Caring for our sick pup...and her recovery

As many of you may know, Roma became very ill from her boarding stay while we were away over Thanksgiving.  It's been four weeks, and just so you know, she is better.  It was the road to recovery, particularly the week following, that was the worst.

Roma stayed at a local boarding facility in Houston.  I won't go slander them publicly, but if you live in the Houston area and want to know who it is, feel free to email me.  We had heard good things about them from people while socializing at the dog park, as well as local pet events.  Our normal facility was full, so we had no choice but to find an alternate.  

As for her stay, as far as we knew during our trip, she was doing just fine.  I even called and they said she was doing great.  Go figure that wasn't close to the truth.  In fact, the day we picked her up she was reportedly sick...and lethargic.  The night we got her home we noticed and we quickly called the facility.  They said, "she was fine."  We didn't find out until the next day that she was actually sick all day.  

Five days followed, five visits to the vet.  Multiple shots, blood tests, injections, and subcutaneous fluid injections...and more followed.  You can see the "bump" on her back...that's the fluid they injected.

She definitely was not a happy pup all week. Nor were Deb and I happy parents.  We were worried, concerned, and angry.  We took a combined three days off of work and slept very little.  It didn't help that we battled and battled with the boarding facility over vet bills and refunds.  They became increasingly more in denial of doing anything wrong.  Guess what, they were!!  

The major thing they did wrong...they gave her her benadryl tablets (for her allergies) with HOT DOG pieces!  Real hot dog!  We have never given her table food and this was what caused her the pancreatitis symptoms and reactions.  Roma is on a very high quality diet, good treats, nothing close to processed.  

Our vet was wonderful...if you need a good vet, we whole heartedly recommend Claws and Paws in Pearland.  Hands down, they were wonderful to Roma.



Also, if you need a good local boarding facility (and day care), Rover Oaks continually is top notch.  Our experience with their day care for the past 10 months has been wonderful.  The multiple times she's been boarded there, including twice during December, they were great.

And lastly, to cheer Roma up, we pissed kitty off...put her in a silly hat.  Thanks go out to Victoria on that one...still fun to put on her years later!

As of today, we have finally resolved the outstanding issues with the bad boarding facility.  They will never see our business again and will never get a hint of a recommendation.  They tried to be good about the vet bills...but they wouldn't even fully pay the last one.   I urge you all with pets...research your boarding facilities carefully, I would never wish what Roma went through on anyone...

Thanks again for all the concern for Roma.  She is doing well and is back to her normal, happy self.  Chasing kitty, cuddling on the couch...being Roma.

Worst Golf Game in YEARS!

A few weeks ago we played at Evergreen Point Golf in Baytown.  First time playing there.  It appears I'm starting to review the courses I play at, so why not continue.  I can sum it up easily...it was relatively flat, well kept, and full of mosquitos!  The course itself wasn't particularly hard...but somehow I managed to make it impossible!  I played like crap throughout...why not throw myself under the bus and embrass myself...I screwed up 4 tee shots (as if I'd never swung a club before) in which I was taking my second shot from nearly the same spot!

Overall on the day I came in last...4th out of 4, with an awful round of...107.  GASP! 

I did have some nice shots...

The weather was nice, the leaves were changing...

Next up, Wildcat Golf Club over new years weekend...let's hope for a bounce back week...looking to drop that score by atleast 20 strokes!

"Does This Shirt Make Me Look Fat?"

We are now heading home, said goodbye to Gracie. She definitely has lost weight but somehow I think she grew extra skin! Looking at her you think she's a pudge, but in reality she isn't...weighing in at a slim 14 lbs! I joked that if they made spanx for dogs, she'd be a great participant. Her shirt doesn't help her look... Overall we had a good trip seeing the family...but are excited to get back home to kitty and Roma! More pics to come...hope everyone had a great Christmas!!

Brisk Florida, and Scrabble...

Well the weather dropped below freezing which meant Gracie put on her little shirt, which I probably bought her 8 years ago! Plus my mom, Deb and I played Scrabble last night...with Deb winning and instantly retiring from play as a winner. We've only played 4 games so far, so we will have to cram quite a few in these last few days. Deb made the word "jube" which I challenged. I lost as it surprisingly was a word!

Mini golf...and more

Today we got out and went mini golfing...we had a 7-some, 8 if count TJ... Had lots of fun even with the cold and windy weather, as you can with the many layers my mom was sporting. Ces was cute putting...more like pushing the ball to the hole. As I was generous in my score keeping, she won by a long shot. :-) My brother and I even got holes in one. After playing I'm still not the best putter, so my upcoming new years round still has much riding on it! Later in the day my sis brought over her dogs, Ginger and Madison. Ginger is still such a lap dog, always vying for a lap to sit on. More later...

And Cesilie, too!

Cesilie has really grown up since we were last here, which wasn't all that long ago. ...some of her favorite gifts came out of my brothers stocking including a harmonica! I kept saying hobos play harmonicas and she'd just laugh! Great times with our niece and nephew!

Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas all! We are in Florida and had a wonderful day, we finally got to meet our nephew, Tim Jr... Hope everyone had a great day as well!!

Denver...and Legos!!

We had a great time in Denver this past weekend...one of my highlights was building Legos with Madison. She is 9 and quite the Lego builder. I had a flashback to my youth building with her.

We were working on the new Lego space shuttle. Deb and I thought it was fitting for Christmas considering Deb's work and all. I thought it was perfect because when I got the original space shuttle years ago, it was awesome!

I know we have more pics from the weekend, will post soon. Including bottling and sampling Deb's dads beer creations.

Things have been crazy for us lately...I'll be sure to fill you all in when some things get settled...

We're Heading Back to Europe!

Well it's official, we are heading back to Europe in 2011!  It's pretty obvious that one of our favorite things to do is travel...whether domestically or internationally...  We took this year off from international travel, but next March, that will change.

From our last Europe trip (in Murano, Italy)

We have planned a 9 day trip departing late on Thursday...all the details are not worked out, but the basic framework of our trip is in place.

We are flying into Paris, then immediately taking the train to Brussels, Belgium.  There we are actually rendezvousing with Debbie's dad!  We are going to let one of the most knowledgeable beer people out there show us around the country known for some of the best beer!  We'll also be all over the Belgian chocolate...

Next we are taking the train to Heidelberg in Germany.  We'll be renting a car while driving from central Germany south...down "Romantic Road" and through smaller historic towns along the way.

We plan on getting into Fussen, Germany (not far from Munich) where we'll use the city as a launching point for a day trip to Reutte, Austria.  

Then we'll be heading to Munich for a day before taking the overnight train back to Paris... Originally we planned on driving into Zurich, but we have become more excited about Paris.  All the staples of Paris are on the preliminary agenda...at first I didn't care to go up the Eiffel tower, but now...I'm excited!

Deb has been to Paris, Heidelberg, and Munich, but we'll be doing a lot of new things for her as well.  Plus, I see her previous trips to Germany and France as ways for me to skip the "fluff" and get the cliff notes version of the cities.

SO...we're excited, the planning has begun, but one things for sure...there's a LOT to plan!  Anyone have any advice, tips, or things we must do???

(FYI, we're such big fans of Rick Steves travel books, we've already purchased 3 for this trip!)

Halloween 2010...

We had a great time at the Reyes Annual Halloween party this year...it was our first time actually making it.  My costume was predetermined a few months back considering all the crap I've gotten this year about being "old."  Debbie's came together on Saturday when we were getting the final touches squared away for mine.  Personally, I think Debbie's costume was awesome and much better than mine.  When she put it all on, I couldn't stop thinking "wow, she really looks older!"  Me, I thought I was kind of silly looking, but sold it as best I could.

One thing's for sure, we were both very very comfortable on the night! 

My costume consisted of old man staples...loafers, hiked up pants, a cane, a pillbox hanging out of my pocket, bushy eyebrows and glasses, and some silver hair!  (the hair was a pain to get in and out!)

Deb's was a pair of slippers with knee highs, a house coat, hair up in curlers, over done makeup, and big glasses. 

We had such a good time...here a few other photos from the party:

 JR

 Jenn and Brian...determining the champ between Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter

 Abe as a Chilean miner...

 The guy from the Hangover with "Carlos."

 Spicer as Jesus.

And one of the most original and creative, the Tuckers came as the characters from Angy Birds.  (Angry Birds is a very addictive App available on your smart phone...)

Sorry to all those who didn't get their photo here...only so much space to blog today.  Go over to the Reyes blog and find your way to the pics from the party...

Oh and you know it's a fun party when you wake up feeling like your costume...woke up achey and feeling old.  Could have been the drinks, could have just been age...guess we'll never know!

Roma moves up a weight class!

Today, Roma did something we thought would happen long ago...she finally hit 30 pounds!  Yes, it sounds silly, but if you recall when we adopted her we thought she'd grow to 50+ pounds.  Of course the estimate dropped to 40, then to 35...but she never got there!  For about three months we've been seeing her around 29.2 to 29.8 pounds.  We joked that she just wanted to stay below 30.  But tonight on our trip to Petsmart, she weighed in at 30.2 pounds!

Tonight the little "chub" and I went for a run...I snapped a short little video clip.  She runs really well with me.  With the weather cooling down, we can do it a little more often.  I do my shorter runs with her...I try not to push her over 3 miles, that seems to be her comfort zone (and optimal distance for her).

Best part of our runs (and walks) is her listening ability...when I stop (like I did to tie my shoe), she stops and sits...waiting patiently for directions.  She does so well!

Hope you enjoyed the story of our little 30.2 pound "chub!"

T-minus 3+ months...Austin Half Marathon

What an uneventful post, but this is going to be the "proof" that I will need next summer...apparently I made the comments earlier this year, but I guess it didn't hold true, as when Deb told me I said it...I didn't believe her!

"This will be my last half marathon."

Yup, I believe my running days are ending...not completely, but these long distance training runs are starting to take their toll on my knees.  Granted I've been battling knee issues for 8+ years now, I'm starting to feel a little bit "old" the morning after a run.  I've been running periodic long distances with sprinkled  short distances, as well as speed training, for the past month or so, in preparation for the half.  But, as I increase my mileage as I've done before, I am not enjoying it quite as much.  People ask me what the enjoyment is with running so much...I used to enjoy the challenge, the accomplishment...but now that I have accomplished my goals in running, I don't have that drive to keep doing it.  Perhaps a triathalon or biking...or perhaps something else?  One thing I'm really enjoying is the 4+ games of softball a week...I get more out of it now than I have in a long while.  Who knows what's next, but I do know it's most probably (90%+) not long distance runs!

Anyways, in the spirit of that one crazy man on our honeymoon..."I'm done!"

(And Deb is running with me in February...not sure if shares the "last time" feelings that I have...guess we'll have to just wait and see!)

Where are you taking my friend?

Roma LOVES going to daycare, and today was no different.  She's been fortunate of late, going twice a week.  And she looooves her time with Izzy.  As I said in a previous post, they cry when the other one leaves...well, tonight I snapped a quick (very short) video of Izzy trying to get around the door to see her bud, Roma.  She apparently has considerable height on her jumps...(one thing that separates the two...Roma doesn't have the height on her jumps).

Enjoy...

(The voices are the daycare personnel, who deserve much credit for dealing with our rowdy pup all day long!  They even had a few battle scars/scratches from the two rough-housing today!)

Pumpkin Carving

This past Sunday we headed over to the Reyes' for pre-Halloween activities...including pumpkin carving!  It was a lot of fun seeing everyone's pumpkins come together.  Deb and I didn't plan ahead, so we kind of winged it.  The talk of the party was about what "level" your skills were...so of course, I said "challenge accepted!"  Bragging rights are at stake when we vote this week at their annual halloween bash.
Here is my creation...can you guess what it is?  It's Mario, from Super Mario Brothers.

As for Deb, she went for a classic pumpkin...picture to be posted soon.

Since I don't have a photo of her pumpkin, I'll post her cookies that she created for the season...she continues to increase the bar for herself, aren't they professional looking?!

And since Deb and I had a reminiscent moment when we took out our Fall stuff with a pumpkin, I'll share a photo from back in 2006.  This is kitty when she was small enough to fit into the pumpkin!  Now, not even close.  (Thanks go out to Deb for holding her in!)  Plus you can see our 2006 pumpkins...

And for your enjoyment...when her head was small enough we'd pour milk in the bottom of a glass and she'd get it all the way in there!

Happy Halloween everyone!

(We'll post more with pics from the party and our costumes...mine has been decided for some time.  It references something I've been referred to as a few times in the past year...any thoughts?)

OH, and Roma came along and was able to play with Robo and Miles...they had a good ole time!

October Golf at Beacon Lakes Golf Club

Today I golfed for the first time in a while.  I had a couple scheduled opportunities canceled thanks to my recent thumb injury, but with it nearly back to 100%, I had the itch to get back on the links!  I roped in Andy, Spicer, Loi, and Mintz to come out...with it being a 5-some, we were somewhat limited on courses we could play, so we chose Beacon Lakes Golf Club in Dickinson.

Overall it was a great day at the course, but before I delve into that, I must tell the story of hole #5.  I had just snapped this photo of the hole...it was such a beautiful day today, I was planning on blogging or sharing some photos.

As I'm walking back to the cart to go grab my driver...BAM!  It was a golf ball that had just missed me by inches!  SPICER!  I was caught so off guard and it was a scary instantaneous moment!  As if he deserved a mulligan, he took one.  Here he is at the box.  I was standing next to the carts on the left...note the hole to the right!  I never let him live it down including me throwing golf balls at him unexpectedly...I had small victories seeing him jump nervously!

But the day was a good day overall game-wise.  I shot a 44 on the front, 45 on the back...a solid 89 for the day.  That's including 3-putting a whopping 8 holes!  Count in the 2 drops, I was quite fortunate to keep my day sub-100.  From my score you can see putting and a few stray shots proved to be the achilles heal of my day...my driving was the inverse of sorts...considering I had 9 - 300+ yard drives, including #16 when I overshot the 352 yard pin, and landing on the fringe of the 383 yard hole #17!  Best hole was #8 when I barely missed an eagle attempt on the long par 5...

The greens were quite slow, this was a common occurrence with us...burying the balls deep into the ground.  This was mine on hole #18.

Roma...or Imposter!

As you all know, Roma goes to doggie day care a couple times a week.  The past few weeks she's gone to Rover Oaks...  The previous two times I'd heard about Roma's new play buddy, Isabelle (aka Izzy).  I even saw her once and thought, wow she's cute...but I really didn't look too hard.  On Tuesday I had heard they played ALL day nonstop and was informed that Izzy was actually a foster.  They had pegged us as good adoptive parents considering she was Roma's best dog friend.

On Friday, when I was picking her up I thought wow, she looks tired...and she came running over.  But something wasn't right, her tail was straight.  Yup, that was Izzy!  And then Roma was jumping below my feet and I laughed.  They look so alike!  I had heard that the two cry for each other, and only each other, when they get separated.  Surely enough, when I took Roma on her leash and led her outside, Izzy was on the other side...scratching at the door and whining.

For now, we can't adopt another dog.  Kitty is still becoming acclimated with Roma...we don't need to add another dog that looks nearly the same...we'll give kitty a heart attack!  Anyways, here's a quick photo of Izzy that I snapped.

Izzy

Funny thing, I sent it to Deb and even on a quick glance from her, her response was "Roma looks tired."  Yup...we have an imposter!!

Happy First Anniversary!

(Okay, so the post is a little late, but I had to show off Deb's cake!)

YAY!  You can put our first year in the books...it's done!  I don't know how to describe it other than a roller coaster.

Getting married on 10-10-09 was the start...off to Europe we went for two weeks of amazing fun!  One month later we were hit with hard news on the job front (for me)...  The holidays were filled with family and friends and lots of support.  By the start of the year we were on the mend as I was narrowing my options down....finally opting for my current position with Rimkus.  Plus we decided to go and adopt a pup...Roma!  Then came raising a puppy.  Throw in Hawaii over the summer and three weddings...and there you have it...our first year!  Really, though, if you read the blog then all of that is just past reading for you.

So, on our anniversary Deb and I went down to Brazos Bend State Park for a picnic.  We even played a cut throat game of Scrabble decided by one point.  Fitting for our first anniversary perhaps.

Deb got me an apron (as I never wear one and often mess my clothes) and a Santoku knife.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santoku  She feared I'd cut my finger off...pshh!  I only sliced a piece of my finger on the third day!  Haha.

I went with the traditional paper...matted a world map on foam board and framed it for Deb (or us).  Now we are in the process of putting map pins where we have been, plus where we want to go, all of which have their own colors.  We have a lot of work to do on the traveling front, but it's one of our most favorite things to do. (More on our Spring 2011 plans to come...)  We have been fortunate to have been all over, but realize there are sooo many places we still want to experience.

And here's the cake Deb made...amazing!  It was hazelnut chocolate ganache and more.  It was amazing.  Everything she bakes is, but this was extra special!

On our first anniversary we were able to enjoy some of our wedding brew that Deb's dad brewed us for our wedding.  It was so nice to relax and reminisce about our big day...just one year ago.

Happy First Deb!!

Krna's Wedding

Two weeks ago we went to Krna's wedding in Outer Banks, North Carolina. Terence and I were excited as neither of us had been before and were looking forward to relaxing a bit by the beach. 

We got there just in time for the rehearsal and to check out Krna and Tim's beach house, which was amazing! It had the sweetest movie room I have ever seen, we will definitely be looking to vacation there sometime! It was really nice to get to see Mama Krna and get to know some more of Krna's friends and family in Virginia.

Next day was the wedding on the beach and everyone looked amazing. Terence was in charge of pictures and I have to give him props, because it looks like he did a pretty good job! 

I also have to say that I have never seen such a calm bride, Krna really looked amazing!

Beautifully handwritten vows...

The smooch!

Thumbs up!

Next day we all woke up early and headed to breakfast at a local shop and took our time driving up the coast. We of course stopped for frozen custard and one of the many Christmas shops, then it was back to Houston. Pup was glad we were home, I think she started to miss us after all our traveling!

I am going to miss my Krna, I mean Campbell-licious just doesn't have the same ring to it! 


Congrats Tim and Krna!