Eight Years

Monday, July 29, 2013

A flurry of blonde fur
velvety soft ears
inquisitive, searching chocolate brown eyes
and a big brushy tail that has attempted to knock many beverage glasses over in one clean sweep.

Our Noah-dog.

He was only 14 weeks old when we rescued him from Lafayette, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina blew through in 2005.

A blonde ball of fluff with floppy ears and a goofy grin.
He was the best "student" in puppy class - learning "leave it" was SUCH a breeze, he made training easy.   Although now he has become a little more stubborn in his older years.

He isn't the best cuddler- he prefers his space.  Although around meal time he awards you with extra love - in order to get his food sooner...

I always feel safe when he's around, he is my protector, my guardian dog.

Today he turns 8 years old.  We don't have any children, but I understand when families look at their child and proclaim, "Oh my, where has the time gone?  You have grown up so quickly!"

So a toast to our first pup on his 8th Birthday - may your kibble always be laced in cat food, your dreams full of squirrel conquests, and your trips to the dog park never-ending.


*regretfully I only have a handful of photos when Noah was just a puppy... but here are two taken at my parent's ranch house when he was still really young - notice his ears still didn't stand all the way up!  The last polaroid photo was taken today, while he enjoyed his daily ritual of sunbathing.

xoxo




Sunbathers

Thursday, July 11, 2013

For a few brief moments today, we were all outside, cohabitating peacefully - both dogs AND the cat... the dogs basked in the heat of the day while Miss Kitty and I retreated to the shadows.  This was the first time all animals have gotten along without trying to pounce, stalk or take a bite out of each other.  Woohoo!  Definitely worthy of a second blog post in one day.  !!  Gotta love the expression I get from them... really, it was peaceful without incident.  xoxo

Brown Paper Packages

One of my polaroids is being shipped to San Francisco today - all prettied and packaged up!
hmmm... maybe I need to hand deliver it so I can go to San Fran... escape some of our heat.  Good customer service I'd say.  Almost Friday!!!

Drifting Downstream

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

as stillness lies
hushed against backdrops of grey skies
breeze is slight
water like ice, currents forcing a chill beneath bone
green grows wild
creating a veil, surrounded
thoughts normally rampant, slow and drift along
following the river down stream


*******

A trip to a childhood memory, also known as ConCan, with my mom, grandma, and sister back in May.  We stayed along the Frio River in a rustic cabin within walking distance to the river.  Just looking back on some of those photos.  I'll share more soon.  xoxo








Monday Forecast: Rain

Monday, July 8, 2013

Overcast today.  Sitting quietly at my desk while the rain falls steadily outside.  Coffee.  Quiet.  Just listening to the rain drops.  Hello Monday.  You aren't so chaotic today, thank you...






Summer Snapshots

Sunday, July 7, 2013

June was a bit of a blur... heavy workload, the addition of a new puppy, and lots of life lessons to deal with.  Let's just say last month began with us camping in our tent in the front yard because the Carbon Monoxide detector went off (not to mention I had been feeling dizzy and nauseous most of the day while working from home).  A simple trivia book left in Josh's truck by one of his friends probably "saved our marriage" on an ill-fated trip to visit my parents (horrible I-35 traffic with two roll-overs, the puppy throwing up all over the back seat, trying to just buy a cup of coffee but having to stop 4 times until actually getting one, and then missing our exit and driving an extra 30 minutes out of the way...).  Finding out Miss Kitty has renal failure.  Spending $1500 in vet bills because our new puppy had a tough start health-wise, and countless other little things that just add up to one blur of a hectic month.

SO here were are in July.  Still a bit of a rough start to the month, but this past weekend has been happily received.  Our good friends from Houston came to visit for the 4th of July.  Wonderful food, kayaking and paddleboarding on the lake, a shuffleboard tournament (we let them win since they were guests...), did I mention good food, and watching the bats fly out on South Congress bridge and the fireworks over the lake while listing to the symphony streaming on an iphone while perched high in Josh's office with front row views galore.  To finish out this much needed escape from the chaos of late, Josh and I went on a date night this evening to the Long Center to listen to the symphony on their front lawn.  We took a picnic dinner - tuna salad with baguettes, smoked mozzarella pasta and Belgian chocolate mousse for dessert.  Even the weather cooperated - 84 degrees, breezy and cloudy with the occasional clap of thunder in the distance.  Lounging on a picnic blanket, drifting away to the sounds of classical music with my wonderful husband by my side - it was the perfect way to wrap up the weekend. 

Happy to be back on the ole' blog - hope to post again soon...  meanwhile, a few snapshots of summer thus far.

The new puppy, Cole.  He is the most difficult to capture on Polaroid... wiggles way too much!

Miss Kitty staying cool in the shade on a hot summer day.

The two boys... blurry because it's their first Polaroid together and they won't stay still... training in progress...

A perfect Sunday evening at the Long Center, listening to the symphony.  Isn't he handsome!!

Early morning walk has me drooling over an old truck.