Mavis

Room to Breathe

Whew, life has been full for Jimmy and I lately. Between training Mavis, tackling house projects, taking on some extra responsibilities at church, working, and Jimmy taking violin lessons, we have both found our selves completely worn out.

brown and white parti colored cocker spaniel puppy sleeping on couch

I pretty much look like this at the end of every day lately!

We talked about how we’ve been feeling busy, so busy we don’t have breathing room in our days and weeks. When we have an obligation every single night for weeks straight, something has to give, you know? We’re both introverts and just don’t thrive off of constant socializing.

We realized we needed to make some adjustments, decide what is truly important, and which obligations we aren’t willing to give up. So, here’s where we’re at now.

  • Jimmy isn’t going to take violin lessons anymore. This was expensive and took a decent chunk of time each week. He put a lot of pressure on himself to be ready for each lesson. Now he can practice at his leisure and truly enjoy it.
  • Mavis is done with training! She passed Adult Level II, which was the highest level class we could do at the pet store we went to. We are so burnt out on training and have been going to classes once a week since August. We are all ready for a break and the opportunity to train on our own time at home.
  • We won’t give up the new church responsibilities, because our focus in life is Christ and living for Him. Serving God means serving our local church (among many other things!), and we wouldn’t want to give that up in a million years.
  • We are trying to cut back on any extra obligations that pop up. We are both pretty bad at saying no to people, but we’re working on it 😉

This week is our first week without violin lessons or Mavis’ training and we feel like we have room to breathe. That is a wonderful feeling!

Have you ever found yourself overly busy for an extended period of time?

Currently: March 2018

Current book The City Baker’s Guide to Country Living by Louise Miller. I’m about 1/3 of the way into it and so far it has been a light, easy read.

Current Drink I literally just finished drinking a Dunkin’ Donuts coffee as I started this post. ‘Twas delicious.

Small Dunkin' Donuts coffee with cream

Current beauty product DevaCurl shampoo and conditioner. As I mentioned in my last post, my hairdresser really wanted me to try this out. I feel like it’s too soon to tell a difference since I haven’t used it for a solid amount of time, but I’m liking it so far!

Current goal Cleaning out our closets and donating clothes we no longer wear. Also, finishing writing my book. I’m at 81,000 words and so close to wrapping up the first draft!

Current obsession Guys, I’m in cake mode again!! I was asked to make my father-in-law’s wedding cake since he’s getting married in May and I’m 100% obsessed with all things cake right now.

He and his fiancé asked for a Harley Davidson-themed cake, so I’ve been nailing down exactly what I want to do in terms of details and just practicing layering the different tiers of the cake. My fingers are stained with gel food coloring and I’ve been highlighting and studying a guide on working with fondant. I am one happy girl when I’m in cake mode 🙂

Three layer wedding cake with fondant and Harley Davidson colors

A super bare-bones trial run.

Current mood Excited (for spring and Daylight Savings!).

Current blessing Jimmy. He’s just so sweet, kind, caring, and hardworking.

Current excitement Mavis has reached the highest level of training (Adult Level II) at our local pet store and has her last class and Canine Good Citizen test tonight! We have been taking her to training once a week since August, when she was 10 weeks old. She’s basically grown up in this pet store, haha.

It’s definitely bittersweet to be ending this part of her journey because we love the trainer we’ve been working with. I’m sure there’s more training at different facilities in Mavis’ future, though!

Parti colored Cocker Spaniel puppy therapy dog in training harness on walk

Current confession I’ve been so slow about doing laundry lately. I have no problem washing it… it just sits in the laundry basket all clean for like three days until I fold and put it away 😉

Current prayer Healing for all involved in the recent school shooting in Florida.

Current indulgence Researching all things cake-related for my father-in-law’s wedding. I have some flavor combos I’m dying to try!

Wilton cake decorating guide working with fondant

Current procrastination Catching up on all things computer-related. I have some work for my family’s real estate business to do, I want to catch up on blog reading, clear out my email inbox, and more. It will all get done, eventually!

Current food Thin mints! It’s Girl Scout Cookie season, aka the most wonderful time of the year. What are your favorite flavors of Girl Scout Cookies? My #1 is thin mints and then trefoils.

Thin mints girl scout cookies in box

Current craving I want to paint my nails. I just need to find make the time to do it!

Current need A new wire for our Petzi Treat Cam. Mavis and Lola chewed it while trying to get treats out of the camera so its out of commission for the time being! Naughty pups.

Current question What is your favorite part about spring? I think mine is just seeing green grass again and watching flowers and trees bud. Or maybe more daylight and warmer weather? Or maybe spring rain? Love that sound. It’s just such a beautiful time.