Dog sitting

This is Colbie. We got to babysit her for a few days last week. I've been wanting to watch a dog so that I could get a better idea about what it's like. It was not at all what I expected. This dog is the easiest dog I've ever met. She barely makes a peep. She is fully house trained and slept through the night. So I'm not sure that it was a true experience of what it might be like for us.

The thing that I didn't expect, was Erik's reaction to her. He was very possessive and obsessive. Anytime anyone else wanted to hold her he would flail on the ground and whine until it was his turn again. He took her with him everywhere. The upside was that he took very good care of her and was gentle and responsible. He was offended at first when she wouldn't obey his every command, and even whined a little bit that the dog didn't love him enough. But with Erik, nothing is ever enough. I thought he was smothering her, but one day they went to play at the neighbor's house. Colbie tried to squeeze through the fence to find Erik and stood at the front door waiting for him. They when he came home, she jumped all over him and sat on his lap. So I guess they must of bonded.

It was a good experience, and I think we are ready to get a dog, it's just a matter of finding the right one.

More Elk sightings

Thoughts part Two

After my post about what I've created in my life that I'm proud of, I started thinking about what's not in my life that I'd like to create. So I thought I'd put it out to the universe, so that the universe can help me bring it in. They all seem to fall into the category of Self-care:

*I want to eat things that make me feel good
*I want to get out more, move my body and breathe fresh air
*I want to say how I feel and ask for what I want, in a way that respects others
*I want to give more
*I want to share myself honestly and without reservation, to really let people know me and to be myself all the time.

Art lessons

I took this idea from Charlotte Mason. I found this calendar at Fred Meyer for $7. Each month has an 8x10 print by Van Gogh. Every few weeks I put a new one on the fridge and we talk about it over lunch for a few days. The first print had a title that Taryn thought was not fitting to the picture, so she created her own version of what would go with that name. The second was a self portrait. Taryn tried to copy it and didn't like the results, so then decided to do a portrait of herself instead. Erik has interesting tid bits each day of things he's noticed in the print, and has even started to notice Van Gogh's style.

Thoughts

Sometimes when I'm anticipating someone coming to my house to visit, I look around and wonder what they'll see. Today I was doing that and kind of marveling at how I've created my life based on what I value. And then realizing that we all do that, whether purposely or not. So here is a list of some of the things I value and how they are expressed in my life.

Relationships: I don't overschedule myself so that I never feel like I have time to be with the people I love. I often have time to just hang out with those people and really let them into my life.

Freedom: This is a gift given to me by Vic, who supports our family. Because of him, I have the freedom to structure my days one by one how I want them to unfold.

Simplicity: I don't often buy things I don't need, even if it's too many dishes, or more clothes. I like having just enough and being able to take care of those things. My house doesn't get over cluttered with stuff, and we can fit the stuff we have into the space we need. I don't over decorate my house because I like to take in the color of the walls, and the beauty of each thing I've placed without it being overtaken by something else near it.

Conservation: I'm still working on this, but I've really come to value the idea of not leaving things behind. I try and buy items in less packaging, recycle the packaging I do buy, and using up the things we have. I also try and make things myself, or buy them used so as not to consume more products.

Quiet: I almost never turn the tv on during the day anymore. I love when the kids have gone next door and it's just me and the silence. It really makes me feel good.

Learning: I really love reading. I love reading about new ways to think about the dynamics of our society. I love reading how to be a better parent, a better partner, a better human.

I'm proud of how my life is structured around what's important to me. I don't react as much to what other people think or to the things that are thrown at me. I feel like as the years go by my days become more authentic and more directly created.

Our Anniversary

Yesterday was our 11th anniversary. We rented kayaks and went out on Lake Washington. We haven't done this in about 5 years, and so we were both pretty nervous at first. It took about 20-30 minutes to get used to the motion. It's different in the winter too because the thought of being tipped into the water is much scarier. This is the first time I've been in my own kayak, and I like it so much better, more control. The water was beautiful. I have a love/hate relationship with water, but nothing makes me feel more alive than being on the water, and I think nothing in nature is more beautiful. We stayed out until the sun went down, it was pretty cool.

We went to dinner after, and had a chance to talk to each other without being interrupted, which we haven't done for a while. It was a great evening. Thanks Vic.