spoiled (and a birthday!)

Oh my. Things are getting bad around here. And by 'bad', I mean adorably a-ok. Someone's got a bad case of softy-ness.

This girl:

is getting spoiled real bad by this guy:

And I'm not sure what to do.

Example A: Last night, I wanted Lola to sleep in our room with us. Normally she sleeps in her kennel, out in the living room. She used to sleep on her pillow in our room, a few months ago. It worked for awhile, but then she started waking up in the middle of the night and whining and walking around...it was distracting. So it was back to the kennel for her. But oftentimes we start feeling guilty that she spends 16+ hours a day in her kennel (all day while we work, all night while we sleep)...what kind of life is that? So I'd like for her to be able to stay out at night. Since she currently has no pillow (she's eaten 2 this year so far), I just brought "her" blanket into our room, laid it on the floor next to my side of the bed (where she used to sleep), and she laid right down! A few minutes later she was up, wandering around, trying to hop in our bed. Clearly, the floor was not soft enough for her. So what does her daddy do? "Oh, I know!" he exclaims, as he hops out of bed and heads towards the living room. A moment later he walks back in carrying a COUCH CUSHION. Her favorite cushion, to be more specific. He lays it on the ground, covers it with the blanket, and what to you know...Lola lays down and falls asleep, happy as a clam. On a couch cushion on the ground. I don't know, it just sort of undid me. In a good way. :) Normally, I may have been opposed to this (what if she decides to chew up the couch cushion?)...but since we bought new couches...I don't really care. (And just because she's awesome, Lola was kind enough to not chew the couch cushion all night long. What a sweetie.)

Oh yeah, did you hear that? We bought the couches! Last Monday, actually. We were going to debate it for awhile (and I loved getting all yall's opinions on it!!) but we stopped back by the Big Lots and asked how many sets they had left, and they only had 1 complete set...so we bought it then and there. My parents were in town for a few hours with their truck, so we loaded them up and took them to my in-laws' house where they will remain until we have a house to put them in. Also waiting at the in-laws' home: a washer and dryer (very nice, donated by one of Matt's uncles), a lawn mower, and a gas grill (those 2 donated by another uncle!). So our house is coming together...or rather, the things that go in the house are. We are now scheduled to close on Wednesday, June 3, so perhaps we will have a place to put all this stuff very soon!

This should be a fun weekend. Matt's brothers are down visiting from Charlotte, so we're spending time with his family cooking out by the pool today...then tonight, I get to see my dear friend Jolene, her husband Tato, and their baby!! They took a spur-of-the-moment road trip east this week (they live on the Texas/Mexico border...a zillion miles away) and so I can't WAIT to see them and meet their 1-month-old, Anahi!

Finally, I would like to shout-out to my lovely friend and almost-life-partner (if marriage didn't happen for us both, I'm sure we would still be roommates. And happy about it) Kristina. It's her birthday! This calls for a photo tribute...which wasn't hard to come up with, since we've been friends since 11th grade, lived together for 3 years, and are somewhat camera-happy people.

Sophomore year of college...gameday! (L-R: Stine, me, Elizabeth)

Sophomore year, after Wesley one night

Junior or Senior year, Halloween. We were the Pillar of Fire and Pillar of Clouds...creative, yes?

One of our many (in)famous Mary Kate and Ashley-inspired photo shoots.

Intern appreciation, 2006

Kristina's wedding, March 2007 (L-R: Elizabeth, Stine, me, Catherine Corry)


at my wedding! Isn't she beautiful? June 2007

my wedding again

Anyway, I have lots more where those came from...and I had a lot of fun looking through all those old pictures! The things I will suffer for my friends...I tell ya. But Stine is as good as they come, and I've been very blessed to have her as a BFF all these years. I miss her so much, now that she lives far far away in Charlotte, but then it makes our time together even more fun! I still hold out hope that one of these days we will be next-door-neighbors for life...and we will both have cute little pygmy elephants tromping around our backyard (we'll share a backyard). Oh, and cute kids, too...and we'll have photo shoots with THEM...and then they'll get married to each other and the world will get a little more beautiful. :) Happy birthday, Stine! I love you!!