Next Friday, my company is putting on a Women in Leadership Symposium. I am part of the planning committee for this event (growing my professional network and all) and am very excited. I very much want to put my best foot forward, and that means looking professional as part of it. On Friday, I bought a new blazer- it’s a lovely red that will go with all of my work pants, and a couple sizes smaller than the last one I bought. It doesn’t technically fit perfectly, but with the right clothes under, it won’t really be noticeable, and it won’t be swimming on me in another couple months as I keep losing weight. I also bought a new pair of boots, and I need to get my hair cut this weekend and get a manicure the night before the symposium (I’ll be wondering around serving wine at the end). In some senses, I am treating this like a job interview, because for some very important people at my company, this will be the first time I get to make an in person impression upon them, and I want it to be a good one. What do you do to make a good impression?

 

And now, on to the blogs.

We’re starting with what is a very hot topic among both pet bloggers and financial bloggers who have pets- how much money is reasonable to spend on your dog?

At The Dog Park, they haven’t had to spend much money on Our Best Friend, yet, but some friends of the family just had over a $3,000 vet bill to surgery to repair a broken bone and torn ligaments. It sparked a conversation in their family about spending on veterinary bills and what it really means when you say the dog is Part of the Family.

Len Penzo recently came back from vacation to an unexpected bill of over $2,400 for their 4 legged family member, Major (aka Best. Dog. Ever.). Being in a kennel situation while they were all gone apparently stressed him out and caused a major digestive issue. Personally, I’m thankful they didn’t have to deal with an intestinal blockage and that Major is back to being himself. But their answer as to what to spend- “Whatever it takes.” Luckily, Len and Honeybee have worked hard to put themselves in a financial situation where that isn’t a bankrupting the family answer.

For some people, it’s one time, emergency spending. For others, it’s what feels like continuous spending on chronic issues. Lance at Money Life and More recently spent another $725 on Daphne’s allergy and skin issues. Hopefully the custom made allergy shots she’ll be getting will get everything under control and make it so this adorable girl can enjoy the world around her, instead of feeling like she wants to crawl out of her skin.

 

Our friends at 2 Punk Dogs have managed to stay safe during Hurricane Sandy (and hopefully through this nor’easter, too), but something occurred to them while watching the news- do you have enough of the right insurance? It’s not just about flood insurance or storm insurance during trying times like these. There’s also the story of the Kiss-A-Bull family who lost their home (and five of their dogs) to a house fire about a year ago. Their insurance covered rent for three months, it took none months to rebuild their home. This last week, you changed the batteries in smoke alarms when you set your clocks back. Did you also review your insurance coverage to make sure that you and your family- those with 2 and 4 legs –will be safely covered in the case of an emergency?

 

Speaking of friends who we are glad have managed to stay safe during the awful east coast weather, my fabulous FinCon roommate, Jana at Daily Money Shot, reprinted a post she wrote some time ago about what not to wear to work. Considering I’m trying not to do too much shipping during my weight loss journey, but that I’m still trying to put a more professional look forward, this was a good reminder.

 

There are work politics and then there are politic politics. This last week, citizens of the United States were once again honored with the ability to voice their opinion on how their national, state, and local governments should work. Mel from No Dog About It Blog has a great reminder of why we really need to be paying more attention to those state and local issues. In North Dakota, animal abuse has not been a felony, but the citizens of that state had the chance to change that this year. Would you have voted to make animal abuse a felony?

 

And then there are the politics that matter only to pet owners … guardians … parents – really, how do you choose which word to use? Two of my favorite bloggers each had a great post about their reasons for using the words they do. Pamela at Something Wagging This Way Comes presents the argument for being a dog guardian. Kristine at Rescued Insanity counters in favor of the traditional dog owner. In these cases, I don’t know how much the terms mean, as both of them are amazingly dedicated to their pets’ health and well-being. Now worries from me about how either Shiva or Honey are being treated. I tend to use the word parent, but that also means I often get people who give me these looks, and I have to explain that yes, I know the difference between dogs and children- dogs I can crate for 6 hours with no one accusing me of neglect, and no one tells me I can’t bring kids to my timeshare- see, easy distinction.

 

And now that you know that little bit more about me, here’s some great fun facts about John from Frugal Rules. I love posts like this that let me get to know other bloggers, and yet, I’ve never done one myself, partly because I feel like I may be oversharing already.

And now we’re ready to learn about two new blogs, or at least, new to me blogs. Dachshund Nola is not new to most pet bloggers I know, but I recently started participating in their Black & White Sunday on Life by Pets, so I thought maybe, just maybe, I should check this blog, and the adorable Nola, out.

And we’re also welcoming The Frugal Path to the Yakezie network. This month, my brother finished paying us back the money we loaned him six months ago. He could have paid it back in 3 months, but we said, no, take a little longer and build your business an emergency fund, because small businesses need them, too.