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| Miss Heidi About to Pass Out |
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| Ashes & Heidi on the Bed |
Showing posts with label Ashes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ashes. Show all posts
18 October 2010
Pets at Bedtine
Last night as I was winding down for bedtime, both Heidi and Ashes hopped up on the bed with me. It was so cute - and kind of rare - that I snapped a couple of pictures.
16 June 2010
Shepherd's Kitchen
If you can imagine the orange cat as a grey one...
(Thanks for sharing, Grandma!)
(Thanks for sharing, Grandma!)
06 February 2010
This Week
Well, I don't know about you, but this week has absolutely FLOWN by me! Having a puppy to care for is like hitting a fast-forward button on life, except you can still enjoy the moments.
I wanted to recap the last week. I've had a lot going on and want to share it with my little army of readers.
Sunday I brought Heidi home, introduced her and Ashes, and tried to catch up on sleep wherever I could. (See post on Heidi.)
Monday I kept busy at work, coming back home for the lunch hour to tend to Heidi, and taking advantage of my flex-time so as to not leave Heidi alone for more than a few hours at a time. That evening I met up with Jessica and Lindsey at Lake Eola to serve food to 100 homeless people; we teamed up with Rock for Hunger. It was a lot of fun, and I'll be helping Jessica's volunteer group more in the future.
Tuesday work and lunch were the same as Monday. After work I was able to squeeze a run into the busyness of caring for Heidi. I ran for 30 minutes, and hoped and prayed I could run at least twice more between Wednesday and Friday for my race over the weekend. Later I had Joel, Heather & Matt over for an evening of Euchre! Joel and I were a bit rusty after not having played the beloved Midwestern card game for so long, Matt had played once or twice before, and Heather was new tot he game. We had a great time playing over Chex Mix, pizza and strawberry milk! Heather & I won, so I guess it's true what they say: girls rule and boys drool. = P After a while Heather had to go in for some work (she was on call), so Joel, Matt & I played some three-person Euchre. We also played with Heidi! It was good for her to romp around and socialize with other people. Groundhog Day marks my anniversary with Lockheed Martin as a full-time employee. I received necessary permission to begin part-time telecommuting, and am so happy with my first year with Lockheed! Also, I learned that I may be able to participate in Lockheed Martin's Information Systems Leadership Development Program (ISLDP), pending space available. It's a very challenging and prestigious program, and I'm thrilled to have the potential opportunity to take part!
Wednesday was my first laid back evening of the week. I had a lovely chat/Skype session with Miss Kristin. She adored seeing Heidi, even though Heidi wouldn't look at the computer screen/camera head on, haha. By Wednesday I was starting to get a good feel for her tiny body's "schedule" and learning her needs, etc, and was able to sneak in another trip to the gym. For an unknown reason I had a very sharp pain in my right knee a few minutes into my run, so I quit, not wanting to worsen the problem. I switched to the elliptical machine and called it a night.
Thursday was a lot like Wednesday minus the phone date but plus a run. I took it easy and my knee was fine. I did some blogging and hit they hay early. Thursday marks the day when Ashes started to play back - or even initiate the playing - with Heidi! He jumped and hopped and ran all around the living room! They're going to be great friends!
Friday I worked from home; it was nice, but a little chaotic given that I had a lunch outing at noon and a meeting at 1 PM. I had several meetings through the morning and into the afternoon, too. Work has definitely been keeping me on my toes, and on one of the calls I learned about several new efforts I'd be jumping in on for my communications role. It's really exciting, and I love the people with whom I work! For lunch I took Matt to Good Fellas' Pizza; we had pasta, and it was delicious - plus it helped me load up on carbs for my race the next morning. After a long week I was able to find time for a nap. Later Matt picked me up and we went to Oviedo for Joel's bonfire party. We met up with some familiar faces from the book club, and met some new ones. The highlight of the evening was roasting s'mores! Mine were cooked to golden perfection! It was a fun party, but at midnight it was time to head home. Matt helped me walk Heidi when we got back to my place, and then we said goodnight as I had an early morning.
Today I got up dark and early at 6:30 AM and went to Winter Park to run in the Florida Hospital Lady Track Shack 5K. The race is all women; estrogen overload! Last year I ran the same race, which was my first in Florida, so it's become a sentimental, traditional race for me. It's a fast course, and I really enjoy it. With Tuesday's knee pain I figured I'd just be running this 5K for fun, but overall I felt great, no knee pain, so I pushed a little. I ended up only half a minute from my PR time of 25'52"! Here are my race stats:
Division: women ages 19-24
Division Place: 12/144
Name: Amanda Bennett
Bib Number: 1306
Age: 23
Place: 146/2077
Gender Place: 146/2077 (top 7%)
Clock Time: 27'46"
Chip Time: 26'33"
Pace: 8'32.6"/mile
Hometown: Orlando, Florida
I'm quite happy with my running performance. A good race to kick off the year! I also bumped into Marissa post-race. It was nice to chit chat with her on the way to our cars. And we got little plants from a local nursery. When I got home I napped, but Heidi was wide awake so I didn't sleep too well. Grudgingly I got up and lounged around for a bit. In the afternoon I took Heidi to PetSmart to engrave her dog tag. Here are a few photos that mark the occasion:
Which brings me to the present. I'm painting my nails a lovely lavender using my new "Done Out in Deco" OPI polish, then I'm going to see if I can't catch a few Zs. Tonight I'm having company over to watch "I Am Legend!" Tomorrow is church and lunch with Aunt Joan over a Melbourne visit. For the Super Bowl it's looking like I'll join Matt at his friend's party.
Have a great weekend!
Amanda
I wanted to recap the last week. I've had a lot going on and want to share it with my little army of readers.
Sunday I brought Heidi home, introduced her and Ashes, and tried to catch up on sleep wherever I could. (See post on Heidi.)
Monday I kept busy at work, coming back home for the lunch hour to tend to Heidi, and taking advantage of my flex-time so as to not leave Heidi alone for more than a few hours at a time. That evening I met up with Jessica and Lindsey at Lake Eola to serve food to 100 homeless people; we teamed up with Rock for Hunger. It was a lot of fun, and I'll be helping Jessica's volunteer group more in the future.
Tuesday work and lunch were the same as Monday. After work I was able to squeeze a run into the busyness of caring for Heidi. I ran for 30 minutes, and hoped and prayed I could run at least twice more between Wednesday and Friday for my race over the weekend. Later I had Joel, Heather & Matt over for an evening of Euchre! Joel and I were a bit rusty after not having played the beloved Midwestern card game for so long, Matt had played once or twice before, and Heather was new tot he game. We had a great time playing over Chex Mix, pizza and strawberry milk! Heather & I won, so I guess it's true what they say: girls rule and boys drool. = P After a while Heather had to go in for some work (she was on call), so Joel, Matt & I played some three-person Euchre. We also played with Heidi! It was good for her to romp around and socialize with other people. Groundhog Day marks my anniversary with Lockheed Martin as a full-time employee. I received necessary permission to begin part-time telecommuting, and am so happy with my first year with Lockheed! Also, I learned that I may be able to participate in Lockheed Martin's Information Systems Leadership Development Program (ISLDP), pending space available. It's a very challenging and prestigious program, and I'm thrilled to have the potential opportunity to take part!
Wednesday was my first laid back evening of the week. I had a lovely chat/Skype session with Miss Kristin. She adored seeing Heidi, even though Heidi wouldn't look at the computer screen/camera head on, haha. By Wednesday I was starting to get a good feel for her tiny body's "schedule" and learning her needs, etc, and was able to sneak in another trip to the gym. For an unknown reason I had a very sharp pain in my right knee a few minutes into my run, so I quit, not wanting to worsen the problem. I switched to the elliptical machine and called it a night.
Thursday was a lot like Wednesday minus the phone date but plus a run. I took it easy and my knee was fine. I did some blogging and hit they hay early. Thursday marks the day when Ashes started to play back - or even initiate the playing - with Heidi! He jumped and hopped and ran all around the living room! They're going to be great friends!
Friday I worked from home; it was nice, but a little chaotic given that I had a lunch outing at noon and a meeting at 1 PM. I had several meetings through the morning and into the afternoon, too. Work has definitely been keeping me on my toes, and on one of the calls I learned about several new efforts I'd be jumping in on for my communications role. It's really exciting, and I love the people with whom I work! For lunch I took Matt to Good Fellas' Pizza; we had pasta, and it was delicious - plus it helped me load up on carbs for my race the next morning. After a long week I was able to find time for a nap. Later Matt picked me up and we went to Oviedo for Joel's bonfire party. We met up with some familiar faces from the book club, and met some new ones. The highlight of the evening was roasting s'mores! Mine were cooked to golden perfection! It was a fun party, but at midnight it was time to head home. Matt helped me walk Heidi when we got back to my place, and then we said goodnight as I had an early morning.
Today I got up dark and early at 6:30 AM and went to Winter Park to run in the Florida Hospital Lady Track Shack 5K. The race is all women; estrogen overload! Last year I ran the same race, which was my first in Florida, so it's become a sentimental, traditional race for me. It's a fast course, and I really enjoy it. With Tuesday's knee pain I figured I'd just be running this 5K for fun, but overall I felt great, no knee pain, so I pushed a little. I ended up only half a minute from my PR time of 25'52"! Here are my race stats:
Division: women ages 19-24
Division Place: 12/144
Name: Amanda Bennett
Bib Number: 1306
Age: 23
Place: 146/2077
Gender Place: 146/2077 (top 7%)
Clock Time: 27'46"
Chip Time: 26'33"
Pace: 8'32.6"/mile
Hometown: Orlando, Florida
I'm quite happy with my running performance. A good race to kick off the year! I also bumped into Marissa post-race. It was nice to chit chat with her on the way to our cars. And we got little plants from a local nursery. When I got home I napped, but Heidi was wide awake so I didn't sleep too well. Grudgingly I got up and lounged around for a bit. In the afternoon I took Heidi to PetSmart to engrave her dog tag. Here are a few photos that mark the occasion:
Which brings me to the present. I'm painting my nails a lovely lavender using my new "Done Out in Deco" OPI polish, then I'm going to see if I can't catch a few Zs. Tonight I'm having company over to watch "I Am Legend!" Tomorrow is church and lunch with Aunt Joan over a Melbourne visit. For the Super Bowl it's looking like I'll join Matt at his friend's party.
Have a great weekend!
Amanda
03 February 2010
Heidi
On Saturday, 30 January 2010 I picked up Heidi, my German Shepherd Dog puppy! I bought her from Yuliya & Chad of Kennels von Lotta in Atlanta. It was a day filled with driving (7 hours, one way), but it was entirely worth it - plus I had a driving buddy on the way home! She did very well in the car! Here I am with Heidi, posing for our first photo:
I got back to Orlando at about 5 AM. (Thanks to Jordan for chatting on the phone to keep me awake towards the end.) When I first walked into my apartment, Ashes was waiting for me, like usual, but this time he did a full-body double-take when he saw who was with me! It was very interesting watching them say hello for the first time. I hate my hair in this photo, but Ashes' and Heidi's expressions are priceless here in their first photo together:
Here's an adorable photo of Heidi playing in the lawn outside my apartment:
Sunday afternoon I took Heidi to the vet for her 72-hour check after bringing her home from the breeder. This visit was her first to see other puppies and dogs outside of her family. She was timid around others her size, but warmed up to them after a few moments. Around large dogs she was always ducking around my feet; she's so cute. No matter the size of the person, though, she is super friendly, always giving kisses to their hands when they reach to pet her. Here's a photo of Heidi with a little girl and her mom:
Her vet check went well. The vet said she was in perfect health with the exception of a minor yeast ear infection. I am treating it, and so far her little ear is doing great. It's good that I have to clean and medicate her ear twice a day because it gets her used to me messing with her ears. I'm also making sure to play with her paws a lot so she doesn't mind when I have to clip her toe nails. I think down the road vets will appreciate her being used to these sorts of things.
She weighed 7.8 pounds the Sunday, 31 January I brought her home. This past Saturday, 6 February she had jumped up to 12.8 pounds. She's growing quickly! I found a German Shepherd Dog puppy growth chart, and, according to the chart, she is expected to reach 16 pounds in two weeks.
Speaking of keeping her tidied up, Wednesday night I gave Heidi her first bath! First I set her in the tub on a towel so she wouldn't slip around (dogs hate that feeling). Then I trickled some water from the faucet. She like it and lapped some up. Then I turned the water on a little stronger; she was okay with this. Next I turned the water on to reach a luke-warm temperature and she decided that was her cue to figure out how to escape the confines of the tub. She didn't enjoy the bath terribly, but she permitted me to lather her up and rinser her off so long as I was half-hugging her during the process. She smelled so nice afterwards! Here's a picture of her partially wet and trying to hop out of the tub:
Yesterday marked Heidi's first day of high energy levels. She has gotten used to her new home and environment, and now she's comfortable to romp and play around. She tries to get Ashes to play with her but he mostly refuses her. Yesterday was the first day she sought out to play with other pups and dogs on their walks. Before I would have to coax her over to the others. She's doing so well in socializing with other canines!
She has also taken a great interest chewing whatever I allow her to chew. She found my slippers on Monday, but I've been saying "no" whenever she gets near them or any other shoes by the front door. She seems to be learning that shoes are off-limits (at least while I'm around). Instead of shoes I've been teaching her that it's okay for her to chew on her toys. Here she is chowing down on Mr. Hippo:
View Heidi's photos albums!
Album One (Day 1-3)
Album Two (Day 3-present)
View videos of Heidi here! That link will take you to the first on my YouTube "Heidi" playlist; from there you can view other videos of Heidi (on the right-hand-side).
Someone planning to buy a puppy from Kennels von Lotta made a comment on one of my videos of Heidi, and that led me to seeing some videos that Yuliya had on YouTube. Here is a video of Kennels von Lotta's "E Litter." Heidi is from the "J Litter," but I'm sure she romped, ate and nursed just like the pups in the video.
Heidi's registered name is Johanna Adelheid von Lotta. von Lotta is the Kennel name; that part always goes last. I chose Johanna for several reasons: Heidi is from von Lotta's "J Litter" (most breeders name their litters a letter of the alphabet), so I wanted a name that started with "J." "Johanna" is a German female name. The meaning of the name "Johanna" is "God is gracious."
Before I chose her registered name I had my heart set on the call name of "Heidi." I chose "Adelheid" because it is a variant of the name "Heidi," plus it is also a German female name. "Adelheid" means "noble and kind;" perfectly matching to the character of German Shepherd Dogs.
Heidi was only 9.5 weeks old when I picked her up over the weekend. She only weighed 7.8 pounds when we were at the vet; she's all fluff!
I've been learning a lot about properly caring for a dog, especially such a young one. I am crate training her to help with potty-training, manners and behavior. She has her good days and some bad days where she'll make a mess, but she's learning. Heidi and Ashes get along famously for a cat and puppy! Ashes gives off an "I'm only tolerating her" attitude, but I know he secretly is very happy to have a friend in the home while I'm away. Besides, she's a furry ball of love!
If you have any tips for owning a puppy/dog/German Shepherd Dog, feel free to leave a comment! = )
Cheers,
Amanda
I got back to Orlando at about 5 AM. (Thanks to Jordan for chatting on the phone to keep me awake towards the end.) When I first walked into my apartment, Ashes was waiting for me, like usual, but this time he did a full-body double-take when he saw who was with me! It was very interesting watching them say hello for the first time. I hate my hair in this photo, but Ashes' and Heidi's expressions are priceless here in their first photo together:
Here's an adorable photo of Heidi playing in the lawn outside my apartment:
Sunday afternoon I took Heidi to the vet for her 72-hour check after bringing her home from the breeder. This visit was her first to see other puppies and dogs outside of her family. She was timid around others her size, but warmed up to them after a few moments. Around large dogs she was always ducking around my feet; she's so cute. No matter the size of the person, though, she is super friendly, always giving kisses to their hands when they reach to pet her. Here's a photo of Heidi with a little girl and her mom:
Her vet check went well. The vet said she was in perfect health with the exception of a minor yeast ear infection. I am treating it, and so far her little ear is doing great. It's good that I have to clean and medicate her ear twice a day because it gets her used to me messing with her ears. I'm also making sure to play with her paws a lot so she doesn't mind when I have to clip her toe nails. I think down the road vets will appreciate her being used to these sorts of things.
She weighed 7.8 pounds the Sunday, 31 January I brought her home. This past Saturday, 6 February she had jumped up to 12.8 pounds. She's growing quickly! I found a German Shepherd Dog puppy growth chart, and, according to the chart, she is expected to reach 16 pounds in two weeks.
Speaking of keeping her tidied up, Wednesday night I gave Heidi her first bath! First I set her in the tub on a towel so she wouldn't slip around (dogs hate that feeling). Then I trickled some water from the faucet. She like it and lapped some up. Then I turned the water on a little stronger; she was okay with this. Next I turned the water on to reach a luke-warm temperature and she decided that was her cue to figure out how to escape the confines of the tub. She didn't enjoy the bath terribly, but she permitted me to lather her up and rinser her off so long as I was half-hugging her during the process. She smelled so nice afterwards! Here's a picture of her partially wet and trying to hop out of the tub:
Yesterday marked Heidi's first day of high energy levels. She has gotten used to her new home and environment, and now she's comfortable to romp and play around. She tries to get Ashes to play with her but he mostly refuses her. Yesterday was the first day she sought out to play with other pups and dogs on their walks. Before I would have to coax her over to the others. She's doing so well in socializing with other canines!
She has also taken a great interest chewing whatever I allow her to chew. She found my slippers on Monday, but I've been saying "no" whenever she gets near them or any other shoes by the front door. She seems to be learning that shoes are off-limits (at least while I'm around). Instead of shoes I've been teaching her that it's okay for her to chew on her toys. Here she is chowing down on Mr. Hippo:
View Heidi's photos albums!
Album One (Day 1-3)
Album Two (Day 3-present)
View videos of Heidi here! That link will take you to the first on my YouTube "Heidi" playlist; from there you can view other videos of Heidi (on the right-hand-side).
Someone planning to buy a puppy from Kennels von Lotta made a comment on one of my videos of Heidi, and that led me to seeing some videos that Yuliya had on YouTube. Here is a video of Kennels von Lotta's "E Litter." Heidi is from the "J Litter," but I'm sure she romped, ate and nursed just like the pups in the video.
Heidi's registered name is Johanna Adelheid von Lotta. von Lotta is the Kennel name; that part always goes last. I chose Johanna for several reasons: Heidi is from von Lotta's "J Litter" (most breeders name their litters a letter of the alphabet), so I wanted a name that started with "J." "Johanna" is a German female name. The meaning of the name "Johanna" is "God is gracious."
Before I chose her registered name I had my heart set on the call name of "Heidi." I chose "Adelheid" because it is a variant of the name "Heidi," plus it is also a German female name. "Adelheid" means "noble and kind;" perfectly matching to the character of German Shepherd Dogs.
Heidi was only 9.5 weeks old when I picked her up over the weekend. She only weighed 7.8 pounds when we were at the vet; she's all fluff!
I've been learning a lot about properly caring for a dog, especially such a young one. I am crate training her to help with potty-training, manners and behavior. She has her good days and some bad days where she'll make a mess, but she's learning. Heidi and Ashes get along famously for a cat and puppy! Ashes gives off an "I'm only tolerating her" attitude, but I know he secretly is very happy to have a friend in the home while I'm away. Besides, she's a furry ball of love!
If you have any tips for owning a puppy/dog/German Shepherd Dog, feel free to leave a comment! = )
Cheers,
Amanda
Inga Visits!
I had the great pleasure of hosting one of my most dear friends last week! Ingeborg made a stop in Orlando on her backpacking trip along the southern US states on her way to Phoenix! It was amazing to see a friend from Australia (we were flat mates over there in Spring 2008 during our study abroad trips; she's from Norway). Of course we had kept in touch, but we hadn't seen one another in the flesh in 18 months! It was amazing to catch up with her in person. Here is the link to the full photo album.
We had something fun to do every day of her stay. Here's the run-down on our little adventure together:
Friday night: Inga arrives; we stay up way too late talking about EVERYTHING; we eat lemon poppy seed muffins with butter and jam; I unwrap all the little presents she brought me from Norway; we gorge on all the candies included in said presents; we have fun speaking "Norway-English," haha; we agree to sleep in the next morning.
Saturday: we slept in; she blogged about her travel to the US while I went for a run; we had pot pies for lunch (her first time having one; she's a fan); she made great friends with Ashes; and we went out for NORWAY NIGHT!
Several of my good friends from the book club joined us in showing Inga Downtown Orlando! We hit Latitudes (to get started), The Lodge (Inga's favorite), and Eye Spy (heaps of dancing); then we capped the evening with some good ole Jimmy John's (another first for Inga).
Sunday: met some folks from the book club for brunch at Hue, downtown. It was quite tasty, but took longer than anticipated, and so we were running behind time to get to the book club at Stardust. I was able to inform Inga of the book we were reading for January in time that she could read it, so she had fun taking part in the discussion with us. We had several new faces at both the brunch and the book club, but Inga was dubbed the "honorary, global book clubber," haha! After the book club we strolled around Lake Eola.
Monday: I had to work; Inga had a nice, lazy day. That evening we were originally planning to go to my Orlando Camera Club meeting to learn about HDR, but we got sucked into a shopping mode and hit Ulta and Ross that evening. We got a little crazy with our nail polish selections! So many to choose from! For dinner I took Inga to Panera.
Tuesday: I worked again, and Inga had another relaxing day. That evening I took a nap while she read, then we went to the California Pizza Kitchen for dinner. After CPK we went downtown, in formal-wear, mind you, to celebrate Joel's birthday at The Citrus Club on the top floor of the BB&T building downtown. It was really elegant, and we had fun chit chatting with Joel and his friend, Dennis. Happy birthday, Joel!
Wednesday: Again, work for me; Inga had a lazy morning; I brought home Jersey Mike's Subs for lunch, then she went to Waterford and I went back to work. That evening we lounged for a bit before going to Urban Flats for some flat bread, live music and she had some wine (as I was driving). Afterwards we went to Borders where I picked up the February book club book and she found a cool iPod case.
At one point through the week I took Inga to The Marble Slab. She was blown away by the concept, haha! She had a crazy concoction, but it really wasn't too bad, less the York Peppermint Patties, haha!
Thursday: after work Inga and I went to Amigo's for dinner where I ate entirely too much, too quickly, haha. Inga picked up heaps of goodies for the pre-screening of the movie "Dear John" that Joel got us tickets for. Ryan met up with us, too, and we camped out for an hour to get excellent seats in the theatre. I didn't cry, though my eyes got a little dewy. Inga cried, I'm pretty sure. We felt the movie was okay, and preferred "The Notebook." Fun time, nonetheless!
Friday: I took the day off to spend a full day with Inga. Ryan hooked us up with some good deals to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventures. Ryan was a great "guide" to the parks. We hit up all the good rides and the longest wait, with one exception (the new roller coaster where they play your song during the ride), was 15 minutes! It was unheard of, I tell ya!
After much walking around, snacking, riding and chatting we got back to my apartment just in time for a quick power nap and prep for the Girls' Night I had planned as the last big to-do before Inga left Orlando. I had a few girls from the book club over, and Tiffany. We chatted, snacked on fruit and fondue, drank wine and had a lovely time painting our nails. I have a feeling there will be more Girls' Nights in the future.
Saturday morning we packed up and drove to Gainesville as it was her next stop and it was on my way to Atlanta to pick up Heidi. So we got a couple extra hours together. She DJ'd for me with the iPods. When we got to her hostel we said our goodbye's quickly to avoid bawling. I sure will miss that girl!
Thank you so much, Inga, for visiting! I loved having you in my home and company! Travel safely as you journey to Phoenix!
-Amanda
PS - Here is the link to Inga's travel blog if you're interested in reading (the second half of each post is in English) about her travels in the US.
We had something fun to do every day of her stay. Here's the run-down on our little adventure together:
Friday night: Inga arrives; we stay up way too late talking about EVERYTHING; we eat lemon poppy seed muffins with butter and jam; I unwrap all the little presents she brought me from Norway; we gorge on all the candies included in said presents; we have fun speaking "Norway-English," haha; we agree to sleep in the next morning.
Saturday: we slept in; she blogged about her travel to the US while I went for a run; we had pot pies for lunch (her first time having one; she's a fan); she made great friends with Ashes; and we went out for NORWAY NIGHT!
Several of my good friends from the book club joined us in showing Inga Downtown Orlando! We hit Latitudes (to get started), The Lodge (Inga's favorite), and Eye Spy (heaps of dancing); then we capped the evening with some good ole Jimmy John's (another first for Inga).
Sunday: met some folks from the book club for brunch at Hue, downtown. It was quite tasty, but took longer than anticipated, and so we were running behind time to get to the book club at Stardust. I was able to inform Inga of the book we were reading for January in time that she could read it, so she had fun taking part in the discussion with us. We had several new faces at both the brunch and the book club, but Inga was dubbed the "honorary, global book clubber," haha! After the book club we strolled around Lake Eola.
Monday: I had to work; Inga had a nice, lazy day. That evening we were originally planning to go to my Orlando Camera Club meeting to learn about HDR, but we got sucked into a shopping mode and hit Ulta and Ross that evening. We got a little crazy with our nail polish selections! So many to choose from! For dinner I took Inga to Panera.
Tuesday: I worked again, and Inga had another relaxing day. That evening I took a nap while she read, then we went to the California Pizza Kitchen for dinner. After CPK we went downtown, in formal-wear, mind you, to celebrate Joel's birthday at The Citrus Club on the top floor of the BB&T building downtown. It was really elegant, and we had fun chit chatting with Joel and his friend, Dennis. Happy birthday, Joel!
Wednesday: Again, work for me; Inga had a lazy morning; I brought home Jersey Mike's Subs for lunch, then she went to Waterford and I went back to work. That evening we lounged for a bit before going to Urban Flats for some flat bread, live music and she had some wine (as I was driving). Afterwards we went to Borders where I picked up the February book club book and she found a cool iPod case.
At one point through the week I took Inga to The Marble Slab. She was blown away by the concept, haha! She had a crazy concoction, but it really wasn't too bad, less the York Peppermint Patties, haha!
Thursday: after work Inga and I went to Amigo's for dinner where I ate entirely too much, too quickly, haha. Inga picked up heaps of goodies for the pre-screening of the movie "Dear John" that Joel got us tickets for. Ryan met up with us, too, and we camped out for an hour to get excellent seats in the theatre. I didn't cry, though my eyes got a little dewy. Inga cried, I'm pretty sure. We felt the movie was okay, and preferred "The Notebook." Fun time, nonetheless!
Friday: I took the day off to spend a full day with Inga. Ryan hooked us up with some good deals to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventures. Ryan was a great "guide" to the parks. We hit up all the good rides and the longest wait, with one exception (the new roller coaster where they play your song during the ride), was 15 minutes! It was unheard of, I tell ya!
After much walking around, snacking, riding and chatting we got back to my apartment just in time for a quick power nap and prep for the Girls' Night I had planned as the last big to-do before Inga left Orlando. I had a few girls from the book club over, and Tiffany. We chatted, snacked on fruit and fondue, drank wine and had a lovely time painting our nails. I have a feeling there will be more Girls' Nights in the future.
Saturday morning we packed up and drove to Gainesville as it was her next stop and it was on my way to Atlanta to pick up Heidi. So we got a couple extra hours together. She DJ'd for me with the iPods. When we got to her hostel we said our goodbye's quickly to avoid bawling. I sure will miss that girl!
Thank you so much, Inga, for visiting! I loved having you in my home and company! Travel safely as you journey to Phoenix!
-Amanda
PS - Here is the link to Inga's travel blog if you're interested in reading (the second half of each post is in English) about her travels in the US.
31 December 2009
Christmas Letter 2009
Merry Christmas!
2009 was an adventurous year for me! Looking back I can see how much I’ve grown and how wonderful the last twelve months have been:
In January, as a sort of graduation gift to myself, I bought a 2009 Honda Fit Sport. When I moved to Orlando, Florida that little car did me well. Even better than the fuel efficiency was the company I had during the trip. My family helped move me into my lovely apartment, which has become home for me and my cat, Ashes; being so far from Indiana isn’t quite so bad with that fur ball around to keep me company.
I moved to Orlando for my new job with Lockheed Martin. I am a systems engineer on the Test Team for the Assured Identity program. Our job is to upgrade the current Lockheed Martin employee badge system to smart cards. My job is to find and report defects in the new system as it’s being developed. Until recently I was on the Test Team full-time. Just last week I began a transition to take on a second role part-time. For this new role I gather and analyze metrics and represent the business area. I’m being challenged, and I really enjoy my job!
Indeed, the weather and nearby beaches are nice, but Orlando has given me so much more for which I am thankful! I’ve made several friends and found a fantastic church. I played on a Lockheed Martin sand volleyball team, and I am catcher for a Lockheed Martin softball team. Also, I joined a gym, a camera club, two running clubs and I even founded a book club!
I love to read and wanted to meet other readers around town, but no existing book clubs I found were working out, so I just started my own: The East Orlando Twenty-Something Book Club. Through the book club I’ve met other bookworms, and we have heaps of fun! We’re a pretty social bunch: trips to Busch Gardens, the beach, book sales, movie nights, bowling, and, of course, the actual book discussions. We read one book a month, but, in addition to that, I usually read another one or two books. The next book on my list is Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.
Here’s the latest on the family: Mom always keeps busy whether she’s gardening, quilting or running. She’s been running up such a storm that, believe it or not, she currently holds the Bennett Family Half-Marathon Record Time! Dad is continually studying his hobbies: photography and weaponry. His Navy background gives him a leg-up on the competition at the shooting range. Chucky has buzzed his hair and is aiming to become a Navy SEAL! With his wrestling history he will go far in that endeavor! Speaking of wrestling, Sam just signed with Northern Illinois University for a wrestling scholarship! I can’t wait to see him wrestle under the lights at State!
I sure do miss my family and friends who are far away, but, lucky for me, I’ve had many visits with them! Here are a few of the year’s highlights: Mom’s visit during Spring Break, running the Indianapolis 500 Mini Half-Marathon with Mom and Dad, Kristin & Aric’s wedding in Iowa and their visit for the Fourth of July, Mom’s summer visit, hanging out with my fellow Boilermakers and my Aunt Joan in nearby Melbourne, Sam’s fall visit, turning 23, Lana & Geof’s wedding, enjoying the Colts’ season with friends, Purdue’s Homecoming and reunion with college friends, all sorts of Halloween fun, and a surprise visit home for Thanksgiving!
That brings us to Christmastime! “And so I’m offering this simple phrase, to kids from one to ninety-two, although it’s been said many times, many ways, a very Merry Christmas to you!”
Amanda Bennett
2009 was an adventurous year for me! Looking back I can see how much I’ve grown and how wonderful the last twelve months have been:
In January, as a sort of graduation gift to myself, I bought a 2009 Honda Fit Sport. When I moved to Orlando, Florida that little car did me well. Even better than the fuel efficiency was the company I had during the trip. My family helped move me into my lovely apartment, which has become home for me and my cat, Ashes; being so far from Indiana isn’t quite so bad with that fur ball around to keep me company.
I moved to Orlando for my new job with Lockheed Martin. I am a systems engineer on the Test Team for the Assured Identity program. Our job is to upgrade the current Lockheed Martin employee badge system to smart cards. My job is to find and report defects in the new system as it’s being developed. Until recently I was on the Test Team full-time. Just last week I began a transition to take on a second role part-time. For this new role I gather and analyze metrics and represent the business area. I’m being challenged, and I really enjoy my job!
Indeed, the weather and nearby beaches are nice, but Orlando has given me so much more for which I am thankful! I’ve made several friends and found a fantastic church. I played on a Lockheed Martin sand volleyball team, and I am catcher for a Lockheed Martin softball team. Also, I joined a gym, a camera club, two running clubs and I even founded a book club!
I love to read and wanted to meet other readers around town, but no existing book clubs I found were working out, so I just started my own: The East Orlando Twenty-Something Book Club. Through the book club I’ve met other bookworms, and we have heaps of fun! We’re a pretty social bunch: trips to Busch Gardens, the beach, book sales, movie nights, bowling, and, of course, the actual book discussions. We read one book a month, but, in addition to that, I usually read another one or two books. The next book on my list is Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.
Here’s the latest on the family: Mom always keeps busy whether she’s gardening, quilting or running. She’s been running up such a storm that, believe it or not, she currently holds the Bennett Family Half-Marathon Record Time! Dad is continually studying his hobbies: photography and weaponry. His Navy background gives him a leg-up on the competition at the shooting range. Chucky has buzzed his hair and is aiming to become a Navy SEAL! With his wrestling history he will go far in that endeavor! Speaking of wrestling, Sam just signed with Northern Illinois University for a wrestling scholarship! I can’t wait to see him wrestle under the lights at State!
I sure do miss my family and friends who are far away, but, lucky for me, I’ve had many visits with them! Here are a few of the year’s highlights: Mom’s visit during Spring Break, running the Indianapolis 500 Mini Half-Marathon with Mom and Dad, Kristin & Aric’s wedding in Iowa and their visit for the Fourth of July, Mom’s summer visit, hanging out with my fellow Boilermakers and my Aunt Joan in nearby Melbourne, Sam’s fall visit, turning 23, Lana & Geof’s wedding, enjoying the Colts’ season with friends, Purdue’s Homecoming and reunion with college friends, all sorts of Halloween fun, and a surprise visit home for Thanksgiving!
That brings us to Christmastime! “And so I’m offering this simple phrase, to kids from one to ninety-two, although it’s been said many times, many ways, a very Merry Christmas to you!”
Amanda Bennett
06 September 2009
The Bubba Roll
Just a quick blurb about the remainder of Sam's visit back in August (for a quick link to the first part, click here).
After a great weekend at the beach and Busch Gardens we settled into a work-week sort of routine. I, of course, went to work as I normally do, while Sam, of course, managed to mix up his days and nights by staying up to ungodly hours of the night (well, morning, really) playing his beloved X-Box. I'm really happy I had an HDTV for him on which he could play his video games.
Through the week we hit the gym a couple times. Sam seemed to like my gym, but he wasn't as blown away as Mom was, haha. Anyway, he was glad to get a couple workouts into his visit. Aside from the gym we saw a movie: The Collector, which neither of us were impressed with. Sam was a little mislead by the preview, apparently. The movie was by the same director as the Saw movies, just to give you an idea of what the film entailed. If it had attended to a small bit of the plot towards the end it would have at least been a decent movie, despite the blood, guts and gore. Oh, well.
The other big event during the week was my taking Sam out for sushi for the first time. I'm happy to report that I've converted yet another person to enjoy sushi. One of my colleagues, Jesse Henderson III, was in town from Maryland, and whenever Jesse visits, a group of us go to Wine Down Wednesdays at Urban Flats, then we have sushi at Fuji Sushi. Sam and I skipped Wine Down and went straight for the sushi. Given that we were with Jesse, it was a fun time; always a riot! Sam and Jesse almost instantly clicked and had a couple moments that I'll chuck under "bonding," haha. Sam's favorite roll was The Bubba Roll; he didn't care at all for my spicy tuna roll, haha. Anyway, the food was delicious and we had a good night.
myself, Sam, Jesse, et. al. at Fuji Sushi
I really enjoyed Sam's company for the week that he visited. I'm so glad we've reached that point in our relationship where we can start to relate and be friends as well as siblings. (The four year age gap made that difficult until recently.) Thanks for a fun visit, Sam! Love you!
Amanda
After a great weekend at the beach and Busch Gardens we settled into a work-week sort of routine. I, of course, went to work as I normally do, while Sam, of course, managed to mix up his days and nights by staying up to ungodly hours of the night (well, morning, really) playing his beloved X-Box. I'm really happy I had an HDTV for him on which he could play his video games.
Through the week we hit the gym a couple times. Sam seemed to like my gym, but he wasn't as blown away as Mom was, haha. Anyway, he was glad to get a couple workouts into his visit. Aside from the gym we saw a movie: The Collector, which neither of us were impressed with. Sam was a little mislead by the preview, apparently. The movie was by the same director as the Saw movies, just to give you an idea of what the film entailed. If it had attended to a small bit of the plot towards the end it would have at least been a decent movie, despite the blood, guts and gore. Oh, well.
The other big event during the week was my taking Sam out for sushi for the first time. I'm happy to report that I've converted yet another person to enjoy sushi. One of my colleagues, Jesse Henderson III, was in town from Maryland, and whenever Jesse visits, a group of us go to Wine Down Wednesdays at Urban Flats, then we have sushi at Fuji Sushi. Sam and I skipped Wine Down and went straight for the sushi. Given that we were with Jesse, it was a fun time; always a riot! Sam and Jesse almost instantly clicked and had a couple moments that I'll chuck under "bonding," haha. Sam's favorite roll was The Bubba Roll; he didn't care at all for my spicy tuna roll, haha. Anyway, the food was delicious and we had a good night.
I really enjoyed Sam's company for the week that he visited. I'm so glad we've reached that point in our relationship where we can start to relate and be friends as well as siblings. (The four year age gap made that difficult until recently.) Thanks for a fun visit, Sam! Love you!
Amanda
09 August 2009
He Doesn't Like Tea
Sam's visit so far has been quite a good time! It's been lovely having him as a guest in my home and city and state. = )
He got in Thursday evening, and professed that he was starving and craving some Chinese food. We stumbled upon a tasty buffet that proved to be perfectly satiating. We got back to my apartment, I gave him the grand tour, he exclaimed how he loved it. It was a fun surprise for him that I had recently invested in an HDTV that could be used for his Xbox gaming antics. The only thing was Ashes' reaction to Sam, haha. The cat went into hiding immediately and would hiss at Sam when we tried to get Ashes out from under the beds. I'd never seen my beloved feline act in such a way, but whatever behavior that was seems to have gone. It was bizarre, I tell you, but all is well now between the two males. (Silly males...)
After Sam got settled into his quarters we went to see The Hangover. Absolutely hilarious! I loved Allen the best, haha! We were laughing throughout the entire film. Loved it. Sam and I were quoting it the rest of the night!
Friday I went to work and had a really dull time at the dentist in the afternoon. Sam slept until 1 or 2 and gamed the rest of the evening. That evening I decided I would purchase a Blu Ray DVD player to take full advantage of my HDTV. Naturally I had to buy my first Blu Ray DVD: Batman Begins. So Sam got to partake in the breaking in of my latest piece of technology and see an awesome movie (how he hadn't seen the entire movie before, I do not know). We stayed up until 3 AM, haha.
Saturday morning we hit Paradise Beach. The weather couldn't have been more perfect, and the waves were absolutely enormous! I'd never seen them so huge. We played in them for a good while before we tuckered out and retired to layout and relax. Neither of us were burnt; quite happy about that.
Sam & I at Paradise Beach, Melbourne
yours, truly
After the beach we stopped by our Aunt Joan's house so I could work on her computer (dead hard drive). While there I shared Aunt Joan's Ice Cream Sandwiches treat with Sam (it would have been wrong of me not to). Upon returning to Orlando we had some Taco Bell that we had at my apartment complex's poolside. Turns out some of my friends from work who recently moved into my complex were hanging out at the pool. Sam and I enjoyed their company, and I proved myself in a little freestyle race, hehe. I tried to warn Jeremy that I was a bit experience in the great sport of swimming. = P Afterwards Sam and I hung out at the apartment and I got some good reading in for my first book club Meetup. I'm about half-way through Fahrenheit 451 now. I really like it, but more on that later.
Today the two of us spent our day at Busch Gardens, Tampa. Boy, was it fun! It had been a few years since I'd been to a theme park, and who better to spend a roller coaster day with than my baby brother!
Sam & I on the tram to the entrance of Busch Gardens, Tampa
I think SheiKra was our favorite; we rode it twice we liked it so much! It's a short ride, but totally awesome because of the straight-down drops!
The Big Drop on SheiKra
Busch Gardens is a great park because there is more than just roller coasters and miscellaneous rides (the Flight of the Phoenix was my second favorite, by the way - think Kings' Island's Viking Ship but one that goes all the way upside down and in full circle!). Anyway, Busch Gardens is also a zoo! I was like a little kid when we passed by the safari animals on the train ride! Elephants, rhinos, ostrich, giraffe (my favorite this time - usually it's tigers/lions but we only saw one tiger), zebra, an ant eater, and, of course, crocs and gators! I really liked the flamingos, too!
me with the flamingos
Everywhere you looked there were topiaries! I liked the tiger and the lion the best.
Me with the terrifying tiger topiary
Sam & I at the end of the day, next to the majestic lion topiary
Amanda
PS - in case you're wondering what the title of this entry has to do with anything, Sam and I had a candid conversation where he stated how he didn't like any type of tea. The way in which he stated it was very funny because it was exactly like Bubba explaining all the types of shrimp meals his momma could cook up. = ) Tea has become a bit of a running joke for me and Sam.
He got in Thursday evening, and professed that he was starving and craving some Chinese food. We stumbled upon a tasty buffet that proved to be perfectly satiating. We got back to my apartment, I gave him the grand tour, he exclaimed how he loved it. It was a fun surprise for him that I had recently invested in an HDTV that could be used for his Xbox gaming antics. The only thing was Ashes' reaction to Sam, haha. The cat went into hiding immediately and would hiss at Sam when we tried to get Ashes out from under the beds. I'd never seen my beloved feline act in such a way, but whatever behavior that was seems to have gone. It was bizarre, I tell you, but all is well now between the two males. (Silly males...)
After Sam got settled into his quarters we went to see The Hangover. Absolutely hilarious! I loved Allen the best, haha! We were laughing throughout the entire film. Loved it. Sam and I were quoting it the rest of the night!
Friday I went to work and had a really dull time at the dentist in the afternoon. Sam slept until 1 or 2 and gamed the rest of the evening. That evening I decided I would purchase a Blu Ray DVD player to take full advantage of my HDTV. Naturally I had to buy my first Blu Ray DVD: Batman Begins. So Sam got to partake in the breaking in of my latest piece of technology and see an awesome movie (how he hadn't seen the entire movie before, I do not know). We stayed up until 3 AM, haha.
Saturday morning we hit Paradise Beach. The weather couldn't have been more perfect, and the waves were absolutely enormous! I'd never seen them so huge. We played in them for a good while before we tuckered out and retired to layout and relax. Neither of us were burnt; quite happy about that.
After the beach we stopped by our Aunt Joan's house so I could work on her computer (dead hard drive). While there I shared Aunt Joan's Ice Cream Sandwiches treat with Sam (it would have been wrong of me not to). Upon returning to Orlando we had some Taco Bell that we had at my apartment complex's poolside. Turns out some of my friends from work who recently moved into my complex were hanging out at the pool. Sam and I enjoyed their company, and I proved myself in a little freestyle race, hehe. I tried to warn Jeremy that I was a bit experience in the great sport of swimming. = P Afterwards Sam and I hung out at the apartment and I got some good reading in for my first book club Meetup. I'm about half-way through Fahrenheit 451 now. I really like it, but more on that later.
Today the two of us spent our day at Busch Gardens, Tampa. Boy, was it fun! It had been a few years since I'd been to a theme park, and who better to spend a roller coaster day with than my baby brother!
I think SheiKra was our favorite; we rode it twice we liked it so much! It's a short ride, but totally awesome because of the straight-down drops!
Busch Gardens is a great park because there is more than just roller coasters and miscellaneous rides (the Flight of the Phoenix was my second favorite, by the way - think Kings' Island's Viking Ship but one that goes all the way upside down and in full circle!). Anyway, Busch Gardens is also a zoo! I was like a little kid when we passed by the safari animals on the train ride! Elephants, rhinos, ostrich, giraffe (my favorite this time - usually it's tigers/lions but we only saw one tiger), zebra, an ant eater, and, of course, crocs and gators! I really liked the flamingos, too!
Everywhere you looked there were topiaries! I liked the tiger and the lion the best.
Amanda
PS - in case you're wondering what the title of this entry has to do with anything, Sam and I had a candid conversation where he stated how he didn't like any type of tea. The way in which he stated it was very funny because it was exactly like Bubba explaining all the types of shrimp meals his momma could cook up. = ) Tea has become a bit of a running joke for me and Sam.
Folden Visit
Over the Fourth of July weekend some very dear friends of mine stopped in for a lovely visit. It was such a treat to have Kristin & Aric as guests for a few days. It was ungodly hot on the Fourth of July, but we strolled around Lake Eola and took in some of the festivities (including fishy caramel popcorn - ugh, haha!), and then I showed them my favorite place in Orlando: The Drunken Monkey, a fantastic coffee house that I frequent often. It was there that I taught Aric how to play Backgammon. We also "had" to bum around our beloved Waterford Lakes Town Center Barnes & Noble!
By the way, I've never seen Ashes take to people so well as he took to Kristin & Aric. They loved him and he sure did enjoy their company. I loved watching the three of them "race" to Ashes' "room," haha! Too funny!
The next day the Foldens (awe, it sounds so pleasant, doesn't it? The Foldens...) joined me at church. Afterwards they helped me tackle the acquisition of a TV. Aric was very manly and brought it up three flights of stairs to my apartment; the stand, too, which was considerably heavier than the TV. While Kristin and I assembled things, Aric made Folden Chili (sans corn, hehe), and it was delicious! He made lots so that I'd have some to eat through my coming work week. That evening we watched Sunshine on my brand new HDTV and I taught Kristin to play Backgammon (she came around to it) while we did Queen Helene Mint Julep facial masks.
Needless to say, it was a wonderful weekend. = )
Kristin & I
Mr. & Mrs. Folden
Amanda
By the way, I've never seen Ashes take to people so well as he took to Kristin & Aric. They loved him and he sure did enjoy their company. I loved watching the three of them "race" to Ashes' "room," haha! Too funny!
The next day the Foldens (awe, it sounds so pleasant, doesn't it? The Foldens...) joined me at church. Afterwards they helped me tackle the acquisition of a TV. Aric was very manly and brought it up three flights of stairs to my apartment; the stand, too, which was considerably heavier than the TV. While Kristin and I assembled things, Aric made Folden Chili (sans corn, hehe), and it was delicious! He made lots so that I'd have some to eat through my coming work week. That evening we watched Sunshine on my brand new HDTV and I taught Kristin to play Backgammon (she came around to it) while we did Queen Helene Mint Julep facial masks.
Needless to say, it was a wonderful weekend. = )
Amanda
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