happy birthday cotton!

our sweet cotton is 5 today.  she has officially passed us in age as she is now 35 in human years.  not that you could tell, though.  she's still spunky and sassy and as smart as ever.  she has lots of energy but knows when to calm it all down.  she still loves to "kiss" everyone and thinks she is the boss of the house.  i am so thankful we picked her out of the litter.  we love you cotton!

the day we picked out our sweet, chubby puppy

such an itty bitty baby

she loves the water...

and she loves the snow...

and she loves playing outside.

and if you really know cotton, you know she loves laying like this.

love this.

love all of the art from this etsy site.  check it out if you love it, too.  the wheatfield

"Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion."

that is a quote from truvy in "steel magnolias."  love that movie.

we've been crying and laughing this week here.  jay's father, larry, died today from a heart attack.  he had the attack on saturday.  he was driving.  people saw him veer into a ditch and got him out of the car, called 911, and started cpr.  the ems workers had a heart rhythm by the time he got to the hospital.  they treated him with a new hypothermia protocol.  but as they re-warmed him and began the tests that determine brain function.  but his responses were negative.

larry was a giving man.  he was always willing to give of his time and talents to help others.  even to the extent of being an organ donor.  those tests were being performed today and we will know soon if he is a candidate for donation and what, if anything, that they can harvest.  how great would it be for him to save more lives just by making a simple decision at the dmv?

so we've been reminiscing with family.  he wouldn't want us to be sad and mopey.  that wasn't larry.  he lived his life to the fullest.  he travelled often and lived a life most people dream of (well, if they love to travel).  he has a family who loves him and so many friends it is overwhelming.

we will truly truly miss him.  he was 56 years old.  much too young to call this life over.  but what a great life it was.

birthday princess.

my mom sent some pictures of my niece's birthday "party" with my family.  she turned 4 on january 30th.  i cannot believe how big she is getting.  i hope to see her this spring whenever we get to visit back in nashville.  anyway, here are some pictures of my sweet little niece.

 playing with legos with her mimi (my mom)

 her cute flower cake and the satisfaction of blowing out her candles

 showing off her new (Easter) dress from her (great) "Grandma" (who is behind my brother)

 she got a new leapfrog

sweet creations.

well, it's pictures of the same hat, but i think it's adorable.  if i say so myself.

weight watchers- weeks 1 & 2

no, i didn't mean to skip either of these.  i have been afflicted with the worst stomach virus ever.  okay.  probably not really, but it's been pretty horrific.  oh, and jay's had it too.  happy valentine's day, honey.  we get to disinfect our house together.  lovely.

anyway...

i have lost a total of 5.2 lbs in two weeks.  yeah!  now, most of what i lost the last week was not by any plans of mine.  and at the end of week one i sprained/strained one of my knees.  nice.  so i actually expect to gain weight next week.  maybe.  it wouldn't be a bad thing.  i am definitely going to have to eat what i can tolerate for the next few days.

anyway...

that's where we stand on the weight loss.  i hope it can continue and that it isn't by the same means as this last week.

for the love of dave

february 6th marked dave's 10th "adoption" birthday.  it doesn't seem like it's been that long.  dave has lived in  4 apartments, 1 condo, and now a house.  he's seen 2 other cats come and go and 1 dog come and go and well, he's stuck with these last two.  (he loves cotton and barley- as evidenced by two of the pics below.)  he's lost a tiny tiny bit of his spunk, but for the most part, he still has lots of energy.  he still loves lounging in the sun and meowing when the water bowl is getting empty.  (he won't drink from a small one.  he has to drink from the 7.5 qt bowl the dogs drink out of.)  he's still sweet and loving and an all around frisky little furball.

 (yes, in the two pics with the dogs, he had been recently shaved.)

GO RED!

today is national wear red day.  

why?

heart disease is the #1 killer of women- greater than all of the cancers combined.  

women are less likely to go to the doctor when experiencing chest pain.

women's symptoms of heart disease and heart attacks often manifest themselves differently than men's symptoms.

help spread the word and awareness.  change your clothes and wear RED today.