Pedicure Dates...

I know what you're thinking.....Julie has a weekly pedicure date w/ friends or something weird like that....actually, I've never had a pedicure......but Jeremy and Dibs have bi-weekly pedicure dates.

You read that correct, Jeremy and Dibs, our pug/chihuahua mixed dog, have pedicure dates. I call it "boy bonding time." It's rather entertaining how this all began.

About 3 years ago I asked my mom to help me cut Dibs' nails since they were rather long. I believe I held him and she cut one nail......and I got bit. Dibs does not like it when anyone, even me, touches or plays with his nails. Ever since that one bite I've left it up to the vet once a year to cut them when he's in for regular shots. Last time they used the muzzle since Dibs wasn't a fan.

Then along came Jeremy who is now convinced he is the new "dog whisper." He was convinced he could cut Dibs' nails. I just shook my head and wished him luck. I even exagerated my horror stories of cutting Dibs' nails to try and deter him from this task. But no, he's stubborn like myself and gave it a shot.

He took Dibs on the back deck and sat down in the chair. I couldn't bear to watch so I turned by back inside the house. 5 minutes later I returned to the window to see Dibs licking Jeremy's face while Jeremy calmly clipped and filed each of Dibs' nails (yes, we actually have an electronic file as well). Seriously, my jaw hit the floor......Dibs bites everyone who tries to clip his nails (including me, his lifelong owner) but not Jeremy......show's his loyalty I guess. So now this has become Jeremy and Dibs' bi-weekly ritual of sitting down for bonding time and a nice pedicure......this past weekend Dibs came to show off his new nails and I asked him if he wanted me to buy some nail polish to really finish them off right......he growled then...ha ha ha.

It just cracks me up, my husband is essentially giving our little 10 lb. dog a pedicure........at least we know Jeremy has a new resume builder if engineering doesn't work out......

All is well in Colorado. I'm still pregnant and as of this week we're told it's a little girl. We laughed when they told us that and said she'll have us wrapped around her little finger.....a boy we would have sent to play in the mud, but a girl....that means dolls, make-up, etc......what are we in for?! But, she's a healthy little girl....which was the most important news of that doctors visit.

I think that's all for now. I hope you're all having a great week.

(sorry for any errors in this posting....I'm rushing to get it posted)

It's fixed!

Two rubber seals later we now have indoor plumbing again.
Life is almost back to normal.

This house is a lemon.....and officially has water problems...

It was a crazy week at the Gacnik house in CO.

On Tuesday we were having some grout/tile repaired in the master bathroom.....simple enough, right? Well, within an hour of the project starting, we learned there was a bigger problem. Let's back up though, we were repairing the grout and a few tile because there was a moisture in the grout and below a few tile (although on the exterior of the shower, it was caused by the shower - confusing I know) which would eventually soak through the floor into the tv room below. So, we thought we'd be proactive and fix it now.

Now back to the story, within an hour of the project beginning we learned there was no backer-board down and the tile had initially been put on plywood.....not a good thing. Basically within a few months of fixing this problem the grout would have been cracking again....seems like wasted money, right? So, we stopped the project mid-way and opted to tear the entire tile floor up and lay down backboard, tile, grout and sealer. Both Jeremy and I agreed this was the best decision to fix the problem permanently. So we rotated working from home while the repairs were made Tuesday - Friday. Now it looks great!!! However, looks can be deceiving.....

We did this repair to prevent water from soaking through the ceiling into our tv room below the shower area, a very proactive fix. Today, when cleaning the bathroom before moving all our stuff back in it, we ran into a problem. When cleaning the toilet, I flushed it to wash all the chemicals down the drain and then I heard......."Julie, HELP!!!!!" So I come running down the stairs to find Jeremy standing in the tv room with a pot over his head and watching water running like a waterfall out of our light above the fireplace...... So I grabbed a ton of towels to soak up the water and try to save our TV, DVD player, etc from the mid-day bath, when finally it stopped.

Now remember, this project was completed to prevent water from coming into our tv room, not to create an indoor waterfall. Funny thing though, the water was coming from below the toilet, not the shower area where the initial water problem started.

We initially thought the water was from the 2 ft. of heavy snow we got this weekend, but then we realized it was directly below the toilet. We're assuming they did not install a new rubber seal when reinstalling the toilet. We've called the flooring people to come fix the problem immediately. Now we can only be hopeful it did not cause much damage to the electrical area the water ran down or the overall ceiling. We'll keep you posted on the outcome of this project.

As you may remember, our house in jinxed with water problems.....no water pressure, our foyer, etc....so it's only fitting that this problem revolves around water as well. Jeremy and I have laughed though, we didn't realize we were buying a "fixer-upper" when we purchased this home, but wow we were in for a surprise!!!

Other than that, it was a pretty good week. We had an unexpected mid-April snow shower which brought us 2 ft. of heavy snow. I've included a photo for your delight and laughter.....as you fertilize your lawn and plant flowers we.....well, Jeremy....is shoveling snow.

An additional photo which is just cute......Sadie now uses Elvis' rearend as a pillow.....one of these days he'll toot when she's laying there to teach her a lesson...ha ha...actually they get along quite well.

I am.....and it's keeps going up!

It doesn't take much to make me laugh. Hopefully you can find humor from this comment/situation which happened earlier this week.

Every now and then I find myself saying exactly what's on my mind, without so much as thinking before speaking. I do believe this can get a person in trouble and it probably has from time to time, however, this past Monday I found it to be rather entertaining.

Jeremy and I had a doctor's appointment to hear Baby G. (aka Shimmy) heart beat. Rather exciting again and yes it confirms I'm still pregnant. However, near the end of the appointment we are going over the do's and don'ts of pregnancy such as:

DO:
Drink lots of water
Drink lots of milk (does ice cream count as a logical addition/substitution)
"Graze throughout the day" - lots of little meals
Sleep
Exercise (still jogging with 2 Labs....hopefully I don't trip over them)
Use Hand sanitizer (like it's going out of style)
Use Lotion (after hand sanitizer to keep your hands from getting cracked and dry)
Use hand rails to keep from falling (you become unsteady on your feet)
etc. etc. etc.

DO NOTS:
Drink alcohol
Drink caffeine (which means I can sleep through the day without my kickstart)
Eat cold meat sandwiches
Drink juice
Eat cheese
Eat canned tuna (so much for lent, ha)
Eat fried foods (fries are out)
Eat salty snacks
Do high impact activities
Stay out of altitude (hello - I live in the mile high city.....)

So, as we're going through this list of Do/Do not's I'm trying to figure out just what I can eat/do that won't kill me or the baby, the doctor comes to his next item on the list. The conversation went much like this:

Dr: Now Julie, I need you to watch your weight.
Julie: (without thinking I respond) I am and it keeps going up.....
Dr: Seriously, I see people who gain 60 lbs./pregnancy and you should only gain 15-20.
Julie: Well, I'm 9 lbs. on my way so I'm guessing I may be an overachiever and exceed your chart. (I always wanted to be an overachiever in school so this is my chance)
Dr: Seriously, try to avoid the fried foods, eating out, salty snacks....maybe take you lunch and some healthy snacks. Also, you really need to exercise, not too hard but doing cardio is very important.

- Now by this time I think Jeremy and I were trying not to laugh out loud. We very rarely eat out and we don't every make fried foods. Additionally, we take our lunches to work and mine consists of this......leftovers from night before to reheat and a yogurt. For snacks during the day I have a banana and an apple......I'm also still jogging with the 2 yellow labs, Elvis and Sadie.

So the only way I can change my eating habit is to switch from the healthy meals to the all fast food diet....something I'm considering because I "need to watch my weight" and my first attempt at taking care of myself is causing me to turn into a blimp apparently.

Jeremy and I left this appointment laughing!!! It's one thing to tell someone to watch their weight who is in need of a lifestyle (food/exercise) change, but to tell a pregnant woman who's going to keep packing on the pounds regardless of what they do to "watch your weight" just cracks me up. I'm going to keep watching my weight and also the clothing that doesn't fit when I get dressed in the morning.

*One note Jeremy would like to add is that this doctor obviously has not been "trained" on what to say and what not to say to a pregnant woman....."You look beautiful no matter how much you weigh" is a much better option for a healthy relationship versus "You look like a blimp." Jeremy says it's all in training you learn the do/do nots of a conversation with a prenant wife.

*A second disclaimer, I didn't tell the doctor is I have an obsession with ice cream.....I like it so much I finish mine before Jeremy, a very impressive feat ......I only allow myself to stop once/week at a ice cream shop, but I feel that fits into the "dairy (calcium)" category on my "DO" list from the doctor.....don't you agree?

Have a great week!