Wordless Wednesday - New Antler

5 things going on - May

5 things going on in our house:

• The 3 of us are going to High Tea on Sunday in advance of next week's Woofstock.  I've been busy getting Gimli's costume ready - it's Jubilee 2012 themed.  Heading to Michael's tonight to pick up some supplies, then I'm going get all crafty!
• I realized late last night that I don't have anything British to wear to High Tea.  I wonder if corgi hair counts? Am considering going to the local sports store to pick up an England scarf.. and maybe one for Germany and a Germany shirt too.  What?
• I'm starting to think about packing for Germany and am wondering if we bought enough Euros. Not even thinking about the thing that happens to me when I have to board a plane.
• Going to the dermatologist, (read: 3rd doctor), on Saturday.  I'm hoping he can tell me what's causing the loss of pigment in my cheeks and give me something for it.  It's not so much the fact that I've lost pigment, but did it have to be my face?  Sheesh!
• I keep telling Mike that his exercise efforts are working, but he doesn't believe me.  Um, hello, loose pants, better fitting shirts!!

Pale green thumb

We aren't gardeners.

I don't have a good sense for plants.  After all, we received an "unkillable" orchid for Christmas and a few weeks later, it was headed for the trash.

This is one main reason we removed the grass from our front yard in favor of mulch, stones and a few hardy plants.  I'm happy to say these plants are doing well, so long as all you have to do is put down mulch and water them.

We also have a few little inhabitants in our front yard - a couple mice and a dwarf.  I think you may have seen them before.

Foot Powered Gimli

Yessir, yessir folks!

Step right up and see the amazing corgi!  You step on his bum* and he sticks out his tongue!

It's an evolutionary step forward, the likes of which mankind has never seen before!

*It's an illusion, Gimli wasn't actually stepped on.  It was the angle of the camera.

Saturday Smiler - Looking at Mike

Laurie over at The Daily Corgi does a Saturday Smiler theme where she showcases, what else, but a smiling corgi.

I've decided to do the same here, mainly because we are so busy on Saturdays that the post doesn't get done on a Saturday.  This way, I can queue it up ahead of time.

Operation schrumpfen Check-in #10

I have good news and bad news.

The bad news is my workouts have been sporadic over the last little while.

The good news is that I'm in the same spot - dimensions wise - that I was in my last check in.

We leave for Germany in just over a month, I'm so behind in my German it's not funny, but in terms of clothes, I have a little bit to go before I can feel comfortable - read: not squished like a sausage in various pairs of pants and shorts.

Therefore, every day til we leave, I'm going to work out and study German.  I've said it to the Universe, now to keep my word.

A weekend of firsts

This past weekend, we experienced two things with Gimli that really opened my eyes.

One was a "fight" and the other was Gimli being slightly "lost".

I'll start with the "fight" first.

I'll call it a fight even though it was the product of a perfect storm of events.  There was food involved and all 4 dogs were jumping up and down to get at the food.  Somehow a piece fell to the floor and it was on.  Gimli and another dog got into it.

I remember snarling and growling and that sound where you know it's a fight.  I remember standing up and grabbing at Gimli with my hands slipping on his fur and finally grabbing his harness and separating.  I was abnormally calm and while my heart was racing, there was no anger in me, no blame, nothing.  It was all, "let me get my dog before serious damage is done."

The dogs were unharmed.  No teeth marks, wounds etc.  After they had calmed down, we let them sniff each other and they were back to playing.  It was all because of that piece of food.

This was Gimli's first fight.  I don't mean to make it sound like a momentous event, because it's not.  I was happy with myself that I was able to keep calm because I feel it helped keep my mind focused on the dogs.

What's the lesson learned?  Control, plain and simple.  No jumping dogs for toys or treats, everyone must sit before you get anything.  This is crucial for when corgi #2 comes to live with us.

Now, the sappy nice story.

That same night, Gimli, who had found a girlfriend, was hanging out next to her enjoying the attention that he never receives at home :).  Mike and I were at the back of the yard sitting around the fire pit with some friends.  All of a sudden, the fireworks started.  Gimli's scared of fireworks, the popping and strange noises make him tremble.

His girlfriend noticed that Gimli's demeanor changed when the fireworks began.  He stopped being calm and easy going and he became nervous.  He started looking for us.  I noticed he was acting nervously and called him over.  He followed my voice, but stopped halfway and quivered a little bit. A firework had just gone off and I think he lost his nerve at that point.  I brought him over and he sat between Mike and I, still shaking but glad to know where we were and that we hadn't left him.

Sometimes it's hard to keep in mind that Gimli is our dog, because in social outings Gimli's always hanging out with other people, but at the end of the day, it's Mike and I that he goes looking for.  I think that's one aspect of the corgi personality that I'm still not used to.  I trust Gimli, but I think I haven't given him that last bit of trust and I think it's time I do.

And now some pictures from the weekend!

Oh, hi!

Peek a boo!

The meat turtle surrounded by bacon wrapped peppers.

The inside of the turtle - cheese and sausage, so yummy!

Wordless Wednesday - I help garden

Gimli and the vacuum

I'm sure you've seen the video of Corbin the corgi who enjoys having his belly vacuumed.  If not, where have you been?, I mean, here's the link: Vacuuming the Corbs.

Gimli is not like Corbin.

This is what Gimli does with the vacuum...

Ribs anyone?

If you bring your corgi to a bbq where there are 3 other dogs and plenty of people to play with and suddenly you realize you cannot find your corgi anywhere and you check the gates and they are secure and you nervously glance around the yard, then be sure to check the kitchen...

Observe the corgi gaze

Those ribs were yummy by the way.  Mike gave in and gave Gimli some of the scraps, but not the main bone.

My kingdom for a pillow

It's no surprise to anyone that I don't have the best sleeping habits.  I go to bed at varying times and still expect to wake up at 7 am.  Combined with this, I always have these oh so lovely bags under my eyes... grrr, no amount of cream gets rid of them either.  I'm always tired, more so during the afternoon around 2 or 3 pm.

Last year, Mike and I went to a "pillow" store/factory and we purchased two pillows for about $250. Ouch, I know.  Well, those pillows aren't doing the job anymore.  I wake multiple times a night to adjust, I've been resorting to sleeping on my side, which eventually becomes painful because my knees rub together and cause pain, (not to mention sleeping on your side increases wrinkles in your face).

We've traded pillows, we've fluffed up the pillows, rotated, flipped them to no avail.

We're now on the look out for a different set of pillows.  This is going to be fun.

Sigh


If only I could sleep like this, then I'd have to troubles...

Gimli at 9 weeks old.

Wordless Wednesday - My new favorite picture

The many faces of Gimli

I love you Candy

No, changed my mind, I love what's over there cuz it's probably food

Did you just say 'you didn't love me'? Don't mess with me, I heard it.

Fine then, hrmph.

Just kidding, I can't stay mad at you.

Tubby

This morning, Lord Gimli went out to pounce and bounce and frap amidst the dewy black top soil and returned with black feet.

I plopped him in the tub and he made this face.

Becoming Voldemort

If you've read the Harry Potter books, you know that in book 7 the name "Voldemort" becomes a channel for the Death Eaters to find you.

For example, in the London cafe where his name is spoken, a trio of Death Eaters appear and duel with Harry, Ron and Hermione.

Today, I had a meeting at 12 pm.  I had already logged into the web portion and was making my way onto the conference call.  Prior to my connection on the call, my colleague was talking about me, (good things I assure you!) and as soon as she said my name, I popped onto the conference.

Very funny and very coincidental, even despite the fact that I have a Slytherin scarf & pin and totally would have been sorted into that House.

Image Credit: Slytherin: Harry Potter Wiki, http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Slytherin

Wordless Wednesday - My Precious

Picture of health

Gimli had an appointment at the vet on Saturday - his wellness test and they drew blood to check for heartworms as well as various blood levels.

He now weighs 28 lbs, which is fantastic for a corgi.  We all know they are prone to be overweight and this made me very happy indeed.  The Dr. said his teeth were fine, he does have some plaque, but it's cosmetic and not affecting the gums, which is great news!

She called yesterday to discuss his blood results and Gimli received another glowing report.  His blood levels, (I don't know what they all are), are normal and she's pleased with his health.  He's also heartworm negative so we are clear to start the preventative medicine in a few weeks.

I love this dog!

Things to do for 2012 - April update

So, what have I done this month? Not much I'm afraid, here's Gimli giving me the stare.

Currently at 41% complete.

1. Take a trip to Germany - going in July!

2. Learn German - started my Rosetta Stone classes. I am now on Unit 2, with about 6 more units that I want to complete before we go to Germany. I really fell off of the classes this month. I'm going to start this up again in earnest.

3. Attempt a conversation, while speaking only German, with someone in Germany.

4. Continue to read, 10 books to start - I've finished 8 books so far.  I will surpass my goal of 10 books and so I'll increase it once I've hit 10. I've been reading the Game of Thrones series, trying to fit it in just before I go to sleep.  I'm on book 3 now.

5. Maintain the blog with regular posts - Trying. I find if I can schedule certain posts, then it makes things much easier to manage. I fell off on this one too, argh.

6. Deal with the symptoms of stopping the medication. Note, it’s nothing life threatening or anything like that, so don't worry :). Booked an appointment but because of my 2nd ailment, cannot start this task yet. Later in the year though, I'll be able to start.

7. Continue to brush Gimli and keep up his teeth brushing - regular brushing, yes. Teeth brushing is slowly getting better.

8. Continue to photograph Gimli and all of his antics. - Working on it.

9. Come up with a proper backup system for all my pictures.

10. Incorporate more fruits & veggies to our diet. - Trying, I'm finding this is going to take multiple trips to the supermarket each week to replenish our fruit supply.

11. Lose 10 lbs. - I have lost 3 lbs so far and gained more muscle. I don't know if I will end up losing 10 lbs mainly because I've been at the same weight for a while, but I'm now able to fit into pants that I stopped wearing in October. (SCORE!) I am switching focus to toning my arms, back and muffin top and decreasing work on the Treadclimber to 3 days a week. I'm continuing to work out, I have started on the muffin top, doing various core exercises.

12. Evaluate and decide if I need to lose an additional 5 lbs. - We will see, I'm not married to that figure on the scale and because muscle is heavier than fat, so long as I can get back to wearing my clothes, I'm good.

13. Maintain my exercise regimen - so far, so good.

14. Paint our house - We have finally picked out our downstairs colors and are looking for a painter. We painted our bathroom a few weeks ago. I don't have any after pictures yet because I'm waiting to get and our mirrors framed, then it will be complete.

15. Frame and put up our pictures. -This will happen once we have painted.

16. Go to The Arboretum at least once a month - weather permitting - this did not happen in January, February due to the strange weather. Gimli and I went to the Arboretum this past weekend for the Dog Jog. We discovered a new trail, so we'll be back once the weather warms up to walk that trail again.

17. Discover local restaurants/bistros etc in my city or in the surrounding areas.

18. Go to Winterlicious or Summerlicious. - looking like it's going to be Summerlicious.

19. Make a snow animal of some kind - Tried the other day, but then Gimli destroyed it. It's now Spring, so it's looking like it will have to be done next winter.

20. Get a massage(s) at the spa. - Booked my Groupon appointment for this month!

21. Take more pictures of Mike and me.

22. Return to the Church. Something is missing in my life and that might be it.

23. Enjoy our backyard.

24. Decide on the color scheme, proper design for the blog.  I've been indecisive and I just want something that's me and something where I won't want to change it in another few months - Changed the color scheme and I really like that picture of Gimli. I think this is it!

25. Surprise someone. - Surprised Mike with his Valentine's Day present, read about it here: Guest Post by Mike.

26. Make a pie.

27. Reach out to the Rescue organization to see if there are any corgis, with a spot on its head, that need a good home with a corgi obsessed woman - E-mail sent, but nothing yet.  Would have been nice to receive some sort of response saying, "I got your email, no corgis yet", sort of thing.
New 27. Reach out to Gimli's breeder to put ourselves on the list for corgi #2. - She responded and we are on the list. She wants to breed one of Gimli's cousins later this year. I am very hopeful for the Fall!

28. Get some professional pictures done of Mike, Gimli and I. - We had pictures taken of us a few weeks ago.  They came out great, am looking for a scanner so I can show them here.

29. On that note, Boudoir Photography! - I have a Groupon for this too!

30. Plant some flowers in the front and back yards to bring in some color. - We de-weeded and put down grass seed this past weekend. It's still too cold at night to trust planting flowers, so we are waiting for warmer weather.

31. Zombie walk.

32. The B&B in Niagara Falls, this one is also for you Mike. - This is not happening. Am very sad and disappointed and quite frankly, pissed off, that we lost this free(!!) opportunity.

33. Photography course.

34. Kick Mike in the butt when he starts to waver on certain things.

35. Move off of "Medium" on the drums in Rock Band and to "Hard".

36. Start cooking more Trinidad type food.

37. Spend less time on the computer in my non-working hours.  I'd rather fall asleep with a book in my hand than be sleepy sitting at the computer and unable/unwilling to leave it. - I'm getting better at this, but not as fast as I'd like.

38. Go to bed earlier.

39. Do the Dog Jog again with Gimli - It was this past March, check it out here: 2nd Annual Dog Jog.

40. Work on Gimli's recall at the Dog Park - I'm going to get one of those long leashes and start working with Gimli in the park in our neighborhood and then try him at the Dog Park.

41. Take Gimli to the play class at Bold Canine - looking like Spring/Summer

42. Work on Gimli's possessiveness. We started this a week ago and I'm already seeing results. He still has moments where he becomes "stupid" and obsesses over a particular item, but he's starting to realize that he cannot go after items the way he used to, that everything belongs to us. I can see the wheels spinning in his head as he chooses to behave and it makes me incredibly happy that we're finally making strides in this area!

43. Work on Gimli's listening skills when guests arrive. - We've started putting him in his crate and then letting him out when guests arrive. We find he's much more subdued and he quiets down much faster.

44. Take Gimli for a herding instinct test?

45. Complete the Minas Tirith 3D puzzle - Started the puzzle this weekend.

46. A Mini Cooper?

47. Head back to Las Vegas - going in September

48. Go to Disneyland and California Adventure - going in September

Wordless Wednesday - I can prance like Pepe LePeuw!

A new breed of Dinosaur?

Behold, the rare and very cute Corgisaurus!

These Corgisauri are very much like the T-Rex in that they have very short forearms and are always hungry all the time.

However, unlike the T-Rex, the Corgisauri are playful, loving and loyal companions.  They enjoy going for walks and snuggling in bed with their slaves owners.

ps, the carrot was not Photoshopped, Gimli balanced it on his nose, then promptly dropped it and devoured it.