Being a "dog person" in a pet crazy world

Anyone who knows me, knows I love dogs.  I have pretty much always had a dog in my life.  My first job was working at a resort for pets.  Since then I have pursued dog training, volunteered at animal shelters, worked at a vet clinic, and currently own 2 dogs.  Reality is, if it weren't for being in a rental, and having a second child on the way, we would be very likely be dumb enough to have 3.  There are many benefits to owning a dog.

This reminds me of my parents "security dog".

Best alarm/home protection system out there (our dogs once deterred someone from our yard in Colorado in the middle of the night.  Who knows of times we were unaware of or not here for!)
Companionship/mood boosters- they even have studies showing the results of this, but I am too lazy to look any up.
Can help you with fitness- it's easier to motivate yourself to go for a walk when you need to walk your dog.
Dogs help teach kids responsibility/kindness
Wonderful heat source in the winter- I love being able to stick my cold feet under the dogs in winter!
My favorite- new research keeps coming out to show how kids are LESS likely to have allergies when growing up with dogs, they help strengthen immune systems.
There are many more, but I'm going to keep the list short and practical for now.

I'm hardly motivated to throw my toddler
a birthday party, much less a dog!

I have very strong opinions about being a responsible pet owner- beyond shelter and food, but also about nutrition, exercise, training, and basic pet health (vaccines and such).  While I shower my dog with affection, I do not do much beyond those basic things.  You will never see me throw my dog a birthday party.

 We don't buy Christmas gifts except with the rare exception when we find toys on sale. I do not refer to our dogs as our 'kids' or ourselves as their 'parents'. They are my dogs, and we are alpha in this pack, that's that.  Not that those things are necessarily 'bad', I just see my dog, as a DOG.  Granted, he is also my friend, and a very dear and old friend at that.

That being said, to some people I might be a bit extreme in my love for dogs- I hardly ever buy black clothing, because I know anything black will just be covered in hair in about .05 seconds.  I have to vacuum at least every other day to try to stay on top of the dog hair.  We have to budget our finances for the overall well being of our dogs.  We have had to base finding places to live on the fact that we own two dogs.  I lay on the floor and cuddle with my dog. I am constantly paranoid of my house having a 'dog smell', and buy Febreze and candles to freshen my house's smell.  We have to, to a certain extent, have a lifestyle to accommodate our dogs; in that we try to come home most nights to feed them and let them out, we do not however deter our plans to socialize or stay out late to take care of our dogs (we have a child for that kind of inconvenience haha).   So to people who do not like dogs, this might be extreme.

Recently, my old friend Rover started limping pretty significantly.  I must admit, my anxiety shot through the roof when this happened.  You see, while I am willing to do what it takes to make him comfortable (budget some meds if need be, get him a comfortable bed, limit his physical exertion), I was unwilling to do anything that would either prolong his suffering if he was in extreme pain, or to spend thousands of dollars for a surgery, especially at his age.  If he broke his hip or needed replacement, it was just something I knew I would be unwilling to do, regardless if we had the finances or not, which, we did not.  I am so thankful it was something that could be managed, however it made me think about dog ownership in general.

I know of several owners who would have spent the thousands of dollars if necessary to do a hip replacement surgery and maybe even physical therapy to follow..  I've seen people drag out their poor dogs miserable, painful lives because they were unable to say goodbye.  In fact, there was one woman who used to come into the vet clinic I worked at who's dog had to have its bandages changed and cleaned frequently because it couldn't walk on its hind legs so it just dragged it's legs to get around.  To pay for surgery, understandable, just not in my budget/lifestyle to do so, but to pay to prolong your dogs life, I consider to be extreme.  Like I said, it just made me think about dog ownership in general, and how far owners go in their love, care... and sometimes obsession with their pets.   Is there an understood line that overall is just too far?  We all have personal opinions of that line, of course, but I'm speaking a moral line... of people putting their pets before people?  Of people being irresponsible instead of good stewards with their finances for the 'happiness' of their pets?  There are pet spa's and getaways! Anyway, just a thought, and I know for each person there is probably a different opinion on the matter, I just wonder if there is a 'right' and 'wrong' way to care for your pets.

Clearly, the "right" way to care for your pet.

So for now, I am just thankful I didn't have to make that difficult decision with Rover, but I know, maybe not so many years down the road, I will have to make that choice with my dog.  So for now, I am just thankful for the years I've gotten to enjoy his companionship and the joy he has brought to my life.  I am hopeful for a few more good years filled with memories of Rover in our growing family.

Traumatized

So, as most moms know... being a mom is gross.   Not just gross... I mean, flat out repulsively disgusting sometimes.  Dads know this too, not trying to leave them out by any means, but just writing as a mom here.  Either way, as a parent, we have all experienced the epic blow-outs that you don't even know where to begin to clean the child up.   There's the sneeze that leaves snot covering 3/4 of their face.  There's the being spit up on, and as they get older and sick... just the flat out being thrown up on.  I know, I know... this is all very disgusting to even discuss.  However, for the most part, I will be leaving out pictures, pretty decent of me, yes?

By far, the most disgusting thing for Tyler and I is having to use the snot sucker.   I'm not sure what the 'real name' is for this device, but that blue bulb thing the pediatrician is always recommending you use... freaks us out.
  Our reactions to this device is probably comical as we both gag and freak out whenever we have to use it, which does no help to  Vi, who hates being touched on her face in general, and is generally crying her head off through the entire process.  It takes us both, because she is an awfully strong little girl, and one of us has to hold her arms down while the other holds her head and sucks the snot.
    Tonight, she was especially congested, and we knew we'd have to use it for her to fall asleep.   Ugh... this dreaded thing!  After I withdraw snot, I usually squeeze it into a rag or something until we are done.  I wasn't much paying attention, and when I squeezed the bulb to get the snot out, I missed the rag and got a GIANT amount of green nasty snot got all over me.  I cannot describe the noises that came from Tyler and I,  but they were not calm, mature reactions by any means.  More along the lines of jumping up and down, flapping our arms and hands about like high school girls, freaking out with gag-like choking sounds as our child laid on the changing table crying... OK, screaming her poor eyes out.  Probably not our most shining parenting moment.  I missed taking a picture at this moment, clearly not as amazing as this parent:

So as I've stated, having to hear the noise and use those snot sucking bulbs is pretty much the most disgusting thing in Tyler and I's book.  We despise it.  However, it CAN get worse, this weekend I discovered this little device not only exists, but comes highly recommended:

Just posting this picture has Tyler sitting here on the couch saying "that's disgusting!"  How do you use this handy little device?  Oh, simple, you just SUCK THE SNOT OUT OF YOUR KIDS NOSE!  Totally cool right?  Wrong.  Not cool NoseFrida...not cool. According to their website "NoseFrida is non-invasive – instead of going inside the nose like the bulb, it forms a seal with the outside of the baby’s nostril (creating a vacuum). Parent-powered (mouth) suction is much stronger and more effective than the static suction of the bulb or battery-powered aspirators. NoseFrida is also easy to clean." 
Not grossed out yet?  Here's a real picture example of this handy tool at work:

Look how happy this baby is!  This thing is legit.  Not working, uh-uh, no way, will I EVER suck the snot out of my kids nose, I don't care how many filters you have on it or how long that tube is.  At the very least they could make it so the whole thing wasn't clear... you get to SEE the snot come out as you suck!

I dunno, I guess a lot of moms swear by this, how easy and safe and whatever it is.  In fact, a friend of mine just got one, I'm interested to hear if she uses it and how she likes it.  Have any of you moms out there used this device?  I'm interested in one, how you like it... but two, how did you bring yourself to use it in the first place???

Well, by now, you may all think I am way overreacting, or you are thoroughly grossed out.  Hope you didn't just eat or anything.

Surprises

So I might be one of the only pregnant women in the world who not only does not know how far along she is, but when the baby is even due.   I had an appointment yesterday and learned that my due date is actually March 23rd, when this whole time I've been telling people it was March 30th.  That being said, it was a reminder of how much I actually want to get done before the baby comes.  Nothing huge or anything, but I did in fact make a list awhile back and thought it was worth looking over at the very least just in case I forget when the baby is due again or something.

Today we decided to take on the toddler bed transition.  We wanted to start this one earlier because we wanted to make sure she has as much time as possible to adjust to changes in her atmosphere before having to adjust to being dethroned and sharing her family with a baby brother.  I read a couple blogs full of tips on helping your toddler adjust to a new bed:  to put them back in bed every time they get up, to lay with them, to let them pick out the bed, to let them pick out the bedding, to start telling them about the change a week before you change them... blah blah blah.   We did not let her pick out the bed, and figured her regular blanket was fine, and came home from a friends and just stuck her in her new bed.  She was asleep within 2 minutes.   

The whole thing was rather humorous, because while I wanted to be prepared for how to deal with a new situation, the entire thing was rather simple.  I guess that's just the predictable part of being a parent in that it is always full of surprises.  

She surprises me every day in her responses, both in entertaining ways and in not so entertaining ways. 

Entertaining:  Waking up to this conversation:  Genevieve:  "Watch a movie?"  Me: "Not gonna happen, how about we listen to music?"  Genevieve: "No way!"    - When did she start saying 'No way'?!  And how does a child raised in THIS house EVER say no to music?  Surprising and somewhat entertaining as she develops her opinions.

Or when I was listening to her whining while sitting in Nana's lap yesterday.  Nana: "Vi do you want to read a book?"  Genevieve: "Nooooooo!"  Nana: "Do you want to color?"  Genevieve: "Noooooooo!"  Nana: "Do you just want to whine?"  Genevieve: "yeah."   - I really couldn't help but laugh.

Not so entertaining:  When I tell her to put her bowl in the sink, she lifts it above her head, and throws it to the floor.  Surprising?  Yes.  Following through with discipline isn't as entertaining as being amused by her opinions when she's being obedient though. 

She is a very surprisingly good eater for being almost two.  Her new favorite breakfast is sharing her 'booties' (smoothies) with me in the morning made with fruit, almond milk and flax seed.  She loves cucumbers, spinach, broccoli, carrots, humus, all fruit, and just overall, will try almost anything.  Meanwhile, most parents I know of two year olds have daily epic battles over food. 

Delicious smoothie and some cheerios.

So regardless if I'm prepared or not, parenthood will always be full of surprises.  I for one hope for more "easy" surprises like with the toddler bed and food, with less 'throwing our bowl on the ground instead of obeying' surprises.