Questionaire

• Copy and paste the following questionnaire with your answers (1-2 words only please).

Where is your cell phone? right beside me
Your hair? Red, long (in a bun)
Your mother? The best person in the world!!!
Your father? Absent.
Your favorite food? Italian
Your dream last night? Nightmare...about losing my garnet ring
Your favorite drink? Sweet Tea
Your dream/goal? Kennel owner
What room are you in? Business Center. Need to get the Internet at my apartment
Your hobby? don't really have one...I like to have movie marthon's at home. does that count???
Your fear? n/a
Where do you want to be in 6 years? at age 29/30... married, hopefully. with kids.
Where were you last night? my apt. making cookies with Alyssa at midnight. Fun!!!
Something you aren't? I'm not a lier.
Muffins? Banana Nut
Wish list item? have my internet back on in the apt...and a second car.
Where did you grow up? Virginia.
Last thing you did? Blinked.
What are you wearing? Jeans and gray jacket
Your TV? I have 3 of them. Couldn't live without my movies.
Your pets? 3 dogs. 2 guinea pigs.
Friends? Many and I love them all!
Your life? busy...working.
Your mood? tired. worn out. and I can't believe it cost $182 at the vet for my guinea pigs!!!
Missing someone? my Mommy. Always miss my Mommy.
Vehicle? 1994 marron station wagon. The Pup Mobile.
Something your not wearing? a watch. I hate watches, I break them.
Your favorite store? Ross!!!
Your favorite color? Brown
When was the last time you laughed? second ago.
Last time you cried? Wednesday.
Your best friend? a few, the besties!!!
One place that I go to over and over? WORK.
One person who emails me regularly? HAWK.
Favorite place to eat? Melting Pot.

Snow Patrol: Set Fire to the Third Bar

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCmBl4y1ilg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOO4So0wv1Y

the version featuring Martha Wainwright

I find the map and draw a straight line
Over rivers, farms, and state lines
The distance from A to where you'd 'B'
It's only finger-lengths that I see
I touch the place where I'd find your face
My fingers in creases of distant dark places
I hang my coat up in the first bar
There is no peace that I've felt so far
The laughter penetrates my silence
As drunken men find flaws in science
Their words mostly noises
Ghosts with just voices
Your words in my memory
Are like music to me
I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
I pray that something picks me up
And sets me down in your warm arms
After I have travelled so far
We'd set the fire to the third bar
We'd share each other like an island
Until exhausted,
close our eyelids
And dreaming pick up from
The last place we left off
Your soft skin is weeping
A joy you can't keep it
I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
And I pray that something picks me up
and sets me down in your warm arms
I'm miles from where you are,
I lay down on the cold ground
I pray that something picks me up
and sets me down in your warm arms

Rhiley

Today is Rhiley's B-day. She's 6 years old.

Next Week (Nov. 16th) she is having Surgery. She has bladder stones. No Fun.

Michelle is gonna take off school to stay with her while she heals...

The nest of young eagles hung on every word as the Master Eagle described his exploits. This was an important day for the eaglets. They were preparing for their first solo flight from the nest. It was the confidence builder many of them needed to fulfill their destiny.
"How far can I travel?" asked one of the eaglets.
"How far can you see?" responded the Master Eagle.
"How high can I fly?" quizzed the young eaglet.
"How far can you stretch your wings?" asked the old eagle.
"How long can I fly?" the eaglet persisted.
"How far is the horizon?" the mentor rebounded.
"How much should I dream?" asked the eaglet.
"How much can you dream?" smiled the older, wiser eagle.
"How much can I achieve?" the young eagle continued.
"How much can you believe?" the old eagle challenged.
Frustrated by the banter, the young eagle demanded, "Why don't you answer my questions?"
"I did."
"Yes. But you answered them with questions."
"I answered them the best I could."
"But you're the Master Eagle. You're supposed to know everything. If you can't answer these questions, who can?"
"You." The old wise eagle reassured.
"Me? How?" the young eagle was confused.
"No one can tell you how high to fly or how much to dream. It's different for each eagle. Only God and you know how far you'll go. No one on this earth knows your potential or what's in your heart. You alone will answer that. The only thing that limits you is the edge of your imagination."
The young eagle puzzled by this asked, "What should I do?"
"Look to the horizon, spread your wings, and fly."

Copyright 2001, Tom Reilly

Tom Reilly wrote this beautiful short story in The Power of Attitude.

My Daughters

Now Three...

Lily died August 24th around 6:30pm from heart failure.

We received her ashes yesterday in a brown urn; along with her paw print.

Our Baby was 8 years and 10 months old.

R.I.P Lily.

We miss you.

I'm back to working my famous doubles. A different manager has started taking over making the schedule so I begged for my doubles back...I'm so excited!!!

Now I have a set availiabilty and I'm on the 2nd job search!!!

Wish me Luck!!

-Sha

Seal-y Annie or Silly Annie??? Definitely Silly Me!!

These pictures are from about a week and a half ago.

I love playing with my baby cousin - and I love being Ornery in general, LOL.


Annie just started Rockin' the Sugar-tail pony this month - ain't she a cutey??

xoxo.

Laguna Gloria

Mel and I visited the "Laguna Gloria" on Tuesday, June 9, 2009.
(last week - yes, I know I'm late posting it!!).


"Laguna Gloria" is the former home of Clara Driscoll and site of a 1916 Italianate-style villa on the shores of Lake Austin in Austin, Texas. It was the original home of the Austin Museum of Art and still houses some of its collections. Today it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Before the influx of white settlers, Native Americans visited the site for its nearby spring (today underwater). The land that includes the property was originally owned by Stephen F. Austin, who in 1832 (seven years before Austin was founded) wrote that he wished to build a home there. This never came to pass.

In 1914 the property was purchased by Hal Sevier, editor of the Austin American, with his new wife Clara Driscoll. They completed their villa two years later, inspired by a honeymoon visit to Lake Como in Italy. Clara, an avid gardener, spent many years planting native and foreign plants around the site and designing the terraced gardens that remain to this day. In 1943 Driscoll donated the homesite to be used as a city museum.

In 1961, the site was converted to the Laguna Gloria Art Museum and became an important part of the Austin arts scene. Soon after, the museum began offering art classes, and in 1983, a 5,300-square-foot (490 m2) facility was built specifically for the growing art school.
In 1992, the institution changed its name to the Austin Museum of Art, and four years later, moved its primary exhibition space to 823 Congress Avenue, in the heart of downtown Austin. Laguna Gloria remained the site of The Art School, and in 2003, the Driscoll Villa was renovated and again became an exhibition space, focusing on local and regional artists.

The site is immediately adjacent to Mayfield Park, also on the National Register of Historic Places.

-pamphlet-

Tuesday was my one day off last week so Mel wanted to do something FUN! with me. So, she researched what art museums were nearby. Mel decided "Laguna Gloria" wasn't too far away and that we could make a short day-trip of it.

Fountain at the entrance of the "Laguna Gloria"

*It's of a little boy holding a fish*

(TOO CUTE!!)

A Native American statuary.
I can't remember the name...pretty though.



There were a few pieces of art inside the house...

* And also some photographs of how the house looked during the time Ms. Driscoll occupied it. (really neat!!)

This is the FRONT of the house .

(the "Entrance" to the museum is actually the back of the house!!)

The Front of the house over-looks Lake Austin!!


A fountain in the front of the house

Me standing in-front of the view from the House - Lake Austin is behind me.

There are stairs leading down to trails that circle the lake...

Lake Austin...view from the house.

Some of the statuary on the side of the house...

pretty flowers

Little critters...

This little guy was sooooo cute!! He got sooo close to me

(I think he wanted treats!)

The Love Temple, Ms. Driscoll had it made for her and her husband...

Me: we're right near the lake...there was a pier to the right of me - a guy had just caught a fish!!!

Mel and I had a really good time. It was really hot though...definitely should go when it's cooler out!! LOL.

Once we were done exploring - we went home, had smoothies, then hit the pool!! We try to stay cool in our family!!!

My NEW "Used" Car

My Momma works with a newspaper company in Virginia. She's been with the company since I was a 1 year old.

Anyway, they have company cars and when the cars hit a certain mileage the company sells the cars at a low price.

Well, Michelle and I have been down one car for a while now, so my Mom decided to make a bid on one of the company cars up for sale.

She got the CAR!! They accepted her offer and my Mom drove the car down to us!! - she got here on Sunday!!!!

My Mom will be spending the week with us - celebrating birthdays!! Mel, Michelle, and I all have birthdays in the same week - the 18th (Mel), 21st (Michelle), and 25th (Me!!).
**Mom has to go back home on June 21st, though.

We got the title of the car put in my name today!!

Here's a picture of my car :

(it's a 2003 Ford Station Wagon - good for Pups!!)

Cheez-it

How Old Do I Have to Be Before I'm Allowed to Eat These??

Annie's hands!!

You might have to be in my family to truly understand and appreciate this Posting.

I have been watching/playing with this cutie alot lately and one of my favorite things she does is "fold her hands" (like in the below pictures).

Why I find it so adorable --> is because her Momma (my aunt Mel) - does this -ALOT. I just think it is too cute!!!

Monkey see!! Monkey do!!

Amy's Ice Creams!!!

"Amy's Ice Creams" is kinda similar to Coldstones (I think they have Coldstones here in TX - but I'm not sure. Coldstones was one of my favorite places to get Ice Cream in VA).

Anyways...

Amy's is a little hole in the wall ice cream shop in the Arboretum.

It is very popular and is very small.

Basically you go in one door - order - and go out the other door. It doesn't have much seating room. But the ice cream is delicious and the crew that works there are really fun and nice.

Mel, Annie, and I beat the girl scouts to Amy's and decided to go ahead and get in line.

**We warned the guys working that a herd of 10 year olds' were headed there way!!! They were happy about the warning!! LOL.

Mel was giving Annie a bottle so I took some of the pictures (usually Mel has the camera!!).

I love the decor, it's very fun and bright!!!

When the guys working saw the camera they decided to preform!!

**One guy tossed my ice cream across the room and the other guy - Missed it!!!

It got all over the counter. LOL.

Later when the Girl Scouts were there. The guys tried again (switching places: The guy who originally threw it did the catching and vice versa.)

This time they caught it!! And it was a farther toss!!

P.S.

I got the Belgian chocolate with coconut "crushed" in.

Mel got "Death by Chocolate"

Jamie got Chocolate with cookie dough "crushed" in.

***Can anyone tell we are a chocolate family???

Austin's landmark marble cow scupltures!!! in the Arboretum!!

When Mel, James, and Jamie lived in Austin before (back when Jamie was 2!!!) Mel worked near the Arboretum. She would take her lunch break by the Pond at the Arboretum - never knowing that this little Cow Sculpture Area Existed!!!

Well now we do!!! And boy did we have a good time!! The Girl Scouts had soooo much fun climbing on the cows (oh to be 10 years old again!! just for a few minutes!!)

I had a great time putting Annie on the Cows!!!

Ride 'Em Cowgirl!!!

(Look how happy she is!!!)


The Black Cow was the Easiest one to climb up on, according to the girls!!

I thought the white one was the prettiest.

I think Annie agreed!!!

SUNDAY FUN!!! At the Arboretum!!!

Jamie had her "girl scout meeting" at the Arboretum.

**something fun to do since they will only meet once a month in the summer!!

**They played on the cow sculptures for a little while.

**Then they wrote letters to the Brownies who are about to become Juniors (bridging)

**They did some other activities, but Mel, Annie, and I headed UP! to the Barnes and Nobles while they had the bulk of their meeting. They are Juniors after all and don't need or want "parents" hanging out the whole time. LOL.

Mel and I (with Annie) had a good time browsing Barnes and Nobles' journal section and of course the kid area.

**I saw a journal with a gorgeous cover on it by the fantasy artist, Josephine Wall. (Beautiful!!!)

Then we met the girl scouts at Amy's Ice Cream Shop for some yummy dessert!!!

San Antonio SeaWorld (Saturday)

I went to SeaWorld with the family yesterday and we had a great time!!

We got our picture taken by the fountain - put my copy in my wallet.

We saw dolphins and sharks in their habitats!!

We saw 4 shows!!

- the Beluga Whale show - "Viva"
- the ski show - "Cool Vibrations"
- the Sea Lion show - (sooo funny) -"Capers??"
- the Shamu show - "Believe" (the one at 8pm - love all the cool light effects on a night show).

We had lunch at the park - we did the "all you can eat" special at the picnic area. (Port-of-Call)
**you have to be a season pass holder to do this - it was yummy and I loved the music that was playing. It was all the stuff I listened to in high school - sooo fun!!!
(Blink182, Madonna, Christina Agularia, Smash Mouth, etc.).

Michelle and I rode the "Steel Eel" rollercoaster. We almost didn't get to go because they had a temporary shut-down. I think it got stuck or something. But they fixed the problem pretty fast so we got too!! Michelle and I liked the roller coaster.
**We wished the bar was lower though - Michelle and I popped up out of our seats a little higher than we would have liked!!
**And a handlebar to hold-on to would have been nice. LOL. It wasn't too scary, I'm just used to having one.

We also spent a lot of time in the Lost Lagoon Waterpark!!
**We started out in the Lil' Gators Lagoon - basically for the babies.
It was soooo hot, I was getting overheated. I was like - let me under the mushroom - after about 2 minutes I was feeling great!!
** We did the lazy river called "Castaway Crusin' - without a tube. They only have a few tubes and they were all occupied!! So we floated without the tube. It was fun. We took turns staying out with Annie - if we'd been able to get a tube we coulda taken her with us!!
**Wave Wash Pool!!! I love the wave pool!! Michelle and Jamie went in whenever the waves stopped. Me: I was out there the whole time, waves and all - 6ft left side (lol)!! Mel and Annie were in the little Oasis area at the very front of the wavepool - away from the waves - getting their feet a little wet!!!

We had lots of liquids!!! Sprite, Lemonade, (UNsweet Tea!!) and Frosted Lemonade!!! Not the hottest day of the year by far - but definitely not cool either!!!

We have Fun Passes so hopefully we go a lot this summer - pray for cooler weather (I know wishful thinking!!!).

San Antonio - The McNay

I went with a friend to San Antonio for the day on Sunday. We had a great time.

We went to a mexican restaurant for lunch and my friend got me to try Menudo and cow tongue . Different. It tastes good - but it's one of those things you don't want to think about when you're eating it!!! My friend refused to tell me what it was until after I tried it. LOL.

We went to the McNay Art Museum and it was absolutely awesome!!

I love art museums. I was happy to recognize a lot of the artists. And was thrilled that they had a John Sloan painting - he is one of my favorite artists - but I'd never gotten to see his work in person before.

I also got to see a piece by Takashi Murakami - a Japanese artist I did a project on in my Senior of High School. it was the first time I've ever seen one of his pieces in person too.

And of course I owww-ed and ahhh-ed over Renoir and Degas. I adore Renoir and Degas!! They have t-shirts in the McNay gift shop with prints of Renoir and Degas artwork. I want one!!!

We tried to go by the "Japanese and Sunkin' Gardens" but the area was too busy - some concert. Have to do that another day (along with the the San Antonio Zoo!!!).

We had a great time hanging out with my friend's folks. They were very nice and I loved their dogs!!! and Birds!! We had a cook-out for dinner and the dogs loved the rib bones. LOL.

Hope to do it again soon.

This Saturday my family and I are going to SEAWORLD in San Antonio -woot woot!!!!
I'm excited. I've only been to Seaworld once before - my 15th birthday. We are planning on getting Fun Passes so hopefully we will be able to go alot this summer. I love shows and I can't wait to check out the 2 rollercoasters. I don't remember doing the coasters when I was 15. I think it was too hot we tried to stay in the shade or AC!!!

"Girl With A Pearl Earring" A Novel By Tracy Chevalier

"Girl with a Pearl Earring" is a 1999 historical novel written by Tracy Chevalier. It takes place in Delft, Holland and was inspired by Vermeer's painting Girl with a Pearl Earring. It fictionalizes the circumstances under which the painting was created.

Plot summary ( from Wikipedia)

Sixteen-year-old Griet lives with her family in a poorer quarter of Delft in 1664. Her father has just suffered a blinding accident and the family's precarious economic situation forces Griet's parents to find her employment as a maid in the painter Vermeer's house.

At the Vermeer house, Griet settles into the family's schedule. She makes friends with the Vermeers' oldest daughter but suffers sabotage and mouthing off from another. She also becomes friendly with Tanneke, the other house servant, but is careful to remain modest and unobtrusive for fear of making Tanneke jealous. These fears later prove to be justified.

During this time, she begins to be courted by Pieter, the local butcher's son. Griet's situation as a maid casts a thin veil of doubt on her respectability and she finds that she has to be both more forward and more careful with Pieter and others than she otherwise would. This is largely because of the bad reputation that maids have for sleeping with their employers. It is not revealed how much of this reputation is earned. The book depicts rumors of employers demanding sexual favors from maids but does not directly show any specific cases. A line, often repeated is, "A maid comes free," implied to mean that maids are more accessible than prostitutes.

Also during this time, the area in which Griet's family lives is struck with plague, and her younger sister Agnes dies. Also during Griet's months with the Vermeers, her younger brother starts having problems with his apprenticeship, being singled out for mistreatment for supposedly accepting romantic advances from his master's wife.

In Vermeer's studio, Griet is exposed to ideas entirely absent from her quiet, modest life. She is fascinated by Vermeer's paintings and his treatment of light. In one scene, Vermeer asks Griet to look at the clouds, and she realizes that even though everyone always talks of clouds as white, they are really a mix of several colors, and a painter must use several different shades of paint so that they will look real. It is implied that Vermeer finds Griet's ability to understand concepts like these unusual.

Gradually, Griet's relationship with Vermeer changes. She is told to run errands and perform tasks for him, such as paintmaking and subbing in for sick models, while keeping them secret from the rest of the house. In particular, Vermeer's sensitive wife would assume that Griet is acting improperly or even having an affair with Vermeer. In contrast, Vermeer's pragmatic mother-in-law recognizes Griet's presence as a steadying and catalyzing force in Vermeer's career.

Griet is warned by Vermeer's friend Dr. van Leeuwenhoek not to get too close to Vermeer because Vermeer is far more interested in paintings than he is in people. Griet realizes that this is true and remains cautious.

the same time, Vermeer's wealthy but licentious patron, Van Ruijven, notices Griet and her beauty and begins to pressure Vermeer to paint them sitting together. Griet and Vermeer are reluctant to acquiesce, due to Griet's strict modesty and a scandal surrounding the last girl who had been painted with van Ruijven. Eventually, Vermeer compromises and begins a painting of Griet by herself, to be sold to van Ruijven. However, he tells her to wear his wife Catharina's pearl earrings. When Catharina discovers this, Griet is forced to leave. Griet at first runs toward the center of town, but then she thinks, "Only thieves and children run." She changes her mind and walks steadily.

Ten years later, long after Griet has married Pieter and settled into life as a mother and butcher's wife, she is called back to the house. Vermeer is dead, and his will has been read. Griet assumes that Vermeer's widow wishes to settle the household's unpaid fifteen-guilder bill with the butcher shop. Pieter laughs and says that he didn't mind losing the fifteen guilders because they bought him Griet as a wife.

At the Vermeer house, Griet learns that even though Vermeer had made no effort to see or speak to her, he had remained very fond of the painting. In addition, Vermeer's will had included a request that Griet receive the two pearl earrings. However, Griet realizes that she could no more wear pearl earrings as a butcher's wife than she could as a maid. She then pawns the earrings and gives most of the money to her husband, claiming that Vermeer's widow had given her the coins to settle a debt with the butcher shop. The book closes on the line, "A maid came free."

***A friend of mine suggested I read this book. I wasn't expecting to get past the first 10 pages without being extremely bored - but was quickly captivated by the story. It's definitely not one of my usual reads - but it was interesting in a quiet way...I really liked it!! :)

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves art!

Half Price on Books and Disney!!!

I got a text message from a friend today letting me know that one of the "Borders" here in Austin is closing it's doors and that everything in the store is half off or 70% off.

Needless to say Michelle and I had to go visit the store before it was gone (last day is May24th)!

We went and Michelle found 3 books. Very good price!

And I FOUND A DISNEY STORE!!!!

When we were living in VA we had 2 Disney Stores near our house - until they both got closed down (about 2 years ago??).

I am absolutely thrilled to have found a Disney store here in Austin. Michelle and I spent a lot of time browsing in there - I especially adore the snowglobes!!!

One of the Joys of Moving to a New State? Getting Totally LOST and Turned Around!! LOL

I woke up this morning and went to work - only to discover I AM OFF TODAY!!!
***I'd misread my schedule (dumb Sha).

So - I called Michelle on my cell phone and said:
"GREAT NEWS I'M OFF (Better NEWS - I'm AWAKE) What do you want to do today?"

She decided she wanted to take the Dogs to the Park.

So we went home so we could change clothes, grab the dogs - and MOST IMPORTANTLY - Print out instructions to the PARK!!

While we were at home I also did some BILLS (yucky) and took inventory on PET MEDS that I need to buy. I discovered I needed all Flea Medication and Rhiley and Maddy only have one month left of Heartworm Medication.

I told Michelle we needed to stop by the Vet to pick up Flea Meds. I'll get the Heartworm pills with my next paycheck.

So - we grabbed the dogs - unfortunately not all the dogs - just our 4. It's too difficult to walk with all six - so Nick and Goldie stayed home.

We went to the vet office first and all the babies got weighed.

Lily loved being inside and laying on the cold tile floor!! She was looking at me with her big "doe" eyes saying "Let's stay here all day!!"

$231 dollars later (each dog got a 5 months supply of flea medication) we hopped back in the car and were off to the park!

We got off at the exit we needed - and then we were sunk - we drove and we drove and we drove.

And we did not see Barton Springs Rd.

However we did see Zilker Park.

Which wasn't the park we were planning to go to - BUT IT WAS A PARK!!

We stopped the car, unloaded the dogs and hit the trail!! And quickly realized that gravel and rocks are not fun to hike on - where is a DIRT trail when you need one?

We reversed course and hung out near the picnic areas (shade!!!) and near the drink stand and pool area.

We got a lemonade from the stand and got 2 doggie cups of water!!
(It was cool today - but not THAT cool!)

Then we decided it was time to go.

We hopped in the car again - this time with the windows up and the AC blasting!

And quickly realized we didn't know how to get back on the interstate from where we were...

We got LOST near the Capitol, but Michelle eventually realized where we were on Lamar and was able to get us back to the interstate.

It was a FUN adventure and now we are home. The pups are worn-out and happy sleeping in the backyard. I am a little sunburned and am happily sipping on a smoothie Mel and Michelle just made us.

Life is Good.

As Marti would say - you never know what your gonna do when you wake up in the Morning!!!!

P.S. sorry no pictures - we packed the camera, but accidentally left it in the car!!

Thursday Was Grooming Day _ Naked Pups!!!

I couldn't sleep Wednesday night so I stayed up all night, and Thursday Morning I woke Michelle up at 8:30am to start grooming the dogs. It took us 5 hours to shave 4 of the dogs and brush out 2.

Madelyne was very happy about getting brushed out!!!

(look at all that gray!! She's 4 years old - she's not supposed to have all that gray hair!!)

Lily liked getting brushed out too - but she's not sure about the camera.

When we first started on Nick we were planning on leaving 1/2 an inch of hair - but then we decided to take it all off.

Nick is one naked Golden Retriever!!!

When we weren't shaving them down they went into the crates so they weren't underfoot. Nick didn't like it too much he wanted to be where all the action was!!

I love my Little Bear - fluffy or naked he is sooooo adorable!!!

We have 5 crates - and they decided to all go into the same one!!!

(shakes head)

Thirsty Puppies!!

Goldie's turn!!!

Michelle worked really hard!!

All Done!!! Rhiley was the last one!!


Goldie all done - look at that color difference!

I love Lily's head tilt!!!

Pretty Girl!!!