Reason #104.5 to be a vet

There is such a thing as a wheel of vomit. Did you know that? It tells you how to make a dog vomit.  It might work for children too. I don't know. I've never tried it.

I need to share this picture. 

Thanks for understanding. 

If you recognize these tights, raise your hand. 

our winter travels and travails

Alex and I don't get to have too much time off together nowadays, so we have been enjoying the few precious days off we have had this winter break.

We took a quick jaunt down to Springfield to see some of the sights. We were lucky enough to be there while the presidential family was also visiting and got a couple pictures with them.

We were too shy to ask for a picture with Larry the Cable Guy and Pres. Lincoln, especially since I have no idea who Larry the Cable Guy is.

We saw our first Frank Lloyd Wright house, the Dana-Thomas house, which was "simply awesome" according to Alex.

We also took a quick saunter up to Chicago. Alex was able to enjoy his first real Ukrainian meal since his mission. He kept saying how much it tasted like the real deal.

We visited our favorite art institute, the Art Institute of Chicago, and we both found some pieces we identified with.

Alex also really liked this one:

I'm not sure why he liked it so much, but maybe it had to do with this part.

No! Not the dead rabbits. The cat eyes, of course.

We all know how much Alex likes cats. 

Thanks Andersons for joining and putting up with us!

Most of all, thank you Christmas and New Years for falling on a Tuesday instead of a Sunday like you did last year because it means I actually got time off from work. Yay!

Its that time of the year again

when we regale you with all the accomplishments of our family in 2012. Actually, most of our accomplishments this year revolve more around what we didn't do rather than what we did.

I (president), for instance, didn't get fired and didn't get sued. I put over 1500 miles on my bike getting to work and back and managed to avoid the sculpted physique that many bikers get.

Alex (supreme dictator) didn't get kicked out of medical school and is now halfway through his third year. He has not yet decided what kind of doctor he wants to be. Any input would be appreciated.

We didn't lose our house and we didn't get divorced. We are happier and more beautiful than ever. We didn't get in any car accidents. I did bounce two checks of my own and one of someone else's. We killed 4 rosemary plants (working on the 5th)  and couldn't get our basil to grow.

Lucy and Lola didn't bite anyone that wasn't family (they almost never do) but bowled over (and probably mortally terrified) a few kids. They are now officially middle aged dogs.

Master Ruben managed to not get arrested.

The chickens and rabbits managed to not escape or get eaten (at least the rabbits that are still alive did not get eaten.)

Ok, a few things that actually did happen to us this year.

We had a great road trip out to Utah/Idaho. See blog post here.

I went all home ec and did some canning and quilting. 

We had a goat roast.

We made a bunch of cakes. See here and here.

All in all, it has actually been a fabulous year and we are so grateful for the many blessings in our life. Most of all, we are grateful to be able to celebrate this special time of year and remember the gift of God's son to the world and to each of us. We wish you all the very best coming year. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

With love, Katie, Alex, Lucy, Lola, Ruben, Johnny, Frankie, Wasabi, Jadwiga, Yaroslaw, and Bogdana

the end of an era

...or...

in loving tribute to my French Alpine dairy goat Makala

Tomorrow my goat Makala will be euthanized. She has had painful front hooves for a number of years and has gotten to the point where she cannot walk on them anymore, but instead hobbles around on her knees (carpi). She would have been 15 in February, which is a ripe old age for a goat.

I showed sheep in 4-H for a few years before I had goats. The ultimate 4-H showmanship competition was called the round robin where the top two showmen in each species (hogs, beef, dairy, goats, sheep, meat goats) competed against each other and showed every species and it was kind of a big deal. There were so many people showing sheep in those days that it was very difficult to make it to the round robin in the sheep division. I decided to branch out and show goats when I was 14 or 15 which was convenient because someone had just donated a goat named Aphrodite (Afro for short) to my mother because she saved the goat's life after roaming dogs nearly took her life (true story). So we bred her and I planned on showing one of her kids in the fair. However, that year Afro happened to have a buck and a hermaphrodite (what are the odds?) Luckily, I found a goat lady nice enough to loan me one of her does to show. Her name was Jazzmine and she was a beautiful doe and not only did I win champion dairy goat but I also won best dairy goat showman and was able to compete in the round robin. Lo and behold, I actually won the dang thing. Those were the glory days. With my taste of fame, I couldn't stop there. I purchased Jazzmine's granddaughter, Makala.

Afro and her two kids.

I loved having goats and seeing the kids (so cute) and don't remember minding the milking all that much (thanks Jessie for splitting it with me). I wish I knew back then how delicious goat cheese is so I could start to learn how to make it, but alas, I was a teenager and what teenager do you know that wants to make goat cheese? I used to love preparing Makala for the show, bathing her and clipping her hair down close so you could see all her sleek curves (although I did hate clipping off her goatee) and shaving her udder with a razor and oiling it up. She really was a beautiful goat. I think I may have won grand champion goat with her too. She knew her name and I would walk in the far side of the animal barn at the 4-H fair and call out "Makala" and I could hear her calling back to me.

Young Makala. Apparently I though it was ok to wear short shorts.

I was looking through one of my 4-H project books from 2000 and to answer the question "What have you learned from yourself by taking this project?" I answered "I have learned that dairy goats are my very favorite animals and I hope to raise them for many years to come."

There was also a question "What have you learned about your animals from the records you kept?" where I answered "I learned that dairy goats need quite a bit of grain to be able to milk." Which is a lame answer and I am pretty sure it is lame because I never kept very good records and just made stuff up the week before the books were due. Hm.

Makala and her two kids. One of those is Mayzie Lou who survives her.

Then I grew up and left home and for the most part forgot about her until I would visit home and trim her hooves. She was a good goat and I am grateful for her and that, because of her, I still want to have goats in the future. Next time I will learn to make cheese.

My parents have been good enough to give Makala and her daughter Mayzie food and shelter for the past 11 or so years I have been out of the house, and I am grateful for that. (Not to mention the food and shelter they provided for my goats while I was still living at home. They pretty much paid for everything and I was just a free loader. Some things never change.)

Why my wife is awesome

Because she writes me love notes all the time.

Like this

All notes from Katie and one from Jeff. Thanks Jeff ;)

Actually, this is Katie here. I can't get Alex to write any blog posts anymore so I have to extol all my virtues for him.

I do want to say one thing I really like about Alex. Here is an example to illustrate: I got home this afternoon from cutting down invasive species in a nearby restoration park with the park district ranger guy and some volunteers (actually, we were cutting honey suckle. I told you that was a weed here, mom) and mentioned to Alex how much I had enjoyed it and maybe I should work outside all my life. He looked at me seriously and questioned if I really did want to be a farmer (I keep talking about how I want my milk goat and milk sheep) with a tone of voice that indicated if it was what I wanted, we could make it work. (Until I reminded him how much time and money I invested in vet school and that knocked him back to his senses.) That is the thing about Alex. He always wants me to a) be happy and b) pursue my dreams, of whatever size or type. Take the rabbits, the sewing machine, the bike, the whole vet school debacle experience and probably lots of other things. I really, really love this about Alex. I never feel boxed in and I always know that he will support me in whatever weird thing I want to do next (until, that is, I go off the deep end. He will have to draw the line somewhere.)

Thanks Alex.

irksome

This morning I was digesting my oatmeal and doing some laundry and I innocently look out the window and WHAT DO I SEE!?!?!

Squirrels feasting on the crabapple tree!

Count them - at least nine!

Friends, this disturbs me. It does not bode well for our poor little peach tree next year. 

Brains

Whew. Now that we're down to one reader again, I can share the good stuff.

If you are unfortunate enough to eat at our house, you might get served brain.

Our philosophy is, the more brains the better. You have your choice between normal white matter brain and hematoma brain. Take your pick. You will be asked if you would prefer frontal, parietal, temporal, or occipital lobe.

Any suggestions on what to get Alex for Christmas? He says he wants a certain board game but I was thinking more like socks or a rain gutter cleaner or something.