A New Hope

(yes, I am a geeky Star Wars fan)

Things are going well with my husband, Doug, and I at the moment. We're coming off a two month long really sucky period, but I feel like we're finally on the right track. He's in with the right people who will help him become the person he wants to be, and I also have a great therapist who is helping me work on my own issues.

We read a great book that helped cement my decision to give our relationship a real shot: Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay: A Step-by-Step Guide to Help You Decide Whether to Stay In or Get Out of Your Relationship. It's a quick book to get through. There are about 30 questions (followed by elaboration and advice to help you come to your answer), all designed to help you decide whether your relationship is worth saving. It reminded me and Doug that despite the troubles we're having right now, there are a lot of really good things about our relationship.

Of course, this is just all around a hopeful time of year, too, isn't it? The weather here has been absolutely gorgeous, and it's amazing what being outside does for my mood. We've been working on sprucing up the back yard, going to parks, and taking our dog to the beach.

The beach is especially fun. Niall (22 months) is really into Blues Clues. Well, with all the dogs running through the wet sand, there is a veritable treasure trove of 'Clues' for Niall to find. He has to point out every single one.



And here is our wonderful dog, Maddy. We got her from the Sterling Animal Shelter back in 2002. She turned 10 last November, and is definitely showing her age.. but she still has a great time playing with the other dogs at the beach.