Puppy Love

David, Athena, and I recently adopted another baby... He is not really a baby at all, he is 7 year old Great Dane (Danes only live to be about 8-10). He is at the end of life and I cant wait to give him the best years of his life. He is staying at my Moms until he gets healthy, and until Athena and him get used to one another! He is beautiful, and unfortunately his previous owners had to surrender him because they had starved him nearly to death. He gains more and more weight everyday and gets more and more energy everyday =] We love him and we are so happy to have him as part of our little family =]

Byron

Athena waiting to meet her big brother

Ice Festival

The McCall Winter Ice Festival is one of my favorite things! Its the highlight of winter to me!
We did not get to go last winter, but we were up in McCall quite often...we just happened to miss those few weeks.
Yesterday we went, it was a last minute decision. We saw some old friends up there and had lunch with a couple we know. Also, this was probably the smallest carnival yet, there were not many ice sculptures at all!!!

Still it was very fun and very beautiful, It started snowing while we were there, I really enjoy the drive (I think the roads are thrilling), I really enjoy the restaurants (My Fathers Place, Red Pavilion, The Mill, Steamers, etc,etc,), I love the weather, the memories that I/we have made there, and the whole atmosphere of a tiny remote town.
Here are some pictures of our trip..

This was my FAVORITE

Concert's

First off, I LOVE concerts, ANY concert!!!

My short list of some of the concerts I have attended:

Jacks Mannequin

Kelly Pickler

Thriving Ivory

May Day Parade

Julianne Huff

Joe Nichols

Taylor Swift

Jericho Road

Sugarland

Secondhand Serenade

Plain White T's

Gloriana

Jason Michael Carrol

.....It's honestly hard to remember every concert I have attended.

I know I have my concert ticket stubs put away somewhere in my scrapbooking boxes, I need to gather them all together!

 I would like to have my list tripled before I have any kids =]

The first concert tickets I have bought this year are for Katy Perry on her California Dreams Tour! The concert itself is not until July '11, But, tickets went on sale early!

Concerts really can 'make you' or 'break you'. This can mean whatever you want but how I am meaning it is, Someone can seem AWESOME and their performance really blows, or, you might not really care for a singer or group but you go to accompany someone, and in return you fall in love with the band.

Music is beautiful, I can't imagine not having it on somewhere in the house 24/7.

-Laura

Dream House

Since I was only 15 or 16 I have been in love with this 6 split floor level home.

Its beautiful, and everything I have ever wanted, and since wanted in a house. I had met the lovely older couple who lived in the house and they being the wonderful people they were let me walk around their house and explore every nook and cranny! What a dream!

I was always sure that I could never have this house as my own because it was too magnificent and they were too old (to sell) and too young (to die) :] and they had many many children , and I was sure one of them would buy/inherit the house.

Recently, recently as in a couple months ago, I went on a drive to see it, something I have done often, and there it was, the 'For Sale' sign hanging in the front lawn, I reacted with excitement and a huge smile, than I thought about it...

a) I just bought a house less than a year ago

b) Being only 20, I don't have enough credit to get such a huge loan for this HUGE house (my credit is OUTSTANDING, don't get me wrong, theres just not a lot of it)

c) David isn't an impulse buyer like I.. (good, bad, sometimes its both)

d) ect, ect, ect..

I was so sad and disappointed! and quite frankly I still am, thats always been my dream house!!

It's sitting on a big lot, wrap around porch, 6 split levels, like 12 bedrooms (used to be a boarding house back in the day), They just a frame and glass over the top of a piece of the original wall paper (If any one ever paints over this or tears it down my heart will break), Words can not describe the magnificent stair case inside, this truly is the dream, this is the house I wanted my kids to sing Miranda Lambert's 'House That Built    Me' too.

So I took all the qualities I want from this house, and other houses, and from my own thoughts, and I put together a a list of things, a full box, pictures, cut outs, thoughts.

"Mama cut out pictures of houses for years
From "Better Homes and Garden" magazine
Plans were drawn and concrete poured
And nail by nail and board by board
Daddy gave life to mama's dream"

These are some of the things I like and some of the things i MUST have.

I need one of the tallest doors, preferably French double doors, but, TALL TALL TALL..

The house needs to be BRICK and HUGE, for all our kids and family and Great Danes to Roam, (thats why we need a big piece of land!)

I LOVE stairs!! I need to have lots of stairs and they need to be stunning!! 

I need a HUGE vaulted fireplace, a few of them, One in the living room, one in the master bedrooms, etc

 The walk in shower in our master bedroom will be amazing, rock, 3 shower heads, walk in, ect. We need a very large bath tub that can fit 4 or 5 people, No we will never fill it up, I just want to have the room =] My Sister-In-Law Mandy has the most gorgeous walk in shower, I want one just like hers! You could fit 14 people in it!

In the other master, it can be an average bathroom =] afterall, its only for guests!

I will have to add more later, after I get all my thoughts and pictures better organized =] 

-The Coles

Picture Update!

 This is baby Sammy when she was 1 week old, 5lbs, thats David celly phone on her belly =]

Dave and Sammy

Oh My, My My.. :]

I need help!
My 13mo old baby girl, Athena, wakes me up between 4-6 EVERY morning. She does not need to eat, drink, play, pee, ect. She just wants me to come lay in her queen size bed with her, Since she is not allowed in our King bed with us (I thought thats why we bought a King, so there was room for 3 of us!!) and cuddle. At first I thought this was sooo cute, and don't get me wrong I still do very much, BUT I don't get great sleep when she does this, and my neck hurts like nobodies business. =[
She is very soft and warm, and the same size as me (125lbs) so cuddling with her is absolute BLISS! But one day (possibly yesterday) I think i'm going to regret letting her form this habit. It needs broke and I need to do it in the best way, I tried making a bed on the floor with blankets, pillows, ect. and laying with her on there for approx 15min and then climbing up the 3 feet to my own bed (when you're half asleep that feels like an obstacle coarse), But, again, no luck!