Solemn

Todd's dad passed away unexpectedly Tuesday night. We're in Wisconsin...

Cookbooks and cowboy boots

Last night Holly, her friend Kelli and I drove down to the Tattered Cover bookstore in Denver to get our Pioneer Woman cookbooks signed.

We were really excited! Several of us gals read her incredibly popular blog and have tried several recipes from it, which have been turned into her new cookbook, "The Pioneer Woman Cooks."

The place was a zoo!

I truly don't think the Tattered Cover was prepared for the turnout, which is kind of silly. Her blog was recently named by Time magazine as one of the top 25 blogs of 2009. She gets, from my very unscientific observation, no less than 200 comments per post - she's popular!

I pre-ordered several copies I wanted to get signed for Christmas gifts, and by the end of the day had added a couple more requests for signed books to my list.

Sadly, it didn't happen.

I was the only one from our group that actually got to see her speak - and she's super cute, by the way! The store ran out of books, so Holly and Kelli weren't going to get a signed one anyway. And the lines were so long! We finally decided to give up and just hit the road for home.

We got some fun photos though! And we had a fun time, so it wasn't a complete wash - except for the gift-giving part. I'm going to have to get creative about that...

The books I pre-ordered...I was supposed to get a couple more, but no such luck! Holly said people were getting snippy about how many books I had (and how many they didn't), so I stuck them in my bag. Online ordering, people!


It took us an hour and a half to make it down this flight of stairs to the landing...


Proof I was there! The crowd doesn't look as overwhelming here. Believe me. It was.


Here she is! I was NOT this close to her. Office camera helped get this photo snapped. She was cute, and nice, and funny. It's fun I got to at least see her in person!

Snow day - belated

Last week we had tons of snow and wind, so much so that I didn't go into work on Wednesday and Thursday. Neither did Todd, giving us a couple nice snow days at home.

What kept us from going out?

Take a look at these photos and I think you'll understand.

A snow drift hanging from our roof...


Another angle...


Who would think it could defy gravity like that?!

Bird watcher

Todd took Rigby with him over the weekend to check pheasant hunters and came back all excited: we may have a natural bird dog.

I think that's pretty cool too, even though I don't sport any blaze orange.

Apparently, Rigby flushes birds and retrieves them - this from a dog who looks completely bewildered when we try throwing a stick for him to fetch.

Todd thinks, with a little work, Rigby will be really good in the field.

Here he is hot on the trail...


I love this picture! He's just so darn cute here...


What a proud puppy! Good boy!

Good morning!

Look at the AMAZING sunrise this morning!

I just don't feel like the photos do it justice...

Brainstorming

Done: I've decided to change my blog and am super excited about the decision and my upcoming move to Wordpress.

Not done: I can't decide what to name the new space and consequently the URL.

I want the premise of it to change a bit. A friend said it should incorporate the two new loves in my life - Todd and Rigby - and I wholeheartedly agree.

So, I need to figure out a name that rolls love, life, and everyday living into one.

Until then, I'll keep writing here.

Oh, and I'm taking suggestions!

Considering...

I'm thinking about changing up the blog. I feel like it's kind of dark and...tired. And the idea of being a former D.C.ite - which is still true - is now almost two years behind me.

AND (this is the thing that's bugged me the most for a long time now) the URL needs changing. It needed changing a year ago when I didn't land in Colorado like I thought I would.

The idea of migrating all my stuff to a different URL is a little overwhelming though. Unless someone has a quick and dirty way to get 'er done. I would love to hear about that!

So, do I change it?

Suggestions?

Hmmm...

Too many doggone choices

I had to buy dog food for Rigby yesterday and what an experience!

There's a million different kinds it seems for puppies, healthy weight management, skin and coat formula, vibrant maturity 7+ senior formula...

And this was just in the dry food aisle.

What ever happened to the days of some simple Purina or Ol' Roy? I know, I know food science is ever evolving. And yes, I want to make sure Rigby eats healthy, but really, does he need a lamb and rice or salmon based food?

No.

So, he'll be eating a regular formula, but I still chose Pedigree. It's got to be good and delicious with a name like that, right?