I have so much to tell you...

But SOMEONE is pitching the biggest hissy fit so I'll have to take care of HER instead of telling you all about my trip to the opera, the fabulous dinner, and our right up close AC/DC rock star sighting. Excuse me while I go and detach a small dog from my big toe now.

We like the new Vet!

Today Mavis went to check out the new Vet. We LOVE this guy! He spent about 45 minutes with us going over every little thing. He even had a book with pictures to explain everything she has going on. It also turns out that her health might not be as bad as we thought. Go figure, the medically obsessed mother of the dog (that's me) had made up her mind that the doglet was already an invalid at 2 years of age. She does have a little bit of a collapsed trachea, but a lot of her problem is likely allergies. Duh. We live 5 minutes from a ginormous airport and 3 major freeways. Who wouldn't have allergies. He personally trimmed her nails, and plucked the hair from her ear canals. Yorkies grow crazy amounts of hair down in their ears. Old men got nothin' on them.

We also talked extensively about her diet. He actually gave me a high five on my choice of dog food. It's all natural, grain free, and mostly raw meat. Dogs are carnivores! We talked about the horrors of commercial dog food. It's mostly filler and grains, and even if you buy the big name brands at he grocery store, you'd be horrified to know where some of these ingredients come from. If it takes you more than a couple of seconds to read the ingredient list, it's probably not healthy for your dog. Unless you are brave and really interested, don't read this article. It will freak you out I promise. The whole website is helpful and full of information, and echos what I read in other places as I did my research, and the Vet agreed. He even feeds his dog raw meat and bones for the most part. We discussed how even the often Veterinary prescribed Hills Prescription Diet is full of filler and additives. Many Vets push Hills foods because they are a big contributor in Vet school text books etc. While I didn't obsessively research cat food like I did dog food, I did run across similar information about it. Cat's are carnivores too. I get sad thinking about Beaux Kitty and Pee Wee, and how I might have helped them live a longer and healthier life had I known then what I know now. They both had kidney failure in the end. Hallmark illness for animals fed a sub-par diet.

My hope is that I will keep Mavis healthy, and prolong her life by feeding her the good stuff. It makes sense. You wouldn't stay healthy eating only Cheetos and Ding Dongs every day now would you? The same goes for your furry friends.

**If you live in the DFW area, Metro Pet will deliver for free, and that's where we get our food**

Mr. Spock and My New Camera

We took advantage of the Circuit City going out of business sale this weekend, and I finally got a camera that would take close up shots of the birds that inhabit my backyard. Here are a few that I took of Mr. Spock, our resident Eastern Screech Owl.







I still have much to learn about shutter speed, etc. I took lots of other shots of Chickadees and Gold Finches that just didn't work. I'll read up and keep trying. You can be sure I'll share when the shots get better.

One more thing.....

My friend Joanne just helped jar me back into reality with her post today. It's not Christmas any more. Our tree is still up, and the stockings still hung. Maybe it's denial, I love Christmas so much. Or maybe it's the hope that Saint Nick is still looking for my house.

The year that could be.

I'm one prone to phases, and I'm wondering, am I a big flake? (don't answer that) Or can we call it spontaneous living? (I like that better) For instance I've put on my life list that I'd like to live in a small historic town, like Stars Hollow. And then other days I decide I'd like to live in the big city within walking distance to everything I need, like Pittsburgh. And there is my proverbial "van down by the river". My constant back up plan. The odds are there I tell you, as I am sure we have a relative somewhere that will let us park our van down by the river when the time comes.

I think the core of who I am doesn't waver, but my favorite things seem to come and go in season. Like, this month I've been on a peanut butter and banana kick. I have it every day for breakfast. A couple months ago it was egg white breakfast tacos on whole wheat tortillas, and then the next month oatmeal from scratch. Every day. I mean, I don't stop liking egg white tacos on whole wheat tortillas, I just become taken with the next one, the oatmeal for instance. I read a magazine article and decided I would eat oatmeal to save my life, and loved it. I'll get back to the tacos eventually. This habit of not having a habit makes for a very cluttered kitchen, pantry, and refrigerator. It also causes me to wander through the grocery store, sometimes going down the same aisle 3 times before I'm done. I do some of my best thinking there. But that is another discussion for another day all together. It makes my husband CRAZY.

Music is another area that I wander in and out of. Jazz, Miles Davis for days. Or I get on a Billie Holiday groove. I once listened to the same Superchick CD for over a month straight every day. I've been craving opera lately. Chris is taking me to see Roberto Devereux next weekend. I have referred to the variety I have bookmarked in Pandora in this post, so I bet you get how far my taste in music varies. And I have to be in the MOOD to listen. Can't mix it all up. I have music phases.

Maybe all of these are symptoms of the clutter disorder I seem to have. I think I thrive on it. I'm constantly zooming through the clutter in my mind, and in my immediate world. So I ask you, might this be the year that I get on one track and stay there? Get organized for once and stay focused? I don't know if I would be me if I did. I'm not sure that life would have the same zest without my clutter.

And here Chris, April and Mavis are on New Years Eve. I began this year surrounded with love, one of the things in my life that does not waver. No phases in the love I have for my family.

Read in a Fortune Cookie....

Be careful! Bees with honey in their mouths have stings in their tails.


*Whaaaa? I thought all bees had stings in their tails?*