Picture Perfect

At first glance, this picture was imperfect.  I wanted a picture of my labs sitting obediently in front of the Christmas tree.  This picture did not occur.  Instead, I have Nay-Nay all hunched over and Zeke looking way up to my right.  Nay-Nay and Zeke are acting exactly like themselves!

If you have read through my blog you will know why Nay looks like that.  It is very difficult for me to get any pictures of Naomi.  She is storm phobic...so when she sees a camera flash, she is reminded of lightening...and of course reminded of storms.  In this picture she is showing her insecurity. 

Zeke on the other hand, is the most food-motivated lab I've ever known.  Right now he is on a diet.  In this picture, Steve is standing to my back right, holding a snack up.  In fact, when I yell the word "snack" while Zeke is outside...he'll come running around the corner.

So, you can see this "imperfect" picture is really picture perfect.  It is the exact personalities of my puppies.  Saying "SAY CHEESE!"  doesn't work with a dog, but us humans...we want the picture perfect.  You  know, when you pick the best "group picture" you always pick the one you look best in. 

None of us are perfect but when everyone knows your lives and your imperfections it can make you feel vulnerable.  It makes you want to block the world out.  I think life would be easier and people would get along better if we all were ready to admit our failures and insecurities.  Humility would happen for all of us. 

God loves me.  If God were to take a picture of me it would be one that showed my heart in action.  Just like Naomi's and Zeke's heart is in action in the given picture.  Would I be hunched over and insecure?  Would I be looking the world over for something I liked more? 

No matter what my state, God loves me.  I know I'm being repetitive, but you see, God loves me!  Though the picture of me is truly "imperfect"....to God, it is "picture perfect" because He loves me as I am.

Spoilin'

How do my puppies spoil themselves?  I really don't know, but I know what they enjoy.

Zeke enjoys a fuzzy blanket (see above!), towel, and heat from the dryer.

Nay loves a good bone and is willing to take her 55 lbs. body and fight a 90 lb. lab for it.

Zeke likes to lay on the couch with you.

Nay likes to lay in the sun on a cool fall day.

I thought I'd take a little different take on this blog and do one kind of fun!

So how do we spoil ourselves?  This past summer I was unemployed for five months and had to find new ways to spoil myself.  I was remembering them as my best friend Kelli celebrated her own birthday this week....finding small ways to indulge.  So here it is, my list of inexpensive ways to indulge or spoil yourself.

10 INEXPENSIVE WAYS TO INDULGE

1.  Sushi-  At the right place you can get a good sushi roll for less than 10 bucks.  My heritage would suggest to many that I might like sashimi (raw fish)...but that is not true.  I prefer the Americanized sushi that might include avocado, cream cheese and may even be deep fried.

2.  Starbucks- Yes Starbucks is expensive, but when I want to feel spoiled I splurge.  You can get a good drink for less than 5 bucks, but if you are really on a budget...get yourself a black iced tea.  I can go anywhere, taste iced tea, and know whether or not it is made by Starbucks.

3.  iTunes- iTunes has EVERY kind of music imaginable.  I love how you can find one song and it can lead you to another and another.  There are songs for 69 cents (Frank Sinatra Christmas) and songs for 1.29.  You can even listen to part of it before you download...it's fun shopping for a song so why not?

4.  Socks- Kelli bought herself socks.  I love socks!!  I have Santa Clause socks and valentine socks.  I have warm fuzzy socks that are made to wear around the house.  I can put on a good pair of warm, fuzzy sock and feel spoiled.

5.  Magazine + Bubble Bath- Sometimes you have to read something just because it takes no thinking at all.  I highly suggest 'Real Simple' or Reader's Digest.  Make yourself a bath, light a candle, and relax and read a story.

6.  Sally Hansen's Manicure in a Bottle- I love a good pedicure, but this summer, I couldn't afford them.  A friend of mine passed on this awesome polish.  It is not the cheapest polish on the shelf, but I can guarantee you that you will not be disappointed.  Base coat and Top coat is no longer needed to achieve the look you want, just a steady hand. 

7.  Library Check-Out- If you have no money at all, visit your library.  At our local library you can check out movies, books, and music for free.  Find an old movie, find several and watch 15 minutes of each until you get stuck on one that you can't stop watching.  Try a movie you've never heard of.  And books?  Well, thousands to choose from and once you pick up a good series you'll be glued for months.

8.  Jewelry- yes, jewelry.  I love a necklace or a pair of earrings.  The best part?  You can never "outgrow" jewelry.  No matter how much weight you gain or lose...you will always fit in your jewelry.  Kohl's always has a good set to choose from and their prices are reasonable.

9.  Yankee Candle- after I got my first paycheck, I went and bought myself a Yankee candle.  No, they are not the cheapest candle but they are my absolute favorite.  I like to go to Bed, Bath, & Beyond, to the clearance section...with my 20% off coupon.  Did you know that the 20% off coupon's may say they expire...but Bed, Bath & Beyond will still take them!

10.  Ice Cream- now, I don't love ice cream, but if you run into me at Bruster's, you will know I am spoiling myself because "Birthday Cake Ice Cream" cannot be beat.  If you go to go Bruster's when it is raining or snowing...your second scoop will be free!!!

Well, those are 10 ways I spoil myself.  Hope you can get an idea of how to spoil yourself once in a while!

Evidence...

This is what I found today....wish I would've had it for yesterday's "evidence" post.  :)  Gotta love my Zeke.

Little Pieces Everywhere

I love my puppies but I promise, after I vacuum I could knit you a sweater out of the left over hair.  In the summer time it gets worse.  Naomi's hair is finer and can be pulled out in chunks.  Zeke...he just shakes, and in the sunlight, you can see hair and dander go flying.

So, in order to love a lab, you grow a love for a Dyson.  Oh, I love my Dyson.   Little pieces that Zeke and Nay left laying around get sucked right up.  I'm so glad Mr. Dyson discovered this "a few prototypes later".  (can you hear my British accent?)

Zeke and Nay leave evidence of themselves everywhere.  Sometimes it is "fur" and sometimes it is really "evidence".  Zeke's evidence can always be found under the dining room table...like the empty bacon bits bag we found today.  Sometimes we find stuffed animal body parts that have been left after the tug of war party.

So just like Zeke and Nay-Nay leave evidence of themselves, I realize I leave evidence of myself here and there.  What we leave wherever we go may be visual or it may be left unseen.  Our words leave impressions on people.  Our facial expressions and body language are often examined by others. 

I went to a funeral of a woman who lived to be 98.  Her children and grandchildren cried as they spoke about the memories of her.  It was clear that each grandchild had a special bond with her.  It was clear that she left a lot of her here on this earth....character, love, principles..left in her children and grandchildren.

I cannot forget that even I leave little pieces of me everywhere.  It is important that I live consciously of what I leave.

A New Year....

Rest Up!  It's a New Year with new adventures to tell, to live, to experience.   The truth is, life is hard.  You are fooling yourself, or living in a bubble, or living in denial if you don't see this for yourself  (...or you are still quite young).  How many facebook status have you seen that tells of a loved one passed away, someone with cancer, someone even changing their relationship status. 

So in 2010 God showed me that you cannot avoid problems, they will happen, that life is not constant.  If you think things can't get worse, BEWARE, they can!  All of this seems doom and gloom, but the truth is, when things are tough....at their very toughest...God will become the most real to you.  I know most reading this know, that the only CONSTANT factor is God...but I'm not here to tell you this, I am here to tell you that in my own experience we have complicated God and who He is.  We imagine a church service, some singing, a message....we imagine sitting with a Bible every day reading it...we imagine doing and serving.  The truth is, we are totally bringing the wrong images in our minds. 

The true image you should see really should be of the characteristics of God.  Love, truth, forgiveness, mercy....it is when you experience the character of God that you really see Him for who He is. 

I know that I have been blessed with a good family and a good church, but it is not in either of those areas that I really saw how simple life can be with just God.  Sure, we are meant to have family and we are meant to go to church.......but when you come to the place that He's all you have, then you know He's all you need!

2011....a new year.....new problems...new sorrows....new joys....keep it simple....Believe and Trust God with every day of 2011.

The Outside Cover

A lab is recognizable by it's look.  It is amazing though how underneath that fur and that bark are always a different dog with a different personality.

I read a book recently, it scared the living daylights out of me!  I kept waiting for that happy ending and it never came.  It only got worse.  If you've read it, I'm sure you know the feeling, it's written by a contemporary author....and is about a school shooting and two childhood friends who grow up to be in different social circles in highschool.  I have to admit I skipped about 200 pages to the end to finish it early.  I'm glad I did because I would've really hated it more if I didn't.  I didn't sleep well that night.

It was really about being different, being accepted, being who you are and not being judged by the outside cover.  I admit I keep my blogs vague.  I read somewhere that you should keep it straight and personal but I don't like blabbing my whole life in a blog.  Too many nosy aquaintenances who think they are my friend. 

So what's on my cover?  I laugh thinking about it!  I imagine some picture a cover with my life as it happened 6 months ago.  Oh, six months ago was a different life and a wonderful turning point for us.  Some people imagine a cover from 7 years ago...if you knew me then it was completely different. 

If I could cover my book it would have a collage of pictures.  Pictures that represent my past, my present, and what might be my future.  You would see the faces of those who have loved me unconditionally; and you might see pictures of those who have taught me what or who I do not want to be. You might se places...as my life as always been recongizable by the places I've lived. 

There would be things you could not see: my beliefs, my faith, my questions.  You would not see the God that had brought me through those pictures...the thread that pull these all together to form a patchwork of art...good pieces, bad pieces...all in one piece. 

What's interesting is the outside cover rarely shows the depth of the inside.....

Picket Fences

I have friends who HATE facebook, they say it's depressing.  You know, scrolling through every one's lives.....their cute houses, their perfect children, their ideal marriage...their white picket fences.  I know some of my friends really have cute houses, great children and a great husband.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not underselling them, I know it's out there and you have to be grateful....but it seems there are some who seriously exaggerate.  I think some people make up these white picket fences...or they purposely leave out the parts of the fences that are broken.

What I always find interesting are those updates where everyone complains and spills their guts.  I always find it amusing and I know everyone is saying, "I can't believe she's putting this stuff all over facebook!".  You know the ones who yell about their ex-boyfriend, or complain about their job.  The weird thing is, those are the people who are REAL.  Truthfully, I am quite private myself.  I don't need for my daily goings on to pop up as gossip in the church circles or to attend a class/family reunion and have people ask me about how things are going with "your last status update."  Anyways, I think "I'm going on vacation" equals "come rob my house".

It is just necessary that we all have some type of fence to guard what is behind it.  What is your fence?  Is it really you I am reading about?  Not many will say..."I got in the biggest fight with my best friend yesterday and I've defriended her!".  (insert chuckle). 

Still thinking on my fence but I hope that you see what is real.....well, what I allow you to see anyways ;)