Slightly used...

but new to us. The past 6 weeks have been a whirlwind of events and a whirlwind of purchases. We've successfully spent more than 3/4 of our savings from David's deployment. With that 3/4 we've become home-owners, SUV-drivers, and puppy-parents (amongst other things).

We love our new home. It's perfect for us - small but sufficient. We still have boxes to unpack, walls to paint, and a home-improvement list that's all tall as I am, but we're finally feeling like we really have a place to call our own. I don't have pics to post of the house yet, but I'll get some out there after we slap some paint on the walls and get the weeds out of the yard.

The new car is fun and functional. It's nice to have enough space to pack people, puppies, and parcels. We still have the Daewoo which has been lovingly passed along to David. It's still an eye-soar, but that's a good thing - for David. He can drive it as "hard" as he likes, and both he and I are happy with that.

The new puppy - Simon - is such a fun little guy to have around. We knew that when we moved we wanted to get a second dog, but we were going to wait till sometime around Thanksgiving or Christmas so we could have more time to settle in to the new place. Since the move, however, Otis has been so lonely. For those of you who know Otis, you know he is a very expressive dog. Usually there is no doubt to Otis's mood. He lets you know. And he certainly let us know that he wasn't happy with his current situation. He had gone from a house full of adults who adored him to a house full of boxes and two very busy adults who usually only had a few hours in the evening to spend at home. Otis was lonely. So along came Simon. We picked him OUT about 2 weeks ago and just barely got to pick him UP (post neuter) on Monday. I'll be honest, I had second thoughts during the interim. We really lucked out with Otis - he's such a well-behaved and well-mannered dog, and I didn't want some hooligan puppy to come in and make our lives a crazy mess of chewed furniture and sleepless nights. Simon has proved to be a little joy though...and (knock on wood) I think he will continue to be. So far, he has slept all night long with no interruptions. We haven't found a single chewed sock, shoe, fence post or chair leg. Otis and Simon play so well together, too. They wear each other out, and then come inside and lay down like two content little pooches. AND...Simon's adorable. I took him over to Mom and Dad's tonight and Dad repeated at LEAST 5 times how "cute" he thought little Simon is. I agree.