Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Never a dull moment!

"Anybody who doesn't know what soap tastes like never washed a dog."
~Franklin P. Jones

It's been a while since I've updated, and things have been crazy! I really didn't realize how adding one little 14 pound dog into the mix would stir things up! Bailey has been adjusting to Dexter, and they are now great friends. They've been cuddling together a lot, and they MUST be together at all times. If I separate them for any reason, they cry. It's pretty sweet. I am happy to see that they are going to be great company to one another. We are back to square one on the housebreaking with Dexter, and Bailey was soooo easy to train that having a "normal" dog is a challenge for us now. But he is actually doing pretty well and having fewer accidents each day. He will catch on soon. Jamie is starting to love him - Bailey is his first love, though. I have to agree that Bailey is an exceptional doggie. One of my coworkers lost a puppy recently because she didn't have tags on, so we have gotten personalized doggie tags for both of our pups. Bailey wears blue and Dexter wears green. My coworker was even on FOX 26 news last night - long story short, a dog shelter euthanized her dog after only having her in custody for one hour. Very sad, and I am glad she spoke out against that policy! I have had the pleasure of giving both dogs a daily bath both yesterday and today while Jamie has been out of town at a coaching clinic. I now have a new respect for him! Here is a pic of our little guys snuggling.




And here is a link to the news story: http://www.myfoxhouston.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=3926076&version=2&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=3.2.1

Elise has also been keeping us busy and entertained, as usual! Here are a few of her latest cute phrases/words:

splashlight = flashlight - She has a major fascination with flashlights. I can't keep one at my bedside, because she keeps wandering off with them. One of these days, I am going to find her stash and recover all 4 of my "splashlights".

puter = computer - Jamie and I each have a laptop that we keep downstairs (then our desktop is upstairs). Elise is VERY picky about which "puter" belongs to me and which one is his. If I use his, or if he uses mine, she runs and tells on us! "Mommy, Coach is using your puter!" We keep trying to tell her that it's okay, because we share, but so far it is not sinking in, and she sees this as a major offense.

"It's prolly gonna rain." - Anyone who lives around us knows what a crazy summer we have had with all of this rain! Elise has just come to expect it now, and tells me occasionally that she's just sure it's going to rain again.

Apparently she is also in a major hurry to grow up. Last night she got into my drawers and decided to wear my bra. She even took her own shirt off in order to put it on. It was hysterical! As luck would have it, I was the only one at home to witness it, so naturally I had to take a picture.


So, that is where I have been for the past week...just keeping up with the dogs and Elise! Calgon, take me away!!! But then again, I would be bored if I didn't have them all.

Monday, July 23, 2007

I must be insane!

"The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you."
~Rita Mae Brown

Our beloved Bailey has been very spoiled this summer with Jamie being out of school and home with him all day. He's been napping in the house, and since his manners are so wonderful, we've started letting him sleep inside at night too. He's pretty much turned into an indoor dog, which I really like. Jamie and I have been talking about how loney he is going to be once school starts again.


So, this weekend I got the crazy (and surely insane) idea that Bailey needs a friend to keep him company. In the ultimate act of spoiling our dog, I got him the best possible gift I could think of...his very own puppy!


So, here is Dexter!






As you can see from this next photo, so far my ingenious plan is backfiring, because Bailey is actually quite jealous of Dexter!




Can you believe that this little puppy actually has the nerve to expect to be allowed to play with toys in the house??? He is clearly very confused! But don't worry...Bailey is setting him straight!




Of course, guess who is THRILLED to have another puppy in the house (and it's not me or Jamie, since we were up all night with the whiny little guy)...





Well, you can't please everyone, so at least someone is happy about this new arrangement. He is really a cutie, and I am sure that he and Bailey are going to become the best of friends...I hope...really...

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Here's To Us

Immature love says: "I love you because I need you." Mature love says: "I need you because I love you."
~Erich Fromm



This post is dedicated to our first wedding anniversary.






Jamie and I were talking last night about how our first year together has gone by so quickly...yet, neither one of us can really remember what life was like before we met. Everything before just seems so obscure now, almost like a different lifetime.

We are celebrating today in a pretty low key manner. We've had such a huge summer with all the home improvement projects, new furniture, and Hawaii trip, that we decided a simple anniversary was best. We agreed to NO gifts, but he woke me up this morning with a cup of Starbucks, a card, and 2 boquets of flowers - tulips (my favorite) and red roses. Now I feel like a loser, because I didn't get anything for him! He's a sweetheart.

So, here's to us!!!

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Kids Say The Darndest Things

"Our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children."
~Walt Disney


Elise is at this really fun age right now where every once in a while she says something that cracks us up. I decided to make a list of a few of our favorites.

"Whatchyour doing?" - This is Elise's version of "What are you doing", but she mixes up the "are you" and instead says "you are"...but it all runs together. Hence the new word "whatchyour".

"Potomous" = Hippopotomous

"Raffe" = Giraffe

"Mommy, I need to hold you." - We are having some pronoun issues here. Sometimes when she says this to Jamie, he tries to jump into her arms for her to hold him. She does not think that is funny at all...but we do.

"Bailey, you're killing me!" - She gets this from me! What a little parrot I have.

"Coach, we have to go or we'll miss the food!" - I have to tell the story behind this one for it to be cute. Since my schedule at work has changed, Jamie has taken over the morning preschool drop-off so I can get into the office early. Her preschool has a policy of no outside food and drinks, so they supply a breakfast cart in the mornings, and you can purchase items such as cereal, granola bars, juice, etc. We initially fed her breakfast at home, but quickly discovered that it was a huge thrill for her to go to the cart and pick out what she wanted each morning, so we've been letting her do that for quite some time now. The only catch is that the breakfast cart disappears at 7:45am. Anyone who knows Jamie and I well knows that we are sooo not morning people, so we often find ourselves in a mad dash to get out the door in time to catch that silly cart before it vanishes. Elise has picked up on this, so she is always rushing us along in the morning, trying to make sure that we don't miss the food! LOL...thank goodness we have never missed it. I think she would cry if we did.

I know there more funny things, but that is all I can think of right now. I will be sure to post more as I remember and she picks up new ones!

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Happiness Unbound By Circumstance

"Happiness often sneaks in through a door you didn't know you left open."

~John Barrymore

I was reading a discussion last night about "happiness unbound by circumstance", and I've been thinking about it ever since. It is a tough concept to grasp - how one could be happy no matter what circumstances presented themselves. I think the best that I can expect from myself is happiness unbound by circumstance with a few exceptions. I can't ever imagine finding happiness if I lost Jamie or Elise; but, I can envision myself being happy no matter what as long as they are with me. I think that is one good thing that has come out of all of this summer craziness. I learned that I could be happy in another town, another house, possibly even with another job as long as our family is together. So, for that I am thankful, and also relieved since this will eventually be our reality.

And since I am on the subject of happiness and the end of the summer, I thought it would be appropriate to share some pictures from our summer that make me smile.


Here is Elise in my mom's yard. I love how her skirt matches the flowers.





Here she is riding the carousel at the very beginning of this summer.





Jamie and Elise at her first Astros game!







Some July 4th fun!





My baby turned 3 this summer too.






Here are a couple of her official 3-yr pictures






We started a nightly family bike riding tradition, because Jamie really wanted to get some exercise and has a tough time running with all the knee surgeries he's had. We really do enjoy it, and it's special time together. I don't think I've been to the gym since we got our bikes!




We had a great July 4th this year. My cousin, Amber, was in town, as well as my grandmother. We had some 4 generation pictures taken during the visit too.



Of course, I can't talk about the summer without including our slideshow from Hawaii...






I'm sure there are many more I could post, but I think that is plenty for now! Now that I look back on it, I really have had a wonderful summer (but I am still glad that football begins in 2 weeks!).

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

I am soooo over this summer...

"Ah! well away! Seasons flower and fade."
~Lord Alfred Tennyson


It's not even funny! Normally summer is really not that bad. Jamie is out of school and working sports camps for some extra cash, and tax season is over, so my job is laid back. It's normally very low stress, and Jamie does a lot of extras around the house, which is very nice too. I arrived home last night to dinner, and he already had Elise's plate made! He's also building a roof over our deck, painting our upstairs, and helping me to finish our landscaping project that we started back in April. It's been productive, at least.

However, this summer, Jamie has been going on interviews and fielding job offers for about a month now. We've come close to moving twice, and it is stressing me out! I think I have a fear of the unknown. I am not opposed to moving at all - I knew when we got married that we would not stay put forever. But, we talked more about moving in 2-5 years, so I really wasn't expecting things to pop up this soon. I will say that most of the offers have fallen into his lap, and one of them in particular was very attractive and deserved some serious consideration. If it weren't for a lack of decent housing in the area that would allow me to continue to commute to work, we would probably be packing up a moving truck right this minute. I'm actually a tiny bit disappointed that it didn't work out. Our friends that took us to Hawaii live in the same town, and it would have been so fun to have another couple to go out with nearby. Jamie actually has a LOT of friends there - young couples with children around the same age as Elise. It was hard to let that job go...we never know where the next one might take us...

It seems that we are officially locked in to another year here, though. The deadline to resign has passed, and it is really too late now to get out of a contract. Now Jamie's talking about adding a third sport here...

Honestly, school needs to start immediately! He has too much time to think right now, and he's getting antsy. I am just ready to know the plan for the year. Dealing with uncertainties are not my strong suit!

Monday, July 16, 2007

The Title of my Blog

I thought for my first post, it would be appropriate to explain the title that I chose for this blog. I got it from a Rascal Flatts song that reminds me of the way I felt when I first met Jamie. It's been more than a year now, and I can honestly say that I still feel butterflies when I walk through the door and see him. I feel like my life didn't really begin until we met....


Rascal Flatts - Feels Like Today
Woke up this morning
With this feeling inside me that I can't explain
Like a weight that I've carried
Has been carried away, away
But I know something is coming
I don't know what it is
But I know it's amazing, you save me
My time is coming
And I'll find my way out of this longest drought
It feels like today
I know it feels like today
I'm sure
Its the one thing that's missin'
The one thing I'm wishin'
Life's sacred blessin'
It feels like today
Feels like today
You treat life like a picture
But its not a moment frozen in time
It's not gonna wait
Til you make up your mind, at all
So while this storm is breaking
While there's light at the end of the tunnel
Keep running towards it
Releasing the pressure, that's my heartache
Soon this dam will break
And it feels like today
I know, it feels like today, I'm sure
Its the one thing that's missin'
The one thing you're wishin'
The last sacred blessin'
It feels like today
Feels like today
And it feels like today
I know, it feels like today, I'm sure
Its the one thing that's missin'
The one thing you're wishin'
The last sacred blessin'
It feels like today
Feels like, feels like your life changes
Feels like feels like your life changes
Its the one thing that's missin'
The one thing you're wishin'
The last sacred blessin'
Feels like today
Feels like Feels like your life changes
Feels like Feels like your life changes