Something positive amongst the negative

So.. My work is not a super positive environment. I do animal control, I work for the police department. So much of what I do and deal with is negative and when i first started it was very hard to deal with! because i'm such a happy person and didn't do well with conflict/confrontation and that is so much of what the job is!

I pick up sick, injured, abandoned or just dogs that escaped from their owner. I take them into the shelter where some owners never come and dogs are euthanized (I have mass respect for everyone who works at the shelter who has to deal with that EVERYDAY and much more and worse) I take in all sorts of animals..so many cats. I pick up dead animals on the road or that have died at home. I get to go deal with owners who get angry, defensive, who yell at me and belittle me. I have to write tickets to good and bad dog owners. I have to euthanize animals. I start out fine, as time goes on, i start getting down about work.

But then, something will happen that stands out and reminds me that there are some positive things and things to enjoy about what I do and brings me back up to happy level where i can start over again and look with refreshed eyes at the job around me.

Someone found a baby bunny in their garage.. not a domestic little fluffy easter bunny.. but it looked like a wild hare (the house was on the mountain). This thing was like 2 inches long and its eyes were not open yet. I don't know how much i can say about what i do at work but i pretty much knew the fate of this little one.. it was too young to survive without its mom, no one would want to nurse it back to health. I was smitten by this little creature i wanted to help it! it hopped and everything. Well, as it turns out i was not the only one smitten by it. I took it to the shelter and we agreed to try to see if a mother cat that just had kittens would allow the bunny to nurse. The first one we tried just batted it around like a mouse.. the second one had a few kittens with her and ACCEPTED THE BUNNY! she let the bunny come up and nurse on it and when i came back a few hours later the bunny was all curled up inbetween the kittens asleep!

I don't know why it made such an impression on me, but I am so happy! It was so amazing to see this mother cat accept an animal that wasn't her own nor even her same species!!! i wish i could have seen more but a rescue took the mother cat and her kittens.. AND the bunny today! amazing! i wanted a pic of that little bunny in with all the kittens.. thats ok. Its little things like this that lift my spirits and keep me going! thank you momma kitty for making my day!

Baby Idol!

I entered Samarah in 97.1 ZHT's baby idol! just for the heck of it. The  prize is an awesome backyard playset! If you feel like it, go vote! :) THANKS!
Here is the link.. and her entry number is #434

http://www.971zht.com/pages/babyidol12/

Cabin

So.. My parents just celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary... and I thought 4 years was awesome. haha. They rented a cabin down in Mt Pleasant and a bunch of the family went down to hang out! Me and my sisters and their kids. Chris didn't go.. but on friday all of a sudden there comes Chris walkin in the door! he drove down and surprised me! I was shocked but it was a welcome surprise!

I was so excited to take Samarah swimming at the pool down there and go hiking and all sorts of fun stuff. But instead, this is what I got to look at out the window. it snowed like crazy. GAY

It was such an awesome cabin! 3 cute cozy bedrooms and a loft! And a freaking soft soft bed. the view from in the loft looking out over the valley was beautiful

Huge awesome table

the camera was foggy but this is the lil room we slept in

Representing OHIO haha

Yay what a good pic!

It was a blast, i love spending time with my family. Go parents for 44 years! almost double what i have been alive.. wow. :)

Marriage.. 4 Year Anniversary

So on April 4, 2012 it was our 4 year wedding anniversary!! holy crap! We both worked and didn't do anything that day.. but went out on saturday to Dinner at Texas Roadhouse.. Yum!

Marriage is like being a mom, so hard, but so awesome. Its a constant effort. But you know what amazes me? Is how two people can make it work! Like for real! To overcome their difference and coexsist as one, it really is amazing. Chris and I are so different. We were raised with completely different beliefs and backgrounds, raised in different states, we are 10 years apart, enjoy different things, totally different personalities.. yet, we are good together! We work! I love being married I love Chris. Happy 4 years!

Some of the things that have happened in our 4 years...

marriage...4-4-08

Buying a House

Visiting Sears Tower

Finding out we're pregnant

Having our baby

And now learning to be parents! (yes, i'm sure you can tell. This was right after she was born, can you say exhaustion??)

So much has happened, so much has been overcome, so much has been learned... Life is such a wonderful, crazy ride. I can't wait to continue on and have many more anniversaries and see what comes next!!!

Easter!

So it was Samarah's first easter this year! It didn't really feel like easter.. i think when she gets older it will feel more like it, as will other holidays. Holidays just aren't the same when you a) aren't with your family b) don't have kids or don't have kids old enough to care.... she is too little to care.. so we didn't decorate eggs or anything. We just hung out in the BEAUTIFUL weather and enjoyed our little family time! My niece took some cute pics while we were hangin out outside!!

Protecting her lil head from a sunburn!

haha i love this picture. her teeth are too cute

Mommy and Samarah

Can you say CUTE?

Our hands and feet! Random but actually a cute pic

Hmm... what is that puppy doin

Puppy love!

I'm stoked next year I think she will be old enough to decorate eggs and find them! I can't wait!

I feel bad though,  I think she got a rash from sitting on the grass and not on a blanket! I feel so bad! :( I should have known better. Sorry Samarah!

Garden!

Chris built me some amazing garden beds last summer! When he finished I was like 8 months prego though.. so needless to say i did not use them. But I am going to use them this year and I am so excited I can't wait! I planted peas on monday! We shall see how I do.

The area before we started....

He made them tall so i dont' have to hardly bend over! what a nice hubby!

He lined them with plastic to keep the wood dry

We filled the bottom with green waste to help mulch with dirt!

I went a little too far with the round up...

I will add pictures if the stuff i plant decides to grow! i hope so because i love fresh stuff from the garden!

Why I love my dog

I love my dog for many reasons and i think she is a fantastic dog for many reasons.

She is my my running, hiking, walking, sitting, sleeping, eating, biking, anything companion.

 She is my best friend. She loves me no matter what. Doesn't matter if I had to spank her for getting in the trash, she waits patiently for me to be done being mad at her so she can come lick me again.

She is always so excited to see me, whether i have been gone 5 minutes, or a whole day.

She loves my cat.

She didn't used to like Samarah, but she does now, and that means a lot.

She never gets sick of spending time with me or Chris

If I am carrying something big and she is laying across the hallway or walkway, she moves! (my dad really loves that quality about her)

When she is outside, she doesn't bark at people who walk by. (unless i am outside, then she is protecting me!)

She doesn't leave the yard, even if the gate is open. She does not dig.  She does not jump on people.

I can leave food sitting on the coffee table sometimes even the floor and if we forget and leave, she does not eat it till we get home and tell her she can have it!!!!

HER QUIRKS:

She LOVES to be under blankets! She is so funny if we have a blanket on our lap and hanging off she noses any part of her body under it that will fit. She tries like hell to get totally under it.

We CAN'T cure her of licking! She is so hilarious she licks the wall, she licks the couch she licks anything that she happens to be next to. And she licks us like crazy!

She likes to fall asleep on her back, usually its all paws up though.

Working in the job I do, i see a lot of dogs that do really frustrating things. and it makes me more and more grateful that I have such a good dog! She definitely isn't perfect, but i'll take the licking and occasional trash diggging over barking, jumping, peeing in the house, digging under the fence, chewing, and various other things anyday. Love you Casey!

After a week of being sick, Samarah finally smiled at me for the first time since she has been sick. My world feels right again.