making a mess, and the dogs (not related to each other)

Heidi loves to paint, color, use stickers etc. I now have a system set up where she wears a large t-shirt, and I cover the table. Heidi can make a mess, and then we clean it up. I have to tell myself not to worry about the mess each time, but it is worth the effort to watch Heidi learn new skills.

Heidi finger painting

I was working on dinner one afternoon, and needed to keep Heidi entertained and away from hugging my legs while saying "up, mommmy, up" over and over and over again :) So she received her own bowls of flour, a spoon, and a cup. It kept her occupied for quite awhile. 

Heidi playing with flour.

Yes, we still have both our dogs. How life goes, they have moved down the priority list. We still love them, and Heidi is starting to gently interact with them. She likes to throw the tennis ball for Sophie, or try to play keep-away with one of Sophie's toy. 

Sophie

Skipper keeps his distance too, but once in a while Heidi can calmly get close to him and pat him for a minute. He still loves to soak up the sun.

Skipper

Here, Heidi and Grandma are blowing bubbles, and  yes, Heidi tries to eat the soap. Ewwwww. This was this past week, and could be our last warm day for a long time. I've pulled out the next size in warm clothes for Heidi. She is mainly up into 3T already, with just a few 2T left that she can fit into.

Grandma and Heidi

Never tired...

Never tired of looking at Heidi pictures. I went back into December and pulled a few of my favorites.

We had to get a picture of us a new home owners! With our great Realtor, Mary.

Heidi, Me, Mary, Kelby

Heidi has learned that Sophie loves to play with the dog toys. Heidi knows which ones are the dogs, and will hold out the toy, or throw the toy. Sometimes Sophie is interested, as in this picture, other times not so much. (excuse my finger, it's hard getting an action shot!)

Sophie, Heidi

Heidi's first Christmas morning. What fun. She was most interested in the paper.

Heidi Christmas 2013

Here we are using the remote to the camera. 2 out of 5 looking at the lens, not too bad!

The Reeds Christmas 2013

Not sure who is more jealous, Skipper or Heidi.

Me, Heidi, Skipper, Kelby

Sick

So my illness turned into Bronchitis. Yuck. I'm coughing all the time, and sometimes cough for 5-10 minutes straight. My stomach muscles hurt. While nursing, Heidi flinches when I cough, and she looks at me as if trying to say "what are you doing mommy? I'm trying to drink here."

In all the numerous books I read during pregnancy, and with all the families I worked with, and in my college/post-grad classes, no one warned me how challenging it is to be sick and try to take care of a baby. It's hard! For a couple days, Heidi lay on the floor with toys around her, and I lay next to her. She was fed, with a clean diaper, and I was guzzling apple juice. That was the extent of my abilities. Sure glad that the dogs realized I was sick, and weren't demanding. My mind feels better, but I still don't have energy. If I try to do something, even like folding laundry, the coughing increases.

A change of plans with Heidi's helmet. The company is not expediting the appointments, so we have yet had the next appt for more detailed images of Heidi's head. We therefore would only be able to have one adjustment before moving. And with the company being something like 6 hours from where we are moving, that didn't seem realistic for 8 or 9 weekly trips for adjustments. Now, I will get a second opinion from a company, Hanger Prosthetics & Orthotics just a few miles away! And it also gives me a month to try extensive re-positioning and neck stretches to see if that makes a difference.

Oh, and I just left everyone hanging about Skipper's vet appt last week. He did really well, and his heart and blood pressure are much better. He's cleared from visiting any vet for 6 months, unless I see a change in his behaviors or eating patterns etc. Yay! Now he has to remain on a 2 times daily medicine regime, with 2 pills each time being shoved down his throat. At least we have a while longer with him. I wasn't ready to say bye... will I ever be ready?

Friendships will be missed.

We have made wonderful friends during these years in TX. I will never forget those friends who opened up their lives and hearts, and I learned to let them in. Friendships go through a natural progression as we grow and mature. Some friends are placed into our lives for a season. Others will be forever in our hearts, no matter the physical distance between.

One such couple, Lad and Joan, are my "adopted" Texas grandparents. And now with Heidi, they are her "adopted" great-grandparents. It works well in both directions. Heidi has more people to love on her, and pray for her, and show her Godly examples. And they receive lots of hugs and smiles in return. 

A huge unexpected benefit of not working right now, is that I can spend quality time with people during the day while Kelby is at his internship. Last week, I spent time with Lad and Joan. Joan attempted to teach Heidi "sooo big." And I taught Joan how to set up a blog, Journey With Joan. You will have to check it out!

And since I have learned that most posts can be boring without a picture, here is Skipper getting in on Heidi's photo shoot. How do the dogs always know when something soft and squishy is on the ground???? And speaking of Skipper, his latest medical update: first heart medication did not help his blood pressure, so now he is on a second medication. We go back next week for a check. Now, I have to shove 4 pills a day down his throat. Praying that this combination brings his blood pressure down to a safer level!

Skipper

Unexpectedly stressful Day

The day started out with a phone call to my sister. She had been on nights at the hospital, so early morning was a time I thought I could catch her on the phone. I explained that Heidi had gone almost 4 days without a bowel movement, and she encouraged me to call the pediatrician. I'm thankful I listened to her, as Heidi became more and more uncomfortable as the day progressed. The pediatrician said that breast-milk babies typically have a bowel movement between 5 times a day to once every 5 days. But since every 4 days was not typical for Heidi, she didn't feel good, and he suggested a glycerin suppository and apple juice. Therefore, Heidi received her first taste of juice! She sucked down 2 ounces faster than I expected. The suppository took 2 hours before we saw the effects. She filled up a diaper, but that is manageable. Oh, but I did put a disposable diaper on her to make things easier!

And my other big event, is that for a while now, I've been thinking that Skipper hasn't been doing well. Nothing that I could put my finger on, as he was still eating normally, and became excited for walks or the park. But he was lagging near the end of walks. And seemed to sleep in one spot on the couch more frequently. So I packed up Heidi, Skipper, Sophie, and myself for a trip to the vet. Not good news, which did not come as a surprise as we had a heart x-ray back in December. Skipper's heart is beating too fast, and his blood pressure is super high. An EKG showed irregular beats. He started on medication to make his heart beat slower but stronger, and to reduce his blood pressure. We have to go back in a week to make sure the kidneys aren't negatively affected by the medicine. I'm hopeful this will work. At the same time, I need to be realistic and acknowledge that this is pretty serious. Boo. I'll be giving Skipper some extra cuddles and treats.

Side note, Sophie went because I needed the vet techs to cut her nails. She cries and squeals and screams, and it isn't worth the stress of Kelby and myself trying. Instead, I let them hold her as she cried, squealed, and screamed. Through the door, I could her them telling her it was okay, but she wasn't believing them!

And since too many words without pictures tends to bore people, here are a few pictures.

Heidi entertained by Sophie.

4th of July, my birthday, Heidi's 1st parade, 2 freaked out dogs.

A sleepy saturday.

A little of this, a little of that

I have been hearing about a popular website for awhile now. It's called Pinterest, where one can post and save different ideas about anything. Now, I haven't joined because I have lots of fun ideas already, and do not need more. But by using links from facebook, I have found a couple new websites for recipes. But then poking around, I found the follwing idea and wanted to try it. Grandma is always needing more magnets to keep all her pictures on the fridge. I liked this idea as I could customize each one. Here is what I have come up with. What do you think? The first set are snowflakes, and the second bunch are fall leaves.

I have found a few blogs which describe home life raising large families. And by large, I mean 10 kids, some biological and some adopted. It is neat reading their struggles and joys, and how they rely on God. Not that I want that many kids, but I feel as though God is leading me to help kids even more in-depth than I am through work. Time will tell as to Gods plans, Kelby's ideas, and where life leads us.

I had to say goodbye to a family whom I had worked with for awhile. This boy captured my heart, and I will always think about him. I'm not sure why I become closer to some kids over others. I wonder if at some point I will feel less, but then my heart continues to open and love. I always try to enjoy my visits and have fun; because if I am not having fun, than neither is the child and they are less motivated to learn. J, you have a piece of my heart. Now, my heart is growing to love new kids.

Here is Sophie tired after lots of playtime. Kelby thought she looked cute panting. I'm not sure about that deer skull in the background...

 Sophie and Skipper are fun to watch together. Sophie follows Skipper on walks, and where he smells, she smells. Sometimes she is in Skippers way, and he uses his body to push her over. Sophie watches Skipper as he chews on a bone, and the second he stops, she runs in to get the bone, and runs away carrying it. Skipper has learned that sometimes Sophie leaves food behind in her cage, and when she gets out, he goes in looking for food. Once in awhile, we let the puppies in bed to cuddle. Here I am going to sleep, and I called Kelby in to take a picture. They are both in their preferred positions, Skipper under the blanket next to me, and Sophie on top of the blanket but still getting body heat from my legs. hehe

Sophie loves to try and play with more than one toy at a time. Here she is, unable to decide if she wants to chew on the monkey, or the ring. 

And I couldn't end a post without a picture of Skipper. Typically, he has a scared expression on his face when he hears the shutter on the camera, but not this day!

A Park with the puppies

One advantage to my job is that I have some flexibiliy in my schedule. I try on friday afternoons to use my flex time in order to leave early. I had driven by this park for my job, and I knew I wanted the puppies to go with me. It was a beautiful day, with lot of space for Skipper and Sophie to play.

I tried to get a few nice pictures, and it reminded me how hard it is to focus two dogs at the same time.

I received my first fixed lens from Mom and Dad for Christmas, and was able to try it out. I wanted a picture of a butterfly, and wow I had to work to get it. I have a stronger appreciation for all animal and nature pictures after this. It took me around 45 minutes to get a remotely ok picture. Every time I moved closer to the butterfly, thet flew away. Can you believe that! I next tried sitting next to a flower, but now I was at the total mercy of the butterfly. And then one time, instead of a butterfly, I captured a fly. Cool!

  

On our way home, I took a detour to see if I could find a house that I had driven by years ago. I found it, and I love this house. I love older homes, especially in this style. Sorry for the crooked picture, I was driving and didn't want to stop and become that creepy person. But I would love to live in a house like this one day... hopefully sooner rather than later.

Fall pictures

This day was a beautiful fall day. In the morning, it was cool, in the 40's, and smelled like fall. There is that distinctive, sharp smell which is so much better than any perfume. By lunchtime, we decided to take the dogs on a walk. Given Kelby's knee issues, we kept it short. I used this opportunity with both of us, with the dogs, in the daytime to take some pictures. Sophie moves so fast! It was hard to get her into certain poses, but we were able to get cute ones. Enjoy

This is Sophie's typical position.

Trying to get Skipper to play!



I couldn’t decide on which pictures I liked best, so you are able to see more than expected.


I love when Sophie carries toys.
She is too cute!



    

  



Sophie-ism's

I've been wanting to spend time writing down funny or interesting stories about Sophie, before she gets too big. These will be random, but hopefully entertaining.

Sophie loves to be outside. She has started to bark at dogs or people if she can't go and meet them. She is learning how to fix her leash if it is caught underneath her. She has not yet learned to stay away from Skipper while he pees or poops... she has almost gotten dirty more than once! She also does not know to stay away from other dog's poop. She has almost walked on it before. Yuck! Sophie loves to pick things up, and chew them. She will chew anything from leaves to rocks, to trash. If she grabs something with her mouth as we are walking, she will prance as she carries it. If she is jumping down from a wall, she hasn't yet figured out how to land on her feet; she will typically land on her head and back feet. Sophie gives kisses, but also likes to bite ears, noses and fingers. One day, she fell asleep with my finger still in her mouth. When she sleeps, she is so tired, that I can move her legs around and she doesn't wake up. When she is tired, Sophie digs to try and make her bed more comfortable. However, her bed can be on my stomach, legs, or doggie beds.

Skipper nudges Sophie to try and get her to play. When he is tired, he jumps up on the couch. Sophie puts her front paws on the couch, but isn't big enough to join him. Sophie and Skipper will play tug-and-war with different toys. I've watched Skipper go after a toy Sophie is playing with, just because she has it. Sophie plays fetch with any toy. But it is super cute to watch with her little tennis balls. We're still working on the release part of fetch. I tied a rope toy to the leg of the coffee table. Sophie will chew and pull on the toy. It helps to keep her self-entertained. Sophie has a very strong jaw - we can pick up a toy she has in her mouth, and she will continue to hold on to the toy, in the air.

Sophie wants to eat Skipper's food, and Skipper wants to eat Sophie's food. For the first week we had Sophie, I mixed their food together, and they ate out of the same bowl. But then the vet told me that Skipper gained a pound, so that ended that idea. They now each have their own bowl, and they only eat if Kelby or I are watching them. Skipper is eating so much food since Sophie has been here. I wonder if it is because he doesn't want Sophie to get it. We've taken Sophie to different events, in order to expose her to lots of people and situations. My goal is for her to become a therapy dog once she is old enough (she has to be over a year to take the tests). So for now, she is getting lots of socialization. Skipper is never happy when he watches us leave without him.

Sophie is small enough that when Skipper is standing, she can walk underneath him. I made Sophie a small fleece jacket. It is super cute. I'll make more as she keeps growing. Unfortunately, Sophie has stinky farts. I mean, clear the room, or hold your nose stinky. We've tried having her eat slower, and not giving her rawhide bones for now. Hopefully this improves shortly! We are working on commands. Sometimes she does 'sit', unless she is distracted. We have started having her learn 'down' and 'stay.' Also, I don't want her to jump up on people, so we will be working on that.

Pictures will come later!

Playtime

For your viewing pleasure... Sophie and Skipper playing. TOGETHER

Meet our new family member

It started with just Kelby in one house, and Kristin in another.

Kristin added Skipper.

Kristin and Skipper added Kelby.

Kelby, Kristin, and Skipper added.... Sophie!

Sophie is a 4 month old Schnauser, weighing around 2 pounds for now. We are not sure if she is a Miniature or Standard. A friend of a friend bought/rescued her from a pet store. Our friend asked if we wanted a puppy, and how could we say no to this adorable face?



She met parts of what we were wanting in a second dog - non-shedding, female, and someone who Skipper will tolerate. Skipper is doing well so far, he even allowed her in his bed once. Can you just imagine what is going through his mind in this picture "fine, I will let her be here for a minute, but come-on, really? Do I have to?" Other times, she is playing with all his (now to be their) toys, as he sleeps on his blanket on the couch.

I, Kristin, was folding laundry this afternoon. Sophie decided to help, by climbing into a pair of pants. 

She is definitely in the chewing phase. Sophie will put everything and anything in her mouth. We are working on her just chewing appropriate things like toys, and not her leash. Sophie plays hard, and then sleeps soundly. Sometimes she is so tired we can move her and she doesn't wake up. She has learned in just a few days to go up and down the stairs to our place. We are practicing the command "sit" and her name.

Awesome new appliances

We are slowly trying out some of new kitchen appliances. I made yummy lemonade with our citrus juicer. So far, we have made two loaves of bread in the bread maker. I think I enjoy bread the traditional way, in the oven better, but it is so easy in the bread maker. You just put all the ingredients in, and turn it on. The machine automatically mixes the dough, lets it rise, repeats this process a few times, and then cooks the loaf. How easy is that?

I absolutely LOVE the food dehydrator. I have already used it three times, and Kelby is concerned with what we may spend on food :)  haha. But anyways, here is a picture of the beef jerky we made. It is delicious, and I could eat a lot of this in one day. Making jerky is easy... cut up beef, marinate it for a few hours, then dehydrate it for around 6 hours, and then...... deliciousness!!!!

Here is myself taking a nap with Skipper. I know my arm looks awkward, but it was comfortable. And here is Kelby taking a nap. You would have to ask him why he is holding 2 pillows on his chest.



Skipper and Urbie "play" date

Skipper has a new friend.  His name is "Urbie," a nickname for Keith Urban. There was lots of smelling and sniffing going on! Urbie was super friendly, and fun to be with.

Urbie was adopted about 2 weeks ago, by Helen and Dennis. Can you believe that years ago, Helen and Dennis were not dog people? And now, they rearranged their house for Urbie. hehe

A few awesome pictures of Urbie. There was great lighting inside the house.

Now outside play time:)

For some reason, Urbie found the side of the house interesting and full of good smells.