Double Christmas

Raven and Homer were busy dogs this year. Between posing for our Christmas card and helping Santa at the 11th hour, they barely had time to romp in the snow. We celebrated the Winter Solstice/ Christmas on December 20th at my parent's house. Dad won the 2nd annual game of Apples to Apples- it was his first victory. Ever. Fresh snow fell on my parent's land. Isn't Mother Nature a talented artist?



On Christmas Eve morning, Andrew and I loaded our sleigh with gifts, luggage and dogs. Ellicott City was under about 18 inches of snow and it made for a chilly Christmas Eve service. Jimmie was zonked from all the excitement on Christmas morning, so I let him nap while I photographed him. Sorry Jimmie, and thanks for being such a cooperative subject. The long weekend was packed with food (too much food!) and visits (not long enough!) with good friends. Our honorary nieces and nephew are really growing and turning into wonderful little kids. Taylor's and Tasch's- please hit the pause button to keep your kids in this phase. Really. They're changing too fast for us! Our trips back to Maryland never seem long enough. Even when we plan an extra day or two, we feel like we missed out on a visit with someone. Hey, psssst... come see us in Ohio!


Oh, one last zinger to keep you laughing till next time...
We think Anna and Sonja are responsible for trying to shuffle the Apples to Apples cards. Pony didn't want to play, so the girls went MIA.

 

Thanksgiving Week and other November Morsels

Has it really been 2 months? Wow, my blog is dusty.

November was a mix of highs and lows in our house.
After a freak accident on October 28th, our beloved grey cat Sonica passed away on November 1st. She lived hard and fast, she was fearless and scared at the same time. She never let us snuggle with her, but we often found her mooshed up against Buster in a sunny patch on the floor. Buster still doesn't seem to understand that she's gone. Sometimes I am positive that he's asking me "Well... When's she coming home?" I just pat his fuzzy orange head and say that we miss her too.

We added one more dog to our house the Friday before Thanksgiving. Just kidding! We were dog sitting for the folks that adopted the stray puppy that we had on New Year's Eve. They got married earlier in the month, and took their honeymoon over the holiday weekend. We had 3 dogs for about 10 days. I walked dogs 100 times. I counted. I had a chart to keep track of who did what outside and when. Laugh all you want, but there were no accidents in the house!

  

Thanksgiving day, everyone came to see us. Mom and Dad, Bree and Todd, Marissa and her one-eyed chocolate Lab Cammie. Cammie has springs in her feet...

This dog never stops moving. Ever. Picture it.














Bree and Todd posed for a classic Miller family portrait, and we hadn't even opened the wine. Yet.

Despite all this insanity excitement, Wrigley/ Wriggles/ WrigRee/ Pooka found a safe place to supervise from. On the very tippy top of my kitchen cabinets. She's the only cat that can get all the way up there, and she seems mighty proud of her newest trick. Little rascal. She almost landed in my pancakes one morning!

Raven and Homer say 'Goodnight'.

A real vacation

Mom and I spent 4 nights down in Naples, Florida. The weather was almost unbearable, 90° and 327% humidity. My glasses fogged up everytime I went outside. Most of our days were spent lounging around in our jammies till early afternoon, watching old Audrey Hepburn movies and eating cheese and crackers. Oh. And we drank wine. The good life, I tell ya!

On Sunday, our last night, we went to watch the sunset at Naples Pier. I took over 200 pictures. None are Photoshopped (I don't even have Photoshop!) It was one of the most amazing sunsets I'd ever seen.

Do you see what I see in this one? A hood ornament in the clouds!

Enjoy!

In the days and weeks following September 11th, 2001, I drove around my hometown and took pictures of every American Flag that I could get my camera focused on. Here's one of my favorites. Finding the flags on every home and building made me look at my country in a different light. I'd never seen so many people  show how proud they were to be Americans.
This is in Old Ellicott City, Maryland.

9-11-01

Grandpa said "These colors don't run!"

A dog's life.

A few weeks ago, we packed up the dogs and headed north to Wooster. My sister bought a house this spring, and it needs some TLC. Lots of TLC. Andrew painted a bedroom ceiling while Marissa and I stripped wallpaper in the hall bathroom. How come you never move into a house where the previous owners have the same decorating taste as you? We're talkin' glow in the dark hand stencilled border in one bedroom, complete with stick-on glow in the dark stars on the ceiling...yuk. So since Andrew was the tallest among the 3 of us, we elected him to attack the ceiling. Notice there are no pictures of this. Only dogs. We played with the doggies a little too much!

Here's my gorgeous sister on her new staircase. Her chocolate Lab Cammie goes a million miles a minute- 24 hours a day. I like how Marissa is calm and perfectly still, but Cammie was talking to Raven while I was doing my camera thing..

Homer's had enough of the girl's nonsense.

My friend Jenny lives just 1,000 feet away, we visit back and forth through the week. Yesterday, she brought her dogs over to play. And this fine fuzzball is the newest member of her family. His name is Manny and he is too cute for his own good. Raven, Homer, and his big sister Skye are slowly teaching him all about our neighborhood. 

Andrew made some Wacky Cake last night. He let Homer have the last of the peanut butter on the spoon... and that spoon went right into a bowl of hot soapy water- so no worries about dog slobber in your cake..

And here's the culprit of the cat pee laundry. Little Pooka thinks baskets of clean laundry = her bathroom. NOT OK. She spent the weekend locked in a bathroom with food, water and her very own litterbox. She just posted bail this evening and is currently re-joining the furry society that is our house.

Homer Kiss

A glimpse into what Homer is really like at home... Quiet, Pathetic, Kissy and Loving. Don't wear short sleeves around him, he'll lick your arm off.

Summer, S'mores and Stuff

Last week I trucked it down to my parents house to help my Momma organize the basement. Raven is oddly scared of the basement steps because they are just boards nailed to stair stringers, no 'rise' part nailed to the back. So she spent the day at the top of the steps, whining and sighing every so often. Luckily, Grandpa Miller (my Dad) kept her company while he made pizza for lunch.


Needy Sweetie likes things neat and tidy. This poor cat can't see her paw infront of her whiskers, yet she'll ball up a blanket to rest on. She's rarely feeling photogenic, so I was happy she let me take this photo.


A couple weeks ago my neighbor girls came over from next door. They love to help in the garden and they think watering flowers and plants is bunches of fun! Note: Do not give a hose to a 3 year old. She will soak you. Andrew and I have become good friends with the parents of these two girls and we made an evening ritual out of filling the bird feeder between our two houses. The girls help us fill it, and then they take turns hanging it back on the hook. It's ok, you can say it now. Awwww.


We've been enjoying our firepit pretty regularly this summer. Neighbors come down and chat for a while. I finally figured out how to get all the s'mores supplies down the backyard hill with minimal trash. This system beats my "tray propped on the edge of the wheelbarrow". Oops. We had some sacrificial s'mores, but we learned from my mistake.


And finally, Andrew and I were making our evening rounds one night- turning off lights, locking doors, etc... I looked up from the foyer and saw these two lovebirds. Perhaps a feline version of Romeo and Juliet was about to take place?


PS- see that painting on the wall behind the railing? Yeah. I did that.

See this?

A mirror image of the wonderfullness that is organization! (and some blood, sweat and tears about Ikea.) Well worth it!

Dogs, ice cream and a haircut- not all together.

Our weekend was a furry blur of dogs and me cutting Andrew's hair for the first time. He finally decided he had enough faith in me to do it...and like he said- "worst case scenario, I go bald!" Riiiight Honey, you'll go bald. (hehehe)

Saturday night, we met my sister and her husband at their house and they treated us to dinner. The cutest thing there? It was Lark, she's their tiny dog.


Andrew's glamour shot before:


I threatened to stop the haircut here if Andrew didn't quit squirming. I almost gave the kid a lolli-pop so he'd be distracted...


Dogs eating ice cream. They actually know what they're going to get when we head to the DQ drive-thru. Two doggy dishes, please!


Raven and Homer on the ride home from the doggy dentist last week. Have you ever seen more pathetic Labs? Raven was totally zonked and we could almost hear Homer singing like the Swedish Chef from the Muppets: Der der der...



Next up: Amanda attacks her office with the Ikea Army of build-it-yourself furniture.

Clippers Game and Homer

Last Friday, Roo and I went to a minor league baseball game. It was the Columbus Clippers VS Norfolk Tides. In case you didn't know, and I didn't know...the Tides are the triple A team for the Orioles. So, as Maryland natives, Andrew and I dressed in Orioles orange and black, dusted off the foam finger, and away we went. We counted as two thirds of the Orioles fans, #3 was just 20 seats away from us. We felt a little foolish, but that was quickly remedied by our 13-2 win! GO TIDES!


So, here's Andrew, the practicing vegetarian.... Hey, it was $1 brat night. What's a guy to do?


And we all know it's best to get a self portrait, always give the camera to the shortest person in the group...DOH!


Homer


And they're off!


Paying close attention

Homer is Home

Andrew and I are the proud new parents of a 5 year old yellow Lab. He was found walking the streets of the ghetto near a hospital here in Columbus. They also told us he was holding a cardboard sign: "will love you forever if you feed me". Homer is 90 lbs of mush. He's loving and playful, goofy and sneaky. He and Raven are getting along just fine, she shares her toys and she's showing him the ropes around here. I only have a few pictures from Homer's first days with us, my camera batteries went kaput.*

*After trying to upload the pictures of Homer, I realized that when you take pictures with dying camera batteries, you only get 25% of the photo...the rest turns out grey. Boooo.

Sooo, here's Raven on a rug, and Wrigley in a box!

The Easter Skunk

Raven has finally proven herself as a guard dog. Andrew and I were relaxing after an emotional week and we heard Raven growl, I mean really growl at something in the backyard. A few seconds later, our noses were assaulted by the fragrance of Pepe Le Pew. We can only guess that Raven saw Mr. Pew, and he got scared and sprayed his stink all over the yard. I had a case of the stupids and opened the back door "just to make sure" it was really a skunk. That was dumb. We could smell it perfectly fine from the comfort of our recliners. When will I learn??

Why is a good pea green so hard to mix?

My palette has 6 pots in it, 5 of them are horrible concoctions of pea green. None of them are the right one. I'm thinking of running to the kitchen to dust off the can of Split Pea Soup and use that on my masterpiece! HA!

I painted flowers

Therefore, I am a budding genius. :D

Parking Lot: 1 Andrew: 0

I think Andrew broke a mirror 2 years ago and he never told me. Most of you can recall our eventful spring of 2008: Kidney stones, root canals, a car accident all in 2 weeks and the list goes on and on. I thought we were in the clear till about 2 weeks ago. He started talking about major tooth pain and yadayada. Next thing I know, I'm schlepping him to the dentist, the pharmacy and the endodontist several times in a week. He's been recovering and it's nice to have him back on his feet. Literally. He has slept through most of the last 8 days.
So we go out tonight for a bite of food. We paid, walked back to the car talked about the music Jersey Mike's Subs was playing. Then out of the corner of my eye, I watch as Andrew twists his ankle stepping off the curb, stumbles, does a full somersault and lands flat on his back in the middle of the parking lot. Really? Yes. Remember that he is 6 foot 2 and the ground is a looong ways away from his forehead. It was a looong fall! Before he took his fall of shame, he threw my my sub (missing the oily spot) and chips to the ground. He broke his fall with his right knee (now bloody) and hands (only a little bloody). For real. Can we get a break here? When we got back in the car, he said it was revenge for me throwing his cake on the sidewalk 4 YEARS AGO. Let it go, Andrew. Let it go.

PS- We laughed about it the whole ride home.

Rissa's Birthday Dinner

Bree and I drove to Wooster tonight and had dinner with our big sister. After one round of drinks, we were laughing loud enough to make our dining neighbors give us the evil eye.
So, as is the case at every family meal, we started remembering stupid things we've said over the years. Some of the best are "Where's my straw?", "You just took a sip of my own coke!", "Point to me where I am." and "Please take off your feet!"

I happen to think some of the zingers would make great book titles... Mine would be called "Rabbit Season, Duck Season: Perpetual disagreements for the average couple"

What would yours be?
If this makes no sense, kindly ignore it. If you want to participate, leave a comment with your imaginary book title.

Just for inspiration, my Mom's would be "Where's My Straw?" because that's what she said as she stared into her glass of water, peering right down her drinking straw. Everyone else at the table could see it except her. Guess you had to be there? Yeah.

Next week's topic: What would you name your sandwich?

Amanda VS The Shower Doors

In the red corner: Amanda...lover of all things fuzzy. Her favorite color is platinum and her favorite accessory is elbow grease.

In the blue corner: The Shower Doors...keepers of the filth, grime and pure nastiness. They are literally the scum of the Earth.

Round 1:
Amanda takes on Door #1 with a vengeance and some pretty pink rubber gloves. She does a one-two punch with vinegar and scrubby sponge, only to be taken down by the sludge jammed behind the door handle.
Round 1 Winner: The Door.

Round 2:
Amanda brings on the 409, apologizing for the anti-Earth properties of the haz-mat. She thinks it is the only substance that can eradicate 2.5 years of the soapy scum.
Round 2 Winner: Amanda!

It was gross, I did it. The doors are clean, and our shower is almost in working order again. Next up, a shower re-caulking job... the entire reason the darn doors were off the track in the first place.

I won, I won, I won, I won!!!

Inauguration weekend

I can't believe January is almost over. I'm just now realizing that it's 2009! I can only handle so much change at one time, you know.
Andrew and I drove to Maryland the night of the 16th. It was colder than bone chilling for most of the drive. The kicker was the stop at Midway on the PA turnpike. 0°. It was almost to cold for Raven, but noooo, she's a Canadian dog who was born to swim to shore with a fishnet in her mouth. So, walking we went, across the parking lot, I went pigeon toed, she had 4 paw drive. ..get it? She peed. Victory! And we ran back to the car before my paws froze. I felt a little guilty for not letting have some water at that stop, but I think it woulda been a little dumb to refill her tank, only to have to empty it once again in BRRR chilly weather!

Saturday morning we drove to McLean, VA for a family event. Since we were so close to DC, we stopped there and posed for several Kodak moments while Meredith drove the bus around monuments. We froze, headed home armed with PrObama stuff and we were happy. We came home to play a round of Apples to Apples and I saw a side of Missy I'd never seen before. What a breath of fresh air that was! Short and stout....pffft!

Sunday...Let's just say Go Cardinals! Every living thing in that house was wearing purple to watch the game. But it wasn't enough to take us to the Superbowl. I blame our loss on Jimmie for calling his Steelers fan of a sister and allowing bad ju-ju to seep into the house. Sorry Jimmie. Take one for the team next time and step outside to make that call!

Monday...was a blur. I don't remember Monday. I musta slept through it.

We watched the inauguration on Tuesday and headed west on Wednesday. We made a pit stop in Frederick for some emergency PB&J and playtime with H&K.
Whew. We always cram so much into our trips, and it amazes me everytime that we come out of it alive.

Andrew modeling his Dad's hat. Pretty sharp, I think. Although, it looks a wee bit "Richard Petty-ish" to me.


You're not an American if you can't name this building. Ok, if you're 10 and can't name it. Cutie pies are the only exception.


Anna wondering where her Aunt Manda's eyes are, while I'm trying to show Andrew how to take a picture. And we end up with this.


Yummerific football cake! Thank you Chris and Missy!


Two clowns, I'm married to the purple one.

I have purple hair.

Yes, I had this done on purpose. Yes, Andrew loves it, he thinks it's a tribute to Baltimore. Yes, it's permanent.
Yes, it's awesome and it makes me feel younger than 27. Ugh. I'm in my late twenties. When did that happen?
My natural color is on top and the new color is on the bottom, so no roots will show when it starts to grow out. My hair grows almost an inch a month, so paying to maintain my roots is like throwing money right down the shower drain. Wasteful.











GO RAVENS!!