Joe and Heather got a great house on a nice cul-de-sac. Every house on the street is as neat as a pin. Their house was in neglect, and is a slight fixer upper. But nothing serious. Just mowing the lawn and trimming hedges makes it have nice curb appeal already. The house was left with alot of junk in it, dirty, and in some disrepair. It just needed a little TLC, otherwise known as elbow grease! I think that is the wisest investment. To get into a good neighborhood for a good price. Add some elbow grease, and make a profit. Although I'm sure they'll live there for a few years, if not a long time.

I have to work during the day, and can only offer my elbow grease at night. So I told Heather I wanted to clean the bathrooms and kitchen. I don't know why. But those are my favorite things. I love to make them sparkle. Starting with the main bathroom, she thought the cabinets and toilet would have to be replaced. I told her to just wait until I was done. I was able to make the bathroom fixtures sparkle and shine by removing all the hard water. Also the ugly brown hard water deposits on the toilet. I used revitalizing oil on the oak cabinets. Cleaned the tile floor, and scrubbed and polished the tub and shower. 3 hours and alot of sweat later, I unveiled my handywork. And she was thrilled! Seriously, it looks absolutely beautiful. It's a bathroom that anyone could be proud of. And it also helped to light a pretty candle before I presented it to her.

I started on the kitchen the next night. Scrubbed out the cupboards, and started "revitalizing the oak cabinets, which were looking like new! Also, scrubbing the grout in the ceramic tile countertops, brightened it up so much. Then I used car wax to make them shine. My favorite is Jubiliee kitchen wax, but we didn't have any. Didn't get to finish, because I got kicked out by the contractor and my son. They were masking off the whole house to take down the cottage cheese ceiling. This house is going to look awesome!

They said we can't work over there tonight. They're texturing and sanding all the ceilings. So I'm staying home and puppy sitting. They have found about a 6 foot rope and are playing tug of war! SO cute!

Yes, count them... two! Doesn't it always happen that way? Joe and Heather are in escrow on their first house. So they're staying with us for a bit. They got a great dane puppy! He is 7 weeks old and tiny! But his father was 160 pounds. I hear that great danes are born small because they have litters of up to 16. And they grow fast. He is definitely growing real fast. And when he eats, I have never seen a puppy expand in the belly area like this. This little thing looks like he will pop! And he is definitely, seriously, the cutest puppy I have ever seen! The other day, Joe said we had too many puppies. I said we only have two. He said, "That's two too many!"

It's a 3 ring circus here, as you can imagine. Marley just turned 3 months. So he is alot bigger, and more rambunctious than sweet little "Toby Bear the Great". We have to basically keep them separated, or only let them be with each other, when one of us can hold Marley back. I don't think he wants to hurt him, but he just doesn't get it!

Only one drawback about puppies... We have not been able to go camping on the lake this summer. Because Marley had to have all his shots before he could go to a camnpground with other dogs. His 3rd set of shots will kick in with full immunities July 23rd. But we're moving on July 24th. So I'm really pressing to get one lake campout going the week after we move in. I want to wakeboard!

I've spent this weekend booking airfares for our company holiday party. Already! Flights have gone up, and I need to book early to make it happen. I hate the airfare bookings. But I LOVE planning everything else. My favorite part is booking the shows and planning the food. I already booked one of the shows. Got one of my favorite family entertainment groups, Limpopo. They are a hilarious, talented Russian music and dance show. We'll have the Reptile Family again too. The kids just love those creepy crawlies. I'm hoping we can get Carolers again this year. I book the group I used to sing in, The Caroling Company. They're the best! We all look forward to the party SO much! It will be a blast!

I guess it's clear from the title of the blog, that we're no longer batting 1,000. Marley still gets an A, because he's cute. And in all fairness, he goes outside way more than inside.

Night before last, Christian spent the night with a friend. So we had him in his doggie bed, next to our bed. At 5:30 AM, we heard him up. It was too late. 4 piles! How did all that come out of that little puppy? Count them, 2 solid and 2 not! OK, it was major "get out the steam cleaner" time! So we decided we would still "free feed" him. But we will put his bowl up on the counter at about 7PM each night. No need to pack his system before bed time.

Last night, we had a good night with Marley. Christian asked us to babysit, so he could sleep over at a friend's house again. I said on one condition. That we sleep like Christian does, with the dog bed on top of our bed. That way, we would know when he got up. Greg reluctantly agreed. He doesn't normally like animals in his bed. Perfect! He woke up at 7AM (which actually made me late for my day. I figured he would work as my alarm clock for 5:30). Took him out and he did both his duties like a good boy! Then, I brought him back in to finish napping in his bed on top of the bed. Greg was still there, also sleeping in. Marley ran up to Greg's pillow, wagging, licking. Greg greeted him and loved on him. So sweet. All aversion to having a dog in his bed is gone. Greg is the leader of the pack here, in Marley's eyes. And they both absolutely adore each other!

Then, on with our day...

So now, we're armed and dangerous. We got a Bissell Spot Bot. So awesome! I was almost wishing he would do something, so we could check it out. OK. So he obliged. Today, is Puke Day. In case you didn't know, that's the holiday on July 1st, before 4th of July. Puppies eat everything. He first puked on the window sill. No Spot Bot needed yet. Easy clean up, with chunks of dog food, bird feathers, pieces of wrapping paper, a few sticks, and even whole little dirt clods. Good thing he purged himself. Didn't get to use the new toy. Darn! But he knew I wanted to use it, so he did it a few more times on the wood floor (wiped it up), and three more times on the carpet. Yay! The Spot Bot is working away on the last or the 3 carpet messes as I type.

We decided to give Christian some more time with his buddy. So he'll be home at 2PM. We'll need to brief him on the usage of the Spot Bot. Our new friend!

Still surviving and thriving in puppy land!

We're housebreaking a puppy! And loving it! Seriously! It's Christian's first puppy of his own. He's 10 weeks old now. And since it's his, we let him choose his method of training. He has chosen not to crate train. We are also free feeding him. That's just because I'm a doting mother, and I can't stand the thought of a baby not getting food when he is hungry. Plus it's my southern mother's influence on me. Feed people constantly, and feed them alot!

Here's the perfect formula for housebreaking, that we happened upon:

1. Lay the ground work - When the kid wants a puppy, paint the worst case scenarios for a long period of time, maybe months (for Christian it was years, as we still had 2 geriatric dogs living). Tell him that he will have to watch the puppy constantly, that it's a full time job, which is entirely his. He can't go and do things with friends, as he will have a baby to take care of. But friends can come over. And you will only babysit if you have time, and if he asks in advance. It's like having a baby and having to find a babysitter. Go into gross graphic detail about picking up their "mess" in the house, and that it could happen 6 times a day or worse if the puppy is sick, and can go on for 6 months or more day in and day out, etc. Then, if they still want a puppy, and you do agree to get them a puppy, they know what's expected of them.

2. Timing - Bring the puppy home the first day of summer vacation, so the kid is home to watch him. Christian knows he does not have a summer for himself. This summer is dedicated to raising, training, housebreaking, and loving his puppy.

2. Get more help - Have 2 more college age kids living with you for the summer too, if possible (My son Joe and his wife Heather, are here for the summer). They are constantly playing with him, training him, and taking him out to potty. If you don't know any college students, put an ad in the paper, "Free room and board. Must help with puppy". Just kidding. But maybe not a bad idea.

3. Tire out the puppy - Let your kid have lots of friends over every day to keep the puppy occupied and tire him out, so he will sleep through the night.

4. Explain the "puppy schedule" to your kid: They eat, poo, nap, pee, play, nap, pee... eat, poo, nap, pee, play, nap, pee, etc. And in that order. And let them know that if they don't pay attention to that schedule, chances are pretty good that there will be poo or pee to clean up after eating or napping.

I told Christian, everytime he eats, take him out to poo. Every time he wakes up from a nap, be right there, because the first thing he will do, is to step out of his bed and go right over and pee on the carpet.

Christian sleeps with Marley in his dog bed, on top of Christian's bed, right next to Christian. The first few nights, Christian slept with his arm across Marley, so that if he stirred, Christian would feel it, and take him out in the night.

Also, Greg and I work from home. I will admit, I have gotten very little work done. This puppy is just SO adorable. I just want to be with him! Same thing with Greg, Joe and Heather. So I leave my office, and find Christian playing video games with Marley lazing on his lap. I ask if he's been out lately. If Christian says he could go out, I gladly take him. And he does his business. I play with him a little, and bring him back to his Daddy.

Before I tell you what Marley's "score" is on housebreaking, I have to let you know this... Since we have coyotes and bobcats in our area, and small dogs do get eaten in our neighborhood, Marley can never go outside alone. So, he is an inside dog, except for when we take him out to play fetch in the yard (yes, at 10 weeks, he is learning fetch, I'm sure he's a genius dog). Now, we're on our 7th day, and (drumroll, please) he has not poo-ed in the house at all! No poo! He has only pee-ed twice on the wood floor when he was on his way out to the back door to go pee after a nap, and someone stopped him to greet him. And when he accidently pee-ed those 2 times, he yelped, as he knew it just wasn't right! And since it wasn't his fault that we interrupted his mission to go outside to pee, those 2 pees don't count. So his score is... 100% He gets an A+! Wow!

Christian also has done 100% and gets an A+! He does not take his eyes off of this dog. He stands there and watches him eat, sits nearby while he naps, etc. And takes him right out. Last night, he asked if we would babysit for him so that he could go out with his friends. Gladly! Trevor's mom came to pick him up, and I was telling her about our housebreaking phenomenon. I teased Christian, "I think you are just mortified at the idea of having to pick up poo!" He just laughed and agreed. Whatever it is, it works! 

The subject of A Grateful Heart has been on my mind alot lately. There's a connection here with a grateful heart and getting teens to clean up after themselves WITH A GOOD ATTITUDE! And  it would also be nice if they didn't have to be told! I don't have too many answers, but here's my rambling thoughts... and borderline venting...

It's summertime, and the "hang out" house (my house) has daily traffic. Instead of just weekends, I have anywhere from 5-8 teens here daily. The idea has always been that Christian is in charge of making sure they clean up. Off and on over the years, I've seen him like a parent, just giving up and doing it himself. Then, getting tired of doing it himself, and slacking off completely at times, until we nag, remind, cajole, beg, plead, and anything else we can conjure up to get them to clean up after themselves. In Christian's defense, I realize that's alot of responsibility for a teen with so many here. Sort of like I'm asking him to raise a bunch of teens and train them. It's tough enough for an adult to manage one teen! So we step in. (roll eyes)

These kids require constant "grooming" in many ways, just like my own. It's cyclical. They do good for while, start slacking, and we have to crack down again. The goal is is that they should clean up without being told to do so. Ha! I haven't seen that for a long time! After all, am I their maid? And most importantly, "Hello... Grow up!" If asking nicely doesn't work, they start leaving trash around for hours or until the next day. Then there's a confrontation, and they clean up, some with an attitude, or some suddenly have "somewhere to go" (convenient, after lazing around for the past 24 hours).

The question arises... If they stopped to think about it, they would appreciate us opening up our home to them and have a grateful heart. And the natural thing to follow would be to be very clean. Ha! That's a fantasy! Some of them say "thank you for having me". But did they put their blankets and pillows away? Or, "Thanks for the ride." But did he take his In-N-Out burger trash (that I paid for) with him? Or just leave it in the back of the car for me to pick up? Sometimes yes. Most times no. Teens are funny. Sort of unconcious alot of the time. But I think they're by nature pretty self absorbed. And it's our job to wake them up. Somehow, some way, awaken them to a grateful heart.

A grateful heart pertains to all of us. I think we must purpose ourselves to have a grateful heart, and take notice of the good things in life. Whether it is a a place to sleep, a car to drive, a juicy red apple, or anything small or large in between. It's funny how teens don't seem to notice how much parents give, or in this case, how much we give to these kids who are not our own: our space (our home), our peace (it's noisy here), our favorite couch for hours on end, our food, my fire pit at night which I can't enjoy when my friend comes to visit because they have taken over, and the list goes on and on... I "give" these things to them, because I choose to. In return for that "gift", I just want them to GLADLY clean up!... WITHOUT BEING TOLD! If I give them my home to mess up for a 24 hour period, they can usually clean up in 10 or 15 minutes if they all pitch in. It's really not a big deal. Honestly, it's almost funny! And funnier still, I love them, enjoy having them here (most of the time). They trully are fun and funny!

For some teens, there is anger, rebellion and bitterness, which I know comes as a result of terrible life circumstances. But I still think those attitudes take root because we forget to count our blessings. We haven't asked God to give us a grateful heart. If we look around, we can all see something to be grateful for almost daily. For example, I could have chosen to be angry as a teen because my mom was in the hospital most of my life. Our lives (my sister, brother, and me) were difficult, having to get a job on a work permit at 15, not to buy fun things, but to have food, toothpaste and shampoo, to be able to buy cough syrup for my baby brother, and the list goes on and on. Life was difficult while she was alive, and we all had to struggle through. Then she died when I was 19, my sister was 16, and my brother was only 7. For all those years as a teen, before she died and was "dying" in the hospital, I could have chosen to be bitter. And admittedly, there were seasons when I was. But as I look back on my life, I see that there were so many things to be grateful for. I saw some way back then, but even more now that I am "old".

My prayer for these teens almost daily is that they will be awakened to a grateful heart, not just so that my house will be clean (which is pretty much near the top of my list at the moment!), but also for their character. After playing video games for hours on end into the night, and sleeping in until noon, "Hey! Guys! Do you expect me to clean up your pizza box, cans and trash from last night... ?" They hang their heads and drag themselves in there like it's punishment. Then it's done in 5 minutes.

A bitter heart is like a cancer that breeds more misery. A grateful heart feels good inside.

(wow, that was a long one!)