A Good Tieman Place: Dont Read This Post

Monday, October 27, 2008

Dont Read This Post

This is a ridiculously long post about Tank, and I don't expect anyone to read it. I had to write it for myself so if I ever print my blog into a book, I will have it.

Tank was born August 15, 2002 which I always thought was kind of funny, because Greg and I were married just 5 days before. In October, we were at the local Yuma pet store. We walked in and immediately saw Tank and his big old head. The price on his cage was very low, and we knew it wasn't right. Some girl working there had wrote the wrong price, and the owner wasn't too happy, but they had to honor it. We weren't even looking for a new dog at the time, but both Greg and I fell in love with him and had to get him. Tank was 10 weeks old when we got him and he was a great dog from the very beginning. We only had him for 2 months before Greg was shipped to Iraq. He and Cass were my companions for the 9 months Greg was gone and he was raised just like Cassidy...like a child. This one time, my 3 best friends came down to visit us and LeAnne ended up naming him 'flower' which I always thought was so funny. Tank didn't get any socialization with people while Greg was gone except with some of the girls I worked with. That made him skiddish around people and especially guys. But when Greg got home, Tank remembered him. I should also say that Tank earned his name. He could go through anything. He chewed through a metal fence, a cement kennel, yes concrete!, doors, a wall in our garage, and lots of wood. This one tine out in the desert, we were playing with Tank and he came running straight at me. I thought if maybe I turned around and had my back facing him, he wouldn't run into me...I was wrong! Because before I knew it, I was staring up at the sky, flat on my back. Greg was cracking up and I actually thought it was pretty funny too. We would go for long walks out in the desert behind our house and he would go in front of us 30ft, then turn around to come back and check on us. We would always tell him, 'go play Tank, go be a dog' but he just wanted to be right next to us. I remember one day out in the desert, Greg taught Tank to jump into his arms, then onto his back, which was really funny to watch! We had lots of great walks with Tank.

Tank also loved to swim! He was great swimmer, which was kind of funny because he was a great big ball of muscle. Every weekend during the summer in Yuma, Greg and I would take him to swim in the Colorado river. It had a pretty good current and he loved it! He really loved anything to do with water.

He loved playing in the hose in the backyard and he had to be there to watch the boys get their baths. We called him our life guard. One of Tanks other favorite things to do was play on the spring pole. He was so excited anytime he saw us getting the rope ready. He also loved to dress up...Ok, I have to explain this. We were so excited when they finally built a Petsmart in Yuma, and we always took Tank with us. We would always put the dog cloths on Tank and he loved it! He would prance around because he knew he was hot stuff and looked good. One time in February, they had all their Valentine clothes out and we put this shirt on Tank that said 'Heart Breaker' and this lady walking by said "Why, Yes you are". It was really funny. We ended up getting him this aviator style jacket, and he always walked a little taller when he had it on. Tank was also great with the boys! Cody and Trevor could pull on his ears, his tail, jump on him, ride him, and he seemed to love it. Anytime Greg and I went up North, Tank was always the dog we took with us because he was so good. Tank was the most obedient dog we have ever had. I loved having him around because I always knew I was safe with him. Most people that saw him, were instantly scared of him. Even people that have worked with dogs for years were a little uneasy about him, but we knew the truth. He was an 58lb cuddle bug, lap dog, and lover who would rather get loves than a dog treat. He only wanted to please us and that was what made him happy. He was always by my side and I will be forever grateful to him for the joy that he brought to my life.

2 Left a comment:

N2ATIVEONE said...: That was a nice post.; October 27, 2008 at 12:37 PM
Joe, Laura, HudBud, and the Twins said...: I'm crying!!! I know you said not to read it but I had to. I care about you and I know how much Tank means to you.; October 28, 2008 at 7:27 PM

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All About The Kiddos

Cody was born in Yuma, AZ on May 10, 2005. He was born at 2:54 on a Tuesday morning. He was 7lbs 2oz and was 19 inches long... I think back on it now, and all I really remember was being in pain for the whole day. I had a Drs appointment Monday morning and my Dr stripped my membranes. Yes, it's as painful as it sounds. After my appointment, Greg and I went and walked around Wal-Mart. Sounds funny, but it was the middle of summer in Yuma and Wal-mart was the only cool place to walk. I had been having little contractions here and there but nothing substantial. After walking, we went home and waited a while. Finally by 8 o'clock that night, I was ready. The hospital was 30 minutes away. Once I got into triage, I wasn’t dilated enough to be admitted so 2 more hours of harsh contractions walking around the hospital. I do remember Greg being a wonderful coach though. It seemed like the only thing that would help was to sway side to side. Im sure it probably looked like we were dancing. Finally around 11:30 they admitted me. I had my epidural and I was set. They called my Dr around 12. Too bad for me it took her 2 and a half hours to get there!!!! I always wondered what took her so long. I think I had to push maybe 5 times and there he was. My mom and Greg’s family made it just in time. They drove down from Phoenix just in time to see sweet Cody Boy. Cody was a colic baby which made for long nights and hard days. I think he was pretty much over that by the time he was 3 months. He has always been very expressive about what he likes and does not like. He makes it very clear when he wants or needs something. There is really no ignoring him, b/c he'll find a way to get what he wants. He is also very stubborn and hard-headed, but at the same time he is so cute, it's hard to be mad at him. Ever since he was a baby, he had to touch my hair in order to fall asleep. He still does that. He's a mama’s boy when it comes to cuddling, but he also has to get in his wrestle time with Daddy. Cody loves all animals and animals seem to love him (could be he always has some sort of food on him). He loves to play cars and trucks. I think he must have 100 hot wheels. My mom got him a spring horse that he loves to play on, especially when Gregory is watching Westerns. He gets his cowboy hat on and his play gun stuck in the back of his diaper and just goes to town being "Cowboy Cody." It’s so much fun just to watch him play and use his imagination. He is such a wonderful, free spirited little boy. He is also turning out to be an awesome big brother.

Just a quick tid bit...My best friend Kate and I found out were due a day apart last March. Her due date was November 19th and mine was the 20th. Well, Kate had baby girl Riley the same day I had Trevor! What are the odds right?

Trevor was born on Wednesday November 21, 2007 at 10:19 in the morning. He was a big boy at 8lbs 12oz and 21 inches long. I was induced with Trevor because there was no luck with stripping the membranes (twice) and I never had any contractions. I was supposed to go in early morning on the 19th, but the hospital was too full. So, I was put on a waiting list. Finally, around 11 at night on the 20th, I was called in. I had sent a text to Kate to let her know I was on my way to the hospital and her husband Cody text me back to let me know she was already there (we delivered at different hospitals). Once I got there, they gave me patocin to induce me and an epidural a little while later. It was great! The delivery part of it was nothing. I had to push maybe 3 times and he was born within minutes, healthy as could be. However, a little after he was born I started to feel nauseous. I ate some yogurt and sure enough it came right back up. I sat up in bed and saw white spots everywhere and heard ringing in my ears then blacked out. They took some blood work and it said I was anemic. I was having lots of blood clots coming out. The Dr ran in and started cleaning me out and pushing on my stomach and let me tell you it hurt like heck. I like to think I have a pretty high pain tolerance too (2 kids before this, 2 tattoos, and a couple of piercings with no complaints) but this sucked!!! I was shaking uncontrollably; I thought I was having a seizer. I guess I was going in and out of it, b/c I woke up later and Greg had put a rose on my chest. I remember waking up and asking him if he thought I died. It was probably one of the scariest times of my life (besides Greg leaving for Iraq). Im so glad my mom was there to explain to me in English all the Doctor lingo. I did get to go home for Thanksgiving with a beautiful, healthy baby boy. This was a big deal because I had some scares early on in my pregnancy. On the first ultrasound, we found out that my placenta was sitting way too low so it was squishing Trevor’s kidneys. They were way too small. That was terrifying for both Greg and me. After a couple more ultrasounds and a visit to a perinatologist (sounds serious right) we found out everything was fine. I couldn’t figure out what the big deal was for having small kidneys. I mean, there are two of them. Turns out after some research, it can be a sign of Down Syndrome. It was very scary!!!! We are so blessed that Trevor is healthy! Trevor is turning out to be an angel baby. He rarely cries and sleeps all through the night. He smiles all the time and loves to look at the color blue. He loves to watch Cody and always smiles when he gets to take a bath. Trevor just seems to love life. It is so much fun just to sit and cuddle him. He makes the cutest cooing sounds. I can’t wait to see more of his personality. It just goes by too fast. Greg and I are so blessed and we are reminded of that every time we see our beautiful boys.

Justin Gregory Tieman was born Friday September 18, 2009 at 9:11 in the morning. He weighed in at exactly 7 lbs and was 19.5 inches long. Everything in a time period of about 36 hours happened so quickly. I had my Dr’s appointment at 2 on Thursday and when I was there, he asked if I wanted the 12 am or 4 am spot to be induced. I took the 12 am spot. Gregory and I made it to the hospital around 12:30, checked in, and then went up to Labor and Delivery. I was given “the gel” around 2:15 am and by 2:20 I was already having small contractions. My nurse had me get up and walk the halls for about 40 minutes. I’m not sure what time I had my epidural? It was with the first nurse I had, so sometime between 3 and 6 am. I got a new nurse around 6:15 and she let me sleep for about 3 hours to get some rest. She came in 8:45-9:00 to check on me and see if I had dilated at all. To my surprise (and hers), I was fully dilated!!! I had slept through all of my contractions! It’s a good thing my Dr was just down stairs getting ready to come up and break my water. I felt so bad for him. I pretty much shot my baby out at him. I pushed 3 times (for about a minute) and he was out. They did have to use to vacuum on him because I already had some abrasions and was starting to bleed. Luckily I got all the medicine I needed and then some to help with the bleeding and everything went really well. I was able to leave the hospital the next day, feeling pretty good. Justin is only a couple of days old, but he is already such a blessing for our family. He is a wonderful baby and absolutely beautiful. Cody and Trevor can’t seem to get enough of him. They love getting to help feed Justin. They are such good big brothers! With Justin now here, I feel our family is complete. Gregory and I couldn’t be happier to have 3 wonderful boys in our lives!