I worked at rehab for the first time since July 4th last night. I was only there for 4 hours, but I missed Savy and Scarlett...that's the longest I've been away from Scarlett so far.

Our girls are growing so fast! Last week I realized that Savy was past the weight limit for the 5 point harness on her carseat. She now has a new booster seat and is using the seatbelt. We got her the Evenflo big kid dlx booster with the built in reading lights and cupholders, and she loves it.



I can't believe my baby is too big for a carseat now.

As for Scarlett, she's getting more and more spoiled. She loves to be held and will start fussing almost as soon as I put her down. Mimi brought her a new mobile this weekend, and she seems to really like it. I was actually able to put her in the crib while I got ready for work yesterday afternoon, and she didn't cry for me once.







Scarlett had her 8 week checkup last Friday. The doctor said she's doing great. She's in the 75th percentile for everything. She also got her first shots...broke my heart. Savy was pretty upset about it too...she did not like seeing her little sis cry and told the nurse "You hurt my baby!" She is still very protective of Scarlett.

The Big Backyard

We visited the big backyard today at the Botanic Gardens with Suzie, Abby and Zoe. Savy had a great time...we'll definitely be going back there. When we first walked in, we saw these flower "beds"...how cute is that?






This row of tiny houses was fun.


This one was Savy's favorite. There are drumsticks and all kinds of things to beat on inside...very noisy.




There was a little snack bar in this house. Out front are scarecrow type things. The wooden boxes hold clothes so the kids can dress the figures.



Off to the side was a little shaded picnic area. There were metal ants crawling up the trees, and a giant spiderweb...see the spider dangling over it.


This is a giant bird house with a swinging bridge, slide, and probably all sorts of other stuff inside. I didn't make it in there...Suzie watched Savy while I took a break to feed Scarlett.





There was a creek for the kids to wade in.


This is Suzie's reaction to Zoe lying down in the water and getting soaked. Savy wasn't far behind.


No matter, though. They would've gotten soaked anyway from the "thunderstorm." When you hear thunder coming from the speakers, you can expect a rainstorm soon after. I'm so glad Suzie warned me to bring Savy a change of clothes!


I think the koi pond was Savy's favorite. These fish were not afraid of people at all. We fed them all sorts of snacks.


Here's Savy right after they splashed her while fighting over some cracker crumbs.




And the finale...a beautiful swan came to visit. I can't remember it's name right now.




Savy and Scarlett on the way out.


We had a wonderful time. This is really a great place to spend the afternoon, and it's free on Wednesdays. Thanks for inviting us, Suzie!

I had a pretty productive day. I dropped Savy off at school this morning, then came home and got started cleaning. I managed to get the bathroom cleaned, floors vacuumed, ceiling fans cleaned (which required climbing a ladder), kitchen floor mopped, and I shampooed the rug. If that wasn't good enough, I also washed and ironed laundry, and I cooked two casseroles for our freezer stash. And I did it all while taking care of Scarlett. I'm getting good at this!

Just to give you guys a glimpse of how hard it is to get Savy to go to bed sometimes, here's a great example. Jon helped her brush her teeth and put on her pajamas tonight, then he put her to bed and turned out the lights. It wasn't long before he called me to "come see what Savy's doing."



She got into the drawer where I keep her "dress-up" toys - tutu, crown, grass skirt, lei pom-poms...and she put every one of them on and proceeded to jump on the bed. She's a ballerina, hula-girl, cheerleader, princess.

Jon's turning the light on and off in the video so you can see the flashing lights on her lei.

I'm so glad to be off for another week! We're planning on visiting the Big Backyard with Suzie, Abby and Zoe this week...or the children's museum if it's raining. Savy can't wait to go on an outing with her friends!

Yesterday Savy helped me plant crocus and daffodil bulbs on Callie's grave; we can remember her with beautiful flowers this spring. We miss her very much. I still catch myself expecting her to greet me at the door when I go outside.

I took some photos of Savy holding Scarlett this week.





We have swarms of hummingbirds in the backyard. I took several videos while sitting on the back porch. Keep an eye on the feeder as well as to the upper left. They get so close to me if I'm still...a couple almost flew into the camera. There are many more that you can't see swarming behind me...right behind my head. Savy's just on the other side of the window doing her best to scare them away, so there aren't quite as many as usual.

When I called to check on Callie today, the vet told me her progress was not encouraging. Her lab values were only a little better after 2 days of diuresis and iv fluids, she'd stopped eating completely, and was obviously in pain. We made the difficult decision to end her suffering today. I went to the office to visit with her, and I stayed with her until she was gone. I am very grateful to Suzie for taking care of Savy and Scarlett so I could be with Callie in her last moments.

We adopted Callie from the West Memphis Animal Shelter about 2 1/2 years ago. We are sad she's gone, but happy that we were able to provide a loving home and family. She was a great watch dog and always kept a close eye on our home. We laid her to rest in the back yard where she can continue to watch over us. She will be missed terribly.

First night at home.


Friends from the beginning.









I want to include Jon's Facebook post on the matter.

We lost Callie today. She was a great dog. She was so loving and patient. Maybe it was a breed trait, but she would always sit on our feet, and watch around us, as if protecting us. She went into renal failure a few days ago. The vet said she had a chance because she was still producing some urine, but today, she was going downhill. She had totally stopped eating and was snapping at the vet staff due to the pain in her abdomen. Christy was with her at the end, when the vet put her to sleep. Unfortunatly I was at work and couldn't get back in time. Thanks to Suzie for keeping the girls so that Christy could be with her.

Callie was Savy's first and oldest best friend. We got Callie when Savy was about 14 months old and Callie was a little over a year. As far as Savy was concerned Callie has always been here. When Savy was a toddler, she would, as kids do, pull, tug, and swat Callie, but she never reacted.

We got Callie at the West Memphis, AR Animal Shelter. She had been at the shelter for almost a year. When they found her, she had a large wound down her back and across the top of her hips. She healed, but it left an inch wide scar in the same area where no hair grew. Because of the scar, the hair going down her back would stand up, like she was angry. But, also because of the damage, she would get arthritis in her hips and hurt pretty badly. She would limp across the yard, but was still very happy to see us when we got home and would come running as fast as her limp would let her.

She was a great watchdog. She had three posts where she would stand guard. The first was at the front door, in the cool shady entry area. The second was between the bushes in front of the window of the study. The third, and probably her favorite this past year, was on the back porch, sitting on a soft chair. She was sitting on that chair, keeping watch when we took her to the vet. She couldn't even stand up, but was still watching.

We buried her in the backyard, in a shady spot under a large tree where she liked to rest in the summer. I had wrapped her in one of the thick pet throws that we used as her bed at night, including her two favorite toys. Savy never saw Callie, but I told her Callie was inside the throw. I started digging the grave and Savy ran and grabbed her pink shovel and started helping. I tried to explain to Savy what we were doing, but she summed it up as only a little kid could. After I made my feeble explanation, Savy asked "is this Callie's bed?", referring to the grave. All I could say was yes, she will sleep here forever.

Whe had kind of a mini ceremony and Suzie came over. Christy had helped Savy pick some flowers, and Savy threw them all over the throw blanket. It's not every day you have to dig a grave for your family pet. I was doing ok until I started to fill the grave and the dirt started falling on the throw. Savy started yelling over and over "Don't do that to her Daddy!" and then it got tough.

Suzie had a good idea. We are going to try to get a custom stepping stone made to mark her grave. Christy is going to plant some crocus bulbs that sprout and bloom in Winter (February). That way the grass will still be dormant and the flowers will stand out from the rest of the yard and not be mowerman bait.

Callie hasn't been feeling well for a while now. We first thought it was just her arthritis flaring up, but then she stopped eating. This morning, she wouldn't even get off her chair, so I took her to the vet. Turns out she's in renal failure. She's going to have to stay at the vet for 2 days for iv fluids and dialysis. We'll decide what to do based on her progress after 48 hours. The good news is that her kidneys are still functioning and have not completely shut down, so there is hope. Getting Callie to the vet with Scarlett and Savy was no easy task. Savy wasn't too happy about leaving Callie there.

We have the worst luck with dogs! I guess it has been going on as long as I can remember...the little poodle I had as a young child was hit by a car. Then my little Yorkie went into renal failure and had to be euthanized. We got a pound puppy shortly after that which promptly had to be put down due distemper (thanks Memphis Animal Shelter). Callie ate some rat bait a few months back and had to be on vitamin k supplements forever. Now Callie is in renal failure (not related to the rat poison). Vita has been the luckiest of them all, but she's always had problems....chronic urinary tract infections, ear infections, and intestinal infections. I just don't understand it...we take good care of our animals. We take them for yearly checkups and feed them well. Their living quarters are always clean. Why are our dogs always getting sick? The cats are always fine...good thing for them!

I had my 6 week post-baby checkup yesterday and got the ok to go about life as usual. We stopped by the playground for a little while. Savy was pleased to see there was someone there to play with, although she'd rather play with girls....she keeps saying "I don't like boys." Daddy is glad to hear that!




Scarlett enjoyed the time outside, too.

Savy and Scarlett

I guess I had forgotten just how much time a newborn demands. It seems I never have enough time to do what I need to. By the end of the day when both girls have finally gone to sleep, I'm too tired to do anything other than just go to bed myself. It's all worth it, though!

Savannah is still being a great big sis. When Scarlett cries, Savy goes to check on her, covers her with her blanket, and tries to give her a pacifier. I thought this was so sweet...Savy couldn't lie beside Scarlett, so she took a nap right under the swing to be near her.



Savy made this little distraction for Scarlett. She hung her magnetized Pooh toys from the mobile on the play yard. Scarlett seems to like it.



Yesterday I let Savy pick out her own clothes for school. She chose the t-shirt Jon brought her from Nashville and her little mermaid cap.



This is the buzzy-bee she made at school.



Scarlett was pretty fussy yesterday afternoon, so we played on the patio for awhile. Scarlett likes being outside and usually is content to lie in her cradle on the patio and watch the hummingbirds.



Savy picked a couple of over-ripe tomatoes and mushed them up for the dogs to eat.



I watered my plants and actually got a chance to read through the Southern Living mag I've had for over a week now. This is my favorite outdoor plant...the dragon wing begonia. This one has gotten huge, but the ones on the front sitting area aren't this pretty.



I need to pull up my summer annuals and plant some mums, and I need to pull weeds in the front flower bed. I guess that's my goal for next week.