Bridgey Speaks

Leela had her first birthday on Thursday, and what did she get? A visit to the vet and a birthday hat, also known as the e-collar. Poor baby.

Last Sunday we went to the dog park at Hartwood Acres where she played with some doggie buds. Then we (and the doggie buds and their owners) watched the free concert there of the symphony. It rocked in a symphonic kind of way.

However, while we were there, one of her little doggie friends got a bit rough and punched her in the eye. It got all weepy on Monday or Tuesday, and so Dave took her to the vet. We didn’t know at the time she had gotten bopped in the eye; we just thought she had an eye infection. Turns out this “trauma” to her eye made it swell a little, which reduces the tear production, which made for thick, yucky (infection-looking) mucus. So, after a thorough exam, she was sent home with some prednisone eye drops and some goopy medicine for eyes and instructions to wear the cone (aka party hat) so that she didn’t rub her eye.

So, happy birthday Leela. You were going to get homemade peanut butter dog biscuits until you pulled the recipe off the fridge and ate it. I hope it was worth it. Poor puppy.

But this weekend we made up for her sort of sad birthday week. We headed out to central PA early yesterday morning. We arrived at Simon and Michelle’s with a dozen donuts from the Oakmont Bakery and had a wonderful few hours with them and their two kiddos, Emma and Peter. Such sweet, cute, smart kids! (Well, Peter is only 7 months, but he liked Leela. So he MUST be as smart as his big sister, who at three and a half talks like at least a five-year-old.)

Then we headed out to Waterfall, PA for a picnic at the Watkins’ house. We got to meet another new baby (this one only 6 weeks, little Jack), and catch up with the Watkins clan and Dave’s parents. We were not only celebrating Jack’s arrival but gathering to say hello to (via phone) and gather treats for Richard, who is doing a second tour in Iraq. Hurry home, Richard. We miss you.

Sometimes I wish that you could become fit just by reading fitness magazines. I read them with lots of good intentions, and then I promptly fall asleep. Last night I was reading an article about being motivated to get up off the couch and exercise and to keep up with an exercise plan. It said you were more likely to be motivated and successful if you set specific goals, not just “I want to be slimmer” or something like that. I’ve decided to set my goals publicly so that maybe I’ll be that much more motivated to stick to them.

I’ve got lots of unrealistic “goals,” like get washboard abs by reading fitness magazines, but after my third week in a row of getting my butt over to the pilates class, I decided to set a realistic and achievable goal. I noticed that on my punch card I have enough punches left for eight classes, so I promised myself that I will go to pilates every week for the next eight weeks. That’s only two months. I can do this. And by the end of those eight weeks, I hope to be doing that crazy push up routine like a champ and be able to hold my legs in the air for the corkscrew without them (visibly) shaking. Now I must go walk the dog. I will try to scoop my stomach while I do so.

Tuesday was gorgeous again. Dave and I took the day off and we went with his parents to the zoo. It was an absolutely perfect day for the zoo. We didn’t get to see the baby bengal tigers, but we did get to see the new polar bears, and they were awesome. The sea lions were also fun to see from the tunnel underneath them!

Yesterday we saw Ratatouille, ate Chinese food and ice cream, and watched fire works. I guess it was two good days and definitely sunshine, followed by rain last night. I’m glad it waited until today to get ugly and cloudy.