adaptation

One of the reasons why Golden Retrievers as a breed appealed to me almost four years ago when I decided to adopt a dog is because everyone (in the books I read) raved about what an easily adaptable breed they were. And they were right, for the most part, but they should have added an addendum. The Golden Retriever (in my humble experience) is very easily adaptable in it's first two years. There. I said it.

The move from 800 square foot apartment to three-bedroom house with fenced yard and doggy door was a breeze for Sipsey. Sure, she missed the proximity to the dog park, but all said in done, there were no major personality changes when moving from apartment to single story house. Then we moved from single story to three-story house and Sipsey has turned into a diva.

As exhibited by the look on her face here.These days she only has one expression, and that is "sullen." No smiles. Just grumbles. We thought that the floor-to-ceiling windows would excite her, since she would spend her days at the other house sitting in a chair with her chin propped on the window sill. Now she just stairs wistfully out the window.

Piper, on the other hand, is within the two-year age limit for adaptability, and is having a party from morning 'til night. New smells, new yard, new creatures to bark at (we have rabbits and squirrels and even a couple of cats lurking around the property.) She has turned into independent Call of the Wild dog who will take off and look back at you like, "What? I don't belong to you." This has been a problem that I fear nothing short of an electric fence or a shock collar will alleviate. But at least she's happy.
And she can now fit Sipsey's entire head in her mouth. Maybe this is why Sipsey has turned into a grumpy old B-word?!

time for creativity

So I took advantage of my pinkeye quarantine and spent some time in my hobby room. Making jewelry. It was so much fun.


A few years ago I purchased a pair of silver spiral earrings that quickly became my favorite pair of earrings to wear. Then time happened, and they became tarnished and ugly and no amount of dipping them in silver polisher crap could bring them back to their days of glory. When I first started making jewelry and working with wire, I aspired to adapting the idea of the spirals to my own meager abilities. It's taken me over a year to figure it out.
Then I remembered the chain I had left over from making Christmas present pendants, and turned the spiral earrings into an earring/necklace set. Very pleased, I am.

So yes, it took over a year to get this seemingly simple concept to materialize, but it was worth the wait, because the sense of accomplishment I felt when I put the set on is indescribable. I DID IT!

In Which Libba Gets Pinkeye

And Dirk gets a ginormous plasma television. For me, though. Dirk can justify anything under the "but it's for YOU!" clause.

sneak peek

This past week has been a whirlwind, a blur, but it's over with. The boxes are no longer invading the house, they're just squatting in the guest rooms. Still TONS to unpack, and organize, and purge our lives of, but we are happy. This house is amazing. It's new, and it's history is going to be written by US.

This is the backyard/patio area. The house sits on a wooded acre on a quiet cul de sac, and my super protective fiance is thriving here. See, Dirk usually abides by the people-are-trying-to-steal-you-keep-your-doors-locked-at-all-times-and-curtains-drawn-at-night philosophy. I grew up in a farmhouse where the keys to the cars live in the ignitions of respective cars and THERE ARE NO LOCKS ON THE DOORS! So when Dirk told me he actually FORGOT to lock his car the other night and the fact that the HUGE floor-to-ceiling windows don't NEED curtains or blinds, I knew we were home.

Part of our contract was that the seller would provide us with an appliance allowance, which meant we got to choose ALL of our own appliances. You know you're getting old when you get excited about APPLIANCES.

The dining table is currently a catchall of crap, but hopefully that will change in the next week or so. The dining area features a large bay window and is an eat-in, which is great, because let's face it, unless you're a Blackwell hosting family gatherings any time a relative comes to town, who ever uses a formal dining room?! Oh, and the archway connects the living/dining/kitchen and there's a passthrough between the living and kitchen.

I'm starting to love our living room. The fireplace WORKS, and y'all, let me just tell you about the light. It is a photographer's DREAM! AMAZING LIGHT! You all probably don't think or care about such things, but between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. there is no need to flip on a lightswitch in this house unless you want to use one of the ceiling fans that grace EVERY ROOM!

Just to show you where the boxes have been hanging out. These are shoes and sweaters (I think), but give me 24 hours and I could tell you for sure.

This room WILL be the guestroom, or my father's self-proclaimed room. I love it. I love the third floor, actually, because it is MINE. Two rooms and a bathroom, all to myself, to decorate without opposition, to retreat to when I need some "me" time, to create baubles, take pictures, and to just "be."

These were the only spaces I photographed today, Dirk does have his own space, too, we call it the "man cave." He spent the entire first day at the house decorating his bathroom. A toilet paper pyramid was created. It is magnificent. It wasn't magnificent as I was carrying boxes of books up two flights of stairs, but I can appreciate it's beauty now. The first floor has a two-car garage and a suite with a full bath. The man cave. The master bedroom and bathroom are on the main level and my bathtub is officially the best thing ever. There are jets. I can lay in it with my legs stretched all the way out and water up to my neck and soak. I am a strict believer in the positive power of soaking. It's therapeutic. And for all of you who "can't stand laying in your own filth", my question to you is: exactly how filthy are you?! Because not once in my life have I ever felt gross while enjoying a soak in a tub. I've turned taking a tub into a verb. As in, "I'm going to take a tub."

The front porch is also pretty amazing. And it will be even more amazing in about 8 weeks when the porch swing my dear friend Geoff ordered for us arrives. As he put it, it's a wedding/house warming/president's day/every birthday for the rest of your life/christmas/easter/thanksgiving/halloween present. He's pretty great.

So is this house. And when the wedding planning and the unpacking slows down, I will take some blogworthy photos, I promise, just had a chance to update this thing and jumped at it!