Attentively Attentive to all Things

So I've been AWOL for a few months.  Oopsie!  My goal of posting at least once a month have fizzled away in a sea of literature homework and a toddler.  Life happens, so to speak.  So here's what I've been up to since my last post in July. Since July, we have decided to raise goats in 2012.  That decision was made about 10 seconds after I saw a Nigerian Dwarf goat.  Check them out here and you'll see why:  http://www.ndga.org/ I started back to school at the end of August.  Taking only 9 hours, I thought this semester would be much easier and I would have more free time to write, etc.  Oh, how wrong I was!  These 3 classes are kicking my butt in all sorts of ways.  If you follow me on Facebook, you've seen my check-ins at SMWC, and my utter joy at being on campus for stats class.  Not.  My literature class is HARD, and the drama class, while fun, is very challenging.  I'm learning lots, when I get over being overw...

Last night at 9:30pm, I uploaded my last assignment for the semester!  I am now a free chickie until the end of August.  I can't even describe the feeling of freedom I have. I have a to-do list a mile long, but I have a reprieve until after Caris' 2nd birthday party on June 4th.  This list includes plans for to turn Caris' nursery into a toddler room, the purging of my closet (*shudders*), the purging of my kitchen, redecorating both bathrooms, taking care of flower beds, and at some point, read and review as many books as possible.  You never realize the simple joy of reading a book of your choosing, until you are made to read uninteresting textbooks for a class that has nothing to do with your major.  *sigh* I also hope to get some writing done, and a certain story finished.  We'll see how that goes.  My writing bug hasn't kicked in yet, but I'm hoping it will soon. We're off to Gatlinburg, TN this weekend for a family vacation. Yep, that'...

Tonight, around 8pm, we lost Piper.  I have to get this out, so please forgive me for the rambling. Piper was 9 years old, but never acted like she was an older dog.  She was full of energy and life.  Piper was probably the sweetest dog I have ever had the privilege of having in my life.  She always wanted to be where you were, whether it be in the bedroom, or in the living room--she was there. At the beginning of this month, I noticed she was breathing funny.  Her entire stomach was going in and out, along with her chest, and I knew something wasn't right.  She wasn't eating well, but we had just changed foods, so I thought she didn't like what we had bought.  We went back to the old food, and she still wouldn't eat.  She sounded like she had a cold, but I couldn't shake the feeling there was something else going on.  Our vet confirmed her diagnosis of blastomycosis, a fungal infection that coats the inside of the lungs with a thick yeas...

I've not blogged recently, mostly because I've been busy with school.  Okay, overwhelmed with school.  But that came to a bit of a halt this past week. One of our dogs, Piper, was diagnosed with blastomycosis, a deadly fungal infection.  She acquired this by breathing in a spore, which turned into an infection in her lungs.  My once powerful, and sweet German shepherd girlie is now a very sick, thin, baby.  It breaks my heart to have to tempt her with all sorts of foods to get some calories in her.  Today, nothing would induce her to eat but about five licks of gravy and meat.  Yesterday, she ate 4 eggs.  She still drinks, though.  Especially after I force peanut butter in her mouth and make her swallow. I'm not naive enough to think she will come through this with flying colors.  If you followed the link above, and read the information, you know we're likely fighting a losing battle.  But, as long as she continues to make an e...