Surprise, Valentine!

I haven't figured out if I'm a softie, or just plain insane. You be my jury:
Hunnybunny and I had been watching the dog show on the USA network last week when I finally said the words,
"If you were going to have a dog, what breed would you pick?"
"Retriever, like a Labrador or a Golden Retriever. They're really good with kids."

I offhandedly told this to my buddy, Jane, (who has the most wonderful Golden Retriever). The woman has the most incredible memory of anyone I've ever met. She and her son were at the store when she heard that someone had a 10-week-old, black Labrador retriever pup that they wanted to give to a good home. And she, of course, thought of me.

My first thought: "Oh, no. Now I have to back this up. I told him we could get a dog."
So, Jane, and her family went with me to meet this family that had this puppy. It was a small, two room house, and the owners knew this arrangement wasn't going to work out logistically. The dog wouldn't have room, they didn't have a back yard, and a new baby was coming on the scene. With two cats already in the house, I was wondering what exactly they were thinking!
I watched the little 7 year old girl as she held on to that big puppy. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying. This was the last thing she wanted to do. Thankfully, Hollywood, The Pickle and The Diva had come along. So maybe seeing I had kids made it a little better for her. The family had named her "B.B.". That stood for "Butterball". And she definitely had roly-poly tummy.
"I will at least leave her middle name B.B. Is that okay?" And she shook her sad little head.
The ride from their house to mine was somewhat comical as this puppy had obviously never been in a moving car before. She managed to pry away from Hollywood and get herself in the back window.
Hunnybunny was coming in from Indy from his usual monthly business trip and Jane's family waited with us to surprise him. I wasn't sure he'd love her immediately. But he did, as you can see from these photos. That's what made it worthwhile....that sweet look on his face. Here was something, besides his family, that he's always dreamed of having.
Oh, you know what happens next, right? Carpet cleaner, walking her, and apparently I'm her new chew toy. She has been sleeping with Hollywood, and he just loves her to death.
And no, we didn't leave her first name as "B.B.". After exhausting the laundry list of acceptable names, Hunnybunny settled on yet another Irish name: Fiona.
Named after that beautiful brunette on Burn Notice. We call her "Fi" for short. And she seems to like it, and us.

Living with Lambchop

You remember this wonderful woman, Shari Lewis. She was as much a part of my childhood as Applejacks and Captain Kangaroo. In my wildest dreams, I never thought that any of my kids would be influenced by her brand of coolness. But, I am happily wrong.
I bought this for the Pickle BEFORE he was born. I was working at a hospital, and this was on the shelf at the gift shop. I just knew this was going to be what my baby slept with. But it didn't happen that way. He ignored it for years. It wasn't until I was about to give it to "Idgy", (the baby I keep), that he picked it up and it's been a part of lives ever since.

The Pickle has slept with all kinds of inanimate objects, none of which were anything classified as a nighttime sleep toy. You remember "Toothbrush" from long ago. He never actually used it to brush his teeth with, but it was an action figure of sorts. Pickle has slept with cell phones, computer keyboards, and any type of gadget you can imagine. Seeing him embrace this little Lambchop is really mindblowing. Even the toughest of boys has a special toy that becomes "real", like the Velveteen Rabbit. (I love the story of the Velveteen Rabbit as many of my toys became "real.) Lambchop goes to kindergarten every morning, and has to be in the car when he gets out of school. Even the Diva (who I take care of and isn't quite old enough for school) reminds me that I have to "get Lambchop". And of course, Lambchop sleeps with Pickle every night. I decided to research Shari Lewis and Lambchop to see if I could find some actual programs for him to see. Sure enough, in our generation of Youtube, there were plenty of episodes to view. That's how he spent his Saturday morning. Amazing, isn't it, that the most retro of things can still be the coolest?

Ricky Tims on CBS

Thanks to my college buddy, Sandy...I knew it was coming up, but didn't watch. You can follow this link.

Here's the quilt I saw upclose, Bohemian Rhapsody by Ricky Tims.

Getting my ducks in a row

This January has been interesting. Instead of doing the annual resolution route, I have had a new approach. And I didn't even read about it online! I decided to really search inwardly to figure out and do what was important to me. Even though I didn't use a standard, "Hey, buy my program online! It will change your life!" idea, I still feel like I have needed to make some serious changes....for nobody else but me. So, I've been looking at my spiritual, physical, financial, and social life. In doing so, I'm amazed at the clutter I've had around me for so long. My mother was an infamous pack rat when it came to saving bills, papers, etc. I'm guessing that's where it started for me. Last weekend, Hunnybunny and I spent 3 hours cleaning out our file cabinet! It's no wonder we couldn't ever find any paperwork...I still had my tax return from 1984! I felt like we weren't going to have anything in the cabinet afterwards, but it slowly began to fill up with CURRENT paperwork. We even started our tax returns this week, which is way ahead of the game for us.
As far as the physical goes, I've been going to the gym a couple of days a week. Also, I have to ask: any of you watch Gillian McKeith on BBC America's "You Are What You Eat"? Well, if you get the chance, she's worth watching. She's a holistic nutritionist who makes people look at their diet and wonder why the heck they're feeling so poorly. (Just a caveat: she's really into what people's bowels emit, so if you have a weak stomach, don't watch.)
The next thing of any consequence for me is spiritual. I miss doing a bible study. Hunnybunny and I worked at a ministry long ago and we were in an in dept bible study all the time. It's time I found another one.
Socially? Well, that might be the hardest. I have little kids to take care of as part of my job and my day doesn't end until late. But I need to get out of the house and hang out with the girls. I feel like I'm swimming in testosterone most of the time.
I also need to make time to quilt. In the evening would be the most opportune time, but I make too many excuses like, "I'm tired", or, "I just don't feel like it." Actually, it's kind of like getting up for the day. Once you get up, you're fine. Well, once I get working on stuff, I'm fine, too.
Anyway, that's what I've been up to.

How clean is your house? Couldn't help my studio...

I don't want these chicks visiting my house. Have you seen this show,
How Clean is Your House?"? Well, Dish network lets you preview a channel for a month in hopes that you'll upgrade your TV package. This month, I've been watching the BBC. Most of it isn't my thing, but these ladies are a scream. I saw them on Lifetime for awhile, but they've not been back. I think it's the whole corporate thing because they use things around the house to clean with instead of store bought products. It does amaze me the houses they go into. Most of the time, it's houses that haven't been touched in a number of years.

I think my 'studio' of sorts embarrasses Hunnybunny. You know, the tablecloth on the wall with various and sundry blocks and borders. Then there's the whole fabric everywhere in our bedroom thing, along with my thread, needle, and now sewing machine collections. He's really been a good sport about it all. I try to keep it organized, but I still fall short.
Still working on my Quilt of Valor. It had some issues (operator error type issues)that Debra helped me with over the phone. That was kind of cool....now when I read her blog, it's like I can hear her voice. No picture of my mess today. I don't want the quilt police to make a house call.

Is it just me?

Or does the new star of Burn Notice bear a striking resemblence to my pastor, Jon Weece? You be the judge. Here's Jeffery Donovan(left)as Michael Westen on Burn Notice. And to the right is my pastor. Great show....calling it an action/comedy. It's a little cool for that. To me, an action/comedy is like Rush Hour. Follow the link to see a preview. I think it's great, which means, I'm sure they will cancel it. That happens to me a lot. My pastor is a great teacher, too. Here's a link to hear some of the teaching at our church. Ironically, this series is called God's Blog, so of course, I had to give it a little PR.