The Bandito...and also, Snow!

Here are some pictures for you...if you are still out there, visiting this sad, neglected blog!


I went to PetSmart yesterday to buy some new dog food, and I had to get this bandana. I have been looking for a bandana for Otto for about as long as he has been with us. This is the first one I have found that was not too girly (Target), not too lame (glow-in-the-dark from Superpets), and lacking a stupid saying (pet store at the mall). He was wearing it so the point was up on his back, but he keeps moving it around. Isn't he so very Old West?


Stop making me sit here to have my picture taken!


And if you look close, you will see that it is snowing. This is our first snow, and I hoped it wouldn't come. I would think I would ne aware if we were expecting a lot of snow, and I don't remember them mentioning that on TV, so I am going to assume this will not mess with the fact that I have to go into work at 3:00 today and drive home at 11:00 tonight.

Otto had yet to see snow, and he was unprepared for the joy. He was snapping at the snowflakes and running as fast as my hold on his six foot leash would let him. It was pretty funny to see!

And it is actually sort of stickign to the ground in a nice dusting. What a perfect day to snuggle under a blanket and read a book. I think that's just what I am going to do.

Working on me...

Well, it's day two of my quest to stop my habit of putting into my body any little piece of food that looks good. So far, like the beginning of any "diet," things are going well. I had a good day yesterday, I was minimally hungry, and I had some water, although not as much as I should have. I also had only diet soda, even though there is a 12-pack of Cherry Coke taunting me in my garage. It is right next to its sister, Diet Cherry Coke, and that is just fine for me.

My next big challenge will be to get this body moving. I am so not motivated to go walk outside. The hills in this neighborhood are daunting, and the cold weather doesn't exactly draw me outside. I plan to look into a gym membership as soon as my income jumps after the start of my new job...for now, I am feeling like today might be a good day to lie around and read and watch TV and do a whole lot of nothing, until I head into work for the evening shift.

Otto is happy to have me home for the day, as evidenced by the fact that, after we came in from a trip outside, he JUMPED ON TOP OF THE TABLE IN THE BREAKFAST NOOK. Just sprung right off the ground and landed with all four paws on top of the table. And then thought better of it and hightailed it on down. The look on his face was priceless..."Oh, crap, what did I do now?" He has calmed down somewhat, now that he has ripped the stuffing out of the toy my mom gave him for Christmas. He couldn't let that elephant get the best of him!

Oh, yeah. It's a good day.

Almost done!

I HAD MY LAST CLASS ON THURSDAY!

Now, I am spending a lot of time sleeping, and I have even started reading a novel! Wacky! I have also acknowledged that Christmas is, in fact, coming, and I had better start preparing for it. Tonight, we put up our first Christmas tree as a married couple, and we were fortunate that Bill's sons could be here to do it with us. It looks good...a mix of Bill's matchy-matchy stuff and my childhood favorites. But it's so weird to have my ornaments on a tree other than that of my parents'!

We are also looking forward to Otto's first Christmas. His eyes became as round as saucers as he realized that a tree was moving into the house...but he's being pretty good about it. He hasn't (A) tried to climb it or (B) peed on it yet. That's good news!

Anyway, look for pictures this week as I finally clear off my camera's memory! And as I finally have time to blog more!

More soon...

Back in Black

Soooo...I post my 9/11 tribute and then disappear from the face of the earth. Yep, that about sums up what's been going on in my life lately!

Here are some random thoughts, bulleted because I don't have it in me to write in paragraph form:

• The wedding is in ONE MONTH!!! ONE MONTH!!!! Too bad the priest hasn't called back to set up all our meetings yet. Stressful? Hell, yeah!
• School is actually trying to kill me. I mean it. We just had our second exam in two weeks, and those suckers are hard!
• Otto continues to be cute, and he is getting better at not freaking out in the crate that much and also can be trusted to hang out in the bedroom in the morning after I get up and go to work so Bill can sleep on the weekends and this has cut down on all the fighting we were doing about it. Now, we are a happy little family. And when Bill's kids are visiting, Otto gets so excited that I think he will someday jump right out of his skin. So cute...and one of the main reasons I wanted to get a dog. Every boy needs one.
• I have my last two wedding-related appointments next week. I can't wait for this thing to be over.
• I have a paper due on Tuesday that I haven't really started so much yet. Must get cracking. Luckily, Bill is out of town for a Boys' Weekend in Cleveland this weekend, so I will have some quality time with the computer to get this done.
• The weather has taken a turn for the colder. Time for sweaters and Uggs. Can't wait!
• Some of my blogging friends have been forced to go underground with their blogs because of some repercussions that come from either sharing too much with too many people or sharing too much that was found by one unfortunate person. I don't think anyone really cares about the drivel that I right, so I am not worried about that, but it kind of sucks.

Alright, that's all I've got! Look for more coherent blogging sometime soon(ish...oh, who am I kidding? You get what you get!)!

**********

Edited to add: For some reason, bullets don't work, so numbers are what you get. I am too tired to try to figure out what the heck is going on! Why can't Blogger just cooperate? Why?

Seasons change...

For the past months of spring and summer, the woods behind our house have been lovely, lush, full, and green. However, the heat of summer has abated and the days are getting shorter, and the Season In Which I Will Be Getting Married is on its way.

See Exhibit A:


In other news, I really love my new FREE StatCounter account. It gives you great information on who is getting to your site and how they are getting there. I am in Info Ho...so I love this.

Finally, gratuitous photos of extreme cuteness...just think how bad I will be when it's a baby!


How he reacts when I say, "Otto! Otto!"


Heading my way...

Puppy Love

So it's not that easy having a puppy in the house, but he is being a champ. He was home alone in his crate for many long hours yesterday, and he didn't go to the bathroom in it at all. I was astounded because all the literature (yes, I have become an info ho regarding puppy books now) says that puppies are physically unable to hold it that long. Hmmm, seems like they are wrong.

We are working diligently on the crate training, and he is doing pretty well. He generally cries right when we put him in it, but then he quiets down. The crate is a lifesaved for times like this, when I want to blog and surf the internet without worrying about him chewing through my computer cables. And he has been sleeping in it at night, with me on the floor next to him. Next week, I return to my bed to see how he does with that. Wish me luck because sleeping on the floor is definitely getting old. However, Bill is enjoying spreading out in the bed!

New addition...

Everyone, meet Otto Graham...



He's the newest member of our family...a two-month old Lab mix. And we LOVE him.

Yes, we are officially crazy...