Back to Almost Normal

My father in law had surgery last Thursday evening and came home on Saturday.  My in laws live about 1 hour away from us.  I have been driving to their house a lot over the past week.  The joy of being home is that I am available to my family when they need me.  It was the plan all along when I decided to be home that I would have that luxury.

My husband is one of 5 children in his family.  The rest of the siblings live all over the country and are making plans to come and visit their parents and help out.  My in-laws have 2 acres of land on which their house is built on and my father in law is a Master Gardener.  The next two weekends will be work weekends getting their property ready for the winter.  I will also be going to their house at least once a week to visit and see if there is anything they need me to do.

Now it's back to my home and my homemaking goals.

Yesterday the temperature was in the upper 50's so I washed windows on the outside of our house.  I didn't get to all of them, but made it to the ones that really mattered.  I was running out of time so I decided that the windows in the main living areas were my priority.

While I was sitting with my in laws in the hospital, I started to knit on a round loom and turned out some simple knitted caps.  I had never done this before and decided that since I would have a lot of sitting and waiting time, I might as well put my hands to good use.

I have a lot of homemaking odds and ends going on right now.  Reading the vintage home economics books, decluttering my house, keeping up on the normal daily housework AND getting ready for a new puppy.  Yes, as if my life isn't busy enough, we will be getting a golden doodle puppy in December.

Back in September we made the decision to add another dog to our family.  We already have a labra doodle.  I contacted the breeder that we got Molly from and was fortunate to find out that they had a litter of golden doodles on the way.  The puppies were born on October 21st and Decker will come home on December 10th.  Why the name Decker?  Because my husband is a runner and not just a weekend runner, he has been a runner for over 40 years and he runs several miles a day.  He has run 12 marathons and runs many, many races during the year.  Molly runs with my husband at least 2 miles out of his 6 to 7 mile daily runs.

So, nothing like a deadline to get my home keeping act together as when that puppy gets here, I will be spending my time housebreaking and going through obedience training.  Getting a puppy just before Christmas is not the ideal time, but when you have a great, reliable local breeder that has just what you want, you take a puppy when you can get it.

Now, this blog is all about living frugally and homemaking so where does a new puppy fit into this? Over the past 5 years we have paid off some of our debt and can afford another puppy.  A new puppy will also keep me more balanced with my bouts of depression and more importantly, our other dog, Molly, needs a companion.  It is my goal that over time both of our dogs will be able to be trained to be therapy dogs.  BUT -- owning and training a dog is work, work, work.  Dogs don't just behave because you show love to them, you have to have them go through obedience training for a well balanced dog.

Molly and my husband after running a 5K race
They came in second.

Tomorrow's post:  Take Pride in Your Home.

Putting a Pet Down

Me and our cat, Sheircon in Feb. 2010

On Friday, June 7th, we had to put our cat, Sheircon to sleep.  She was 16 years old in May.  The above picture was taken 3 years ago when she weighed around 10 lbs.  When we put her down she weighed around 5 lbs., was going through kidney failure and had stopped eating altogether.  She was a wonderful cat and I enjoyed the privilege of owning her (if you can ever own a cat as they seem to own the person).  

I stayed with her as she was put down and then we put her in a box, placed a piece of pink fabric on top and buried her under a forsythia bush in our backyard.  

In January we had our black lab put down.  She was almost 13 years old and had declined so much.  

Griffey

Now we are left with our 16 month old labradoodle Molly.  We have no intention of getting another cat.  One pet is enough for us for now.  Molly fits the bill and she is a wonderful, loving dog.

Molly

Update and a frugal hair product recipe

First of all I want to update you on my progress.  I am doing quite well as the medication I am on has finally gotten into my system and I feel really good.  Not over the top, but my normal, happy self.

I have lost weight over the last few months - total of around 19 lbs. and I am working hard on keeping it off. I have energy and I take a lot of walks with our dog and I am hoping to start running this week.  I am working on projects (most of it sewing) and other things around the house.

My husband has taken this week off for vacation so he could put up a cedar privacy fence for our backyard but we are in the midst of a rainy spell here.  It is ridiculous.  If we would have known that putting up a fence was all it would take to make it rain for several days, we would have done it last year when we were in the midst of a drought.

The purchase of the cedar privacy fence along with our son taking summer college courses has put us on a tight budget.  I use a detangler for my hair as it is now several inches below my shoulder.  Yes, I could go and use a coupon and get my usual Pantene Detangler, but even with a coupon it will cost $2.50.  So I did some research and I have made my own.  I put 1 tablespoon of conditioner into the 8.5 oz. bottle the Pantene Detangler came in and I filled it with warm water and shook it up.  I spritzed it on my hair and it worked quite well.  Just shake it up before each use and that is it.  

I completed the beginner's Dog Obedience training with my dog Molly last Tuesday and decided to invest in the Intermediate Dog training class which began the next day.  Classes are not frugal, but a life long well balanced dog is well worth it.  Also, I have discovered that I really enjoy working with her.  I have seen her progress from an anxious, unsure dog to a happy, more balanced dog.  I can walk her and she will sit when I stop and anyone can pet her.  When we walked past a yard where there were two dogs barking at me, she looked at me when I told her to watch me and we kept moving.  Teaching a dog to watch you when they are anxious shows them that you are their leader and they can depend on you.  Also people can come over and she will greet them and then I tell her to down and she stays down until I tell her okay.  

She has changed so much since January and it is due to the training.  Also, I have gained so much confidence and my anxiety has been reduced.  When I walk Molly, I walk with my head high and I create an atmosphere of leadership.  She trusts me because I am her leader.

So, I won't delay posting any longer.  I just didn't want to post a whole lot until I was back to 100%.  Hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day weekend.  For us, we may not be able to get the fence up this week, but I am catching up on sewing and my husband is enjoying a much earned break.  If he can't put up the fence, he can always enjoy watching baseball on t.v.  After all - it is his time off, no matter if it is raining and we can't put up the fence or if the weather clears up and we are able to put it up.  One way or the other, the fence will be up sooner or later -  it will happen.

A Long Awaited Update

I have deliberately held off posting anything due to my problems with anxiety and depression.  I wanted the medication and therapy I am going through to take more effect before I posted anything.

I am on my third medication since late January and it is working.  On April 7th I posted that I was feeling wonderful and I was feeling considerably better than I had for two months.  I am taking Lexapro and like many anti-depressants it takes almost 6 weeks for it fully to  be absorbed by your brain and take effect.  

I am making progress each day and have chosen to go to a behavioral sciences facility where I meet with a med specialist who constantly monitors the medications I am taking and making sure that I am receiving the correct dosage and that I am not having any problems with the medications.  I cannot express how secure it makes me feel to meet with someone every two weeks (and someone I can call in between) to make sure that I am not having any problems.  The person is an expert on these types of meds and I totally trust her.  I trust her because I see things getting better.

I have also taken another major step and that is to acknowledge that I need to see a therapist twice a month for two months and then probably once a month thereafter.  The sudden fright that I had in January has triggered so much that I recognize that just taking medication is not enough.  The two work together.  

My husband's health insurance covers all but 10% of the medications and the therapy.  I can honestly say that I would use a credit card and pay as much as it took to get better if it was necessary.

One thing that is coming up is the fact that I never had anxiety or depression when I was working full time.  So, is the answer to find a full time job or perhaps the answer is to find some volunteer job to fill my time.  I am in no hurry to make a decision and I am going to rely on my therapist to help me with what is best for me.  I can say this, I never, never, never want to go through what I went through in January, February and March.  

So what else has been going on?  Since my fright in January was triggered by our dog Molly barking loudly at someone at our front door (truly a dog thing), I decided that I had to take her through obedience training.  Molly had not been the same since we put our black lab to sleep in early January.  Poor old Griffey was like a mother to Molly so someone, meaning me, has to take the lead of being Molly's leader.  I am the person that has to be the pack leader to Molly.  Obedience training takes up a lot of my time.  I spend many afternoons on long walks with Molly with her sitting, heeling, watching me, staying, coming when called by name and so  on. She has a long way to go, but she is losing some of the timidness that she had displayed and will let strangers even pet her.  She used to hide behind me.

As for barking at people at the door, I had to go out and buy a second crate for her and it is kept in our living room.  Part of her obedience training is inviting people over to the house, putting Molly in the crate and then letting the people in the door.  You need to greet the people as if you hadn't seen them in 20 years - you know - over the top.   This communicates to the dog that this "stranger" is really a friendly person.  Of course all of this is told to the individuals before hand.  Then when Molly is relaxed in her kennel, she is allowed to come out and no one is to pay much attention to her or make eye contact with her and eventually she will lay down and feel secure and go to sleep.

The other benefit of the second kennel is that when I am watching my now 2 month old son in the mornings, I can quickly put Ryan in his crib which is located in the bedroom next to the living room, kennel Molly and then let the person in.  I can then pick up Ryan and if Molly feels comfortable I can let her out of her kennel or not.  

Now, some people will think that crating or kenneling a dog is inhumane, but it isn't.  Dogs are den animals.  In fact, Molly sleeps all night in a kennel near our bedroom and she also is kenneled when I am gone for home up to 4 hours at a time.  She sleeps and feels secure.  All I have to say to her in a happy voice is, "Molly, kennel up" and she runs into her kennel.  

Molly goes for a 1 1/4 mile run in the mornings with my husband, 2 mile walks with me in the afternoon and another 1 mile walk in the evening which is key to a balanced dog - basic needs of food, water and exercise; rules, boundaries and limitations - discipline and affection.  Too many people treat a dog as if it was their child - I have done this in the past to a dog we owned years ago and that was a big mistake.

I will probably take Molly through a second obedience class because it keeps me accountable and it also helps to socialize her more.  

Lastly, we have decided that the time has come to buy a vinyl privacy fence.  The picket fence that I painted a few years ago has several rotting boards and is also needing painted again.  Also, we want a privacy fence so people that walk down the sidewalk next to our property can't tease our dog and even more importantly to create a safe environment for our grandson as he grows older.  We will install it ourselves but it still costs a lot of money.  My husband has set aside money for home improvements, so this is one of those times I am very grateful for him doing this.  Add to the fact that our front porch floor needs to be replaced, that we have to install a sump pump in our basement (last week we had water in it again), we will be eating frugally and be glad for the money we set aside.  Now, if the furnace and air conditioner can just hold out for one more year.  Fingers are crossed!!!!

From this post I want you to know that if you are suffering from depression and/or anxiety don't feel ashamed.  If I had diabetes, I would be on insulin.  It doesn't matter if it is physical or mental, hurting is still hurting and you need to feel better so you can enjoy your life.  

Second.  Owning a dog is a big commitment and can cost money.  From purchasing a good quality dog food, to vet bills, toys, crates and obedience classes.  But that is my choice to do this and please note, that we only own the number of pets that we can afford.

Lastly, do whatever it takes to set aside a small sum of money each paycheck towards any home or car repairs.  Don't rely on credit cards but make the necessary cutbacks to save the money for that rainy day that we always know will come.

My camera is not working, but when I get a chance I will post a retro apron I made for myself.  I love it.

Belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

First of all, I want to wish everyone a belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  My youngest son asked me this afternoon if I had shut down my blog as I hadn’t posted anything since early December.  We had internet problems for a week and then after that problem was resolved, I decided to take a break from blogging over Christmas. 

I had the best Christmas I have had in three years.  What was the difference?  I scaled back on the decorating and the baking and the cooking.  The end result was less stress and more fun with family and time for reflection. 

The last two years I have faced depression that raised its ugly head in late November and came into full force in December.  In October of this year I resolved that I was going to do anything and everything to make sure it didn’t happen again this year. 

I do not suffer from chronic depression; but more of what you would refer to as Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder that leads to depression.  Knowing this, I decided to get out of the house and go for long walks in the fresh air with our labradoodle, Molly.  I walked anywhere from 2 to 3 miles in the morning which was a great way to start my day.  Then I made sure that I got to bed by 10:30 p.m. and I would sleep to 7:00 a.m.  In other words, I got exercise and sleep and I was taking better care of myself.  In the late afternoon when the darkness closed in, I worked more in my kitchen where I have lots of lighting.  There are lights over the sink, under the cabinets, over the stove and a big ceiling fan with lights in the middle of the room.   If I were to turn all of the lights on, it would be extremely bright and that is what I need some times. 

I am amazed that for me getting exercise in the great outdoors and getting enough sleep has worked wonders for me and my mood this winter.  I now realize that for the past few years I would just succumb to the expectation that during the winter this was going to happen and I just had to live with it.  Yes, a mild anti-depressant helped, but I didn’t like the side effects.  However, if I need an anti-depressant I would go back on one and live with the side effects and be happy rather than unmedicated and miserable.  Does this make sense?

I realize that not everyone can control depression with exercise and sleep but I have found that for me, this is working along with taking the time to read and do fun things that I enjoy.  I also think that having a plan beginning back in October has helped, recognizing the signs that I may be slipping into depression and knowing that if I need to I can call my doctor and get a prescription.

This week will test me.  We have scheduled an appointment on Wednesday January 2^nd to have our black lab put down. She is 12 ½ years old and has cancer and other problems.  It is time to say good bye to her.   I met with the veterinarian last week and wanted her to examine Griffey so we could make a decision.  The veterinarian told me that we shouldn’t take her on walks anymore because of her declining health.  This left sleeping and eating as the only thing the dog could really do.  This veterinarian has cared for Griffey since she was a puppy and she knows our dog.  Finally the vet looked at me and told me that the time had come to make the decision.  So, I decided that it would be best to wait until after New Year’s Day. 

What do you do when you have one week’s notice that you will be putting your dog down?  Well, you make her last days great days.  I have given her little bits of chocolate knowing that it doesn’t matter.  We have taken her for a car ride – something she has always loved and we have also taken her on walks – very slow ones.  I am hoping that on New Year’s day we will be able to take her out on the recreation trail that skirts around our community and let her smell the good country air. 

We will be with her at the end.  I’m not sure how our 10 month old labradoodle “Molly” is going to react to this.  She has always lived in a household that has another dog but we have no plans to replace Griffey.  Molly will just need to adjust somehow. 

I will always have a dog.  It is sad when you have to say goodbye to a family pet, but I would never let that prevent me from opening my heart to another pet.  We have owned some great dogs over the years and we have lots of wonderful memories of each dog. 

I don’t want to end this post on a sad note after all I have talked about depression and the death of a pet. 

I have been pondering about what I want to do in the year 2013.  The year 2012 just flew by and I didn’t really accomplish what I wanted to accomplish.   I was way too busy most of the time with stuff that really didn’t matter and I regret that. 

So what am I going to be doing?  Well, concentrating on making my house more of a home.  Back in 2008 I subscribed to a mentoring website called the Homemaker’s Mentor.  Two times a month I would receive e-lessons on homemaking.  I was working 50 plus hours a week at the time, but my heart always wanted to be home.  I subscribed to these lessons and knew the day would come when I would actually work on them.  In 2009 when I lost my job and stayed home, I thought that I would begin the lessons then since I was home full time.  But that year went by and I accomplished little.  I was too busy adjusting to being home and living on less money and while I wanted to get to those lessons it never seemed like I had the time.  The accompanying years of 2010 and 2011 seemed to be spent enjoying the last few years my youngest son would be home and they were also spent learning to live on less and volunteering my time at our church. 

In 2012 we had the two college girls living with us and it seemed that the urgent and day to day household tasks seemed to keep edging out those homemaking lessons.  The girls have moved out and back into the dorms.  Last week as I was cleaning the upstairs of our home I came across those lessons gathering dust on my desk and I decided then and there I would make the changes in my schedule in order to do those lessons that I knew I would enjoy. 

So the year 2013 is going to be spent on my homemaking skills.  I’ve shared before that my mother never taught me to really “keep house” and I struggle with keeping a household schedule of cleaning, baking and cooking.  I have always looked at the past – 1920’s to the 1950’s as the “homemaking” era when more women took pride in keeping their homes clean and relatively neat.  Women cared about sewing and making things last.  Yes for a lot of women they didn’t have the choice except to be  homemakers.  The beauty of my life is that I have the choice in what I want to do and this is the choice that I have made – to be a homemaker. 

I want to learn to crochet, take the time to sew more and improve my sewing skills.  I have closets to go through and re-organize, pictures to put into albums and some to be scrapbooked.  There are rooms that need painted and wood work to be stained.  There is a yard that needs to be seriously re-landscaped (I know nothing about this).  Yes, it is ambitious but it is everything that I want to do.  And I need to get on track with cleaning and I need help to know how to clean some things and to establish a regular cleaning schedule and upkeep schedule for our home.  This is how I want to spend my time. 

When I tell people this they look at me as if I have frogs coming out of my ears as more women feel that they were freed from the “bondage” of homemaking in order to have great careers away from home.  That’s fine for them but for me I want my second career to be in homemaking.   I am going to truly embrace homemaking in 2013 and will report on what lessons I am working on and how I am doing.

I hope that I can encourage other women to improve their skills in homemaking or learn new ones.  Let’s get back to homemaking and really take the time to make homemaking a priority.  After all, we all end up coming home sometime – let’s make it a welcoming and loving place to live.  Are you with me?      

Hospice care for our Dog, Griffey

Our Labrador retriever, Griffey.

Our old dog, Griffey, has cancer and is dying. About 3 weeks ago I noticed that she hadn't been eating much and after a few days my husband took her to the Vet.  When the cancer diagnosis came, I wasn't surprised.  I could tell she hadn't been feeling well.  So now we are taking it a week at a time.  Griffey is taking some pain killers which helps her be "happier."  

We continue to take her on her morning and evening walk with our other dog, Molly.  We have been loving her a lot and until last week I even was able to take her on walks on the local rec trail through the woods.  I would love to take her more often but she has a lot of trouble getting in and out of our car.  

Walking the Rec trail, one last time.

Our goal is to make her final days great ones.  

After her walk tonight she stumbled and fell and had trouble getting up our back steps.  I am wondering if she will make it to Thanksgiving and I am also wondering if I will be able to be with her when she is put down.  I will find the courage to be with her as she deserves to die with her family loving her.

In the meantime she is on homemade dog food.  Here is the recipe the Vet gave me. 

3 cans green beans
3 cans yellow wax beans
3 cans stewed tomatoes
3 cans carrots
1 pound browned hamburger
1 pound cooked rice 
6 cooked potatoes, cubed

I keep "Griffey's stew" in the fridge and feed her around 2 to 3 cups in the morning and in the evening.  She devours this food.  The first week I gave it to her she gained 1 lb.  I looked at her tonight after helping her in the house and realized that she is looking boney and losing weight again.

So, until the time comes when we will have to put her down, Griffey will be getting her homemade stew, pain killers, play time, walk time and loving time.

Dogs do bring joy to our lives.  It is always sad when we have to say good bye to much loved pets, but I wouldn't trade the joy and memories that these pets bring us for anything. 

Those lazy, crazy Saturdays

Saturdays are lazy, relaxing days around our house. No matter what, my husband and I sit on the back porch, sip coffee and read the morning newspaper. I love our time together. With our new puppy, Molly, Saturday mornings start earlier than ever and sipping coffee is never simple. Molly gets up at 6:00 a.m. no matter what day of the week and she likes to romp around the backyard.

This morning it had rained so the backyard was a little muddy. Today was the wrong day to wear my white bathrobe, with my white nightgown on the back porch while sipping coffee. I looked up and before I could do anything Molly was running towards me and before you could say "MOLLY!!" I had muddy paws and coffee all over me. Oh, and the citronella candle almost got dowsed out by coffee.

So, while I brewed another cup of coffee, I changed into an old pair of shorts and a t-shirt. I took my bathrobe and nightgown and put them in the wash with some detergent and bleach and then I started over with a fresh cup of coffee and newspaper on the back porch.

We had Molly spayed this week. I do not want to add to the pet population. While Molly was under anesthesia, I had them paint her toenails. I think she's "styling."

Today being the last day of the month, I had several coupons that were going to expire. I go through my coupon binder the last week of each month and pull any coupons out that are going to expire. If there are high value coupons on products that I know I can use, I set them aside to possibly use. The rest I throw.

By high value coupons this is what I had: 50 cents off Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, 50 cents off Gain Dish Detergent, $1.00 off any Tide, $2.00 off any Venus or Daisy disposable razors, BOGO Hershey's candy bar, $3.00 off two Pantene products, 35 cents off Ivory bar soap, $1.00 off Secret deoderant, $1.00 off Splenda, $1.00 off Bounty Basic Paper Towels, and $2.00 off Keri Body Lotion.

These are all items I can use and the value of these coupons are quite high for these products. Remember, I live in a small town so it is easy for me to go to Dollar General, drive 1 block to a grocery store and then drive 1/2 mile to the Super Walmart. It doesn't take much time for me to drive around and find the lowest price.

At Dollar General I used the $1.00 off Tide coupon on a smaller jug (25 load size) of detergent which made the final price $5.00. I don't use Tide as a general rule of thumb as it is so expensive but I like to keep it on hand to pre-treat and to use for those really hard stains such as blood, chocolate and ketchup. A little bit of Tide on stains can go a long way and I stretch it.

Here are the rest of the deals I found (most were unadvertised). My net price after coupons for the products are as follows:

1. Venus Simply Disposable Razors - 4 count - $1.50
2. Secret Deoderant - $0.75
3. Bounty Basic Paper Towels - 8 count - $4.49
4. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser - 2 count - $1.49
5. Gain Dish Detergent - $1.49 (large bottle)
6. Hershey's Air Delight Candy Bars - 2 bars - $0.75
7. Splenda - 50 count - $1.49
8. Keri Lotion - 15 oz bottle - $3.97
9. Pantene Shampoo - 13 oz. bottles - $1.83
10. 3 bars of Ivory Soap - $0.89

All of the above are products that I use. No, I didn't need these now (except for the chocolate) and I will add them to my stockpile.  I had multiple coupons so this was a nice time to stock up.

I want to address the Ivory soap. I never really used Ivory soap until I started finding coupons for the soap. Granted the coupons are for 25 cents or 35 cents, but when you end up with 3 bars of soap for under $1.00, that is a good deal. You can use Ivory soap for showering or you can even use it in homemade laundry soap. It is a nice basic soap. Here's another tip, rub a bar of Ivory soap on a mosquito bite and it will relieve the itching.

I only used these coupons when the price of the product was a deal. I didn't use them just to use them. In fact, I had several other coupons with me that I ended up throwing away as I never found a good price on the products.

You have to know when to use coupons and when to throw them away. I'm set on shampoo and razors and lotion for long time. As for the chocolate, that will probably only last a couple days.

A Puppy is like having a Newborn

Molly all worn out . . . .

. . . . from playing in the sprinkler.

Oh my Lord -- I had forgotten what it was like to have a puppy in the house. I remember some things -- like the persistence in getting the puppy outside in time to "potty" and also the constant wanting to bite and chew on me, but I forgot about all the time it takes out of your day to work with a puppy. Hence instead of staying up and writing my posts for this blog I have been going to bed early so I have energy.

Molly is at the new cycle of life and our other dog, our beloved Griffey, is towards the end of her life cycle. I am housebreaking Molly and I am diapering Griffey on her bad days. By bad days, Griffey is "leaking" as they say in the Vet world or has some issues of incontinence. Her liver enzymes are elevated also. However, that is all that is wrong with this wonderful black lab of 12 years. The vet has told us that it will be only a matter of time that this leads to other issues so we may need to start to have "the talk." It doesn't mean we are going to put her down right away, it only means that we need to talk about it so that when the time comes, we have a game plan.

Griffey sporting her diaper

Here is the plan - I will be with Griffey when they put her down and then for the week after I will be crying. Talking about it ahead of time helps with dealing with the grief process down the road.

When the time comes to put Griffey down, it has to be my husband's decision as Griffey is his dog and since I love my husband very much I am willing to diaper a dog when necessary. I diaper Griffey when she needs it and I let her go diaper free in the backyard.

This is leading to my next post -- all of this time spent with the dogs has left little time for any kind of organizing or planning which has led me to "fly by the seat of my pants" all the time. And this has led to spending money. So, it is time to put a "diaper" on the spending and avoid any leaks as much as possible.

Okay - Molly is asleep and it looks like from the previous sentence I need to get out of the house and take a break.

A new puppy

My husband holding Molly.



About two weeks ago my husband started talking about getting another dog.    We were fortunate to know a local breeder of labradoodles (Labrador Retriever/Standard Sized Poodle) and goldendoodles (Golden Retriever/Standard Sized Poodle). This breeder only has two litters a year and is very selective about who gets "her" puppies.  Well, she was very happy to offer us a labradoodle puppy since we know her and her husband.  
Now a new puppy is not very frugal.  We were given a discount on Molly's price since we know the breeders, but we have spent money on a crate for her and of course on her food and chew toys.  As time goes on the cost of owning her won't be as much as it is the first few months of her life.  We will need to buckle down to afford the extra expenses but it is worth it.


Never wake a sleeping puppy.

 Molly arrived in our home last Saturday evening and she has been a great dog.  We are on our way to housebreaking and she has fit in so well with our family. 

I know that I had a lot of comments about our putting Buddy to sleep and not sticking it out.  However, I stand by that decision and we have moved on. 

Meet Molly . . . .

. . . . our wonderful new labradoodle puppy.  Been up at night with her and spending my days getting her housebroke.  She is so sweet.

Will post more tomorrow including the blogs that I will be awarding the Liebster Award to and a discussion about grinding your own meats. 

An update on my "Buddy" post

I am still getting comments on our decision to put our dog, Buddy, to sleep.

"Barb" commented on my decision and her comment led me to a response that perhaps may give more insight into my decision.  When I wrote that post I was in the middle of my grief and honestly, I knew that it would create a lot of controversy.  That's okay. 

Many of you have been so kind, others have offered advice and then there are always those who will disagree with me, which is perfectly okay, but then go on to describe me as a Nazi dog killer.  Obviously I didn't reply to those individuals or even post their comments as they responded Anonymously.  At least, have the courage to respond with your name or to e-mail me.

This morning I decided to respond to the comments with more information and instead of doing another post, read my comment to Barb.

Thanks Barb and all of the other followers who responded, many with the gentle criticism which I appreciate.  Go here to see my response:  http://thepathtofrugality.blogspot.com/2012/02/making-mistake-and-moving-on.html.

Using My Frugal Skills

I have spent a lot of my "spare" time over the past week preparing for a couponing program that I gave at our women's group at church.  It always happens - I don't think it will take long to work on a project and it ends up taking longer because I put my heart and soul into it.  The one thing that I came up with for the presentation was a handout on "Babysteps to Couponing."  In this handout I talked about not taking everything on at once and starting small and working your way up to a level that you are comfortable with.

I always emphasize that when taking on a new skill never try to learn or do everything all at once.  Take those baby steps until you are comfortable with a new skill.  If you try to do everything related to couponing and stockpiling all at once, you will burn out and get discouraged.  Start small and work your way up.

I have a lot of coupons that need to be clipped and I plan on enlisting the help of the college students that live with us and hang out at our house.  They are more than willing to help me with anything I need. 

Sunday evening I was in the livingroom working on my coupon presentation.  I went into the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee and there were our live in college girls doing dishes, cleaning up the kitchen and tidying up.  They want to help me out with the housework and they pitch in without my having to ask. 

This living situation is working out.  It is because these girls are a perfect match to our family and they fit in so well.  I know we are lucky.  I enjoy their company so much and I feel I have two "adopted" daughters now.  I dread when they graduate and move on but I know we have made life long friendships.

I heard on the news this morning that the stock market is doing well, but gas prices are out of sight.  This makes living below our means a little more challenging.  But hey - I love a challenge as long as it is not too tough. 

I try to prepare healthy meals and everyone in our household appreciates that.  Preparing healthy meals that don't cost a lot is a definite challenge.  Last night I roasted 3 bone in chicken breasts that had been on sale for 99 cents a lb.  I served the chicken with Birdseye Steamers - Wild Rice and Broccoli.  I used two packages and I remember that I was able to get them on sale for 75 cents each.  Along with this I had half a loaf of French bread left in the fridge.  I sliced it and buttered it and toasted the slices in the oven.  I made a tossed salad from lettuce, red peppers, green peppers, cucumbers and carrots.  All of these items had been on sale at a good price. Then I served fresh pineapple.  One whole pineapple was on sale for only $2.49.  For dessert - there were cookies in the cookie jar.   

This was not only a healthy meal but an easy meal to prepare for the 5 of us.  There is leftover salad for supper tonight and leftover chicken in the fridge for sandwiches for lunches. 

I have not baked homemade bread in quite a while but have decided that I need to make time as the store bought bread is expensive and not near as nutritious.  So I have finally used up enough things from the freezer and have space for loaves of my homemade bread.

Now on to some little blogger "housekeeping"  My post on putting our dog Buddy to sleep had some interesting comments.  Generally I don't like to post anonymous comments but many times people leave their name and I will go ahead and post them. 

Today I posted quite a negative anonymous comment regarding Buddy.  It isn't even the worst comment I received.  I decide when to post comments as I review them all.  Since I started this blog in September 2009 I have probably only not posted 5 comments in that entire time.  Leave it to an article about our pet dog to bring out the ugly comments. 

If you're going to have a blog, you have to take ugly comments as they come as it is just part of having a blog.

Making a Mistake and Moving On

I had to put our dog, Buddy, to sleep this week.  It's been one very hard week.  Buddy was good with us, but had fear/aggression towards strangers. While we worked with him on obedience - sit, down, stay and come and we were making some strides, it was his fear towards strangers that gave us a big problem. 

Buddy nipped my mother-in-law on Christmas Day and then within an hour he had his head on her lap sleeping.  They came in the door and he got scared.  Then when we would walk him he got very nervous when he saw other people.  Again, we would put him in a sit and try to get him through it.  We knew it would take work.

Then on Wednesday 4 women were walking across the street from our house.  I was in the backyard and they were just walking and not talking very loud.   Buddy barked and then he jumped the fence and ran up to them, barking and nipping. He nipped one of them - no bite mark, no breaking of the skin.  Then he took off.  I talked with the women, apologizing and making sure they were okay.  Then I got in my car and I took off after him.  It took about 15 minutes to catch him.

When I got him home and put him back in our yard, he was running around trying to jump out again so we put him on his leash.  I walked in the house and told my husband that enough was enough and that we couldn't have a dog with this kind of behavior. 

Buddy had been dumped at our house and I believe he had been a "country" dog allowed to run and perhaps his previous owners didn't care that he didn't like strangers, but I did.  So I walked back outside and put Buddy on his leash and took him to the vet to be put down. 

I didn't take him to a shelter as I didn't want to pass his problem behavior onto another family.  What if I did and they beat him?  It just wasn't fair to him or any future owner.  I did in my heart what I knew was right, but that didn't mean that my husband and son agreed with me. 

My husband took that dog with him running and my son, well, he just loves dogs.  However, I was the one home with the dog all day and I couldn't constantly be worrying about what he may or may not do.  Sometimes it is hard being an adult and making such decisions, but for our sake and Buddy's sake it was the right one. 

It has been a few days and we have moved on and are getting used to not having Buddy around. 

Here are the lessons that I learned from this experience:  1.  I will only adopt a puppy from now on and we will probably stick with the labrador retriever or golden retriever breed.  I do better with those breeds.  2.  It was a financial lesson.  Putting him down cost $130 and from the day we got him and he had his shots, checkup and was microchipped, I bet we spent at least $400, not including food and treats.  That is a lot of money to spend when you only have a dog for 4 months, but I am at least learning from my mistake. 

The one thing I have focused on is that Buddy had a good time at our house for 4 months. He was regularly fed, walked, played with and loved.  On his last day he got to run around the neighborhood, go for a car ride and go to the Vet (which he loved).  While at the Vet our son walked him and talked with him so that he was not alone. 

I am not against rescuing an animal.  For us it didn't work out this time.  It may for another family.

Now, that the grieving process is over and I am moving on, I can concentrate on my home and family.  Life is Good. 

No, not Peanut Butter too!!

Due to the drought in the southern states, the peanut crop has not done well at all which means peanut products will be going up in prices an estimated 40%.

My husband has peanut butter on a bagel every morning and I love crunchy peanut butter granola bars for breakfast.  I even make homemade dog treats that contain peanut butter.  Peanut butter is a staple for a lot of people.  I'm not going to go into the good and bad of regular peanut butter versus natural peanut butter.  The fact is it is a good source of protein for many people.

I have several jars in my pantry that I purchased for 99 cents a jar over the spring and summer.  Now I wish I would have purchased more.  Perhaps I should pay attention to what is an actual serving size of peanut butter so it will last longer.  Then again I should do this with all food.  For peanut butter a serving size is 2 tablespoons.  I know that we spread more than that on piece of bread or bagel slice.  So with everything pay attention to the exact serving sizes.

When I was a child I remember that peanut butter was one of the things that our family would receive in the commodity program.  When my father was out of work we would get some food from the government commodity program.  I remember peanut butter came in a large institutional can and I thought that was kinda "cool" as peanut butter in the store came in a jar. 

This week has been a week of excess spending because we adopted Buddy our new dog and had as of yesterday $238.00 in veterinary expenses.  The dog may have been free, but the upkeep and maintenance isn't.  Now that Buddy is in our family we will budget his expenses as we have with other pets.

Buddy is a gentle, wonderful dog and it just seems that him being  part of our family was meant to be.  With the addition of a new pet there comes new routines and more time has been spent getting Buddy used to his new home.  Also, there is the training.  Fortunately Buddy is housebroken but not leash trained so I am spending more of my time to get him leash trained so that I will be able to walk him without him straining at the leash. 

Buddy will be my new exercise partner as our older dog, Griffey, doesn't walk very fast due to her age.  She kind of lumbers along and I doubt that I burn 10 calories if that when I walk her.  But old dog or not, Griffey enjoys and savors her daily walks no matter how long it takes her.  Perhaps this is something we as human beings can learn from our pets - to savor the small things such as a slow lumbersome walk on a cool fall day. 

Rescuing a Dog

Someone dumped this dog in front of our house yesterday.

Buddy

Today he became ours.

He is part Boxer and part Coon Hound.  It was not a frugal day.  The vet bill was close to $200 but he is a sweety.  We had been talking about getting another dog for a long time and I have always wanted a Boxer. 

He's a keeper.

 

Weekend of Projects

I have already posted that I bake 8 to 9 dozen muffins on Thursday for my husband's cross country team to have for breakfast on Friday morning.  Our dog and our son's dog have learned that when my husband comes home from practice at 7:30 a.m. and they see him getting out of his truck with a big rubbermaid bin, they know that that bin contains some leftover muffins.  Here is how my husband is greeted:

Now comes the sit and shake before the treat is given.

That is how the weekend began.  With two dogs begging for a leftover pumpkin muffin and then it was back to:

Painting!!!!

The fence is about 200 feet and I am 2/3's of the way through painting the outside and then I will work on the inside.

Griffey and Brody, my painting buddies.

Saturday was bust up the concrete steps and pour new concrete steps. Our oldest son was on hand to help. 

Mixing up the concrete

Now we have to wait a week. 

Then today after church. . . . . . .

More painting.



I feel like that Paul Simon Song "Still Crazy After all these Years," except my version is "Still Painting After all these Years."



Living with a Big Black Dog

I always have felt overwhelmed before Christmas and then after Christmas. This year the time prior to Christmas was relaxing due to the fact that I was home full time. I was able to get everything done during the day and I even wrapped all the presents days before Christmas.

Actually I was concerned about putting the wrapped presents under the tree as our dog, Griffey, cannot be trusted with any kind of paper product. One day she took hold of the toilet paper in our bathroom and started to run around the downstairs tee peeing everything in sight. Then she started to eat her way back. I am starting to wonder why I am baking her dog biscuits when I could probably just stuff her dog toy with toilet paper and she would be happy. Every teacher should believe that dogs do eat homework.  Our son has turned in slightly chewed up assignments before.  I have even gotten over my fear of opening her mouth and sticking my hand down her throat to retrieve something she is eating.  If it isn't paper, it is plastic bags.  If it isn't plastic bags, it is food she is not supposed to have.

When we sit down to eat at night she will lay down next to my husband's chair but we are not fooled.  We know that someone will end up being the weakest link at some point.  Not every night, but it does happen.  She can quickly jump up and grab something off the table and eat it before we can do anything about it.  And then there is the "magic cloth".  That is what we call the bread cloth that we use to cover the rolls or bread in the bread bowl.  She has learned that if she pulls on the "magic cloth" that bread or rolls will fall out.   Someone must always remain at the table while someone is either putting the food on the table or taking it off. 

Then there was the time that I set bread dough to raise out on our back porch during the summer. I thought the dog was in the house, but she was in the backyard and I didn’t notice her. About 30 minutes later I went outside and saw the eaten up bread dough and the dog was running around the back yard belching yeast and her tummy was growing. We gave her 1 teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide (as recommended by the vet) and about 10 minutes later she upchucked everything. Okay I hope no one was eating, but I couldn’t let her digest all that bread dough. She has eaten a wash cloth before and we used the same remedy. 

One time she ate a bag of Hershey Kisses that I left out.  I can't believe I did that.  I discovered this right before I went to work.  I took her to the vet and they took her into a room and gave her some solution to make her throw up.  Then the assistant came out to talk to me.  I started to hear all this noise of cabinet doors banging coming from that room and I asked if they left Griffey in there alone.  They said yes and I said never turn your back on the ocean or a big black dog.  They opened the door and she had managed to open the cupboard where all the dog treats were and she had eaten a lot of them.  Griffey knew where they hid the treats.  So they took her outside and told me they wouldn't charge me for all the dog biscuits she ate.  Good thing.  She spent the day at the vet for observation.

Over the years that dog has eaten many things but my most embarrassing incident with her was while we were out walking at noon one day. First of all, if you do not like to hear someone talking about dog feces then do not read on. Well, here I am walking her on a main thoroughfare of town when she decided she needed to “do her business.” I had a plastic grocery bag with me so that I could clean up her mess. Well there she was humped over, and she acted as if she was constipated. She kept trying and I was getting impatient and people were passing in their cars and I was pretending not to notice anyone. Then I looked down and there was a long string like thing coming out of her. It was pink or should I say pinkish…. I recognized it as the apron tie from the apron that she had chewed up a few days earlier. Now when a dog is “constipated” they will stay in that humped position until they are “relieved.” They will not walk and try again later. So there I was and I realized that she wasn’t going to move with this “pinkish apron tie” half out of her. I sucked some air, said a few choice descriptive words and then I took the plastic grocery bag and yanked the apron tie out of her. I swear the dog breathed a sigh of relief and then we went on our way.

Two days later a friend saw me and said she had heard a story about a lady helping a dog relieve itself. So much for living in a small town.

This morning she did her ritual of pretending to be sleeping. Then as soon as my husband went upstairs to get ready for work she ran and found some paper to chew on. I swear she doesn’t do this when he is around as he is the “Alpha Male” in the house. I take issue with that.

All the things she did to terrorize me when she was a puppy are but a memory.  When I was living it, it wasn't so funny.  I had to keep the doors closed to the bedrooms and bathroom and I had to constantly be vigilant to see where she was and what she was doing. 

Bottom line, I love her. I can say that now as she is sleeping on the floor next to me while I am typing this. She looks up every now and then and then sets her head down and sighs. Never, never, ever did I think back 9 years ago when she was a puppy that we would still own her into adult hood.  But here she is and when she does "meet her maker" some day, it will be very sad in our household.  We have talked about it and my husband does want another dog after Griffey and I think we will always own another dog.  But does it have to be a puppy?  Isn't there a place for a geriatric stray dog to live out it's retirement years?

Dogs (and other pets)

Griffey Rose

Nine 1/2 years ago my DH asked me if he could get a puppy.  Our dog, Lady, had died 2 years prior.  We had two cats at the time and lets face it, cats are easier to care for.  I had pronounced our family a "cat only" family.  After a couple of months I decided that I was ready for a dog too.

We picked up our black labrador puppy in late June.  I remember when we went to pick her out of the litter that I wanted to pick the puppy that was sleeping.  But no, my DH chose the puppy that kept stealing the toys from the other puppies and running around.

DH named her Griffey Rose.  Yes she has a "male" dog name.  My DH is a Cincinnati Reds fan and he is a fan of Ken Griffey Junior and Pete Rose.  I was surprised that he didn't try to add Bench to her name for Johnny Bench. 

The summer of 2000 was rough for me.  That dog terrorized me.  She used my legs as a chew toy, was constantly biting me and jumping on me all the time. I hated to be around her.  She chewed on anything and everything and her energy was boundless.  I thought that we had made a mistake.  We took her to puppy training and she was pronounced the feistiess (sp??) lab that the trainer had ever seen.  I should add that the trainer raised lab pups.

When I was home alone with Griffey I kept her leash on her as she was constantly grabbing somethng and running through the house.  At least I could grab the the leash and reel her in. 

Griffey was 7 months old when my DH went on a trip to Kentucky to help Habitat for Humanity.  He was gone a week.  I got up every morning early before work to walk that dog in the cold.  I walked her at noon and at night.  About the 4th day into this routine I was walking the dog and she looked up at me and it was as if she was thinking "He must be dead so I must be nice to her."  Everything changed and she became a good dog.

Oh, she has her bad habits of eating paper out of the trash can, stealing any food from the table if you are not looking (she lulls us into a sense of security) or she runs the fence barking at people and scaring them.  We call this BBD security (Big Black Dog). She is my companion now.  Her age is showing.  Her face has gray on it as do her paws and belly.  She sleeps the majority of the day but comes to life when it is time for a walk. 

I would have given Griffey away in the first few months that we owned her, but I stuck it out.  My main reason was that my husband loved that dog and I love him.  Now we think occasionally about what it will be like when she is gone someday.  The immediate response is that we will get another dog.

Pets can be expensive.  It costs money for the food (we buy Iams), the annual trips to the vet, the medications for heart worm and flea control, the operations to have them spayed or neutered and more.  Griffey takes Proin pills twice a day at a cost of $20.00 per month.  I now make her dog biscuits but I purchase her rawhide bones.  When we go on vacation we board her at a nice kennel where she is treated well and they know her.  This costs about $9 per day. 

Sheircon and me

We also have a cat, Shiercon, and she is now 12 years old.  She is fed veterinary food and she is in remarkable health.  But again, she goes to the Vet once a year for a checkup. 

The bottom line, pets cost money and they can put a dent in the budget which may not be frugal.  We own the number of pets that we can afford.  IMO pets add more to our lives than anything I could purchase with the money I would save by not having a pet.