Sweet Dog Needs Good Home

So 2010 didn't start out great. The first four days of it I had a migraine headache that I could not get rid of. The fifth day, I was feeling so much better and then the worst thing happened. Our sweet dog Boomer bit Isabella. She was crawling around in the kitchen while I fed the dogs and once Boomer started eating, she just went straight for him. I turned my back for two seconds and didn't see her or even think about the fact that she shouldn't be on the ground while they were eating. Anyway, she got too close and Boomer just turned and snapped at her and got her in the face. I, of course, freaked out. She is totally fine, her wounds are almost totally healed already, but obviously it could have been a lot worse.

The reason I am writing this bummer of a blog is that Boomer needs to find a new home. He is really a sweet dog. He isn't a big fan of kids so the ideal home would be an older person(s) who has no kids around. He loves adults and we are absolutely heartbroken to have to get rid of him, but we just can't risk it happening again. So basically if you are reading this and know anyone looking to rescue a dog, please let me know. They or you can email me at kellitrent@gmail.com with any questions. We are just praying we can find him someone who will love him as much as we do!

Second Annual Top 10 Song List

So last year I made a list of top 10 songs for the year. When I thought about doing it this year, my first thought was 'when did I have time to listen to music? There is now way I could come up with 10 good ones!' But I just started thinking about it and suddenly I had a ton to choose from! So I put together my list for 2010. Just like last year, this list is not necessarily songs that came out this year, they are just the ones that were on my personal radar for the year. So here we go!

10. The Resolution - Jack's Mannequin
I am pretty sure I heard this song last year, but I really listened to it, over and over, this year. Nothing profound to say about this one, I just like it.

9. The Climb - Miley Cyrus
Yes, I know. Miley made my top 10, but I LOVE this song. When Isabella was first born and I was up many times during the night feeding her and feeding her took a LONG time at first, I would have the Christian radio station playing. And they played this song all the time. So whenever I hear it I always think back to those wee hours of morning when it was quiet and dark and Bella was so tiny. Sounds so sweet right now, but I am pretty sure at the time I was tired and wishing I could sleep. =)

8. Geraldine - Glasvegas
I can't understand 90% of the words in this song without looking them up because this band is Scottish. But this song has a great beat and tune and I love the way he says Geraldine.

7. Til Summer Comes Around - Keith Urban
This song FEELS like what he is singing about. When I listen to it I feel like I am standing on this pier as the sun goes down on another summer. I need a jacket and am just feeling so sad and hopeless. Ha, not sure why that means it makes my top ten but it does.

6. Lights Out - Santigold
No idea what it is about, but I used to sing the 'darlinnnn' part to Bella all the time and she would always smile, so maybe that is why I like it.

5. Ramalama (Bang Bang) - Roisin Murphy
I first heard this song on So You Think You Can Dance this summer. They were showing some routines from past seasons and this was a group Wade Robson routine that I had never seen. It was awesome and so is this song.

4. Very Busy People - The Limousines
So I have always been kind of a goody two shoes, but there is this tiny little rebel in me that secretly likes vulgar songs that are full of swear words. That little rebel picked this song to be on my list. If you decide to go give it a listen, please don't judge me. =)

3. You Don't Know Me - Ben Folds
A great song that has great insight about way too many people's relationships. When I was pregnant I would get things stuck in my head all the time - songs, phrases, names whatever - and I would literally wake up all the time with this song already going. At least it was a song I loved!

2. Should You Return - Copeland
This is a band that I heard about on the ACL message boards and after giving them a listen on My Space (does anyone use that anymore?), I got their CD 'You Are My Sunshine'. The whole thing is great, including another haunting song Strange and Unprepared, but this one is my fave.

1. Hey Now - Augustana
2009 was the year of Augustana for me. I bought their last CD when Sweet and Low came out, but only listened to that song for the longest time since I didn't love their first CD, even though Boston is a great song. This year I started listening to it and played it over and over and over while I got Bella's nursery all painted and put together and then it became my CD of choice for those late nights when I wasn't listening to Miley on 94.9. =) 20 Years almost made the list, but I decided to stick with just this one song. SO good. I was lucky enough to get to hear them sing it live this summer on their tour with Counting Crows.

So that is my list. Like last year I will add a few honorable mentions that didn't make the list, but also were some faves of 2009. First is Use Somebody - Kings of Leon. I really liked it when it first came out, but now I am honestly kind of sick of it. Bad Romance by Lady Gaga is another one that I heard first on SYTYCD and loved. I have to admit, I am a LG fan. Jai Ho, the theme song to Slumdog Millionaire, is another great song - put it on your workout playlist. Last I am going to add Cath... by Death Cab. It was actually on my HM list last year, but only because I had really just heard it, but I kept loving it all this year, so I am giving it another mention.

Last year I asked for comments on what your favorite songs were for the year. I don't think anyone replied, but I will ask again because I always like to hear new music. So let me know! Happy listening in 2010!

All Bella wanted for Christmas...

...was her two front teeth, and she got 'em! The weeks leading up to Christmas were trying for me and Bells because she was not sleeping well. She would take forever to go down for naps and would wake up several times at night. That is VERY unlike her so I was starting to get very frustrated. However, when we were at my parents, she got her first tooth! The bottom left one and then within a couple of days she got the matching one to the right. You could barely see them at first, but now they are much more pronounced and when she chews on my fingers now I have to be careful to get them out of the way of the teeth. And now she is sleeping MUCH better. I can't believe she has teeth!! She seems too little. It just reminds me how I need to really enjoy every second. She is getting so big and I know I will turn around and she will be a grown person.

She is also crawling and pulling up on everything so I am having to be super careful about watching her. We have started baby proofing, but still have a lot to do. I know every stage is cuter than the last, but she is at the cutest stage! She smiles so much and gets so tickled about things. Her newest thing is to shake her head when she gets really excited. She will smile and just shake it real quick back and forth. No idea why, but it is cute. Here she is with her horse that Aunt Amanda and Uncle Jared got her for Christmas...


Isn't she the cutest?

Christmas 2009

We kicked off our Christmas celebration this year with our annual Texmas party that we have every year with some of our friends. This year it was at Lacey's house. We had a delicious meal and played Catch Phrase, per usual. We brought Isabella with us and put her to bed in her pack n play so we could stay up late! Here is a family pic...

The next day we drove to Tyler and back to have Christmas with my mom's side of the family. My Uncle Ronnie hadn't seen Isabella yet and we haven't gotten to see them in forever so it was a nice treat!

The next weekend Jason's parents came down for our Christmas celebration with them. I got to use my pretty new chargers and table runner and we busted out the china for the occasion. =)


We opened our last, and best, bottle of wine we got in Italy and Jason and his dad grilled out awesome steaks, and we of course opened presents and had a great time. I got some much needed Northpark gold so I spent the next day at the mall!

We headed to Tyler on Wednesday before Christmas and had the gathering with my dad's side of the family that night. So many of my cousins have kids now so it is fun to watch all the kiddos and one of them is exactly a year older than Isabella, so it was fun to see how she reacted to everything, thinking that is how Bella will be next year.

Christmas Eve we braved it and took Bella to church with us. It is a short Lord's supper service so I just came prepared with every trick I could think of to keep her quiet and she actually did REALLY well. Jason took her out at the very end, but for the most part she was good. We changed our normal tradition of going to Outback to eat afterward and tried a new Chinese place. Then we went home and watched Home Alone before hitting it.

Christmas morning Bella was up early and Amanda and Jared got there around 8 so we spent the morning opening gifts. Here is my sister's outfit. =) Sorry Manda!


I truly love Christmas morning opening gifts with my family. I realize that is probably a 'duh' statement, but not just because we get gifts, but just because we are all so cozy in our pjs and we just sit and talk and enjoy each other for two or three hours. I mean when else do you do that? Anyway, I got season tickets to the new Dallas Performing Arts Center for their Broadway series so I was SO excited about that and am going to see South Pacific this Sunday! Bella got the cutest little slippers...doesn't she look adorable?


Every year we bundle up and go out to my dad's land and make a bonfire and roast hot dogs and make s'mores, so this year we took Bella out. I was worried she would get cold and fussy, but she did great!


It was a great Christmas this year, as always, and I really can't wait until next year when Bella will be a little more aware of what is going on.