A thankful month - Day 3 and 4

In continuing with my thankful month (since I didn't do it in November)

Day 3:  I am thankful for Charger - our first "child". 

They say a dog is a man's best friend - and man does Charger show it.   Charger is always there for a cuddle when I'm upset and really knows how to just be my side and try and cheer me up.    His energy and love is enough to make the world smile.   He especially cheers up a room when he (of 80lb weight) jumps up on my lap, lathers my face and head with kisses and rubs his entire body all over me - as some of you have borne witness to :)  Trust me - it's an interesting and entertaining scene.    Charger is a big part of our lives and I can't wait for him to get more used to the kids so I can see the joy that he will put on their face and they on his!

Day 4 - I'm thankful for Kalas, our second "child".   Although he was supposed to be a she, and he can be a big PITA, he is such a lover and cuddle-bug.   And I love it when after playing with each other, he and Charger cuddle up with each other!   He also loves the kids and can be commonly found lying next to them and watching over them.

Best Buds...

Michael Vick – Part II

Way back when, I wrote a post onMichael Vick and I called it Part I with the intention of there being a Part II.    Well Part II is finally here!!  This is the first chance I had to really sit and think about what I wanted to say and not just write my standard ramblings about my in-laws and whatnot.

Although this is Michael Vick Part II, it’s really not about Vick at all, and completely about what he brought to our attention.  

Prior to Vick’s arrest, I rarely heard about dog fighting.  The only thing I really remember hearing about is how “pit bulls are vicious”.   Which is a complete stereotype based solely on the fact that one can train a pit bull – and really many other types of dogs – to be vicious for dog fighting.   I have two dogs that are complete mutts no matter how much they look like labs.   I know my mom falls into the stereotype, so sorry mom – but I am 100% sure that my new puppy Kalas has pit bull in him as its all over his face, and Im 90% sure Charger has pit bull in him.   And they are the sweetest, most loveable dogs ever.    There are plenty of full pit bulls out there that have are complete lovers.   As a matter of fact, I was talking to my vet about pits, and she said that 99% of pit bulls out there have never attacked and are not at all vicious.   And most of the ones in shelters are in there because they were too “soft” for dog fighting.   I honestly never thought of it that way!

Anyways, back to dog fighting.   We all know Vick did a horrible thing, and we all know how I feel about what he did and Vick – but I have to say SOME good came out of it.   We are now all more aware about dog fighting.   Unfortunately, it really hasn’t changed much.   All it changed is those of us who aren’t living in the low-income areas where dog fighting is so prevalent are now more aware of it.   But unfortunately, even with Vick spending time in jail, there is still plenty of dog fighting going on.

Vick has been going out to some of those low-income communities in the local area to talk to young kids about why its wrong and how they shouldn't do it.   Unfortunately, that's about the end of that - there really is nothing else going on to try and stop this from occurring.   People have boycotted and protested the Eagles, but that’s not really affecting those who are active in the dog fighting community.

More needs to be done directly in the communities where “we:” know dog fighting is prevalent.   You have to reach the kids, because unfortunately the adults are already set in their ways most of the time.   Maybe have special assemblies in schools to address the issue, maybe SPCA and PETA can team up and get some cartoon for tv created that gets the point across with still being entertaining enough for those kids.   Maybe somehow get a video game created – cause no matter how poor these families are, they still usually have cable and video games.

These kids are growing up in an environment where they see so much bad that that is what they learn.    It takes a special kid (and usually a strong parent) to grow up around all sorts of bad and somehow work themselves out of that way of life.   

It’s going to take a lot to make the change that needs to happen.   And unfortunately, it goes far beyond dog fighting as well.   

I’m fairly certain all of my readers come from middle class families having grown up in decent working class neighborhoods, eventually having moved to the suburbs.   We never had to experience the life of growing up in low-income areas where you were lucky if you had two parents living with you and you were luckier if whoever took care of you (whether it be a parent or grandparent) really pushed you hard and made sure that you went to school and did good and came home after school and did your homework.   Where it was safe for you to go play with your friends outside and ride your bike around the neighborhood.  

Instead these kids are growing up with parents who send their kids to school and expect teachers to do all the parenting, but then get mad at the teachers when their kid is acting out or doing bad.   Schools are limited in what “punishment” they can enforce because of fear of losing a job and having a lawsuit on your hands.   And there is no punishment at home, so the kids do whatever they want.   In many instances now, those kids are bringing knives to school and having sex in elementary school, joining gangs and doing drugs by middle school, and selling drugs and killing others by high-school.*   If we can’t get it across that all those things are bad, why do we think they learned from Michael Vick’s going to jail that dog fighting is a bad thing?

When you grow up to be someone as high profile as Michael Vick, yeah, you probably should know better at that point – but all your life you learned a certain lifestyle and that’s what you know. **

*Im not trying sterotype to say all kids who live in low-income grow up in this circumstance, but I am saying (and therefore stereotyping) that many kids live in this environment – specifically the ones who get involved in dog fighting and other illegal activities.  

** Im not making excuses for anyone!   It is completely inexcusable, but unfortunately, there needs to be more education out there.   

It's a girl! Oh wait....it's a boy...

So we just adopted a new puppy!   But life is never simple when it comes to my life...

My mom and dad graciously helped my hubby and I out - I was in Boston visiting my roomie and hubby was working.   I never really thought to give my parents a full description of the dog we were getting and the other dogs on the transport because they new we were getting the female chocolate lab, and I figured the driver of the transport knew who all the dogs were (and could tell the difference between a female and male).  Can you tell where this is going?

My parents sent me a couple pics while I was in Boston, and looking at the pictures, it didn't really look like the dog I was looking at, but I figured they had the right dog, she just looked different from the pics they sent.  

Well guess what?

The driver of this transport made a big mix-up!   The driver couldn't tell the difference between a female chocolate lab with white on its feet and a male chocolate lab with white on its chest - so we ended up with the male.

The funnier thing - no one else noticed.   Not my parents - although they didn't really think to look, and I wouldn't have either; not my hubby who spent 24 hours with the dog before I came home and watched him pee, not even the other family.

I of course noticed as soon as I got home and met the dog.  

So our girl dog is now a boy dog.   We talked to the rescue and the other family and both dogs and family's are happy with their current situations, so there is no reason to change anything.   Eric/Kalas (his original name/his new name) gets along great with Charger and Adam and I love him already.   He might not cuddle up to Adam like Kali/Kalas would have (based on her description), but time will tell.

Life is....

BUSY!   Its that time of year at work.   Well I guess its always that time of year except in the summer and that one really bad year.   But as soon as September hit, work got really busy, and therefore I have a thousand posts in my head that I want to write (if I can even remember them), but I barely have a second to write them - I really need to get back to completely OCD and have my life scheduled out like I used to (yes I was that crazy!).

Well, eventually I will finish finish all the posts I started over the last month and start (and finish) all the posts that are in my head, but in the meantime, I quick recap of the past week or so:

- We are officially getting Kali!!!  We got an email the other week about her giving us a little description of her personality - and Adam and her will be best buds!   She loves her foster mom because her foster mom just lies with her and cuddles.   Adam could never get me to sit still and cuddle, nor can we get Charger to do that (well sometimes we can), so maybe adam will finally have his match :)   We will be changing her name to Kalas (in honor of the great Harry Kalas).   I think we will give her a middle name - but Im not set on anything yet.   My friend Marci recommended J-Roll (nickname for Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins for those non-Philly, non-baseball folks).   I do like that, and I definitely want a Phillies name - any thoughts?  Plenty of names in my head - Tug, Schmidty, Utley, Dutch, Whitey, LA, list goes on and on and on....

- Adam and I unofficially gave Charger a middle name - cause if Kalas gets one, he should to!   For those that don't know, although some might think his name is Charger because he charges someone as soon as he sees them (we - ie. I - are working on that), he is named after the Dodge Charger, the name just fits his personality perfectly.   I wanted to give him a taste of the Phillies, but then Id have to give Kalas a car middle name, so I comprimised - although I did pick this one.   His new middle name (when its not Barks-a-lot or something that we are just teasing him with) is Mustang.   Charger Mustang Needleman

Trust me those are not the things that have been keeping me crazy busy, just the stupid things that I felt like sharing right now :)

Oh - and I started to follow a new blog, and Im starting from posts in the end of August, and only gotten a few in, but I really like this one.  Sadly I like it cause it sounds like she is in the same boat as my sister-in-law and I with our in-laws - but its entertaining.   If you like my crazy MIL stories - go check out Elle at This is Mommyhood - she has some good ones up there about hers.

Hopefully Ill catch up on blogging this weekend - but more than likely not since I have a list a thousand things long (in my head) of what I need to do this weekend...

The things dogs eat...

I start this off with a warning that there could be a bit TMI included in this post - so continue at your own risk :)

Dogs really do eat the craziest things - and I'm not talking about the food we humans give our dogs.   Charger, like many dogs, loves to tear through the trash.   He specifically loves to tear apart, and occasionally eat, tissues and dryer sheets.   The trashcans that cause the most trouble are the upstairs bathroom and our bedroom - because that's where the culprits usually lie.

Typically the tearing apart of tissues and dryer sheets doesn't bother me - I just pick up the remnants after he gets to it.   Oddly enough he could care less for the feminine products that lay in the trash can.   He usually could also care less for plain old tissues - he really likes the ones with flavor (ie used tissues from a cold).

I remember my mom telling me that our childhood dog, Tanya, loved to get to the used pads.   Well if you think that's gross - you might want to stop reading here.

I know - you don't want to read further, but you just can't stop!


Charger LOVES to eat (used) condoms.  This past week, I came upstairs and found a wad of tissues sitting on the bedroom floor the next morning and it was barely touched, and I couldn't figure out why Charger took out tissues but didn't touch them - and then I realized...


I swear the minute he realizes they are in the trash can, he goes on his own little trash diving adventure as soon as we aren't in sight and digs it out and leaves everything else behind.    We hide them in loads of tissues and push it to the bottom of the trash can - and that just doesn't work.   The simple solution is to buy a lid to my trash can - I just keep forgetting.   The good news (or bad news depending on how you look at it) is that it always comes out...

Dog Names

Adam and I are looking to adopt a second dog when we get back from vacation near the end of the month.   We have our eyes on a certain dog, and so far it looks like things might work out.   If not, I'm sure we will find the perfect dog for us and for Charger.


Just like with Charger, I don't want to pick out a name until we get the dog and get a feel for his/her personality and make sure the name works with their personality.

With that being said, i'm really hoping that a Phillies themed name will fit the personality - anyone have any recommendations?   I have a couple that Ive had in my mind for a while: Schmidty and Tug.   I was also recently thinking Whitey (for Richie Ashburn), but I have all plans to get a dark haired dog - so that would just be weird.   Im totally amenable to a name that references older players or recent players - BUT I'm not gonna name my dog a name that would be a human name and Im not naming my dog Utley - because Ive met tons of dogs named Utley.

My biggest issue is that there is a chance we will bring a female dog into the house, and Im not sure any of these names really fit a female.   I have one thought, but I'm not really loving it - Ace.  Another thought is Polly (for Placido Polanco) but that falls into the real name category.  Anyone have any thoughts on these names or other recommendations??