In Theory...

So… it’s snowing outside! Yes… SNOW…ING. What happened to our glorious 58-60 degree weather we had on Saturday? My girlfriends and I are training for a ½ marathon and had a fabulous 6-7 mile run outside (in the middle of Jan!)… however, if this white stuff sticks around for the upcoming weekend our 8 mile run is going to be HORRIBLE… agh!

Reflecting on our last blog I would like to talk about how in theory some ideas are grand… in theory… my friend Mekala had the great idea to send her dog (Raleigh) to “doggy daycare” last week… this past weekend he became very sick- wouldn’t eat/drink… and kept standing in a weird yoga-ish position for awhile… we prayed all weekend for Raleigh’s health (not necessarily that he would become himself as he’s very rambunctious all the time, but just to get better…) Mekala made an appointment for yesterday afternoon on post… yesterday morning I got a phone call from her- she was hysterical… Raleigh was hemorrhaging all over her house! I grabbed my keys and took them to the vet on post… we were seen by someone immediately… Mekala was doing as best as she could… and I was trying to just be supportive (while holding a sample of the “stuff”)… when in walked the secretary who said she had just talked to Mekala’s husband who said to “do whatever we needed to do”… that’s when I about died… Mekala stopped crying and said “that’s not possible…” and the women responded with “oh, but I just did… your husband.” I didn’t know what to say… the woman made a horrible mistake… I was about to say something to her when Mekala responded “no, there’s no way… not my husband… he’s serving… in Afghanistan right now…” silence… DEAD SILENCE. The woman left the room (I felt awful for both of them…) but no one’s perfect… I learned so much about the signs to look for if a dog is dehydrated (Raleigh was)… later that day he had x-rays done on post… she took him to another vet off post for a second opinion only to find out that he had to have surgery… NOW. Apparently Raleigh swallowed some type of rubber ball… probably at the “doggy daycare” place (where they monitor your dog/play the ENTIRE day… I suppose however, it’s hard to keep track of every dog there… when there’s over 30 dogs at a time)… so… that’s where we’re at… Raleigh had surgery last night and will come home probably Wed or Thurs… as far as the “doggy daycare” goes… Raleigh will not be returning this week… or next… and that $12 day-care stint is now costing over $1200… yes… that would be 12… times 100…dollars. Pray for Raleigh… and Mekala… she is one of the strongest women I know… as well as her husband Chris who is in Afghanistan serving.

On a more “upbeat” note… Caleb and I went to a coffee house right outside one of the gates on post (Shout out to Bearclaw coffee!) and played Boggle… for those of you who don’t know- it’s basically my favorite game behind Twister and Pretty Pretty Princess… and possibly Candy Land… no, it definitely surpasses Candy Land… anyways… Caleb is a genius (and very competitive)… I myself am a phenomenal Boggle player… no lie. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and were pretty much tied… but in the end, I won… thanks to all that studying for the GRE vocabulary… yes, I pulled out some vocabulary terms that I learned while studying… and WON. I guess all that studying paid off for not only getting into grad school BUT winning a game of Boggle… life is GOOD.

While playing Boggle and hanging out at Bearclaw we found some great magazines… and recipes… that I tried… Caleb is such a good sport… he genuinely seems interested in trying anything that I can throw at him… and takes it like a champ… I would like to add that most of the recipes that I either come up with on my own (“throwing things together”) or other recipes- he’s enjoyed… but yesterday’s recipe was “OK”… which means- “thanks for trying hun, but maybe we can try a different recipe… and throw out that one…” ;) On a side note- Caleb is also a good sport about groceries… we went this weekend and I “up and decided” that our grocery bill is outrageous and that he has to go on my “no soybean oil” diet… I’m allergic to soybean oil (which is in just about… EVERYTHING. Seriously… go check your cupboards… and fridge… AND bathroom- shampoo, lotion, etc.- it’s there… check it out)… Caleb on the other hand LOVES everything that has soybean oil, so we eat a lot of different meals/food… which makes food shopping expensive… oh, and did I also say that I “up and decided” that there is a “no pop” rule AND “2 item limit free/junk food” policy now in effect at the Lohman household? Yup… that’s right… so… mom and dad… Caleb will probably be heading home for some “pop” and “junk/free food” soon… that, or will be making a new bank account so that I won’t be able to see where his “debit/charges” are going… ie. Monster Energy drinks… and “free food.” ;) Just kidding… he won’t use his debit card… he’s too smart… I think he’s going to start picking up lose change (finally!) after me… who has a pig bank full of change just from bending over and picking up the shiny metal… you’re never too rich to pick up a penny…