2007 in the books

2007 is coming to a close. Just hours remain as I write this. I have no intention of making any resolutions. I sort of constantly make resolutions throughout the year, so no reason to set myself up for failure early.

In retrospect, 2007 was one of my better years. We bought a new house, signed new contracts, took some nice trips, became pregnant with our second son, and ended the year with a new puppy. I don't have too much to complain about from the last year. Next year brings the promise of a new addition to our family, new challenges, sleepless nights, stress at work and home, and another round of first smiles, steps, and words. This time next year, we will be putting two little boys to bed long before midnight, as we bid goodbye to 2008.

And that day will come faster than imaginable. The years seem to slip by more quickly with each one that passes you by.

As evidenced in my musings here, I seem to get bogged down in the minuscule everyday frustrations that seem like such a BIG DEAL at the time, but are a distant memory only a week later. Someday, I will long for the neediness of a new baby or the tug on my hand of a toddler. The chaos of my life these days seems never-ending and insurmountable at times, but I know someday when my life is quiet and uncluttered, I will miss these hurried moments.

Maybe I should resolve in 2008 to appreciate all that I have and not wish it away.

--MM

Micro-manager

We have a person at work who is driving me batty. She is a year younger than me, has less experience, and in my personal opinion is less qualified, yet she has a title and abuses it. She keeps saying she is going to leave for some other job, but she JUST WON'T LEAVE. PLEASE JUST GO! Whew. I feel better.

I am feeling large and round and uncomfortable today. I feel and look like I swallowed a soccer ball. How can I still have 15 weeks of this to go? It seems so much worse when I am up at 8 or 9 and moving around all day till midnight. I need to lay down some of these days and rest my roundness.

Last night, Ruby peed in our bed. It was not pleasant. Then she lay down next to me and kept sniffing and tickling me with her tiny whiskers. I banished her and T to the guest room for the night. This puppy ownership is tough. Puppy class starts this weekend. I hope Ruby excels.

--MM

Bad babies

Raising a puppy is not easy. I have forgotten how challenging it was to take care of our first cat as a kitten. She would suck on my hair and purr in my ear all night. That might sound enticing, but it really wasn't.

We are trying fruitlessly to crate train Ruby. She is a skinny, tiny thing and shivers in the crate and hates it. We stuck her in there for two nights, and she created such a racket whining and howling, she woke up Q. There was quite a chorus of mad babies in the house. For the last two nights, she has slept in our bed. Training is going great.

I am afraid we are going to roll over and squish her. I never wanted to sleep with Q in the bed for that reason. Last night there were two tall humans (one pregnant), a cat, and a puppy in our double bed. It was quite crowded.

She also hates going outside in the cold and strains on her leash and shivers. So far she has just been peeing and pooping on the ground. Again, training is going great. I like the ease of cat training. Can a dachshund be litter box-trained?

She and Q are buds though. She is right at his side biting on his toys as he plays with them. They may a pretty cute pair.

She begins puppy school this weekend. I think maybe T wishes I had gotten a receipt for his Christmas present.

--MM

Many posts

This was a busy weekend, and I broke it up into many posts. Please scroll down to "The doctor's verdict" to start from the beginning.

--MM

The Christmas puppy

T grew up a dog person, and I grew up a cat person. Somehow, we have made the marriage work, and T has come to know and love cats. We have accumulated two, and they are easy, sweet pets. They will always be my preference.

Something over the last year though has been changing my mind. T and I have always thought dachshunds were a riot. They are just such funny looking little things! Q's first word was "doggie," and he gets extremely excited every time he sees one. I finally decided I would make the leap and get our family a doggie.

I picked one out almost a month ago. I wanted a little short-hair dachshund with the classic reddish brown fur. I found a delightful little girl at a breeder in our town. I put half down and told them I would return on Christmas Eve.

When we got back from our crazy, long night away, I told T I had to go pick up one more gift at the mall. I put the cat carrier in and went to pick up our new puppy. When I arrived home, I had T put on a sleep mask to cover his eyes and went out to the car to retrieve the puppy. To my dismay, she had pooped in the carrier and was covered in it. Oh well, I thought as T sat inside blindfolded. I scooped her up and went in and put her in T's hands.

He felt something wet and furry. When he took off his blindfold, he was a little stunned and in disbelief to see a tiny, poopy dachshund shivering on his lap. After washing off the little four-and-a-half pound thing and putting T's sweater in the washer, we started to get to know her.

She is quite different from cats. She is skinny for one thing and follows us around everywhere. The cats have been surprisingly good with her. They are much bigger and always will be, so that's an advantage. She has chased them a bit and elicited a few hisses, but other than that, it is mostly harmony. Our house feels a little crazy now with a baby, two adults, and three animals, and it will just get crazier next April, but that's what makes things interesting, right? I hope.

We decided to name her "Ruby." She loves Q because he is right at her level. He is convinced she is a cat and doesn't like all the licking, but they are fun to watch playing together.

On Christmas morning, Q enjoyed his new toys. and I got a wonderful and surprising present. T got me Kate Spade diaper bag that I had been eying. It is ridiculously expensive but quite fabulous. We had a nice dinner and now will be ending the night with something sweet.

It was an interesting but unforgettable Christmas.

--MM

The Long Night Part Two: The Crime

I had taken two naps that day, and was wide-awake long after Q and T drifted off. I was finishing my book The Innocent Man, by John Grisham just before 2:00 a.m., when I heard someone fiddling with our door and apparently trying to get in.

I poked T and whispered, "Someone is trying to get in our room!" He was a bit groggy, but heard the clattering of the knob.

He called out, "Hello?" and the person hurried down the stairs.

After that we could hear a lot of clattering and clinking from downstairs. We figured at first it was just a drunk, confused guest, but something didn't feel right.

I convinced T to go down and take a look. This is probably not the smartest idea, but curiosity was getting the best of us. He went down and saw a figure hunched behind the bar putting wine and liquor bottles in a bag. "Can I help you?" T said.

"Yeah, you can," the guy said as he stood and started walking toward T with his hands behind his back. Then he took off and ran out the kitchen.

T hustled back upstairs and called the police. The burglar had left his shopping bag full of bottles on the bar. When we saw the cop pull in, we heard more noise downstairs and figured the cop was already inside. It turned out it was the little crook returning for his bottles! Pretty brazen.

The police and deputies talked to us and got a description. They brought in a police dog to sniff around for the guy. We returned to bed but were wide awake for quite awhile. What would we have done if he got in our room?

The next morning we enjoyed French toast and scones. The inn workers were very apologetic, but we of course didn't hold anything against them. They gave us the night free and a certificate for a two-night stay. Sometimes crime does pay!

--MM

The Long Night Part One: The Sleepless Baby

We made the mistake of not bringing a crib for Q. We will never make that mistake again. Q usually goes to be around 8 or 8:30. Sometimes as early as 7:30 or as late as 9:30. This night, he would not fall asleep. He kept walking around the room pulling things out, destroying magazines, throwing his balls, and babbling.

Around 10:00, we finally started to seriously try to get him to sleep. T boxed him in behind a love seat and trunk in the corner. Q screamed and tried to wedge himself out. T rocked him for twenty minutes and then I took over. I rocked him until my back hurt and my left arm ached. His eyes finally closed, and I laid him on T's coat. His eyes popped open, he got up and started walking around. It was almost like a horror movie. We just couldn't beat him.

I don't even remember how it finally happened, but he blissfully drifted off to sleep just before midnight. It was crazy. We figured he would sleep forever as he is generally used to 12 hours of sleep a night, but no. He was up at 7:00. Before that though, the long night continued.

--MM