So many things to do...so little time.

Wow! I am so terrible at keeping up with this blog thing. It seems that late night is my only time to myself, so I guess sleep will have to wait and I'll spend all night typing instead.

So today we added a member to our family. Meet Bella. Bella is a six week old Saint Bernard. We always knew we would get a dog eventually, but planned to wait until the kids were a little older. Well, I can be very impulsive sometimes (okay a lot of the time) and yesterday I got a wild hair and decided I wanted to get a puppy NOW! God bless my husband for putting up with me. I made an appointment with a local breeder to go check out their dogs without even asking him and he dutifully went along for the ride today. After about an hour and many questions, Anthony, Alexis, and I picked out a lovely little girl whom we immediately named Isabella; Bella for short. We promptly took her to Petco to buy all of the necessities: a collar, a name tag, food, dog bowls, and of course toys and also decided to have her groomed while we were at it. Anthony hated the little purple bow, but I thought it was pretty sweet and she didn't seem to mind that much. So far she has far exceeded my expectations. She is wonderful with Alexis and Justin. I never imagined that a puppy would be so tolerant of an excited 2 year-old and a curious 1 year-old. Nevertheless, Bella has allowed Justin to pet her and kiss her incessantly and allowed Alexis to carry her all over the place. Enjoy it now, Alexis, because before long this puppy is going to grow into an extremely large puppy and carrying her will no longer be an option, though she'll probably be able to carry you. Potty training is already going great as well. No accidents thus far (knock on wood) and I will consider myself very fortunate if tomorrow goes just as well. I've always heard that Saint Bernards are very smart dogs and as such, easy to train. We'll take it day by day and see how it goes. Tomorrow I have to call the vet to make an appointment for her shots to make sure she stays a happy, healthy puppy. The happiness and joy that I see in the faces of my babies has made me absolutely positive that I've made the right choice in getting a puppy. Though I know that it will bring a lot more work in the coming weeks, I am completely and totally satisfied as I gaze at Alexis and Bella cuddled together in Alexis's bed.

Tomorrow will be an extremely busy day. I am so far behind on laundry that my bathroom is starting to look like a laundrymat. Laundry is definitely not one of my favorite things. I don't really mind loading the washer and dryer...it's the putting it away. How on earth does my family go through so many clothes in one week? In addition to laundry and vet visits, I need to pick up the kids toys because my house looks like the toy boxes exploded in every room of the house. Oh how I wish I could afford a maid. Maybe one day after I finish grad school. One more thing to add to my to do list. I really need to get my application finished and mail out my letters of recommendations so my past professors can fill them out. If only there were 2 or 3 of me, I might be able to keep up with the many tasks in my daily life.

Well, after 2 years and 2 babies, I have finally decided it was time to take off my leftover baby weight. So far I have lost 4 pounds this week and am feeling pretty good about it. I still have a long way to go, but I have been eating so much healthier this week and actually getting some exercise as well. Not only have I lost a little weight, but I also have more energy which has been really nice. It hasn't only been good for me, but it's been good for the whole family because I'm planning our meals better and giving them healthier options as well. Wish us luck as we try to become a healthier family. Pre-pregnancy weight...HERE I COME!