This is Mitsy. We brought her home from the Humane Society yesterday. She is a 4-year-old Boston Terrier...and just the sweetest thing.

She's turning out to be a wonderful addition. She's playful, but she has long relaxing periods where she just lays at your feet. The only problem so far is the cat. She doesn't seem to be taking to him too well.

Anyway....pics!



and gnawing her Nylabone...

To: All my children
From: The Goddess/Mother Nature
Re: Latest Storm Equals Personal Growth

So after this weekend's ice storm/flurry fall, I am acutely aware of the "memos" Mother Nature sends us.

1. We drove around town today, and it seriously looks like a tornadoey, war-torn zone. Tree branches and limbs everywhere, on cars, houses. Power lines askew, roads blocked. And yet, it's brutal, but its her way of pruning. It's her way of clearing out the dead flora to make room for new growth. It's her destructive, yet efficient way to keep this planet working for us.

2. And naturally, it is her way of reminding us who exactly is in charge. We think we have it all figured out with our 401Ks, Roth IRAs, on-time car payments, cupboard full of groceries, cool little iPods, cell phones, video games, etc. etc. etc. But then she sends a crippling ice storm, causing power outages, and now we are without all of the aforementioned gadgets and even necessities like electricity and heat. It is all Mother Nature reminding us what life really is, pared down.

It's time and family and survival.

She strips us of all those encumbrances to see if we sink or swim. It's the same as with the trees. She "prunes" us of the old junk, which is our dependency on modern-day stuff and our attitude that we know everything, and tries to make us remember the things that will allow us to grow (change in attitudes, etc.)

So, I guess we should embrace all these opportunities for learning that the Goddess provides us for us. Easier said than done, no doubt about that.

That is a hard lesson I learned about myself. I wouldn't say I'm proud of the fact that I'm awful when I'm terribly disappointed, but I don't see it changing anytime soon.

We met some friends in the Amana colonies Friday afternoon; we planned on staying at the waterpark there, let our kids have some fun...then Saturday, we'd buzz forty-five minutes north to Cedar Rapids and pick up our new dog (Misty - Boston Terrier). I was completely beyond excited. This is where my thought process had been the last two to three weeks...wanting a dog, finding the right breed, reading/researching the dog type, locating that breed at a shelter in the area, visiting the dog, falling in love with the dog, and preparing and buying things for the dog. The buildup was incredible.

So, a massive ice storm moves into central Iowa late Friday night. By Saturday morning, the parking lot is completely undrivable. We watched car after car try to make it up the incline of the lot, and then skid back down to the bottom. Police cars were (trying to) coming in left and right, dropping off drivers who'd put their cars into a ditch.

I'm beginning to have to face the fact that I will not be getting my dog today. The weather is worse the further north one goes.

My heart is broken. I am so extremely, massively bummed out. My heart wants to risk the treacherous conditions anyway. I've been waiting for this dog for a long time, it seems. My head is practical, of course, and says there's no way we should risk the lives of our children for an animal that will be there Monday or Tuesday. Saturday morning is, for me, the internal struggle of a lifetime...eventually, I will work it out and resign myself to going home without a dog.

My head is right, I know....but I'm a Taurus, so I'm emotional. So, I become very tetchy, especially with my husband. He's Mr. Low Risk, Mr. Let's-Not-Do-Anything-Crazy...EVER.

It does not help matters that he is always right. He'd mentioned the possibility of not going Friday eve, when we were watching the weather. Then, Saturday morning, he and the guy we were with made a total spectacle of themselves at breakfast by gawking out the window and running a loud commentary about the people trying to drive their cars on the thick sheets of ice outside. Naturally, all of our children abandoned their pancakes and followed suit.

For me, one of the suckiest parts of the morning was when our male friend came right out and made the suggestion that we might want "to skip the dog and head right home." Brent, of course, agrees with him, but then immediately turns to me and asks pointedly, "What do you want to do, Heather? Do you still want to go get the dog?"

What kind of an ass do I look like if I say yes? Brent deliberately asked me THAT question in front of our friends - because there was only one way it could be answered. His way. I was so pissed at being manipulated like that.

So naturally, we don't go to get the dog. It takes us about two hours to get home yesterday (normally would have been a hour-fifteen trip). We're fighting the whole time. Brent goes on and on about how "he gave me choices. I would have let you drive up there by yourself to get the dog if you really wanted it." I'm getting angrier every second, because it's not so much what he's saying, it's how he says it. He can be so condescending and patronizing (the worst part is that he doesn't mean to do it).

Here we are, going back and forth, and then, all of a sudden, he begins to complain that I don't spend enough time with my kids, I don't care about them, I don't want to be with them, etc. He's said that to me before, usually when he reaches such a frustration point that he's just trying to hurt me. I stopped talking at that point, and we sat in frosty silence the rest of the way home.

We tried to talk last night before bed, and I think we're being civil towards each other right now, but neutral. That's about the best I can put it...I have no desire to be near him, but we're interacting on civil terms.

BTW, he is going to pick up the dog tomorrow, provided the weather doesn't kick somebody's ass. Maybe he's trying to atone for stupid things said. I suppose I should try to be nice...I've been too busy licking my wounds. Ah well, I suppose I'll be alright in a couple of days.

Remember a few posts ago when I wrote about how we were going to try to lessen our dependency on TV and video games? Parameters were: no TV or video games during the weeknights (including mornings before school also). The weekends would be a little more lenient, but in no way were we going to watch enough TV to make up for what we missed during the week. A hour or two per weekend day...

Week One (Feb 12-18) went well surprisingly well. I certainly had anticipated many grumblings from just about every quarter. So far, Elliot (the 2.5 year old) has been the biggest complainer - wants to watch Go Diego Go! He started pretty strong at first, but has gradually asked less as the days go on.

Kirby has not thrown much of a fit, nor has Spencer. They both have taken it rather well. And finding more productive ways to spend their time. We have gone through a few more crayons, plain white computer, etc. than before...but it is all worth it. They are being more creative, playing with things they haven't played with in awhile, playing with each other (well, I might add). They are fighting a little less, and Spencer is definitely less whiny. It's just an all-around good thing for our family.

In fact, we are doing the TV-free thing again this week.

The kids had today off from school, as well as tomorrow and Friday, so TV time might be a little lax...but they are tempering their screen time with other things - cleaning chores, playing board games, writing or reading.

With our new addition coming home to the family on Saturday, this is a good thing for us, I think. More just being together. All good things.

PS - I jogged for an entire 20 minutes on the treadmill tonight. Can't honestly the last time I did that. Might have been the early 90s...and it wasn't a treadmill, it was the dreaded mile in Phys. Ed.

I have wanted to be a dog owner for a little while now. It started a couple of years ago when it was a just a germ of an idea in the back of my mind. I bought a book called "The Perfect Match" which listed all the breeds, traits, sizes, coats, etc.

The idea lost steam when we moved to Iowa about a year and a half ago.

We adopted a cat from the animal shelter last July. Seneca has been a good addition to the household. But, I want a dog now. I want to be a dog owner.

So, about a month ago, I started the serious research. Took the online quizzes, etc. Came up with two matches for our family situation: Pugs and Boston Terriers.

So, I do an online search at petfinder.com. There's a BT available for adoption in Cedar Rapids (about two hours from here). We make plans to visit on Saturday (yesterday), and meanwhile, I'm reading everything and anything about dog ownership. Heh heh, this is my first time.

We went to visit her yesterday. I think I may be in love. I cannot stop thinking about her. She was so hyper-excited to get out of the kennel, she kept jumping and running up to the other dogs as if to say, "Omigod, I'm free! Look at me! I'm out!"

We got to take her out on the leash, and she just wanted to go everywhere. For the first several minutes, she'd nip when we tried to pet her, but I'd read that was the tendency with this breed, especially when they were overexcited.

After several minutes, she calmed down a great deal and sat with us. And let us pet her without fuss.

She also had a personality profile filled out by the folks who surrendered her. They said she definitely needed training, which scares me a bit, because I'm a first-time dog owner!!!!!!!!!!

But, they lived in the country and so the dog pretty much ran free. Then, ironically, they surrendered her because she wouldn't stay in the yard and wouldn't listen to them.

I love the BT breed and I think she would be perfect for our family, I mean, she was raised with four kids and another dog and cat, so she'd fit in fine.

Gawd, do I know what I'm doing???