Spayed

Ivy and Madison got spayed today and it's been so traumatic!!

I decided to capture one more photo of them before the big change then I took them in around 8:30 this morning. After my goodbye kisses and a little anxiety, I spent the rest of the day taking care of everything I needed to get done so I could be home with them for the rest of the weekend. The animal clinic called me around 1:30 to let me know the surgery went well and the girls were snuggled up together on a heating pad recovering. They said they had been just precious all day and I could pick them up at 4:00.

Scott and I arrived right on time anxious to get our girls. After informing us of everything they did and how smoothly it all went, they fetched Ivy and Madison and brought them to us. They were pretty out of it which I totally expected. Then they showed us their little scars and that's when it all went downhill. Yes folks, it happened again. One look at their hurt little tummy and I did what I love to do---I passed out. Apparently my dogs hysterectomy was entirely too much for me to handle. As I was coming to my first emotion wasn't fear----I've got this down by now. It was utter humiliation. Who does that? Apparently 1-2 people a year or so they told me. Neat. After downing a bottle of water and taking full advantage of the wet wash cloths they had given me, Scott carried his 3 girls out of the veterinary clinic and took us home to rest.
This evening has been so sad. Ivy and Madison are pitiful. I didn't expect it to be this bad. I called the vet twice because the cries coming from them are so traumatizing. Scott and I have literally sat on the sofa all night long trying to comfort them. Madison has done a little better than Ivy. Ivy lets out a little cry every 5 minutes or so. I feel like such a bad Momma for putting them through this even though I know I'm doing the right thing.
We are all now currently in bed. I have a feeling it's going to be a long night. I'm hoping that when morning comes my little babies are going to be feeling much, much, much better.

And in happier puppy news, Grace got a haircut today. Doesn't she look adorable! :)

Good TV--It's Back!

Tomorrow morning I'm taking my little puppies to get spayed. I feel bad for them. They have no idea what's coming. I hope they recover well. I gave them both a bath tonight and their bed is currently in the washer getting all fresh and clean. They won't be able to get a bath for about 10 days so I want to make sure everything is clean and sanitized. I'm going to try to make sure I get everything that can possibly get done while they're at the vet tomorrow so I can spend the whole weekend watching after them at home. I know I'm paranoid. I don't apologize for it. I'm sure they'll recover well but still....You know how I am.
I'm super excited that my shows are starting to come back this week. I've missed them. Modern Family debuted tonight and, like always, I laughed so hard. It's also awards season. You know how much I love that! So much goodness is on the tele right now. AND!! The other night Scott and I saw the preview for Taken 2 and got ridiculously excited. Taken is one of the best movies ever so I'm hoping that I feel the same for the second! That's definitely a movie we will be going to the theater to see.
It's time for me to get ready for bed! Night!

Fall

My week has been crazy busy so far and it's only Tuesday!
I had my girlfriends over last night and it was fun getting to visit. I love girls nights!! I had so much to take care of around the house after they left that I didn't get a chance to go to sleep until 2:00!! I'm exhausted and felt like I've been dragging all day. Thankfully I was really busy at work today which made my day fly by. I got home at 7:00 tonight, watched DWTS, showered and now I'm in bed! I'm so tired!!
Here's a pretty photo to end this with. I still can't find anything to put on my entry hall piece and since I had company last night, and will again Friday night, I went with flowers again. This time, fall inspired!

Where is Rutgers?

Today was just like any other college football Saturday. Wake up, immediately turn on GameDay, stay glued to it until leaving to tailgate.


Our day was fun but a bit delayed. I've never had a more challenging time trying to decide what to wear than I did today. Nothing made me happy plus my hair was flat because I washed it last night and let it air dry. These are obviously major problems. My husband was not happy with my delayedness. We normally arrive at our tailgate around 1:00 but we got there at 3:30. My bad!
I really thought we were going to win this game. This season is so unfortunate. Scott decided that the only thing that would pull him out of his depression was this.


The last time I ate at Mr Burger was with Jaclyn the day after Owl-O-Ween in 2005. I remember it so vividly because it randomly started snowing. Mr Burger is SO YUM. We shared this meal since we ate too much tailgate food and a BBQ nacho at the game. I kind of regret eating it but I kind of don't.


Ivy and Madison haven't been around long so I told them all about the Razorbacks and what it used to be like and this is the face they gave me. Life lesson number one: Being a Razorback tends to be heartbreaking. WPS forever and ever though!!!

Day In My Life--Friday

??--I'm not sure what time I woke up today but I do know it was extra early so I turned on the TV and went back to sleep. I woke up for the second time just as Kelly and Michael came on. It was magical. The last time I slept until 9 feels like light years ago.
9:30--I pour myself a class of OJ and crawl back in bed. I stay there until 11:00. I can't remember the last time I did that either.
11:45--I'm craving chicken noodle soup from Chick-Fil-A. I decided to take the girls with me to go pick some up. They get really car sick so I try to take them on short little trips whenever I can so they'll get used to being in the car. They did perfect today!
12:00--Back home to eat my soup and watch Megyn Kelly. It's been so long since I've been able to watch her and I've missed it. Two hours later America Live ends and I decide to stop being lazy and get productive.
2:30--I drop off some clothes at a seamstress that need repairing then pop by Westwood Gardens to get some plants for my back porch.
3:30--I'm back home and ready to get started. I get a little sidetracked when I walk into my house and see the new rug that I got for my living room, 8 days ago, with a special carving in it.

These two little monsters are so bad when no body's looking. They never pull crap like this when I'm home so I never catch them in the act to get onto them. So now they've managed to destroy my trim and my rug. Luckily they're both easily fixable. Trim isn't a big deal to repair and the rug will now get flip flopped and the hole will hide under the sofa. Bad, bad girls.
4:00--Scott gets home from work and he helps me get our back porch all ready for fall.
6:30--We're finally finished and thinking that instead of that Ruth's Chris date night we had planned on having that ordering a pizza sounds like a better idea. Gardening was more work than we expected and the idea of getting dressed up doesn't sound as good as lounging in our sweats.
8:00--Pizza's here! Half veggie (for me) and half pepperoni and sausage (for him). We climb onto the sofa and watch Snow White and the Huntsman. I had reservations and wasn't sure what I'd think about the movie but I really liked it a lot.
11:00--Movie's over, I'm blogging, and not in the mood to go to bed yet. Scott's fast asleep but I think I'm going to rent another movie. I may not make it through the whole thing but it's worth a try.

Don't let the innocent, adorable faces fool you.

Day In My Life--Thursday

7:50--I wake up to puppies pouncing on my face. The girls are starting to sleep with us about 30% of the time now. When they sleep in the laundry room the other 70% of the time they are crazy hyper when they get out. They slept in the laundry room last night hence the waking up to licking, pouncing and sniffing. Always pleasant.
8:15--Get prepared for Marta and Emma to clean my house. They come every Thursday at 8:30. I usually get dressed before they arrive so I can leave and be out of their way but since I haven't had a lazy day in forever I decided to just chill in my PJ's and hang out upstairs while they cleaned. Ivy and Madison, especially Madison, are so obsessed with them. Madison loves everyone. If something happened and Madison had to live with someone else she totally wouldn't care and would adjust within seconds. Marta and Emma are finally able to tell Ivy and Madison apart. Everyone always has a hard time with it. Madison has the light face and Ivy has the dark face.
10:30--Lunch. I always get hungry around this time so if I have the option I just go on ahead and eat. It's kind of embarrassing but oh well. I've learned a snack won't satisfy me so I may as well just eat my lunch. Today it was a Lean Cuisine Panini.
12:00--Down to Fayetteville for some errands. I visit my favorite boutiques in Fayetteville and find a dress to wear to the game on Saturday from Masons in the mall. It's black so I need a red necklace. Still on the hunt for that. I'll continue my search tomorrow.
4:00--Home. I turned on Dr. Oz, laid on the sofa with my girls and chilled.
5:45--Scott's home with dinner. I'm starving (since I ate lunch at 10:30) so we cook right away--a shared strip and salad. While Scott is grilling I take my new neighbors a half dozen cupcakes from Bliss and introduce myself. They seem really nice and I have no doubt they will love the cupcakes as they are little bites of heaven.
7:00--No good shows are on so we're glued to Fox News for the rest of the evening. I'm ready for my shows to start back up!
12:01--Finishing up this blog, taking a bath, then getting in bed. Today was fun! I still have a lot of errands to take care of tomorrow but not getting up and immediately getting dressed was so nice.
And just because...

This was Ivy and Madison at the vet last Thursday. Their pink crate was definitely the safe zone even though they were very curious to know what was going on outside of it. 

Day In My Life--Wednesday

8:10--I've been pretending my sleep for about 30 minutes now. Time to take off my eye mask, get blinded by the extreme light that comes into my bedroom, and turn on the tube.
8:30--Shower time!! I washed my hair last night so it's just rinsing and shaving. I shave EVERY day. Nothing in this world could happen that would make me change that. I will always shave. I feel ewie if I don't.
9:00--Back in bed (after giving the girls their vitamins and scoop of food) with my cappuccino and watching my favorite morning show!!
9:20--Outfit struggle--I didn't love it today. It could have been better.
9:45--Out the door. Not without making the bed though. It's like shaving. It will get done no matter what. The last time I didn't make my bed in the morning is when I changed the sheets. Which I do every Sunday.
10:00--Work.
12:00--Snack!!!! Goldfish crackers are the best snack ever. I count them out (55=140 calories) and Landon is SO right. The original orange ones are way tastier than the colored ones.
1:15--Lunch. I come home and eat a can of Campbells Tomato Soup again. I watch Megan Kelly on Fox during my lunch hour. It's safe to say I squeeze in about 5 hours of news per day. I love the news.
2:30--Back at work.
6:55--Home!!! I'm greeted by a cute husband and cuter puppies.
7:15--Dinner. Mahi Mahi and salad. Yum. During dinner we watch the X Factor. I love Simon. And Brit Brit.
9:00--Big Brother. I've been looking forward to it all day. If you ask me, Dan SO should have won. I love Ian too though so it's okay. I think Scott would be awesome on Big Brother and I'm trying to convince him to apply. He would be great at competitions and would have a perfect social game because everyone likes Scott. He isn't overbearing and out there with his personality. Scott kind of flies under the radar. People trust him--as they should--and he's very smart and annoyingly logical. I would be horrible on Big Brother. Everyone would hurt my feelings and they wouldn't make their beds. I'm positive they'd use the dirty kitchen sponge to clean the dishes and that would stress me out so much I couldn't even think about the game for fear of sick nasty germs.
10:00--Clean up my Facebook. I'm not trying to be rude but some people just need to be hidden. The foul language, the constant "like if you agree" the incessant updates...it's just too much. And while we're talking Facebook can I please request something? I think that before you reveal the blessed child you should clear off the placenta. It's gotten out of hand. I understand that we're super excited to reveal the little miracle but shouldn't we wait until it's bundled up in a blanket with that cute little blue and pink stripped hat on? I know I'm stepping on some toes but I mean, someone's gotta say it. I promise I won't feel any differently when I have my own so don't send me emails saying I will. I won't back down on this.
11:30--Time for bed.

Day In My Life--Tuesday

8:30--Alarm goes off and I'm startled. I set my alarm for 8:30 every day but it never wakes me up. That's Scott's job. I stayed up too late last and I regret it. I immediately pop out of bed and hop in the shower.
8:50--I'm clean and makeup is done. I decide to forgo washing my hair since I woke up late. Plus I just don't feel like messing with it. Per usual, I make my cappuccino, give the girls their food and vitamins then hop back in bed.
9:00--Watch Kelly and Michael while drinking my cappuccino. The host chat is extra funny to me today. I decide I'm going to really like Michael.
9:20--Get dressed. Its a production because I couldn't make up my mind. I went with a dress, cardigan and scarf. I also managed to throw my hair up in the perfect messy bun with only one try.
9:45--Off to work.
1:45--Lunch time!!! I'm beyond famished. On the drive I make an appointment to get Ivy and Madison fixed. They turned 6 months old yesterday so its officially time. We schedule it for next Thursday.
1:55--I'm home with my girls and choose a can of Campbell's tomato soup while watching Katie on TV.
2:45--Back to work. Today was super busy for me. Before I know it it's...
6:45--Time to go home!
7:15--Dinner! Scott cooked an extra chicken breast last night so we shared that and a can of Leseur Peas, my guilty pleasure "vegetable." That meal doesn't take us far.
7:45--Still hungry. Brie and crackers do the job.
8:00--Special 20/20 on the greatest television shows of all time. Very interesting even though Friends wasn't mentioned once. This disturbs me.
10:00--Time to get ready for bed!! I need to wash my hair and usually I'd shower to do that but I'm in the mood for a bath. While trying to relax, Ivy figures out how to break into my shower.


11:00--Blogging.
.....as soon as I'm done--BED!

Day In My Life--Monday

I thought it might be fun for me to write about what my day to day life consists of this week on the blog. I feel like it will be really neat to look back on it one day. I'd like to do this every 6-9 months just to see how different my schedule and life changes. So here we go!

6:45-- Scott's alarm goes off.

8:10--I finally give up on trying to fall back asleep so I turn on GMA.

8:30--Hop in the shower. I didn't have to wash my hair today since I did that last night. I always like when that happens because it allows me more time in the mornings to chill. I slip my PJ's back on and do my makeup.

8:50--Make breakfast. It's always the same--a french vanilla cappuccino. While the Keurig is doing it's duty I give the girls their morning scoop of food (2/3 a cup) and their daily vitamin which they love and always have to sit for. Still training!!

9:00--I'm back in bed to eat sip breakfast while I watch the host chat on Live! With Kelly and Michael.

9:20--Host chat is over, cappuccino is finished. Get out of bed, do my hair and choose my wardrobe for the day.

9:40--Getting stressed over my shoe decision. Kitten heels or flats? The debate went for 5 minutes. I went with flats.

9:50--Off to work. Like always, call Mom on my way.

12:45--Lunch with Jaclyn at McAlisters. Taco Salad is my meal of choice. It was really good today. They put more chili than usual on it.

2:50--Get a break at work to check my emails/social networking and see one of my favorite restaurants has replied to me on Twitter. It was exciting and I hope they take my suggestion into close consideration.

I also have a voicemail from my builder. A couple is wanting to build in my neighborhood and are interested in my floor plan. They're wondering if they can come see my house. No problem whatsoever. Happy to help out!

4:50--Leave work and go to Ulta. I need 2 of my Dermalogica products. I never enjoy this day. Dermalogica is pricey but I love it and thankfully it lasts a long time. When checking out I get a $20 coupon to use on my next Dermalogica purchase. This thrills me.

5:15--Home and happy to see Madison and Ivy. Madison is extra excited to see me today.

6:00--Couple checks out my house. They love the floor plan and stay to analyze/ask questions about the home and neighborhood for 45 minutes. I hope they are my future neighbors because they were SO nice!! Their daughter came with them and we figure out the reason we recognized each other was because she works at Savoir Faire. I obviously shop there way too much.

8:00--Scott comes home from work and fires up the grill. Chicken and vegetables for dinner--what else?

8:20--Check up on Grace. She had lady surgery today. Her recovery seems to be going good.

8:30--Nothing interesting is on TV so I decide to watch 2 episodes of Game Of Thrones.

12:00--I am, for some reason, up entirely too late blogging. I'm so tired, about to take a bath and go to bed.

Until tomorrow...

WPS?

Well our Razorback tailgate was fun but the game was miserable. Disappointment in this season doesn't even begin to describe it. It's all just very frustrating because we have a really great team with National Championship potential but our coach.....oh our coach. I feel sorry for him. You know he's stressed and just way in over his head. It stinks for everyone. I heard that Jeff Long and John L's cars were parked at their offices early this morning. Wonder what that meeting was about? Oh to be a fly on that wall.....

Can we talk about how adorable this photo is? My parents ordered these shirts from American Apparel and printed on them for the girls to have and they all looked so cute!! Walmart always used to carry Razorback t-shirts, jerseys, and sweaters but for some reason they've stopped this year. Holly had tons of great Razorback gear but of course I would never hand-me-down to the girls because what's Holly's is strictly Hollys. No sharing there. So we just had to make our own. I still want to find them a Razorback jersey so if you see one let me know!!

We had a great weekend and I loved having my parents come up to visit. We ate

dinner at Theos on Friday night and ate so much catered BBQ for lunch on Saturday that we didn't even eat dinner last night. Instead we stayed in and rented a movie. Grace, Ivy and Madison had a blast playing together of course.

This picture just melts my heart. Madison and Ivy love each other SO much. They always snuggle up and sleep together but lately Madison has been putting her arm around Ivy while they snooze. It's just the sweetest thing ever!!! I love how much they love each other. They're so precious.

Bama

TGIF!! I love the weekends.
This is going to be a good one. I'm not going to the game--gasp! My parents came up for the weekend and since it's suppose to pour we decided to watch it on Randy's (FIL) big screen. We're catering BBQ, I got petit fours from Ricks today....we're all set to enjoy our own tailgate/watch party! I love experiencing the games but I also love watching them in my FIL's theater room too. It's going to be a fun day and I'm looking forward to it!!


I finally have a piece of furniture for my entry hall. I can't find anything to put on it though! Since I have company this weekend I had to decorate it in some sort of way so I went with fresh flowers. It's so beautiful!! Fresh flowers never fail.
Okay yeah my parents are my guests but during game weekends a lot of people are popping in and out and I just couldn't handle an empty piece of furniture right in my entry hall!!
Time to rest up and get ready for tomorrow. WPS!

It Is Well

Want to see the most beautiful photo that's ever been taken?


Isn't my baby girl so gorgeous? I found the film (yeah, it's old school) of this shot and this photo was take of Hol in the fall of 2004 when she was 8 years old. She's a beauty isn't she? I've never looked at something that constantly overwhelmed me with how adorable it was but she did it to me every single day. How cute Holly is LITERALLY overwhelmed me Every Time she looked at me. Nothing else has ever made me feel that way. Holly is perfect and I miss my girl so, so much. It makes me sad to talk about her in the past tense. I still sob over her multiple times a week. A solid 30 minutes of mine and Scott's drive to Little Rock this last weekend consisted of a large breakdown from me. Grief is so hard and still very heavy.
It's been five months and 1 day but hasn't gotten any easier. I think about my girl almost constantly throughout the day and dream about her at night so often. No matter how much time will go by I believe I'll never get over it. And you know what? That's okay with me. Never getting over Holly is well with my soul.

Tailgating in Little Rock

Scott and I got to Little Rock on Friday around 5:00. The puppies were SO excited to be reunited together again and their level of happiness kept us entertained for quite some time. My parents best friends, The Gobers, were staying with them for the weekend as well so the six of us ate dinner out on Friday night at The Butcher Shop. It was Yum. They have one in Memphis and Scott and I always wanted to go when we lived there but never did. I'd recommend it.

On Saturday morning I woke up and headed to my favorite store--J.Crew. I needed a new J.Crew shirt to go with my J.Crew shorts. Obviously I found one. When do you not find what you're looking for in there? I looked like a walking J.Crew ad and almost nothing in fashion world could make me happier than that--almost. Only a few things could top it.

After eating at Mooyah's (First time--YUM--Get your burger wrapped in lettuce--so delish) we set off to tailgate. Mine and Scott's tradition for the LR games is to watch the game at the tailgate instead of going in. We love it--I don't know why--but it's our tradition and I always plan on keeping it that way. I can't even talk about the game except that Scott predicted it and everyone thought he was crazy. I need a few months before I can digest what's happened to us this year. So many things are frustrating about this season. I hope it's just a season. Being a Razorback is so heartbreaking sometimes.

I still love my Hogs though and I'll always cheer them on no matter what challenges may face us. WPS!!!

LR Weekend

My weekend was so great--minus the major upset. (I mean, what happened?) I'll share more about my weekend tomorrow. Until then, I'm going to enjoy the rest of my Sunday.
PS, do you follow me on Instagram--@kara2lou? I'd really love it if you did!!

Time Of The Season

Obviously, I'm very excited that Razorback football is back in town. I love everything about it. Per usual, we had to inflate our game day friend. He's new to Hyde Park but has been living with us (Me. I had him before I knew Scott) for about 7 years. I love this little guy and my game day Saturday mornings start out by getting him all set up. He looks cozy in his new space doesn't he?

Don't worry, the inside of our house gets showered with Razorback love too.

Tailgating was great. Always is. Scott, Jake, Jaclyn and I ate lunch at Hammontrees together then hit campus to get our tailgate on. Scott and I didn't stay for the entire game because 1.) We were playing......wait, who did we play? I seriously can't remember and 2.) The girls were home ALL DAY by themselves and that's never happened to them before so it was stressing me out. It's funny because I got two puppies for exactly this reason--So I wouldn't worry about leaving them because they have each other. I hated leaving Holly and that sad face she gave me and I always said if I did it again I would always have two together so I would never feel guilty leaving them. Well, apparently it doesn't make a difference with me so that grand idea was a bust.

Speaking of my little duo, they are in for a super fantastic weekend and they don't even know it yet. We get to see Grace tomorrow!!!!!! Scott and I are headed to Little Rock for the weekend. Ivy, Grace and Madison will all be so excited to see one another that I'm willing to bet they wet themselves. My girls also LOVE their Gamma so I know they'll be happy to see her too. It's going to be a fun time for all of us!!

Home

Hey all! Yesterday was such a yucky day for me. I felt horrible and was convinced for about 5 minutes that I contracted the West Nile. I went to a driveway party in my neighborhood on Sunday night and got bit by a mosquito and I had all the signs pointing towards it. I honestly can't believe I pushed through work. I came home and went to bed at 8:45 and felt perfect when I woke up this morning. Thank goodness!! I don't know what got me yesterday but apparently it wasn't something that a 12 hour sleep couldn't fix.


This was in the September issue of Vogue and I thought it was kind of cool since I'm an El Dorado girl. Correction. I was born and raised there. That's all though. I'm not trying to put it down it's just, well....I'm a NWA resident and have been for 9 years now. This is where I call home and probably will for the rest of my life. I love it here and don't really have any desire to live anywhere else. I'm a NWA girl. My roots may be in ElDo but home is here....and I love it.


Speaking of home....I'm going to Little Rock this weekend to see my parents and I'm SO excited. No matter how old I get, "Home" will always be stored as my parents number in my cell. I can't wait to see them. It's been 6 weeks--way too long in my book!! I know the 3 puppies will be SO EXCITED to see each other as well. They are the bestest of friends there ever was. It's so sweet!!
Time to chill. Until tomorrow....

Labor Day 2012

Happy Labor Day!! Scott and I spent our entire day with our neighbors!! Many of us gathered at the pool today to enjoy the holiday together. We grilled burgers, watched the kiddos splash around, sang to the music playing in the background and participated in an intense (haha!!) volleyball tournament!! I love my neighborhood and I'm SO sad summer is "over." I was able to meet and become friends with so many of my new neighbors because of the pool.
I ALWAYS look forward to fall but this year I'm SO sad that summer is ending and its mostly because I won't have the Hyde Park pool + the awesome neighbors that accommodate it!! I say it all the time but we hit the jackpot with this neighborhood. I've never lived in a place where I got to know my neighbors names let alone be friends with them. I'm so grateful for that. Today was a lot of fun!
I guess summer is officially over but the Hyde Park pool doesn't shut down for a while. Thank goodness!!! I've got a tan to try to keep up!!