Happy Turkey Day

  We had a nice turkey day with the family.  I am embarrassed that this is the only pic I have of the day.  We had 10 people for dinner and we all sat at one table.  Next time I need to recruit a photographer.....  It's difficult to cook and clean AND take pictures.  Can't wait for the Akins to post pics of the new family member that was born ON THANKSGIVING!

4 Years, 4 Months and 4 Days After

On 11/11/11, James and I celebrated (not really), rather we realized we had been married exactly 4 years, 4 months and 4 days.  When we went on our honeymoon we visited the Kauai Coffee Plantation.  We bought a burlap sack and finally decided to get it framed.  Here it is!  We have it prominently displayed and absolutely love that it says '2007' on it. 

Love my babies

Now that we have wood floors, the pups who are the royalty of comfort, cuddle together on their dog bed.  We have 2 dog beds that usually stay in their room.  We put one in the living room and here they are. 

It's so hard to resist a photo opp like this.

They are so cute.

After I took the first pic Rosie sat up and snarled at me.  She likes to get up when I get the camera out for her close up.  Oh and also if you look closely, you can see a CLEAN firebox as we got our chimney swept yesterday.  We have wood, a clean chimney and all we need now is cool weather. 

Prayers Needed

Last week, my dear friend Jill emailed her closest family and friends about what was going on with her 2 year old daughter.  Unfortunately the news was not good.  It is with a heavy heart that I write this on the blog.  I am hoping you take this information and pray for 2 year old Emma, her mom Jill and her dad Dan.  Emma was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in her pelvic area and lungs.  She started chemotherapy last week.  I cannot fathom what Jill and her family are going through.  They have set up a caring bridge website for her click here

Emma was also mentioned in an article on MLB click here

Click here to see pics from when I got to see Jill, Emma and Michelle for a quick visit

It is hard for me to wrap my brain around why and how this could happen to a sweet, innocent 2 year old.  So most other things seem trivial compared to this.  I think about Emma, and her parents daily.  I pray that God will keep them strong and remove the cancer that has invaded her small body.  Please do the same.

Sometimes, you gotta toot your own horn

I was excited to recieve the manager of the quarter award last week.  This is the 3rd time I have recieved this award and I was very surprised.  My team celebrated bosses day with a sweet card, flowers and lunch for me.  I felt ver special on Sunday.  This is our white board at work (I blurred my last name since this website is public and for other obvious reasons).  I have the best team and my recognition is their recognition.  We have definitely celebrated our successes and I am so proud of them. 

Before, During and After

Here are the stairs before the carpet was ripped out.  The walls and banisters had aleready been repainted. 

Here's the carpet in the dining room.  Not a smart idea to have carpet right under the dining table. 

Living room with the same light colored carpet, a nightmare if you have dogs, kids, etc.

During!  The crew arrived on Monday and immediately got to work.  It took 3 men, 3 days to complete the project.  We were thinking about doing the work ourselves but after it was all said and one, we are so happy we got the crew to demo/install everything. This picture shows the underlayment that was placed between the concrete and the wood.

Brazilian Cherry wood.  So rich looking.

We are trying to get everything back to normal.  It's been a slow process since we have been working so much.

Here's a good pic of what it looks like.  We are still going to be tweaking our wall art, etc.  It's very clean and we have already invested in a dust mop.  I have the best steam mop but unfortunately we cannot use that on the wood, only the tile.  We are looking forward to have friends and family over to see our new 'place'.

Like Peas and Carrots

Phoenix and Rosie are canine soulmates.  These buddies are so sweet, I just adore them.  They are the best guard dogs, you wouldn't tell by this picture but my money is on them if a bad guy were to cross them.