The Floppy Dog Contest

Our lives are so busy, especially lately. Time has been flying by. Last night as I put Harper to bed, it hit me that she is almost 14 months. It hit me like a ton of bricks. She is never going to stop growing and changing. Every time I get used to a certain age or stage of development, she moves on or gets a little older. This motherhood business is sneaky like that.

 I just can't believe that I have a little girl. Most of her baby qualities are gone (well besides the fact that she wears diapers and drinks from bottles). They left me with a beautiful, sometimes feisty, independent girl. I think she got her independence from me. Just ask my parents or Colt. I don't like help with ANYTHING. Yesterday, I tried to read to her. She pulled the book from my hand and proceeded to read aloud to herself. What?!? That wasn't supposed to happen for at least 3 years.

Oh, and she puts herself to bed. She is just too grown up to wait for her mother to tuck her in. That kind of stuff must be for babies. When Harper is tired, she goes to her room and stands in front of her bed. I don't know if I should be proud of her or ashamed of myself for not noticing how sleepy she was.

Harper has even taken a pet of her own. It's a floppy dog toy. You might remember it from our plane ride or from Harper's post Thanksgiving sleep. Anyway, he goes everywhere with Harper. He gets far more Harper snuggles/kisses than I do (not fair, if you ask me) and he sleeps by Harper every night. She takes him for "walks" using Hazel's leash. Basically Harper drags him around and says, "Walk, walk, walk..." She even "shares" her snacks with him. He has already had surgery (I had to stitch his leg up, thanks to Tucker, of course) and countless baths. He has become sort of the 6th member of our family.

Here are some pics of Harper with her puppy. They are from my phone, so accept my apologies for the poor quality.

In our house, we eat whipped cream on bananas. 

So here is the contest:

Harper's floppydog needs a name.

I'm letting you choose it.

Leave me a comment with your name suggestion.

The winner will receive a most fabulous prize!

We will choose the name on December 10.

(By the way, Harper's floppy dog is a boy)

Good luck and xoxo.

Engagement Photos

In case you haven't heard, Colt and I are in love and we are getting married.
"We're going to the courthouse and we're gonna get married..."

How many times during my tween years did I belt that song out all alone in my room?

Probably enough times to certify me as a nerd.

I love Bette Midler. I can't help it.
And I belted the proper lyrics back then. It's only recently that I replaced "chapel" with "courthouse."

Our good looks and Whitney's skills made for some fab photos.

Whitney is Colt's cousin so I'm semi-related to her.

Come January, I'll be officially related to her. 

I can't wait.

Not only do I get Colt, I get Whitney, Calli, Kenzie, Carrie, Doug, and Zowie. 

Unexpected Staycation

I do believe that I just experienced my very first staycation. Thanksgiving weekend was unexpectedly amazing. It was relaxing and productive and I'm coming back to the real world this morning feeling more inner peace than I've known in a long time. It is as if my perspective quietly realigned itself over the four day holiday, without any conscious help from me. I feel happy. I feel revived. I feel optimistic and ready to be a better mom/daughter/fiance/friend/student. The details would be boring, so I'll just offer you a few reasons why my Thanksgiving staycation was so wonderful:

• I found a wedding dress. It's an ivory strapless gown with slight gathers in the skirt and a lovely lavender sash. It's elegant and it's perfect. It was the first one I saw in the first store Calli (future sissy-in-law) and I went to. Fate? I think so.

• Thanksgiving was amazing. You've seen the photos. 

• We ordered all of the candy for our candy buffet. 85 pounds of candy should arrive on my doorstep sometime this week and I'm going to do my best to not eat half of it before January 15.

• Despite the fact that it was a Holiday, I managed to get in several workouts. I hit the gym 5 times and I feel great because of it.

• I won a locket! I entered a giveaway at So About What I said (a most delightful blog that you should all read) and when we got home from dinner on Thursday, I got an e-mail saying that I won this: 

It's perfect and I was so excited. I never win anything. Well, I won several coloring contests when I was little but that was mainly due to my mother's artistic direction. Anyway, it is from Joyeful Art, a wonderful little etsy shop. 

• Colt and I had some solid quality time together during the break. We laughed, played, ran errands, and laughed some more. It was much needed and it was amazing.

• We also took our engagement photos. We've been engaged since last February so it was about time. Whitney, Colt, and I survived the snow/freezing cold and came out with some gorgeous shots. I proofed them with Whitney last night and I'm over the moon with excitement about them!

• I made my first ever turkey dinner last night. That means that I get to snack on cold stuffing left overs all day today. I don't care if you think it's gross. I love it.

• To top off all of these Thanksgiving delights, I turned on TCM Saturday night and Funny Girl was on. Funny Girl is my favorite move of all time. I get chiiiiiiillllllsss every single time I watch the scene where Fanny sings 'Don't Rain on My Parade" and I never fail to cry during 'My Man.' Barbara Streisand is amazing and I don't care what Colt says, she is the coolest.

So there you have it. Staycations can be extremely effective/productive/wonderful, especially when they aren't planned. Even Harper seems happier today. I think that she feels that I'm more balanced and lighthearted and I know that she likes it. She danced almost non-stop all weekend. I danced, too. We danced together and it was magical.

Teaser

It was really cold today while we took our photos.
I had snow in my shoes, but it was worth it.
Whitney claims our photos are all amazing.
She teased me with a few...

Engagement Photo Sneak Peak

Taken by Rush Photography.

If you need pics, Whitney Rushton is your girl.

She does weddings, kids, babies, and dogs.

(801) 879-0507

http://www.rushphotographyblog.com/

Pickles and Olives

Thanksgiving was amazing!

We went to Colt's Aunt Amy's house.

Amy is a wonderful hostess.

We had a great time.

Harper tried sweet pickles for the first time.

She loved them. I also think she ate her weight in olives.

Colt ate his share as well.

I mainly took photos.

Thanksgiving eating is serious business for both Colt and Harper.

Harper's feast

Amy made us these darling place cards.

Blueberry Banana Delight was my contribution to the meal.

It's a Lomento family favorite.

Silly girl showing off for our table...

Harper made sure to tell us that dinner was "All gone..."

Post-turkey sleep

We realized that we have no yummy leftovers to eat.

So, I'm making a turkey dinner today.

And the List Goes On

Mountains
The Life of Pi
Rent
Lip stain
Liberty Park
Sugarhouse Park
Parks in general
Snuggly blankets
Candles
Tootsie Rolls
Love Actually
Popcorn
Red nail polish (today's color)
Elizabeth Gilbert
Footie Pajamas (for Harper, not me)
My pink Kitchenaid mixer
Fancy Nancy
Repainted Furniture
Havianas
Throw pillows
Clean sheets
Clorox Wipes
Pumpkins
Nap time (Harper's, not mine)
Chips and salsa
Wheat Thins
Peanut butter
Rachmaninoff
Josh Groban (yes, I'm that sappy)
Black beans
The dictionary
Anthropologie
The Food Network
Free People Clothing
Blank journals
School supplies
Petco
Flowers
Trees
Brass Plum
and Pringles

Material favorites aside, I'm so grateful for my life, my family, my friends, and my dogs. Sometimes I get caught up in self-pity and start feeling sorry for myself and then the gratitude disappears from my heart. It is when I forget to be grateful that anger sneaks in and tries to take over. Anger leads to hatred and hatred, in every form, is something I'm trying to stay away from. 

Luckily, it never takes me long to remember how very blessed I am. I'm sorry for any complaining I do on here. I, like everyone else, try my best. I'm trying to weave positivity into every aspect of my life. I'm trying to practice diligent joy, even when it's difficult. I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn and grow and I'm even more grateful for the amazing family and friends who offer me grace and patience as I do so.

Happy Thanksgiving Day, 2010.

How are you celebrating?

I've made my blueberry banana cheesecake.

I've painted my nails and cleaned my house.

Now it's time to relax and be grateful.

I will be spending the rest of the day with my two favorite people.

Here they are on Thanksgiving Day last year.

Colt hasn't changed much.

Harper has. Just look at the next photo. 

Harper is ready to enjoy her first Thanksgiving feast today.

She's going to love it.

Hazel is ready, too. She knows I'll sneak some turkey home for her.

I Can't Stop

Here are some of the more frivolous (but no less wonderful) things I'm thankful for... It's not that I think C.S. Lewis or Jane Austen to be frivolous... They just don't rank as high up as Harper and Hazel. I'm thankful for them nonetheless...

Baby Wipes
My hairstylist- Whitney, I love you.
OPI Nail Polish
Veggie Burritos from Taco Time
Funny Girl
The old and torn blanket Colt's Grandma Adams made for him (it's now more mine than his...)
Wuthering Heights
Diet Coke
Porcupine Pub and Grill
Chaim Potok
Animals
My iPhone
Breakfast at Tiffany's
Body Scrubs
My Subaru
That a messy bun has become an acceptable hair style
e.e. Cummings
Wicked- the book and the musical
Jane Austen
The Library
Les Miserables- once again, book and musical
Jane Eyre
Chopin
Anne of Green Gables
Georgia O'Keefe
Van Gogh
My Camera
Glee
The Sound of Music
My Fair Lady
My A Ex. Sunglasses
Five for Fighting
C.S. Lewis
Dave Matthew's Band
Barbara Streisand
Chipoltle
Halogen (clothing brand)
Dooney and Bourke
Ulta/Sephora
Harry Potter
Anything Argyle- sock, sweaters, scarves...
Umbrellas
Body lotion
Veggie Sandwiches from Kneaders, Jimmy John's, or Red Butte Cafe
JCrew
Nordstrom
Coffee

Things Worth Mentioning

Happy Thanksgiving week, my bloggy friends. I love this week (yes, Vegetarians love Thanksgiving. It's not always about the turkey), especially since it ends with a long weekend. Colt is especially excited because he will be ice fishing for the first time this season. He's been talking about ice fishing since August.

We are having Thanksgiving with Colt's family this year. It's going to be really fun. I will miss my parents terrible, though. Hopefully we will celebrate with them next year. I'm actually contemplating hosting Thanksgiving in 2011. That is a terrifying thought for me but I think that with my mom's help, I could do it and I'm pretty sure my family will love me, even if the turkey is dry.

I have so much to be thankful for. As always my blessings are countless- a healthy body, books, a working mind, music, yoga, family, friends, chocolate, chocolate chip cookies, coffee, Diet Coke, shoes, clothes, makeup, mexican food, and indoor plumbing. I could go on an on. My heart is full and my cup really is spilling over with love and joy. A lot of my facebook friends have been posting something they are grateful for every day. I could list something daily for a year and still wouldn't be close to covering all of those things that make my life completely amazing.

There are a few things that can't go unmentioned. They are the biggest, most wonderful parts of my life. They are what I am most thankful for, not just on designated days, but every single moment of every day.

Mr. and Mrs. Lomento

I love my parents and would be one great big mess if not for them.

Here they are meeting Harper for the first time.

Miss Harper Jane Adams

I think everyone knows how I feel about this girl.

Miss Hazelnut Valentine

Hazel is my constant companion and foot warmer.

She is the princess in this house and we love her.

Miss Zowie Adams

She isn't my dog, but we were roommates for a year.

I'm head over heels for her cuteness.

This is her when she came to stay with us.

She is 12 years old, which makes her an old lady in dog years.

That's probably why she came with an old lady bag.

Tucker Red Wild 

Are you surprised that he made the list?

So am I.

Even though he ruined my carpet, my bedspread, and Harper's favorite blanket, I love Tucker.

 Mostly, I love how happy he makes Colt. They are pals, for sure.

I also love that he has traded puppy bites for puppy kisses.

Last, but certainly not least, I'm thankful for Mr. Adams.

I don't know why but this is my favorite photo of him.

He is really the person who completes me best.

I can't wait to marry him in January.

Don't worry, I cried while posting these photos.

Isn't being grateful wonderful?

Happy Thanksgiving Week.

I hope that your lives are as blessed as mine.

Miss Harper J Meets the Snow

Harper was really too small last year to appreciate the snow.
On Saturday night when it was coming down, I got so excited.
I couldn't wait to show it to her in the morning.
We bundled her up first thing and headed out.

She did a lot of looking around...

Then she found the smallest bit of snow she could and touched it.

I think she was a little scared. She clung to my legs. You know I never mind that business.

 I tried to get her to be more adventurous.

She wasn't having it. In we went.

Maybe it will grow on her.
Or maybe she will be like me and foster a life long dislike of anything cold, snowy, icy, sleety, or slushy.
I seriously struggle with snow.