One of things I love about watching Ellen is that she is always making me laugh. Lately she has been showing all sorts of funny infomercials on the show. I realize that there are those of you who don't watch Ellen and are not aware of some of these amazing products that she is introducing into our lives. So, I thought I would bring those commercials to you here so that you don't miss out. Please take a minute to enjoy the videos below :)

Hawaii Chair

Tiddy Bear's for Everyone

Get a Grip People

Why is the world we live in so freaking sensitive? Why is everything somehow misconstrued to mean everything and anything? Why is everything taken so literally that people turn NOTHING into something every time?

http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/your-money/2008/02/14/are-skinny-drinks-offensive.html

Starbucks introduced the "skinny" latte early in the New Year. What does this mean really? Well, for me it means that instead of ordering a Venti-Non-fat-No Whip-Sugar free-Cinnamon Dolce Latte, I can order a Venti Skinny Cinnamon Dolce. All it means to me is that I have to say fewer words. Why in God's name would that be offensive?

So all you out there who chose to make issues out of everything in life and think the world is out to get you go right ahead. As for me I thank Starbucks for helping me in my daily life by making me have to say fewer words when I order my drink. Starbucks, I salute you!!

Public Service Announcement

There is a Canadian stuck in the United States who is having terrible cravings for such candy as Smarties and Wunderbars. It is a sad time for this girl who cries herself to sleep at night because she cannot be with the candy she loves. I am not sure she will be okay without at least a little taste of her favorite candies. If you are from Canada and interested in donating some of these tasty treats to this sad girl and in the process helping make the world a better place, let me know and I will be sure you get her address;)
***I feel it important to note that Smarties ARE NOT M&M's. They are SMARTIES. Smarties to you silly americans are these...In Canada we call those Rockets and they are only sold at Halloween. Real Smarties may resemble M&M's but they are nothing like them. Smarties are bigger, have a harder and sweeter shell and the chocolate is WAY better.***

1980s Smarties Candies Commercial (Canada)

Wet, Sloppy, Disgusting Mess

Outside that is. It is GROSS out there. So gross in fact it makes me want to stay inside until it passes. The snow, the rain and the puddles. You know how it is when it snows and then the next day it rains like mad and turns all the snow into a big wet and slushy mess.

As a dog walker I don't really have much choice but to be out in this weather, it's my job. You do what you have to do. The rain doesn't bother me so much, that's what an umbrella is for. But what I hate is when I maneuver around puddles and think I am safe to step in what seems like only snow on the sidewalk but actually turns out to be a big, wet slushy puddle that covers your entire shoes. YAY!Add to that the fact I only had my running shoes on and they were sopping wet, and my feet were frozen. I was not a happy camper this afternoon. But now I am home and my shoes are in the dryer and my feet are once again warm.

And now I am going to retreat back to my couch and the warmth of a fuzzy fleece blanket.

Sticks are bad for doggies

Last week Chris and I had a little scare with Belle. One night we went for our evening walk and near the end she was running and playing with a stick as she always does. But this time she must have swallowed a small piece and either it was lodged somewhere or it just irritated her throat on the way down. She started hacking and gagging which at first wasn't that alarming. She has done that plenty of times but always cleared whatever was there out after a couple of times. Once we got in the house she immediately went and lay down in her bed. That was unusual just for the simple reason that after her walks she is always hyper and wants to play. She didn't drink water at all the rest of the night and in the morning was still hacking and gagging. When I noticed she hadn't eaten her breakfast that was when I got worried. Belle usually eats EVERY morning around 6 am before we get up. Chris wanted to just wait it out and made the point that she was not having trouble breathing or anything. We waited a few more hours and decided that we should at least take her in for a check up.

Of course the minute we got to the vet she was perky and happy and not hacking or gagging anymore. Go figure. He checked her out, listened to her lungs, made her swallow water and checked she was swallowing right. All was good. He decided all the hacking and gagging was probably due to irritation.

Needless to say, Belle doesn't get to play with sticks on her walks anymore. We bring a ball along now for her to run and chase.

An Open Letter to Dog Owners

To Whom It May Concern,

When I walk down the street and see a steaming pile of doggie doo doo it does not make me smile. When I am occupied doing other things and don't look on the ground with every step I take and I step in a pile of doggie doo doo it does not make me smile. I realize that picking up dog poop is not the greatest past time in the world. I do not enjoy it, but I DO IT. I pick up my own dogs poop and I pick up the poop of all the other dogs I walk. I do it because it is the RIGHT thing to do. Please tell me how anyone in good conscience can let their dog crap and not pick it up. Whether it be the sidewalk, someone’s yard or the middle of the road, PICK IT UP. It is NOT rocket science, I promise. You take a bag, scoop it up and voila--no doggie doo doo for all the good folks of the world to step in. And maybe, just maybe you will feel better about yourself for not being such a moron. Perhaps I could offer you a few ideas about how to remedy the problem if you really don't want to pick up the poop yourself.

For starters you could try this...

http://www.fellowlike.com.tw/en/?d=product3

It is just creepy and weird, but it's an option. Please take a minute to watch the demo video.

There is also this option. Now I am sure it would take a lot of your time and some serious commitment to train your dog to use the toilet in this fashion, but I am sure it is possible.

Last but not least you could give this a shot. How hard could it be? People can train their dogs to do all sorts of things, so why not pick up their own poop?

Seriously though, I wish you all would just suck it up and pick up the darn poop yourself. You don't have to like it but you certainly should have to do it. Next time you don't I pray there is a cop sitting nearby waiting to slap you with a hefty fine. And if that is not possible I wish a giant pile of doggie doo doo in your future, I wish you to step in it and slip in it. I wish for you to trail it into your car and your home. Maybe then you will realize how the rest of us who actually pick up our dogs poop feel.

Thank you so much!!

--A Concerned Citizen

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

NEW YORK GIANTS!!!! You have MADE our year!! Congratulations on winning Super Bowl XLII!!!
And yes I took those pics of my TV with our camera, I just had to. I almost couldn't believe it. BIGGEST upset in the history of the NFL! I love it!!

Chris and I watched this the other day and about peed our pants. Your welcome!!

Hanging out in all the wrong places

I know people who have run into all sorts of people in their lifetime. Actors, singers, musicians etc. My run ins with such people have been few and far between. Although we did see Cindy Crawford at Disneyland a couple of years ago.

As most of you know Chris works for Starbucks. Most of the stores that he services are located downtown. About a year or so ago he went to a store and was told by the people working there that Jennifer Garner had been in just a little while before he arrived. Then a month or so ago he was sitting at a red light. A blonde woman was crossing the street, as she was passing right in front of his car all he could think was that she looked really really familiar. About 15 minutes or so later he finally found a parking spot and went into the Starbucks where he had a service call. Turns out the blonde that looked so familiar to him as she walked right in front of his car had just been in that very Starbucks getting a coffee. Turns out that blonde was Cameron Diaz. He missed getting to meet her by like 5 minutes. Then the other day he was working on a machine when he saw 4 Nashville Predators players come in. They were in town to play the Bruins that night. Jason Arnott, Radek Bonk, Greg DeVries and Alexander Radulov just happened to chose that Starbucks to get their caffience fix. As a big hockey fan it was neat for Chris to see them.

Moral of the story....I clearly need to hang out at Starbucks more cause all I ever see when I am at work is dog poop, the mailman and random crazy people.

**anyone else having problems with the spell check? Mine doesn't seem to be working, which is NOT a good thing for me.**

Jeff Brown is a friend of ours who we have a ton of respect and love for. He is one of the most humble and gracious people I have met in long long time. I wanted to make a point of telling you all about his book so that you can run out to the store RIGHT NOW and get yourself a copy. We feel blessed to know Jeff and to call him our friend. Please take a few minutes to head on over to his website to learn a little bit more about Jeff and his book.

http://www.drjeffbrown.com/

Sports Blog

I forgot to mention on here that Chris and I have started a sports blog. As most of you know we are both sports nuts. So we thought having a place to talk about just that would be a good idea. That way those of you who couldn't give a crap about anything sports related don't have to be tortured with it here. That being said I still think you should all check it out.

http://cemcsports.blogspot.com/

Sweet Dreams

Chris and I have had a crappy. old and very ugly futon for the longest time. We live in a very small apartment so a futon best suits us as we get to use it for both bed and couch. We have been needing a new one for the longest time and just never got around to it. Finally we got a new one last night. HOOORAY! Chris's mom and dad actually paid for most of it as a gift which we are so very grateful to them, we feel very very blessed that they did this for us.

The futon we got is a queen, which is bigger than our old one. We love the wood finish it on. We just got a forest green cover for it last night for the time being. This weekend we will prob head over to a futon store near our place and get a different one that comes with pillows and stuff.

A few weeks ago we were taking care of a friends dog for a week. Belle and Madison for the most part get along but tend to get a little testy with each other if they get in each others "space." One morning after Chris had already left for work I got out of the shower and noticed Madison laying in Belle's bed. I assumed Belle was laying on the couch and when she wasn't I started looking for her trying to figure where she could be hiding. Well she wasn't hiding and this is where I found her and just had to take a picture. How CUTE is this?!?!

Seattle Seattle and more Seattle

When Chris and I were in Seattle we were uploading our pics from our camera to Chris's mom's computer so that at the end of our trip we could just burn them on to CD's and take them home. For some reason they never ended up actually burning onto the CD's so when we got home and unpacked we learned the CD's were blank. Chris's mom once again put them on disc and then mailed them to us. So NOW I am finally finding some time to sit down and post some of those pics and tell you about the rest of our trip:)

The next 12 posts are about our trip to Seattle over the Christmas holidays from Dec 18th-January 4th. We had a wonderful time with friends and family and were very sad to head back here to Boston. Not all of these posts are exactly in order as things happened but your just going to have to deal with it ;)

Christmas Eve/Christmas Day

After spending the last 3 Christmases here in Boston on our own Chris and I were both happy to be with family this year. Christmas Eve is when Chris's family opens gifts etc. There was Chris and I, his brother Bryan and his wife Andrea and their boys Gavin and Trevor, Chris's sister Alicia and her husband Paul and of course Chris's mom and dad.

The night started off with Gavin and Trevor building a Gingerbread House. Every year Linda makes Chicken Divan which is basically a casserole type dish with chicken, rice, broccoli, cheese etc. And it is GOOD! We all look forward to it every time she makes it. By the time we ate supper I am not sure who was more excited and eager to open presents....me or Gavin and Trevor. ha! Mom and DadChris, Paul and Bryan

Chris with his new Avalanche jacket

Me with my new Oilers gear and Ryan Smyth t-shirtIf you know Andrea you know how fitting this shirt and mug are

Gav and Trevor eager to see what's inside

We found this Pirates replica Black Pearl at Costco and just had to get it for them

Paul and Alicia wondering if it's bedtime yet

Chris with his wind up flash flight.

It was a wonderful evening and I am pretty sure a great time was had by all. We got some great gifts from everyone. I got a crock pot cookbook, Oilers gear, books, puzzles, a new duffel bag etc. Chris got Avalanche and Seahawks stuff, a new duffel bag, new razor just to name a few.

Chris and I waited until Christmas morning to open our gifts for each other. I am a big kid when it comes to Christmas and I wanted to have presents to open on Christmas morning. We got up around 8 am and opened our stockings and presents. Chris got me a huge scrap booking kit with all sorts of different stuff in it, new pajamas, a watch, Planet Earth series on DVD, Isotoner gloves ( I LOVE them), fuzzy socks, and a new Oilers jersey. I got Chris a Seahawks pullover (the ones the coaches wear), a PSP. Tiger Woods 07 for his PSP, Adidas toiletries case with cologne etc and a Mythbusters t shirt. It was so much fun opening our gifts. We got snow IN SEATTLE on Christmas day, how about that. It didn't last long, but while it was falling it was so pretty. We spent the day just lounging around the house with Chris's parents. That evening we went with them over to Paul (Chris's sisters husband) parents house and enjoyed a YUMMY turkey dinner. All in all it was a wonderful day and we were so thankful to have family to spend it with this year.

A Royal Affair: A Duke Gets Married

Chris's younger cousin Alex Duke got married in Chehalis Washington on December 29th. The wedding was originally planned for this summer, but Alex--who recently joined the Marine Corps--will most likely be getting deployed to Iraq in the near future. SO they decided to get married now before that happens. Good for them, they are young and such a cute couple and Chris and I are very happy for both of them. The ceremony was beautiful and Alex was dressed in his full Marine uniform. The wedding also gave us a chance to see relatives on Chris's dad's side of the family that we wouldn't have seen otherwise, so that was nice.

Alex and Chris

Me and Chris
Mr. and Mrs. Alex Duke
Chris and I, Mom and Dad, Paul and Alicia

Grandpa and Char McCleesHow cute are the rubber duckies!?!
Me, Chris, Paul and Alicia after our blue cake

Bubble time