Top Ten Things I Love: About Lou Lou

For my second installation of my Top Ten Things I have chosen to write about my puppy, who is not a puppy at all.

TOP TEN THINGS I LOVE ABOUT LOU LOU

1. She is the sweetest, calmest dog I have ever come across. (Ask anyone, they will agree).
2. She gets little bouts of energy and attacks her toys, but she never pulls the stuffing out of them.
3. She hates swimming in the pool but loves swimming in lakes and rivers.
4. She prefers to sleep on our bed rather than hers, careless of the lack of leg room she leaves me.
5. She cries with joy when we get home, regardless of the amount of time we have been away.
6. She doesn't want you to help her play with her toys, she just prances and showing them off.
7. She is terrified of the cat 99.9% of the time, but if she is feeling extra playful she might dart at her for a second before she realizes what she is doing.
8. She knows when something is wrong and she is always willing to cuddle.
9. She hates going for walks and sits down 20 yards from the house... this is really embarrassing at the moment, but adorable at the same time.
10. She will do anything for a treat.

Pat got her when she was a puppy and loved her immediately. While the rest of the pups in the litter were jumping around being playful, she sat in the corner looking concerned and he knew she was his. And she is his. She REALLY is daddy's little girl, but I like to think she has a soft spot for me too. She always comes back to bed if I am still sleeping. I would say I am the nice one in her eyes, but I have to be the one that takes her to get her nails trimmed (her 2nd most hated thing... besides walks/car rides) which is why Pat makes me do it.

Do you have a special relationship with your pet and know all their quirks?

Grand Re-Opening: Fuchsia

This past Christmas, the company I work for helped a group called The Sunshine Angels provide Christmas Gifts to 2 Group Homes. These homes house about 10 foster children each. All these kids have been rescued by CPS from abuse and/or neglect. Since then our Company has continued to support the Sunshine Angels' cause; to help these kids understand that they are loved and cared about unconditionally!

The Sunshine Angels have started "The Angel's Closet" that holds gently used donated clothing. A lot of the children that come to these homes come without any belongings, and that can include shoes, or a normal every day outfit. This is something many of us could never fathom. After meeting this kids, I feel very fortunate for my closet full of clothes and shoes and accessories. I also keep a bag in my closet that I fill with clothes that I don't want, don't fit, or are out of style. As soon as this bag is filled, and I have gone through my husband's closet, I donate it to the Sunshine Angels for "their" kids.

They need clothing of all sizes as the children range from 7-19 years old. Boys and Girls!

So, if you have done your bit of spring cleaning and have clothes to donate, please come on down to the Fuchsia Grand Reopening! They are accepting all donations for The Sunshine Angels! And, while you are there, enjoy discounted services, giveaways and much more! I hope to see you there!!!

Celebrate Our New Space with Us: May 18th, 4pm – 7pm We invite you to celebrate our Grand Re-Opening in our new space — Fuchsia style! You don't want to miss this opportunity to checkout some of the new services we are now offering and earn your chance to win a variety of special giveaways. Plus, all Fuchsia Members and the first 25 guests in the door will receive a goody bag packed with little luxuries. THE DETAILS When: Friday, May 18th, 4pm – 7pm Where: Fuchsia Spa’s new location — Village Square at Dana Park Shopping Center, 1822 S. Val Vista Dr., #103 Mesa, Arizona 85204 What: A celebratory event hosted by Fuchsia. We will be offering lite bites, beverages, discounted spa service packages, prizes, complimentary blowout styles from the “look-book”, hot-trending nail design applications, lip and chin waxing, chair massages and facial demonstrations. RSVP: All members and guests welcome. Free to attend — just enjoy the evening, relax and allow us to dote on you! Please RSVP via email to: rsvp@fuchsiaspa.com please include your name, number of guests you will be bringing and if you are a Fuchsia member. Reservations are requested by Wednesday, May 16, 2012. Stay connected with us on Facebook » Giving Back to The Community: Sunshine Angels Our Grand Re-Opening Celebration is also the perfect opportunity to give a little back to our wonderful community. Fuchsia Spa supports Sunshine Angels, a Valley non-profit, that sponsors more than 250 tweens that have been rescued from their troubled homes by Child Protective Services. During our celebration, we invite you to bring items that will make a positive impact on these young lives, such as boxers/bikini underwear, jeans, t-shirts, belts, socks, shampoo, feminine products, wash clothes, cleaning products, etc. We will have a drop box to collect all of your thoughtfulness. Learn more about Sunshine Angels » Book an Appointment Did you know that you can book your next Fuchsia service online? It's easy: Book an Appointment Forward to a Friend Share the love. Forward this email to a friend: Forward

Fuchsia and the Fuchsia Logo are registered trademarks of Owens-Hall & Vukonich, LLC. Fuchsia - 1854 S Val Vista Drive, Suite 108, Mesa, AZ 85204 - 480-813-7465 www.fuchsiaspa.com

A time to heal...

With every tragedy there has to be a time to mourn and a time to heal.

Pat and I have been doing just that, in very different ways. He has started making big changes for himself by signing up for school and absorbing himself in house projects. He is working so hard to make our future a little brighter by improving all things he has control of.

I, on the other hand, have been healing by distraction. First it was watching TV and feeling numb. Then it was watching TV to cry. I watched "A Baby Story" for 3 hours one day. Some may feel that is a mistake, but I think it is one of the best things I did. I learned about a couple that lost their baby at 35 weeks! Although they were terribly distraught, they not only tried (and succeeded) again for a baby, but they also started a program in their 1st baby's name for families that had suffered a miscarriage or still-born.

That was something that moved me forward towards healing. There has to be something good that comes out of the bad. I am still working on that "good thing," but it will come.

In the mean time, I had the luxury to spend time with my close friends and sister this last weekend and it really was nice to feel like some of the "gloom" was lifted from around me. We all shared laughs and smiles and I was even fortunate enough to meet some new great friends at the Arizona Blogger Conference that The PHX Style Collective put together.

Everyone was running around in their most stylish gear snapping photos of the beautiful Saguaro Hotel. Instead of doing that, I was being the silent observer, enjoying strangers' company and feeling relief that Bri was the only person that knew what I had recently gone through. That night was a night of moving forward.

Here is the one photo I stole from Bri, taken by Sarah from Chicks Who Give a Hoot, who coincidentally happens to be the funniest person I met all night!

So to everyone who attended, that may or may not pop by my blog, thanks for the great night and helping this girl smile!

Digging this Jam

Until it is over played on the radio I am sure...

1 in 4...

On March 27th we found out that we were going to have a baby... Little baby Haire. We were so excited! So ready. We started preparing ourselves and our house for our child. We only told our families as our doctor instructed because after our first ultrasound there would only be a 5% chance of miscarriage. Then we could tell everyone.

The day before that day, the day we were going to be sure there was only a 5% chance would wouldn't meet our little one, the Monday after Easter, I woke up feeling off. I laid in bed longer than I should have and fortunately Pat came home on his break to find me in bed, concerned. I had gone to the bathroom and there was spottiing... then came the cramping. He reacted as a concerned husband and would be father should. He called the doctor immediately. He had to get back to his route, so me and baby were on our own.

We went to the doctor in a matter of minutes. The doctor said he thought everything was okay but wanted to move the ultrasound up and see if we could hear the heartbeat that day. He also gave me a RhoGAM shot as I am B-.  As luck would have it I wasn't able to have the ultrasound onsite because of some shitty insurance issue. And so, I came home and sat, festering for 3 hours. Trying to distract myself, trying not to imagine the very worst. But it was no use. 1:30 pm could not come soon enough.

I arrived at the new, strange facility for the ultrasound. The front desk girls were not warm like the ones at my doctor and immediately I was sure something was wrong. I went into the dark cold room where the tech was training someone on the new machine. They talked tech the entire time knowing what they were looking at but leaving me to swim in my negative thoughts. I have seen enough movies to know when I should be hearing the heart beat, the heartbeat that is supposed to beat twice as fast of my own.

Pat was on his route thinking of me and the baby. We aren't a religious couple, but in times of need Pat talks to his grandfather who passed away 2 years ago. He didn't hear anything back, not a feeling or thought came to him. He came to the next intersection where someone had scrawled out "I love you"  in chalk across it. Then he knew. It seemed our hearts broke simultaneously.

We lost the baby.

This is undoubtedly the most terrible thing that has ever happened to us. These past two weeks I have been trying to search my soul for strength, guidance, and direction. I still have not found them, if I am being honest, nothing but distraction has helped me.

For the entire life of this blog I wanted it to be a fun place, with happy tales and love stories, but I wanted to share this story because I had no idea that something like this would ever happen to Pat and me. We did everything right. I stopped drinking coffee and eating lunch meat, resting when my body required it. I was taking prenatal vitamins a month prior to conception. But still it happened. It happens to 1 in 4 pregnancies. I was not prepared for a miscarriage.

1 in 4 pregnancies.

I don't want to rain on anyone's parade. Pregnancy is a wonderful and exciting time! And I truly pray that no one goes through what Pat and I have gone through. I just hope this helps someone that may go through a similar tragedy. I just wish someone had prepared me that the loss was more probable than I ever knew.

The physical pain of losing the baby was more than I expected. "Just a normal to heavy period," the doctor said. The 2 am contractions were so painful I found myself screaming out, trying to put my body into a position that would release some pressure. Nothing helped, all I could do was meditate and wait for the pain to stop.

The emotional pain and literal emptiness... feels endless.

Now Pat and I are growing, supporting each other and hopeful for the future and our future family. But, we will always remember our "Baby B."

How does your garden grow?

When I was 13 or 14 my mom and step-dad bought an old farm house that had an acre or two of land behind it. My mother, having a green thumb, planted a HUGE garden. There was corn, various kinds of squash, tomatoes, and all sorts or fun things. I never helped her with the garden because I thought I had more important things to do... like talk on the phone, or drive my sweet Blazer around town. That was back when gas was a whooping $1.14 a gallon. Remember the days? I digress. Looking back now, I wish I would have helped my mom in the garden. Not only because it would have been the nice thing to do, but because I have this new fascination with gardening. I blame it on my neighbors, and the Fabulous Beekman Boys. 
But really, ever since I moved to Arizona, I dreamed of having a garden. First I lived in an apartment, so I had flower pots that dried up and shriveled in a rapid fashion. Later I moved in with Mr. P. Funk into his town house. We had little pots full of basil and mint. The mint died, but the basil thrived.
Finally when we purchased this home, I had room for a garden. We have lived here for about a year and a half and the Mr. built me my garden last week!
It was my job to move the rocks out of the way for the raised bed. I didn't realize that that was some pretty frickin' hard labor.

I filled the pictured wheel barrel 3 times! Then neighbor Joe filled it a few times as well! Thank God he came to assist. I ran out of steam fast!
While I was shoveling mini boulders, Pat was in his garage workshop building the raised bed. He has some mad skills if you ask me!

The guys later filled the raised bed with the smelliest soil in the world. Be grateful Willy Wonka didn't invent Smell-o-Vision.

The next morning, Pat and I woke up at the crack of dawn, as good farmers do, and got straight to seedin' the garden. Pat acted as the "hole" digger and I counted the tiny seeds with my nimble fingers.

Now we play the waiting game for the little sprouts to peak there leaves out. 10 -12 days the seed packets claim. After they are a few inches tall we will have to do some thinning of the "crops" so we won't have sexin' carrots or radishes.
This summer we planted Basil, Green Onions, Tomatoes, Carrots, Radishes, and Peas! I can't wait to see if our little garden produces! Growing my own food always seems to motivate me to cook fun tasty meals.

Postino East Opens! : Dinner

It has been nearly a year that we have been waiting for Postino East to open. It truly felt like an eternity though. The long drives to Phoenix for our favorite restaurant are now a thing of the past! Rather than going to Postino East on the official opening day, we decided to go on Thursday. We thought it might be a little calmer. Well, we didn't really think that. It is just when it fit into our schedule.
Finally we have arrived to the best place on Earth! Postino East! And, yes, we took my sweet ride Vanda.

We were aware there was going to be a wait, given that it was opening week. After we put our name in we found a pretty sweet spot past the lawn, with a great view of everything that was about to happen to us lucky souls!

 

We also had a great view of the Gilbert Water Tower, which I think is definitely an East Valley gem.

We had an awesome server bring out the wine/beer list as well as a menu to look over while we were waiting. Sitting where we were felt like we were just hanging out in our back yard with good people watching.

We didn't know if the server was going to come back, so the dudes went up to the outdoor bar and ordered us some drinks. Avery delivered our wine as a nice brother-in-law would. I had the Zin and Chantele and the Red Blend. (I won)
I was such a beautiful night! We didn't mind the hour long wait at all! Once we were seated, my sister and I had to use the loo. The unisex loo that is! So, while you are waiting here is a little poster for your viewing
pleasure.

 And the toilet paper is awesome. And I always want to steal a roll, but I don't. Karma is my friend!

Here is our little AZ family. It was really a perfect night for hanging at this dope joint all night. It took us about 3 hours to get home from our Postino excursion, but it was worth every minute!