Exciting Week

This week was busy, relaxing, exciting........ALL OF THE ABOVE! I had Friday off from work for the 4th of July and then my typical weekend off. Both Tyson and I were off from work on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday because his parents were coming in. It was nice to see Tyson have an extra day off.

First off, my long weekend started off with a ride along with the police department that Tyson works for. I rode with one of his buddies/fellow police officer on Saturday night. The night was slow. We pulled over a couple of people, which, by the way was SO FUN and funny at times. Let's just say that some people are interesting. Then, we get a code three call about a weapons disturbance and we "rode hot" from one side of the city to get to the other. Riding hot means to drive at 100+ MPH with the lights and sirens on to get to a call. Let me just say that that was the most fun, yet scariest experience ever!!!!!!! We drove really fast while dodging other cars for a good 3-5 minutes. All I could think was, "If a car is going to plow through us while were racing through an intersection......please do it quick so I don't feel a thing." When we finally made it to the location, my body heat had raised to about 100 degrees. I was fanning myself from my adrenaline running so high. Overall, I got to see what the police job is all about, and, YES.....I can see why some people get into it. It can be exciting and unpredictable at times....which is fun.........BUT..........I got to experience how dangerous it is. But, BOY was it an experience! I'm ready to do another ride again!

After that, Tyson's parents came into town and we pretty much hung out, did some wedding planning stuff, and they got to come to K9 training with Tyson and me to watch the bite/narcotics work with the other K9 dogs and officers. They also got to see Rosco in action. Tyson and I were really glad that they could come out to watch what this K9 business is all about. I know Tyson was more than overjoyed to share this experience with his parents. Tyson's mom took me to get started on looking at wedding dresses and that was FUN! It just started to feel so real when I was putting on those dresses and veils. I was excited that I was able to get some ideas on what looks best on me and what doesn't. I can't wait to take my sister and stepmom with me to see what they think. UGH! I just can't wait to get the dress! To me, this is a very important decision. I was one of those girls who dreamt up my wedding dress ever since I was a little girl............LITERALLY. Now my day has come and I have GOT to choose the perfect one. It's such an overwhelming, yet, an exciting experience.

On a final note, about four weeks ago, I took my TExES teacher certification exam to become certified and GUESS WHAT........................................TODAY I FOUND OUT THAT I HAD PASSED!!!!!!!! Wooooo!!!! I was so worried. It took me FOUR HOURS to take that thing and I remember thinking to myself that it was so hard and that I didn't think I would pass it. I have been biting my nails for the past four weeks worried over the darn thing, and now I know I passed it. I'm so relieved!!!

Well that's all that's new in the future Sutton household. Tyson and I are still busy as ever working, planning our wedding, and spending as much time as we can together. We get more and more excited as these months pass by and we get closer to the wedding.

Long Time, No Blog

Sorry for the lack of blogging lately. I've been super duper busy these days. I'm going to try to encourage Tyson to write up an entry one of these days so you can hear what he has to say.

Summer is going great for me, especially since I don't have summer school anymore. This is my first summer to not have to do school and it is very nice. YAY for almost graduating!!! Since I don't have school, I'm all about work work work with the kiddos at the center. The field trips have been fun this summer. I got to go to Splashtown for the first time in years and I felt like a kid again. I'm so tired though. A summer full of hyper kids has left me coming home every day barely being able to keep my eyes open. Just ask Tyson. I love my kids though. They are a fun bunch this summer.

Tyson has been doing okay lately. This has been a long week for him though. Over the past few years, his stomach has been bothering him constantly throughout the day......enough to cause some anxiety for him and effect his daily routines. So, he went to the doctor (FINALLY) and they decided to do a colonoscopy and another procedure (don't remember what is is called) to check and see what could be wrong. Monday night (the night before the procedure) started out a little rocky with all of the laxatives, etc. that he had to take. We ended up staying up all night with him having all sorts of problems. Pain, fever, and all kinds of other stuff. Let's just say that both he and I spent part of the night sleeping on the bathroom floor together. I refused to leave his side, so we set up shop on the bathroom floor. Tuesday he had the procedure and they found a few things that causes his constant upset stomach. Nothing major. We got medicines for it and now it will be taken care of. For the rest of the week, Tyson just couldn't seem to get up to snuff, so it was a week of aches and pains still. I'm just glad he took care of this situation, and now we know what is going on so we can ease it. Tyson is now doing well and has finally returned to work. Today he said his stomach isn't aching as much as it has been, so we're making progress.

On another note, the save-the-date magnets have finally been sent out. Since Tyson was off for most of the week, he kept himself busy by putting together and addressing all of the magnets and getting them sent out. Thank goodness I have a groom that is fully involved in this wedding. I'm hoping to find my bridesmaid dresses and my wedding dress this summer. That's the next step we're taking with this wedding.

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying this summer. Shoot Tyson and/or me an email some time to say hi.

Summer Kiddos and a Canine

This week is the first week we have the afterschoolers FULL TIME since school is on summer break. All I can say is that Friday can't come fast enough. At the end of my day on Monday, my body and brain checked out for the rest of the week. Sad, but true. It was a rough start. Monday was the first day of this whole summer program, and we have a new routine along with some new kiddos. It's exhausting to get everyone situated and teach them the new routine along with going over as much as we can with the parents. I have been run ragged. Every morning, I'm there with another teacher at about 7:30 a.m. and we will already have about 45 hyper kids between the both of us where you don't have the control like a teacher does in a contained classroom. At the same time all of this is going on, we deal with all of the madness that occurs when getting new parents and kids situated, making sure everyone is checking in, making sure the kids are staying out of trouble, talking with parents about their questions or complaints, paperwork....blah blah blah....I COULD GO ON FOREVER!!!! You DEFINITELY DEFINITELY DEFINITELY need to know how to multitask and think on your toes. That is where it gets pretty tiring.

The first week is always the hardest because there are a lot of new children along with getting the children used to the summer routine of field trips, or just the day overall. It is Wednesday, and I'm so tired that I drove home, parked, and just sat in my car to listen to music and stare off into space. I just needed some peace with myself. I have tomorrow and Friday and then it is the weekend where I can recuperate. I'm so ready for it. I hope next week will be a little less difficult. Actually, I know for a fact it will slowly get easier. I just have to get the kids adjusted and then it will hopefully just become second nature. But, I do love my kiddos this year!

About a couple of days ago, Tyson's dreams of starting up the K9 program sort of got shot down by some of his fellow officers. They believe that Tyson won't be able to start up the program with the current Chief. They think Chief won't budge on his opinions about a police dog. He was a little upset last night, but, he woke up at 6:30 this morning and still took Rosco to training on his day off, just like he does every Wednesday. He is determined. He tells me that he doesn't see a reason why his police department wouldn't start the K9 program up again. To everyone, I'm so proud that Tyson is so passionate about this. He takes time out of one of his days off to go to training and not get paid to do it. He works so hard and he wants this so bad! I sure do hope that when Tyson and Rosco are ready to prove to Chief that the program isn't such a bad idea and that they aren't a bad idea, the Chief will keep and open mind and see that Tyson will have spent over a year and a half on his own time and his own money to train this dog for the department. I hope he sees how professional and resposible Tyson is and how they can trust him to get the program up and running. Tyson knows that this is some serious stuff and is more than willing to put his whole heart into it if given the chance. That's all he really wants, and that is a chance to prove that he can handle being the K9 officer. Whew! I'll get off of my soap box. It's time I went and sat down to enjoy what's left of my night.

So, What's it Like Being Married to a Cop?

I was getting a little frustrated with Tyson's work schedule for a while. We weren't seeing each other and it was taking a little bit of a toll on me. I just miss him, and it's hard not knowing if he's okay out there on the streets. Also, it's a little lonely at times. With THAT said, I found this interesting, yet VERY true and funny article written by a police officer's wife about being married to a police officer. After reading this article, it made me feel better because I realized that I'm not the only one who experiences all of the "fun things" that come with being in a relationship with a police officer. If you read it, it gives a whole new respect to a police officer's family. After reading this article, these are the things that I found that are SO TRUE with what Tyson and I experience now:

When I kiss Tyson goodbye and tell him to be safe, I wonder if that is the last time I will ever see him.

I have to be self-sufficient.

The article says that the wife has to keep the kids quiet while Daddy sleeps. Well, I have to keep the dogs quite while Dad sleeps.

Holidays together are almost non-existent.

The pay is terrible for such a risky and dangerous job.

You sleep alone almost every night.

When you think you're going to get that little time alone, he ends up having to stay later because of some late arrest, traffic stop, or someone calling out of work. Basically, it ruins the rest of the day because he has to sleep all of it.

I have learned where to sit in a restaurant with him so he has the best vantage point.

Although there are some yucky things that come with the position of becoming a cop's wife, there are some advantages!:

I know I'm protected when he's home.

I find out all of the juicy details and the dirty scoop on the "big wigs" of the city.

The news sensationalizes everything, so I get to find out the truth of the matter.

I get to hear the most adventurous stories that not all husbands can come home and tell their wives.

These are the main points that this author wrote in this article that was TOTALLY about our life right now. I laughed the whole time because it is SO TRUE!!! Anyways, I brought this up because I thought that it would be interesting, and it gives insight of how different life is when you're a police officer or you are marrying one. Below is the article. I do recommend reading the article. It is very informative, and you'll see how much Tyson sacrafices to do a job that pays him next to nothing, yet, he loves doing:

http://www.officer.com/web/online/Police-Life/So--Whats-it-Like-Being-Married-to-a-Cop/17$29366

The Two Boys

I have finally gotten a chance to take new pictures of Rosco in his growing stages. The link will be posted at the end of this blog along with pictures of my wedding bands. All of the photos you'll see of Rosco are of Tyson working on his bite work and prey drive. It's really neat when you see it in action. Again, this Wednesday, Tyson took Rosco to training and he continues to impress Bob our trainer. The trainer and the other fellow officers started hiding dope in cars for Rosco to find, and he found it every time. Rosco is only 14 weeks! I'M EVEN IMPRESSED! The chief of Montgomery County PD (I think) was completely impressed as this was his first time seeing Rosco. He told the trainer that he wouldn't find it, and sure enough, Rosco proved him wrong. Bob is continuing Rosco on bite work, and ROSCO LOVES IT! He thinks he's playing. In about two weeks, we're going to have to stop him on bite work because he will be loosing puppy teeth. We don't want to hurt our baby! I know I talk about Rosco more than I do about Precious, but he's changing every day since he's a new pup. The only thing that changes on Precious is her haircut, and sometimes that's too scary to talk about. HA! She knows she's still my number one!

On another note, Tyson and I have officially ordered the save-the-date cards, so they should be at our apartment any day now for us to send out. I've checked out my month by month lists of things to do, and we're on top of everything and on schedule....if not a little ahead! We're so close to getting the BIG part of the wedding paid for, so then, we'll have about 8ish months to save up here and there for items that aren't included in our package. But, there's not much! I'm so excited! I know Tyson was stressing about all of this, and soon he will be able to relax.....................................hopefully...................that is if I can keep him from looking way too far in the future and taking things day by day. A little at a time that is. It is so amazing how involved and on top of everything he is with the wedding planning. You don't normally see grooms doing this. But, it is so helpful since I'm pretty much doing this on my own. I'm so excited to hear that Tyson is going to cover his Wednesday night extra job for the next two weeks so he can have a full 2 days off. I FULLY support him doing this because he needs a break, and we need some time together. His schedule is tiring both of us out right now. Right now, he's off getting a massage. Good for him.

All in all, everything is going good at the future Sutton household. Busy as usual! Don't forget to take a look at the new pictures of Rosco! Also! I have a few pictures up of the engagement ring as well as my wedding bands!

THE PICTURES OF ROSCO AND MY ENGAGEMENT RING AND WEDDING BANDS:

http://picasaweb.google.com/reannins

Ring, Dog....Life....

Well, Tyson and I jumped the gun and already bought my wedding band, or should I say, wedding bands. It is actually a solitaire enhancer that has two bands that wrap around the engagement ring. They both have diamonds going around the bands, and it really showcases the engagement ring since it is so unique. When we were talking about what we were going to do for a band with my engagement ring, I had this idea in my head that I did not want an enhancer because I thought it would be a little much since the engagement ring is so lavish in itself. After looking at a few places, Tyson really wanted to look at rings at Jared's since he's such a fan of that place. We saw many that worked, but none that we LOVED. Tyson suggested looking at enhancers. I was a little hesitant, but, ironically, it ended up working out the best. Let's just say it definitely screams, "Hello I'm married," and when all three rings are attatched..............OH BOY does it sparkle! I kept asking the jeweler with worry that my hand was too petite to have the amount of rings that I had on my hand. Both Tyson and the lady reminded me that it looked beautiful. All in all, I LOVE it! It makes the whole package look different, and there are things about this wedding that I want to be a little different and not so traditional. Also, it definitely accentuates the engagement ring (which is an heirloom I might add), and shows of the beauty of it. It's perfect and I'm happy.

Tyson took Rosco to training today and they started him on bite work. From what I hear, Rosco is did awesome for his very first time!!! The trainer predicts that he will be ready for competition NEXT YEAR! I was amazed because I thought that was a little early, but they see him really progressing fast. I'm proud of my boy! He's such a smarty pants! Rosco keeps growing in size. I'm going to have to post more pictures. He's getting so big! He's starting to tower over my little Precious, but I don't think she's noticing it......or maybe she does???? But, she still plays with him and gets along with him really well. She'll jump on Rosco, and Rosco will lie on his back to let her win, so she'll growl pretending to be a big mean dog while she's pouncing on him. It's HILARIOUS!!! I'll have to post a video of it.

On a final note! I would just like to say that I'm finished with all of my classes this semester and I walked out with ALL A's!!! I think I'm motivated to wear one of those big sashy type of things around my shoulders at my graduation next year since I never got to wear one for my high school graduation.......HA!

Engagement Photos!

We have officially taken them, and they are now up to view! Yayyy!!!

Our friend Lauren so graciously took the time out of her day to take our pictures for us. I was so grateful. They turned out BEAUTIFUL and I am so excited! I love looking at them over and over!

Below is the link to the pictures. The ones I posted are almost every single one we did. We actually took about 240, but I didn't post all because some were doubles.

Right now, we're in the process of choosing which ones we love and then getting them all re-touched and fancied up. The one's you're viewing are the raw originals. Let Tyson and I know which ones you like! We would love your opinions since we love so many. It'll help us narrow it down.


HERE ARE THE ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS:

http://picasaweb.google.com/reannins/EngagementPhotos