Shed and Puppy

Yes the shed and puppy are the only big happenings in life right now, so that is what I blog about. Now that the weather is nice, we are working on outside projects and hopefully planting the garden soon! Here are just a couple pics for y'all.

There is really more progress than this. 90% of the sheathing is up and the rafters and roof are up with tar paper on so far. I am SO EXCITED for the shed to be finished and shelves to go up. Then I have something new to organize and plan and then I can move on to the garage and I just can't contain my excitement. I LOVE TO ORGANIZE!!! This is just thrilling to me to have new projects to work on.

Here is Steve and his little girl Penny. They are still just best of buds.

Little Miss Penny after a bath. She was in trouble before her bath, but too cute to be mad at afterwards. We were trying to keep her warm. Cuddling after a bath makes bath time an enjoyable experience right?
Brayden and and Penny meet again. They both get SO overly excited to see each other. We have to be very careful to watch Penny so she doesn't pounce and trample Brayden, who adores her, but doesn't want her too close. We've only gotten to pet her one time. Usually he is happy watching her from afar and announcing over and over to anyone who will listen "dog, dog." Such a cute pair these two are.

And again, Penny rolling around playing with Steve being all crazy together.
Ok that's all for now on the shed and the dog. Until next time....

Life with Penny

Penny and Steve were very fast friends. He is such a softy when it comes to her, but also better at knowing how to correct her than I am. But I am learning with his help!

Penny's first bath. She was a BAD puppy this day and had poop ALL over her and the kennel when Steve got home. He just sprays her off with the hose (he comes home in between work and appts), but I won't touch her until she gets a proper bath. She is not a huge fan, but we are trying to make it not too traumatizing so when she is 120lbs she isn't out of control!

Oh the cuddle bugs. She LOVES it when she gets to be cuddled like a baby. Steve is the WORST when it comes to picking her up to cuddle her and place her on his chest.

Such a weird sleeper. This is one of the most amusing positions.

Ok, on occasion I can't help cuddling with her too. She is just so darn cute!

Here is a little before and after action. She is 10 weeks in the picture above.

And just a week later at 11wks you can see she is GROWING like a weed! She won't be our "little" girl for much longer. I'm going to miss this little puppy size!

Anyhow, there is an update:) We think she is starting to make a small improvement when it comes to housebreaking, but we'll see how she does when we go back to work this week.

Family of Three

After A LOT of research and discussion... we took the plunge! We are now a family of three and Steve is out numbered. Still struggling to chose a name, but I'll give you an update when we finally decide.....

.................. and the results are in. Her name is PENNY MELIZA!

Welcome to the family Penny, Pig Pen, Pen...


Bravely wandering out of her kennel for the first time in her new home.

Getting acquainted



Starting to discover her surroundings.


Not quite used to wearing a real collar. She only wore a green ribbon around her neck for the first 8 weeks.
Look at that sweet face.


Her favorite. We CANNOT get her to keep her feet out of the dishes while she is eating or drinking. Perhaps they are just too big for her at this point. Not for long, she's a fast growing girl!

Thanksgiving in April

Way back in February for my Dad's birthday, I gave him more of an invite than a gift. I told him I would make him whatever dinner he wanted, for whomever he wanted and whenever he wanted. So April just happened to be the day we were all available, and Dad decided he wanted Thanksgiving. Partly, because it's delicious, and partly to give me a challenge. See the results below! It was my first Thanksgiving and I think it went marvelously well.




Though it was Thanksgiving dinner, I wanted a Springtime table. Bright and colorful and fun! I love decorating for parties and setting pretty tables.


The table centerpiece

Little details. Oh it was the first time we got to use our fancy China we got for our wedding thanks to Steve's parents. I LOVE the china and was so excited to get to use it.

Here we are busy cooking away. I sported my cute "party" apron. Keeps me lookin' cute even though I have an apron on. Another wedding gift actually, and I simply adore it.

Here's the spread. It's enough for an army! Everyone was sent home with leftovers.

Brayden was excited to get up in his chair but then found himself sitting at the head of the table all alone while the rest of us loaded up our plates.

The BEAUTIFUL and DELICIOUS pie that Steve made for dessert. It's just so pretty and tasted wonderful.

And since it was technically a birthday party/present... we sang.

Eat up!

Typical after-Thanksgiving-pass-out session happening. Except Brayden was actually just buzzing from one person to another busy as a bee.

It was a fun time had by all! A nice no pressure way to try making my first Thanksgiving too! And we were only 30 min later than my original goal. Not to bad I'd say.

Shamrock Run!

So here's the deal. I run. Some. Probably should really call it jogging. But running sounds more much more impressive. But truthfully, I jog. Why do I do it? In an attempt to stay in shape, hopefully shed some pounds, and justify the occasional indulgence of Mint Oreo Blizzards at DQ.

Jogging is not something I love while I'm doing it, but I always feel better after and have a sense of accomplishment. So recently, I was peer pressured into signing up for the Shamrock Run. In reality I knew I could cover the distance (5k which equals 3.1 miles I believe) yet feared I'd be the one on the news crossing the finish line by myself, last. But I got over my sillyness, and signed up.

Glad I did it. It was my first real "race" of any kind and it was surprisingly FUN!

I went down to the Convention Center Saturday morning at 8:45 to pick up my bib and shirt. It was a ZOO already down there with the 32,000 racers there to pick up their stuff and also some kind of cheerleading event happening for what looked like a bunch of 13 year old girls who needed about 6 more inches on the length of their skirts. But I survive and stared planning my race day attire.

It was a tough decision because I wanted to stay dry before the race, not overheat during the race and keep warm after. Turns out I picked JUST the right stuff to wear.

Here is me at home in my running gear. Excited and nervous for the events to start!

My carpool buddies getting their bibs on. Allie on the left and Jessica on the right, the one who peer pressured us into racing today, and our resident motivational speaker.

Me getting my ankle timer thing on. Thanks for the flattering angle Allie ;)


And a close up of the ankle timer. Ha ha, it makes me laugh that Allie took these pictures.


Us is all of our pre-race beauty (and apparently supporting Nike very well in this picture)


WE FINISHED!!!!!!!!! HOORAY! This is me and Suzanne. She was my running buddy, we stuck together til the end (until she got a boost of wild energy and sprinted across the finish line). Ha ha, my legs would not cooperate to sprint but I made it none-the-less.

And lastly, all of our team the Frolicking Leprechauns after a successful race! Nicely done ladies. Can't wait for next year!

Revolve Tour

I got to attend a little part of The Revolve Tour this weekend. It's intended for teen girls but I LOVED it! Awesome event and very fun to see my cousin up on stage. What a blessing to see how God is working in her life.

Miss Sophia, doing her thing as a part of the worship team.

Tiffany Thurston and Soph up on stage. Beautiful ladies, beautiful voices.


The whole worship team.


This one has to be my favorite. Soph and Grandma Faye backstage while there is a Rap/Hip-Hop band up on stage (Group 1 Crew). Leave it to Gram to make backstage at 93 years old during a Hip-Hop concert.

Fun with Brayden

Got to have a fun play day with with sister and Brayden this week.

Oh I see you have a camera in your hand. Did you know I LOVE to play with those? And I think it's a kick in the pants to look at myself on them too!

Sure I'll ham it up for ya! I just love to play and be busy :)

Oh my Auntie Christine. These are awfully fun sunglasses you have.


OOOOO-weeee, I can't hardly stand it. This is a fun game!


I am one cool cat.

Ohhhh, acting a little shaky here. Not so sure about the cool factor....



...ooohhhhh, and it's back. Yep, you only wish you could be as cute as me. These sunglasses ROCK!

Thanks for a fun play date dude.