Pleasant Changes

Spring is in the air-- even though it is 30 degrees outside this morning!  I'm so happy to see the green coming up all around our home, in the woods and on the trees.

Can you see the green!?

I'm really noticing the yellow flower bushes that are in bloom right now.  They seem to be everywhere!  They look so pretty and dainty.  It seems a lot of people have them in their yards, and they are wild in the woods, too.

This yellow flower bush is a little sparse, but it's in my woods!

I had to bring some of this color inside my house.

Our mantle in our living room

I'm finding that if I go outside and bring in some of the nature inside my home, it makes me really happy.  I guess it's the simple things in life that can do that for you.

Speaking of simple, here is my dog Pilot (haha!) and our new cat interacting with each other.  Moo Moo is still not too sure of Pilot, and Pilot just wants to play with her all the time.


Moo Moo snuck in on this picture, completely distracting Pilot.

 

The look on Pilot's face just makes me laugh every time I look at this picture!

As for the art fair front, I'm still waiting to hear some replies from a few shows.  I check my email and my Zapplication status daily!  I've been keeping insanely busy during most of my days.  I'm working at the Pet Resort Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30-8:30.  I've also been going to my mom's house and painting her living room, hallway, and powder room (it's all almost finished!).  I haven't been spending too much time in the studio, but I'm going to make it a point to do that next week for sure.

Time to get going... more running around to do!
Peacing out,
Nikki

Updates Galore

Good morning!  Sorry it's been awhile since I've posted.  I've been pretty busy all week so far.  This month is just flying by!  There are some updates to fill you in on, so here we go.

1. Exterior home makeover in progress.

This week has been Steve's "off" week, so he has been working on our house (weather pending!).  He managed to transplant siding from one area of the house to another, cut down some nasty trees in our yard, and started painting our house. 




Our house today, bright and early this morning




Steve up on the ladder, painting away



Siding from the back of the house was used to fill in this whole section

Where the siding came from (we are building a master bathroom addition here, so the siding wasn't going to stay anyways)



Our backyard mess... the tractor from Charlie (Steve's stepdad)



What used to be the front of the house is now the left side of the house.  We will be removing all the shutters (I hate faux shutters).

I plan on doing some yard work tomorrow while I'm home.  Why not today, you ask?  Well, that is because....

2. I got work!

I'm officially working part-time at Paws Here Awhile Pet Resort on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30 to 8:30pm.  My first full day was this past Tuesday.  It is some tough work!  I have so much to learn with the business.  I've been shadowing Sue's employees there, and they are all really nice.  I love being around all of those animals.  They are nice to work with! :)

I'm also working on my mom's house.  Yes, I am painting her living room/hallway/powder room.  She's nice enough to pay me for my work and time, so it's a good gig.  I'll be taking some before and after shots of her powder room since it is getting a major overhaul (with the help of Steve).

3. We adopted a cat.

When I went to the animal shelter last week with Sue, we came across this very interesting cat.  We had to bring a dog we were considering into the "cat room" to make sure she wasn't cat aggressive.  Well, the poor dog was freaking out (turns out she's afraid of cats) but in the process this very sweet cat came out and was all over this dog with hugs!  We ended up using this cat as our "tester kitty" for other dogs we were considering, and she was totally calm, cool, collected.  She was like a dog in a cat form!
You can ask anyone who knows me... I'm NOT a cat person.  But this cat was pretty friggin' cool.  I told Steve about her, and this past Sunday night we brought her home with us!  Her name is Moo Moo and she is a cow (fat cat!).  She's about 3 years old, which I love.  Kittens tend to annoy me.



She's solid when you pick her up




Moo Cow with Steve (can you tell she doesn't want to be held?)

4. I've finally started getting stuff together for my wedding.

This has been a task I've been procrastinating.  Well, not anymore!  I've finally ordered my "Save the Dates" and I will be mailing those out as soon as I get them.  My mom and I went out to Ambassador Tent Rentals in Midland on Monday and reserved our party tent.  Steve and I are marrying on October 8th this year, and we have decided to get married at our house.  It will be all outdoors (hopefully the weather will cooperate) and very laid back.  Tomorrow Steve and I are meeting with the caterer.  I hope it goes well, because I will have my two major "to dos" checked off if it does! 

So there you have it.  All of that since I've last posted.  Like I said, never a dull moment here. 

I gotta get going with the rest of my day.  I'll be sure to post soon!

Peacing out,
Nikki

Exhausted

Today was my first day working with Sue (Steve's mom).  She owns Paws Here Awhile, a beautiful pet resort located in Hanover Twp, PA. 

Sue invited me to come along with her and some of her staff (Bonnie and Cindy) to the Brooke County Animal Shelter in Follansbee, WV.  Our task was to go there and check out some of the dogs and cats, screen them, and then take them back with us to her pet resort to get them cleaned up and ready to adopt out. 

I was a little nervous going into it.  I tend to get really emotional in animal shelters.  I mean, you've seen those damn Sarah McLachlan commercials with the sad dogs and cats staring at you helplessly from their cages, right?!  Really depressing!  I was expecting to hear that damn "Angel" song as soon as I crossed the threshold. 

Amazingly enough, I managed to keep my shit together.  I teared up about 3 times, but fought the waves of emotion back.  The facility is really well kept, and the people working there really do love animals.  That was nice to see.  I'm not going to go through all the gritty details, but I will tell you that at the end of our trip, after spending 5 hours there, we ended up with 12 dogs and 3 cats.  I'm extremely confident every single animal we chose will find a great home.

Oh, and I am kicking myself for not bringing my camera with me.  I wanted to post some pictures!  I'll see the dogs and cats again soon, so I'll be sure to snap some shots to share with you.

Needless to say, I'm very physically and emotionally spent from today's work.  It's sad to see all of those animals, but fulfilling to be there trying to make a difference in some of their lives.

Talk to you all soon!
Nikki