Baileys first cottage weekend

This weekend we took Bailey to the cottage for the first time. We weren't sure how she would react to a new place to sleep and the other dogs. To our surprise, Bailey was the perfect little puppy! She loved playing outside with her cousins and especially loved all the attention from the family. 

Since at home Bailey does not like getting her feet wet, we weren't sure how she would react to the water. Turns out, she loves it and swimming! She swam a few times but mostly slept under me for the day. She was so cute. 

Two things learned - she is very social and loves playing with other dogs. We definetly need to have her out with other dogs as she gets older. We also leaned that she loves the water. What a super dog we have! 

The wonderment of puppy emotions

Yesterday Chris wasn't home so Bailey and I had a chance to catch up on this weeks Coronation Street. This week was highly dramatic as Tina died and Carla lost her baby. It was tragic. The moment when they told them Tina had died and they broke down crying, Bailey stopped playing. She looked up at the tv and started to whimper. She turned around and bounced into my lap. She snuggled and licked my hand for the rest of the show. She kept looking up at me and watching my face. I've never experienced anything like that before. Bailey knew that it was emotional and wanted to be of comfort. She is by far the sweetest little puppy I have ever known. We are so blessed we found her.

A Bailey Morning

Our dear baby girl Bailey has brought more joy than I ever imagined possible. She is funny, smart and full of unconditional love. A morning with Bailey is something I look forward to everyday. It's usually around five when we wake up. I go downstairs to see my little girl and she's usually sitting sweetly waiting to be let out. As I open the crate she jumps into my arms giving sweet puppy kisses. I just love her sweet little face. I wish everybody was that excited to see me in the morning. 

After we go outside for 20 minutes we come in for breakfast and some water. Bailey eats while I make myself something and coffee. We sit down, watch Breakfast Television and relax for a new minutes. It's now play time. Bailey loves to play. She especially loves jumping around after a ball or rope in the hallway. 

After we play it's time to get ready for the day. Bailey hates when I shower. She whines and yelps as I try to explain I just want to be clean, clearly she doesn't understand the need to be showered ;) While doing my make up and hair, Bailey quietly sits at my feet. It's nap time. 

If we have time we go back outside before handing her off to Chris. Leaving is just the worst feeling but at least Chris has to so the dirty work and put her in the crate. Looking forward to another Bailey morning. 

Bailey the sweetest puppy

Yesterday was such a rough day for me. I knew she was ok and my Aunty was coming to let her out but I just felt so bad leaving her. I didn't want her to hate me or forget all about me. It was finally time to go inside and as soon as I opened the door and Bailey saw me. She bounded to me to fast to greet me with puppy kisses and lots of love. I felt so much better. Bailey had a good day with my Aunty and my parents. She was a very happy camper! 

After dinner we went outside to play. Chris was playing soccer with Bailey and it was in an instant that we started singing the hashtag song from Jimmy Fallon. Bailey loves to play to the hashtag song. It was so cute! I'm glad out puppy loves the same shows as we do ;) 

After playing we went inside and started to get ready for bed. She was pooped! It took an hour to wake her up and make sure she pooped before bed. Chris put her in her cage and she whimpered but quickly stopped. I was amazed how little it took for her to start getting used to it! She did so well all night. I woke up every three hours to let her out and to my surprise she needed to be woken up each time. She's truly a fantastic dog.

This morning we played and watched breakfast television. She apparently loves music because everytime music came on she would jump and scoot around. I am so thankful we found out Bailey. She's a joy and the best dog I could ever ask for! 

Meet our new puppy Bailey!

After years of researching and discussing, we finally bought a puppy! It has always been my dream to own a golden retriever, however with asthma and being only 5'3 with a bad back we knew needed something a little smaller who didn't shed as much. Looking at the different breeds we decided on looking at a mini goldendoodle. This breed is known to be hypoallergenic and only 20 - 25 pounds.

We answered an ad online from a breeder who out of 10 puppies only had one girl left. The drive to get her was one of the most nervous drives I have ever done. The anticipation of my husband, who was not certain about a goldendoodle, liking the dog and having her like us was making me sick. Thankfully, when we went inside this little red haired puppy came bolting into our arms and started playing like crazy with us. I was hooked. Chris did all the question work. Thankfully his family has had dogs their entire life and were so helpful in knowing what questions to ask and what to look for - thanks Sophie and Sir! After five seconds of discussion we determined that yep, this was our puppy. 

I had the privilege of holding her all the way home. As we started on our way we started saying a few names, most of which she didn't care for. Suddenly I said, how about Bailey? She looked up and licked my face. Then Chris said, so you're a Bailey and she cocked her head to one side stopped talking to us. That was it! 

Once home, my whole family came from all across the GTA to see this new addition. For the Sweets/Guys, this is our first dog in our family! She was so sweet to everybody and loved the attention. She was great playing with my little nephews and especially loves Z aka the animal whisperer. I think it's the ginger connection ;) 

Sleeping day one was awful - she did not like the crate and yelped. I felt awful so I ended up sleeping on the couch with her. Day two was better. She whined for about half an hour and fell asleep or so I thought. I woke up three hours later to let her out to pee only to find she had unhinged her cage and had taken a large poop on the rubber mat. Thankfully she chose the right place that was easy to clean. 

This morning we played for an hour and are leaving her in the crate while we at work. We have such a great family who are coming to look after her this morning and afternoon. She is well loved! 

What have we learned so far? Puppies are a lot of work. They poop a lot and have the tiniest pees! Bailey loves to watch Love and Hip Hop Atlanta - literally  she sat and watched the show. It was so cute! Bailey needs to work on biting, it's not nice. 

I am so happy to have this little girl in our family. She has the cutest face I have ever seen. She also has the sweetest personality. We are so lucky and all I can say is she has my heart! 

Crockpot meals

As Chris and I try to save money to buy a house, we've been looking at different ways to save money.

So, over the past two weeks I have bought groceries to use in the crockpot. With less than 100 dollars a week, I've been able to make crock pot meals for the week and freeze several meals. It's not only a great time saver, but I've been able to make tasty and healthy meals while saving money.

Over the next week, I will show you some of my favourite meals!

2012 to 2013

As I reflect back on the past year, I can only say I'm so happy 2012 is gone. 2012 was a year of change; I switched jobs, went to Jamaica, watched my friends get married, made a lot of tasty treats, threw my dad a 60th birthday party, became the MOH for my sister-in-law and lost one of the greatest people I have ever known.

April 1, 2012 - The Worst Day of my Life

For months, I had been back and forth from the hospital visiting my grandma. She had fallen ill and taken in an ambulance to the hospital. It took weeks, but she started to get better and was getting ready to come home. She then fell, broke her hip and was taken into a successful surgery. After some time, she fell ill again and this time her body had no fight, she passed away in the morning on April 1, 2012.

At first I thought it was a sick joke, there is no way my strong grandma could be gone. The woman who I went to for prayer, advice and a good joke. No, this was not happening. I called my sister, who informed me that it did happen. I'd seen grandma the day before. She was breathing better, took communion and when I left said I love you. The last words we said to each other, I love you. I never got to say goodbye, I thought I had more time. The next few days were a blur. I remember at her visitation just wanting to run away and pretend it was all a bad dream. My grandma, gone. For weeks, it was hard to get out of bed. I didn't want to be around anybody and certainly did not want to hang out with anybody over the age of 60.

While planning my dad's 60th birthday party I realized, grandma might have left this earth in body but her spirit lives on in everybody she touched. Grandma was the most giving person I had ever known. If you were cold, she'd give you her jacket. She gave everything she had to anybody who needed it. She never complained and always found the good in people. She cared so deeply. Every night for hours, grandma would be on her knees by her bed, praying for everybody she'd met. She never forgot a soul. I will never forget her love of cooking and her amazing Sunday roast beef dinners, shortbread cookies and guy squares. She has inspired me to become the best cook I can be, always keeping true to what she taught me - with butter everything is good! The thing that will always stick with me the most about grandma was her love. She loved us with her whole heart and would do anything that made us happy. No matter what we did, she always loved us, was proud of us and told us so. It seems fitting our last words were, I love you.

Losing her has left a huge void in my life. Nobody can ever replace her, or even come close. All of our memories will stay with me forever and I can only hope that one day when I walk through those pearly gates, she will be there to greet me with a story, a song and perhaps a guy square.

Goals for 2013 
I have a few goals for 2013, some may be lofty but I am determined to actually do these!

1. Get outside more: Well, for those who know me, I hate going outside. It's always cold or stinky. This year, I want to learn to love the outdoors. I will start with skiing and then see where I go next!
2. Buy a house: After 1.5 years of marriage, it's time to buy a house. Hopefully the summer of 2013 will be the summer the Martins buy a house with king sized bed.
3. Learn guitar: While I wallowed in self-pity last year, I listened to a lot of Johnny Cash. I need to learn Ring of Fire.
4. Do my devotions everyday: Some mornings, I am too tired to wake up early to do devotions. This year, I vow to do them everyday and not skip one!
5. Show those I love how much I do care: My grandma always showed love, I want to do the same. This year, I hope I can show those I care about the love I have for them. Let the lovefest begin!