Am I wearing a kick me sign??

I found out my Grandmother has a malignant tumor in her bladder.  They are performing surgery in early March and feel confident they can remove all of the tumor because of it's small size.  I just hope they remove everything and nothing harmful returns!  She doesn't let on as though she's worried, but deep down I know she is and I'm glad my mom will be traveling to be with her...they have such a great mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationship!  She decided to come into town this weekend and I will be so happy to see her and spend time with her before she has her procedure.

Our poor Jasper has been sick :(  His stomach has been upset oh so badly.  My husband took him to the vet today and he said he had an accident in the exam room that showed traces of blood....sorry, gross I know, but everyone knows that's never a good thing.  We couldn't feed him yesterday and they told us not to feed him today.  After I took him out this morning, he ran to his food bowl and was just wagging his tail because he knows he's always fed breakfast before I get in the shower, and it broke my heart not to be able to feed him because he's starting to be sluggish and I know he needs a boost!  He was given a round of stomach meds so I hope they kick in asap!  And speaking of wagging his tail, we have discovered he has developed another problem, which has a deceiving name..."happy tail".  Great Danes have such long tails that when they become excited their tails tend to bump into whatever they are around.  Well Jasper has such a happy tail that he has essentially broken the tip of his tail.  We crated him for a day and when I came home to take him out I noticed his tail brushing the wall and leaving little blood spots.  I of course freaked and called the vet and they said he more than likely wagged his tail against the sides the entire time he was in the crate due to being so anxious and did it then.  They don't have much feeling in the end of their tail, so they explained that he probably didn't even realize he was hurting himself.  We have his tail wrapped and he doesn't even bother the bandage, but looks so pitiful with it on!

(I snapped this outside while walking him!  his tail looks like part of a mummy!)

They prescribed him doggy xanax (yes, I know...doggy xanax) to help with his separation anxiety in hopes of him taking it easy while he is in his crate.  I hate to think of my poor puppy in there not even realizing he is hurting himself! :(

For the past 3 weeks on Tuesday evenings I have been attending a bible class that my cousin is leading at her church.  The study is entitled, "Me, Myself, & Lies" and the author describes it as a thought closet makeover.  It touches a lot on self-esteem and self-worth which are weaknesses of mine and things I most definitely need to work on.  Last week we talked about how all too often we beat ourselves up over problems that arise and blame ourselves while we constantly complain about it and never think about stopping to pray about it and realize we serve a God who is committed to us and if we would only take our hands off of the problem and ask Him for his help, we would see just what our faith is capable of.  This story was the focal point for one of the days and it truly touched my heart.

Mark 5:25-34

A large crowd followed and pressed around him. ²⁵And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. ²⁶She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. ²⁷When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, ²⁸because she thought, "If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed." ²⁹Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
 ³⁰At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"
 ³¹"You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' "
 ³²But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. ³³Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. ³⁴He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

Imagine having the amount of faith that this ostracized woman had that she knew that if she were only to be able to touch the hem of His garment, her life would be forever changed!  I have 3 more weeks in the class and look forward to growing in not only my relationship with myself, but my relationship with Him. 

For a good cause!

"Jasper"

I am a huge advocate of spaying and neutering pets!  Thousands of animals are born into this world and not given a second thought as they are turned over to a shelter or left to fend for themselves.  I have entered Jasper in a photo contest in which one vote for $1 will not only support his chances in the photo contest, but support countless animals who may get a second chance, just like he did, because of your vote!

Go here to vote for him and any other photo that you see that you like!  If you want to enter your precious pet, the deadline is Friday for the Spay Day 2010 Pet Photo Contest!

Now I've said my ABC's...

I saw this on a friend's blog and thought it'd be something to get this "why are you already here Monday?!?!" started off in a good way!

A - Age: 25

B - Bed size: UGH, Full.  One day this king and queen will have a king or queen.

C - Chore you hate: Putting up laundry!

D - Dog's Name: Jasper

E - Essential start your day item: Coffee, coffee, coffee.

F - Favorite color: green.

G - Gold or Silver: Silver.  I don't think I will ever be a gold fan.

H - Height: 5’6"...5'7" somewhere around there.

I - Instruments you play(ed): played drums

J - Job title: Assistant Victim Witness Coordinator

K - Kid(s): in the future, but now right now.

L - Living arrangements: with my husband in our first little house that I wish we could be in forever!

M - Mom's name: Connie

N - Nicknames: E, Big E, Em, Embo

O - Overnight hospital stay other than birth: None

P - Pet Peeve: people who cannot spell and don't have a relationship with grammar

Q - Quote from a movie: "and I'm just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her." - Knotting Hill/Julia Roberts

R - Right or left handed: Right

S - Siblings: n/a

T - Time you wake up: 6:45 most days

U - Underwear: I always seem to be buying it!

V - Vegetable you dislike: brussel sprouts

W - Ways you drink your coffee: cream & sweet-n-low

X- X-rays you've had: Teeth, hand, elbow

Y - Yummy food you make:  cheesy chicken broccoli casserole

Z - Zoo favorite: elephants for sure!

This past weekend has left me itching for summer oh so badly!  I want to watch male Hale grill steaks while our friends socialize & play kornhole wondering whose car will pull up next to come hang out....I want to wear dresses and flip-flops....I want to take Jasper to the dog park after seeing how much he loves other dogs, especially little ones :)  -- ah, it seems so far away!  

March is a jam-packed month for us and I know it will fly by.  I have never been a big fan of the "spring forward" time change, my body seems to take forever to get used to it.  The hubby's birthday is in early March and I have part of his gift figured out, but need to get the wheels turning for the rest of it.  

Hope everyone has a happy, or if anything, a tolerable Monday!

Ten Things That Put Me Over the Top!

Meghan at the always entertaining blog of Livin' The Life God Gave Me tagged me to share ten things that make me happy.  So here goes!  I'm going to go for the little things that bring a smile to my face.

1.  Leaving for wherever I am going in enough time to run through Starbucks.  I love being able to savor  that Cinnamon Dolce flavor while driving down the road.

2.  Having a clean house.  I can honestly stand in a room that I have just cleaned and feel like I have actually accomplished something and smile before I turn the light out and go on to my next project.  

3.  Books.  I can't get enough of them....end of story.

4.  Lazy days.  Who doesn't love these?  Snacks, blankets, comfy clothes, and good company.

5.  Pictures.  I can look through album after album of pictures regardless of whether they're from when I'm 3 or 23 and always reminisce on good times.  

6.  Remembering I have a gift card to somewhere at what seems like the exact time I'm worrying about spending $ on something, but know that we need it.

7.  Voice notes on my blackberry.  It never fails that when a friend and I to exchange one (and usually it's this girl) I laugh out loud for at least a minute.

8.  Decorating for holidays.  I don't care if it's putting out a Vday dish towel and candy dish or decorating the Christmas tree....I can't get enough of it!

9.  Making finger foods.  I'm always anxious to try new recipes for the snacks we take places.

10.  A favorite song.  I always forget how much a song I love can change my mood as I'm tapping the steering wheel and belting out the lyrics.

I'm going to tag....

Just a Little Something on my Mind

Newlywed Morgans

Wife and Mother of 2

Delightfully Rotten

These Magic Slippers Will Take You Home

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!  Only 2 more days!!!

Meet our new addition...Jasper!

Well here he is.  All 130 pounds of him.  He is the newest member of the Hale family.

We got Jasper from a Great Dane rescue group called Dames for Danes.  His right ear, as you can tell, is only half there.  :(  His owner who gave him up said he was born that way, but his foster mom fears someone tried to crop his ears themselves and it didn't go as planned.  I like it...I think it gives him character!

We traveled about an hour and a half to pick him up and he did extremely well on the car ride home.  We stopped at PetSmart which did NOT turn into a cheap trip!!!  I bought him a $60 bed that he had no interest in when we got home.  He was content with just being on the floor!  And that's pretty much what made him happy for the night!

We start obedience classes tonight...we don't wanna waste any time :)  He isn't hyper or bouncing off the walls...we just want to master sit, stay, and all that good stuff.  Wish us luck!

Bookworm

So recently I have finished these two books....

and...

"The Lovely Bones" was a book I could not put down.  I found myself rarely, if at all, thinking about the movie and comparing what I had seen in the previews to what I was reading.  I never tried to picture the characters I had seen in the movie trailers as the ones in the book and I was proud of myself that I didn't let that affect my reading.  I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone!

With "Dear John" I found myself in a similar situation of not being able to put it down, but my downfall was constantly comparing the book characters with Channing Tatum (and I mean, who wouldn't want to constantly think of him??) and Amanda Seyfried and wanting them to do what I wanted them to do and what I had seen on the previews.  I didn't particularly care for the ending, but in talking with others, I do see the flip-side and see why they, in fact, did like it.  If nothing else, I have two movies to go see now that I have read the book for, right??

As I said the other day, we were going through an application process to adopt a dog from a rescue group.  We had our home visit on Monday and PASSED with flying colors!  We got word Monday night that we were approved to become his new parents, but that he'd just been neutered so we needed to wait a couple of days to go get him.  Well the time has come and we will be going to get him today!!  I can't wait to post pictures and learn all about our new addition, Jasper!  Happy Wednesday everyone!

Let's spice it up with February!!

I felt like January was such a cold, dismal month!  I'm looking forward to February because I am a fan of Valentine's Day and male Hale is in a chili competition next weekend...and this girl looooves some chili!  The food is free and a local radio station and news station will be in attendance.  A bake sale will be in full effect as well....I think my diet will be blown this day!!  Donations go to help the 212th Transportation Unit for the Army Reserves.  They deploy in April for Afghanistan for one year so this will be such a great cause.

I did enjoy our snow this past weekend though!  I am glad I like being a homebody because when everything turns to solid ice and you're home Friday, Saturday, & Sunday, you can catch some cabin fever!  Brunswick stew, board games, white chicken chili, & movies seemed to do the trick though.  I love how snow always looks so perfect on rooftops!

For quite some time now we have wanted to adopt a dog.  We have looked and looked for a four-legged friend to adopt in the particular breed that peaked our interest.  We became interested in this breed because of their temperament, habits, & what we heard from speaking with previous owners.  Last Thursday we visited a lovely guy named Jasper and he stole our hearts.  This particular rescue group likes to do home visits to ensure the dog will have a safe & suitable lifestyle.  We have our home visit this evening and from what the agency has indicated to us, if the visit goes well, we should be able to bring him home some time this week.  We don't have a fence, but they have known that from the get-go and said it was not required, but I still worry they will count that against us.  I don't want to post any pictures or tell you any more about it because I want it to be a surprise!  And not to mention I will be so, so bummed if things don't work out.  Just keep your fingers crossed for us!


Without a doubt, Super Bowl commercials and good eats are two things to always look forward to during the big game.  Then 4 days later, my book club girlies will be meeting at my house to discuss "The Lovely Bones" (can't wait to see this movie!).  Three days after that will be Valentine's Day which I am glad is falling on a weekend and I've figured out what to get my husband!  The next day will be this gal's birthday and I'll wait 12 days to celebrate this new mommy's birthday!  Looking forward to February's festivities!