just because i find it hilarious...

So, in < three weeks Rob and I are going to be in our very first wedding together, as bridesmaid and groomsman.  You probably remember me talking about Paige and Jarrod?  Anyway, Paige has graciously allowed her bridesmaids to select a shirt and shoes of their choice, but we are all wearing matching skirts.  Well, I picked out a shirt a few months ago and held onto it, feeling good about my choice.  But now that it's getting closer, I am second-guessing myself.  To put myself at ease, I decided to have Rob take some pictures of me in my potential bridesmaid garb to send to Paige for approval.  Aaaand this is what I got:

and I saved the best for last...

If you even have the option, zoom in on my face.  oh. my. gee.  For real, I told Rob it looks like I got high as a kite and then he beat me up, took a picture, and Simon is too ashamed to even watch.  This is quite possibly the most unflattering photograph in the entire world.  I love it.

Rob, my love, you are quite the photographer.  

ALSO: hopefully I'm able to be a bit more photogenic for the wedding photos.  Just saying.

on organization and other weekend randoms

Ugh.  Is it really Sunday night?  Weekends are going by way too quickly as of late.  Mr. Chipman and I had a pretty full weekend (again) and therefore did not get a lot done in the way of home projects and things that at this point I seem to be perpetually putting off.

On Friday we drove Anka and her friend Marie to the airport.   After that we went to Dewey's (always).

Saturday, I did laundry.  So, so much laundry.  For a long while I was super good about keeping up with the laundry.  I would be able to do all the laundry each weekend in 3 loads and I would be completely caught up.  However, in recent weeks I have skipped over that chore and therefore spent hours Saturday morning/afternoon doing load after load of laundry.   And since it's getting so flipping cold here in the great midwest, I can no longer dry clothes outside :(  P.S. I am still not caught up with laundry.    I had to cut it short and start getting ready for that fancy American Classical Music Hall of Fame stuff I went to with Rob and his company.  We attended the symphony afterward and it was pretty good.  I mean, I was tired and the classical music wasn't doing much to keep me awake.  I love Music Hall, though.  Unfortunately, we didn't take any pictures of us looking like total babes in all our formal wear.  Which is a shame, because I ended up dropping a lot of money to obtain some fancy clothes.

And now it's Sunday, and we spent sooooooooooo much time doing church stuff.  And then we got home and I was determined that we'd start organizing the home office.  Well, naturally I started stressing out and gave up, and now we have a desk, a broken chair, a storage bench, and a pile of random knickknacks sitting in the living room because I refuse to put them back in the computer room.  Blah, we really need to get that basement redone so I don't feel so bad about dumping this stuff down there.

Anyway, I know all this stuff is super enlightening but I'm going to spare anymore details of my exhilarating weekend.

i know i said i wouldn't...

...but come on, he's a cutie patootie.  yeah, i said it.

Also, I picked up this rabbit toy for Simon this past weekend and he carries it around like his baby.  

date night, etc.

I think this Saturday counts as a pretty good one.  Even though Simon the Wise has quite turned into Simon the Whiner, mourning his captivity between the hours of 3 and 7 AM, we have still decided to keep him :).  This little guy sure is rearranging our schedules.  Around 11, I met with Rob's coworker/friend, Alyssa, and we went to the mall and got dresses for the Music Hall business next Saturday.  Then Rob and I spent the afternoon hanging out/cleaning/Simon entertaining and then my parents came over for dinner.  I decided to invite them over when I realized we hadn't had them over for anything besides house maintenance since we moved, and I thought that was kind of crappy.  I made chicken parmigiana and it was delish.  We need to have Rob's fam over sometime for the same.

After my family left, we decide to turn the remaining hours of Saturday into a date night, traveling up to West Chester to use our Rave passes and see Moneyball.  It was a pretty good movie and being at Union Centre was like old, pre-married times.

Now we are laying in bed, dreading the fact we have the alarm goes off in less than 4 hours for church business.  We are also experimenting letting Simon sleep in our room tonight.  So far he is staying on his pillow from his crate at the foot of the bed, so that's good.

Aaaand that's all she wrote.

Goodnight, blogpeople.

on updating.

I believe a few weeks back, I made some reference to my hopes of getting some kind of regular posting plan down, so all of my posts don't sound like rambling nonsense.  Well, I am here to report that I am nowhere near accomplishing that but after just reviewing my previous post, I can see something needs to be done.

Until next time.

things

Simon has gone through a relapse the past couple days.  Monday and Tuesday he whined ALL NIGHT.  I mean, like every hour.  The first night I felt really bad, and ended up waking up at 5 for him.  By Tuesday I was just getting pissed off, and luckily last night he slept (I think) soundly.  I/Rob closed the door to our room, anyway.  And he was getting better with people, like way better.  I took him to Eden Park to go on a walk with my friend Sara and her dog, Penny (Sara just moved back from North Carolina - yay!) and Simon was TOTALLY NORMAL.  He was even jumping up to Sara and wanting her to pet him and stuff and I thought we had reached a breakthrough.  However, on aforementioned days, during his walks, EVERYTHING terrified Simon, once again.  He violently through himself toward the street when we approached an abandoned toy truck on the sidewalk.  Every person we passed he obviously suspected as a dognapper/murderer.  And kids?  Nervous breakdowns.  He can't even handle them.

Has anybody had any similar experiences with their dog?   Specifically fear of people (especially children) that they have overcome?


In other news, I love my new schedule on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.  I have 2 hours purely to myself in the morning and it is glorious.

Also, Rob and I will be attending some fundraising gala and whatnot at freakin' MUSIC HALL on October 1.  It is honoring composer Philip Glass and his induction into the American Classical Music hall of fame, but also trying to raise money for a unique project that Rob's company has been hired to do for them.  Rob is even presenting at the event.  Needless to say, I am terrified.  We are not classy and I have to go out and buy all new fancy clothes just so I don't look like a savage at this snooty event.

more about simon.

Simon is doing so, so great.  We officially adopted him this past Saturday and he is such a great dog.  There are noticeable improvements every single day and he wasn't a bad guy to start!  Love this little dog :)

P.S. I promise I'm not going to be posting about my dog all the time now.