Things that make me happy...

My beautiful home (soon to be more beautiful with new siding!)..

And the view from the front porch on a beautiful day.

In no particular order....

This bedroom I saw in a magazine... I painted mine to match, but it's still a work in progress..

My husband working hard, even through dinner...

my husband taking some well-deserved relaxing time...

and my husband doing what he loves.

Seeing the "Twilight" series dominate the "worst books" list

My cute chicken tea-pot...

And the way it makes my kitchen cute

This bumper sticker that reads: "Guns kill people like spoons made Rosie O'Donnell fat". Ha!

And then enjoying it with a delicious breakfast

 

Putting delicious things in my coffee...

Seeing the junky Taurus with a "for sale" sign,

And driving the new car, instead!

 And, of course......

Brisa in a box.....

And Bella in the same box!

Cute!

One of Kyle's coworkers just sent me the cutest e-card...it is a must see.

Click here to watch the little animation.

(Isn't she precious?!)

 Did you notice that the little kitty in the card looks JUST like Brisa???

This is EXACTLY what has been going around my house for the past few weeks, what with all the knitting I have been doing!

Thanks, Sue! That really made my day! :)

"Hope for a Family"

At Church on Sunday, the priest who said Mass was visiting from New Hampshire to talk about CFCA (Christian Foundation for Children and Aging), which is a sponsorship program that helps people living in poverty in 22 countries around the world. My husband and I have been wanting to get involved with some sort of charity organization for a while now, so we were excited to hear about this one. With this program, not only can we donate and help someone less fortunate than ourselves, but we can really make a difference in the life of an individual by being connected one-to-one with a child. We have the opportunity to build a relationship with a family that is in need (because, although you sponsor a child, the focus is on building a strong family...."we work with each child in the context of the whole family, recognizing that the child's well-being depends, in large part, on the family’s well-being").

So after church, we decided to sign up. It just felt like the right thing to do...

We are sponsoring this young man....

His name is Alberto and he is a 7-year-old boy from El Salvador who likes mathematics, toy cars, and is apparently very chatty.
We really look forward to developing a friendship with him through letters and pictures.. our sponsorship is more than just financial support...it is about telling the child "I believe in you" and helping them grow into their full potential.

Anyway... if you're interested, just check out their website here. It's really easy, and you can sponsor either a child, or a teenager, or an elderly person for $30 a month.

We are really excited about getting to know Alberto, and will be writing our first letter to him soon.. I think this will be a really great experience for both my husband and I...  I will let you know how it goes :)

"As one person I cannot change the world, 

but I can change the world of one person." 

-Paul Shane Spear

Um....I have your dog.

Sigh....fencing in the backyard just took first place on my priority list. Today was the third time in the last few months that I have received a call from a strange number with someone on the other end saying "um....I have your dog". How embarrassing.

He walked pretty far this time, too....all the way to the end of our street, and then ACROSS Michigan Ave. How he managed that without getting killed is beyond me.

Shame on me for leaving him out for so long, I suppose. I should be a more responsible pet owner.

What a pain.

So....Much....Fur....

I'm feeling rather motivated today. Probably because I've been browsing cute blogs and marveling at all these cute, CLEAN houses. I would probably consider myself a decent housekeeper  (I try, at least...) but with animals like mine, who shed a ton and don't really go outside (and a super busy husband who tends to leave things.. laying around), it takes more than mediocrity to maintain a fur and clutter-free house. Needless to say, I never really achieve that...and probably never will.
Actually, I always thought it would be easy to keep things tidy, since it's just the two of us (+ 3 fur-balls), but it's not as simple as I thought... I think it's because I like to dedicate entire days to cleaning, rather than just a little at a time, because I hate the feeling of leaving the job only partly done.

Those days usually go something like this:
I always start in the kitchen...always. Because you never know when I might get the urge to make something, and that can NOT be done in a messy kitchen. Do the dishes, wipe the counters, scrub the stove, mop the floors...everything. 

Then I vacuum, starting in the office, then the sitting room, through the dining room, into the living room, and up the stairs (Emptying the canister between rooms because there's SO MUCH FUR!). This step takes the longest, because the fur is everywhere....seriously. It never ends.
Then I just clean...for hours. I don't even know how it could take so long to clean up after TWO people. Just two! I must be ridiculously slow.

^^^Bad Idea^^^

I enjoy doing it, really...I do. I would take a day at home cleaning over a 4 hour shift in retail any day. But considering I rarely have entire days that can be spent at home doing whatever I please, I am really trying to reform...so that I can do a little at a time...instead of waiting for a whole day.




So I guess my point is... today, I'm making it my goal to do just a little. And tomorrow...just a little. And the day after that, and the day after that...just...a little.

Wish me luck..........