Puppy Love

Last night, Chris came home and walked in the door with flowers and a Valentine's Day card! When I opened the card, I little heart fell out of it. When I looked a little closer, I realized that it was a dog tag. Chris got me a puppy for Valentine's day! He is part Bouvier and part Australian Shepard. We named him Wrigley. He is a little fluff ball right now, but we think that he is going to get really big! He is really good for a puppy, He even slept through the night. Here are a couple of pictures and a video of our new pup!

Watch the VIDEO Below to See the Pup in Action!

Shampoo...really?

So, I have had many crazy, painful things happen in my life. I will name a few here:
- I smashed my chin on a metal trailer, resulting in stitches and a gnarly scar on my chin.
- I got kicked in the face by my horse, resulting in plastic surgery and a cracked bone above my eye.
- Breaking my wrist in 6 places and getting a concussion because a snowboarder took me out on a ski hill.
- Getting shampoo in my eye.

Yes, that is right people... shampoo! Last night, I was enjoying a lovely shower, and I was squeezing shampoo into my hand. Somehow, on the journey from bottle to hand, shampoo ended up in my eye.

Now, you're saying to yourself, "it's just shampoo." But, I promise you, it was dreadfully painful. This was truly one of the top 10 most painful experiences that I have ever experienced, I am not being dramatic here.

When the shampoo entered my eye, I immediately stuck my head under the shower head... to no avail. My eye would no open, even when I used my hands to try and pry it open. Then, I called Chris up to help me! I immediately started crying, because there was nothing we could do and the pain just wouldn't go away. And if you know me, you know that I am NOT a crier! Finally, I laid down and forced my eye open while Chris squeezed tons of eye drops in. Even after that, I was still in pain.

I find it unbelievable that a little shampoo could cause so much trouble and pain. I advise you, avoid shampoo in the eye at all costs!

Oh, and just in case you are wondering what kind of shampoo it was... Herbal Essences was the culprit!

Un déjeuner français

Sam and Josette's home in Provence. Meals were always delicious AND beautiful!

Well, here I sit on a Tuesday afternoon, FINALLY watching it snow! It won't amount to anything, but it's better than nothing I guess.

Since I only work part time, I have Tuesday and Thursday afternoons off. It is a bittersweet thing because on one hand, we don't get as much money, but on the other hand, I get some extra time to do things such as clean, cook, relax, plan and visit with friends!

Today, I got to visit with my friends from France: Sam and Josette. Sam is originally from Texas and Josette is from the south of France. They lived in the US, including Fort Collins, and they chose to retire in France and have been there for many years.

Sam and Josette

I never had the chance to study abroad, so when getting my second degree, I asked a French Professor what my options were for "studying," in France. After all, what kind of French teacher would I be with out spending significant time in France? I have traveled to France many times, but I have never "studied," there. So, my Professor introduced me to Josette. Two summers ago, I was lucky enough to travel to Provence and stay with Sam and Josette for two weeks. Josette gave me private French lessons, and I got to live the Provencial Life for a little while. It was a great experience.

Once a year, Sam and Josette come to Colorado for a month, because they have family from Fort Collins and Denver. When they come, they always invite Chris and I over for a visit. I have to say that it was really funny watching Chris get his first "bisous," from Josette when he met her.

Josette and I

Today, I went to visit on my own, because Chris was in school. I love getting to practice my French and get updated on European news. It was good to see my friends from France, and hopefully, Chris and I will go visit them in France sometime soon : )

Sam and Josette's home of Cabries, France

A Lazy Weekend... With No Guilt

Hello all! Happy Super Bowl Weekend.

For us, this has been a very lazy weekend. We went to dinner and a movie on Friday, lounged on Saturday, went to Church and lunch today and now... more lounging. I love the fact that the Super Bowl gives me a reason to be lazy! We really have not accomplished much! I (Angela) usually feel really guilty and lazy when I have weekends like this. Then, Chris reminds me of how much we do during the week, and I begin to understand why we have weekends... to recover.

Our weeks consist of: Teaching (which requires a great amount of energy to be effective for our kiddos), planning, grading, cooking dinner, making lunches, driving to Wellington (Ang), staff meetings, basketball practice and games (Chris), cleaning, taking care of our pets, keeping up with e-mail, staying in touch with family, shoveling the driveway, working out, laundry and thousands of other little things that keep us moving from day to day. And somehow, we still need to find time for ourselves and each other. It is no wonder that we are tired by the time Friday night rolls around!

I have to point out that we are not this lazy every weekend and I also have to point out that we love what we do and our busy lives! But, every once is a while, it is totally ok to put your feet up and just relax! So, I encourage everyone to take a lazy weekend without guilt! You will be better off for it in the long run... sometimes we just need to breath!

Happy Februrary and have a great week!