Aside from a couple rounds of laundry and hauling things over to the apartment I didn't get much done during the week.  Fortunately, I had decided to give myself a bit of a break in an effort to alleviate the stress of changing over the apartment.  Yep, I've employed some help with the cleaning... ok, a majority of the cleaning.  I did the necessary laundry, wiped out the inside of the cabinets as I did the necessary inventory, and washed the windows.  The rest was well under way when I returned from work on Friday and should be getting finished up tomorrow.  Yay and thank you to J for working my to do list to a "T".  This, it means a lot.

Friday I hit the Italian Oven for the first time in roughly forever with Beff and the Wild one.  I got a bit of a surprise as we headed towards the entrance.  Yep, he's still pretty.  That few moments was, as only can be best said by my Niecey-poo, awwwwwkward.

Today I headed to Altoona to visit with mom for an early celebration of her birthday.  The weather was great, most everything is melting off (just in time for more snow, I'm sure) and the only thing to deal with on the road was fog (again).  We worked through a pile of the word puzzles she pulls daily from the paper, chatted for a while, headed for a late lunch, and went to church before I headed back to spend the evening with the beasts.  I know I was hungry, but by God we need an Olive Garden here in Johnstown... I'm so in love with so many things there.  The parm crusted stuffed chicken with a side of butternut squash was AWESOME.

I've also been on another photo upload/backup spree.  Lots getting moved up to shutterfly and now need put onto CDs as well.  You wouldn't believe how many reasonably good photos of the dogs (my favorite photo subjects) I got during the course of the photo a day effort.  I was thinking how much clicking through those photos takes me through 2012 without intending to do so.  I wonder if I challenged myself next year to take a photo a day of something meaningful to THAT day what would come of it?  Would it force me to live a little more too?  If not, I'd have lots of photos of the couch.  At a minimum it would force me to carry my camera more and try to capture life as it unfolds.