Ringing in the New Year with Bob

As many of you know already, our beloved beagle Copper was diagnosed with cancer in November. He hasn't died... still hanging around, playing with his sister and his new little brother, and barking nightly at 7PM for his bone.  But, over this past weekend we stumbled upon the Utah Beagle Rescue website and found a beagle named Bob that was in need of a home. We sent an email to his family letting them know that we had room in our home, and in our hearts, for another beagle, and they responded the next afternoon with a phone call. We showed up to meet Bob and his family on Saturday night, bringing the pooches with us so they could all get to know each other. A few sniffs later and Bob was on his way home with us.

Bob is five years old and loves to sleep under the covers. He knows how to sit, lay, shake hands with both paws, and roll over. He mastered the doggie door in one day, but still has yet to give me a kiss. I guess we'll take the beagle kisses one day at a time.

Our home has been full of playing dogs, lots of beagle snuggles, and most importantly,  our home is full of love.

You can follow the activities of our little beagle family at A Beagle's Bark: The Tails of Copper, Dora and Bob.

A Valentine's Day Special

Okay, so this isn't a typical post for a "family" blog, but...I'm not sharing anything too personal.

Richard dropped in for a visit while I was showering the other day. He started to sing this cheesy song by Bruno Mars that we had just listened to in the car on our way home from dinner the night before.  It's a "girly" song. I actually find it quite fun and I freely admit that I like to bop to the beat of the music on my way to work in the mornings.  Anyway, he changed the words around and made up his own, and well, it was just...fun!

We are also Glee fans. Say what you will about the show. I like it!  So, today I'm going to share the song that Richard sang to me in the shower. It was fun. It was spontaneous. It was us.

Have a wonderful Valentine's Day and many, many happy days after that!

Oh! And you get to hear the song being performed by the Glee kids! Woo Hoo!  Life doesn't get any sweeter than that!

"I THINK I WANNA MARRY YOU..." 
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCLbEHCyNa0

The Man I Married

I like to think I married the most perfect man.  I stopped thinking that a long time ago and finally admitted openly that I did.  I've never been one to brag much, but sometimes you just have to share what's in your heart.  Today my heart is full of Richard. 

Richard.  I love the sound of that name escaping my lips.  Richard.  Richard. Richard.  He's tall, handsome, and has the most incredible brown eyes.  I spent my whole life just waiting for that one perfect person to come along and love me.  Finally, just when I was about to give up...Richard came along. 

He didn't care about my past.  He wasn't worried that my childhood horrors would interfere with our life.  He never considered me "damaged" like so many others did  because of the things I had been forced to endure at the hands of others.  Richard considered me whole.  He considered me complete.  He says I'm a better person for having survived.  He said it would be a strength in our marriage.  Well, of course, I agree!

We've struggled plenty in our thirteen years of marriage. But we've managed to make the best out of all our trials. Isn't that what marriage is about? When I struggled after my car accident in 1998, Richard and I were able to find the humor in our new life together. I was nicknamed "BabySteps" during the beginning months as I began to regain the strength to walk again. He would assist with my need to find words to complete a sentence, and never seemed to mind that I couldn't remember my married name, or our address, or our phone number. It took me years to even remember our wedding day and when I did, I was begging for a do over! He stood by me when we found out I wasn't able to have children. He didn't fret over my diagnosis of Lupus. He just kept on living. With me. The two of us together. The way it should be.

This past weekend Richard and I hung out at the house together.  We took care of the tasks that most couples with a home take care of.  But this time, as I watched him dig this hole in our yard to repair a sprinkler line that had developed a leak, I smiled.  Richard.  He's strong, knowledgeable, loving, kind, giving, and most importantly, he's in love with me.  Me!  The girl with the past of sorrows- the one who only wanted to be loved, finally knows what it means.

And just in case your wondering what is up with that face...or should I say the hair on that face, he insisted on not shaving during all the scout camps this summer.  I made the mistake of telling him he should keep growing the beard thingy because it would look cool!  I was kidding, of course!  But then I made the even bigger mistake of telling him he could go as Colonel Sanders to the ward Trunk or Treat.  So, he's growing it out until Halloween.  I get to introduce him to Lee Child sporting a ton of facial hair...and I totally think that's cool!