Author: ls1228

I’m a California girl who loves sunshine, driving with the top down, the beach, a glass of red wine, a shot of bourbon or even a fruity cocktail if the situation calls for one. If my arteries and jeans would allow it, I’d eat steak & potatoes every night. I love a good book. Anything from biographies, to crime drama, to modern romantic with a touch of suspense, and even the occasional “trashy romance novel” can be found on my Nook or book shelf. I’m funny but can’t even tell a “knock knock” joke. My Southern roots show themselves via my love of a pair of good (spoiled) hunting dogs, comfort food (especially grits & greens), the outdoors, a rugged man, a sturdy pickup truck and muscle cars (But OMG I LOVE my Porsche!). I’m likely to speak with a country twang when I’m around anyone else from the South (or if I’ve had a couple of cocktails), and I love many of the same things as my Southern relatives: NASCAR, College Football and BBQ. I believe in and honor the men who've served in the United States Military and respect for my Mom, my elders and the smell of fresh baked bread & apple pie rank high in my book. I’m that girl who listens intently and thinks a lot. I always check my facts and I have opinions on everything around me! At times I’m funny, sometimes I’m infuriating, but I’m always honest.

The Joy and Sorrows of Pup Parenting

On By ls1228In UncategorizedLeave a comment

lovemylabWe’ve all seen the shirts, coffee mugs, magnets and bumper stickers proclaiming that our pets are pretty much the center of the universe, prettier-smarter-better than anyone else’s, and the loves of our lives.

My labs, of course, are all of the above and more. 😉

I have 3 Labrador Retrievers and 1 Selkirk Rex cat who are, indeed, the center of my universe.  Daisy is my 11 1/2 year old “Senior Citizen” Lab, Dany is our 3 year old Lab, Lucky is my 3 year old Selkirk Rex kitty and Dusty is my 1 year old Lab pup.

Just over 15 months ago I discovered a lump underneath Daisy’s left ear.  I assumed it was related to the ear she’d been scratching at and took her into the vet to get some antibiotics to clear it up.  When her blood tests came up inconclusive for any kind of infection, we spent more than $2500 and 3 weeks searching out answers to what was ailing my girl.  We finally got an answer when my vet sent a tissue sample out to a friend she had at the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at Colorado State University.

It turned out that we had stumbled upon the very early stages of Lymphoma in our beloved baby.  We went through the potential treatment plan, what we were facing in costs, and what the likely side effects and prognosis were for Daisy.  I wasn’t ready to make a snap decision, wanted to do my own research and told our vet we wanted to talk about our options before starting the course of chemotherapy that they were recommending begin immediately.

Daisy gave us no indication that she was feeling ill at all.  We did our research, found out that the strain of Lymphoma we were dealing with was a slow grower and that many owners, especially of senior dogs, opted to not go the route of chemotherapy. It was a hard decision to make, but we finally decided that we would rather have fewer good months of time with Daisy not feeling ill from the side effects of treatment and set about making some changes to improve her already good life.

Already a very pampered, spoiled primarily indoor dog eating a grain free diet (Blue Freedom Large Breed Formula), I made the decision to continue her once daily 20 mg dose of Prednisone to try and arrest the swelling of the lymph node we had confirmed was cancerous and to attempt to slow the spread to her other lymph nodes.  To that established routine, I also began giving her a daily probiotic (GNC Gas Less) as well as a Glucosamine supplement to strengthen her joints.  Daisy also continued to enjoy a variety of fruits and vegetables straight from our garden and even the occasional scrap or two of steak and chicken.

After a week or two on the new diet/supplements, Daisy was more active, her eyes were clearer and she appeared healthier than I had seen her in the past couple of years.  She was loving having the new puppy (Dusty) to mother and train and, as we found out later, was doing far better than 2 other dogs who’d received the same diagnosis in the weeks surrounding hers.  All in all we have been quite lucky that we chose to take the path we did: She is 15 months post diagnosis and her vet team refers to her as their miracle girl!  She has shown no spread to her other lymph nodes and she has out lived the other two younger dogs who were treated with chemotherapy and survived only a couple of months after treatment began.

The most recent change that I made to keep Daisy, Dany and Dusty healthy is that I am no longer buying them processed pet treats.  I now make them at home and they love them!

Peanut Butter-Pumpkin Dog Biscuits

  • 2/3 Cup Pumpkin Puree
  • 1/3 Cup Creamy Peanut Butter
  • 2 Large Eggs
  • 2 1/2 Cups Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat pumpkin, peanut butter & eggs on medium until well combined. Gradually add flour at low speed until incorporated. If the dough seems a little tough, add a couple TBLS more Pumpkin Puree.  On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough 3-4 times until it comes together. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut and place onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone liner.  Place into oven and bake until the edges are golden brown, about 20-25 minutes.  Let cool completely and store in a sealed container.

themorepeopledog

If you are on Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to, but that make me wonder, funny quips, photos and other silly things, I have a page followed by more than 1,900 people who find me mildly amusing:  https://www.facebook.com/extremeblondemoments

Impulsive vs Spontaneous

On By ls1228In UncategorizedLeave a comment

impulsiveMerriam Webster defines impulsive as, “acting or tending to act suddenly and without careful thought.”

When I was 22 I was definitely impulsive.

I ended a marriage that was never going to last  (especially in light of the fact that he turned out to be gay),  was seeing someone I was in love with, who I’d wanted to be with for years, yet once I had him, I walked away from him.

Bad advice given by close friends convinced me that:

  • His business was more important to him than I was;
  • After my train wreck marriage, I should be living it up;
  • He didn’t like the same fun nights out drinking and dancing that they did so I basically had to choose between 1 night a week with him or every night with them; and
  • They said he was only with me when he couldn’t be with the girlfriend that they convinced me he secretly had.

If I’d have stopped to think, I would have given their arguments against pursing a relationship I really wanted proper consideration:

  • I should have been supportive of his business focus, not threatened by it;
  • I was never a partier, it was a temporary phase and one I ended up not missing at all.  I loved nights in with him; and
  • I should have listened to my heart

Instead I listened to the advice of the friends I ended up parting ways with because we were too different in the end.  They weren’t interested in what would make me the happiest, they were interested in not losing a financial contributor to the many “girl’s nights out” we had in large part due to the job I had that paid well.  When they hooked up, had boyfriends for a few weeks at a time, and ditched me completely for a guy, the same rules didn’t apply and my opinion of their choices didn’t matter.

I hate asking myself, “What if?”  In this case I obviously made a horribly wrong choice that cost me a relationship with promise and, even worse, a true friend.  That “What if” haunts me and I regret the impulsive choice still, 25 years later.

I know my weaknesses and strengths.  One weakness in particular is that routine bores me.  I appreciate and acknowledge that a certain part of life is going to be routine, like working at a career and creating a home & family life.  I need a certain amount of spontaneity in my life to survive the monotony that doing the same things can bring.

Spontaneous: Taking a risk, living life to the fullest, no plans, “don’t think just do.”

spontaneous1I don’t need my life to be a three ring circus, but I believe that every couple needs spontaneity to keep their romantic fires burning, to say connected outside of the demands of family and work life, and that the connectivity mobile phones provide should allow for:

  • A weekday picnic in the park;
  • An unplanned date or weekend road trip;
  • A lunch date that turns into an afternoon at a ball game, walking on the beach or driving along the coast;
  • A surprise vacation or any other unexpected time that gives focus just to us.

Ask my friends and they would describe me as: Focused and organized when things need to be done but I am also the girl that loves adventure, can get ready to go in a flash, goes with the flow when plans change and am always ready to have fun.

I’m glad that age, experience (good and bad) and good people around me have changed me from someone who acts impulsively and acts without giving thought to what the consequences could be, into a person who takes care of her responsibilities yet maintains a sense of fun and sense of adventure.  It makes life WORTH living instead of being something that HAS to be lived. Hmmm

As a reminder, if you are on Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to, but that make me wonder, funny quips, photos and other silly things, I have a page followed by more than 1,900 people who find me mildly amusing:  https://www.facebook.com/extremeblondemoments

The Peril of Being the “Tech Gal” For Your Own Blog Site

On By ls1228In Extreme Blonde MomentsLeave a comment

girl-and-computer-victoryI am the first to admit that I am not a technical guru when it comes to writing code, website language and other computer programming / data processing jargon. Frankly I think a 5 year old has more computer literacy than I do where it comes to creating and maintaining a website, but I knew enough to keep the site for my blog up for the past year.

Perhaps I got a little complacent and far too comfortable with how easy my previous domain name registrar / WordPress host made it to communicate to the world via my tongue-in-cheek blog that: I am a girl of many opinions with a salty vocabulary, the gift of gab, and just enough knowledge of navigating the “World Wide Web” to make me dangerous.

That being said, I made the mistake of using a hosted site via a webhost who I will not give the benefit of a mention or further free advertising on the back of my blog, and my site disappeared.  Let’s just say it’s not your Mommy’s company…hmmm

Two weeks of fighting via phone, email and chat box (after being made to wait online 79 minutes to talk with a technical support “expert” and their so called, “Customer Service” has only resulted in them requesting:

  • Site Retrieval Fee (AKA Ransom for my site, which is being held Hostage)
  • Technical Support Fee (For all of their “pleasant” requests for more of my money)
  • Another Month of Pre-Paid Hosting on their “service” from which I could then access a backup to move my site to the new host, whom I am already paying….their crappy “service” is exactly what I was trying to get away from!

hamster-wheelI am sure all can see the hamster wheel that they have kept me on, which has only done one thing:  Delayed my site from re-launching on the new host and thus has caused a break in entertaining and engaging my followers with my daily rants and raves…UGH!

Getting my blog back live has taken weeks and practically an Act of God, but have no fear: I am getting a crash course in backing up my site locally from now on, painstakingly recreating that which I have toiled over for the past year and, come Hell or High Water (which we did get some of this week in otherwise sunny southern California, but I digress), I will now be back live as soon as possible….If you’re reading this, my Herculean task has been accomplished.

These are the current things that are definitely making me go hmmm….

As a reminder, if you are on Facebook and are interested in the things I may not devote an entire blog post to, but that make me wonder, funny quips, photos and other silly things, I have a page followed by more than 1,900 people who find me mildly amusing:  https://www.facebook.com/extremeblondemoments