Got an itch?

We might have a little problem on our hands.

This little cutie went to the beach on Saturday and while he absolutely loved it and it knocked him out for the rest of the day and we were even able to let him run off his leash....

we think he may have fleas now.

After the beach we noticed he was a little red down-under near his man parts. I honestly thought he had a bad case of chaffing: it was red, there were little specks of black (which I thought were sand), he was running in salt water for hours... it seemed logical to me. The next day it was significantly less red so I thought it was confirmed.

Then he started itching, a lot. Yes, I know dogs itch but it seemed like significantly more than usual. And all over his legs and belly. He would itch with his foot and go crazy with his little front teeth. His skin was getting red and I kept noticing the little black specks. This is when I knew it was something different.

So thanks to Google, I learned that the little black specks are called Flea Dirt and are basically excrement from the fleas. They say you can scratch some of them off onto white paper and add water to them and they'll turn redish brown because they're actually bits of blood. However, Ollie was not in the mood to have me scratching around near his junk to get some of them off so I can't be certain about that. I made an appointment at the vet and were going in a few hours.

I'm not thinking that getting rid of the fleas on him is going to be very difficult. There are flea shampoos, collars, medicines, etc etc. The thing that I'm really worried about is our apartment. Because cleaning the pup is only half the battle and it wont do any good to wash him if there's more fleas in our apartment.

So I spent the morning doing laundry on his bed cover, the towels he sleeps with, the pillows on the couches, and the blankets on the couches. I then deep vacuumed our whole apartment; every spot on the floors, moved all the furniture to get under & behind them all, used the vacuum adapter to get on and in all the cushions. I plan on repeating this process on Thursday morning and again this weekend. The trusty internet said that the first step to getting them gone is to vacuum. Then to use some type of insecticide.

I'm hoping that we caught the problem early enough that infestation shouldn't be a huge issue for us and we wont have to result to fogging our apartment or anything too crazy. I haven't actually seen any live fleas and J and I don't have any signs of bites. I know it'll all be fine in the end but believe me, this is not how I planned on spending my Tuesday.

Have any of you ever dealt with dogs and fleas?

What did you do/do you have any tips?

on giving a little love

I may not be the person who goes on political rants.

I may not be the person who choses to voice their opinions to anyone they meet.

I may not be the person who knows everything about every current event.

I may not be the person to try to change the things you believe in hopes that you'll agree with me.

I may not be the person to put you down for sticking to what you know.

I may not be the person who hates anyone that believes differently than me.

But....

I am the person who believes in the best for all.

I am the person who wants the world to be a better place.

I am the person who will do a little something here and there to try and help.

I am the person who tears up for this commercial given the current state of our Gulf of Mexico.

I am the person who wants you to buy Dawn so that maybe one more oily duck out there can get a bath.

*I actually looked up what having a duck as a pet requires after seeing this commercial. They are so adorable*

on being thankful

I am thankful...

+ for the motivation I've had lately. Because without it, yeah, I'd be seriously stressed. I'm already starting to get those stress symptoms, stomach aches, head aches, groggy feelings, etc, even with all of the things I've been able to accomplish. My studying is going great, I'm right on track with my course and I'm feeling much more confident for this time around.

Current countdown= 15 days

+ that all my hard work is seeming to be paying off. My practice test scores have seriously increased from what they were 7 weeks ago when I just happened to have a break down and thought about giving up to work at Walmart my whole life. And even better than that is that my practice scores are now higher than my first actual score. Hopefully this keeps it's upward trend. 35 here I come.

+ for the motivation I've had in other areas besides my test because lord knows that's most of my time right now. I've made myself stop studying to go to the gym occasionally to try to work out those other muscles I have. Not just my brain and my "writing muscles." And I have to say it feels good to get out and release like that. Plus, Jeff and I even got up at 6 am and went for a run this morning. I know, I'm shocked too, but we really did it! For us non-runners, that was a big step.

+ for times when the laundry is clean. It seems like a never ending battle and I'm sure it's much easier to do laundry for two than for a whole family and I shouldn't really complain. But most of the time I dread doing it since we don't have our own washer and dryer. That means trucking to the garage multiple times and paying for each load. Not to mention having to run down as soon as it's done so some big jerk doesn't take your clothes out. (I seriously don't understand why people do that and it drives me batty! You really can't wait 5 min until I'm there and have move everything on top of the washer? Ughh) But as much as laundry annoys me, I love when it's done, you can wear whatever clothes you want!

+ we are getting to go out on Friday night and see Tim McGraw, Lady Antebellum, and Love & Theft! I seriously LOVE all three groups and can't wait to enjoy the night, maybe even with a beer or two. I really hope the evening turns out as great as I'm hoping it will but as long as there's good country music and I have my boy at my side, I'll be a happy girl.

+ for my upcoming Antigua vacation! I don't think it's really set in yet that I'm really going because of all the other things I've had on my mind lately but after browsing some resort pictures, yeah, I'm stoked! The traveling part is not going to be very much fun (flight Saturday to Denver 10:30 am, flight to Newark 5 pm, flight to Antigua 9 am, arrive 1 pm) but it's going to be so worth it once we're there. I found out yesterday they offer free water sports equipment so I may or may not try to wind surf while we're there. Along with the diving, tanning, shopping, relaxing, possibly drinking (they make their own specialty rum on the island) and don't forget the studying. (yes I know I'm a nut for studying, but my test is in 15 days remember) I'll definitely need someone to pinch me when we get there.

And to think that I get to eat this for breakfast every day.... Heaven.

+ most importantly for my BF, my main squeeze. He has been beyond supportive with all of my "non-fun" habits lately and I can't thank him enough. I am almost, just almost, more excited to be back in SD in a few weeks simply to be able to have fun with him more often. It's summer for crying out loud, let's make the best of it. But really, I love you babe. ♥

on crafts to cleaning

I have had an interesting few days lately. I've gone from one extreme to the other in terms of my mood in just a matter of the weekend. Isn't it funny how things can change so quickly, just like the weather in good old Littleton. (You might not understand that metaphor if you're not from the 303, but believe me, the weather is bipolar sometimes.) Most importantly though it's made me realize a few things about my life, things that I take for granted and should really cherish more.

1. Feeling in a crafty mood the other day, I decided to make a trip to Michael's. I miss making things from scratch, adding your own touch to something fun and the feeling you get when you see something you've made as compared to something you bought. While I have no real "handy-man" skills I'd like to think that I'm capable of putting in the effort to make something or even creative enough to make something pretty. So I wandered around trying to limit the things that I bought because really, I could buy everything in that store. I saw the new floral-stems out for spring and knew instantly I wanted to make something with them. Even though it's been warm here for a while now, seeing those flowers made it really seem like spring. The lack of seasons is part of why I love Southern California but it makes the transition from winter to spring much less noticeable. So I decided to make a center piece for our table that would bring the feeling of spring into our apartment. I didn't realize how good it would make me feel to have this new creation. I think its pretty cute if I do say so myself and it was cheap which is a plus.

Flower pot= $1.29

Spring floral-stems= 2/$3

Ribbon= $1

Floral tape= $2.29

Easter Grass= $1

Bic pens= Free

Total= less than $10

It's sorta hard to tell but the stems of the flowers have pens on them. Yes I know, they're just like the ones that you see at doctor's offices but I like them. Plus it makes our new center piece functional as well as visually-appealing. I used pens we had around our apartment already so this addition didn't make the project any more expensive. And another plus is that I have more of everything to either make more or to buy different flowers for the summer/fall/whenever I want to change the decor. I also found a set of two 16x20in. canvases on sale while at Michael's. I've been saying that I wanted to paint a canvas for a long time now I just never wanted to spend the money to do it. So when I saw the sale I had to buy them. I have not bought any paint as of right now because I'm still trying to decide what I want them to look like but I will have more details about this project to come.

2. This weekend has made me realize a lot about my relationship with Jeff, all of it good. In the past I've found myself comparing our relationship to others around us. And I've been guilty in the past of stirring up a fight based on some sort of jealousy I had towards the others. I've been known to say "why can't you be more like insert name here and do the things he does?" or "I wish our relationship was more like so and so's." But something about this weekend made me realize that I was acting so childish when I would start those fights and get upset about those things. Because the truth is, no two relationships will ever be the same and it's honestly stupid for me to want my relationship to be another's. I'm with Jeff for a reason and it's him and his traits that make me happy, not someone else's. We fit each other like a glove and I should never want him to act differently than himself, just as he never wants me to be anyone but myself. No matter what he might do or what he might say, we're in this for the long haul and I take comfort in the security of our relationship. I can act stupid and throw a fit about something I shouldn't but I know he will always be by my side. I cherish the fact that we can fight but that in the end we will be together.

"When you get home, she'll start to cry.

When she says 'I'm sorry' say 'So am I'

And look into those eyes so deep in love,

And drink it up.

'Cause that's the good stuff."

~Kenny Chesney- The Good Stuff

♥ ♥ ♥

3. After a pair of my sandals accidently got broken last week I've been meaning to get a new pair to replace them. I have a weird obsession with sandals and really, shoes in general because I believe certain outfits/occasions need specific shoes. As soon as my old pair broke the thought "what shoes will I wear in this situation now" popped into my head so it was just a matter of time before I bought new ones. And I did, just yesterday. Now I should add a disclaimer at this point because what I've been saying makes it seem like I spend way too much money on a pair of shoes I'll wear only a couple of times... my new shoes are from Target, as were the pair that got broken. I am in no way a girl that rushes to the Steve Madden store to spend $80 on a pair of summer shoes when I have other sandals at home. I buy new things but always try to spend as little money as possible. With this said, I love my new purchase.

I must say, the pedicure I gave myself the other day looks wonderful with my new shoes ;-)

These sandals are different from anything else that I own which is part of the reason I knew I needed them. I wasn't simply buying another pair of black flip-flops that were identical to ones I already owned. I think they make a wonderful addition to my wardrobe.

4. I spent today doing laundry, cleaning our apartment, and studying. Sounds like a horrible day right? But I've actually enjoyed every moment of today. Sometimes I get in the mood to play house-wife for the day and there's something about cleaning a messy apartment that is extremely rewarding. When the bedroom is cluttered with dirty laundry and a few hours later everything is folded and hung up the room seems brighter. I even treated myself to washing the sheets on our bed which is something we don't do every week. But I must say that I love crawling into bed on fresh sheets. I think I like cleaning because it has an obvious ending. You can see the stains on the counter from pasta sauce and coffee disappear, you can see the faucets become shiny again. Basically, today has been a great day and I plan to finish it off by making a delicious dinner of tortallini for Jeff when he comes home from golf.