...stick your head in a hole and roll around in the grass!

You probably guessed from the title that this post is about Lucy. It's been a while since I've done a post just about her. Well, I finally caught some of her antics on camera.

I'm not sure how she gets her whole head in a squirrel burrow. She must not think these squirrels are too bright. She spends quite a bit of time waiting on them to come back up out of their holes. They never do. Would you?!

Lucy also likes to roll around in the grass.  I'm not sure if it is to disguise her sent from the squirrels or just for fun.  Either way, it's part of our walk routine.  First, she lays down in the shade and pants for a while (because 65 degrees is sooo hot?!).  Then, she rolls around like a goof!

...be apart.

Sometimes you can't come home. James is stuck out in the middle of nowhere solving a few work issues. He won't be home this weekend, but he sent these. The card says, "I miss you!" I miss him too. He will be home for Christmas! I'm lucky. Even though we heard about the troops pulling out of Iraq in time for the holidays, there are still a lot of military families that will be separated. I count my blessings and thank them for their sacrifice!

...pay it forward.

I finished another baby blanket. This one is not for my baby. It's not for a baby shower. It's for a military family that will visit the Navy Marine Corps Relief Society like I did. I attended a class there about budgeting for a new baby. It was a good class. At the end, we were given some layette items and a blanket hand crocheted by a volunteer. It's a beautiful blanket. I appreciated receiving it so much that I decided to pay it forward. So, I crocheted one for the society to give away. Here are some pictures I'll remember it by:

...get muddy.

I knew it. I just knew it! The rain today halted progress on the landscaping. What once was dirt, now is mud. I happens to be right outside our front door--just to the side of our paved entrance way. Lucy needed to go for her walks today and...did you guess it? Yep. She walked thru that mud every time! Ugh! I had to wipe her down after each trip. No amount of verbal correction or tugs on the leash helped. She was like a magnet drawn to the mud!

Please, landscaping specialists, come back tomorrow and cover up that mud!!!

...eclipse.

Did you wake up early to catch a glimpse of the lunar eclipse? I did. Well, to be completely honest, it was also a bathroom run (small, pregnant bladder). I got to catch it at a few phases as I snoozed. Near total eclipse, I decided to see what I could get with my camera. It's not a good shot using my 18-55mm lens on my DSLR. You need a tripod and nice, telephoto lens to get a decent shot. This is what I got standing in the back yard in my night gown layered with a hoodie. Ha-ha. Are you picturing that?! Good thing it was before sunrise! I don't think I would have had the nerve after dawn.

If you want to see a good photo or learn more about today's eclipse, check out this BBC New article.

...meet a sad demise.

Well, it's happened. The landscape specialists have killed my geraniums. They left them alone for a long, last week in the partial sun. However, today the deed was done. This is what I saw after the crew left:

Sure. You might say that it looks partially on its way to a well sculpted front plot. On the other hand, the heaps of dirt scattered with plant parts reminded me of a sad little mass geranium grave. Okay. I'm a bit sensitive. I'm pregnant. Hormones will do that. I am happy to say that I didn't cry! I got creative instead:

Now my little flowers are memorialized properly! Rest in peace, geraniums...

...band again.

There have been a few baby showers during my recent blog absence.  I crocheted a few things for them.  I love making hand made gifts for baby showers.  It makes the gift seem more personal.  Plus, it feeds my crochet addiction.  LOL

Here are a few pics from what you may have missed:

I had fun making baby girl headbands for today's shower.  Since I'm having a boy, I've been more focused on blue things lately.  So, this was fun to break out all the girly pink, red, and purple I had in my stash (yarn collection) and go nuts.  Here's what I came up with:

I made a few extra flowers for the wrapping.  That way she can sew them to stuff or tie them to hair clips.

Just for fun, here's the picture from the baby girl headbands I did back in January.  You can see that some look quite similar, while others are completely different.

 I'm not sure which I like best.  It's nice to improvise a bit...when it comes out well.  Well, the girly fun is over.  The next shower (in a week and a half) is for a boy.  I think I'm going to do a yellow and white mini blanket.  I just don't want to go strait back to the blue just yet.

...awe!

Lucy just might be the cutest dog in the world!

...survive!

This is what I found as I came home from James' promotion.  The tree that was marked for destruction is gone.  So are all the paving stones.  However, we have some survivors in the back! 

My geraniums are still there (minus the middle one I transplanted).  I wonder when they will go...

...pin!

In the middle of nowhere, as the wind pounded sand on the outside of the K-Span (think modern day Quonset hut), while several Marines waited at parade rest (stand at ease), I pinned on my husband's new rank insignia. 

Congrats to my hubby for being promoted!  I'm proud of him and all he's accomplished in these few years.  I have to say it's a very good thing that I brought in those homemade cinnamon rolls.  The Marines had to wait around for quite a while as a mock folder was created.  They didn't have the paper to read for his promotion because it got sent to the wrong unit.  Marines are very ceremonial/professional.  So, the proper wording was found, quickly typed up, and read to get things all squared away.  Now everything is all official! 

If only he can remember to change his voice mail message over to his new rank...

...baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

We saw this on the way back from the store today.

It's not your average truck bed passenger!