of the television. This is not the first time that she has done that. It kind of serves as my wake-up call that I have not be a present mommy to her. So I clicked off the TV and helped her build a puzzle.

As far as new words and phrases that Katie has picked up, here are a few. I let her put on pale pink eye shadow while I am putting on my eye make-up. Today when we were in the bathroom, she asked me, "Momma can we color our eyes?" I guess she sees applying eyeshadow like coloring in a coloring book. Just a few minutes ago I heard her say, "absolutflee" which I believe is "absolutely." She has also been using the phrase, "Geez Louise" which is a phrase I use a lot.

Sorry I had to step away for a bit. We have sleigh bells on our front door and I had heard them jingle. I opened the front door and there was Katie running down the sidewalk. I chased after her and yelled at her for her to come back. She ignored me and proceeded down the driveway. I had to run back to the house to get some shoes. When I got outside she was coming back down the sidewalk. When I got a hold of her I reminded her that she can only go outside with Mommy and Daddy. She also got a swat on the butt and baby-gated in her room. This episode bums me out because Katie has figured out how to unlock the front door. We now need to get a new lock for the front door, such as a lock that only opens with a key. I guess I am also bummed because she tried to run away from home. I am sure she was going to look for someone who would give her their undivided attention.

Rick's Thursday Pictures: New Do and A Train

Today is a popular day to die. First Farrah Fawcett and now Michael Jackson. Farrah's death was expected, but Michael's is a shocker for me.

The temperature was scorching once again. I think today was the hottest day of the summer so far.

I spent the afternoon at the beauty salon getting highlights and a hair cut. Below is a picture of my new do. I got about 4 inches cut off and basically have a long bob, or a lob as they call it.


The picture below is the Katie picture of the day. She made a train out of the dining room chairs and was offering free rides to those that passed by the dining room. I took her up on her offer and enjoyed the leisurely ride.

Well, gotta dash. I have so much to do since I spent this afternoon getting primped and pampered instead of doing any cleaning or laundry. Ciao

Play Doh Pooch's Poop

I made a dog out of Play Doh for Katie. I told her to try to make a bowl for the dog, some dog food and maybe a bone. I was busy making a requested cat when I glanced over at her progress. I pretty much knew what the answer was going to be, but I asked anyway, "Katie what is that by the dog?" Her reply, "Poop. He's pooping." The little pile of poop made out of red Play Doh was all she created for her Play Doh Pooch.

Ricks' Bonus Pictures: Tea Party

Katie hosted a tea party this afternoon. It was a highly exclusive event and only the swankiest residents of Corinth West were invited. We drank creme soda out of delicate, pink, plastic Disney Princess teacups that had been in the family since March. We dined on donuts, cake, an onion and a red pepper. It was a wonderful soiree and an unmitigated success.

The incredible spread of foods and refreshments.

The hostess enjoying a spot of creme soda

The guest of honor--actually the only guest--enjoying her creme soda.

Katie took the picture of me. She did an excellent job of framing me.

Rick's Wednesday Picture and My Morning Schedule

In the last post I wondered what Katie was going to do once Eric was gone. I ask the same question of myself.

My typical morning starts at 7:30 am. Katie usually wakes me up via the baby monitor. I get her out of her bed and get her in day clothes. Then I go into the kitchen to examine the mess. Eric will sit up and I slip the towel around his waist. The two of us will slowly make our way from the back of the house to the front door. Navigating the ramp is tricky since both of us don't fit on the ramp at the same time, so I end up going down the stairs while trying to keep Eric on all four of his feet. Once he is outside I clean up any accidents that Eric had in the kitchen overnight and then scrub the entire kitchen floor with Lysol. Next up is Katie's breakfast, which is easy to fix. She typically likes a piece of toast and/or some fruit. Some days she fancies a scrambled egg. After she is fed, it's time to get Eric's food ready and feed the cat. After the train deposits Eric's food and water next to him outside I finally attempt to run a comb through my hair. A ponytail has been my favorite morning hairdo for a while now. When Eric finishes eating, I search the house for a pair of shoes for Katie so she can go outside with me to bath Eric. I get my rubber gloves and use the garden hose and shampoo for white dogs. After he is washed I dry him off with a towel, brush him and apply ointment to his ears so the flies won't bite them I leave him outside to sun-dry.

Without fail when I come into the house the clock says 10:00 am. When he is gone my whole morning schedule will be uprooted and I will be wandering around here like a lost dog, or more aptly put, like a person who lost their dog. I will have roughly 2 1/2 hours int the morning with no schedule or duties; I will have "free time." But you know, I'd gladly decline that "free time" if I knew keeping Eric around was in his best interest. But the reality is that it no longer is.

On to cheerier subjects. Here is Rick's Wednesday Picture. Nothing earth shattering or slightly amusing. Matter of fact it looks like a few other pictures that I have taken in the last few weeks. It's Katie drinking some milk while watching her new favorite show "Max and Ruby." Katie has been quite the drama queen this morning and she reacts to every little thing as if the sky is falling. We need you here, Hon. Only 2 1/2 more days of being a single parent and Katie's single source of entertainment. I know she feeling insecure about you being gone because yesterday as I was walking toward the office, Katie wrapped her arms around my legs and said, "Momma don't go. Stay here." My first response was the breaking of my heart. Then I knelt down, hugged her back and played with her. Emails, phone calls and bank balancing could wait.

Food Train

For awhile now Katie has been the person in our house who feeds Eric. To her it is not a chore for she demands to do it and throws a hissy fit if I try to feed him.

When I tell her it's time to feed Eric, she races into the kitchen and gets his bowl. We keep Eric's dog food in a special dog food container that sits on the floor and has a little door on it. She retrieves the dog food scoop and carefully places the nuggets in Eric's bowl. However, each and every time I hear her say, "Uh oh, too much" and she puts a few nuggets back into the dog food container. She saw me do that once and has latched on to it as if it is a part of the ritual. The only part I am allowed to do is to put a few dollops of wet dog food into Eric's bowl and get his medication ready. Katie retrieves a piece of cheese from the refrigerator and I wrap his medication in the slice. However, she MUST put the cheese in the bowl and stir his dog food. If I try to horn in on any part of the process that she sees as hers she cries, "My turn, my turn" and I mean CRIES. Once she is done mixing she drops the spoon into the sink and picks up Eric's bowl. Meanwhile I grab his water bowl and we form a train as we chugga-chugga to the front door. (Eric usually eats breakfast outside.) We actually make the train noises, which include the aforementioned chugga-chugga and toot toot.

Katie loves this twice daily event and always has a wide grin on her face as we train across the living room. She is so proud that she feeds Eric. Katie will surely miss her number one job when Eric is gone.

I Wonder What Time It Is On The Doomsday Clock?

I am getting rather nervous over North Korea and the latest statement by the North Korea's state run news agency. Here is the quote from a Yahoo news article written by Hyung-Jin Kim for the Associated Press.

"If the U.S. imperialists start another war, the army and people of Korea will ... wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all," the official Korean Central News Agency said.

Basically North Korea is threatening to wipe the US off of the map if the UN stops and inspects one of North Korea's ships that is believed to be heading for Myanmar. We have the USS John S. McCain trailing the North Korean ship which is believed to be carrying illicit weapons. Also, it is believed that North Korea is preparing to launch a series of missiles. It is believed that the missiles being prepared for launch are intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) with a range of up to 4,000 miles. Alaska and U.S. bases in Guam would be within that range. (You will notice the over use of the word "believed" because when it comes in North Korea one can only make speculations because of their secrecy and hot air that blows out of their collective mouth. They talk the talk, but some believe that they cannot walk the walk.) If we see a missile--armed or not--careening through the skies towards Sarah Palin's home, the US will shoot it down and probably send a few of our own in the other direction. And there you have World War III, which would not be like the previous World Wars because of ICBM's.

It's times like these that I am thankful for our hardened hole in the ground which was designed to withstand a nuclear attack. However, I often wonder into what kind of world did we bring Katie or will she even have a world to enjoy.

Rick's Tuesday Picture

It's stifling hot today and you can see the heat waves squiggling off the driveway. The front door knob is hot to touch and I darn near burnt my hand when I picked up the metal sprayer on the water hose. Whenever it gets like this I feel as if I am in a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western--the heat, the dust--and I expect to hear that signature whistle at any moment. The rest of the week is supposed to be in the 100+.

Today I rented "He's Just Not That In To You." Rick doesn't really care for chick movies so I tend to watch them when he is out of town, which is just about the only positive of his constant traveling.

I got Eric outside this morning at 7:00 am, but brought him back in at 11:30 am. He has slept all day. I know I won't get him to go outside in this heat, so I am prepared to be cleaning the kitchen floor a few times before my day it over.

Rick's Tuesday Picture is similar to one of yesterday's. The reason is that Katie did the same thing she did yesterday. She removed the couch cushions and hopped on them. Lately Katie does not like me styling her hair but I got her some new, fancy ponytail holders today and she was anxious to try them out.


That's about it for now. Yesterday I had a lot to say, but today I'm a little brain numb. Katie had me up at 6:30 am when I had only gone to sleep at 2:00 am. (I don't sleep well when Rick is out of town.) Ciao.

Hi

Before Katie goes to sleep, I climb in her crib and read her a book. Tonight we also played with her YBCR flash cards. The cards are double-sided, have one word printed on each side and a picture that slides out to show the word. I had the cards scattered on her bed and they were closed so you could not see the pictures. She asked me, "Momma where's 'hi'." I reply I didn't know. She scanned all of the cards and flipped them over until she found "hi." I was shocked. She clearly knows how to read "hi."

Rick's Bonus Picture

Katie's a smart cookie. She knows that she is not allowed to jump on the furniture. The reason I tell her that it is a no-no is because she could catapult right off and hurt herself. So today what did she do? She removed the cushions from the couch and put them on the floor and proceeded to jump from one to another.

Action shot. Boinga! Boinga!

She also asked me to unfold the bed from the sofa so Baby Too had a place to take a nap. The umbrella in the background is from her outdoor patio set, which is in the Quonset Hut. I told her that Daddy would get it out when he comes home. (Just what you need, Hon. Another thing on your Honey-Do List.) She placed her Disney Princess chair under the umbrella and told me that area of the living room was the beach.

Sorry for the numerous posts today. I just have a lot to say and show.

Failing The Developmentally Disabled

I lived the majority of my life in Michigan, so when I moved to Texas I subscribed to Texas Monthly to educate myself on the issues and news of Texas. From Texas Monthly I have learned some depressing facts about my adopted state, such as we have the highest teen pregnancy rate in the country and the percentage of the Texas population over 25 years old with a high school degree or higher is 78.3%--the worst in the country. However, the facts I learned in this month's Texas Monthly make me ill. The article called "Failing Darla" is about Texas' funding for the developmentally disabled. In 2008 the US Department of Justice investigated Texas' thirteen state schools. As a result of that investigation "more than 800 employees across all 13 facilities have been suspended or fired for abusing facility residents since fiscal year 2004."

I expect the Texan readers to tell me "love it or leave it" and I respect their right to do so, but before you start throwing sticks at me and saying "Yankee go home" read the article here. I realize that there is no Utopian state in the US and that all states have issues. Furthermore, I love living in Texas and Texas has many things right about it, but that does not stop me from cringing when I read articles like "Failing Darla" from the sheer horror of the situation and from embarrassment that I live in a state where Darla's story is common, the norm. My question is why are we so backward and Johnny-Come-Lately to so many important social issues? Perhaps it is the result of Texans being an independent bunch of folks that prefer a less intrusive government. I really don't know, but something has to change.

A Year Long Project

After over a year, AT&T has finally fixed our first phone line. They couldn't find the problem before because by the time they got our here to fix it, the phone line would be fine. However, the last couple of days it has been out more than working. AT&T called me this morning--I opened a service ticket on it last Friday--and told me that the line was bad enough that he could finally work on isolating the problem. He "narrowed" it down to someplace between here and Anson. Now there's nine miles between our home and Anson, so I was sure it was going to take awhile. He then narrowed it down to a two mile section of the line. He called back shortly after and told me that he found the problem. There was a small section where the insulation was exposed. He fixed it and the line is working! And better yet, working without static!! Just goes to show you that good things come to those who wait for AT&T to do their job. (Rick, stop jumping for joy. The client is going to think you're weird.)

Rick's Monday Pictures: Body Parts

Today's first picture may seem a little odd to some of you, but Rick will understand why I posted it.

Pickle toes

After I took a picture of Katie's feet she wanted me to take a picture of her hands and feet. I think the shadow on the right is the camera strap.

Slow Day

Katie has been watching her YBCR DVD when the DVD player cooperates. I've had that RCA player for six years and it has always been a bit of a flake. It will not recognize a DVD, stall in the middle of a movie or skip huge parts of the movie. (I can't tell you how many times we didn't realize the DVD skipped forward and we were scratching our heads going "Huh?" when the movie didn't make sense.) Anyway, today after numerous attempts to get Katie's DVD to be recognized by the player, I said the heck with this. We jumped in the car and headed to Wal-Mart where I purchased a Sony DVD player for $40. I looked at the DVD player/recorders but I want to do my research before purchasing one and not just buy what Wal-Mart had in stock.

The Sony DVD player set up quickly and I popped Katie's DVD into the drawer. It was weird to have a DVD play right away and not have to deal with "incompatible disc" messages.

According to NOAA it is 98F right now. My car said it was 101F outside. The weather station in the house says 99F. Regardless, it is HOT HOT HOT! Actually it has been hot the last few days but today is the first without the infamous West Texas wind, so it's too hot for Eric for lounge under the shade tree. He was only too happy to get on his feet and get into the air conditioning.

When we were in Wal-Mart the greeting card aisle was packed. People were still buying Father's Day cards. Also, a lot of people were dressed up. I guess they were going out to Father's Day dinners. It made me kind of sad that the Daddy in our house is far from home.

Other than a little bit of laundry I haven't done too much today. I must remember to move the trash container to the curb and to call my Dad. As you can see, the highlight of our day was going to Wal-Mart.

Rick's Sunday Picture: Happy Father's Day

The picture says it all. We miss you, Hon, and hope that you enjoy your day.

Rick's Saturday Picture

Today I was busy cleaning when Katie came to me crying. I thought she might have hurt herself so I asked her what had happened. She replied with tears spilling out of her beautiful blue eyes, "I can't find Daddy." Hon, I can hear your heartbreaking just as mine did when she said that.

So here's Rick's Saturday Picture and hopefully the last Saturday picture I will post for a long time. Monday, Tuesday, etc. Pictures I don't have a problem with, but Saturday means Rick is gone for at least two weeks. This photo is from yesterday at May Farms when Katie was holding a baby chick on her lap. The solemn expression on her face matches her mood today, which is missing-daddy-blues.

Camping Outside

Last night at 8:30 pm I went outside to bring Eric into the house and he won't have anything to do with it. When I wrapped a towel around his waist, he won't use his front legs to stand up. Then he refused to sit up and without him doing so I could not slip a towel around his waist. So about every 10 minutes I went outside to see if he was ready. I was getting frustrated and Eric was getting mad at me. A few times he whipped his head around as if he was going to snap at me while I was behind him trying to lift his rear quarters. By 10:30 pm I was starting to panic because it looked like he was going to be camping outside for the night. I didn't want to leave him outside because I was afraid a rattler would come slithering across the front yard and since Eric cannot move quickly, he'd definitely get bit. I also worried about a coyote coming by and attacking him since animals can sense illness and weakness. I gave him a dose of Previcox and a pain killer and retrieved his big dog bed from the house. If he was going to stay outside, I wanted him on his bed on the patio. I also considered getting him on his bed and then pulling the bed and Eric up the ramp. When I plopped the bed in the front yard, he got up to go sit on it. (His medication was starting to kick in.) I quickly grabbed a towel, wrapped it around his waist, steered him to the ramp and finally at 11:00 pm got him in the house. I was glad I didn't have to try pulling him up the ramp on his bed. I don't know if I would have had the strength to pull a 105# dog up an incline.

This morning it was pretty easy to get Eric outside and thankfully it's a windy day so he can stay outside in the shade of the big tree. He also seems more limber today' however, I gave him a larger does of his medication with his breakfast. This afternoon he showed interest in his play tire, which he hasn't done in a few days.

As for Katie and I, we have had a low key morning. We gave Eric his sponge bath outside and I let Katie give Eric some Beggin Strips. She also tried a Beggin Strip when I wasn't looking, so I had to take the dog treats away from her.

Well, I think I'm going to kick back and relax. This morning I scrubbed the kitchen floor so hard my arms actually hurt. Katie also seems a little tired. I think a nap is in store for both of us after we get the mail.

"Yes, I'm Tired."

Rick, knowing that I struggle with making Eric's appointment to be put down, today made the phone call from New Jersey to the vet. Monday, June 29 at 10 a.m. is the day and time. Rick also called the same guy who dug Max's grave and he will be here that Monday afternoon with his backhoe. Of course the tears are streaming down my cheeks. Not that Eric will understand, I will tell Eric to lessen the pain and guilt I feel.

Oddly enough I also feel peace. The other day Eric looked a little down so I asked him if he was tired. Tired of all the medication; tired of me lifting him to get him in a standing position; tired of not being able to walk down the driveway; tired of relying on me to bring his water bowl to him; etc., etc., and so on. I knew Eric would tell me when it was time and when he had had enough. Well, he answered my question with a look in his eyes that said, "Yes. I'm tired. Yes, I'm ready. Yes, I have had enough."

Rick's Friday Pictures: May Farms

This morning Katie and I joined other MOPS and Moppets at May Farms. May Farms is a farm between here and Abilene where kids can meet various animals, as well as take a "hay" ride. I took oodles and oodles of pictures but have posted just a few below.

Katie conversing with a burro--at least I think it is a burro.

Feeding a baby goat. His little horns were just coming in.

More goat feeding. This guy was hungry!

Checking out the llama. Katie didn't want to feed him because his mouth and teeth were too big.

Getting on the trailer for the "hay" ride through the fields. Miss May drives pretty fast and does circles to give the children a thrill.

See the little goat behind Katie? He was not penned and kept on following Katie. Apparently she was generous with the food nuggets and the little guy didn't want to lose sight of her. He got pretty bold and would push at her hands, so Katie started running away from him.

Feeding the black goat. He also got greedy and stole Katie's cup filled with nuggets. I managed to get it back from the goat.

Holding a baby chick.

Half-holding a rabbit. Right after I snapped this picture she pushed the bunny off of her lap. Thankfully the bunny was okay.

May Farms also has a Beefalo--a mix of a cow and a buffalo--cows, buffalo, turkeys and roosters. Katie was thrilled when she heard the rooster do his "cock-a-doodle doo" and she immediately answered him back. So May Farms was an absolute hit with Katie. We left before the horseback "riding" began. There were so many children there and only one horse saddled up, so it was going to take forever to get a chance to walk around in a little circle on the horse.

We wish you were there with us, Hon. Perhaps we can go when you are home. Hugs and kisses.

Glass Half Full. Part II

I can't put my head on the pillow before I add one more positive item to the previous post's list. Point three is that Rick will only be gone for two weeks total. There are military wives in my MOPS group whose husbands are gone for months at a time. Furthermore, their husbands aren't sitting in a upscale hotel with a view of Manhattan, but in the sands of Iraq or the mountains of Afghanistan. In light of that fact, I feel like a yanker for boo-hooing about my husband being gone for a couple of weeks.

Glass Half Full

Well, Rick's consulting gig got extended by another week and as a cost saving measure for the client, he won't be coming home this weekend. To state the obvious, Katie and I are bummed. Father's Day is this Sunday and he won't be home. We will have to celebrate it the following weekend. Regardless, I am trying to look at the positives of this situation.

• First Positive: Rick has a job. With so many people out of work, I am grateful that he has a job.
• Second positive: Eric's D-day will be pushed to the end of this month, so I will have at least one more week with my buddy.

WTU was out today to permanently fix the downed power line, so our electricity was off for about 20 minutes. Katie was upset when she couldn't get the TV to turn on. She started whimpering that it was broke and that Daddy needed to fix it. I explained that the guy in the big truck would fix it, but apparently only Daddy has the knowledge and expertise to make everything right because my explanation didn't stop the tears.

To cheer Katie up, we went outside to give Eric his daily sponge bath. While doing so, I got chewed up by mosquitoes. The grass in the front yard is too long--another result of Rick's constant traveling--so I guess the mosquitoes have set up shop. Surprisingly the mosquitoes are not bothering Eric.

This afternoon I let Katie drive the golf cart up the driveway and back. It took forever because she was super cautious when stepping on the gas. Perhaps that was a result of the reprimand that she received when she almost drove over me the other day. She was not very good at steering or watching where she is going. Instead of looking out of the front windshield, she was looking to the side or down at the ground. Don't worry, Hon, we didn't hit anything and she was sitting between my legs so the brake was within reach.

Tomorrow Katie and I have a MOPS play date at May Farms. May Farms is an animal farm located between our house and Abilene. Katie and I went there 1 1/2 years ago, but she was too young. I am sure she will enjoy it tomorrow.

So until tomorrow...in the mean time I will keep looking at the glass as half full because what else can I do?

Rick's Requested Picture

Rick, here's your requested picture. Katie actually took the picture and did a great job. I set the camera on auto and she centered her subject rather well; however, I did crop the picture down.

Rick's Thursday Picture

This morning I was up at 3 a.m. throwing up. The early morning dash to the bathroom was not the result of a stomach bug, but most likely the result of eating too much licorice, which I did while watching TV last night.

This morning Katie and I watched her YBCR video, read the accompanying book and did the flash cards. So we are off to a good start.

Below is Rick's picture for the day. It's one of Katie standing outside her hidey-hole. We love and miss you, Hon. Here's hoping that you will be home on Friday.

Reading Material Arrived

Today the "Your Baby Can Read" learning system arrived in the mail. I immediately ripped the box open and was surprised at all of the materials that are included. The system is divided into five levels and each level has flashcards, a book and a DVD. You are supposed to spend one month on each level before moving to the next. It is recommended that you and your child watch the DVD twice daily. We watched the DVD this afternoon and it kept Katie's attention. It's not that long--maybe twenty minutes--but it keeps on reinforcing about 12 different words by showing the written word and then a short clip illustrating the word. At the end of the DVD there is a little game where your child is asked to choose between two words and point to the correct one. For example the words elephant and dog are shown and the man on the DVD asks your child to point to the word that is dog. Katie got two right of the eight sets of words. I didn't expect her to get any right and it may have been by chance that she picked the correct word.

There are a lot of studies out there that attest to the fact that early reading creates a more successful student, among other positive outcomes. Interestingly, the learning power of a child is remarkable for the first four years of their lives and then it begins to slow down. So it is a shame that a typical American child does not learn to read until they attend school, which is typically past the stage of the ability to learn quickly and easily.

I am really excited about Katie learning to read. I absolutely love reading and can devour a decent size book in a few days. I hope that I pass my love for reading to my daughter. After all I got that trait from my father.

Rick's Wednesday Picture

This morning Katie nabbed a piece of salt water taffy. Somehow it fell out of her mouth and, of course, landed in her hair. I was able to get the gooey mess out of her hair--it was on the ends--with water and a fine tooth comb. After I was done, she wrapped her head in a blanket. I thought maybe I had accidentally pulled her hair when I was doing the taffy extraction, so I asked her if her head hurt. She said, "No, my hair hurts." Below is a picture of Katie with hurt hair.

A Month From Now

This afternoon I gave Eric his dose of Frontline Plus for fleas and ticks. Being a good doobie, I wrote on my calendar that I gave him the topical medicine today. I then got the reminder sticker and flipped to next month and then it hit me. He most likely won't be around then. I put the sticker on July 16 anyway. When that date rolls around and if Eric is not with us, the sight of that sticker will either make me cry with the loss or smile with the good memories. Here's hoping for a smile.

Rick's Bonus Pictures: Katie's Hidey-Hole

Here's Katie's hidey-hole where she has set up a make shift bed and a small library of books.

Buggy Software and A Hidey-Hole

I have spent most of the morning get my laptop back up to speed. In December I loaded CA Internet Security Suite Plus and in the last few weeks components of that software have slowly blown up. When you contact support for the product, their answer always is to unload and then reload the suite, which I did yesterday. I didn't see any great improvement so today I uninstalled everything except for the firewall. The embarrassing part is that the company for which Rick works is the owner of the security suite. At least he doesn't work in that product's division and is not responsible for that less than stellar software.

I also uninstalled Window's Search/Indexer which kept on going in loops. Another piece of software that just eats up process space and, if I may be so eloquent, a piece of dog doo-doo. In general I am pretty fed up with Microsoft and its products. I don't use Internet Explorer anymore because of the holes and security flaws.

Well, that's my rant regarding poorly designed software. As for Rick's Tuesday Picture, it is not that great of a shot. Katie created a hidey-hole for herself in her bedroom. She grabbed her blanket and Rick's pillow to finish off her special area. This morning I draped towels from her shelving to her dresser, as well as down the front so it is more tent-like. The picture below is before I erected the walls. Please note that she gathered numerous toys around her and her room is not really that much of a disaster.

"Need Help With That DVD Player, Grandma?"

Last week while talking to Rick on the phone, I advised him that Katie knew how to operate the DVD player. She turns the player on and uses the button to open and close the drawer where the DVD sits. When handling the DVDs, she carefully holds the discs by their edges. We have never out and out taught her how to do all of this; she learned from watching us. One part of operating the DVD player that I didn't think that she noticed was the fact that you have to unplug the Dish's RCA cable from TV's front jacks and then plug in the DVDs RCA cable into those jacks. (It's an older TV that only has one set of jacks.) Anyway the cable is split in three--video, left audio and right audio--and each plug and jack is a different color--red, white and yellow.

Silly Momma, I so often underestimate her intelligence. Today she wanted to watch Dora and to my amazement she correctly disconnected the Dish's cable from the TV and plugged in the DVD's cable. The yellow plug was in the yellow jack, the red was in the red and the white was in the white. So it's official, my 2-year-10 month-old daughter is more adept at hooking up a DVD player than my parents.

Rick's Monday Pictures

At the birthday party Katie attended last week one of the take-home goodies was a small squirt gun. Since she enjoyed the water battles that she had fought there, I purchased a squirt gun for myself and this afternoon we played "Gunfight at OK Corral." Below are the pictures from our legendary gunfight. The larger purple squirt gun was the one that I bought for myself, but it wasn't long before Katie commandeered the bigger gun with more water power. She's no fool.

Full on assault of Momma. I love her stance. As for me, she got me good. In my defense it was hard to defend myself as I aimed my expensive camera at a squirt gun toting Katie.

Momma retaliating and Katie running for cover. What a yellow-belly!

A fancy maneuver. She was trying to squirt me while running away. She actually did pretty good.

That's it Katie, water the weeds.

Rare Photo Op

Here's a photo op that I do not get very often--Katie sleeping. Katie rarely falls asleep anyplace but in her bed and rarely takes a nap without my prompting. So I was surprised when I walked into our bedroom and found a sleeping beauty.

Golf Cart Thief and Stuck Dog

I've just having one of those days where the best place for me is in bed. Katie and Eric are both being a handful and I seriously feel ganged up on.

On his way out this morning Rick took the garbage container up to the road. I had a few trash cans that I still needed to empty in the house so I gathered that trash up and Katie and I hopped in the golf cart to get rid of those. I parked the golf cart on the apron of the driveway and walked the last twenty feet to the container. My mistake was leaving Katie in the golf cart and not taking the key with me. The next thing I know Katie is in the driver's seat and is barreling towards me, full tilt. I yelled at her to stop and she merely looked at me and smiled. I grabbed a hold of the golf cart and managed to slam on the brake. While doing this maneuver I was sure Katie was going to run over my other foot, but thankfully I was nimble enough to engage the break and hop into the golf cart in one move. She got quite the "what-for" for trying to run me over. This is not the first time and not the first time today that she has attempted to make a break for it in the golf cart. Like closing the barn door after the horses have escaped, I have removed the key from the golf cart and I am going to hang it in the golf cart well out of her reach. However, knowing that little Doodlebug, she may not attempt to drive the golf cart again, but I guarantee I better hide the keys to the cars, truck and van. I can see the headlines now, "Two Year Old Girl Steals Mother's Car and Drives To Wal-Mart."

Oh but the little excursion outside did not end there. When we came back to the house, Eric stuffed himself under the front steps and could not get out. With a lot of pulling and loud voice commands I finally extracted him from underneath the steps. He was so freaked out about being trapped under the steps that he pooped and peed himself, so for the second time today I had to give him a bath.

Well, I'm going to grab a book and crawl into bed.

Blink, And You Will Miss Him

Rick made a quick stop at our home this weekend--36 hours. He also informed me that he may have to change his airline ticket and stay another week in Newark. I'll know on Monday or Tuesday. I bawled when Rick left this morning. The thought of being alone for one week, let alone two weeks, seemed extremely depressing and overwhelming. It didn't help that Eric made an absolute mess in the kitchen overnight. If Rick stays the two weeks, I'll have to push euthanizing Eric back a week.

Last night we drove to Midland to attend a Mensa meeting hosted by Rick's chapter of Mensa. Rick gave a presentation on Atlas F Missile Sites and how we are converting our site, Corinth West, into a home. I had never seen Rick give a formal presentation on Corinth West, and it reminded me of what a good speaker he is, as well as how intelligent and informed he is. It was also the first time that I have seen Rick speak about the site and the listeners actually understanding everything he said. Overall, the meeting was an interesting experience. There were about 12 people there, all Mensa members. I was concerned about feeling out of place since I do not have a card saying that I am a smarty pants. But I enjoyed the more involved conversations that took place.

On the way home, we got pulled over by a Hawley cop for speeding on US277. When the cop told Rick he was doing 76 mph, Rick said he was not and that he had the cruise control set at 69 mph. I could see Rick's jaw clench when the cop insisted Rick was speeding. So the cop goes back to his car and returns shortly thereafter with a HUGE apology. Rick was not speeding. The cop said he had the setting wrong on his radar gun. Rick appreciated his honesty and we were on our way. Which got me to thinking, I bet the cop stopped us with the speeding excuse hoping to catch a drunk driver. It was a little after 2 am on a Saturday, which would be after the bars close.

We finally arrived home at 2 :30 am to a house with no electricity. Apparently a big storm blew through here while we were out and took our electricity with it. When I called WTU, the recorded message said they were working on all of the power outages. When we woke up at 7 am this morning--we had to use the alarms on our cell phones--the electricity was still out, so I called WTU and opened a ticket. The guy came out and ended up walking way the heck back into the field behind us to find the downed line. He jumpered our line until WTU can replace the downed power line. So at 12:15 pm, our electricity was back and just in time. It was starting to get a little warm in the house.

So that was our Saturday and Sunday morning. If I had blinked, I would have missed Rick being home.

The Tree That Walked

Katie and I took the golf cart up to the mailbox. When I was turning around in the driveway, I didn't use the brake to stop the golf cart. I let it coast to a stop. We were coasting toward a tree and Katie said, "Uh oh Mommy, tree coming." Now I don't know why that made me laugh. Perhaps it is because her statement made it sound like the tree was walking toward us. Chances are, dear reader, you don't see the humor in it because I am easily amused. And don't worry, Hon, we didn't hit the moving tree.

Rick's Friday Picture

A new day, but the same headache that I had yesterday. The Tylenol I took last night didn't even touch the pain. I have too much to do this morning to be slowed down.

Katie and I just got done giving Eric his sponge bath. I usually do it later in the morning and give him an hour or two to dry off outside. However, it is supposed to be hot today so I had to do it earlier so I can get him in before the temperature gets up there.

Rick comes home today. Here's crossing my skeptical fingers that he will actually be home at the scheduled time.

Well, I'm off to do some cleaning. Below is Rick's Friday Picture. It's not a photo of his beloved Doodlebug but of our dining room that I painted two weeks ago. I figured it was appropriate to post a picture of our home since that is where Rick is heading and where his heart always is.

Rick's Thursday Pictures

(I had to correct the title of this blog because Rick pointed out to me that it is Thursday not Wednesday. I told you yesterday flew by too fast!)

Katie's brain, like all children her age, is a sponge. She retains everything that she hears and sees. For the last couple of weeks her favorite TV programs have been "Dora The Explorer" and "Go, Diego, Go." Well, her sponge brain has learned to count in Spanish.

I actually realized that she could count in Spanish about two weeks ago. One day I heard her counting in English and after each number she was saying something else. It wasn't until I heard "cuatro" that I figured out what she was doing. I was amazed. Neither Rick or I speak Spanish so she learned this from TV. It sure drives home the point that you have to monitor what your child watches on TV. Anyway, the child can count to ten in English and five in Spanish. I think I will also teach her how to count to ten in French, as well as start teaching her French phrases. You know what they say, children can learn a second language a lot quicker and more easily than an adult.

Today's pictures for Rick are of Katie playing with her Play Doh on the breakfast bar.

Counting her Play Doh containers in Spanish.

Either playing peek-a-boo or bug eyes.

I chat at you all later. Miss you Hon!

Busy Day, But Not Too Busy For Rick's Wednesday Picture

Where did the day go? I know I lost a few hours somewhere along the line. Perhaps it was when a storm blew through this afternoon. Once again we were fortunate and the worst of the storm past to the north of us.

I have spent most of the day working on the website for MOPS and my mother-in-law's website. I truly enjoy creating websites and I am amazed how much of the knowledge I have retained despite retiring four years ago.

I have also been working on a PowerPoint presentation that Rick is going to give to his chapter of MENSA this coming up Saturday. The meeting where he is going to speak about Atlas F Nuclear Missile Sites will be in Midland. It will be a very hectic weekend. Rick will get home Friday night. The meeting is in the evening on Saturday and we will have to drive back home late that night so that Rick can fly out Sunday morning for New Jersey. Somewhere in there I have to do his laundry and get him repacked.

Katie also has been busy today, but thankfully it has been a good kind of busy and not the type where she creates havoc. Last night about 11 pm I went to find my wedding ring and the right hand ring that Rick had got me for Christmas. I had took them off earlier in the day when I was cleaning and playing with Play Doh. I had put them on the wine cabinet; however, they were no longer there. Then I recalled that earlier Katie was watching the photo picture frame which is also on the wine cabinet and I said out loud, "Oh crap." I began searching the house for the rings, which included checking the trunks of her tricycle and riding carts. No ring. I was tempted to wake her up and ask her where she put my rings, but I was afraid she would then stay up for a few hours. Earlier in the day, as I posted yesterday, she had hid a bottle of Hershey's Syrup between Rick's nightstand and the wall, and then had covered her treasure with pillows. I checked there and lo and behold there were my rings. Thank you Jesus!

Rick, your picture for today is another shot of Captain Katie. This picture looks like a publicity photo for World War II's best flying ace. I also put this picture on the right rail of this blog. We miss you and will talk to you later this evening.

Shoes and Rick's Tuesday Pictures

We had one big rain storm last night. After the storm past, I went outside to see if there was any damage--thankfully none--and the rain gauge said we got 2 1/8". That's a lot of rain in a short period of time. I also lost my electricity three times last night and once for 1 1/2 hours, which is unusual.

This afternoon I was trying to get Eric into the house. I have to use a towel around his waist to lift his back end up almost all of the time now. Well, he sat back down right on my foot. I pulled my foot out from underneath his 105# butt and managed to break the toe thong on my Fit Flops. I was really bummed. I love my Fit Flops, so I ordered a new pair online today.

As for Eric, he is still outside and has been since this morning. I cannot get him up the ramp. Thankfully it is overcast today, so it's not that hot. Regardless, I keep on running outside to refresh his water and to bring his water bowl to him. I also gave him a sponge bath with the outdoor hose this afternoon, which I actually do every day. I figured the cool water would feel good.

I finally figured out how to download pictures off of my cell phone to my computer. I have been promising Rick the picture I have posted below. Last week Katie and I had lunch at Subway and the picture commemorates that event.


Today I caught Katie with the Hershey's Syrup. She got it out of the refrigerator and squirted some in her mouth---gee, I wonder where she got that idea from, Rick?!! I put the bottle back in the refrigerator. About 15 minutes later she must have been feeling guilty because she beckoned me over to a few throw pillows that were on the floor. Once there, she unearth another bottle of Hershey's syrup. Apparently she hid it for late night snacking.

Katie loves to wear other people's shoes. Today she raided the master bedroom closet and selected a pair of my high heels. How she managed to walk around the house in these was miraculous. I even have difficulty with that task! She was singing while she walked the catwalk so that is why her mouth is open.


Those are your Tuesday pictures, Hon. Hugs and kisses. We miss you.

Rick's Monday Pictures

A few days ago I bought Katie her first set of Play Doh. Today at Wal-Mart I got her the barn yard set that has more Play Doh and some tools. I have made her a dog, a cat and a dog bone. She makes little bowls and then drops tiny balls of Play Doh in the bowl. Apparently it's food for her Play Doh dog and cat. I'm loving the Play Doh because she'll hop up on a bar stool and create her masterpieces on the breakfast bar for hours---well, it may be only 30 minutes but with an active child like Katie who's constantly going, going, going, 30 minutes seems like a blissfully long time.

As for Wal-Mart, yes it seems that I go there every other day. When Rick is out of town, Katie and I venture into town and Wal-Mart for some human interaction besides with each other.

Yesterday when I was driving to the birthday party, Katie yelled from the back seat, "Stop the car!" I thought, "Oh no! What's happened?!" Turns out she had dropped her sippy cup and she couldn't reach it. She also deduced that I won't be able to reach it so she wanted me to stop, get out of the car and retrieve her sippy cup. Well, I wasn't going to do pull over on the freeway for a sippy cup, so I told her to tough it out.

When Rick was home this weekend--wait he wasn't home for the weekend, just one day which does not make the weekend. Anyway, I told him that I have given it a lot of thought, but we need to put Eric down when he, Rick not Eric, is done with the consulting job in Jersey. Earlier in the week I talked to our vet--yes, I started to cry in the vet's office--to get more details on how they put dogs down. Shorty, who works at Anson Vet, advised me to call ahead of time because they don't always have a vet on site. I know what day I want to put Eric down, but I couldn't make the appointment at that time. The reason being is that I couldn't come back home and look Eric in the eye knowing he only had 2 1/2 weeks to live. Also making the appointment would make it seem so final. Without a doubt I would spend the 2 1/2 weeks crying--not the best image for Katie. Regardless, I am thinking that Monday, June 22 will be the day. I choose that day because Rick will be home and Max was put down on July 22, 2006. In a weird way I am trying to be consistent. When I was at the birthday party on Sunday, Dawn Marie gave me a book that was given to her when she had to put her dog down. I haven't started reading it yet and may wait until Eric is gone. I know I will cry through every page and I don't want to get too depressed before the 22.

So on to happier things. Below are Rick's Monday Pictures. We miss you Sweetie.

Katie eating her lunch on the breakfast bar. This picture is actually from last week.

This picture is also from last week. Katie and I were taking a walk up the driveway. She decided to hide behind a baby mesquite tree and then pop up and try to scare me. Hence, the scary face. The tone in this picture is so off. I tried fixing it with my photo software, but to no avail.

Well, that's it for Monday's thoughts and updates.

Birthday Party

Rick left for New Jersey this morning and Katie and I went to a birthday party in Abilene. Rick was home for a whopping 34 hours!

The birthday party was for Cruz. Katie and I met Cruz and his mom at MOPS. The party was at Centennial Park which I have never been to before. Well, the park is one of those big ones with multiple entrances and Abilene State School is also on the grounds. I went in one entrance and promptly got lost. I noticed a white SUV following my every turn. I finally pulled off on a side road and the SUV pulled up along side me. They were looking for the birthday party also. We each consulted our maps and this time I followed the white SUV. We managed to find another entrance which was locked, but that didn't stop us. We drove around the gate because there was an opening in the fence. Yes, that is right. Katie and I broke into the park!

At the party, there were quite a few activities for the kids to enjoy. There were squirt guns, Play Doh and sidewalk chalk, as well as the park's playground. Cruz's parents had put out quite the spread. There was pizza, grapes, chips, lemonade, birthday cake and freeze pops. Katie had a great time and I took a few pictures.

Filling up her squirt gun at the water fountain.

Keeping an eye on the birthday cake. Her hair is wet from one of the many squirt gun battles.

Eating birthday cake.

Watching Cruz open his presents.

After leaving the party, we didn't even get out of Abilene before Katie was fast asleep. I also managed to get her out of her car seat and into her crib where she continued to nap for two hours. All in all, a great day except for the part about Rick having to leave again.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CRUZ!!! Thanks for inviting us to your party.

Captain Katie

Rick's flight was delayed out of Newark, so he got rebooked on to the last flight into Abilene. Which means he did not get home until 10:45 pm. It's the second week in a row that the flight was late leaving Newark because of congestion. The lesson to be learned and remembered is to not take a 3 pm flight from the New York area on a Friday. Unfortunately his reservations are made for the next two weeks and he is on that flight both times.

In the Newark Airport there is a Brainy Baby store, so Rick came home bearing gifts for Katie. She received a magnifying glass, a pilot's hat, a Dora book and one of those toys that is a wheel that loops around on a metal hook. When she saw the pilot's hat she requested that I retrieve her airplane jacket from the closet. Her airplane jacket is a little bomber jacket with military patches on it, as well as a pair of wings with her name on them. The jacket was another gift from Rick that he picked up on his many travels. Below is a picture of Captain Katie. She looks like she is about to go off to war--not to the Iraq or Afghanistan War, but to WWII. She looks like Colonel Hogan from "Hogan's Heroes."

As you can see below, the hat's a little big for her.

The magnifying glass is also getting used. Rick killed a mud dauber wasp and the two of them sat on the kitchen floor examining it with the magnifying glass. Now whenever I kill a fly in the house, Katie must take a closer look with her magnifying glass before I can put it in the trash.

Today I ordered "Your Baby Can Read." I got sucked into the info-commercial during one of my late night/early morning-TV-viewing-due-to-insomnia attacks. Some of the home videos of the children reading are kind of eerie to watch because the children are like 18 months old and are reading at a 1st grade level. It's like, "What's wrong with this picture?" I'll let you know how Katie works out. (I say that as if she doesn't learn to read I am going to return her not the reading system!)

Anyway, enjoy the weekend. Rick is napping, which he deserves but it's also tough because I would like to spend some time with him instead of hearing him snore. Til later........