And I Quote...

You see things; and you say 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?'


George Bernard Shaw

A bird doesn't sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.


Maya Angelou

Tid Bits

Today I made mini yellow cupcakes filled with peach and cream cheese centers and topped with butter cream frosting. They were pretty good but the time of year was all wrong. These little delights are meant to be enjoyed in the spring or summer,not the gray days of January. Yes somehow the time of year mattered with this recipe...

I also experimented with dinner-I love making one dish meals but I admit it feels a bit like cheating. I poured one can of chicken broth in a 9X13 glass baking dish. I added 2 cups of orzo pasta,2 cups of frozen broccoli and 3 chicken breasts on top. I seasoned it all with dry Italian dressing mix,covered it with foil and baked it in a 350 oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes. It was soo good! I think we like orzo pasta!

2 for 2,not bad.

It was brought to my attention that I had an ad covering my blog. After much trial and error I have removed all the background gibberish and have settled for a simple layout via blogger. It seems I have fixed the problem but if I have not,let me know!

I know all my faithful readers have tolerated a lot of puppy talk and photos......

.....
.....
I would say it'll get better but...
It probably won't. haha

She is so adorable it's hard not to take a million photos a day! These days Maxine is a wild and crazy girl! She is such a typical puppy-she eats,she potties,she plays,she sleeps and then she does it all over again. I cannot let her out of my sight as she is curious and gets into everything she can reach or potties on the rug. I have had a lot of time off this week and I see how easily time flies when you are chasing and playing with a puppy all day! I am soaking up every moment of the precious time as I know she will grow up before I know it! I need to start planning a puppy shower but I have no idea where to start. It's really all food and some cute invitations right? ANY help would be muchly appreciated :)

So I will leave you with some new photos of Maxi

 

Also a pic of the adorable cake Vern got me for my birthday,THANKS BABY!!

33

Today I am 33.
For my birthday I took the day off.
Besides chasing Maxi,cleaning puppy potty (still working on the potty training) and washing dishes..
 I drank coffee in bed and watched TV until sometime around 1pm.
Then I took a long hot shower and allowed myself to use a lot of hot water.
I deep conditioned my hair,pampered my feet and shaved and scrubbed 32 away.
Ahh,a new woman!
I put on a comfortable outfit and a bit of make up.
Vern cooked an amazing steak dinner and bought me a very cute cake!
Trevor and my friend Tara joined us,it was a mellow fun time.
Just as I wanted :)
We talked,laughed and ate until we were too full for words.
Our entertainment was watching Chipper and Maxine learn to play together.
Chipper is such a patient big brother,I am so proud of him!
I spent the rest of the evening with the man I love more than words.
Then,I gave Maxine her first bath here at home in the kitchen sink.
She didn't really like it much but she smells better ha ha
 We all snuggled in bed and watched TV.
Perfect ending to a perfect day :)
If this is how 33 will be,
I'll take it.

Welcome Home Maxine!

We are proud to announce the arrival of Maxine to our home!

We brought her home Friday and spent a long weekend snuggling with her and introducing her to her new family.

She is fluffy little bit of Heaven.

We love her so much!

Everything about her is perfect from her tiny black heart shaped nose to her little curly tail.

At 11 weeks old she is already potty pad trained,such a smart girl!

Last night she cried at bedtime,so I took her out of her crate and let her sleep with us.

I swore I wouldn't..I caved after 30 seconds.

It went great,she slept on my head and in the crook of my neck...

 until I woke up at 4:30 am to feel her trying to play with my hair.

OK more like eat my hair.

Then Vern woke up at 5:50 am to take her potty.

THEN,guess who thought it was playtime?! ha ha

Thankfully she humored us until 7:30am.

Mommy left for work and Daddy stayed home with the kids.

Our sweet little snuggle baby had turned into a playful toddler overnight!

I think she's starting to feel at home :)

Tomorrow is the real test.

She will be left alone for the first time (besides a little practice).

In her crate and no humans for an hour.

THEN her first day getting "babysat" by "Uncle Del".

Yes,I am leaving my new baby with a legally blind man.

No really..she'll be fine

.......

right?

Lol

Welcome Maxine,Maxi,Max.

Thank you for coming and completing our family

:)

Nesting

Today I cleaned out 2 closets.

I took out 3 bags of my old clothes,1 bag of men's clothes and 3 bags of garbage.

I stored everything else neatly in the closets.

"Hello closet floors!

I have missed you!"

I have finally arranged the house to accommodate Maxine.

Her pink crate is filled with a soft cushy bed and pillow (all Care bear theme of course).

I found a pink shoulder bag I got in Hawaii a few years ago. It's pink and is the perfect size for toting her around with me. Baby slings are $30-60! I am so glad I avoided that purchase!

The office has been rearranged to make her a "potty spot" until she learns to go outside like her big brother.

(Right now she is potty pad trained and hasn't been outside much.)

Now to vacuum up any last minute bits of choke hazard that I might have missed..

and we're ready.....?

Not quite.

We still needed a few supplies.

Off to Walmart we went,

my oh so patient and supportive boyfriend and I.

Potty pads-check

Food bowls-check

Dog brush-check

Dog stairs (she will be too small to get on and off the bed and furniture without them)-check

Pink fuzzy baby blanket-check

Puppy hair bows and accessories (found in the baby hair stuff for super cheap)-check

Mini pink hot glue gun and glue sticks for future accessory making-check.

OK now we're ready.

:)

It's A Girl!

We have finally found our puppy! We will bring little Maxine home this Friday! She is an 11 week old Maltese female.

My prayers were answered when I found the nicest woman with a litter of puppies for adoption in a near by town!
Vern and I went  to meet the owner and puppy a few days after Christmas and we fell immediately in love. This puppy is the sweetest little snuggle baby I have ever seen. It didn't take us long to decide. ha ha
We all felt it was best that we leave Maxine with her doggy Mom for a few more weeks. She still had a little growing up to do and we had a house to puppy proof! The Christmas tree has now been put away,our bedroom has been rearranged to accommodate her pink crate,Vern painted the kitchen and hung the new light/fan fixture and we have removed/vacuumed and dusted every inch of the house for any possible choke hazards or disasters. Today I visited the local doggy boutique and bought her a pink striped hand knit sweater and a light pink coat made of the snuggly-est fabric you have ever felt. It feels ssoooo gooood to finally have a little girl to spoil with pink and girlyness! I am anxiously counting down the days until Friday...3 1/2 to be exact. Here are some of the pictures from our first meeting with Maxine and her owner.

Many more pictures to come! Plus, I will be sure to catch up about the holidays and show off my new kitchen :)

3 Days Til' Christmas

3 days til' Christmas and here I sit.

The wind outside has blown for weeks and the gusts have gotten up to almost 60 mph.

Tonight is no exception.

I had a fun and busy weekend!

Jessica came to visit from Idaho and we did a little pre holiday celebrating.

We stayed up late talking and catching up.

We went to Zoo Lights at the Point Defiance Zoo with Tara and her kids.

It was amazing but so busy and full of overstimulated children!

Oh good times.

Then we had a Scentsy/work Christmas party at my house on Saturday.

It wasn't a huge money making success but it was fun to hang out with my girlfriends.

We ate,drank and exchanged gifts until almost 9 pm.

I was sad to see Jessica go on Sunday but it was time to return to work..

2 busy days of work and I was EXHAUSTED!

I fell asleep last night at 8:30 and didn't wake up until 10:30 this morning.

I guess I really was tired!

Jessica got me a tea pot and loose leaf tea to try.

Very yummy looking tea but I have yet to try it.

I will report more on this later..

She also got me started on Scentsy.

It's a flame less wax warmer.

I love that it turns on and off with a switch and no hassling with messy tea lights anymore!

The scents are amazing and the variety is surprising.

My house smells like a fresh Christmas tree with a hint of cinnamon.

It's heavenly.

Last but not least..

Tonight we brought home our "new"car.

It's replacing Vern's Jetta that has become high maintenance.

It's a 97' Toyota Camry.

Despite needing a few repairs it's in great condition.

We will be selling the Jetta and the Caravan eventually.

1 truck,1 van,2 cars,a camper and a boat is too much!

One last thing..

My resolution for 2011 is to "grow up".

Time to make our house a home.

Time to concentrate on savings.

Time to work more and play harder.

Time to face health issues.

Time to face Cancer...again.

Time to...but it's so hard to say it....

Quit. Smoking.

Time to prepare for a long healthy future with my soul mate.

If I don't get  back on here in time...

Blogger Friends,

Thanks for reading

:)