The Dackel Princess

The Friday Five ~ October 15th

The week sped by. I’m in a phase of my life where the days, weeks, and months are tending to slip by very fast. This week was a pretty good one. So here we go with the week’s Friday Five.

I love my new floor cleaner. I decided to experiment with my bathroom tile floor and the half bathroom floor. Well, I have to tell you, it was easy on my back and neck and did a fabulous job. Over the weekend I hope to do the kitchen floor!
I recently lost my favorite comb. I thought it was in my purse, but no luck! I searched my tote bag, car, kitchen, everywhere it may have gone. No, go. So, I ordered one from Amazon. It wasn’t exactly like my favorite comb, but close. Still, while awaiting the arrival of my new comb, I grieved the loss of my favorite. The new comb arrived and it’s okay. I was putting it away in the bathroom vanity when I recalled that I had not unpacked my traveling toiletry bag. So, I grabbed that and what should I find? Yes, my favorite comb! So, the new one will go in my travel bag and my beloved comb will never leave this house. Funny how we get attached to these things.
Today I go to my Glaucoma Doctor for a check. I have had surgery on both eyes now, and the pressures did come down. Let’s just hope that with the drops it is staying down.
I am back to being on my WW Healthy eating plan. I’m feeling good and I am psyched about it once again. I want to live my best life, healthfully!
Lastly this week, I am looking to find a new Dackel Baby. I cannot tell you how I have grieved for my boy. My arms simply ache with no little boy to hold and hug. I do not care if I get a boy or a girl. I am of the belief that my next Dackel will come to me like all the others. The new pup in my life will find me, just as Shubi, and Greta did. And then Greta blessed me with Arnie and Anneliese. Yes, I truly believe my puppy will find me.

Well, that is it for this week. I hope wherever you are that you enjoy a warm and wonderful weekend.

It’s Here!

In recent years, I’ve been having trouble vacuuming and washing floors. When I actually break down and do this, my neck gets really sore and I just hang it up for the day.

So, I was watching an infomercial over the holiday weekend when I saw a Bissell machine just for wood floors and tiles. Best of all, if a small dust-bunny of Lili’s hair gets caught up in the machine, this thing is ready and can handle anything.

So, I went to Amazon to check their prices on this machine and it was close to $250.00, and that was just for the machine!

So, I went to Bissell and their machine came with one extra roller bar and one mini container of cleaning fluid.

I really didn’t want to pay $250.00, but I figured that Bissell had the better price. So, I began the process of ordering it online straight from the manufacturer.

My problem was, the site kept kicking me out. It would not allow me to complete the process.

I hemmed and hawed for a few hours and I was “thisclose” to just ordering the machine from Amazon when I got an email from BJ’s Warehouse. Their come on was “Come to BJ’s and check out our prices!

So I toddled on my Browser to check out their sales, and what should I find? If you guessed my machine, you would be right! And best of all, it came with 3 mini bottles of cleaner, 3 large bottles of cleaner, 4 beater bars and of course, my machine. It was also on sale for $189.00! Well, that’s just too good to be true!

So I signed into my account and set about ordering the machine. When I reached the check out it asked me if I wanted to use the $10.00 coupon I had earned by using my BJ’s credit card at the Warehouse and their gas stations.

Why, yes, yes I did!

So the grand total was $179.00!

With free shipping!

I was so excited when I hit the order button on Sunday night! And yesterday, at 5:30 PM, UPS arrived with my new machine!

I set about putting it together and storing it for now in the closet. I need to add, the machine was easy to put together and is very lightweight. About 10 pounds.

Perhaps later today I will pull up the rugs in the bathroom and wash the tile floors in there. This will give me an idea of how this works.

If it works the way I hope it will, washing my floors will not be as painful as it has been.

I am so happy!

This & That ~ October 10th

I think as we grow older, and if we are caregivers ourselves of a loved one, we tend to neglect ourselves. And so it has been for me. Tending to Jack, with his medical problems, keeps me very busy. I simply do not have time to tend to myself.

That being said, going in for my physical was a good thing. The findings made me realize I need to slow down a bit and make myself a priority.

I’ve been delaying going on cholesterol medications, but the new numbers are kind of dreadful, so I’m going to relent this time and start trying to find a medication that works for me, without messing up my other medications. Also, I know I need to get back to my walking, which I sort of gave up when Arnie became so ill.

If I am being really honest I will also stop eating a lot of red meat, and get back to more poultry and fish. Topping it all off with a lot of salads and vegetables. All things I love, but honestly, the last six months I have not been as careful as I should be.

So starting tomorrow morning…Monday…I start back strictly following the WW Green Plan. No more excuses.

And today I may even go for a walk. I will be lonely without my Arnie, but, who knows…one day I might have a new baby to walk with me.

Getting it Done!

So Friday found me on the road to see my new Primary Care Nurse Practitioner.

To say she is lovely, warm, efficient and the only medical professional who has ever treated me would be an understatement. Amy is all of those things and more.

I went in with a list of 5 problems I am having, and she went down the list and seriously addressed each and every one of them!

Finally! A medical professional that actually listens to me and is striving to get a handle on everything.

By the time I left her office, I had prescriptions for a UTI (yes, again), an appointment to have an MRI, and a knee x-ray. There were other things I needed her help with and she was so glad to help me.

The ride home for me was really busy. It was bumper to bumper from our tolls on route 93 north. This lasted for probably 15-20 miles. I wasn’t at all surprised because it’s a holiday weekend and everyone is coming up to go to local fairs and others to close up their summer camps.

I stopped to pick up my mail at the Post Office, only to find my little town in all stupidity has blocked off several more parking spaces. Now they have blocked any space for the disabled to park close enough to the building. Isn’t that against the law? It infuriated me.

A woman I know was defending it because a woman was killed in the crosswalk a few years back. I am sorry for this. But, it was a series of tragic events that led to it.

First, the woman was reading the mail in her hands and not looking as she crossed the road. The teenager who hit her was using his cellphone to text.

You get the picture. It was a rather unfortunate series of events. And now, now it’s making it difficult to get into the Post Office for most people. It’s making a local shipping store (which also has mailboxes) look better and better.

I came home to Lili who greeted me quite happily, and Jack, who was already eating his lunch.

All in all, Friday was a major success!

The Friday Five ~ October 8th

Here we are, October! It seemed that the days, weeks, and months have just flown by. Before we know it, Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here. Then, look out…2022!

So, gentle readers here is this week’s Friday Five.

Although I am still feeling the loss of my darling Arnie, I am trying to hold onto all of the wonderful memories of Arnie, his sister, Anneliese, and their Mama, Greta.
Arnie, Greta, and Anneliese.
From the moment Greta arrived in 2004 I have enjoyed her and her two children. One beautiful and wonderful line of delightful dackels! How lucky have I been!
I thought of what I could do to mark the end of The Dackel Princess era. So I bought a shadowbox. In it, I will put pictures of my pups along with their collars. It will be a prize remembrance of those happy years.
I’ve had a few routine check-ups this week. Including today, which will find me in for my physical. When you reach the age of decrepitude, there is more to discuss than when you are in your twenties.
The foliage here in New Hampshire has begun. It’s very pretty around us, although not even close to being the peak. I think by next week it will be simply splendid!
Lili is doing very well. She tends to watch us a bit more closely. I think she is still concerned one of us might disappear.

So that is it for the week. I hope you all have a great weekend!

TBT: My Grandchildren & Me

This week I am looking back at the birth of my two grandchildren. There is something so special and amazing when you hold your grandchild for the first time.

I was thrilled when Mandy told me she was expecting a little girl! And then, when I held Savannah for the first time, my heart swelled with a love so strong and so full of happiness!

Ever since her birth, Savi and I have had this connection between us. Maybe all grandparents feel like this with their grandchildren. I would go anywhere and do anything for her, and her brother.

Savannah May 31, 2012

Holding Savi for the first time brought happy tears to my eyes. Watching her grow and change has been such a delight!

After Savannah’s birth, I figured if that were all the grandbabies, then I was a lucky lady. But one day I was in my yard and a woman came by. She was buying our old truck. She took my hand and read my palm and told me that I would have another grandchild and this one would be a boy.

This woman had never met me before or been inside my home. And yet she told me all about my granddaughter and my soon-to-be grandson.

A few weeks later I was babysitting Savannah overnight at Mandy’s and my daughter came running down the stairs waving an EPT Pregnancy Stick! She was pregnant!

To say we were all thrilled was an understatement. I had told her about the woman’s prediction and a few weeks later we found out that our darling Quinn, a boy, was on his way!

Quinn March 7, 2016

Since I never had a boy, I knew very little about them. I learned fast that having a boy was rough and tumble and playing trucks and focusing on anything with wheels. This boy started walking at 7+ months and hasn’t stopped since.

I love being a grandmother, and the love I have for Savannah and Quinn isn’t measurable. I tell them all the time, “I love you to the moon and back!” And their smiles, their hugs, and their love mean more to me than anything.

Savannah, Mandy, Quinn, and me last Christmas.

This & That ~ October 5th

Well, the Internet Gremlins got me yesterday. Not only was Facebook down, but good old Microsoft downloaded an “Update” for my computer that totally wiped out my printer settings!

I was too busy to pay too much attention to it all. And actually quite annoyed by it all.

Starting tomorrow I plan to begin Autumn cleaning. I have two rooms that really need to be cleaned out and have a lot of stuff thrown away. I’m ready…

My goal is to get our house spick and span clean so I can hunker down and hibernate once the snow falls!

It was a great pajama party with my grandkids. But something odd occurred. I was watching a kid’s movie with them and I fell asleep! I took a much-needed nap!

I guess at 62+ I have entered the phase where a nap is a reward and no longer a punishment. And oh, how lovely that little nap was, although my grandson Quinn told me that I snore!

Have a great day everyone!

The Friday Five ~ October 1st

Well, this year really is flying by. I’m not sure why, but look at your calendar…it’s already October! I have many things going on in October, which will start on Saturday with a visit with my beautiful and wonderful grands! So, here we go, this week’s Friday Five.

I started Thursday chopping. I wanted to make a big batch of Chili for Jack and I also wanted to put together a meatloaf to freeze. After two hours all was chopped and I began the process of making the Chili. (By the way, we are eating it for dinner and all I can say is YUM!)
I’ve been inundated with laundry. Today I have three loads left and I will be all caught up! Yay! Laundry is not my favorite thing to do.
3. Lili is doing well. She seems to have known Arnie was ill and she isn’t looking for him. She has become my girl and I am appreciative of her love and attention.

My Granddaughter, Savi

My Grandson, Quinn
I am going to see the kids on Saturday. I can hardly wait! I’ll be spending the night having a pajama party with the kids. Pictures to come!
Next week is a slightly busy week for me, complete with blood work and my physical. I’m sure I will pass with flying colors!

So that is it for the week. I hope wherever you are, you have a happy and healthy weekend!

TBT: Shubi & Me

Hi All! I wanted to share my story about how I became owned by a Dachshund!

In 1989 my husband brought me to Starnberg, Germany, this is just south of Munich, to meet his dear friends Lucie and Otto. I was a new bride and nervous about meeting his longtime friends. As I sat in their living room, in bounded a small vivacious pup named Shubi, who was a wire-haired Dachshund. Shubi spoke no English, and I spoke no German, but it did not matter. It was love at first sight! Shubi climbed into my lap and we kissed and that was it.

Me and the original Shubi.

For the next week wherever I went, I was followed by this love-struck little man. When we parted I cried and all I would say to my husband was, “I want a little Shubi dog!” We made four more trips to Munich over the next four years and it was always the same. Shubi became my love while I was there.

Sadly, in 1994 Shubi escaped his fenced-in yard and was hit by a car. I grieved for so long. And so did Lucie.

At Christmas this year we learned that Otto was ill and in February 1995 we went back to Germany to see Otto and Lucie. The house was oddly still with no little man running around the house. It just was not the same cheery home. I said to Lucie at lunch that we should go and find little puppies and have them together. Otto heard us and while we were out shopping he found an ad for Rauhhaar Dackels, or in English, Wire Haired Dachshunds.

It was 35 kilometers east of Munich to go to the home of the puppies, but we all piled into the car and off we went to Landshut. An hour later we walked into the kitchen of the Lanzingers. There, in a small basket on the floor were three baby dachshunds. I went over and a little face looked up and tried to jump up to me. I picked her up and that was it. She looked me over, decided that I would do, and after kissing my face clean, she settled into my arms and snuggled. Lucie picked up a little boy pup and we were off.

I kept trying to think up a good name for my baby when my husband, who had been oddly silent said,” All I have heard for years is ‘I want a Shubi dog’, the dog’s name is Shubi. And thus our Shubi adopted us as her parents, and her responsibility in life. Lucie named Shubi’s brother, Toni.

At the Munich Airport.

I feared bringing a pup back to the states would be difficult, but it wasn’t. She was three months old, had her shots, and once we purchased a doggie passport and bought her a ticket we were all set. Shubi road Business Class with us from Munich to New York. She was wonderful on the plane and my husband rushed her out as soon as we cleared customs, to the parking area next to the terminal. Bravo Shubi! She did just what she was supposed to.

Shubi was warm, and funny, and stubborn and sweet, and good, and made me feel like I was the most important person in her life. My husband, who believed that White German Shepherds were the only dogs in the world, changed his mind and now adores dackels too.

Shubi learned English, was housebroken quickly and ruled the whole house, and I was happier than I ever thought it was possible to be!

And right now I know that I will never be without a “Shubi Dog” ever again!

Thank You!

First I want to thank everyone who has written to me with their love and condolences after the passing of dear Arnie. His loss has taken the wind out of my sails and the sadness is rather great. Your love and care mean a great deal to me.

I woke in the night and discovered an empty bed. Always I would get up and return to a warm furry body waiting for me. Now the bed is empty and I am alone.

Lili and I got up at six o’clock and we both looked at each other and wondered how we would get through the day. Somehow we managed, but tomorrow I need to do a few things around here.

I need to wash Arnie’s bed and put it away. The little dackel steps need to be washed and also stored. For now, we have no small fur babies, and both Lili and I keep expecting to find Arnie sleeping in his bed.

One day, we will adopt a little wire-haired dackel. We will need all the little things that made my pups live and thrive in their home.

One day.