Lovely Laundry Rooms // I'm Getting A New Washer!

Remember my washing machine that went up in smoke the other day? Well, the service man for our Government-leased homes {or Hausmeister in German} came by today to take a look at it.  Turns out it's over nine years old!  No wonder it crashed!  The Hausmeister wrote something in German in big blue letters on the front of the machine & said to me, "We will bring you a new one."  Wahoo!  A new washing machine!  It's at times like this when I'm happy to be taken care of by the government.  Smoking washing machine = new one free of charge!  And as I told the Hausmeister, at least my clothes were alright & the smoke didn't turn to fire!

I bet laundry rooms are one of the most overlooked when it comes to decorating, but oh how cute they can be with just a little imagination & cute coloring! Mine? Think pink!! I'll have to post a picture sometime. But here are "loads" of "fresh" ideas for you to look over ;)

Images From WeHeartIt.Com, Domino Magazine, Better Homes, & Country Living

Locked Myself Out. Smoking Washing Machine, What's Next?!

Sorry I didn't write yesterday, I was dealing with a few strange things: I locked myself out of my house Sunday night, & then while doing laundry yesterday, my washing machine started smoking & the room filled with its stinkiness!  What a bizarre 24 hours!  But, with the help of a lovely neighbor friend, I got back into the house & consoled my worried dogs who thought someone had been trying to break in!  And tomorrow, the Hausmeister will be here to look at my stinky washing machine.  My fingers are crossed that the craziness is all behind me now.  I just need to find a good place outside to hide a spare key . . .  I like this guy!

I might be doing laundry the old fashioned way for a while.  But...let's hope my machine gets fixed {or replaced!} quickly!

Have any of you ever locked yourself out before?  Ooh, it's awful.  Do you hide a key now?!

And I'm curious to know if your washing machine has ever gone up in smoke...  Mine leaked too!  It's now sitting in my pretty pink laundry room, unplugged & away from the wall.  And still stinky.  Yuck!

This week's Saturday Around The World blog party ends tonight, so make sure you've entered for a chance to be this week's Featured Blogger!  Wahoo!

And I haven't forgotten that I promised to tell you about my awesome shopping experience from last Saturday! I'll post it tomorrow, pending that nothing explodes or floods in my house :) Think...crystal factory!

Another Quiet Morning

I did better with my sleeping last night! Didn't wake up until 5:45, & that really was an improvement! Can't wait to get rid of this jet lag! It's no fun waking up before the sun, being unable to go back to sleep, & wandering downstairs to sit in a quiet house! Layla & Lucius aren't even awake yet!  But I'll get back into the groove of things before long :)

Time to make my coffee & get myself ready for the day!  I need to restock the kitchen & do some cleaning, not to mention take care of all my plants that died while I was gone!  Sad face....  Oh well, I know that I have a nap waiting for me this afternoon & a sweet phone call from my hunny tonight!  ♥  We're almost halfway through this wretched deployment!  {I'm so proud of him, but I am awfully sick & tired of being apart!  Grr.}

% Relaxing & A Celebrity's Castle!

As the days of my brother's visit wind down, we've been spending out time doing something wonderful: relaxing. Sleeping in, watching good movies, sight-seeing in nearby Bavarian towns, working out at the gym on Post, walking the dogs, & of course making delicious dinners! Isn't it nice to be able to enjoy your time this way? Especially when you have a lot on your mind...

I think I'm in the "annoyed" phase.  The newness of this deployment has worn off.  I'm now used to going to bed alone.  I don't like being used to Don being gone!  And so now, I find myself annoyed with it!  But no matter...  We're doing this together & we'll get through it together!  I'm so proud of Don for what he does, for what his men do!  And I'm staying busy here too, but in a very different way.  It's just a matter of getting through those days & pressing on to the better ones!

Tomorrow, I think that my brother & I are going out in hunt of...*drum roll* Nicholas Cage's Castle!  Well, he doesn't own it anymore.  He sold it a few years ago...  But it's supposed to be quite close to my house, so we have to go find it!  And who knows what other castles we shall find on our hunt!

Wish us luck!

Too Many Photos, Too Little Time!

Bare with me, my lovely readers. I have so many photos from my trip to London, Salzburg, & Munich that I need some serious time to organize them all before I can decide which ones to share with you!  Tomorrow, I'm hoping to really start my London reviews!

We're enjoying some very nice, cool & rainy weather here in Bavaria.  It's a much welcomed break from the 90 degree temps & no air conditioning!  Phew!  Plus, my lawn is loving it too!

Tonight, my brother & I are {somewhat shamefully} going to see the new Twilight movie.  I read all the books before there was even a whisper to the public about the movies, so I'm a bit prejudiced.  Have you read the books?  Seen the movies?  What do you think?  ...Me?  The books are way better.  An easy & somewhat ridiculous storyline meant simply to entertain!  An easy beach read!  All this chaotic hype & craziness surrounding the actors is insane...  Wow!  I don't really feel that the movies are that good, but it is fun to watch them...  I guess all teenage girls have to be obsessed with something?!  Team Jacob!  *oh boy*

Happy weekend, lovelies!  ♥

It's A Good Friday!

A chilly but cozy 43 degrees at 11:49 am with a sky that seems to be promising a downpour of rain at any moment.  The grass is green, the leaves are now out on all the trees, & tulips of every color can be seen across the neighborhood.  It's officially Springtime in Germany.

Happy Friday, everyone! I hope that your week is coming to a wonderful end, with all your projects & goals completed! Here, all is well. I just took the dogs on a 30 minute fast & brisk walk in the sprinkling rain. I kept looking up at the sky full of gray clouds, trying to figure out which way the storm was blowing. Whether it's coming our way or not, we made it back home without getting drenched!

Looking back on this week, I can see that a lot has taken place!

• I picked up & planted most of my window boxes with pastel pink & fuchsia geraniums on Monday

• Don & I went to the Squadron FRG Meeting on Tuesday

• Blast!  I can't remember what I did Wednesday!  That means it must have been house work.  Yes, I think I did all the laundry that day, including duvets & dog beds!  That is an accomplishment!

• I found a German Auto Shop that spoke English & could take our car, along with calling ADAC to schedule a tow on Thursday!  Hooray!  It all worked out!  And even more impressive, Don & I met the tow truck on Post, got the car, & took care of the paperwork at the Shop.  Phew!  We can now say that we've done all we can do...until we have to pay.  Let's not think about that...

• Today, I helped a friend watch some kids {two very cute little boys} & we had a wonderful time watching Curious George, making monkey noises, & riding around the living room on a little elephant with wheels.  Note: I did the pushing, not the riding, although they got such a kick out of it that maybe I should have let them push me!

Don should be coming home from work early today, which is always a treat!  AND *drum roll please* I ordered a new laptop for myself so that Don & I each have one, & I think it arrived at the Post Office today!  I am thrilled, like a little kid with a new toy.  I can't wait to "play" with it :)

And for your daily dose of my doggies, here's a few recent pictures!  {I just found the very cool Picnik.Com & spent too long playing there!  What a neat site for photo editing!}

Wishing each one of you a fabulous Friday & a wonderful Weekend!

Life & What's Most Important

Life, & all that it holds for me, has been so wonderful lately that I haven't wanted to neglect it in order to post here on the blog. Between my parents visiting & wanting to spend as much time as possible with Don, I haven't even paid much attention to my email recently. But starting tomorrow, life will pretty much be back to normal, & I'll have time to write while Don is busy at work! Just think of all that I have to share because of the time I took off!  I have to say though, I haven't felt at all "guilty" or "out of touch" because of my lack of connection with the online world.  It's been nice not to have the distraction while more important things {er, people!!} are by my side.  No matter how involved we become with technology, nothing is more important than the ones you love.  And so, blog readers, you can understand why I've been absent!

Everything is great here: our yard is finally growing grass {we've been very diligent about seeding & watering, & it's paying off!  Hooray!}, flowers are blooming, the birds are chirping, & the dogs are happy.  Every minute Don & I have together is treasured, & the two weeks we had with my parents were fantastic!  God is so good, & His blessings are everywhere!

Don & his Artillery Battery had the day off today  for winning a competition recently, & I couldn't think of a better way to reward them!  A bit selfish, huh?!  But it's been so nice spending the day together, relaxing, taking care of some things {aka taking Lucius to the Vet & making car appointments}, & watching too many episodes of our most recent TV show obsession, Weeds.  Oh boy.  {Please note: I do not at all endorse or approve of the theme!  Yet...the show is so catchy!}  Now, though, Don's headed to Post for a meeting & I am determined to get a lot done while he's gone!  Laundry {oh, how it piles up...even after I've cleaned it.  Whoops!}, mopping {re-seeding a yard + having two Great Danes = messy floor!}, & hopefully having time left over to paint my nails {Red My Fortune Cookie; thank you, Kim!}.  Off I go!

I'll be back soon, I promise!  What has been keeping you busy lately?!

Photo courtesy of Photobucket.Com

A Walk With The Dynamic Duo

It is a beautiful day!  The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, & thanks to our nice walk this morning, Layla & Lucius are passed OUT!  Here's to an already productive day.

You know! L & L. Layla & Lucius. Our two adopted Great Danes! A combined total of 240 pounds of fun! :) Here are some pictures {& a video!} that I took during our walk this morning. They are so good for me when we go on walks, & they love to be let off their leashes so that they can run & play! We live in a wonderful location with plenty of walking trails & open fields nearby, making it a great place to live if you own dogs! Or, if you like to take nice walks! Some people run back there, but not I. Maybe a jog on a good day :)

Lucius usually just stares at Layla while she does her crazy woman running, then he braces himself as she makes her approach!  He used to stay at my feet all the time when we were out, but now he's becoming more adventurous!  Layla is still much faster than he is, but he's catching up!  They're definitely best pals!

 This is one of our favorite fields to walk to.  Nice & open, no distractions from the road or walking trails.  Perfect for us!

 Layla sure is movin'!

 Watch out, Lushie!  Here she comes!

 Handsome Lucius showing off his Dane drool.

 Are we going home now?  I'm exhausted!

...And so, back to the house we went.  We were out for an hour, a beautiful sunny playful hour!

Back Where We Belong: Together

Man, I haven't written in a while! Sorry about that, everyone. But there have been more important things in my life lately that I'd rather pay attention to than sitting down in front of the laptop!

Don came home from the field a day early!  It was wonderful!  He texted me Saturday morning basically saying, Don't get your hopes up, but we might be home tonight!  Of course, I planned my day according to him coming home that night, staying busy finishing up all the things I wanted to get done before he arrived.  And I pretty much accomplished it all!  Good thing, too, because he was ready to be picked up from Post at about 6:30!

I drove through the Bavarian countyside, Shania Twain turned up loud, singing along with a smile on my face to songs about love love love!  The way I felt reminded me of when Don & I were dating long distance, seeing each other for maybe one weekend a month.  The butterflies in my stomach knowing that I would see him soon.  The constant silly grin slapped across my face.  And yes, after parking the Mini in Don's Battery Headquarters parking lot & waiting for him to come out, when I finally saw him, I hopped out of the car & ran to him for a big hug & kiss!  Had it really only been two weeks?!  It felt like much longer than that, & boy was it good to be back together!  And he'd even stayed true to his "out in the field" tradition of growing a little mustache..."Just for you", he says with a grin.

His birthday was Sunday the 21st, & we spent the day relaxing together, snuggling on the sofa, & eating good food!  I made brisket with homemade BBQ sauce, rosemary & garlic potatoes, & yummy salad, & German Chocolate Cake.  We even had Champagne!  It was a good day.  And he had Monday off, which was fabulous!

Isn't it neat that when you are so in love, there is no need to go out each night?  No need to go to parties or clubs.  Just being together, wrapped in each other's arms, watching TV & talking about your day is all that you need!  And all that you want.

I'm so glad that he is home!  {The photo is from our trip to Prague last May.  Although you can't see where we are, it's one of my favorites of the two of us!  We were standing on the Charles Bridge, & it was gorgeous!}  I hope that you all had an equally enjoyable & lovable weekend!  ♥

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Are you wearing something Green?!  ...I'm not, well not yet at least!  I will definitely put something green on before I go out tonight!  I'm taking a friend who is new to Germany to an Irish restaurant nearby that Don & I really like.  It's called The Bayrisch-Irish, & it's in a very small town called Königstein. It is owned by a couple, the wife German & the husband Irish!  The food is delicious & it's honestly a nice change from German food.  Plus, when I'm there I always order a Cider, which is virtually impossible to find elsewhere in Germany!  So it's fun on all accounts!  Plus, I just found the restaurant website {in German, of course!} & noticed that they are having live music tonight!

I wonder if they will have green cider :)  What are your St. Patrick's Day plans?!  If I could have two wishes come true right now they would be 1} for Don to be home with me, & 2} for us to be in Dublin!  I loved our trip to Dublin!  And today of all days would be a great time to visit again!

Tea & A Good Book

Well, today was a success! I got a lot done: cleaned all the bathrooms {have you ever used Borax?  It's wonderful!  My toilets are *sparkling*}, vacuumed the entire house, cleaned L & L's kennels & beds {Lucius makes such a mess when he eats his rawhides in there!}, & even painted my nails in OPI's La Paz-itively Hot!  And while I was sitting here working on a project, I got a phone call from Don!  It's so wonderful to hear from him, even when we can only talk for a few minutes!  He & I sure are ready to be back together, & it hasn't even been a week yet!  Will I get tougher?!  Maybe so, but it won't ever get easier to be apart...

Now, after my productive day, I'm going to make a cup of Chamomile tea {Celestial Seasonings from my hometown of Boulder, CO of course!} & curl up in bed with my wonderful book, Shadow of the Moon by M.M. Kaye!  Maybe, if they're good, I'll let L & L up in bed to snuggle with me for a bit ;)  You know how cute that looks!

I hope that you all had a wonderful Saturday!  What did you do?!