Mocha's got happy mail!

It's not every day you go to the mailbox and find a hand-addressed letter. . . to your dog! Julie (yes, she's a Sparkle Girl) sent this sweet surprise to Mocha all the way from Washington State.

Isn't Mocha a lucky girl?

Thank you, Julie--Mocha and I love this whimsical card!

Yum, Yum, Yum!

This weekend, I worked on a big batch of cards for my niece, who started studying French this year.

Here's a sample of what I made using the set En Ovale from the new 2009 SU! Spring Mini.

Don't these colors remind you of Neapolitan ice cream? Or maybe strawberry-dipped soft-serve cones from the Tastee Freez? Chocolate Chip, Regal Rose and Sahara Sand--my new favorite color combo!

Remembering our sweet Sydney Dog

It's hard to believe that 13 months have passed since our darling Sydney Dog was diagnosed with T-cell lymphoma. Even harder to imagine that it was three months ago today that we gave our furry little blessing back to God.

How special those 10 extra months we had with her were! In dogs, lymphoma cannot currently be cured. So, the treatment is all about maintaining an excellent quality of life while suppressing the cancer as long as possible. And indeed, until the final weeks, you wouldn't have guessed that she was ill at all.

We often joked that Sydney was probably thinking that the good life got even better starting last March. More treats! Better treats! New bones! Ball collection triples! Longer walks--and *twice* a day, when Daddy doesn't go to work! Lots of rides! Visits to Grandmother's and Aunt Joy's! Eggs with dinner! Less being the Big Guard Dog and more being the Big Go-With Dog!

So many happy memories, such a sweet little dog. . . .