Year End

I can't believe that 2009 is almost here. This year seemed to fly by. Christmas went well, we had a great Christmas breakfast followed by napping and great Christmas dinner. Then more napping. It was rough :)

Gemi got a bone and some dog treats from santa. Which she managed to get a hold of the dog treats when we were not home yesterday and ate the entire package.

Jonathan got a sonicare toothbrush (which works awesome), some pans and the matrix movies on blue ray. Which are now 20 bucks cheaper!

I was became the proud owner of a body bugg. What is a body bugg you may ask? Well if you watch the Biggest Loser it is those arm bands that the contestants wear and it tells how many calories you burn. It is pretty neat.

Which starts the 2009 weight loss challenge (It never ended, or really began in 2008). LOL. But this year should be fun and exciting. Jonathan and I are ending our personal trainer and getting a membership at the Cuyahoga Falls natatorium. I started taking some of their aerobics classes and I love them! It is a good way for me to get the cardio I need and I would feel like a total loser if I quit in the middle of the class. So I push all the way through until the end.

Plus as a bonus Jonathan has started to make "deals" with me. He has promised me a Levian diamond ring that I want if I loose 15 pounds in the month of January.

I guess he figured that I would work hard enough for some diamonds. Which I will!! I think he is really ready to try and have babies and he knows that is not going to happen unless I loose some weight. So I will be blogging my weight journey throughout January and hopefully success by June!! I wonder what I will get if I meet my goal weight!

Maybe I could loose a few by the time Brian and Amy get back from Australia. They should be arriving there very soon in an hour or so!

HI AMY AND BRIAN!!! Bring me some shot glasses.

OK well we are off to watch the Cavs game at Rocknes.

Winter's arrival

As I sit here pondering my blown diet last week. I gazed out the window to find snow falling!

I in turn decided to move closer to the fire and continue to think about the past week and I how wouldn't even dare weigh myself yesterday. I didn't want to know!!

Our new doors are coming tomorrow and I am not sure if that is good or bad timing. We are having our front doors and back sliding door replaced. It will take them two days to do but I am not sure I want a gaping whole in my house while they take the old doors off and put the new ones on. Brrr it is going to make the house frigid. In the long run it will make the house warmer since our doors have horrible drafts.

Little Gemi hates the cold although she hates the clothes I put on her equally as much. She will be dressing up as a pumpkin for our Halloween party at work this week. All the office gals are dressing up as witches. I will have to take lots of pictures because she looks so cute in the costume.

So back to the blown diet. We went to The Ohio State game this weekend and lets just say diet and eating healthy were no where to be found. (I ate a whole pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream!) Today I had to get back on track and I did really well. I even made it to the gym and got a good workout in with the trainer. I just need to focus more on cardio if I ever expect to loose the pounds. It is so hard to spend an hour on the treadmill after working 9+ hour days. I just need to get focused and do it. I suppose I should start leaving work in the middle of the day and then coming back. That seemed to be pretty effective in the past.

Oh well another day and another dollar short!

Bye bye Sophie

I took Sophie back to Haven for Pets today. She was a little escape artist and I knew that wouldn't fly at work.

Jonathan took her out yesterday and decided not to leash her. She ran off within two seconds. He spent the next 15 minutes and 7 yards over trying to catch her. It's almost like she didn't want to be caught. She would not let you come within 20 - 30 feet of her or she would run further.

Today I was letting Gemi back in and the damn dog ran through the door and ran off. I spent the next 35 minutes and 20 yards trying to catch her. I was in my socks and toting Gemi with me. I ran and ran, lost sight of her a few times and almost died losing my breath. She finally ran up by the middle school where the kids watched from the window as I tried to wrangle her in. She finally went into the practice football field which was fenced in. I sat on the ground and called Gemi to come to me, when she came Sophie followed and got within arms reach and I grabbed her.

The dog acted like she had no idea who I was when chasing her. As soon as I got home I called Haven for pets to take her back. I could just see her being at work and then running out the door and getting hit on West Market street. She definitely was not a good fit for the home.

The weird thing is that the dog was so sweet and loving she would have been great. But when she got outside it was like she wanted to be a stray!

So now it is just Gemi again. :) Yahhh!

Princess Sophia

Today was a disappointing day. I was all ready to start my running schedule and when I got the gym both treadmills were taken! :p. I did the elliptical instead but it was such a bummer from what I was pumped to do. I guess I will chalk it up as my cross train day and run on Wednesday instead. I am starting off slow so I have plenty of time to build a good base.

I tried this 5 hour energy shot today too. I have been super tired and having trouble getting motivated so I thought this would help. I had trouble sleeping last night so that probably didn't help me get moving today. I drank half of it around 1 and felt pretty good then the other half an hour before my work out. I think it helped a little, I wasn't wired or anything but I didn't want to just curl up in a ball and sleep either.

I picked up the second dog for work today. Sophie. She is really cute and a sheltie mix. She is really good too. Already potty trained and really calm (probably because she is on doggie Prozac, lol). She has a bit of a separation anxiety thing, which is good though because she will never be alone. I feel bad for her because she is a year old and has been in a foster home for a month. A few homes foreclosed in a neighborhood and some family just left her behind. She is a bit skinny and needs to fatten up some, but I doubt that will be a problem. I think Gemi likes her more then the puppy, she keeps biting her paws trying to antagonize her to play.

Weigh in week 3

I weighed myself and lost 2.7 pounds this week! Woohoo. That makes for a total of 6.3 pounds in 3 weeks, I am so excited. I didn't use all my weekly flex points which I think may have helped a little. I have been eating only when I am hungry and definitely making wiser choices. Weight watchers rocks!

Good morning officer!

So I didn't eat the best today. I had a bowl of cereal and a ham sandwich. (I wasted 5 points on a coffee too!) But that was all I ate until 8pm. So I was starving and when I get that way I want to eat anything and everything. We went out to dinner and I just wanted to order, order, order! Thank God Jonathan kept me in check. He made me split a meal with him and we got hummus for an appetizer and I had a side salad too. I was full after the hummus and salad lol.

We went through the McDonald's parking lot on our way home because there were 3 cop cars with their lights on. Although by the time we made it around the circle again to get to the McDonalds they were finishing up whatever they were doing. I am just so nosy. So the cop pulled behind us and we figured we should stop to get something instead of just pull through. So I got a diet coke. I kept looking back at the cop so I think that made him suspicious or something.

Besides I wasn't buckled up when we first pulled in so I whipped my seat belt on really quick on top of it.

So we pull out and he comes behind us, like speeding up to catch us. I think he may have thought we had been drinking or something because I kept giving Jonathan the V8 smack on the forehead in the car too. So we talked about swerving around so he would pull us over and it would be funny (although he probably would not find it that way). I don't think he cared too much after we drove straight the whole way home (a whole mile!).

Which reminds me about how eventful this morning was. Jonathan and I were leaving for work and we were cleaning junk out of my car. So I put my purse inside, started the truck, got Gemi situated in the passenger seat and cleaned out the back seat. So I strolled around to get in and my doors were locked!! Gemi just stared at me from inside the truck.

Jonathan and I ran around for 5 minutes looking for my spare key which I never found. He decides he is going to run to his dealership and have a new key made to let back in. (This would have taken at least 40 minutes for the drive to and from alone, poor Gemi!) As he headed to work I decided to call the cops to see if they could help. An officer was there within 5 minutes (then again we live a mile from the police station) and the cop popped the lock within 30 seconds. I just felt like a big old retard considering I was AT HOME and couldn't get myself in the car!

Oh well the policeman was very nice and Gemi was so excited to see her mommy. At least the day got better except for my hunger!

Dogs, Weight, and Work!

So little Luci is spending the night with another co-worker (thank God!). Jonathan wanted to keep her. I think two days of dealing with a puppy was enough for me. We were up at 3 and 6 am to let her out plus about every hour when she was awake. I'm pooped! I think Gemi was a bit jealous anyways so I wanted to give her some TLC this weekend.

Everyone at work loves Luci and she loved work. She ran a muck! She ended up on all three floors by herself, getting on and off the elevator. She is so social which will be great for the residents. I am going to go pick up Sophie tomorrow. She is a cute 35 pound sheltie mix. She is supposedly very social and love attention. If all that is true she will fit in great in the community. Jonathan wants me to bring her home over the weekend again! Lol I think he enjoys having the extra dog around.... I don't! At least Sophie is potty trained.

So Sunday is weigh in number three! I can't believe this week FLEW by. I definitely did not work out like I should have. I did Monday and Tuesday and then stopped again. I really need to get into a routine. I am hoping that maybe this week coming up will be better. I get all excited after watching the Biggest Loser, but then by the end of the work day I am exhausted and just not interested. I know once I get going I will feel good but until then I just have to push through it.

I am thinking about training for a race, that always seems to give me a reason to actually work out. The Cincinnati Flying Pig Half Marathon in May looks fun and if I follow my weight loss plan I should reach my weight goal by March so my knees should be ok.

Work has been crazy lately. Our census has dropped again. We had 2 residents die last week and 3 moved out for various reasons (financial, closer home to their family etc.) in the past month. Nothing that we did wrong which is good. I am still working with my lead care managers to make them strong leaders. It is hard sometimes because they don't always listen. And then there are those who always want to make trouble or cause drama. I guess I shouldn't complain because the one's who still work for me are not as bad as when I first started in this position.

Our living room is still being remodeled, although we are almost done. I had Wednesday and Thursday off and I did nothing! I was so lazy.

Jonathan had his MRI on Thursday and we are waiting for the results on his knee. We both know that he will just need surgery, it will just depend on how big of a surgery. We hope to know Monday or Tuesday coming up.

Oh well another day is over. Too bad a full moon is next week I am sure it will get crazier!

The girls

Did I mention that Gemi is pouting?

Abigal lost again!

So the big weigh in came and went and I lost another 1.8 pounds which is good. I wish it was more but at the same time I know it needs to be slow and steady. That's also pretty good considering I didn't work out. I have managed to make it to the gym yesterday and today. I didn't do too much since I am getting back into the groove but I have earned 6 activity points this week.

We got a new puppy at work today. Ok well I got us a new puppy at work. Our house dog Charlie is too fat so our housekeeping supervisor (who Charlie loves anyways and mopes around when she is not there) will be taking him home. I bought Luci from Haven for pets. She is a rescue dog and a cute little 4 month old Malti-poo (Maltise - Poodle mix). She is adorable and very sweet and playful. They charged me 175 for her (which work will reimburse me) which isn't bad considering she has been spayed (or neutered which ever one for a female dog), given all her shots, and 90% potty trained! If you bought her breed in a pet store she would be like $600.

So I asked the lady how they came across her since she was so young and so darn cute. They told me that some rich people bought her from a pet store and decided that they didn't feel like caring for a puppy so took her to the vet to be euthanized!! WTF?? I was shocked, what assholes. The vet actually refused to do it and took her in then giving her to Haven for pets. Where she was purchased by me!

Gemi loves her and the two of them have been running around like mad dogs in the house. They are both passed out now. Gemi is laying with me and Luci is with Jonathan.

So the trend of the belly fat naming has spread some more. We named our maintenance coordinator's belly Herbie. I really suggest that everyone names fat rolls of fellow people they know! JK.

Ok that is it I am going to go take a picture of Luci to post and let Jonathan putz around on the computer. Another week down in the weight battle but I am sticking to it!

Week 2 Weigh in Tomorrow!

So tomorrow is weight in week 2. I just had a big york peppermint patty and I am feeling guilty about it. Although I am still under my weekly points by at least 10. I am over by 4 today. I am hoping for a 2 pound loss. I didn't eat the best yesterday night, I used that as my once a week treat. Although it wasn't even good! I had a pulled pork sandwich and fries and it felt like a total waste after I ate it. I didn't even eat all of it (not that, that is a bad thing.) I am feeling really full right now but I have been guzzling a giant diet pop so that is probably why. Thank God diet pop is no points.

Work was sort of blah today. I think we are going to have another resident die soon. It seems like it always happens in threes, so I suppose we will have one more pass away after her. I am remodeling the employee break room. It is beginning to look really nice. I hope they can attempt to keep it clean for a while.

I came home today and just cleaned the house and went to the grocery store. I bought a few vegetables and some fruit since veggies are no points and fruit is only a couple. Everything I have read says I need to eat more veggies. I even bought fat free ranch so that should help with the carrots and celery sticks. I can eat the cucumbers alone with salt. I also found Progresso soups that are no points! So that can at least tide me over as needed too.

I am bummed because I didn't work out this week. I really need to get back into the swing of that. Work was just so crazy and I was tired. We are watching the Ohio State game now and I just feel like sleeping. Oh well it will take time.

I can't believe that the holidays are creeping up so fast. I was talking with Amy about what time to have Thanksgiving dinner. I think Jonathan's parents are coming up again which will be nice. We have been remodeling the living room so it will be nice for them to see it all finished. Jonathan even put up crown molding, it looks really nice. We just have a little more to go and I need to repaint the foyer (since I already painted it once and Jonathan didn't like the color choice). I am so sick of TAN! He claims it looks mint green but I don't think so. We can't come to an agreeance about what color to paint it either.

I have been using the message boards on WW a lot too. It is nice to listen to other people that may be struggling with staying on track. It is like a little support community.

Ok enough babbling for tonight. I am going to plop down on the couch with Gemi.

The circle of life

So today at work a resident who has lived with us for 9 years suddenly passed away. She kept saying she didn't feel well today all day and she fell this evening so we sent her out to the hospital. She died a few hours after being sent out :( She was completely independent. She had a lot of OCD issues but she was a great lady.

One of our marketing links brought in his new baby today. His son is 9 weeks old. He was soooo cute. I held him and he drooled all over my shirt. My boss kept laughing at me saying "You know you like it!". He was pretty darn cute. A whole head of hair and really quiet.

I decorated the home a little bit today since we still don't have an activity coordinator. I love putting up Halloween stuff. I have to go out and buy some extra stuff tomorrow. A lot of it got ruined last year because it wasn't stored properly.

I am excited for my next weigh in. I have been eating really well and my hunger needs have gone down a ton! I am not starving all the time. I have not gone over my points and I haven't tapped into my 35 Flex points I get a week. The less calories the better. I hope I can loose 3 pounds, that would be nice.

I am currently watching the debate. I think Palin is an idiot!

Ok sorry for the boring blog! Nothing exciting lately. Go Bucks this weekend.

Ohio State Game Pics

GO BUCKEYES!

The Vomit Theory

Do you ever have one of those days at work where it seems like people keep coming to you from the beginning through the end of the day with problems? It starts when you first step through the door and get hit with a problem or complaint. This is followed by another problem, a few more employee complaints and so on. Before you know it your day should have ended an hour and a half ago and you are still plugging away dealing with issues.

This is what I like to call the Vomit Theory.

The Vomit Theory is basically this. People who are either your employees or consumers (whom will never be happy) feel that something is not right, or there is a problem. Therefore they come to you and immediately vomit their problem all over you. It is not literal vomit but it is a spewing of words that shoot from ones mouth and compile themselves into a lump in front of you that you now need to clean up. Sometimes the vomit is small and easy to clean up. Perhaps you could just place a potted plant over it. Other times the vomit is a huge chunky and soggy mound that is seeping into the carpet and worse then any flu season. Those must be extracted, scrubbed and the air needs spritzed for the next five hours to avoid the foul smell.

Once people vomit on you they feel much better. But now you must fix what is now laying before you. Sometimes I wonder why common sense doesn't grace my employees and family members. They make decisions and take actions that make me want to smack them in the forehead like a V8 commercial. If more people had common sense some days may be a little more tidy.

Today was one of those days where everyone had the flu.

I think the sight of all the vomit made me less hungry today. I barely ate all my weight watchers points. In fact I had a tall hot chocolate from Starbucks to finish off the last 5 points. It was so tasty too!

I didn't work out because I was stuck at work an hour and half longer then I wanted to be trying to require people to be responsible for their actions and to solve their own problems. Although my legs feel almost normal today. If it doesn't rain tomorrow I would like to take Gemi out for a bike ride in her carrier.

Oh well I think it is time to hunker down and relax for the night. I am excited for another day closer to me weekly weigh in!!

Re-appearing Blogster

So I know it has been forever since I last blogged. Yes I slacked off. But I feel the urge to start again.

So I started my diet #568. I joined weight watchers. This worked for me in the past and I figured it is a great way for me to judge just how much I am eating. Did I mention I am hungry? LOL.

I lost 1.8 pounds my first week. I wanted more but was excited to loose. I ran in the Akron Marathon on a relay team on Saturday. I did the 10K (6.2 miles). I haven't been able to walk normal for the last two days. I did get the running itch though. I really want to do the Flying Pig Half Marathon in May. But I have to loose some pounds first. My knee hurt really bad from Saturday. I iced it and took some anti-inflammatories. That helped.

I like weight watchers. It is easy to follow. I even got 3 people at work to do it with me so far. I am hoping for more. I am even surprised how I just don't eat junk food now. I would rather spend my points on something more filling. I gained ALL the weight back that I lost for our wedding. So dissapointing. (But the food was good.) I want to keep it off, I don't ever want to get back to this point again (unless I am pregnant, and I'm not!).

Abigal is the name of my fat roll though. I am hoping that she will go away. I think I may have actually started a trend. I have named one of my friends fat rolls, Delilah. Also I named one of the girls at work, Clara. It is fun to grab my belly, jiggle it, and yell Abigal is HUNGRY!

Yes I am strange, like you didn't know that!

Ok well I feel better now that I got this all out in the open. Wish me luck, my next weigh in is on Sunday. I did great yesturday and today on my food. 5 more days and I will have lost again (hopefully). I am still seeing the personal trainer. Although I should actually loose some weight faster now.

Good night and Sleep tight! Did I mention that I am still hungry?

Wee on the Wii??

So things have been crazy lately. We decided last minute to throw a reception/family BBQ before Jonathan's parents left. This left us less then two weeks to plan for approximately 30 - 40 people. As procrastinators we wouldn't have it any other way. So I scrambled to put some invitations together and get out first thing Monday morning. I wanted to order some from online, it would have cost us $200, so Jonathan vetoed the decision. Therefore I spent my Sunday evening addressing envelopes, printing invites and stuff envelopes. Jonathan got the hint that he needed to help me after I passed him several nasty glances while he played his stupid football game on his playstation.



I managed to get all 70 envelopes addressed, stuffed and sealed and sent out first thing Monday morning. We have had several responses already so it should be fun. I am imagining that his parents will leave Sunday morning after the party, I think they are really ready to be home. They miss their dog Scooter too.



Laura's birthday was this week and for those of you who don't know Laura she is my best friend from high school. Her flavor of the week, Brian, is actually really nice and do I dare say both Jonathan and I think he is a keeper thus far! Although she got wasted on Tuesday and acted like a retard so I am surprised when she woke up in the morning that he was still there. As a small glimpse of the night she kept rubbing her belly, which I named Delilah (no she is not pregnant we name our fat rolls around here) saying that the baby was drunk and then would giggle it. It was quite the night and we only spent 1/2 an hour with her because by 10pm she had drank almost an entire pitcher of margaritas by herself. When she met us at Friday's I was the dutiful friend that held back her hair while she vomited in the bathroom and reminded her that at 26 we were not supposed to be doing this anymore :) She's a nut!



After all that it was a full moon this week which meant all the old folks were loony. We had a gentleman in an electric wheelchair knock a table over onto another resident, who by the grace of God was not hurt because a care giver had caught it. So in turn I took away the old chaps electric wheelchair privileges on the first floor. The next day he insisted that it never happened and that I was a liar and out to get him. After 45 minutes of attempting to explain to him what happened and of course getting no where I threw him on the elevator. Ok well I didn't throw him but I would have liked to, he was driving me CRAZY. But I had a care giver take him up so I didn't have to hear about it any more.



He then stopped by my office before lunch, during lunch and after lunch to have the same endless conversation about how I fabricated such a story. His wife came in to see him and left after literally 5 minutes because he was being so mean!



To top it off we have been on a wii and wii fit kick. We are buying as many as possible so we can sell them on e-bay. We sold our first Wii fit for $130 which after shipping and ebay cost we made about 30 bucks. This was just a test run, we have seen them go as high as $190 so I am going to readjust my selling tactics a little. We now have 4 Wii fits in the house (6 including Amy's and my brand new one) and one Wii. We plan to sell them all on e-bay (well not mine and Amy's). So this brings me to my next point Wee on the Wii.



So when I woke up this morning my little princess Gemi Gemstone was laying next to me. We cuddled until I got up to get ready for work. She always sits on the bed and stares at me until it is time to go downstairs. So when I was finished getting all fabulous we headed down for me to let her out. I went and opened the door and she walks over to my Wii which was on the ground on the pretty green yoga mat I got to accessorize with it. She sniffed it and then headed outside. I looked down at the mat and it was a little shiny. I touched it with my finger and it was all wet. I then smelled my finger and I'll be damned the little shit peed on my Wii in the middle of the night. There was yellow back splash all over the damn thing. The little foot pads were soaked. I was furious.

So my little princess was rotten! Well I did something to my arm and I am in extreme pain right now which Jonathan is claiming it is a pinched nerve. It hurts a lot more then a pinched nerve! I have to stop typing before my arm falls off. I will keep you posted on the party and my arm.

This one is for Josh

Josh's funeral was today. We never made it to the calling hours. I do not think Jonathan could handle it or was ready to face the loss of a friend and someone so young. On my way to work I headed towards the circle and people were lined up all around it. My car was stopped behind a truck, the police were clearing the circle to start the funeral procession. I turned off the car knowing that this would take some time. Many police cars from all surrounding cities where there to take part and honor a comrade. It was sad. The procession took 10 to 15 minutes to pass through before the streets were opened up again. News helicopter's flew overhead to get a birds eye view of the police and civilians that came to pay their respect to Josh.

The following are photos that were taken from news crews from today's procession and funeral.

The funeral procession for slain Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian makes it way down Darrow Road on Friday to the Crown Hill Cemetery in Twinsburg.

Members of the police community stand at attention Friday as the funeral procession for slain Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian arrives at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Oakwood.

Law enforcement officers at Friday's memorial service for slain Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian walk Miktarian's police dog, Bagio, down the center aisle of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Oakwood.

Police officers stand at attention Friday as the funeral procession for slain Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian passes under an American flag as it makes it way into Crown Hill Cemetery in Twinsburg.

Police dogs and their handlers on Friday line a Twinsburg portion of the route of the funeral procession for slain Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian.

Oakwood police officer Holly Miktarian is escorted to the gravesite of her husband Twinsburg police officer Joshua T. Miktarian during his internment ceremony Friday at Crown Hill Cemetery in Twinsburg.

Twinsburg police officers Friday carry the body of their fellow officer Joshua T. Miktarian during the internment ceremony at Crown Hill Cemetery in Twinsburg. Officer Miktarian was shot and killed Sunday.

This evening at dinner Josh became the topic of conversation again as he has so many time over the past week. Both Jonathan and his dad began to tear up. Jonathan's dad donated money in the family's name to Josh's memorial fund. So many ideas and theories run through our heads as to what truly happened. We discussed many of these circumstances during dinner.

At home we watched the funeral procession on the nightly news. It was like out of a movie or something you would see but you never expect to know that person. As Jonathan and I talked into the evening we decided it would be a good idea to dig up some old pictures of them when they were younger and give them to Holly. It would mean a lot to her and Thea their daughter, the more memories they can have the better.

In Memory of Joshua Miktarian.

The Return of the FLIES!

So you have to be kidding me right. The flies are back and grosser then ever. When I was home yesterday, I worked at home only I did very little work, I went upstairs to jump in the shower before grabbing some lunch with the in-laws. When I headed into the bathroom those damn nasty flies were back!


I immediately put on my big game hunter hat and went to town smashing each and every one of them. They like to play dead too. You can swat at it and it will lay on the floor all curled up and then the next thing you know it is crawling around on the floor! So it is worse because you have to smash them really good and since they are so big it is just plain messy. I killed a total of 15 all by myself. And for those of you who know me, I am not into bugs at all. So this was quite the achievement. I left a couple of them on the floor to show to Jonathan and flushed the rest.

Just on a side note, if you ever look up the word flush, or toilet or even flush toilet on google for a picture. You get some really weird stuff. Like people have the strangest bathrooms. For example the see through fly fishing toilet seat. Like why would you want to see through your toilet seat? Do you really think that your fly fishing seat might just hook something? Well if it does, it probably isn't going to be something you really want to reel out!



So I call Jonathan and he starts flipping out, because yeah it is pretty darn disgusting. I told him I would call terminex or something. Well of course I didn't and he wasn't thrilled with that when he got home from work at 9pm. I did eventually pick the dead fly bodies up off the floor that I was saving for him, which I am sure he appreciated.


Well today we went to work and decided to shut the master bathroom door and the master bedroom door to see where these flies may be coming from. And of course I was supposed to call the exterminator, I picked Orkin, which of course I didn't. So when we got home we headed upstairs and those damn things were all over again! The bathroom door didn't get closed all the way my flat iron cord got stuck in it so we did not have a good judgement of where exactly they may be coming from since they were in both rooms again.

Jonathan went out for the big game hunting as I watched. "Did you call the exterminator today," he asked? "Ummmm no," I cringed. As I began to notice the steam shoot out of his ears I booked it downstairs to grab my cell phone why he got to take his frustration out on the flies.


Finally I called and they are having someone come out tomorrow to take a look at the issue. We have this sweet ziploc baggie up there with 8 fly bodies in it, just in case any one is in question. 2 out of those 8 played dead so they are actually alive in the bag and will hopefully suffocate soon or something. I guess I am guaranteeing that at least 2 will have all their body parts still attached!

Let's just hope I make it until then Jonathan may swat me with the newspaper first.

THE FLY

We found another one! The nasty bugger must have escaped the bedroom. Ewww!

In memory of Officer Joshua Miktarian

On Sunday night Jonathan and I were watching the 11:00 news and they were talking about a fallen police officer in Twinsburg that was murdered on a routine traffic stop. They talked briefly about the man and the situation which was still under investigation. The news anchor said that he was only 33, had a 3 month old baby girl and his name was Joshua Miktarian. The first thing that popped into my head was his age, he was so young and the same age as Jonathan. Jonathan on the other hand sat up suddenly in bed and said "Oh my God did they say Josh Miktarian?". We rewound the tivo and sure enough the fallen officer was Josh. Jonathan gasped and fell silent for a moment, "I grew up with him," he said, "We were great friends from grade school into high school."

My heart sank realizing that this once strange man on the television screen that I felt so sad for had now made an impact so close to home. I had only just begun to realize just how close to home it would be.

Josh and Jonathan grew up together. They used to hang out all the time and run in the same crowd. They both loved sports and enjoyed baseball. They rode around Tallmadge on their mopeds together and spent many summers just hanging out. Josh lived down the street from Jonathan as a kid and as time has passed he continued to live down the street as an adult. Ironically both Josh and Jonathan purchased the house they grew up in so they still both lived just around the corner from one another. Josh's house is less then 1/4 mile from ours. When we would go to the recreation center and we would always see his police car parked in his driveway. K-9 was marked on the side.

I vaguely remember Jonathan mentioning he grew up with him when I inquired about the police car in the driveway one day. As we sat in bed I asked why he was still not as close to him as he once was. He said that Josh had gotten a baseball injury that had prevented him from playing sports. He told me their close friendship changed directions as Josh got involved with other activities at school since he could not participate in sports anymore. Although Jonathan would see Josh out in his yard often mowing the lawn he would stop and say hello. As time passed and Josh joined the police force, he was an 11 year veteran, Jonathan did not see him as much because he worked the night shift. But that never stopped the memories of the great times they had together as kids.

As we sat and watched the news story again it was hard to believe that someone so young and so close to home had an untimely death doing one of the things he loved the most. They announced a vigil that would be held at Twinsburg city hall the next day. We both decided to go. Jonathan hated the idea of telling his mom about all this, "She's going to cry," he said. For the remainder of the night we lied in bed realizing just how fragile life is and that you never know when your time to go may be.

The next morning I headed out the door in a rush. I had to be at work early for a meeting. Jonathan was sad, I could tell. The shock of it all was still settling in. When I arrived at work I grabbed a newspaper and took the front page that was covered with Josh's story. It was a routine traffic stop. He pulled a car over for loud music and suspicion of DUI at 1:54, he called in the car's license plate. A few minutes later he called for backup. When dispatch attempted to reach him again, there was not response. When back up arrived he was life flighted to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. I tucked the newspaper into my bag and called Jonathan later in the day to tell him I was saving it for him. He was planning on getting out of work early so we could head up to Twinsburg for the vigil.

That evening when I arrived home I turned on the computer to try and find an address for the city hall so we could put it into our GPS system. Jonathan's mom was going with us and I had stopped at the store to pick up a folding chair for her and 3 candles. I went to Ohio.com, the Akron Beacon Journal website to get the details. As the web page loaded the headline read 'Self defense claim in officer slaying.' My mouth dropped and my heart sank. How could someone plead self defense? I read on and the details only became more sickening. Josh was shot 4 times in the head, his gun was still holstered and the suspect was arrested an hour later at his home with one hand cuff still on. His dog was in the back seat of his cruiser the whole time. Jonathan got home and met me upstairs as we continued to read. I felt ill and enraged at the article. It made no sense, none of it.

We headed toward the vigil and the thought of the article remained on my mind. Traffic in Twinsburg was backed up due to the surmounting amount of people that were coming to pay their respects for this fallen hero. Jonathan dropped his mom and I off close to the site and he went to park. Hundreds of people were there. I got mom situated as I observed those around us. Young and old, white and black, friends and strangers were all there to mourn the loss of this man. When Jonathan found us I asked him if he would like to get closer and to see if we could perhaps find Josh's family.

We headed into the crowd passing the hand crafted memorial that now surrounded the city hall sign. Flowers, pictures and letters all surrounded this area. Through the crowd I noticed a small group of people, a shorter woman in white was being hugged and visibly sobbing. I leaned over and pointed her our to Jonathan asking if that could be his mom. Jonathan gazed over the crowd watching the small group of people closely and he then recognized Josh's brother Paul who has cerebral palsy. That was them. My heart broke even more watching a family in such grief for losing their son, husband and father to such and untimely death.

We moved in closer making our way through some of the crowd. The vigil was about to begin so we stopped as we were heading the back way around the group of ever growing people. We stood in a group of officers that were from all different communities. As the people began to speak about Josh I could not help but to cry. I watched his family as they tried to be strong but you could tell they were devastated. The speakers that came that broke down into tears. And the strangers that spoke that were there to just say thank you. I asked Jonathan if he wanted to go and speak with the family but I could tell that his heart was broken too and that he knew he would be unable to hold back the tears if he did.

We headed back towards mom and gathered up our things preparing to go. We decided we would go to the calling hours on Thursday. We gave our candles to those who had none and walked slowly back to the car. We made it back to the house emotionally saddened. Jonathan and I headed out into the front yard lowering our flag to half staff in respect for this fallen officer and friend. We watched the vigil on the nightly news and spoke a little more about the outrage of the self defense theory. We will watch this trial closely and put our faith into the judicial system that justice will prevail for his family and this fallen officer.

Invasion of the flies!

I do believe that I posted my blog to early the other night. Or maybe perhaps I jinxed what should have been a normal evening.

After dinner I was sitting downstairs relaxing typing up my blog and watching Dance Machine. By the way it was the stupidest show I have ever seen, not that I couldn't tell that from the beginning, but it was like a train wreck, you just had to watch. Once I finished up I decided to take my contacts out my eyes were burning something terrible.

I went upstairs and turned on the bedroom light. I noticed that the window wasn't t open and it was hot up there (we don't have air conditioning), so I opened it. I headed to the bathroom and turned on the light and heard a buzzing noise. It was the buzz of a fly. I took a peak around and didn't see anything and continued to head into the bathroom. All of a sudden 'zoom,' straight over my head. The fly landed on the wall. I stepped a little closer to it, Jesus Christ it was HUGE. This had to be the biggest fly I have every seen. Suddenly a second fly comes swooping in and I duck. Bugs gross me out! I shudder from the thought of them landing on me and quickly shut the bathroom door.

I head downstairs to get my big game hunter husband. "There are two enormous flies in the bathroom, you have to go kill them now," I exclaimed! He just looks at me and shakes his head getting up from the couch and heading upstairs. I told him that I have seen horse flies before and these things were way bigger then those. He just chuckled and grabbed a piece of newspaper and started to roll it up. I stepped into the bedroom and pointing at the bathroom door I cringed, "They're in there."

Jonathan bravely opened up the bathroom door and prepared for battle. "Jesus Christ," he exclaimed, "these things are huge." I smiled with satisfaction knowing that I had not exaggerated on their sheer size. He swatted at the flies killing them both. Suddenly another fly zoomed past me into the bathroom. Another then landed on the tall floor lamp to my right. I screamed. "Where the hell are they coming from," Jonathan asked. "The hell if I know," I replied. Another came followed by yet another. Jonathan shut the bathroom door to keep them trapped inside while he tried to kill them as I searched the room to try and find where they might be coming from. I headed to the open window and noticed five more crawling around on the screen. I quickly slammed the window shut. "There are five more trapped in the window," I yelled to Jonathan. I kept hearing slap after slap.

As I watched 3 or 4 more zoom around the bedroom I decided that this was just a little too creepy for me and exited the bedroom quickly shutting the door behind me. I would leave this unexplainable situation for Jonathan right now. I scurried downstairs and turned on our laptop to try and see if maybe we could have had a nest in the house that we did not know about. I googled flies and came up with a website that showed close up pictures of every kind of fly imaginable. I scrolled quickly through the pictures until at last I found them! Tachinids! These large flies would require a host in order to reproduce, which was usually a moth or butterfly. The larvae would then hatch inside the host killing it and eventually emerging as a full grown, giant, hairy, ugly ass tachinid fly. Now that I thought about it we had recently found a couple of dead moths upstairs. I have the lovely habit of leaving the doors wide open in the house to help cool things off, but I am sure this had nothing to do with it (or so I told myself).

I swiftly ran upstairs to let Jonathan in on my findings. He informed me that he had killed 17 now! I asked if he had any of the bodies left, I wanted to confirm the visual on the computer that I expected to be the culprit. He shook his head no, he had flushed them all down the toilet. Suddenly another buzz and then another. Two more had flown into the bathroom. Are you kidding me?? That now brought the total 19. Jonathan emerged from the bathroom with the beaten fly on his now weary piece of newspaper. Ah ha! It was exactly what was shown in the picture. Gross! I immediately decided that the entire bedroom and bathroom needed to be scrubbed (I didn't care if it was 11pm or not.)

We stopped and listened in the room. Had we finally managed to kill them all? Zoom! Nope, one last nasty little bugger was left. Jonathan went after it and smashed it against the wall. It was finally over. 20 flies later our room was bug free and getting scrubbed from floor to ceiling. We weren't taking any chances.

We spend the remainder of our night dusting, scrubbing, sweeping and changing sheets. At midnight we finally got the chance to plop down in bed. Ahh peace and quiet and a squeaky clean room. We never did find the exact culprit of the flies. There were never any signs of them aging in the home. Just a sudden appearance of them and a labored disappearing battle to kill them. Poor Gemi was so traumatized by this, I had left her trapped in the bedroom while Jonathan ran around swatting endlessly at things. Perhaps I will learn my lesson and keep the doors shut, but I doubt it, after all I do enjoy the breeze.

You're moving.... uhhh surprise?

Today, I believe, actually turned out pretty normal. I went to work, did an assesment for a potential new resident, mowed the lawn and made dinner. No drama or crazy issues. Jonathan made fun of how I mowed the lawn, he is so anal about it. It must be a man thing. I think it looks great!

The only odd thing out of my whole day was going out to do the resident assesment. A man came in today looking for a safe place for his mother. He told me how she was fairly independent and had some small short term memory problems. After touring him through the building I ventured out to where she was staying for her rehibilitation (she recently broke her hip). I wandered my way through the building having my little dog Gemi in my handbag since it was too hot to leave her in the car. I found her room and came in introducing myself. I told her I was there to assess her. The woman stares up at me from her wheelchair tucked under her table tray and replies "I'm not hard of hearing you know."

Tina has hypersensitivity hearing. When she was born the doctor used forcepts to pull her out of her mother's womb and it damaged her frontal lobe. As a result she has had a slight seizure disorder and a hearing problem that she hid for many years. I thought I was speaking softly but aparently it wasn't soft enough. At a whisper I began again and she paused and looked at me and then the dog. "I suppose some people like dogs in their room... I don't." Tina said. I apologized and explained that it was too hot to leave her outside and I was on my way home from work and she comes with me daily to my job. "Well it doesn't seem to bark like most dogs, probably only when it's antagonized." I believe she was afraid the dog would bark and it would hurt her ears. I started to ask her questions about her abilities and mindset, my quieted tone of voice seemed to suit her just fine.

Her son warned me that she may "stretch the truth" about her abilities. I inquired if she needed any assistance dressing and she told me no. Now I knew that this was not true because her son said she was unable to put her pants and socks on by herself. I asked if she needed any help perhaps with her pants or socks due to her broken hip, trying to get a more honest answer. "Well my pants are on aren't they? So I guess I can do it just fine on my own," Tina stated in a stern voice.

Ookayy next question. The more I asked her, the more she asked me. "Where did you say you were from?" I told her the name of our home and that her son had been in to visit today. "Well why would my son being doing that?" I told her that her that he has been out looking for a place for her to live when she got discharged from the rehibilitation center. She then informed me that she already had a place to live. Apparently her son had failed to mention to her that she would not be going home. You would think I would have at least gotten a heads up as to her being clueless of this whole sitiation. So adding this to the already stacking odds against me Tina really doesn't care for me now.

Surprisingly, on an off note, this is not the first time this has happened to me. Every so often I get booted from a house, yelled at, or told to get the hell away when the family leaves it up to me to break this news to their loved one. Although unfair that I become the angry target of an assumingly sweet elderly person, if this makes the process easier on the family (not so much the resident) then I guess it will just be something that I will encounter time from time.

I quickly finished the rest of my questions and assured her that her son will be speaking with her soon. I showed myself to the door and told her that it was very nice to meet her. "You're the first one to ever tell me that," she replied dryly. And off I went, thank goodness that was done with. I called her son once I got home. He asked me how it went. I told him good and casually asked if he had mentioned anything to her about this move to her yet. "No we haven't told her yet. We are planning on selling her home. My brother and I think this is best for her," he non-chalantly replied. I told him that she was not happy that I was there but overall I concluded the same assesment as the one we did without her presence. He was grateful and we hung up the phone.

In the long run Tina will end up being quite comfortable within our community. We will be able to assist her when she needs it and give her the privacy and quiet that she strives for. Sometimes we are required to give the "surprise" of their upcoming move. As adult children, even if your parents are in their 80's, it is not always easy to tell them what needs to be done in their best interest if they are not willing or able to listen or understand.

On the In-law watch

Another day and another dose of frustration. The morning began with Jonathan's dad refusing to want to go to the endocrinologist at the Cleveland Clinic. I said "That's nice, it's not an option and you are going anyways." He didn't eat at 3am like he was supposed to so his blood sugar level took a dump again this morning. He managed to maintain it the rest of the morning and on his way to the doctors. Which I drove them up to in order to make sure the proper information was communicated. It was a good thing we went too, his doctor said that the one diabetes pill that he was on was horrible to take when your creatin levels were high. (Creatinelevels have something to do with your kidney and since he only has one now the levels are too high and this is not good.) I guess it could have caused a side effect where the mortality rate is over 50%. That alone made us right for forcing them to go.

So all was well and we had the medications adjusted. We came home and went out to get a bite to eat. We ate at the French Coffee Shop, they have the best French onion soup! I also had my first crepe. It was an apple cinnamon one, very yummy. I highly recommend that too. Any ways when we came back to the house I installed a standing air conditioning unit on the mid level of the house. We don't have air conditioning and the warmth in the house midday has been bothering his mom. So I started to install it in one window, they didn't want it there, so I moved it 2 windows over and now I have to get the sticky foam thing off the windowsill with goo-gone at some point in the near future. I did get the unit installed and working so it feels nice and cool now. Did I mention I had to move all the furniture down too because of this? Gotta love it!

Finally time to rest. Dad checked his sugar level and hello it was a whooping 488! What the hell?!? Checked it again, maybe it was wrong, 357. What in the... Check it again 210. Ok I guess it's time to call the doctor. They page the resident doctor on call and he acts like it is no big deal. He just tells me to start the new medication. Well that's not what the doctor we saw today said, she told us to wait until he had not been below 80 for 24 hours. He still had another 12 hours to go. I guess I didn't really care for his answer because I began searching for a second opinion.

I ran down to the pharmacy where they were so helpful. They gave me a free blood sugar monitor to ensure that he is old one was not wrong. They called into his insurance company and ordered him extra test strips and the pharmacist called his RN wife to see what her opinion was on whether or not we needed to call 911. I then spoke to Amy too. Amy pretty much thought I was crazy and asked why the hell we have been taking his blood sugar every 10 minutes. Ok well she didn't use the word hell, she doesn't swear, but obviously I do. She told me that since it had leveled off he was fine and recommended not take his pill tonight because if his blood sugar dropped it could be bad. She was right and it made complete sense. After that we all calmed down.

I returned home all proud with the free blood sugar monitor, new test strips and his prescription. But I think I am clocking out for the evening now and going off duty. Jonathan can take over from here.

Ok well it's time to watch Last Comic Standing and veg out. I've punched out and I need a drink!

Sometimes In-laws just don't listen.

In our very first post I failed to mention a major part of our lives at this moment, the in-laws are in. Jonathan's parents, who typically live in South Carolina, are here to visit under unfortunate circumstances. Jonathan's dad was diagnosed with bladder cancer a little over six years ago. He was in remission for many years and they broke the news to us that the cancer was back after we returned from our honeymoon. We both believe they knew before we left to get married but did not want to put a burden on our special time.

A week after we returned home his parents drove up to see a specialist at the Cleveland Clinic. The prognosis was what we expected. He was to have major surgery to have his bladder, prostate, lymph nodes, left ureter and left kidney removed all due to cancer. They set the date and then headed back home to make all arrangements for their next trip up, we all knew it would be a long one.

His parents returned 2 weeks later where his dad went in for some pre-optive tests and then that Friday was the surgery. The surgery alone was supposed to be 6 - 8 hours long. We headed up to the C.C. at 4:45am, he had to be there by 6. He was immediately admitted to pre-op and by 6:45 we said our I love yous and parted ways. This began a long grueling day of waiting. Hours passed as we all tried to kill time and hope for the best. We knew the surgery was serious, blood transfusions would have to be made and being under sedation for any length of time is always dangerous. Around 9:45 am the main frame update board stated that the surgery had began.

9:45?!? What have they been doing with him for the last 3 hours? If it was a 6 - 8 hour surgery the earliest he would be finished would now be 3:45 pm. So much for being first on the schedule, an emergency must have come up.

Time ticked away as we read magazines, searched the internet, played games and reminisced. Around 1:00 pm Jonathan went and checked with the front desk for any updates. He was rung into the operating room and spoke with the doctor, all was going well. We all breathed a sigh of relief. At 2:00 pm an overhead page rang out "Jonathan Ward to the front desk for the doctor's call." Panic set in. We knew his surgery was not supposed to be over for at least another hour and a half. What could have happened. We held our breaths as we waited for him to return with the news. Our necks strained to see him appear into the crowded waiting room. Finally he appeared and gave two thumbs up from a distance to let us know everything was ok. Once he made it back to us within speaking range he told us the surgery was over and all had gone well. He confirmed that the left kidney had to be taken but that dad was on his way to the recovery room.

The wait for him to be cleared for visitors in the recovery room was just as long. It was 5:30 pm before Jonathan was called to the desk again, only two visitors were allowed in at a time. Jonathan and his mom went to see him while his sister and I waited. Their visit was short. They went in and said hello, shared their I love yous, ensured that everything was ok and then they were ushered from the room. The visit lasting less then 10 minutes.

Upon their return to the waiting area they shared the news that dad was doing great. Another 2 visitors could go in to see him in two more hours... 8 pm. I figured this was a no brainer. We had been there for 12 hours already, we were all exhausted and we knew he was doing well. We should head home grab some dinner and return in the morning. Not so likely. Julie, Jonathan's sister, really wanted to see him. Now I understand where she was coming from and if it were me I would have felt the same, but at the time I was tired and being selfish. I wanted to go home. I kept this thought to myself and let the family make this choice. Of course we stayed. Another long two hours needed pass.

As time ticked away the 8 o'clock hour was approaching. We checked with the front desk and we were told that they were preparing to move him into the critical care unit. We needed to wait some more. By 8:45 pm he was assigned a room and we met him at the door. They wheeled him in as we stood in the hall while they changed his dressings and transferred him to his new bed, another half an hour passed. The nurses and their aides finally cleared the room and we were allowed in. He was doing well, he was sleepy but his sense of humor was there. We made our final visit brief as dad shooed us out the door claiming we were there too long already. We headed home and hit our beds at 11:00 pm, it was a long 18 hour day but all was well, it couldn't have ended any better.

As the days passed on exhaustion crept as we drove endlessly to and from Cleveland while still working and dealing with small complications that dad had. He went a little loopy from the drugs and called all frantic Sunday morning not remembering ever seeing us and he thought he was in Holland and there was a war. Once his system cleared from the drugs he returned to his normal cognitive state but he then had issues with atrial fibrillation and his pulse sped to 150. They moved him to the cardiac unit. Once that was under control they found a blood clot in his leg it stayed dormant for days and then moved to his upper thigh he was placed on blood thinners.

Two weeks after his surgery he was finally released. We brought him home right before the fourth of July, he was doing great. A couple of days later his blood sugar began to give him trouble, he was after all a diabetic. He had multiple episodes of hypoglycemia where he broke into cold sweats and his sugar levels dropped to 40. After just a few hours his levels would just plummet and he again would reach hypoglycemia. We tried for a couple of days to manage his levels with food but it seemed to no avail, we could not get them regulated. Finally as we were out to dinner at my brother and sister-in-law's house Jonathan's parents called again to say his blood sugar was dropping.

We headed home and I finally called the Cleveland clinic to speak with the resident doctor on call to see if we could get some advice or answers to this unending situation. The doctor said to stop all diabetes medicine, eat often like every hour and a half and to call the doctor's office in the morning and get referred to a endocrinologist.

When we hit home we relayed the message and the instructions but dad well he seemed confused and just didn't want to listen. He asked how was he supposed to eat every hour and a half and what was he supposed to eat. Well let me think you put food in your hand and bring it to your mouth and you can eat anything in the kitchen. He was confused about calling the doctor. I could hear the frustration in Jonathan's voice rising. "What do you mean how do you eat every hour and a half?" he exclaimed. "Fine just do what you want." he said with despair to his dad. Sometimes in-laws just don't listen.

I told him I would call the doctor in the morning and get things figured out. As for now Jonathan is fixing dad some food every hour and a half and then monitoring his sugar levels in between. We are documenting it all down to give the doctor a good idea of what has been going on. I have a feeling that it is going to be a long night in the Ward household.

Wish me luck.

The Sheriff's Urinal

Thomas was a resident that was in his early 80's, he suffered from the early stages of dementia and as time passed on his body worked less and parts of his short term memory faded. The pictures in his room showed a once strong man, a business owner, a father, a man of strong Jewish faith and a sheriff.

Since age and mobility were no longer on his side simple tasks such as using the bathroom were not as easy as they once were. Thomas was using a bedside urinal for when he would be watching television and did not want to call for assistance to have help in walking to the bathroom and transferring to and from the toliet. But as time passed, as did his ability to aim. Time and time again when Thomas would attempt to use the urinal he would miss, spill it or spray into the air like a newborn baby boy. This became an issue for many reasons not just the obvious.

By Thomas using the urinal he was sitting in his chair longer which in turn means he is missing the opportunity to use his mobility. Yes the small task of walking to and from the bathroom helps keep an elderly person's bones and muscles more mobile. The less they use them the more mobility that is lost day after day. Another reason, and perhaps more obvious, he was getting urine all over himself, his chair, the floor or whatever else was within close proximty. This required a whole change of clothes, his chair and/or carpet needed scrubbed, and the smell of urine to slowly take over his room. After talking with his family the decision was made to take the urinal away.

At first he tried to use other objects. Pop cans, Gatorade bottles, anything that could hold liquid. We quickly learned that if Thomas had troubling aiming into a urinal a pop can could be quite disasterous. We now double checked his intable for any objects that could hold liquid and made sure it was out of reach. Through encouragement and reminders Thomas began to call for assistance when he needed to use the bathroom and the idea of the urinal faded away. His care givers were pleased with how he was staying dry throughout the day and calling to receive assistance. He was getting up more periodically throughout the day which in turn meant parts of his mobility may last just a little longer.

Although one morning the urinal, in his mind, had suddenly disappeared. This was a more difficult day where his dementia showed its true colors. He yelled at his care givers demanding to know what had happened to his urinal. He claims he had four and they have all suddenly disappeared.

The care givers tried to redirect him. They said the urinals have been gone for a long time. They told him he does not need a urinal when he is doing so well walking to the bathroom. They told him the urinals had been thrown away. None of these thoughts remotely satisfied him. He demanded to see the person in charge. The care givers came to me and explained what the day had been like and how Thomas has been insisting to speak with me. I set out to talk with him in hopes that I could some how redirect him.

I found him in the common area sitting in his electric wheelchair. I told him that I was the person in charge and asked him what I could do for him. (Now mind you Thomas has met me before and has spoken with me 100's of times, but today I was a fresh new face to him). He asked me my name and if I was in charge. He then demanded to know what happened to his urinal in a loud and frustrated tone. I escorted him to a more private area where we could talk and would be less likely to be overheard or disturb fellow residents. I sat down and listened to his dilemma. I too tried all the theories the care givers attempted. To no avail I too was not winning the battle and Thomas was becomming more frustrated as I too felt frustration building because my ideas were beginning to run short.

To my surprise Thomas looked at me and said, "I have a sheriff's badge upstairs and I will bring it down and arrest you for stealing my urinals." I could not hold back the large grin that spread quickly across my face. He asked if I thought this was funny? And although I did find it amusing and quite possibly one of the cutest things that a resident has said when frustrated I ensured him that I was taking the situation very seriously. I told him that I would find the urinals and follow up with him this afternoon. We finally got him to go to lunch!

I thought I was free and hoped that the afternoon would bring faded memories of the mystery of the "missing" urinal. How wrong could I be. After lunch his daughter called and she was going crazy because he had called multiple times that morning complaining about his problem. Only then to have a care giver approach me to let me know that Thomas was waiting outside... with his sheriff's badge.

We finally solved the situation by showing him a urinal and telling him that it was his. We explained that he did not need to use it since he was doing so well calling for assistance and walking to the bathroom. We told him we would place it in the cupboard in his bathroom that way when he goes home he will have it to take with him. Thomas was happy as could be.

To think all we needed to do to comfort the sheriff was to show him a urinal. We know he will never need it again. We know he will never be returning home. But for a day, the sheriff was out to solve the case and found justice once again.

The Ward's first offical post!

So here I am, preparing for my first offical post on this blog. It all started because of my sister-in-law and her idea to post all of her vacation experiences. Her and my brother travel... a lot. Usually 2+ cruises a year. And I am talking serious cruises, like 2 weeks long and over seas.

So in turn I get this genius idea to start a blog of my own. I figure that between my work and Jonathan's job we should have enough crazy stuff to entertain someone out there. Besides lately I have been thinking about writing a book about my job. I figured that this would be a good way to keep track of all my stories (all resident and family names will be changed for their privacy) to one day, maybe, if I eventually get around to it, write a book.

I figure writing a book will be good once I get pregnant. The debate is on whether or not I should stay home or go back to work. Although the idea of having children is still a year or more away I suppose it is natural to try and prepare your lifestyle for what will never be the same again. Jonathan is ready for kids, and then again he is 6 years older then me, so he is ready whenever I am. As for me, I always thought I wanted kids, then I thought I didn't, then I thought well ok 1 and I want a boy (like what are the chances of that going to be), and now I believe to some extent I am nesting. All you moms and moms to be will understand what I mean when I say nesting. It is that urge to look at baby items, cribs, changing tables etc. Or you think about what color you want to paint the baby's room or what theme it should have. Currently I like the cute zoo animals especially the lions. But part of the agreement is that I will not even attempt to have children until I loose some weight.

This brings me to my next saga, the battle of the bulge. I think we all hit this at some point in our life or maybe those of us who just enjoy food and become comfortable (did I say comfortable or lazy?). When Jonathan and I first met 3+ years ago we both were in great shape and looked fantastic. As the years have passed us, stress has hit us, and comfort (or laziness!) has come our way, the pounds have packed on. I am now a cool 51 pounds heavier then I was when I met him. I have actually managed to keep 10 off from when we started our weight loss challenge. We were doing very well.. until the wedding. The food on the cruise, on the honeymoon, then back home has gotten the best of us. I orginally had lost 25 pounds from my heaviest point before the wedding but 16 of that has crept back on now. So today I started serious. I am back on with the battle of the bulge.

You would think since we have a trainer that we would have not made it back into the fat depths so far but I don't think I have seen him but once or twice in the last 2 months. Good thing we spend almost $700 a month to just get fatter. So I vow to all of you that have actually read this far into my blog and to myself that I will be seeing my trainer at least 3 to 4 times a week and I will stick with my weight watchers.

Well my hands are hurting and it is about time for Jonathan to be getting home from work. I think that this is a good start for my first blog. If you read it thus far, kudos to making it through all my blubbering. Until next time.