Our little puppy, okay not so little, Arrow is one. we celebrated yesterday with birthday ice cream for all three puppies and a special gift for Arrow. As you can imagine, all three dogs loved their ice cream treats. Anakin enjoyed his in the comfort of his crate as he gets a food aggressive towards the other dogs. That and he’ll try to take their ice cream too.
Arrow loved his little Lamp Chop stuffed toy. I, on the other hand, did not. Apparently, I missed the fact that it had a squeaker in it. Needless to say, Arrow and his toy were squeaking away all night. Anakin loves to hoard toys and not play with them. He was eying Arrow’s toy as soon as Arrow got it. Consequently, I distracted him with another toy. Nevertheless, his focus continued to return to Arrow’s toy.
While the puppies enjoyed the birthday festivities, the rest of us watched the Hurricanes take on the Devils. This was a must win for the Devils, but ultimately the Canes sent them packing with an overtime goal. The Panthers play tonight and have the chance to end the Maple Leafs season. We went to game four Wednesday and they looked terrible. Here’s hoping our Cardiac Cats show up and get er’ done.
In honor of the 30th anniversary of Weezer’s Blue Album (yesterday,) here’s Buddy Holly.
They’re here!!! That’s right Jake and my folks arrived just in time for the winter solstice tomorrow. More to the point, they’re here for the holidays! I’m so excited to have all three boys gone for a Christmas. Moreover, my parents visiting is the cherry on top! My parents flew in this afternoon, while Jake and Melly drove home from FSU. He had flown to Tally first, so she wouldn’t have to drive down by herself.
The anticipation was getting to me earlier today, so I passed the time taking portraits of the dog with my phone. Truly, portrait mode in the iPhone takes some incredible pictures. Today I was playing around with the stage lighting. It produced some super cute photos. Although to be fair, the subjects themselves were super cute. Incredibly, all three of the puppies were cooperative with the photo shoot. This rarely happens!
We ended the evening with a nice family dinner at Villa Rosana in Boca. Melody and her parents were able to join us, which was fantastic. The Mayor was quick to reserve the spot next to himself for Jake. He definitely misses having his big brother home. During dinner, the boys and Melly enjoyed each other’s company with healthy dose of laughter and riposte amongst the banter. I’m looking forward to another fun day with them tomorrow!
Today’s accountability tracker:
Workout: Ran two miles, walked one. Restore and Refresh Restorative gifs practice via Practyce App.
It was another late night as the Mayor had his last regular season high school hockey game tonight. I kind of thought his team was done last Friday, but clearly, that was wishful thinking. Obviously, I love the morass that is high school hockey in south Florida. If you’ve read any of my recent blogs, you know I hold it near and dear to my heart. Fortunately for me, it’s not over. Apparently, the Mayor’s team qualified for the playoffs. At least, the kids are having fun and enjoying the league.
Before we went to hockey, the Mayor and I took Arrow to his last puppy kindergarten session. He’s officially a puppy kindergarten graduate. Nonetheless, he still has a lot of work to do and so do I. I’ll be signing him up for the beginner classes that start in February. I crinkled up the schedule sheet, so hopefully, it doesn’t get thrown away. He does really well with the trainer in class, but not so well with us. Interestingly, Arrow does awesome when we work at home. We’ll keep working with him as he’s eager to learn.
Today was my first day of vacation. I had planned to take the Mayor Christmas shopping this morning, however, there was a wrench in our plan. Apparently, the hubby scheduled Goalielocks to work. Unfortunately, nobody told me, so it was quite a surprise. It was probably for the better, however, as my sinuses were still bugging me this morning. By this afternoon, my sinus headache had abated nicely. Thank god for prednisone. Hopefully, the sinus headache will be completely gone tomorrow. Speaking of tomorrow, it’s a big day! Jake comes home for the holidays and my parents get here!!! Can’t wait!! And now another late night is over.
Today’s accountability tracker:
Workout: Sweat HIIT beginner week 2 leg day and mile run
I’ve got two sleepy puppies. They’ve had a very busy day of destroying the tennis ball toy they got for Christmas. Also, as my sales assistants, I keep them busy with work all day long. It’s tough to lay down and watch mom work all day. If I wanted to wake them up, I could say the magic word “out” and they’d run to the door. I could also open a bag a shredded cheese and they would run to the fridge. Those sleepy puppies are silly.
I’m glad it’s almost Friday even if work has been good this week. Of course, the best part of my week is Jake’s weekly call home. He looked and sounded great. I can’t wait until we can see him again! Sadly, I have no idea when we’ll be able to fly out and visit him again. I am hoping, however that we can make it out to Utah for the big air show on base.
I received word this morning that one of my former employees has been missing since November. Shenika is one of the kindest most loving people in this world. Please share the above flyer wide and far. We need to bring her home safely. As the search goes on, please pray for her safety and for strength for her friends and family looking for her.
I’m so excited! In just a few days, my boy will be home for the holidays! It’s been over a year since he’s been home. Can you believe it? Truly, we can’t wait to see how the dogs respond to seeing him again after all this time. I think they’re going to lose their minds! Anakin, of course, will be meeting him for the first time. Before he meets him, we’ll give Athena and Maya time to hang out with Jake without the interference of their little brother.
Speaking of I’m so excited. Is it just me or does that phrase immediately conjure pictures of the Saved By the Bell episode where Jesse Spano overdoes it on caffeine pills? I’m pretty sure if you were born in the 80s like I was, you know exactly what I’m talking about. What I need to see and have not yet watched is the Saved By the Bell reboot. My brothers and I used to watch Saved by the Bell every Saturday morning usually at my Grandma’s house. Has anyone in the blogosphere watched it? Is it any good?
Anyway, I digress. Here at the homestead, preparations are underway for Jake’s return. We’ve got to set up his old-old room for him since Goalielocks took over his room. This has been a bit of an undertaking since Goalielocks’ cleaning style involves throwing everything in that presently unused room. Yeah, he cleaned the upstairs a couple of weeks ago and it looked pretty good. At least, it looked pretty good until I went looking for my medicine ball in his old bedroom.
Yesterday, the Mayor had one game up at Skatezone. They won 4-0 and he had a great game. Unfortunately, he took an elbow to the head that sent his head into the boards at the end of the game. Since I was working the box, I was able to clearly see it from my vantage point. Consequently, once we got home from the game he began to complain about a headache. Thankfully, he passed the concussion protocol and had no other symptoms apart from the headache. Out of an abundance of caution, we’re going to keep him home from practice tonight. He, however, is not supportive of our cautious approach. Too bad!
Also, I finally made it to the eye doctor after putting it off for years. I know, I know, it’s horrible. Thankfully, the appointment was quick and painless. Fortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any signs of thyroid eye disease in my eyes. Thyroid eye disease, TED, is often a hallmark symptom of Graves diseases. I’m fortunate, however, that my eyes have not been impacted either before RAI or after RAI. Lastly, I treated myself to my first new pair of glasses in like a decade. I’ll post a picture as soon as they come in.
Here’s a list of our day’s activities:
*I read The Idiot, by Fyodor Dosytoevsky
*It’s day 1 of BBG 3.0 week 5, which means it leg day!
*I’m so excited!!!! I’m counting down the days until my oldest boy comes home for Christmas!
*Today I ran a mile and walked a mile. It went far better than my run on Friday. Thank god!
*Today’s word of the day is astound. My children’s ability to “clean” astounds me. Perhaps it’s my fault for trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.
*I love the footprints the puppies leave on the patio when coming back in every morning. Today’s footprints may have included some ashes since they knocked over the grill. There are, however, no kitties in this house.
*I took my puppies including sweetAnakin for a walk. Today Anakin is wearing his Christmas bow tie. He looks mighty dapper if I say so myself. Naturally, I bought all three dogs Christmas outfits. I can’t wait to share the pictures with you. You’ll love them!
Today’s song is Whiskey in the Jar, by Metallica.
Affiliate advertising supports this blog. By clicking on the link and making a purchase, you are helping to support the blog with no added cost to you. I appreciate your support!
My sweet little boy Anakin had to go to the vet today for his rabies vaccine. Since he started limping in the last couple of days, I also had the doctor evaluate his left shoulder. Our appointment was scheduled for 4:00, so we left the house at 3:20 to get there a little early. Apparently, that was a total mistake.
Due to COVID19, no puppy parents are allowed into the clinic. Consequently, we had to take a seat and wait outside. This would be okay, except it’s Florida and it’s 90 degrees with a dew point of 76. I wouldn’t be surprised if the heat index surpassed 100 today. My poor puppy was getting so hot. Fortunately, I was able to get a water bowl for him. Meanwhile Goalielocks and I melted in the heat.
We waited until after 6:00 for him to be seen. I was dying from the heat and ready to throw in the towel. Nonetheless, my sweet little boy needed his rabies vaccine, so we can start taking him of dog parks. Also, the vet isn’t super close, so I didn’t want to have to come back a different day. Fortunately, his exam went well and there is no structural issues causing a limp. The vet feels like he likely hurt some soft tissue jumping around and being a puppy. Now we’re home and he’s comfortable resting after his vaccine and a pain shot for his shoulder.
Meanwhile, my throat is starting to hurt and my glands are feeling a bit swollen. My temperature was a little higher than normal this morning, but still not above normal range. I ran my 2.23 miles (#IrunwithMaud) this morning without too much difficulty. Afterwards I went almost straight to yoga, which was pretty awesome. Thankfully, I had enough time to do my post run stretch routine with the therapy balls before yoga.
Today’s class was a gentle flow with Jenn from Open Heart Yoga Studio and it was divine. The slower flow, yin and restorative poses have done my mind and body so much good. I was a balls to the wall kind of girl before I got injured and sick. Honestly, it’s probably why I got injured and sick. Now it’s about finding balance in my yoga practice, my workouts and life. Since I’ve started the quest for balance, my mobility and ability to slow down have improved greatly. I’m so excited to share my experience with my future yoga students.
I’m hoping some sleep will do my body good because I was hoping to go into the yoga studio to support its reopening. Nonetheless, if there’s any hint of a sore throat, I will be partaking in class from home. Fortunately, the Zoom classes have been great and with great support and feedback from my teachers. Otherwise I have a low key last day of school planned for the boys. My afternoon will be spent in yoga teacher training while the boys wrap up their school work.
Affiliate advertising supports this blog. By clicking on the link and making a purchase, you are helping to support the blog with no additional cost to you. Thanks!
Today I’m happy to bring you Puppy Yoga Episode 2 starring Anakin. Since I practice teaching Surya Namaskara A in my teacher training yesterday, I decided to work on it again this morning with Anakin’s help. I hope you enjoy the cuteness and serenity that is puppy yoga.
It was another beautiful day here in South Forcina. Clear blue skies, low humidity and decent temperatures made for a very pleasant day. I had hoped to run today, but a cramp in my calf and my left hip felt otherwise. Consequently, I’ve learned my lesson about pushing it too far when injured, so I skipped the run. Hopefully, my calf and hip are feeling better tomorrow.
Since I wasn’t going to run, I took a ninety minute vinyasa class with Monica. It was challenging physically and mentally, but oh so good. One thing I enjoy about Monica’s class is here creative flow. Moreover, today’s class had more of an ashtanga flavor to it for my benefit. Specifically, this will help me with my yoga teacher training. Thankfully, today’s flow gave me some cardio work along with a lot of strength and breath work. I even nailed my crow pose today!!! Yay!
As you may recall, my Goalielocks is on the third shift. Consequently, I usually let him sleep in on weekends for the benefit of everyone. Since my class was 90 minutes, I didn’t go up it wake him up until 12:30 pm. Naturally, I had reservations about doing this post class because I was in such a zen place. Surprisingly, Goalielocks woke up easily and was pleasant. Talk about winning!!
My afternoon was spent hanging out with the dogs and doing stuff around the house. I may also have watched the latest episode of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist. Overall, I really liked the latest episode. Particularly, I loved Bernadette Peters cameo. She’s an absolutely brilliant singer and actress. I really enjoyed her scenes. Naturally, all the men in my house to fail to recognize the awesomeness of this show. As a result, I watch it when the Hubby isn’t home and the boys are busy.
This evening started with a great headstand practice with Anakin. When I started my practice tonight, I didn’t really anticipate that it would be partner yoga. Fortunately, Anakin had a different idea. Every time I would bring my feet in and my hips up, he’d crawl underneath me and lick my face incessantly. Honestly, it was the cutest thing ever and made me laugh. After I made several interrupted attempts, I decided to call it a night. Clearly, Anakin had other plans in mind.
For dinner, I made the first of four Blue Apron meals I ordered. Initially I ordered in the beginning of April, due to shortages at the grocery store. Of course, due to an uptick in their volume, they couldn’t accommodate our orders until this week. Tonight the Mayor and I made soy glazed chicken with brown rice, sugar snap peas and mushrooms. The recipe was easy to follow and the food tasted great. I’m looking forward to our next dish.
*Obedience training Anakin courtesy day Goalielocks
*Took Anakin, Maya and Athena on a walk.
Affiliate advertising supports this blog. By clicking on the link and making a purchase, you are helping to support the blog with no additional cost to you. Thanks!
It’s a cloudy night after a hot and humid mornings here in South Florida. In fact, I was lamenting to my parents that are few point was more than double their ambient air temperature. Who needs a 72 degree dew point in April?!! Not this girl!!! Fortunately, there was sufficient cloud cover to prevent our temperature from rising into the 90s again. Meanwhile, the temperature in Minnesota was in the low 30s when they checked on my Grandma today.
Initially, I tried to wake up earlier so I could run earlier. Sadly, the best laid plans don’t always work. I guess you could say that I was a bit slow moving this morning. Nonetheless, Athena and I still got out for our morning run. Since it was so humid and still hot, I carried a water bottle for her and planned stops to rest throughout. Athena is my favorite running partner still home, so I have to take care of her.
Additionally, running in the heat and humidity can be dangerous especially with a thyroid issue. Consequently, we took water breaks every half mile. Moreover, for our second mile I changed my running strategy. Instead of running the full second mile, I alternating running for a minute with walking for thirty seconds. I love changing up the workout and this is a good way to build endurance safely.
Post run I did my stretch routine and relaxed on the couch before yoga. I also took this time to rehydrate a little. Thursday yoga with Jenn was an awesome compliment to my run this morning and Christine’s class yesterday. Today we did a lot of work on our hips, legs and back. My shoulders were sore from all the work I did on them yesterday, but they loosened up after my run. Thankfully, the work we did on the lower body in class today is essential to keeping my legs and hips healthy. I have to admit running without pain is pretty great!
When I’m not working out, I’m hanging out with my precious puppies or harassing my children to complete their work. I much prefer my sweet Anakin to yelling at teeenagers. At this point in the quarantine, I feel like my life’s allusions are akin to a train wreck. Fortunately, I know I’m not alone in this feeling. Moreover, I know this is a temporary situation. Nonetheless, writing and talking about the pressures of life in a pandemic is absolutely necessary and healthy. If could describe your quarantine experience in less than two words, how would you describe it?
*Pulled my hair out (again) managing my teenagers virtual schooling.
Affiliate advertising supports this blog. By clicking on the link and making a purchase, you are helping to support the blog with no additional cost to you. Thanks!
