Last chance to enter!

Don't forget to check out my giveaway on Monkeys. on. the. bed.'s blog, which ends tomorrow! You could win a set of summer-inspired onesies from my new Etsy shop. Or, if you'd prefer to simply buy the onesie of your choice, check out my store and let me know what you're looking for. Happy shopping!

Peaches & Palm trees Giveaway!

To kick off the start of summer, and to spread the word about my new Esty shop, my good friend at Monkeys on. the. bed. is hosting a Peaches & Palm trees giveaway!

I'll be painting a set of two custom onesies inspired by the best of summer for one lucky winner. Perfect for upcoming baby showers, or for your own little one to sport, my hand-painted onesies will be made to your requested size for a boy or a girl (or one for each!).

The giveaway will start Friday, June 19th and end on Tuesday, June 30th. Visit Monkeys on. the. bed. this Friday for all the details and to learn how to win. Good luck!

First trip to the dog park

After numerous invites to the dog park, we finally felt ready to take Jax yesterday morning. We met up with her friend, Bella, at Fleet Peoples Park. It's not technically a "dog park", since people can rent it out for picnics, etc., but it is all fenced off and has a lake so it's very dog friendly. They even have a dog-washing station by the entrance so you can rinse off your pup before heading home!

I was a little reluctant to have Jax off leash since I wasn't sure whether or not she'd try to run away, and I was also a little nervous about how she'd do with new, stranger pups all around. But I was so pleasantly surprised at how well she did, and how much fun she had. The best part, though, was how much she loved swimming in the lake!

Here's a video of her splashing around, trying to eat the water and jumping like a little kangaroo.

Jax Update

It's been a while since I posted about our little pup, so I thought it was time for an update. We've had Jax in our home now for just over 4 months and I can't imagine life without her. I never thought of myself as a total dog-person, but I am definitely a Jax-person! I can see now why dogs extend people's lives...she brings us a lot of joy and continuously makes me laugh.

Earlier this week, as we are doing right this moment, we were up late watching the Magic play. We actually invited Jax up into our bed because she was being so sweet and she stayed with us through most of the second half before I put her to bed. It was so heartwarming to have her snuggle on me and at one point, it looked like she was watching the game!

Today, Ryan said goodbye to the Tahoe and turned it back in to the dealership. Since she loves riding in the car, Jax came with me to pick him up. She was a great passenger and again had me laughing at her, this time for her human-like poses.

(No, she's not wearing the seatbelt...the car just thinks she's a person and beeps until the belt is buckled if I don't do this.)

Magic Fever

Tonight is Game 3 of the NBA Finals, the first home game for our Orlando Magic against the LA Lakers. The whole town has caught Magic Fever, with banners popping up all over the city (including my building below), and it's pretty exciting.

I've taken part in some of my company's festivities to support the team, including a pep rally, where I dressed up to try to win tickets to a game, and sidewalk chalk art to show our support.

When I was walking back in from lunch, I noticed that even City Hall (who we share a parking garage with) was all decorated for the team.

The game begins at 9 pm (so late!) so you know what I'll be watching tonight. Go Magic!

Housekeeping

I've been setting up shop on Etsy and working on posting some of my latest creations. No sales yet but hopefully someone will spot me soon to place an order. If you haven't already, check out Peaches and Palm trees, my new shop for hand-painted onesies and other custom items. And tell your friends! And, if you have any helpful tips for bringing traffic to my shop, please let me know. I'd love the feedback.

Our little girl is growing up

Yesterday, by complete accident, was the first day since we adopted Jax that she spent the whole day at home by herself. I was in meetings all afternoon and got back to my desk to three missed calls from Ryan and an email explaining that he never made it home at lunch because he got tied up at work.
I was a little anxious to go home and see the condition she was in after spending almost 10 hours alone (thankfully we keep her crated during the day so there wasn't a lot she could have done). I got home, fully expecting a mess in her bed, but our little angel pup was just wagging her tail and excited to be let out to stretch. No accidents!
I'm still not completely ready to ditch going home at lunchtime to check on her (in fact, I am planning on going today) but it's good to know she can hold it if needed. She is definitely growing up!

Another eventful weekend

We spent the weekend celebrating a number of events with our friends.

The first big event was our friends' wedding, in which Ryan was a groomsman. The rehearsal dinner was at a Mexican restaurant that served delicious fish tacos (my dinner) and had a fun mariachi band that we got to serenade the groom- and bride-to-be.

(a shadow of the trumpet player - if you couldn't tell)

The wedding itself was at a place called Paradise Cove, which had a beautiful beach setting overlooking a lake. Despite a very rainy week, the weather held off and it was lovely out. We had a lot of fun hanging out at the cocktail hour and enjoying a night of dinner and dancing.
After spending some time at the "after-party", we arrived back home to the great news that our other friends welcomed their new baby girl into the world early Saturday morning. I am so excited to meet the little one - especially because I have already seen pictures and she is gorgeous!
To top off the weekend, we spent most of the day at the Audi dealership setting Ryan up with a new (pre-owned) A6 to take the place of his beloved Tahoe. It's a great car and really suits him. And even though we won't have an SUV in the family for a little while, I am already getting excited about what kind of SUV I will get when my own lease is up in a year and a half.
When we got home, we had a bar-b-que on Saturday night to "tailgate" before the Magic game. It was nice not to have such a nail-biter of a game to watch and to celebrate our team entering the NBA finals, which start on Thursday.
After such a busy few days, we spent a lazy Sunday getting ready for the first full work week in a while. Bummer!