Teddy...

This face…simply melts me!

December 12th I logged onto Facebook and saw a photo of the cutest little hamster-looking face.  My heart immediately began to race.  This baby needed a home...and I instantly knew that I wanted to be his momma.  Still to this day, I don't really know how to describe it.  His face - it just spoke to me!  Long story short, Girard was on board and fate was on our side!      

He was a precious tiny 3 pound clumsy ball of fluff fur and had puppy breath!
I was hooked the second I buried my face in his silky-soft puppy fuzz.
We named him Teddy; because, well, he looked like a teddy bear when he was itty bitty!
He was the best early Christmas present from God that I ever could have asked for!

He's Also Known As:  Teddy Bear, Baby Boy, and Buddy …then there’s:  Teddy Monster, Teddy the Terror, and Dennis (as in Dennis the Menace!)

Things That Are Tail-Wagging Good:  ice cubes, tennis balls, belly rubs, cheese, getting to go (on car rides), more cheese, fetching sticks, going on walks, playing keep away from mom and dad, and most recently, playing hide and seek - mom/dad hides, Teddy seeks!

Not A Fan Of:  school buses, the vacuum cleaner, blender, hair dryer, or bath time!

Guilty Pleasures:  licking the bottom of momma's yogurt cup, enjoying a spoonful of peanut butter, and sleeping in the bed with mom and dad!

Biggest Uh-oh's:  pottying in the floor, chewing on momma's high heel shoes, chewing a hole in mom and dad's new sheets, and chasing a squirrel into the road.

Four and a half months ago this sweet and handsome puppy we have roaming around our house and rummaging through our laundry hamper, trashcans, and whatever else he can get his nose into came to live with us and I honestly can't imagine our lives without him!  He may be a Curious George, a sock thief, paper shredder, bird chaser, and slipper stealer... but, he's also the best early morning cuddlier, sad heart healer, and the reason I smile everyday!  Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined loving him as much as I do.  It's certainly safe to say that he has me wrapped around his little puppy paw!  

Naked Trees...

Winter is my least favorite season.
Everything is brown.  The trees are bare.
The wind feels as though it is ripping through my skin with knives.
And of course - it's cold.
I, for one, do not like being cold.  I don't know many people who actually do.
It can suck the life right out of you with its arctic blasts and bone-chilling temperatures.
(Not to mention:  dry, cracked hands and static electricity.)

The weather has been extra gloomy the past few days.
And it's a fact that my soul greatly depends on sunshine.
Old Man Winter was just about to get the best of me when I had a small revelation.
It was like a stirring deep down, forcing me to look beyond what I physically see and feel.
A stirring to find the beauty, to find the silver lining...

And then it hit me.

Bare trees - their branches are stripped of their leaves.
They stand through the bitter winds and snowfalls, never forcing their blooms to open.
They wait, patiently, for the cold of winter to gradually fade away.
When the dawn of Spring emerges, it is then that they begin to soak in the sunlight.
And beautiful blooms begin to appear from their once bare branches.

Winter (and naked trees) are like the hard times in life. 
It's hard to see beyond right now, but God is there in the midst of the constant, bitter cold and dark skies.  And before long, the sights and sounds and feelings Winter brings will fade away into Spring blooms and warm breezes and gorgeous colors!

If I Had A Dollar...

For every time I've been asked, "When are you going to have a baby?!" or, "Are you pregnant?!", I'd be rich!  Well, maybe not rich...but, I'd definitely have a new pair of shoes!

 

And before the rumor mill starts up:  I'm not pregnant.

My womb is definitely uninhabited - at this moment.

 

On one hand, it's sweet...and means a whole lot that people are excited about Girard and I expanding our family.  On the other, sometimes the questions, guesses, and eyebrow raises are hard to swallow.

 

I realize and completely understand that those inquiring don't mean any harm at all!

I'd be lying if I said that I've never been "that person" before.

But, now that the shoe is on the other foot (and has been for some time), I shiver at the thought of thinking that I've made someone else feel uncomfortable about something that really is extremely personal...

 

This is just my two cents...but the questions and assumptions may (unintentionally)...

 

Suggest that you think they've gained weight. 

((Sometimes I have a tummy - a big thanks to my sweet tooth & love of carbs!))

 

It can sadden someone who may be having trouble becoming pregnant...or miscarried.

 

And like I've already mentioned, it can make them feel uncomfortable - for a multitude of reasons.

 

I love children and dream of the day I become a mother & Girard, a father!

I am excited to see what the future holds - when the time is right!

Until then, picture me sipping on a big ol' glass of wine, eating sushi,

and soaking up non-prego life as it is right now! 

After all, we did just become puppy parents and life has been pretty dang fantastic!