Sunday Snippets

"There is no greater risk than matrimony.  But there is nothing happier than a happy marriage."
--Benjamin Disraeli; qtd. in Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage by Elizabeth Gilbert

~~~~~

"'Did I tell you that my father is dead?' Mai asked as she was showing me around.
'I'm sorry to hear that,' I said. 'When did it happen?'
'Four years ago.'
'How did he die, Mai?'
'He died,' she said cooly, and that settled it.  Her father had died of death.  The way people used to die, I suppose before we knew very much about how or why."
--Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage; Elizabeth Gilbert

~~~~~

--www.postsecret.com

~~~~~

"Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me, 

and lead me in the way everlasting."

--Psalm 139: 23-24

~~~~~

"Let me not the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
     If this be error and upon me proved,
     I never writ, nor no man ever loved."
--William Shakespeare; "Sonnet 116"


 

My Favorite Puppy Girls

When Hub and I went home over the 4th of July, I took the opportunity (about 10 minutes before we left) to take some pictures of and with my favorite puppy girls, Dixie and Maisie.  

Aren't they the sweetest?

One Year Ago Today

Today, Hub and I are celebrating the conclusion of our first year of marriage!

Yay for us!

I was so surprised when our wedding day rolled around, and now I am equally (if not more) surprised that we've been married an entire year already.  

Our wedding already seems so far away but just like yesterday.  It's weird.  

I say that about all significant (and insignificant) events in life, but it's really how I feel.

Happy Anniversary to Us, 

Meet Miss Maisie!

Maisie 

is a 9 week old Miniature Dachshund. 

Her favorite pastimes are chewing, running around the apartment at warp speeds, cuddling, and sleeping.  She has two temperaments: asleep and crazy.

Hub and I love her so very dearly; it borders on ridiculous.  We don't care.

Her fur is three different colors: black, white/gray, and the typical dachshund red.

She is beautiful.

She is very tiny (fewer than 3 pounds).

Her right eye is brown; her left eye is half brown and half blue.  You can see it a little in the picture above.  I love her eyes.

Currently, she is learning how to potty outside, sleep through the night, and distinguish what is an is not an appropriate chew toy.  She is also starting to learn her name.  I probably don't help with this because along with calling her "Maisie" I also refer to her as 

Maisie Daisy

Maisie Moo

Puppy

Puppy Tuppy

Turkey Lurkey

Little Lady

Crazy Maisie

Little Devil Dog

Lovie

I think there are more, but you get the point.

She  has just mastered going all the way up and all the way down the stairs all by herself.  It's quite humorous to watch.

She is so much fun and so full of energy.  These pictures would probably lead you to believe that I'm lying about the full of energy part, but when she's moving, it's all too fast for a camera.  (at least to fast for my phone's camera, from which all these pictures came)

She likes to play with iPhones; her nose can operate them.  Her favorite t.v. show is Bones, and she would prefer that I never read; she especially hates, but loves to chew, magazines.

Her favorite place to be is in someone's lap, and she is very friendly.

She is not a big fan of being left alone, even if we are just a room away, so she is usually right at our feet.  I like that.

Soon* I'll tell you how Hub and I came to adopt such a fabulously fiesty little puppy.  I think it's a good story.

Maisie sends her love,  

                              

*I'm going to stop saying I'll post things "tomorrow" and start saying I'll post things "soon." That way, when I don't things posted on the appropriate "tomorrow," I won't feel so guilty. 

We Lost Our Minds and Got a Puppy. we are starting to recover. (our sanity, that is)

I was MIA from the blogosphere last week mostly due to the fact that Hub and I lost our minds last Sunday afternoon and got ourselves a puppy and then took a trip to Arkansas.

It's been one of those kinds of weeks.  You know, ten kinds of crazy.

Our sweet, 99%-of-the-time-precious puppy is a 9 week old Miniature Dachshund.

Her name is 

Maisie.

(may-zee)

Isn't she beautiful?

Here she is resting the night we brought her home.

I fell in love with her about 2.5 seconds after I saw her.

Come back tomorrow for a better introduction.

xoxo,

                                                            

Sunday Snippets

"Never trust anything that can think for itself, if you can't see where it keeps its brain."
--Harry Potter and the I Can't Remember Which One; J.K. Rowling


~~~~~


"You think the dead we love ever truly leave us?  You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble?  Your father is alive in you, Harry, and shows himself most plainly when you have need of him."
--Harry Potter and the I Can't Remember Which One; J.K. Rowling


~~~~~


"A good song is like a good meal--I just want to inhale it and then share a bite with someone else."
--Hoda Kotb; Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee


~~~~~


"And this never stops being true: Neglecting to give thanks only deepens the wound of the world."
--Ann Voskamp; 

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2011/06/what-to-sing-in-your-storms/

Happy Sunday,

The Very Same Coin, I Tell You.

I am the spitting image of my mother.  My nose is slightly smaller, but other than that I'm all her.  We have the same hair and the same eyes and the same toes.  My whole life has been full of listening to people say,

Child, you look just like ya Mama.  You do know that, right?

Little Jan!  I'd know who you belong to just by lookin' at ya.

You look just like your sweet mother!  I'm sure you get that a lot.

Nobody ever said I looked like Daddy.  Except once.

A lady I don't know but won't ever forget came up to me and said, 

By God, girl, if you are not the spittin' image of Rhett Maris, then I don't know who is. 

Before she walked away she added offhandedly with a bit of a smile, 

Huh.  I think you may look a little like his mother, too.

 She turned swiftly, and I choked back tears and muttered a thank you too quiet to be noticed.

  

My mama always says that when I was born I looked so much like her that Daddy would say, a little begrudgingly, 

You can't tell I had anything to do with her.

He shouldn't have been worried because just as much as I am mother, I am also him.

You see, Daddy and I are a peculiar pair.  We are just enough alike and just enough different that we either really get along nice or we butt heads at every turn.  There is no medium heat for the two of us, and I like it that way.  It means that good or bad, happy or sad, we're us.  Real all the way, and we love each other too much to ever give up on the other.

We don't have to speak to understand each other.  A look or squeeze of hands will always do. 

Daddy taught me to love music and appreciate the importance of the written word. 

He inspired my love of cooking.

  I try to choke back a cry the same way he does, and when we laugh, I mean really laugh, we throw our heads back at just the same angle.  

If you watch closely, you can always see him in my facial expressions, and he is ever present in my thought processes.

His life has taught me that where you come from doesn't have to dictate where you're going.

More than anyone else, he is who I want to be proud of me. 

I am certain that God could have chosen no better man to be my father, to challenge me in all the right ways and push me beyond my imagined limits and teach me unwavering love.

We really are two sides of the same coin, Daddy and me.  We were made to fit together; we belong to each other.

Happy Father's Day, Dad.  I love you so very much, 

Thoughts of the Sundry Variety

Sometimes, I don't know what to blog about, which has been the case as of late.  This becomes the trouble when my focus is the trouble.


Last week was lovely, full of Harry Potter, fajitas, and VBS.  It was great.


Lately, my head has been so full of thoughts and questions and wonderings that it's been almost impossible to get things done. I said "almost," mind you.  I've been getting most everything done, except blogging, that is.


On our Memorial Day Getaway, my mom said lots of funny things.  Here are a few that I recorded:


Upon arriving to a nice shopping area Mom says, "This is a nice place.  We should come here."  I reply, "We are here."  Mom says, looking confused, "Oh."


While Hub, Daddy, and I have a conversation in the living room about figuring out who some actress was in some movie Dad says, "Was that the blonde girl?"  Mom looks up from her work at the kitchen table and asks, "What?  Is she naked?"


While perusing through pamphlets I ask, "Do those men have teeth?"  Mom answers, "They are brothers."


I keep losing my train of thought.


You want to know a word I have trouble spelling.  Actually, I always spell it correctly, but I always want to spell it incorrectly.  That word is lose. (or any variation thereof)  
Since choose has a double O, and it sounds the same as lose, wouldn't it stand to reason that lose should be spelled loose.  But, I suppose lose can't be spelled loose because then how would we spell loose?  Are you following this?  I feel as though it's important.  Sort of.  Anyway, I've always had trouble with double letters.  Perhaps I'll expound on that at a later date.  


Since I'm rereading the Harry Potter series, it has come to my attention how useful a house elf would be.  I would treat my house elf with kindness, you know.  I wouldn't be one of those terrible people who mistreats house elves.  No, no.  I am always appreciative of a helping hand.  I have said all of this to say, if you know how to get a house elf or of any good house elves out of work or really anything about real, live house elves, give me a shout.




I have to go now because I don't have a house elf, and my kitchen is a wreck.


Farewell, 

Sunday Snippets

"Compartments, files, systems--not for me.  Here's how I like my purse (and I swear I showed someone the contents the other day, and this is what came out): loose dollar bills, jam-packed wallet, a winter hat, a hardback novel, a thank-you card with a dog on it, Advil, one glove, a travel zip bag with 3-ounce bottles, mints, my checkbook, cough suppressant pills, a bottle of perfume, deodorant, contact lenses, a comb, an apple, and a Christmas ornament.  Yeah.  That's my world."
--Hoda Kotb; Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee


~~~~~


"'Fascinating!' he would say as Harry talked him through using a telephone.  'Ingenious, really, how many ways Muggles have found of getting along without magic.'"
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets; J.K. Rowling


~~~~~


"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
--Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets; J.K. Rowling


~~~~~


Rereading Harry Potter is more fun than I thought it would be,
                                         

Memorial Day Getaway!

 For a Memorial Day Getaway, my little family went to Gatlinburg, TN.  Maybe you wish I wasn't calling it a Memorial Day Getaway because that's cheesy, but I don't care.  I like a cheesy name; it makes everything a little happier when I write it down in my planner or on the calendar.  Yes, those are two different things.

 So, anyway, we went to Gatlinburg, and had a fabulously wonderful time.  We rented a cabin whose driveway was constructed by none other than the DEVIL himself.  Other than that, the cabin was nearly heavenly.  You can't have everything, right?

 We spent part of one day at the aquarium.  I love aquariums.  They are just the most fun.  Have you never been to an aquarium? Call me!  We'll go together!  I just love all the little fishies, which is why I have so many pictures of them and their friends.

 We did other things, too.  For example, we spent a hearty chunk of time at the outlet mall.  Let me tell you; that was a glorious trip.  You don't get pictures of that because I'm not cool enough to take pictures of myself and my family shopping.

 Don't you just love all of these oceany creatures?!

 This is Frank the penguin.  He had a bit of an attitude.  I could tell.  I'm training to be a penguin whisperer. (Not really. But I want to. Really. So, if you know how, CALL ME).

We had lunch one day at Bubba Gump's.  YUM.  This is a picture of my dad that my mom made me take because she thought his bib was funny.  It was even more funny because he had already spilled a little something on his white shirt, and we all laughed at him. Probably you just had to be there, or maybe just know how my daddy acts when he spills. Either way, it was a good time.

I like this picture because of his smirk.  When I close my eyes and think about my dad, this smirk almost always pops up.  I think I smirk like that sometimes, too.  I hope I do, anyway.

The end, 

                                                                                                          

Sunday Snippets

"Now please don't think I'm a slob--I'm not.  I'm not dirty.  Dirty is an old sandwich on your floor.  I'm--messy. Messy is where you can't find your other shoe.  Often."
--Hoda Kotb; Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee


~~~~~


"There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other, and knocking out a twelve-foot mountain troll is one of them."
--Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone; J.K. Rowling


~~~~~


"Funny how the mundane is actually the glue that keeps friendships alive."
--Hoda Kotb; Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee


~~~~~


I hope you're having a beautiful holiday weekend!
                                                

Sunday Snippets

"Like a huge wave that barrels across the ocean, or a gentle wave that laps the shore, there is an undeniable ebb and flow to life. I try to remember that.  Move forward, move forward, move forward."
--Hoda Kotb; Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee


~~~~~


"Being a mother gives you a singular sort of vision, a prism through which you can see your child with many different faces all at once.  It is the reason you can watch him shatter a ceramic lamp, and still remember him as an angel.  Or hold him as he cries, but imagine his smile.  Or watch him walk toward you, the size of a man, and see the dimpled skin of an infant."
--The Pact; Jodi Picoult


~~~~~


"People who forgive generally have more and better relationships with others, feel happier and more hopeful, and score higher on just about every measure of psychological well-being."
--Dr. Fred Luskin; The Oprah Magazine, May 2011


~~~~~


"It's important to listen.  Most people just want to know that they are heard."
--Anne Meara; The Oprah Magazine, May 2011


~~~~~


"Adults, light-years away from this, rolled their eyes and smirked and said, 'This too shall pass'--as if adolescence was a disease life chicken pox, something everyone recalled as a mild nuisance, completely forgetting how painful it had been at the time."
--The Pact; Jodi Picoult


~~~~~


"People who lie about their age are denying the truth and contributing to a sickness pervading our society--the sickness of wanting to be what you're not."
--Oprah Winfrey; The Oprah Magazine, May 2011




                                        Hugs and love, 

What I'm Reading (Also)

Do you know Jodi Picoult?  If not, you're in trouble.  Well, not really, but you're definitely missing out.


Picoult is one of my favorite authors, and I intend to read all of the books she has written. (I like her that much!)


Her novels have creative and interesting plots that pull me in immediately, but at the heart of her work is always a dilemma, a giant question of morals and ethics that makes me reconsider beliefs I've clutched onto without really exploring.  


Right now, I'm enjoying The Pact.  It's a story about love and loss and complication, oh, and murder. . .or suicide.


                 I can't wait to see how it ends, 

I've Got the Fever (If you make it through this post you deserve an award)

Yesterday, which will be the day-before-yesterday by the time you read this, I felt bad, horrible, no-good.  Secretly, I've been waiting for this sickness because it's been taunting me.  A sore throat this day, stuffy ears the next. If you don't know what I mean when I say 'stuffy ears,' count your blessings.  Seriously.  Do it. 


After a few days of feeling like Mediocre Mable, I decided it was probably just my allergies.  If you don't have to regularly think about your 'allergies,' count your blessings.  Seriously. Do it. 


So, I carried on with life as usual until yesterday, remember: day-before-yesterday to you.  My ears hurt; my head hurt; my throat hurt.  Bad news all around. 


Today, which will be yesterday by the time you read this, everything got worse.  I even had a fever.  Or, "got the fever," as I like to say. Don't you think that sounds more serious?  I do.  I mean, "I've got the fever" is a lot better than "I think I'm running a low-grade temperature."  Having "the" fever is a more adequate expression of how I'm feeling.  Besides, where I come from people arbitrarily add "the" the lots of things, so it comes naturally.  


I think I should take a moment here to explain that although I appreciate a spontaneously thrown in "the," I do NOT, under any circumstance, add an "s" to the end of something that is not supposed to end in "s."  For example, the store is named Walmart not Walmarts.  That's tacky.  Here's another: it's Kroger not Krogers.  Again with the tacky.  Am I being harsh?  Probably.  Blame the fever.  I now realize how irrelevant this paragraph is.  Blame the fever again.


Back to the sickness.  I haven't decided if it's doctor-visit-worthy yet.  I feel like it might should be because of the fever. I rarely get the fever, but I'm holding out for a couple of days to see.  In the meantime, I've been "resting" and trying to decide what "resting" really means and rediscovering that I'm no good at the "resting" because I feel restless.  Sometimes, okay all the time, when I'm sick I spend the beginning of the illness trying to prove to myself that I'm fine.  It's a really ignorant thing to do, but, nonetheless, I try it every time.  


I'll do chores and lift things and get myself all out of breath and feeling like I might die before I decide to sit down.  Then, once I can breathe again, I repeat the process.  Yes, I know it's bad for my health.  No, I cannot stop.  It's just a thing with me.


I think it's because I really hate being sick; I'm no good at it.  No matter how badly I'm feeling, I always feel like someone will think I'm faking it.  How ridiculous is that?  Beyond ridiculous, I know.  I guess that's why I always have to prove to myself that I really am sick.  


The other reason that I'm no good at being sick is that I feel guilty.  I spend lots of time apologizing.  How ridiculous is that?  Beyond ridiculous, I know, but I can't help it.  I've done it my whole life.


After wearing myself out a million times yesterday, I decided I really am sick.  My suspicions were of course confirmed by the presence of the fever.  I don't often get the fever, remember?


Since I am sick, I'm supposed to be "resting," which is another thing I'm no good at when it comes to being sick.  If I feel healthy, I have no problem in the "resting" area, but when I'm sick, no sort of "resting" works for me.  For me, sickness equals restlessness, even when I'm sleeping.


Here are some of my troubles with "resting:"  (Yes, I realize you don't care)


1.  Lots of people "rest" by lying on the couch or in the bed and watching t.v. all day.  I can't watch t.v. all day without feeling lousy about myself which adds to my ridiculous guilt about being sick.  Plus, the t.v. is sometimes too loud.


2.  I read a lot when I'm "resting," but when I get tired of doing that because my head might split open from aching, I'm at a loss. 


3.  "Resting" usually requires staying in the same spot for lengthy periods of time.  I'm no good at that when I'm sick because I am perpetually uncomfortable, and I feel guilty for not moving for hours on end.


4.  This list could go on, but I think it shouldn't.


I said all of this to say, well, nothing.   I hope by tomorrow, which will be today by the time you read this, I'll be feeling better, but I'm kind of doubtful.

I know this picture of my sweet Dixie has nothing to do with this post, but she is so cute, I just couldn't resist!

If you're wondering, yes, I do know how senseless this post is. Blame the fever. 

                    Have a healthy day,