Spring is in FULL bloom

Call me crazy, but over the last two years I have somehow managed to plant over 1000 bulbs in our front yard. They are a mixture of daffodils, tulips, and hyacythinths. It took quite a bit of time, an aching back that required some acupuncture treatments, and some skepticism from Clark, but come spring time, let me tell you...our yard is pretty spectacular. Even Clark will admit my "craziness" is well worth it.

And if that craziness wasn't enough, I recently bought some more bulbs from Costco to plant this spring for summer and fall blooms (lillies, calla lillies, begonias, peonies, and more). I just cannot help myself when I see them at Costco...the price is right and I can envision all the color in our yard.

Also this spring, Clark and I finally got around to putting up our new curtain rods, curtains, and hung artwork in our living and dining rooms. It really makes our house a home...I just wish we did it sooner (it only took us over two years!)

blue, purple, and white hyacythinths from our yard

Living room with new curtain rods, blue curtains, and artwork on the walls (also note the flowers on the coffee table from our yard) up close view of curtains and art front window with new curtains and artwork

living room

up close view of art in dining room

dining room

other artwork in dining room

tulips from our yard

more tulips from our yard

hyacythinths (they are so fragrant...they make the entire house smell so good!)

purple and pink tulips lining the flower beds

red and yellow tulips lining the other side of the flower bed

these red/yellow ones are my favorite

daffodils

Happy Easter

We decided to travel to Portland for Easter weekend to see my family. I hadn't seen baby Alexis since she was one week old and Clark had not yet met her. Grandpa and Grandma Dog hadn't seen Lucy since Valentine's Day weekend, so they were itching to see her.

We left late on Friday because Clark had to work, but it was nice not to fight the traffic. By the time we arrived, Lucy's excitement was peaked and she jumped out of the car and could hardly contain her tail from whacking everything in sight as her bottie wagged from side to side. We got to Portland after midnight and my mom, the night owl, waited up, but my dad was fast asleep as he was getting up early to go fishing the next morning. Lucy did not care...she stormed into Grandpa Dog's room, jumped up on the bed, licked his face, and whimpered with excitement.

The next morning after a delicious breakfast cooked by my mom, Clark went golfing and while I debated going to the gym to workout, I opted to stay in my PJs and lounge around the house. One of my favorite things to do to relax is curl up on the sofa with a blanket and a good book, but it is something that I rarely get to do. Every weekend this year has been filled with activities, so I was determined to force myself to relax...and relax is exactly what I did. I spent most of Saturday curled up in the magic blanket (a blanket my mom handmade for my grandpa when he was undergoing cancer treatment...it truly is magic...everyone that curls up with it falls asleep...pure magic bliss). Anyway, after a few hours of reading curled up in the magic blanket, I met up with one of my best friends, Jen, for lunch in the Pearl District. It was great to see her and see her boy, Kelley, who is almost one year old. Then the anticipated arrival of of my brother, Vanessa, and baby Alexis. I am so lucky they were so generous with their time spending all afternoon and evening there. Alexis is now 9 weeks old and as cute as can be. Clark got to hold her and he did great...though he didn't get the pleasure of changing her diaper or holding her while she was crying. We had a yummy dinner of Original Taco House.

On Easter Sunday, Clark got up early and went golfing. Meanwhile, I curled up in the magic blanket and read more of my book. Right now I am reading "Open" by Andre Agassi and as a tennis fan, it is fascinating. Spent the ENTIRE day in my sweats, reading, watching it rain outside. We had an early Easter dinner around 2 pm and Clark went back out and golfed ANOTHER round...he really must love it to golf in the cold, wind, and rain. The Easter Bunny even had a basket for us...Lucy got a new squeaky toy, which she demolished very quickly, but she loved it nonetheless. And Clark and I got some candy :)

Bryan, Vanessa, and Alexis stopped by again for another snuggle session before we headed home. A great weekend of relaxation and yummy food.

Lucy, the Easter Bunny

Vanessa, Bryan, and Alexis
Alexis looking at her Easter present

Lucy carefully watching Grandpa Dog holding Alexis...she got VERY jealous over his attention for someone else, so much that she started whining and wouldn't stop until someone else held Alexis (Lucy didn't seem to mind that me or Clark held her...so that tells you who she really loves)

Clark holding Alexis

Auntie Andi holding Alexis

Grandma Ninnie (G-Ninnie) holding Alexis

Flowers from my yard I brought mom

Lucy making herself at home at the G-PA's house (and this picture is not posed...she somehow managed to move the pillow and lay like this)

Life is rough being a spoiled dog

Spring Cleaning

What better way to spend a rainy spring weekend? Spring cleaning of course! The last few weekends we have spent time attempting to de-clutter, clean, and organize various rooms in our house. Our first room we tackled was perhaps the most daunting one...the office. Though you wouldn't call it an office if you saw it. You'd likely call it the junk room because it doesn't have a desk, chair, bookshelves, or anything you think of when you think of an office. Instead, it holds our unpacked boxes of stuff from when we moved here (over two years ago), our atheltic equipment, decorations and pictures we have yet to hang on the wall, and all of our Christmas and other holiday decor. Since our charming old home doesn't have a garage, basement, or attic, storage is a limitation. It is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it forces us not to keep stuff we don't need, but on the other hand, the stuff we really do need to keep, we simply have no place to put it.

I should have taken a "before" and "after" picture so you can fully appreciate just how much crap we got rid of and just how much we organized, but trust me...it's pretty impressive. We now have a room that we can use as an office. We will start looking at office furniture that will now fit in the room. We still have plastic storage containers that are stacked on one side of the room, but at least they are organized and easily accessible.

This office cleaning project produced 3 trips to the Goodwill, filled our recycling bins, and filled our garbage can. There is something very liberating about getting rid of stuff you don't need and to organize what you do need.

On to our next project...cleaning out our closets. Mine was overflowing with clothes, most of which I don't wear that often. I am such a packrat when it comes to clothes and shoes. While I may not wear a certain item of clothing for months at a time, I have a hard time getting rid of it altogether. But I was determined to clean it out. I was able to get rid of four large bags filled with shoes and clothes I could stand to part with. I figure if I haven't worn it in the past year, then I likely wouldn't miss it. Again, I wish I would have taken a "before" and "after" picture to demonstrate the contrast, but let's just say that before I ran out room on my shelves and in my drawers that I had piles of clothes on the floor...yes the floor. Now I have enough room so that every piece of clothing is carefully hung, folded, and put in its proper place.

A very productive spring cleaning indeed. Next couple weekends we will continue to work on the office. While we have gotten rid of stuff and organized what was left, the one project we have yet to do is file all of our bills and paperwork in labeled file folders (right now they are literally just stacked in a plastic storage container). While that is neat, it doesn't really help me when I need to actually find my tax return from 2007, our mortgage paperwork, or other stuff we need to file. So...hoping that in future weekends we can shop to find a desk, chair, bookshelf, and drawers and begin to set up our office for use.

Half Marathon Training

So call me crazy, but I decided to run another half marathon this year. Last year was my first one and while I made good time (2 hours and 15 minutes with an average 10 min/mile pace), when I crossed the finish line, my legs felt like a ton of bricks and my knee and hip joints were sore for over a week, despite taking Advil. And the 12 weeks of training I endured to prepare for the half marathon were absolute hell. So why you ask would I voluntarily choose to endure this pain again? Well despite the dreaded training and the pain, there is a sense of accomplishment when you set a goal and achieve it. Particularly when that goal is not something that comes naturally to you. I have always been active and enjoyed playing sports, but running for the sake of running has never been something that I have enjoyed. I think I enjoy a challenge more than anything. It started out years ago when I ran a 5k race...3 miles was easy enough to complete. Then I ran a 8k, then a 10k, then a 12k, then a 10 miler. Then I thought...what the hell, I might as run a half marathon, it is only 3 more miles.

So here I am again, trying to motivate myself to run 3 times a week to prepare myself to be able to run 13.1 miles without stopping. This year I decided to start my training early. One thing I learned about myself last year was that my body needed a lot of recovery time after long training runs. So this year, I devised a 16-week training plan...4 more weeks to train this year.

Each week, my training program calls for two "short" runs and one "long" run. I just completed my 4th week of training and I feel that I have such a LONG way to go...I don't remember training last year to be this hard.

Here is running log for the last 4 weeks...

Week 1 - two short runs of 3 miles each and one long run of 4 miles
Week 2 - two short runs of 3 miles each and one long run of 4 miles
Week 3 - two short runs of 3 miles each and one long run of 5 miles
Week 4 - two short runs of 3 miles each and one long run of 5 miles

And the last 5 mile run was so PAINFUL that the last mile my lefts felt like a ton of bricks and all I could think about during my run was food and how hungry I was. Probably defeats the purpose of burning all these calories, but all I can think about on my runs is food and what I want to eat. I am just starting to feel like my 3 mile runs are "easy," but my long runs are painful and at this rate, I don't know how I am going to be able to run 13 miles.

Let's hope the next 12 weeks of training becomes easier for me. I hope the Seattle Rock N Roll Half Marathon on June 26th is so much fun that it makes it worth all this pain.

Babysitting Maddy

I agreed to babysit Maddy and thought it would be a piece of cake...well it was fun, that is for sure, but I was EXHAUSTED. I don't know how Sean and Michelle do it...I don't know how they keep up with Maddy. She has so much energy and never stops talking and playing.

I only had one minor "issue" after Sean and Michelle left...we told Maddy that mama and baba were going to work and I was going to play with her. They snuck out the back to avoid any drama and Maddy was happily playing with her doll pushing her around in the stroller when she suddenly realized that her mama and baba were gone and she was stuck ALONE with me. The horror! I was sitting on the couch in the living room and all of a sudden it went silent and I hear some sniffling coming from the kitchen. I walk in there and as soon as Maddy sees me, she starts CRYING and the alligator tears start flowing. I am thinking, "Oh crap. What am I going to do?" I seriously worried that I was going to have to call Michelle and make her come home. But quick on my feet, I immediately scooped her up (thank goodness she let me hold her during her time of serious drama) and I asked if she wanted to go get her "pengis" (her stuffed animal penguins that she adores and sleeps with every night). After getting her pengis and her pink blanket, I asked if she wanted a brownie...because when all else fails, you can always resort to bribing with food, right? It seemed to work for my parents with me, so why not Maddy? Maddy liked this...all of a sudden, she was on the couch, pengis tucked in with her blankey and muching on a brownie. Sugar...oh the wonders of sugar to a two-and-a-half-year-old at 7 pm (which is usually her bedtime, but I was told she was allowed to stay up as late as she wanted).

The tears soon subsided and we were back to playing...pushing her babydoll around the kitchen in the stroller, cooking in her kitchen, and soon, she wanted to get out every piece of paper, sticker, crayon, marker, and scissors in her desk. I was getting sleepy, but Maddy was not showing any sign of exhaustion. She was fascinated with my iPhone and got very good at flipping through the pictures with the touchscreen. She even danced while I played some music (see video below) - priceless that she falls over from exhaustion...maybe from jumping and down? maybe from the head banging? I am not sure, but I think she has a future in dancing.

Finally, around 9:30 pm, I noticed her eyes were getting droopy. The last few hours I kept asking her if she wanted to go upstairs and read a book and get ready for bed...Maddy would shake her head no. But now, as her eyes were getting heavy, she shook her head yes and held her arms out reaching for me to hold her (my heart melts). I scoop her up and take her upstairs. She doesn't fight me while I change her diaper, put her PJs on, or put her to bed. She is so tired, that I don't have to read a book to get her to sleep. She just closes her eyes and asleep by 10 pm. I think I was asleep by 10:15 pm.

Fun times...cannot wait to babysit again.

Sean and Michelle dressed up in 80s gear for their party

Maddy pushing her babydoll in the stroller
Maddy calming down from her melt-down with a brownie

Maddy is so happy her Auntie gives her sugar so late

Maddy watching TV with her pengis tucked in with her special blankey

Cooper relaxing (sshhh...don't tell your parents I let you up on the couch!)

Here is a video of Maddy dancing...shortly after this she falls asleep from exhaustion...

6 Month Countdown Begins Now

Six months from today Clark and I will be saying "I Do" and getting hitched is a big deal for us. I mean, we have been together for 5 years (we met in March 2005) and we have been engaged for over 3 years (December 2006). Yes, that is not a typo. You read correctly. We have been engaged for OVER THREE YEARS. Why, you ask have we been engaged so long? Well, long story short, we got engaged when we lived in DC and shortly after we were engaged, Clark accepted a new job in Tacoma, WA. We spent 2007 trying to figure out our living and job situation - I eventually moved back in June and got a new job in July. Oh yeah, we also bought a house in September. So all of our time and money went to adjusting to our new life in Tacoma. 2008 was a year of adjusting to the new jobs and house and we adopted Lucy. Before we knew it, it was 2009 and we realized we still had not yet a wedding date. Bottom line is that we are procrastinators, but we FINALLY settled on a venue and secured a date.

So, Sunday, September 19th, 2010 at McMenamin's Edgefield in Portland, OR will be the place we will celebrate! We still have A LOT of details to plan, including securing a florist, DJ, photographer, ordering invites, ordering a cake, figuring out decorations, our ceremony details, finalizing our menu, and planning our honeymoon. Let's be honest...I love event planning, excel spreadsheets, color-coding lists, and "to do" lists, but I just can't get motivated to start this because it all seems so overwhelming and when you start looking at the prices of everything, it is kind of ridiculous. So, here's to a 6 month countdown that I hope is stress-free and fun!

For our family and close friends, please visit our wedding website for details: www.mywedding.com/andreaandclark

Here is a picture of Clark and me right after he proposed

We are at a restaurant in DC, I was taking him out to dinner for his birthday

December 12, 2006

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Lucy loves St. Patrick's Day because she gets to sport her green headband that reads "Kiss Me, I'm Irish."