Adopting an Animal

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love my crazy dog. He is a handful and he's stubborn as all heck, but I seriously love him so much. I was staring at him the other day as he lounged in "his" chair and I realized how proud I am of him and of us for adopting him.

I have never adopted an adult animal before. I guess I was always afraid that I would be taking on a problem that someone else couldn't deal with and I really doubted that I would have the patience and love to break bad habits in an adult dog. I was so wrong.

We adopted Reggie when he was two years old. He had been purchased as a puppy (along with his brother) by a young couple who really didn't have the time or desire to train them. They threw them in their backyard and eventually turned them into a shelter when they had a baby. Reggie did not do well at the shelter at all. He cried and cried and cried... the volunteers at the pound found him in his brother's cage constantly (they had no idea how he did that!) and he went absolutely crazy when they tried to put him in a crate. This type of behavior wasn't exactly appealing to people who went to the shelter looking for a pet.

Luckily, he was taken out of the shelter by his breed's local rescue group. They decided to split up Reggie and Hershey into two different rescue centers because they didn't think anyone in their right mind would adopt TWO high energy dogs at once and they needed to teach each of the dogs how to exist without each other. Hershey did better than Reggie did and was adopted after a short amount of time. Reggie ended up in this home for over six months. They worked with him every day on basic commands, but his stubborn attitude and high energy characteristics made him an undesirable pet.

Along came Matt and Amy... :) We fell in love with him the moment we met him. We knew we would face a lot of challenges with him and we certainly have. We had to rearrange our work schedules, secure our fencing, come home several times during the work day to get him out of our annoyed neighbors yard.... I even got a black eye once when he jumped on me and accidentally head butted me in the nose! But honestly, having him in our lives was worth every second of frustration. We had to make changes and saccrifices in our lives, but oh well!! He brings us so much joy! He has such a funny personality, he LOVES to cuddle with mama (that's me!), he plays funny games with us: his favorite is "Where's papa?". Matt will go hide somewhere and then I'll ask him "where's papa???" and Reggie will run around through the entire house looking for him and when he finds him he attacks him with tons of kisses... it's awesome.

I'm sorry the story was so long, I just wanted to tell you the story of Reggie. I am so happy and proud to have him in our family and I got a little overwhelmed with joy the other night when I was looking at him thinking "This is your life. We gave you a chance and I'm so happy that you did. You are the silliest, most spoiled dog I know and I am so thrilled that you have finally found your FOREVER home".

To anyone out there who is considering getting a pet - please, please, please - look into your local shelters and/or breed rescue centers. Puppies are cute, yes indeed, but there are so many awesome dogs out there who need the love and security of a FOREVER home just like Reggie did.

Christmas Shopping

For the first time in my entire life, I have actually started Christmas shopping before the holiday craziness. I made a list of people we are buying gifts for that includes ideas that I am coming up with and have already checked some things off as "purchased". Happy Dance, Happy Dance!!!!! I'm hoping that this will help me relax and enjoy the holiday season a bit more this year.

We will be traveling for Christmas, but still plan to host our Annual White Elephant Party.... The question is: Should we bother putting up our tree (artificial) and decorations for the party even though we aren't going to be there for Christmas??? Decisions, decisions...

Politics

I am ready for the election to be over. Like most Americans, I am very interested in the debates, I find them to be very educational and I believe that this election is extraordinarily important because of several economic and foriegn policy issues our country is currently facing. But.... I am sick and tired of hearing/reading about how people "feel" about the candidates or their choices.
I'm not a big "sharer"of my feelings about the issues and candidates. I discuss these things with my husband and my very close friends. You will never find me criticizing people for their political beliefs, just as you will never find me criticizing someone for their religous beliefs. I find it completely absurd that certain people think it is ok to say that people who side with candidate a or b are obviously "uneducated" or "uninformed". Why can't people realize that everyone was raised differently and we all have different values and beliefs? Why is it "ok" in your mind to tell me that I am wrong about my OPINIONS???
And... why do people get personally offended by something a politician says or refers to? These politicians are speaking to the entire United States; they can't please everyone! They are trying to get other people to vote for them, so why would any politician purposely be offensive???
Anyways, my point is this:
I will vote the way I choose to vote based on MY beliefs and the only people that would change my mind are the candidates themselves. While I don't at all mind a political debate amongst adults, I am sick and tired of people bombarding me with their opinions and feelings about why they are right and I am wrong. Be adult and be respectful people! All of the candidates are planning on doing what they think is best for this nation and I think it's about time we start respecting all of them for thier bravery and knowledge instead of talking about how you feel they are horrible because of feeling a, b, or c.
If someone said "I don't agree with McCain or Obama's stance on this issue because......" I will listen and absorb, but if you tell me "McCain or Obama is an idiot because...." or "McCain or Obama offended me because they said...." I will roll my eyes and ignore you.
I do not think that the candidate I plan to vote for will win. And while I might not be thrilled about it, I will not complain about it, I will not talk about how the new president is an idiot or moron; I will respect America's choice and stand behind my country in hopes that we can once again become the nation that people admire and love. I wish people would get off their high horses and agree to do the same. I admire people who want change and stand behind the issues they believe in, but I do not admire people who are inconsiderate and bash people because they do not have the same beliefs as them. I find it horribly un-American.
Feel free to flame, but do it elsewhere please :)