Home again ... finally!

I originally started working on this post on Sunday. Then I started vomiting and realized I had (and still have) the stomach flu. So here it is late; better late then never.

Today I made it home from my "vacation" with our girlscout troop. In short, we stayed in a little "cabin" about 3 minutes from my house all weekend, watched DVD's, ate junk food, fought, terrorized eachother, put on about a hundred pounds of make up (this is a room full of teenage girls, after all), played games and slept.

I especially like this trips, because I like the element of adventure that comes with them. 97% of my days are spent in the same house, with the same routines, and worst - living with the same people. It's not particuarly that I just like a break from the ordinary. The adventure of things kind of consumes me. If you told me a plane would be ready for me tomorrow to take me to a Fergie concert in Manhattan, I would be packed by the next morning. I live for adventure.


One thing about this trip, however, brought unmesurable amounts of worry over me before I left. Actually, three things. And their names where Shelby, Penny, and Kit.


I hated leaving them.


Not as much because I MISSED them, but more I trusted no one else to take care of them like I did. I examined my choices.


(1) Leave them in a kennel, which is not a choice I particularly liked, seeing as in September of 2006 when we traveled to Ocean City, MD for a weekend - I had to leave Shelby and baby Penny in a kennel. When I came back, my dogs where thin, starving, thirsty, covered in urine, and really overly happy to see me.


Besides, I didn't have the money. Moving on to choice number 2.


(2) Hire a friend to come in and out and take care of them. But I knew nobody nearby that I trusted or would come down to our little home in the boondocks, and I was NOT going to entrust their fate to the neighbors.


And again, I didn't have the money.


Not realizing my probably most practical option was right underneath my nose. The people who shared the house with me could take care of them. Aka, my parents.


Who are not particuarly thrilled with dogs - especially not my father.


The thought of them taking care of my dogs brought on more worry. I could just see them sitting in crates in fecal matter for the whole weekend. I didn't know if it would have made any difference if it were specifically my parents or not, in my mind nobody could take care of them like me!


But I had to agree. What other option did I have?


I sat for quite a while writing up care directions before I let. "Do not let Shelby alone with Kit, she might kill her. Do NOT let Penny offleash outside for any reason, she will not come when you call her. Do not give them newspaper with staples, they will swallow them. Do not leave them outside alone." The list when on and on and on...

This was also my first time leaving Kit.


The morning before I left, everything seemed to be in order. I kissed each little Dachshund on the nose. "Be good for grandma. May the Lord bless you." Kit affectionatley took my finger in her mouth. Shelby seemed to wonder what was going on. Penny couldn't care less.


Really, she couldn't.

So I set off on my little adventure. It wasn't quite what I thought it was. I fought with most of my friends, cried once, tripped twice, got scared witless, hardly got any sleep, had to wear a shirt two days in a row (ick), and on top of it all - SOMEONE gave me the stomach flu...

Even though I usually had fun at these things, this time I couldn't WAIT to get home. Not as much to what was at home; as long as it was away from that camp.

As I approached home, I began worrying about my 3 little babies. If they were ok, if they'd be fed enough, etc. When I usually got home from something like this, I would rush to them going "I'm home, I'm home!" and Shelby would jump into my arms and Penny ... well, wouldn't...

But I barely had the energy to move, let alone give them an energy-full greeting. I stumbled into the room they were in, and for a moment forgot how to open the door. Finally once I remembered how a door knob works, I came into them.

My room was a mess. Disorganized, etc. And they were all three sitting in peed-up crates. I moaned, out of exhaustion, and began cleaning them up. Shelby was so glad I was home. Kit snuggled against me and Penny gave me dirty looks.

Even though I was tired and frustrated, I was so glad to see them.
(I think...)

And I learned one thing...

Never ever go to a girlscout thing ever again without ... Well, never go to a girlscout thing ever again.

Problem solved.