Chew toys and beach bums

Let me begin by saying this: I love my dog. I really do. I can't put any kind of monetary value on his company and friendship. BUT, if he eats one more thing at my house that I have to replace, I'm going to be poor.

Here's a brief summary of some of the things he's destroyed in the past year: countless pairs of socks, an estimated 15 pairs of shoes, two t.v. remotes, a blanket, a suede comforter, three harnesses, two leashes, a collar, two throw pillows, six books, two cell phone chargers, an ungodly amount of toilet paper, a few hats, some DVD cases... the list goes on.

But here's the real kicker — last night, he ate MY CELL PHONE. The bottom half of it is completely chewed up. I can still use the arrow buttons at the top, but that's about it. OH, and he destroyed the part where the charger plugs in, so once the battery dies, that's it. No more phone. I guess I'll be going to Alltel tonight to find a new one. Obviously the two chew toys that Mama bought him this weekend weren't enough to keep him entertained. Good try though.

Somebody please tell me why I love him so much?

Maybe he was getting me back for leaving him alone all day Saturday while we were at the beach. Which was AMAZING, by the way. The weather was absolutely perfect. No clouds, temp in the high 80s, crystal clear water. And I didn't even burn!

(Here we are on the way to the beach!)

We went to play mini-golf, which was really fun until about the 10th hole when everyone was more focused on the prospect of seafood than trying to get the ball in the hole.

(We had to take a picture with the gorilla.)So we rushed through the last few holes and went to the Back Porch, where we proceeded to stuff our faces with shrimp, crab claws, scallops and other tasty beach things. Over all, it was a great day.

(The mother-daughter picture.)

Not to mention Alabama totally upset Georgia Saturday night. Can I get a Roll Tide?

The Bible and the beach

Last night I was lost in reflection as I thumbed through the Bible that Grandma brought me when she came to visit. This isn't just any Bible...this is one that she was given in 1978, and nearly every page is filled with notes in her handwriting. There are dates written beside verses, marking important passages of her life.

I don't think she could ever know how precious a gift that was to me. Years and years ago, she promised the Bible would be mine one day, and I thought she had forgotten. But on the inside of the front cover, she had written "To be given to Heather when I die, Mom". After crying at the thought of one day not having her, I started turning the pages and cherishing her words.

I think one of my favorite notes was one that read, "When Satan reminds you of your past, remind him of your future because of the grace of God." It's comforting to know that no matter how many mistakes you've made, God still forgives you and promises a future of eternal life.

In other news, Mama, Loretta and Brooke are coming to see me tonight. I think four people in my tiny little house might be pushing it, but the company will be nice. We're leaving in the morning to spend the day in Destin. The high is only supposed to be 84 tomorrow, so I don't know how much time I'll spend in the water, but it will be nice to relax on the beach for awhile.

Maybe I won't come back looking like a lobster. :)

Hair trauma

So, here it is...the new, waaaaay short hair-cut I got Saturday. While still in "hair shock" at the amount the scissor-happy man-stylist took off, it is starting to get more bearable. I'm starting to hate it less. :)

Thankfully, everyone at work has been super supportive and they continue to tell me it looks good, so that helps a lot. Of course, they could just be saying that to spare my feelings! Who knows?

Besides the traumatic hair experience this weekend, I had a great time on my visit home. I finally got to see Dean, who is hands-down, the CUTEST baby I have EVER seen! I'm not exaggerating. That child definitely won the looks lottery, not to mention the personality lottery. (Congrats Jen...your child is amazing! But you already knew that.)

Wait...what?

So there was this commercial on last night (during House, which did NOT disappoint!) And as I was sitting there listening, accepting whatever it was they were telling me, I had to do a double-take. Let me describe: it was a commercial for a daily asthma medication, that if taken regularly should minimize the risk of attack. BUT...in the side effects list (you know, the one the say really fast at the end like you won't hear the bad stuff?) the woman said "May increase the risk of ASTHMA RELATED DEATH." Are you kidding me? Isn't that why you're taking the medicine? Because you don't want to die?? That's like the anti-depressant commercials that warn, "May cause thoughts of suicide in adolescents." Hmmm...something doesn't sound right with that.

On a related note, I think my dog needs medication. For those of you who have not met Toby, let me just say this: he's a little on the hyper side. Not hyper in a normal sense, by hyper like he took a whole lot of speed and just can't stop moving. He bounces EVERYWHERE. His favorite thing to do lately is hide things...everything. Yesterday it was the remote. After looking for it for 30 minutes, I finally looked under the love seat and discovered a stock-pile of raw hides that I had previously thought he had eaten. And there, in the middle of them all, was my remote. A few teeth marks, but still in tact. So I pulled out all of the hidden treasures and he promptly got to re-hiding them. Some he buried in cushions, others he buried on the living room floor. Well, he thought he buried them. He's a little mental. He digs a pretend hole on the hardwood floor, puts the bone down, then uses his nose to nudge what he obviously sees as dirt all around the bone. Only there's really nothing there. So then he takes a few steps away from his little pretend mound of dirt and looks from it to me, trying to figure out how well it's hidden. Then after a while, he decides I can see it, so he moves it to a new location and starts again. It's a long process.

If only everyone could be so easily entertained.
This is Toby...

.

Snide comments, sarcastic remarks...how can you NOT love him?

In case you're wondering, I'm talking about Dr. Gregory House, from my favorite TV show. Yes my friends, tonight is the season premiere of House at its all new, easy viewing time. Can you tell I'm excited?
Sure he's cranky, mean and sometimes unethical, but he makes me laugh. :)

In other news, the way-too-expensive treadmill I bought a few weeks ago DOESN'T work. I got the daggum thing lugged in the house, unpacked, put together (all while cursing at it for being so heavy), then when I plugged it in - NOTHING HAPPENED. So naturally I tested the outlet, found that it worked with other things, and got even more frustrated. I have literally tried everything. I took the cover off the place where the motor is housed and found that the little indicator light inside comes on, but nothing else does. So now, I get to REPACK the blasted thing, call the freight company to come pick it up and then start all over!! Good grief. I think I'm going to get a refund and just go to a sports store and buy one. Next time though, I'm hiring someone to do the heavy lifting and assembly. Putting it together is not supposed to be the only workout you get from the thing!

On a happier note, Grandma is coming to stay with me Friday night (which means the disaster that is my house needs some work). Bright and early Saturday we're headed to the B'ham area to visit Cousin Jen and family! (my first experience with Baby DEAN!) I can't wait to see everyone. I'm sure there are fun times to be had for all. :)

Let's try this...

Okay, everyone seems to be getting into this blog thing and I'm beginning to feel a bit behind times. So here we go - I am now officially a "blogger". Whatever that means.
I'm not going to be presumptuous enough to think anyone will actually read this on a regular basis, but none-the-less, it's here for those who are interested.
I will go ahead and tell you this much though: I will more than likely NOT be one of those religious updaters. Mostly because I live in Andalusia, Alabama and there is simply not much that happens here that would be of much interest to read (or write about). You'd wind up reading a lot of blogs titled "My trip to Wal-Mart" or "I fell asleep before 9:30 last night...again".
Yes, I live a very exciting, edge-of-your-seat, what's going to happen next kind of life. Be very jealous. :)