As promised...

...Roger in the snow.

He got his last round of puppy shots yesterday, and I found out he's now 6.3 pounds! He gained 2 pounds in the last month. Heffer! I've been watching the clock, waiting for yesterday to come because now we can go to dog parks and take obedience classes. Roger's as close as they come to perfect, but he's a puppy, thus making him a perfect devil.

On another note, I feel like I am barely inching towards the finish line of 2009. Come on, new decade!

On another note, I have been eating peppermint bark and chocolate-walnut fudge in alarming quantities this season. Oh, and I'm absolutely and officially addicted to froyo.

On another note, I've also eaten way too many yogurt covered pretzels. Wait, that's probably the same note as above.

On another note, my dad's in Dubai. So jealous.

On my last note, I am gifting etsy galore this Christmas, and all my packages have started tumbling in. I love the original quality of these doodads and trinkets, and I hope the giftees love these one-of-a-kinds as much as me!

On my final note of the day, BIGGEST LOSER TONIGHT! I'm rooting for Danny.

Snow!

I couldn't hardly believe it.




At first, it was sleet.



Then it looked a little fluffier, a little softer. And then it started to float.



It snowed in Houston on Friday! Even more than that, IT STUCK! So cool. What a beautiful treat for us.

Roger + Snow pics to come.


On another note, I am an avid tea drinker. Usually, it's this tea because I spend most of my time at work, and my company supplies us all sorts of yummy drinks for free.

I love, love green tea, but I feel like this is about to become a new winter tradition:

I'm distracted today, but just wanted to post about the momentous occasion! Hope you all had a great weeked!

Flyin' By!

The end of the year is coming up quickly! This Thanksgiving was my favorite by far. I have a feeling this Christmas - in Portland, YES! - will be one of my favorites as well. Roger is growing up way too fast and is rip-roaring around the place at dizzying paces!

I am a big New Year's resolutions fan. I know a lot of people aren't, and I judge all of you for that. I gave up Diet Coke for 2009. It's the only resolution I can remember, and therefore probably the only one I kept.

What's the challenge for 2010, you ask? This is my newest sacrifice:

That's right. Chocolate. I definitely didn't think I could do without my precious Coke Zero/Diet Coke for a year, and that turned out to be relatively easy. But chocolate? Just the thought makes me grab a Toblerone and tear into it like there's no tomorrow.

I'm also resolving to run a half marathon in the first half of 2010.

Both of these things are requiring courage in even ATTEMPTING to complete them. But I'm excited and challenged and therefore satisfied.

On this Friday...

...I wish I was snuggled up in one of these:

Laying on one of these:

Watching this:
I really dislike K.H., but my love for G.B. overcomes all odds. With all the work I have to do, it's amazing that I still don't feel like I've plugged into today yet.

Bottle of wine and baby puppy waiting for me at home...

Thankful Thursday

1. A busy day that includes getting to deliver and discuss a new business proposal.

2. The opportunity to go home at lunch and kiss my sweet, little dog (and be kissed back!).

3. That Friday comes after Thursday.

4. Eating only chocolate for lunch (which really was only a good idea at the time, but still makes me smile).

5. High heels on hard floors. Such a sexy sound.

The Weirdest Things...

The littlest, weirdest things make or break me.

I bought a cool cup this weekend. Make.
I overeat. Break.
Got (lovingly) made fun of for going to bed so early and let it affect me. Break.
Talked in my sleep and again got lovingly made fun of. Make.
Regular Sunday naps. Make.
Knowing that all my old friends are hanging out and growing closer to each other without me. Break.
High altitude running. Make.
Reliving highschool excitement over the MTV VMAs. Make.
Not sleeping well due to worry over sleeping in. Break.
Stressing about how easily I break. Break. Break. Break.

Steamboat Lake is absolutely one of my favorite places on earth! Charlie and I spend a lot of time outside, and have found a park near my dream neighborhood where we play soccer and frisbee every Sunday. This park is pristine: at the feet of the moutains, gorgeous green fields, and the same familes and pets seem to show up every week. It's the backyard of several homes in the neighborhood. Rachel Zoe may die for fabric and heels; I die for scenery like that.

When we're not together though, while Charlie is working on Saturdays for example, my time is usually divided between town, books and food. Recently I read the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and it was literary crack. I am so enchanted by farms and raising animals for reasons other than being pets, and I love the idea that maybe I might someday "live off the land" and "live closer to the earth." It's definitely a new goal of mine to have a garden everywhere I live, and while my first attempt here in Colorado has included only parsley and basil, my diet and soul have both been enriched by a life of planting, pruning, growing, picking and finally eating.

One of the draws of a simpler life - one out in the mountains, one spent weeding in my free time - is there is less energy for breaking. It takes a lot of life to constantly be breaking yourself down, life that could be enjoyed encouraging the seeds of joy and peace, pruning the wild branches of relationships and living off the rich spoils of a life lovingly tended.

A life lovingly tended. Make.

There's no title for this post.

I fell off the bandwagon in a bad, bad way. I haven't kept "plugged in" to anything the past couple months - facebook, personal email, blogging. Sometimes a little distance is a good thing; other times, it's just running away. A new toy (yes, I hold a Blackberry to my ear several times a day now) has switched me back on, though, and hopefully joining the 21st century of technology will keep me accountable to staying in touch with loved ones around the country and world.

Colorado is the centerfold of the United States; it's the golden, basted turkey on the Thanksgiving table. I have loved the past 2-1/2 months here. I have til the end of December and then it's most likely back to Houston with the likes of me.

My time here has been strategically divided between Parachute (where my apartment is), Rifle (where I work), Steamboat Lake (where Charlie works) and my kitchen/couch. I've read scores of great books and watched way too much Bravo. Charlie and I honed our ping pong skills and dabbled in pool and shuffleboard as often as possible. And we cooked. Cooked a lot.

What I haven't done here is grow as much as I wanted. Along with commitment issues, it's becoming increasingly more difficult for me to focus on myself in positive ways. I took stock of my inner dialogue and words said aloud about myself, and it's shameful. I would never talk to anyone the way I do to myself; I'd never neglect anyone the way I do myself. Something's gotta give.

Have you told yourself "I love you?" lately? It's way harder than it should be.