Merry Christmas!!

My good friend, Meagan, emailed me the other day begging me to please update my blog! So Meagan, this ones for you...

No Christmas would be complete without a visit to see Santa Claus...


Thank you for your enthusiasm, Santa.

It's been snowing pretty much non-stop today! I think I enjoyed snow a lot more before I had a dog, but I think Baylor loves it. We went for a walk earlier and she kept her tongue out catching snowflakes the whole way...


Tomorrow's Christmas! I hope everyone has a wonderful day filled with lots of great things...Merry Christmas!

(Sorry Meagan, I guess I didn't have much to say.)

Doggie Day Camp

Yesterday Baylor got the opportunity to spend the day at Doggie Day Camp! Who knew such a thing even existed??

We had a few minutes before "check-in" time so I got a chance to put Baylor on the scale for the first time in a long time. She weighed in at 54.3 pounds!! She still seems kind of small to me, but that's a lot of poundage.

After the scale, we headed to the PetsHotel where I signed her life away. I went back after lunch time to "spy" on her and see how she was doing. The dogs all play in a big room that has a glass wall into the store. Baylor was happily bouncing around from one group of dogs to the next. She even received a report card at the end of the day and apparently she did everything right! I'm so proud.

She was one tired dog when she got home and even laid down in the car, something she NEVER does! I'm sure she's eagerly awaiting her next trip to the Doggie Day Camp.

Sigh...

I just wanted to say that I have had the most enjoyable week ever! I spent lots of quality time with lots of great people. I was able to attend not one, but two Baylor football games, including one at the new Cowboys Stadium. I didn't have to work. I got to sleep in. I got to spend nearly all day shopping on Friday and even bought something!

There's way too much to recount, it was just a really great week and I'm having a hard time with the fact that I have to go back to work tomorrow.

Three more weeks...just 15 school days!

I don't really know what to say...

It's been quite awhile since I've found myself sitting at the computer to blog. There's been some super fun times that I wish I could document but the details are escaping! I'm thinking a list format might be easiest...

1) About a week and half ago my dog gave me a black-eye. I've never had a black-eye before but now I can say that it HURTS! I was bending down tying my shoes and Baylor got right underneath me and then jumped. Her very, very, very hard head hit my cheek bone. I wanted to roll around on the floor and cry, but I didn't.

2) I had the great opportunity to attend the Baylor vs. A&M game in College Station last weekend. The game was horrible, but it was fun to hang out with my friend Haley and witness her 2-year-old daughter's first "real" trip to Aggieland. A&M is a place rich in tradition and it was cool to see Abby experience that for the first time. See...I do have a little bit of respect for the Aggies.



3) I've been able to spend a lot of quality time with my good buddy, Meagan. This girl cracks me up!


4) I was able to lend a hand to my friend Stacey. She needed some help in the kitchen. If you know me at all you know how silly that statement is. We tried to make the famous Thanksgiving rolls. I had to leave before they were finished but I believe they turned out well! The highlight of this day was getting to feed Sutton and then him falling asleep in my arms. He's so cute!


5) Last night I got to attend the Dallas Mavericks game with lots of my favorite people. It was a great time filled with lots of unplanned adventures. We almost made an appearance on the 10 o'clock news too!







6) I've been off all week for Thanksgiving and I really, really, really enjoy days off!

7) Tomorrow is Thanksgiving! I've spent quite a bit of time pondering all that I'm thankful for this year. I can't believe that it's already been a year since last Thanksgiving. I feel like I did a pretty good job documenting all that I was thankful for last year and I can easily say that I'm thankful for all of those same things this year. I'm also extremely thankful that even though some things have changed this year, the people that are most important to me have remained constant. I'm so thankful for my family and friends that God has graciously placed in my life. I am blessed!

8) I'm already so excited for Black Friday Shopping! Always a fun time with my friends!

9) I believe I'm done!

Remember...

Do you remember two weeks ago when I showed you how much Baylor was enjoying her new memory foam bed?

Well, she has really gotten a lot of use out of it the last couple days...


Not really what I had envisioned but I guess it's alright. And while chewing up your own bed might suggest that she's not the smartest dog in town, she does occasionally prove otherwise. The other night we were watching TV (seriously, she sits and watches TV with me) and she very calmly got up, put her paw on the door and waited for me to let her outside. Then today she let me know that she wanted to go for a walk by finding her leash and laying by the door with it...


Her current favorite pastime is playing fetch. She will alternate back and forth between her red and blue tennis balls for about 30 minutes. We've been working on her catching skills and she's improved quite a bit. It won't be long until she hits the road as an amazing trick dog!

Just for fun, look at how small she used to be...

Confession

I have a confession to make. I recently discovered that I really enjoy Legos! There's just something relaxing about taking this:


And turning it into this:


I know, it's strange.

In other news, Baylor (the dog) had a Spa Day yesterday. She got a pumpkin spice bath (seriously?), her teeth brushed, her hair blow dryed and brushed, and a pedicure. She also came home to a new "memory foam" bed. I don't think she's spoiled or anything.


Sadly, Baylor (the football team) played like they were having a spa day yesterday. This season that held so much promise has suddenly turned quite disappointing. Luckily, I'm quite familiar with this type of thing! Don't get me wrong, I still believe we're capable of winning every game, even Texas!

Sic 'em Bears!!

Welcome to the gang, Sutton!

I'm not sure if I'm going to have children of my own, but God sure has blessed my life with lots of great kids. And, my "favorite-kids-ever" gang got a little bigger in the last week.

My friends, Stacey and Kevin, welcomed their first baby, Sutton Brooks, into the world last Wednesday. Stacey and I have been friends since elementary school and were roommates all through college and for a bonus year after. We even spent four of those years living in the SAME room! We've had some pretty crazy times along the way and I can hardly believe that she now has a baby! I got to hold him on Wednesday and I thought he was pretty stinkin' cute then, but I can honestly say that 5 days later, he's even more stinkin' cute! Of course, the fact that he slept in my arms for well over an hour may have had something to do with it. :)


Here's hoping he'll wear the same shirt as me someday!

Poor Baylor

Today was a big day for Baylor, she got "fixed." No puppies in her future. I know this a routine procedure nowadays, but for my little pup, it felt like major surgery. We arrived at the vet at about 7:30 and after signing all the paperwork and being promised a phone call when she was out of surgery, I left. By early afternoon I was starting to get a little concerned that I hadn't heard anything. Finally, I called and learned that she was doing fine and ready to be picked up. Thanks for letting me know, peeps!

Baylor definitely wasn't herself when I picked her up. She was very groggy, slow moving, and didn't try to jump once. She didn't even want to get in the car and I didn't think I could pick her up without hurting her. I'm sure it was quite a sight as I tried to talk her into getting in. Apparently she knew what was best though, she puked three times in the car on the way home. Poor dog.

Once she made it home she just stood there. She didn't lay down, didn't sit, she just stood and looked at me. Here she is sporting her new accessory. She loves it!



She also got hospital "necklace."


The one bright spot about this experience...The regular (totally inflated) fee for today's Vet visit was $1,195.35. My fee was $32.30, and eleven of that was for a pedicure. :)

In other Baylor news, she became a homeowner while I was in Chicago. Her "grandparents" really love her and took excellent care of her while I was away. They even bought her a house! She spent all night in it last night and looked so cute poking her head out at me this morning. I'd post a picture but it's too dark. Maybe Baylor will feel up to posing with it tomorrow. Thanks Mom and Dad for loving Baylor so much.

Chicago: A recap

I just wrapped up a great weekend trip to Chicago to visit the Williams Family. We packed a lot of fun into a short time and I apparently came home exhausted because I totally slept for about 11 hours last night. Here's a quick recap of all the fun...

Thursday morning Payton and I headed to the airport at about 5:30 am. It was EARLY!! We arrived at the airport and everything was going quite smoothly. Our plane was supposed to take off at about 8, we would have a brief layover in St. Louis and then be on our way to Chicago. Unfortunately, due to a maintenance issue, we didn't take off until after 9. We missed our flight in St. Louis and got to Chicago a little later than planned. I have never "missed" a flight before so I was little concerned about how all that would go down, but it turned out to be quite a pleasant experience. I sort of feel like a real adult now that I've dealt with something like that.

Once we made it to Chicago we headed south to Herscher, IL where we were able to catch Meagan's basketball game. I've always enjoyed watching Meagan play, she's got such natural talent and catching a game was one of the main reasons for the timing of this trip. This isn't a great picture at all, but here's Meagan and her team stretching before the game (notice that the team she was playing against has a green and yellow gym-how appropriate):


Friday morning we got up and went and toured Beecher. We saw Meagan and Lexie's schools, the Illinois/Indiana State Line, and LOTS of corn! In the afternoon we loaded up on the train and rode into the big city. Chicago is a really neat city and it had tons of cool buildings. We ate dinner at a cool restaurant where you can write on anything. We also visited several really cool stores on Michigan avenue.












One of the highlights, for sure, was visiting The Bean. This is a giant bean-shaped sculpture that is made of shiny metal that reflects the city and anything else close to it. The memorable part was using the iPhone to locate The Bean in Millennium Park. The iPhone did great, but apparently I am unable to read maps and led us about 4 blocks totally out of the way. Keep in mind that it is FREEZING and we had already walked for awhile, so it made it all the more exciting to actually find the bean!




Saturday we spent some more time in Beecher and even got to experience Lexie's favorite place, Plum Creek Nature Center. It was a really cool place that you could easily spend hours enjoying. Chicago actually has fall so all the trees were different colors, it was really pretty.






A little while later, Payton and I headed back to the airport and we arrived home safely late last night. It was a great trip and it was especially great to see some great friends! I think I may miss them more now, but it was good to see their new world and hang out for a little while! Thanks Williams family for showing us the sights and taking such good care of us!

CHICAGO!!!!

I'm here in downtown Chicago at the multi-story Apple Store! I'm thinking that Heaven may have some of the same qualities. Only way better of course! It's pretty darn cold here and it's been raining all day, but that hasn't stopped us from enjoying the downtown sights! I love it here!

I also am loving hanging out with this cool kid:


Later, yo!

Going on a trip on my favorite rocket ship...

Ok, I'm not going on a rocket ship, but I am going on a trip! Tomorrow morning I'm heading north to Chicago. I'm super excited about visiting a place I've never been, but I'm even more excited about going to see Ryan, Shannon, Meagan, and Lexie. My good friend, Payton, is going with me and I'm sure we'll have many crazy adventures. I'll be sure to keep you posted! Later, yo!

Time to get serious

Yesterday started out as such a beautiful day! I even took this picture of Baylor enjoying the cool, yet sunny morning (isn't she getting big?):


Then by about 2:30 things had changed and the weather did not really cooperate with my plans for the evening. For the third week in a row I was going to enjoy Baylor Football live! I was especially excited about this week's game because my good friend Kristy joined the fun. We drove through rain nearly the whole way to Waco and thought it might clear up right about the time the game was starting. We were wrong. It rained pretty hard for most of the first quarter and didn't show signs of stopping. Here's a picture of the boys trying to catch a little of the action:


About the time we (mostly me) gave up and made it to the safety of a restaurant the rain had stopped. Of course!! We still had a good time watching some of the game on T.V. and then finishing it up on the radio.

The Bears got another win to bring their record to 3-1. We need 3 more wins to be bowl-eligible and after the loss of Robert Griffin it's going to be quite difficult. Not impossible, but difficult. I still believe it can happen, but it's definitely time to get serious!! I wonder when the last time OU lost two games in a row was? Anybody?

No longer disappointed

If you're going to be a committed Baylor fan you just have to get used to the idea that it's going to be a year full of ups and downs. For example, Week 1: Big win; Week 2: Big Loss; Week 3: Big Win! It's a roller coaster that I just can't seem to get off. If the team's playing in Waco, it's even harder for me to stay away.

After last week's disappointment I had no intention of going to yesterday's game, but had already secured tickets for the October 3rd game. When I got the tickets in the mail on Friday afternoon I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple bonus tickets for yesterday's game. Aren't Baylor people nice? I thought about giving them away, although I didn't know who would want them, but the Bears pulled me back in and I was able to find two more boys to enjoy the game with...

Here's a before picture of Luke and Landry (at the Bear Pit on campus):



Here's an after picture of Baylor's newest fans:


After visiting the Bears on campus and showing Landry that there was no way they could hurt him (this was our entire conversation on the way to Waco), we enjoyed a little pre-game fun...




The boys were totally into the game. They did the Sic 'em Bears, sang the fight song, and yelled at all the appropriate times. It truly made my heart happy! Once the game was very much under control (we were winning 41-7) we headed home. The boys quickly fell asleep and I was able to listen to the rest of the game on the radio. No disappointment this week, we won 68-13 and scored more points than any other college team yesterday!

It was a great day and I'm already looking forward to next week!