From Chicago...An appropriate picture for the day.

Because she's like our baby, here are some more pics of Dixie girl...

I'm a lazy bird dog...

Borrowing my neighbor Aidan's chair...

What are you lookin' at, Mom?

As close as I'm getting to that crazy Maddie dog...

Can you see me now?

We're having fun. Maddie has been so, so good with the pup. She looks worried when Dixie whines in her kennel, but she doesn't yet like her enough to let her play with her toys! She growls a bit at Dixie when she tries to steal her toys from her, but so far she hasn't been too harsh at all. Dixie likes to chase Maddie around, but she's not even close to fast enough yet! It's pretty amusing, especially when she hits the hardwood and her long back legs go out from under her! Unfortunately, Will has to leave on a trip tomorrow, so the pup will be home alone during the days. My sweet neighbor is going to come let her out in the middle of the day so she won't be crossing her legs when I get home from work! I won't only blog about the dog from now on, but I will post pictures and such periodically because we have family that wants to see our new addition!

Here she is!

Meet Dixie.





We're very tired after a long, crazy day of travel yesterday, but we're so glad to finally have our pup!

Rain, rain, go away...Please don't follow us to another state!





So, it rained our first day in Chicago, but we had fun anyway. We walked around, window shopped, browsed through a few, and had lunch. Then we napped (since we had to leave our house at 3:30 in the morning). We had dinner at a bar/restaurant right by our hotel (so we didn't get soaked - no umbrellas!). Good food, good conversation, and GREAT service. It was funny how we both immediately noticed how nice our server was, when really she wasn't going above and beyond her job description. It was just such a change from the rudeness we have experienced in WA. All in all, it was a great first day. We're off to museums today, with a little Navy Pier thrown in along the way (if we can fit it in between the pizza, steaks and Chicago style hot dogs we're wanting to try...). Tomorrow is our last day here. We'll probably hit Michigan Ave. in the morning, then we're heading to a White Sox game. They're playing the Yankees and it's not supposed to rain. Oh, and we can try the hot dogs there if we don't run into a street vendor between now and then!




I'm sure you're thinking, "What a sweet man to sit with his back to the TV so that he can have a nice evening of dinner and drinks with his wife, EVEN THOUGH playoffs are on."




Notice that said wife is sitting across from said sweet husband, and what's behind her? Yep, a mirrored wall. No basketball was missed!

More work outside...

...This weekend we put some sod in our yard. For some reason, which we have never really solidified, the builders in our neighborhood leave a strip around the backyard with no grass - basically like an 18 inch deep flower bed bordering the entire back yard. Weird. It would take TONS of plants to fill it and make it look even somewhat presentable, and then there would be so much weeding to be done. I have wanted to put in sod along the edge to just make the whole thing yard, but I had no idea what sod cost and figured it would be expensive. On a whim (mostly because I'm tired of Maddie tracking in dirt, and I know it will only get worse with two dogs), I called the sod farm just down the street to get a quote. To fill in all of our edge (minus where we planted a few trees and shrubs) and to add some sod to edge of the patio we built last year was going to cost...$45.38. Not bad! We picked up the sod on Saturday morning, took about two hours to lay it all down, cut it, water it, and admire our work. Our yard is looking a little yellow compared to the new grass, but we're hoping fertilizer and watering will help that out. Not a bad result for half a day's work.



In other news, my husband is a soccer player. This is not in the realm of his usual athletic activities - golf, basketball on Sunday nights, the occasional racquetball game. Nonetheless, he is helping his squadron's team to a base championship game, and it's really kinda fun to watch. I didn't take pictures at the last game (which was cold but not wet) but here's a few from the previous game. You can see where I sat to watch. Hey, I'm supportive, but not crazy.

Here's a pic of our new pup! We'll get her after our trip to Chicago. She's seven weeks old now, so she'll be a little over nine when we get her. We originally didn't get a pup from this litter, but we got a call yesterday that a family had to back out of their deposit and we were next in line for a female!



This other picture is of her dad. She'll have the same coloring when she gets older. I think she's just precious, and I'm excited to have another puppy in the house! Will is thrilled to finally have his bird dog. Of course, I'll post more pictures once she actually joins the family.



Oh, and as of this moment, she doesn't have a name. I'll let you know that as soon as I know it!

Been thinkin'...

This weekend I had a lot, a lot, of think time. Will has been gone and there was yard work to do. So much yard work that my fingers keep slipping on the keys because my arms are shaky - that day-after shakiness that is accompanied by very sore muscles that are screaming for a hot bath (but are being ignored because I have to go to work in a few minutes). I weeded, planted, transplanted, spread mulch, mowed, edged and Home Depot-ed. I was so tired last night I could have gone to bed at 7 pm. I did all of the work iPod free. I'm not sure why other than I like to hear if Maddie is barking so I can tell her to hush so as not to bother the neighbors. I did see those neighbors out in their yards doing similar things, although the wives came over to chat (with clean hands...) while the husbands worked. Would have been nice, but at least I got the work-out and the sun (yes, there was sun...not warm sun, but sun nonetheless).

So, while I was thinking here's what I thought:

-I can't wait to go to my cousin's wedding in Michigan in a few weeks. The weather should be beautiful and we'll get to spend a lot of time with family. I'm envisioning cook-outs and lots of lounging. We're spending the first two nights of our trip in Chicago because Will has never been. I love Chicago and can't wait to share it with him.

-I think I have decided which vehicle I would like to get. We think we'd better go ahead and replace my car while we can and hope to avoid two car payments, at least for two years. More on this after I test drive...(I like to make up my own mind about these things, with Will's input, and there are so many car snobs - not all [6] of my reading faithful, of course - and I want to go form my own, uninfluenced except for professional reviews, opinion. Know what I mean?)

-I'm more than ready for Will to get home. Hopefully it will be late tonight/middle of the night, or at least by when I get home from work tomorrow.

-If I had about three thousand dollars to spend on our yard it would be gorgeous and functional and much more maintenance-free. Instead, it is pretty, still functional, but requires some (lots of) work. I can live with that. It got me outside all weekend and I really, really enjoyed finished products. One thing's for sure - It looks a WHOLE lot better than it did on Friday!

-I don't want to work this week. But I have to. Let's hope those sixth graders are ready to see me two more days! Friday with this class went okay, but it could be much better. I am counting on them to make that choice today, and I'm going to do everything I can to facilitate that. This is a group of really good, funny kids, who have been plagued with a less-than-stellar regular teacher. It's too bad. Hopefully today's sunshine will be felt inside as well!

I hope you have sunshine, too.

I just finished sewing a table runner for a friend. She wanted to pick the fabric and the embellishment, but she doesn't sew. I put it on my table just to see how it turned out, and now I think I might just have to make one for myself! The only problem is that with about an inch left to hem, my sewing machine fell apart. A part (the one that holds the needle...kind of essential) literally fell off, so I tried a quick fix to get the last inch sewn, but there's still an extra piece I can't figure out how to get back on. I think I'll try the internet for a solution. Until then, the machine will be retired to the closet...I've used up all of my creative juice for one day, anyway.

It's cold. And raining. And it looks like it'll be this way for days...still. I've started taking a vitamin D pill in addition to my multivitamin after many suggestions (and literature on the internet like this: "It is very important for individuals with limited sun exposure to include good sources of vitamin D in their diet."). I'm an individual with limited sun exposure. Maybe I can find a support group for that..."Hi, I'm Amy, and I don't get much sun." Choral response: "Hi Amy!" At this point, I'm not ruling it out.

Netflix...I should get two movies on Tuesday. I spent about five minutes setting up the "Movies You'll Love" section, rating movies I've seen and such. It's like it's in my mind. The first movie that popped up as a movie they know I'll love is Goonies. Like I said, it's as if they are in my mind. I thought I'd do the two week free trial while Will was gone, see some girl movies, then if I see us using it we'll keep the subscription and start getting movies we'll both like. My good neighbor friend uses Netflix and loves it...I know Blockbuster has one of these deals, too, but we don't have a store close enough to use the feature where you can return movies at the store, so we decided Netflix would be the best one for us.

So, do you have it? Love it? Hate it? Just curious...

Google owns me now. I haven't been able to comment for a while now, and I assumed it was because they were going to make me make the switch. And they did. And I'm not happy about it. Argh.

Floor Before: Ugh.





















Floor After: Yay.

Well, I can barely hear myself think because the floor people are here to reinstall our hardwood that has been torn up since November due to leaky doors on the back of our house. I could not be more excited and I'm sitting right here in the living room watching the work, even though it's LOUD. I haven't felt like having people over (except for our special out-of-town visitors!) because of the disarray of the house - all due to the floor. They also had to take up the baseboards around the area where the floor is missing. The subfloor looks terrible and is a dust and dirt magnet. I've been having to vacuum the plywood floor because of all of the mess that gets tracked in from the back doors. The missing floor extends from the living room, through the eating area in the kitchen, past the start of the kitchen cabinets. The kitchen table can't go in the center of the room because of it, and the chair and ottoman in the living room have been at a crazy angle, taking up way more room than they should. All in all, it has been an inconvenience, but it's over TODAY!

On another note, I made a dessert last night that I was somewhat skeptical of, at least, before we tasted it! A while back there was a coupon in the paper for this:
It ended up being just over two dollars. Cheesecake is Will's favorite dessert, and after making it for is birthday I knew it was both expensive and time consuming. I thought I'd give this a try. I had graham crackers/butter/sugar at home to make the crust, so this was a cheap dessert. And surprisingly good. A note to anyone who tries it: Use an electric mixer to whip it up before putting it in the crust. When I opened the tub it was not very smooth, so I whipped it for a minute or two and it turned out to be a perfect cheesecake consistency! It passed the cheesecake connoisseur's taste-test and I even sent a slice in his lunch box for a little midday snack.

That's all I've got for now. I'll have to post some floor pics (before and after) when they are done.

This week is spring break for the school district where I sub, so I've got a week off! Really, it's my second week in a row of no work because I took off last week while we had company. Speaking of that company, here are a few more pics of our week of fun in the sun (well, sun for most of the time)!

We participated in a Chili Cook-Off for Will's squadron. We didn't win. Anna and Matthew gave our chili the thumbs-up, and they're pretty picky, so we thought we were a shoe-in. What we forgot is that we're in the land of Yankee. I think ours might have been a little too spicy for the judges. Maybe next year?


We really enjoyed the Seattle Underground Tour. It was an interesting glimpse into the history of the city - funny tour guides, not too long, and lots of extra info about the area. It's not too expensive, but it is kinda creepy/cobwebby/stinky down there. All in all, I'd say it was worth it. I just wish Will could have gone with us!





Fish market. A must-see for any tourist because of the fame factor. Next time I have an extra fifty bucks, I'm actually going to buy some instead of just watching the spectacle of fish-throwing.


Traditional Pike's pic! Aren't they precious?


Will was able to arrange for us to see a jet. He gave the kiddos a grand tour, including a look out of the hatch at the top of the plane. The view was awesome as in the clear blue sky Rainier was out in all her glory. This really is a beautiful part of the country when you can see it!

I think our guests had a good time. We relaxed, we cooked out, we ate out, we toured, we walked, we saw, we conquered. I had one of the best weeks I've had since moving here.

So the only question I have is...Who's next???

We had a great day yesterday, our first full day of hosting Spring breakers! We had lunch at a local burger joint on the water, where the waitress noticed, "You're not from around here, huh?" Ha! I wonder how many times we'll hear that this week? Later in the afternoon we headed to Seattle for a Sonics game. So, they're not the best, but we had fun. They played the Nuggets and they really held their own there, off an on at least. The arena was nicer than we expected, and we got to see a part of town we hadn't been to before. The arena is right at the base of the Space Needle. To top it off, it was clear out towards the Sound (no views of Rainier today - very cloudy to the East) so we could see across to Bainbridge Island, etc. It ended up being a pretty late night for us, let alone for our visitors whose time zone is three hours ahead! Needless to say, the teenagers are still asleep. Will and I are enjoying coffee, quiet, and hoping the sunshine that greeted us this morning will stick around!

Is it Friday already? Where has the week gone?

I've enjoyed staying busy with subbing, but the house is suffering. I need to get some cleaning done before our guests arrive tomorrow! My niece and her boyfriend are coming for a week! We'll get to do some more touristy things that we've been wanting to do, as well as just hang out and enjoy the Southern accents and great personalities we miss so much. These 2500 miles (from Texas) might as well be half a world away. We're still adjusting to the extreme differences in personalities and culture (read: manners) up here, and it will be nice to get a small taste of home.

I was out in the driveway after mowing the yard on Wednesday and some new neighbors walked by with their two dogs. They stopped to introduce themselves and chat...They're from Arizona and are also having a hard time adjusting. The lady asked me if we new anyone friendly in the neighborhood, so I pointed out houses of people I know. Then she asked me what was the deal with people staring blankly at you when you wave at them. This has been a huge adjustment for us as we like to wave at our neighbors as we drive down the street or walk by with Maddie girl. People just stare at us like they've never seen such a thing, don't know how to respond, and definitely don't like it. I just told the lady that I don't know why they react that way, but we just keep on waving and smiling and let them think what they will. Like I said - it's a different world. Sometimes I wonder if we probably shouldn't let ourselves adjust. Our personalities aren't going to change, and I really don't want to get to a place where I think the way they treat each other up here is better than what we're used to. I tend to think we were raised right.

Oh, and I absolutely think the culture differences are largely weather-related. It's very hard to be happy and outgoing when there's no sun for weeks on end. Yesterday we almost hit sixty degrees. The sun was shining. We had birds on our fence, chirping even. I had the windows open in my car as I ran errands around town. I got home and played with Maddie in the yard. I got teary eyed when I saw the ever-impressive Mt. Rainier. It's so beautiful here, but we haven't been able to enjoy it in a long time. The last time we could comfortably sit outside was when Alicia and Chris were visiting - almost a month ago. So, after years and years in this dreary weather (not year-round, but for about 9 out of 12 months) it's really no wonder people are slow to smile. Thankfully we won't be here that long. I think about 4 years here would be enough at one stretch, but I could come back after a long break in a place where the sun shines a little more often!

Here are some more pictures from our trip to Leavenworth, WA. We had an absolute blast, along with getting some much needed R & R. The place we stayed was amazing. It was our first bed and breakfast experience and it was more than we hoped for - the details added up to a one-of-a-kind vacation. We felt catered to and spoiled, but yet the place wasn't stuffy or snooty at all. These people know how to run an inn.

The B&B - Run of the River Inn


Little details in our room...food for the birds (to leave in the feeder on our balcony), a personal note welcoming us, and a key on a pretty pewter key chain. There were also pears on our pillows. Yum.


More details...Burt's Bees products in the bathroom. Nice!


This is the common room where we had breakfast each morning. They had coffee, tea, cocoa and cider available all day, as well as fresh-baked cookies each afternoon. The staff was very helpful and we ended up hitting some really good restaurants on their suggestions. At first I thought it might be weird or uncomfortable to all eat together, but it was great. Breakfast was at nine and everyone was still waking up and not too chatty, but just talkative enough to keep the awkward silences at bay. The inn only has six rooms, and they were not all full, so the table always had extra seats. Plus, the breakfasts were so amazing I would have eaten on the floor - fresh fruit, different smoothies each day, shittake mushroom quiche with Swiss Gruyere cheese, caramel apple flan...just to mention a few items on the menu!


One day we took a bike ride into town. The inn has mountain bikes for each room. The loop we took ended up being about eight miles, but the long part was the ride into town. We took a break to shop, snack and wine taste (which is why Will's teeth look purple!) before riding the less than two miles back.


A shot of the town. Really cute shops...Neat places like The Cheesemonger's Shop and Icicle Ridge Winery Wine Shop. It's a small downtown area, about enough to fill one or two days of browsing. However, the food was good enough to fill a week! We got our fill of schnitzel, sausage and red cabbage!


We spent a day skiing at Steven's Pass. It was a blizzard when we got there, and snowed all day long. It let up in the afternoon on the front side of the mountain, but the back side was so windy and cold! I almost wimped out at lunchtime, but I pushed through and we ended up having the best afternoon. It was more than we expected skiing in Washington to be.



Lots of snow!



Brrr.


This last pic is from Will's squadron's welcome home party. We somehow left without taking any pictures, so we took this on the street before getting in the car to drive home. It was a nice way to wrap up Will's two weeks off. Good food and good company. Oh, and doesn't he clean up nice?!? My handsome husband (makes up for the goofy, purple teeth, bike helmet picture!). =)

Okay, well, that was LONG! I have a million more pictures because it was just that much fun. It wasn't too hard of a transition back to real life, though, because my husband's home - much better than what my "real life" has been like the past four months. Life is so good.

So, Charla gets something cute like "Clara Clarke," and I get this...

Your Irish Name Is...

Saoirse MacSween

What's your Irish Name?

Whatever... =)

Gig 'em Ags...


...whew!

Just a few teaser pics from our first day of bliss...Starting with the gift basket in our room, followed by some pictures of our balcony and its view in the middle, and ending with the two of us enjoying some freshly brewed coffee on the swing (I'll have to elaborate on the amazing coffee makers they have in the rooms here later). And yes, folks, that's sunshine. The weather is a whole different ball game up here in the mountains, and thankfully we've timed it just right. And to top it all off, they have a gorgeous Airdale here named Plaka who is ready to accompany you on a walk if you so desire (and I do desire)...it's like a huge version of Maddie girl.






And now I'm lounging on the bed, feeling the breeze from the balcony door, enjoying the view. Will is lounging in a chair by the fireplace reading the paper.

Can I just say that we are loving life right now?

Today we're packing for a few days away...



...a few days that will include a stay at a B&B (a first for us) and some snowshoeing. We're going to try to work in a little skiing as well. I'm so looking forward to a few days away in what looks to be the most romantic place we've ever stayed. More to come when we get back from our week in the Cascades.

Quick Update...

Will made it home safe and sound. It was a fun, anxiety-filled afternoon and evening as we waited for them to finally arrive. There were news crews and a huge group from a local middle school to welcome them home. Oh, and lots and lots of cheering family and friends ready to have loved ones back.

Home!

In front of the plane they came in on, the Patriot Express, a charter that carries troops around the world (and most importantly, carries them home!).

This little guy had all of them sign his poster that read, "I enjoyed my freedom today. Thank you." He and his dad came just because they heard troops were getting home. They didn't know anyone there and they weren't affiliated with the school group.

Just to prove the mustache came off! :) Oh, and to show off the Ireland sweatshirt Will picked up for me when they stopped in Shannon, Ireland on their way home.

There will be more pictures to come of our time in Seattle with Alicia and Chris. I'm just sneaking in a blog post while Will is up at base taking care of the few things he needs to do before getting two weeks off!

Tomorrow...he'll be home tomorrow.

Please pray for safe travel. 30 plus hours in transit can't be too fun. Hopefully I'll post some pictures soon of the sweet, sweet homecoming...but then a blog hiatus is in order. I've gotta spend some time with my husband.