RIP Bailey Marie

My world was torn apart yesterday when my dad had to put our family dog to sleep. Bailey was born on May 7, 1999 and I received her a few weeks later for my 13th birthday. She was the BEST dog. She loved going bye bye in the car, treats, snuggling and chewing on her chewies. I knew she was sick but never expected the phone call I got yesterday saying they found cancer in her liver.

We had lunch with my dad 2 weeks ago and he said he had noticed that she had lost a lot of weight. He had switched her dog food so he thought she just wasn't eating it. He switched her dog food back and she was eating but not gaining any weight back. Last week, he was in Texas for work so my grandma and grandpa kept her. He called them everyday to check on Bailey and they said she was doing great. Just playing and laying on grandma's lap like she always did.

Dad got back in town Friday and Derek, me, my sister Amy and the kids went to Manhattan Friday night. Bailey ran to the door as soon as she saw us and was so excited like she always was. I reached down to pick her up and was shocked at how tiny she was. I could feel every bone in her body. She ate her dog food, treats and acted like her normal self that night. Usually when we are in town, she sleeps with my dad until he wakes up the morning and then hops around beds to cuddle with whoever is still sleeping. The girl loved being under the covers and cuddling at night. I was surprised that she followed Derek and I to bed Friday night and wanted to sleep with us (and Zoe and Elsie). I of course let her! She slept right up against me all night Friday night and I am so glad I got that 1 last time. Looking back on it, I think she did it knowing that it might be the last time.

Saturday as she was on my lap I pulled her eyes back and noticed they were really yellow in the back. I immediately knew that wasn't right and looked at her tummy and realized it was yellow as well. I googled these symptoms and found numerous things it could have been. She was still running around, playing and eating that day but dad said he was going to get her in first thing Monday.

Saturday morning dad said she had accidents in his room during the night. He woke up to hearing her belly make all sorts of sounds and poop all over the floor. This was not like Bailey AT ALL. She has been potty trained for 11+ years and has been known to hold her pee and poop for HOURS when it's storming or she hears firecrackers because she is too scared to go outside (she ran away on New Years Eve of the millenium because a loud firecracker scared her. We searched for her day and night until we found her almost a week later). Dad called the vet right away Sunday morning and they of course were closed except for emergencies and thought she would be ok until Monday.

He took her in Monday morning and they decided to keep her for the day to run tests. They did a sonogram and noticed spots on her liver. They called my dad for permission to put her under so they could scrape the spots on her liver and test them. About an hour later we got the worst news we could have ever imagined...she had cancer all over her liver. All weekend we never thought this would be the outcome. We just thought she had a stone or something but we said if worse comes to worse and they say she is in pain and there isn't anything they can do, we would put her to sleep. We didn't want her suffering so the decision was made to put her to sleep yesterday at 5. I got the news at 3:30 so there was no way I could make it to Manhattan. 5 was the latest they could do yesterday or they would have to do it today. I didn't want her suffering over night and I gave her a big hug and kiss Sunday before we left so I knew she knew I loved her and I wanted her to be pain free. Dad went back in after they called to tell him the news and was able to play with her and hold her before they put her to sleep. He said the room was like a living room instead of a hospital room so she wasn't nervous and was up playing. She loves chewing on chewies so she was chewing on her bone on my dads lap until she went to sleep forever.

As hard as this is on me, I know its even harder on my dad. It's just been Bailey and him since all of us kids moved out and she is his little side kick. She sleeps with him, eats lunch with him when he comes home over his lunch break, takes a little nap with him on his lunch break and is right beside him every night when he reads the newspaper. Every Friday they load up in the car and make the 2 hour drive to KC where they spend the weekends with his girlfriend and her dog Moe. And every Sunday they make the 2 hour drive back to Manhattan. I pray that he finds strength to get through these next couple weeks and that he knows that she is always going to be right there beside him. You will forever be loved and missed Bailey.

RIP Bailey Marie Long

May 7, 1999-Feb 28, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Just wanted to wish all our friends and family a Happy Valentine's Day!!!

I'm not a huge of V-Day so we don't really have any plans. I think it's dumb that you need a holiday to express your love and get all dressed up and go to a fancy restaurant. I want that every week :)

Derek suprised me Saturday with flowers and wanted to take me to a nice dinner last night but we had a big mexican lunch with my family so I wasn't really hungry. I talked him into Pizza Hut instead :) Tonight we are going to workout, eat leftovers, finish our invitations, and watch the K-State basketball game. Sounds like a good Valentine's Day to me!

Eventful weekends

I'm a little behind on non wedding blog posts. I'll start with 2 weekends ago...

My sister Amy and the kiddos came to town that Friday. She isn't working much anymore so she got to town early enough that I met her over at Amber's so the twins could play with Harper (she's only 2 months older then them) and Paxton. When we all got off work that night we headed out for pizza and then hung out at Amber's.

Saturday morning I woke up early, got ready and headed back over to Amber's where Amy and the kids had stayed. Amber had to work that morning so Amy, my mom, the kids (keep in mind there are 3 under 3) and myself loaded them all up and headed to Union Station to see all the trains. Besides the few times the boys would run off from us, they all did pretty good. Harper loved being able to run around with the older boys.

By the time we finished there, it was well after noon. We should have just went through drive thru because it was past the kid's lunch time but we were feeling brave and went to Crown Center to continue our "Train Day" and eat at Fritz's. Note to self-when it's already past lunch time and there is a line to get into the restaurant, DON'T stay! We already had the boys excited that trains were going to bring them their food so we couldn't leave. We waited in line for about 30 min before finally sitting down. Long story short-all 3 kids cried/whined while we were there and everyone was staring at us. I wanted to curl up in a ball underneath the table. The 3 of them are usually really good at restaurants so this was the first time I had seen them all act this way. We scarfed down food (that wasn't even good) and darted home! All 3 were asleep by the time we left the parking garage.

Amber's birthday was Sunday so her and Mike went to the K-State/KU game Saturday night in Lawrence. Mom, Amy, the kiddos, and myself ate a bunch of crap for dinner and played with the kiddos that night. We were all in bed early that night after the days eventful activities and Amy was waking up early to run a 5K! I went back over early Sunday because I knew Amber was in charge of all the kids while Amy was at the race and I had a feeling she would be tired and hungover from Saturdays events. Unlike Amy and myself, she can really pull herself together after a night of drinking. She got home at 2, Aiden was up at 4:30, and Paxton and Harper were up at 6:45. I got there at 9 and she was sipping her coffee and had everything under control. Way to go Amber! Amy did AWESOME in her race and we all met for Mexican after her race and before they headed home.

This last weekend...

Derek and I had a low key Friday night at home. I think we made dinner, watched a movie and were in bed at 10 (yep we're cool like that).

Saturday I ran some errands to look at stuff for centerpieces and then we went to the Boulevard Wheat Brewery tour with Amber, Mike, my cousin Kayla, and her husband Judson. It was an ok tour but not as good as Anheuser-Busch's. We had some free beer at the end of it and then went to a sports bar for some more beers and appetizers. Amber and Mike had plans that night with Mike's family so Kayla and Judson came over to our house and the 4 of us drank, watched basketball, and tried to keep their shih tzu Delilah and our shih tzu Zoe from eating one another. They are both alpha females so they don't get along at all! We tried going bowling that night but it was an hour wait so we passed and came back home.

Sunday the 6 of us plus my mom went over to Amber's for the Superbowl. We had so much amazing food. I could have cared less about the game, I just went for the food! Overall, we had a fantastic, super unhealthy weekend. I love having so much of my family live in the same town and I love that Amy is only a 2 hour drive away. Now for pictures of the past 2 weekends....

Wedding updates

I was informed by my sister (Amy) that only my dress needs to be kept a secret so I guess I will agree and go ahead and show you all my bridesmaids dresses!!

Did you guess the right one?? I love them and my sister (Amber) tried it on and it looked even better on. I can't wait for the girls to get them in the mail. I think I have also decided to buy their shoes to go with their dresses. At first I didn't think I cared what shoes they wore but the more I thought about it, the more I realized how hard it might be to find shoes to match this dress. So my lovely sister Amber found these and they are exactly what I wanted.

I can finally check centerpieces off my list!!! I have 3 different centerpieces that I love and will be going shopping this weekend for the majority of them. I am so relieved to have these decided. Amber told me to stop looking at other centerpieces before I change my mind :)

I was just going to do simple bells for when we leave the church but Amber found these really cute ribbon wands with bells that I think will look awesome in pictures. It's 1 more project i'll have to do but they seem easy and totally worth it.

I'm still on the hunt for me shoes before my alteration appt. next weekend. I don't want regular wedding shoes (white or ivory ones) so i'm having a hard time finding what i'm looking for. I'll be adding that to the shopping list this weekend.

Derek and I decided on food for the reception and will be meeting with the pastor, cake lady (well just me will be going to this appt), and florist (again just me) the end of this month. I have been researching cake ideas and have a tiny idea of what I want but i'm still working on it. My bouquet has been decided but I am switching up the original bridesmaids bouquets. The yellow gerber daisies are just a little too bright so i'm going to see what other ideas the florist has. I don't know a thing about flowers!

And lastly....INVITATIONS ARE IN!! They are redoing the reception cards (they were way too small) but they should be in next week so i'm going to start putting them together and having Amber address them so when I get the reception cards back, they'll be ready to be mailed out!

I'm so happy things are finally coming together and I am SO ready to see everything all put together and to enjoy our big day!

Things I'm Lovin!

I know it's been awhile and I really don't have many Things I'm Lovin but I have a new obsession this week that I just had to share! Let me start by saying that I usually don't have Derek buy me any Lean Cuisines on his week to buy groceries (we take turns) because I am really picky on which ones I like. Well this week he ended up having one of my lean pockets because we had nothing to take for lunch so I told him no problem but to grab some more at the store. I wasn't too nervous because I told him just to get some Lean Pockets because I haven't had a kind I didn't like. Well I guess they came out with a new kind since I went to the store last week and I am so glad Derek got some. I am obsessed

They are 280 calories which isn't bad because I usually just have 1 of these and some Sun Chips for lunch. This one just tastes like a cheesy pretzel and it is sssoooo good. Had one yesterday and today (Derek wasn't too happy that I didn't let him have one)

Not only am I trying to plan our wedding but I have also been buying stuff for our honeymoon! I have already gotten 1 swim suit in the mail and have my eye on 3 more at Target. I love this one from Target because it's reversible! How can I not buy it? It's like buying 1 and getting 1 FREE!

(no picture because I can't find out)

Ok I feel like a fat kid for having 2 food related Things I'm Lovin but atleast their healthy! My sister had us try Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt and it might be my new favorite dessert. I had no idea I was going to walk into dessert heaven...

First you get to pick your flavor (or 2 or 3 or 10) of yogurt and if that doesn't satisfy your sweet tooth alone, you can walk on over to the candy BUFFET and choose as many toppings as you want on your yogurt (keep in mind that the cost is based on weight). Derek absolutely loved his and I loved mine until I got to my tart vanilla. I didn't see regular vanilla so I thought that was it. Wrong. It was disgusting. Derek said he saw regular vanilla but didn't know I was looking for it. That just gives me an excuse to go back!

Lastly, I am loving my workout essentials. Pandora Radio because I don't like to pay for music on my phone and my arm band Derek's grandma got me for Christmas. I am completely worthless when I try to workout without these.

Check Check Check

I'm a week early on my monthly wedding blog but I have officially had a VERY productive wedding related month. I was off last week so I attempted to make the centerpiecs I wanted to do. After 2 tries, I have give up. I will post a picture because I am 99% sure I am not going to be doing this anymore. They look easy but they were HARD. Or maybe it's just because I don't have a crafty bone in my body.

So my wonderful sister Amber has come up with a new centerpiece that we are going to attempt this weekend. I am doing 2 different centerpieces but the other ones are for sure and they are pretty easy (even for me).

Tonight was probably the biggest wedding day so far. I ordered the invites AND flower girl dresses!! I don't want to ruin the surprise for those of you who are getting invites (who am I kidding? The only people that read this blog are family and friends so you ALL will be getting invites i'm sure). But I will show you the dresses our 3 adorable flower girls will be wearing.

Earlier this month I finally decided on bridesmaids dresses and all the girls have ordered them! Again, i'm not going to show you a pic but I will tell you it's one of the 4 below. I liked all 4 of them but loved the one I went with.

Groomsmen tuxes have not been ordered but I called the tux place and they said that when we go to Manhattan the end of February, we can order them then and that gives them plenty of time to get them all in.

We officially have an organist to play at the ceremony

Linens are still on my to do list. I just heard today that the college rents linens out so I need to call them and see about chair covers and napkins.

We have appts set up at the end of February with our cake lady (which I still have no idea what I want the cake to look like), pastor, and flower lady. That means I have to know exactly what I want for centerpieces before we meet with her again.

Also in February I will be taking my dress in to get altered. I need to find shoes before that appt!

My list for the next month:

• Centerpieces (I am so ready to cross this off my list)
• Buy my shoes


• Toasting flutes


• Cake serving set


• Ring bands


• Tuxes


• Linens


• Mail out invites!

Yay for a productive January. Now lets hope I can keep this up. 3 more months!

DC

This past weekend I flew to DC with my nanny family. The dad isn't able to go to DC til tomorrow so my nanny mom paid for me to fly to DC with her, the twins, and their older brother (who is 3). Instead of turning around and flying back home, I stayed 2 nights with my friend Melanie from high school. The twins did SO good on the plane. 1 sat beside me in his car seat and the other sat on my lap. They both fell asleep 10 min after take off and slept the entire flight. I was shocked!

We got into DC around 5:00pm DC time. After helping my nanny family get through the airport and to their ride (they are staying a week with my nanny mom's family), Melanie picked me up and we headed back to her place. She lives in Alexandria, VA which is about 20 min. from DC and her apt. was SO cute. We decided to order in Chinese and stay in that night.

Sunday we drove around and did some sight seeing. It was really cold out so we mostly drove around but we did walk around the white house and 1 art museum. We then met her friend for mimosa's and lunch which turned into drinking and watching football all day. That night we went to a little karaoke bar and had a blast singing in our own private room.

Melanie headed to work Monday morning and I spent the day recovering from the day/night before. I got a taxi around 2:30 that took me to the airport and I survived my first plane ride by myself. I had a great time in DC and the people there were SO nice but I was glad to see Derek and the dogs waiting for me at the airport.

Now I have been enjoying my week off and catching up on wedding stuff (that's a whole new post that I will get too soon). Elsie got fixed yesterday so we have been cuddling lots. She is almost back to her normal self today. Glad I made it to the gym, grocery store, and Wal Mart. It just started snowing here and we are supposed to be getting around 6 in. so I'm sure I'll be staying in tomorrow. Here are some pics of Elsie's haircut last week and the dogs in the snow. They like running and playing in the snow for about 2 min. then their feet get cold and we have to go carry them inside. Happy Wednesday!