I CHOOSE JOY....and why you should too!

I've always believed that joy is a choice and I still do. In my opinion, joy and happiness aren't the same thing and you can definitely have one without the other. Happiness doesn't exist in a bad moment....but joy actually can.
Happiness is a state of being..or in other terms...the natural flowing side effect of a good experience. Sooooo.......what determines if the experience is good or not? Well, that comes from each individual persons own definition of what they like or dislike. For example, I dislike snakes, but my husband likes them and can and will pick them up and enjoy holding and looking at them as if he's holding and looking at say.....a kitten. In that moment he's unbelievably happy....me.....not so much. Similarly, I really like the experience of shopping and can literally spend hours wandering through racks and aisles looking for bargains. In that moment I'm euphorically happy....Ben....not even close..he's in chest gripping dread thinking of what I could be spending or even considering spending.
Consider the photo of a person in a bright yellow bathing suit smiling at an under water camera with bubbles coming from their nose for someone that may trigger great memories of a tropical vacation and lots of laughter and adventure......good experience = happiness. For the person sitting next to them however, that exact same photo may trigger horrible memories where they couldn't breathe under water...or fear of the unclear water behind them that could be hiding dangerous things.....bad experience = unhappiness. How about the public announcement of a pregnancy or an engagement? For some those things are wonderful and happy because they've had good experiences, while for others those things can cause deep sadness, feelings of inadequacy, and even depression because they long for things that have yet to be fulfilled. A photo of a loving couple sitting in a romantically lit restaurant staring into each others eyes longingly may make one person's heart go pitter patter with feelings of romance.....while another feels disgust as they look for wedding rings and wonder if they are having an affair. Happiness is not an across the board given....it's subjectively based on our experiences or perceptions.

 Joy, however, well...it's more than an event...it goes deeper than that....it's a little more abstract....it's an essence....an essence of being one way in spite of things being another way....and it usually requires our cooperation.....it's a purposefully made choice. How though do we choose joy? How do we envelope that essence? It starts with us deciding WHERE our joy comes from.....what is our source. I mean dissecting the raw REAL source we draw our definition of joy from. Does our joy come from the fleeting and completely imperfect things this life and other humans have to offer...or does it come from something else? If our definition of joy is based on life circumstances and people....then we've unintentionally and unknowingly tied our definition of joy in with our definition of happiness. If that happens....our joy will always fall short and we will always be on a roller coaster ride based on how our day or our life is going. I don't know about you, but I don't like emotional whiplash.

For us Christians, our definition of joy cannot be tied to our definition of happiness. Instead, it MUST be based on the character traits of who we know and are learning the triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) to be.  

I cannot stress that last comment enough....so I'm going to repeat myself in a slightly different way...

.....our definition of joy MUST ONLY be based on THE CHARACTER TRAITS of GOD.......NOT on a person, circumstance, event, or situation and certainly NOT on a feeling.....not even on how we perceive God SHOULD perform....but on His character traits. 

 Like it or not, there are some things we Jesus folk really need to understand....and we just HAVE to grasp this because it's literally causing way too many Christians to sink in their faith walk because they are walking around miserable, hopeless, bitter and just plain dried out. Weary is one thing....we ALL get battle weary....but to be spiritually mummified is a whole other issue. We're supposed to bring salt and light to the world....not Jesus jerky. I know that may sound funny...but seriously....pay attention here...

1) Humans have free will, which means we and those around us can make horrible choices that are cruel and selfish and downright evil and can affect....well....almost everything. (Free will explained) (i.e. a) people we work with can be jerks b) spouses can lie or say cruel things c) drivers can cut us off d) people can commit heinous crimes etc. etc. etc. )

2) Since the fall of man....we live in a "fallen nature" (imperfect) world that is, ALSO like it or not, subject to the natural laws of science and nature instead of God's perfect laws. ( i.e. a) gravity pulls things down b) germs and lack of sleep can cause us to get sick c) weather patterns can wreak disastrous havoc d) lemon bars, potato chips and fettuccine alfredo make us fat etc. etc. etc.)

To choose to be joyful in the face of adversity and cruelty and trauma is hard....sometimes it feels impossible...but I promise you...it's not. I've been through some really hard things, some traumatic things, some potentially embittering things....many at the hands of people that I loved and trusted....and even now there is a battle that my husband and I are fighting together that could easily be cause to steal our joy. However, through EVERYTHING....even when I'm too wounded or weary to actually talk to God....I go to His Word and let Him speak to me and I feel my joy...my essence of being, restored in the midst of whatever hell I'm tearfully fighting through.
The cooperation portion of the essence is I have to ALLOW myself to BELIEVE that there is hope. I have to ALLOW myself to BELIEVE that God is actually who He says He is. I have to ALLOW myself to BELIEVE that God actually really does love me and doesn't want to hurt me and let me down the way humans have hurt me and let me down. Don't fool yourself either...we all SAY we believe that...and sing the songs and run around like joy filled Polly Pockets when life is grand....but the reality is...when life is horrible we do not function in joy...we function in fear, anger, CONTROL, bitterness, rejection, etc, etc, etc. Choosing to cooperate with joy takes effort....God knows and has always known that. That's why in the Bible He makes a big deal of telling the Israelites to set up stones of remembrance to REMIND themselves of God's character through what He's done for them. He protected them, rescued them, defended them, repeatedly forgave them and gave them another chance, provided for them, rallied them.....SAVED them. In Hebrews 13:8 we are told flat out that Jesus (part of the triune God- Father, Son, Holy Spirit) is the SAME...yesterday, today and FOREVER....so guess what. That means God will STILL protect us, rescue us, defend us, repeatedly forgive us and give us another chance, provide for us, rally us, and has already saved us. So to get the essence of joy? KNOW GOD'S CHARACTER.....His character proves that we are safe in His care...no matter what hell we are currently in....no matter if we understand or not...we don't NEED to understand....we just need to patiently endure.

Hebrews 10:35-36(NLT) So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

Psalm 40:1-3(NLT) I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair,out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. He has given me a new song to sing, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see what he has done and be amazed.They will put their trust in the Lord.

Here are some links to verses to help you learn the character of God and some to help you get that essence of joy going in the face of adversity. ( Click on each reference to read the verse.)

Romans 12:12

Psalm 94:19

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Daniel 3:16-30

Psalm 9:2

Isaiah 61:10

Daniel 6:16-28

2 Kings 6:15-17

Proverbs 17:22

Psalm 34:1-19

Habakkuk 3:17-19

Genesis 22:1-19

Philippians 4:4-9

Psalm 119:111

Malachi 4:2

Isaiah 43:1-7

Isaiah 43:10-21

Romans 5:3-4

Psalm 35:10

1 Peter 1:8-9

Psalm 16:11

1 Timothy 6:7-8

Psalm 119:114

Isaiah 41:8-13

2 Corinthians 12:8-10

Psalm 46:1-3

Jeremiah 29:11

Psalm 34:4

Nehemiah 8:10

Psalm 91

Psalm 116

Romans 12:1-3

Love,
Fran
~JOY ALL WAYS~

Song of the Season

As I write this I'm sitting near an open window and can hear the beautiful sound of a mockingbird singing from the top of a giant fir tree across the street. He's soooo excited and vibrant as he announces to the entire neighborhood that he's there. I love the sounds of birds singing, especially mocking birds. Suddenly a wealth of memories flood my heart and mind. Chilly Sunday mornings at my grandmother's house eating cheese toast and getting ready for church. Crisp Saturday mornings driving along with my mom and patrolling tag sales. School mornings standing in front of our kitchen window with the sun streaming in through the branches of a neighbors tree and closing my eyes in the warmth. All of those memories have one thing in common for me....the ever present sound of bird songs.  To me they represent morning and life for a new day.

 I'm especially focused on savoring every single note today because it will only be a few more weeks and then that sound will be gone for months. Winters in Connecticut can certainly be beautiful to look at when the snow and ice come...but the only nature sound that will fill the air will be the stark and lonely sounds of crows and seagulls and I will dearly miss the happy little songs of the warmer weather. Unfortunately it's just a simple side affect of the changing seasons. I realize however, that if it weren't for that gaping span of time without it..I wouldn't properly appreciate when they return.


Just like anything else in life really. I used to love Chinese food....until I worked across the street from a restaurant and ate it every day for almost a year. Suddenly I didn't feel the same about it...the appreciation was gone. Last Winter I couldn't wait for the warm weather of Summer....until the sweltering heat and humidity hit me and made me long for cooler days. Whether it's a season of weather or a season of life....change is good and variety is essential...for many reasons. It makes us appreciate things more and realize the value each brings. So today Ime going to appreciate the birds singing....and tomorrow I will do my best to appreciate something else current to the day.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 & 11 (NLT)

¹ For everything there is a season,
      a time for every activity under heaven.
 ² A time to be born and a time to die.
      A time to plant and a time to harvest.
 ³ A time to kill and a time to heal.
      A time to tear down and a time to build up.
 ⁴ A time to cry and a time to laugh.
      A time to grieve and a time to dance.
 ⁵ A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
      A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
 ⁶ A time to search and a time to quit searching.
      A time to keep and a time to throw away.
 ⁷ A time to tear and a time to mend.
      A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
 ⁸ A time to love and a time to hate.
      A time for war and a time for peace.   

¹¹ Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. 

 

What are you appreciating today?

The Dreaded C word!

So it's that time again...the time when we go through the past year and assess all the things that we need to work on improving in the year to come.  Commonly called, making new year resolutions.  A few years ago I decided to stop calling them resolutions, instead I commit to making better choices and I don't announce to anyone what those choices were unless I manage to accomplish it by the end of the year.  Why do I do it that way? EASY 
Have you ever noticed that when you publicly air a goal or resolution a long series of events begin to present themselves that are aimed solely at tanking said goal or resolution? If that weren't the case why do people EVERY single year re-resolve to lose weight and eat healthy, stop smoking, meet their soulmate, do less work and more traveling and on and on. It's as if all the disgruntled resolutions and their resolution makers have a vendetta against the NEW resolutions and their makers and so they go on a mission to find them out and devise ways to cause them to fail. I'm tired of making resolutions that I don't keep...it's not as if it bolsters me towards success in the year to come, instead it's like taking a dive into a swimming pool with a lead weight attached to your ankle. Some of you can relate, I'm sure. Doesn't exactly inspire victory or success does it? Not even close.

Sooooooooo.......this past year I made a choice to start getting more organized and de-cluttering. One I have made in years past and never seemed to be able to completely accomplish. Now for all of you neat-nicks out there this is a goal that comes as easy as breathing, for those of us who are, shall we say, organizationally challenged however, it's a depressing death sentance. Now, the complete irony in this for myself is that I am actually pretty OCD about certain things. I love oranization and I love to have a place for everything and everything in it's place. My achiles heal however is that while I'm great at tactical organization projects and LOVE a challenge....the art of maintaining that organization has always elluded me....until this year however.
The year started out pretty much the same regarding my oh so familiar goal, but somewhere around July I had an epiphany. 
At that point I had already been working at sprout central for several months where every Friday we have to do a major cleaning of the entire facility. When I first started working there even the thought of having to do a deep cleaning in ONE DAY of an entire building that had been attacked by drooling, puking, pooping, dirt wallowing, snot wielding children all week was impossible to comprehend. However with teamwork we were all able to take on certain duties and even amidst caring for the children, by the end of the day the work was done. Pretty soon I had been able to get into the routine with the rest of the girls and some days we were even done by the end of naptime. The reason it worked however wasn't just people randomly doing things, it was because we had a plan, a list. So finally I got the idea to bring that list home and try implementing it. Well, it took alittle tweaking since we don't have kids..just a dog. Also I had to give myself some room and instead of expecting it to be done in a day I gave myself a week. With our crazy schedule that would be the only way I could be successful at it and not lose heart. The result? It worked!!
Sooooooo....in an effort to reach out to all those others who are struggling to scratch this goal off their resolution list, here is the basic checklist I used. As you complete a task, check it off and remember in most cases each thing only needs to be done once a week. You may have to tweak it to suit the rooms of your own house, but the basics of each room are the same. Also, for clarity sake, the term "de-clutter" simply means those shoes thrown all over the living room floor should be put away and the purse and stack of bills tossed on the kitchen table should also be put away where they belong. If they don't have a place don't get distracted by trying to do it now. Make a list of things you need to create a home for or throw away and come back to them later.
Now...here are the basic items that every room will require. Make a list of every room in your home and put these items in the section for each room.

• sweep/mop/vacuum
• wipe down windowsills
• de-clutter
• empty trash bins
• wipe down tabletops and surfaces*
• dust

Specialized items, these are the things that are only in certain rooms....add those that apply to every room where they are needed.

• wash throw rugs
• change bed linens
• change hand towels
• clean pet feeding areas
• water plants

Now....if you notice I put an asterisk next to the line that said "wipe down tabletops and surfaces". That's because there are a lot of things that fall under that catergory. You may only need that general item or if you're like me you may need a more detailed breakdown of the term "surfaces" to ensure you don't forget something. So for those of you, here you go.

• mirrors
• counters
• toilet bowls and tanks
• sink
• tub
• refrigerator (inside and out)
• microwave (inside and out)
• stovetop and oven door
• photos and picture frames
• televisions
• computers
• stereo systems
• large and small appliances
• wall clocks and wall hangings

So that's it, pretty basic really. By breaking down the rooms in this manner it's amazing how much easier it is to accomplish the seemingly impossible. Kind of like that old adage about how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Now, the REALLY good news? The more weeks you go through your list the faster it will go each week and the easier it will get. So don't get disheartened the first few weeks. Give it about 6 weeks to really hit yor groove and see how long it will take you to complete each item on your list in a week.
Hope it works for you as well as it did for me and hope you can forever check off this item from your resolution list!
Happy Cleaning! :)

The Week In Review

WOW...what a phenomenal week! So let me catch you up to speed with a quick rundown of the highlights.

• We spotted two hot air balloons floating over our downtown area so we caught up with them and as Ben drove underneath I took some great shots.
• I finally got my CPR and first Aid certifications in so now I can save somebody's life and not get sued..oh yeah!! Only took a month and a half after the class to get it...INSANE!!!
  
• My father in law went into and came out of the hospital yet again. Thankfully he is ok again.
• We had a meeting with the hospital in regards to my mother n law passing away. We finally got our chance to confront all of the department heads and tell them our concerns about care and lack thereof. They seemed to listen...so that was good...plus we just got to vent which we needed.
• We had a new sprout arrive at Sprout Central....a real cutie....he is the foster child of some friends and we kind of expected the worst regarding behavioral issues, but so far he has been a pleasure. Except at nap time however, but he's getting better so pretty soon he should be fine.
• I tried some new soup starter kits from Whole Foods and they were AMAZING!!! Can I just tell you how much I love that store. If you have one near you and have never tried them....you really must go....they are a bit more pricey on some things...but the quality you get is WELL worth it!
• I had my first day of wishing I could just go home from Sprout Central.....I swear the kids were all wired to meltdown at the exact same times that day.....I wanted to pull my hair out...lol. It's all good now though.
• We went sledding with the kids, well....I didn't sled down the hill...I let Amber and Becky do that....I just took the pictures.
• Ben and I went to our friend's John and Melissa's for a game night last night. THAT was fun....they have tons of games that I've never heard of, but are really cool. This was one of them.
  

• Sargie got himself trapped inside the recliner again. LOL...that was tonight....he has a habit of crawling inside the underneath of recliner when I have the footrest up and this time when I got up and closed the footrest he didn't have time to get out. So this time I decided to snap a picture of him before I let him out. LOL

So I think that's pretty much it for the week in review. I'm thinking that I'm going to take more daily pics though to include in the blog. I think it will add some fun to it.
Let me know what you think! :)

Doctors, Sprouts and Ice

So I decided to take the weekend off from blogging....not so much by intentional choice as much as I was just exhausted and decided to sleep instead of my usual 10-midnight writing block. Sooooooooooooooo let me catch you up. Saturday we had a snowstorm in the afternoon so there was a parking ban in our city, which meant we didn't have our normal street ministry. So that was actually nice....we got some much needed rest and ran a couple of errands. Then that night Lori came over and in the expectation of all of us possibly having no church the next morning she spent the night so we could chit chat without worrying about the weather and catch up. Since her mom died and Momchu died, we just haven't been able to connect.
So I had gotten some gourmet fresh raviolis from Whole Foods and expected to have a really nice Italian dinner. Hmmmmm......so much for that. What I failed to notice was that the filling included goat cheese! I HATE goat cheese.....ughhhhh....nasty flavor....it tastes like the smell of a petting zoo!!! No amount of sauce, no amount of Parmesan cheese..or anything else could kill that nasty flavor. Both Lori and myself gulped them down with as few bites as possible and as quickly as possible so we had to taste them as LITTLE as possible. LOL
Meanwhile,both of our churches are die hards that rarely cancel a service soooooo at 5 the next morning Ben and I woke up and went out to shovel the driveway and clean the cars. By the time we were done we had just enough time to run in, get cleaned up and dressed and wake Lori up to get ready. OY!!
Sunday was great, as usual....and I was sooooooooooo psyched to have a couple of my friends help me in the kitchen. Yesterday afternoon was relaxed and wonderful...Ben and I watched a movie and just enjoyed each other's company.
Monday being back with the kids and my co-workers was so nice. Amber wanted to make banana pudding with the kids so she walked them through each step and I took pictures of them all. LOL...soooooo cute! Today was just as good.....only today we made English muffin pizzas with them. They had fun. We also took the whole little sprout herd to the park to go sledding. They had a BLAST.
Life at home yesterday and today has been fun too. It's been so cold and icy that simple things like even taking Sargie to go potty has been an adventure in humor. Imagine a little dog that #1 can't find a scent to mark his usual tinkle zone and #2 when he does finally find a spot, attempting to get the necessary traction to pee is almost impossible. Not to mention when we first step outside the step is a sheet of ice and no matter how many times he slips and falls he still hasn't learned to pace himself going out the door. So every time he hits the ground running..he LITERALLY hits the ground. All four feet flying and tail spinning like some out of control rudder..there he goes....ZZZZZZIP...BOOM....right off the step. LOL.
Let's see..what else.....oh yeah, last night we finally got the meeting with the hospital to discuss our concerns about Momchu's passing. You could tell they were trying to do damage control,and you could tell they were defensive....and the one Dr that was the thorn in our side was there too. We did well...all three of us vented our frustrations, our anger, our concerns and said all the things we have been chomping at the bit to say since she first went into the hospital there. Then at one point I had my chance to finally call this doctor out on the carpet for cold and callous and god-complex things he had done. I will tell you I handled it very tactfully..I didn't swear..I didn't rant and rave and didn't raise my voice. However, with every ounce of tact and boldness in me, I called him on every single thing that I felt needed to be addressed. The silence in the room and the squirming body language of the other hospital staffers made it an interesting confrontation... I refused to back down and every lawyer,military man and medical staffer in my own family would have been proud as I drew on every single one of them to deftly defend my disgust at him, and by the time I was done........well.......I had clearly made my point.
Sigh....I firmly believe that we did NOT lose Momchu for nothing...and I know that if we can make this hospital safer, and more attentive to it's patients and their right to be treated like human beings....then it will have been worth it. That alone takes the sting out of losing her. God is good!!

Rise and Shine!!!

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH myyyyyyyyyyy.........this day got started off with a bang...LOL.
So I made the new schedule for this month at work and put myself on this mornign to open at 6:15. No problem....we set the alarm to get up at 4 to give us plenty of time to get ready etc. Well.....the very last thing that Ben said to me before we went to sleep last night, was " Wow....we have to get up in like 4 hours.." Now...he WAS exaggerating....we actually had close to 6 hours before we had to get up....but my tired brain locked onto "4 hours" as I drifted off to sleep.
SOOOOOOOOOO...........4 hours later..almost to the minute....I woke up. BEing half asleep and also concerned with being hyper vigilant that I not miss the alarm and be late to work, I sat up and looked at the alarm clock. Well....being bleary eyed and half asleep for some reason I could have sworn the clock read "7:47". All of a sudden I leapt out of bed like I had been shot from a cannon and promptly began freaking out. I jolted Benny and the mini marine out of their sound sleep with cries of, "OH NO, OH NO,OH NO!!!! WE OVERSLEPT!!! I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AT WORK ALMOST 2 HOURS AGO!!!!!"
Ben flew out of bed and apologized repeatedly for somehow sleeping through the alarm as he ran through the house getting ready to get dressed. Meanwhile all I could do was picture my poor co-worker Devon waiting at the door, in the cold, with one of our kids and his mom....waiting on me! I rushed to the phone and called her cell phone. What met my ears only made things worse! SHE was still sleeping too!!!! " DEVON!!!! OH MY GOSH!!! WE OVERSLEPT...WE WERE BOTH SUPPOSED TO BE AT WORK ALMOST TWO HOURS AGO!!!!"
She repeatedly asked me sleepily, "wait...what???" and I repeated my self several times until finally she said to me.......(wait for it..) ............."Fran......noooooooo............it's 2 in the morning."
"What?"
"Fran....it's only 2:49 in the morning.."
"Wait.....WHAT??????"
"Oh my Gosh Fran...it's only 2:49 in the morning...(insert light groggy laughter)"
....silence.....
"Nooooooo.......(I leaned over and looked at the clock on the microwave behind me and confirmed the horrible truth) ......noooo.........(insert more light groggy laughing fromthe other side of the phone) .............OHHHHHHHHHH MYYYYYYYYYYY GOSH!!!!!!!!!! I did NOT just do that!!! OHHHHH my GOSHHHHH!!!! I am soooooooo SORRY!!! I cannot believe I.....WHAT was I thinking?!?!?!?!? OHHHHHHHHH MYYYYYYYYYY GOSH!!!!! The two looked like a 7!!! I can't believe I just did that....oh my.....Oh nooooooooo....are you going to be able to go back to sleep?!?!?!?!"
"yeah...(laughing) ...oh my GOSH Fran!!!"
" Oh my Gosh, Dev I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO SORRRYYY!!!!!"
Sooooo, yeah that was pretty much where the conversation ended and then I promptly notified Ben and Sargie of my HUGE error....and both filtered back into the bedroom as if the wave of adrenaline had just dropped off and they were suddenly fully aware of jst how tired they really were.
LOL......so YEAH...THAT was how my day started....then when I REALLY DID get up at 4, got ready and went to work....I wa in such a tizzy afterall that I hadn't checked the news to notice that we had a 90 minute delay.....so I didn't have to be to work until 8 anyway....sigh.....on top of which I had to work a 12 hour shift today ANYWAY....LOL.....
Ohhhhhhhhh my......so it was a comical day to say the least. I can't help but laugh...even now my eyes are tearing up and making it hard to type because I'm laughing so hard. LOL.Ya know...I know people that if this had happened to them, they would be foul and irritated all day long...but for what? Stuff happens...find the good and humor in it... Thank God, I'm alive and have a job and friends etc etc etc....it adds interest to an otherwise mild day. LOL....life is good....and now I'm going to bed to catch up on some sleep! LOL

Fiesta, Cuddles and Evil Aunt Mary

Oh my gosh....Praise God what ANOTHER awesome day!!! Me and the girls actually treated ourselves to a little Mexican feast for lunch today in celebration of being back at work. Yeah, yo heard me....we can't help it...we LOVE it at our little Sprout Central!! So we found a tiny hole in the wall place in downtown that was completely authentic...to the point that I almost needed a translator to place the order. LOL. The food was really good though....and the portions were HUGE. I think we'll definitely be going back. Plus as Amber and I waited for them to prepare our order the waitress actually gave us free dessert that she had made herself. It was good...and a bit unique. It was a rum raisin cake with flan on top. I liked it, but poor Amber didn't....so I told her to wrap it in her napkin to throw out. LOL.
It was sooooooo nice to be back with the kids though....they are just such a blessing. They make us laugh and you can't help but feel like a superhero when they run to you to tie their shoe laces, fix a broken toy or hug away their fears and tears. My favorite (yes I freely admit I have a favorite), I'll call him "Tank" (because he's built like a little tank...I fully expect to see him on the NFL gridiron someday) ....anyway.....my pitiful little Tank wasn't feeling well today. His usual bubbly,smiling self with his bright eyes and million dollar smile was trying his best to be perky as usual, but he just wanted to be cuddled and this child who is always smiling at me, just wanted to cry. SIGH...I felt so bad....my poor little baby.....so Amber and I took turns cuddling him and finally put him down for a nap. Thankfully he slept well and by the time he got up three hours later....he was feeling much better. YEAH!!!! :)
So anyway, after work we went and spent a couple of hours with Mike, chatting and just visiting. That was nice....I have really good brother in laws.....actually....all of my in laws are wonderful....with the exception of Aunt Mary in Manhattan...MMMMMM.....that's another story for another blog day. LOL...oh well...according to the rest of the family she doesn't like ANYBODY...so no big loss there.....LOL.
Anyway.....it was a good day....after we got home we had some errands to run so we took Sargie for a car ride and grabbed some fast food for dinner. It may not sound like much, but I am soooooo thankful for all the little details in my life....I'm soooooo blessed beyond belief. God's awesome!!!
Night all!

Things will be fine in 2009!!!

It’s a new year…and that means new adventures in life. I’m excited….2008 certainly brought me many adventures…..some happy, some sad….but all brought about changes in my life that I wouldn’t trade for anything. So before I go forward let me recap the past month and a half to fill you in on why I haven’t blogged since mid November.

So at my last update my mother in law had suffered a stroke and after a bleak initial diagnosis, she began to turn around. We continued to see marked progress in her and the nurses in the ICU were WONDERFUL with her. She improved so well in fact, that she finally was well enough to be moved to a regular room on one of the hospital floors. We thought that would be a good thing, instead however that is when all of the problems began. What followed were three weeks of emotionally and physically draining hell.

Without going into overwhelming detail….in a nutshell we encountered multiple incidents of neglect (so bad in fact that at one point she contracted pneumonia and had to be sent back to ICU for a week), false orders (DNR), and constant phone calls from hospital staff telling us she wasn’t improving (in direct contradiction to what we saw when we were there with her) and trying to get us to let her die. Things got so bad we had to bring in a 24 hour private duty nurse to watch her and make sure she was getting proper care. Over time Momchu began to get tired….she overheard our conversations with the staff, chewing them out for lack of proper care etc and I think she was as weary as we were. She was fully aware of her surroundings, and was as interactive with us as always (even though she was tired physically and her speech was still impaired heavily) and although we had to make it a guessing game to talk to her, she communicated quite well.. So one night the three of us, Ben, Mike and me all hung out in her room for a few hours and watched some movies with her. She was bubbly and in good spirits, blowing kisses and such.

Two days later she was gone. They said it was brought on by her pulling out her oxygen line….but I had personally put on the little padded boxing gloves to prevent her from doing that and so I know they were tight and there was no physical way she could have done that without help. Not to mention the fact that they were supposed to be checking her hourly, and they admitted that they hadn’t found her until the morning and by then her oxygen levels were so low that she couldn’t fight her way back.

It would have been really easy to get sucked into the rage of the tragedy….and stay there…..but as you know, I ALWAYS know God places a scarlet thread of good in every situation…no matter how deeply imbedded. This one happened to show up relatively early. After years of unsuccessfully trying to contact my brother in law who had, for various personal reasons, removed himself from the family, Ben hopped onto my Facebook account and sent him an email. By that night, he had contacted us and a few days later I got to meet him for the first time at her wake. By the after funeral luncheon the next day I realized how happy I was to have him back in the family. He has the same wack job sense of humor that Ben and Mike have and he likes hot peppers as much as Ben too. That one still makes me shake my head! LOL.

Soooooooo……..as horrible as it was to lose mom, it was all worth it in the end because it brought my brother in law back to the family when possibly nothing else would have.

Meanwhile….during the drama with Momchu, Tatu, my father in law, was in the hospital twice during that time. Long story….but after a brief stint in a nursing home for rehab, he is fine now and thankfully there is no more news to report regarding him. My parents FINALLY finalized their divorce….something that was LONG overdue and had the same relieving effect as setting a broken arm after it had been left to dangle uselessly and painfully for almost 10 years. I was actually in court with my mother helping her fight her case when the phone call for Momchu came in. Thankfully I didn’t listen to the voicemail until we had recessed for lunch.

Work at Sprout Central has been soooooooo much more than I ever imagined. I can honestly say I have not enjoyed a job this much, in years……perhaps ever. From coming up with fun and creative crafts for them to make, to doling out snacks and cheering them on like a maniac when they go potty, I am loving every minute of it. My co-workers are amazing and fun like a family and the kids….ohhhhhhhh the kids. Some are exasperating…..but the vast majority are a blast. WHERE has this job BEEN my whole life???? On that note however, I REALLY must insert a PRAISE GOD here. When I left my job at the deathstar, my last day was ten years almost to the day that I was hired. When they mailed me my final paycheck ( I left mid pay period) we were shocked at the huge dollar amount of the check . It was FAR larger than it should have been, in fact it was the amount of three of my normal paychecks with them. Upon some research I realized that since I had worked a few days past my original hire date I technically qualified for all of the vacation time I would have had to use for the year. Instead of writing it off, they GAVE it to me in one massive payout!!! Something I had never imagined or planned or dreamed of. I couldn’t help but think that after all the years of garbage I had endured there and the fact that I refused to be cruel or callous upon my exit (even though my friends and coworkers encouraged me to leave the same nasty way the company treated me, and fleshly speaking they would have deserved it), but to honor my God and my faith, and I even TOLD my coworkers that in my last weeks there, God chose to bless me because of that. Something I was and still am, sooooooo thankful for. God ROCKS!!!

Sargie is doing well. He has decided that he loves to have his teeth brushed and every time I try to brush my own he wedges his way between me and the sink whining and crying for me to do his. LOL. He also experienced his first snow last week. LOL…oohhhhhhhhhh my goodness, what a nut. He LOVED it and repeatedly asked to go outside again and again so he could snowplow with his nose, run, jump, hop and roll in the snow. We took him to the home of some family friends for dinner one night where he played endlessly with their two little girl mini American Eskimo dogs. One of which was totally enamored with him…we joked that she had a crush on him…since he IS an older man (she was only 7 months old). LOL.

Our Christmas was quiet….we just didn’t feel like celebrating this year, and didn’t even exchange gifts. Sargie is the only one that lost out on that deal…pitiful boy….but doting mom and dad will buy him plenty of gifts later. Instead, Christmas day we slept most of the day away and watched TV.

I know this year is going to be a good one though, 2008 proved it to me…..no bad thing ever happens without being followed by a God thing…a GOOD thing. So, happy new year to all of you and lets go forward with excitement and anticipation for all the great adventures this year holds!!!

Update on life

Wow.........it's been a long two weeks or week and a half...or however long.....the days are starting to run together to be honest. A LOT has happened, but the two biggest things are my dear mother in law (nicknamed Momchu) had a stroke a week and a half ago....on the night of the 6th (yeah we never did get to the MC birthday ball...or even our hotel suite, but that's ok) . We were told that night that she wouldn't make it and even if she did....that her quality of life would be so poor that we should let her go just to spare her. Of course we all love her so even the thought of doing such a thing was just unthinkable......so we prayed....we told God we were ok with whatever He decided to do with her, but that we were asking for a miracle. Within an hour we began to see a turn around and almost all signs of paralysis began to fade with a restoration of movement and basic motor skills. She still has a long way to go, but she is alert, communicative and with proper rehab will make a wonderful recovery.
The second thing that happened is I started my new job (instead of the nickname of Deathstar like my last job, the new nickname for my job will be Sprout Central) and I LOVE it!!! The kids are great, a few behavioral quirks here and there....but overall...they are AWESOME!! Besides.....after 9 years of working at the deathstar.....nothing can phase me. LOL. So I am enjoying everything from wiping noses, changing diapers and getting the bottoms of my shoes sticky from spilled juice......to dancing around like a maniac, walking children to the park on a rope leash and reading the same page in a storybook 20 times because it has the picture of a snowman on it. LOL. I am really enjoying it too....I'm not just saying it either....I'm REALLY having a BLAST!!! Plus the other teachers are soooooo great to work with...it's making the whole process fun. I think the worst thing I've had to deal with so far was sitting on a dried and crusty booger. Yeah that was pretty nasty.....but other than that....no complaints. LOL.
So that's the 411 for now.....it's not every detail...but at least it catches you up on my last two weeks so I can start fresh with more amusing entries.

Riding Off Into the Sunset

So the time has come......my tenure at the deathstar has finally ended. After 9 years here, as of November 11th, I will finally be free. Hard to believe......but it's definitely long overdue. I still refuse to go into a long rant about how they've wronged me or whine about things that are just "so unfair"....it just doesn't serve any purpose...and for that matter I really don't want to look back on my blog and have to read about it.
The fact of the matter is, 9 years ago I loved it here....I planned to retire here....and the fact that my sweet hubby and I have been able to enjoy working together(only about 20 feet away from each other) for so long has been AWESOME! I will truly miss the commute in with him, the last minute kiss and I love yous before getting out of the car in the mornings and being able to go to lunch together everyday. Not to mention the occasional love notes tossed onto each other's desk as you quickly walk past them.
Over time though, things within the company changed, some good.....some not so good...and I have truly learned the intrinsic value in having supervisors who are not afraid to discipline employees when needed, because when unacceptable behaviour is left unchecked.....it makes life difficult for all.
So I have been looking for a long time for something better. I've gotten lots of offers and some were very good...but they just weren't where I wanted to be, or doing what I wanted to do. So I held out. Then finally last year something opened on the horizon that i just KNEW I wanted to be a part of. So I tossed my hat into the ring and due to circumstances...it just wasn't time yet. so I waited.....and every time that door popped up again I tested the water to see if it would work. Always the answer was a resounding, "not yet" .....**sigh**.....that was not easy, but I'm a big believer in the fact that "The right thing at the wrong time, equals the wrong thing" so I refused to try and MAKE it fit....it just wouldn't have been good at all......for anyone involved.
So I waited more.....then it happened....I checked in again, got a no and patiently set it down prepared to wait more....when out of the blue, a week or so later, "BAM".
My gosh......to say I was in tears of joy is a major understatement! Euphoric shock is more like it.

So, it will be a complete career change (THANK YOU LORD)....and I'll miss seeing my sweet Benny during the day....but I am soooo looking forward to the change and the new adventure this will bring. ***sigh***.....life is good.

Is There Such a Thing as Cyber Marital Counseling?

I saw the following news article come across the A/P wires Friday and decided this would be a nice piece of brevity to interject right about here……

Online divorcee jailed after killing virtual hubby
By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press

TOKYO: A 43-year-old Japanese woman whose sudden divorce in a virtual game world made her so angry that she killed her online husband's digital persona has been arrested on suspicion of hacking, police said Thursday.
The woman, who is jailed on suspicion of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating electronic data, used his identification and password to log onto popular interactive game "Maple Story" to carry out the virtual murder in mid-May, a police official in northern Sapporo said on condition of anonymity, citing department policy.
"I was suddenly divorced, without a word of warning. That made me so angry," the official quoted her as telling investigators and admitting the allegations. The woman had not plotted any revenge in the real world, the official said. She has not yet been formally charged, but if convicted could face a prison term of up to five years or a fine up to $5,000.
Players in "Maple Story" raise and manipulate digital images called "avatars" that represent themselves, while engaging in relationships, social activities and fighting against monsters and other obstacles. The woman used login information she got from the 33-year-old office worker when their characters were happily married, and killed the character. The man complained to police when he discovered that his beloved online avatar was dead.
Soooooooooo…………….NOWWWW back to life, back to reality……..(and yes, that was a TRUE news story released by the AP Friday)
Am I the only one that finds that entire news story disturbing? I mean REALLY??? I can’t decide which bothers me more, the fact that this chic lost ALL touch with reality and decided that she “needed” to off this guys AVATAR,(heaven forbid his little pixilated character remarry some little gigabyte tart! LOL) or the fact that this guy was so attached to his cyber self that he needed to go to the actual human police to report the “murder”. Then again it could be the fact that these two were so absorbed in an internet GAME…..G-A-M-E…..GAME…..that they actually thought these two responses were NORMAL!!! Wackos!

If they can’t handle marriage in a cartoon computer world without going over the edge, when they don’t have to deal with dirty laundry, clogged toilets, smelly sneakers, lawns to mow, and no budgets to try and maintain, how will they EVER handle the real thing?

Real life may not be as neatly manicured as a cyber world, but REALLY???? When do we draw the line between harmless fun and internet networking and losing touch with ALL reality?

Dog Burritos, Car Keys and Fish

Ok, so this weekend I kept seeing a pervading theme developing around me…..and actually even into this morning too. One of BEING a friend and helping others when they need it and the intrinsic value of HAVING friends to help when you need it…..and the really cool thing is that I got to see it from three viewpoints…..the doer, the receiver and the observer.

So it all started late Saturday night. I was talking to a dear friend of mine who is going through a really hard time and towards the end of the conversation she mentioned to me that her family (her siblings and elder relatives) had all decided that evening at the dinner table that family is everything…because essentially friends will just stab you in the back. Now, my friend doesn’t feel that way at all but no matter how much she has tried to sway her family they just won’t budge…to them, blood is everything and the ONLY thing. (Visions of countless mafia movies filled my mind…lol) So this got me thinking….and sooooo the chain of events began……

Event #1) Yo Quiero Taco Bell: As this friend was sharing her family’s views on friendship with me, I heard a bark coming from our bedroom. Now yet another quirk that the boy has is he LOVES to attack his toys. He will carry them into the bedroom, jump on the bed, fling the toy into the air, let it land and then pounce on it and bark at it as if it’s going to bark back. We’ve gotten used to this nightly routine of his so most of the time Ben and I just tune it out. So when I heard that bark I just assumed this is what he was doing….even though it did sound a bit muffled. A minute or so passed and then another muffled bark. Again, I didn’t think anything of it because it’s become so normal to hear Sarge do this. So I continued with my conversation, but I could hear Ben get up from his chair in the office and go into the bedroom to check on the him. I heard him saying something to him, but couldn’t hear what it was and a moment later I heard Sarge running down the hall and looked up just as he bounded into the living room towards me. Then I saw Ben standing in the doorway, red from laughter. “Would you like to know what your son just did?” he asked me…. I KNEW this was going to be good so I said yes, and as he tried to hold back his laughter, Ben told me why Sarge had sounded muffled when he barked. On our bed, we have several layers of covering, a top sheet, a cotton blanket, a fleece blanket, a goose down duvet, and a regular bedspread. Lately, the boy has discovered how fun it is to burrow under all the layers of covers and zip around like a mole underground. Well apparently, that’s what he had decided to do, however this time he had gotten so excited that he had tangled himself up in the fleece and in trying to get loose had in fact wrapped himself up tighter like a little doggie burrito…(gives new meaning to the Taco Bell dog…lol). So when Daddy Ben had gone in to see what Sarge was doing all he could see was a whimpering, wriggling lump under the many layers of covers. The pitiful furball was completely helpless and Ben had to come to his rescue….

Event#2) Fish Sandwich: Sunday’s have simultaneously become my most fulfilling yet most exhausting day of the week. Without going into a long self-absorbed brag list of what I do, let’s just say I’m VERY busy with a new undertaking at church. Now I love this new project, more than I ever dreamt I would to be completely honest…but I LOVE it! So when I get to church on Sunday mornings it’s pretty early and I hit the ground running. By about 11 I’m still going strong, but I’m beginning to slow down a little. When 1 o’clock comes around however I’m starting to feel the exhaustion. Now I know in time, once I build up my volunteer base, things will get significantly easier, and the load will become much lighter…until then however, it’s just me and another woman closing up shop and cleaning when everyone else is gone for the day. Thankfully we get along very well….it makes the job much easier when you enjoy the person you are working with. Yesterday however, she had to be somewhere and had to leave early. She felt bad and kept making herself feel guilty and I kept telling her not to worry about it. “Loaves and fishes” I kept saying. I’ve seen it happen too many times out at the street ministry we work at. When all the volunteers have to be somewhere and you’re operating on a skeleton crew…out of the blue, a group of volunteers will show up to help. So I knew somehow it would be ok, but even it if it ended up being just me and taking a lot longer I wasn’t going to make myself miserable by complaining. So we went along doing as many of our chores as possible before she had to leave. Then just as she had to go, a man walked up and asked me if I needed help. I told him I would very much appreciate any help he could offer if he had time. He said ok, immediately went out, and came back a few minutes later with his son in tow. Not only was he going to help me, but so was his son, his daughter and his wife! WOW!!! I was practically in tears…I was soooo thankful. Then, another couple that are in charge of another ministry at the church also came in to help me… just spontaneously decided to help. LOL….it was awesome! It was a total “loaves and fishes” moment complete with so much extra help that I didn’t know what to do with it.

Event #3) Buzzed: So normally Ben and I will take Sunday evenings off instead of going to the evening service, because it’s the only rest we really get during the week. Last night however it was our turn to help with baptisms so we went and had a blast, and I got to take pictures of the people before, during and after they got baptized….it was really fun. Well, midway through the service the cell phone rang. After feverishly rushing to turn it off (in my defense we always leave it in the car which is why I wasn’t used to turning it off before service…lol) I looked to see who called and it was my mom and brother. I thought it was a bit odd for them to call on a Sunday on the cell phone and hoped it didn’t mean there was an emergency. I decided to wait until after service to call back though and dropped it back in my purse. Then about 20 minutes later it rang again (in silent mode…don’t give me that look…lol), so by this point I knew something was wrong. I got up and called my brother back. Sure enough, mom had gone to the grocery store across town and accidently locked the keys in the car, he didn’t have a way to get to her with his key and we had the spare. Sooooooo…..after service was over and we had a couple more spontaneous baptisms, helped clean up and get everything settled, we headed out to help mom.

Event # 4) Nothing is Impossible: So first thing this morning I came into work and there was no heat…..ohhhhhhhhh…joy. LOL. I decided not to complain and just be thankful that for some odd reason I had decided to wear my ski jacket to work instead of my lighter Fall jacket. THANK GOD!! About an hour into the morning one of my friends here at work came over to say good morning and she looked about ready to cry. She suddenly opened up and asked me to pray for a family member….a potentially serious need. So I told her of course I would and gave her as many encouraging words as I could at the moment and told her to never lose hope….that I would stand with her and pray for a miracle. So we are…..

After all of those things is when I began to think about what my friend’s family had said about friendship. Yes, it’s nice to be close to your family…and it’s GOOD to be close to your family…but you need outside friends too. If you seclude yourself into a cluster of family only and nobody else just because it’s “safe”…YOUR entire life suffers as well as those that would have benefitted by having you as a friend. I remember a couple of years ago reading a VERY interesting article about a science study going on in England. It’s called The Eden Project. What it is, is an absolutely Fascinating GIANT domed ecosystem. I highly recommend you read up on it…very interesting stuff. ANYWAY….early on they discovered that the trees grown inside were large and beautiful but they weren’t as strong as trees outside of the dome. WHY? Simple, they hadn’t been exposed to the elements……they had been sheltered. The elements of driving rain, wind, extreme heat, extreme cold…though temporarily unpleasant and potentially deadly for sustained amounts of time…temper the trees with strength. Life is like that too…and so are friends. Sometimes friends will hurt us, sometimes people that call themselves friends, aren’t really friends at all….I’ve had my share of those too, sometimes family will hurt us when they are supposed to be our biggest support. Regardless…good or bad, sometimes we just can’t do it alone and we need people to reach out to us and lend us a hand and vice versa. The more we reach out to others in their time of need, the more they will reach out to us in our own time of need.

Ecclesiastes 4:9 (NLT)

9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. 10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.

Boys Will Be Boys

Every boy needs a fort and apparently, boys of the K-9 variety are no different. If you haven’t noticed by now, our little fluff boy is very quirky….in a good way….and a VERY entertaining way. I know he thinks he’s human……and the way we pamper him, talk to him and take him everywhere possible…..well…..I’m not going to be the one to tell him he isn’t. LOL.

So ever since we got Sargie he follows us EVERYWHERE, he feels the need to be with us no matter where we are. Even when he is sooooo exhausted from a long day of playing, car rides or various other adventures…he simply cannot let us out of his sight. He will wake up out of a dead sleep and get up to follow you only to collapse on the floor of whatever room you’re in, then lead the way back when you’re done. If Ben is sitting at his computer in the office and I’m sitting in the living room on the laptop, Sarge will position himself in the kitchen doorway so he can see us both at the same time. There is however one exception that we have discovered.

In the guest bedroom, I have an old antique bed that sits very high off the floor in the far corner of the room. Next to it I have an antique leather steamer trunk that sits open against the wall to display my collection of teddy bears. On the other side of the trunk is a wooden rocking chair, which sits next to the bedroom closet. Now….in order to fully understand what I’m going to tell you next, we need to shift from human perspective to dog perspective.

Tall bed+ corner +floor length comforter = fort

Trunk+ space beneath open lid+ next to fort = tunnel

Rocking chair+ next to tunnel = camouflaged look out point

Open closet door+ next to camouflaged look out point = U-turn or emergency escape hatch

See where I’m going with this now? Yep…..the mini marine has created a fort for himself….and he plays in it EVERY day. Sometimes it’s cute, other times it’s exasperating. Usually it’s cute though and chances are if I can’t find one of his toys….or all of his toys…it’s because he has carried them inside the fort and hidden them somewhere that only he can see. When we’re in that bedroom using the ironing board or doing something else he will run in and slide across the wood floor as if he’s sliding into home plate then scuttle himself right under the bed just as quickly as his furry little feet will take him. Instantly he begins his back and forth run under the bed, through the tunnel, behind the look out point into the closet to turn around and do it again. Sometimes he will sit at the lookout and monitor what’s going on, other times he will lay down and relax inside the tunnel or in the cool corner of the fort. It’s his own personal game and he thinks you can’t see him. If you sneak over the top of the trunk though and peek down to look at him he gets very upset that you’ve found him and spoiled his fun.

This morning as I was ironing my shirt he went through his usual routine only to find that I had closed the closet door the night before. This I found was COMPLETELY unacceptable to him, and he didn’t think twice to verbalize his frustration to let me know it. I could hear him batting at the door to try to open it and when he wasn’t successful he immediately called my name (in dog language that is) so I could come help him. I walked over to the other side of the rocking chair and was met by his white eye lashed blinking eyes. I asked him what he wanted (as if I didn’t know…lol) and his response was to turn and bump the closet door with his nose then turn back to look at me (Don’t tell me dogs don’t understand! This kid KNOWS when we talk to him). I decided to play hardball to see what he would do, so I said, “No, you don’t need the closet door open…you can come out and turn around.” I went back to my ironing. A moment passed and I heard his frustrated sigh as he pawed at the door more to try and get it open then finally let out another yelp. I went back to look at him again and he stood there staring at me, blinking those adorable eyes and wondering WHY on earth I wasn’t helping him. Finally, I relented and opened the closet door. He happily clambered inside, turned around, and went back through the tunnel and into the fort.

Now like I said, usually it’s cute like this morning was when he goes to play in his fort. However, other times, it is much less than cute. As I’ve mentioned before, he loves to steal paper, empty toilet paper rolls and dryer sheets….among other things, but those are his favorites. Well this past week I caught on to a VERY sneaky little trait that he has developed……pre-meditation.

So…..when the other rooms are not in use we close the doors. A new habit we have developed since we discovered Sargie’s little recon missions to raid things he deems chewable. The doors aren’t locked, just lightly shut to keep him out and he is VERY good about adhering to boundaries…..that is until he discovered the privacy of his fort. Well it seemed harmless enough to let him pop the door open so he could retreat to his little area whenever he felt like it. Until the other day when I witnessed something that blew me away. I sat on the bed working on the laptop and saw him come into the bedroom and walk over to Ben’s trash can to see what was inside, a few ripped up pieces of junk mail…not a big haul. I watched him to see if he was going to pull anything out and was pleasantly proud of him when he didn’t. He turned back around and walked to the hallway completely unaware that I was watching him. Then I saw him go to the guest bedroom door and pop it open. I smiled thinking how cute he is that he was going to go to his little fort and I started to look back at the computer screen. That’s when I noticed him turn back around and slowly walk over to Ben’s trash. He slowly leaned his head over the top of the rim of the basket and looked for a moment then reached in as if trying not to set off an alarm and grabbed a mouthful of paper. Then as if shifting gears he spun around and flew out the door and towards his hideout. I couldn’t believe it! I shouted his name, tossed the laptop to the foot of the bed, and took off after him. Let me tell you chasing after a dog that just dove under a fort and skittered for his escape hatch was not my idea of an evening’s relaxation.

Yeah….you read that right. This adorable and highly intelligent little furball just learned how to carry out a pre-meditated crime! Unbelievable! I was in such shock I had to call Ben…and of course now that we’re dog parents I had to do it correctly, “Ben…..come look what YOUR son just did!!!” I know it was all he could do not to burst out laughing in spite of my shocked frustration. Sooooooo the dilemma now is not to keep the door locked, but every night we have to empty the wastebaskets throughout the house to make sure that he can’t scrounge for paper. Thankfully, he doesn’t touch the kitchen garbage, that doesn’t even interest him…..just the paper trash….only DOGS eat out of the kitchen garbage I guess…..LOL.

**sigh** Never a dull moment in the Babij household…..lol

Remind me to tell you about the "baked bean incident" one of these days.