MangObama

I took the Pastelitos to The King Mango Strut today. There were tons of people, lots of loud noises and many new smells. They got lots of attention since everyone who sees them has to stop and tell me how adorable they are. They behaved like champs, even going to sleep amidst all of the noise.

Pardon me, but you're standing on my tail

Last night, I went to a game night with friends. I took The Pastelitos along (with permission first, of course) because I've read that exposing puppies to as many different people and situations as possible before they are 16 weeks old makes them very well socialized. They are 15 weeks old today.

There was also a 10 month old baby there. I was a little worried that they would want to play too roughly, but they behaved wonderfully. At one point, they were both asleep in the middle of the floor and the baby was crawling all around them. All of a sudden, Queso lifted up his head and looked at the baby with a bit of concern. I looked down and saw that the baby was STANDING on Queso's tail. He didn't yelp, he didn't nip, he didn't even whine. When the baby got off of his tail, he went right back to sleep.

I've got the best Pastelitos in the world!

America Alone

I've done quite a bit of reading over the last months. Library cards are AWESOME! I just realized that I didn't post information about America Alone by Mark Steyn. I have quoted the premise of this book to so many people in the last few months that I need to put it here. I highly recommend it!

On my own time

One of the opening illustrations that Stephen Covey uses in his GREAT book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is that we would all be happier if time would just stand still for awhile so we can manage all of our tasks on our own time schedule. Imagine picking up task and being able to respond to it from start to finish without the pressing needs of everything else in your world.

That's what winter break is for - my days now consist of picking up one thing at a time (e-mail, chore, project, whatever) and spending as much time as needed on it until I can cross it off of my list FOREVER!

For the larger tasks, I set the timer for on hour. When the bell rings, I pack it up and table it for another time. When I think of something else to do, I add it to the list. (Lists are a great friend; electronic lists on my PDA are the greatest friend in the world!)

My goal is to get all of those "New Years Resolutions" about finishing projects done before New Years. Wish me luck!

Christmas Recovery

I'm feeling the benefits of staying home for Christmas: I'm not in "recovery" mode! I did get to see friends and family in Chicago the weekend before, but was home in time for Christmas Eve service at church. Christmas Day brought lots of quiet time, reading and reflection, doggy playtime and phone call greetings. It was a lot less stressful and I can feel how much more relaxed I am in the days following. I'm actually looking forward to another week of vacation time and have lots of projects/goals to catch up on with all of my free time!

The Next Mozart

I've decided to clean out my e-mail files and found a cool video from a long time ago. Unfortunately, I can't upload it, but here's a weblink showing you this little musical genius! Enjoy!

This time was different

An entry in the journal of the 7th grade Dean:

Dean: Jonathan, Mrs. Gonzalez said that you were throwing a paper airplane in class on Monday and that she asked you to stop.

Jonathan: Yes, I know.

Dean: And she wrote you up on Tuesday for throwing a paper airplane in class again

Jonathan: Yes, I know but I threw it for a different reason this time.

A Very Pez Nativity