Quick Updates

I am falling so behind in my blog posting - I am never going to hit my 2 posts a week for the year goal unless I really turn it up!  We Lowes have been pretty busy getting ready for little Riley's arrival, attending soccer games and riding lessons for Alli, and just living!  Here's a few things we've been up to lately:

• Razorback Red White Game - My daddy and my brother came up this Saturday to attend the annual Red White game for the Razorbacks.  This year was pretty highly anticipated since we have a brand new coach and a new offensive scheme.  We were running late getting there, so Ryan pulled right up to the stadium to let us out.  A police officer started telling him he couldn't do that and needed to move on until Big Mama got out of the car.  At that point, the police officer sheepishly told Ryan he was fine, and then he was overhead saying "What was I going to say when she got out of the car?"  Special treatment?  I'll take it.

• Alli learned a life lesson - After the Red White game, we all went to eat and then I went to do a little nursery shopping while Ryan, Dad, and Alli went to the Razorback baseball game.  I went to bed before they got home, and the next morning, I asked Alli what her favorite part of the game was.  She didn't hesitate at all and announced, "Learning to spit sunflower seeds!"  Apparently her father and grandfather thought it was high time she learned how to properly eat sunflower seeds at a baseball game, and she caught on pretty well.  That's my little lady.

• Cash had surgery - I noticed a small lump on Cash's neck right by his collar, and when we took him in to the vet, they aspirated it.  They said it looked okay (he gets blocked sebaceous glands regularly), but they decided to send it to a lab in Little Rock to test it.  The lab called back and thought we needed to have it removed - apparently they saw some cells that they didn't like.  I've been pretty shaken up by the whole deal, but we knew it was best to tackle it head on and get it taken care of.  He had surgery last Wednesday and was doing really well until Saturday when he scratched open the stitches.  Ryan took him back to the vet, where they stapled him, but ten minutes after being home, he opened them up again.  When Ryan took him back the next time, they said he had opened his inner and outer stitches and would need to go back under to get fixed up.  That was Saturday, and now we're at Tuesday.  He's been spending his days in the crate with a sock over his foot and his evenings with me following him around saying "Don't scratch!!"  It's looking pretty good, but we still have about ten days of this to go.  Worn.  Out.  Ryan tried to create a solution, but our active boxer just can't seem to keep a bandage on.  So say your prayers that the results of the removal are positive (the lump is down in Little Rock getting analyzed, and we should hear something any day now).  

• Riley's room is coming together - Thanks to some major deliveries last week and huge strides in decorating, Riley's room is almost complete!  I should be able to share some pictures this weekend, but it's probably one of my favorite rooms I've ever done.  Seriously.

• Alli finished her first soccer season - Last Friday, Alli wrapped up her last soccer game.  She's made dramatic improvements since the beginning of the season, and almost made a goal twice!  She's also turned into quite the goalie.  We're so proud of her and can't wait to see her continue to develop through camps and fall league.