Home Again…& Anneliese

I drove home today. I took a route I have driven hundreds of times and yet today, I missed my exit. I was driving along on the highway, and found myself surrounded by tractor/trailer trucks. They were close and kicking up dirt and made me very nervous. I put my foot to the floor and tried to pass them and they held me and a few other cars out. And that is how I blew my exit.

Up here in northern New England, if you miss an exit, this can mean the next exit might be considerably up the road. This was true. 13 miles up the road!

No worries, I told myself. I looked at the map and planned my route across the state. I started on the alternate route, and got about a third of the way across and the road stopped! It was closed! I had to drive back to the Interstate, and then south 25 miles, to pick up the route I should have been on the first time. Now I was an hour late!

I met Mandy for a little retail therapy (shopping) and then arrived home at 4:00. I was greeted by four happy dogs, two of which smelled like they’d been rolling in something really horrid!

So Greta and Arnie and I all took a shower and got nice and clean. It seems that Anneliese is staying nice and clean these days. But then, perhaps in her delicate condition she finds those horrible smells something to avoid. She is looking adorable these days. Here are two pictures of Anneliese’s belly! What do you think?

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My Dad is resting comfortably. I am glad that I got to see him and spend a little time with my Mom and sister. It’ll be the last time that the four of us will be together.

It’s good to be home now, and to be with Hubby and the pups. And the next time I go anywhere I am going to bring my GPS. I sure don’t want to get stuck driving around like that again!

My Dad

I raced down to Connecticut today as my Dad is now in Hospice and not doing very well. I wanted to see him. I wanted to say good-bye.

I dreaded it, but found the scene quite comforting. Dad is in a wonderful Hospice, being taken care of by fabulous nurses and finally, he is in no pain.

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His room looks out at the ocean and when he wants to he can see sailboats and seagulls.

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But mostly now he sleeps or drifts. But for him the pain is over.

We talked some, and I cracked a few jokes and I even sang to him two songs. He was happy to have me there, with my sister and mother. He smiled.

I don’t think it will be much longer.

I’m Thinkin’ Biscuits In The Oven!

Today I was looking at Anneliese and all I could think was, she looks pregnant! Anneliese usually lies on her belly and sleeps, but today she flipped over onto her side and slept with her belly just starting to stick out a little.

Yes. At this point she is “cute pregnant“. I always felt I was “cute pregnant” early on when I was just starting to show. You know, a little pop in the belly that made it impossible to zip and button your jeans? Yeah, that’s how Anneliese looks. Like she couldn’t button her jeans! LOL!

We took her out for a ride today, as she is always the first dog at the door when we get our coats on. My shy Miss now wants to be out and in the car. She loves to travel!

Anneliese’s grandma came over tonight for dinner. Barbie is the owner of Bernie, Anneliese’s Daddy. We looked at pictures of my Germany trip and planned our breeding of Greta and Bernie this summer.

When I look back on the great pups they had, I am just as excited as I am right now, with Anneliese.

Puppies, Puppies, Puppies!!! Wonderful!!!

The End Of The Week

Friday I had an appointment with my retinal surgeon. I have a problem with my retina and eventually will require additional surgery, as I am slowly losing vision in my left eye. The appointment went well, as I don’t need surgery in the next couple of months, and I am truly blessed with an excellent doctor who treats me like a member of his family.

My only problem was driving home afterward. They had to dilate both of my eyes, and the sun was so bright, and it was reflected on the snow and I COULD NOT SEE! I ended up stopping in a shop and getting a cheap pair of sunglasses to wear over my regular sunglasses so I could drive home. This is the first time I have had this problem. Usually the dilation doesn’t bother me.

On the home front, Mr Arnie Man has just been so darn cute the last few days. I think he missed me while I was in Germany. He cuddles pretty closely to me, (Hubby as well) and has been giving me the cutest poses.

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Hubby and Arnie.

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Mr. Arnie Man.

Anneliese continues to show signs of pregnancy. I can hardly wait until next week when I can bring her in and find out for sure.

Life’s Happenings

The day was bright, with blue skies and cold winds. Somehow it helped to energize me and get me out to do the shopping and the visiting that I’d wanted to do.

I took Anneliese with me, as she has become almost my “Siamese twin”.  Whenever I get my coat on to go out, I find Anneliese sitting at the door waiting for me. It’s a nice change from the shaking little girl that she was before her trip across the Atlantic to meet Isegrim.

We went to the Post Office, and mailed my application to Weight Watchers. Anneliese was also able to bewitch a few people there with her adorable ‘come hither’ look! Oh those big brown eyes of hers, just make people go weak in the knees!

Then I was off to the grocery store to pick up a few things. I ran into a woman I know and her two children. Needless to say, they also got to visit with Anneliese.

My last stop before I got home was at a craftsman’s shop where they sell fine jewelry, pottery and other hand made items, to see my friends, who also love dogs. They’ve been following Anneliese and her foreign love affair and they were happy to see pictures of Isegrim and to see Anneliese. They were thrilled that she has become more confident and no longer shakes with worry.

Yes, Anneliese sure has grown up since her trip to Germany!

I came home and got a call from my sister that my father has been placed in Hospice Care. It’s a blessing, really and now I pray that the good Lord will ease his pain and bring him home.

Today is Friday the 13th. Somehow, it just doesn’t worry me at all. Probably because I am starting to think about life in different terms. I don’t believe in curses or spooky things. Life is life. It’s as good as you make it, and the end? Well, who knows.

Rain, Rain, Rain!

I woke to flashing clocks all around, with the exception of the one clock that sets itself from a satellite. Most of all when I looked at the clock I realized I had over slept! The rain was pouring down and it was quite crappy!!!

Thankfully I had my hair trimmed yesterday and since I have really curly hair, very little needed to be done to get it in order.

I slapped on some make-up so I didn’t look bad enough to scare the elderly and small children and jumped into my suit. Then I raced out the door and drove (carefully), to the Weight Watchers meeting down the road, where I was to give my little talk about Weight Watchers in Germany.

It went surprisingly well and after I got an application to become a Leader. Who knows if it will work out, but I would truly love to be a Weight Watcher leader.

Fingers Crossed!!!

Fortunately, the rain lessened as the day progressed and I was able to get the dogs out a few times. Hubby helped out with this as he was clearing the slush from the driveway before it had the chance to freeze and become a total disaster.

Anneliese seemed to enjoy it, although she got a bit cold and so she was happy when I put her sweater on. I wonder if she thinks about Isegrim when she has it on. After all, she wore it after each of her “sessions” with him.

Once again, she is asleep and I hope so very much she is growing little babies in her belly!

Fingers Crossed!!!

Is She…..Or Isn’t She?

I was outside in the yard today with the dogs. All were running around with the exception of Anneliese. She was being a tad quieter than usual. In the house, she stretched out on the sofa and took a long nap. Quite unlike my girl, who is a constant rawhide bone chewer.

Then tonight, when I fed the dogs, she sat back and looked at me with big soulful eyes. She wasn’t hungry. I didn’t force her to eat, as I might regret it later if she threw up. She also made these noises and Kimmy asked me if she had a fur-ball in her throat. Just like a 7 year old to guess at something animal like, but in the wrong species. Very cute!

So I just am leaving Anneliese alone. Letting her sleep and rest, eat some crunchies when she wants, and let the days pass until we know for certain that she is pregnant.

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Personally, I’m thinking she is. Simply because she’s acting just like I did when I was pregnant.

I wonder if that means that she too, will want Peanut M & M’s, which seemed to be all I wanted to eat in my third trimester!

Oh well, no chocolate for this girl!

The Celebrations

Despite the snow and generally awful weather we managed to celebrate Greta’s birthday. As you know we like to get a yellow cake, and allow each dog a little taste after we sing Happy Birthday to the Birthday Dog. Ah such fun, isn’t it? A Birthday Dog, and kids? Perfect!

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Greta with Kimmy and me and the cake!

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Happy Birthday to Greta!

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Cutting the cake. See the captive audience?

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Everyone loves cake!

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Greta eating her cake!

Paws Across The Ocean!

I was so pleased to see that the kennel owner of Isegrim featured Anneliese and me on her web page. I cannot begin to tell you how exciting it was for me to travel over to Germany with Anneliese and to meet Frau Zillmer-Lehnhardt and Herr and Frau Hintz, and their daughter, Steffi. Isegrim was even more wonderful than I thought he would be, and he and Anneliese made a perfect match!

Anneliese and Isegrim.

The couple

Today I went to the Vom Bruchsee web page and I was happily surprised to see that Anneliese and I were not only mentioned on her page, but we were also there in a picture! It will be wonderful when I can send a picture of a beautiful, healthy litter of puppies to Frau Zillmer-Lehnhardt to post on her site!

I have a waiting list for the puppies. I’m happy that my pups will go to homes where they will be members of the family, as well as tracking dogs. These little dackels are quite amazing in their abilities to track wounded game and to recover the lost deer for their Masters.

Now we wait two more weeks for Anneliese’s exam. The doctor will gently palpitate her belly to determine how many little pups might be in there. Then about 1 week before her due date, of March 25-26, we will x-ray her to see exactly how many pups she has in there.