i went to walgreens last night to scoop up some of my new favorite mouse and hairspray (v05 curl enhancer) ON SALE! and this is the bag they put my goodies in. this looks just like the trash bags i always intend to buy for the bathroom trash can, as in, 13 gallons and no handles. times are cleary tough for the walgreens people.





and this is an updated picture of the monster duke.





the day we got duke, august 4, 2008




wednesday, november 20, 2008.

he's currently 34ish lbs., and because his dad was a dalmation, there is a good chance he won't get above 55 lbs. which is a good thing because he already looks like a horse.

I need to work on keeping this thing up-to-date if I want to one day be a successful “mom blogger”. There are two things one must do to be a mom-blogger:

1.) go forth and multiply (or do whatever necessary to be a mom, like steal small children from the park or adopt.)
2.) write a blog about mom-ish things.

Currently attempting: 2/2
Currently succeeding: 0/2

OY.

The only thing remotely relevant to mom-blogging I can write about today is the part-time job I have taken on. Thanks to recommending by my full-time job manager, I have embarked on the journey of court ordered tutoring. Just a few hours a week with a student who needs a little encouraging on their school work, and all is well with the probation officer. Battery charge? Kicked a girl in the face at the park? Where do these hooligans come from? She doesn’t need tutoring, she needs her butt whooped by her parents or counseling. I am not a parenting coach, however, so I cannot recommend a swift kick in the pants as appropriate punishment for breaking someone's nose.

Pray for me. I don’t want to get pummeled because I know stuff about stuff and she doesn’t. Or the off chance her boyfriend thinks I'm cute. I'd be dead meat.

Happy Anniversary (plus 3 weeks!)!!

Our one year anniversary was October 20th. Our wedding day was the most beautiful day of my life. We were completely surrounded by people who love us and care about us and our marriage. There were plenty of tears, and laughter, and I felt like a princess in every sense of the word. Plus, I had a fun time dancing it up at the reception.

(tears)

(laughter)

(people who love and care about us)

(dancing it up at reception)

(cake, October 20, 2007)

(cake, October 20, 2008)

You really can have your cake and eat it too! Twice, if you're lucky!

I love you, even when you insist on growing out your facial hair and you look like a lumberjack.

Babywearing!

I am fascinated with babywearing. The closeness and comfort of holding your child close to your heart, letting her feel your love and warmth – I can’t wait! I introduced my husband to the idea of babywearing, and he seemed skeptical at first, worried about the baby falling out of the sling, but I reassured him that thousands of women wear babies, and if done correctly, it’s perfectly safe!

So imagine my surprise yesterday, when he proclaimed (rather loudly) “look, she’s babywearing!”, in regards to woman in front of us at Cabella’s, who was indeed, carrying her adorable little girl in a sling. It was quite fashionable, fyi.

I think he’s coming around!

When I do have a baby, I want this sling, from Nonny&Boo. SO Chic! I know some of my only readers here (hi nikki!) are either expecting or have just had babies. So be sure to check out the Nonny&Boo website for their adorable styles of slings and wraps!

For more information on Babywearing, check out Steph’s blog.

It has nothing to do with race. I’m already annoyed at the amount of people who have related my fears about Obama’s win to the color of his skin. That could not be farther from the truth. My fear is because of his relations with other countries, and his desire to pull the troops out of Iraq.


Trust me when I say, I don’t like war any more than the next person. But I don’t want war in my backyard. I don’t know if I’ll be able to feel safe again for quite some time. Not because of color, because of surrender. There are three people in my immediate family who have fought in Iraq or Afghanistan, or both. My brother missed my wedding because he was overseas. So trust me when I say that I don’t like war. But protection is necessary and I cherish the commitment of our service men and women to keep us out of harm’s way.


Nicholas M. –United States Air Force

Anthony J. – United States Air Force

Jon C. – United States Marine Corp.

My family. Right there. Not strangers who are a name on a piece of paper. My family.


Do I want them to go back? Heck no! But would they? In a heartbeat. Because “Country First”.


*many classmates, friends siblings, and acquaintances from college have also sacrificed their time away from comfort and their families to serve our great country. Thank you all.

Jared B.

Justin K.

Travis C.

Jason K.

Kade G.

Phil R.

Jon B.


May God hold everyone of us in the palm of His hand, and keep us safe from all harm.

ohio is for lovers

we're going to ohio this weekend for the 2nd annual cornhole classic tournament. for those of us in the 'burbs, we like to call this "bean bags". but, if you're from the sticks (and there is NOTHING wrong with that, cause i am too), you can just call it cornhole. because, as you know, you are throwing a bag of corn into a hole. brilliant.

i'm looking forward to spending time with my sister, and my mom, and then having lunch with my dad on sunday. the 3.5 hour drive is no fun, but i've downloaded a book onto my iphone, so maybe that will keep me occupied while aaron sleeps or drives. not at the same time.

i love home.

i have a problem with this.

i love my dog (most days), so every day, i click on this link, to give food to animals in shelters, with hopes that they will be fed until one day someone will take them home.

but more than i will ever love my dog (sorry, duke), i love my mom, sister, grandmothers, gaggle of aunts, female cousins and best girl friends. so i click this link, to give a free mammogram to a woman who can't afford one, or doesn't have insurance.

my problem is this: yesterday ALONE, there were 211,723 bowls of dog food donated to homeless shelters! TWO HUNDRED, ELEVEN THOUSAND, SEVEN HUNDRED AND TWENTY THREE.

and yesterday ALONE, there were 19.2 mammograms donated to women in need. NINETEEN POINT 2.

really? heartbreaking. please make this a favorite of yours, it is so easy to do everyday, it only takes 5 seconds, and it could save a womans life. then click over to the animal page, and feed a dog. but after giving free boob squishes, please.

if we don't save the tata's, who will?

*in honor of my aunt heather, who had an abnormal exam, but is cancer free!
*in honor of my mother's friend diana, who has beat breast cancer!
*in honor of pat, my grandma's sister-in-law, who lost the battle in 1996.
*in honor of mrs. bright, a friends mother, who lost her battle in 2004.