Brandon's Puppy

A bunch of things as they pop into my head

I'm really annoyed that my camera is broken.

Matty is doing "pipi in the potty"! No diapers in the very near future...YAY!
Speaking of Matty, He loves to eat "green carrots" (celery).

The puppies had their second de-worming appointment today. They are all getting deliciously chunky. This week they weigh: Music, 1.51 lbs; Bella, 1.41 lbs; Rosie, 1.39 lbs; Brandy. 1.35 lbs; Olivia, 1.34 lbs; Alice, 1.28 lbs; and our little runt Butterball, 1.13 lbs. Collectively they weigh almost the same as Sandy, who weighs just over 10 pounds.

I am not ashamed to admit that I watched New Moon on Saturday, all the while following along with the book.

Our fridge scared us yesterday. Hubby called me during the late afternoon to tell me it was
not cooling, and in fact the temperature was much higher than what it should be. Mr. Pessimist was already swearing that it was broken and that we can't afford to fix it, what are we going to do, blah blah blah. We woke up this morning and it was back to normal. I speculate it was the kids, not closing the doors properly.

Tech Talk

Among several other duties, I handle some IT requests at my job. I was the one who was able to get an online seminar to play from a laptop onto the flat screen in our meeting room. I’m also the one that reconnects people’s wireless printers when they disconnect. So it’s no surprise that a few people in the office have come to me for tech advice. Two people in particular were upgrading their computers for Christmas, and they asked me what antivirus software I recommend. I’m no IT expert, but I have heard some good things about Vipre. All their online reviews are excellent and praise its features: it doesn’t slow down your computer, it offers both antivirus and antispyware protection in one product, it provides full protection against threats received via email, and it’s very easy to use. Oh, and it doesn't require you to set up automatic credit card payments, you can renew annually via their website. Again, I'm no expert, but that does sound pretty good to me.

Disclosure: The above is an honest review. I did receive compensation for researching and writing about the product.

2009 is almost gone

Christmas has come and gone, and the New Year is just 4 days away. The boys loved all their presents, unfortunately I cannot share any pictures because my camera died shortly after taking the picture I included in my previous post. I asked Brandon to get it for me from the kitchen counter and it slipped and fell on the floor. It's officially broken. The budget does not currently allow for the purchase of a new camera, but I'm really hoping I can work something out before their birthdays next month.

That also means puppy updates are limited to the camera on my phone, which is not very good. I'm going to try and take video with it too, so I can show you all how active and playful they are now.

How was your Christmas? Did Santa bring you what you wanted?

Merry Christmas

Not as many gifts under the tree this year. The boys each got a couple of things, and the remaining four items are for my nephews and niece. But we have our health, and the love of family and friends (oh, and let's not forget a house full of puppies), and those trump anything that might be wrapped up in a bow.

Merry Christmas to all!

With love,

Amanda, Eric, Brandon and Matthew

Long Week

Besides having to take the puppies to the vet on Tuesday, it's been quite an eventful week. My grandmother was in the hospital for the last three days. She is much better and was released today around noon.

My boss's son has been really sick, so she's been in and out of the office sporadically since Wednesday. Consequently, I've had more work to do and have left the office quite late all week.

And let me not forget to mention the thunderstorms that have doubled my commute time the last few days. I am very much looking forward to the two short work-weeks ahead.

Canine news (Warning: Adorable puppy pics included!)

Sandy and the puppies went to the vet on Tuesday morning. She's had diarrhea since Sunday night, and the puppies needed their first deworming. We think the culprit of Sandy's tummy troubles is a bag of food we bought on Sunday. She's on two meds and bland food, which she loves. We're supposed to help her out by supplementing the babies with formula, but they aren't having it. They hate the little bottle, and refuse to drink from it. Otherwise, they are doing great! They are just about double the size they were at birth, and we got weights on them at the vet:

Alice, 7.9 ounces

Bella, 8.4 ounces

Brandy, 7.2 ounces (she was the runt when they were born)

Butterball, 6.2 ounces (on the left...sister Brandy is on the right)

Music 8.4 ounces

Olivia 6.9 ounces (no longer named Nessie as my co-worker may be adopting her, and has become the *slightest bit* attached...)

Rosie 8.2 ounces

All of them have opened their eyes, and their hind legs are getting stronger and stronger every day. Rosie and Music took three "steps" last night. I love watching them wiggle all over the place, it's the cutest thing!

We have fallen in love with all of them. Hubby has told me at least once a day, "I want to keep them all!". I already told him the only way that will happen is if he can find a job that will pay in dog food and vet care. At least we know we'll see most of them often, as four (including Rosie, which we are keeping) are staying in the family.

For now, we are enjoying them for as long as we have them, and are grateful for the unique experience we have been given.

Cutest Doggies Ever.

From top to bottom, Music and Rosie.

Yes, I am one of those pet owners...

A friend updated her FB status today with "doggie clothes are so adorable", and my imagination took off. I can picture Sandy wearing a Santa suit, and the puppies in teeny, tiny elf suits. For New Year's we could dress up the boys in miniature tuxedos and the girls in itty bitty dresses.
I wish I had someone to loan me the above, it would be great to take a holiday picture of Sandy and her brood before they are split up in a few weeks.

Homework time

1. Did you ever see a shiney reindeer?
2. Is it cold outside?
3. When its going to be Christmas?
4. Do you like ice?
5. What is Christmas all about?
6. How many friends do you have?
7. I am old.
8. Get out of my house.
9. I saw a mouse.
10. There are mice under the table.
11. My dog is a girl.
12. He feels fine.

Happy Song

You know what song makes me happy, no matter when or where I hear it? The song from the commercial with the colorful ipods.
That little tune always makes me want to get up and dance, and almost makes me want to go out and get an ipod! (Not much point in that though, since I’ll automatically have one when I get an iphone…whenever that is!)

You know the one:

You have an earworm now, don't you?

Crickets

Hi all, I know it's been quiet...sorry, didn't have much chance for blogging this weekend.

We took Sandy and the puppies to the vet on Friday morning. Everything is great! They gave her a calcium supplement, since she's feeding so many little ones. And she's on puppy food, which will give both her and the babies lots of energy. All seven of them are in a pudgy state, and it's so much fun to watch them wiggle around.

Yesterday, I spent the morning cleaning, and in the afternoon my sister, mom, and grandparents came over and we decorated the tree. Oh, and stared at adorable puppies.

Today, I went to something work-related for an hour, came home and stared at puppies, we ran some errands, stared at puppies some more, did laundry, and stared at puppies, B did his weekend homework, there was some more staring at puppies, and we got ready for the start of a new week. Any idea what our new favorite pasttime is?

A couple of updates

Inspected the puppies today: It's a boy, and a girl, and a girl, and a girl, and a boy, and a girl, and a girl. The two boys have homes already, my grandfather and sis wanted them. Two girls have tentative homes, so that leave two girls needed a new family to love them in a few weeks. We are seriously considering keeping one of the new babies. B already picked her out and named her Rosie!

In non-puppy news, my latest post is up at snackpicks.com. The boys loved helping me make the casserole, and posing for pictures with their creation. Hope you enjoy it!

Homework Time!

Haven't posted one of these in about a month....B's teacher changed the assignment, so now they have to write five "telling" sentences and five "asking" sentences.

1. I scrub myslf when i take a bath.
2. A stunt is when you do something dangerus.
3. Grunt means that you are angre.
4. A runt is a very small animal.
5. A slug is a snall that dosit have a shell.
6. Do you have a brush?
7. What is a hunt?
8. Did you rush to do your work?
9. What is a plug?
10. Can you plese hush?
11. Is December a month? (bonus word)

Happy Birth Day!

Hubby left Sandy outside this morning because he was scheduled to be at work all day today, and we didn't want any little surprises when we got home. Well, we got some surprises anyway...seven, to be exact. That's how many puppies Sandy had this afternoon. We did not know she was pregnant. The vet didn't know either. I guess she was newly knocked up when she found us, and it was too early to tell when we took her to the vet two days later. For the last two weeks, I suspected something was wrong, she was getting way too fat, but she did not have any other pregnant doggy signs. So I figured, "let's wait and see"....

Poor little girl was all by herself, outside, in the rain. Not sure what time she had them.
Hubby initially thought there were four or five, as she found a cushy spot in the backyard to have her brood and some of them wandered off. As we were bringing them inside, two more joined the pack, sniffing around for their mama.

Had he let me name the dog Bella when we found her, I would have named the puppies Edward, Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett, Carlisle, and Esme. For now, they are the Seven Dwarfs, since they are so tiny.

My friend Mary on FB said it best: "Congrats! You found your pup when she needed you most!" I could not agree more. I shudder to think what she might have gone through had she not adopted us.

We've got tentative homes for three, but four need a home. Anyone want a puppy?

Out with the old, in with the new

In order to make room for some of the things the jolly guy dressed in red will be bringing, I've listed a few of the boys' neglected toys online. Considering how expensive toys are these days, I quite enjoy making at least some of my money back. I get all giddy when I see the price go higher and higher.

My only pet peeves about the process are hunting down the right size shipping boxes for the items, and estimating shipping costs. You should have seen the trouble I went through when I sold B's carrier and travel system a few years back...my dad had to construct a big enough box out of three smaller boxes. The shipping cost was almost more than what I sold it for!

Anyway, a little extra cash this holiday season will come in handy...just a couple of weeks after the kids unwrap all their toys on Christmas morning, we've got a couple of birthdays to celebrate.