Growing Up

I'm having a really hard time because my baby brother is getting ready to graduate from high school when I want him to stay a little kid forever. I can only imagine what my mom is going through. She loves us girls alot, but he is her baby and her only boy so I know this is killing her. Anyway, my talented aunt Terri took his senior pictures and I just wanted to brag and show everyone how big of a babe my little Rob is! We are so proud of him for the man he is becoming even though I am sad that he is already 18 and that we only have 9 or 10 months left to enjoy him until he goes on his mission. Love you Lobster!!!

Jellystone here we come!!!

A few weeks ago Dru and I bought our season pass to Yellowstone National Park. We love it there. We go up there at least twice a summer. We had never gone in April before so were a little hesitant because most of the park was still closed and it was snowing like crazy. Much to my surprise it was AMAZING!!!! The park was beautiful and there was no one there. Best of all we saw lots of animals. We saw this cute little black bear that just sat at the side of the road for almost 30 minutes trying to find some food.

We saw a couple of coyotes, some elk and buffalo (of course), and my very first GRIZZLY bear!

We actually saw him twice.

The first time we saw him he was off in the distance eating something, and the second time he was right on the side of the road. It was so much fun to see those animals. The buffalo were not used to sharing the road with cars so they made it very difficult to get around. One charged at our car and then veered off, while another one kicked at us as we drove by. We were lucky that they did not do any damage to our car or us, but it was quite an adventure. We feel so blessed to be able to stay at my parent's cabin in Island Park so that we are a little closer to Yellowstone. We have so much fun there and it is quickly becoming a tradition for Dru and I. Sorry the pictures aren't very clear, it was snowing really hard.

Sweet and Innocent

Picture Tag

1.Go to your documents/pictures

2. Go to your 6th file

3. Go to your 6th picture

4. Post it, and blog about it

5. Tag 6 people to do the same

6. Name your picture

This is a picture of our puppy Maddie on one of our visits to her before we took her home. She appears to be so sweet and innocent. The couple we bought her from originally named her Dora the Explorer and always told us how curious and mischievious she was. We did not believe them because everytime we came to visit she did this (snuggled with us and slept). We obviously should have listened! Despite her naughty behaviors we sure do love Maddie and Marley!

I'm going to tag: Britt Barrett, Brooke Floyd, Chel Gambles, Jenn Barbo, Liz Curtis, and Ronda Ingram

What a day/Feather Fun!!!!!

So I have had the most incredible day today and I would like to share it with all of you. Disclaimer: I am on medication that makes me crazy. Insane even. You must keep this in mind while reading this post because it magnifies every situation 100x.
First of all, I must say that everyone and thing relating to my job today decided to gang up on me and make my life difficult. Obviously due to the nature of my work I would be breaking confidentiality if I went into further detail, so you are just going to have to take my word for it.
Second, I received a call from Dru on his lunch break along with a picture message to show me what the dogs had done to our house. More on that later.
Third, I went to fill up my gas tank today and one of the employees was absolutely certain that I still owed the store $10 even though I paid at the pump. Needless to say, I was very frustrated because I knew I had paid for my gas. It turned out that I was right and had indeed paid for my entire tank, but it was not until my client informed me that I realized I was yelling at the poor man. How embarassing!!!
Back to my sweet adorable puppies! It turns out that my dogs decided to play tug-o-war with one of my throw pillows and since a picture is worth a thousand words I won't say more.

I have cleaned up the feather mess after emptying the vac. 3 times. While cleaning Maddie and Marley both jumped in the feathers and pounced on the vacuum (never know how to spell that word) barking the entire time. I swear they were mad at me for taking away their fun and were telling me off.
I have obviously had a rough day and you will be glad to know that I will be taking the rest of the night off before I start again tomorrow, but I must point out the bright side of everything today. Maddie and Marley had a blast with those dang feathers! Mind you I was only able to recognize this with the help of my dear friend Chels!

Last week we decided that we were going to keep Marley, so yesterday we signed the adoption papers and now we officially have 2 dogs! The deciding factor in this was when Josh and Lindsie dog sat for us (Thanks again Josh and Lindsie!) and Marley hung out under their coffee table most of the weekend. We knew that Marley had been through so much in her life and she was loved and comfortable with us, so uprooting her was not a good idea. We are having so much fun with the both of them and they love eachother as well. Maddie has definetly loved having someone home with her all of the time and she does not destroy our house as much!

Last Wednesday (11th) my baby brother turned 18. This has been a hard thing for me especially since my baby sister turned 21 last month. It is a constant reminder that I'm getting old! Life seems to be moving faster and faster and sometimes I just want it to slow down. At any rate I am so grateful for both of my siblings and for the wonderful people that they are turning into.

Valentine's, Life and Basketball

Dru and I had a great Valentine's Celebration, we actually did not Celebrate on Valentine's Day, but a few days before. Dru took me out to eat at the Outback. We rarely eat there, but it is so yummy. I love it. I enjoyed going on a date together to a nice resturant since it is not something we do often. As for actual Valentine's Day we brought home some Wendy's and watch some of the All-Star events for the NBA. My sister and her husband were in town so they came over to our house to watch the festivities with us. It was actually a really good time and I loved being able to spend time with Linds and Rob. We don't get to do that much.

As for other news, Marley is adapting well to our family. She has quite the little personality. Her and Maddie are definetly two peas in the same pod. They love to play together and it is nice that they have eachother while Dru and I are at work all day. My parents' new house is finally finished and they get to move in sometime next week. We are so excited for them!

Last, Hillcrest Basketball has been doing extremely well in District Tournament and after their big win against Blackfoot they are now advancing to the final round (they won by 12). We are so proud of this team, especially Rob, for all of their hard work this season. Last year they struggled so much and it is nice to see them winning and enjoying themselves. We told Robbie no pressure but that Dru and I have both gotten time off to watch him at State! I believe their regular season record was 16-4 (the highest of Coach Baldwin's Hillcrest career) and in the District Tournament they are 2-0. (don't quote me on those numbers) We are so proud of you Lobster! You are the best little brother in the world and we love you!!! Linds you are the best sis in the world too!

Marley's Story

I love animals, especially dogs. This is definetly something I got from my Grandpa Bob. When you own a pet it is part of the family, equal to any human. That being said, I went to the pound with a little client and came across a little pup who touched my heart. Marley is a pure bred boxer who was picked up by animal control about a week and a half ago. She was found so malnourished that most of her little bones are visible. She was curled up in a little ball in the corner and at first I thought she was probably an agressive dog. Something about her piqued my interest so I asked about her at the front desk. One of the officers told me that she was not violent, just scared and unresponsive but that I could take her out into the play yard and see what I thought. They also told me that she did not have much time left and that if someone did not take her she would be put down on Monday morning. They were amazed that someone had not taken her already because she is a purebred and quite a nice looking dog. She is black with a white chest and paws. Usually I am saddened by these type of things, but am able to distance myself since we have such a sweet boxer at home that has a good life, but as it came time to leave I started crying. I knew we could not take another dog so I tried to keep under control, but as the afternoon wore on I found myself unable to control the emotion I felt seeing this dog that had been treated so badly on the verge of losing her life. I just kept thinking that she would make a really good pet for some little boy and she would never get the chance unless I did something about it. I asked many people I knew if they were interested in her, but did not get the feedback I was looking for. Finally, I called Dru in tears well aware that he would never agree to what I was going to ask him, but for some reason I asked him if we could take her in as a foster dog. Dru reluctantly said that we could so I made all of the arrangements and she was able to come home with me last night. At first she was very scared, but she is warming up to us more and more. She is still a little unsure of Maddie, but we were able to get both of them running around in the backyard together chasing a ball. It has been so fun to see the changes this little girl has made so quickly. I have high hopes for this puppy with a sweet demeanor despite all of the struggles she has had in her life. She has a rough road ahead of her because of all of the obvious abuse that she has endured, but I know that she will make a great dog for someone one day soon. We are so excited to have Marley with our family until she can find the perfect one of her own!