At the Playground

The playground has become much more fun since Evelina learned to walk.  She likes to walk around and explore, look at the other kids playing or swinging, and watch cars or motorcycles zoom by.  By far, her favorite activity at the playground is the sandbox.  She could stay in it for hours, digging and covering up her legs.  She's even been known to throw a tantrum when it is time to leave, so I've started to lure her to other toys instead to avoid a meltdown.  She also loves to "drive" at the playground and walk up the platform stairs to the bridge.  She's even started to enjoy swinging.  It was rough going for awhile, she would cry or protest going in the swing but now she smiles and giggles and asks for more. 
  

Next spring we plan to get a swing set for the yard and possibly a sandbox (if she still likes it).  I'm thinking this would be the perfect 2nd birthday gift!!

Yard Sale = Success

Chris and some bargain hunters

On Saturday we held our first ever yard sale and it was a success!!  Boy, are we glad it is OVER!! It took a lot of prep work, going though everything in our basement and some spare closets, making and hanging signs, and setting up, but it was totally worth it.  

We had advertised that the yard sale was to begin at 8:00a and we had our first two bargain hunters around 7:30a before we had even finished with the set-up process.  By 8:30ish, our street was a parking lot.  It was a lot of fun.  We were able to catch up with most of our neighbors (two of which participated in the yard sale), and meet a few people from neighboring streets.  "Shoppers" came in waves and with each hour that passed, we would either slash prices or put more items on the $1 or free table.  We did NOT want to have to have to lug anything back up the driveway to the garage or basement.  In the end, we made $460.  We plan to donate $400 to the cancer walk we are participating in on Sunday and Chris and I split the remaining $60.  

It feels wonderful to be cleansed of so much extra "stuff" in our lives and it's refreshing to walk through the basement everyday.  

The Ciano Fam!!

A special thanks to my mom...without her spending some quality time with Evelina, we would have never been able to pull the yard sale off. 

Favorite Maternity Photos

We received the proofs from our maternity photo session...now the hard part will be choosing which images to purchase and in what size. I don't want a house full of belly so we have to choose carefully. I wish we had all of the money in the world so I could get all of the images on CD and print my own but maybe I will wait for Cashina's newborn shoot to splurge. Here are a few of my favorite maternity pics.

Maternity Photo Preview

When I found out I was pregnant I just knew I wanted to have a maternity photo session to capture the beauty of the belly. Chris was ambivalent since he doesn’t love having his picture taken (neither do I for that matter) but I promised the shoot would focus more on my belly then anything else. So, we booked a session with Heidi Hope Photography after I laid eyes on her beautiful and stunning newborn and maternity images.

We had our session on Saturday and decided it would be nice to have her come to our house. I was awoken at 5:30am by thunderstorms and downpours and at that moment threw my visions of straight hair and outdoor photos out the window. When Heidi arrived we explained our fear of camera issues but she was so great that after a few shots, we felt a lot more comfortable. She took a variety of shots in different rooms of the house and also set-up a backdrop for more studio-like photos. I’m just thankful that our house gets lots of light which definitely helped the shoot to be more successful considering the ominous skies.

She posted a preview of some of her favorite images to her blog. The complete gallery will be available in a couple of weeks.

Now I can’t wait for her to capture Bambina Ciano in her first weeks!!

Happy Birthday Violet!!

A year ago today, our first child Violet the Pug, was born to Belle by a crazy breeder. We never imagined what the next year would bring or if we (or Violet!!) would make it through, emotionally or financially, but despite its challanges we love our little Violet and are happy that she is a member of the Ciano (and Fisher) family. In between the frustration and tears she brings joy to our lives each day.

What we love most about Violet, other than how cute she is......she is a little clown and makes us laugh everyday.

What we would change about Violet, other then her OCD/craziness......her ability to be housetrained!! Uggh!!

Violet has improved over the past year but still needs lots of work and takes a lot of patience. Even though Cashina isn't born yet, I can imagine that it will be like having twins during Violet's high maintenance moments. Let's hope she gets better with age.

Dining Room Before and After

Here are some before and after shots of the dining room. We still have some decorating to do...putting up curtains, hanging some photos, maybe a new rug, etc. but all in all, it feels cozy and inviting.

Before - November 2008

After - December 2009

I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas

Well, dreaming isn't necessary this year since we just got about a foot of snow dumped on us. For the first time in awhile we have more snow in Ashland than in NH. Lucky ducks!! The snow is quite pretty and I can appreciate it more since I don't have to dig my car out of an on-street parking spot and have anxiety about whether or not I will find a spot when I get home or not. Oh the glories of a driveway. Now, I'm sure if you spoke to Chris he would have some gripes about shoveling the front stairs but that is the price you pay for home ownership....I think of it as good exercise. This year the deck and a landing area need to be shoveled for our little Violet so that is an added cardiovascular workout but thankfully this latest storm's snow was very light :-) Looks like we won't be using the grill for awhile!!

Happy Anniversary

Yesterday marked our 1 year anniversary as official homeowners!! Last year on November 26th we were signing our life away to move into our new home. The past year has been filled with many accomplishments, endless learning experiences, lots of laughter and fun times with family and friends, all wrapped up with a crazy puppy Pug. We are excited for what the next year will hold for us on BHL...hopefully the decorating and getting settled will turn into more fun!!

Autumn Update

It has been a busy few months, with some relaxing mixed in between me trying to fight off a never-ending cold (I think I may be improving though, knock on wood).

Violet is up to her old tricks but cuter than ever. She was spayed in October and wasn't even interested in her stitches so no Elizabethan collar was required. Thank goodness...I can't imagine her spinning with that thing on!! Ha!! She is a whopping 9.2 pounds now and we think she may actually break the 10 pound mark in the next month or so. Her doggie daycare person, Carin, wishes she would have stayed 4 pounds forever since she was a lot easier to handle. Arm cramping is a normal occurrence now a days. Violet also tackled a major milestone a few days ago, she climbed the stairs in the house all by herself!! We were shocked and wish we would have gotten it on video. Of course, she had great bait....her Auntie K and Cousin Mitzy were at the top of the stairs and she couldn't WAIT to see them. We have tried again since with no luck but still, first times the charm :-)

In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday and hosting the big day for the first time, we decided to finally paint the dining room and invest in new furniture. It has been fun, even though I am sure Chris would beg to differ since he did the painting. The gold color we chose really warms up the room and adds a nice splash of color to the first floor. And, having a real dining room table and chairs has made such a difference. The best part about the room is that we could actually host Thanksgiving dinner in comfort, and who better to host than Mom, Jim and Kerry (and Lilly and Mitzy). It was a great day with great food and not too much stress. Of course, Kerry was the Chef de Cuisine and I her Sous Chef. I think if I had to do it myself, I am now confident enough that I could...well maybe.

So, I guess the holiday season has officially kicked-off. I bought my first Christmas gift on Wednesday, heard my first Christmas carol on the radio today, I'm gearing up to put out a Winter wreath, put candles in the windows, and make out Holiday cards. Now if someone could do my Christmas shopping for me, and the snow and fridged temps could hold off, that would be excellent.

Pug Model

Since before we even took Violet home, I had dreams of having professional photos taken of her. I had found this wonderful photographer's blog online and told myself that WE HAVE to come have her shoot our little girl. And, with Violet being so cute, we couldn't pass up the opportunity.

We had scheduled the shoot a few times but had to cancel due to all of Violet's "health" issues so when we thought she would be able to make it a couple of hours without spinning and most importantly, when we thought all of her shaved spots would be grown back, we scheduled again.

She did amazingly well during the shoot and was such a ham. We think her true calling is Pug Puppy Model. Li, from Fat Orange Cat Studio, was fabulous to work with and she loved Violet just as much as we do. She took some beautiful photographs which has made it tough to decide which ones we want to have printed. Decisions, decisions. Li posted some of her favorities on her blog. Check them out: Fat Orange Cat Studio

Our Protector

A few weeks ago I was making dinner while Violet played with the free flip flops I got at the nail salon the day before. A couple of our neighbors dogs were barking and they caught Violet's attention. She must have been trying to protect her mom...although that didn't last long since flip flops are one of her favorite things.

It's Been Awhile....

It's been awhile since our last post and A LOT has happened with our little Miss Violet. We've had many ups and downs but we've made it through with tears, arguments, lots of pug kisses and curly tail wagging. I think I've gained more patience then I ever thought I could possess and I have amazed myself. We keep saying our prayers that Violet will soon be an "almost" normal pooch. We for sure aren't perfect so why would we expect her to be!!! All we know is that she is one of the cutest puppies to have ever walked the planet.

Hot Stuff

One of our neighbor's daughter's, Abby, has a slight addiction to Violet so we brought her out for a visit last weekend. It was on the warmer side so Violet got to practice her panting for the first time. Now isn't she cute :-) I can already see her happy clown face, which is typical for pugs, shining through. Don't worry, her water bowl was near by. Photo courtesy of Ethan Gordon.

Agility??

Violet loves to jump and is adorable when she is successful or takes a nose dive. Maybe we have an agility dog in our midst? We are thinking of buying a hoop to see if she would jump through it. Someday she can enter into the circus as Violet, the famous fiery hoop jumping Pug.

Does She Know Her Name?

Violet has been quite the handful but her cuteness makes up for a lot of the frustration we have felt over the past couple of weeks. We are confident that she will be housebroken some day but today is not the day. She is so tiny that she just can't hold it!!! A puppy her age should be able to hold it for about 3 hours....we wish!!! We should just take stock in paper towels since we seem to be using a lot these days.

Here is a video of Violet playing with her star toy. I think she may be learning her name but I'm not convinced. I think we could call her "Crazy" or "Spinney" in the same voice and she would think it is her name.

Play Time!!

I was dangling a toy in front of Violet each time she would circle around me and she thought it was fun and started playing. Yay!! I think she likes it. Now, maybe it will keep her occupied in the crate?

Welcome Home Violet

Violet has officially joined our family in Ashland. We picked her up early on Saturday and she did well in the carrier on the way home while she focused on capturing a few treats. She squeaks a lot and roams around endlessly. We aren't sure if she is looking for her siblings and mom or if it is just what she likes to do. Every now and then she will stop and sit down to take a break or stop to "do her business" and when we think she may be tired we will put her in her crate or bed and see if she will settle down. She is super cute and seems happy. When we pick her up she likes to nuzzle into our necks and give kisses all the while wagging her curly tail.

She got to meet her grandma yesterday and I think they hit it off. Mom had the secret football hold going on that calmed her right down and made her sleepy. Chris and I are trying to get it down but aren't having much luck. If I see her yawn I will wrap her in a blanket and try to settle her down. I have had success a couple of times. It is almost like having a real baby...only she doesn't wear diapers!!

Violet and Grandma :-)

We are still trying to get a routine down and our main goal this week while taking some time off from work are to get her used to the crate. She whines a little and has a new semi-howl going on but it hasn't been so bad....yet!!

Cute Pug Bottom

Inaugural BBQ

Summer arrived for a few brief days last weekend so Chris and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to, as I like to call it, “grill and chill”. Our new grill was just screaming to be fired up and just waiting for steaks to sizzle on its virgin grates. We also got to enjoy our new patio set with the company of great friends!! Thanks Ang, Jeff, Aimee and Sean for joining us for our inaugural BBQ. Hopefully we can do it again soon….with a patio umbrella the next time so we don’t sizzle.

Photo courtesy of Angela Malone

Put Down The Checkbook....

Since the beginning of BHL history, the street has been considered a private way which meant for us this year (and for all others the past 3-4 years) the street has had to be plowed by a private company...meaning each house had to foot the bill. Well, at long last, BHL is going public. Great for us for 2 reasons:

1) No more check writing each month to pay for our portion of plowing and sanding!!
2) Our curbing will finally be completed!! Once the snow isn't covering it, it looks like our street is still a construction zone.

http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x594737838/Town-takes-over-two-roads

Now, only time will tell how well the town actually plows but we have 9-10 months to wait for that. I'm taking bets.

New Kid on the Block

When the house was being built, the original kitchen design had a center island instead of a breakfast bar. We decided to forgo the island since it seemed to take up a lot of space in the kitchen and because we wanted to spare any guests sitting at the island from being hit in the back by the basement door…so we had the breakfast bar installed instead. We love the breakfast bar and eat almost every meal there, it was the perfect choice.

As I started to cook in the kitchen and Chris watched me glide across the floor from one end to the other, we came to the decision that a butcher block island would be a great addition to the space and help add some character as well. As much as we loved the ballroom dance floor, it wasn’t very practical for preparing meals.

So now we have the best of both worlds, a faboo breakfast bar and an island for chopping and preparing (although, I am afraid to chop directly on it so have been using cutting boards…I know, I am crazy). And who knew that butcher blocks could be made out of cherry wood? It matches our cabinetry perfectly!! I still need to figure out what to put on the bottom shelf and maybe a nice bowl with fruit on top would be nice but I will figure it out.

We are still stumped at what to do with the smaller dance floor between the kitchen and the living room so for now it is the perfect space for impromptu “Dancing with the Stars” reenactments.