Whilrwind

It has been a whirlwind of a few weeks around here. I figure by the time the house selling and buying process is over, a total of about 6 weeks will have passed. It isn't any wonder I have a headache.

Inspections on both homes are complete and all went well. I have received my request for remedy from my buyers; the work is minimal and somewhat irritating actually, but whatever....I have an estimate and will call in the morning to get the work scheduled. I on the other hand, lucked out...my roof is being replaced under an insurance claim, as are the plumbing boots and gutters. :) I am also getting a credit for a couple of windows rotted out and getting some venting fixed. The one remaining item we have yet to have remedied is related to the structure where a piece of wood has come loose. They have agreed to have a structural engineer come out and look at it. My gut tells me it is normal for a house of this age and that if there were indeed structural issues, they would have shown up in other places in the inspection. However, I am not willing to take a risk with such a big issue, so we are going to get that worked out. The seller has been very reasonable in all this, and the realtor understands my concern and is also reasonable as well.

I ordered my moving supplies today...boxes of all sizes, tape, tape dispenser, foam and these really cool labels that are very brightly colored and clearly tell the movers where things should go. I have a moving co compning out tomorrow for an estimate. My buyers want to close a week ahead of the original contract, so if I can find a moving solution that includes storage at no extra cost, I will rip the band aid off, pack up and go stay with my parents for 2 weeks. My seller would not move the close up, but I have no problem doing so as long as it doesn't cost me $$. The best deal is a closed deal. :)

On a lighter note, last week was my cousin's annual visit with her kids. Her kids are growing up..Amanda is now 15 and Jenn is 13. Amanda graduated from COPS kids camp last year, and is currently is Utah on an Outward Bound trip. (they have to dig a hole to "go" in the woods and bury it...apparently is it called "grooving" - can't wait to hear her stories about that!!) Jenn still has one more year after this but I don't see her "grooving" in the woods. It was a fun filled week...as usual, it went by too fast. I was so tired last night I went to bed at 7 and got up at 7 this morning - I was in a hotel room in PA for work. Hilton Garden Inn beds ROCK. :)

So that is the story from here. One last little tidbit of info...I entered Acie punk in his first trial. He will make his debut in Zanesville in September...assuming he lives long enough. One more greeting like he gave his sister tonight and he might get punted back to his gramma Ellen in Michigan. I keep telling him that chomping on his sister's neck is not an appropriate greeting and that his behavior pisses her and I off. Does he care? Not at all. :) He is a MAMA'S BOY...100%. He cares about me and me only..his behavior is nothing other than jealousy and wanting all my attention. He follows me around...where I am, he is (secretly, I love it). As much as I rag on him, he tries hard. :) He will be very excited to meet one of his new cousins this weekend (from the litter I posted about earlier). He will see his uncle Sniper this weekend (Morning Star's Hit that Target) and his newest cousin, Stinger (Longlesson's Heat Seeking Missile). I am hoping that they wear him out. :)

Hope everyone is well!

Its Official..

We are moving. :) We will be in the new house on 8/26.

What a whirlwind week. We are all exhausted. But I am very happy with my purchase. Inspection on my current home Monday, we are still trying to finalize inspection on the new house. I will take some photos of some of my favorites things during the inspection. :)

What's up with us?

Dear readers,

Mom says she found us a new castle...but we can't make an offer on it until we sell our old castle. So...the castle is up for sale, mom is constantly cleaning up after us, taking the crate up and down and brushing us a lot. Oh yeah, we have been shipped to gramma's a lot too - 4 people have come to look at our house since it officially went on the market last Friday.

So...here is the link to our castle. :)

http://cbrmls.columbusrealtors.com/Pub/EmailView.asp?r=406370182&s=CBR&t=CBR

Here is the link to what mom hopes is our new castle.

http://www.kingthompson.com/property/details/28889/MLS-211023830/4761-Coolbrook-Dr-Hilliard-OH-43026.aspx?SearchID=86269&RowNum=1&StateID=41&RegionID=0&IsRegularPS=True

We have been very busy....but happy. More to come on what we have been up to later.

Love,

The Labbies

Getting Old...

I think I am getting old. I did a particular exercise in my workout on Monday as of this this Wednesday evening, I am well aware of my glut muscles. Some serious glutial fatigue going on - I could hardly even run the dogs at agility last night.

Getting old sucks.

My two favorite yard decorations...

Photos taken June 2011.

 Ok, I am biased, I am their mom....but aren't they two of the cutest little stinker bugs?? I sent this photo to the man that owns Ace's father - when Ace matures and fills out, his body structure will be very similar to his father. (Cody - registered name "Lime Creek Code of Honor")

They look like they sort of like each other?

A bit of perspective...

Tonight, I decided I need a buckeye sundae from Greaters (peanut butter chip ice cream, with whip cream, hot fudge and chocolate sprinkles.....YUM!). As I walked in, a dad with three little boys walked in ahead of me. They were SO excited for ice cream - they talked about what flavor they were going to get and were in awe of the line that had formed behind us (it was pretty long) They were really good in a somewhat long line - and lucky for them, the teenagers that run this Greaters have it down. They can move people in and out of that place like its no ones business. Did I mention these were three of the CUTEST little boys out there?

As I waited in line and watched them, I reflected on how something as simple as ice cream with dad can be so exciting to a little kid. While they will remeber the big things they did with their dad (vacations, etc) I am guessing that these little boys will remember going to get ice cream with their dad for many years to come. It was obvious this was not their first dance, and it seems like this might be a special treat for dad and his guys.

It reminded me to stop and look at the little things in life and how much those things really mean. We all get so caught up in our every day life that I think we sometimes lose perspective of what is important...I know I do.

One year later...

This weekend marks the one year anniversary of Chelsie's return to her agility competitions. After a long, long...LONG rehab, May 15, 2010 was a glorious day in her world. We didn't get a q on that first run, but she had a great time, ran beautifully considering she hadn't trialed in almost 10 mos and all her friends gave her a great cheer.

One year later, life is a little different in our household. Ace is no longer the little flea he once was - although still a flea in Chelsie's eyes, I think she is learning to love him and would miss him if he wasn't here. (Ok, maybe that is a stretch). But as I watched them play today - her submissively on her back while he pulled on the neck she never grew into - I came to the conclusion that sometimes...not all the time, she likes him. Me too, little bean...most of the time I like him too.

One year later, we have adjusted to a 2 dog household. I think the hardest thing for me is not to humanize Chelsie's emotions. She is to the point in her life where she, for the most part, does not care where I am. She doesn't have to be right next to me all the time. Ace is still in that phase where he is wherever I am - and don't get me wrong, I am ok with that, as he is still a puppy and still should be supervised pretty much 100% of the time. But because he is always so close to me, I am definitely cuddling with him more, petting him more, handling him more. Add to that it is the time of the year where it gets hot and when it gets hot, Chelsie won't sleep on the bed. She still always gets first dibs on everything...but it is still a little difficult for me to reconcile in my mind.

One year later, we can all actually lay on the bed in harmony - with Ace touching Chelsie...at least for right now, until she gets down and goes to her cool bed. :) I have to hand it to her...whatever she has said to him about that bed, he gets it. I have never seen him lay on it...and if I did, I would kick him off and tell him that's sissy's bed.

Tomorrow, we will be going to Cleveland. We will see all our friends and have been invited to Ace's littermates house to swim in her amazingly awesome pond. At the end of the day, I will have 2 happy, tired puppies - who will be ready to go back to the hotel and crash with their exhausted mom. Yes, one year later life is different...but I could never imagine having another dog before now and could not imagine having any other dog besides my little Acie.

I promise to take pictures and post them. :)

Some oldies but goodies....

 The three photos above are from Chelsie's first run back last year....I took an extra few seconds to love on her and let her know how proud of her I was. :) Her friends were still cheering for her. :)

One of Ace's first few days at home. He was a fast learner...he saw the big puppy laying there so he assumed he could lay there too. :) Approximate age in this photo is 8 weeks.