Timeout oops

October 30, 2012
Cole got sent to timeout tonight.

Which isn't a big deal considering the kid loves timeout (no, seriously he does) and is there at least 15 times a day.

He had grabbed Pearl's pajama bottoms as she was trying to get dressed. Then grabbed her shirt and threw it out into the hall.

Highly unacceptable behavior in my mind.

Until Jeff came back to read books and asked Cole why he'd been sent to timeout. When I explained what unruly thing he'd done, Jeff started laughing. Then confessed that the night before he'd done the exact same thing to Pearl, teasing her so Cole could "win" at getting his pjs on.

Hmmm. I wasn't sure if I should send Jeff to timeout or not.

Long day

October 29, 2012
This picture pretty much sums up my day.

Oh sure, it started out just fine.

I woke up. Fought with the kids (and dog) to get ready for school. Made lunches. And sweetly drove to Jeff's office to bring him lunch.

Then I got a phone call.

I forgot my eye doctor appointment. I mean, who schedules a doctor's appointment on a Monday morning (sheesh). No big deal though, we can reschedule it for later this afternoon.

Then I remembered I had a meeting at that exact same time. So it was back to the rescheduling for a little earlier this afternoon than I had hoped for.

I finally get to work, sit down at my computer, and see a frantic email from the neighbors. The dumb dog has somehow managed to rip or chew her head collar off. The one apparatus keeping me from spending even more money on her because she might lick her incision open.

Sensing this was going to result in an emergency trip to the vet with a bleeding dog, I rushed back home to check on Blu. Well, first stopping at the vet's office to buy a new head collar. By this time I was also wondering if we had even locked the front door before we'd left for the day. After getting Blu situated and talking to the neighbors about checking on her (and screaming at the dog for jumping on me like crazy), I turned to leave. Only then realizing that I'd locked the back door and couldn't get into the garage. Then I remembered the front door just might be open. Whew.

Rush back to work. Eat my lunch. Answer a few emails. Then head back towards home for my eye doctor appointment.

Get my exam, have my eyes dilated, and drive back to work with those funky, "why yes I went to the eye doctor today" glasses (I really need to buy some nice sunglasses) for my 3:00 p.m. meeting. By the time I left work today, it was after 5 p.m. and I'd only worked a whooping total of four hours... and just barely too. Just in time to run home, grab anything edible for the children to eat for dinner, and go to obedience class (ironic considering earlier events in the day) sans Blu. She's on doctor's orders to not be too crazy.

Comical, really.

The Cone of Shame

October 28, 2012
I think I hate the "cone of shame" (UP reference... if you haven't seen that movie, watch it!) even more than the dog.

And I am fully convinced they took out more than just her "womanly" parts as Jeff calls the female reproductive system. Like her brain! She has completely regressed with any training I had done and is a wild, jumping, out of control, run-into-the-back-of-your-legs-with-that-dumb-head-collar, mutt.

This could prove to be a very, very long week.

Jealous

October 27, 2012
I am totally jealous of my 6 year old niece's birthday cake.

I mean, she doesn't have a unicorn collection and she gets a unicorn cake? Er, I mean, a "battle stallion" cake as Jeff called it.

My childhood was so deprived.

Date night

October 26, 2012
I don't even care that my date has ketchup on his face from dinner, spilled his ice cream, and refuses to talk to me.

I'll keep him.

Surgically altered

October 25, 2012
Blu had a rough day today.

So did my checkbook.

She got spayed, vaccinated, micro-chipped, and licensed.

But it was worth the $300+ when I read her discharge papers. "Surgically altered?" Seriously? That's what the vet called getting spayed? I mean, I will admit my stupidity in thinking they would do a similar procedure like they do with women and not take out all of her female reproductive organs, but "surgically altered?" My first thought was, "Did Blu have a sex change?"

When I showed Jeff the funny, he asked me, "Is Blu a cat now?"

Hilarious!

We Remember Every Day

October 24, 2012
October is an emotional month for me at work. For the past five years, we have published a book of stories of teens who were killed on Utah's roads. We hold a Family Remembrance Event for all of our families a few days prior to the public release of the teen memorial book. And then a press conference to release the book to the media and general public.

Today was that day.

Not only do I have the stress of pulling off our biggest press conference of the year, but I have the emotional journey of greeting, hugging, crying with, and helping the families who speak and who attend. And the media's always urgent requests.

The press conference was beautiful. We had candles all over the room, flickering in the dim light as our speakers told of their grief, heartache, and message to other drivers. I've grown accustomed to crying in front of my coworkers, boss, and boss' boss' boss now after working on this project for five years. The most humbling, emotional, and rewarding project I have ever been involved with. But my words do little compared to the families who share their loss with us.

If you have teens, young drivers, soon-to-be-drivers, or a driver license yourself, take the time to read these stories. Your life may never be the same. I know mine isn't.

"We Remember Every Day: Stories of Teen Lives Lost on Utah's Roads in 2011" can be downloaded from http://health.utah.gov/vipp.