My sweet baby girl...

Here are a few pics of my sweet baby girl!

Meredith just LOVES to cuddle!

There are some nights that she just isnt content unless she is right next to me...

How sweet!

...and she got settled down and started to drift off

... and she's out!

What I'm loving Wednesday!

Another link up with Jamie over at This Kind of Love!

~ I am LOVING my internship and how well its going.

~ I am LOVING my students and how they make me smile every single day.

~ I am LOVING that I had a restful weekend this weekend.

~ I am LOVING that I am coming up with some great ideas for lesson plans.

~ I am LOVING that I am approximately 133 days away from a Master's Degree in Teaching.

~ I am LOVING that my gym has recently expanded and they have some really awesome new equipment.

~ I am LOVING my family and friends.

and as always,

~ I am LOVING my sweet dog Mere (who has a vet appointment today!)

Project 52: Ennui

Tonight I saw the perfect opportunity to complete my project 52 photo for this week. Meredith was lounging in the living room floor next to her friend Holly, but she just looked so bored! She would much rather be outside frolicking around but its pitch black outside! Without further ado...

See list of topics here

Next week's topic: red

One Year Anniversary

Today is me and Mere's one year anniversary! One year ago today my sweet puppy came into my life. Some days it feels like it was just yesterday, but other days feel like it has been forever since I have had her. In fact, I can't remember the last time that I woke up without her paws propped up on my chest, tongue licking arm, face, neck, or whatever she can reach.

So in honor of our one year anniversary (ok, I may be lame, but bear with me), I thought I would write about all of the things that I LOVE about my dog. She really is like my child at this point in my life, giving me unconditional love and companionship. She actually got me through a pretty tough time in my life when I had all but given up on my dreams of being a teacher and hope of doing anything productive in my life. She was there with me through a rough break up. She was there with me through the transition from college to back home to grad school, and she will continue to be there for me for many years to come.

~ I love how excited she gets when I come home (with like her entire body shaking as her tail wags back and forth)

~ I love her sweet puppy kisses (she will always be a puppy to me!)

~ I love how she curls up into a ball to go to sleep

~ I love how she wakes me up in the morning, by pouncing and licking me until I wake up

~ I love how I can depend on her to really wake me up in the morning when the alarm on my phone isnt enough incentive!

~ I love how she brings out every.single.one of her toys when she wants to play with me. It's like she cant decide what she wants to play with and is so excited that its all just too much!

~ I love how gentle she is with kiddos

~ I love how playful and fiesty she is

~ I love how sociable she is with other dogs and humans

~ I love how everyone falls in love with her and think that I have a super awesome dog!

~ I love how eager she is to go for walks with me

~ I love how she makes sure that I go to bed on time, and if I don't she will nag me until I do. She knows when it is bedtime!

~ I love how good of a cuddler she is

~ I love all of her weird mannerisms

~ I love that she has a pretty sit and a regular sit. Her pretty sit is for when she is trying to get something out of me!

I'm pretty sure there are more, but that would just be overkill haha. So, I promise I will stop now and leave you with this fierce looking (crappy phone) picture of Meredith playing with her friend Maggie. I promise Meredith isn't really a killer dog...

Weekend recap

This weekend I went to Raleigh to relax, visit friends, and have a little bit of a change of pace. I was completely lame and didnt take any pictures. I seriously need to work on the whole picture-taking thing.

Friday I drove up to Raleigh with Mere Bear in tow. I met my friend Amanda at her apartment and we went out to dinner at the Village Draft House. I had this delicious portobello pita with sauteed peppers and onions- it was sooo good! Later that night we went out to meet some friends from high school that were in the area and we went out to a couple of different places.

Amanda had to work for most of the day on Saturday so I lounged around for the day, took Mere to the dog park, and just enjoyed having the day off. Meredith used to LOVE going to the dog park, but I guess she has gotten quite used to being Queen B around the house (being the youngest of the dogs that hang around) and wasn't so sure about the dog park at first. I guess since it has been like 8 months since she has had that interaction with THAT many dogs, but she warmed up to it eventually. I think I am going to have to research doggy daycares and take her like once a month or so to doggy day care to get used to being around other animals that DONT live in our house.

Anyways, Saturday night we hung out with my old roommate Katy and watched the movie "Grown Ups." Sunday was pretty laid back and I left mid-afternoon to take Mere back to the dog park and then drive home. I know it doesnt SOUND like a fabulous weekend but I think it was just what the doctor ordered!

Mere's Snow Day

Just thought that I would share some pictures from Mere's snow day a couple of weeks ago. I thought that I had already posted these pictures, but I guess not! Meredith is a strange, strange dog, she doesn't like to get wet and yet she loves the snow!!!

This is my favorite shot of her. I love the snow on her nose, she is just too cute!

A very fishy tale

Look at that face. Cute, right? Well don't let her fool you!

A few days ago my Grandma let her dog Holly out for a little while and Holly came back smelling like fish. She smelled TERRIBLE! Holly is a pretty old dog and doesnt stray very far from the house, but we do live on the river so it isnt SO far fetched for one of the dogs coming back smelling a little fishy. However, Holly smelled like she took a nice long soak in a tub of flounder. Needless to say, Holly got booted out to the garage for the rest of the evening/night. After being in the garage for less than 30 minutes, she had the entire garage REEKING from her scent. She got a rinse-free shampoo bath the next day to get rid of the scent. One thing about Holly is that she has a LOT of hair and despite my Grandma's best efforts, Holly still smelled fishy and nasty. I was just glad that Meredith didn't find the fish and roll around in it...

.....until yesterday.

That's right. I came home and my Grandma told me that she had found what Holly had gotten into and it was a wrapped up piece of fish, like it belonged in someone's freezer. Odd. A little while later I let Meredith out and she came back smelling like fish! What in the world? Her doggy spray couldnt mask the odor, the rinse-free shampoo couldnt mask it, nothing works! I know this makes me sound like a really bad dog mom, and believe me I am not, but I even tried febreeze on her!!! It is THAT bad. After febreeze I finally doused her in some of my good perfume and that covered it enough to where I could stand her to sleep in my room last night, but I still smell it on her when I go to pet her or snuggle up to her and that just isnt going to fly. She even spent time out in the outside kennel today, I was hoping she would like air out or something, to no avail.

Has anyone else had to get a really smelly dog smelling fresh again? What did you do? I'm desperate!!!!

Oh, and apparently my Aunt found some frozen peas in our back yard yesterday so we think our dogs are getting into some mischief over at someone else's house. Yikes!

Crazy Life

Life has been rather crazy lately. I dont even know where to begin to update things! School is wrapping up: I had my last class of the semester this week and I am currently working on getting my finals in order and sent off to the appropriate professors. So far I have completely finished with 2 of my five classes. Hopefully by the end of today I can say that I have finished with three, but by Tuesday of next week everything should be done and submitted. I have a (researched) short story to write for my Children's Lit class that has to be on some cultural custom, I have a writing portfolio, and a unit plan due. I have most of my unit plan done, but I have to put finishing touches on it and make some of the worksheets, etc and then upload it all to my wikispace (more about that later). I have 2/3 of my writing portfolio pieces finished (I think), so I need to edit the last piece and make my letter to the reader for that final. And for my short story, well I have researched. I have researched, but I havent read any of that research and I havent even begun to write the story so this final will be my most time consuming, and the one that is due first of course!

Meredith is doing great. She is completely spoiled, but I am ok with that. I bought her a cute doggy coat for cold/rainy weather for Christmas from Land's End. I also want to get her a big rawhide and some new treats and a toy or something. Yes, I know, I know. I still have several people to shop for, but I cant even begin to think about that until finals are over. I also have Christmas cards to write, and I think I want to send out a picture of me with Mere Bear, but that will have to wait too. I need to update some of the people who helped me through Meredith and into this MAT program on my life, but again, it will have to wait.

My birthday is coming up. The big 22. woo. I cant wait.

Last week, I hit a deer with my car. My poor car is totaled. The poor deer is dead. I will upload pics of that at a later date.

So basically, thats my life in a nutshell at this point in time. I am busy currently car shopping and working on finishing up my finals. I have some babysitting jobs lined up for December- yay money. I also have some projects in mind for the break so I am sure I will update more often over my time off with what I am doing. I also plan on reading a lot of books because I miss reading for the joy of reading- so expect some book reviews! As for now, it's back to the grind!

Just because she is so darn cute...

Mere Bear taking care of Old Holly Berry.

Jon Jon sharing his toys with Meredith- how cute :)

Meredith enjoying her new puppy from PetSmart after Mommy was told that Meredith was the BEST dog they had ever had for a nail trimming/grinding.

Labor Day and Couch to 5k: Week 4, Day 3

What an absolutely BEAUTIFUL day it has been! Actually, its been a pretty wonderful weekend all around to be honest. I didn't go to class on Thursday night because I was afraid of the "hurricane," what a laugh! It barely did anything and now I kind of feel bad for not going to class, but since I had an hour plus to drive each way, I suppose that it is always better to be safe than sorry (as the saying goes).

Friday, I spent the day running errands. I watched Jon in the morning, then I went to the DMV (oh the horror!) with my Dad so we could get my car in my name (yay Graduation present!). The trip to the DMV led to the need to go and get my car inspected and another trip the DMV because they wouldn't give me a license plate because I didn't have a current (read, within the last 90 days) inspection on the car and there was NO WAY that I was driving around all of labor day weekend with no license plate on my car. I got stopped literally within 5 minutes of leaving the DMV the first time. No joke. I also managed to squeeze some time in to get to footlocker and get some sweet new running shoes. They are Brooks, if that means anything? That night I watched Where the Red Fern Grows with my grandparents. Meredith watched it with us. so.stinkin.cute! She actually WATCHED the movie and was cocking her head from side to side when the dogs were barking.

Saturday I spent the day helping Cassandra move to her new house (adorable, btw!) and Meredith had a play date with Penny. She was pretty wore out when we got home and basically went to bed soon after we got home. Sunday I got a lot accomplished. I worked in the morning at a church nursery and then I came home and cleaned my room! I have been trying to figure out what to do with the 20+ books that I have for this semester so I had to do some re-arranging on my bookshelves. I also rearranged my desk, did a ton of laundry, and cleaned the sheets on my bed. Whew!

Today was gorgeous weather. Uncle Dave made breakfast and I spent a good chunk of the morning outside doing some homework. Mere and I took a lovely nap this afternoon and then completed Couch to 5k: Week 4, Day 3.

The run went surprisingly well. It was the inauguration of my new running shoes, which I could immediately tell a difference with. My shins were not the least bit sore today and my calves only tightened up towards the end. Meredith was a much better running partner today than she has been in the past, with the exception of the need to run after cars that pass us and nearly getting hit by cars. I actually had a much better pace today and I think that I did about three miles overall from warm up to cool down. I hope that I keep improving and sticking with this. It has taken me much longer than it should have as I haven't been very consistent with it. I should be within 2 weeks of finishing it by now and I actually have 5 left now. I think the running shoes will help and I think I need to set a consistent time to get up on those days of the week to do it.

Couch to 5k: Week 4, Day 2

Even though it looked like the sky was about to fall out on me this morning, I went for my run today. I took Meredith with me because she gets so darn excited when I get her leash out, it really is very hard to resist. I mean here she is, bouncing all around like a mexican jumping bean, and who am I to deny that kind of excitement? Today's run was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. Now don't get me wrong, I am not saying that it was easy by any stretch of the imagination, but I didn't have as hard of a time with it as I had anticipated after not running for a week and a half. I only had to stop during my run once, and that was due to Meredith, not because of my inability to run for that long. I think what I am going to have to do is really start walking/running every day and taking Meredith on my non-C25k times, because when I am trying to meet certain goals, I need to be able to do them without the added annoyance of trying to keep her out from under my feet.

The one thing that I really did notice today is that I desperately need new running shoes and that is my top priority this weekend. The inside padding in my shoes has been rubbed away and I have rubbed the side of one of my toes raw (even though I was wearing socks... odd). I also think I need to get at least one more sports bra and a couple of pairs of running pants/shorts that are meant for running so I am not worried about my shorts riding up all the time.

In other news, you can definitely tell that hurricane Earl is making his way in. The river is super choppy, the winds are picking up, and the clouds look like they will pour down any minute! Stay safe!

A bad blogger...

I admit it, I have been a bad blogger lately. Grad school started back up again last Tuesday and so I have been trying to get back into the school mentality. I am really uncertain as to how exactly this semester is going to play out. I have one teacher two nights a week, and so far I like him one night of the week and not so much the other night. Weird? Definitely. Well, not so much as one night I am in a class full of undergrads because it is an undergrad/grad class (really an undergrad class that is cross-referenced as a grad-level) and it is amazing to me the stark difference that I notice in undergrad vs grad students. I don't know if it is because I went to Meredith and people generally weren't this rude or what it is but it is so annoying! I was sitting in class last night and it was so obvious, people were texting, spacing out, and just generally being rude. However, on the other night that I have him, I am in a class of my 5 fellow English MAT-ers and one random person and it is much, MUCH better! The other class that I actually have to go into campus for I am going to wait one more week until I make my decision about it. I found it very hard to sit through on Monday night, but he said that class was going to be different for the rest of the semester, so we shall see!

Other than school, I have just been working with Meredith on staying in the yard. This will be quite a long process I can already tell. She does really well if I am outside with her and tell her to stop and come back, but if I am not there, she just takes off! I have admittedly been a bad runner and really, REALLY need to get back on track with this whole couch to 5k thing. I did take Meredith for a two mile walk today, but I need to get back to my running schedule!

More updates to come, I have homework I need to get done and should be working on that instead of blogging!

We still have some training to do yet

Meredith ran off tonight. Now this isn't an unusual occurrence, Meredith frequently uses her free time outside to go "explore," but she usually comes when I call her, even if it takes a few minutes. Tonight she didn't come back for a pretty long time. I got nervous because it was starting to get dark out and I drove around the neighborhood calling her to no avail. I was about to turn around to go home, thinking to myself "she couldn't possibly have gone out this far..." only to find out that she had indeed gone that far. A family that lives about half a mile up the road had found her outside and brought her into her back yard. So I am upset because she was obviously too far away from the house, but at the same time, there was no way that she could come when I called her because she was fenced in. Now don't get me wrong, I am grateful that they found her and I can only hope that they brought her in with their best intentions of keeping her safe (after all, they did feed her dinner), but at the same time, there was no way that she could get home. I thanked the family for taking care of her and brought her back home, but we need to find a solution to this issue pretty darn quick. I love this dog too much to let her get taken, hit by a car, abused in some way, or caught by a dog catcher because she got in the wrong person's yard.

Couch to 5k- Week3: Day 3

This morning I did actually make myself get up and run! It was hot, and very humid, but I did it. I felt bad because it really seemed like Meredith wanted to go with me, so I did bring her along, but I don't think she will be joining any more of my future C25k runs. She is just so darn curious about everything around her, and I love that, but I don't love having to jerk her away from whatever it is she is exploring so that I can keep going. I am doing this program for me, and I need to be able to do it to where I am satisfied with myself and the progress that I have made. In all honesty, she just slows me down and is more of a burden. What I really need to do is take up our long 2-3 mile walks again and let her explore during that time. I know I said I was going to do this, but I have yet to do so.

I decided after this morning's run that I am going to do the week 3 schedule tomorrow and Friday and start week 4 on Saturday. I need to get more comfortable with these 3 minute runs before I attempt to tackle two 5 minute runs (in addition to two 3 minute runs). So keep me accountable, expect updates about things both tomorrow and Friday for a continuation of week 3 and then on Saturday for the beginning of week 4.

On the bright side, I will be getting new running shoes soon! I want the Reebok Runtones. I have been eying the Reebok easytones, but I don't really wear sneakers around everyday, so I think the runtones will be nice to have :)

Couch to 5k- Week 2: Day 3

Today I ran week 2 day 3 and I can't say that I am happy with it. I ended up walking half of running interval 5 and some of my other runs were rather pathetic. I decided to go ahead and re-do w2d3 on Friday and take the weekend off of running. One thing that I do love about this program is the flexibility of it. I like that I can feel like I should go ahead and re-do a day and not feel bad about doing so. Afterall, it is all about living a healthier lifestyle. I don't want to over do it, and I definitely don't want to go into week 3 unprepared!

Unfortunately, I think when I do re-do w2d3 on Friday, Meredith will not be joining me. I love having my dog on my runs with me but today she was a real hindrance to me from the start. On my very first run of the day she just stopped dead in her tracks right in front of me! I almost tripped over her (and that definitely wouldn't have been a pretty site). Now I am not saying that she won't join me on any of my future runs, I just think I am going to take a day off of the dog company.

Happy Birthday Meredith!

My baby has turned one.

The vet estimated her at 28 weeks when I first got her back in February and so I just picked a random date to celebrate her birthday.

Yesterday, I baked her Peanut Butter Dog Biscuits, bought her a nice big bone to chew on, and baked cupcakes. The peanut butter dog biscuits seemed to be a hit, although I wish they had been crunchier. They turned out more like cookies and the crumbled all over the place when she ate her first one. I think at some point I will try a different recipe and see if I can get something a little crunchier for her.

Just a few pics of Meredith enjoying her bone :)

It's amazing what you can accomplish

It's amazing what you can accomplish when you don't have all that pesky school work getting in the way! Last night I enjoyed making dinner (taco salad) for the Coles and also baking an apple pie.

This morning I have already done so much and I even slept in later than I normally do!

I vacuumed the living room and my room (as the dog hair is extremely pesky), watered the plants, taken care of the dogs, folded and put away three loads of laundry, picked up a little around my room, unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, and baked Meredith birthday cupcakes :)

I do still have to go to Greenville a little later on today to sell back some books and reflect on my stimulated teaching experience (which went well, I don't remember if I have updated on this yet?).

Tonight the family is coming over for homemade pizza! I also am baking Meredith some puppy biscuits later for her birthday. Yes, my dog is spoiled :)

Couch to 5k- Week 1:Day 2

So I just completed day 2 of the couch to 5k day and I feel great! My "brisk" walks were a little brisk-ier and I could definitely tell that it was easier to get through those 60 second runs.

I did have the added challenge today of keeping two unleashed dogs (one of which was my own) from getting run over. Last run, Molly (the neighbor's dog) and Maggie (my Aunt's dog) followed me but they kept out of the road for the most part. Tonight, Meredith was out playing in the yard and I was hoping to sneak away unnoticed, and I failed miserably. When I was just far enough away from the house that it was too late to turn back, I hear her barking and running after me and with her came Molly. I am not too terribly fond of Molly, but I still don't want to see her get hurt. It was because of these two mischief makers that I inadvertently missed one of my running sections :( But I think I more than made up with it in my progress with the other running sections. In run 7 I really found my stride and was going at it pretty good :)

After my last run, my calf muscles have been pretty sore and I have a sore on my right side of my stomach, but I figure that they will work themselves out with time. I can already feel the pain in my calves returning. I should probably buy some muscle rub :)

Overall, I am proud of my progress and hope it continues!

New Collar

Meredith will soon be sporting this new beauty

because she won the friend of Fiona photo contest a few weeks ago. Such a cute collar for her to wear in the fall!

new collar

So Meredith Grace recently got a new collar. She officially broke her first one (which was a cheap dollar store collar that I got when I unexpectedly got her back in February) one day while she was tied out at my parents house. I bought her a new one that was quite a bit more hefty than the first one in hopes that it would last, but alas, the same thing happened when my sister was watching her while I was at Katy's wedding.

** just a side note, I really dont like to tie Meredith Grace up. At my parent's house, our house is really close to a very busy road and Meredith is unfamiliar with the area and is still very much a curious puppy. I have to respect my parent's wishes of not allowing her in the house and since there is no decent size dog kennel, she has to get tied up. If it were my decision, Meredith would be a basically indoor dog with the exception of exercising her and that is the way that it was at my apartment. At my Grandparent's house she is allowed inside if she stays in her crate or on her bed, but they have a kennel and a pretty secluded neighborhood that Meredith is getting more and more used to so I like to let her run loose some while we are here. (That was possibly TOO much information, but some people have very strong opinions about tying dogs to a stake or tree)

I wanted a collar that was both cute and functional because her last collar got so nasty looking so quickly. I wanted a fabric that would resist getting dirty to a certain degree (because let's face it, my dog likes to get down and dirty) but that would be washable as well. I ALSO needed something that was adjustable and could fit snug to her neck (she is an odd size and the standard store mediums are too small while the larges are too big for her). There have been a few occasions where Meredith's collar has come off right over her head and that is never a good feeling.

After thinking all of this through (who knew that there was so much thought put into a dog collar?), I decided to go custom. My Aunt has talked up an etsy shop called Lucky Fiona (found here) and I checked them out. They were running a special where I could buy one collar and get the second one for .50 cents so I decided to go for it! Without further ado, here is the photo collage I made of Meredith sporting her new collar to send to Lucky Fiona to show her how cute it was on Meredith!