If dogs ever take over the world

Not only is it Monday, but it's a dreary, threatening-to-be-rainy Monday. I feel so tired and slow today, in spite of a good night's sleep last night. I was in bed at 11, and woke up around 6, which means I got a solid 7 hours of sleep. I know the ideal is 8, but 7 is great for me--I usually average around 5-6, if that. Plus I got to sleep in a little on Saturday. So I should be feeling well-rested and ready to face the week--but instead, I want to slip into my baggy sweats, crawl under a fuzzy blanket and read a good book, letting myself drift off to sleep when my eyes get heavy. I always feel that way on rainy days--it seems like rainy days were made for cozy sweats and good books.

And to add to my tiredness, I already have a headache, and a slightly achy jaw. I honestly think my jaw symptoms have gotten better, but now that I'm paying attention to them, they seem more numerous. So while I may be feeling better, I am acutely aware of every little twinge in my jaw. I'm trying pay attention to the things I do that are bad for my jaw--such as leaning my chin on my hand (which, apparently, I do a lot), biting my lip (because doing so puts your jaw in an odd position), and clenching it without realizing. Right now, I can't tell if this jaw ache is due to TMJ symptoms or if it's just an extension of my headache, but either way, this only intensifies my wish to be back home, curled up on the couch.

But enough complaining. We had a good weekend. Friday night we went out to dinner with Pastor and Dawn--a new restaurant opened across the street from us, and we wanted to check it out. We had about a 30-minute wait, and Ari kept herself amused by walking up and down and all over the sidewalk, seemingly unfazed by the humid evening air. The restaurant was nice--service was a bit slow, but that's to be expected in a place that's only been open a week. It was a sports bar/grill, so there were TV screens of all sizes covering the walls, and the atmosphere was quite noisy. That made it a little hard to carry on a conversation, but it was great for when Ari started getting antsy--you couldn't even hear her whining over the din. We ordered her some mac and cheese with fries (shaped like smiley faces--so cute you could just eat them up. Which, uh, I did, since she didn't want them).

I don't even remember what I ordered. Oh wait--it was some kind of chicken wrap. I've decided that going out to eat with a toddler is a good diet plan--you're so distracted by trying to keep them amused and quiet, and then by trying to feed them, that you hardly finish what's on your plate. I did manage to gulp down a few onion rings, which I remember because the dipping sauce was so good. It seemed like pretty much the same sauce they give you with the bloomin' onion-type things at other restaurants--that pale orange-y colored sauce--but just so much better.

Saturday, we ended up at the mall. Tony dragged me into the Disney Store--he's always wanting to go in there, in case we see any of my old co-workers, so that he can show Ari off. It's cute that he's like that, really, but I try to resist going into that store because I know I'm going to want to buy something. And, I did. There was a wall in the back with a bunch of the Disney princesses in a rag-doll style, and I zoomed in on the Belle one. I've seen these dolls before, but today, they were on sale, and the look of delight on Ari's face when I showed her the doll sealed the deal. All of a sudden lately, she gets very excited when she sees faces--whether it's another baby in real life, a picture of a baby in a magazine, or a doll. She reached out for Belle, cooing and grinning and touching it, and Tony just smiled at me. "Do you want to get it?" he asked.

"Yes--we have to begin the brainwashing." And as Ari continued making friends with Belle, I leaned in close to her and began murmuring, "Belle is the best Disney princess ever. Belle is your favorite princess. You love Belle."

Of course, 5 minutes after we left the store, I was picking Belle up off the ground and stashing her in the basket underneath the stroller for safekeeping. It's OK, though--this brainwashing thing takes time.

Ari was starting to get a bit antsy in her stroller, so we let her play in the play area, which was a little bigger than the one in the other mall, and much more crowded, being that it was a humid, summery Saturday. She did well, though, and held her own against the big kids. She got wiped out a couple times by bigger kids, but it didn't seem to bother her--the only time she cried was toward the end, and I think she was getting tired anyway. But she spent most of the time happily exploring, and even climbing a little. I can tell she's on the verge of learning to really climb--she's always lifting up her foot on bookcases and things like that at home, as though she's trying to figure it out. She's great at climbing up the stairs at home (which is really more like crawling up), and she was able to use this new skill in the play area. I always find it funny that every time we take her to the mall play area, she gathers a little "fan club" for herself--without fail, one or 2 (or more) older girls will latch onto her, and follow her around, wave at her, talk to her, etc. And she just drinks it all in.

Sunday was busy, as always--church in the morning, and then we had a big church-related meeting at Pastor and Dawn's house afterward. We hung around after the meeting, too, and didn't get home until about 7 PM. As much as I love hanging out with friends, I get to the point where I just want to be home. Especially on a Sunday evening, because as the day draws to a close, I start thinking about the week ahead--thinking that I need to pick out clothes for work, pack Ari's bag and food for the day, do dishes, and a hundred other little things in preparation for the long week ahead. But in spite of the list in my head, I spent an hour on the couch with Tony, watching Big Brother 8 (which he's gotten hooked on, in spite of himself). About halfway through the show, as I was vocalizing my dislike of a couple characters, he grinned at me and said, "So you're really getting into this show now, huh?"

I shrugged. "Not really--I'm just watching it because you're watching it. And I want to watch TV with you." I repositioned myself so that I was snuggled up against him, and watched the rest of the show. Sometimes, dishes and chores can wait.

Jack Handey QOTD:

I hope if dogs ever take over the world, and they chose a king, they don't just go by size, because I bet there are some Chihuahuas with some good ideas.