Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Sarah Lee

On Friday morning, we lost our beautiful dog, Sarah Lee. I wasn't sure I would write this post or what it would even say, but it felt wrong not to say a few words about the special little animal that was such a big part of our life. Sarah had been diagnosed with an inoperable bladder tumor a few months ago, and we knew eventually the tumor would get so big that she would no longer be able to function. But she had been trucking along just fine recently, and we had hoped that would last till Christmas.

But last week she started getting sick, bladder infection we thought. So we gave her medicine, it didn't help, and she just got worse and worse. By Thursday, she couldn't pee at all, and she literally spent all night outside trying to pee and throwing up. It was pitiful. And that night, I just knew it was over. I knew when I took her to the vet in the morning, she would be gone. The worst part of it all was Adam was out-of-town, so I had to be the one (although we talked about it, and he even said goodbye to her over the phone, she was so excited to hear her daddy's voice) to make the call. And I was the one in the room with her, holding her, when she drifted off.

During the whole process, I stayed upbeat with her because I didn't want her to pick up on my sadness and be upset. But after she was gone, I couldn't believe I could cry so much or so hard. I couldn't believe Adam could cry so much or so hard.

Although there aren't that many tears left that I can cry, there are few moments when her absence isn't noticed. There is no one to wake me up way too early in the morning because she wants to go on a walk (something that used to annoy me, but now I miss desperately), there is no one to feed, no one to give belly rubs to, no one to laugh at because of the way she scratches her back, or talk to in annoying baby voices. Sometimes Adam and my's mind will trick us for a split second, and we will look up to see what she is doing only to be faced with the reality that she is gone.

She was the sweetest, gentlest, kindest dog, and anyone who ever got the pleasure of meeting her couldn't help but fall head over heels in love with her.

So rest in peace our Sarah Lee. You were our baby, our precious goldie, and you will be forever missed.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Life Recently According to My Iphone


I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and enjoyed the food and the family. And now that thanksgiving is over it is time for the best season of all, Christmas! I just can't wait.

Here are just a few snaps from the previous week:

1. I took this shot just outside my office. I found it oddly beautiful.
2. Gorgeous tree inside an Orange County Mall!
3. Adam and I went to see The Muppets. It was fantastic. Worth the wait.
4. Eggnog Gelato from the store. There are just no words for this wonderful treat.
5. One of my favorite things about Christmas is the poinsettias. Love the bright red.
6. A chicken salad sandwich and an orange juice from my favorite little cafe, Vie de France. Love, Love, Love the packaging. They also have amazing sweets. 

Song of the Day: Christmas Wrappings by The Waitresses

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Thankful

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Little Things I Am Grateful for This Thanksgiving:

Spiced Apple Cider
Kindle eBooks
Christmas Decorations & Christmas Music
The Packer's Undefeated Season
Re-airing of 90's shows on Teen Nick (Love Kenan & Kel)
Fleece Blankets
Freshly Scrubbed Hardwood Floors
Puppy Kisses (from Puppies who are now 11 years old)
Cheesecake Factory Cheesecake
Funny Text Messages
Starbuck's Red Cups
Cooler Weather
Pinterest
Clinique Happy Perfume

But most of all I am grateful for my family, my friends, a husband who never fails to be there for me, and a dog who is thriving despite all her health issues.  Happy Thanksgiving Y'all. I hope you eat until you can no longer walk!

Song of the Day: The Luckiest by Ben Folds

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

A Little Scrapbooking

This week I have some much needed time off work (thank you Thanksgiving break, you are lovely). I used the break to go to my own personal mecca, Michael's.  I can spend hours roaming the scrap booking aisles, in fact it took me two hours to pick up supplies for four scrapbook pages. But the best past of today is when I got to the register I found out they were having a huge sale and everything ended up costing me $15 dollars instead of $30.00.  Score.

When I got home, I put on one of my favorite movies, My Life in Ruins, and got to work scrapping a few events that happened this year (the New York City Trip, L.A. Dodger's Game, San Francisco Trip, and our 2nd anniversary). They are not perfect, but I love the pages oh so much, and I enjoy looking back through the scrapbook and seeing everything we have done in these last few years. If you want to see more scrapbook pages go here and here.

P.S.-It is seriously difficult to photograph scrapbook pages, I need to invest in a scanner!





Song of the Day: Telephone by Lady Gaga

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Anyone?

As a child born in the 80's, who came of age in the 90's there are certain things I hold near and dear to my heart. Like pop-up music video (and pop-up Brady Bunch), fruit roll-ups, beanie babies, tamigotchas, the game dream phone (which I played in college with my girls occasionally), and the phrase "Da Bomb." By the way, do you know that the kids from the 90's totally started the phrase "Da Bomb." And now the teens I work with have shortened it to "Bomb," and they try to pass it off as their own personal contribution to society. No respect for the ones that came before them I'm tellin you.

But one of the best things about this time period was definitely the movies! We had The Goonies! Pretty in Pink! The Breakfast Club! And one of my all-time favorites, Ferris Bueller's Day Off. I mean who can forget the hypochondriac Cameron Fry? The German American Parade Scene? The annoying sister? The Save Ferris campaign? The young Charlie Sheen sighting? I know I can't.

Last week I watched Ferris Bueller's Day off with the teens at work on a VHS tape. VHS, baby. Does that blow your mind? It blows mine. Before that day, I don't even remember the last time I saw a VHS tape. And the sound of the the tape rewinding in the tape player was really nostalgic for me. I don't know if the teens really enjoyed the movie like I used to. It is not as in your face as comedy movies are nowadays. Which makes me a little sad, but oh well. There is no accounting for bad taste. Just kidding. Sorta.

When I got home from work that day, I decided to Wikipedia the movie just for fun. One of the things I learned is that while most of the film was made in Chicago, Ferris Bueller's house was actually a home here in Long Beach! I had to go see it! So after some long hours of stealthy googling (OK, it was really easy), I found the address. It is located in a swankier part of Long Beach.  And last Sunday, we went to check out Ferris Bueller's house, which looks exactly like it did in the movie!

I didn't pose in front of the house because obviously someone was home, and I didn't want to appear like some crazy person cheesin' in front of their house on a seemingly random Sunday (although I'm sure they have seen their fair share of those). But I thought it was pretty darn cool to see a little glimpse of Hollywood history.

Song of the Day: Diet Mtn Dew by Lana Del Ray

Monday, November 14, 2011

Life Lately According to my Iphone


1. A beautiful sunset I saw while I was sitting outside Adam's office waiting to pick him up from work. It sure made those 30+ minutes (he was running late) stuck in the car a little more enjoyable.

2.  I used the money I had save that I was going to use for something for myself and bought Adam the new Modern Warfare Game. And then I lied, and acting really sneaky, and made him think we couldn't afford it for a long time, so I could surprise him with it :) It was just a really big deal to him and that just makes me uber happy.

3. The best and cheapest Chinese take-out in all of Long Beach. Maybe in all of the United States. I'm not even kidding. Although, I think I go there way too often because they always recognize me and know my order. And that feels less friendly to me and more like a judgement on my lifestyle choices. But it is not, I'm just slightly neurotic like that.

4. Adam in the kitchen! Cooking! In a Hug Hefner style robe! Be still my heart! I showed Adam how to make the really simple recipe I have for breakfast casserole, because he wants to wow his family back home in Wisconsin next week by cooking them breakfast.  But oh my goodness did he need guidance every step of the way, you would have thought it was rocket science. God bless his little non-cooking heart. May we never separate because then he may starve to death.

5. Sunday we had lunch at Stacked with our friend Luther. A place where you build your own burgers on little ipad tablets on the tables. It's one of our fave places. And these are a pictures of their coasters. Just cause.

6. Our goldie, Sarah, being a ham and horsing around.

7. This really blurry pic of Adam and me was taken to prove that we are one of those annoying couples who even dress alike. Yes, we did go out to eat in our matching Green Bay Packer's Jerseys. It is like we are the wonder twins! Everyone knows that after you have been married a long time you start to look a like. And being married two and a half years is a really long time! I mean we have been married 953 days, which is 850+ days longer than Kim Kardashian!

8. A pumpkin ice cream/snicker doodle cookie ice cream sandwich. Can you say amazeballs?

9. The house where Ferris Bueller lived in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off!! I could say so much more about this, but I'm pretty sure that deserves its own post. So stay tuned.

Song of the Day: Only Prettier by Miranda Lambert

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Oh, For The Love of the ...

Lately, I've been walking our dog in the evenings more and more on my own. I don't exactly know how it happened, but over the years it has just become Adam's "job" to walk the dog. You know just like it became Adam's job to wash all the dishes because one time he overheard me telling someone dishes disgust me (and he is sweet like that). Also in his job description? Hanging pictures and killing any spider I see, even if I see it in the middle of the night and he is dead asleep (it is not like he is going to stay asleep through all that screeching anyway, let's be real).

I decided to start walking Sarah because I could use the exercise, and it is nice to give Adam the occasional break. However, I feel like for the entire 45 minutes or so I'm gone this is Adam's thought process:

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I always take my tunes with me when I'm walking with Sarah because there is no interacting with her on the walk. Sarah considers her walks her time. Meaning she doesn't want to be talked to, she doesn't want to be petted, and she for sure doesn't want you to walk ahead of her. No, she just wants to sniff, to hunt for cats, and to search for abandoned chicken wings on the side of the road (by the way, how in the world are there so many chicken wings to be found?!?)

Now before I continue this story, I want to assure my mother who reads this blog (hi mom!), that I walk Sarah fairly early in the evenings, when there are tons of people around and it is perfectly safe. Because if I don't say this, I will have a million texts and one long phone lecture about how what I'm doing is not safe! And how I'm going to get killed! And how she heard of someone who got killed walking their dog! So mom this won't happen to me, I promise.

One night last week I was walking with Sarah, blasting my really deep, mind-opening music (e.g.-Taylor Swift and Kelly Clarkson).  I was stopped at a traffic light when I could tell this young man was trying to get my attention. I am not one to talk to strangers, heck I don't even like talking to my friends on the phone. Plus, most people in Long Beach only gesture at you like that when they are homeless and want money. Which is always bad news for me, because I am notoriously bad at giving away my money out of either guilt or the want to just stop talking.

So I was very skeptical and very, very trapped. I couldn't pretend not to hear/see him because I was stuck at a traffic light. But I sized him up, he was well-dressed, and there were tons of people milling around. So I slipped off one of my ear buds and he simply asked, "Could you love a man as much as you love your dog?"

I don't know what his motivation for asking me this was.  Was he flirting with me? I'm never good at recognizing flirtations unless they are REALLY direct. Basically, a guy has to actually tell me they are flirting with me for me to get it. Or had he been burned by an ex-girlfriend that chose her frilly-dressed, pocket-sized, miniature chihuahua over him and he was looking for answers? Or is he some kind of anonymous, secret, underground Sex in the City type blogger working on his next story? I guess I'll never know. I just answered, "Of course, I could love a man more than my dog." And then I added, "But I'm already married.." Just in case he was flirting and walked away.

I thought about the question on the rest of the walk. I could see why some people might find it easier to live with a dog rather than a spouse. I look at it this way. If it was only the dog and me, I would never have to worry about someone not putting their clothes away right after they wash them, which is my ultimate pet peeve, like some people do in this household. *Cough, Cough. Adam* And I'm sure Adam would say if he lived with only the dog, he could play video games all the time with no judgement.

But no as much as I love my dog, and believe me I love Sarah. In fact, I'm quite obsessed with her. I could never love her more than Adam. And I know Adam could never love her more than me!  Or at least I think I know that. But maybe I better ask him....

Song of The Day: I Am Not The Robot by Marina & The Diamonds