Happy Holidays!
Daron and I had a very quiet and lazy Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We figured we better save our energy for next year :) We had a nice time at the Best Friends Christmas Party and here are two group shots with some of our buddies.

Rodeo and Jen in Zion National Park November 18, 2007




I have been putting this off because I didn’t think I could put into words what I was feeling or give Rodeo the tribute he deserved. But the Blog must go on and I just wanted to thank each and every one of you who have shared words of love and support during the last month.

Anyone who knew me knew how much My Rodeo meant to me. He was my constant companion, Best Friend, running partner, travel co-pilot, my first son, my confidant, my soul mate, my everything. My days, vacations, work schedule, exercise sessions, relationships, down time, up time, all times were scheduled around My Rodeo. If he wasn’t happy I wasn’t happy and my whole goal in life was to make him happy, at least half as happy as he made me. He was a beautiful dog with an old soul which made him extremely extraordinary.

Although the last four months were hard because he was on a lot of medication and his enlarged heart was causing him to cough he never lost that sparkle in his eye or his ability to chase rabbits. It was on the morning he passed, November 27th, 2007, that his sparkle was gone and his ears were not held high. He had been anxious at night all week. I thought it was his medication or his diuretics that were keeping him up but in the end I realized it was his heart and lungs. But that morning he was up at three and having trouble breathing. He could not lie down although for 45 minutes between 4 and 4:45 he did fall asleep on my stomach, I think the angle was just high enough where his chest wasn’t compressed. Unfortunately, I tried to slowly move and he woke up. I rubbed his chest and he was so tired. He would lie down only to cough and have to stand back up.

The whole family got up early that morning and Daron spent some time with him in front of the fireplace. Rodeo had been “talking” to Daron a lot in the previous weeks. Daron believed it was Rodeo telling him to take care of me. Smart dog.

I remember finding out I was pregnant in July the same time I discovered that Rodeo’s heart had gotten far worse. That summer an Indian from the Kiabab reservation had told me that when a soul leaves the earth it makes room for a new soul.

Rodeo had hiked in all of his favorite spots Thanksgiving week and got to spend time and enjoy the cooking of his Grandpa and Grandma Nagle. I had the week off so I took him to Zion National Park, Tom’s Canyon where he chased Jack Rabbits, Vermillion Cliffs, and his last hike was that Monday, November 26th, 2007 behind the shooting range in a beautiful area that I call Elephant Canyon. He had a great time and we even sat on a rock and hung out in the sun for awhile. He was happy. It was as if he was born to live in Utah. His markings matched the red cliffs and the terrain perfectly and he absolutely loved hiking.

I thank God that I was at the Sanctuary that morning and that Rodeo was put to sleep while we sat in my truck, him in the co-pilot seat cradled in my arms. As he was fading I relived our hiking trips and talked to him about chasing rabbits and deer. I told him what a good boy he was and how much his Mom was going to miss him. We were able to spend time alone after my friends and coworkers and vet left. I told him I would meet him at the Rainbow Bridge just as soon as I could and that he could rest assure that I would be thinking about him romping around in Heaven every single day.

Unfortunately my parents had to leave! Daron and I were getting quite spoiled with them here. Mom was always cooking something and Dad painted our molding, cabinets, and more. One day my neighbor emailed me and said my parents were working too hard. She drove by at lunch and saw them sweeping the front walk, painting the front door and steps and heard nailing later that day. What can I say? I have great parents! Luckily, that was the only day I worked while they were here so I made sure we had fun too! My Mom and I actually made curtains for Addison's room. She measured (of course, if anyone knows me they know math is not my strong point) and I sewed. The curtains we made are in the photo with Mom adjusting them. The cow print material over the other curtains are going to be hemmed etc. we just ran out of time. The little elf/gnome figurines Mom brought from Florida and their colors match the room quite well. They have cute little faces too. I bought two of those red lamps and painted them and am planning to glue black fuzzy trim around the bottoms of the lamps. By Saturday we needed a break from the house so Mom and I went to Page Arizona to shop and eat. As you can see from the photos we stopped off at an overlook of the Lake Powell Dam - I think it is actually called the Glenn Canyon Dam. Anyhow, we saw the dam and ate at the Dam Bar and Grill. It was fun and although I was sad to see them go I knew they were heading to the Wynn hotel for two nights - that definitely made leaving a bit easier for them :) Now I just hope they win some money!!!

Mom and Dad Nagle finally made it back for another visit! They will be spending Thanksgiving with us this year. This weekend Mary and I went golfing on Saturday (the weather was incredible). I shot a 46 on the 9 holes we played, and Mary kept right with me! We had so much fun I'm pretty sure we'll play again before they head back to Florida. Sunday I'm pretty sure everyone knows what I did... (the Raiders are going to be the cause of my early death) But not everyone is quite as committed to soaking up all 17 weeks of NFL football before the playoffs so Jen and her parents made a quick run up through Zion while I kept one eye on the TV and the other on the Prime Rib cooking in the oven. So we definitely have been eating well since Mary's arrival! Enough words! Here are some pictures...

IT'S A GIRL!

Daron and I went to the Dr. yesterday and since we are about 5 months pregnant he checked the sex. Daron and I were so sure it was a boy that we just sat dumbfounded when he said it was a girl! We still aren't over the shock. One good thing is we had the name picked out for a girl but not a boy. Addison Andrews is growing right on target. Her head and femur bones measured up just fine. I of course am hoping for a waif of a girl - small head and shoulders :) I am sure Addison is going to be a Tom Boy and she will surely be a daddys girl! She already has her BFF (Best Friend Forever), Madison Unerfusser. Madison was born on October 30th to Chip and Sarah. Addison will be wearing Madisons hand me downs (unless they are too girly, frilly or foo foo) ha! I will post the photos of the baby room. It is currently a Black and White theme. We may have to add a TOUCH of pink or yellow or green. Just a touch though! Otherwise here are some photos of me at 5 months. Black is a beautiful thing!

Halloween has come and went. Jen won some cash and a gift certificate at the Best Friends Halloween Party. She won for originality with her "bun in the oven" homemade costume! We also had a friend from Corpus (Ken) come out for a couple of days for some hiking, poker, and Guitar Hero III. Good times were had by all except Raider and Colt fans... Kristy wins the prize for getting us the first baby outfit we've ever owned! Hook 'em if you're a boy or a girl... We should actually find that out tomorrow by the way, and Sara and Chip had their little Madison and finally posted some pics so go check out their blog too! http://chip-sarah.blogspot.com/

Last weekend Best Friends hosted a Las Vegas Super Adoption. We had over 7,400 people come and look at a variety of animals from local rescue groups and shelters as well as cats from the Parump rescue and some Best Friends animals. In total 332 dogs and cats were adopted and although Best Friends adopted out 10 dogs we went home with 10 new dogs. All the rescue groups pitched in to take the Lied Animal Shelters "left over" dogs. This way no one went back to a kill shelter. For more info. check out http://network.bestfriends.org/lasvegas/news/

It is official, Hayden Robert Andrews has entered the sacred Andrews man club. Jason, Dad and Hayden came out for the weekend for some fresh air, amazing scenery, and a lot of hiking. We went to Zion and explored without boundaries, and then we went to the Grand Canyon for more of the same. We had a great time and even voted to allow a woman to join us at the Grand Canyon. We figured she might be carrying our next member so it would be appropriate. We had a BLAST and no body even got hurt!!!!!!!!

It is Baby A (not A for alien, A for Andrews)

Daron and I went to our monthly Dr. visit on Tuesday and got an ultrasound done. It is the only reason we like going to the monthly visits. We are lucky that the hospital is small and our Dr. likes to do ultrasounds. Anyhow, Baby A is doing well and the doctor thought that he/she might be a Baby Mr. A but warned us that it was a bit early to tell and that it could have been a tailbone he was seeing!

What we do know is that Baby A has a very strong heartbeat and moves around a lot. I am just hoping that Baby A is healthy and smart like Dad and have thick hair like mom :)

Salamanders Rule! I caught this guy after a full day of rain. It was on John and Jamie's window sill, and their cat was just freaking out on the other side of the glass. I thought it would like to live at our pond so I grabbed the vicious and highly dangerous wild animal with my bare hands. Luckily it was focused on killing the cat and wasn't able to sink its fangs into my hand as I fought it into a container for the deadly relocation attempt. He looked good in his new surroundings, & we like him. He is a perfect specimen of a "Tiger Salamander"

Rodeo's Day
Ever since Rodeo's heart condition starting getting worse I've really been catering to him. I know many of you are asking "Don't you always cater to him?" Anyway, Sunday September 16th was Rodeo's Day. We went to Duck Creek and Navajo Lake for the afternoon. Although it is only a 45 minute drive from Kanab it is much colder and much higher. It was really chilly but if I had dressed properly it would have been perfect. We ate sandwiches from a great little cafe on the way and went on two hikes. Rodeo loves to find dead deer and take a leg to carry around. He found one and in the top photo you can see it hanging out of his mouth. Thank goodness he did not want to take it home because I was debating letting him take it - Yuck!

Thank goodness for Mommies!

My mom sent a package this weekend with a great pink dress. I think it will "grow" with me and might make a nice holiday dress. She has also been a listening champ ever time I call and complain about my headaches! I have to thank Kristy and Sarah, too. They are usually on their computers at work so I have been bombarding them with whining! I appreciate their patience and support! Of course, Daron has been the one taking care of me when I am rendered useless from a headache. I seem to barely make it through the work day, luckily I can usually get a workout in and then it is home to bed. Anyhow, here's the pink dress and here is the belly! Yikes. I think I have the whitest belly in the world!!!

How can something so tiny make you feel so sick? UGH. The nauseous feeling is one thing but the bad headaches are KILLING me. In addition, we have a cat in the office and the smell of wet cat food greets me every morning, afternoon and evening. UGH. Amazingly enough I feel best in the early morning and slowly slip downhill as the day goes on. Therefore, Daron has had to pick up most of the evening chores like laundry and cooking and cleaning up after dinner. Thank goodness he is the cook in the family! I seem to collapse after my evening workout and retire to the bedroom around 7 p.m. I know, I know most of you are thinking "So what really has changed?" LOL, I guess not much other than I can't take medicine for my aches and pains! Ha.

It's official!
So to anyone who hasn't figured it out yet I am proud to announce that one of my little backstrokers made it to the promise land! Jen is having a baby! We went to our 10 week checkup to see if it is for real & let me tell you... no doubt now! All is well at this stage & the baby looks great & has a strong heartbeat. Here are the pictures we wanted to post earlier, but wanted to proceed with caution...

Congrats Jennay!!!!!!
Jen's awesome Coyote painting won honorable mention at the Western Legends art contest!! That is a pretty big contest, and I'm proud of her.

One minute they are in the hospital and the next they are on a cruise to Bermuda! Yup, I am happy to report that my parents have been recovering quite well from their February/March hospital visits. I could not be more thrilled. Part of me wonders if they were just trying to give me a break from my first winter in Utah. Anyhow, since their “2nd coming” they have managed to visit Lisa in KY, family in Montana and islanders in Bermuda. Not only that but they look GOOD doing it! Hopefully, they can add the big city of Kanab to their tour list!