Early on Matt and I realized that we shared a love for dogs and a strong dislike for cats. We both had dogs growing up and can't wait to have one of our own. We are resisting the urge to dive right into dog ownership..with the wedding, honeymoon, job interviews for Matt and the 2009 Holiday season, we will be away from Knoxville quite a bit and don't want to board a puppy that much. So we wait.
But being planners, we already know what we will get and when. Back in Vancouver quite a few of my coworkers have Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers and I've always loved them. I used to dog sit for several of the Wheatens and could never get enough of their bouncy personalities and tendency to snuggle up. Fortunately Matt was easily swayed to love Wheatens too so we plan to get a lil' Wheaten pup next spring.
Here's an informative video about the breed. But if you really want to fall in love with the breed, just go to Youtube and search for "Wheaten Terriers." I'm having a "I wish I had a dog" kind of week. How great would a snuggly Wheaten be to keep me company as I clock so many hours on the couch with my knee propped up!?
Friday, March 27, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Can’t help but be optimistic
As soon as I moved to Knoxville, our friend Mike was eager to have me join his co-ed adult soccer league. I was a little nervous to get back into soccer, but mostly just excited. That was back in October so I figured I had plenty of time to get back into shape and for my knee to fully heal. Fast forward to March and my knee was still bothering me but after seeing a physical therapist and still not having answers to the problem, I decided to just try playing soccer.
Since I tore my meniscus while sitting and stretching last time, I figured if it was going to happen, it would happen. I may as well play soccer and if I injure it, at least I’ll have a better story than last time.
Well, I have a story! My first game of the season was on Sunday (my birthday). I wasn’t feeling confident in my knee at all. I even told the team that I wanted to sit out to be safe, but since the girls had no subs, I decided to play. And it isn’t in my nature to go on the field and volunteer to come off. So I subbed in and didn’t come off the field until I was being carried off.
It felt wonderful to be out on the field. I’m rusty. Really rusty. But I had moments—a really good pass or a good steal—and I felt like I was really a soccer player again. Then I had moments when I kicked the ball and it soared in the opposite direction as I intended. I can’t wait to heal and get back out there and get rid of all that rust!
I did a little “move” and knew immediately that it wasn’t good. I couldn’t put pressure on it at all. I got carried off the field and couldn’t help but cry. At that very moment I accepted the fact that I would need surgery again. Monday morning I called and got an emergency appointment with the orthopaedic surgeon. As suspected, it seemed to be my meniscus so he prescribed pain meds, ordered an MRI and I hopped out on crutches.
Tuesday I got the MRI and Thursday morning I met with the sports medicine doctor. He confirmed that it was my right meniscus again and he needed to do surgery to remove the torn section. I think the doctor was a bit surprised by my reaction. Since I had already accepted that surgery was inevitable, I just wanted to schedule it as soon as possible. No tears this time (the first two times I got told I needed surgery, the flood gates opened and I sobbed in the doctor’s office).
So the big day is April 8th. I can start bearing weight within the first day or two and back to normal activities after about 4 weeks. Compared to my previous surgeries, this recovery sounds like a breeze. I’m so excited. I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but maybe this surgery will let me go back to my active lifestyle. I haven’t had a good run in over 2 years and I am eagerly waiting to try again in May! Maybe my nagging knee pain will finally go away! Here’s to hoping the third time is the charm!
Since I tore my meniscus while sitting and stretching last time, I figured if it was going to happen, it would happen. I may as well play soccer and if I injure it, at least I’ll have a better story than last time.
Well, I have a story! My first game of the season was on Sunday (my birthday). I wasn’t feeling confident in my knee at all. I even told the team that I wanted to sit out to be safe, but since the girls had no subs, I decided to play. And it isn’t in my nature to go on the field and volunteer to come off. So I subbed in and didn’t come off the field until I was being carried off.
It felt wonderful to be out on the field. I’m rusty. Really rusty. But I had moments—a really good pass or a good steal—and I felt like I was really a soccer player again. Then I had moments when I kicked the ball and it soared in the opposite direction as I intended. I can’t wait to heal and get back out there and get rid of all that rust!
I did a little “move” and knew immediately that it wasn’t good. I couldn’t put pressure on it at all. I got carried off the field and couldn’t help but cry. At that very moment I accepted the fact that I would need surgery again. Monday morning I called and got an emergency appointment with the orthopaedic surgeon. As suspected, it seemed to be my meniscus so he prescribed pain meds, ordered an MRI and I hopped out on crutches.
Tuesday I got the MRI and Thursday morning I met with the sports medicine doctor. He confirmed that it was my right meniscus again and he needed to do surgery to remove the torn section. I think the doctor was a bit surprised by my reaction. Since I had already accepted that surgery was inevitable, I just wanted to schedule it as soon as possible. No tears this time (the first two times I got told I needed surgery, the flood gates opened and I sobbed in the doctor’s office).
So the big day is April 8th. I can start bearing weight within the first day or two and back to normal activities after about 4 weeks. Compared to my previous surgeries, this recovery sounds like a breeze. I’m so excited. I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much, but maybe this surgery will let me go back to my active lifestyle. I haven’t had a good run in over 2 years and I am eagerly waiting to try again in May! Maybe my nagging knee pain will finally go away! Here’s to hoping the third time is the charm!
Friday, March 20, 2009
More sleeping trials and tribulations
If you are a loyal reader, you know that Matt is NOT a morning person. And honestly, I’m not either but compared to him I am bright eyed and bushy tailed in the mornings. We have alarm issues on a regular basis. Matt and I both set our own alarms…they are typically within 15-30 minutes of each other. And we both set more than one alarm (yes, that is a lot of alarms going off). I set two alarms on my phone and Matt sets alarms on his phone and clock radio.
Well at 6 am, Matt couldn’t care less about his alarms going off. He’ll reach over and being so sleepy, he can’t figure out if it is his phone or clock going off. If he guesses wrong, he gives up, rolls over and goes back to sleep with the alarm still going. I don’t enjoy this so I nudge him and say “It’s your phone” or “Are you going to get that?” Which in his sleepy state, irritates him because he could easily keep on sleeping regardless of the seagulls cawing from his alarm clock.
This morning the same thing happened. Matt’s alarm went off (this time, his phone). I ask, “Is that your alarm?” Matt: “Yeah.” …continues to sleep
I patiently wait to see if he is going to get it. After a minute I realize that no, he isn’t. So I ask “Are you going to turn it off?”
This was the WRONG morning to ask this question! It turns out that Matt’s phone wasn’t on his bedstand like normal. So he literally jumps out of bed. His stance wide (picture a sumo wrestler’s stance) and he came down loud and hard. It was the biggest fit I’ve ever seen from him. He then grabs his phone and storms out of the bedroom. I thinking, what the heck was that? And tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep. But I was pretty awake at this point so I got up to find Matt curled up, asleep on the loveseat.
He was so mad at me for asking him to turn off the alarm that he banished himself to the couch! I think he was just trying to get me back by startling me awake. Because just a few days ago I got up before Matt and proceeded to fall down the stairs (I’m OK). But Matt got to wake up to a scream and major thuds and leap out of bed to find a Cara pile at the bottom of the stairs. Fortunately in that case he was far from mad and very sweet and consoling to me.
Well at 6 am, Matt couldn’t care less about his alarms going off. He’ll reach over and being so sleepy, he can’t figure out if it is his phone or clock going off. If he guesses wrong, he gives up, rolls over and goes back to sleep with the alarm still going. I don’t enjoy this so I nudge him and say “It’s your phone” or “Are you going to get that?” Which in his sleepy state, irritates him because he could easily keep on sleeping regardless of the seagulls cawing from his alarm clock.
This morning the same thing happened. Matt’s alarm went off (this time, his phone). I ask, “Is that your alarm?” Matt: “Yeah.” …continues to sleep
I patiently wait to see if he is going to get it. After a minute I realize that no, he isn’t. So I ask “Are you going to turn it off?”
This was the WRONG morning to ask this question! It turns out that Matt’s phone wasn’t on his bedstand like normal. So he literally jumps out of bed. His stance wide (picture a sumo wrestler’s stance) and he came down loud and hard. It was the biggest fit I’ve ever seen from him. He then grabs his phone and storms out of the bedroom. I thinking, what the heck was that? And tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep. But I was pretty awake at this point so I got up to find Matt curled up, asleep on the loveseat.
He was so mad at me for asking him to turn off the alarm that he banished himself to the couch! I think he was just trying to get me back by startling me awake. Because just a few days ago I got up before Matt and proceeded to fall down the stairs (I’m OK). But Matt got to wake up to a scream and major thuds and leap out of bed to find a Cara pile at the bottom of the stairs. Fortunately in that case he was far from mad and very sweet and consoling to me.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Are you sick of wedding talk yet?
Sorry if you are sick of all the wedding updates, but I have one more important one! We are finally ready to publicly announce our website! Today we finished our gift registries and that was the last blank to fill in on the site.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Now when people ask "Where are you going on your honeymoon?"
The answer is: El Dorado Seaside Suites!
Yep, it is too late for a poll. We pulled the trigger and booked our honeymoon! We worked with a travel agent and once we had our options narrowed down to 3 choices it was a really easy pick. The clear winner is The El Dorado Seaside Suites (about an hour outside of Cancun, Mexico). The resort has wonderful reviews and even made the 2006 Forbes list of Top Ten Most Romantic Beach. And we really couldn’t pass up the Swim-up Junior Suite. These pool lounge chairs right outside our door completely sold us.
Plus we get a complimentary honeymoon package with massages, champagne and a candlelight dinner on the beach! We will spend 7 nights basking in the sun at this all-inclusive, adults only resort! We are leaving Knoxville on October 19 and returning on the 26. Woohoo! And the real clincher? It was the best price out of all the trips!
And yes, we are taking the risk of hurricane season. But we purchased good travel insurance so if anything does happen we are covered. We couldn’t justify the travel time we would need to go anywhere that isn’t in hurricane season.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Honeymoon Destination - Voice your opinion!
You get engaged and everyone asks, "Do you have a date?" We quickly chose the date and were happy to answer that question. Now we are getting a new one, "Where are you going on your honeymoon?" I get this question ALL THE TIME. Like seriously, all the time, the dentist, doctor, friends, coworkers. Sometimes I think people ask just so they can tell you where they went or where they would recommend. Which is great, we've gotten tons of input. Now its just picking a place and going with it. We know that no matter where we go, it will be amazing and will always be special because it is our honeymoon.
We've been investing more time in the topic lately. Who wouldn't get excited about choosing which wonderful, tropical resort to go to? It's a great time-waster to go online and look at all the amazing options. To help narrow it down, I called the travel agent we use at work and Sandy has been guiding us. We have a pretty good idea of where we will go.
Here's what we know:
We've been investing more time in the topic lately. Who wouldn't get excited about choosing which wonderful, tropical resort to go to? It's a great time-waster to go online and look at all the amazing options. To help narrow it down, I called the travel agent we use at work and Sandy has been guiding us. We have a pretty good idea of where we will go.
Here's what we know:
- We definitely want all-inclusive...its our honeymoon we want to be taken care of!
- We want tropical. Warm sun, beaches, fruity drinks.
- It's hurricane season so we'll be looking into trip insurance.
- We dont' want to travel TOO far because of the travel we have to do for the wedding, the lack of vacation time I have, etc.
- Did I mention tropical? With lots of sun, beaches and bottomless drinks?
- We are on a budget so it will be nice but can't be too extravagant.
Before I tell you our top choices, let us know where you went, what you recommend, or what you don't recommend.
We can't wait! I think I might make us some fruity drinks tonight to enjoy while we look online at all the beautiful beaches and resorts!
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Skype Central
We LOVE skyping with the Sarvela family! We have so much fun talking with Megan, Mark, Corbin, Trent and Becca. Mom and Dad Gish have even come and visited with us on Sykpe too. In the beginning, Matt and Corbin were the goofballs and camera hogs. We have all taken a few notes and now our Skype calls get a little crazy! As you can clearly see from these pictures it is a party at the Sarvela house!
Trent and Becca both being crazy
Starring Trent
Starring Becca
And even Zoey joins the fun!
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