My dog pack

So, yesterday, I let the dogs out while I was exercising.  I finished up and was about to go take a shower.  I closed the door to the yard, and made sure I closed the bedroom door, because Argo, when left to his own devices in the bedroom will strip the blankets off the bed (I don't know why).  I double checked to make sure Stella wasn't in the bedroom, because I've accidentally closed her in there before, and she gets upset about it.

I was just about to turn the water on in the shower when I heard the hollow heaving sound of Argo starting to puke.  I raced to the door and opened it, only to find that Stella had accidentally been locked outside.  Argo didn't really have to puke.  He was perfectly fine the second I opened the door.  He was just trying to get my attention so I'd let Stella back in.  A 105lb dog starting to heave will always, always get my attention, and Argo uses this to his advantage.

They couldn't have been apart for more than five minutes, but oh, the celebration they had when they were reunited - prancing around, nibbling and sniffing each other like Stella had just come back from a long, long journey.

I absolutely, completely and totally love the way my dogs love each other.  It's a beautiful thing to watch their friendship.

Spring Cleaning

I am so touched by all the kind words about last week's post left in comments, e-mailed and tweeted. I can't thank you enough! It's such an incredible reminder of the amazing kindness of people and the power of sharing our experiences with each other. There's something so comforting and heartbreaking and beautiful in hearing the words, 'you aren't alone,' or, 'I understand, that happened to me too.' Thank you!

In the past few weeks, taxes, car troubles, a plumbing disaster, and all the chores and tasks that make up every day life have left me feeling a little out of breath and out of step. So, I've promised myself that this week I'm going to take the time to put some sense of order back into our house. The goal is to make our house feel like a home again, instead of a three-bedroom junk drawer/laundry pile, and I have this crazy idea about seeing the surface of our kitchen table again someday. But, since this will involve doing laundry, filing papers, and possibly using one of those vacuum things I've been hearing so much about, I need to bribe myself.

Candy is often my go-to bribe for unpleasant chores, but I'm pretty sure I have single-handedly caused a jelly bean shortage in Western New York over the past few weeks, so I've resolved to call it quits on the sweets for awhile. Luckily, my dear friend, Shanna Murray, launched her line of hand-drawn wall decals today, and they make the perfect bribe!

Not only do Shanna's designs (and Shanna herself) lift my spirits, but the decals give me the perfect motivation to get the house in order, so when they arrive I have the space and time to enjoy them.

I ordered this one for our living room.

And this one for my office.

Because, who doesn't need a reminder now and then?

Do you have any good motivation tricks?