Lucy is on the Loose (y)

OMG!!! puppy time is crazy time. This has been a wild ride, because our new Lucy is a super duper handful of teeth, speed, barks, naps, then repeat. We are like two stressed out parents. Me, holding down two jobs and finding time for the dog, and trying to keep Ba Kitty feeling ok about it all. Mark, with grad school and research. Man, when does the fun start and the stress stop? I have no idea. But this weekend we start training class with her and on Tuesday we are getting some help from a personal dog trainer. Here's hoping. Also, here is a picture of our little fire starter. Ohhhhhh, she looks cute (well, ok I guess she is cute) BUT man she is a rascal.

27th Birthday and Puppy Time

So it's gonna be a busy weekend. Yes, I wish it were here already. Work has been stressfull this week and I find myself living more and more for the weekends these days. In fact my coworker said to me this morning that it felt like Friday today. Oh how I wish it were friday. But as some of you know, two major things are happening this weekend. On Saturday Mark and I drive to spring green wisconsin to get our puppy and on Sunday it's my 27th birthday, which will be a low key day of playing with the new dog.

Friday night I am having a birthday party at the Brocach Irish pub. Just drinks with friends, nothing major, but it should still be fun. I reserved an upstairs room and am getting a cake. I look forward to drinking off the stress of the week :)

I will post lots of pictures from my party and puppy time on my flicker account, so make sure you check em out.

Ok, I'm off to an appointment, then the preschool and then the afterschool care program. Sigh, I wish it were 6:00pm already :)

Welcome Our New Puppy

I've taken up the fine hobby of scrapbooking. Back in Seattle I worked on one with my mom and my sister, and it was a good time, so I thought I would start one myself. And I have the perfect topic: the new puppy. For those of you who haven't heard the good news, Mark and I will be bringing home our new German Shepherd puppy from the breeders home next weekend. The day before my 27th birthday. I cant believe how lucky I am. How many people can say they got a birthday puppy? Not very many. Needless to say Mark and I are super excited!

We have been busy getting ready for our new family member. I have been reading a ton of books over the past few months and just watched a training video by the monks of new skete whom breed German Shepherds. We have been thinking of names (no decisions yet) Talking about how it will all work with Ba Kitty. We also went to the pet store last weekend to get the essentials: crate, food, bowls, leash, toys. And like I mentioned I'm gonna start a scrapbook.

Ok :) time for pictures... Ohhhh and if you want to check out our breeders website: http://www.vomhausmiller.com/

Mark, Sarah, and Grace

Sarah and Grace

Since I've Been Back...

Life has been eventful since I came back to Madison from my wonderful vacation in Seattle.


First off, I got an iPhone which was a gift from my family for the Hanukkah. Mark and I went to the apple store in the West Towne Mall to pick it up. We went early in the morning on a Sunday so as to avoid the crowds, which was a good plan because that is the only apple store in town and they are quite busy. At first, I didn't want to say goodbye to my trusty old cell phone of 4 plus years. I was surprised to feel attached to technology. I didn't think I would get sentimental about a phone, but it had worked so well for so long, I never had to change the battery or anything. However, what finally sold me was that the monthly phone bill would be the same price. With the iPhone I could surf the net, check email, make calls, use all the cool apps. With my old cell all I could do was call people, take fuzzy pictures, and that's about it. So for the same price per month I could have an iPhone? I was sold. and I love the new phone. It really is amazing, it's extremely easy to use and fun. mark and I are big dorks. We wake up on the weekend and lay in bed for an hour or two dinkin around on our iPhones.


Also since getting back Mark and I have been looking into getting a dog. We have been talking about it for almost a year now. We have read some great dog books and studied all sorts of breeds and made contact with a few breeders and rescues in and around Wisconsin. The search is going well so far. Last week we were really excited because we had a great lead. A woman who lives just an hour out of town had her first litter of Chinook puppies. It's a rare breed and both mark and I love! If you want to learn more about them go here : http://www.chinookclubofamerica.org/


They are an amazing breed. So we went to her home and spent time with the breeder, her dog and the 11 pups. It was a wonderful day and Mark and I both fell in love with the puppies and there mom Kaya. When we were leaving, the breeder told us we had a really good chance at having one of the puppies because we live close by to her and we seem like a good home. But, unfortunately we were on a waiting list so we didn't know wither or not to get our hopes up. Sure enough she e-mailed us in the middle of this past week and told us that the families above us on the waiting list seem like good homes, so at this point she wont make a dession until next week. Sigh, so Mark and I are still looking for other litters.


Work is going well. Some times its super exhausting and stressful, as working with children often is. But I really do like my co workers and at least we can all commiserate with each other about the job. We were gonna go out this weekend and have a few drinks but it never panned out. maybe next weekend. I also just snagged 10 more hours a week at the preschool! Which is great, but it's from 7:00-9:00 in the morning everyday, which is not so great, as getting up early is hard for me, but I will do my best :)


I finished two books. Twilight and Marley & Me. I absolutely loved Marley and Me. It made me laugh out loud it was so funny, and very well written.

More later on life and the puppy search.

:) Sarah

Seattle Homecoming

Way to much time had passed since my last post. Also, too many things have happened, far to many for me to fit in one blog entry, so here are some highlights.

Mark and I went to Seattle and had a wonderful time with friends and family. It was definitely a whirlwind trip, but I tried not to fit too much in and give myself a bit of down time, well, I tried but didn't totally succeed, I assured myself there would be plenty of time for sleep when arrived back in Wisconsin. But it was all worth it. I think it was the best vacation and home coming I have ever had, and it really helped to remind me that the goodbyes I said to everyone back in August weren't permanent, just temporary. I knew that time and events had passed, but I feel like my relationships haven't changed that much and for that I am grateful.

I missed everyone so much as well as Seattle itself and all its perks. I think if i had to choose some favorite memories from my trip they would be going to the Banya 5 russian baths with some of my best friends from college and then to have pho noddle soup afterwords, having Christmas dinner on the 25th and Mark's family and my parents, having Hanukkah with with my mom, dad, Becca, and Paul, seeing my bubby and papa at shabbat, having a goodbye party at Goldie's in wallingford, pretty much everything was great! I was so happy to be home, it was really needed and way overdue.

I put some pictures from my holiday in Seattle on facebook, and will put them up on flicker in the next few days, but here are a few I thought you might like :) enjoy. Ohhh, and Happy new year everyone!

Chilly Weather, Chili Cookoff, and "Are joo a JEW?"

Hi everyone :) Six more days till Mark and I arrive in Seattle and I can't wait. Of course, it's gonna be kind of a hectic of a visit, trying too see everyone and fit in everything we want to do. But I am committed to making enough time to relax. Even if it is a whirlwind of a vacation, it should be really fun and defiantly much needed.

It's freaking COLD here. We are talking -15 with a wind chill people. It doesn't feel that bad because it's been getting colder and colder over a period of time, but it's definitely the coldest temp I have ever felt. My good friend Tessa states it accurately when she says this about Wisconsin winters: "It feels like Brain Freeze all over your body" Yeah, its true, you get that "Oh My God, it is soooooooo cold" feeling, and like brain freeze, you just want it to end. But, I'm glad I can come back to Seattle for a while and get a break from the cold and snow. It's been snowing all day here, it's all quite and sparkly outside, I love that, but the cold? no thanks :)

Mark and I are gonna have a chili cook off at our house in the spring (Some friends of ours host a chili cook off every year in Seattle and we wanted to bring that tradition here to Wisconsin). So we have been getting ready and looking at recipes. Last night I made a great chicken chilli and I think I'm gonna enter it in the cook off. If you want the recipe it's posted in the October section of my blog. It's unlike chili's I have made before because it contains sweet potato. You grade it up and put it in, you cant really taste it much but it gives the chili a really nice consistency. Very cool. Give the recipe a try :)

All my Hanukkah and Christmas shopping is done. So that's a relief. I did a lot of it on-line this year which worked out quite well, but I still went into all the malls so I guess I didn't avoid all the crowds. In fact, I was in the mall last weekend, getting a book I have been wanting and some cards for everyone, and it was quite insane. Lot's of people and crying kids, man I have to deal with that at work, why do I have to be around crying kids on the weekend? But, anyways, you know how when you go to the mall there are those kiosks in the middle of the lane? Well, the East Towne Mall in Madison has soooo many of then and the people who man then are aggressive as hell! You'd think you were walking through a bazaar in a foreign country with everyone shouting at you and wanting you to try this lotion or buy this rug! It's crazy.

Anyway, there is this one guy who always works at this kiosk which sells flat irons for straightening your hair, and as you can imagine when I walk by he always gives me a hard time. he is always like " Jou! miss! voud jou like me to strayteen jour hair?" I'm not sure where his accent is from, but one day Mark and I were walking by and Mark said to me "Is his accent real?" "I don't know" I said. It does sound sort of put on, but maybe I'm being too judgemental.

So this weekend I went to the mall and happened to walk by this Kiosk. It seemed as if the man who works there jumped out form no where and said to me in a loud voice trying to attract my attention "ARE JOO A JEW?" I heard this and waved him away with my hand as to say "I'm not interested in the crap your trying to sell me." and walked on. I was wondering how he could tell I was a Jew and what a rude thing to ask a stranger in public. Then I realized I was wearing my gold Jewish star necklace my mother had given me, and it all made sense. Still! "Are joo a jew?" Come on! kinda rude, fake accent guy.

Ice on the Windows

So, you know that in places like California and Seattle people buy those cans of white frosty stuff that they spray around the windows to make it look like they have ice building up on them. it's one of those silly winter traditions that, non the less, gets people in the mood for the holidays. Well, I was very surprised to see a few homes and businesses do that here, because for the last week our windows have looked like this, and I think it's gonna stay this way all winter.

I like it really, it's kinda pretty. Mark is going sledding today with people from his department, I was invited but declined the offer, as I work late and am still getting over being sick. I am feeling better, but am very tired. My tummy is still not sure about food, but I'm trying to eat anyway.

I'm off to work. More blogging soon :)