My Little Guy!

Norman is growing like a crazy person.  And it's so funny how you don't notice the size difference when you are constantly together.  But looking over the pictures I have taken of my lil pup over the past month and realizing that he is quickly outgrowing my lap, reality is finally setting in.  My baby is growing up - and fast!

At 15 weeks old, the teething and growth spurts are in full force.  So, of course, Norman is incredibly bossy and outgoing (rolling eyes).  It's hard to come home from a long day at work to a crazy puppy, but once he calms down, my heart melts all over again.

Ok, on to the pictures!  Just look at how much he's grown!

9 weeks old:

Look at that hankerchef!

10 weeks old:

This is a framer:

Norman's 1st Christmas, 11 weeks;

Yogi and Norm meet!

12 weeks old:

Look at this face!

13 weeks old and loving ice cubes:

His head tilt gets me every time!

My little snuggle bunny isn't going to be little much longer.  He's 25.5 pounds now and will continue to grow quickly over the next few weeks.  Although I've gone insane at times, and posted about it,  I love Norman more than words can say!  So happy he's a part of our family.

The Guest Room/DIY Project

The guest room has definitely been a labor of love.  When we moved in, the room was a 3-year old boys room, with bright blue walls and red/white checkered drapery.  Adorable for a little guy, not so adorable for a grown up guest room.

So, Matt and I got to work picking the paint color and refinishing the horrid closet.  The paint color we chose is this gorgeous light green/blue that matches the ivory bedding perfectly.  Too bad it took us months to finish painting.  We had things to do, people to see, dogs to train and this room took a spot on our back burner.  But because we had a New Year's Eve party, we felt that we had to finish it and we got to work.

First, we finished painting.  The walls were incredibly difficult to work with in this room - slanted and cracked.  A lot of coats were needed to make the paint look nice and then we had to take a tiny brush to make the trim/edges look nice.  We finished - check!

The next project was my DIY project - refinishing my old dressers.  Our idea was to create a weathered look and we went to Lowe's to buy all of the "ingredients".  My simple, white, 10-year old furniture has been transformed!  This was definitely hard work because I couldn't remove the drawers, but it was so worth it.  Check it out!

The nightstand:

The small dresser:

The large dresser:

A close-up of my masterpiece:

And the layout, minus the bed (which is an upcoming post):

What do you think?  If you are interested in refinishing old furniture, it's so simple...

You'll need:

A sander

A shiny base coat

Crackle glaze

A dull top coat

Clear protector

And it's an easy way to transform the look of a room in just five easy steps.  Go ahead and try it out!

I can't wait to share the final result with you, minus wall decor and trinkets for the dresser.  It's such a cute room - who wants to have a sleep over?

Lately...

Lately, I have been...

• Hanging out with Stormin' Norman!  We are actually having a ball together.  Why, you ask?  Well, becuase he is officially housetrained.  And he is doing a great job in his puppy obedience class!  I can't believe he will be 15-weeks old this weekend.  I know, I know, you need updated pictures.  And if I were you, I'd want to see them too, becuase he is growing like a fish!  We just had his 14-week checkup and he is officially 25.5 pounds.  He has gained over 10 pounds since we got him in early December.  Since my baby is so special, he will get his own post very, very soon.
• Working on the master bedroom and guest room.  My post last week talked about a DIY project I have been working on.  And I'm officially finished with it.  The guest bedroom has been put together, the bedding looks AWESOME...and all we need are some trinkets for the dressers and decor for the walls.  So close!  And our master bedroom is a-MAZING!  We got our big girl/boy furniture in last week (a king size bed, two nightstands and a chest)...it's all put together and it's fabulous.  I'm trying to bring more glamour into the room with shades of green.  Again, a post to come on these home improvements soon.
• Spending quality time with Matt on the weekends.  He has been gone every week this month, which leaves me and Norm to fend for ourselves.  But when Thursday night roles around - the night Matt gets home - we can hardly contain our excitement!  I love it when we're all together...I have come to get really lonely when Matt is gone.  Not sure why, since he's been doing this for 3 years, but lately it's as if a part of me is missing when he's away.  Blah, blah, I know - I don't want to get too emotional in this blog, so I'll stop there.
• Cooking!  That's right!!  I have made some crock pot dinners and this past weekend, I made Matt porkchops with homemade applesauce and a Mediterranean Salmon with pine nuts and couscous.  Delish!  And the best part of these dishes? They tasted good! 
• Watching a LOT of TV.  Right now, my favorite shows are:
• Jersey Shore (GTL, baby)
• Real World (love the D.C. season)
• American Idol (of course)
• The Biggest Loser
• Grey's and Private Practice

This is what I've been up to lately.  I can't believe January is almost over.  I also can't believe Matt and I will be married 3 months this Sunday. 

Actual posts to come on the above - with pictures!

DIY Project

I've been working hard on our guest room these past few weeks.  The walls are finally finished and my BIG DIY project is, too!  Too bad I didn't take before and after pictures, but I'll work something up over the next few days.  It involves a simple white dresser:

And a lot of paint to create this look:

Pictures to come!

Forever

That's right.  Forever is how long it's been since my last post, well, at least it feels that way.  Norman has officially taken over my life in a 80% good way and 20% bad way.  See, I knew what I was getting into.  I have had puppies before, but they were never my sole responsibility, they were my parents...I was just there to help.  I knew they loved to bite, jump, pee, play, eat, etc., but I never knew how taxing it could be on one person!

Matt has been out of town this week.  And of course, the first week I have Norman alone, I decide to have multiple meltdowns.  I'm not talking a tear here and there, I'm talking sobbing, convulsing meltdowns!  What did I get myself into?  My clothes have holes in them from the puppy teeth, my floor has been cleaned 30+ times because Norman has been difficult to housetrain and I have to come home for lunch every day to let him out.  Yes, he's a baby and yes, he's the love of my life, but as I recall from my good friend Lauren's post back in May, yes, I still want to kill him sometimes.  I have NO life.  I can hardly do laundry, I'm outside in the cold, wind and snow at all hours teaching him to go potty outside, not in and I'm constantly tired from waking up early and going to bed late.

Everyone warned me that taking care of a puppy is hard and that it will eventually get better.  I'm desperately looking forward to those days where I don't have to worry that he will have an accident or chew through a couch.  It's a learning process, and I'm definitely the student here.

Sorry for the vent, but I needed to post and that is the only thing I knew to talk about right now.  Now it's off to let Norman out!  Here's hoping he didn't pee in his crate again...

Unscripted Love

I found true love...again! 

Matt and I adopted a puppy!

We have been searching for a male pup for quite some time.  It has been on my Christmas "wish list" for months now and on Sunday morning, we were in luck.  A breeder about 4 1/2 hours away got back to us and said she had two pups available.

So we immediately jumped in the car at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, drove to Petsmart, hit up the ATM and started off on a roadtrip.  After a long journey to Lamar, MO, we were greeted by Chance and Ceaser, two adorable Goldendoodle male puppies.  And after an even harder decision, we chose Chance, the more "chill" of the two and of course, the largest puppy of the litter.  At 9 weeks old, he's already 15.6 lbs!  Which is five pounds larger than his baby brother.

Our Norman, as we have decided to call him, is such a gentle, sweetheart.  Not only has he slept through the night, but he very rarely goes to the bathroom in the house and is learning commands quickly.

Here are some pictures of Norman!  There will be many more posts to come on the new love of my life.  (insert sigh)

Baby Norm

Our family!

And of course, we can't forget about Uncle Cooper!

A Flaw?

Women have strengths that amaze men...

They bear hardships and they carry burdens,

but they hold happiness, love and joy.

They smile when they want to scream.

They sing when they want to cry.

They cry when they are happy

and laugh when they are nervous.

They fight for what they believe in...

They stand up to injustice.

They don't take "no" for an answer

when they believe there is a better solution.

They go without so their family can have.

They go to the doctor with a frightened friend.

They love unconditionally.

They cry when their children excel

and cheer when their friends get awards.

They are happy when they hear about

a birth or a wedding.

Their hearts break when a friend dies.

They grieve at the loss of a family member,

yet they are strong when they

think there is no strength left.

They know that a hug and a kiss

can heal a broken heart.

Women come in all shapes, sizes and colors.

They'll drive, fly, walk, run or e-mail you

to show how much they care about you.

The heart of a woman is what

makes the world keep turning.

They bring joy, hope and love.

They have compassion and ideas.

They give moral support to their

family and friends.

Women have vital things to say

and everything to give.

HOWEVER, IF THERE IS ONE FLAW IN WOMEN,

IT IS THAT THEY FORGET THEIR WORTH.

________________________________________________

Never forget how wonderful you are.  Happy Monday!