Iowa

Iowa

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Winter Has Arrived

Wow, it's been awhile, hasn't it? Hopefully, my blog friends will return and become a cheerful group once again.
It has been snowing here in the burgh...only the third measurable snow of the season. I've had enough. I don't even think it's pretty anymore, just annoying. But it is winter, and spring will follow!
It's been an odd few months here. Road trip was wonderful! Mary Rose came with Sprout, Bean and Monkeyboy to the beach. We went to the farm first and were honored when Mrs. Miller invited us into the private quarters of the farm. We met Mary Rose at the hotel at the beach. I can honestly say that this was the best road trip ever. Each of the kids prepared a meal, and it was a blast. Monkeyboy served as sous chef for several meals and he and Sprout were hysterical making the pizza and mac and cheese. They took their dinners very seriously, and they were actually quite tasty. A safe trip and loads of fun.
Bean, Monkeyboy and parents went to North Carolina for Thanksgiving and I watched the sick fish, sick dog and sick cat. Of course, with my care, all were healthy again before the homecoming. Well, the fish (whose name I can never remember) was living in very cloudy water, but he made it! Who knew...they told me to feed him twice a day. And the fish floats belly up, which did freak me out, but he survives even today.
Our Steelers didn't do so well, made it to the playoffs, but lost to Denver. Much to my surprise, the Denver contingency of the family sent me a bronco's shirt (notice, I did not capitalize their name). I was so glad the Patriots lost the superbowl. We, here in Pittsburgh, don't much like Tom Brady and the team.
Sprout and Monkeyboy have become quite the skaters and go skating most Friday nights with friends from school. Monkeyboy is also playing inline hockey, and doing quite well at it.
Bean got a part in the professional production of "Jesus Christ, Superstar" at the end of March. Rehersals start this week. Very exciting.
Christmas was a blast. Of course,all fought over my gift. It was a deck of cards with my picture on them. Oh, and Mark from Phipps, pasted my picture on a bottle of Pepsi to add to my gift. I was doing something against Phipps policy and he wanted to be sure that I knew he took a picture of me doing it. That Mark, such a prankster.
My brother and his wife got a Great Dane. Yes, that's right. Her name is Bella and she is beautiful. Getting bigger every day. I will see if it is okay to put pictures of her on the blog.
I am still working with the dogs at the shelter. Love them. They are just such fun. As soon as I begin to walk them and train them, they are adopted, which is a very good thing. There is one dog, however, who has not quite settled down enough. She is a puller, if you will. Jackie at Phipps tells me I should stand with her and make her stay in place until she stops. The problem is that as soon as she gets out of her cage she is dragging...literally...me through the kennels and around the pathway in the woods. What should be a 15 minute walk becomes a 5 minute walk/run. We go to the cages for her to run, and she picks up the toys and shakes them so hard I think she must be getting brain damage. But I love her, she is funny, and I will continue to work with her.
My friends, Becky and Tom, took me to see the dog whisperer last Friday in Akron. What a treat that was. First, the venue was spectacular. As was he. Funny, but very serious. He had his dog, Junior, with him.
We lost Sandy, our supervisor, at work. She was promoted and now has her weekends off with her husband. I have never seen a bigger smile on any one's face! We miss her, but have a new supervisor, Katie. She has quite a job ahead, and I hope she enjoys the challenge!
Well, that's it for now. I will put some pictures up and hopefully a movie of Monkeyboy playing hockey. Hope to see all of you back again! It's been too long.

14 comments:

Lori said...

I can't believe it! I was going through my favorites and deleting them, but checked your blog before doing it! Amazing, you are back. I'll let some others know so we can all read together. Are you still working with Belle? Such a beautiful dog! And what kind of dog is Starr? Never saw a dog like that before. So glad you are back, Mia.

Ben said...

Mia, it's good to see your blog up and running. My dog died in January and I went to your shelter and got a one from there. It's a rottie mix and is a great dog. I thought about you when I was there. So, I have been checking the blog and here you are! Road trip sounds like lots of fun. And yes, so very happy the Patriots lost the superbowl. Good for Monkeyboy, sports is a great outlet for kids and it's good he is enjoying it. Inline hockey has certainly made its mark lately. Keep posting, good to see you again.

Twigs said...

Hi Mia, welcome back! I love your stories about the shelter. Sounds like that dog has a lot of energy! Yes, what did happen to Belle? Did you take her? I love the beach and I love that picture. It just looks beautiful. And that is a very interesting dog. Do you do pet sitting much? You need to move here if you do, I need a pet sitter. Sorry about the Steelers, I think I remember that they had a lot of injuries. But I guess most teams do at the end of the season. Looking forward to more posts.

Jen said...

Many of us visit other blogs, and the word was out that yours is back up and running! :) Glad to see it. Yes, do tell us what happens to the dogs you spotlight. I think Belle was beautiful and Starr looks very unusual..regal in a sense.
Glad the road trip was yet another success. Those seem to be really special. And the farm sounds so neat. Love the gifts you give at Christmas. And it would seem Mark shares your sense of humor. So glad you are back, Mia.

SassySam said...

Sounds like a great summer trip! Any malls there? I mean, what is vacation without a mall, right? Gee, it is good to see you back again, Mia. We didn't do much over the holidays, we were all sick with some bug, but we did have a lot of family time together...A LOT! It's funny, your last blog talks about how hot it has been, and we have just now had our first blast of winter. Well, maybe not the first, but it has been very mild here.

Bill said...

Hey Mia, good to see the blog. Ben told me you were up and running. He got the greatest dog from your shelter. I am on my way to bed, but just wanted you to know...I am looking forward to your posts...don't let us down!

Tim said...

Had I been encouraged to cheer, the Steelers might have finished the season on top. However, it is good to see people finding their way back to your blog, and I will begin writing my cheers for next year. Are they really going to drop Ward? The pictures of the dogs are great. Never saw one like Starr, interesting dog.

ginger said...

Hi Mia,glad your'e back. I like this much better than facebook.
The dog pictures are great and it's great that some of your readers are adopting these dogs.

Keep us informed, we missed you.

Rooted for the Patriots until they got a touchdown that won me some money in the pool, then I was for the Giants all the way.

Tigger said...

OMG, I love the dog whisperer. We saw him in New Jersey! I want to work with him. And the dog pictures are wonderful. Keep them coming.
Glad to see your post up again. Have missed reading it. And the picture at the shore looks so inviting, even in this cold, snowy weather. Something to look forward to.

Ellizabeth said...

Happy Valentines Day, everyone. Good to see the old crowd again! And especially good to see the post. We have a number of dog shelters here, but I think if I were to volunteer there, I would want to take the dogs home. Or cats since they house stray cats as well.
So, where will the next road trip be, Mia? Have you begun to plan for it yet? Always fun to hear about them.

SocialWorker2 said...

Always hard to lose a supevisor, escpecially one that has been good to work for in the past. Hopefully, a new one will be equally as competent.
Always good to see the posts and the people that follow. You posts always bring a smile and a view of your world. It's good to see you back again and I hope you continue to post.

Jessica said...

I love those pictures of Bella. How cute is she! Bella seems to be the dog name of the hour, I know three other dogs named Bella. How old is she, and how big is she? I still love the ones of the golden and the black dog the best. And your captions for them were great! Thanks for posting, Mia.

Mark said...

I don't know what pictures I like better, the one at the beach or the one of the dog with the bone in their mouth! Glad to see you back and hope you continue to post. We have missed you. Love to watch Dog Whisperer. Wish he would come here and do a show. I hear he is traveling with Junior now.

Shelly said...

Wow, looks like the old gang is back! Hi everyone!
I got a new boss at work, Mia, and it is so hard to get to know what the expectations are and figure out their quirks. So far, so good. We are getting busy at work, which is additional stress for him, so we are trying to do all we can to support him.
We needed Tim to cheer for those Steelers, so practice Tim for next year. I heard Hines Ward wasn't signed,is that true?