Hey guys!! As you all know I am a dog lover..without question, my life would not be and has not been complete without a pup by my side..I found a cookbook the other day..for homemade dog treats..this is not a new baking method for me..while living in Georgia before I used to make dog treats all the time and had even at one time considered trying to make a good of it as a homebased business..Well for the past 2 days I have been baking and baking and thinking..and then today I read a quote that said.."Find Something that Inspires You and Figure out a Way to make a Living from it."..I have to ask myself..could this be something for me?? I love dogs, I love to bake..2 plus 2?? I'm not sure but it is definantly something to think about and roll around in my brain for a minute.
One of my friends and coworkers loaned me this awesome book pictured above..I highly recommend it..but will forwarn you..the tears may come. For me to be able to read this book is a huge triumph as I have always avoided any TV shows, movies, books, cartoons, musicals..anything that has an animal involved for fear they may get hurt or die in the process..call it being traumatized from seeing Ol' Yeller as a child. Anyway..back to the dog treats..all are made with normal, fresh products (like chicken, carrots, applesauce..)..no chemicals, no preservatives..and so far so good..my taste testers seem to approve!! Even Marli the Terror cat likes the ones with chicken..of course!! ;D
The last couple of days have not been stellar for Max the Wonderdog, sometimes he sleeps so deeply I hold my breath until I see his chest rise and fall..but when he is awake for the most part he is okay and has bursts of energy for short periods of time..sometimes I think to myself, good he is better see?? He will be able to accompany me for another 5 years or so..but my heart knows this is not the case and soI cherish every moment I have left with him..
If you have a dog, spend some extra time with him or her today..and if you have the priviledge to be loved by a dog..read this book..written from a dog's point of view that I cannot help think is so far off base..I wish you all a Wednesday filled with love and warmth..
Ughhhh..after almost a week of weather gorgeous enough to wear my flip flops and hang out in the backyard with the pups the weather here has taken a nasty turn and seems more like November than March..my wardrobe is back to boots and about 30 layers..no actually just 4 but my gosh..after months of cold and grey it seems like so much more!! Thank goodness I have these beautiful flowers that my hubby brought me for our 4th anniversary a couple of days ago..so pretty!! I am taking advantage of him and the 4 footed children enjoying a Saturday afternoon crash out session on the couch to sit upstairs in the office and answer emails, update calendars, and basically just putter around...So we were brave enough to do a bit of shopping this morning..it was high time to invest in a new blender..seeing as the 2 I have previously bought here ended up with burnt up motors while trying to make a smoothie with frozen bananas..just think of what would have happened had I tried to make Margaritas..the flipping things would have exploded!! ..time to try a new brand..we will see how things go. We also stopped into a quasi dolllar like store..kind of like a Big Lots..great inexpensive stuff for things like crafts, and patio decor..I even found a coloring book for adults..now, I don't know about all of you..but sometimes I just have the need to doodle and let the creative juices flow..in the shape of lots of colors, and since I do not have a real talent for things such as drawing I am happy to let someone else do the drawing and then color in between the lines..for me this is absolute awesomeness and one of the ultimate ways for me to relax and lose the time and stress of the day. We have yet to go out and celebrate these past 4 years in which we have faced some real stressors and seem to have come out stronger for..much to some people's dismay I am sure ..but this evening we are heaed out into the elements to eat greek..granted I will spend the next 3 days drowning myself in bottles of water to get rid of the sodium and large protein intake..but for this evening..I will just eat and enjoy..besides..got an awesome workout in this morning and have had my 2 shakes for the day!! Wishing you all an amazing weekend..don't forget to share your smile!!
PS..for all of you Max the Wonderdog fans out there..he is holding his own..continues to take steriods 2 times a day but is eating and drinking and urine production is improved!! He is sleeping more but otherwise doing well.
Good Morning to you all! Wanted to share our last couple of days with you. The weather has been playing nicely and so of course that means that we had to bring some new accessories home to brighten things up ..including some easter eggs to decorate our "Ostern Baum"..the flowers are going crazy blooming and I am holding back with every ounce of will power I have NOT to head straight to the garden center and go a little wild..but only because Matthias says we will have a couple more freezing nights..but..my time will come and I will post new pics as the beauty arrives and the accessory collection increases!! I have some colorful fabric upstairs just waiting to have some new pillows made out of it!! I am lucky to be married to a man who gets enjoyment out of me indulging my "girly side" filled with pinks, flowers, and butterflies..;D It doesn't happen too often but when it does...
The pups enjoyed their afternoon outdoors..Max found lots of new smells and Missy rolled around in the grass and talked to the workers building the house behind us..good that she told them who the boss is around here!!
Marli is strictly an indoor cat but has lots of large windows to look out of..
So today is starting out a little on the foggy side but hopefully things will clear up and we can continue our days outdoors..that is after I make a trip to the store for critter treats..Just how is that when I am home we go through a package in about 4 days and when Papa is here alone with these babies a package lasts weeks?? Poor 4 footed kids..good thing I am back to being a stay at home mom and wife!!
Enjoy your day..and don't forget to share your smile!!
Hey guys..even though life is not all rainbows and unicorns at this moment..the one thing that is working for me in a fabulous, amazing, woop woop, WOW kind of way is my results from using these products from HERBALIFE and eating fresh, colorful and healthy..although I do have a confession to make..joined my hubby for an evening in Hannover and ate drank the following..a Swimming Pool cocktail, had a Starbucks flavored coffee, ate some BBQ ribs and fries...oh..and a pastry while shopping...and still had these awesome results..Good nutrition just rocks!!!!! Granted I do not eat that way everyday but sometimes you just have to go a bit over the top..but with my supplements, 2 yummy shakes a day, and my protein bars for snacks..this venture out of my normal habit land didn't set me back an ounce!
So..for the week..1.52 pounds gone..and 3.5 inches gone..just like that..this puts the totals at 4 weeks into this new healthy nutrition lifestyle of mine at..7.92 pounds and a total of..13.5 inches..from my waist alone I have lost 4 inches. Results like this make me say that I can't believe it everytime I break out the measuring tape or step on the scale..but it is true..and people are seeing a difference..especially my husband..wink wink!! But when you feel amazing and your body starts changing things are going to start happening..period!! You have more energy, because you feel better about yourself you are more willing to get out there and be there for others, you get more accomplished..I know that my skin looks better, my hair is healthier, and where before I just wanted to sleep all of the time and had a hard time getting through the day due to lack of energy and motivation I am now getting tons more done and looking for more to do..for the first time in years I can stay awake until 10 pm where before I was ready to.. literally.. crawl into bed about 7pm..and all of this without being hungry..awesome..especially since I am a total snack lover..before I would eat from 4pm until I went to sleep..now I either have a shake or a light dinner and if I am craving something sweet I have a protein bar..craziness!! Did this start as a weight loss journey for me?? Yes..indeed it did because NOTHING else was working for me..and that includes working out for an hour or more on average of 5 days a week and depriving myself only to end up binging because my body was not getting the nutrition that it needed..but this has become so much more..it has become a nutritional lifestyle..and my body is just screaming thank you for putting all of this great stuff into it..vitamins, minerals..you name it..it is in there..working so that I can function on an optimal level..WoopWoop..see you all next friday (of course I will post on FSF before then but for Herbalife results) for week 5 weigh in and measurements!!
For all of you Max the Wonderdog fans out there I have no so good news..As Matthias picked the babies up from the critter hotel on Saturday it was evident that Max was not doing well and had lost a significant amount of weight within a very short amount of time. 1st trip to the vet revealed a low body temperature and swollen abdominal area along with enlargement of the prostate gland, difficulty peeing and when he did it was dark in color.. labs were drawn, 2 injections were given..an antibiotic and 1 for pain, along with contrast to be given every 2 hours..2nd day was xay day and the films revealed that Max has tumors in his lungs and bladder along with 4 to 5 stones..also in his bladder..for now he is comfortable, still eating and drinking and getting around okay..has to pee several more times a day than usual since he cannot empty his bladder completely but it is lighter in color than 2 days ago..he now takes 3 new medications..an antibiotic, a steriod, and a paste that may help to dissolve the stones..as he is 14 now and has had 3 surgeries in the past 3.5 years we have opted not to put him through anything other than oral medications for treatment..I came home early from Kaiserslautern and will be spending every moment I can with him from now on..he has been my constant source of unconditional love for more than a decade and in his last weeks or hopefully longer I will be here for him.. as long as he is comfortable we will let nature take it's course..call it a selfish move on my part but I need a little more time with this little dog with the crooked legs and the big attitude that stole my heart...a little more time to learn how to say goodbye..
Good Morning all!! So..wanted to share with you all my results from week 3 on the Herbalife products..yet another 1.98 lbs lost, along with another 2.5 inches. Am fitting in long walks before or after work in order to get my cardio in..have been a little worried about getting back into the whole running scene as I am still having a bit of discomfort from my foot surgery but will try a short distance slow run today and see what happens!! I have now completed my 1st course and will start Patho next week..ready for my brain to grow..flexing all of these muscles feels great!!
Okay..time to get this day started..load my water bottles and hit the pavement..wishing you all a great day!!
Hello everyone..sorry for the delay in writing..am back at my "German" job now which as with my "American" job..also requires me to be away from home..but lucky for me I was lead to a great little B&B that enables me to rent a room a month at a time and is located very close to the woods..see pics!! This lets me have a place to unwind and go for a walk after work to decompress a bit before hitting the books!!
The room is great and after unloading a car full of stuff I have settled in..note Herbalife products are also there and have been keeping my hunger at bay and energy level high while getting back into the routiene of the ER!!
I really like my new job, I have so very much to learn through with it being 100% auf Deutsch..there is a huge difference between conversational and medical german..just like in english..but every day..no every hour..I learn a little more and for the most part the people I work with are great, as are the patients..of course every basket has to have a bad apple and unfortunantly 1 of the other nurses has taken a strong disliking to me and works really hard to make my day harder than it already is and needs to be.. but since arriving here in Deutschland this will not be the first or the last time a female has been a little on the hateful side to me and I am sure it will not be the last..even though last time I checked we were all adults and no longer in high school..oder??
Unfortunantly for some of the people here, what they don't realize is that they can not run "the outsider" off..I have lived through far worse than rude comments and eye rolling and truth be told, it just makes me dig my heels in harder and become more determined...but enough of that...Life in general is good, not crazy about being away from home for weeks at a time but I am loving..and I mean loving actively taking care of patients again..being a nurse makes me feel alive and for me is such a calling from God..to work with other human beings on this level is an honor and a priviledge.
So..this is also the second to last day of my first course..as you can all see I have brought my office and study space withand I am ready to get going on the next one!!..Wishing you all a fabulous Thursday..be blessed and don't forget to share your smile!!
