Easter Weekend

Marlee Kay's first Easter. Oh how I am enjoying all of these firsts with her.

We had such a great weekend.

On Saturday the three of us colored easter eggs and just enjoyed the oh so perfect weather we are having here in the desert.

I'm not sure who had more fun?

Of course, the Easter Bunny paid a visit to our home Saturday night. She brought Marlee a swimming suit and wrap, sunglasses, and a care bear. Dada got Marlee and I a little something, too. A little stuffed bunny for Marlee and beautiful lavender lilies for me.

Sunday morning Dave and Marlee went out searching for the eggs the Easter Bunny left. Dave had such a hard time finding the eggs. It was hilarious.

Once, again, I'm not sure who had more fun.

Then Sunday afternoon we went to my parents house for a yummy barbecue.

The kids gearing up for the egg hunt.

Carter Bug and Marlee Moo hangin' out.

Back to reality, Dave went back to work and me back to school..boo! I so enjoyed my week off.

All things me me and me!

My sissie Lesley tagged me with 7 random facts meme.

The rules are:
1. Link to the person who tagged you
2. Post the rules here
3. Share 7 random or weird facts about yourself
4. Tag 7 random people at the end of the post, linking to them
5. Leave a comment on their blog so that they know they’ve been tagged

So, here goes...

1. My husband was exactly twice my age when we started dating in 2000 (yes, I was of legal age and then some). This is weird to most and we have gotten used to being judged. How do I respond to this? He is the yang to my yin and what we have works for us. Dave and I will be celebrating 6 years of marriage next month. What can I say, I like em mature, distinguished and wise. Like a fine wine, he just gets better with age.

2. I have many many obsessive compulsive tendencies. I like things a "certain" way, which is my way. I have an extremely difficult time giving up control. My family calls me AA. No, I am not an alcoholic, it stands for Anal Ange.

3. I am a hermit, recluse, loner, you name it. I loathe crowds and will go days without leaving, other than walks to the park with Marlee and my two spoiled doggies. Many people probably find this strange. I however love to be at home and in my element.

4. I love to learn. I know, I'm a nerd. I have always been a very curious person that asks a lot of questions and has a hard time taking something at face value. My Mom tells me when I was little I would drive her crazy asking question after question. She has always said I would make a great reporter/journalist.

5. Following #4, I want to be a lawyer and I think I would make a damn good one. Before my beloved Marlee, this was my career goal. Now I am still going to school, majoring in Criminal Justice and Business, but I'm unsure as to where it will lead me.

6.I am an interior designer at heart. After attending one semester at the Architecture Program at UNLV I realized it wasn't for me, but deep deep down I have a huge passion for design and architecture.

7. Dave and I have talked about selling everything, buying a motor home (one of those swanky ones), and traveling around the country for a couple of years. Just the five of us (Dave, Marlee, Cooper, Mollie, and Myself). No, I am not kidding. What an educational and entertaining experience this would be. We would hit every National Park, National Monument, all the oceans, everything.

Okay, I am tagging:
Kristy, Stacey, Dara, and Kristie. Hop to it girls.
That's all the bloggin' buddies I've got!

Marlee's 1st Saint Patty's Day..

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!

Doesn't Marlee look so cute in green? Heck, she looks cute in anything.

Ahhh...I can breath a sigh of relief tonight. Between tax preparation and midterms I have been one busy bee!

But...

The dutiful wife and Mother I am (insert sarcasm here) still had time to prepare dinner for the family.

So, can you guess what we had for dinner tonight?

Well, Marlee had GREEN beans..yummy.

and Dave and I had New England Boiled Dinner (aka corned beef and cabbage)

Doesn't it look yummy! It tastes a lot better than it looks!

After I got done cleaning up the kitchen, this is what I found:

How sweet is this picture?

8 Months

As always, I do not even know where to begin this post. On the tenth of March, Marlee Kay turned 8 months old. I am loving this stage. She is such a bundle of delight..so full of life and personality.

At eight months Marlee Kay:

-weighs roughly 20 pounds.

-wears a size 3 diaper.

-eats great. She has been introduced to: acorn and butternut squash, sweet potatoes, peas, bananas, apples, pears, prunes, mangos, rice cereal, plain and vanilla yogurt, and carrots. She is such a good eater and has eaten any type of fruit and veggie we give her. She seems to eat anything, just like Dada.

-reaches her arms out at me and Dada to be picked up (March 3). So cute..melts my heart.

-is so active. She is constantly moving, kicking her feet, smacking her hands, and wiggling.
-sits up unassisted for about 10 seconds.

-rolls and rolls and rolls. She can get anywhere. I turn my head for a couple of seconds and Marlee is across the family room playing with the curtains. She is definitely an active baby.

-gets up on hands and knees and rocks back and forth (March 7). She's going to be crawling before we know it.

-is so vocal. She screams, squeals, laughs, and babbles so loudly.

-puts anything and everything she gets her hands on into her mouth.

-loves to be read to. Every night Dada and I take turns reading her a bedtime story. So often when Dave is reading to her I peak in on them and just watch Dave be so gentle and sweet with her.

-is such a good sleeper. She sleeps between 11 and 12 hours a night and takes 2-3 naps. I know, I know, I'm a lucky Mama.

-loves pictures. I take her around the house and point to all the pictures on the wall and tell her, "this is Marlee, or Mama, or Dada, or Bubba's". She starts kicking and laughing. Especially when I show Marlee pictures of herself.

-enjoys showers with Dada and walks in her stroller to the park with the Bubba's.

-is constantly playing with her tongue..clicking, spitting, blowing spit bubbles-you name it.

-is very timid when around people and unfamiliar places. She sits back and takes everything in. It usually doesn't take her long to warm up though. She is definitely like her Mama, a creature of habit and familiar surroundings.
-does not like loud noises.

-does not like to sit still.

A couple of weeks ago I went in Marlee's room after she woke from her nap and this is what I saw:

Yes, we had to drop her crib mattress this month. Sad day for me.

Marlee is growing up so fast. Everyday it seems she is learning and doing something new. I am so lucky to be able to stay home with her and soak up every possible second by her side. Marlee Kay brings purpose to my life. As Dave says, his little punkin makes everything better..so true. How lucky we are.

Sad Day Squared

So, yesterday was another sad, sad day. My beloved Brett Favre, quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, retired after 17 seasons. He was my MVP and one of the main reasons I love to watch football. What now?

On a more serious side note, Mollie seems to be doing better. She hasn't had anymore "episodes" since I picked her up from Dr. Vet Monday afternoon..thank goodness because it scares the hell out of me and so sad to watch. The blood work came back fine and the doc told me he leans towards something neurological but does not feel it is necessary to put her on meds or get a neurological analysis. He told me to keep a close eye on her and let him know if she has anymore episodes.
One more thing and then I will get off this topic. I just want to tell my sissie, Stacey, thank you for making me feel better. You always raise a good point when it comes to my pity parties with my Bubba's...I was given dogs with problems because I take good care of them and go to any and all lengths to keep them healthy and here with me for as long as I can. Most people don't. Thanks sissie.

Okay, so what now? I know, let's talk politics. Anyone watch yesterday's primary coverage? Pretty exciting, right? Senator Clinton took three of the four primaries yesterday, including Ohio and Texas, which are huge. Before yesterday Obama had great momentum, winning numerous states and if Clinton didn't do good yesterday she was basically out. So I say yipee for Hillary! I know many people don't like her and when I ask why there is really no reason, at least politically. She just turns people off. To each their own, however I happen to like her, and Obama for that matter, and I am really torn between the two for different reasons. I can't understand Clinton's extreme dislike because if people took the time to research her and what she stands for, she is definitely for the people. If Obama wins, fine. Fair is fair, but sometimes it seems to not always be fair. Maybe our country hasn't come far enough. It saddens because I hear time and time again, it's not because she is a woman. Well, then what is it? And if it's not her, then who?
A couple of weeks ago I was watching Bill Maher and a feminist was on talking about how she feels there is more sexism than racism in this country. My response to this at the time was no, certainly not. However, after watching the debates and coverage of the primaries and hearing the comments that are made about Hillary, I might have to agree with her. I know many will disagree with this and I realize there is still racism in this country. Maybe I feel this way because I am white and female..I don't know. I rambling now.
Off my soapbox now.

Sad Day

So, today started out as any other Monday. Wake up early, and when I say early I mean 5:00am early. My morning went something like this:
Feed Marlee
Play with Marlee
Put Marlee down for morning nap
Check email and school

Pay bills
Clean my bathroom and bedroom
Take shower and get ready
Do a load of laundry
Marlee up..feed her again

It is now 9:30am
Pretty mundane Monday, right? Well, about 10:00 am Mollie (my dog) starts having what my vet refers to as episodes. A little background..
I do not only have one baby, I have three babies. My first two are my puppies, Cooper and Mollie. Cooper was a Christmas present from Dave in 2001 and we got Mollie February 2002. I know there are many people out there that think I am absolutely crazy in the way I treat my dogs. However, these two little furballs got me through some pretty dark times and are such great companions. Did you know that research shows elderly people that have dogs live longer than elderly people that don't?
So, About a year ago Mollie started having what we think are seizures. Her vet, best doctor ever, diagnosed her with epilepsy. She averages about one seizure a month. Not enough for me to justify putting her on medication. I have just been paying close attention and keeping in contact with Dr. Vet.
Today, Mollie has what I think is a seizure. I do what I always do, lay with her, pet her, and tell her everything's going to be alright. Then she had another, and another, and another. About one every fifteen minutes for three hours.
At 1:00 I take her to the vet. Not good when you get bumped in front of all the patients..means doc thinks this is serious. He assessed her and told me he wants to do blood work and keep an eye on her for a couple more hours.
Long story short, he doesn't know exactly what is wrong with her. Not sure if what she is having now is cluster seizures or something else. He called a neurologist (Can you believe they have puppy neurologists?) to get a second opinion. They should get her blood work back tomorrow and hopefully this will tell us something.
The good news is Mollie has been home for about an hour and is acting completely normal. Let's cross our fingers.
Sad, very sad, day for Mama..

My sweet Mollie girl