Picture Time!

I happened to look around our home today and said to myself, "we don't have enough pictures in here".  So I have been rendering that problem today.  I have lots of pictures loaded on my computer but actual prints I have not made. We have zero pics up of our new addition, little Piper. Pathetic....I know!

I just got done making a couple collages.  One collage of photos from our travels.  Plus a collage of our family, us plus our "kids".  Sorry boys but in the collage Piper has a bit of a starring role!  Over the years the boys have endured my camera lens shoved in their little faces plus a professional photo shoot. We have quite a few framed photos of them around.  The pics in the collage are the only pics of Piper so far. Needless to say she needed to be slightly the star of the collage. It's actually quite equal as far as amount of pics of each pet.  No jealousy will spread. 

I seem to go through times when I love pictures and other times when I get tired of messing with them.  I've recently been less into pictures.  I'm trying to get myself back into taking pics more because this is Piper's first year of life.  Brad has about a handful of pics of Storm during her first year which he regrets.  I don't want to have that regret someday regarding Piper!  So back to taking pics, getting them printed then framed.

I want a nice pic of all 5 of us!  I hope my husband reads this!  I mentioned it back at our 1 year anniversary but we never did get one taken.  Perhaps we can soon! I regret we didn't get a pic of the 5 of us when Storm was still with us.  We at least have a few pics of Storm with Cody. But sadly none of Storm with Cody and Simon.  In recent months I've made sure to snap a few pics of our current trio of pets. However, I'm always seeking a better pic of our trio! Smile "kids"!

10 Days!

Let the countdown begin!  Ten days until my mom arrives in Big D.  She will spend a full 2 weeks here and we will celebrate her birthday at the start of her visit.

We have a few things planned, nothing truly spectacular.  However, we'll have plenty of fun I'm sure.  I have yet to clue the pets in on their grammie coming to town.  Cody truly understands when I mention it to him.  Once I tell him grammie is coming he thinks it's happening right then so he instantly goes looking for her.  Piper will not clue in even after I make the announcement to the pets.  It will be only her 2nd time to see her AZ grammie.  She was so young for my mom's first visit, I doubt she will remember her.  Most people that she has seen only once or twice before she barely remembers as it seems.  However, she is now getting to a better stage for remembering people, "truly remembering people".  I think she likely recognizes a scent yet she's been too young to remember all the scents and who is who. 

We did not visit Phx this Spring as we have done the past 4 years. We decided to skip this year. So it has been all the way back in November since we've seen my mom.  Therefore, this visit should be a blast!  I'm glad it's a full 2 weeks so there is no rushing to get things in. Good times ahead!

Believe It!

Hello world! For it is I, Simon C. Vaughn!  It's about time my mommie relinquish control of this blog to allow little wonderful me to make a post!  Long overdue don't you think?

So how is life you ask?  Well my kitty sister had her nails removed so I like her a little more now.  But I'm not about to tell her I like her more now.  I have a reputation to uphold, don't you know!  She's too lovey-dovey to let her know I like her more.  I don't need her curling up in the same bed with me like she does Cody.  There's only one female in this world that is allowed to cuddle me.  Only one female in this world I'll drop my "too cool attitude" for.  Who is that?  My mommie!  But shh, it's a secret that even one female can get me to be cuddly!  I am one independent dude!

The other day I left my mommie in shock and awe of me.  Now she should have been in shock and awe in a good way but I'm afraid she wasn't exactly feeling proud.  As she yelled at me in a not so nice tone.  She yelled, "Simon! That piece of banana is honestly that important to you?"  The answer is....."HECK YEAH!!!!!!!"

This is what happened, mommie gave Cody and I a piece of banana each.  Cody was taking his sweet time.  I was finished.  Cody was sniffing his banana piece.  While he was sniffing it I lunged in his direction.  Cody growled at me.  I then pulled back to mind my manners.  But then something snapped in my brain.  I suddenly didn't care about manners, as I lunged a second time I snagged that piece of banana.  Cody attacked me.  Piper ran far away from us pugs.  As for mommie she ran over to scold me!  She stood there telling me she was shocked that I pulled that stunt.  Well believe it! 

Today while out walking with Cody and mommie, I happened to see something I needed to investigate on the opposite side of Cody.  Does anyone know how slow Cody moves?  He's always moved super slow.  I'm fast and he's a snail!  No joke! I think fast and I move fast!  The thought to get to whatever it was on the opposite side of Cody consumed all my brain power.  I didn't care how I got there, I just wanted to get there.  The shortest way plus the easiest way was to go under Cody.  So there I darted under Cody forcing him to ride on my back for a brief few seconds.  My mommie again had that same look of shock and awe on her face as she did when the banana incident happened.  She then told me I can be slightly embarrassing to her at times as people were standing off in the distance watching one pug ride the other pug!  Me embarrassing?  Yep, believe it! 

What can I say? There's something that clicks in my brain making me quickly do things and by any means necessary I'm going to do whatever my brain clicks in for me to do.....Believe it!!!!!

Simmie Out!

Meatball Mania!

Not sure I've mentioned this before but one of my favorite things to make for dinner is meatballs.  Why?  They are fun!  Fun to experiment with!  You can make meatballs so many ways with so many different flavors.  Meatballs with a cream sauce, a marinara sauce, a glaze, etc. 

Well I've been known to conduct some experiments in my kitchen.  A few weeks back I had the idea for Hawaiian meatballs.  For the Hawaiian inspired sauce I mixed chili sauce with a can of pineapple chunks.  The spice mixed with the sweetness was pretty darn good.  We ate all the leftovers within a couple days.  Based on the small amount of time it took us to finish off the leftovers, I knew the meal was a keeper.

I fixed my new Hawaiian meatballs once again this week.  My challenge the second time around was remembering the measurements from the previous time.  I pretty much use the same meatball recipe, only changing a few spices depending on what kind of sauce I'm serving the meatballs with.  This time around for the sauce I used a 6 oz can of pineapple juice mixed in with the chili sauce then I threw in fresh pineapple. Yes, I've started buying fresh pineapples.  Learning to cut up a pineapple was actually quite easy to conquer, but it was a bit daunting for years to me.  At some point I overcame that issue.  LOL!

So what is next to try?  What direction should I go in with my meatballs?  I mentioned teriyaki meatballs to Brad, he quickly agreed that should be the next experiment.  A homemade teriyaki sauce with meatballs might work?  Or take my Hawaiian sauce and transform it into even more of a sweet and sour sauce.....oh the possibilities!  Precisely why meatballs are one of my fave things to prepare!

Our Long Weekend

We had a nice long weekend.  Spent time with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law.  They came over and spent the majority of Sunday with us.  We played games.  Tried out our new Kinect Sports Rivals game on the Xbox One.  There's this one climbing game on there.  Oh geez!  I just had to try it!  There I was imitating climbing up the side of a cliff.  I was doing well at first, then things went a little south!  Literally!  Instead of moving my character north she was falling down south. My poor character fell numerous times.  But I did eventually make it to the top of the cliff.  Not an easy feat! 

On Monday we went to see Godzilla at the Imax with my in-laws.  Awesome!  Okay, I'll admit I've never seen anything Godzilla related before.  I went into the movie not knowing exactly what to expect.  However, I think that's better than going into a movie having too high of expectations.  Definitely worth seeing!  Especially at the Imax!  It will be one we will purchase once it comes to dvd as well.

The French Open started on Sunday.  So we've been sneaking in a good amount of French Open watching.  Some noteworthy upsets already.  The winners of the previous Grand Slam this year down in Australia were both beat out in the first round.  First time that has happened!  However, at least none of my big faves have gone out yet. As usual I anxiously hope for Serena Williams to get beat out! Fingers-crossed! ;)

Welcome Home!

Little Piper is home!  She came through her procedures in good form.  I went to pick her up late this afternoon. She was very glad to be leaving the hospital.

So far she has acted quite normal since coming home.  I expected her to be lethargic or just generally not up for much.  Instead she's been our usual little Pipe!  She's a feisty one!  She does have stitches, plus her paws are swollen.

She's supposed to wear an e-collar for 2 weeks. Two weeks?  Doesn't that seem like a long time?  Well she is not wanting any part of that e-collar being around her neck.  She wiggled out of it during the ride home.  Once we got home I put it back on her but she was immediately trying with all her might to get that e-collar off.  I was worried she was going to tear her stitches open on her paws so I decided to take the darn e-collar off.  We are watching her close, making sure she isn't messing with her stiches. 

She was super hungry upon her arrival home.  Which is completely understandable, since she hasn't eaten in a day and a half.  I was trying to make her wait for "dinner time" but I quickly decided she needed to eat before the pets typical dinnertime.  I then felt bad for the boys as they couldn't understand why they couldn't eat too.  So our animal kingdom got fed about 40 minutes earlier than usual.  Simon didn't complain!

We were definitely meant to keep little Pipe.  It felt weird not having her here.  I kept glancing over to see where she was at different times last night only to realize she was in the pet hospital.  She doesn't say much but at the same time last night was extra quiet without her.  Her presence was missed for sure. She adds just the right amount of spunk, plus she keeps her bros on their toes! 

Piper's Big Day!

I got up super early to take Piper to the vet.  This is the second time we've gotten up and rushed off to a vet office in the last 4 weeks.  Things went a lot smoother this time around. No long commute. No being told to wait for a supervisor to speak with me. No being asked if they could test a pain drug on our kitty in exchange for free procedures.

Piper will spend the night at the vet hospital.  I'll pick her up tomorrow some time. It's going to be a little odd not having her around for more than 24 hours. We've become quite attached, as well as used to having her presence around. I am most curious to see how the boys respond to not having her here for a day and a half.  Since coming home this morning without Piper they've both gone to check the closet area where she sleeps. They were both rather zonked out when I went into the pet region of our household to retrieve Piper so I could take her to the vet. They probably have been trying to figure out if they dreamed mommie come in to get Piper or if that indeed actually happened! Lol!

Let me tell you haven't lived until you've been walking up to a vet office at the crack of dawn with your young kitty in her carrier when you all of a sudden feel wetness spreading down your right side.  I looked down to notice little Piper was relieving herself and the carrier was not catching all of it, my pants got doused quite heavily. Poor thing was super nervous! 

After 12 years with the pugs, only Cody has peed on me!  And that lovely incident didn't occur until he was about 8 years old.  So Piper has certainly won that race!  LOL!  Not that it's a race, because it definitely is not!  But the new record is 7 months!  LOL!

A Wild Friday Morning!

Today started off with a rumble. It only seemed like a usual Friday! ;)  I got the pets up and promptly fed them.  They appreciate promptness when it comes to feeding time.  Minutes after Brad walked out the door I continued the pet chores of the day.  I'm all about getting the pet chores done early in the day!

Not sure what was going on in Cody's head but King Cody the ruler of the pets decided he would attempt to end Simon.  When the rumble took place Simon was lingering a bit, as it was Cody's turn.  However I don't believe that is what set Cody off. I never can figure out what sets him off when he attacks Simon.  Perhaps it's the way Simon is breathing or his very existence.  Go ahead take a guess! Who knows?  Simon is in no way a wimp, so he instantly came right back at Cody.  I quickly did what I could to attempt to defuse the pug brawl that had erupted in the middle of my kitchen. My instant game plan was to grab a pug in an effort to lift the pug up and away from the other pug.  I didn't care which pug.  Any pug! I grabbed the instigator and lifted him up away from the victim! Whew, pug brawl done!

Next thing I know little Piper is making the rounds!  Checking on each brother.  Too cute!

Then the next issue arose, Cody goes over to the hallway and begins sobbing, such big sobs his whole body shook slightly.  Possibly he suddenly felt bad for what had occurred? Possibly he was regretful Simon had survived? Possibly he wished he had gotten in a few more "licks"(no pun intended, hee-hee!)?  No clue! Once again take your best guess!  However it's a mystery never to be solved! 

Another wild morning courtesy of the pugs! They never seem to disappoint in that manner.  We can always count on them to do something unique.  It just depends what category the "uniqueness" falls into:  bad unique or good unique!

Good Move or Bad Move?

There we were last night sitting on the edge of our seats.  Or rather on the edge of our sofa watching the NFL draft!  Where would Manziel go?  I'm actually quite tired of hearing about this darn Johnny Football!  A young kid like that coining a phrase and adapting a signature movement, it's been a bit irritating as we that live in Texas have had to endure 2 years of Johnny Football hype!  They even have Johnny Football shirts featuring him doing his signature move with his hands up in the air.  Now we don't root completely against A&M....we're nice like that! ;) But this is more of a Longhorn and Horned Frog household!

Still, this kid has given me a pain I can't locate in the last 2 years.  I honestly have been trying to stay away from all the NFL draft hype because I couldn't stomach anymore Manziel chatter! I wasn't too concerned where he landed yesterday! 

But there we are watching the draft.  Good ol' Johnny Football is still sitting there waiting to be drafted.  I thought he would be drafted at least in the top 13 or 15. But no, he was still there as the Cowboys pick was getting nearer and nearer.  The teams in front of the Cowboys had absolutely no need for a rookie quarterback. I suddenly within minutes had to readjust my mindset concerning good ol' Manziel!  I turned to Brad and said, "the Cowboys have to take him!".  It was the wisest move to make!  Draft him, let him sit behind Romo for a couple years to develop. Lets start planning for the future Jerry!  Romo is 34 and just had a fairly serious back surgery!  Time to think ahead! 

Brad agreed!  Manziel needed to become a Cowboy!  The pick was in!  The Commissioner announced:::::::::Zac......(something)(the guy's last name escapes me right now).  No Manziel in Big D! Jerry didn't have the guts to pull the trigger, so to speak!

As a result what has been the biggest talk of the day in our section of the world?  The lack of guts Jerry Jones and the Cowboys have.  The seemingly BIG mistake the Cowboys made yet again in the NFL draft has filled air time here today!  Now if Manziel goes on to have a so-so career or a flop of a career then Jerry will be vindicated!  But if he has any sizeable success the Cowboys will regret this for years and years to come!

Dallas media is TOUGH on the Cowboys!  So if Manziel had been drafted by them yesterday it would have been quite the circus with him and Romo.  The media would have had a field day pitting them against each other.  So I will agree with that one small point, which was brought up during some of the sports talk we listened to today.  Fact remains, I believe the Cowboys made a huge error.  Manziel is from Texas A&M, he's been quite the college star and even won a Heisman trophy as a rookie.  So if Jerry wanted to sell tickets and fill seats....Manziel would have been quite the added attraction at Jerry Dome!  Perhaps next year when Arkansas' quarterback goes into the draft, maybe then Jerry will pull the trigger to get him!  Jerry likes Arkansas(it's his alma mater)!

Three Deaf Pets!

Oh geez!  When I took Cody and Piper to the vet about 10 days ago they were both diagnosed with ear infections.  Cody with an infection in each ear and Piper with one in her left ear.  I'm quite sure it's her left ear at least!  LOL!  No, it's the left I checked really REALLY good!  Compared both ears before I started administering meds! 

Seriously though upon getting the two of the them home I sat there for a second trying to recall which ear was infected for Piper.  I went through every page of her vet office visit paperwork, which never stated which ear is infected!  Don't worry...I'm 100% certain I'm treating the correct ear! 

To treat the infections: first off, I have to wash their ears every other day with this special pet ear wash.  Thank goodness it's only every other day! In addition to the ear washing I have to put drops in their ears.  Ever tried holding down a kitty for ear washing time?  Or tried putting drops in a kitty's ear?  Oh it's a treat! The worst is washing her ear.  I have to catch her, then hold her, then attempt to wash her ear with the vet prescribed bottle of ear wash.  There hasn't been a time yet that the ear wash hasn't gone all over me.  It's my new perfume!  Getting the drops in their ears is much easier than washing their ears...believe me!

I noticed within a day or two Cody and Piper were having trouble hearing all of a sudden. The first few days Cody was super bothered by not being able to hear and the obviously weird feeling he had in his ears.  I'm thinking to him, his ears feel about the same way ours do when they get plugged up on a flight. 

At some point in the last few days I checked Simon's ears and made the decision to start treating his ears with just the ear drops.  As a precaution! Especially since his ears did not look any different than Cody's to me.  Soon after giving him a couple doses of ear drops he seemingly went deaf too. You've heard of the 3 blind mice, we have the 3 deaf pets!

The med and ear washing will continue until Wednesday.  It was prescribed for a full two weeks.  We're getting close to the end!  Yippee! I can hardly wait for them to have their hearing back.  Piper has only one ear that's being treated so her hearing is halfway there.  But the boys are seriously hampered as both of their ears have been treated daily.  When we came home earlier this evening we walked in with no pet giving any sort of response.  After a couple minutes Simon opened his sleepy eyes to see mommie and daddy had entered, he instantly erupted into his usual barking.  We both told him, he was super late to the party!

What's It Like?

Well I'm obviously not the mommie to any humans....YET!  But I am the proud mommie to 2 pugs and a kitty as everyone already knows! Now what is it like being the mommie to 2 pugs and a kitty you ask?  I have 3 words to describe it:  exciting, fun, and unique.  At times it's a bit of an unpleasant unique!  If you know what I mean?

There are the exciting moments like when Piper discovered she has a tail trailing along behind her.  Or how about happy-go-lucky Cody that spins, dances, and roughs up toys every morning when he first awakens. Cody is now the first pet that greets me each morning.  It used to be Storm.  As for an exciting moment with Simon...where to begin?  Numerous times when I take him to the dog park he stuns people as he races at top speed with his ears pinned back showing all other pups(not to mention more athletic breeds) just how fast a pug can go!   

Oh man, it can be fun at times!  I've invented Vaughn-style!  What is Vaughn-style you ask?  I put on music during a random late afternoon then begin a short dance marathon.  Vaughn-style is when you have one dog balancing in your right arm on your right hip.  Another dog balancing on your left arm on your left hip.  Then to top it all off you have two hands grasping a kitty directly in front of you.  At that point with all three in my arms I begin to dance to the rhythm. I'm actually surprised I can lift all three at the same time. Here's the thing....Vaughn-style only works with a pug on the right, a pug on the left, and a tabby cat in the middle.  Yep, it must be pugs! LOL!

How is it unique?  Once again....where do I begin?  It's unique when you have one pug determined to inhale his rawhide to avoid his brother getting it, the other pug whining about this issue at top volume, and a kitty showing you she knows how to unroll the entire roll of toilet paper.  Or how about just this morning when our Piper shook her head as I attempted to clean her ears.  The ear wash solution went all over me!  I had it in my hair, on my face, and my clothes.  It was like my new perfume today as I couldn't seem to get rid of the smell on me.  Geez! 

Adding in the fun, the excitement, the not so pleasant yet unique experiences....it's all worth it!  I love all of our pets.  I was not a cat person at all when Brad came into my life.  I quickly got used to Storm.  Her and I were buds!  She liked me for sure!  Now with Piper, it's a totally different experience.  She's my first kitty.  She's actually the first pet too, I've had from such a young age.  She was basically a newborn kitty when she arrived into our lives.  I think since Piper came to us just 2 days before this past Halloween, with each passing week and month I gain more confidence in my cat-rearing abilities.  I never remember questioning my abilities with the boys.  Perhaps that's because I had experience with dogs.  I can definitely say though I'm feeling more and more like a cat mommie as well as a pug mommie!  Thank goodness everyone gets along and the boys do not have any type of jealousy toward Piper or the attention she gets.  I think Brad and I do a decent job of letting the boys know where they stand. Nothing has changed for them since Piper came along.  They simply gained a little sister!

May Day!

Welcome to May!  Man, this year is moving right along.  I thought it was possibly time for a picture post!  Short on words big on pics!

 Oh my sweet Cody-man! He's considering reading the Sports Illustrated!

 Piper: "So did you decide you love me yet?" Simon(turns to me to ask): "Are we sure she's a keeper?"

 Does it get any cuter?  Adorable....then again I'm biased! LOVE this one!

 Even though Piper is scurrying out of the pic and it's slightly out of focus, I still love it.  All three of our "kids" in one shot and awake for the pic!

 Piper says: "Oh no, not the dreaded hand! I'll get you! I will!"

 Piper: "Mommie, are you taking pics again?"

 Finally she's learning to pose!

 King Cody flanked by his royal servants!

 What's in the bag?