AHHH-Chew!

Missaroo is by nature a sniffer. Anytime we go somewhere new, her nose is to the ground checking out who's been there. Then of course she marks her spot to let all future sniffers know, The Missaroo has been here. I've even caught her barking at scents before. Strange, but extremely true AND hilarious.

Along with all this sniffing comes sneezing. I guess I never realized that dogs even had the capability of sneezing before the Missaroo. But then again, I really didn't know anything about dogs before the Missaroo. But now I wonder, does she have allergies or does she just sniff too much?

Anytime she walks into a room that I just sprayed something, she sneezes; usually more than once and almost always on me. Gross. ((And yes of course I say to her "God Bless you Shmooie")). There are three things that I spray: Fabreeze, which makes her sneeze the most, my perfume, which makes her sneeze the least, and my pillow spray. It's suppose to help relive stress. She sneezes a couple of times depending on how soon she jumps on the bed after the spray down.

I'm hoping all this sneezing is normal. I mean dogs sneeze right? Or is this another weird only the Missaroo who thinks she's a person thing? Does your dog or cat sneeze? Know a dog with allergies? We'd love to hear from you!

A Good Night's Sleep

Missaroo and I haven't been sleeping very well lately. ((And if you think it's weird that we both wouldn't sleep well at the same time, well I'm not really sure why you read my blog then))

A couple of nights ago, she wouldn't come to bed. Usually this means she is sick, so like any good dog mom I went to check on her. She seemed fine but definitely wanted to be alone. That's fairly strange for the Missaroo. She usually HAS to be with me all of the time, and I've gotten so use to that I don't like it when she doesn't want to be around me. On top of that, she's been twitching in her sleep a lot too. You know, that dog dream run thing they do. Of course, that makes me feel bad, like the reason she isn't sleeping well and having dreams like that is because we aren't getting enough exercise during the day. I feel like a dog mom failure.

My worry wort status doesn't begin and end with the Missaroo either. I've been tossing and turning most nights as well. I've had a lot on my mind lately, but nothing that really stands out as to why I'm not sleeping. I always have a lot on my mind.

Then last night rolled around and for the second Sunday in a row I didn't feel like death by the time I got home from work. Missaroo and I stayed up until 10 and then headed to bed. We both slept like rocks. The only thing that woke me up was the realization she was laying so close to me, her head was on my back. It took away all my dog mom fail feelings. It felt great to know we both got a good night's sleep.

Finding Your Zen Place

I'm not one to take a yoga class let alone a yoga mentality, but I do believe in finding your "happy place." In this day and age people connect more with the term "zen" then "happy place" so that's why I'll use it here. This is my attempt to be "cool. " ((I am so not cool, I could write a whole blog on that topic))

Missy is a dog, so her zen place is pretty obvious: wherever she is when you decide to rub her belly! It brings a big smile to her face first and then she just goes calm. And for anyone who knows the Missaroo, her calm is nothing short of a miracle. ((OK she's getting better, but she's still pretty crazy most of the time))

I'm a person so my zen place, not so obvious. But like the Missaroo, I'm not too picky: any baseball field in the country. Last night I remembered that. I went to a Spokane Indians game. They're a minor A team but so much fun anyway. And it was very fitting to because today my hero's jersey was retired. It was Frank Thomas day at the ballpark. I love Frank Thomas and I mean I LOVE FRANK THOMAS! There aren't many people in history I rather meet than big Frank. I tear up talking about him. He's why I love baseball soooo much and also why a baseball field is my zen place.

I wish I could take the Missaroo to the ballpark with me. They actually have "Take Your Dog to the Ballpark" days at Sox field. If we ever move back to Illinois, we are definitely looking into going to a game together. After all, if I'm always there with the Missaroo in her zen place, isn't it only fair that she get to partake in mine? Do you or your pet have a zen place? We'd love to hear from you!

Serious Business

That's some serious concentration going on.... Don't get between the Missaroo and her chewie!

Another Year to Go

If there's one thing I love more than a "To Do" list its a countdown, or a mile-marker of some sort. I remember dates. Today marks my one year working for KREM2. I still remember my news director meeting me at the door with a firm hand shake and this phrase "Welcome to the Mighty 2." It certainly was the start of my Spokane adventure.

But I've already looked back at this past year, and now it's time to look ahead to see where we're going. No worries though, we will be right here in Spokane for at least another year, I signed my new lease a few weeks ago.

The biggest thing yet for us to accomplish is the now infamous motorcycle sniff. I've been wanting her to go up to a bike and just look around and sniff one for a long time. I've blogged about her hatred of motorcycles more than I can count. Now that the love of the Missaroo's life has reentered mine in the best friends kinda way, I think it's time to ask for his help. For those of you new to the blog, you'll have to read an earlier blog post, I think it's called "Overcoming Motorcycle Fears Gus the Bear Style." ((Sorry, my blog post achieves aren't working at the moment or I'd link it here for you)).

I also want to give the Missaroo a chance to swim still. She might not even try it. She might hate it. ((She does do her best to dodge sprinklers)) Or she might be a fish in disguise. Only one way to find out. My other big goal for us this year is to get out more. Sure we walk twice a day everyday, but we either walk through the neighborhoods or up and down Regal. I want to take her on a hike, on a trial, on a day trip when it's not so Darn hot that she can't stand it. In other words, look out fall here we come!

As for me, my goals are more like staying focused and on track. I want to put in another year of producing in a mid-sized market. I don't want to go into my work goals here for a number of reasons. I want to knock off a few things from my life to do list ((yes I have one of those)). I'm not too specific on that, I just try to do a couple a year. And I also want to be another year into my Master's program, which would only leave me with a quarter or two left.

Missaroo and I really are pretty simple at heart. We just want to live our lives, work hard, and have adventures. Although I think we've all learned in the last year, in order for us to have an adventure sometimes all it takes is a walk down the street. Wish us luck! Any goals you guys have for the upcoming year or the rest of this one? We'd love to hear from you!

A Year in Review

A year ago yesterday I moved to Spokane. A year ago tomorrow I started my job at KREM. I know its seems to have become the catch phrase of this blog, but what a difference a year makes. I thought I would take the time to look back on our year here. Don't worry, tomorrow we'll look ahead too.

So what have we accomplished since moving here??? When  it comes to the Missaroo, quite a lot. I wanted to get her into daycare. Although, in the end it didn't work out, we did it, she loved it, and we have a great doggie hotel to fall back on when we need it. ((she'll be spending 5 days there when I fly home)). I wanted to give her a real home. I think the Missaroo wasn't sure what was up with all that moving around we did before I found a job. She was a confused dog and it showed. She didn't have a routine or schedule, and she sure as heck didn't know what belonged to her. Now she has her stuff and I have mine. She's never chewed anything that didn't belong to her here. She's also come to figure out that the crate isn't so bad after all, because after all, that's where all her stuff is. I've also been able to give her everything a dog needs. She now had her own food and water bowls, she has a real doggie bed, and she's been micro chipped. From here on out we can focus on adventures, not stuff. Now I can start to give her experiences and even that we've already gotten started.

When it comes to me, I rather look at the last 6 months, from the time the blog started. In that time, I've finished three quarters of graduate school and healed the broken heart-ness that motivated the start of this blog. And on that second note, I've actually discovered something else. The broken heart-ness has turned into a great friendship. We were great friends to begin with who moved too fast, and I fell too hard. I had to dump the friendship when he dumped me, but now we're back to being good friends. That's uncharted waters for me. I've never been able to do it, but it's working out well and I couldn't ask for a better best friend in all of Spokane.

When it comes to us, the Missaroo and I have continued to bond. She is my best bud too and the love of my life. I've learned we can make it through anything. I've also learned she makes my life better and has given me a new found purpose. This blog and her Facebook page are making a small difference in the lives of animals. We won't stop animal abuse or adopt out every animal that needs a home, but I'm proud to say we have saved exactly two lives. It is such an honor to know people are reading our stories and then going out an adopting pets of their own.

It's been a crazy, hectic year full of life adventures. I have no regrets and I wouldn't change a thing. We love our lives and we're doing the best we can with what we have everyday. Here's to another year in Spokane! :)

What's with the Scratching?

We all know that I think almost everything Missaroo does is adorable, especially in those moments when she reminds me that she is in fact a dog. But the key word here is almost.

Recently, she started SCRATCHING the floor! It doesn't seem to be doing any really damage and the marks go away when I vacuum, but I'm still not a fan. This is a new thing too. I thought by now I would have seen all the Missaroo has to offer in the strange behavior department. And because it's a new thing, it makes me nervous.

What would cause her to scratch the floor like she does throughout the apartment? At first I didn't think too much of it, like she was trying to get a bug one time or something. But it's continued for weeks and the scratching is getting more and more aggressive. Not good. I have been scolding her when she starts up and that does get her to stop. My next question of course is how do I get her from starting altogether? And of course what's with the scratching in the first place?

Any suggestions? Have you had a pet that does that too? I'd love to hear from you!