SURPRISE!!!

Meet Bailey, the newest addition to our family:



Yes, Bailey (a 7-month old male Boxer) was a surprise to me and Christopher. Shad acquired him from a co-worker who turned out to be allergic to him. I, being more of a fan of SMALL dogs, wasn't quite as excited as Shad had hoped. Christopher is doing pretty good. He seems to be more of a fan at a distance. Since Bailey's so big and still a puppy, he easily knocks Christopher over. Therefore, Christopher doesn't like to be too close very often. He did attempt to sit next to Bailey a couple of times while outside playing, but Bailey wouldn't hang around for very long.

So, it's going to take a little bit of time for everyone to get used to each other. Bailey is a really sweet dog and has been very patient with Christopher even though he just REALLY wants to play. He's basically a small dog in a large dog's body. He loves to cuddle and thinks he's a lapdog, which I'd love if he were much smaller! He's definitely a far cry from Brinkley or Jack Russell Terriers, but I'm sure he'll wiggle his way into our hearts. We're going to give it through the weekend and see how things are going next week. Shad said that the original owner is willing to take Bailey back if needed. There have also been a couple of other offers from Shad's co-workers, so at least there are alternative options. However, I really do want things to work out. I know that Boxers make great pets and if Christopher weren't so small, I probably wouldn't have quite the same feelings. Christopher will get bigger over time (of course, so will Bailey), so we won't always have these issues. I'll leave you with a couple more pictures of Bailey:

Friday Fill-In

Okay, I know I've been a slacker, but here's this week's Friday Fill-In:



1. It's January; 11 more months until Christmas!!!

2. Domino's pepperoni pizza (with extra sauce) is what I crave most right now.

3. Cork and wine go together like chocolate and strawberries.

4. Sleep is so nourishing.

5. Let us dare to be more like God.

6. Bailey is the newest member of my home.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to my Domino's pizza (haven't had any since before Christmas!), tomorrow my plans include watching the Titans stomp all over the Ravens (GO TITANS!!!) and Sunday, I want to relax between church in the morning and church in the evening!

Update On My Sore Throat

I realize that I never posted an update on my sore throat from Christmas.

I went to a walk-in clinic first thing in the morning after Christmas before going down to my mom's. I went with the certainty that I had Tonsillitis since it's fairly common with me. Of course, as standard procedure, the clinic did a Strep test...which came back POSITIVE! <:-O Yes, my throat was sore, but it wasn't THAT sore! Apparently, I caught it before it really got bad, although it did end up getting much worse. I got a shot in the butt, which HURT like the DICKENS (from now on, I'll take the antibiotic pills over that shot!) and was done. I didn't have to take any other medications.

I was expecting to start feeling better within 2-3 days and for the Strep to be completely gone within a week. Unfortunately, I wasn't quite so lucky. I had pain the entire time...like, so much it hurt to swallow ANYTHING. I think it ended up lasting a grand total of 9 days (from the day of the first symptoms to the day it was completely gone). Not too much longer than 1 week, but when it hurts so much to eat anything at all, every day is 1 day too many! So, now I'm completely over it! Even better...neither Shad nor Christopher caught it from me!!!

The Party's Over...Back to the Real World

Well, Christmas and New Year's Day have both come and gone, so now it's back to the real world this week. We go back to school tomorrow. Blah. It's not that I don't like school/teaching, but I've really enjoyed not having a schedule these last 2 weeks. Alas, all good things must come to an end, though.

We spent these days off just spending time together as a family, having fun and being lazy. It was nice having Shad home so much! This was his first year to be able to take the week of Christmas off of work. I hope it's something he can do every year now!

I guess there's really not much to write about today. Hmmm...I've really been enjoying my camera! I can't wait for Spring when we'll be outside more often...great photo opportunities! I don't really have any new pictures to share that haven't already been posted, but here's one of Christopher playing Shad's PS3:



Well, I guess that's about all around here. I hope everyone's had a really nice holiday season and has a healthy and prosperous new year!