A home for Sammie and a new home for us!

So Sammie, the foster kitten I convinced my husband to pull from animal control went to her new home. Yay! They seem like really nice people and were instantly in love with that little ball of purrs. We're so glad to have rescued her and sent her to her new forever home, but now the house feels a little empty. I know, ridiculous with a rabbit, a cat, two six week old kittens, two dogs... and a husband of course! Haha! So... I'm rescuing two more tomorrow. Two orange kittens that were abandoned in someone's yard the other day. So sad that someone could just leave these poor helpless kitties out to fend for themselves. Not to mention the fact that it's about a 1000 degree here in good old Georgia and these poor kittens would have died of heat stroke if not found when they were.

In other news, we're moving into a brand new house in just about 7 weeks. We spent this past weekend searching for the perfect home and found that it was harder than we though, until.... we stumbled upon the perfect house! We can't contain our excitement. I wish I could move tomorrow so we could get settled in. One of the best parts... a yard for the dogs! No more walking on leashes in the apartment community. We will have a brand new home with a brand new fenced in yard! Can't wait! Now, the move isn't something I'm looking forward to. We're doing a DITY move or PPM. That's going to be exhausting, but it may be well worth it financially for us to deal with the extra effort. My brother in law and father in law are willing to come down to help, so that at least take a bit of the heavy lifting off of my shoulders.

So, for now, I'm trying to tie up our lives here. I'm trying to get some school work done, rescue as many animals as I can, work as much as I can, buy a house, pack and move our house and fur family, and all while keeping my sanity. Wish me luck!

Moving!!!

Sorry i haven't written in a while (not that anyone really reads this enough to miss me). Things have been crazy here on my end. I've been working 50+ hours a week at the veterinary hospital, which means 11 hour days of wrestling dogs and cats. I'm exhausted!!!

I've been rescuing animals again. Haha. Big surprise. I rescued a kitten from animal control hours before she was to be put to sleep. The poor little girl was so underweight and had an abscess on her leg and a cut on her nose. With a little love and care, she's now the sweetest little girl and will be ready for her new home any day now. I also took in two 3 week old kittens who were found in a gutter. They are super sweet but certainly a handful. So, needless to say, my house is crazy all the time with all the animals. Currently we have the 2 dogs. Gambit is an 8 month old Border Collie Mix and Peach is a 1 year old Chihuahua. They were both animal control rescues here in Columbus and within hours of being put to sleep when they were saved. I have my 13 year old Himalayan cat, Pugsly. I've had him for the last 12 years. He's my grumpy old man.  A couple of years ago, I rescued a baby rabbit, now named Cricket, who had a fractured leg.  Our current fosters include Sammie, the 10 week old kitten and Roswell & Scuba, the 3 week old kittens. CRAZY! I wouldn't have it any other way though.

Since Simon has been back from Ranger School, he has gone through the crazy process of trying to figure out what's next. Apparently, a whole lot of waiting... He was able to go through his Mechanized Leader course a couple of weeks ago and is now just waiting on going to Airborne school. As far as we've been told, he should get in this Friday, but you never know until he's actually in, so we'll see. We're crossing our fingers though because if he doesn't get in this week, it throws off our whole moving schedule. Which brings me to....

We're moving!!!
We're leaving Fort Benning and Columbus, GA and headed for a new adventure. We're going to Savannah! At this point in time, (if everything goes according to plan) we should be moving in about 8 weeks. We can't wait! We'll be buying our first home out there and are going house hunting this weekend. This move is going to be so much easier than our last one. Savannah is only about 4 hours from here. That's a lot better than our 21 hour drive from Massachusetts last year. No thank you!

He's HOME!!!!

My emotions are still reeling and I've had a few days for it all to sink in.

Thursday night, I got into bed counting down the minutes until I could pick Mr. S up for his 8 hour pass the next morning. Just as I was falling asleep, my phone rang. It was him! He said that he couldn't talk, but that he was coming home..not for an 8 hour pass, but for good!

Friday morning arrived and I was so excited to be able to bring my husband home. I couldn't sit still. I got to post extra early and waited in the parking lot for any sign of the guys being released. After 5 hours of tense waiting and pacing with fellow wives, they started to appear. I thought I was going to cry I was so excited. As each wave of soldiers exited the compound gates and each man reunited with his wife, I was getting that much more excited to finally get to reunite with Mr. S. Then I realized that there were no more men coming out and there were no more wives left waiting with me. He wasn't coming.... I tried to hold back the tears.

Thank goodness for 2 of his friends who saw me in the parking lot. They were both in the course as well and were kind enough to take the time out of their pass to go back into the compound and find out anything they could for me. All we could find out was that he had to go before a board to see if he was going to recycle. He wasn't coming home today. I got in my car and just cried.

It wasn't for another hour that I received a phone call. "Hey lovey" he said casually. I blurted into the phone through sobs, "Are you coming home today?" "Only if you come get me. I'm waiting for you," he said.

Long story short, he was dropped from the course for stupid reasons. I was finally able to see him. He's finally home. I was finally able to tell him all the things I had been holding in since he left. He was finally able to sleep. It's been a tough adjustment though. He is feeling like he failed and seems to only want to concentrate on when he can go back. I'm feeling like he isn't happy to be home with me and he would rather be back there. It's taken a few days, but it's finally starting to feel back to normal. Here's the question though:

As an army wife, do I have an obligation to put my feelings aside and let him be upset that he's not in training with his men or do I have a right to be upset that he doesn't seem so thrilled to be home with me? This dilemna plays again and again in my mind.

Power Clean Time!

Friday, Mr. S comes home for 8 whole hours!!!! I can't believe how quickly this first phase went. It's over. Let's just cross our fingers that he passed and gets to move on to phase 2. There is so much to do before he gets home. I've got to power clean this house and make everything perfect for his arrival. I'm so excited!!! The dogs are getting baths, the tables need dusting, the sheets need washing, I need to bake something. I have to go to post and get some supplies for him. I just can't wait!!! These next two days are going to be long, but it's worth it to get to see him on Friday!!! Wish me luck!

I will never understand killing helpless animals

A wriggling, writing ball of fur is licking at your face. You love and cherish his antics and think what a great addition to your family he has been. Then, a year or so down the road, you move or have a baby or simply are annoyed by your dog and you bring him down to animal control. You think, he's a sweet boy, he'll find a home for sure. Do you know that 90% of animals in Columbus, GA never see the outdoors again. They are euthanized in the masses here and I can't stand it!

One of my friends from work has started a project called Happy Homes. She has been working really hard to save those who are on puppy/kitty "death row" and place them in happy, loving homes. There are only so many animals that we can save though. What we really need is a no-kill shelter to take in all these sad, homeless fur babies. She has entered into the Pepsi Refresh Contest to receive a grant for $50,000 to build just such a place. Only problem is, we need people to vote.

So, I know that not many people are reading my ramblings, but I can't help but ask.... Please help us get this grant and save those sad, neglected dogs and cats.

You can vote daily on the following website, but even better is if you drink Pepsi. There are Pepsi bottles out there that have codes in the caps. If you enter the codes in those on the website, they count as a "Power Vote" (up to 100 votes for one code!). We're number 40 right now and could really use as much help as we can get. So, please vote!!! Help us save the animals.

http://www.refresheverything.com/happy-homes-no-kill-shelter

Rest in Peace Waffle

Today was challenging. I was just stuck with a case of the Mondays all day. I couldn't get out of my funk. I tried everything. I worked all day, so when I got out, I thought that a trip with Gambit to the store to get him a new leash and some treats would be a fun outing and a quick pick-me-up. It was nice, but I was still feeling kind of blah. I thought maybe some KFC might cheer me up. Nope. They forgot to put my cookies in the bag and I realized that I don't really like KFC. It's kind of gross. I decided that I would play with my bunny. She loves to snuggle and give kisses and I knew that would cheer me up. Unfortunately, I went to go pick her up and found that she had died. She was just laying there and was cold to the touch. I lost it.

I am feeling so insecue right now. I can't handle all these things that have gone wrong since Mr. S left, and Waffle dying is the worst. First I broke my hand, then we had to put one of the dogs I was helping foster to sleep, and now Waffle died. I can't even tell him about any of this because I know it'll make him worry about me and he really ought to be worrying about only himself right now. I just feel so left alone though. I can't even share my frustration and grief with him. I'm upset that I wasn't there for Waffle when she died. She didn't even seem sick. It makes me question my skills as a veterinary technician and it makes me so sad that her little life was cut so short. I'm upset that I have no one here to share all my emotions with, so here I am at 1:30 in the morning, writing it all down. I can only hope that someone out there is listening so as I'm not entirely alone in my thoughts and feelings.... that's definitely how I feel.

Taking Charge of my Life Through Fitness

I DID IT!!!!

I got my butt out of bed and I did it. I got dressed, took care of the dog, put on my sneakers and made my way to post. I completed my first Spin class at 11:45 this morning and I feel GREAT!

It was hard, but I am so proud of myself. There were a couple of points that I wanted to give up, but I thought about Simon and how hard he's working and his drive to not give up. I felt an emotional surge as I pedaled my way to confidence. I just want to scream "I DID IT!"

According to my heart rate monitor, I burned over 550 calories, but I didn't stop there. When I got home, I felt so good that I took the dog for a mile long walk. Yes! Another 100 calories burned. I feel so fantastic! Just needed to share...

This song empowers me.
"Jar Of Hearts"- Christina Perri

No, I can't take one more step towards you
‘Cause all that's waiting is regret
Don't you know I'm not your ghost anymore
You lost the love I loved the most

I learned to live, half alive
And now you want me one more time

[Chorus:]
Who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving scars
Collecting your jar of hearts
And tearing love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the ice inside your soul
So don't come back for me
Who do you think you are?

I hear you're asking all around
If I am anywhere to be found
But I have grown too strong
To ever fall back in your arms

I've learned to live, half alive
And now you want me one more time

[Chorus]

It took so long just to feel alright
Remember how to put back the light in my eyes
I wish I had missed the first time that we kissed
‘Cause you broke all your promises
And now you're back
You don't get to get me back

Who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving scars
Collecting your jar of hearts
And tearing love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the ice inside your soul
Don't come back for me
Don't come back at all

Who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving scars
Collecting your jar of hearts
And tearing love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the ice inside your soul
Don't come back for me
Don't come back at all

Who do you think you are?
Who do you think you are?
Who do you think you are?