Ohhhh, my poor knee

A few years back my knee started acting up. I was still tap dancing at the time and had to take several weeks off since it was hardly able to hold my weight..poor knee. Anyhow this past year it has been bad on and off. I went to regular doctor, x-rays, etc. No sign of arthritus, no broken bones..yet still hurting like crazy. Well the hubby said call for a surgeon referrel, so I finally did. My appt. is Monday. Well, this morning I was in my room and I picked Rosie up to bring her downstairs. There is one step from my room into the hall landing. I stepped and heard the worst noise in my knee ever! It hurt so bad I thought I would pass out..still holding Rosie! Luckily I have a chair right next to the doorway and I sat in it and tried to calm myself down. Oh, the freaking pain. I managed to get downstairs, took Advil, and waited. At 8:30 I decide I would make the trip to work and stay as long as I could since I will probably not be working on Monday....I stayed until 3:30...omg. Came home iced my knee on and off. Tried to rest on sofa, but the girls would not cooperate and were jumping all over me. So, my right knee is all swollen and who knows what else and now I sit and wait for Monday....blah!

Rosie is sad

Isn't Rosie getting big?









Poor Rosie is not feeling good. Today the hubby brought the girls to my office. We got take-out and went to local park by canal to eat. He called when he got home to tell me that Rosie had yelped several times in the afternoon and was looking very sad. He checked her over and she didn't appear to have any injuries, but would just yelp out every once in a while. When I got home she did not get excited to see me and hid under table when I let her out of her crate. I did some mama cuddling and tried to figure out what could be wrong. Then it hit me...she had her Rabies shot on Monday afternoon...could this be it? I believe that is a "muscle shot" and have heard that sometimes dogs react to it. Neither Chloe or Zoey ever had any problems with shots, so I am perplexed. Has anyone else out there had their Pugs had problems with shots?

Other than this, I have spent this week working on hubby's ebay listings. He has 3 sets of auctions going on now...phew! He "parts out" motorcycles, his little (messy) hobby. Seems he is constantly cleaning the garage. The first action closed last night, so now he is busy packing, tomarrow night the second auction will close and the third will close on Monday. He still has 2 motorcycles that he has not started tearing down yet. He likes to finish up by the end of June, so he can enjoy summer and the money he makes...haha.

100 Things About Me

Okay, here goes:

1. I am a Paralegal
2. I did not get this degree until I was 40!
3. I have been married for 26 years...phew
4. I have two children - a son and a daughter
5. I always wanted three children
6. I was a "stay at home" mom until my son was 13 and my daughter 10
7. I loved being home
8. I have one sister, who is 9 years younger than me
9. The saddest day of my life was when my mom died
10. My mom lost a baby 2 years after my sister was born and I always felt guilty because I was mad at her when she told me she was pregnant again
11. I drive a VW Bug
12. It is my fourth "stick-shift" vehicle
13. I love to walk
14. I refuse to eat any type of sausage...ugh
15. I love vegetables...all of them
16. My mom taught me how to sew when I was 6
17. She also taught me how to make sauce, bake, and knit
18. I love to read, but consume a book and stay up WAY too late reading
19. I sew dresses for my Pugs
20. I love cookies...all of them
21. I am the 3rd generation of my family to live in my house
22. I believe my house has "spirits" in it
23. I struggle with my weight
24. I would love to live near the ocean
25. I travel with my family to Cape May NJ each summer
26. I hate roller coasters
27. I love to go boating
28. My idea of camping is our RV - parked with a deck around it
29. I loved school
30. I have two cats
31. I quit college the first time with 3 years worth of credits
32. I met my husband at my summer college work assignment
33. I love convertibles
34. My favorite color is red
35. I hate to fly
36. I love coffee
37. I have a cup each night before bed
38. I love ice hockey
39. I played field hockey in high school
40. I played the violin in grammer school
41. My bestfriend lives in Colorado
42. I love Pugs
43. My favorite TV show is Grey's Anatomy
44. I love blogging
45. Both my grams and my mom died within the same year
46. My dad lives with me
47. I would like to only work part time
48. My basement is creepy
49. My house has a cupola
50. When I was young my grama let my best friend and I paint it purple/yellow and white
51. I repainted it those same colors last year
52. I have a swimming pool
53. I rarely use it
54. I don't like putting my face underwater
55. I used to snow ski
56. Now I am too cold
57. I am afraid of heights
58. I cry easily
59. I worry alot
60. People say I am funny
61. I need knee surgery
62. Both my children were born by c-sections
63. I still have my tonsils and appendix
64. My husband and daughter both had emergency operations to remove their appendixes
65. I broke my foot once
66. I always wanted a horse
67. I have a barn
68. I love to give presents
69. I am a good listener
70. My husband's parents both died of the same cancer in the same year
71. We miss them
72. My Pug Rosie is named after my mother-in-law
73. I barely have any gray hairs
74. The ones I have came from my kids...only kidding
75. I sell things on ebay
76. I collect Pug stuff and have tons
77. I do scrapbooking
78. I love to talk
79. I hate centipedes
80. and slugs
81. I love to garden
82. I hate to weed
83. I wear glasses for reading and driving
84. I know dog/cat CPR
85. I could never be a nurse
86. My dream is to have a beach house for 1 month every summer
87. I have my own ceramic kiln
88. I can speak Spanish
89. My great-great grandmother was Canadian Indian
90. As a child we vacationed in Canada each summer
91. I would love to travel to Europe
92. I am a night owl
93. I am afraid of guns
94. My son is engaged
95. I have freckles
96. I love to tap dance
97. I played the Zither when I was young
98. I love thunderstorms
99. I golf, badly
100. I never thought I'd make it to 100!

No Mama's Big Bed for Rosie...yet

Our girls both sleep with us each night. I can't exactly remember the age when they started, but I know it wasn't before 3 months. The hubby keeps asking when Rosie is joining the slumber party. Well, tonight I thought I might catch a few z's with the girls and invited Rosie, she romped around and they all settled in. Again, hubby asked can Rosie sleep in here tonight..."no, too soon", my answer...I don't want her peeing in the bed. So, move forward 15 minutes. Rosie starts acting up and launches herself off the bed. The 3 feet off the ground bed. Okay, come on back up and behave. Rosis starts playing around and runs to the footboard and falls in the space between the mattress and footboard. Okay, let's see where did she go. I go to the end of the bed and there she is hanging between mattress and footboard. Picked her out of there and laughed. She walks up the mattress and PEES. Okay, definetely not ready to sleep with us!

Friday night ebay project

Rosie helps in the office


The hubby sells motorcyle parts on ebay. He buys the cycles, takes them apart, cleans up the parts and writes up the listings....then I enter them all on ebay and do all the follow-up paperwork. Tonight I spent from 7pm to 10:20pm entering listings..while...the Pugs slept, the hubby slept, and I tried to figure out what part of the motorcycle I was actually listing. Great fun!

Pug friends

Chloe, the Pug who changed my life!








I continue to be amazed at the wonderful friends I have made all thanks to this sweet girl. She started it all out for me. I belong to a great group of Pug people that organize events in upstate NY www.wnypugs.org . Over the past three years our "core" group has organized events to promote Pug rescue and awareness, and supported local shelters for the welfare of all animals.

When I first joined these "pug possessed" people we used to just work on our 2 large events, now socialize as a group. We have a couple of summer parties, a February party, we go to meetups and travel to other areas Pug events. We even have been known to get-together without our Pugs, imagine that! I have made some great, great friends within this "core". People I would have never met otherwise.

And of course mugs too!

My Pug item collection moves in many directions. As my previous post shows, I especially love Pug art. I love how different artists capture their beautiful faces. Many of the things I have I received as gifts. The items I buy for myself are usually one unusual or one of a kind. Then I spotted the mugs.....I mean doesn't everyone need enough mugs to serve coffee to a small Pug loving Army? When I ordered these through Danbury Mint, I guess I didn't read the small print...18 mugs???? I had no idea there were this many! Wow, thank goodness I just received and paid for the last shipment!

All things Pugs

Do the rest of you Pug possessed people collect Pug items? Here's a sampling of "some" of my stuff. I try to limit it to my home office.........

 
I may have a problem............

The Day After turning 2

Chloe thought she might need reading glasses








Zoey is totally wiped out....








totally! zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Happy Birthday Zoey

Today is Zoey's 2nd birthday....

Happy St. Puggy's Day

Happy St. Puggy's Day to all our friends...from Chloe, Zoey, and Rosie.

Something about Mary......

Sadly, I received the following email this morning from a fellow Pug lover in Colorado. Have your kleenex ready!

Dear Friends at DFW Pug Rescue,

It is with a broken heart that I write to let you know that we have lost Mary today. Last night she went into respiratory distress, suffered a seizure and we rushed to the emergency room. She underwent xrays, bloodwork and an EKG. The overnight ER veterinarian saw what she suspected was a non-cardiogenic edema in Mary's lung. She was cared for overnight in the hospital in an oxygen crate. This morning Mary's care was transferred to Dr. Schmidt, the daytime veterinarian who is an oncology specialist. Dr. Schmidt repeated the xrays using a different technique and was able to see that what looked like edema on the original xrays, was in fact a mass. Dr. Schmidt performed a biopsy which confimed the diagnosis of lung cancer. After day-long consultations with the oncology doctor and our own veterinarians, it was determined that Mary would not be able to withstand surgery to attempt removal of the carcinoma. We were able to spend a treasured 45 minutes with her in the comfort room at the hospital before we sent our beloved Mary to the Rainbow Bridge. She left this world in my arms, surrounded by the love and prayers of her forever family.

I would like to thank you once again for the blessing that is Mary. The lessons she taught us will leave us forever changed. The love we shared will never end. It is with hope and faith that I look forward to our reunion at the Rainbow Bridge.

Michelle

Check out the following link, scroll down through page and read about Michelle, her hubby and her devotion to those "hard to place" Pugs! (Her original story starts quite far down the page)

http://www.dfwpugs.com/feature.html

Rest in peace Mary.............

Hair Appointment

What craziness. My daughter is receptionist at hair salon that we both get our hair done at. I had an appt. tonight and everyone there wanted me to bring in Rosie. They have deemed her the salon "mascot". So my evening went: Drove home, took the girls outside, grabbed toys, blanket, etc. for Rosie, put her in basket in car, drove to salon. Now mind you I was having my hair highlighted and cut, so the appt. was about 2 hours. In that time Rosie ran around the entire salon like she owned the place...in between sitting on my lap. What a time. I did bring my camera, but my daughter didn't get any photos.

Let's not talk about how Chloe and Zoey felt about the whole thing!

Phew

Last week my doctor's office called to remind me that I had missed my yearly mammo....now, I asked myself..."how did they know"?. Apparently, they actually follow-up on this stuff! Crazy. Anyhow, as last August I had the HUGE lump scare and have had films, ultrasounds, surgeon visit, return surgeon visit..and on and on. This all taking place from August thru December...ugh! So, I confused my re-film on problem breast with my annual, who can figure. So I call to schedule and they tell me they can't see me until May. Normally, I would have said darn and scheduled, but instead witchy me comes out and I say..."nothing sooner?" and get the response...."sorry, no", I reply "WELL MY SURGEON IS NOT GOING TO BE HAPPY ABOUT THIS". Suddenly I have an appt. for exactly one week later, which happened to be today. Move ahead. Leave work, go to mammo, sit, wait, fret, go in, undress, sit, wait, fret, go in exam room, you know that drill, go back, wait, fret, they come out, need more films, go back in, the drill again, go out, sit, wait, fret, sorry we see something you need an ultrasound, yikes, sit, wait, plan funeral, go in for ultrasound, lay in the dark, feel like throwing up, told to wait there, sit, wait, fret, they come back..."everything looks fine"! Can you say THANK YOU GOD!!! I go back to surgeon for other breast in May to talk about removing Mr. Mass, think I'll have him check out Mr. Okay No Problem, while I'm there. The fun sure does never end. Did I also mention I have skin dr. follow-up exam in April, I need an eye exam, and I still have to get appt. with knee doctor?????? People wonder why I dress my Pugs...because I'm loosing my freaking mind!

The Middle Child

The face of the "middle child".
Zoey still has some mild issues about Rosie. She seems to love her and plays with her lots, but sometimes, quite frankly she just looks sad. There are times when she runs into the den (Rosie is afraid of the stairs) and hangs out there. Othertimes she can be found upstairs in the office hanging out in the lounge chair.
Well, Rosie had her 2nd vet visit tonight and I mentioned to the vet that Zoey just doesn't seem herself. She seems sad. Nicely enough the vet took me serious, since they all know how Pug nuts I am, and said to keep an eye on her and if she didn't perk up, that they would check her out. She has just finished the last of her antibiotics today for her urinary infection and those pills could also be making her feel icky. Who knows. So, I continue to give her lots of hugs and probably spend more time with her than the other two.....all because of that "middle child" face!

Meetup?

Today was Pug meetup in our area. We were having a St. Patrick's theme. The girls had their outfits all ready and off to the party we went....

The hubby covered the seats in his truck with sheets and I sat back there with the three girls..no small feat. Rosie got dressed early.
Problem was that some of the other Pugs were jealous of our outfits and this happened to Zoey and Chloe.....

So we will be doing some repairs prior to our St. Patrick's Day greeting!

Happy Saturday

Today was a beautiful day in upstate New York..yeah, finally. We took the play yard out of the kitchen and decided that "potty on the paper" needs to be "potty outside". Crazy Rosie doesn't seem to do potty much during day, but at night becomes the "mad pooper". I have never, and I do mean NEVER seen so many little poop piles...phew. Well, today we went out 5 times and went potty 5 times. No inside accidents. No accidents in the crate. I am going to say a potty prayer tonight.....yikes. I guess I'll set the alarm for 3am and take her out...ugh!

We also took our first walk with the three of them. Rosie pranced right along with the girls, she was very cute about keeping up. Tomarrow is Pug Meetup with a St. Patrick's day theme...stay posted for photos. There is a contest for best costume.

We also took a trip to Home Depot today. We live on a busy corner and only take the girls outside with harness and leash on. When they were smaller we used the play yard and carried them out, but found when there were two it was just easier to harness and leash....well now three is a leash nightmare. I have been bugging the hubby to fence in a small area off our deck/garage area. There really is no good place to fence. Doing it this way will mean he needs to make a gate for the main deck steps, add a back set of steps to fenced area and then put up around 6 or 7 sections of 8 ft. fencing. He is not thrilled. We have to do it so we don't interfere with pool and pool deck and patio...what a pain. Of course I love the vinyl old fashioned looking fence, but the price is crazy per section and we'd like one area gated, plus have to do all the work ourselves...ugh. So, I am thinking of calling in the professionals and maybe doing a black chain link fence. It would just make life SO much easier and then we could also enjoy the deck/pool/patio without worrying about the girls! You know...all about those Pugs.

By the way a friend of ours told me yesterday that I need grandchildren.....haha.

All those dance lessons....

My daughter took dance lessons from age 2 until age 17 and cheered from age 15 until 19....now she is going to cheer/dance for an indoor professional football team that is starting in our area. It's only a 6 home game season, but will be tons of exposure...hmmmm.....did I say exposure? Actually, they are perfectly covered in their outfits. I will be attending all games and if anyone says anything within earshot of me about the dancers...well, I'll have to hurt them!

Sunny at last

Finally, a nice sunny day. The girls enjoyed playing around in the kitchen and napping in the sun.

They have a great time playing together and are all exhausted at day's end.
The scrapbook seminar went well. I'm progressing good on my projects. The hotel was nice, even though I hardly slept. Came home with a terrible headache, which I hear is going around. Nothing, and I do mean nothing touches it..ugh. Forced myself to go out to Chinese with the hubby. The waiter brought me WonTon soup, even though I didn't ask for it. Gave hubby all the noodles and just had the broth, followed that up with Sesame Shrimp (which I took most of home). Went home and straight to bed. Thankfully that darn headache was gone this morning.
Did a little sewing tonight. Made the first of the "spring fling" dresses for the girls. Stay posted to see these adorable "flowers".

Friday!

Off to another scrapbooking overnight! Woohoo! Leaving work at 3pm today, off to the hotel to check in, unload supplies, then off to dinner before starting the evening of "scraping". We can work until 1am if we want, but I ususally take leave at 11pm to settle in. Up at 7am, to breakfast, and then another full day. I feel good about making these books for my kids. Hopefully after this weekend I will be well on my way to finishing this HUGE project. I have mixed feelings while working on these books, they've grown up so fast. Suggestion for those of you thinking about starting for your new babies...stay organized, even if it's with a folder or large envelope. Separate by year, mark your photos....you think you'll never forget. Well I'm here to tell you, that you do! I have also done a scrapbook for the girls.....my own keepsake for myself. I have done so much with them and gone so many places and met so many people, that I am now on their second book too!

Missing you...........

Remembering mom on her birthday
I miss you....always

CLB - 03-02-1939 to 11-12-2000



From Mom to me on 2-12-1987......

Were I not your mother -
I would wish to be your friend
Share whatever might you bother
Follow close your lifestream's trend
As you true, your truest friend,
Such as angels would you send.

One I part from shape and form,
Freed from all relatedness
Do not grieve, but bless the Norm-
From my new etherealness
May I, hope I, bless you, bless
Our here - togetherness.

First step?????

Well the little monster Pug, Rosie found herself in this predicament today.......

Yes, the 8 week and 2 day old Pug climbed up a step! Now we were hopeful that steps would have a fear factor connected to them. But, apparently not for her. However, once up the step she pondered what to do next...up or down????? So she threw herself off the step, shook herself off and continued her play time with her big sisters. She is one crazy little Pug.