Day 8: Not the clearest day but a good day

While today was not as good as yesterday, it was good to be able to get things done because people were willing to help to allow it to be done.  While it was still a little white here in Ohio another family sat with J and his sitter to ensure he was okay since the other half of the class was in session with the help of an iPad all was well.  Sherbert and I were able to go to a local park and track one of the trainers. We did good other than a little confusion because she couldn’t’ figure out who she was looking for we were on it once she figured out she was looking for the trainer she was so good I almost couldn’t keep up with her and ended up on my knees in the snow. No, there are no pictures of that moment: D!

 

Today we worked on some of the commands we already knew as well as getting our pups to kiss, which for the most part Sherbert has down pack, she has no problem giving J a kiss when he is upset.  The pups are all taught how to play dead and it’s quite interesting to see them in action Sherbert kind of does her in a funny mode she rolls half way then kind of looks at you like are you sure this is what you want lol.  Other than that today was an overview and reinforcement. J was a little more all over the place especially since he was use to his sitter he thought he could test the waters but was surprise to see we had reinforcements in place for him.

After the weird night we had I was feeling a little worn down but I was super impress with the Hampton Inn at Fairborn not only is the front desk team amazing but also they are courteous.  For some reason this morning, I simply could not get myself out of the bed I was up but totally out of place at around ten to nine I got a call from the front desk. They were concern because usually by eight I’ve already walked Sherbert not only were they concern but they had taken care of uncovering my car with snow and as I ran out the door to try and get to Xenia on time the front desk manager handed me a bag breakfast.  All I could do is smile and think I am truly blessed to be among people who truly care.

Not much to share today as I felt I was sort of in a daze. I was truly sleepy today. Nevertheless, I look forward to telling you all about tomorrow since it is a Mall day, which means tracking!

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald “Missy”, Jonathan “JB” & Sherbert “SD” Brown

Day 6: Meltdowns, Snow, & Countdown

Woke up to Sherbert doing her I have to go whine, which set me in motion because I really was not looking forward to cleaning her cage.  My morning was a rocky start not only where we late getting to the faculty which led to me feeling off kilter because I had to reroute myself and get over to the class site once I got there and got my bearings I felt better and was able to focus on what we were doing.  I have to say Sherbert was on her game this morning.  We did one track but she was on top of the footsteps that Jonathan and his friend took this morning going right to them and having that look on her face like so mom, I found him where are my dogs (hotdogs) and my tennis ball.

The DeZarn girls and Sherbert

Today was a little awkward for me because I was in a transition mode due to circumstances Jonathan’s sitter had to return home and it meant I was handling Jonathan & Sherbert. Can we say busy bodies but I am happy that the families here have bonded because I had some moms & dads stepping in to help when necessary at one point we had grandparents involved with the chaos of the kids. We began to work on behavior disruption today which includes lap as well as over which can be a large help when Jonathan is in meltdown mode or coming out of seizure mode because it’s deep pressure. 

So here is the fun part of it all or at least now that I look back over the day I think that but it was no funny or laughing matter while it was going on. We were back in the mall today and we were doing inside tracking and tethering. Now remember yesterday when I wrote about the chaos that J caused in the stores with tethering. Well today was no different Mister Brown went for ham and just cut a fool  at first I attempted to ignore it and act like nothing was going on but that lasted all of about thirty minutes because I could feel the tension headache forming behind my eyes and I can only imagine the scene we were causing.  Sooo I untethered them and that still did not satisfy him so we went through a three-hour period of an upset and temper tantrum child and a dog who did not know whether to stay by Mom’s side or to try to console his boy because his boy was simply in fight or flight mode. After a few moms stepped in and attempted to help me we finally got an idea on how to pull off a tracking situation in the mall and JcPenny’s of all places but it worked out because we made it as fun as possible.

J & Sherbert in play mode

Once back at the hotel I was hoping for a quiet moment I was even willing to let J take a quick nap for a quiet moment but he had other plans so I let Sherbert and him play for a little while to see who would tired down first. Let us just say as I write this blog he is up making noise and knocking on the wall.  Here is hope that the night manager does not call up here tonight for his mayhem…

Cannot wait to share with you tomorrow’s adventure we are official on countdown until time to go home T minus 5 days…

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald “Missy”, Jonathan “JB” & Sherbert “SD” Brown

Day 3 of Training: Updates from Day 1 & 2 and a little rambling

As we began to build into the foundation of being a dog owner, we are now coming into play the part of being a service dog owner.  Many may say there is not a big difference between the two however there truly is and as we add on to what is expected of a service dog owner my mind begins to open to real world experiences as well as accepting the fact a lot quicker that my family just got a whole lot unique. 

I am going to bring everyone up to a little more speed after having the first day be interrupted by viral infection and then the second day I was just pooped.  There are twelve families in all.  Our little lady actually has a sister pup in our mix name Pretzel who will be living in West Virginia.  All of our pups are amazing well trained, behaved, and just particular adorable however they are used to their trainers voice and so the process of getting them user to our voice is simply the challenge as well as getting them to respect our commands.  The very first day we worked on sit and down I was extremely proud of myself because I got the hands commands and word commands down pack quickly and Sherbert responds to both being given together or simply one of the other.

Our second day wasn’t bad well for me it was a rough one after a night in the local ER for a viral infection everything got to me from sound to smell and I was determine to fight it out.  Our goal for that second day was to get our counterparts to remain in the sit and down commands for longer periods.  How many people you know wants to constantly have to tell their service dog no and sit and stay among other things so it’s a learned and practice behavior to get them to stay one place in one position while their handler takes care of whatever it is that they are doing even  when distractions are around.

The great thing about these service dog is they have a understand that when a command is given that I’m already letting him/her know to stay  in that command until I give the release command which happens to be free. When Sherbert is given the command to sit she knows it’s an implied condition that she stays in that position until she’s released  which is simply by me telling her free.  I was amazed at how calm this little lady acted when they started throwing out some cool treats that she seems to love in front of her and the tennis ball. 

O let me tell you about the tennis ball I thought at one point my arm was going to be ripped from my arm she may look small but Sherbert is extremely strong so we keep tennis balls away from her unless she’s being rewarded or we are in play mode. 

Sherbert can also walk into a heel mode which for her it means walk to my left and have her ears within the my leg distance and to follow my every turn and step without over powering me or trying to pull me ahead.  To say she had my respect and attention is far by means but now I realized she knew what she was doing so I know needed to show her I was learning but I was still Mom and she needed to follow rules so here comes day three.

Today was tracking and do mind you I woke up to snow flurries (Did I mention to anyone I’m from South Carolina below the Dixie Line and that we don’t do snow) so imagine my crazy little self-watching the news and seeing all of the craziness going on so my first thought was let’s leave early (that didn’t happen) but we did get there on time.  Now today was totally fun well after I warmed up it was but we went tracking and I have to say if I didn’t say it before My Girl Is A ROCKSTAR she was on her boys trail snapping and S-trailing all on his body cell scent.  For those who are wondering what snapping is basically it’s her head movement that lets me know whether we still have a hot trail and also her way to be able to pick up where her boy has gone.  The S-trail is basically if she’s in a wind pattern the wind will blow the skin cells in certain areas so she’s on the trail but she has to work with the wind pattern. With a few new tricks up my sleeve such as place when Sherbert gets on this special mat that she has and she always keeps atleast two paws on it and she can do whatever she wants.  We had a lot of fun with disturbance training it’s interesting to find how she has now adjusted as me being her owner and when I leave she always thinks like Jonathan has and that thought process “Oh Mom’s gone yeah baby no rules.”

Overall she’s a good girl I’ve been taught some things to recognized about her I know she’s a stubborn little thing because my child is stubborn and I know she will do well as long as I respect her and she respect me. So all in all we are good however I hear my little angel in her kennel snoring and I’m now going to lie it down since tomorrow is a early day and it’s a super fun day as we are going to be doing more tracking as well as our first public access run a busy mall.

Saying Thank You That Are Positive In Your Life

Did you know that Thank You are two of the most powerful words a person can tell someone?  Today I was talking with a friend, she made the comment that she noticed how I always said thank you when someone did something for me, and that she appreciated the fact that I still had those manners but she posed a great question to me.  Her question was have you taken the time to thank those people who don’t do anything for you but lead a positive life that it influences you as a person whether it’s their actions, their words, or their compassion. Of course I had never done it because I never saw a reason to because I’ve always perceived it as that persons reputation however she challenged me to thank ten people who have had some sort of positive influence in my life and to thank them personally.  I thought this was weird until I reached out to these individuals (I ended up with fifteen people I personally thanked).  Therefore, here is what I told my friends:

So I was told to tell ten people today thank you if they have been a positive influence in my life sooo with that being said your person #1.... Thank you for being a positive influence on my life and continue to impact me with positive thoughts and experience.

Now here’s what I will say I did tell each person that they were number one and it was a simple reason no one person is better than the other they each have a reason why they are my number one by something that they do in their lives so to me they are all #1s.  I challenge each reader to do this and see what your friend response is. Mine have of course been favorable and probably surprising because it caught them off guard.

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

JFK

"The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention."

Oscar Wilde

~ Truly Blessed,

Misherald "Missy" & Jonathan "JB" Brown

52 Week Money Challenge Check In

So we are in the middle of week five and everyone should have at least ten dollars in their savings accounts for their money challenge.If your just starting the challenge I would defiantly say try and catch up before the time continues and your trying to play catch up in the middle of the year.

So how is everyone doing?  Does anyone have any suggestions for the others? Are you doing automated drafts, every paycheck do you move the amounts, do you budget it, how are you excelling at this challenge?

Me what I'm doing is while the amounts are small I'm moving the full month amount out at the beginning of the month and putting it in a account that's not associated with my checking account but instead is linked to another bank that's not directly linked with my everyday money.  At this time I'm using ING Direct because my interest rate is basically .75%.  Would love to hear from you on how your success is going!

~Truly blessed,

Misherald "Missy" & Jonathan "JB" Brown

Are Your Goals Realistic Or Do They Have Consequences?

Are you setting goals that are in the result hurting you?  I read an article today that talked about Considering Not Setting Goals in 2013 and honestly my thought was WTH because I truly believe that when I set goals I sent myself up for successor am I really setting myself up for success with multiple side effects that will affect me later. Often times as business minded people we look for ways to get things done quickly, effectively, and productively while making a sound decision involving our revenue but is it always the best choice? 

I would love for you to read the article I read and give your feedback and tell me your thoughts.

I am still on the fence because I am a stronger believer in goals and setting the bar high enough so that the result is something I can be proud of.  Yeah I have set a few big hairy audacious goals or BHAGS as the world of goal setters say…

How about you?

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald "Missy" & Jonathan "JB" Brown

Boundaries: Personal, Professional, & Self

Someone asked me today if I knew my own limits and my first response was yes. However, after that person began to ask questions that are more specific I found myself hesitating and having to think about my answers. It made me realize that to a point, yes, I did but when it comes to certain people and certain situations, I did not put my boundaries in effect. Any life coach will tell you that creating strong boundaries is the number one way for an individual to improve their lives especially females.  I have heard Cheryl Richardson once say that you have to free yourself from the “disease to please”.

It is often said that you have to be aware of yourself to know what boundaries you need to set. So yes, it is important to set self-boundaries but you also have to know what boundaries you are setting with people. Of course, each person will have a certain threshold because of his or her status in your life whether it is your spouse, child, employer, coworker, or friend. Do not let yourself feel guilty for setting boundaries.  When you allow guilt to eat at you then you wasted your time setting the boundaries because you talked yourself right back out of it. The way you overcome the guilt situation is knowing when to say simply say no. If you are not in the mood, maybe your tired then just say no do not try to formulate an explanation of why you are saying no Just Do It!

Here is my biggest issue saying yes. You ever get that person who always tells you if you need me call me.  They just volunteer to help but you never want to depend on them or feel like you are putting them out their way even when they offered to help. I am good for rejecting help but being the first to jump to help. Backwards I know :) ! Then there are the biggest two words you can tell anyone. Thank you!  It’s okay to not express to someone how much you needed them or maybe you felt bad for having to call on them… no it’s simple just say thank you for being there, thank you for caring, thank you for taken care of me when I needed it. Do not let the feeling of shame or regret get to you.  Just be gracious and your friends know your heart it is going to be okay.

There is so much more to setting boundaries that I can go on and on about but what help would I be to just give it all away instead of suggesting that you doing some reading or research because I’m still working on it. My biggest hindrance right now is asking for help. I have the worst habit of waiting until things are just totally out of control before I will admit to myself that I need help.

Here are some good reads on how to set your boundaries:

Boundaries: When to Say YES, When to Say NO, To Take Control of Your Life by Dr Henry Cloud and Dr John Townsend

The work book is a great help mate as well!

Setting Boundaries with Difficult People: Six Steps to SANITY for Challenging Relationships by Allison Bottke

Necessary Endings: The Employees, Businesses, & Relationships That All of Us Have To Give Up In Order To Move Forward by Dr Henry Cloud

Here is a quote to think on:

When people show their boundaries, (I cannot do this for you), you feel rejected.  Part of your struggle is to set boundaries to your own love. Only when you are able to set your own boundaries will you be able to acknowledge, respect and even be grateful for the boundaries of others.

~Henri J.M. Nouewn

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald  "Missy"  &  Jonathan "JB" Brown

Are You Up For The Challenge....

A challenge has been posted all around Facebook and it has called the 52 Week Money Challenge.  At first, I was considering not doing it but I figured what could it hurt.  

If you are game I challenged you to open a savings account and every week just put the amount that is shown on the schedule and if you cannot remember juts count the week and put that up. I will suggest find you a high interest yield bank to do this with and whatever you do make it a total separate account do not link it.

If your looking for a great place to open a savings account try ING Direct.  They have a great yield  of interest rate!

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald "Missy" & Jonathan "JB" Brown

A dollar saved is a dollar earned.

A New Year. A New Me. A New Plan.

2012 is officially over and 2013 is has begun. 

Many people would say settling is not the best way to handle a situation as a matter of fact most would say that settling is simply giving up.  However, the question remains is it wise to settle for a career, a spouse, or simply settling in life all together. Just so, you as a person do not feel alone or as if you are not, accepted?

I will admit for the past seven years I have just been settling for things never realize attempt to overcome issues.  My way of thinking is settling it got the situation handle quickly and effectively but then I began to wonder that if settling was just my way of avoiding instead of really working through things. For example, my love life or really the lack of a love life I have always made the comment about how I sacrifice it with the everyday needs of taking care of Jonathan and that I was more than willing to sacrifice this part of life. For me this was just settling because I was not wanting to deal with rejection or having to defend my time with my son. Was it right to settle maybe not but did I do it for all the right reasons?  There are many things I have simply settle for between the careers I have recently had in the past years to simply get by to simply settling for life as it is instead of attempting to push forward and achieve better things.

I am sure everyone has their whole list of resolutions that they are making and have been planning to do with the New Year. I honestly do not believe in resolutions however, I do plan to reevaluate things in my life and make some changes for the better. This year some of my focuses are my finances, my personal life, as well as increasing my direct sale business.

Now as you, all look into the future I am sure you all have things you want to work on and things you plan on working towards. Therefore, I simply say to attempt to do the best you can towards these goals but remember while things do not always happen overnight that you just have to continue working on them until you get them where you want them. The great thing is all of these changes are going to make a better life for Jonathan, and me, which is always the essence of everything I do.

A few quotes for 2013…

Your success & happiness lies in you. Resolve to keep happy, and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.         

 ~Helen Keller

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.                               

 ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Celebrate what you want to see more of.            

~Tom Peters

Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365-page book. Write a good one.               

~Brad Paisley

Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.                   

~Oprah Winfrey

A few recommendations if you are interested on working on making your life better:

Finances: Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey 

The workbook is also a great tool to use as well...

Personal Life: It’s Complicated (But Doesn’t Have to be) by Paul C Brunson

Motivation For A Better Tomorrow: Today Matters 12 Daily Practices to Guarantee Tomorrow’s Success by John C Maxwell

~Truly Blessed,

Misherald "Missy" & Jonathan "JB" Brown