Here's Luna...

Here's her report card for the first week in our house.

Potty Training: C+

She's good when you take her out but still doesn't come to the door to tell you she needs to go out. At least all of her accidents tend to be on the linoleum and she hasn't pooped in the house. We usually can tell when she needs to do #2 because she goes absolutely CRAZY!

Chewing: B+

Being a 10 week old puppy, she wants to chew EVERYTHING! She does good with redirection to one of her toys and is learning no.

Tricks: A

So far she has mastered sit. It helps that she sits alot already so it was an easy one for her to learn.

Crate Training (Sleeping): A-

She will "kennel up" pretty good at night and sleeps until about 5:30 am. We usually take her out and then she will go back into the crate for another hour or so. She has had an accident in her crate but we think that was when we had crated her during the day so its a clean slate in my eyes.

Crate Training (Daytime): D

So she had been used to a crate during the day so we thought we would train her to stay in the crate in the day and we would go home to let her out at lunch. We died that for three days and reaslize that with her little bladder, its too much to be crate for so long. The new plan is to let her have the kitchen area during the day with some newpaper/pads out until her little bladder can hold it longer. She's recovering from a post surgery bladder infection so hopefully, this grade will move up significantly in the next few weeks. for the next week, Michael is home during the day for work so she is enjoying the comforts of being absolutely spoiled with love ALL THE TIME!

People Interactions: A-

Although she jumps a bit, she LOVES meeting new people. She will never be lacking for a social life.

Dog Interactions: C-

We have only encountered a few dogs and she usually runs under my feet when they get close. The one that wanted to meet her who was super friendly came up and licked her and by the sound of her yelps it sounded like he took a bite out of her. Needless to say, she's a little fearful so I think we are going to start introducing her to some friends dogs to start the socialization with other canines!

Overall, things are going well. We still have to watch her ALL the time but she's super fun and loveable.

Please remind me of this when she chews my favorite shoes!!

New Family Member

I have decided not to continue to apologize for the lack of posts. There are many excuses I could make as to why I am so forgetful.

I could blame it on not making the time.
I could blame it on being a newlywed.
I could blame it on adjusting and continuing to unpack from our honeymoon (yes, I know we’ve been back for a month...Stop judging!)
I could blame it on the rain…but we know where it got Milli Vanilli!

Instead I will just post when I have time or something interesting to share and be okay with that.

So, there are some major life changes that could be happening.
First, we are adding to our family. No, I am not pregnant which everyone’s first reaction is when I say this. Instead we are getting a puppy!

I honestly have never described myself as either a dog or a cat person. I had both growing up and enjoyed them but these days kitty’s tend to make my eyes red and watery and my nose runny and sneezy. Dogs we had growing up were of the smaller variety and I honestly had some issues with larger dogs and all the slobber and fur that come along with them.

MJ has been mentioning wanting a dog for awhile now. He grew up with them and has had many in his adult life. I vowed that getting a dog before the wedding would not be good for my sanity but I would consider it afterwards. Needless to say, as soon as we got home MJ started emailing me links to puppies that were up for adoption. We agreed that only a smaller dog would work until we move into a larger home so we started checking the local shelter websites.

We have found the cutest little puppies to pick from. There are 5 of them, all names after types of candy. We have completed the application and have our first visit with them on Sunday. Once we choose the pup we want and we think it’ll be a good fit, a home visit will be done to make sure our home is appropriate and then the pup is ours.

Wish us luck!!

We're back!!!

What a whirlwind life has been lately. I had been consumed with wedding planning and then BAM, it was wedding week. I took off work at noon on Wednesday the 8th and did some last minute errands. Most everything was done and we had multiple bags spread throughout the house that needed to go with us to the Matthews House where we were married.

My family arrived on Thursday and since I was already a bit stressed, I had a mild breakdown when I was surrounded by people asking me what needed to be done. After a short trip to the mall and a parking lot phone conversation with Jessica, I stepped back from the ledge and moved on.

MJ picked up Christian on Thursday night and joined my family and I at the Hibernian for dinner. It was such a nice night that we were able to sit outside and enjoy a tasty dinner and drinks. It was very fun and I was able to introduce Christian to my niece, Nocera. They are both tweens and I was a little nervous not knowing whether or not they would get along. My fears were calmed as I watched them spend the next three days giggling, wearing each others clothes, and stalking poor Brian Berger....they LOOOVE him!

Friday was our rehearsal dinner which we hosted at the Matthews House. My coworkers father made a southern BBQ complete with chopped pork, BBQ chicken, and homemade hush puppies. It was yummy and a nice tribute to Michael's southern roots. After the rehearsal, made our way over to the hotel where our guests were staying and enjoyed a few drinks before we had to say goodnight to one another. It was so surreal to have so many people from different areas of my life all together.

MJ returned to our house for the night but I stayed at the Matthews House with Jess, Jen, Deb, Andy, Brian and Jake. We sat on the porch and enjoyed a couple more drinks before we retired to bed.

I woke up feeling good and well rested. I was "puppy piled" by Jess, Deb and Brian where we cuddled a bit and discussed the upcoming day. We eventually meandered downstairs to get some coffee and breakfast. We sat on the sun porch chatting and catching up some more. It hadn't quite hit me that it was my wedding day.

My hairdresser and make-up artist arrived and so began the getting ready process. We moved in and out of rooms getting hair done and make-up applied while dining on my dad's yummy chicken salad sandwiches and fruit. Oh and sparkletini's of course! I sadly and tearfully had to make the decision to move the wedding indoors due to the threat of rain. Eventually it was time to get ready. I was feeling pretty good. The photographer and videographer arrived and pictures began.

Pictures went quick and all of a sudden, I was dressed and ready for my wedding just waiting to start the show. The show was organized by the most amazing friend, Brian Berger. He kept things organized and made sure we were on time and everything was in its place for my special day. I do not have enough thank yous in my body to say how much I appreciate his help.

I was doing fine, my emotions were in check and then it hit me. Like having the wind knocked out of me...OMG, it's my wedding day! With Jessica's help, I pulled it together and began the walk down the stairs to my dad. I saw my dad when I was on the 3rd to last step. At that moment, a lifetime of emotions about my wedding day flooded me and the tears came.

Dad stepped forward to my rescue reminding me that if I cried then he would cry and we'd be a big mess. I giggled, took some breaths and off we went. I was fine for about 20 steps and then I could see the guests ahead of me and the tears returned. I fought back tears the whole way down the aisle and then I saw him. And I knew that I everything was going to be okay. And it was so much more than okay...it was AMAZING!

Our wedding was officiated by Jake who did a fantastic job. Our wedding felt so "us". He took the time to know us and in turn wrote and spoke so personally about each of us as individuals and as a couple. There was laughter, there were tears and his words were beautiful and heartfelt. I have never felt so loved in my life. Surrounded by all of the people who have left hand prints on my heart in some way. The witnesses to my life through childhood, college, Chicago and now NC. Words cannot describe how that felt.

We ate, danced, drank and socialized and all of a sudden, it was over. We said our goodbyes and we just looked at each other. It is so strange to spend so much time preparing for one day of your life. It goes by SO fast and we immediately wanted to do it again because it was SO much fun!