Animal House

Nate and I both really like having a dog in the family, and we knew we'd need to get one as soon as we moved into our own house because this girl has a really strong bond with dogs.  So when November rolled around and we both started to get puppy hungry, we decided to give our friends from The Kennedy Burren a call to see if they had any litters coming soon. Turns out they had just had a litter born on 11/11/2011 and we adopted one.

So we made the necessary preparations. . .

And then took a little (I mean long) drive to State College over New Year's weekend to get little Rocket.

Which is why I'm still not sure how we ended up with this cute girl in our home as well. If you know Nate, you know we really were never going to get a cat. The picture doesn't do her justice, she is really a beautiful Lavender Siamese who is very friendly. This is how it happened: Nate and Olivia were at the vet with Rocket and saw this kitty. Turns out she was being fostered at the vet and had the run of the place at night, but they left her in the lobby in a crate during the day so someone maybe would see her who couldn't live without her. Well, they were right because Olivia came home and would not stop talking about her. I asked Nate who this kitty, "Jocelyn," was. Nate just said, "Oh no, you heard about her?" and basically told me that it was so hard to not just let Olivia get her on the spot, they were so in love. Believe it or not, I didn't have to do any convincing or begging. I just made a few calls, paid the adoption fee, and she joined our family, too.  Olivia changed her name to "Belly" or "Belle" because she has a belly, and a bell around her neck, and she is very pretty.

As far as Abby is concerned, we have a new playground in the house. And just to clarify, the dog's crate and the cat tower are actually off limits to the kids, but the first time I caught them in them, I took a picture because I couldn't resist.

And here is our little puppy (I mean tick magnet) today. I'm still not sure when life is going to get normal again, but I'm glad our kids will have these guys as playmates.

Nostalgia

The best of times and the worst of times (so amazing but so exhausting!). I was thinking about my babies when they were teeny and how much I loved seeing their strong daddy haul them around like little bundles.  See if you can tell which is Livvybug and which is Babs. . .

My beautiful girls

Here's a little photo of my girl just before her school's Valentine's Daddy-Daughter dance. I may be biased, but isn't she lovely?

My girls in their very fancy Easter outfits. Such fun little girls.

Can you believe we have a six year-old in the house?

A cousin birthday party. The only way to beat it would be if all 22 cousins could have been here.

Ahh, a moment of peace. This girl's sense of humor and beautiful smile are what keep me going through the terrible 2's. What a wild ride.

The one merit of a nuisance pond

Enjoy this video. . . if you don't get motion sickness first. I promise to practice holding the camera still.