13 years!

TV Boy had his first school sporting event today. He did a great job in his 1st ever cross country meet. He didn’t have his uniform yet and had only been to 2 practices. He ran a mile and half in 10:44.

Trailing a high school kid

Passed up the high school kid

After his race, he ran back and met a friend of his so he could cheer him on. Love it!

I mentioned in a previous post that I have beens super busy. Usually when I do the soccer pics for TV Boy’s Soccer League, I don’t get around to getting his picture. Well, this season he made sure that I did, because he wants to have new pics for his profile on the Thunder website. Thought I’d share…

Tomorrow he is participating in his first school related sport, Cross Country. He’ll be running a mile and half. Go Tigers!

Like I mentioned in my last post, I’ve been super busy with soccer league pictures. I finished up last night with taking the pictures. Now I’ve got to finish going through the pictures, editing, posting to galleries, sending emails, and placing orders. Then, start deliveries. Lots of work. I’m just happy that I was able to take all the pics on schedule. No rain outs!

I’ve got several posts in the works, but I just gotta find time to get them finished up and posted. I was looking at my blog earlier and realized that my header has a Corgi on it. WOW! I got a huge lump in my throat, realizing I don’t have a little black Corgi at my feet tonight as I sit and write this post. Tuesday after writing my last post, I cried much of the day. In my peripheral vision, I’d see something white and black on the floor. I guess, by habit, my mind would jump to the conclusion it was Rosie, and then I’d remember that she’s gone. Ugh! I’ve also heard lots of noises while home alone this week. Usually, I would have just assumed it was her, but now with her gone, I became quite curious what was making so much noise. One day, there was a cricket in the kitchen that kept hopping, which made a noise like Rosie’s nails on the floor.

Rob worked hard Tuesday and Wednesday digging a hole in the backyard. We buried her Wednesday and plan to have a funeral for her after the kids make a stone to put on grave. Oh how I miss her…

Anyway, Wow. I got off subject there. I love my header, so I’m not sure I’m going to change it because I know someday, we’ll have another Corgi. But, maybe I’ll find another cool pic to use instead. I’m also working to have some Menu pages with links to those in my sidebar. I’ll let you know when those are up.

So the posts that I’m working on include:
- Kids’ 1st day back to school
- TV Boy’s soccer pics
- Some new recipes
- Cub Scout Survivor Pictures
- Soccer Tourney pics (from this weekend)
- And…..probably more travel posts. I’ve got a couple more cruise posts that I want to share. Then, I plan to move on to Road trips!

So stay tuned.

If you follow me on facebook, you are aware of how the last couple of weeks have gone. So very busy with school starting and all that goes with that. I’m also taking Soccer league pictures last week and this week. On top of all that, Thursday August 5th, Rob had come home for lunch and wondered why he wasn’t greeted by Rosie. I had remembered letting her outside a couple hours before, but she usually makes it well known that she’s ready to come in. We sent the boys out to see if they could find her and she was up under the deck, where she loves to lay where it’s shady and cool. The problem was she didn’t come out when called.

Thinking this was just a flair of up of her back problems that have been going on for a few months. For those of you who don’t know, dogs like Corgis, with short legs and long backs can have issues with herniated/pinched nerves. This causes them pain, paralysis, and loss of control of bowels, etc. We had this problem with our last Corgi, Jenny. So a few months ago when she was acting differently, we pretty much self diagnosed her, but took her to the vet to make sure. Turns out we were right. The treatment we chose for her in this case was crating. The only effect she was having was pain. She still had functionality of her legs and bowels. Stairs are also a really bad thing for dogs with this issue. Super bad news for us because we live in a split-level house with stairs in and out! Anyway, after some crating for a few days we saw a huge improvement in her and was able to let her live pretty normally. We tried to limit her travel up and down the stairs as much as we could.

So anyway, after bringing her back in that Thursday after finding her under the deck, she wouldn’t walk around hardly at all and she stopped eating. We brought her with us to our friends’ house in Atlanta, who we spent that weekend with. After getting back Monday, I took her to vet. She of course was dehydrated. She was hooked to a life-saving IV drip for several days and finally started to walk and eat. She came home Thursday, Aug. 12. She was walking and eating, but not really. She never finished 1 bowl of food over the weekend.

Yesterday when we got home for church, she was the worst I’ve ever seen her. She was pretty much paralyzed and we could tell nothing was going to make her better. Unfortunately, she suffered her last 24 hours. I sat next to her much of the day and evening to adjust her when she got uncomfortable, since she couldn’t do it herself.

Today Rob and I took her to the vet and the vet was shocked since she had responded decently last week, but the vet said she may have suffered a stroke or something with no return. We stayed with her as they put her to sleep. We brought her home and we will be burying her tomorrow so the boys can have some closure to the situation.

Ugh! You just don’t realize how much you expect to be met with such enthusiasm. I know especially for Rob, who Rosie would always greet with true excitement. Today, as I did stuff around the house, I would hear a noise or catch something in the corner of my eye and my mind would think, must be Rosie, then I would realize it wasn’t really her. As hard as this is going to be, I’m going to be listing all the memories of Rosie that come to mind. Memories of rosie…
-loved popcorn.
loved candy. She was so sneaky. No matter how well I thought I hid candy from the kids for like Easter or Valentine’s Day, Rosie would find it!
-was a bit OCD about marking her territory.
-loved to go for walks.
-loved to lay in her bed. We had one in the living room and one our bedroom.
-scared of thunderstorms.
-was a bit ditzy.
-hated having her nails cut.
-hated the camera.
-started to thump her leg as of late when we would pet her right below her neck. It was so funny.

Other facts about her…
We got Rosie after buying our first house in 2000. TV Boy was 2. Rosie was 3. Rosie was here to welcome Trey as a newborn. She would always get a concerned look when I would let him cry too long. Rosie came from award winning show dog parents, but her frame never grew to the accurate size, so she could never be a show dog. This was fine with us we had no plans of showing her.

Well, I hope all this makes sense. This was a hard post write……

Click here to see Rosie memorial page.

This cruise was planned a little while after we found out we were expecting our 2nd chil. We wanted to go ahead and bring TV Boy on a cruise, because we knew it would probably be quite awhile before we got to take him on one. Rob’s Mom and Step Dad joined us, which was nice. This trip was taken in October over a long weekend with a Columbus Day Holiday. We opted for a 3 day Royal Caribbean cruise to the Bahamas and the private island, Coco Cay.

We left Thursday night and drove down to Orlando. We spent the night at the Amerisuites Orlando. This made for a relaxing morning of free breakfast at the hotel and heading over Cape Canerval to the port.

Here’s TV Boy excited to get on the ship.

After boarding we went to the Windjammer Cafe and had lunch. We hung out on deck and waited to do the mandatory lifeboat drill at 4:30. At 5:00, we set sail to Nassau!

Since this was the first cruise with TV Boy, we checked out the kids’ program, which we found to be very disappointing. The age group he was in was 3-5. As an educator, I found this to be ridiculous. Especially for kids like mine, who would be bored coloring and playing with blocks when they go to the kids acitvities. Heck! He could do that with us just as easily, but that’s the point. He would be bored. Oh, I won’t go into all the details of this, but I’ll just say this was just the beginning of Royal Caribbean making us feel like we’re JUST the incompentent customers!!

That evening we attended the Welcome Aboard Show starring Jan Downs. Afterwards, we put the little one to bed and headed out to the piano bar.

Here he is the next morning dressed and ready to go, but it was so much fun to play on the pullman. We had an interior room for the first time. This was also our first time on Royal Caribbean. One thing we really missed about Carnival is the larger cabins. We’d also never been in a cabin without a port hole or window, which may have contributed to the feeling of being cramped! TV Boy slepted on the pullman, which is bed that folds into the wall. This helps when you put it up during the day to give the room a feeling of openness. The little table between the 2 beds folds up too.

Our first full day was spent in the Nassau, Bahamas. We actually had an excursion over to Paradise Island to Atlantis Resort. Since just a few months before Rob and I had enjoyed a 7 week cruise with a stop in Nassau, we had already experience the awesomeness of Atlantis. We knew that TV Boy and Rob’s Mom and Step Dad would really like Atlantis and the aquarium there. Eating at Atlantis is not cheap. We looked at several menus there and decided to walk back to a restaurant we saw when walking to Atlantis called Anthony’s Bar and Grill. This was first time to have conch! Since I was pregnant, I only had a small bite. It was yummy and I highly recommend you try some if you’re at a place that serves it.

The next day, our stop was at Royal Caribbean’s private island, Coco Cay formerly called Little Stirrup Cay. The really awesome thing about going to “private island” when cruising is that the cruise line owns that island, which means:

We’d never been to a private island before and we knew after a busy day in Nassau/Paradise Island we would be ready for some relaxation. We found a quiet area by this cover with very calm waters. Rob and his Mom enjoyed the speciality drink there, called the Coco Loco. Since I was pregnant, I got a virgin one and it was so yummy! Read about Coca Cay. Here’s an article about all private islands that are owned by cruise lines.

You do have to tender into the island. Here’s some pics as we get ready to tender back to the ship.

After returning to the ship, we hung out on board. Then, headed up on deck to watch us leave the beautiful island and head towards Port Canaveral. That evening we ate a wonderful dinner and went to see the Farewell Showtime. The next morning we were back at port and time to head home.

I can’t write this entry without saying that Royal Caribbean’s service did not live up to Carnival or Celebrity at all. We had a room steward that was never reachable, when in truth, we have never had to call a room steward. He never replaced our dirty towels one day. In fact, the 2nd night on board, I stood out in the hall way in my gown looking for someone to help, because our toilet would not flush and had started overflowing. And the already mentioned saga about the kid program. All of this could have been made better if the staff actually seem to care that we were not happy with several parts of the cruise. We filled out the survey at the end of the cruise as we always do, but this time we did not have many positive things to say. I really wonder now if those are even looked at, since we thought that for sure we would get some type of letter of concern or at least acknowledgement after cruising with RC. We never did…

Would I go on Royal Caribbean again? Yes, but only if it was a much better deal than any other cruise.

See all the photos from this trip here.

Shopping
Many people visit the ports just for shopping. If you’re interested in shopping, I would recommend going to the “Talk” that will be given the day before that port of call. The “Shopping Expert” will know what to watch out for and deals to look for.

Picture courtesy of awreunion

Foreign medications may be tempting. You will more than likely see advertisements while at port, but beware. If it’s not approved by the FDA, you’ll have to surrender it to Customs and possibly when you return to the ship.

Anything Cuban-made is forbidden and you will not be able to bring it home.

Due to U.S. customs regulations, onboard shops are closed while the ship is in port.

I learned as a child when driving down into Matamorous, Mexico that they way overprice everything. So when going to Cozumel, I had on my shopping face. This is what I do to get the price down. If you show interest, like by asking a question about it and then checking the price or asking the price. Don’t look desperate and don’t let them know you’ve fallen in love! Walk off. I’ll bet you, they will try to continue the sell of that item and possibly offer less. Have a price in mind. Try to work them down as close to that price and see what you can get. I’ve gotten some real steals. As far as other places besides Mexico, I don’t think they are into negotations as much, so if I find a good deal, I take it. Just don’t expect to make a deal.

What is Duty Free?
Duty Free items will not be charged any kind of sales tax. Many travelers enjoy purchasing luxury items and liquor while on a cruise because there is no tax. But there is a limit on how much you can purchase. Check with your cruise line for specifics.

Can I purchase alcohol off the ship and bring it on?
You’re allowed to buy alcohol while at port, but when you get back on the ship, you’ll have to check it in. This means you won’t be able to drink it while you’re on the ship. You will get it all back the last night of the cruise, so that you can pack it. Alcohol is one of the biggest sellers among cruisers, because it is so much cheaper than it is at home. So many cruisers stock up. Just check with your cruise line on the limits that U.S. Customs allows.

Bathrooms
On occasion depending on where you are, you may find you need some pocket change to use the public restrooms.

So that sums up a few of the important things you should know about Ports of Call. If there is something you’re unsure about, feel free to go to the information desk onboard. They are usually very knowledgeable about the ports that you’ll be stopping at.

Need help with cruising jargon? Check out Cruising Terminology

Eating and Drinking
Cruise FAQs
Gambling ~ Tips ~ Travel Insurance
Shore Excursions & Cashless System

This is what I did instead of watching the All-Star Game last week. They remind me of cookies my Granny makes. So yummy! I’m looking forward to switching up the recipe, with the mix & match ingredients I’ve listed. Please comment if you make these with different mix & match ingredients. The pictures you see here are with the semi-sweet chocolate chips & milk chocolate chips.

Servings: 4 dozen
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes per batch

Mix & Match Ingredients:

1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup of milk chocolate chips
Hershey’s chocolate bars: chopped
M & M’s
semi-sweet chocolate chips
milk chocolate chips
white chocolate chips
peanut butter chips
or really any type of chip you can think of.

Look here for ideas. Just mix and match what you think would be yummy. You need 2 cups of any of the above.
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Stir together flour, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. In a different large bowl, stir together butter, sugars, eggs, vanilla, and cocoa.
4. Gradually stir flour mixture into butter mixture. Mix until combined.
5. Stir in your mix & match ingredients and nuts if you so choose until they are evenly distributed.
6. Two ways of putting dough on pan; Either drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheet or roll cookies into golf ball size for a more round cookie.
7. Bake about 10 minutes.
8. Cool on a baking rack.

~Adapted from Extreme Chocolate

I just love when Rude Cactus does the posts of numbers. I’ve kept that in mind, trying to find a good time to do a post like that. Well, unfortunately the time has come. LOL! I was hoping it would be some wonderful post about a vacation or new job. Not so much. I’ll just let you figure out why it is unfortunate by leaving you with the totals….
Days since this all started: 16
Days it seems like it’s been going on: 35
Trips to the emergency room: 1
Antibiotics Rob has taken: 3
Pain meds attempted: 2
Trips to the dentist (so far): 1
Root canals to be had this year: 1
Antibiotics that seemed to work for a few days: 1
Antibiotics that made his tooth hurt more than it ever has: 2
Phone calls to the dentist: 6
Phone calls to the pharmacy: 2
Cost of meds including all the ones that are wasted: $31.24
Days the dentist was on vacation while this was going on: 5
Times of puking: too many to recall
Dentists who said it was out of her “realm” to prescribe Phenergan: 1
Phone calls to relative for Phenergan: 1
Times Rob and I have decided we must be totally ignorant: 30
Times we mentioned that Rob is allergic to Codeine: 50
Times we wonder why we keep putting drugs into his system: countless
Days of work he’s missed: 4 (I think), but regardless WAY too many
Times I googled something related to nausea, drug side effects, etc: 42
Times I told the kids to be quiet because their Dad is sick: 164
Times I think he’s getting better: 7

Just wanted to post this for those of you who read this on a subscription. I have a question on my sidebar that I would love for you to come answer so click here. Check out the survey question on the right hand side bar. THANKS