Goodbye to Maggie

Jack, Charlie & Maggie in November

Well, after about two years of consideration, we have become a dog-free home.  We have not been giving Maggie the attention she deserves and sadly she had become more of a nuisance than a fun plaything.  She has always been a great dog; we just decided we don't spend the time with her that we should.  SO we started asking around to see if we could find a home where she would get the attention she needs and deserves.

Last Sunday at our Memorial Day party our friend Jill mentioned her sister Julie was looking for a second dog. Her first dog is a timid little dog (Princess) that was rescued from a puppy mill and needs a playmate.  Plus Julie's daughter, who just graduated from high school, wanted a running mate.  Jill sent Julie a picture and they agreed to come get her the next morning for a trial.  Jack watched her leave and when I said she was going to live with Julie, Meghan and Princess  he said "she can live here with me."  Since then he's asked about once/day "where's Maggie?"  We just remind him that she went to live with her new friend Princess and he moves on.

I got an update Monday night and they said Maggie cried and paced all day.  They took her to a dog park twice (about the number of times she's been in her 6 year life) and took her on two walks, which seemed to help.  The update on Wednesday was that she had settled in and is always snuggling with her new BFF Princess, and Julie put a picture on Facebook of the doggies taking over her bed.

We are so happy we were able to find such a great new home for Mags.  I know she will be so happy having a buddy and getting spoiled with walks and dog park visits and just general love and affection!!

Bad Mommy & Happy 4th

Well, I've officially forfeited my bid for Mommy of the Year. Thursday night as I was putting Jack into his high chair for dinner, he arched his back and spun right out of my hands, tumbling to the floor. I dropped my child. Turns out he's fine, but oh man, that is not a good feeling. THEN, in case my good mommy status was still unclear, I rolled his fingers up in the car window Saturday night. Again, he was fine, but Mommy is not very happy with herself. Poor baby. It's hard enough being a toddler trying to explore the world without your mommy trying to beat you up left and right!

On to happier topics...we had a very nice holiday weekend. We spent a lot of time with good friends and Jack got a lot of quality play time with his buddies.

Family photo:Jack & Nathan swimming:Jack and Addi swimming:
Addi, Jack and Nathan trying out the play yard (thanks Claytons & Knichels - that thing worked great to corral the kiddos!):
This is Jack's new way of playing with Maggie - too funny. Good thing we have one of the world's most tolerant dogs:

Feeling Better

The little guy is starting to feel better after almost a week of his 3rd antibiotic (Augmentin this time). He's still not back to his normal self - not quite as smiley and happy - but he has made vast improvements. He's sleeping great, but not eating quite as much as usual. AND his poor little tush is red as can be again. Darn diaper rash! Still smiling, just not as constantly as normal:
Some other updates:
We went to Race for the Cure last Saturday, and Jack was a real trooper. It was VERY hot and humid, but the little guy just hung out in his stroller drinking his sippy cup of water and munching on Cheerios and Chex while we walked the 5K (which takes forever when there are 70,000 people). Towards the end, he got a little worn out, so we laid his stroller seat back and he zonked out. He was an angel baby.

Our family pre-race:
Lades (Julie, Chrissy, Reghan and Darrin):
Mr. Energizer Bunny:
Cool in his shades (for about 30 seconds):
Miss Maggie Neu:
Miss Addison:
Jack passed out at the end of the race:

Jack has learned how to throw mini temper tantrums. I know I won't be saying this for long, but right now they're pretty cute. He desperately wants to play with the TV, DVD player and satellite box and when we tell him no, he's not a happy guy. He throws his body back and/or rubs his face on the carpet. Here he demonstrates option 2:
Swimming at Grandma & Grandpa Lang's house:

Jack and I are preparing for his first flight this Thursday (well, I'm preparing; I'm not sure he's fully understanding what I've been telling him). He and I are going to visit my sister and Greg in Rochester, NY for the weekend. I'm a little nervous about the solo travel with him (Jason is staying here to hold down the fort), but I'm sure we'll survive. I've been getting lots of tips (thanks Al!) for traveling with a baby and have been making lists galore to make sure I don't forget anything. We'll see how it goes!

Here are some fun (& messy!!) eating pictures:
This is Jack's favorite expression these days - we're guessing he likes feeling his bottom (and only) teeth, but it's too funny:
Another play date with Addi. Are these two not the cutest things??? (Thanks for the pictures, Mel!)

And some non-Jack updates:
Maggie has been shedding like crazy, which, when combined with my neglect for housework, has resulted in a very fuzzy house. SO, this weekend we got her shaved, which is a first. Much to my surprise, she really doesn't look much different. It was the right choice for sure!
Also, I FINALLY got the big wall in our living room decorated, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. Observe:

Sleeping Beauties

My two loves snoozing on the couch

Fruit Fetish

Maggie has been obsessed with bananas for a long time - she can hear you peel a banana from 3 rooms away and she'll come running hoping for a slice. Now our fruit loving dog has found a new favorite - apples. Last week I let her eat the last few bites of my apple and boy was she a happy camper. Tonight I gave her round 2 and she loved it just as much!

Sorry about the picture quality. A video camera is on our list of items to buy before Fletch's arrival, as obviously my regular camera doesn't quite cut it.

Woffy Pop

Maggie got a lot of gifts for Christmas, but the most unique was the Woofy Pop microwavable pepperoni-flavored doggie popcorn, which her cousin Otis sent to her. I popped it for her the other day and she LOVED it!
Thanks Otis (and Kel & Greg)!

I'm Back!

I took a very long hiatus because my next post was going to be a painful one. We had our dog Willie put to sleep about a month and a half ago. He was aggressive the whole 4 years that we had him, but lately he had been getting worse - not only was he biting adults, but now he was biting other dogs and snapping at kids. Jason & I decided (after about 4 years of consideration) that we needed to put humans before our dog. We would never have been able to forgive ourselves if he had seriously hurt someone. So, we did the hardest thing we've ever had to do in our lives and took him to the vet to be put to sleep. He is now resting peacefully at Jason's parents' farm next to their dog, Harley.

We miss him, and Maggie (our other dog) took it really hard - she didn't eat for 2 weeks - but we know it was the right thing to do.

I have a lot more updates, so stay tuned!

Patio Progress

Jason made some good progress on the wall yesterday, with the help of Greg. They rented a huge saw - Jason claims they "needed" it, but I think he just loves big power tools. They got all of the cap stones cut and started gluing them down with the filter cloth on the back side of the wall.

After he glues the rest, next will be filling the space with a bunch of rock. Then we'll have to hire a guy with a bobcat to bring in dirt to fill in the entire space where the patio will be. Fun!

On a side note, doesn't my husband have nice calves?

Here are some pictures of the pups enjoying the outdoors the other weekend:

Our Morning

Maggie was very nice to her grandpa this morning and left him a few doggie presents on his favorite couch. And by presents I mean cute little brown smelly things. Lucky Grandpa. I think we're going back to square one with potty training her - she's not quite used to her new set-up yet.

Let's blow this pop stand

So Saturday came and went and we're completely moved out of the old house. Yay!!. A big 'Thank You' to everyone that helped. What is usually a pain in the ass turned out to be nothing more than good exercise due to all the hard work shared by all of our friends. We truly appreciate it. Now comes the fun of getting settled in at our new, temporary housing at Tom & Pat's. Day 1 didn't go so well as Maggie's collar broke and she got out for about an hour. Willie bit my friend from work, probably gave him rabies. Then while Willie and Annie were walking around looking for Maggie, they both stepped in dog shit which Willie so kindly tracked all over the back seat of Darrin & Chrissy's new car. 1 day down, 119 to go. Shoot....me. Or the dogs. Whichever.