Kody

Okay, now a couple of hard posts so I can get on with all of the others.  I'm a bit anal and like to have all of them in order.  I also loved it when I could back date them so I knew when they actually happened rather than when I took the time to write about them.  But I think they removed that option when they updated the blog site and made uploading pictures MUCH easier.

My sister's wonderful dog, Kody, passed away on February 28th.  He graced her with his presence for almost 13 years which is pretty old for a Siberian Husky.  The week before he started acting a little weird and eating objects, like Keira's socks, and then one of Jason's rope toys.  He was able to discard the socks, but not the rope.  The ultrasound that was done didn't show for sure, but we think that it was in his stomach blocking the opening to his intestine.  Surgery would have been very expensive and not a wise choice for a dog at his age.  For about a week and a half he was unable to eat or eliminate much, progressively becoming worse.  On February 28th he was so weak he could barely get up.  Laura had have him put to sleep.  

He has been a wonderful blessing to our family, arriving at a time when Laura needed him so much.  He was her best friend and was always there for her.  He has been through a lot of moving and extended stays with various members of our family but was always as happy, loving, and loyal as could be.  In his younger years he loved to take himself for walks at any chance he could, but as he got older and wiser, he realized that he'd rather be nowhere else than with Laura.

He was my dog, Jason's, best friend.  Jason would become ecstatic whenever he would come over.  The first stuffed toy that he didn't tear to shreds was one of Kody's old toys a couple of years ago.  Even a month before he passed away, Kody always put up with Jason's puppy-like play and love.  And up until the last couple of weeks Kody would still yelp and dance at the thought of going for a walk.

Kody was loved by all and will be greatly missed and could never be replaced.  We're so thankful that Laurie had such a wonderful dog for so long!  We love you Kody and will miss you!

18 Months!

Well I'm quite the slacker and only posted pictures on this post last month and never wrote anything, so pictures are all you'll get, besides her stats.  :o)

At 18 months Keira is 2 feet 8.75 inches tall which is the 81%.

She weighs 24 pounds, 4 ounces which is 50%.

Her weight for length is 37%.

The doctor said she looks great and has no concerns and that she's talking like a two year old.  :o)

 First day of nursery!  She did awesome!

Counting

This is how Keira counts...  2, 3, 5, 6, 8.  Not bad for 18 months!

I really hadn't been trying to teach Keira how to count, but I do count things for her.  Last week while she was taking a bath and I was counting something,  I said "one" and she said "two, three."  Totally out of nowhere!  It was soooo cute!!!

As Warned... The Chickens are Here

Six chicks were shipped to the post office and my poor sister had to go get them since I had to work and Chris had to fly to California the morning they arrived.  Poor Laurie was quite embarrassed.  She was carrying Keira in one arm and a box of chirping one day old chicks in the other.

 We have five Red Stars (which is a hybrid between a Leghorn and Rhode Island Red) and one Plymouth Rock Barred.  They are living in our old fish tank until they're 5-6 weeks old (or outgrow it).  Then they can go outside.  Hopefully Chris has everything all figured out.  

 Keira (and Jason) is fascinated by them!

 This is Taz.  The first day he (I guess SHE since they're all supposed to be girls) was so mean to the other chicks and kept nipping at their feet.  He also wouldn't lay down, he was running all over the place.  Luckily since then he's become nicer and calmed down.

 I have to admit, they're pretty cute and fuzzy!

Ouray Trip

Last week Keira and I had a nice five day trip to Ouray to visit my mom.  A once five hour trip becomes six and a half hours with a toddler and a dog.  On our way there, I hit a major milestone.  It was my first time eating in a restaurant without another adult.  However, I have had to go to a drive through by myself a handful of times in my life.

It was actually pretty fun.  Keira loved holding and drinking from her own cup.  I'll have to introduce that later in the meal next time so she eats more of her food.  She also loves to dip french fries in ketchup.

 She did awesome on the drive over.  She slept for the first hour and just played and talked for a long time.  For the last hour and a half I put a movie on.  My sister let us borrow a portable DVD player.  It was fabulous!  Keira loved watching "Nemo."  I think I need one for our longer trips.  And I'd have to get a case thing that hangs over the headrest so she doesn't have to strain her neck to see it.

 We won't talk much about our trip because Keira was a little terror.  I don't think she's ever been so bad.  And of all the times to be good...  She would touch things she knows she's not supposed to, she tested me, tried to distract me to get something she's not supposed to have, said "not" and "no" about everything, wouldn't eat, and we'll stop there.

The highlights of our trip were our walks to the park.  She especially liked looking at the fish and turtles in the pond.  Jason enjoyed them too.

Thankfully she did remarkably well on our drive home, despite not taking a nap.  I'm thinking we won't be invited back to Ouray until Keira is better behaved.  ;-(

He's Gone Paleo

For the last several weeks Chris has been doing something called the Paleo Diet.  It's not a diet, but a way of eating like they did back in the day before all of our fabulous technology.  He's really into it.  It's based of the fact that humans used to be hunter/gatherers.  Their food consisted of lean meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, eggs, and nuts (if they can be eaten raw).  There were no crops such as grain, including cereal, bread, oats, wheat, rice, and corn, and no dairy, legumes, corn, potatoes, yeast, or anything that needs to be cooked or processed.  Which is about 90% of my diet.  Their typical diet was about 29% protein, 38% fat, 33% carbs (not from grains or sugar).

Everything is supposed to be organic, so it's expensive which is a bummer since I've been working so hard and have been saving a lot of money by couponing.  It's also pretty time consuming to "make" something for every meal.  I enjoy grabbing a bowl of cereal for Keira and I every morning.  Luckily Chris has been cooking his own meals.  Probably because of fear that I'll add something he's not supposed to have.  ;-)  

As you may have guessed I'm not doing it.  I have enjoyed several of the meals, but it just seems impossible to me.  Not to mention, the whole no grains thing is pretty against the Word of Wisdom.  I really don't know what to do.  I must admit, it's kinda a pain when your spouse is on a diet and you're not and then I feel guilty eating normal stuff.  But I'm pretty certain that I don't have enough will power not to eat any sweets, bread, or milk.  It doesn't bother him though.  I was talking to someone in church today and his family is very into nutrition and eat extremely healthy.  He's also a nurse and has been hearing a lot of the same things, that cancer wasn't even around until grains and that fats really aren't responsible for heart disease.  So I don't know what to do.  I MIGHT give it a try.

One of Chris' most exotic paleo creations.... What's your guess?....

Frog legs.  :-(

DISGUSTING!!!!!!!

On the Home Front

 You may notice the bathroom looks exactly the same as 22 days ago.  Yup.

BUT we do have an idea of how we'd LIKE our house to look.  An additional one car garage, the fence extended so we have a humungous back yard, and nicer landscaping.

And here are Chris' latest thoughts for the chicken coup.