Tuesday, December 24, 2013

12 things


Hello, my neglected blog.  Lots has happened since I last posted. I'm not going to attempt to catch up.  I'll just start from here.

It's Christmas Eve!   We have eaten and are sitting around watching "A Christmas Story," so I thought I'd take the time to post something I saw on Facebook. 

12 things about the way I celebrate Christmas...

1.   The Big Man and I were engaged around Christmas of 1988.  We bought a teddy bear with the year on it that year and vowed to buy one each year on....and we have!  We bought #26 this year.  So here are numbers 1 and 26. 


2. We read the Christmas story from Luke 2 as a family before going to bed on Christmas Eve.  I love it in the King James, so we use the Bible that was my late grandmother's. 

3. We always attend the Christmas Eve service at church.  It is my favorite service of the year.  Tonight was no different.  T. Willy's favorite carol is "Angels We Have Heard on High."  They sang it at church tonight, and we all loved watching our sweet boy belting it out.  I smile just thinking about it. 

4. My favorite Christmas movies are "A Christmas Storyl" and "It's a Wonderful Life."  I've directed both of them as plays.  

5. We have appetizers for our Christmas Eve meal every year.  T. Willy is picky and MK became a vegetarian this year, so we had a lot of variety tonight.  

6. We have hash for Christmas breakfast every year - other things too - but always hash. 

7. After the Christmas service, we drive around looking at lights. This year it seemed that a lot of people didn't put up lights.  Kind of sad. 

8. Christmas color of red and green are my two favorite colors.  

9. My mom did Christmas right.  I never feel that I can live up to the way she did it. 

10. T. Willy usually sleeps in MK's room on Christmas Eve. This year he has decided not to do that.  Sad face. 

11.  Our Christmas tree is more sentimental than fancy.  We try to get ornaments whenever we go somewhere new, and we have some from when the Big Man was a kid  I love them. 

12. In 1992, I think, I nearly ended the bear tradition. We didn't buy one that year.  The next year we bought a generic bear, and put a 1992 on it.  It's the only year we've faltered.   Whenever the Big Man gets sentimental and talks about the future, he says we need to stay together forever because we "need more bears."  It has become something of a mantra.  They take up a lot of space, but they're meaningful.   

So that was 12.  Merry Christmas!


Saturday, September 14, 2013

Etc....

The school year is going really well.  I love my classes.  We are busy busy busy, but that's nothing new.  T. Willy seems really happy at school, and MK is doing well too. She now gets "on the floor" with customers and is learning new things all the time.  The Big Man is enjoying a rare weekend off and looking forward to a few meetings in Orlando coming up in the next month or so. 

We are still really enjoying the puppy.  She is growing so fast and learning so much.  She is getting spayed this week, so I'm a little nervous about her recovery, but the doctor assures me it will be okay.  

So that's about it.  Pictures!




Sunday, September 01, 2013

All my chicks have come home to roost.

MK's friend, CD, has been living with us for about a month. CD is from Seattle.  This weekend, CD's mom sent them to Seattle for sightseeing and a Taylor Swift concert.  They had a wonderful time, and they're now home again.  

The Big Man and T. Willy and I had a quiet weekend. Tomorrow is the Big Man's birthday.  We celebrated a little tonight. I made one of his favorite meals and a cake.  We will do presents tomorrow. 

Yesterday was puppy school. Emmy did well.  If we could get her to outgrow carsickness, it would be even more enjoyable.  

So here are some shots of her at school. She didn't master "down" as in "lie down," but she rocked the tunnel!!!








Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Newest project.


Before, close up and after!





Saturday, August 24, 2013

Busy days!

Just a random post: school has started for everyone, and we're settling into a routine.  Even Emmy went to puppy training class today!  She will go for 5 more weeks, so we are busy every day!  We start auditions for the fall play on Monday, so that's adding to the craziness. However, it will be over in late October, and then we can relax a little until the spring show begins.  

We had some out of town surprises last week. A friend of the Big Man's from high school was visiting the area, and we had a great dinner out with him and his family. Then a cousin of mine was here, and we had another great time visiting with him and his family. That doesn't happen for us often, so it was especially enjoyable. 

Here are some pictures!









Wednesday, August 14, 2013

The floors are finished!

It took exactly 3 weeks as we were promised!  I am so happy with the job they did, and I am also happy that we are able to put our house back together!  We are finished with the office, living room and T. Willy's room. So here are some pictures. 






Friday, August 09, 2013

Meet the new band

For the past 4 years, we attended "Meet the Band" to watch MK participate.  This year, she sat with me, and we watched together.  It was definitely bittersweet.  We had a great time, and the rain held off  until the very end.

The floors should be finished Sunday. I cannot believe it!!  We're so pleased with them, and we will be thrilled to have our house back to normal.  





Monday, August 05, 2013

24 years today!!!!

Just a picture today.  I started my training, and we went out to eat.  Sushi!!! We're still moving furniture around, but the end is in sight, and we may have our house back to relative normalcy by Monday!!!  

Saturday, August 03, 2013

One room down!

Our bedroom is finished.  We are sleeping in our own room tonight!   T. Willy has been displaced to the office, and we're hoping it's back to some kind of order by the weekend.  I cannot wait.  

So here is a picture.  I'm going to bed...in my own room.  I'm a little relieved, can you tell?

Friday, August 02, 2013

Last day of summer

It's been a fun and busy summer.  Most teachers have one more week, but I am going to some training next week, so I will start that Monday, and we report to school the following Monday.  The summer flew by, but I'll be glad to see the students and my fellow teachers. 

We took Emmy to the vet for the first time yesterday.  She earned a good report, so we are happy about that. She is growing fast and is shaping up to be a good fit for our family.  There are still typical puppy behaviors, but we are really enjoying her.  We spend so much family time outside with her, and I especially love that.  

Our floors are about half finished.   Our house is still upside down, but we are surviving.  Our bed has been in the office for a couple of days. He should start in our bathroom today, so that will be a big relief.  Then just the bathroom and bedrooms on the other side of the house, and it will be finished.  

So here are some pictures of Emmy at the vet and of the flooring progress.  




Wednesday, July 24, 2013

The view from here

This has been the rainiest summer I can remember.  I try to look at the bright side, and I haven't had to water plants in a long time.  The grass is as green as it can be and everything is beautiful.  But, like most things, it has a downside, because we haven't been able to be outside as much as we would like.  With a new puppy, it's tricky.  We are mastering the art of taking her out under the umbrella.  

We had a great downpour today, and it's a really pleasant night.  I'm sitting on my new swing, and I have to say, it's pretty nice.  The upheaval of the flooring plus puppy is manageable, and I'm relaxed after all the furniture moving. (The refrigerator is in the office as I type.). I have wanted a porch swing for years, and between showers, I'm really enjoying it.  The living room was finished today, and we moved some furniture back in, and we are really happy with how it's turning out.  

So here are a couple of pictures of what I can see right now and one of the living room before we put the furniture back in.



The future

MK is a recent high school graduate. For all graduates, the next question is....what now?  Some students struggle with that. MK has not. She has known what she has wanted to do for years, and it's exciting to see her ready to pursue her dream.  

So she will begin cosmetology school next month.  She has never really enjoyed school, so it's a lot of fun to see how excited she is about it. It will take about a year - maybe less - and then she will be able to live out her dream.  

She did makeup for the girls in color guard, and some friends have asked her to do their hair as well.  Last night, she spent the night with a friend and "ombré'd" her hair.  Here it is!

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Monday, July 22, 2013

Because a puppy didn't cause enough chaos....

Our house is 15 years old.  We have had the original carpet and linoleum since we've lived here. They're both in bad shape, and we are able to change them. We considered many different options and decided that tile was for us.  

A friend recommended an installer, and he came yesterday and ripped out some carpet and is now laying tile.  So, in addition to the chaos the puppy has given us, we are in a bit of upheaval with the flooring as well.  At least there is an end in sight, and we are really happy with the tile we've chosen. We are going with one tile throughout the entire house - every single area.  

So here are some pictures of the floors sans carpet and the upheaval it is causing.  




Friday, July 19, 2013

Today's obligatory dog photo of the day

Dog days

That's what our lives are about right now. We have a puppy, and she demands our attention.  She has slept through the last 3 nights, and that has been really nice.  She is a biting machine, though, and my arms are proof of it.  We are working on that.  We've read exhaustively about the breed, and German Shepherds are notorious biters, so we are working through it. 

She loves being outside.  Yesterday we all went in the pool, and we tried her out in it. She was never more affectionate!  She clung to MK, but she did well.  She was outside the whole time we were in the pool, and the she napped for a long time.  Maybe some more of that in the future!

The Big Man and MK continue to work, and T. Willy is a huge help while they're gone.  He is all about rules, and he has many rules for Emmy.  We are trying to explain that she needs to explore and doesn't have to be told "No," constantly. We are all learning.  



Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Puppy days

Having a puppy is like having a mobile baby with sharp teeth.  MK says it's a good thing she's cute.  We are documenting milestones.  She's getting good at sit and slept through the night.  She understands why we go outside so often, but we are still working on her understanding that it's only outside.  

T. Willy is still on the fence about her.  He loves having a dog; he just likes it when she's asleep.  We are enjoying being able to pick her up right now because we know it won't last long. 



Saturday, July 13, 2013

Puppy

It's been two full days, and we are learning our new normal. The puppy is fitting nicely into our family.  We all love her!  MK is certainly the most bonded with her, and T. Willy loves the idea of her, but he's still not 100% comfortable.  He loves to play outside with her, but he doesn't love all the jumping that she does when he is around. 

My sister in law and niece have met her, and we've had a great time playing with her.  My niece starts college next month - big things coming up!!!





Thursday, July 11, 2013

Anticipation...

Today was interesting.  It poured rain for hours!  T. Willy had to have tennis camp inside, but it seemed that he still had a fun time.  He isn't ready for Wimbledon yet, but he has learned a lot and gained a lot of confidence.  

I was looking for a place to make an I.D. tag.  I stopped one place while it was pouring about as hard as it seemed possible.  I just took my flip flops off and rolled up my jeans and walked about the parking lot in bare feet.  The water was up to my ankles. It was crazy.  

I was glad it finally stopped raining, because today was D-day.  D as in dog!  Meet Emerald, or Emmy, as she is known to us.  She is a doll, and MK is amazing with her.  T. Willy is so happy, but he's not quite sure what to do with her yet. He will figure it out soon enough. 

So that's been our day. MK is taking the night shift, but I told her I'd help out if she needed it.  I'd better get some sleep in case she takes me up on it.  Good night!