Updates, Dogs, and Jasmine

Hello friends! It's been a while and I have missed you. What have I been up to? Well, my mom had some heart surgery and she is better and doing great. I have also been contemplating this blog and my other blog and the best way to combine the two. I am still working on those decisions and until I figure it all out, I hope to blog more here.

I have continued with my intuitive eating journey and I am down about 10 pounds, which doesn't sound like much in such a long time, but for me it is huge. My relationship with food is SO much better, I don't stress when presented with the idea of dinner out with friends or what I might munch on when I am bored. It feels a lot like freedom. It is still a journey and I am still very much a work in progress, but I feel very good about my accomplishments.

The husband and I have been taking a digital photography class, been doing a little more home improvements, and a little traveling. I look forward to sharing adventures and pictures with you.

The fur kids are doing great!

And they love modeling for my photography class assignments.

I have been busy, but I still try and volunteer and do what I can for sweet fur babies looking for loving homes. Speaking of which, meet Jasmine!

Hi, I’m Jasmine! And I would love to be your shadow. I sure love humans and I like to follow mine everywhere! My foster mom says I am always on her heels. She loves it, just ask her. I also love the cuddles…do you have a lap? I’d love to lie in it. 

I am just a baby and I am learning to be a good girl. Right now I am less than a year old and I am only 15 pounds; so I don’t need much space, just lots of love! Speaking of love, my foster mom also thinks it’s funny that I like baths. I don’t know what to tell you besides baths are awesome. Just look at me, I am so gorgeous! 

My foster mom says I am still adjusting to living with my foster siblings, but she thinks I am going to be good with other pups. I have been around other dogs all my life and even though it has been tough, I am a sweetheart! 

I’d sure like to meet you and share some love with you. If you are in need of a shadow, contact Red Collar Rescue and arrange to meet ME!

Isn't she a doll? I know she'd be a great addition to a lucky family.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Jasmine's photos provided by BH Studios.

Thursday Thoughts

So, last night I was relaxing in my bed with my book. I knew Bauer had snuggled up right by me, I could feel a paw on my arm. I looked over and almost passed out from the cute.

I seriously love this guy. I am so happy to have him in our family.

I mean he fits in so well it is a little hard to believe he has only been with us for four short months. It kind of feels like he has been here forever. I can't imagine not having him.

He and Sammy make a perfect duo. Love.

In other news from my garden. I planted no sunflowers this spring. That doesn't sound at all noteworthy except that there are sunflowers growing in with my daisies.

Pretty right? They are super tall and I am not sure what kind of sunflower it is, but I can only guess that I have my birds to thank for them since there are sunflower seeds in the seed mix I feed them. I love nature.

Enjoy your Thursday!!

Back to Reality - Vacation Recap

The husband and I spent last week in Dauphin Island, Alabama.  What a gorgeous place!

We had nothing on our agenda besides relaxing.  It was a much needed break.

Sammy and Bauer made the trip with us and they loved being beach bums.

Bauer and Sammy being bums.

This was Bauer's first road trip with us and he did great!  On the way to the beach he did a little whining in the car, I think he wasn't sure why we were in the car so long.  As long as I reached out and pet him he'd settle right back down and sleep.  On the way home he was quiet and cozy the whole way.  He's a good boy.

He and Sammy did some good car snuggling.

While we were on vacation the husband and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary (and the 7th anniversary of the day the he proposed on an Alabama beach).  Romantical!

I got a little blue box containing a beautiful necklace with a W on it...love.

Good work husband.  You are too good to me.

In the middle of the week my sister, brother-in-law, and nieces joined us for beach fun.

 

Look how gorgeous my girls are!  My sister had the great idea to hire a photographer to get some pictures of all of us on the beach.  Obviously I took some pictures while this was happening too.

And a few selfies.

Sisters!

Bauer loved all the snuggles from his cousins who adore him.

Our boy is definitely living the good life now.

View from the deck of our house.

This was our first time to stay on Dauphin Island and it was wonderful.  The town is a very lazy beach town and the beach was not at all crowded.  We rented a house from Boardwalk Realty and they are fantastic! They really take care of their renters and make it super easy to check in and out. Our house was right on the water and it was very reasonably priced for a week at the beach in the middle of summer.  We will definitely go back!  In fact, can I go now?

Pelicans!

We made many trips to Skinner's Seafood to pick up fresh seafood to cook.  They had wonderful freshly caught seafood and it was all delicious!  If you are ever on the island and want to cook some fresh seafood you didn't catch yourself, go see them and they will hook you up.  Lol...hook you up.

I hope your week was half as fun and relaxing as mine!

Weekend (and more) Recap

Wow!  Life has been a little crazy here so I have been letting the dogs blog for me for almost 6 weeks.  That's a long time.  Here's what I have been up to...

The husband and I road tripped to Hattiesburg, MS.

As you might know, we have family that lives there.  This trip was special because this beautiful girl was taking her first communion.

 

That's our niece/God daughter Chelsie, isn't she a cutie?

 Trixie helped her dad barbecue for Memorial Day weekend.

We had friends over to enjoy all the delicious food.

It was a great time.

The next weekend Dave and Rachel got married.

You might remember them from David and Aerin's wedding post, that's where I got this great picture of the happy couple.

My sister and nieces came to visit.  I love seeing them as often as possible, so I always love when they come visit.  We had lots of fun that included a trip to the Downtown Aquarium.

I hadn't been to the aquarium in a long time and I had never been on the train that takes you through the shark tank.

Definitely a very cool perspective.

I also didn't know there was a white tiger at the aquarium.  Seemed a little out of place to me, but what a gorgeous animal.

I was happy to see her, but at the same time I felt a little sad for her.  The more I work with animal rescue the more I think about animal rights and welfare.  I thought she looked a little sad and lonely hanging out with everyone looking at her.  I am sure she is well taken care of, I just can't get over the feeling that a wild animal in captivity isn't happy.

This fiber glass version of her seemed just fine.

Chelsie was the only one on board with acting scared.  I love her scared face.

Around the house there has been lots of snuggling,

a little photo-bombing,

and lots of playing.

Sammy and Bauer are completely in love.  We couldn't be happier with having Bauer home with us.  I can't imagine not having him here.  He's dear.

I have been busy at home as well.  I have some new chairs and this awesome print from Sammy and Bauer's session with Mary Pasicatan Photography. 

I have some little projects to share...

...and some big ones.

I am looking forward to sharing it all with you soon!

Weekly Finds

I love spring.  I don't know if it is because I was born in the spring or if it is the blooming flowers and gorgeous weather...

...but spring really puts me in the mood to shop.  Possibly it also has a little to do with my tax refund.  Not sure.

I think I have mentioned it on the blog before, but in case I haven't let me tell you now.  I love to shop with Zappos.com.  Their customer service is great, their shipping is free (all the time, no paid membership for it, no matter the dollar amount you have in your cart), and they are fast!  I usually receive my packages a couple of days after I place my order...sometimes the next day.  If you haven't shopped with them, I highly recommend giving them a try.

I did a little online shopping this week at Zappos.  I picked up this cute new phone case.

Daisies!

And I grabbed these black flats by Blowfish.

(source)

I had never tried Blowfish shoes before, but I really like them.  They are a fabric upper that is textured, reminds me a little of burlap.  They are cozy and cute. 

I also made my first etsy purchase this week.  I love these bangles by Antebellum Baubles.

Aren't they fun?  I love them.  Since making this first etsy purchase I have gone back and bought a couple of more items (most of them gifts).  If you have a May birthday you should be excited.

Sammy and Bauer wanted to say hi...

...but instead they decided to nap.

Have a lovely Tuesday.  Happy shopping!

*This is not a sponsored post.  I received nothing to say wonderful things about Zappos.com or Antebellum Baubles.  I just like to share the love.

Weekend Recap

I hope you had a wonderful and blessed Easter weekend!  I got this picture from my sister in Mississippi and it made my day.

I can't wait to see my nieces in two weeks!  Love those pretty girls.

We had a quiet Easter around the house.  I made dish pan pasta for our Easter dinner.

Dish pan pasta is so easy to make.  Typically it is made using leftover pasta, but I like it so much I made the pasta specifically for it.  You spray your baking dish with nonstick cooking spray, layer your pasta and sauce in the bottom, add a layer of cheese, another of pasta and sauce and repeat until your dish is full.  The cheeses I had on hand and used yesterday were cottage and mozzarella.  Then bake until warm and bubbling (I did 350 degrees for about an hour); melt a little more cheese on top.  Done.

Dish pan pasta is a delicious lasagna style concoction that is typically made from whatever is in your fridge.  Hence the name dish pan pasta, it's like you threw in everything, but the kitchen sink.  My grandma used to make it a lot.  Brings back memories, so a perfect Easter dinner dish.

A new development over the weekend my bed got a lot smaller.

Double Trouble

The are conspiring to take over my side of the bed; I can feel it. 

I hope your weekend was wonderful!