My Family

My birthday is fast approaching. It's this Wednesday! In recent years it has not been as happy of an occasion as it likely should be. My family has suffered through some devastating heartache. Some years ago I lost my grandfather whom was everything to me. He passed away a little more than a month before my birthday. Then in 2007 I lost both of my grandmothers 3 months apart and my favorite uncle passed away during that 3 month time span as well. We actually lost my grandmother on my dad’s side of the family just a little more than 2 weeks before my birthday. So needless to say since I was so close to those family members when my birthday rolls around it’s not as happy for me in recent years. I have trouble getting into the right frame of mind to celebrate. I tend to be a little weepy as my birthday nears.

Due to the drastic changes in my family the dynamics are certainly different. I mean no disrespect by this next part to any of my family members…I’m just being honest. I have never felt a close bond with my mom’s side of the family. It’s cordial, it’s enjoyable to get together with them. But there isn’t a single person on my mom’s side of the family that I would call on the phone to simply chat with when I’m bored. For the most part I would refrain from asking them any advice too. It’s just not that type of relationship that I share with any of them.

Now my dad’s side is different. I identify fully with them. I’m a Peterson for sure! My personality, my looks, my beliefs all come from the Peterson side. I’m an only child so my cousins are quite important to me. My cousins Nick and Glenn I talk with frequently. I think of them both to be more like my brothers than my cousins. I also have a cousin named Trevor that cracks me up. He’s like a walking sports encyclopedia. He can quote numerous ASU stats if anyone ever needs him too. Go Devils! On my dad’s side I’m also tight with my only aunt and some distant family members. Obviously it’s kind of a small group of us!

I went through boxes of family pictures today. I don’t mind people seeing me when I was just a youngster! Lol! First up is me and my grandpa Peterson. Then me with my fave uncle Dale. I look a little scared but trust me he was an awesome guy to be around. I wish I could've found a good pic of me and Nick but I only came across toddler pics of us. I thought he might not appreciate me showing his toddler pics. Your welcome Nick! Next is me with Glenn at his graduation and then me with Trevor at a family dinner. None of the pics are all that recent but they are all my faves. Well the first 2 are my new faves since I just barely discovered their existence! The last pic of Simon is very random. I found it in a box today as well. I started laughing because I was recently asked if I can touch my tongue to my nose. Lol! Well Simon has no problem with that!

Preparing for Mom to Visit pt.2

In the last post I talked about the boys being boarded and me going to San Antonio with my mom. Lots of things change around here in a relatively short amount of time. San Antonio trip has been canceled. Instead we will stay around Dallas and Fort Worth.

This blog nearly made my mom cancel her trip to Dallas. Apparently she read my last entry! Doesn't everybody get a little anxiety over their parent coming to visit from another state? I think it's somewhat typical. Well, after saying she was canceling then saying she didn't know whether to come or not she has decided to come after all. I knew she would end up coming due to the fact that it's my birthday this coming Wednesday. Since I'm away from home the birthday celebration will be different and rather low-key. In my family you have to be in PHX in order to be acknowledged. I doubt most of my relatives that would normally meet for dinner with me will likely take time to pick up the phone to call me on Wednesday. A select few will but the majority won't.

Little does my mom know that the day she called to tell me she was canceling her trip I had been online planning out the activities we will be doing while she is here. Yes, I'm somewhat of a planner. For some things I can be spontaneous but a visit from mom is not one of those things. I need to be organized and make sure she has a good time while she is here. My need to plan certain things may have come with maturity. When I lived in Seattle I never remember showing my mom much of the city. Now I take more time to plan things out to ensure we both have a good time and she enjoys Dallas. Aside from maturity though I really am loving Dallas and I want my mom to see that! Hence, we are staying around Dallas for the duration of her visit!

Preparing For Mom to Visit

The question of the day is....How posh do the boys living conditions need to be while I'm out of town for 2 days? I just got done calling around to different boarding places for the pugs. Their vet has boarding but they have a few extra charges I'm not too thrilled with. Extra charges that will significantly run up the boarding bill. For a few dollars less than what the vet's office charges the boys can stay in a Petshotel suite complete with cots and a TV. I doubt they have a need for TV but the fact that the boys are in their own room with a sound-proof door would help them sleep better. I have to say I was shocked to do the math and discover the boys could stay in a posh suite for cheaper than what the vet's office would charge. So how posh do they need things to be? I'll be fretting over the answer to that question for the rest of the weekend!

The reason the boys will be boarded is because my mom will be coming to town and we will be taking a venture down to San Antonio during her visit to Texas. I have no clue if other daughters or maybe even sons get nervous when mom comes for a visit. But I sure do! I love my mom don't get me wrong. It will certainly be nice to see her. However, I worry about things going just right while she is here. Since I left Phoenix for Dallas I feel pressure for Dallas to make a good impression on her each time she visits. Hence my anxiety has begun!

This will be her second visit to Dallas. I am curious to know whether she is enjoying flying to Dallas to see the 3 of us more than she enjoyed visiting Seattle when we lived there? I plan on asking her that this time around. She does make quite the fuss over coming to see the pugs. At times I question if she is more excited to see them or me?

During her first visit here, I felt like I was on vacation too. We were never home and I had each day full of things to go see. It was fun but my hope is for a more laid back visit this time. With a short trip planned to San Antonio I'm thinking it's a good balance between being home in Dallas and sightseeing in San Antonio. We shall see how all this goes. I'm sure I will continue to get more and more nervous over the course of this coming week.

Random Thoughts

In my last post I talked about the rainy day Dallas had on Saturday. Little did I realize that come Wednesday we would still have rain. It is nice to have so much rain. But I'm ready to see the sunshine again.

Despite being in Dallas I still have to cheer for my Cardinals back in AZ. I figure since I'm in Dallas I will rarely see the Cards play on TV. Which is fine I understand that. Then this Sunday low and behold I did get to see the last 7 minutes of their season opener. Nice to see them but the outcome of the game stunk. Why is it they always have to play San Francisco in the season openers? And why is it that San Francisco always acts as though it's the Super Bowl when they play against the Cards? Relax 49ers it's only week one!

What's up with the pugs? Simon loves to eat. He's not overweight by any means. Picture the living dog version of the Hungry Hungry Hippo game. That's how Simon is with food. In PHX there was a pecan tree in the backyard which Simon loved. He feasted on pecans nearly every day. Well, just the other day Simon discovered something to replace his thing of the past pecan feasts.....acorns. Most of them are not ready to eat yet but he tries to. And I try to get them away from him. He usually wins most battles. He gobbles things up so quick it's almost impossible to prevent him from eating things he shouldn't. Frustrating!

Rainy Day

First off, I love the rain! I didn't grow up seeing much of it but I've always enjoyed rainy days. I suppose there were times when I was extra nervous driving in the rain but after living in Seattle for 2 years I certainly got over that fear.

Today is a very soggy day in big D. I paused for a few moments while laying in bed to listen to the rain before getting up for the day. Every morning the boys need to be walked soon after getting up. On a rainy day this can be a challenge. Cody is not a fan of getting wet. However, I decided since the rain was only a misty type rain we would attempt to do at least a portion of the morning walk. As we started out the rain was not too bad to deal with. I didn't feel I was getting majorly wet. Cody was coping just fine. About two-thirds into the walk the rain picked up. By that time there was no choice but to finish the walk in the rain. Despite the heavier rain coming down on him, Cody only stopped once during the walk to look at me as if I was crazy for having him outside in all the wetness.

After getting the boys home from the walk I had to decide whether or not I wanted to go for a jog as is my typical Saturday morning workout or opt for the fitness center. Once again the rain was lessening up, so guess what I did? Of course I opted for the jog. It wasn't long into the jog when the rain became, what I would classify, a downpour. I was rather soaked by the time I got home especially my shoes since I was unable to avoid going through some puddles. But I didn't care! I completely enjoyed being out in the rain. Simply put, I'm much appreciative to being in a place that has weather!

Labor Day Road Trip

It was Labor day yesterday. After working out in the early morning I decided rather spur of the moment to take a little road trip. Before starting out, I took time to pack up some snacks and my lunch since I try to eat as healthy as I can. Stopping for fast food is not something I wanted to do.

I started out thinking I knew exactly where I was going. I soon realized I was on the wrong freeway. Well it was the right freeway but the wrong direction. I consider myself to be one of few women that has a decent sense of direction. Generally it takes a lot to get me lost. However, I think I left my good sense of direction in Phoenix! No, I don't have GPS. Yes, my cousin keeps telling me to get it. I prefer to not listen to him! By now it's a bit of a competitive thing to see just how long I can live in Dallas with these crazy streets before having to get GPS.

Back to the road trip...I got turned around and finally headed in the correct direction. When I was making my way to Dallas for the move 4 months ago. I stopped the first night in El Paso and the second night in Fort Worth. Yes, I probably could have continued on to Dallas the second night but I was tired of driving and it was getting dark since I didn't get up early enough to start out for the long drive. Coming into Dallas from Fort Worth I saw sights I had never seen before. Small rolling hills that were filled with green grass along and trees here and there. To people from Dallas it's no big deal. But to me, I'm not used to seeing small rolling hills loaded with green grass with a decent amount of trees along the way. I grew up in a brown desert with plentiful cacti!

During this short road trip I came along a few ranches. Those I do not remember seeing when I first made the trip. I came across a place selling honey. I bought some! Haven't tried it yet! The honey is basically my one souvenir of my Labor day road trip.

By the time mid-afternoon approached I decided I should get back. I turned around to make the trek back into Dallas. Not sure how I did it but I wound up on yet a different freeway then I was on when I left Dallas that morning. Oh well! I was fine since I kept seeing signs for Dallas. Then somehow I missed a turn-off for Dallas, I thought about getting off the freeway and turning around yet again! However, I decided to see if I could recognize anything else along the way to see if I could figure things out. I soon noticed the skyline of Dallas in the distance. I quickly approached another turn-off for Dallas. I eventually found my way home to two pugs whom were waiting patiently. Or maybe impatiently, I'm sure they wanted to be walked since it was early morning since they had last seen me.

The road trip as short as it was served it's purpose. I wanted to remind myself of those scenes I saw coming into Dallas back in May. Especially since I struggled just slightly with some feelings of being homesick last week.

Weak Moment Pity Party

Since I moved here I haven’t missed Phoenix one bit. However I knew a weak moment of missing my hometown had to come at some point. Sure enough on Wednesday night I was a mess. It was the simplest thought of home that soon made me think of all the things I’m missing out on.

My weak moment pity party started like this….I wonder how everyone in my old neighborhood is doing? Soon progressing to city news, after such an impressive season last year the excitement for the Cardinals new season must be at an all time high. And I’m in Dallas missing out on it! Just lovely! Not to mention, I’m missing out on the ASU football season as well. Go Devils! I’m not going to get any big news about the PAC 10 here. In case you can’t tell from what I just said…I love football! I grew-up around the sport thanks to my grandpa and uncle. My fave uncle used to coach high school football for numerous years. Our family really has lived and breathed the game as long as I can remember. Thank goodness they didn’t mind dragging along a little girl to the manly football games. Because still to this day I love the sport and I believe I understand it better than some of my male cousins. Take that boys!

Back to my pity party… next up, I settled on thoughts surrounding my birthday. My birthday is coming in a few weeks and I won’t have the typical celebration. No going out to eat with each side of my family. No spending time with my fave cousins(Hi Nick!) and aunt. Before long my thoughts turned from sadness to frustration when I thought about how I can’t find decent Mexican food in Dallas, something AZ is known for. After awhile I decided in order to put an end to my somewhat ridiculous pity party I needed to cash in the day and go to bed early.

On Thursday morning during my early morning walk with the pugs I made a point to think about things that are better here in Dallas. Which wasn’t hard since I was walking in relatively mild temperatures and didn’t have to deal with the blazing sun while on the walk. Weak moment over and done with!

As of yesterday I’ve been here for a full 4 months. That’s pretty good that I made it 4 months before missing my hometown. When I lived in Seattle, I doubt I made it that long before missing Phoenix. Especially since I moved there at the beginning of their dark and rainy season!

Pleasant Surprises in Big D

I did a reasonable amount of research before moving to Dallas. I had a general idea what it would be like. However, I knew I would discover some surprises. Below are some of the surprises I have discovered.

There's very few cowboy hats. I generally make a mental note every time I do see one. All in all not many walking around with cowboy hats.

I knew from my research that there was more green grass and trees than I was used to seeing in Phoenix. That's for sure! Now to someone moving here from the East Coast or the Pacific Northwest, they would not agree. They would be looking for more trees. But for this Zonie I was pleasantly surprised to see how much green grass and trees are all around. Not to mention a few lakes. In my area there are quite a few parks even a dog park nearby and a beautiful lake.



The amount of small creatures I see is rather remarkable too. Not much going on small creature-wise in Phoenix. Since moving here...I've seen a raccoon, numerous squirrels, bunnies, frogs, an armadillo. Possibly I'm missing something but that's all I can think of right now. My first armadillo sighting came one Sunday morning just a few weeks back. I was on a walk with my boys when I saw this thing that I could not identify. I watched it for a few seconds. It eventually turned a little so I could see it's tail. Sadly, days later it was my first roadkill armadillo sighting. Yuk!

Dallas is more pet friendly than I imagined. There's many doggy daycare options. There's even an indoor off-leash dog park. First time I've ever seen one of those! Seattle needs to think about getting one since it rains so much there. There's also many self-serve dog washes. I've only taken my boys to a self-serve dog wash once since moving here. The experience was alright but just alright. Neither one of my boys seemed comfortable with the process there. They are used to taking bathes but not used to me taking them somewhere and having a bath in that manner. I remember I tried the drier on the boys. I've never seen such frightened looks on their faces. Both of them were likely thinking, "that's it, I'm outta here". Advice of the day... never try to use a drier on a pug at a self-serve dog wash!

It's not that hot here. People that talk about the dreaded Texas summers should move to Phoenix for one summer. This has been rather easy to deal with this summer in comparison to what I'm used to. As long as I don't have to deal with 115 degree heat, I'm good! I moved here in May, I couldn't believe it didn't actually start to have "summer like temps" until mid-June.

It also rains more than I thought it would. I love rainy days! The first few weeks I was here it rained so much I thought I was back in Seattle.

A rain related story to end with...Dallas had just had a bad storm in mid-June. Once the rain cleared late in the day I decided to take the boys for their one mile walk. I didn't imagine the residential road which we usually travel down would be flooded but it was at one little section. No problem I figured since it's just empty land on both sides of the street. So here we are, all three of us attempting to walk up a small hill in order to avoid walking through the flooded section of the street. The hill was completely saturated and we were all three getting stuck in the mud. Poor Cody hates getting dirty and hates water. He was not a happy camper! Simon however, seemed to be leading the way through the mud. Eventually we made it over the small hill and on to the sidewalk. I have to admit I felt silly for even trying to take the boys out after such a storm. The ground was too slippery and muddy.