Christmas is fast approaching

Thanksgiving came so quickly. We had already started Christmas shopping. We are more than half done. Our tree went up on Thanksgiving. Richard spent hours strategically placing our Christmas lights on our house weeks before Thanksgiving. But we forgot one important step in the process of preparing for Christmas: cards.

In the past, we started planning weeks before Thanksgiving. We always do a photo card.

2006 - Richard and I relaxing on the couch

2007 - our wedding picture

2008 - 5 month old Christian

Of course Christian was going to be the star of this year's card, but we had not planned anything.

So the Sunday after Thanksgiving we bought a large silver ball ornament and a big plastic candy cane. We dressed Christian in his nicest polo, drapped a white sheet over the couch and attempted to have a little photo session.

Between our delayed point and shoot camera and Christian's inability to sit still, none of the pictures are card worthy. Christian loved to hit the ornament with the candy cane and at one point turned the candy cane on us! This, however, is my favorite picture.

We chose instead a picture my dearest friend Molly took of Christian a few months back. She always takes the most brilliant and beautiful pictures of my son, capturing his personality and light.

So I proudly present the outakes of our botched photo session:

State Fair 2009

View from the Space Tower:

Foods Consumed by Richard and me:

• Pronto Pup
• French Fries
• Cheese Curds
• Deep Fried Oreos
• Deep Fried 3 Musketeers
• Hot Dish on a Stick
• Deep Fried Banana Split
• Corn
• Taffy
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Litter Box Woes

My poor cats deserve a new litter box. They have been sharing the same box for roughly four or five years. For a short time, I was not cleaning it enough, so they started using the litter catching mat in front of the box as a second litter box when the litter box was full. (I didn't know they were doing this until a week ago). So I threw out the nasty stinky mat. Bought them a new bright, pretty, filtered litter box, a new mat, and a new scooper. The new box has a hinged door to help control the smell and litter spillage. (The old box once had a door, but they broke it off after a few months).
I took Elvis and Maddy down to the basement. Showed them the box. Put them in the box. Showed them how the door swung open and closed. I showed them each twice.
I thought we were all happy. No smelly dirty box. Fresh sleek plastic. Brand new litter. Nice new mat.
Then there was a smell...
An uninvited smell where there shouldn't be a smell.
A poopy smell...
....in the dining room.
At four a.m., Richard woke me up frantic because he noticed the smell (I noticed it the night before but thought it was Logger's gassy behind).
So we searched, me half awake for the origin of the icky odor.
Richard discovered it. Hidden between the wall and the bookcase where we keep the spare high chair cover and the awning to Christian's first car seat (forgot that was there). The cats had made their own litter box in desperation. So we scrubbed and washed and washed and washed and washed the fabrics and the floor (thank God they missed the carpet).
We figured out the cats couldn't figure out how to enter the litter box. The hinged door was a barrier to their sanctuary. Pushing their head against it to go in and out was just too much (don't forget they have used a hinged litter box door in the past). So I removed the protective door.
And I checked tonight: they are using the litter box. Yeah!

Mr. & Mrs McWoolery!

I wish I had more pictures of Michelle and Chris's special day. My husband decided it would be better to rely on Molly's camera rather than take pictures with ours. True, Molly does take awesome pictures, but now I have none to share on my blog...besides these adorable ones of Michelle! And I finally got a picture of Ryan! Woo Hoo

Putting up the baby gate

What a pain in the ass this was! Richard got it up though. The poor cats haven't figured out how to get around it which has made for some amusing acrobatic moves by Maddy. Hee hee. We usually leave it open unless Christian is on the move.

Easter Bunnies are Mean

Martinis and a Bride To Be

17 March

Lots going on today.....

St. Patrick's Day.....

Ryan's 30th birthday....

and

Logger's 2 year anniversary of joining our family....

The day we brought Logger home

Richard and I were running errands on March 17, 2007. We had been talking about getting a dog since we bought our house six months earlier. We decided to go to the animal shelter to just "look". We met two dogs there. Logger and an older yellow lab. The yellow lab was very sweet and we were very close to adopting him. He had hip problems and would have had a hard time maneuvering all the stairs in our split level house. We decided to meet Loggerhead. Logger and his brother (Turtleshell) were by far the cutest puppies there. Turtleshell was barking nonstop while Logger sat next to him, tail wagging feverishly.

In the room, Logger played with Richard and me. He immediately climbed into Richard's lap. Richard instantly adored him. Our final test was to see how he would react to cats. The staff let out one of the cats who was familiar with dogs. Logger ignored the cat the whole time. So we made our donation and brought Logger home.

If you have ever been to my house or had the pleasure of babysitting Logger, you know he is a crazy dog. He does everything except ignore my poor cats. In fact he herds them to where he thinks they belong. He is convinced they are going to steal his bones or his precious Chicken (rubber dog toy). He is also the sweetest dog you will ever meet. He loves everyone and insists on kissing you. He loves Christian. For the first 5 months, Logger never missed a diaper change. He would never let the cats near Christian. Every morning Logger has to say hello to Christian. And when Christian and I arrive home at night, Logger has to lick Christian. He sneaks Christian kisses every chance he gets.

Let me back up....Logger had a rough start at our house. A week after our wedding (April 2007), Logger ate a bottle of Aleve. My friend Kelli rushed Logger and me to the animal hospital. Logger spent two days hooked up to tubes, receiving fluids and antibiotics. It was one of the scariest two days of my life. Even though Logger was still a fairly new addition to my life, he was my constant companion. Richard had begun driving over the road and was gone for two weeks a time. Logger kept me occupied and made me feel safe. I wasn't ready to lose him. $2000 later Logger walked out of the hospital healthy and happy.

Logger is the fastest dog I have ever met. He out runs every dog he meets. It is amazing to see him cut corners and race around trees.

Logger has a long list of things he has consumed. The Aleve bottle was just the beginning. He has eaten a leather journal, multiple pairs of shoes, my dental mouth guard, gum, a tube of bactracin, stuffed animals, all the cat toys in our house, baby formula, most recently seven chocolate covered granola bars, and much much more.

I can't stay angry with Logger. He is so sweet and loving. He is my best friend. He keeps me sane while Richard is working. Just when I think I am at my breaking point, Logger is there. He comforts me, he loves me. He is my best friend. I am so excited for Christian to grow up with Logger. I know they will be the best of friends.

Logger 2008 and a pregnant me (this was after Antonio accidently gave me a black eye with a frisbee)

Logger 2009

Logger relaxing on Christian's Boppy pillow

Vroom Vroom!

Richard and I purchased a new car. A 2008 Dodge Caliber. I have never owned a car in the 2000s nor had a car under 75,000 miles (I don't count Richard's truck since he bought it before he met me and I rarely drove it). We traded in Richard's Ford Ranger. (The kicker is we learned as we were about to leave the dealership that they already had Richard's truck sold.)
Richard now gets the pleasure of driving my 1998 Ford Taurus to work. He isn't too happy about it and the guys at work are giving him a hard time, but he is excited for me. And he feels better knowing Christian and I are in a more reliable car.
I love my new car!
What I love about my new car:

• It sits higher than my Taurus
• It only has 12,000 miles!
• The body style
• The tire pressure monitoring system
• There's a cooler in the glove compartment!
• CD player, IPod holder, built in Satellite stereo, direct IPod connector
• More cupholders!

What I miss about my Taurus:

• Lumbar support
• Automatic climate control
• Automatic headlights (I keep forgetting to turn on my headlights because I never had to in my Taurus!)

Below is my actual car taken from the Fury Dealership website. The color is Dark Khaki Metallic. I was a little unsure about it especially since the salesman called it Gold. I really like it now.

Happy Birthday Jack!

Jack is joyful.

Jack is playful.

Jack is infectious with his laugh.

Jack is cuddly.

Jack is silly.

Jack is adorable with his dark eyes and contagious smile.

Jack is precious.

Jack is two today.

My "Mom" Cut