The cup

In Matthew 26:39, Jesus prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will."

On a very serious note, the cup Jesus was referring to was dying on the cross for the sins of all mankind. Did you know he did that for you? He didn't want to do it. He was asking God for another way (cup), but in the end, he submitted knowing it was the will of the God.

On a much, much lighter note, I too have been praying for a cup. Seriously, this cup is driving me crazy.

Clearly, I spend too much time at Chick Fil A. In my defense, I have a 3 year old that weighs 18 pounds and LOVES their chicken nuggets. AND, I have lots of coupons for free chicken nuggets. So see, it's just the perfect combination. But, despite the coupons or the cries for "CHICKEN NUGGETS!!!!" My trips to Chick Fil A may have to come to an abrupt halt!

Every time I go to Chick Fil A, I have to look over and see this cup. It stands outside a Quiznos. The first time I noticed the cup, I am pretty sure I held up the whole drive-through line. I just kept starring and starring. Finally, I pulled out my camera and took a picture.

And then I had all these things going through my mind. What is wrong with that cup?! How in the world is that person standing like that? What in the heck is wrong the person? Seriously, he has be drunk! Why is he standing in the big pothole in the ground? How in the world does he not move his feet? Isn't he about to fall over? It took everything I had not to run over, rip the cup off the body and check the person's pulse.

The next time I went to Chick Fil A, the cup was standing in the same place but this time he was standing straight up. Shew! The cup was not nearly so disturbing and I didn't feel the need to go on a rescue mission.

But then I went to Chick Fil A again and this time the cup was leaning in a completely different way. I stopped traffic again. I pulled out my phone and took a few pictures. Then I pondered contacting an attorney on behalf of the poor guy standing in this cup. I decided that the store was abusing someone. There was no way on God's green earth that the person in that cup could be conscious... or mentally stable.

I haven't figured it out yet. But what does it say that I have spent that much time on this? I've taken pictures of the cup, downloaded the pictures, blogged about the cup. I've talked to others about the cup. I've thought about the cup when I was no where near the cup. I've gotten mad at Quiznos and vowed never to eat there because of the cup.

On a side note, Paul calls me obsessive/compulsive. I can't figure that out either.

Defamation of Character

If Taffy could sue me in a court of law, she would do so for defamation of character. Of course I would turn around and countersue her for vandalization of personal property. SOO, I guess it's a good thing we are talking about a dog here and we are really not headed for a long legal battle.

The bottom line is this: the good name of Taffy the dog has been slandered (by me... see previous posts) and I am here to clear her name.

Have you ever heard the saying, If you love something, then set it free?

I decided to do that last week. I was tired of fighting Taffy into the garage. I was tired of the shards of wood lying around the garage. I was tired of the wet dog I would come home to when she was caged, especially since I still do not even know what the wetness was/is. (Let's not talk about that anymore.)

Last week, I went to a shopping area that sits really close to my house. I decided I could do what I needed to do and be back home in 20 minutes. In that 20 minutes, I would let the dog have free reign of the house.

The thing that has always concerned me the most about leaving her is my front door. I waited 6 years for that front door and right or wrong (probably wrong), it is the pride and joy of my house.

If that dog so much as left a finger nail scratch in that wood, I would pluck her nails out one by one with some pliers and then I would have to blow her to smithereens with a shotgun.

I loaded my shotgun and ran to the store.

Ok, ok!!!! I don't even have a shotgun and as much as I don't LOVE dogs, I could never hurt one.

So, I ran to the store. I came home, pulled in the driveway, and with knees so weak I could barely walk, I made it to the front door.

I opened the front door, turned around and thoroughly inspected the door... the inside of the door. There was nary a scratch!

I got back in the car and went to Target. Target makes me happy... just so you know.

I came back and all was well.

Taffy has been left unattended since that day... and I am happy to report.... all has been well.

Taffy truly is the perfect dog... now.

P.S. Paul's mom came over the other night and when she saw the dog she said, "Hey Carmel!"

I was like, "What'd you call her?"

She said, "Carmel."

And, I said, "Or Taffy."

I tell you between her and my dad.... licorice, carmel. Hahaha!

P.S. The bird lady walking by my house again. (See previous post.)

Things I don't know what to say about.......

This hard-boiled egg for instance. It has boobs. And, I sat it in the lid of an apple juice bottle and took a picture of it. And, I laughed really hard at myself... for thinking the egg had boobs and for taking the picture and for posting it on Facebook. I have 500+ friends on Facebook and only two of those friends thought it was as funny as I did. I think I am cutting my friend list down today and just keeping those two friends. Something tells me a lot of those other people won't miss me.

I also don't know what to say about this lady.



She walks around my neighborhood carrying that black cage. Do you know what's in that cage?

A bird.

That lady walks her bird. There's something wrong with that entire picture. First of all... um... birds fly. How about putting that bird on a really long rope and letting him fly around as YOU walk through the neighborhood? I sure as heck think he'd prefer that as opposed to being walked around the neighborhood in a cage. Because... guess what else? The walk.... it's not doing him any good. HE'S NOT GETTING ANY EXERCISE!!!

What makes that lady think that bird wants to be walked? I bet that is the most frustrated bird in all the world. Not only is the bird being treated like a dog. He has to be walked around the neighborhood where he gets to see all the other birds flying around. I bet the other birds make fun of him too. Poor guy.

And, then there's my husband. He all of a sudden feels the need to embrace characters. It started with the Chick Fil A cow. He sent me the picture one day by phone.


He had written:

In the arms of another heifer as the caption of the picture. He had a moment of clarity before sending the message to me realizing that if he said he was in the arms of another heifer then he was in a round about way calling me a cow.

Something tells me I need to ramp up the affection level around here since he keeps having long embraces with things other than his wife.

And, wanting his picture taken with these things.

Then, there's that dog that lives in my house. The dog's name is Taffy. But, my dad couldn't remember the dog's name one day and fearing for the dog's safety knowing she has to live with me, he asked my mom, "How's Licorice?" He was dead serious too. Hahaha!!

Licorice, Taffy... whatever her name is... she's got issues. As if that wasn't obvious by my recent posts. One day Paul called and asked me if I'd come to the pool and pick her up. Now, why she was at the pool in the first place is beyond me, but I've stopped asking questions and so I drove to the pool to pick her up.

Shelby got in the car too and we were slowly exiting the pool because of the speed bumps. Taffy, being a dog, wanted to sit in my lap and stick her head out the window. Now, having a dog in my lap and driving is about as fun as getting a root canal... but, it's only about 1/2 mile home so I thought I could handle it for two minutes.

30 seconds into our 2 minute drive... Taffy jumps out the window. Now, why on God's green earth would she do that? I mean really! That dog! As I stopped the car to get out and get her, this lady pulls up beside me and she said, "OH!!! I am SOO GLAD that was a dog! I thought it was a kid!"

I can't decide what perplexed me more. The dog jumping out of the car or the lady thinking it was a kid.

Anyway, Taffy has continued to either A) get out of every enclosed space we put her in B) jump 4 feet into the air to squeeze her way through a small hole in the broken glass in the door that is in the garage but leads outside C) try to claw her way to the hole in the broken glass after we've put plywood over it or D) if she can't get out of the cage we've put her in, by the time she gets home she's soaking wet.

Why is she wet? What is the wetness? Slobber? Sweat? Urine? I'm not sure I want to know. And, since I have so much free time on my hands, I have to give her a bath. I am SOO glad we got a dog.

We went to an amusement park the other day and we knew we wouldn't get home until about 10 pm. We left Taffy in the garage. When we were leaving, Paul was talking to Taffy. He said, "Taffy, I fully expect you to have a bonfire going with all the wood chips you've made when we get home tonight."

I thought I was going to die!!

Here are ALL the cages she can get out of it. Yes, she can get out of every one of them.
The plywood she works on in her spare time.

It's hard to see the hole in the glass, but it's there.

Can You Be a Country Superstar AND Also Be Totally Down to Earth?

Can You Be a Country Superstar AND Also Be Totally Down to Earth?

Just in case you've ever wondered.... the answer is a resounding yes!

If you're new to my blog, we are friends with Hillary from Lady A. She dated a very good friend of ours several years ago. She came to our house several times and hung out with the family. She was about the sweetest thing I ever met. She doted all over the kids; bringing them gifts and being very attentive to them. She even sat with Shelby and wrote a song in the book she gave her for her songwriting. At the time, Lady Antebellum was just starting. Her boyfriend at the time would say, "They're going to be big." But, it was one of those things where I was like, "Yeah, do you know how many people think they are going to make it big?"

I did know she had an amazing voice. We asked her to sing for us and she sang a song she wrote for her high school graduation. We were blown away by the voice and the song.

When Hillary and our friend broke up and we were devestated. We loved Hillary and the guy she was dating. I decided I wanted to stay in touch with her. So, we exchanged so emails and I committed to pray for her on a regular basis. I can only imagine how tough the music industry is. AND......

Do you know how big Lady A is? Do you see what happens when I pray??? Ha!

ANYWAY.....

Hillary, being exactly who I thought she was way back when, has remained in touch with our family... even facebooking with Shelby the day after winning Grammy Awards and once while walking out on stage for a concert. Who, that busy, has time for a 12 year old?

Shelby never gets tired of seeing Lady A in concert and apparently, Hillary never gets tired of Shelby asking for tickets because she gives them to us regularly. Sunday, she was at a fair near our house. Hillary left us tickets at will call and we planned on seeing her at some point in the evening.

After a series of unfortunate events including cell phones not staying in range, we were not able to see Hillary. I had 3 disappointed girls, as Shelby had brought a friend. I also had one disappointed little guy. Disappointed... but they handled it very well.

Being an adult, I totally understood. Plus, I'd just be sick of people if I were her.

But, do you know what Hillary did Monday morning at 10:30 am after driving through the night all the way home to Nashville? She called our home and talked to all of the kids and apologized all over the place for not being able to see us the night before. She and I were then able to catch up for the next hour.

Are you kidding me? She absolutely did not have to do that. We totally understood PLUS would it even have mattered if we were ticked off about it? She doesn't need us.

But, that's the kind of character that is Hillary Scott and that is the reason I liked her the moment she walked through the door of my house. Our conversation reaffirmed that she is the real deal.

So, if you have a daughter that needs a famous role model, I know one.

And, once again, there is at least on Country Music superstar who is as down to earth as they come.

Go LADY A!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hillary with the girls a couple of years ago when we went out for pizza after one of her concerts.

I LOVE That Dog, I Love That Dog, I Love That Dog

I LOVE That Dog, I Love That Dog, I Love That Dog

At least that's what I keep telling myself.

One day last week, we went to the pool for 2 hours. 2 HOURS. I didn't know what to do with the dog because we'd taken her with us wherever we went over the weekend. So, I put a long leash on her and roped her to the banister in the kitchen.

This is what my carpet looked like leading up to the kitchen when I returned from the pool.

Thankfully, our friend who gave us the perfect dog, has some experience laying carpet and we just happen to have an extra piece.

The next time we left her we put her in a cage I borrowed from my cousin. When I pulled in the driveway and opened the garage door, who should come running out of the garage? Oh, well it would be THAT dog,! Taffy. She somehow got one wall of the cage down. AND, since she was out and about, she decided she would claw at Paul's red Buckeye door.

The next time I left her I went to Zumba. I looped a ribbon in and out and in and out of the cage and then I tied it around that particular door so that she couldn't get the door down. When I came home from Zumba and opened the garage, guess who came running out?

Good guess!

Oh, and since she was out, she decided to go ahead and work at that door a little more. There was some nice red wood shavings laying around the garage floor. To get out, she somehow managed to chew the ribbon off despite the fact that it had to have been almost impossible (I said... almost) to even get her teeth to the ribbon. Once again, the door was lying down flat.

Today we went to church and I decided to use a steel- linked chain collar to hold the door together. No way can she chew through that! Go ahead and try!!!

When we came home and opened the garage door, Little Miss Houdini came trotting out of the door with a look on her face like, "Is that all you got?"

Oh yeah! There were more wood shavings and since that must be getting a little old by now, she decided to do some jumping and try her mouth at the blinds that stand 4 feet from the ground and used to cover the whole window.

The cage door... bent. I'm not sure how she squeezed her ever-loving body through it... I just hope she tore some flesh on her way out.

Seriously, does God just sit up there cracking up at me?

I thought this was the perfect dog. I mean... I'm gonna go out on a limb and say this dog has some separation anxiety. Yep, she's got issues! That's for sure. Then she trots around the house looking all innocent and sweet. Curls up next to Jackson and gives me the look like, "All little boys need a dog."

Someone needs to tell her that one year....I gave a dog to my kids for a Christmas gift, and then 4 or 5 months later, I gave her away. I've got no heart. She's living here on borrowed time.

I Lost

Despite my picketing, my threats to never again do laundry or make dinner, and my promise to leave the country, we have a dog living in our house.

I guess, if I am going to be truthful, it's partly my fault.

I always have a story.......

Paul started this whole thing a couple of weeks ago saying he'd found the perfect dog. One of the guys he mentors and his new wife, felt horribly sorry for this perfect dog because they were gone all the time. By the way, the perfect dog, according to my husband, does not bark, chew, run away or eliminate it's bodily fluids in the house. The perfect dog according to me... lives anywhere but this house. Anyway, he asked if we could have the dog and despite desperately trying to obtain the dog, the dog had been given to someone else who would not give it back. (I did the silent cheer.)

But, Paul was convinced that Jackson needed a dog. "He lives in a house full of girls and we hang out with friends who mostly have... only girls. The boy needs a dog! All boys need a dog!"

Yeah, whatever.

The kids got wind of this perfect dog, which is another story, and they began scouring the internet for another perfect dog.

Well, Friday, I was on Facebook and I saw a friend who was trying to give away a Cocker Spaniel that was supposedly a great dog. "Yeah, well, then why are they getting rid of it?"

But, something possessed me to call Paul and tell him about it.

Now, why would I do that?

So, he called and then calls me to tell me, "April!!! It's the perfect dog!"

All these perfect dogs are appearing out of nowhere.

I agreed to go "see" the dog. It just so happened that we were going to my mom's that night and our friends and the dog only live 5 minutes from my mom.

We stopped to see the dog.

It was like seeing Emme for the first time. I couldn't believe how little the dog was and I couldn't believe how cute the dog was.... and I don't even like dogs FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

We took her out into their huge, unfenced backyard that connected to endless soccer fields. Our friend would walk far away and yell for her and she would would run right over to him. I could tell right away that she was a sweet dog... and then I heard her story.

Her name's Taffy, by the way.

Our friends, Jacob and Sheila, just moved back to our area from the deep south. They have 4 children under the age of 6, and they are living with her parents until they find a house.

They were not planning on a dog. One day, however, they went out to a farm to buy something. On the back of the property, Taffy was chained to a pole. She was matted and had at least 20 ticks on her. She had two gashes in her back because the neighbor boy would come over on occasion and beat her. Taffy, was used to breed, and since the last batch of her pups didn't sell well, they were done with her. "You can have her if you want her" the farmer told Sheila and Jacob.

Sheila, also not a dog lover, looked at Jacob as tears ran down her face and said, "We can't leave her here."

Taffy has been living in Sheila parent's house for the last 3 weeks. Despite being a great dog, she is just too much for them right now.

We left Sheila's parent's house with Taffy in the back seat nestled between my 2 dog loving children, Gracie and Jackson.

We've only had her for 2 days and the family is in love with her.

Even I love her... but only a little bit:-)

I lost the battle. I swore we'd never have a dog. Darn it!

That Oreo is about to Blow

Part of the problem with my quirky personality is... I get overwhelmed really easily. For example, if my house is a wreck, everything in me says just to sit down and read a book. I know that makes no sense to ANYONE including myself, but... just being honest.

This has carried over to my blogging. When I haven't blogged in awhile, blogging overwhelms me. I feel like I have too much to say... so I say nothing.

Yeah, don't ask questions, just take it for what it's worth... which is nothing.

Anyway, I have to show you what we found on Craigslist tonight. My family is obsessed with finding a dog... which means they must be intent on getting rid of their mother/wife. I have not agreed to this and so I am totally protesting. I have been walking around with a picket sign that says NO DOGS ALLOWED. They pretty much act like they don't see me, but let me just say this, "If mama ain't happy, nobody ain't happy."

Anyway, so the family is looking at dogs on Craigslist and they found the following dog with the following listing. Take caution in viewing this dog. He looks like he swallowed a giant marshmallow. His name is Oreo and I am confident he is going to blow at any minute.

Dog Needs Help (That is the title for the Craiglist posting)

This dog belongs to my mother in law. she has had him since he was a pup. But she does not know how to properly care for him
he looks as if he is a jack russel/chi mix.
she has over fed him since day one, constanly feeding him treats and table scraps
he is extremly over weight
she has never clipped his nails and they are far too over grown and i can tell he is in pain
his name is oreo.
he hasnt been trainned for commands such as sitting, ect
but he is house broke
i talked her into getting rid of him but instead of listening she just went out and got another dog. so now oreo is getting less attention and he has to face the fact that his mom got a new dog and got rid of him
he needs a loving home, somebody that will get him back to his right weight and groom him right
he is black and white
a big attention hog
very good with kids, we have an eighteen month old litle girl that pulls on his ears and everything and he just sits there
he does let you know when somebody is coming by barking
i feel so sorry for him. i have done my best to try explaining to her how to take care of him
my landlord doesnt allow pets or i would put my experience into work.
if we dont find him a home, i am going to have no choice but the pound
im done watching poor oreo suffer.
he is in serious need of a good home.

20 dollar rehoming to cover gas, because i will be willing to deliver.

I know it's sad, but aren't you cracking up? $20 fee... just for gas cause this desperate lady is willing to bring Oreo to whomever. Oh my!