It's a Boy: Piper the Dog!

My husband and I have talked about getting a dog for many years now. The time just was never right. Especially when we lived in small apartments in which we barely fit ourselves and all of our belongings. Two cats was not much of a stretch, as they tend to find little corners to sleep/hide in.

Now that we have the big house in the burbs, we started talking seriously about expanding our brood. We weren't sure how the cats would take to a new member of the family, but we really wanted to give it a shot.

When we heard the story of Piper, an adorable, 4-1/2 year old Lab mix, it just felt like fate was calling out to us. Piper's family was not able to keep him because their 2 year old daughter got scared of him when he got excited (as Labs tend to do). His family was heartbroken that they had to put him up for adoption, especially to people who they did not know. They asked family and friends first, of course, then expanded their search to friends of friends, etc.

We heard about Piper because my husband works with the neighbor of Piper's family. It worked out well...Piper's family could get a so-called background check on us through their neighbor, and we could hear about Piper from someone who wasn't his owner.

When we met Piper last weekend, it was love at first sight. I think for all 3 of us. He insisted on laying on our feet and getting pet the entire time we met with his family, all 30 minutes of the visit. Overall, there were just good vibes all around.

So, today was the day that we went to pick up Piper from his family. There were, of course, tears on their part. Piper is a sweet dog and they hate to say goodbye. On the other hand, we were excited to bring him back home and start spoiling him right away. Toys, walks, petting, anything he wants. Below, you can see him snuggling up to my husband, already looking quite at home!

We plan on spending most of our weekend helping Piper settle in to his new home.

(As for introduction to our kitties, Ben and Heidi, that will wait a bit. There have been a few close encounters, but nothing more, thank goodness.)

Superbowl Fun

I wouldn't call myself a football fan. Over the years, I've grown to appreciate the sport, understand the rules, and even get excited about being part of a Fantasy Football League (in which my team placed 2nd this past season!!). But, a "fan" I am not.

However, I am always one for having some fun on behalf of a sporting event. While in college and a for a few years after, I did my best to make it to the annual Harvard-Yale football game, known in Ivy League circles just as "The Game". I usually made it into the actual football game for less than 25% of the actual playing time. But, I made sure that I was at The Game...that is at the tailgates, the parties, etc.

Since becoming more domesticated, I have come to enjoy the prospect of preparing fun party foods on behalf of sporting events. This evening's Superbowl (which I actually watched >50% of!!) was just the right opportunity to try out a few more recipes from one of my favorite Moosewood Cafe cookbooks. I whipped up a batch of the "Festive Black Bean Chile" and the "Almost Fat Free Cornbread". Check out the finished products below, along with the fancy German beer and veggies and ranch dip that I nibbled on throughout the game.

My husband and I didn't have any team favorites, so we watched the game just for fun. But, our cat, Bennie, had a clear favorite, as evidenced by the photo you can see below:

Bennie didn't tell me exactly why he is such a Steelers fan, but my guess is that he feels a kinship for a certain QB with whom he shares a name....

You can imagine that Bennie would be pretty psyched when the Steelers came back at the very last minute (literally) to beat the Cardinals, 27-23. But, no, he didn't even see the end of the game. He was busy sleeping and/or playing with some ribbon in another room. So much for supporting his team!

Overall, a pretty fun time!

50 Minutes!!!!

That's how long I spent, collectively, speaking to a total of 5 (FIVE!) customer service reps in 1 single phone call trying to set up installation of my new clothes dryer.

I'm serious. Dead serious. I'm not exhaggerating one bit.

After making 2 (TWO) phone calls (prior to the above-mentioned call) in which I was transferred between multiple departments telling me I needed to speak with the OTHER department that had transferred me, I finally got a hold of the "right person" to PURCHASE installation. A sigh of relief on my part...until I was transferred to the SCHEDULING department and got lost in the telephonic maze.

It then took 3 failed attempts before I found a rep who was sympathetic to my plight and took it upon herself to try to get me back to where I had started. It then took this very nice rep 3 more transfers to get me back to the original rep that had helped me.

Another sigh of relief...until he tried to transfer me again to scheduling...and if you guessed that I was lost again, you would be correct. Only this time, I heard a pre-recorded message telling me that my "call had not gone through" and I needed to "hang up and call back".

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

I was all ready to give up on the "pro" installation and try to do it myself. Until the rep who lost me TWICE at that point called me on my cell phone, apologized for losing me, and took care of everything himself.

Phew!

I only hope that the actual installation goes much more smoothly than its set up!

Merry Christmas from Connecticut

Connecticut has numerous special significances for me...it's where I went to college (bulldogs! bulldogs! bow wow wow! Eeeee-liiiiiii Yaaaaale!), it's where my husband grew up, it's where I almost got married (my native Colorado eventually won out), and it's where my husband's family still lives.

Married life requires many compromises, one of the biggest being splitting holidays between the two families. In 2007, we spent Thanksgiving in Connecticut, and Christmas in Colorado. 2008, therefore, is the opposite: Thanksgiving in Colorado, and Christmas in Connecticut. (I have, unfortunately, never seen the movie referenced in the above image, but it's a neat coincidence!)

My parents-in-law were EXTREMELY gracious and invited my parents to join us for the Christmas holidays. There's just something about being an only child (for my Mom and Pop, aka Step-Dad, that is) that makes it harder to not be at home for the holidays for the first time...ever. Ok, ok, I'm in my 30's and I shouldn't be such a big baby...but I am. I'm not ashamed to admit it.

So, thanks to my in-law's generosity, my parents and I are easing into the splitting-of-the-holidays tradition. But, who knows...now that my husband and I own our own house, maybe we'll just have everyone come to us next year. (Note to parents and in-laws reading this: This has yet to be an official discussion, so no promises yet.)

Here's hoping that everyone out there is having as fun of a holiday as we are here in picturesque Connecticut!

Moving Day Approaches

Tomorrow is the big day...we are moving out of our apartment in Jersey City and into our new house in the burbs. It's pretty exciting, except for the fact that we are not even half-way packed yet, and the movers are expected at 8 am tomorrow.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

It's been an exhausting week. Including flying back from Colorado last weekend, closing on our house on Monday, going back and forth between our house, our apartment, and our places of work throughout this past week, the week could not have been any busier....Ugh, I'm ready for a vacation.

With no internet or cable set up yet at our new house, we may just have nothing more interesting to do than to unpack all weekend. Then comes the start of another work week....I'm already worn out just thinking about it. This cute little kitty shown below is what I imagine I will look like in 24-48 hours time:

So, think lots of good thoughts on our behalf!

Home Jersey Home

There's no denying my Jersey-ness now...

My husband and I closed on a house in the Northern NJ suburbs this afternoon.

We are now the proud owners of a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom, bi-level house with an AWESOME 2 level deck off the back (with a built-in hot tub), a fenced-in backyard (perfect for our future pet dog), and a 1 car garage (perfect for George the Prius)! (There used to be a 2-car garage, but previous owners transformed the 2nd garage into an office, which works just as well for us!)

Here are some photos of our quaint NJ abode:

(above) A front view: If you look closely, you can see my husband and our home inspector standing in the middle of the roof.

(below) A view of the deck, which we will be making good use of next summer for BBQ's with friends & family (whoever is willing to make the trek out to the NJ burbs):

The only photos we have of the inside include the previous owners' furniture. So, for authenticity's sake, indoor photos will be shown at a later date, after we have actually moved in.

I am excited to follow in the footsteps of another blogger (http://www.melissacmorris.blogspot.com) who has spent the last year or so detailing the transformation of her home in New Canaan, CT. Of course, neither my new home nor its future contents are/will be worth (monetarily, that is) as much as those of Melissa C. Morris, but I guarantee that they will be just as chic and trendy, and will be well-documented here on RJG.

So, come back frequently for updates!

Happy T(of)urkey Day!

I'm a vegetarian, so I don't take part in the turkey eating, but I enjoy eating all of the side dishes that my family makes for the day. Despite the title of this entry, I have never actually tried tofurkey, but maybe someday...

As always, I'm thankful for many things in my life, but this year, I am especially thankful for my Dad's health. After a very unfortunate motorcycle accident a couple of days ago, my Dad ended up with 3 broken limbs requiring 2 days of surgery. He has made it through with flying colors, in great spirits, and with a fantastic optimistic attitude. Please send good thoughts his way!

Dinner is almost on the table here at my house, so I'm signing off.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!