Why Dogs Live Shorter Lives Then Humans

I saw this on Facebook and had to post it in a place I wouldnt lose it....It made me tear up a little thinking of my loving puppy.

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog’s owners, Ron, his wife Lisa, and their little boy Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.




I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn’t do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.



As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.



The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker ‘s family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.



The little boy seemed to accept Belker’s transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker’s Death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, ”I know why.”



Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I’d never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try and live.



He said,”People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?” The Six-year-old continued,



”Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”



Live simply.



Love generously.



Care deeply.



Speak kindly.



Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:



When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.



Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.



Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure Ecstasy.



Take naps.



Stretch before rising.



Run, romp, and play daily.



Thrive on attention and let people touch you.



Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.



On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.



On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.



When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.



Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.



Be loyal.



Never pretend to be something you’re not.



If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.



When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.



ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF EVERY DAY!

Of Regrets and Resolutions

Not this Sunday but the one before we had those kind of lessons that just kind of make you think. And for the last week Ill admit I have don’t a lot of pondering. Our Sunday school lesson was all about the Book of Mormon but part of the lesson focused on how we often take the Book of Mormon for granted and treat it as more of a check list item that is just one more thing we have to do for the day. And then I went on to Relief Society where the lesson was on Elder Uchdorfs conference talk Of Regrets and Resolutions The focus we took during that talk was all on priorities and living up today to who our Heavenly Father knows we are.




As I spent last week pondering on what are my priorities, what excuses am I making and what can I do different I ran across this article on Pintrest. (yes you can begin to see where my priorities are) The article is titled 3 Things I Wish I Knew Before We Got Married  (when I saw the title I got skeptical thinking it would be a world bashier on marriage but was intrigued to read and am glad I did)



The article is broken down into 3 parts. 1) Marriage is not about living happily ever after 2) The more you give to marriage, the more it gives back and 3) Marriage can change the world.



To quickly share a few quotes from it that helped spur my thought process.



“I once read a book that alluded to the idea that marriage is the fire of life—that somehow it’s designed to refine all our dysfunction and spur us into progressive wholeness. In this light, contrary to popular opinion, the goal of marriage is not happiness. And although happiness is often a very real byproduct of a healthy relationship, marriage has a far more significant purpose in sight. It is designed to pull dysfunction to the surface of our lives, set it on fire and help us grow.

When we’re willing to see it this way, then the points of friction in our marriages quickly become gifts that consistently invite us into a more whole and fulfilling experience of life.”

“If one makes their husband or wife priority number one, all other areas of life benefit.”

“Of course, marriage requires sacrifice. And sometimes it will feel as if it takes and takes. However, when we return marriage to its rightful place in our priorities, it can quickly turn from something we have to maintain and sacrifice for into the greatest asset to every other layer of our lives.”

““What’s the most important thing I can do as a father”?…“Go home and love your wife.” …Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam, the authors of Babywise, say it this way: “A healthy marriage creates an infused stability within the family and a haven of security for a child in their development process.” They go on to sum up their years of research by saying, “In the end, great marriages produce great parents.” …The point is that marriage has a higher goal than to make two people happy or even whole. Yes, the investment we make into our marriage pays dividends for us. But, concluded by Medina and his colleagues, the same investment also has significant implications for our family, our community and eventually our culture.”



You may be wondering why this article helped spur my thoughts. 1) It relates to how to strengthen home and family (aka marriage) and 2) I strongly feel it expands past more then just my relationship with Kyle and enters into my relationship with my Heavenly.

Both of these relationships are a bi-product of what I put into them. The more I put in the more I get out. We all know that our marriage is 3 way covenient so in my mind it’s a 3 way relationship between me, Kyle and Heavenly Father.

But with out going into all that logic, thoughts and theology my thoughts are focused still on priorities.

I find it funny how we have time in our lives for things like: TV shows, movies, Girls/guys nights out, pintrest, facebook. Crafting, sports, news, internet surfing, a spot free house and perfect yard we seem to never have time for (or feel like they are a burdern) scripture reading, service, temple attendance, meaningful time with our spouse and our children. While these less spirutual things have a place in our life should they really replace what really matters. It keeps striking me as odd when I think about it.

From it all I concluded to try a noble experiment for the the next 31 days (1 month) I should have started on the first but 31 days is still 31 days.

Here is my experiement:

1) Put Kyle first!! Make sure all things I do will make him feel validated, loved supported and needed. Make sure I put his needs first over the non necessaries. If I sense he needs wife time give him more time!! If I know he needs his own time respect it. For example….coming up and putting a nice dinner and the oven and straighting up so he can come home to a clean house will make him feel loved and that I appreciate what he does….this leads to #2

2) Don’t criticize or complain. Don’t complain that I made that dinner, cleaned, etc. Kyle works Saturday morning to earn us some play money for vacations and such. I have made a point lately of doing Sat cleaning while he is gone and not complaining that he didn’t help or demand that he needs to do his list of chores. By me doing everything I can and allowing him to do what he needs or wants after work has resulted in a happier Kyle about working the second job, a happier easier Saturday morning and my favorite (proff of the article) he does little things for me like this Saturday bringing me home a fritter and DP cause he was thinking of me!! That’s a good reward for my cleaning and not complaining. Well so is a happier husband.

3) Invest in my self….what doest that mean. Make sure I take the time to look “presentable” aka put on the cute outfit for outings, wear accessories and jewelries, put on cute makeup, etc. for date nights and my husband…guess what you can still look cute in sweats just don’t make it a norm. Take time for exercise. And yes have a little me time. The logic here…when I feel better I will have a better self estem. I will complain less to Kyle, I will want more us time and be more excited for it.

4) Put the Lord first!!! Before I can ready blogs, play on pintrest, turn on the news, etc I need to take time for a few minutes of scriptures, prayers, etc. I can replace my radio on the drive into work with conference talks. We can plan temple dates just as we do movie nights.



My hope and honestly I truly believe result of this experiment will be a happier me, a happier Kyle a happier marriage. But also one based on love, respect and trust.

Not that I feel we have problems….I just feel like we can take our marriage to that next level. We can take our lives to that next level. But also because I truly believe we will all benefit from putting the first things first. We will have more love, more faith and more spirit and God in our lives.

Please jump on board and join in if you want.

A Taste of Christmas Decor

Here are some pictures of our Christmas decor this year.

Did You Know....

That we are proud parents of an adorable German Short Hair Pointer named Berkley.

Im sure if you follow us on face book you do!!

Once we entered contract on our house we went puppy shopping. We knew we wanted a dog. Our requirments: 1) can be a good running exercise partner 2) A good dog for camping, hiking, etc 3) Needed to be a larger dog (no little doggies for us) 4) Trainable

Kyle really wanted a lab and I really wanted a Grey Hound (I still do). We werent really sure if we wanted a puppy or not. We thought about adoption but got nervouse that we would have to put a lot of work into helping them adapt, adjust and break bad habbits so some how a puppy it was.

We found a cute puppy and her sellers were willing to hold on to her for a few weeks tell we closed on the house. So we picked Berkley up two days before we moved (not recomended) I wish I had cute little puppy photos but for the sake of updating our blog these will have to do.

Here are some cute photos I have of dear Berkley.

Remembering Blessing

I remember a church talk awhile back, I believe it was Elder Eyring, about tender mercies. I trully believe tender mercies are at times the blessings you have to look for in the midst of trials or things not semingly working out the way you desired. In that talk I believe he said that we should write down these blessings as we see them so we can always see how the Lord blessed us.

Well lately I have had this overwhelming feeling of peace that the Lord has and will continue to bless Kyle and I as we strive to start a family and follow his teachings.

Here are blessings I have noted sense we got engaged over a year ago. Most came during trails.

1) Our getting our sealing clearance in time for us to be able to be sealed on our wedding day. This blessing came as a result of hearts being softened for us.
2) My car breaking down on the way to Boise...How its a blessing, after we switched out cars for the SUV we continued on to Idaho to find our selves driving through some scary stormy roads...I know my car would have been a serious danger to us.
3) My being able to get a job lined up so I could work in Utah county and not work in Davis county. That one was a huge test of faith because we choose to not secure an apartment that would split our commute. We figured we could cross that bridge after we got married.
4) My car getting totalled....We were able to get a really good insurance pay out that allowed us to get more money then my car was really worth to replace it with a much more reliable car. (That one was a huge burden on me)
5) Everything we went through in our house hunting process. It amazes me how we turned down three homes when we had no clue how this one would work out. Almost had a few others but had the home owners accept a last bid after they verbally accepted ours. Having our house go in and out of short sale almost not close on it because of the sellers financial situation. To have it all work out. With us landing in a much lower monthly payment then we originally thought. And now we are in a loving neighborhood with great neighbors. Its one of those things that we know was meant to be.
6) State Farm deciding to drop us on car insurance because of a piece of metal totalling my car. We got our new car insurance lined up and will be paying for both of us what state farm would be charging for one of us!! Can beet almost paying half of what you planned to pay.
7) Jobs....Kyle accepting a job in the summer to find it was really not a good fit for him...he felt like he wasnt secure in his job or would have a good future there. He had been actively job searching and interviewing for jobs we thought would be perfect for him but to have him not get them. But in the end he ended up with a job that was a perfect fit for him. One where they offered him the job on the spot and chose him specifically because he had the computer technology knowledge combined with the construction background they were desiring. This job is going to be so great for our future.

These are just a few.

Yea the future is so uncertain and scary because of all of the unknowns and the things I cant control. Yes Ill admit I like to be able to control and plan my future. But I can see how the Lord blesses us day in and day out and comes through when he is so needed in ways that go above and beyond what we thought we needed. I truly feel converted that if I just trust him he will guide us to exactly what is needed. Even if we have to make it through the storm to get there first.

Updated Emergency Preparedness Blog

Ok Folks.....

I have spent hours litterly getting us ready to start preparing our 72 hour kits.

A huge portion of my time has been spent preparing our emergency/evacuation plan, our Grab and Go Folder, and first aid info. But guess what Im caught up and ready to go. Ok partial lie, I still need to make copies of important documents, put the folder together and do our home photo inventor. But at least Im organized, found all my info and am ready to go.

I have spent so much time on a project that honestly I hope I only touch when it needs updating. But I feel so blessed and at peace knowing we are prepared...well organized for an emergency. We are ready to start preparing our 72 hour kits now!!

Remember to follow along each week this coming year I will post that weeks project. By the end of the year we can all survive for 72 hours after an emergency.

I have updated my blog with links to all the info I have used. You can benefit from my hours of work and get to where I am in a matter of less then an hour. Lucky you.

Check it all out on my blog.

Oh My Photos!!

Holly cow Im not even that good at posting on a regular basis yet some how I have filled my memory storage for photos on my blogg....What to do what to do?

If I didnt have family out of state I think I would stop blogging all together seeing as I am so good at it.

So questions of the day:
1) Who is actually reading our blog? If you are please comment to help me decide what to do.
2) What is a good place to save my pictures to so I can still blog with out paying for photo storage?