Happy Valentine's Day!

Married, engaged, dating, or single, Valentine's Day is for everyone. Yes - it's a commercialized event, but it's also a day where everyone is just a little kinder and a little more thoughtful than usual. Can't we all use a day like that at least once a year?

I hope your day was a good one. On behalf of our family, our three happy canines send their wishes to you!

Where Did January Go?

And when did it become February? Why did time seem to move so slowly when we were young & now it just flies by? I'll take it - if it'll get us closer to the end of the school year!

The dogs are enjoying the nice weather. Of course, they prefer to enjoy it asleep on our leather couches. (Rotten beasts.) Believe it or not, I don't have much to say today. Here's a picture that makes me smile:


Steve with one of his many nasty tennis balls. (on one of the leather couches w/ a pillow of course!)

And one more - Pippin enjoying the "Puppy Bowl" on television today. :)

Sadness for My Friends

Two of my very close friends have lost their moms within the past ten days. Although I can't imagine what they are experiencing right now, my heart just breaks for them. Grief is such a personal thing that one just can't understand until experiencing it. I am blessed to say that I haven't experienced the grief of losing my mother. (Of course I hope I never do, but anyway...)

Their losses, however, have shaken me deeply because I care for them so much and hate that they are hurting. I hope to comfort them through thought & prayer for now, and hope that I can be available to them both in the really tough days to come.

We never know what tomorrow has in store for us. So, I guess we all need to cherish the people and time we have each day. Know that if we're having a bad day, that there is someone out there experiencing something worse. I know I will hug everyone a little tighter right now - especially my mom.

To C & J: Although you probably won't read this, you're both in my thoughts and prayers. As I've already told each of you, I love you and I'm sorry that things are so bad right now. This isn't something you'll ever get over, but it is something you will get through. Let me help when I can. I'm here for you no matter where you are. In IIKE, Kristin

More Home Improvements

C'mon . . . do home improvement projects ever really end??!! Today we finished staining the exterior of our back fence and started on the interior. You can see a definite difference & it looks so much better!


BEFORE


DURING


AFTER


And we had a security system installed the day before the wood was done. Now we're "Protected by Brinks" plus 3 dogs and a cat.




Over the past several weeks, I've painted the front & back hallways, the foyer, & our master bath - both the vanity & wet area. I need to finish the top trim of paint in the halls and I'll post all of the painting I've done. No wonder I'm tired . . .

Not the End of the World

We survived our first week back to school after the Christmas break. It's not the end of the world, but limits our activities & blog fodder! Nothing too exciting here . . . still trying to put the house back together, still nervous about using our new security system, still loving the new look of our home, still feeling crummy (me). Oh, and GO COWBOYS!!!!

We're hoping that Pat & Linda - Todd's dad and his wife - come visit next weekend. We have MLK off, so a long weekend with them would be fun.

I'll close now so I don't bore you to death.

Finally Finished Flooring

Our wood was installed this morning, thus ending our forever-feeling-flooring-frenzy! They look fabulous! It only took the guys about four hours to install them. Todd and I have been together over four years, and there has only been slab in that room since then. How quickly things change. Is it odd to be in love with floors? ;)

I wanted to get some photos of the slab before they began, but the worker-guys were so fast that I missed my photo-op while getting dressed. For your viewing pleasure:


Getting started


I was fascinated by the glue patterns. See previous blog entry about me being a freak.


It's down & taped. Time for quarter-round to be set.


Ooooo - pretty!


Our yard has looked something like this a lot lately.


And our house has looked a little like this a lot lately, too. UGH.


We're almost there!


Beautiful! Shot from the kitchen towards the foyer.


Long view from the foyer. And there are not spots on my lens. Must be orbs of angels singing from heaven about our glorious floors. ;)

TGI2008!

Thank goodness it's finally 2008! I told Todd on NYE that "us getting married was wonderful, but 2007 pretty much sucked." So 2008 is official OUR YEAR! After surviving the past several months of losing our babies, multiple family members suffering from illnesses, and more - it's time for a fabulous year!

We spent NYE next door with our neighbors Troy & Janet Dungan. They are such nice, nice people and so are their friends. We were a bit hesitant to attend their black-tie party. As it usually goes, you dread going but are so glad you went. That was the case for us! We met some fun, nice, and interesting people. We stayed until around 11:00pm and headed to the home of other friends. We rang in the new year with very little fanfare, but we were with our friends (and Vegas buddies) Troy & Amy and Michael & Sonya. It was a late night/early morning, but it didn't matter because 2007 is over! :)

Whatever you did or did not do, Todd and I wish you all a very happy and blessed 2008.