More pictures!

I put the bows back on Jo and one lasted until I got a picture.

Caleb guarding the new toys.

Two naughty dogs.

What a fun day today! Laura and I went shopping at the Dollar Tree. Who knew you could spend that much money in a store where everything is only $1. We stocked up on wrapping paper, halloween decorations, and other misc. items including a costume for Jo. You will have to wait until Halloween though. I also bought the dogs new toys. Instead of buying them different toys I bought two of the same thinking there would be no fighting. Well, now we know that Jo always wants whatever Caleb has and Caleb wants everything. The pictures above are of Caleb being naughty. He spent about 2 months on steriods for immune mediated polyarthritis and we are happy to see him back to his old self and off the steriods. The side effects seem to be gone except for the increased appetite. An hour after he's eaten he brings you his bowl because he's hungry again. After his haircut he is looking a little chunky. More of him to hug!

Haircuts!

The dogs had their hair cut today and the groomer said they both did great! I was happy to hear that. Jo did have bows on her ears but they only lasted 5 minutes. As usual, getting their pictures was difficult as they are always moving. These two are the only ones that are not blurry. Enjoy!

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. I've been on a stretch at work. Tomorrow is my last day and then I get a day off before I go back for 4 more. We decided that I am going to cut back on my work hours. I will be going part time in November. My coursework gets heavier each semester and now that Matt is gone 6 out of 7 days the poor puppies get no attention. I hope it will allow me to see more of my friends and family. I have not seen Torey and Taylor since July!! I am going to study now. I have my NRP (neonatal resuscitation) mock code renewal in the morning and I need to memorize all the questions to ask, order, and medication dosages. The last mock code I did the poor "baby" faced every problem you might encounter in the delivery room. Anyway, I've posted a couple Vegas pictures to hold you until I can post more.

What we have been up to

New valance & floor. Now just need to install baseboards and other finishing touches.

New faucet (ignore the pre-backsplash wall please)

New countertop

Can you believe we have been married a year?! This last year has been our busiest yet with the house, school, and the addition of Jo to the mix. We had a chance to have dinner together to celebrate. My dad had come over that day and helped me move the stove and fix some things around the house. Since the stove was out of commission I couldn't make dinner so we went out. We went to the world famous (according to Matt) Chinese buffet in East Peoria. It was packed but the food was so good. I love tofu but it never comes out right when I make it so I definitely eat it when I can. Anyway, enough of the food talk. The kitchen has come a very long way in the past few days. The tile is all laid and 75% of it is grouted. There are a couple loose tiles I need to go back and fix before I finish but I ran out of steam. I decided to decorate instead. Tonight I had a genius idea. The red silk dupioni table runners my mom made for the wedding are so beautiful and with only one table were going to waste. Then I had the idea to use them as a valance. So here is what I did. I folded one in half, made three pleats with a single stitch each and hung it up. Right now it is attached with safety pins because I'm trying it out. If I decide to make it permanent I think I will use velcro that way they could easily be taken down to clean and put back up. So I've posted a picture. Let me know what you think. I can't decide if the horizontal lines of the shade and the vertical pleats are too busy. This has become way too long. I'm going east tomorrow and won't be back until Monday night so I had better get back to my laundry and cooking. Enjoy the sneak peek of the "new" kitchen.

On the home front

My mom got Matt a pizza pizazz (sp?) for his birthday. We tried it out that night with a homemade pizza. It was delicious and so fast. Now he is always offering to make pizza.

Taylor wasn't sure that she liked the icing on her fingers

I have been trying to take advantage of my days off and try to finish some projects around the house. The kitchen has turned into a summer long project. We put the new countertops on and installed a new garbage disposal and faucet this week. Unfortunately, when we went to turn the water back on the valve broke. Tom was able to come try to fix it for us but when the water company came to turn off the water to the house outside that valve also broke. So, they will be coming back sometime in the coming week to dig up our front yard and replace parts. We do however have water now. I am hoping to accomplish many things today as my dad is coming up to teach me how to turn off the gas so I can move the stove to paint behind and tile under it. I will post before and after pictures of the kitchen when it is finally done. My goal is to get all the home improvement projects done before the semester begins. It will be sad to leave this house in 2 years after we put so much work into it but I'm hoping to move to a bigger house and Matt is hoping to move to a house that doesn't need any work so he doesn't have to help me anymore.