This is how we found Red after he had been outside on a rainy day. He had a grand ole' time playing in the mud puddles.

Starting Over

Meet Red.



We have had him for a couple of weeks now. He's about 13 weeks old and he and Clive have the same dad. Red is proving to be very smart, but also fiesty and stubborn...but he's growing on us.

Man's Best Friend

On October 31, 2009, we lost our beloved dog Clive. He was not even two years old. He had surgery on his left hip on Sept. 10 and after that he had a new complication every week. They did another surgery to remove some dead muscle and put in drains. The vets worked hard to keep the infection down, and Clive remained at the hospital for the last 2 weeks of his life. His white blood cell count went down and things were looking up. On the morning of Halloween we were supposed to go pick him up and bring him home for the weekend. The vet called us and said that Clive had taken a turn for the worse overnight and they needed to amputate his leg in order to keep the infection from spreading. They went into surgery around 11:30am. About an hour later, we learned that Clive had gone into cardiac arrest on the table and they were unable to save him. He had been through so much over the past few months and his body just couldn't handle it. He had also begun losing muscle in his front right leg, which leads us to believe he had some sort of muscular/joint disorder. I know that he is at peace now, but that doesn't make it any easier. I miss his sweet spirit around the house. I miss seeing him on the back porch when I pull into the driveway. I miss him putting his face on the side of my bed in the morning. I miss him running to the door when I get home from work. I miss his sweet face. I miss my friend.

Gag Reflex

This is hilarious.

Wouldn't It Be Nice

In honor of my 4 year wedding anniversary tomorrow, I'd like to dedicate this post to the Beach Boys who so perfectly put in to words all the feelings I had in the 7 years Tom and I dated before we got married:

Wouldn't it be nice if we were older
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long
And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong

You know its gonna make it that much better
When we can say goodnight and stay together

Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up
In the morning when the day is new
And after having spent the day together
Hold each other close the whole night through

Happy times together we've been spending
I wish that every kiss was neverending
Wouldn't it be nice

Maybe if we think and wish and hope and pray it might come true
Baby then there wouldn't be a single thing we couldn't do
We could be married
And then we'd be happy

Wouldn't it be nice

You know it seems the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it
But lets talk about it
Wouldn't it be nice

Speak to Me

Do you ever hear a song that just speaks to you or pulls at your heart? I love music, so this happens to me fairly frequently. Most recently, it has been this song by Casting Crowns. The song is called Praise You in This Storm. I think one of the reasons I like it is because the bridge is one of my favorite scriptures. Funny enough, the reason it's one of my favorites is because it's what the Mother Superior says to Maria in The Sound of Music, which I use to watch multiple times a day when I was 5 years old. It also happens to be my favorite movie of all time. Check out the song on itunes. Here are the lyrics that for whatever reason, have really affected me:

I was sure by now, God You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away, stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say "Amen" and it's still raining.

As the thunder rolls, I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you".
And as Your mercy falls, I raise my hands
And praise the God who gives, and takes away.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

I remember when, I stumbled in the wind.
You heard my cry to You and raised me up again.
But my strength is almost gone.
How can I carry on if I can't find You?

As the thunder rolls, I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you".
And as Your mercy falls, I raise my hands
And praise the God who gives, and takes away.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

I lift my eyes unto the hills, where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

I'll praise You in this storm, and I will lift my hands.
You are who You are, no matter where I am.
And every tear I cry, You hold in Your hands.
You never left my side,
And though my heart is torn, I will praise You in this storm.

Double Trouble

For the past week, we have been watching a 10 week old puppy for some
friends of ours while they were at summer camp. She is a yellow lab
too, so she and Clive look super cute together. Her name is Roy and she
is very fiesty. She and Clive had a grand old time running around the
house, tunneling under the house, and using the bathroom in the house
(okay the last one was just Roy). It was fun for Clive to have a
playmate for the week and it made us appreciate him being out of the
"puppy" phase. We managed to capture some sweet moments for your
enjoyment: