Blog Update

I recently posted a video on Maya's puppy blog that is pretty neat. If you're interested, go check it out. Just click here to visit her page. :)
And of course, a Happy Halloween to everyone today! Be safe and have lots of fun!!!

Extra 50% off at Payless, thanks to Oprah

Today (after Oprah airs) and tomorrow, Payless is offering an additional 50% off of Payless accessories and shoes. I actually went in last night, tried on, and placed a few pairs of boots/shoes on hold for today. So, I'm all set! All in all, this will come out to about $55.00 plus tax for these four pairs. I'm sooooo excited; I LOVE my shoes! And what a bargain, considering you can use this additional discount off of sale merchandise. To acquire your coupon, head on over to oprah.com and look for the link that she has on her website. The store that I shopped at won't honor the coupon until later today, but the actual coupon says you can use it as early as 10am this morning. I'd check with the store you plan on shopping at to see when they will accept it.

These are already on sale for just $39.99, meaning I'll only pay $19.99.

These boots are currently on sale for $29.99, which means I'll pay $14.99.

These awesome pumps are $14.99 now, but will be $7.49 later today.

These may look metallic, but there aren't; they're just brown. :) They're regularly $22.99, and I can't wait to get them for only $11.49. Whoo hoo!!!

Arthur's New Project

Arthur and I have talked on several occasions about making a little porch potty for our dogs. Now I think is the perfect time to finally get this project moving, as the weather has just been awful. Living in an apartment is sometimes just terrible when you have animals; being on the second floor isn't any better. It's not that we hate to walk the dogs, but when the weather isn't being kind to us, walking them in rain, ice, sometimes sleet is not always an option. So the idea came to me that we needed more than just potty pads indoors to help out with this. The girls have never liked to use the potty pads, so I figured if we constructed something that was most like the great outdoors (like turf, for instance), they'd be more inclined to use it. Hopefully, this is something Arthur will get started on in the next couple of weeks; below are a few ideas we plan on using to get started. Wish us luck! And I sure hope the girls will use it. Also, I want to add that with Maya's puppies on the way, I also thought this would be a good tool in helping to potty train them. Since they will be susceptible to contracting diseases from other dogs/animals in general, I won't be able to take them outside or get them near anything that could harm them. Basically, they can't go outside until fully vaccinated. I think this would be an awesome way to help them learn to use the potty appropriately. We'll see...

I really like this idea of a pull-out tray (in plastic) for easy cleaning. :)

Our Jack-o-lanterns

For the past several years I have always made sure to have a carved pumpkin or two. Arthur was kind enough to be sure I didn't forget. Yesterday he brought home two pumpkins, and we got to work on them. I think they turned out well; of course, I always think mine is better. lol

Arthur's artwork

Mine. Do you know what movie this is from? That's a little Tara Trivia for ya!

And check out the amazing glow of my lil' pumpkin man. :) Cute and a bit creepy all wrapped into one.

Halloween Mummy Cake!

I thought I'd post a couple of pictures of the cake I made earlier today for a party later tonight. I thought it was a cute idea and different, so I gave it a whirl. It's pretty simple, but a TON of frosting- two chocolate cakes layered and covered with chocolate frosting, then covered with more buttercream frosting. This makes for one heavy cake!

Maya's Box

Arthur finally put together a whelping box for Maya (that she and her puppies will live in for a few weeks), and so far I think she likes it. She even went into her box on her own last night to just chill out. :) He did such an awesome job, and made this exactly the way I wanted. Thank you, Arthur!

Napping in her box

Chlo-jo saying "hi".

Though her hair is slightly messy, I still just love this picture. I just love her doggy smile! ;)

Update on Maya

A couple of night's ago when I had my hand on Maya's belly, I was able to feel movement from the puppies inside. The little one on her right side is an active little bugger, especially in the evenings. :) Even if you look really closely, you can see her tummy move along with the puppies' movements. It's so cute! We've determined she's at least having two (she has one on each side), but three would be a perfect number. We're getting extremely anxious waiting for these little ones; two weeks to go!

Biggest Loser Contest (numero dos)

Yes, we have started yet another biggest loser contest here at the office. Only thing is, it started over a month ago and I just got started last week. I have until the 13th of November to kick booty! There are a few people that have been doing fairly well, I'm not one of them. ;) But I am trying, at least now I am. So far, so good, but I've got a ways to go if I'm going to have a chance at winning. I'm probably a good 10-12 pounds behind some of the other competitors, yikes. But that is more reason for me to really push myself. It's tough, when you lack the motivation to do something you know you should be doing. Luckily, I've found that motivation again and I'm not letting go without a fight. Will I win this time around? Not likely, but there's still a slight chance. I'm doing my best to sabotage the others; I made a delicious cake for everyone on Tuesday. hee hee Yep, that's right, I fight dirty. So what!?!

Photos from the Fair

We probably picked one of the rainiest days to attend the Texas State Fair, but I'm glad that we did. It rained a few times throughout the day, but it wasn't enough to damper our plans. If anything, this rain kept the crowds away, and we never had to wait in line for anything. The cool breeze was a plus, as well. It was a great day! Unfortunately, because of the rain, I didn't have my camera out for most of it. So yeah, I didn't take too many photos. Oh wellsy...

The fried food was great, as always. I think I may have gained like 10 pounds from the deep fried pecan pie, Fletcher's corndogs (which are fab, btw), fried bbq egg rolls, ice cream, and fresh lemonade. I decide to pass on the fried butter this year. It just didn't sound appetizing to me. Ew!

Big Tex!

And how could I not take a picture of the ferris wheel?!? Preetty.
Nope, I did not ride this thing. For one, it's scary looking, and two, the weather was just too unpredictable that day for me to even consider it.

A view from the Texas Skyway (looking down on Midway Park)

I couldn't help myself! That booty was just too pinchable for me to resist. ;)

Arthur in front of the Esplanade

A big storm was supposedly coming in (it was supposed to be really bad). It looked very scary!

Check out those awesome clouds! The sky was even green, though you can't see it from these photos.

But it only got a little windy and then rained for maybe 5 minutes or so. Bummer! This is what the sky looked like minutes after. Blue and just gorgeous!

And of course, me being the animal lover I am, we just had to head on over to the livestock petting area to check out the animals. This is one of my favorite pictures, this little kangaroo is just taking it easy. He's like, "Hey, what are you looking at?!?"

Then he finally decided to grace us with his presence and came out for a quick peek. I just wanted to yank him outta there and cuddle with him. :) Of course, you know I really wouldn't do that, lol.

When I took this picture, all I saw was the cute camel, now all I see is poo. Where did this poo come from?!? Oh wait, I know the answer to this.

I like to call this photo- THE STAREDOWN. The camel won, btw. And nope, there wasn't any spitting involved (I told Arthur he'd get in trouble for spitting on the camels).

And last but not least, here's a photo of an up and coming Elsie the cow. She was so precious and had the most beautiful little face.

All in all, the day was great! We bought little souvenirs here and there, loved the food sampling, the music, and the shows were great, too. I highly recommend the Kroger Birds of the World show, in case you're nearby.

Introducing Maya's Puppies

I have created a blog journal for Maya and her puppies. Here is where you will find all the latest updates on her and her upcoming litter. We thought it would be nice to have a journal for us to write everything down in and keep track of things. And then I thought it would be even nicer to share it, for anyone who cares (I can't think of too many people who might, lol). :) Click here to visit her page!

*May not be suitable for young children* (NIPPLES)

Okay, so no, I was totally kidding about it being unsuitable for children, lol. These nipples are only doggy nipples, perfectly okay for all ages. I just thought it was a nice title. "Why is she posting pictures of her dog's nipples?" you may ask. Well, it's not the nipples I'm posting, actually. It's the fact that Maya is preggers, and we are just so thrilled. No, we haven't had it confirmed by a vet yet, but I'm 99 percent sure. We've just been playing the waiting game for the past several weeks, but I'm completely confident that she is now. She used to have a flat tummy, seriously- it sometimes almost seemed concaved even. Today marks the beginning of her fourth week of pregnancy. In case you didn't know, most dogs have a gestational period from usually 60-63 daysish. That makes her at about the halfway point. We're so excited and anxious to meet the little ones. We will be having a 2D x-ray done in a couple of weeks to determine the number and sizes of the pups. It's so exciting!!! :)

Just look at that little round belly! So cute!!! btw, it's more noticeable in person than in these photos. You're probably thinking you can't see anything. Trust me, she's pretty big for her.

I hear that around Day 40, we'll be able to see/feel the pups moving around in there. And this is the baby daddy, Rumble (sorry you can't see his face too well). He's only 3.5 lbs., very cute! The only thing he didn't have that we were looking for was smaller ears; I was hoping to balance Maya's big ears with a male that had smaller ones. Oh wellsy, I guess the pups are doomed for big ears, lol. But really, this picture doesn't do the little man justice- he's soooo much cuter in person. I think his and Maya's babies will be sooooooo precious! And I've seen two of his babies from other litters, they are just precious! :)

Happy 30th Anniversary!!!

Yes, today is my parents' anniversary and yes, it's been a whole 30 years. Whoa! I hope you two have a wonderful day, time to relax, go out to eat, and ENJOY eachother's company. I love you both very much. And the picture is the most recent I have of the both of them; it was taken with my niece, Aubrey, for her baptism this past month.