I am such an ass

Over the years, I have watched TV shows where people have had to euthanize their Golden Retrievers, and I always cry. The thought of the pink cocktail being pushed into Fonz's leg used to make me bawl almost instantaneously. I've made so many life decisions based on Fonz, it seemed unimaginable that he won't be here one day. As he has gotten older, I have realized that it will happen someday, hopefully not soon, but it is something that I will deal with when it happens. (don't get me wrong, I will be a wreck and probably miss work, and I have no idea what life would be like without him) Fortunately, I have friends in the vet industry, and so I won't have to take that dreaded car ride into the vet's office...we can put him to rest in the comfort of our own home.

Yesterday was the day The Fonz and I went to the doctor. He just needed a little bloodwork done, and I had to get my finger operated on. Easy stuff. So we are sitting in the vet's office, waiting for the tech to come and take him back to visit all of his friends, and in walks 3 grown men and a black lab.

I didn't think much of it, but the dog looked tired. When he sat down, his right back leg splayed out in a way that I have never seen before, his hip had to of come completely out of his socket. I figured, well...that's why he's here. Maybe he's getting x-rays or meds or something. One of the men crouched down and offered him one of the several slices of cheese that he had in his hand. This should've been a HUGE clue. Three grown men, one holding cheese, sick dog. But no...I didn't get it.

The poor dog refused the cheese, and here is where I am an ass. I opened my mouth and said something to the effect "Oh...he just doesn't want to be here." I got a sad look from crouching man, and just then, one of the other men said to the receptionist, "Yeah, we're here to put him down."

GEEZ!!! What an ass I am!! Three grown men never take one dog to the vet, (and these guys were tough-looking, like duck hunters or something) unless they are there to say good-bye. And then I have to go and open my mouth and be the insensitive chick in the waiting room with the very healthy-looking Golden Retriever who wants to maul your sick dog. Fortunately, they were quickly ushered into a room, and the tech came for Fonz. He literally pranced. The exact opposite picture of the poor, coughing black lab. It's abnormal how much my dog loves the vet.

(As a side note, we weighed Fonz. It's official, he is not just fluffy, he is fat. To the tune of about 10lbs overweight. That's a heck of a lot of winter weight to work off in the spring...we'll have to walk together, or something)

Gross!!

This post is not for the weak of stomach. I mean it. If you don't like icky things, especially where blood is concerned, just stop reading. Because I am going to show you a picture of my finger.

I went to the dermatologist yesterday and YAY!, I have a diagnosis of the thing on my finger. And double YAY!!, I get it removed today!!!! Dr. Nadene was right, it's a polygenic granuloma...or somethink like that. What is great about the whole thing is when the doctor looked at it, she commented, "Well, it doesn't look like cancer." WHAT???? CANCER???? That thought that had never even entered my MIND!! Eeks! Good thing it's not cancer...otherwise that would really suck. And if I ever do get cancer, I'll probably be the one who has it in stage 4 before I go to the doctor because I just don't think anything of the really obvious symptoms. Let's hope this finger thing has taught me a lesson.

So, without further ado, here it is. My finger. You can go vomit now.

I'm in a dense fog

Mornings are not my thing. That is not a secret. Workaholic got more done before I woke up than I will probably get done all day. And I sort of feel bad, I was really was planning on doing everything that he did...you know, when I got out of bed.

But anyway, I turned on the TV while I was feeding Samantha, and was surprised to hear that there is a dense fog advisory out. Isn't it amazing how when you don't have to leave the house, you don't really pay attention to certain things?? And I opened the blinds, and you know what? It is really foggy out!!!

It got me to thinking...why is it that schools get a 2 hour delay, but adults don't get a 2 hour delay for work? I mean, if it is dangerous for the buses to roll, why is it safe for sleepy-eyed accoutants to drive to work? I have definitely had days where I get to work, and I can't remember the drive. So I propose that whenever schools get a 2 hour delay, so do America's employees. AND, why leave it at that? Ditto for snow days. I'm a safety girl. (bonus points to anyone who can identify the movie) Just because we're adults doesn't mean we have to grow up, right?

Happy Tuesday

I'm one of those people who love to watch TV. I can sit for hours, rotting my brain. It's a great talent. I love Jon & Kate Plus 8, ER, Friday Night Lights, Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy, The Office, Scrubs, That 70s Show, Brothers and Sisters, The Soup, Desperate Housewives, The Dog Whisperer, and many others.

But by far my favorite show of all time is The West Wing. I'm only mentioning it because I just found it on Bravo. Yay!! Two episodes in a row!! It's got Rob Lowe when he was older, yet still really hot; Bradley Whitford-hot in his own way; Martin Sheen as the Mr. President that you can't help but love and adore; and Janelle Maloney and Allison Janney playing incredibly strong women. AND...Rizzo from Grease is the president's wife. What more could you ask??

It makes me sad that they don't make shows like The West Wing anymore. Because it was a really great show. Smart, fast-paced, well-written. It was the first show that I started to watch with closed captions, not because I couldn't hear, but because if I didn't, I'd miss something. And this was way before my beloved TiVO.

On another note, I have a weird thing on my finger. It's been there for months. My OB-GYN said it was a pregnancy thing, but now it has morphed into this gross thing that is rising like the Phoenix out of my index finger. And it bleeds. And the Band-Aids that I am using have a weird smell. I can't wait to go to the dermatologist on Thursday...I'll let you all know just what it is. Even my OB-GYN is looking forward to it...

Technically Insane

In my quest to drive myself crazy, I recently joined Facebook. I have this complusion, when I have things like this, to check it constantly. If I don't check my e-mail about, oh...a million times a day, it drives me crazy. There are certain places where I find myself not caring, like...the lake, or my parent's house, or even Southern Indiana (sometimes). When I have pictures on my camera, I have to upload them onto my computer, and then usually onto a photo sharing website. Even if I am not going to do something with them. And this blog?? If I don't post for a while, I feel bad. I know, I know...there are times when you are like...Gail!! It's been 3 weeks!! And to that I say...Yes, I know, and I genuinely feel badly about that. But you'll just have to deal.

In the days and weeks after Samantha was born, this compulsion was driving me nuts. I wanted to get the pictures on the computer, so I could e-mail them. (no...I didn't want to send them directly from the camera, I wanted them to be in their little folder in My Pictures, so I knew where they came from, and that I had them. See???) I just had to send out a text, then an e-mail, when she was born, even though I really just wanted a snack. And a nap. But my nuances are actually not what this post is about.

In joining Facebook, I have been able to re-connect with people from my past. (why, you ask?? If you really wanted to re-connect, you could have, but obviously you don't care that much about these people in the first place right??) (and while there may be something to that theory, we're just going to skip it for now) One of the things that I have noticed is that people who have young kids always post pictures of the young kids. Never of themselves. And people who don't have kids, or pets, always post great-looking pictures of themselves. And you know what?? I am jealous.

Because having a kid has really taken a toll on my looks!! I mean, I've been looking back at pictures to see who Samantha looks like, (and the obvious answer is below), and I used to be pretty cute, if I do say so myself. Now...my hair usually needs to be highlighted, my teeth need to be whitened, and my face is fat. And that's just a headshot. (there are about 2 pictures of me taken while I was in the hosptial, only because I threatened death to anyone with a camera if they pointed it in my direction) I think most people who have kids forego certain things, like caring about their appearance, and just stop taking pictures of themselves. Unless the kids are in the pictures, in which case, everyone looks at the kids, so it doesn't really matter what you look like.

I know, I know, some people out there will object to my theory, and say that they have kids, and they care about their appearance, and will post hot pictures of themselves on Facebook. And to you I say...fine, go ahead. (and you really have kids under the age of 1??) But I say there are many more out there who totally agree with me. And they just use the excuse of posting pictures of the kids, "I want everyone to see what they look like." (but it is really because they don't look like they used to, and don't want the world to see) News flash, most people want to see what you look like.

But the only picture you are going to get of me is my birth annoucement, which my mom found in an old photo album of my grandmother's. She's put my picture and Samantha's newborn picture side-by-side, so everyone knows that she is indeed, my kid.

Blessings

Do you ever read those books where someone is telling their story, and they interject all kinds of insights about their faith? One of those books was Let's Roll, by the woman whose husband uttered that now infamous phrase on 9/11. The last one that I read that I really liked was by Kate Gosselin, mother of twins and sextuplets, in her book Multiple Bles8ings. She talked a lot about how unexpected her pregnancy was, (I mean, having six kids at once instead of one or two), and how she got through it. Then, as the reality of having 8 kids under the age of 4 hit her, she learned that God would provide for them when they needed it most.

So most of them time, I read these books, and I wonder if there really is something to it or if it all is just coincidence. I mean, really? You don't know how you are going to make your mortgage, and suddenly a check appears in the mail. Don't get me wrong, I have faith in God and all, but I just don't usually see it in my own life. Even as I look back (because hindsight is 20/20), I can't usually apply instances of faith to events in my past. (which is pretty crazy, b/c my 20s were pretty damn eventful. You would think I would be able to find something!!)

However, I don't know if it's the new mom thing or the hormones, but I finally saw one!! I'd only been getting 2-3 hours of sleep at a time, (and anyone who knows me knows that does not go over well with me) and I didn't have a very good day on Thursday. (let's just say there was a little crying involved) I talked it over with Workaholic and we decided that he would take the middle of the night feeding. (no matter what time it was...usually I do anything before 4) Yay!! But I still wondered in the back of my head if I was starting to lose it.

And then...we watched Private Practice. Did you see it?? There was a new mom on there who had postpartum psychosis. Basically...she tried to hurt her daughter, because she just wanted quiet and a couple of hours of sleep. And she had to be hospitalized and medicated and all that. And man...she was nuts!!! (She didn't stop talking and could hear her daughter cry from across the building and she just did not sleep.) I woke up on Friday morning, after 8 hours of sleep, completely refreshed. I had a great day, and today is going well too.

I can honestly say that episode could not have been timed better. Because if Workaholic had any reservations about taking that 4am feeding, (and staying up until 11 the night before), I am damn sure that episode convinced him that he had to do it. And I am going to go with there is no other explanation for that impeccable timing than God. He knew I needed 8 hours, and he made sure that I got it. Something so little, means so much. Maybe I should start writing my own book!!

Where'd It All Go?

Poor Fonz...it was about 60 degrees in Michigan this past weekend, and he found the last little patch of snow to love on...

Friends...I Think?

Sometimes we just sit around and think of ways to torture The Fonz...

Full Circle

Four score, thirty-one years and 3 days ago...

My Workaholic was born. Happy Birthday Sweetheart!!

While he was in the hospital, they gave him a little yellow shirt. (when Samantha was in the hospital, she was given a little yellow hat...I guess 31 years apart, they kept running out of the right colors!). My MIL brought over the little yellow shirt the other day...here is Samantha wearing her daddy's shirt!! (I have a feeling this won't be the last time she raids dad's closet, especially if she is anything like me)

If you can't tell, because she hasn't perfected the art of posing yet, it says Life Begins at St. Anthony Medical Center. How cute!!

He Went to Jared!!

Workaholic hasn't read my blog more than once or twice, and so far his impression is that I just trash him all the time. (which we all know isn't totally true!) That is why I tried to tell everyone how great he was in the labor room, you know, while I was pushing a 6lb. cantaloupe out of my ass. But he really is great, otherwise there is no way that I would have married him! (or put up with him the 8 years before we got married)

So while we were recovering from the trauma to my perineum, he gave me my "Way to have a baby present". I usually am a little reluctant to let him buy me jewelry, but I personally think that he nailed this one. He might just know me!! (I am not a great photographer, so if you can't tell, it's a silver cross with a little diamond in the center. Just perfect.)

What Brain??

I was laying (lying??) in bed last night, waiting for Samantha to wake up, and I had a million cajillion thoughts running through my head. And one of them was a really kick-ass blog. (well, I don't know about kick-ass, but it was interesting) And now?? I can't even remember what the hell it was about. It even had a really catchy title!! Damn-it!

BTW...I joined facebook, you know, because I need something else to fill my time. So look for me if you haven't become my friend already! And I promise to try to remember what I was going to tell ya'll.