Our New Addition

Fresh off the heels of my "no babies here" post, guess what. We have a new addition! Yup, a furry little baby has joined the family. As Tim puts it, his "son". Yes, he will kill me for writing about all the cutesy things he does with our new furry baby on my blog for all to see. But you know what? He's admitted to me that he doesn't read my blog anymore, so that sounds like an open invitation to me! Plus, I'll know who tells him about it if he does find out (here's looking at you, Susie and Alice)! :) Haha.

After we lost my little love Scooter, I knew I wanted to get another guinea pig for a couple reasons.

1 - I am such a sucker an animal lover. Honestly? If I lived alone, I'd probably have like 10 guinea pigs. Tim has limited me to 2. There are so many out there without homes it's not even funny. No one ever thinks of guinea pigs that way, but it's true. You know what? There's a guinea pig rescue in our area (Have-a-Heart Guinea Pig Rescue). "There's such a thing as a guinea pig rescue??" Same reaction I get every time I tell people about it. I have been to this rescue (it's in Burlington, NJ). It's where I got PC, the other guinea pig I have, 3 years ago. Basically it is this woman's house with tons of guinea pigs (and other animals), and she also has guinea pig foster homes she has to house them at when her own house gets too full. My point is that just like cats and dogs, there are guinea pigs out there also without homes and a cage of their own and love from a family. So I knew when we lost Scooter I wanted to help another homeless GP.

2 - Guinea pigs are social animals. They like to have companions (companions they get along with, of course). PC definitely seemed lonely after Scooter died. I felt bad leaving him home alone during the day, or turning the lights out on him at night. He had always had his big brother right there with him during those times. So I knew I wanted to try to find PC a friend.

Some people don't like to get another animal when they lose one they loved so much. I am not trying to replace Scooter. Trust me, he could never be replaced. But it does fill in the hole in your heart just a little bit, and perhaps it distracts you from the pain you feel. And it's providing a home for an animal that didn't have one.

So I was all set to hit up the guinea pig rescue this weekend. I had been emailing with a foster home and the rescue. Then I get an email from Amanda:

So I went to the dr today and I overhear this woman talking about how she got her kids a guinea pig and as it turns out her husband is really allergic to it. Its name is Arnold, or "little fella". He is 2 1/2 months old. Her name is Debbie. Here is her number.

Heart... strings.... tugging. I thought I must've told her about my plans to go to the rescue, but apparently I didn't. I'm just the guinea pig lady (totally fine with me). I called the woman, explained to her that I was interested, but that we needed to do a meet and greet to make sure they weren't going to fight or anything (sometimes they can get violent, and that's not a good match). I told her if it didn't work out I would be happy to take little fella to the guinea pig rescue. She was so grateful. Turns out there was even more to the story.

A man walked into a 7-11 holding up a guinea pig and asked if anyone wanted it. Poor little guy! Debbie happened to be in that 7-11, knew her husband was highly allergic, but, like me, couldn't let a little stray go without a home. She decided to bring it home and figured surely one of her friends or family would be able to take him in. Two months later, she still couldn't find a home for him. Her local animal hospitals and rescues were overcrowded and didn't want to take him. Then Amanda overheard her at the Dr and that was that! I met her in a Walmart parking lot (don't judge me), we let the pigs meet, and I brought the little guy home.

He's a fiesty little guy, that's for sure! I guess it's because he's so young (about 3 months). He has so much energy! He was pretty scared at first, being in a new home and in a real cage and all (he was in a rubbermaid bin for 2 months!), but he has quickly warmed to us and his new big brother. I compare it to like having a baby, because he squeals like crazy just to be able to come out and play or be held (attention in one way or the other). He's even got a little baby belly, it's so cute! And he runs around and around and around when we put him in the playpen on the floor. He runs circles around our fat big boned PC.

Tim is enamored with the little thing. He says Scooter and PC were his stepsons, but that Little Fella (hold on, we'll discuss the name in a minute) is his son. When he takes a drink of water he's like "Awww look! He's drinking!" um... yes, love. PC drinks all the time. "Aww he pooped!" Lol. And when I come to bed at night I get "What was my son doing before you came upstairs?" Yup, he's hooked. He may not have been much of a guinea pig man before, but he sure is now.


So names. He'll be called little fella for the most part, but like I like to point out to Tim, he calls PC "fat boy" and that's not his real name, so the baby needs a real name as well. I'm thinking Tyson. Here's why:

Mike Tyson via Google Image Search

Right? Right??

Bonnie made the suggestion of TyKo (Tyson and the first two letters of our last name), and of course for some reason Tim likes that better than just Tyson. I think he just doesn't like my suggestion because it's my suggestion. God help us if we ever do have kids. They'll never be named. Or they'll be named something like TyKo or Little Fella.

-C
xxx

PS - I told the rescue and foster home I wouldn't be coming afterall, and told them the whole story. They were glad to hear I was helping out a GP that needed a home, and didn't go to a pet store or something. Remember how many pets are in shelters and rescues before going to a pet store, my friends!

No Baby Zone

via Google Image Search for NO BABIES

It's like a no fly zone, but for babies. No babies here. Furry babies? Yes, please. No human babies, though. Not for the time being at least.

Unlike some newlyweds, we're not getting pressure to have babies from family or friends. I've heard of people being asked on the day of their wedding when they planned to have babies. Because clearly the only reason people get married is to have babies... sike. Maybe it's that I've made it very clear to everyone I know that this is a no baby zone. Either way, I'm glad that pressure doesn't exist for us.

We are, however, getting pressure from marketing companies. Oh hi Target and Bed Bath. We used to have a registry with you, but now that our wedding date has passed you want to send us baby item emails. Awesome. That's really helpful and not annoying or freaking me out at all.

I used to be signed up for The Knot. You have to put your wedding date in when you sign up so they can give you a countdown on the top of the page every time you go to their website. Not gonna lie, I wanted to see wedding pics on there way before I even got engaged, so I signed up and made up a date. Then when we got engaged and picked a date, I changed it. WELL apparently they think I don't want to see wedding pics anymore, because they've now automatically changed over my subscription to their sister site, The Nest. For the longest time I thought was a parenting website because I would immediately delete their emails, and when I hear "nest" I think "empty nest" which = no children, so nest = children in my mind. Turns out it's actually a home and life kinda thing. So, ok, it's not The Bump which is ANOTHER of their sister sites, but yet I still get emails from The Nest saying things like "See what your future children will look like!" and "Decorate your baby's room with these tips!". No. I don't want to hear your tips or see what creepy photos of children you come up with. I didn't ask to be signed up for The Nest. I don't like that The Nest automatically assumes that I'm having children, let alone anytime soon. The Knot might want to poll its readers and find out if they want to receive The Nest, or, hey, some of us still like looking at wedding pics, so I'd like to continue to get The Knot! I totally still get Martha Stewart Weddings emails. Martha would never make an assumption like that. So now I need to go log into The Knot and make up a new wedding date so I can stop getting stupid emails I don't want. Oh, wait, what's that? When I type in www.theknot.com it automatically redirects me to www.thenest.com. Arrgg.

Dear The Knot,

I love your pretty pictures, but I really hate you and your assumptions. You know what happens when you assume things, right? Yeah, you make an ass out of you. No, not me, just you.

XOXO
A-Newlywed-Who-Still-Wants-To-See-Wedding-Pictures-MMMK-Thanks

-C
xxx

Is it weird...

...that I love organizing? Like, get excited about it. Not that I do it every day. I need to have the right amount of time to do it, and either the right amount of or right lack of sleep, because in my head it's like a fine art. It takes time and patience. But when I do have time for org time... it's on. And I get way too excited about it. OMG I FIGURED OUT THE PERFECT WAY TO ORGANIZE THE PET STUFF! Score.* OMG I FINALLY ORGANIZED THE PANTRY AND THE CANNED VEGETABLES ARE HERE... BAKING ITEMS THERE... AND CHIPS AND SNACKS GO HERE! Yes.

Sometimes it's easy to see the organization, sometimes it's just in my head. Like I'm pretty sure my husband has no idea where anything is in the house, but to me I'm like what? The extra blankets? Obviously they're in the container next to the dryer, under the bed in the guest bedroom, in the closet, and in the basement. Duh. You didn't know that? Oh, right, because I put them there and in my head I know where they are, but I guess you can't read my mind... yet. You should probably get on that if you ever want to know where anything is in the house.

Hm... maybe I should give him a list of where things are? I really do know where just about every little thing in my house is, and could totally do it. A house map for the hubby... good idea? Or crazy... I'm thinking good idea. He's probably thinking the other.

I also super heart organization products. I hoard have little bins and baskets all over the place with the intent of finding something to put in them. And when I do, it's a tiny little victory for me. I may even have done a happy dance when I was organizing my pantry and remembered these little green bins my mom gave me that fit onto one another (like, lock into place, and I had no idea they were supposed to do that, which made me even more excited when I realized that) and perfectly fit my excess spices. Or maybe I didn't do a happy dance because that would be weird... but I was home alone that day and no one will ever know...

So this weekend, and the next, are organizing weekends and I'm way too excited about it. Scrubbing floors and cleaning toilets? Um, no thanks. Give me a junk drawer to organize and I'm all over it. With a freaking smile on my face.

-C
xxx


*Really hoping this is a reality this weekend because it's out of control.

I know I'm not supposed to talk about it, but...

via Google Image Search

I'm going to briefly talk about my wedding registry.

*GASP* THE HORROR!

I know, I know. My mom says you're not supposed to talk about your registry. Well, actually, she didn't even agree with having a registry really in the first place because "it's asking for gifts when you're not supposed to." I agree with the idea that people technically do not have to buy you a gift, but the whole don't-ever-mention-your-own-registry-or-you-will-be-deemed-an-awful-person-and-horrible-things-will-happen-to-you thing bothers me a bit. It's deemed rude, and, of course, I would never bring it up to someone in a "you need to buy me this" sort of way. I just don't get why you can't mention it at all! It was an olden days unspoken rule, but I think it needs to vanish. Seriously. One of the greatest pieces of advice I received regarding my registry is that if you don't put things on your registry, then people don't know what you want. And when people don't know what you want, they come up with their own ideas. And what does that get you? Probably a lot of things you neither need nor want.

Another issue I had with my registry is that I KEPT SEEING THE THINGS I PUT ON THERE ON SALE OR AT MARSHALL'S/TJ MAX! I live and breathe bargain shopping, and it killed me to see something from my registry at one of these places for half the price and:

A - not buy it and then remove it from my registry. Not gonna lie, I did end up doing this a couple times. I had to fight with myself to stop doing it, though, or else there wouldn't have been anything for people to buy off my registry - and what does that get you friends? Say it with me. Things you neither need nor want.

B - not tell people about it. I wanted to send out blast emails like, "Hey, guess what! I saw this at Marshall's today - you should go get it there instead of where I registered and save yourself some dough!" Or, "Hey guys, Target has that thing I registered for on sale this week - now's the time!" I knew it wasn't right to do it, since it would have been seen as "Hey guys - go buy me a present, NOW!" but it just killed me to know that these items could be purchased for less and I couldn't tell anyone about it! There should be an option for people to sign up for email alerts associated with your registry or something. That'd be cool, huh? Like "Yes please, sign me up so I can get that toaster oven for my friend when it goes on sale!" I also wish Marshall's had a registry. Seriously. It's such a damn shame that they don't really have a "stock" of certain things at every store, so they can't have a registry. I thought about having people tell one of my MOHs when they got me a gift from Marshall's or Ross or something so she could remove it from my registry, but that would've just been way too tricky and tedious and annoying, I'm sure (MOHs - you're welcome). I know there are universal registries out there, like this one, but that doesn't even really help my cause. Sure, you can pick things from all sorts of different online stores, but you can't buy the apple corer I registered for at Bed Bath and then found for almost 75% less at Marshall's (and subsequently bought). Lol, what I mean is that you can't register for *any* thing at *any* physical store. The universal registry purpose is to combine different websites you want things from. Obviously it would be impossible for it to gain access to a place like Marshall's inventory (since they don't really have one) and be able to check it off your list when it's purchased. I think we need like a satellite registry or something. Yeah... that way, you could just buy something and somehow it would bounce off a few satellites and boom, checked off your registry. No? Silly idea? Is it? Or is it genius...

I also was known to call my mom and ask for things off my registry for Christmas or birthday for fear that they would sell out in the store. Target is notorious for this, Bed Bath not so much. I had to update my Target registry SO many times. As much as I love Target, it's really freaking annoying that they A - run out of things so often and B - don't even tell you what they are when they're out of stock! I actually emailed their customer service to say that I had a ton of items on my registry that just disappeared. They were listed with some funky number, the pictures were gone, and I had no idea what they were, so couldn't replace them. Was it my knife set? If so, I could pick another one. But noooo, it just didn't tell you. And when I emailed customer service about it? They said "We need to know what item you're speaking of." Um, yeah. I'd also like to know that information. That was one customer service issue that was not resolved.

Ha, also thought this was funny.

via Google Image Search

-C
xxx

Chopped

I finally got my wife chop. Or maybe it's just a chop at this point. But I finally got it, and I love it. Not like "Ooooh my hair's so pretty!" More like it just feels so much better. Not only is it super short (for me), but there are layers all through it so it's not as thick as my hair tends to be. My hair was driving me crazy. It was so long it would get stuck under purse straps and in coats, and of course when I'd pull it out from under my coat collar it'd be all staticky. Also I hadn't had a day in months where I thought I was having a good hair day.

Also, my mental state may just be a little shaky at the moment due to a super fantastic start to 2011. So I made a rash decision and I'm not gonna lie, cutting my hair felt good on an emotional level as well. A la Britney Spears circa 2007.

via Google image search

I'm with ya Brit Brit.

I actually didn't even realize I was taking that much off until the other hair dressers started coming over and checking out all the hair that was on the ground.

On another note - let's make this blog wedding-related for once! Halfway through my chop, I had an "Oh sh_t" moment. I remembered that I'm to be a bridesmaid in a little under two months. Oops. Now, Bonnie is like the most laid back bride ever, so I wasn't too fearful, but I can't deny that I felt bad. I know some brides want their bridesmaids to have their hair done the same way, and some specifically request that bridesmaids don't cut their hair until after the wedding. Yes, that was me. I didn't do it in a "DON'T YOU DARE CUT YOUR HAIR!" kind of way (at least I hope it wasn't taken that way), but I wanted everyone to be able to have long enough hair to do a side bun. So yes, I felt pretty bad when I was mid chop the other day and realized I had no idea how Bonnie wants her bridesmaids' hair to be. Of course, I'm pretty sure even she doesn't know yet, lol, but still. Anyway, my hair dresser assured me that my hair grows so fast (tell me about it), that any hair dresser who knows what he/she is doing will be able to get my hair up in a 'do. So, uh, future bridesmaids? You may want to check in with your bride pre-chop. Unlike me, who acted spontaneously, apologized after, and am lucky my hair grows at the rate of a Chia Pet.

-C
xxx

My Scooter Boy

Sorry folks, but looks like I'm gonna be a downer again. My beloved guinea pig, Scooter, died yesterday. For those of you who think of guinea pigs as not "real pets" like dogs or a cats, think again. Guinea pigs can have personalities just like those animals. All of the ones my family has ever had have been full of personality. I know you're not supposed to choose favorites, just like with children, but I have to say Scooter was and always will be my favorite. He was the most laid back guinea pig ever. He didn't care if you took him for a car ride. Didn't care if you picked him up and held him. He was usually right at the edge of his cage just waiting for you to pick him up (as opposed to my other one, PC, who runs and hides). He looooved to be held in robes and blankets. He has been known to fall asleep on his gramma (my mom). He was just the sweetest little boy.

He was born in January 2006 and I adopted him sometime shortly after from a family that had too many pets (seriously - parrots, guinea pigs, dogs, you name it). I adopted him and his "brother" Fievel. Unfortunately Fievel had health issues and passed away a few years ago. But Scooter lived to be 5 years old, which is actually quite a long time for guinea pigs. It's hard to have pets that don't have a very long life span, but they're just such great pets.

Most loved pig

Scooter was actually really sick with a common guinea pig ailment called "Bumblefoot." Basically, he had ulcers in the bottom of his feet that would not heal. Poor little guy. :( I took him to the vet in November, which actually had a Dr. who knew a lot about guinea pigs (hard to find). She told me he would live max 6 months with antibiotics. So of course I bought him a gajillion antibiotics. He's my baby! Of course I would. So since November I've been giving him medicated baths every night, injecting antibiotics into his mouth, and occasionally switching to topical antibiotics. He was not a fan. But, it definitely seemed to help. When my mom was taking care of him while we were on our honeymoon he didn't seem to be doing very well (this was pre-vet visit) and she was so worried he would die while we were away. He didn't, and he just about maxed out the 6 months the vet gave him. Even though I was kind of in denial and hoping she was wrong...

Last week we started noticing he was doing worse than usual. He couldn't walk very well, wasn't moving around as much. I took him with me to Maryland so he could see Gramma one last time. Turns out it's a good thing I did. I was in NY on Tuesday and DC on Wednesday for work. I was originally supposed to stay over in DC on Wednesday, but changed my mind and opted for a late train home instead. Yet another thing I'm glad I did. Hubby had told me the night before that he really wasn't doing well, but I wasn't really prepared for it to be true. When I got home Wednesday night, Scooter couldn't move one of his arms at all, and could barely move the other. Tim thinks he may have had a stroke. Bumblefoot also can get into the bones, though, and that may have happened as well. Either way, he wasn't in a good place and I sat down and held him for a while, knowing he didn't have much longer. Tim woke me up the next morning to tell me he was gone. He thinks he held on just long enough for me to get home and say goodbye. I like to think he did.

I got to hold him the night before he died. My little sweetheart...

My poor little Scooter, I bid you adieu...

When I first got him, so teeny tiny!

He used to love climbing and jumping on things when he was younger.

St. Patty's Day pig

He sure did love going outside at Gramma's and eating fresh grass.

Scooter helping unwrap Christmas presents... aka eating the paper.

He ate that whole carrot! He was definitely OD'd on carrots for a few days after Gramma gave him that.

Scooter in Gramma's robe

Christmas pigs

Mmm strawberries

Oh yes I did take a picture with my babies in my wedding dress! It seemed a little ridiculous to have them as ring bearers… but I definitely had to be with them on my big day at some point!

My mom said this morning it was amazing how somebody so tiny could bring so much joy. So very true.

Love and miss you so much baby.

Love,
Mommy
xxx

Estate Sale RECAP

As you know, we had the estate sale this weekend. It was a lot of work, but we got rid of a LOT (even though there's still a lot left...). I definitely feel better about things going to a good home. Although I don't really want to think about what's going to happen to the stuff that's still there...

We all seemed to have our things we were reluctant to let go of. Mine were these two large dolls Meamaw always had out in the living room dressed up for whatever season or holiday it may be... they were Cyndi and Megan (me and my cousin), and they've been around for most of my life. I was the one who sold them, and even carried them out to the woman's car. That was hard, but I knew I didn't really want them and I'm glad someone actually took them and we didn't have to get rid of them some other way. AOB hated them (she says they freak her out) and probably would have gladly taken them to the dump! Or set them on fire or something. Lol. I'm only half kidding...

Anyhoo - I thought I'd share a few pics I forgot I had. This'll give you an idea of the borderline (or not so borderline) hoarding going on here. These pics were taken in 2008 right after my Meamaw died. You can see her love of dolls... and other things.

Garage

Back Porch

Doll Room

More Doll Room

Meamaw's Bedroom

More Bedroom

Oh, right... did I mention it SNOWED for the second day of the sale?? In Maryland? At the end of March?? It didn't even snow up in Philly/NJ last weekend! Well, I guess that's because my mom brought it down with her. We woke up to a winter wonderland on Sunday morning.


We pretty much thought we were doomed, since we got about 3 inches of snow, but it cleared up around 11am and we had a ton of repeat customers who had been by the day before who came back, and a couple of newbies, too. I guess you know you've got good stuff if people come back for a second day, right??

And since I'm still alive and typing, you know I didn't bring that much stuff back so my hubby didn't kill me.

-C
xxx