Popcorn Kibble

When I was a about 6 years old, we were staying with an aunt for a while and one afternoon I was happily playing on the chalkboard (I liked playing 'teacher' to invisible students) when my mom and aunt called me to the kitchen for a chunk of fresh coconut. Mmm, I loved coconut. So I took my piece and returned to the chalk board to continue playing. Except, I got my hands mixed up and took a bit of the chalk. Blech! I had to race all the way up the stairs to spit it out in the toilet. Chalk does not taste good at all. I've never gotten my hands mixed up again.

Fast forward to today.

I had a craving for some popcorn but didn't want to give Eco any and figured I'd throw her kibbles to keep her busy while I greedily ate the popcorn by myself. Let me tell you, my coconut/chalk memory was very much on the surface of my brain - there was no way that I was going to confuse my hands. It was hard work, people, but I was successful.

I just thought I'd share that with you.

Puppy Party

The puppy party went well last night, she was one of the smallest there and because there was a timid little cocker spaniel in the group, they split us into a big puppy paty and a little puppy party. Later a 100 pound 14 week Great Dane came to join us, which gave Eco someone to play with and despite their size difference, I must say our little girl held her own when she needed to. There was only gentle play fighting but it was good. It's too bad the cocker just hid in the corner, too afraid to experience anything.

Eco got to meet the cat at the party too, but the cat hissed at her and was kicked out. Ha ha. No cats allowed at a puppy party.

They gave out goodies bags to everyone and, Eco won the door prize! How cool is that? What a lucky puppy.

When we came home, so had to have a bath because she had gotten pretty wet from Great Dane slobber, and then she needed a rest. Boy was she pooped!

And today, she is 11 weeks old.

Shots!

Today we went for Eco's second vet appointment, she got checked out and had her 2nd set of shots - that means she can now go to more public places and meet other dogs, so we'll have a bit more freedom.

2 weeks ago she weighed 9lbs, and now she weighs 16 pounds. See I told you she was growing fast!

Tonight I'm taking her to a puppy party at the veterinarian's office, which I am sure she'll love because she loves other doggies and people too! And Labs love food and so I know she'll love the treats she'll get tonight, which will make up for the car ride which she doesn't quite enjoy at this moment.

I may be little now....

Want to have some fun? You are going to be able to watch me grow big, big, big - practically in front of your eyes. In fact, I'm growing so fast, I bet you can HEAR me grow!!!!

I'm 10 1/2 weeks old now, aren't I getting big?

Time keeps on ticking, into the future

Wow. Just like everyone else, I'm finding time is flying by like crazy. Why does it seem to speed up the older you get? sheesh.

As you know, I have been super busy at work (like who isn't these days, right?) but I was stressing myself out. Yup, I was doing it to myself. No boss or co-worker was being demanding or yelling, I brought it all on myself. And the results were constant headaches and other health issues. Jp would tell me to not worry about it, but I couldn't help it. And I would get headaches in the middle of the night because I was dreaming of fictitious work situations in my sleep. I hadn't told anyone at work about our puppy and I was trying to make it though the work day dealing with a busy load and a gnawing/peeing/barking puppy (I work from home).

I was feeling so stressed, I even thought about running away from home and had it all worked out: I had enough money for a month's rent and I would take my car and the puppy and drive to some city in the Kootenays and start all over again. This resulted in hurt feelings because I would be leaving Jp behind - but I wasn't thinking of him, I was just being selfish. And intellectually I know that running away wouldn't be the answer but with sleep deprivation, headache and stress, who's rational?

I knew something had to change and as I played with the dog, I thought about it, and I had talked it over with Jp and my brother. And we decided to do a couple of things:

1. Prioritize the work so I knew very clearly where things stood
2. Call my boss and let him know where I'm at and how long it'll take to get things done
3. Ask him to prioritize tasks on my list
4. Keep a stopwatch going during work hours - stopping and starting for puppy breaks
5. Ensuring that I took at least 15 minutes to do something for myself

And you know, I had a very good Friday at work. No headaches at all. And I think I even got more work done because I was better organized and less stressed; and with the stopwatch keeping track of the time worked, I could see that I was actually putting in more time than I thought - so my employer still got a normal work day from me. I'd better remember this lesson because it was a very good one for me.

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Because of my headaches, my doctor ordered some tests just to rule out physiological causes, and so I was off to the lab for a bloodtest. A few seconds after I sit down, Britanny comes to me and asks if I'd let a student take my blood. I make a joke about always getting the students, but sure, fill yer boots. She checks my vein and determines it's an easy one and puts the needle in - but then nothing. She calls Jackie over, and Jackie makes a face. Jackie tries and mumbles something about a weird angle and then tells me they're going to have to do it on my other arm. Britanny gets stuck holding the cotton ball on my right arm so Jackie can draw blood from my left arm and then Britanny has to hold the cotton ball on both my arms because I can't. I feel bad for the poor girl and tell her it happens to the best of them and to shake it off. No biggie.

When I get home, I tell Jp who recommends that I never let a student take my blood and tells me how he refuses whenever he's asked.

What do you do? These people have to learn somehow and this is the first time I've had a problem. Do you trust your veins to a student? Would you take the risk?

~~~~~~

Ah yes, in case you want to hear about our little girl, Eco.... can you remember the puppy days? I'm told it passes so quickly, but in the midst of it, it seems like an eternity of little sharp chomps on your fingers and wiping up pees in the house. I'm told to expect 6 months of house training/accidents - oy!

And our puppy - she's really a multi pet: sometimes she plays like a cat, she's got webbed feet like a duck, she chomps on your fingers like a baby crocodile, she runs through the yard eating grass like a cow and well of course, she's a dog.

I've been keeping a little log book on her, mainly to get her into a routine so I can get my job done during the day but also because she's going to go from 10 pounds to about 80 pounds within the first several months. Each Friday (she was born on Friday the 13th ) we weigh her and take some measurements, take a stamp of her foot and a photo in front of a yard stick - soon we'll have a photo journal documenting her weekly growth.And the things she likes and is learning (a sort of baby book but I'm not getting all wacky about it) - at 10 weeks, she can sit, lie down, give me a kiss, sit pretty and shake a paw. She comes when called only about 30% of the time.

Should I post photos? Let me know if you're interested. I don't want to bore you. Most of the photos I take are of her sleeping because she's pretty active when she's awake and it's harder to take a picture when she's running all over the place.

Donkey Puppy

I can't remember the last time I was this tired. Goodness.

And work is busy - which can be okay, except when you feel more like a donkey. There's busy and then there's busy. Right now the company I work for seems to just keep piling stuff on the donkey until the donkey breaks. And they won't grieve for the donkey, oh no, they'll just look for a new donkey to replace her. Well this donkey let her boss know today that she can't take on anything more.

The big boss man said he would make some calls and look into it.

The the little donkey never heard from him again but no more extra work came her way.

At least for today.

The donkey is grateful she has a job to do, but even donkeys have limits.

The donkey will fall asleep tonight without worrying about it though because she has a puppy to take care of now and work just doesn't seem so important at the moment, at least not the kind of work the donkey's been given.

The donkey's learned to just take one thing at a time, moment by moment.

The donkey's brother is jumping up and down waving his hooves in the air because he's told her to live in the present for about 1 year now, but donkeys can be stubborn and set in their way.

The puppy however, is helping her learn this lesson better than any person or book could.

The end..... at least for today

Wonder where I've been?

I haven't been around much these days, I know.

Well, this is what we took home yesterday. (She likes the armrest of the car)

A 9lb 4 oz , 8 week old chocolate lab girl puppy whom we've name "Eco" (like 'ee-ko')

And someone doesn't like to be left alone - which we're trying

to change before my Monday at work is supercrazyhectic!

I've missed you. I'll be back soon I'm sure.