Winter, Spring and Gardens!

Well we have made it through another wet, cold winter! Whoo hoo spring is here (well officially tomorrow). This winter brought a lot change in our house and family. We said goodbye to our dearly loved Aunt Joan do to breast cancer. She was the glue that held our little Zyta family together and is much missed at family gatherings. We also bid goodbye to our big black girl, Ishie. She is greatly missed as well, and I think of her often. We also lost our Grumpy boy. Not sure exactly what happend there. Shortly after Ishie he just never came home. We are very sad at our losses this winter, but winter also brought new people and a new family member to us. The winter brought new friends as well. Most of the crew at theater have become more like friends than Paul's coworkers. A few stand out more than others, Brandon, Nathaniel, Chelsea, Mike. Also the new manager, Marty and his wife Jolene. Its nice to have a lot of people around (even if I normally only see them at work) to joke and talk with. Winter also brought our little guy, Ian Marley. He was a suprise really, but has become a welcome member of our family. He is endless entertainment. He started as a beagle (30lbs max) and is now (pretty sure) an English Coonhound (70lbs). He also has a really cute hound bay that hes not afraid to use when he gets excited or is chaseing the cat. I am debating on getting a tracking dog title on him. He does have a heck of a nose for a 3 month old!
So what does spring have in store? Working with and hopefully riding the horses. Spring will also breing a Garden! This year I get to dig up a portion of the yard for the first time. I am so excited!! This will be my first real garden! Corn, Peas, Carrots, lettuce, and Onions are on the list to plant. I also have a container that I can plant in, which is usually where my garden is. In fact I am so excited I think I might go get started on breaking ground it now!

Weight Log

Ok it has been about 3 weeks since I decided to track my exercise and weight loss. I set goals for exercise (15 days for January) and then weigh myself on the first of the month. For January I had 22 days of exercise, started at 223 and am now down to 215. Woohoo! I am super excited about it. I figured that at 8 pounds a month by June I should be at 175 or so. It has been a LONG time since I have been under 200.

Ian Marley Zyta

We have had Ian for a week now and we added to his name he is now officially Ian Marley. Thats because he is a Marley! From the chewing of things that shouldn't be chewed to the sweet and very loving parts. Ian is helping to heal my (and even Paul's) heart from Ishie. It has been just over a week since we hae had him. In that time he has: chewed a computer power cord, peed on our bed (he was slleeping with us), chewed a sock, and dragged Zev across the room. He has me up every 2 -2.5 hours. (uually potty, not such a bad thing!) The good stuff: He went nose to nose with Spirit and actually played with him through the fence, won Beauty over to the idea that a dog will not eat the herd, played with Trent (new managers 1 yr old) very gently, Lots and lots of cuddles. He is also a total clown, often tripping over his paws or ears. I have to say he is growing on me, wasn't sure if I really wanted him at first but I am glad we did!

Puppy!

As you know from a previous post as well as other means we no longer have Ishie and Zara. Add to that our big male cat Grumpy. He has been missing a week now. Despite several trips to the shelter and search of the neighborhood he seems to be gone. I still have hope that he will show up...Anyway on one of the trips looking for the cat I saw puppies. They were 7 week old beagle mixes. I fell in love with one, asked Paul (who said no) and moved on. Then this afternoon Paul asked me what kind of pup he was. I told him and we went to look. My pup wasn't there but his brother was. We ended up bringing him home. He is a very cute little guy, brown and white with a white tipped tail. The white parts have brown ticking on them. We named him Ian, in honor of our beloved Ishie. So far he is doing great! He loves Jade and Zev. Jade is indifferent to him and Zev thinks he is a playtoy. We may regret bringing him home becuase of puppy frustration and I am sure that there will at least one post on the horrors of having a puppy in the house, but in the end it will be worth it.

Ishie

This is Ishie our wonderfully loving, sweet and tolerant 4 year old German shepherd. This was taken on her first and only boat trip, with my cell phone (not bad clarity huh?). It was an incredible day for her and I. We got to go to some friends lake property. Ishie got to play in the lake and run and run on the property. She took on a steep set of slippery steps without blinking an eye. She went up them and came down the mountain side. I got to watch as she conquered her fear of the jet motor rumbling behind her as she set on the bench seat in the boat. This was followed by going to the barn to clean and feed the horses. This was a special treat as dogs are not normally all lowed. She was very good and didn't bark at them. She played in the feed room, eating carrots while I made beat pulp. Then while I delivered she hung out in Lil' Chiefs stall. I was very proud of her, as I am sure none of it was easy for her. A very very good memory. There are a lot more. I don't have the heart to write them here, perhaps some day. You see we had to let our Ishie girl go to heaven. She was incredible with people and especially loved kids allowing them to dress her and pretty much do whatever they wanted with her, but couldn't get along with other dogs. We did everything we could but in the end we had to keep her and other dogs safe. She went very peacefully in her sleep. We are mourning her loss and likely will for a long time yet. We buried her at the barn where she is close to us. I am sure she knows how much we love her and how hard it was/is for us tolet her go.

Fat Rant Video

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=yUTJQIBI1oA
This is a pretty sensitive subject for many of us. Speaking for myself being fat is something I have struggled with for years. It affects the way I see myself (frumpy and lacking confifence) and to some extent how I interact with others. This video puts all into perspective and gives a boost. I would like to view my self with the same attitude the video has, perhaps it would help to do something about it. Having said that I also want to add that I am down to 220 from 230 a month or so ago. I am walking daily and getting exercise at the barn daily. My goal (please remind me throughout the next few months) is 180 by June. I think I can do it, as long as I keep up my exercise and continue to drink plenty of water. Dieting doesn't really work for me because I LOVE food and I get frustrated. But I have found that drinking a ton of water and regular (at least an hour a day) exercise and reducing the amount of food I eat by a little does. Will post monthly updates on how its going.