The Manganaro's

Projects keeping me busy

2011-03-10T02:43:00.000-08:00

Mark is still in school, two classes this semester and they are stressing him out! He is really close to finishing his masters yay! Also, he is moving up in his job slowly but surely. He is getting ready to take a new position within the same job which is very exciting! We're just lucky we have jobs! He is staying busy playing ball- both softball and basketball oy vey! Boys. So when Im not working I like to keep busy also, and lately that has been a lot of picture taking and baby showers. I know nothing about photography even though I did take a photography class in school... but that was like decades ago! Really I just like anything that I find beautiful... people, moments, nature, objects, fabrics, home decor. Staying busy this way is a way for me to keep a chaotic calm. Here are some things I've been working on lately...

Tis the season for baby showers!

2011-03-10T02:38:00.000-08:00

My sister Amanda is having a baby girl in a week! We are so excited and can't wait to meet baby Capri! This is the shower that my mom, sister and I threw her at my house.

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A few of Amanda's belly pictures

Boy oh boy!

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I was so excited when I was asked to decorate for one of my best friends baby showers. I only had about a week to throw something together but I am happy with the way it turned out, and more importantly she was happy with how the shower turned out! Phew!

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This was me trying to be artistic ha ha! She had a lot of cute ones but to keep it private I just posted these ones

KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON

2011-03-10T01:13:00.000-08:00

So in the middle of the craziness of opening my new salon, doing baby showers, taking photos, decorating the house and all the other things that fill my days... I had been feeling some funny symptoms. I was constantly shaky which I thought was due to drinking caffeine, my heart felt like it was beating out of my chest, I couldn't catch my breath, I was ALWAYS hot and sweating and I kept having horrible panic attacks. I will spare you the details of the other symptoms but with this and still not being able to get pregnant, I finally gave in and got checked out. Well after much testing my results came back. The doctor looked at me and nonchalantly said ... "you have graves' disease". When that statement set in I cried a little. It shouldn't have come as a surprise since my father and grandmother both have and had it. But I was surprised. I mean, I try really hard to be a healthy person. I try to respect this body I was given though I am far from perfect. Graves' for those of you who don't know is an autoimmune disease. My body attacks my thyroid gland making me produce too much of the thyroid hormone which makes me hyperthyroid. If that makes any sense? Apparently this happens in women more than men and although people are predisposed to get it, it is brought on by stress or trauma to the body. Which is why this happens a lot in women in their child bearing years. And the more I thought about it, I remember a few of the symptoms coming on after my miscarriage. Then when I was dealing with the salon stuff it came on like a ton of bricks. So long story semi short, I have chosen to not kill my thyroid gland (much to my drs. disappointment). And even though I have chosen to take the countless number of pills they prescribed, I am trying to keep my body clean. I have gotten off the caffeine, started running again, am trying to stay away from foods that could cause allergies, well basically just trying to be healthier and more respectful of my body. Hopefully at some point I can turn this thing around. Maybe that is wishful thinking but I need to give it my best try before doing anything drastic- like getting rid of my thyroid gland all together. So the moral of this story is to de stress your life. When you feel like flipping out... wait a few seconds to really think if its really worth your health. Take time out for yourself.. go for a walk, take a bath, get a massage, practice yoga, or meditate. Whatever calms you. Try your best to rid your body of unhealthy things. Enjoy your life, your family, your kids... not everyone has that opportunity so cherish it. And most of all keep calm and carry on.

Sister in laws beautiful family

2011-03-10T01:05:00.000-08:00

I just had to post these pictures. I took pictures of my sister in laws family and they are such a cute family! This first picture cracks me up cause Sophie (the little girl on the bottom) was making the craziest faces. Once I thought I had a good picture with everyone looking in the camera, BOOM! Soph was making another face.. This one makes me chuckle.

The grinch who stole Christmas...

2011-03-10T01:00:00.000-08:00

Although I didn't document our Christmas or Thanksgiving this year, I did manage to get this pathetic picture of my little rat Hank. He destroyed one of my beloved Christmas present props, that was adorned with candy canes. You can see the evidence all over his fur!

Reunion time!

2011-03-10T00:51:00.000-08:00

We had a family reunion around Thanksgiving -hence the turkey pinata . The cousins enjoyed the pinata, the saw dust scramble (where they searched for shiny new coins in a bunch of saw dust, it was like finding a needle in a freakin haystack), and just had fun getting to spend time together.

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Cohen chilled while his cousins did the saw dust scramble. Noah and Baron posed for this picture, classic Baron face. And I got Jaime and Rob's family to model for me in front of the lake.

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A Little cousin love...

We sang a farm animal song while bhaaaa-ing like sheep... well... nevermind. And enjoyed some delicious mexican food.

Halloween

2010-10-25T02:53:00.000-07:00

Halloween is one of my most favorite holidays, the dressing up, the cute decorations, and lets not forget, the best part... the CANDY! Well this October has been particularly busy. Mark has been traveling for work and is back in school for his masters, so that keeps him very busy. And I have been making big decisions about moving my work closer to our home. I have finally found a place on Higley and Ray! I am leasing a room with two friends and its like our very own mini (five station) salon. Super exciting but needless to say it has been ALOT of work. I am finally settling in but October has just slipped away so fast! I haven't had the time to pick out any costumes for Halloween parties but I did manage to get a few decorations up... just in time for a birthday dinner we threw for my father in law. (which Im mad I didn't get any pics of).

Amongst all of the chaos, I did take a Saturday off so me and my hubby could go get a delicious breakfast and take our dogs to Barktoberfest... notice, Me and Flossy's nails are the same color! Hank had a blue sparkly mohawk, blue legwarmers and bright green nails, I wish I would have gotten more pics.

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This is Hank is tired from making the wreath. The glass jar at the end of the table was filled with fall colored peanut m&ms.... not such a good idea to have candy laying around the house!

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Mark got crazy and decorated the tree... This is our scary entryway, and a wreath I made with all things from Hobby Lobby!

2010-09-28T02:16:00.000-07:00

Oh how I adore mustard YELLOW. It transitions ever so smoothly from summer to winter. (as shown below on Hayden and Rachel) Can I just say... I pretty much love this color on everything!

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A summery mini pleated skirt to mustardy winter bootcut pant...

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You can dress yellow up or dress it down

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Red Carpet moment of the CENTURY.....Michelle Williams in a to-die-for Vera Wang mustard yellow Oscar gown

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DELICIOUS bright pops of YELLOW color

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Yellow cork heels, and lovely embellished pillows...

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To oversized bags and pretty yellow necklaces. (Found on etsy)

AND SO IT IS..............

2010-08-30T03:23:00.000-07:00

On a personal note... as some of you know, Mark and I have been trying to have a baby for sometime. We started getting that itch at the beginning of last year. We actually did get pregnant pretty quickly. We were so excited! I started feeling a lot of the symptoms, the cravings, the exhaustion, the funny little pains in my tummy, my sense of smell was out of control! I even started feeling like a mom, if that makes any sense? Its something unexplainable, the bond that can grow in such a short time. I don't know if it was because we were older and so ready or that I had wanted to be a mother so badly, but I did get a strange sense that I wasn't ever alone. And as quickly as that feeling came... that feeling one day, disappeared. Last July I, like many women, miscarried. It was a very tough, emotional and humbling experience to go through. Unfortunately this time around it has not been as easy. Maybe there is a lesson that I have not learned yet. Humbling myself?... something I work on each day. Struggles of life?.... having to go through hard times to know the good?... I am grateful for those experiences. Sympathy for others?....I have compassion for others differently than I did before. Not coveting what others have?... Ok, Ok... this one is a tough one. I am so, so happy for my friends and family that have children (I love my nieces and nephews), I guess I can work on the coveting part though. The only thing I can think of is.... Patients. Ugh. That whole "not on our time" speech. I have never been one to wait patiently for something. I guess this is just one lesson I am still working on LEARNING. So as for now... I am putting IT out into the universe. I want children! (A girl preferably) Ha ha just kidding anything would be nice! I need to start a family soon so that I don't end up with a dog farm! So universe, I am trying this whole "law of attraction" thing.. if I say it, it will be. And so it is.

Speaking of dog farm, Flossy needed a friend soooo..........

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flossy aka "THE BEAST"

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Hank aka "the suckup"
.............................BESTIES........................

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Best of FRIENDS

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Flossy is very OBSESSED... I mean... in love with Hank. She has to know where he is at at ALL times. She chases him relentlessly, stares at him like a creeper, and smacks him in the head with toys to get him to play her favorite game with her.... chase/keep away. Im bummed this picture turned out blurry but if you look closely, you can see Flossy's eyes and the way she looks at Hank.... yup.... obsessed.

2010-08-30T02:22:00.000-07:00

DECORATING UPDATE:

I just LOVE mixing the new and shiny with the old beat up treasures I find. This is our master bathroom, obviously in desperate need of a fresh coat of paint and maybe a window treatment. I found this gorgeous, vintage (like 1940's vintage) "school house" pendant online for under $200! Also while rummaging through an antique store, I found these old beat up soda crates, $15 a piece... not too bad. Oh and look next to the crates.... it is those wire milk baskets I got in NEW YORK!

2010-08-30T02:03:00.000-07:00

If you remember, this is the HALF bath I am currently working on. So far we just have it painted. It looks like a baby blue in this picture (YUK), but it is the "silver/sage" from Restoration HARDware. (A really nice silvery BLUE-green COLOR). Up this wall we are actually going to either DO a white subway tile or white brick. I DID get as far as purchasing the sink AND the table it is sitting on. Next, we are doing some cool LIGHTING and BUYING a faucet.... STAY tooned!

2010-06-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

This was our trip to the Hamptons

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This is Chelsea Market, it is by the Meatpacking district in the West Village. This building use to be the old Nabisco factory, where they discovered the oreo. It is two blocks wide and I don't even know how many floors high. This bottom level has retail stores one of my favorite being Anthropologie. It has stores where you can buy fresh organic produce, meats, fish, live lobster, organic milk and so on. It also has yummy places to eat, little deli's, cakery's, places they make crepe's. So many cool places! Upstairs is where the oxygen network is, the food network, the mlb baseball, google, the ny cable news and tons more! I have never seen a place like this but it was really cool! Definitely worth checking out if your ever in the area!

2010-06-28T17:58:00.000-07:00

I got these wire baskets (at 20% off btw) that I have been coveting for some time now at one of the stores in Chelsea Market. I have many plans for these little gems, I will post when I get them situated. These were strange pictures placed all over the walls of different weird men and they were actually for sale! The stop light was hung over an elevator that was made out of old mailboxes... coolest decor ever!!!! I was in decor heaven!

2010-06-28T17:55:00.000-07:00

2010-06-28T17:28:00.000-07:00

On the way to visiting some flea markets, Mark and I ran into a palm reader. Now I am the last person on this earth that has ever wanted to do anything of the sort. I am freaked out by anything super natural, or "of the other side". There has been way too many stories within my family, and even my own experience with "a ghost" if you will, that I have always stayed far, far away from this kind of thing.. heck I run to turn the channel if a scary commercial comes on! (Thats not an exaggeration). So I'm not sure what possessed me to want to get my palm read. I won't go into all the details but she was right on about so much that I started tearing up! She said a lot of positive things but she also said that there was a lot of negativity around me and that I had to cleanse the negative to pull positive in so that I can progress forward. So she gave me this stone.. its a tigers eye. It does a lot of things but mostly cleanses bad energy and lets me have an open mind to see from others points of views. I am supposed to meditate with the stone (which I haven't yet) so for now I keep it under my mattress. We will see if anything she says will come to fruition. Yes I am now Spidi (Spencer and Heidi).

2010-06-28T17:16:00.000-07:00

I found these cool handmade charms at "The Green Flea", (the other place we went was called "Hells Kitchen Flea Market", I highly recommend both places)! These charms are made out of old typewriter keys. And these are more of the wood blocks.

2010-06-28T16:57:00.000-07:00

Wherever we go, (to Marks horror) I always have to make some stops at antique stores or flea markets. My mom took me as a little girl and I could never appreciate the old dusty junk, but now I'm obsessed! I don't know if its getting a deal, or having a vision to convert a piece of junk into something beautiful, or something that was ingrained in me as a little girl, but mostly I think it is one of the best ways to see parts of a city that you would never get to see just as a tourist! These wood blocks just looked cool (at places like these there are a mix of new and old things), a pair of old binoculars, and my most prized possession, this crazy wood mannequin head that belonged to a famous wig maker.

2010-06-21T00:10:00.000-07:00

One of the days we visited the Holocaust museum. It was really heartbreaking. When we came out of that museum, there was another one that was a room that you went in and you would hear a bunch of voices talking. It was really futuristic and kind of creepy. They gave us headphones and an Ipod touch for the tour. On the touch you would see the person talking, telling their account of how the Holocaust directly affected their life. You would hear them through the headphones and every time you would walk to another glass tube, the person would change to someone else telling a different story. If you weren't by a tube and you were just standing in the middle of the room, you would hear lots of people talking. It kind of felt like you were floating above them listening like you weren't there... very odd. Also the room was on the second floor and there were glass window walls. You could see out across the ocean and even see the statue of liberty!

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We had to make a stop at Dylan's Candy bar of course. It was three stories of candy heaven. They had everything from a fondue station, to candy stations that you fill bags, cotton candy machine, ice cream parlor with a bakery, and even a huge Chinese candy section. It was crazy!

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We even visited Manganaro's Deli! It was closed though.

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We rode the bus tour around the city.. as you can see I'm not really sure what to do with my mouth with all my braces, it all looks so awkward!

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Here are some pictures I found of when we first got Flossy, seven weeks old!

2010-05-20T04:26:00.001-07:00

I think I have been putting off posting anything for a while because my heart is still breaking and the pain hasn't gone away... I don't know if it ever will. This last January I was faced with the hardest decision I have ever had to make. I had to lay my love, Sammy, to rest. It is still so hard for me to talk about as I am welling up with tears now. He was almost twelve years old. He got cancer that had started in his pelvis and had spread very quickly throughout his body to his lungs, making it hard to breathe. I knew over Christmas break something was up when I took him on a hike and a few days later was wheezing in pain. Within a couple weeks, I watched him decline rapidly. I took him in to get some testing done and within a week they told me it was cancer. After I received the news I was so distraught I took some time off of work to be with him every second until I decided what to do. I was faced with this decision alone.. no one could make it for me. I tried to give him all of his medicine but there was so much of it Sammy was just struggling. He had just stopped eating and didn't even want to go outside. So his last few days I carried him in my arms down this pathway by our house with lots of grass and trees. The wind rustled the trees around and I would say a little prayer with Sam. I just needed to know what to do. Although the answer was clear it was the hardest decision I've ever had to make. How do I say goodbye to a friend that has been with me since high school? Through all of the hardships I've faced, to have him there nuzzling me letting me know everything would be ok... through all of our runs and hikes we would take together, for all the celebrations with family, and through all the trials in our family's lives... he has just been there so loyal with wanting nothing in return. Now I am faced with having to make the decision to end his pain and say goodbye to someone I love dearly. I love you buddy, and miss you so, so much. Nothing can or will ever replace you my love. Monday, Jan 18th 2010 is the day that you went back to heaven. I hope you are there playing with Muffy and Rusty and waiting till we are reunited again someday! Deep breath... so after all of this, I struggled alot. I was very depressed and came home to a quiet house every day. I just wasn't able to sleep and would cry uncontrollably. So a few weeks later, Mark and I decided to get another dog. Not to replace Sam, but to focus my attention elsewhere. Well it definitely kept me preoccupied. I still cry for Sam, but now I have a new responsibility to take care of , and she is a handfull!!! Here are the pictures from Sammy's last night with me. We had a little get together at my parents house with Sam to celebrate his life.

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Introducing, our newest addition.... Flossy! She is the opposite of my beloved Sam in every way. He was small, black, and feminine, and very very smart (people always said he was human). She on the other hand is a huge, white, marshmallow that is super dopey and gets scared of her own shadow when we go on walks at night... literally. We are working on the smart part... She is getting there though, poodles are smart by nature. She is only five months old and weighs forty pounds already! She knows how to sit, shake, and lay down. Flo is still in puppy mode and has the attention span of a fly right now but she will soon be joining a puppy class and will be working on her manners. A couple of interesting facts about Flossy that are kind of funny are, she is missing a nipple, and she needs braces just like her mommy.... the braces part.

2010-05-20T03:40:00.001-07:00

So I am down to working three days a week now. (Less days, longer hours). I somehow get this question on a regular basis: "what do you do on your days off?" Since we don't have kids yet, people are baffled on how I spend all of my time off. Honestly... I really don't know where all of my time goes?! But somehow I stay super busy between: trying to go to the gym on somewhat of a regular basis, grocery shopping (trying to find the local farmers markets), I love to cook and spend a lot of time making fancy meals for yes, just Mark and I, scrubbing toilets, laundry,etc... (I need a maid)! The ongoing projects around the house, trying to get each and every room decorated (its a lot of work)! And oh ya, trying to keep Flossy from destroying our house and our beautiful backyard that my hubby put in. It really makes for busy, busy days! So here are some things that have been keeping me busy lately:

2010-05-20T03:20:00.000-07:00

My biggest project that were tackling right now is our half bath. It is the one that guests use so Im not sure why I decided to do the other bathroom first. So here is a picture of my finished hall bathroom, and a picture of the one we are working on now. We are literally starting with a blank canvas, which I guess is good. My vision for the half bath is "French Industrial". The color we decided on is silver sage from Restoration Hardware. For those of you who are not familiar with their paint, you can get online and check out their colors... silver sage is my favorite and it is what they have displayed in the store. This is the paint can, you can see the color on the can.. the one in the back is a darker color called "blue sage" I'm not sure I am sold on this color yet, not even sure where I will use it. I am thinking of maybe a broken whitewashed brick up the wall that the sink is against. An oil rubbed bronze spout coming out of the wall. A white porcelain rectangle (farm style) basin that sits on top of a cabinet made out of rusted black metal and reclaimed wood. I'm doing little bits at a time since this project is detailed so I will post pics with the progress made.

2010-05-20T03:05:00.000-07:00

Another thing that I've been spending my time doing is decorating frames for gifts. Here are two that I made for friends of mine.. the family one explains itself, but the one that says "big d" was for a friend who's dog recently passed away, that was his name. The frames are at Michaels (one of my most favorite stores), in the wood isle. They are just in raw form so you have the freedom to paint them whatever color you want! I just used a white acrylic paint, and mod podged on scrapbook paper, embellish and violla!!!! Off the subject, but when I was down at the Michaels on Germann and Gilbert, I looked across the street and saw that they are putting a HOBBY LOBBY (another fav) on the southeast corner!!!! They are not open yet but keep your eyes peeled cause I would imagine they will have a grand opening really soon!

2010-05-20T02:54:00.000-07:00

A must have for me is a huge "inspiration" cork board that I can load up with pictures of all the many things I want for my house. Usually the pages are pulled from Ballard Design, and Pottery Barn. These two pictures are pulled from pottery barn, and oh how I die for that distressed ledge hanging above the bed. I don't know how long I can hold off from purchasing it, I just don't know how I am going to justify to Mark spending $300 on a ledge! Maybe it will go on sale... fingers crossed!

2010-05-20T02:47:00.000-07:00

Here is some hardware that will be embellishing some part of my house, and an old window I picked up on one of my antique shopping trips (something I learned from my mom at a very young age)

2010-05-20T02:33:00.000-07:00

So this is where a lot of my time is spent... my craft room. In all its glory, unorganized and messy it drives me nuts! I will have to finish it and take more pics.

2009-12-26T02:45:00.000-08:00

I have never had braces. Even though I had straight teeth growing up, I always wanted braces. Everyone had them when I was younger, it was the cool thing. I used to bend a paperclip and stick it in my mouth to pretend that I had a retainer. Over the years, my bottom teeth started crowding. So in all my vanity, I have decided to get braces. Not invisilign, full on braces! Sure I got clear, but geez I'm thirty not thirteen! I had an appointment all set up for after X Mas, but thought it would be hilarious to move my appointment up so I could have them on for the ugly Christmas party. Not so funny when I actually got them on..... OUCH!!!! IT FREAKIN KILLS!!! And lets not talk about the amount of food that gets stuck in them... it's a wonder how I nourish myself! It gags me and I don't even want to eat! There goes the yummy Christmas dinner... nothing says yummy Christmas dinner like cut up blistering lips! Oh and it gets better.... in the next week, I get my wisdom teeth out. Don't ask me why I am torturing myself. I'm sure I'll at least get some great pics out of that! Ha ha!

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Before

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I might have a big mouth, but I have a super sensitive gag reflex... this was horrible!

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Tah Dah!!!

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This was our first ever "Ugliest Christmas sweater party" that turned into "Be as ugly as you can possibly be Christmas party"

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My niece Lexy just got her braces on too!

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The gift frenzy

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All I know is if this was the ugliest pants contest, I would have definitely won!

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The kids had fun decorating gingerbread cookies.....

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Watched the grinch, and gave hugs

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And played with silly string

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Gotta love my family

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Some family shots

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Some family shots

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Nothing hits the spot on a cold night like bread bowls and homemade soup!

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And the winner is.......... Amanda! I just died laughing when I saw her! This is her with her money pot she won.

2009-12-26T01:04:00.001-08:00

This actually makes me really sad. I came across these pics the other day when I was looking through my camera. As some of you know, I was super excited that Mark and I were going to adopt a puppy from a rescue. These are the only pictures we have of this moment in time. Sniffle. So after much thought, Mark and I had found this Italian Greyhound that we thought would be a perfect fit in our little family. Sam is getting up there in age and we thought he could use a friend. So we looked on petfinder.com and came across this adorable puppy who was seven months old and rescued from a puppy mill. We did a little research on the breed and knew that he would be a little hard to potty train and knew that coming from a puppy mill he would need some work. We wanted this little dog so bad that we were even willing to wait for him to get over his kennel cough before we could take him home. We waited a few weeks (felt like forever). Finally we were able to pick him up! This breed is a very difficult breed and they will only allow certain people to take them on. Thats why when the lady handed him over with little to no questioning, I was a little shocked but very happy. We took the little guy home and named him "Noodle". Long story short, he was the hardest dog to handle! I seriously had a nervous breakdown. I was super sleep deprived from his howling that kept us up a night. I just remember that right before we made the decision to give him up, I was slumped over the sink that I was washing him in (he peed everywhere and constantly smelt like urine), I was scrubbing away and crying to Mark, " If I can't even handle a dog how am I going to handle a kid?!" I felt so bad that I had to make the decision to give him up, I was sick over it! It ended up being the best thing for Noodle. I didn't give him back to the rescue we got him at, but to a rescue that dealt only with this specific breed. They are VERY picky on who they adopt their dogs to. Since Noodle picked up some really bad habits being in a puppy mill for the first part of his life, they are working on rehabilitating him so that he makes a good dog for someone. Even though our first experience wasn't the greatest, we are still all for getting a dog from a rescue. I know many, many people who have had great experiences and won't get anything except rescues! It was mostly our fault, we didn't have the proper means to rehabilitate this poor little guy. (not to mention the rescue we got him from, shouldn't have had him in the first place, and should have interviewed us more). We are definitely working so that we will be properly prepared before we get our next rescue dog. PLEASE DO YOUR HOMEWORK ON THE TYPE OF BREED YOU WANT! PLEASE DON'T PURCHASE ANY ANIMALS FROM THE MALLS OR PET STORES (THEY COME FROM PUPPY MILLS!) PLEASE SPAY AND NUEDER YOUR PETS! There are so many dogs out there, they are putting the to sleep by the truck load! If anyone wants help finding a rescue, I am a little more educated now and can totally help, just let me know! Even if you want to foster an animal let me know! Noodle is with a family that just loves him, they say he even learned how to use the doggy door!!!! Happy tear!

2009-12-26T01:01:00.000-08:00

2009-12-26T00:57:00.000-08:00

Some random pics I found on my camera...

2009-12-26T00:54:00.001-08:00

A fun night of bowling and games...

2009-12-26T00:52:00.000-08:00

Me and Marge!

2009-12-26T00:49:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when you mix family and cameras.

2009-12-22T00:14:00.000-08:00

Getting in the Christmas spirit, we decided to have a Christmas Eve party at our house this year. (It was a good reason to hurry and put our backyard in anyway). We thought it would be fun to throw an "ugliest X Mas sweater party". I thought I would be clever and make up some invites with a picture of Mark, Sam and I in really ugly X Mas sweaters. Not only sweaters, but I thought it would be hilarious to make really ugly faces too. I waited anxiously to receive the product of what I had created. I got them, sealed them, and sent them off as I chuckled to myself. Then it dawned on me... I just sent my brother in laws, something they can blackmail me with! Even though I am fighting with every fiber of my being to not post Marks picture up, I will only post Sammy's picture. After all, there is no way to make him ugly! I will say though, that Mark was pointing a giant candy cane at the lettering on his tight red shirt that read: "Tis the season to get naughty". And he looked a little bit like a serial killer... hee hee just kidding Mark! I won't comment on what I looked like!

2009-12-22T00:12:00.000-08:00

2009-12-22T00:07:00.000-08:00

Marks sister, Melanie just had a baby girl... Marlee (I'm a bad aunt, I don't know if thats how to spell her name). So here are some pictures I took of her adorable kids

2009-12-22T00:04:00.001-08:00

My sister Amanda just graduated from nursing school! Yay! Here are some pics from that night

2009-12-22T00:01:00.000-08:00

2009-07-15T23:45:00.000-07:00

Two more pics of the house... we are getting close! The doors were locked so I had to take a pic of the cabinets through the window.. they are knotty pine and have a glaze called "smoke" we love them!

2009-07-09T02:34:00.000-07:00

So much has happened in the last little bit for Mark and I. One of the things is our new house we are building! It will hopefully be finished in the next month. HALLA!!!!!!

2009-07-09T02:25:00.000-07:00

Just to update the fundraiser for baby Ellery.... we raised around four thousand dollars! It was one of the hardest things to organize, but when i saw the looks on Ellery's mom and dad's faces, it made it all worth it!

2009-06-01T00:31:00.000-07:00

Ok everyone, one week till the fundraiser! It will be held at Habit Salon, this coming Sat. June 6th from 9am-5pm. Please, please, please send out this info to as many people as you can. I would love to have a fabulous turn out! Just for those of you who don't know... we are raising money for this sweet babies medical bills. Her name is Ellery McBride, and she was born with a chromosome deletion, has had so many major seizures she most likely has permanent brian damage, and has undergone two major open heart surgeries. We are raising money for a good cause!!! The girls at Habit salon will be doing haircuts from 9am-5pm and donating all of the money earned to Ellery. ($35 haircuts)! We will be doing $5 waxing, free chair massages, and there will be live music from 12-3! We are selling cupcakes in a jar... yummmmm, and we will be having "IT'S A GIRL THING BOUTIQUE" setting up shop in our front room. There will also be really cute jewelry for sale! Even if you don't need a haircut, come down for the raffles, we will be raffling off:

*A MICRODERMABRASION FACIAL

*ONE HOUR OF MASSAGE (from Kara Jones who's amazing)

*ONE HOUR OF PRIVATE MACHINE PILATES INSTRUCTION

*A FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHY SESSION (with Annie Randall)

*ONE HOUR OF INTERIOR DESIGN

*SWAROVSKI BABY BRACELETS (lots!)

*CUTEST CUSTOM MAGNET BOARDS

*TWO $25 GIFT CARDS FROM GECKO GRILL... YUM!

*CUTE CUSTOM APRONS

*TONS OF BABY ITEMS

*TWO GIFT CARDS FOR CUSTOM BLOG LAYOUTS

*HUGE GIFT BASKET OF RUBS AND MARINADES

*HAIR PRODUCT GIFT BASKET

AND I'M SURE MORE TO COME........

So PLEASE stop by and have some fun! Cash and Check only for all items (except haircuts, will accept card also) Also, Haircuts will be first come first serve, so come down and put your name on the list! NORTHWEST CORNER OF VAL VISTA AND SOUTHERN AT HABIT SALON!!!! SEE YOU THIS SATURDAY!!!!!!

2009-05-07T23:49:00.001-07:00

Ok... so link to baby Ellery's blog and check out the new info on the fundraiser coming up! We are lowering our haircut prices for this day only! $35 haircuts!!! Ladies, that's a steal from this talented of hairdressers! Please come get your haircut on June 6th, or come for the raffles, or just come because you want to support a good cause!!!

2009-05-06T01:41:00.000-07:00

I know this young couple who just started their sweet little family a few months back, in September. Much to their surprise, their little girl "Ellery" came 35 weeks premature. She was diagnosed as having a chromosome deletion in her 9th chromosome resulting in a congenital heart defect called Tetraology of Fallot. They have had many trials, and have been in and out of the hospital since the day Ellery was born. I have made them a blog with their "story" on it. Please link through my blog or go to www.babyellerybenefit.blogspot.com , and read their story. Because she has been in the hospital for most of her fragile life, she has had to lay flat. This resulting in her head flattening out. I am trying to get the word out, so they can raise enough money to get Ellery a little helmet to reshape her head. They have an account set up at Bank of America under "Ellery K. McBride benefit account", no account number needed.

We will be holding a fundraiser to raise money for this family, at Habit Salon on Saturday June 6th so please let me know if you are interested:) (We will be doing haircuts, I'm not sure the cost yet, sorry) We are in the very beginning stages of planning, so there is more info to come! I will keep you all posted! Thanks!

2009-04-27T04:05:00.001-07:00

I was not aware that anyone ever read my little ol blog, until people started mentioning to me that I need to update. Soooo... this is my yearly attempt at updating our blog. Thank you to Kim to give me a little kick in the pants! How's that for getting right on it?? I will try my best to stay on top of it... (oh and p.s. Kim, I updated my music just for you) :)