Today is my weigh-in day.  I lost 2.5 pounds this week.  However, last week I GAINED a pound.  I got a stern message from Weight Watchers telling me I’m losing too much weight too quickly, and I need to slow down.  I just think it’s funny that it doesn’t humiliate and shame me when I gain, but when I lose “too much” I get my knuckles rapped.  I’ll gladly take the knuckle-rapping as opposed to the “Oh, you seem to have gained this week.  Just keep doing what you’re doing!” messages. 

Total weight loss:  22.5 pounds. 

I’m not going to meet my goal of 30 pounds lost before I head to Traverse City, but I came close enough. 

Speaking of, a week from yesterday I’ll be there.  I’m starting to freak out. I’m really, really excited to see Tricia, Julie, Allison, Pat, and a few others, but I’m also knotted up with anxiety about it.  I assume this is all normal stuff.  Honestly, the thing I worry the most about is that being in my home town will bring back a rush of really bad or painful memories.  I’m hoping to be pleasantly surprised by making new, happier memories there.  I haven’t even asked Tricia if she has wireless at home so there’s a chance I may not even be online, which actually sounds like a real vacation.  No kids, no internet, no responsibilities?  Yeah, vacation.

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Thora is settling in.  Since the Great Carpet Ripping of 2009, she’s been fine. The SPCA loaned us an airline crate. She hasn’t been able to jailbreak out of it yet, and she hasn’t hurt herself either.  She is still velcro dog but I successfully went to the bathroom without her glued to my side yesterday, and one other time I left the room and she stayed sleeping on the floor in the other room.  Baby steps . . .

A few people have commented on how quickly we adopted Thora.  It was pretty quick.  However, I think it’s been the best decision for our family.  Lily and Arden were struggling with the loss of Delilah, and I couldn’t stand the silence of the house.  Having Thora has been very therapeutic, but none of us are over Delilah’s loss.  When I got a river stone memorial from my sister yesterday, I broke into tears in the parking lot of the Little Gym.  I’m sure picking up her ashes will yield the same result.  It’s been truly wonderful watching Arden fall in love with her “new doggie” and watching Lily attempt to walk a dog that outweighs her by 30 pounds.  We all still miss Delilah. Thora is just making the ache a little smaller.

We had our first Thora incident yesterday.  Apparently she doesn’t like her crate.  I think HATE would be a better term.  We left to go to the pool after getting her in her crate.  When I returned home, she greeted me at the door. The downstairs door.  Her crate is upstairs.  We were shocked.  Then I noticed her eye was all raw.  We went upstairs - she had literally chewed and bent the bars on the crate until she created enough space to wiggle out.  Unfortunately, the bars caught on the carpeting, and it’s Berber.  When you start pulling on Berber, it’s like pantyhouse.  We now have a large section of carpet without any, well, carpet. 

Mike returned the demolished crate last night.  The store clerk said, “Um, wow.  She’s strong!”  Apparently they haven’t seen this happen very often.  I had a quick phone consult with a behaviorist at the SPCA - she says it’s either extreme separation anxiety or extreme fear of the crate.  Considering she roamed freely until we got home and didn’t touch a thing in the house, I’m telling myself it’s just a major dislike of being crated. 

I’m going to pick up Arden in a few minutes and I’m going to leave Thora here, uncrated.  People, if you hear fire engines or smell something burning, you will know why.