BACK TO MY BLOG

 I haven't posted on my blog for over a year.  It has now taken me several hours just to figure out how to get back into it.  I finally figured out that I used a different email than my gmail account.  Whew....I must be getting too old for this!  haha

I'll try to post something soon.

Plantation Shutters

I’ve thought for quite some time that I’d like to have Plantation Shutters in the house.  There were several reasons I hadn’t gotten them.  One of the primary reasons was that you had to decide how you wanted them mounted.  You could get the outside mount which allows you to use the windows tilt in feature for cleaning or you could mount inside the frame which according to the websites would keep you from using the tilt in feature.  I finally got Randy involved and he said that we could just take pins out of the hinges to remove them so I could still tilt them in to clean.  And in reality, I don’t clean them that often.

After Randy carefully measured 3 of our windows I ordered them back the first part of June.  They said they wouldn’t be shipped until July 23rd.  I was surprised last week when I got an email saying they’d be delivered today.

During a bad thunderstorm this morning I got a text saying they had been delivered.  I called Randy (he was at Habitat) and he said he’d run home and get them inside.  I was worried about Charlie since the thunder was so loud and it was the longest he had been left at home alone.  I had been debating whether I should come home and check on him.  So I guess the thunderstorm and delivery came at the right time so there was an excuse for someone to come home other than to ‘check on the puppy!’  

Evidently he was doing fine and the shutters got taken in out of the rain.

Randy got the first set put up in the bonus room.  I think I’m gonna like them!

We got the hidden tilt and had a center rail put in so we could just open the top or the bottom.

He still has two pair to put up in our bedroom.

I will probably go ahead and order shutters for the other bedrooms and the garage.

We never shut the blinds in the living room or dining room so I don’t plan on getting them for those rooms since they’re so pricey.

Charlie - Day 3 - First Sunday

Today was the first day that we left Charlie home alone.  He had a visitor while we were gone to church.  Holly said he sure did cry a lot!  He’s been rather whiny since we brought him home, but after we got home he did much better.  I guess he was glad to see that we’d return after leaving him.
We’ve also had some issues of him not using his pee pad, but I realized that I had given him too much   freedom in the kitchen so I’ve taken away some of his space and he’s doing much better.
He’s doing so much better with the whining and crying when we put him in his pen.  I’m glad since tomorrow I have to go to work.  I’m not looking forward to leaving him, but I must.
I gave him a little bath today to try to help with his dander  that it seems I’m allergic to.  So far, so good today.  Hopefully I’ll be able to manage it with keeping him bathed and allergy medication.
I’ve been playing him a video that the breeder made of his litter.  It’s funny, he’ll nose my phone and then I’ll play it for him.  It’s fun to watch him watch it.  Sometimes he puts his nose on my phone when it’s playing.  He seems to like watching it.  I also play the one of Jacks barking for him.

Charlie, Day 2

Taking care of a puppy is much like caring for a new baby.  They take up ALL of your time.  Lol. And watching them sleep makes you want to sleep also!  On Saturdays Randy always cooks breakfast and I usually sleep in a few extra minutes.  Today we got up together.  He hit the shower and I tended to the puppy.  I’ve decided not to try to take him out to potty just yet.  He’s doing pretty good with his pee pad so we will just go with that for now.  I got his breakfast fed while Randy was cooking.  Our new rule for this puppy is that he stays in his pen while we are eating and no food is ever going to be given to him off of the table.  He cried..... I’m sure he will eventually learn this rule.  And I’m learning it myself.  It’s not always easy,  bu I want thIs to be how we handle people food.

He doesn’t seem to care for his dry dog food yet and the breeder told me the puppies liked puppy mousse so Charlie and I took off for Pet Smart this morning and bought him some different food.  I’ll let him have it a few days and then try to mix some kibble in with it.  He’s had a lot of changes already so if I can keep his food the same I will.  He did pretty good in his carrier in the car.  Cried a little but did settle down.  

He finally decided he wanted to sleep in my lap but I really didn’t think that was a good idea since I’ve got to go to work on Monday.  So.....I got in his pen and patted on him until he went to sleep....then Randy came home from Habitat and woke him up!  Oh well, it’s a start to helping him be independent.

A couple of times he’s been shaking and to calm him down I play a video that the breeder posted of Charlie and his brothers and sisters.  It seems to help.

He’s finishing up that nap he started earlier.  We’re upstairs and he’s in his canvas crate right beside me.

Just got a text that my new kitchen scale was just delivered.  Mine only went to 16 oz. and the breeder wanted me to watch his weight for a while.  He was 32 oz on Thursday.  I hope he’s eating enough to sustain his weight. From what I’ve read he should be slowing down on gaining weight at this point and the average for his adult weight would be 3 times his 8 week weight.  So maybe 6 pounds.  But that doesn’t always hold true.

According to my new scale Charlie isn’t quite 2 lbs.  Probably just not that accurate.  I’m not going to worry about it right now.  He seemed to eat pretty good today.
During supper Charlie laid down in his pen and was quiet while we ate....yea,  Charlie!  You are learning.
After supper he had a nap then played pretty hard.  He’s back asleep now next to me upstairs.
Hopefully tonight will go a little better than last night.
Love ya, Charlie!

Charlie is home!

Yesterday we went to Portland, TN and picked up our precious little Charlie.  It’s been a little crazy around here ever since!
We had his area all fixed up for him.  A crate to sleep in, a pee pad to pee & poop on, his little bowls for water and food.  Then a larger pen around everything else.
He was asleep in his carry on bag when we got home and he continued to sleep in it for an hour after we got home.  When he woke up I showed him his pee pad and he used it,  Yea, Charlie!  We played some, then he ate some lunch and went back to his pee pad to poop.  He was on the pad but the poop fell off the side.  But he definitely tried!  Yea, Charlie!
He doesn’t care for his new crate at all.  So I’ve removed it from his pen for now.  I’m leaving the pad so he’ll have something soft in there.  He won’t go to sleep while I’m holding him and he doesn’t care for going in his pen when the gate is closed.  This is a problem!  What I’ve found is that I can take his canvas carrier upstairs and put him in it on my chaise lounge, right beside me and he doesn’t mind being in it and will fall right off to sleep.  Sometimes we just stay upstairs,  other times I close it up,  carry him downstairs and set the whole carrier into his pen and open the carrier so he can get out to potty when he wakes up.
Last night when we put him to bed in his pen I still had his metal crate in there.  He whined and cried and yelped for about 20 minutes.  I didn’t hear him again until after 3am.  He was really upset and I was worried his sugar might get low so I got up to give him some of the syrup they had given us to give him if that happened.  He had closed the door to his crate and couldn’t get in so he was on the cold floor.  He cried for 30 minutes in my arms.  I couldn’t get him calmed down.  Finally I brought him upstairs and put him in the carrier next to me and he fell asleep.  I took it down and put it in his pen and went back to bed.
When the alarm went off this morning, all was quiet out in the kitchen.  When I got to him I noticed that at some time he had gotten up and pooped on his pee pad.  Yea, Charlie!  I was surprised since he had been so upset.
And that was the way we spent Charlie’s first day and night with us.
Hoping for less crying tonight!

Puppies, Puppies, Puppies

I’ve wanted a puppy ever since we lost Toby in April of 2013.  I had just retired January 1, 2013.  Then  I thought if we didn’t have a dog we might travel.  I’m kind of slow....it’s  taken me this long to realize that we weren’t  going travel (except for a few trips to the gulf coast).  We’ve sold our cabin and gone back to camping where every other camper has at least one dog.  I always loved using Toby as an excuse to take a walk in the campground.
I went back to work part time in September of 2014.  I decided at that point that it wasn’t fair to get a puppy and leave him home alone while I worked.  Then a couple of weeks ago I had an epiphany!  If I got 2 dogs they could keep each other company while I worked!    Randy agreed to take them out to potty when he comes home for lunch so they won’t be alone too long.
I found a breeder in Portland, TN.  I watched her videos on Facebook and was smitten with her Yorkies!
We went down and saw the puppies and there was no doubt that I wanted them.  As it turns out one of the puppies was born on Memorial Day, the last one available in that litter.  His mother is P.J. and his dad is Fritz.  The other was born 2 weeks later.  They can’t come home until they are 8 weeks old and 32 oz.  so I will get Charlie first, then two weeks later we’ll get Jacks.
The day I picked them out I had already decided on Charlie’s name,  but when it came to Jacks I wasn’t prepared.  Then the breeder told me that his daddy’s name was Jackson and his mama is Emma.  I made a quick decision right then to name him Jacks for both of our daddies.  I’m not sure what my dad would think of their names,  but it’s keeping his name, Charles Jackson, alive in my puppies.  I really don’t think he’d mind.
I’m sure there will be lots of posts in the future about the puppies.  If things go as planned I’ll get Charlie on Friday and then Jacks two weeks later.

Charlie & siblings