Has it really been a week???

Wow, has it really been a week since I've updated this thing. I guess it really has been that long. Alas, I have good excuses, er I mean reasons. For one thing I'm quite busy with school. What? You say it was only the first week back. Yes, they still bombarded us with knowledge that will supposedly help is in our future. I've also been enjoying the time with friends considering I hadn't seen them in a week. Just got done with Shimmy-we had a short tuggie play session. Nothing complicated, just a simple, you tug on your tug-n-treat, you get cookies kind of thing. Cookies! That reminds me, I'm seriously bummed I won't be able to do Susan Garrett's Recallers 2.0 course. I just simple won't be able to afford this time around. However, I'm hoping it won't take her as long the second time around to bring out another one. The webinars we're still quite helpful and I think Shim and I will just continue to try and figure things out as best we can. On another note, a good friend I know through the dog world recently took in a shelter momma dog who is literally about to pop any day. Sadly the dog is heartworm positive and will need treatment. Puppy care will also become quite expensive as the xrays show a good 7-9 pups in the oven. A chip in fund has been sent up for this sweet girl now dubbed Snow. I would highly appreciate it if anyone could donate. Every dollar helps so don't hesitate! Click here to donate!!! Aside from that there isn't much else to report. Test on Friday, then on Thursday the week after, and 2 on Wednesday the week after that, along with a huge Biology Lab Project due not this week but next week Wednesday. Anyone want to come do it for us? Shimmy and I have taken to the lazy life. We're ready for summer...

Quote of the Day: "The bad news is time flies. The good news is you're the pilot." -Michael Althsuler

Birthday Weekend

This weekend was my birthday and our 3 day USDAA agility trial extravaganza. We had an absolutely amazing and kick-ass time! We got back in College Station on Thursday morning and set up at the trial site and helped out a bit. Then we headed to the grocery store because Shimmy and I were in need of some serious stocking up. We then headed back to the trial site to help out some more and then headed to dinner at the Hullabaloo Diner. The food was incredibly delicious. Dessert was of course the best-we had regular cheesecake and chocolate cheesecake-I died and went to heaven it was so good. The next morning we headed to the trial site and started our day.

Friday 3/18/11: Masters Gamblers-NQ Advanced Snooker-Q/1st (AS Title), Starters Standard-NQ/3rd, Steeplechase-NQ, and Masters Jumpers-NQ

Saturday 3/19:/11 Masters Jumpers-Q, Starters Pairs-NQ/3rd, Starters Standard-NQ/2nd, and Masters Gamblers-NQ

Sunday 3/20/11: Masters Gamblers-Q, Starters Standard-Q/1st, Advanced Snooker-Q/2nd, and Masters Jumpers-NQ

Overall we truly had a fantastic weekend. When we Qed we were in total sync and when we NQed it was just a little thing here or there. I am mostly very proud of her first 2 Masters Qs and the fact that her teeter performances vastly improved over the course of the weekend. She even got a teeter gamble, although we just didn't Q due to being half a second over time, same thing happened in jumpers today. She had a bunch of positive moments and great runs and I was so pleased with her this weekend. It was a great birthday with good people and an amazing dog! Shimmy also got worked on by Ken Bain and got herself some trigger point therapy. I think part of our success was those magic hands! Shimmy is currently out and snoozing away. She's had a long weekend and we had a great Spring Break, too! Sad to see that it's coming to an end, but I was glad that it happened and we got to do some awesome stuff. Now to finish these last couple of weeks of school. May 11th is the official last day so that's the goal we're keeping our eyes on right now. We're shooting for a great ending to the semester and some good times in between!

Quote of the Day: "Celebrate what you want to see more of. " -Tom Peters

Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo 2011

The rodeo comes to Houston every March, and for me, it's definitely a must-do during Spring Break. It's just not a break without the Rodeo. Andrea, my mom, and I had an absolutely awesome time. We did some shopping, watched some livestock being prepared for show, had some good food, walked around at the carnival, saw KISS in concert, then rode some stuff at the carnival and wrapped up watching a few horses being worked at the arena. We didn't get back until a little after midnight, hence the non blog post yesterday. I thought about writing a post last night/early this morning....and ended up crashing. It was so great to go though and I had the most amazing time. I can't wait to go next year. Though it was great seeing KISS I really want to go sometime to see someone I absolutely have to see, and get closer seats. Maybe next year. Aside from that the rodeo performances were great. There were several good riders and only one barrel racers horse slid down. Everyone was alright though, and no one got hurt, so that was definitely good news. This blog post will probably be more pictures than words, but Facebook will have more pictures. Here are just a few from our awesome day though...

Quote of the Day: "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." -Howard Thurman

Fun Times Ahead

Andrea's over for the night! Today was fairly uneventful but still good. Andrea came over around 4 after I watched some tv and had some cheesecake. We then played cards and headed to the dog park with the pups. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves again and all got baths as well. The picture of the day was that which is pictured here. Muddy paw prints all around. It poured rain this morning and the park was quite wet. After that we headed to Andrea's house to get her stuff, and then to Kroger to pick up dinner. It was awesome-as usual. We then played more cards with my mom and Debra. Now, we're just hanging out. Tomorrow I've got my doctor's appointment-ew (I hate doctors). I know, I know-ironic since I'll be one (granted it's different, I'll be a veterinarian). Regardless, I don't like doctor visits. However, I get to look forward to after wards because we're heading downtown for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo! It's a must do every year for me and I can't wait to go and have a good time. Good food, great things to see, awesome rodeo action, kick-ass music, and a fun carnival. Should be a great day! Aside from that there's nothing new to report. It'll be time to hit the sack semi soon. This time change is still messing with my mind a ton. At least it's during Spring Break, if not, I'd be hurting during classes.

Quote of the Day: "It's the game of life. Do I win or do I lose? One day they're gonna shut the game down. I gotta have as much fun and go around the board as many times as I can before it's my turn to leave. " -Tupac Shakur

Successful Morning

This morning Debra and I ushered mom to La Madeleine where she was surprised by several friends for her Birthday Breakfast. Her birthday isn't until tomorrow, but happy early birthday to my wonderful mommy. It was 16 of us - my mom, me, Alyson, Suzanne, Jenny and her 2 daughters, Letrice, Crystal, Judy, Anita, Debra, Penny, Kathy, Joy Lou, and Anna Lee. Needless to say, we all had a great time! The breakfast was delicious and the cake was awesome. Lots of cute cards and all. I'm glad I was able to give my mom a surprise "party". Debra and I did good. It was fun planning it and a huge thank you to all who came out. It was great. Now we're at home just relaxing. Planning on going to the rodeo with Evelyn on Monday or Tuesday. Should be fun. Aside from that going to go shopping in a little bit. Dog park later tonight-which is always fun. Also planning to get together with Ceci and Andrea. It's all still in the developments, but that's ok. Lots of plans for the next few days. I really am finding a lack of motivation to work on my Chemistry lab. We'll find some time to do that....whenever. I don't know haha. We don't care about Chemistry lab right now. We'll worry about that when the time comes to worry about it. For now, my brain is simply on Spring Break. :) The weather is gorgeous outside and I for one can't wait to go out and enjoy the day some more! Happy Saturday everyone!!!

Quote of the Day: "Your birthday is a special time to celebrate the gift of 'you' to the world." -Anonymous

Spring Break Time

Spring Break is officially here! So sad that I've got Chem lab to work on, but I'm free from all other duties that involve school so yay for that! I'm already missing my friends, however. History was boring as ever, Chemistry was bearable considering we all drew on each others notes again, and Biology was fun having a giraffe drawn on my leg. Emily was the artist and Dani and I were the subjects that were drawn on. Now, Shimmy and I are back in Houston and can't wait to get started with the fun. A good friend is coming back from her Peru vacation tomorrow so hopefully I'll be able to see her this week along with my good friend Andrea. Mom's birthday is on Sunday so that will call for some celebration and we're planning on hitting the horse races and the rodeo. Thursday morning it's back to College Station for 3 days of USDAA trialing over the birthday. Should be fun! Aside from that we're just relaxing at home right now. I'm loving being back and mommy made me my favorite dinner, or one of my favorites so my tummy is happy as well. Oh, how I do love being home for Spring Break. Shimmy is also quite pleased with herself considering she's upstairs snoozing away on the bed. We'll head to the dog park tomorrow to see our friends and just sleep in and relax. For those of you who have Spring Break at the moment, I hope you have an awesome time! Enjoy the week-the weather is supposed to be great!!!

Quote of the Day: "Light tomorrow with today." -Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Fun Times

So tonight Dani, Ginny, Jaycee, Emily (the birthday girl), and I all went to Olive Garden to celebrate. It was a good evening with lots of laughs and good times. It's always great for all five of us to hang out. It doesn't happen as often as it should considering our individually busy schedules. After wards we headed to Spoons to get some froyo. Good times continued and we ate lots of nummy bacteria to aid our digestion! Yay for probiotics. The picture pretty much says it all. Ginny took the picture due to having given up Spoons for lent. But, she still joined in to hang out which is always good! It was a great way to spend some time celebrating having finished our tests this week and getting ready to start a fabulous Spring Break. Tomorrow it's time to head to class and then come back to pack. Have I mentioned I have some of the best friends ever in college? These are some of the coolest people I've ever met, and I'm gonna miss the hell out of them during the break. Good day. Great evening. Awesome friends. Enough said. :)

Quote of the Day #2: "In good times and bad times, I'll be on your side forevermore...that's what friends are for." -Anonymous

Tomorrow's the Day!

Exactly 1 more day until Spring Break. At around this time tomorrow I will be on the bus headed home to pack for Spring Break. Psych test went alright today. Hopefully I did well. Had a great Sbisa lunch with Ginny and can't wait to hang out with her and Dani later. A big shout out to Emily Kirkpatrick who has a birthday today! Dinner at Olive Garden tonight to celebrate! 3 classes tomorrow, but they're all back to back so I'll be done in one chunk. Took Shimmy for a walk with Melanie and Major earlier which was fun. We went to Brother's Park and back around. We'll probably make another trip to the Park with Ginny later depending on the time. Aside from that there's actually nothing exciting going on. Kind of sad I guess. I don't really want this to be a short blog post though. I guess it'll have to be though. I'm sitting here and nothing is coming to my mind. I blame school. It's all school's fault I tell you. Spring Break-I can't wait. :)

Quote of the Day: "It is not length of life, but depth of life. " -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Burnt Out

Sorry for the lack of update the past 2 days. I've been a busy bee. Sunday I just had errands to run and came back to College Station and saw the friends I missed again. It was a good evening. Yesterday was busy as well. After class Dani, Ginny, and I headed to meet up with our Realtor to try and find a house. We looked at two properties that weren't too bad. We still want to look at the inside of one other house though. Depending on which places allow the animals we'll probably mostly go by that. We're excited though and can't wait to have an official new address soon! 3 more days until Spring Break which is totally awesome! I'm so excited for the break. I finished my History paper though it is too long. So, now I have to shorten it-sad day. Oh well. I'm starting to get burnt out though and am really looking forward to Friday. Biology test tomorrow and Psychology test on Thursday. Got out of Psych class early today though so that was a big plus. In the underground right now with Ginny just relaxing. Dani's heading over here later and we'll study some. Right now, I'm definitely enjoying my break time though. Got the Chem test back and got an 85 so that totally made my day yesterday! I for sure had thought I bombed that test. It was a really difficult one. Now, all I'm worried about is my Biology Practical grade. We'll see, I guess. Aside from that tomorrow is going to be crazy as usual, especially since we also have Pre-Vet Society. If I can get over the Wednesday hump though then Thursday and Friday should be smooth sailing for the most part. Excited to do a bunch of stuff during Spring Break. It's really starting to set in that I'll have 1 week of freedom! I will miss my wonderful friends, though. Hope everyone has a good Tuesday!

Quote of the Day: "You cannot hate other people without hating yourself." -Oprah Winfrey

Strutting with the Mutt

This morning was definitely not a pretty wake up call. Getting up at 6:30am is not my idea of a good time though after breakfast it was a bit easier. We got to the Airport early and just hung out with the dogs. The 2011 Mutt Strut the SPCA put on was pretty good. We got a few free samples and it was good to get out and walk with my girl. It was quite windy and cold however, so the activities were cut quite short. After wards we went to Bones2Go and picked up some raw meat and chews for Shimmy. She's all set for this coming week until we start out Spring Break. After the blog update we'll head out to PetSmart to visit Loving Arms. Haven't seen them in forever. Hopefully adoptions will go well today. Later we're headed to the dog park for some fun, so we might as well say, the day has gone to the dogs. And, I am ok with that. I'm glad Shimmy is getting some fun out of the weekend. Hanging out with Ariana tomorrow-MALL DAY! It's been a while since I've gone shopping at the mall. I do actually have things I need to purchase. Aside from that there's nothing huge or new to report. Although I had an early wake up, I'm loving being home again and I think Shimmy does, too! She's currently upstairs on the bed snoozing away. She won't be happy when she gets a bath later. Little Omelette Dog very much dirtied herself up at the Mutt Strut considering it was wet and there were puddles everywhere, but the dog park is going to be very muddy as well and that will definitely call for a Shimmy cleaning. Huge thanks again to everyone who participated in and raised money for the Mutt Strut. It was great to see so many people come out to support those animals that are in need. Definitely something we're doing again next year!

Quote of the Day: "Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened." -Anatole France

Heading to Houston

Exactly what the title says! Shimmy and I are heading to Houston tonight to visit the madre and participate in tomorrow's SPCA Mutt Strut to raise some awareness and help out animals in need. Hopefully we'll be able to make a trip or two to the dog park as well. I'm all packed and ready to go and did all the things I need to do around the house. Now, we're just waiting for the madre to get here. It's been a pretty good day so far. History was boring as always though at least we're talking about World War II which is my favorite part of History. The World Wars are awesome (not in the sense of haha a bunch of people died, but in the sense of how they developed and how they played out). Going to take home some of my homework to work on that this weekend. I'll most likely just study for the upcoming Biology test and Psychology test. I might start my History paper depending on if I get a reply from my Professor on clarifying his absolutely ridiculously strange instructions. I mean, come on, if you're gonna give out instructions at least make them clear, please and thank you. Some people... No pictures to post yet, haven't done anything too exciting. Well, after I got home I ran into a friend who was out jogging and she joined Shimmy and I on a short walk which was fun. Note to self, hang out with different people more often (though I absolutely love my regular group of awesome college friends). They make life fun. Hopefully the weather will be nice in Houston tomorrow. The weather in College Station is supposed to be quite icky tomorrow. Nonetheless, huge shout out to Dani Kutz who has her Quidditch Tournament tomorrow. Kick some ass girl! As happy as I am to go home to visit my mom, I'm going to miss my friends terribly even if it's just for the weekend. We hang out on a daily basis and I'm always so well distracted I don't miss home as much anymore. God only knows what I'll do without them this summer...winter break was hard enough. Guess we'll find out. Anyway, that's really all that's here to report. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Quote of the day: "The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned. " -Maya Angelou

Adventures of Brothers Pond Park

I absolutely love Brothers Pond Park. Shimmy and I now go there religiously and we are often joined by good friends including Ginny and Dani. Today, Ginny joined us and we had a great time. After a good day at class and a good lunch at Sbisa we headed back to the house and took Shimmy. We stayed out for a good 1 hour or so. Shimmy got to do lots of exploring in and around the woodsy areas and had a fabulous time. We also went to the Pond area twice and she waded in the water. She also got to do some staring at the ducks which were quite apprehensive considering Shimmy was ready to dash over and see what they were all about. We got back and gave her a bath, which she most certainly needed! Now we have a clean, exhausted, and very content little Omelette Dog. I'm currently just relaxing and enjoying not studying for a test right now. I have Bio on Wednesday and Psychology on Thursday and my two papers due Wednesday and Friday. However, after getting a second wind last night I ended up finishing my Chemistry Technical Abstract from 12:00am-12:45am. Not the brightest time to do it, but it actually went quick and well. I'll probably do my History paper tonight or tomorrow and worrying about studying for the weekend. I finally get to go home again! Mutt Strut this weekend which should be a ton of fun and then hanging out with a good old friend from Middle School who I only see every now and then considering she now goes to LSU. Looking forward to a good weekend, a good last week of school before Spring Break, and an amazing Spring Break of course! :)

Quote of the Day: "Today was good. Today was fun. Tomorrow is another one." -Dr. Seuss

Today's Discoveries...

Pretty good day today. Had a nice chat with my Psych prof and a good lunch with Dani and Ginny. I got home and decided it's such a pretty day outside, why not take Shimmer out, but instead of walking, add some jogging. As predicted, Shimmer decided jogging wasn't good enough, she wanted to run, though she was good about me telling her, um dude, there's no way we're going for a full out run here. So we jogged on and off, our regular route, down Ponderosa, through the Brother's Pond Park trail, past the Pond, back up Deacon, and down Adrienne back home. Cutest thing ever-as we stopped by the pond, some ducks came waddling out of the bushes one after the other quacking away. Sadly, I didn't bring my phone or I would have a picture to insert here. However, I do not. Note to self-I am way more out of shape than I thought I was, but despite being exhausted after getting back I feel good now. Our goal? To try and incorporate more and more jogging into our walks so that maybe someday soon we'll be able to go for jogs not walks. Shimmy is now very tired, super happy, and has taken residence in her kennel. I'll probably go ahead and start the studying in a few. I really don't want to, but let's get tomorrow over with as soon as possible! At least now that my dog is pooped I'll be able to study in peace and quiet.

Quote of the Day: "A tired dog is a happy dog." -Anonymous