Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!  Its pretty quiet around here today, but we have a lot to do before going to a friend's to spend the evening.

Everyone have a safe and happy 2009!

Merry Christmas!!

I just want to send everyone a virtual Christmas Card and wish everyone a Merry Christmas!!!

Here is the picture we used for our Christmas Card:

This one is the rejected one. Rejected only because I didn't like the way it looked in any of the card layouts:



Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!!

All the best
Reilly, Doug and I!

Pictures!!! Finally!

I am working on my Christmas Card pictures and I am finally able to get to sit at the computer and download some pictures of the cruise!

So here it goes :)

This was our towel animal the first night... We think it was a dog.....

Proof that Doug actually did go on vacation!

Not the best picture of me, outside Costa Maya.  Our ship is in the background.

And this was a cool piece of art on our ship - done entirely out of spools of thread:

There are a few more I want to post, but I have dinner to cook and cookies to bake!  So I will post more later.

We're Home!

After almost 10 days away, we are home finally.  Doug and I pulled in at 10pm last night and picked up Reilly at 8:30 am.  He was very happy to see me and I him. But I know he enjoyed his time there, bc as we were putting him in the car, he gave Mimi a Reilly "hug".... he put his head up against her chest and got scritches from her to say goodbye.  That made me feel really good.

I have spent the day catching up and doing LOADS and LOADS of laundry.

We had a great time on the cruise.  We went to Belize, Costa Maya and Cozumel.  It was really nice to just get away and relax a bit.  Lots of fruity drinks and I think I went through 4 books. :)  

I will download pictures and post them along with some stories, but for right now it's good to be home.  Reilly's been asleep all day long :).

More to come.

Being Thankful

Before I head off on the cruise( which I am VERY thankful for) I wanted to take a minute to list a few things I am very thankful for:

My husband whom I love dearly

My mother who is alway supportive

Reilly who brings joy to my heart everyday

All of my friends who keep me sane and make me laugh(and those that let me be crazy)

My Canine-L family.

I am also thankful that both Doug and I have jobs in this horrible economy.  

I am thankful for those of you who read my blog :) - so that I can pretend these arent't the ramblings of a dog obsessed crazy woman.

Everyone have a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving.

The Worst Part About Vacations....

Is leaving your loved one behind. I had to say goodbye to Reilly this morning since Doug is dropping him off this afternoon to board. I HATE leaving him for 10 days, but he'll be in such good hands. And I know his Auntie Margo, and maybe his grandma will check on him while we're gone.

My friends in agility class will also check in on him, both Saturdays after class and Luann is great about emailing me and letting me know how he's doing. So I'm not worried about his care, I am just going to miss him terribly.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!!

FOUR Days and counting......

Until we are on our way to FL for our cruise. The worst part about vacationing, is missing Reilly - but he's in good hands with Mimi. So I won't worry too much.

We're just about ready to go - hair is done, waxing is done - all I need is a pedi. And we need to pack. But I am going to do that ( hopefully) on Thursday. I have a sleep study on Wed night and it might spill into Thurs - but I hope not. Then I can have the whole day off!

So off we go!!!!

"Gray" is not a natural hair color!

In anticipation of our cruise( T minus 9 days and counting) I went to get my hair cut, colored and highlighted on Tues night. I decided to try a new salon( dangerous, I know) and was looking forward to seeing what this person could do for me.

We sat down for the consultation and I told her what I wanted. I wanted my natural color back, plus some highlights and a cut.

As she is evaluating my hair the conversation went something like this:

ME - " I want my natural color with some highlights"
HER - " Well your natural color is gray"
ME - "Um, no it's not... it's brown"
HER -" Well all I see is gray - what color brown would you like?"
ME - "GRRRRR"

I pulled out a piece from underneath my hair and showed her the color I wanted. I didn't quite get what I wanted, it's a little darker, but it works.

Gray! HMPF!

The Kindness of Strangers

The number one reason I love living in the South is the generosity and kindness of the people who live here.

As some of you know, I have been sick for the better part of a week. I didn't feel like going to dog skool on Sunday, but I went bc we only have 6 classes and I hate to waste them.

On the way home from the trainers, I had a coughing fit and hit a HUGE hole in the road. When I hit the HUGE hole in the road, I busted tires on the passenger's side of my car. Fortunately there was a nice turn off in front of a church to pull into and I stopped there while I waited for Doug and the tow truck to come and rescue me.

Once I made all the necessary calls, Reilly and I got out of the car and sat in the yard of the church. I cannot tell you HOW many people from the church came out to make sure we were ok, and that we didn't need help and to offer me refreshment. I was very touched by their obvious concern.

Reilly, on the other hand, was not touched and would not let anyone within 10 feet of me, but I guess that's a good thing.

Even after the tow truck got there, people kept coming out and telling me how I wasn't the only one this had happened to.

Thankfully, I had JUST purchased the extra road hazard warranty on my car and I won't have to fork out any of my own money. Which is just as well as it's an almost $3000 repair job since my wheels are bent too.

And I wrote the city of Milton GA to inform them what happened and they said " sorry" and that they would look into fixing the hole. Grrrrrr

Halloween and Our Great Weekend Away!

First off Halloween. Now we had a nice Halloween with friends. Some of them brought their kids over to trick or treat in our neighborhood and it made for a nice evening.

I had to take this picture to share though - I don't know whose sippy cup it is, but hey - this is how we party in our group!
This is an adorable picture - Veronica and Jake. They went trick or treating together and they both had a really good time.

Saturday morning Reilly went to "camp" while we loaded up and went to Chattanooga for the night with some friends of ours. When in Chattanooga the aquarium is a must! There is no way I could post all of the pictures that Doug took at the Aquarium( thank GOD for digital cameras) but here's one of my favorites:

I just love the seahorses. We took tons of penguin pictures also.

There was also a big crewing competition in Chattanooga during the weekend "Head of the Hooch". It was really interesting to watch - lots of colleges, high schools and even the Olympic team was there.



We ate at a great Italian restuarant on Sat night called Tony's. Fresh pasta! It was fabulous!

Sunday morning Doug and I woke up sick and we've been sick ever since. But before we left on Sunday we did a cruise through the Tennessee River Gorge on their new Hyrofoil boat. It was pretty cool and we had great weather for it. This is us, getting ready to get on the boat:

It sucked that we got sick, but thankfully Chattanooga is only an hour and a half away. So we got home picked up Reilly and headed to bed!!!! :)

Now only SIXTEEN DAYS till we are cruising in the Caribbean with our friends Bill and Susan! Rum punch here we come!!!!

Halloween Party!

There was a Halloween Party at the dog trainer's on Sat so Reilly and I stayed after class to attend! I have a couple of pictures. The first one, is Reilly in his bandanna. He was pretty fried - there was a lot going on.

And we had to give a short agility demo, along with another dog in our class. He did pretty well considering ;)....

Here's our trainer Sonja with her dog Nege:






And this is Mimi - the woman who takes such great care of Reilly when we board him!
And one last closeup of Reilly's bandanna, courtesy of Mary Lyn!

Oh and I almost forgot... Reilly POST party in his new bed.

Reilly has a Fan!

Can you believe it? My little crack in the box has a fan base! :) When Doug and I picked him up from daycare last night a VERY nice lady brought him out and was gushing about how much she loved him.

He's her FAVORITE dog in daycare and she always wants to be with him when he's there. She said that she is one of the few people that he listens too. And in fact, when he gets in trouble in daycare and she's there, he runs over to her and sits on her feet. That's his sign that he wants to be comforted.

She gave him a super bath yesterday - scrubbed him down good. She said he loved it(really???).

It was very sweet and I was very touched.

Bed update: He has it and has managed to sleep ( as with all his beds) with only his butt and legs on it( tell me again why I spent $200 on a bed for his butt???). I was surprised it was comfortable that way bc it is raised and has something of a lip on it, but oh well.....

And Intermediate obedience is going. Slowly..... We are going to go home and practice heeling tonight and PLACE AGAIN!!! :)

Updates to come.

I Love Good Customer Service

About a month ago, I ordered what I thought was a really snazzy bed for Reilly from Orvis. It wasn't the one I wanted, but I was trying to save some money. When the bed arrived, it was WAY to small for my stretchy dog( it said up to 70 lbs, but I don't see how). Plus I hated the fabric. So I sent it back and broke down and got the one I wanted originally.


Doesn't it look all cuddly and comfy????

Well my luck, the stupid bed was on back order, bc apparently EVERYONE wanted this cuddly bed. I was finally told it would ship on 10/24. I got a notice that it shipped yesterday and they OVERNIGHTED it! YAY for Orvis! I am guessing that since I had to wait so long to get it, they expedited the shipping!

I have had great experience with them and I love shopping with them!

So tonight, after a hard day of daycare, Reilly will have a new bed to cuddle up in.

Just An Update

I can't believe it's been so long since I posted. But a lot has been happening and it's been a very busy time.

First off, Doug's nephew ( Pictured in the last blog post) is done with his "boot leave" and is off to Jacksonville NC for training.

Secondly I am now gainfully employed! The company I have been temping for offered me a job last week and I happily accepted.

Let's see what else?

Oh, Reilly and I have signed up for Intermediate Ob. We really need it, I think and it will be fun. I had to buy him a special bed for it though, so he can learn the "place" command. This is the bed:And of course, since he is spoiled, then I had to get the sheepskin cover to go over it. But I am sure it will all be worth it ;).

Friday night I went to the Opera and saw Madama Butterfly. It was interesting, but the director did some visual things that detracted from the overall look of the opera.

Halloween is approaching - our FAVORITE time of year. We got a HUGE pumpkin yesterday courtesy of our neighbors who went to N Ga to the pumpkin patches. So that's on our "to do " list for this week.

That's it for now, I'll keep you posted on the Obediance classes ( ahem)... we'll see how that goes.

Our LONG Weekend!

I won't go into too much detail, but suffice to say, our weekend had it's ups and downs.  It was nice to see Doug's family in Beaufort SC and very moving to watch his oldest nephew graduate from USMC boot camp at Parris Island. 

Here's a picture of Doug and Cameron right after

 Graduation.

We are very proud of Cam and after some leave, he's off to his next training station in Jacksonville NC.

While in Beaufort we took in some of the sights - I love old houses.

After the graduation, we were off to meet our friends John and Cat in Savannah.  Savannah is a lovely town - lots of history, alcohol, seafood and ghosts!  It's been named the most haunted city in America.

We stayed in an old factory which I am sure was haunted, but we never saw the resident ghost( thank goodness!) which was right on River Street.

After having spent the first 3 days with family it was time to get a drink.  So we went off to get some Chatham Artillery Punch and do a little shopping.

Apparently this was also Oktoberfest weekend in Savannah( we had NO idea) and on Saturday they were having all kinds of activities like Wiener dog races.  There were TONS of doxies all over the town and it was fun to see them.  Some were all dressed up - but all of them were adorable.  Savannah is very dog friendly and there were a lot of dogs wandering around on Saturday.  We spent some time at the greyhound adoptions, petting on the dear dogs.

We missed Reilly terribly, but we got a bit of a dog fix.

We also went to the old cemetary in town and I am sure we were thought quite morbid for having our picture taken in front of a mausoleum.

After the cemetary, we hit the old Catholic Church:

And of course we did a ghost tour but didn't see anything scary!

Here's some pictures of us at dinner:

Oh and last but not least, we can't forget the USMC mascot - a bulldog:

PS:

Reilly did GREAT at the trainer's!  He didn't eat a lot, but he ate some and he was so happy and relaxed when we picked him up.  Not stressed out at all!  He's sacked out now.....

And We Are Off!

It's finally here! The graduation of Doug's nephew from the Marine Corp boot camp. We weren't sure this day would come, so we haven't been saying much about it.

Tomorrow we head off to Parris Island to meet the Inlaws and spend some quality Marine family time. ( Thank God we have our own hotel room so we can then have some quality drinking time!)

We will be taking pictures of Cameron in his blues, so I will post them next week.

Once the graduation is over - and I don't understand why all this has to take place in the middle of the week - Doug and I are meeting our friends John and Cat in Savannah for a nice alcohol and ghost filled weekend of revelry!

Everyone have a good weekend! I'll be back as long as we can find gas!

Birthday Weekend!

Not mine, the DH's..... Saturday is the big day and I have a weekend of festivities planned.

Starting tomorrow, the neighbors are going to come over for some steak and cake :) Specifically Cookie Puss from Carvel.... And probably some video game playing.

Saturday some friends we made doing the play are going to come to our house to celebrate The Doug's birthday( The Doug being his nickname from the play - don't ask).... We are going to have burgers and MORE cake and then off to the N GA State fair. It's a cheesy fair but its still fun for a couple of hours. They don't even have livestock or anything unless you count the World's Largest Steer... I don't know what the special activities are on Saturday but I am sure they will be riveting. Last year someone got shot out of a cannon... So who knows??

I don't ride the rides - fair rides scare me and I tend to get sick - deep fried twinkies don't stay down that well...... So I will watch while everyone else gets sick. Hopefully I will have pictures to post on Sunday. If I live through Sat night.

The Gas Crunch is Killing Me!

For some reason, it seems as if the gas shortage is worse in Metro Atlanta than anywhere else. Tagging on to Angela's rant about it from this weekend, I have one of my own.

I have been good about getting gas. I am waiting until I am down to a 1/4 of a tank before I try to get gas. I have a CX-9 and with as much as I have been traveling 1/4 of a tank of gas comes very quickly to me. Last night I decided that I had better stop on the way home and get gas.

So I pull into this madhouse that used to be a gas station and make my way around to a line. As I am getting in a line, some woman in another car is coming towards me and very upset bc apparently I am blocking her exit. At this time, I had NOWHERE to go bc someone had pulled up behind me.

She's in her car shouting and gesturing at me to move and I am trying to tell her that I can't( I have a backup camera people, I can see when there is a car behind me!). The guy behind me could see what was going on and was trying to help me move backwards, but I could only move about a foot. She's still screaming at me to get out of her way( and I am trying VERY hard not to get out of the car and slap her - seriously, I entertained the thought). Turns out she wants me to do a 3 point TURN into the parking spaces so that she can get through to get out. Now, I have a pretty big car and it's not the easiest thing to manuever, but I attempted it just to shut her up. I finally moved enough to where she could get through and she proceeds to tell the person behind me that *I* don't know how to drive. I swear I am glad she left because at that point I *would* have had to get out of the car and slap her silly.

We are in an unfortunate situation right now, and everyone just has to be patient. I hate it, I am an impatient person, but we just have to suck it up. It took me TEN minutes to get OUT of the station once I had gotten gas. But I didn't lose my temper - even though the reason it took so long is because some woman forgot which side her gas tank was on and had to turn completely around at the pump.....


I just kept thinking good thoughts and turned the Sirius on to comedy and let it go at that.

TA DA!!!!

So what do you think? Shannon at Eightcrazydesign has done it again! I love it!! I adore the colors and especially the way she was able to incorporate Reilly's picture into it.

I am ready to hear your opinions! Hit me - good or bad!

Oh and PLEASE use my button! You'll find the HTML code easy to install on your blog.

Thanks!

The Wii has a Fault!

Yes ladies and gents, I have found the one flaw with the Wii Fit! I weighed in last night( first time in a week- shame shame) and the little blankety blank told me I had gained 3 lbs(see Angie, I feel your pain!). Then it proceeds to ask me WHY I think I have gained that weight.... and out of the choices there was NOT one labled " It's just that time and I am BLOATED!"..... Apparently the Fit doesn't take hormones into account.

So I selected - "Gee I don't know" and moved right along ;).

Stay tuned! The new blog design is ready and should be uploaded soon!!!!

Doggy Shopping - I'm addicted

Hi, My name is Stephanie and I am addicted to shopping for my dog. I don't shop for myself - ever! It's always for the dog.

What triggered the latest shopping binge? The new Orvis Dog Catalog. Have you seen it? Pages and pages of things that my dog just HAS to have! The newest item? A frisbee that lights up! Who doesn't need that? Reilly loves frisbee and when we play in the dark he can't see it, so bingo - problem solved.

Then I was perusing their cushy cushy dog beds. Compared it to the bed Reilly got from Target. Found Reilly's bed lacking and BOOM! New bed for Reilly.

I finally made myself PUT the catalog down and walk away.... It's hidden in a drawer but calling my name, telling me that Reilly really does need that squeaky toy, and a fleece pullover...... ARGH!!!! HELP!!!!!

Pictures of the Play

I think I might finally get some of the pictures to post... so here it goes:

This is a picture of all but 2 of the guys in the play. The guy in the suit was nice enough to fill in for someone who didn't show up - ever.... Thankfully he did bc I would be standing there if he wasn't.

Here are some of the girls and one of the missing guys.... The girl in the middle is supposed to be wearing an extremely ugly dress.. technically a 60 year old Russian dress( what was Neil Simon thinking????) Thankfully the assistant stage manager/tech person is a super seamstress and she bought a dress at a thrift store and made it ugly :).



This is from the last scene in the show.... I wish they had gotten the whole cast in - they are going up the stairs... It would have been a nice picture.

So we have 3 performances this weekend and 2 next weekend and then we are done. I am going to miss the cast so much - some of us have become friends. Thank goodness for Facebook.... :) At least I can keep track of them there.

But I am looking forward to tonight. I am refreshed and ready to go. Although I will miss seeing Doug at home tonight. I am hoping he'll meet me during act II and go out for drinks after the show.

Wii Fit

Inspired by Angie to do the Couch to 5K( not going so well btw) I went and spent $90 on a Wii Fit this weekend. I REALLY like it.

The first thing is does is a body mapping which told me I was fat( really??) and calculated my weight, and my BMI. Then you can use it to set goals.

There are several modules on the fit - Yoga, Aerobics, Balance and Strength Training. The aerobics has stuff like step( nope failed that) , Hula Hoop, and running - that's all I have so far. I need to unlock more stuff by working out more. The yoga is fun and so is the balance. I haven't worked the strength training yet, but I think I will tonight since we're supposed to be getting rain.

Doug's gotten into the program too, so it's been fun doing it together. Reilly hates the whole concept of the Wii.... especially since Doug stepped on him while playing tennis the other night.

I'll keep you posted, but my BMI is already dropping.....

We Opened!!!!

Finally!  The play opened last night and it was quite the success.  Except for one guy missing an entrance( everyone covered for him) it went very well.  Even the DH enjoyed it - and I was surprised him being as sick of the play as I am.  But he'd never seen it, just spent countless hours building the set.

I thought I was going to be able to post some pictures, but I can't get them to download so I will do that later.

I am happy bc Agility was cancelled this morning and I can relax a bit.  Reilly's not so happy, but he's very happy I am home.

And I am happy that I can have my life back!!! :)

I've Been Honored

My wonderful friend Angela has passed on a lovely award to me and I am honored. Especially since my blog hasn't been very interesting lately, but I promise it will as soon as the play slows down( we open tonight!).

Here's my award:




I am very thankful that there are people out there that read my blog! So many many thanks to Angela for this award.

Now there are some rules for accepting this award and here they are:

The rules of the award are:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links of those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you’ve nominated.

I am passing this award along to:

Janyne, Robin, Lizz, Susan, Angie, Crowzma and Pendaisy.

Enjoy!!!

Labor Day Weekend

And yes we labored, and labored and labored......

Sat we had agility and then Doug and I went off once again to finish the set for the play. WHERE, Doug ended up spraining his finger pretty badly....... But he persevered and did not whine too much till we got home.

Sunday we went to watch an agility trial ( FUN) where our trainer was running and she thinks that Reilly and I can probably enter tunnelers at the next show( YAY!!!). I bought tons of treats, of course and then it was off to rehearsal after some Wii time.

Monday we had a nice hike in a park behind the dog park that we go to on Sat's. It was about 2.25 miles and very shady so not too strenuous. Then back to rehearsal :)

The show FINALLY opens on Friday I need to get some pictures of our BEAUTIFUL set posted.... I'll see what I can do at dress this week.

Too Tired to Drive

I am so exhausted( I know I keep complaining about this, but bear with me till the play opens :) ) , it's literally getting dangerous. My driving skills are getting terrible and it's bc I have no reaction time and I am just not paying attention. Unfortunately in Atlanta, there is NO public transport to speak of so I am stuck driving myself everywhere. I am seriously considering the option of a nap in my car at lunch.

It's just till the 5th... but this not going home at night after work is getting old. I've barely seen Doug and Reilly or my bed! Last night I got 6 hours of sleep, but that was my own fault. We went and saw Rod the Bod at the new Ampitheater in Atlanta.

He was awesome, I loved every minute of it. But this ampitheater is about 45 minutes from my home with no traffic, so I rolled in about midnight. Why is it that performers have to have an opening act and that opening act doesn't go on till 8pm? Rod is in his 60's( and still looking good I might add) but you would think he would want to call it an early night.

Then what did I do( I'm such an idiot) I signed up to win concert tickets for Friday night!!! It seemed like a good idea at the time( too much wine) but now I am hoping I don't win. Friday is the ONLY night I get to be home. ONLY one. WHY would I want to go out to another concert???? Because it's one the DH would really like to see, that's why.

Reilly is at daycare today for the first time in weeks. We're having someone out to get rid of the roof rats(yay) and I assumed Doug would not be able to work at home with him barking at the exterminator all day long.

On a happy note, the rain is gone. So it's sunny and happy here in Atlanta Land today.

Catching up

I know, I know, I haven't posted in ages. But I have been SOOOOO busy between looking for a job( now working a contract job) and the play, who has had time to do anything??

So here's a little update:

On the play - it's going so well! It's going to be hysterical, if I can get through these last 2 weeks without killing any of the cast members! The play is so funny, but they keep cracking themselves up. So I didn't get home till 10 last night bc the rehearsal ran so late. Reilly does not know what happened to me! Poor guy has hardly seen me at all. Thank goodness for a 3 day weekend. Although I'll either be at rehearsal or building sets. Speaking of sets, DH has been a godsend and has practically built 1/2 the set on his own. He's spent 2( soon to be 3) Saturdays at the theater helping. Actors aren't very good at power tools :).

Then there's work. It's going ok. I'm tired, my brain is tired, from having to learn new stuff. Then I have to run from work to rehearsal and get home at insane times at night. But it's only for the next two weeks. Then we open on the 5th. And it's only Friday's and Sat's for 3 weekends. Woo hoo!!!!

That's it for now. I am still waiting for my new blog design.... the time passes so slowly!!!

Sharing the Love

Robin Curry of Raising Fisherman has blessed me with the Sharing the Love award.  She knows I have been going through a rough patch and I really appreciate her sharing this with me.  The purpose of this award is to raise awarness about organ donation and to share the love around the web.  This award should be passed on to blogs that make you laugh, smile, or just uplift you in some way.

I am passing this award on to some pretty wonderful people out there:

Janyne of Busy Living Life

Angie of Angie's Spot

Natalie of Knatolee's World

An Update to the Update

I was offered the position that I interviewed for this morning.  It's contract, meaning if I don't work I don't get paid :).... but it's more money, so it's ok for now.  It will probably go permanent, we'll see....  So I start on Monday.

Just an update

Nothing is really going on around here.  We're still gearing up for the play in Sept and in fact we built the set on Sunday.  DH came with me to help and he was a Godsend.  Thank goodness he was there or we'd all be in trouble!

But I guess we are getting old, bc by the end of the day, neither of us could move very well :)

The job hunt is still on.  I had a good interview this morning and one last week, so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

Other than that, we're pretty boring for now :)

A Meme Tag from Angela!

Angela has tagged me, so here it goes!

A meme is basically a list of things about me (hence the name). The stated subject is "6 UN-spectacular things about me." Now here’s a subject that could go on forever (but I promise it won’t, LOL!) And it comes with few rules, as follows:

1. Link the person who tagged you - see above!
2. Mention the rules on your blog - here they are!
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours - This is where it will get interesting, below!
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them - see below!
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged - This is the fun part!

So let’s see. Six “unspectacular” things about me:

1. Like Angela I have never mastered the stick shift. Yes, I am just that uncoordinated. It's amazing for a person who can do complicated manouvers on a horse that require using all 4 limbs separately, I cannot for the life of me hit the clutch and shift at the same time.

2. I will buy any kitchen gadget that comes my way. Anything. I think I own half of William Sonoma. Seriously. I am fascinated by kitchen gadgets. I always assume that I will use that piece of equipment sometime in my lifetime. Even if I only use it once, I feel justified.

3. I am a soap snob. My husband bought me soap from a parfumarie in France a MILLION years ago and I refuse to use any other kind of soap. Fortunately he goes to France frequently enough to where we haven't run out yet, but I am NOT above begging friends who are going overseas to pick up a case for me. When he comes home from France his suitcase weighs a ton( bc he better have no less than TEN bars of soap in there) and it smells lovely. I will even( if it comes to that) have it shipped to me.

4. I will buy anything in the world for my dog. I will go to doggy stores and PetSmart and catalogs and buy treats and toys and whatever I think it takes to make him happy. I can't help it, he's spoiled.

5. I am a reality show junkie. I watch anything from Gene Simmons( my FAV), to Kimora Life in the Fab Lane, simply out of fascination. I can sit there for HOURS watching these people's lives and not get bored. And yes, I watch The Girls Next Door and Denise Richards.

6. I am a child of the 80's. I love the music and the movies and the tv shows. I still watch Magnum PI and Miami Vice. I go to Poison concerts. I have more 80's music on my IPod than anything else. I loved Thriller.

So I am now tagging:

Janyne, Robin, Ginny, and Natalie.

Didn't everyone want to be Jesse's girl?

Another weekend, another concert.  It seems to be an eighties theme this year.  First Bon Jovi, then Poison and last night, Rick Springfield.  I was not a huge fan, but it was an enjoyable concert.  But what a PITA to get there!  

We live in Marietta GA.  The concert was at some venue in a small town called Peachtree City.  The venue is an outdoor ampitheater( very small) called The Fred.  I took us an HOUR to get there.  It wasn't that it was all that far( 50 miles) but it was raining and no one in GA can drive in the rain.  ARGH.  So we got there thinking that we had totally missed the first 30 minutes of the show.

We pulled into the parking lot and had an extremely difficult time finding a parking space.  Why?  We didn't think we would, especially since it wasn't sold out, but lo and behold the parking lot was filled with GOLF carts!  Peachtree City is a "golf cart community" and people can drive their carts everywhere.  So of course they took them to the concert.  It was quite a sight I have to tell you....

When we got there, the concert hadn't started bc of the rain, so we breathed a small sigh of relief.  The rain had stopped by the time we got in, so we found our seats and got ready for Rick.  But no, he had an opening band.... and well, that's all I am going to say about that.

Rick finally came on, after a snafu with his mic.  How many roadies does it take to get a mic to work???  I mean REALLY people!!!  So 45 minutes after the opening act closed, he finally made it on stage.

It was a good show, he played to the crowd and even came down into the table section to mingle with everyone.   It was entertaining, but all I could think about was how late it was getting and how I really hadn't had enough to drink :).

We finally got to my house at 12:30 and the boys were watching Robot Chicken.  They had entertained themselves quite nicely all evening.  Boys night out as it were.

A New Look

Well I've done it. I've asked Eight Crazy Designs to do my blog for me( curses to you Angela :) ).... Angela's looks so great, I couldn't resist.

She won't be able to get to me till Sept, so we have to wait a bit for the new look... but I am very excited about it.

So stay tuned!!

This is hard work!

This staying at home stuff is hard work!  Who would have known??  I didn't get a chance to sit down and take a breath till about 3pm today and then, I couldn't go to the pool bc we had massive storms move through.

After I mowed the backyard( THREE HOURS with bagging) I met Doug for lunch.  Then I had promised Reilly a car ride, so we went and ran to some doggy stores that I had been wanting to check out.

We got home, checked email and the storms hit.  So I decided to relax in my bed( with laundry going too) and read Eclipse.  If you aren't reading these vampire books you really should.  I HATE vampire stories, really and truly... but these are really good.  I picked one up for lack of anything to read and figured it wasn't much of a waste if I didn't like it.  Now I can't put them down!  The 4th one comes out Friday and all the bookstores are having a Harry Potter like celebration.

I'm not going to join that, but I will be in line on Sat to get my book!

And as usual, the movie is coming out and I *hate* who they have cast, so I am NOT going to see it.

Keepin' Busy

There is certainly NOT a lack of things to do around here! I've met with recruiters, cleaned the entire house, and washed a number of things that desperately needed it.

Reilly is pooped. Poor thing. He can't get ANY sleep with me home. That's ok. He doesn't need to sleep. I had him and the neighbor's dog outside playing in the mud and they had a blast. I should have taken a picture, but I was in the middle of washing the floors. I HATE washing the floors!

Tomorrow we do lawn work - ugh... then maybe, just maybe I'll let myself go to the pool.

And it was one of those days.....

I got let go from my job yesterday. It really sucks and I am very upset about it, although I think in the end it was for the best. I did not enjoy working there and I was looking for another job anyway.

So even though I didn't get to leave on my terms, I think it will be for the best overall.

Best part is I will be home with Reilly for a bit and I can get some stuff done around the house that I really needed to work on.

Just an update... I'll post something happier later.

"Don't Need Nothin' but a Good Time..."

Was the theme of the Poison concert last night. This was not a concert we were all dying to go to, but it was inexpensive and it was a nice Sunday night in Atlanta.

Turned out to be a better concert than I expected. It was a 3 band concert with Sebastian Bach from Skid Row as the first performer. We were late, due to a dinner snafu, and we missed most of his concert which was fine. Then Dokken came on and did a really nice set. I am not a Dokken fan, but I found myself enjoying the music. Again, it was a pleasant evening and I was having a good time people watching. I have never seen so many tattoos in all my life! People watching took up most of the evening :).

Then Poison came on. Apparently Brett had a hard time remembering where he was bc he kept saying Atlanta. He must have said it 50 times. And promoted his Rock of Love tv show( of which they are filming a 3rd, but it's not going to be the same as the others).

Concerts, especially outdoor ones are truly a study in human behavior and they let you observe from a distance. I am fascinated by people who get really and truly drunk at concerts. What's the point? You've paid all that money and you don't remember the concert.

For you Poison fans out there, they did a lot of old stuff that I didn't really know. He closed with Every Rose Has it's Thorn, Talk Dirty to Me and Don't Need Nothing but a Good Time.

It was a good time - we were with 2 of our best friends, which makes it even better.

We got home around midnight and I am exhausted :).....

Progress Happens......

Well sometimes you feel like you work and work and work and it's all for naught. I have finally made some progress on my weight. I've lost another 2 pounds (mostly sweat I think! :) ) and and feeling a little more encouraged.

There is also progress on the play front! Rehearsals are going well and I think we are going to have a hit show on our hands.

Then Reilly and I are making progress at agility. Well, he's making progress, it's now time for ME to get my act together. So we are thinking Spring for our agility debut.

It's not much, but its enough to satisfy me for now.

If only I could work SLEEP into my schedule somewhere :)

Just Keep on Keepin' On.....

Which is pretty much how I feel right now. If I can just get through each day without any major issues, or just falling out, then I consider it a good day.

Now you know MOST of this is my fault. *I* am the one who signed up for the play, but I do miss doing theater and I thought it would be fun. And don't get me wrong, it IS fun... but also time consuming, as is everything else in my life.

And the heat wave isn't helping. In an attempt to help hubby with the lawn duties this weekend, we started mowing the lawn at HIGH NOON on Sat, which is when we both got home. It took a lot of sweat and several rest breaks to get the stupid thing mowed. At one point I thought I was going to be sick, so I had to go inside and lay down on the floor under the fan. Reilly thought this was quite interesting and kept circling me like a shark, not quite knowing what to do.

It's hotter than blue blazes down here...  as everyone in the south knows.  So I am going to call it a night and head back into the AC and go to bed :).

EW's New Movie Classics

I'll follow Angie and Angela's thread....

Here's how to play:
Copy and paste this list.If you’ve seen the movie, put the title in bold type.Put an asterisk next to the movies you’ve seen and liked.

The following list comes from the current double issue of Entertainment Weekly in which they list the 100 best movies of the last 25 years (aka The New Classics).

1. Pulp Fiction 1994
2. The Lord of the Rings trilogy 2001-03 *
3. Titanic 1997 *
4. Blue Velvet 1986
5. Toy Story 1995 *
6. Saving Private Ryan 1998 *
7. Hannah and Her Sisters 1986
8. The Silence of the Lambs 1991*
9. Die Hard 1988 *
10. Moulin Rouge 2001
11. This Is Spinal Tap 1984
12. The Matrix 1999 *
13. GoodFellas 1990
14. Crumb 1995
15. Edward Scissorhands 1990
16. Boogie Nights 1997
17. Jerry Maguire 1996 *
18. Do the Right Thing 1989
19. Casino Royale 2006 *
20. The Lion King 1994*
21. Schindler’s List 1993
22. Rushmore 1998
23. Memento 2001
24. A Room With a View 1986
25. Shrek 2001*
26. Hoop Dreams 1994
27. Aliens 1986
28. Wings of Desire 1988
29. The Bourne Supremacy 2004*
30. When Harry Met Sally… 1989*
31. Brokeback Mountain 2005
32. Fight Club 1999*
33. The Breakfast Club 1985*
34. Fargo 1996
35. The Incredibles 2004 *
36. Spider-Man 2 2004 *
37. Pretty Woman 1990 *
38. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind 2004
39. The Sixth Sense 1999 *
40. Speed 1994*
41. Dazed and Confused 1993
42. Clueless 1995
43. Gladiator 2000*
44. The Player 1992
45. Rain Man 1988 *
46. Children of Men 2006
47. Men in Black 1997 *
48. Scarface 1983
49. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon 2000
50. The Piano 1993
51. There Will Be Blood 2007
52. The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad 1988
53. The Truman Show 1998
54. Fatal Attraction 1987
55. Risky Business 1983 *
56. The Lives of Others 2006
57. There’s Something About Mary 1998*
58. Ghostbusters 1984*
59. L.A. Confidential 1997
60. Scream 1996
61. Beverly Hills Cop 1984*
62. sex, lies and videotape 1989
63. Big 1988*
64. No Country For Old Men 2007
65. Dirty Dancing 1987 *
66. Natural Born Killers 1994
67. Donnie Brasco 1997
68. Witness 1985*
69. All About My Mother 1999
70. Broadcast News 1987
71. Unforgiven 1992
72. Thelma & Louise 1991*
73. Office Space 1999*
74. Drugstore Cowboy 1989
75. Out of Africa 1985
76. The Departed 2006
77. Sid and Nancy 1986
78. Terminator 2: Judgment Day 1991
79. Waiting for Guffman 1996
80. Michael Clayton 2007
81. Moonstruck 1987
82. Lost in Translation 2003
83. Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn 1987
84. Sideways 2004
85. The 40 Year-Old Virgin 2005*
86. Y Tu Mamá También 2002
87. Swingers 1996
88. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery 1997*
89. Breaking the Waves 1996
90. Napoleon Dynamite 2004
91. Back to the Future 1985*
92. Menace II Society 1993
93. Ed Wood 1994
94. Full Metal Jacket 1987
95. In the Mood for Love 2001
96. Far From Heaven 2002
97. Glory 1989
98. The Talented Mr. Ripley 1999*
99. The Blair Witch Project 1999
100. South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut 1999

EW also listed the top 7 movies that readers said were missing from the list. They are:

Shawshank Redemption

Forrest Gump*
American Beauty*
The Ususal Suspects
Jurassic Park*
The Princess Bride*
Braveheart*

Going down down down...

Six lbs and counting as of this morning! Not as much as I would have liked, but considering I have not being doing UBER UBER cardio not bad.

I haven't done ANY Cardio for 2 days( bad bad.....) but I was at auditions for Rumors. I am stage managing( God help the cast) for a friend of mine and I am looking forward to it. It's been a long time, but it's like riding a bike and well, I can be a bit bossy, so I think it will be fine.

So off to the trainer tonight and hopefully tomorrow night, as we have a friend coming to town on Friday night and I'd like to go to dinner with her.

So off for now... I'll keep you posted!

Happy 4th of July!

I know I am a couple of days late but it's been a busy weekend! Here we have Reilly showing off his patriotic bandanna courtesy of Auntie ML. He wore it all day and on our walk to Kennesaw Mtn.

We had a pretty good weekend. The usual - bbq on Friday then we ended up with a lot of yard work for the rest of the weekend.

Here's how Reilly spent his weekend:




and







Reilly spent the weekend doing his part to keep the chipmunk population under control. Needless to say he got a couple of baths this weekend.




And we tried out the new outdoor waterer with him and he's getting the hang of it I think. He actually drank out of it tonight, with me encouraging him. Now we just need him to go up to it on his own and start drinking out of it. I'll post pics soon.

Saturday night was the most fun of the weekend. We went to a tapas restaurant( I just don't get tapas.... ) with our friend's Catherine and John, and Cat's twin sister Elizabeth and her husband Sasha.

And low and behold what was at the tapas bar? But DUELING PIANOS !!! We LOVE dueling pianos and have been trying to find them since they left a bar near our house. So we closed the place down last night( it wasn't hard they closed at midnight).... but we had the best time. We'll definitely go back.

We've had a visitor all weekend. Miss Willa has been staying with us. She's been with Mike's parents, but they went out of town and so did Mike and Amy so we said we would take her since we've really missed her. Apparently Reilly hasn't missed her that much, he's awfully put out that she's here, but he'll get over it.

And on the weight front I'm minus 2. I was hoping for more, but considering I was on steriods all last week, it's not too bad.

I'm going to have to figure out my workout schedule, for next week, as I promised I would stage manage a play for a local theater before I decided to do this diet. We're doing Rumors and it starts with auditions Monday and Tues. So I'll just have to see what I can do.

Stay tuned.

Let the Torture Begin!

So I have gone and done it and signed up with a personal trainer! I think this guy is going to be really good and I am trying really hard to stick with the plan. It's only been a week, and I don't think I have lost any weight, but that could be due to the fact that I am on Prednisone and it is that time of the month :). So 2 strikes against me to start with.

But I am going to keep plugging along. I am seeing the trainer 2x per week( it's all I could afford) then when I am not with him I am doing cardio and sticking( yes STICKING) to my diet.

I will probably fall off the wagon a bit this weekend( it is a holiday) but I won't slack up on my excercise. I intend ( hear me now) to get up EARLY tomorrow and take Reilly on a walk around Kennesaw Mountain. We'll do the short walk - just 2 miles, but that's a good workout for all of us.

Maybe on Sunday we'll be ambitious and do the 5 mile walk, now that they have it well marked.

I'll be posting updates so stay tuned!!!

Tagged!

Penny tagged me so here it goes:

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Living in Atlanta, working in an advertising agency and Connor was still alive.

Five snacks I enjoy:

1. Honey Roasted Peanuts
2. Cheese cheese and more cheese
3. Blue Cheese stuffed Olives
4. Potato Chips
5. Reese's cups

Five Things on My To-Do list today:

1. Work :)
2. Agility Practice
3. Put laundry away
4. Take a mile walk
5. Pick up my prescriptions

Five Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

1. Not work
2. Build a big house out in the country
3. Rescue a ton of dogs
4. Have horses
5. Give my parent's enough money to live the way they want to.

Five jobs I have had:

1. Groom( for horses)
2. Accountant
3. Retail Sales Person
4. Computer Tech
5. Part of the Equestrian Competition Mgmt for the 1996 Olympics

Five of my bad habits:

1. Worrying
2. Biting my nails
3. Eating bad things
4. Talking loudly
5. Feeding my dog people food

Five places I have lived:

1. Dunedin, FL
2. Safety Harbor, FL
3. Brooksville, FL
4. Atlanta, GA
5. Marietta, GA

Five people I would like to get to know better (yes, this means you are tagged!):

1. Ginny
2. Amy
3. Lizz
4. Janyne
*** Everyone else has been tagged! :)

Five Random Things:

1. I am tired of being sick.
2. It's too darn hot to do anything outside
3. I wish I were at home with Reilly
4. I hate that I have to pick up for the cleaning people this week
5. I wish Reilly would catch the stupid fly that's in the house

Went to see the Izzard :)

As in Eddie Izzard. A comic who is a transvestite, who is amazingly funny. ( an Action Transvestite!)

If you don't know him, he stars on The Riches on FX with Minnie Driver. A good show, but it certainly does not show off his comedic talents.

The man is hysterical - and it's intelligent humor. Last night's bit was all historical( a lot of his bits are) but the funniest parts are when he goes off on a tangent and gets totally lost. You have to really pay attention to follow him.

This round he's not performing in drag. He didn't explain it to us, but someone said it's bc he thinks people come to see him in drag and not for his performance.

But he was awesome and 2 hours was not long enough, although with this sinus infection, I was about to die...

If you ever have a chance to see him live do it. If you aren't familiar with him, rent Dressed to Kill. That will get you hooked!

Sick again

Yep, I am sick again and I am sick of being sick..... This time its a NASTY nasty sinus infection. So bad that the dr insisted that I stay home today. I was home yesterday and unable to hardly get out of bed... but today I am at least able to be up and around. I was going to go to work till the dr said no. So Reilly and I are at home again today and I think he's enjoying it.

But come Hell or High water I am going to see Eddie Izzard tonight. I have been looking forward to this forever, and I am not going to miss it. So it's off to bed for me.

I'll report on Eddie Izzard and our weekend with our visitors later.

Off to See The Lizard

I have finally gotten some pics from the JB concert we were at last week(during the horseshow ;) ) I took my friend''s 14 yr old daughter to her first JB concert and here are some pics to share.

This is my friend Wendy, Me, Camily, Doug and some random guy who was letting me drink his margarita. So I figured we could include him in a picture. This was before the concert. And yes, unfortunately, we were all sober.





Here's a pic of the stage. Not too bad considering the distance and the fact that it was taken on a blackberry:

And one last pic( blurry - sorry) of the man himself.

Hopefully I'll have some pics of the horseshow soon... I am waiting on SOMEONE to send them to me ;)

I'm Exhausted

There's no other way to say it. I am worn out( or worn to a frazzle as my mother would say). All I want is a nice long sleep and a relaxing weekend to catch up.

Last week I was at a horseshow in 100 plus temps working outside for 12 hours a day. That in and of itself is fine. I expected it and I do this voluntarily and enjoy it. But nonetheless its exhausting.

Then to find out we had no A/C at home last Sat, when I was at the point that all I could think of was getting home and sleeping in my own bed. But no, I ended up going from one hotel to another because I refused to go home in 100 plus temps with no A/C. So we got a room at the local La Quinta Inn( dog friendly) until they could come and fix our A/C on Wed.

Reilly was a very good boy at the hotel, but his patience was wearing thin by Wed morning and he was ready to go home.

Home on Wed. Unloading the car, running to the store to stock up on a few essentials till I could do a big shop. Unpacking 2 suitcases, various coolers and other sundry items that hubby and I had taken with us to make life more comfortable.

Over to the neighbors for dinner( Bless Sarah for taking care of that for us). Home to bed. Exhausted. Nightmares, so no good night's sleep for me.

Then Thursday - home, laundry, mow lawn, and off to a late dinner with a friend which had been planned for weeks and has to be squeezed in whenever we both have the time. Home to bed, exhausted, too much water at dinner, up and down to the bathroom all night long....

Here it is Friday. And I still have a long laundry list of things to do to get the house ready for guests on Thursday. My mother, her dogs and 2 more people are coming to visit for the weekend.

I must get a pedicure. I MUST get my nasty car cleaned out. I MUST get the water stains from the A/C off the ceiling. I MUST get all the laundry done. I MUST get some rest!

The one bright thing( although I am kind of disappointed since I enjoy it, ) is that the new agility class is starting NEXT week, not this one. So I can either sleep in on Sat( yeah right) or get an early start on all the crap I have to do.

Sorry for all the complaining. Just tired, whiny and feeling overwhelmed right this moment!

Gotcha Day!

Today is Reilly's 2nd Gotcha Day with us and I am so happy with my big guy. I love this dog to death - and he's just a perfect fit for our family.


He's come such a long way in such a short amount of time. From a skinny, shy mangy dog to the happy healthy dog that we have today.


Unfortunately I am not getting to spend his gotcha day with him, as I am going out of town till Sunday, but Doug will be there to spoil him and give him his cheese.


Happy Gotcha Day big guy! We love our Reillybug!!!!





Before and after pictures:

2 years ago today






Today

What a change 2 years can make.

Pictures Pictures and more Pictures

I am finally getting around to posting a couple of pictures and I am too lazy to edit my other blogs so I am combining them all into one.

Here's a picture of Angela's Tucker from last Friday night.

And here is Robin playing with Reilly

And here, is Reilly looking very pitiful after having his wart removed.  Don't let him fool you, the bandage was only on for an hour.

The Rest of the Story( or weekend as it were)

First off - pictures.  When Cat and John came to the house before dinner, we realized that we were dressed identically.  So of course, we had to have a picture.  It was truly sad :).  Then here's the after - dressed up and ready to go.

Those are our night out pictures.  There were more things we should have had a picture of.  Catherine and I had an Animal House moment when we went dancing.  We had some guys that were quite interested in dancing with us and it was kind of a " May we dance with your dates" scenario.  But the guys found it amusing and no one was hurt :).

After recovery on Sunday, Monday was the Joe Cocker/Steve Miller Band concert( pictures to come).  We went to our friend Penny's early, had some lovely drinks:

Here's the recipe:

Mix 3 Beers( any kind)

3/4 cup of vodka

1 can of frozen lemonade

Garnish with cherries

I can't remember what Penny called it - Pink Panty something.  We used to have a drink called Pink Panty Pulldowns, but we used Sprite and a LOT more vodka.  Now I know it sounds a little strange, but the drink was really quite refreshing and I am NOT a beer drinker.  Vodka yes, beer no.  I plan on making them this weekend for some friends.

Anyway, once we polished off a pitcher of those, it was time to go to the concert.  It's at the new outdoor ampitheater in N. Ga.  I LOVE watching concerts outdoors.  It's much more relaxing than being squashed in with a bunch of people.

Joe Cocker was AWESOME - truly a master.  He played my favorite song of his " You Can Leave your Hat On" and also all of his hits.  Then Steve Miller came on.  He was good till he had some blues guy come and sing in the middle of the set.  The guy sang like 5 songs and while he was very good, it was kind of a downer.

I did get up and dance some though, despite the dangerous slope on the lawn.  And I had an admirer come and dance with me which was fun.  He was very polite( not scary like the guys from Sat night) and kissed my hand as he left to go back to his seat.

The concert was on very late and we didn't get home till 1:30.  Reilly had been left in the capable hands of a petsitter but he was very happy to see us.

So I am off to continue my quest to catch up on a little sleep. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The Beginning of the Weekend

Robin came to town this weekend and Anglea had us over to her house. While the boys played pool we chatted and played with the dogs. Tucker wasn't too interested in company her position was strictly to be admired from afar.  Reilly was in the thick of everything and therefore was admired and petted quite a bit.

We had a great visit and dinner with Robin and Jack and they had to leave way too early.  Once they left Doug and Daniel got into a raging game of Motorstorm for the PS3 while Angela and I chatted some more.  I finally dragged Doug away from it around 11:30 bc I had an 8am dr's appt for Reilly.

So come Sat morning, Reilly and I are off to the vet.  Doug wasn't able to manage to get out of bed to come with us.  But I wanted to get Reilly's wart looked at so off we went.  Dr Meg was laughing at Reilly as usual, and said that she would take the wart off for us, no biggie.  It was in a bad place on his foot and I didn't want him to rip it off, which would have been an even bigger issue.

Saturday night was our big birthday celebration.  Catherine, John, Doug and I had an elegant dinner at Canoe on the Chattahoochee river.  ( Cat and I share the same birthday) We enjoyed our meal tremendously!  I had the quail stuffed with duck appetizer and then the pheasant for dinner.  They brought us special birthday desserts :).

We were really dying to go somewhere fun and there used to be a cool piano bar here in Atlanta near us, but it has turned into a regular dance club.  We thought what the heck, we'd go ahead and go.  We had a blast.  Well Catherine and I did.  We danced and danced and danced.  Doug and John drank and watched us dance and laughed.  Two am found us at the Waffle House.  Note - don't ever order the LITE waffle at the WF.  It's not low calorie it's RAW.  They mean light as in the COLOR.  Ugh.  It was NASTY at 2am.

SIX am found me up with Reilly who couldn't sleep anymore ;).....  Cat and John had spent the night so Doug and I got up with Reilly while they slept in a bit.  Then we had a nice breakfast at Cracker Barrel and that was the end of the birthday celebration.  My wonderful husband bought me a beautiful Tissot watch and gave me a very sweet card.  It's definitely a keeper - the card ( well and the watch).

Stay tuned for tomorrow's entry :) 

Baseball and Birthdays

I have been remiss in posting pictures from our baseball game this past weekend, so here they are.  Above is a shot from our seats in Turner Field.  The Braves lost it in the 9th, but we had a great time with our friends Angela and Daniel.

I had a picture of Angela and I but I can't get it to upload, so check out Angela's blog for the picture :).

As for Birthdays - today is mine and it is also the birthday of some people who are very special to me.  My friend Ginny and I share a birthday - I am honored to be her Birthday Sister.  And also my good friend Catherine and her sister Elizabeth celebrate on this day also.

I am calling this my "mini" birthday bc it seems like everything was small ;)  Hubby sent me beautiful - but petite- flowers.

Also, the gift given to me by my mother, which I specifically requested was a lot smaller than it looked in the catalog ;)  No matter, I will use it anyway.  And the card from my mom?  You guessed it - mini.  Again, beautiful but small ;).

So here's a picture of all my bountiful gifts ( so far) on the patio table.  

Its not been the best birthday in terms of celebrating.  Unfortunately I have been battling the stomach flu and it's very difficult to celebrate when you are throwing up.  I am hoping that will all be past me by this weekend.  Lots of partying to do and no time for throwing up!!!

And here's a picture of the best present of all, my smiling dog!

A Day at the Agility Trials

There was a nearby agility trial on Sunday so Reilly and I decided to go and check it out.  Amy and Sarah went with us so that Amy could watch all the dogs.  She loves dogs.  I just wanted to take Reilly so that he could check out the atmosphere and I wanted to see how he would act.

Well he was wonderful!  I hate to brag... :)  But he got many compliments on his calm demeanor and how fit and well he looked.  

I was heartened by watching these dogs go - it gave me hope for Reilly and I.  Not that they were bad, not by any means, but they were a far cry from what you see on Animal Planet and it showed me that it's ok to NOT be perfect at a trial and we won't be laughed out of the ring if we mess up.

It was encouraging that most of the handlers came out of the ring blaming themselves and not the dogs.  Very refreshing.

So I think we make our way into the ring someday soon.  It's not as far off as I thought. 

But as a lovely side effect of the trials I picked up a bug somewhere - either the agility trials or at the ball game Sat night. I've been home with the stomach flu and it SUCKS to have the stomach flu the week of your birthday!

I am feeling better now, in fact, I think I will head to bed.