A Big Step

My heart was pounding but it was not from exertion. We had not started walking yet. I wore no earphones. I wanted to be able to hear everything around me, especially the jiggling of dog tags. My eyes continuously scanned yards looking for loose dogs. I made sure my pepper spray was easily reachable. Logically I know the chances of Maximus being attacked again are minimal but I can't help to be paranoid. I took Maximus to our downtown area where a lot of people walk with and without dogs. The downtown area is made up mostly of businesses and the prep school with some residential houses peppered in. I figured that there was less of a chance of loose dogs in this area.

I walked Maximus for almost an hour. This was his first walk since his Labor Day attack. I have been struggling with guilt over not walking him and wanting to keep him safe and his love of walking. I so want to protect him. Seeing his attack and not being able to do anything to stop it was heartbreaking. I can't seem to get those images out of my head.

But yesterday I felt brave enough to try walking Maximus. Yesterday Maximus was joyous as we strolled downtown. Maybe someday I'll feel comfortable walking in my own neighborhood again. I hope so.

Weekly Winners

I found some beauty outside this week despite the cold. Be sure to go to Sarcastic Mom to check out more weekly winners.

A building at the local prep school.

No leaves but beautiful sky.

Serious sky. Taken while hubby drove us to his parents on Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wordless and Wardrobe Wednesday

The coolest turkey hat ever. I am thankful for this little turkey.

Check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos. Don't forget to head over to see how all the cool kids are dressing at Heathen Family Revival.

Dog Attack Update

I haven't written much about the attack on Maximus recently other than about my new fear of being outside. A lot has happened since Labor Day when a neighbors' pit bull attacked Maximus requiring 3 surgeries and 25+ staples in his chest and neck. At the advice of an attorney, we sent a certified letter requesting the owners to pay Maximus' medical bills. After a couple of weeks, they thankfully did pay the bills. They saved us from taking them to small claims court.

We decided that we wanted to bring some attention to vicious dog ordinances but we wanted to wait till our veterinarian bills were paid. Fate had another idea. A woman whose dog suffered a pit bull attack (a different dog) brought the issue up at town council. When we saw the notice in the paper about the agenda, we knew we had to go. Dave went to the meeting armed with our story and photos of Maximus' injuries. The town council gasped when Dave stated the owners of the attacking dog never received a ticket. Nothing really happened to them. Dave and I are both really unhappy with how the town handled things. There did not seem to be a procedure on how to handle these situations. The state gives the towns the authority to seize, ticket, and/or euthanize animals. The owners were told they could go on vacation as planned without even providing records for rabies shots. It would have been nice to know that the dog was up to date so Maximus could avoid unnecessary shots. It would be nice if the animal control office had a filing system to keep track of vicious animals other than post it notes and staff memories. That is how one worker stated he checked this dog's history.

Dave went to the town council meeting armed with research on how other towns protect their citizens against vicious animals. Basically those towns all have a definition for a dangerous animal and then list steps that need to be enforced to ensure public safety. Some towns require dogs to take classes to be "good" dogs, some require yards to be fenced, some require muzzles be worn, and some require dogs be removed from the town or euthanized. Many on the town council members are against making further ordinances.

Dave was asked to attend another meeting on this issue. Dave thinks he was not expected to talk much at this meeting but he feels passionately about this issue and had done a ton of research. He is not making many friends on town council, police station, or animal control office. He is getting attention though. The local paper wrote an article about Maximus' attack and discussion about the dog ordinance. They got a couple of facts wrong but were pretty fair overall. I'm not confident any changes are going to be made. I'm not sure when I will feel safe to walk Maximus but I am proud of all the work Dave has done on this issue.

Weekly Winners

It has been a busy week but I managed to get a couple shots I liked. Be sure to go to Sarcastic Mom to check out more weekly winners.

Playing with sun.

The last leaves in the yard.

Little boy and big train.

Fitness Friday: Finding Balance

When I was in college, I worked out 6 days a week. If I couldn't work out for at least 45 minutes, I didn't think it was worth doing. I loved working out. I forced myself to take a day off. I actually liked 6 am track workouts except for the puking that sometimes occurred. I loved the feeling of working hard and getting my workout done so early.

Things are different now. I'm content if I can get a 30 minute workout in. I no longer have a plethora of time to workout. With all the demands of motherhood, I have had to make adjustments. I try to get in 5 workouts a week but I don't stress if I only get in 3. Some weeks are busier than others. My priorities have changed. I would love to have more time and energy to workout but I don't want to miss any of the fun stuff with the kids either.

Someday I'd love to train more but for now I'm finding balance between family and working out. Dave and I have worked out times that I can go to the gym. I plan on going 2-3 days a week so I can run during the cold weather. I'm still running outside with Davey while Caitlin is at school but the weather will be too cold soon. I'm working out at home 3 days a week. I do my 30 Day Shred video and I use my elliptical machine. I'm trying to workout more intensely to be more effective since time is more limited.

How you are staying fit? Feel free to share your own tips for fitness in the comments or leave a link.

Skywatch Friday

When you see a sunset like this, you have to pull over and take some photos.

Go to Skywatch Friday to see skies from all around the world.

Then and Now Thursday

Welcome to the Then and Now blog carnival. This meme is a chance to look back at how life has changed over the years. Hope you'll join us. Click here for more info on this meme.

Then: 2007
Caitlin was only 2 years old and Davey was a couple months old. We really didn't follow Thomas the Train but someone gave us free tickets to the event. Caitlin enjoyed the ride on the train. We had fun despite the constant rain.

Now: The kids love Thomas the Train. Davey learned to sing the Thomas theme song before he said much else. The day looked like the first time we went to visit Thomas. It was pouring the whole ride down but stopped as we pulled off the exit. The kids were very excited. Their faces lit up the first time they saw the great train. The kids enjoyed all rides, trains, and face painting. The tickets were far from free this time but worth every penny.



Please share how things are different Then and Now. Click here for more info on this meme. Remember you do not need photos to participate. Be sure to visit other participants' posts and leave some comment love.

Wordless Wednesday and Wardrobe Wednesday

Excitement at the museum.

Check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

How else does one dress when visiting the big trains?

Head over to see how all the cool kids are dressing at Heathen Family Revival.

I Heart Faces-Autumn Beauty

This is my entry for I Heart Faces Autumn Beauty theme. Caitlin made a silly leaf mask. She is my beauty.Be sure to go to www.iheartfaces.com to check out all the other beautiful faces.

Not Me Monday

It is time for Not Me Monday. It is a time to admit to somethings you might want to forget. MckMama is our host at My Charming Kids . Go over there to see what other people are not doing this week too.

It was not my son that had to be physical taken away from the train table kicking and screaming when it was time to leave.

It is not my daughter who is constantly making jokes up with "your butt" as the punch line.

It is not my dog 90 lbs. yellow lab that climbs onto laps on visitors to get petted. That same dog did not steal and eat a pound of uncooked ziti from the pantry.

It is not my husband that froze all our contact cases in ice after sterilizing them. I did not have to chip the ice away to use a case.

I do not love my family despite their little quirks. I am not a lucky mama.

Weekly Winners

They are on the late side but here is my weekly winners. Be sure to go to Sarcastic Mom to check out more weekly winners.

Concentration

Up to Something.

Freezing the water.

Swirling.

Skywatch Friday

This was a couple of weeks ago before the trees lost all their leaves.

Go to Skywatch Friday to see skies from all around the world.

Then and Now Thursday

Welcome to the Then and Now blog carnival. This meme is a chance to look back at how life has changed over the years. Hope you'll join us. Click here for more info on this meme.

Then: Before Having Kids
I looked forward to going to Dave Matthew concerts, football games, and tailgating. I was pretty carefree. I worked during the week and had weekends off. If I drank a little too much tailgating and was hung over the next day, it was not an issue. I was able to vegetate on the couch, eat cheese doodles, and drink plenty of gatorade.

Now: I rarely go to concerts or football games. I rarely drink too much. I get hungover if I have more than 3 drinks. When I get hungover now, I still need to do all my usual mom duties and often I work on the weekends. There is no vegetating on the couch. But that is ok with me. Now I look forward to going to kids' concerts and events. I really enjoy seeing my kids having fun. We just got tickets to see Nickoledon Presents Storytime Live. I can't wait to see Davey see Ming Ming live.

Don't get me wrong I still love going out with friends and enjoying a good beer. It is just that making the kids happy is more important now. It is my job now.


Please share how things are different Then and Now. Click here for more info on this meme. Remember you do not need photos to participate. Be sure to visit other participants' posts and leave some comment love.

Wordless Wednesday

Check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

Weekly Winners

Time for another weekly winners. Be sure to go to Sarcastic Mom to check out more weekly winners.

Concentration.

Curiosity.

My Childhood Toy.

Skywatch Friday

Go to Skywatch Friday to see skies from all around the world.

Then and Now Thursday

Welcome to the Then and Now blog carnival. This meme is a chance to look back at how life has changed over the years. Hope you'll join us. Click here for more info on this meme.

Then: 2005 Caitlin's first Halloween

2007 Davey's first Halloween.
Back then Halloween was just an opportunity to dress the kids up and take lots of photos.

Now: 2009
Still an opportunity to take lots of photos but the kids are not as patient and they can move way better now. The kids also get to get trick or treating too. Davey liked to yell, "Halloween treats" instead of trick or treat at each door. They ran to each door. Davey yelled for everyone to wait for him. And they did.

Please share how things are different Then and Now. Click here for more info on this meme. Remember you do not need photos to participate. Be sure to visit other participants' posts and leave some comment love.

Wordless Wednesday and Wardrobe Wednesday

The kids love to help blow candles out.

Check out 5 Minutes for Mom, Momspective, and Wordless Wednesday for more wordless photos.

My little firefighter in training.

Head over to see how all the cool kids are dressing at Heathen Family Revival.

Favre Cam

I was watching the Viking vs. Greenbay game on Sunday when they showed the Favre cam. The camera showed you Brett Favre throughout the game. I joked that the Favre cam should go into the shower too. Dave thought that was rather creepy. I pointed out that he would gladly watch a Jennifer Anniston shower cam. He denies it but I know I'm right. Brett is one of the oldest NFL players at 40. He is one of the few players that I can fantasize about without feeling creepy. I would still be the younger woman in this scenario. I don't care what team he is on. He is hot. I think the shower cam would be a great addition. I can't be the only one who wants to watch Brett shower.

Not Me Monday

It is time for Not Me Monday. It is a time to admit to somethings you might want to forget. MckMama is our host at My Charming Kids . Go over there to see what other people are not doing this week too.

I did not think Davey had a bit of a virus last week. He was pooping 5-8 times a day. He is usually a 1-2 poop a day boy. After 3 days of this, I did not discover that Dave had been feeding Davey Fiber One granola bars. The pediatrician did not recommend half a Fiber One bar for Caitlin, who has constipation issues. Needless to say Davey is not cleared out. I did not make Dave change all the poopy diapers this weekend as penance.

I was not disappointment that we missed 3 Halloween events last week because Caitlin did not have a bad cold. I do not enjoy Halloween as much as the kids. I was not really happy that she was well enough to go to her preschool party and trick or treating at the end of the week. We did not have a great time at both events.

Weekly Winners-Halloween Addition

The kids were sick this week so I didn't get my usual pre-Halloween photos. Trying to get the kids to pose on Halloween for more than 2 seconds is next to impossible. But I did get some photos of Maximus as Super Dog. Be sure to go to Sarcastic Mom to check out more weekly winners.

To the rescue.

Super Dog.

Coy Witch.

The one shot of the little witch and Thomas.