The Story of George, the Bestest Buddy Ever!

This is the story of George, also known as the best dog ever.

As most people who ever knew me pre-age 22, I was not a dog lover. In fact, I was scared to death of dogs. Then I met my husband-to-be, an absolute dog lover, and I had to change my mind.

I bought Jim a puppy for his graduation present. He was in heaven.

Unfortunately, Molly died at 9 months old. :(

rest in peace, Molly.

I took Molly's death so hard that I vowed that I would never own another dog.

Two months after Molly's death, Jim suggested that we go *just take a look* at puppies at a local adoption event. I said fine, but only to look at how none will ever live up to how awesome Molly was.

About three and a half minutes into the event, I was hooked. I wanted another puppy. Jim's plan had worked! We met and fell in love with a litter of 10 puppies and their mom, "First Lady". She was found abandoned in another state, pregnant, and in need of love. Her puppies were named after presidents and first ladies. There were three that I absolutely loved:

Franklin

Teddy

and George.

We quickly filled out the paperwork and decided that Franklin was our dog. A few days later, we had learned that he was taken. It was a phone call from Jim's sister..."you have to pick George"...that was the deciding factor. We brought George home two weeks later, and kept his name.

It was love at first sight.

Look at those eyes.

Jim headed back to grad school, and I brought puppy George home, completely by myself in my endevor. I knew nothing about raising a puppy. I was in for an adventure, one that would lead to a lifetime of closeness and bonding.

 George had *one* accident inside, ever.

Matching floors in George's honor.

 A pasttime he has loved since the beginning.

Even the smallest size collar does not fit baby G!!!

Anxious to get out of his little yard when I got home from work one evening.

Our first walk together. Although he hated being out of the house at the time, today this is his favorite activity.

I knew from the look of George's mom combined with his gigantic paws, that he was going to be a big boy. Before he got too large, I signed him up for puppy class. This was a lifesaver and has definitely paid off.

My little over-achiever.

Smart like his daddy.

As George started to grow, we became more and more attached at the hip.

Probably staring at a bug.

We <3 bridges.

George has been by my side through everything. I became very sick and bedridden twice since I've had him, and each time, he would not leave my bedside. Food even had to be brought to him, and usually, he'd refuse it.

Then came the time that George himself got sick. George needed surgery at 4 years old to remove a melanoma that had grown on his skin. The poor buddy was in so much pain and was having delusions after the surgery. He needed drugs to be painfree during the healing, but it would make him so loopy. The vet insisted on keeping him overnight for observations after the surgery, however, as I had predicted, when he woke up from his anesthesia, he would not stop crying. The vet called me only hours after the surgery. "He will do much better at home and with you, he is much too stressed here to recover properly." That's George for you: too concerned for Jim and me to leave us alone one night.

Hiking in the Shenandoah, and look, a bridge!

Never more than a few steps behind me.

(Does the shirt look familiar?)

Enjoying a spring afternoon.

In May, 2010. we decided to expand our fur-family and give George a friend. We gave him a sister named Sadie.

It was love at first sight, part II.

She fit into our family perfectly...

We thought for sure that George would just love and accept Sadie with open paws, like any other sibling would do....

"....AND STAY OUT!!!!"

...but George had something else in mind. He was not thrilled about sharing his home and parents with another puppy. But his heart is infact bigger than his stubborness, and he soon welcomed baby Sadie:

Busted.

Here is a list of 10 little-known facts about George:

1. He loves sitting for hours and hours, taking in mother nature, and never moving other than to sniff the fresh air.

2. He is the fastest runner that I know.

3. He has a house with his name on it.

4. He allows me to practice my photography, by doing impromtu "picture days", complete with awkward senior photo poses.

5. George LOVES hikes. and walks. and nature.

6. He smiles his biggest while in the Adirondacks.

7. Only while on vacation, George sleeps/lounges on picnic tables.

8. George makes friends faster than anyone that I know. He's also not embarassed by any form of P.D.A.

 

9. He once defied all odds and jumped up onto his hind legs to catch a snowball in his mouth, thrown by one of several BFF's, Sean.

10. He has a star-burst in each eye.

In addition to that list, I'd like to share with you just how much George puts up with.

Here is a list of the top 5 forms of abuse George puts up with from my brother Robert (pre-Army, I'm sure the list will be updated post-Army):

1. Self-explanatory.

2. Also self-explanatory.

3. George chasing a laser beam, controlled by Robert up the wall.

4. Self-explanatory.

5. Robert titled this one on the facebook album: "Why Uncle Bob?" Enough said.

6. BUT....at least after a hard day of abuse, George is rewarded with a warm bed, pillow, and monogrammed blanket.

To be completely fair, I have to include the following photos. George does put up with a lot from me, as well:

Easier than brushing?

That laser pointer provided hours of entertainment, as George pulled me around the house, horse and carriage style.

George has so much character. He's constantly doing new things to make us laugh. Just last week, he started a new habit of winking at us every chance he gets:

take one.

and two.

three. (always the left eye.)

While George has only been in my life for 4 1/2 years so far, he has certainly changed more than I ever could have imagined. He greets me with a smile each day when I arrive home. He insists on snuggling up as.close.as.possible to me at night, which sometimes includes sleeping partially mostly on top of me. He's extremely protective of me, of my emotions, and of our family.

Sadie has joined him on his extra-long list of best friends. If George had things his way, the world would be made of peanut butter, squirrels would run a *tiny* bit slower, and Robert, Julia, Morgan, Sean, etcccc... would all live next door to us.

I love you little buddy! Thank you for being my best friend!

The First Editor of my Journal

Today I had a memory.

It was one of those memories that starts out by innocently thinking something random ("It's hot") and within seconds, you've created a path full of different flash-backs and check-points (want to be cooler-- ice cream is cold -- soft serve is good -- soft serve in Warrenton -- I saw an old teacher there once) that leads to a completely different state of time, oftentimes one that your mind hasn't visited for years.

That's when I remembered her: Mrs. Norskog, my 2nd grade teacher.

Mrs. Norskog was one of those few teachers that you remember for life. I not only remember her and what I learned, but the emotions that I felt during that year. I have more memories from 2nd grade than I do all other elementary grades combined. She was such a unique teacher. Her classroom was cluttered with artifacts, reptiles and posters. Her stories mesmorized her class full of hyper 7 and 8 year olds for hours. Oftentimes, she would get so involved in stories about the Civil War or how Abraham Lincoln's life was lived, that we'd skip every other subject for that day and just go straight to recess.

Mrs. Norskog loved show-and-tell. And because of it, my parents made me bring in anything and everything to, well, show-and-tell. I brought in encyclopedias that we had at home that just happened to cover what we were discussing in history class. I brought in the weekly "Mini Page". I brought in a frog that I caught in my pond. I brought in items from Japan that my cousin Jim had sent over. I brought in a paint-by-numbers that I created at home. I brought in a fable book only because we were learning about Aesop in school. She never, ever declined my request to share something with the class. I must have brought in a hundred items that year. She would stop class each time so that I could show off my item. Those times she stopped class to let me speak were the cornerstones of my education.

{proof}

The biggest impact that Mrs. Norskog had on my life was journaling. Mrs. Norskog had our class keep a journal. She'd set a certain amount of time the first thing in the morning to write in our journals, and then she'd have each student read them outloud to the class, every single day. This has provided me, now an adult, with two valuable treasures: 1) I still keep that journal on my bookshelf. 2) I still feel inspired to journal or to blog.


I have been looking for an opportunity since I started this blog to share pieces of that journal, but I never knew how to introduce it until now.

She'd read the journal entries every night to correct spelling, etc. She almost always left a positive message, which of course, made me feel like a million bucks.

And of course, sometimes I'd reply to her, hoping to strike up this secret two-way conversation.

I cannot even imagine how many times she must have been put to sleep by our awful, pointless stories. Granted, this probably was also known as "the worst day of my life" for a 2nd-grader.

Never, ever holding anything back.

When I thought of Mrs. Norskog the other day, I thought, "What a perfect idea, I can share with her how my 2nd grade journal impacted my life and my love of journaling!"


I thought it would be easy to google and find her address, and write her a letter. I could send it to the school where she teaches now? In fact, I only saw her a few years back, hanging out at her son's ice cream shop in Warrenton.

So I typed her name in the google task bar: "Eugenia Norskog" (An unforgettable name).

I took out a pen and paper to write down the first address that popped up.

The first search that popped up, however, was not expected.

"Eugenia Folk Norskog, of Warrenton, died June 3, 2007."

My heart sank.

How could I have never told her about my journal? About how much she meant to me and my education, even at 8 years old? And how the reason I write, whether publicly or privately to this day, is all owed to her?

When you are 8 years old, and the world around you is so pure and innocent, you retain that mindset when you are grown up and look back on that age. Which is why I suppose I thought that Mrs. Norskog was immortal. Each time that I put a pen to paper to write in my umpteenth journal since second grade, or when I sit down to write a letter, or when I decide to blog, Mrs. Norskog will be just that. I pray that someday I can be half as inspirational to one single soul, as she was to me.

This is the first journal entry after Uncle Mark was tragically killed in a car accident. The funeral was on my birthday that year, and Mrs. Norskog knew how devestated my entire family was, and sent notes and cards home to my parents. I remember being so heart-broken about Uncle Mark, however all I do here is talk about my birthday presents. Looking back, I see that as a child, I was searching for something optimistic to replace my sadness with. It really reflects how I react in bad situations presently. I am absolutely eternally grateful for this journal entry, and the ones that followed. It reminds me of where I was, what I was doing, and even what presents I was opening, during a tragic moment that I have replayed in my head for the past 20 years.

And Another.

"Wow, I feel really bad about spending $24 on a bottle of wine, and it being gone the next day." - me

"Don't be, that's only $1 an hour." - husband

Real Life Conversation That Just Took Place

Never a dull moment at Camp Conrad.




{Jim, turning on the t.v.} "Are you recording something??"

{Me, yelling back down the stairs} "No? I don't think so?"

{long silence}

"THE DONUT MAN?!?!" -Jim

"Oh. Hehe. Um, well it's Sadie's favorite! She likes the songs!"

{continuation of silence, yet to be interupted}

Guess I'll just have to bring my dog to the live event next year at church.

Make Me Smile

"I'm so happy that you love me. Life is lovely when you're near me. Tell me you will stay, make me smile." -Chicago

Things that are currently Making Me Smile:

1. My boss takes time to thank me for my work at the end of each day. (It's the little things...)

2. Jim has been reading the Bible to me at night (at least on nights when I don't fall asleep at 8:26 pm...) I've never read the Bible. I listen to a Christian Radio show on my way to work (shoutout to Family Life Today), they are always referencing the Old Testiment. I feel silly, but if it's not about Noah, Moses, Adam or Eve - I am lost. (Shoutout to my highschool Old Testament teacher, who rarely showed up for class.) So Jim is reading it to me. :)

3. Talking to my niece and nephew on skype. My nephew called took one look at my t-shirt and proudly announced: "The Chicago Tigers!"...to which my husband responded, "Kid, we need to talk." Nephew and I laughed for about 20 minutes.

4. Speaking of niece and nephew, we are taking our first vacation of the summer to see them next week, for my niece's Baptism!


5. Sweet Frog opened. Need I say more?




5. Recently discovered this beauty, my childhood summers now come in an alcoholic beverage:

The Smores Martini - only $3.99 on Fridays

6. Paella day at the farmers market:

7. And while this is not our display at the farmers market, this is the view that we get to enjoy, every Sunday, from 8:30-1 pm.

Work Words

(because I really cannot resist.)


"Somewhat of a nice guy, but a little bit of a dweeb" -Mr. X's observations, upon meeting a potential business partner.



"She has no income!" - Mr. X, commenting on why "she" couldn't be approved for a loan.
"Well she's writing a book" - Ms. Y, defending the potential borrower.
"What if the book sucks!!" - Mr. X.

Work Words

"I have mentally checked out of the snow. I am ready for small umbrellas and sand in my teeth." - Mr. X. (stated back in March)


"Mr. X, you have a package.."-office assistant
"Is it ticking?" - Mr. X.

I am Spoiled.

This morning, I woke up to my husband announcing to me:


"I'm smoking a fattie!"


Confused and concerned, I rose out of bed and followed him outside to the grill, where hours earlier, he had started his day's smoking.

*sizzle sizzle*

There I saw it: what was to be my breakfast that Memorial Day morning. A juicy, succulent "Fattie" that he had told me about weeks prior. A bacon weave held together a sausage roll, filled with cheddar cheese, green pepper, onion and tomatoes.

Observe, our first, applewood-smoked fattie. A tradition that will live on within the Conrad household. I am so spoiled.

On Markets and Celebrations

Have you ever woken up at 3:45 am, jumped in the shower and rushed out the door by 4, on a Sunday morning?


Jim and I can finally cross that off of our list of things to do before we die. Because starting 3 days ago, and for now on, that will be the way we kick off the week.


We are helping out a local farm: selling their product in the heart of DC at a farmer's market. It is exactly what we are passionate about: sharing the fruit of hard labor and God's creation with thousands of people. Country meets city life, if you will. And we are the liaison.




In other news, Jim and I just celebrated our 3 year anniversary yesterday! And by celebrated, I mean we went to work, got home late, grabbed a fresh meal to go at the market and watched American Idol. We remembered that the reason we chose this day to get married was because it meant we'd always have Memorial Day weekend to celebrate our anniversaries, and that is exactly what we are planning on doing.


And finally, the big news. ROBERT IS BACK FROM AFGHANISTAN!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited. I cannot believe that a year went by, even though it felt like eternity while we were in it. I am sure that I only feel 0.000000000001% of what his wife feels. But I am just so thrilled. And the fact that it happened on our anniversary was even more of a treat.

What Message Am I Sending?

This is absolutely embarrassing. Embarrassing, yet eye-opening.

I keep a tracker on my blog. You know, so I can see how many people love me on a daily and weekly basis, and important stuff like what town they read from. That's about all the information I am ever given. (I can't in turn stalk my stalkers, so please don't worry.) Today I discovered that there is another feature that I can see on my tracker. And it startled me.

You know how when you are google-ing something like "yellow labs in cottonelle commericals", and sometimes you can wind up on some unknown victim's blog? Well, apparently that happens often to my own. So often, in fact, that my tracker has a convenient list to let me know exactly what was typed into google/search engine that led a person to my blog's front doorstep. "Genius!" I thought. Until I looked further.

Look here:

Look closer:

Wow. I don't even know what to say. Is this the long lost brother-in-Christ that was standing behind me in the confession line that day, trying at last to track me down? Or is this some perv that probably needs to be standing in a confession line. For those who don't know, this is clearly linked to this blog post.

Well, 4.00% of my google-search readers, I hope you found what you were looking for. And if not, I hope you at least enjoyed my story which I tried my hardest to tell from a Christian perspective, complete with guilt and morals.

So please, go about your merry ways and remember, if you ever find yourselves forgetting the name of my blog and you are not one of my 5 beloved followers, you know what to google.

A special note to those who may be in charge of engraving my gravestone in the future: please don't let these words be the legacy you think I am leaving behind.

Thank you.

Yee-Haw. A Top 10.

It is a known fact that country music has the best fans over any other genre. Fans stick with their favorite artists throughout the decades, no matter what. To prove this, I have come up with a top 10 list that I compiled during a recent indulgence in my newly-found favorite hobby: watching country music videos from the 90s on youtube. (SO much fun...and a great distraction since Facebook is being given up for Lent.) The selfless me felt naturally inclined to copy these down to share them with you, my blog reader. May you enjoy them at least half as much as I did.

Here they are, in a very particular order (with no editing done, which trust me, is very painful) :

10. “This was me and my exboyfrienes song. He was going to sing it to me at our wedding but then found him cheating on me with my ex best friend so we never did get married. That was ten years ago but everyonce in a while have to listen to the song still love it.”
-More Than You’ll Ever Know Travis Tritt

9. “Don't those sexy, weepy eyes of his get ya goin'”
-(I prefer to read this with a thick, southern draw) State of Mind Clint Black

8. “Does clint have any american indian ancestory in him just curious.”
-(Because I nor these fans could help ourselves) State of Mind (again) Clint Black

7. “When youre alone and bored and maybe have a drink or two in you, aint nothin better than listenin to ol Dwight whine about love..”
-Back of Your Hand Dwight Yoakam

6. “My truck broke down and I had to walk to work for a couple of days till I fixed it. It was just a couple of miles but for some reason this song would always end up in my head as I was walking and it wouldn't seem so bad.”
-State of Mind Clint Black

5. “Is it legal to wear your pants that tight. Wow!!!”
-A Thousand Miles from Nowhere Dwight Yoakam (ew)

4. “This song goes through your head right before you take a stand for your own foolish pride (its a decision usually fueled by large amounts of alcohol).”
-You’ve Got to Stand for Something Aaron Tippin

3. Dwight is my absolute fav now & has been 4 alot of years, will always be. I thought with my health that if there were anyone I would like to see besides Jesus, it is him. Love Him Always!!!
-Back of Your Hand Dwight Yoakam

2. “My girlfriend of 1 year, 1 month, and 14 days broke up with me 7 months ago and I feel like a stone she has picked up and thrown to the hard, rock bottom of her heart. Teenage girls can be so cruel :( “
-Hard Rock Bottom Randy Travis
(I swear I did not edit this is any way...the count was there as clear as that sad face.)

1. “If you love something set it free....If it comes back to you get a restraining order.”
-You’re Gonna Miss Me Brooks & Dunn