My 3 Other Children

Would you like to meet the canine members of our family? They're such a big part of our family I can't believe I haven't introduced you to them yet. Each one of them is a rescue dog, found on various streets of Houston. We got Lakota and Allie, each at the age of 4 mths, when they were brought in to the animal clinic where my sister, Susie, worked. Rick found Astro all on his own and we still hold him accountable for that!

I want to post various pictures of them so I'm going to give each dog it's own posting. Here we go!

Lakota

Lakota is the best dog ever! He's almost 11 now and we cherish every moment we have with him. We got him when Josh was 3 1/2, just before Halloween. Josh was really in to Batman then (remember when he used to wear a cape everywhere?) so we dressed Lakota up as Batdog! The 2 of them were so cute together.

Lakota is so smart and gentle with everyone. He loves to sun bathe in the backyard and is the kind of dog that when he's happy he "smiles", or at least we all think so! He has 2 really bad knees now and has limped for a while. We have wonderful vets who help us take really good care of him. They give him injections on a regular basis that really help. Even with his physical limitations, Lakota is still the canine pack leader and can get his point across to the other 2 dogs from across the room!

Lakota is the kind of dog who sees an open front door and dogs playing across the street but will just sit and look at you for permission to quietly wander out and politely investigate.

Allie

Allie is our polite little 6 year old lady. She arrived at our home at the age of 4 months and is such a sweet dog. She had a fetish for chewing the corner of pillows (only the ones from the couches, mind you) when she was a puppy, but fortunately, with time and money those pillows are being replaced and few remain. She is kind of my dog, in that she gets scared by loud noises or rowdy behavior, and that leaves me by default!

When you talk to Allie she squints and looks at you with such love in her eyes. She has such a gentle spirit and usually has her front paws crossed when she is lying down. She loves to play with her toys and will lie on her back, hold a toy between her front paws and smack herself in the face with it.

Allie is the kind of dog who sees an open front door and dogs playing across the street and will bark at them but be hesitant to venture out. If she goes out she'll do the mandatory sniffing and then sit beside or behind me.

And then..... there's Astro!

We've had Astro since he was about 6 months old and he's now just over 2 years old. Rick found him, hairless, starving and scared, running around in traffic near downtown Houston. He spent his first few days hiding under our bushes in the backyard. Now he's a bull in a china shop!!

Our first several months with Astro were a disaster. Rick has nicknamed him DisAstro! He dug in our carpet, like he was digging a hole, and put runs in our Berber carpet. He chewed everything in sight. He would bust out of his crate, even when we bungee corded him into it. I swear, he has Houdini in him. There were several times where Rick and I thought about giving him away to someone, but whom? We know what would happen to a dog like him. Things get better as time goes on and we love him dearly!!

Astro's favorite things are to dig holes in our backyard, be covered with as much mud as possible, play roughly with Allie and Lakota (who tolerate him some how), eat out of the garbage, get food off of the counter,chase the cats and bark at them... Should I go on? He loves to ride in the car and stick his head out the window. He trots like a horse as he goes around our back yard. When he's happy his tail wags in a circle. He loves to cuddle and will literally sit on you if he gets the chance. He is extremely gentle with children and when you give him a treat or piece of food he takes it so softly and tenderly. He has grown on us and we can't imagine life without him..... well, just a little! {sigh}

Astro is the kind of dog who sees an open front door and dogs playing across the street and will go berserk. He will first jump on the closed front door and bark madly. Then, when he sees his leash, he will jump up and down and try to grab the leash from you. Then, when he realizes that you're not going to put it on him until he's calm, he sits down quietly, but shakes with excitement all over. When the leash is on him he will jump up and down until he realizes that you won't open the door until he's calm. So, he sits quietly and quivers some more. When you open the door, you better brace yourself so your arm is not ripped off from the socket. As you jerkingly make it across the street, he's barking and howling. The neighbors and other dogs have a worried look in their eye. He sniffs the other dogs and paws them to play with him. It's quite a sight!

Oh, by the way, the picture on the right is of Astro licking the carpet. He's doing that because we ordered Chinese food and he helped himself to a barbecue rib when we weren't looking. He took it to the carpet and proceeded to eat it until I found him. I took the bone so he was forced to lick the barbecue sauce off of the rug for about 5 minutes. Carpet cleaner, here I come!

Rodeo, Here We Come!

My aunt from Canada came for a visit and to spend time with my mom (her sister). She's loving the warm weather, beautiful flowers and new green leaves on the trees. She's already had fajitas and Chick-Fil-A! We're having a good time with her, especially today! We're off to the rodeo/livestock show.

Aunt Robin will be experiencing her first turkey legs, funnel cake and Rick may have talked her into a fried Twinkie! Pepto Bismol, please stand by!

FYI - she is doing so much more than just eating. We've been for a few nice walks, had great talks, lots of laughs and much needed moral support. We love you, Auntie Robin!

Wet T-Shirt Contest

I loved it when the kids were little and talked in that way that toddlers or small children do - trying to talk like a big kid but not being able to pronounce things the "grown-up" way. I miss the days when Josh would call Lauren "Yawren" or when Lauren would recite the book "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" in her sing-song way. There's a precious little girl in our children's choir. Instead of singing the lyrics to this one song "... before the Red Sea parted.." she sings "... before the recipe parted...". I crack up every time she does it! It's so cute.

I don't get that much these days, with the kids being full-fledged teenagers. They say or understand lots of things that I sometimes wish they wouldn't!! However, they're not as grown up as they think they are! :)

A while back, as we were driving in the car, Josh said "Mom, what's a wet t-shirt contest?". Somehow they always seem to ask me those kinds of questions while I'm driving. It's a wonder I don't wreck my car. Anyways, I decided that Josh wouldn't have asked if he didn't have some idea what a wet t-shirt contest was so I better be honest. So, I went on to explain what it was as politely as I could. Josh's response was "Why would they do that?". Lauren said "So guys can look at their breasts, you dork!".

Josh just sat back and looked deep in thought. Then he said "Huh. That's not what I thought it was.". I asked him what he meant and he said "Well, I thought it was when they poured boob water on you.". I choked back a giggle and asked what boob water was. He replied "I dunno.".

So, there you go. Being 14 is really not that far away from being 4! I love it!

A Horse, of Course!

So, what was I trying to save this morning? Was it my children, my husband, my mom or dad, my sanity? NO, a horse, of course! Well, actually it was a pony.

I was driving home from dropping off the kids at school when I saw a Shetland pony on the side of Louetta, a busy road in our part of town. I've seen the pony a few times, grazing in a field of abandoned, rusty cars and other garbage and thought to myself that I should call someone about it's safety and health. This morning, it had broken out of whatever fencing there was around the property and the pony was walking along the paved side of the road, just inches from cars. I turned my car around and came up on that side of the road, just as the pony went back into the field. I left my cell phone at home, so I took off in that direction and called a few places when I got there. Someone from the Harris Co. Sheriff's dept., livestock division (didn't know they had one!) was coming by. I grabbed my cell phone and a bag of carrots and went back to the field, about 5 minutes from home.

I waited a bit until the Sheriff's dept. truck and trailer arrived and we went looking for the pony. We found it on the back porch of the abandoned house, with access into the house. The pony came up to me and let me pet it and I gave it some carrots. Then, I helped hold up the broken fence as the sheriff tied it off better with wire. He said the pony had shelter (there was a barn) and food and looked fat and healthy so we left it there. He was posting a note to the property owners about the fence, pony, etc. as I left.

Boy, the dogs sure gave me a good sniffing when I got home! Time for a bath!

Hi ho, hi ho. It's off to school we go!

Well, my friend LaSchel and I went to see 2 more schools today in a search for a high school for Josh and her son, Major (Josh's best friend). It was so easy finding a school for Lauren. Well, not easy but the decision was simple. She simply HAD to go to The Monarch School because we knew it was the perfect place for her. I had a very comforting faith telling me that it was all going to work out and it did. No such luck with this search.

LaSchel and I have spent ten's of hours researching on the Internet and made several phone calls. We've now seen about 10 school in all parts of Houston. You'd be surprised at the difference between one school's vision listed on their website and then the different things you hear in a conversation and then going to see the campus. We've seen schools that sound wonderful but in actuality are nothing more that a workbook haven with teachers (no make-up or pants allowed) that are only there to facilitate the workbook. Yes, I'm serious! We heard one principal brag about how silent the students are (there wasn't a peep from anyone the whole time we were there) and he was so proud that when they recently had a power outage, this one group of students just kept working and reading away basically in the dark. Don't ask me how. Could you imagine how joke-telling, impression-doing, farting-under-his-arm, artistic and creative Josh Rainey would function in one of those schools. LaSchel and I have had quite a laugh over it all.

Today, I'm not laughing about it. We're down to the wire, schools are taking applicants from new students and the clock is ticking. I think I've seen everything out there that is suitable for Josh and his needs and I'm down to 3 choices. None of them grab me as "the one" and I'm so concerned about this. LaSchel and I have seen the results of our boys being in the wrong school and it's devastating for them and for both of our families. Please be in prayer for us that we find just what Josh and Major need.

For all of you out there who think "Well, Beth, aren't you a certified teacher? Just home school him".... all I can say is "Have you met my children?" I love them dearly and would do anything for them but I would go from being certified to certifiable in no time flat!

Thanks for your prayers,
Beth

Ding Dong!

Ding, dong. That's the sound that my new washer, dryer and dishwasher make when they're finished. Unbelievable! No annoying "ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" buzzing sound now.

The dishwasher started acting weird about 3 months ago and we've basically been washing the dishes by hand for the past 2 weeks. We got Rick's bonus (woo hoo) and off to Home Depot we went. After picking the dishwasher we walked past the washer/dryer sets. Our washer is only 7 years old but it's pretty crappy and has been from the get go. The newest problem has been that the drains for the Downey fabric softener to be released into the rinse cycle clog with some kind of gunk (ick!). The Downey has no where to go except out the top of the machine and all over the underside of the lid.

Anyways, they were having a great sale on LG appliances and so we got all 3. They arrived yesterday, so this morning all three units were filled to the brim and cleaning/drying away. They are so quiet it's unbelievable. Rick and I spent about 10 minutes going from the laundry room to the kitchen and back, watching them work and listening to ..... well, hardly anything. The washing machine is also one of those front loaders. We were so excited! Yea, I know, it doesn't take much to entertain us these days.

When the cycles are done, there is this polite ding dong, ding dong sound. I think the washer, dryer and dishwasher have slightly different ding dong sounds (you know, different combos of dings and dongs) that I'll have to learn. Right about now you are all thinking I'm pretty much a ding dong myself, right? Don't nod too vigorously!

Rick doesn't care who dings or dongs. He's just excited that some laundry and dishes are getting done. Did I mention that I'm a wee bit behind in ummm.... just about everything?

So, how long do you think it will take before my new machines grow old and my laundry piles up again?

Oh, that happy family!

So, here are our latest photos taken at the church. Actually, they were taken in August but I'm just now getting around to making sure all family has a photo or two. I don't want to be pushy with my friends so I haven't offered them to you yet. If you want one let me know. My feelings won't get hurt if you don't ask, I promise.

I'm so excited about these photos because it's the first picture in several years that Josh has agreed to smile. You know, it drives me crazy. The boy is a total goof ball at home but you get a camera around him and he shows the sourest face he's got. What's up with that! Don't Lauren and Josh actually look like they like each other. I know, I was impressed with their acting skills too!

We always have a funny story about our church photos. The first family one we took, when Lauren was about 2 and Josh was a newborn turned out hilarious. Josh was only a few weeks old and we were still learning how to deal with 2 kids. I had to feed Josh right before we left, but we were ALL dressed and ready to go. While I was feeding Josh, Lauren went up to her room, got out the vaseline and put it all over her hair. We tried to wash it out (even used some Tide) but that grease wouldn't budge. So, we combed it the best we could and off we went, so we wouldn't be late for our sitting. Remember how big Lauren's head was as a baby!! It was huge. She also had very thin, straight blond hair then and not much of it. So, if you can imagine adding vaseline to that, she looked like a giant melon head. She sure did have a beautiful smile on her face. She thought her hair looked lovely because she'd "done it" herself.

Well, on this photo shoot, we had to retake any photos with Rick in the shot. He cut his neck shaving while getting ready, and because he's on blood thinners the nick on his neck would not stop oozing. So, he stuck a piece of toilet paper to it and off we went, so we wouldn't be late for our sitting. Sound familiar? We took our shots, stepped aside for the photographer to take the shots of the kids and I noticed the big white blob of toilet paper stuck to Rick's neck! The photographer hadn't noticed it because he thought it was the backside of the button on Rick's shirt (you know how some shirts have that white mess of thread on the other side of the button?). We looked on the proofs and, sure enough, there was the bloody TP! Luckily, the bleeding was over by then and we retook our family pics. Not bad, huh?

The First Day

So, I'm asking myself why I'm creating a blog. Is it to keep our loved ones up to date on events in our lives? Is it to let my friends and family share/commiserate in the soap opera which is my life? Is it to give myself another way of expressing my thoughts and feelings? I guess it's all of the above, and maybe a few more that I don't know of yet.

I've been inspired by my sister-in-law, Angela. I absolutely love reading her blog! I laugh out loud when she tells funny stories about her kids. I feel empathy when I hear of her struggles. I try new things based on her experiences. Most of all, I feel like I have a connection with her and her family, even though they live far away from us.

Hopefully, as I get the hang of this, you'll be able to come here and take a peek into our daily lives (as painful as that might be!) and walk with us on our adventure. It's never dull around here, I guarantee you that!