A new Grand Puppy and Christmas 2012

I had such a WONDERFUL Christmas this year! It could not have been better and I can't wait to share all the details with my blog readers.

The fun began on Dec. 20th when Kate and her boyfriend of the past 18 months Travis arrived. However they were NOT alone! They brought along their new Brussels Griffon puppy "Chewy" with them. "Chewy" is short for the Star Wars character Chubacca. Brussels Griffons are known for their "monkey faces" and when full grown they do resemble Chubacca!

They chose to get a Brussels Griffon for several reasons. Kate has been working at a Pet Store selling puppies for almost 3 years and has come to learn a lot about many different breeds of dogs. They wanted something that was hypoallergenic (non shedder and less to no dander) since Kate's dog Lily (who she has had for 3 years now) is such a massive shedder. Kate was not up for having to clean even more hair then she does already!

 

Also, as a terrier breed, the Brussels Griffon has a wonderfully mild temperament. They are smart too! The main reason for a 2nd dog is that Kate is away from home more than she'd like with school and work. This leaves Lily alone in her apt way too much. Now Lily has a "brother" to play with! So far Lily loves her little brother and they are great friends.

 

Due to Lily's shedding and the fact that Kyle and I are very allergic to her, I made the "tough love" choice of not allowing Lily to come visit us anymore. The last time she came to visit us over the Summer, it took over 4 hours to vacuum up all the hair she left behind and I felt sick and allergic for weeks after. In fact I had to completely disassemble and clean/sanitize my vacuum cleaner to remove the left over hair and dander from the clean up of her hair.

 

This is NOT a problem with Chewy however! As a hypoallergenic dog, he does not shed AT ALL. I never found one hair dropped from him the whole time he was here. 

 

I was thrilled to be able to spend a ton of quality time with my new little "Grandpuppy" and was so happy to not have one allergy symptom to the little guy. Of course this got me thinking about wanting to get a puppy for Kevin, Kyle and I....but alas after considering it more and speaking to my allergist office we have decided to continue to stay "dog less" for the time being. Kyle and I both recently had allergy testing done with the same Dr. We both are a level 6 (which is the highest allergy you can have on a 1-6 scale) to dog hair, dander, saliva and urine. My Dr. said he highly advises against getting a dog (even a hypoallergenic one) unless we both go through a complete panel of dog allergy shots. That process takes many weeks and is not cheap!

 

Although I was not allergic to Chewy at ALL, not even his saliva (and trust me he licked/kissed me a lot!) Kyle did get watery eyes when exposed to his saliva. 

 The allergist said that every dog is different and that the "hypo" part of a hypoallergenic does not apply to the saliva and urine! Only the hair and dander is hypoallergenic. Kyle and I could potentially be allergic to another hypoallergenic puppy we try out.

 

We discussed it as a family and until we get to the bottom of why Kyle has been dealing with vertigo issues for the past year, we don't need to put him through dog allergy shots. So for the time being....we are putting the idea of a puppy on hold.

 

Someday however, I WILL get the shots, and will get a hypoallergenic dog. I grew up with Golden Retrievers and nothing quite makes a home a "home" then having a dog. I suddenly became allergic after having children which my Dr. said is not uncommon in some women. I miss  the unconditional love a pet can bring to you and caring for and loving a pet is a lifetime experience I want to have again. When the time is right, it will happen.

 

For now however, I will enjoy Chewy when he visits us and Lily when I visit Kate. I love them both dearly!

 

Below is 6 week old Chewy playing with some doggie keys. As it turns out Chewy is the perfect name for him as he LOVES to chew!

 

                                          Look at that little puppy belly! Chewy is so sweet, easy to care for and very affectionate. He is VERY mild mannered and only whimpers slightly when at your feet wanting to be held. At only 6 weeks old, he is just a BABY and slept a lot! His routine reminds me a lot of a human baby. He eats, pees/poops, plays a little and then sleeps....I loved holding him in my arms and watching him drift off to sleep. So cute! I was totally in love within an hour of him being here.

 

 

We enjoyed a quiet night at home on the 20th and awoke on the 21st thankful to find that the world had NOT ended after all! LOL Here is Kate and I dressed and ready to go out to our favorite taco place at the beach.

Below is Kate and Travis and Kyle at our favorite taco place.

It's been so wonderful getting to know Kate's boyfriend. He is a wonderful young man and treats Katelyn with a lot of love and respect. They have a great relationship and I look forward to seeing what the future brings for these two wonderful young adults.

Kate had JUST picked up Chewy from the airport the day before they came down to visit us. She purchased him from a breeder in Tennessee.
We decided it would be fun to give him his first bath after lunch.

He loved it!

                                Chewy smelled so good after his bath!

                                            Just look at that cute little face!

 

 

The next day my Dad and Step Mom Polly arrived in the early afternoon. We enjoyed "Christmas #1" with them. Here is Kate and Kyle as I found them sitting quietly and chatting in front of the tree. Mom's out there with young kids....nothing is more rewarding then seeing your young adult children enjoying their time together! These two truly love each other and they talk on the phone a lot too!

 

                                       Brother and Sister....friends for life!

Chewy was totally fascinated by the gifts under the tree. He not only enjoyed chewing at the bows and paper, but literally tried to crawl into some of the gift bags!

 

Above is Polly, Dad, Kevin, Kyle, Kate and Travis at the dinner table right before we began to eat the ham dinner I prepared. Below I got in on a picture too!

After dinner we quickly cleaned up and all went out to see a movie. The next morning I made a big breakfast and we all exchanged gifts with my Dad and Polly. That night my Dad treated us all to a wonderful dinner out at PF Changs which is a family favorite!

 

Here is Kate and Chewy right before we left for dinner. Kate just cut over 7 inches off her hair....I love it really long, but she looks great with it this length as well!

 

                                                    Below is the four of us.

      
Below is Kate and Kyle with their Grandpa Harry and Step Grandma Polly.

 My Dad was so blessed to meet and marry Polly. She has been a wonderful addition to our family and we all love her dearly.

                                            Kate, Travis and Chewy.

 

 Before we knew it, Christmas Eve had come and gone and Dad and Polly headed home to spend Christmas day with her boys and Travis flew home to be with his family. The four of us ended up spending the entire day on Christmas Eve in our PJS playing board games, watching movies and eating left overs. We decided to skip church for the first time in many years. Typically Christmas Eve service is a tradition for us, but we chose instead to spend some quality family time at home reflecting on the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus.. Kevin lead us in a beautiful prayer that resulted in tears for us all! I'm so fortunate to have a close knit Christian family and am blessed that my kids continue to remain close to Jesus and his teachings.
 After a great night's sleep we all awoke to see that Santa had been to our house in the middle of the night! I made our traditional cinnamon rolls and we took our time opening gifts while we listened to Christmas music.

 Below is Kyle with his 3 big gifts from Santa. Kyle had expressed an interest in playing the drums again a few months back. He started playing at 10 years old. He took lessons for a few years and enjoyed playing until he was 14. He took a break over the last 3 years and recently realized that he made a big mistake selling his drum set before we moved back to California.

 The look on Kyle's face when he realizes that he not only got drums, but got the drum kit he REALLY WANTED was priceless! So glad I caught it on film. LOL

                                              Kyle opening his cymbals.

                                          Setting up the drum set in the garage.

                               Kyle playing his drums! He says it's like riding a bike, you never forget! He sounds great and he will be starting drum lessons again soon.

While Kyle spent almost the entire day in the garage playing the drums; Kevin, Kate and I prepared a turkey dinner. We typically always BBQ the turkey instead of roasting it in the oven. Below Kate cuts oranges, onions and herbs which will be stuffed into the cavity of the bird before it is cooked.

 

A few hours later the bird is ready and it looked great! Kevin does a great job BBQing the bird on his Weber BBQ.

 

 

 

 

Kevin cuts the bird. This year I took the drippings from a pan that Kevin set directly under the bird and made the BEST ever homemade gravy. The flavor from the BBQ turkey drippings made the gravy a perfect compliment to our meal.

Even though it was just the four of us I decided it would be nice to set the table with one of our nice sets of dishes. These dishes were a gift to me from my in laws many years ago and I love them so much!!

Before we ate we had a "Happy Birthday Jesus" toast with our sparkling cider. 

 

 

                                            Kev digs into the yummy meal.

Chewy eats his puppy food....notice how he lifts his little back leg up...so cute!

After an early dinner, we all got dressed and went to the movies.

 

Although I still have a way to go to loose all the weight I've gained in the past few years...here I am 27 pounds lighter than I was this Summer. For the first time in years I didn't gain any weight over the holidays. I have 30 more pounds to loose before I reach my total weight loss goal. I attribute my success to eating Sunrider Herbal Foods religiously, cutting out all sugar/dairy/gluten and exercising several times a week.

                                                        Kevin and Kate....

                                    Kate and I...cherishing the moments!

                          Before we left for the movies, suddenly we couldn't find Chewy. We looked everywhere including under the beds and in the garage. Finally we found him.....

                             ....all curled up on Santa's lap. Cutest thing ever!!!!

 

Thank you for reading Definitely Debi! God has placed it on my heart to start a new blog in 2013! It's currently in the "pre-planning" stages...so stay tuned for more info.

 

Happy New Year!