At our house lately: Flu, last weeks of pregnancy, and new additions

First off, we've had the flu. Well, at least Owen has. I've had something with slightly different symptoms that could be the flu (the child does sneeze right in my face) or could be an upper respiratory infection. Who knows? Owen was out of daycare for nearly a week. I canceled classes one day and spent my non-class days at home with her--not getting much work done, nor really getting much rest. Now my Dad has some sort of either sinus or respiratory infection. I'm not sure if he took whatever I had or if his are allergies but he's pretty miserable. Yuck yuck yuck. So far Paul has escaped.

Of course after Owen was diagnosed (they did the swab test, even) I came home immediately to call my doctor to see what effects the flu has in late pregnancy. They seemed to poo-poo it. Hopefully everything will be fine.

We are scheduled with our C-section at the end of Feb, so I am HUGE. My friend Laura wants me to post a photo of my belly but, I just don't think so. I actually waddle now. Luckily this time my feet aren't seven sizes bigger from swelling as they were with Owen. This baby seems to enjoy pressing her whole weight into my bladder at inopportune times (such as when I'm standing in front of a class lecturing) and doing flip flops every night as I try to get some sleep.

All-in-all, though, I must confess I like being pregnant. I feel pretty good in pregnancy. Paul, bless him, says I am beautiful, but that's because he loves me.

We do have two new additions to our household, as if we needed more on our plates. Two hound dogs showed up New Year's Day and have decided they like us and will hang around. I'm sure the facts that we put our large dog crate on the porch with some blankets and we feed them daily and we give them bones to chew has nothing to do with their desire to linger. I finally broke down and took them to the vet this week. They now have collars, shots, heart worm pill and a clean bill of health. The vet says they are about 8-9 months old, just puppies, really. One is what's called a Treeing Walker 'coon hound, which you can read about here. The other is likely a Black and Tan 'coon hound mixed with something else. Hounds are popular around here among hunters, largely bear hunters, who keep packs of them in small outdoor pens with tipped-over barrels for houses. My neighbor across the field has some. Maybe these came from his group. Maybe they were dumped for not being good hunters or not being pure or simply being two too many in a litter. Who knows? No one seems to be looking very hard for them, at least.

We've named the Treeing Walker (a girl) Daisy and the Black and Tan (a boy) Homer. They're sweet sweet sweet. But they can't stay. No really. They can't.

They can't.

I do have a new baby coming soon. And a toddler. And don't forget my ten-year-old Jack Russell Terrier, Paco (who is offended at their very presence). And a job. And other obligations. Did I mention how sweet they are? No. Can't keep them.

For one, they're eating my house. Literally. They chew the corners of the cabin. They're puppies after all. Oh, and they're hounds...which means the need lots of exercise (not too much of a problem at our house) and they have a deep, sweet bark, most of the time in the middle of the night.

Hey, maybe you'd like to take them? Did I mention how sweet they are?

Side note: I would upload photos of them but I am cursed with freakin' dial up and seem to have trouble with photos. I'll try to do it from my office later, so check back.

Comments

[Alissa]

I'm so glad you're enjoying being pregnant. That always makes me so happy to hear. I was so miserable by the point you're at now that nothing made me happy!

Your new puppies sound sweet. We had a dog that chewed on our house, too (cedar siding) but he stopped after a few months. It did help to paint jalapeno pepper hot sauce on some of the favorite chewy areas--once he tasted the burn the house was less attractive. Do you really think you'll be able to give them away after all this time?

[Laura B. Fogle]

I can't wait to see the puppy pictures - no I am not ready for another dog, though far less stretched (no pun intended) than you are right now. And I am still waiting for belly pictures. : )I was all dressed up for a dinner with Mike's coworkers on Friday night when Maggie came by and patted my tummy. "You look like your going to have a baby." Thanks, kid! I did a quick adjustment of my pants and sweater and made a mental note to burn the pants the next day. No, we don't have news other than me needing to do some situps. Maybe posting my own belly pictures would be motivation.
Laura

[Sara Short]

Hi,
I found your blog after you once visited mine, Speaking of Simplicity. Thanks for visiting and I wanted to let you know I think your blog is lovely. Hope you keep it up even after the new baby is here.
Best of Luck,
Sara