Sound of Music

It was movie night at our house on Saturday, and we watched the Blu Ray version of The Sound of Music. The picture was amazing. The blades of grass were swaying on the hills that were alive with the sound of music. This film is beautiful in Blu Ray, and I recommend that you add it to your next movie night!

Also, I learned that my husband knows all the songs by heart. In all our years together he's never mentioned this movie, but we start watching it and he knows all the words?! That was a fun little surprise- to learning something new about the man I know so well!

Police

Dooley cannot make it through the night without having to go outside to relieve herself. She wakes us up one, two, or three times during the night. My husband and I take turns taking her out. Last night when my sleepy groggy husband was turning off the house alarm so he could take her outside he accidently punched in our silent alarm code. The silent alarm code turns off our alarm, but it also tells the alarm company to send the police.

We had police at the house last night. It was an exciting night.

DADT

According to the Washing Post blog the Senate will vote on getting rid of Don't Ask Don't Tell ("DADT") military policy this weekend. The bill passed the House earlier this week.

If this passes the Senate and is signed by President Obama, then the brave men and women defending our country that also happen to be gay will no longer have to live a double life. Our soldiers can live in their truth.

Good bless America!

Natchez Crepe Myrtle

In June of 2009 we had to take down a 30-year-old Bradford pear tree that was starting to split. Yesterday, we had a 16-foot Natchez Crepe Myrtle planted in the same spot. Natchez Crepe Myrtles bloom white and have pretty bark; they are the clearly superior crepe myrtle. We're reworking our front landscaping, and I'm only going to to plant things that bloom in white. I think it'll be beautiful. This new crepe myrtle makes me happy.

Pigwidgeon

I got home from work at 6:30 yesterday evening and my husband was already in the back yard with Dooley. It was dark outside, but the light from our Christmas lights (we decorate our back yard for Christmas) was illuminating the grass and trees. My husband called my cell phone to inform me that on the lowest branch of the ever green tree there was an owl perched. I tip-toed outside to see the softball-sized owl watching us in our back yard. My husband went inside to grab the camera, but we never could get a good photo of our guest. It was so exciting to see the owl in our back yard. I think it was Ron Weasley's owl, Pigwidgeon, visiting us.

That's Funny

I saw this photo on the Internet, and it made me laugh, which is why I'm posting it here!

I want cake

My husband's Tahoe is about 9-years-old and my 4Runner is 7-years-old. My husband treats cars the same way he treats a tube of toothpaste- he squeezes every last drop out of them before he buys another. This month his Tahoe's battery went out and one of his speakers went out. For the first time I think my husband realized that one day we might have to buy another vehicle, and the thought of buying two new vehicles scared him a bit...it's so nice to not have a car payment!

We're not ready to buy, but we're starting to look and think. We keep our cars for so long this is an important decision.

This weekend we test drove a 4x4 Honda Pilot with the touring package, which stickers for $42,000, and is the nicest Honda Pilot you can get. It had all the bells and whistles: navigation, back up camera, heated seats, etc, but it was less than thrilling to drive. To me driving a Honda is like eating vegetables: it's smart, but it's not scrumptious.

I felt guilty for not being excited about this new car we were test driving. I've never owned a new vehicle; I've only purchased used vehicles, and we were test driving a brand new vehicle and I wasn't excited?! I was thinking my husband should get a GMC Denali, or a Toyota Sequoia, or an Acura MDX...and we could park it next to my Lexus RX 350.

Does it make me shallow because I care about the kind of car I drive? I don't want to eat vegetables. I want cake! I want that corner piece of cake with extra icing and a scoop of ice cream on top! Is that wrong?