Last week was my spring break and I spent it working fulltime at an attorney’s office.  I have been trying to find a job in an attorney’s office for the entire time I’ve been in college, and of course I found it right when I’m on my way out.  I had fun despite the fact that I just did office work for a week.  I filed, answered telephones, sent faxes, and made labels for letters to be mailed out.  It doesn’t matter though, it will look good on my resume.  At the end of the week, the attorney asked me to work every Friday, which will most likely turn into more work after I graduate!  Speaking of law, I haven’t heard back about law school, but I should start to hear back fairly soon.

What else has been going on… the weather!  It is absolutely GORGEOUS!  The azaleas, dog woods and wild plums are in full bloom and our little family is loving it.  Tom was lucky enough to go out on the boat a few times this past weekend, but I was busy doing wedding preparations, so I didn’t.  Hunter went out on the boat for the first time, and just like Remington he loved every minute of it.  We’ve got some great pictures on the hard drive, so I’ll have to get those and show them to you all.

Wedding plans are coming along nicely.  I slightly altered the color – instead of “Wild Orchid” on the David’s Bridal web site, we’re now going with “Lilac.”  The other color is called “Clover.”  The moms have their dresses, and the bridesmaids have at least started to look.  I am going to have three bridesmaids, because of a falling out with one of them.  It’s easier to have three because there won’t be as much drama, but my feelings are hurt because of the way it all went down.  Anyway.

This weekend, we also met with the priest that will be marrying us.  He gave us a book of readings to choose from and information that we will need to set all the music up for the mass.  It was really nice to talk with him.  He has been the monsignor at my church since before I was born, so I have completed all my sacraments under him.  He also married my mom and stepdad in 2003, so he knows the entire family.

Flowers are set.  My bouquet will consist of green and white hydrangeas and freesia, and a single green (very light … almost yellow) rose in the middle.  The rose is significant because my deceased paternal grandfather was a wholesale florist and absolutely loved yellow roses.  Since the yellow won’t match with our colors, we’re going with green.  It’s so beautiful!

We also went to two cake tastings and decided on a cake baker/decorator.  We’re doing a three tier with cornilly lace, and a sheet cake that will be decorated the same.  Very simple yet elegant, which is exactly what we wanted.

In other news … I planted an herb garden yesterday!  I only have four herbs in it because it’s just a small window box – basil, sage, flat leaf parsley and mint.

And, after a two week hiatus from the gym because of my sinus infection and working, I went back last night.  It was a little rough, but I’m going back tomorrow.  They actually demonstrated some safety equipment while I was there, which was kind of strange.  I should have pushed myself to go today, but I didn’t.  Tomorrow I’m going first thing in the morning and doing cardio and strength training.  I got some tips from my soon to be brother-in-law and that will also help jumpstart my weight loss again.

Off to finish the laundry and get ready for bed.  I have gotten back into the habit of reading right before bed again.  I really missed it!

Believe it or not, I came down with another cold.  All of a sudden it just hit me last night after we got back from driving.  My mom seems to think it’s the remnants of the cold I had a couple weeks ago, but I don’t know.  I do know that it’s killing my gym time!  I’m feeling too bad to go.

Yesterday we went to Sam’s Club to get our membership card and stock up on meat and fruit.  The strawberries they had were SO DELICIOUS looking that I almost bought two of them!  Now we won’t have to buy anything for awhile.  We’re going to use the strawberries to make homemade ice cream with the ice cream attachment I got for Christmas (to use with my stand mixer).

Gotta run, the dogs are going nuts and it’s making me crazy!

This past weekend, we took the boys home with us.  Remington stayed with Daddy, and Hunter came with me.  We were afraid that Remington might try to attack my mom’s dogs since his attack on the Chihuahua was very recent.  It was nice because I got the chance to work with Hunter one-on-one, without the distraction of Remington trying to take Hunter’s treats or sit in front of him.

Tom and I agreed that we wouldn’t do anything too drastic with Remington just yet because we didn’t want to expose him to something new that might trigger his aggressive behavior towards other dogs.  It’s just so unpredictable and new to us that we didn’t want to take a chance.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to hear about Remington’s walk on Saturday with Tom and how well he did.  He went by four dogs and a couple cats and was perfectly fine.  When dogs barked at him, he didn’t react like he has in the last few weeks.  Instead, he’d just keep walking with Tom.  When Tom stopped to chat with one guy in his neighborhood (and the guy’s dog), Remington waited patiently, sniffed the other dog, and there was no big fuss.  What amazing progress!

The best part of the weekend was Remington’s first trip on the boat.  Tom and his dad took Remy out to an island near their house, where Remy spent a good hour and a half running, playing in the water, and chasing birds.  According to Tom, he had the time of his life.  He could barely keep his eyes open when I went to pick them up to head back on Sunday, and he slept most of yesterday!

Now that we’re back in Gainesville, both boys are doing very well.  A couple has moved in next door with two dogs that like to bark when our dogs are outside.  With a spray bottle, we let them know they can’t bark back.  They haven’t barked at the dogs across the way, and they’re okay with people coming and going right outside our front door.  Maybe they just needed a relaxing weekend to get away from our apartment, who knows.  It’s just absolutely AMAZING that they’re both behaving so much better.

Maybe if we continue the training, we can teach them basketball tricks and they could win basketball trophies?  I’m kidding….

The trainer spent 2.5 hours with us at our apartment yesterday, and worked with both dogs (but Remington more than Hunter).  Tom and I are absolutely flabbergasted at the improvement in both of them!  We believe in positive reinforcement training, using the clicker and only rewarding good behavior (instead of punishing bad behavior).  We also bought a gentle leader for Remington, and by the end of the session he was completely, 100% manageable on a leash.  We went for another walk last night and it was as if he didn’t know he was on a leash.  Completely amazing, if you ask me!

We both feel a lot better about Remington.  He may not be a dog park dog due to the unpredictable aggression, but he is not a bad dog and he is still a normal dog.  The trainer has a dog who is also dog aggressive and she lives a completely normal life with her dog – they go on walks, etc.  He just doesn’t go to the park unless there are no other dogs present.

On another note, I went to the gym this morning for an hour.  My 2 week guest membership is up on the 10th, so I’m trying to get as much in as I can until I have to start paying for it.  In one hour (35 minutes on the stationary bike and 25 minutes on the stair master) I burned 700 calories!  I’ve gone through about 60 oz of water today and have about 14 oz more to go until I’m at my “usual” intake.  Going to the gym made me want to come home and eat a really healthy lunch, so I had a banana and a salad with a little bit of grilled chicken (no skin) in it.  And I rewarded myself with a peanut butter cookie from the apartment office when I went to fax something.

I wish it was sunny and nice out, that would complete my day!  Oh, and I really wish I didn’t have a finance test tonight.  I can dream, right?

On the Wedding Front, the reception site is booked for sure.  We have signed the contract and are now waiting to hear back from my priest.  Yay!  Tom and I are working on invitations now.  We have a general idea of what we want, but it’s difficult to find stationary with both of our colors.  We’re going to keep looking though.  Meanwhile, if you have any companies that you recommend for printing, please let me know!

Our engagement party (for our friends) is this Saturday.  We’ve got a few friends staying with us which will make it so much fun!  I’ve been running around like a mad woman today cleaning and preparing, since tomorrow I have class all day and one friend gets in tomorrow night.  I know no one will really care if our apartment is absolutely spotless or not, but I’m OCD like that.  And, I just hate having guests when the apartment is not immaculate!

Speaking of cleanliness … yesterday, Tom came home during lunch (like he normally does) to check on the dogs.  They had torn the foam cushion out of the chair we have (that matches the couch).  There was foam EVERYWHERE.  I came home right behind him and my jaw dropped to the floor.  What a site our living room was, seriously!  We got a few pictures that I’ll have to share when I unload the camera.  Needless to say, we are now running a doggy boot camp with Hunter and Remy.  I think they’ve figured it out, too, that they did something REALLY bad.

I always hate ending a post.  I never know what to say!

We did enough running around that I don’t feel the need to get any Decaslim … at least for awhile!

He finally came to get me (with the help of the dogs) at 8:00am because he was so excited that it was my birthday!  He brought me a birthday card about farting (boys…) and it was even signed by Hunter, Remington and Romeo (and Tom of course).  It was really cute.  I’ll have to take pictures of the written part from each animal because … well, the little sayings speak for themselves.

Tom was nice enough to make me french toast for breakfast, which he has never done before.  It turned out really great, and I was pleasantly surprised because he never tries to cook!  Next we lounged around watching Food Network and reading the newspaper (well, I was cutting coupons, my usual Sunday activity).  We ended up taking the dogs to the park for about an hour which was fun.  Hunter does this thing where he digs and flings the dirt to Remington, who stands directly behind him (and ends up laying down in the dirt).  Cute, but dirty!

After the dog park, we came home to pick up a friend so we could go to brunch.  I had the filet mignon and omelette with four(?) mimosas.  They were small, don’t worry!  But sooo delicious.  We were absolutely stuffed but still wanted to try and find a bookcase.  The one we had out in the living room was seriously about to collapse.  We didn’t find one, but I did find a couple books at the Homegoods store.  I always end up buying something from there, I love it so much!

We just vegged out after we got back and did a really easy shrimp dinner; nothing fancy.  And, we were in bed by 9:00pm because I had a headache and was exhausted from getting up at 8:00am (I know, sad)!

The best part about the day wasn’t actually my birthday, it was the day before.  We went to a jeweler in the mall to look at engagement rings.  Without either one of us knowing it, the conversation got pretty serious, and next thing we know, we’re in the diamond room looking at a diamond through a microscope.  We were at the jewelers for over an hour and the guy put the ring on hold for us.  We got home and talked and talked about everything engagement, and I found out that it is definitely going to be before January 1.  Now you know why the day before my birthday is a day I’ll never forget!

I thought about doing a video like Jordan did, but when I made one it looked retarded.  Maybe another time!  Instead, I’ll post some pictures fresh off my camera:

Starting from the top left moving to the right and then down,

1. Hunter looking out the window when we were driving back after Thanksgiving.
2. Me as we were driving back.  Bored much?
3. Remy sleeps like this on the chair.  Sometimes he looks out the window, too.
4. Romeo snuck into Hunter’s crate because apparently it looks extra comfy.
5. Gators are going to the BCS!
6. Tom and the dogs at the dog park
7. Me and some dirty pups that I call mine
8. A REALLY good picture of Tom!
9. Right before their dinner – can you tell they’re not very patient?
10. Remy while he’s waiting to be fed.  “PLEASE??”

As I posted yesterday, I joined Weight Watchers.  My starting weight was 180.6.  Unfortunately, I weighed myself after breakfast but remembered before I showered!  My first goal is to lose 10% of my body weight – meaning a goal of 162 lbs.  I think it’ll be difficult with my birthday, Christmas, Virginia trip and the break coming up, but I know I can do it.  I hate the feeling I get when I’m absolutely stuffed, so I try to avoid it at all costs – as much as I love eating all the holiday food my family and friends make!

I didn’t manage to work in any exercise yesterday, but I will be getting on the elliptical and the Wii Fit this afternoon.  I am hoping to get the dogs to the park as well.  It’s always really fun for me because I run around with them, throw a stick or ball, etc.  I’ve also got some cleaning and laundry to do which is still considered movement!

Yesterday I had a glass of wine after dinner, nachos (lots of lettuce and tomato) with dinner, half of a chicken BLT and water instead of iced tea.  I also opted out of the Baskin Robbins ice cream we all stopped for after dinner.

Today, I had the left over chicken BLT sandwich for a late breakfast (I woke up at 10am) and three York peppermint patties.  As soon as those are gone I’m not going to be buying anymore.  They’re really bad for my weight!

I’m also still only on my first bottle of water today, but with working out and stuff that’ll be different by this evening.  I’m actually halfway through my last LSAT diagnostic test and since every second is precious, I don’t bother sipping water (yes I take it that seriously).

I’m really looking forward to this journey.  And, I encourage you to join me at The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans!  You don’t have to have any specific weight loss plan, it’s just there for motivation and accountability.  There are weekly weigh ins on Wednesday, but you only have to post on Wednesday and link back to them with your weekly weigh in weight.  You don’t necessarily have to actually weigh in on Wednesday.

I’m off to permalink this post over there, browse some sites, and check on the dogs before I finish the last two sections of the LSAT.  I’m loving all the comments lately, thanks guys!

Remington also made a little “progress” this morning.  He jumped onto the bed by himself because he wanted to!  We’ve found that he doesn’t get up on furniture (our bed or the couches) unless we put him up there ourselves.  He’ll put his two paws up, but that’s it.  It’s like he wasn’t allowed to do that at his old house, and we’re all about that at our house!  So we got to snuggle this morning while Tom was in the shower – me and my dogs.

I’m in the process of finishing up laundry and getting things together so we can leave by 3:00p today.  Unfortunately, Tom has to work the day before or day after a holiday in order to get holiday pay, so today is the earliest we could leave to go home.  We’re doing dinner with his parents tomorrow, with my dad on Friday, my parents on Saturday, and hopefully going to see our nephew with the dogs before we go back home on Sunday.  It’s going to be a jampacked weekend but I’m so excited.

Rachie Ann gave me the Superior Scribbler Award!  Thanks, Rachie Ann.  She made my day by her comment that although she may not comment very often, she really enjoys reading my blog everyday.  Thank you so much, Rachie Ann!

Alright, have to go get ready to leave!  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your friends and families!

What do you think?  Remington is a year-and-a-half old Lab/Pointer mix that I found (by accident) last Wednesday at the local animal shelter.  I went with a friend to try and rescue her cat because someone had called him in as a stray.  We looked around at the dogs, and this guy warmed my heart.  He was in a cage all alone – no dogs around him – and you could tell that he was just itching to get out.  We played with him in the yard and he played like Hunter – running like crazy, getting the ball, and just being really sweet.  I texted Tom basically to let him know about our new guy, and at first he didn’t like the idea but warmed up to it.  After approval and all the paperwork was done, they pulled him from adoption because of a hemangioma (a cyst that could be malignant) on his right flank.

I moved very quickly by calling a rehabilitation farm in our city on Thursday.  After emailing and calling back and forth, we agreed that I would act on behalf of this rehabilitation farm, go pick the dog up from the animal shelter, bring him to the adoptathon that the farm would be at on Friday, and get him looked at and adopted.  The vet student that looked at him confirmed that the cyst was more than likely not malignant, as it is not attached to anything but skin and the dog is not old enough to develop cancer.  I filled out the adoption papers and brought him home!

He went to the vet on Saturday where I got him microchipped, got some flea/tick medication, hookworm medication (didn’t know he had it, but glad we’re treating it), and topical cream for the cyst.  If that doesn’t work in the next few weeks, we’re going to go straight to getting it removed.  Whatever ends up happening, he’s a very happy dog and couldn’t be loved more.  I will never adopt a purebred dog or cat ever again!  Can you imagine him being euthanized and not a part of our family?