Volunteering is hard.

As some of you may know from my Facebook page, I recently decided to start volunteering at Stray Rescue of St. Louis.

Now a few things you should know...
1. I have never volunteered anywhere before (on a continual basis).
2. Dogs in shelters make me sad. Like very sad. Keep in mind too that Stray Rescue isn't just any "shelter" either. They take in dogs (mostly pit bull mixes) that have been severely beaten, mistreated, under-fed and lots of them have been bait dogs in dog fighting rings. The bait dogs are the ones who they tie down while the fighting dogs "practice". Most of them have scars all over their bodies and heads.
3. I didn't know if I could overcome the overwhelming sadness I would feel.

BUT, I had a realization.

I can't just sit back and not help. Whether I volunteer or not, these dogs will be in the shelter. They need to be walked. They need attention. They need laundry done and kennels cleaned. They need time. They need ME.

As hard as it is for me, it's been a much harder road for them. Just because it upsets me to see all of these dogs waiting to be adopted doesn't mean I shouldn't help.

So I attended orientation. And I almost had a breakdown. I was reassured that no matter how the dogs looked, they were in a MUCH better place than they were before. So I just kept telling myself that.

Afterwards I walked a few dogs and it was really a lot of fun! These dogs are so misunderstood. They are so happy and sweet! I couldn't believe how willing they are to love humans, after being so mistreated by them. The dogs still had scars all over their body and some were still very skinny. Since the orientation, I have gone back once. This time when I went, the volunteers were NOT friendly. I mean not at all. I was so discouraged, and considered not going back. But I realized through this journey there will be lots of trials. I will not let stuff like this stop me from helping these dogs have a better life.

So, I will return Wednesday. I'm hoping for a positive experience with the staff this time. I will keep you all updated on how it goes. I can't wait to see the cute dogs and give them some love and attention!

If you want to know more about Stray Rescue, click here.

Housewarming Party

On Friday night we had a housewarming party! It was so great to have friends come over, see the new place, and drink and eat some bbq. So many people were able to stop by and we had a great time. So enjoy some photos from the evening!

Thanks to everyone for coming!

Feeling domestic

I am not a cook. Just as I am not a runner. I have tried both many times and always wonder why I keep trying, because I just plain don't like either.

But I've decided to try cooking again. Call me crazy. My goal is to make one new recipe a week. I am hoping it will become easier over time?? My only rule is there can't be very many ingredients because then it just gets too complicated and expensive.

So tonight I made creamy avocado pasta. I got the recipe here, which I found on Pinterest (of course). I'm guessing most of my recipes will be coming from Pinterest! This recipe was healthy and tasted pretty good. I would say it had a "refreshing" taste...good for summer. I would make it again.

Creamy Avocado Pasta
Cook 1 serving angel hair pasta according to package instructions, about 12 minutes (including boiling time!). Meanwhile, combine the juice from ½ a lemon, 1 garlic clove, 1 tbsp. olive oil, ½ of an avocado and 1/8 cup basil in a food processor and puree. Toss together pasta and sauce and season with salt to taste.

Here are the ingredients. Pretty simple!

While the water was coming up to a boil, I did the other prep work. The recipe claims to only take 12 minutes, but I'm not as fast as them apparently. It took me a while to peel the garlic and cut up the avocado, but I think if I did it again I would be faster.

I put all of the ingredients in a blender (expect the pasta, duh) and hit "puree" and this is what came out.

Creamy avocado-ness.

Then I just mixed it in with the noodles! I added the salt at the end and also added some olive oil because it seemed a tad dry. But overall it turned out pretty good!

Let me know if you all try it and if you have any ideas for next week!

Making a house a home

This week I've been trying to spruce up the house a bit, along with unpacking (still!). It's really hard to pick and choose what I want to buy for the house since I don't have an endless budget. Boo. Anyway, I just wanted to show you all a few things I have added to my bedroom and downstairs bath to make our house a little more "homey."

First, we decided the downstairs bath need some towels. Well, it had towels, but not pretty ones. So, we headed out all over town and finally came up with this.

Not much but it's starting to look better. We still need some artwork but that will come with time.

Next I made some improvements to my bedroom that I'm really excited about!

If you read my last post, you saw that I was debating about the pink ruffle duvet. Well it had a few bad reviews and I was afraid of the color not going well with the peach walls. So I decided to do all white bedding. I was still in love with the ruffles and then I came across this. For only about $35, I decided to give it a try. I LOVE IT! It's so dainty and pretty.

The pictures don't do it justice. It adds just the right amount of ruffles and for a much more budget friendly price than the Urban Outfitters duvet. I still want to get a white quilt and white sheets, but all of those things cost money, so I will have to just wait. I also plan on adding my painted pillow shams, which I hope to finish very soon (with a blog tutorial to come!).

And finally, I added some art to these bare walls.

You may notice the art on the right from my design board. Well, the other night I stopped by Kirkland's to check out a bath mat Jessica wanted me to look at, and I saw it on sale, with a coordinating print! I was so excited, especially when I found out they were only $29.99 a piece! Yes, I got both of these for a mere $60. They are huge, with nice framing and even framing on the inside. I think they look great and I couldn't be happier with my purchase.

That's all the updates I have made so far, but I will keep you posted as stuff starts to look more "complete."

And lastly, I will leave you with these photos. Cause who can resist cute dogs?

The black and white dog is my friend Tacy's new puppy. He's so stinkin' cute! He a shih tzu/bichon frise mix with one eye (aww) and he's the sweetest thing and so happy all the time. Sasha (top right) is Tacy's other dog, and she's not too happy about the new addition to the family. Hopefully she'll come around :). Cocoa was pouting because we had to put the bones away so they wouldn't fight.

Oh, the life of a dog.

My bedroom wish list

So, I've been thinking about how I want to design my new room for quite a while now. It's the only room in the house that has all "my stuff", as in things I've bought, picked out, etc. I was so excited when I found out I would be getting the room with the shelves, but also overwhelmed! I mean...that's a lot to decorate! Plus I want it to look good and not stuffed with random crap.

I've been working on a design board that I wanted to share with you all. Although, some of it has already changed. Anyway, I'll go ahead and show it to you...

1. Headboard from JcPenney. I already own this headboard and I love it! I bought it on sale, so check back for sales if you're interested.

2. Pillow from Pottery Barn teen. I love it but it's a little pricey (you have to buy the insert too).

3. Rug from walmart.com. Only $116 for a 5x8!

4. Duvet from Urban Outfitters. I absolutely LOVE this! Two problems, it's pink (my walls are peach, and I can't paint them) and the reviews aren't the best. A lot of people said it rips really easily, and for the price ($179), I don't want to get it and it not last. So, I'm rethinking this one.

5. Dachshund print and rose framed print both from Kirkland's.

6. Kissing dachshunds print from etsy. So cute!

7. Chandelier from Urban Outfitters. I bought two of these a long time ago, so they don't have this color anymore. But, these are beautiful in person. I'm planning to put one on each side of my bed.

8. This is a photo my dad took in Hawaii at a church. Can't wait to put in on my wall!

9. Cherry blossom tree print from etsy.

I can't wait to see how this room turns out. I am loving the pink and mint color scheme right now. I will definitely keep you all updated as I make progress!

I am planning on making some custom pillowcases later this week, so check back soon. :)

And we're in...

Whew! That was a long weekend, and boy do I have a ways to go! As you know, on Saturday we moved into the new house. We hired movers. Best decision ever. I think if we didn't end up hiring movers, we would still be moving today. They were seriously awesome and super friendly and hard-working! They really saved the day for us!

The day started around 9 am and they were done by 4. They had to move 2 apartments (1 on the third floor) and a storage unit. We just sat back and watched them move! They had the whole truck loaded by noon, and after lunch we headed over to the new house. When we got there, my parents and my friends Stephanie and Jason had arrived to help. They all came up from Cape G, which was so nice of them! We all helped unload boxes and they really helped move the process along. Amanda came by as well...she had been watching Cocoa for me during the move (a life saver) and brought her back to the new house and unloaded some boxes for us. I am so thankful to have such wonderful friends and parents!! Afterwards we went out to eat at J. Bucks downtown. We had a wonderful dinner (thanks to my parents!) that ended with "the Big Freese." It's cookie, ice cream, oreos, ice cream, and another cookie. It was huge! The description said it would feed 2-4 people...umm...try 7! 

(front) Katie, Dad (holding the Big Freese!), Mom  (back) Stephanie, Jason, me and Jessica

I can't believe we are finally here. It's such a great house and location and I feel so lucky to be able to live here. However, I am going to miss Chesterfield, where I spent about 9 months of my life.

It was such a nice area...very safe and clean. 

It had a nice, wooded view.

Beautiful trees! (see Cocoa for scale)

It was very spacious (for a one bedroom) and had the perfect dining room/bedroom for me to live in.

Mess before the move! And a view of my dining room/bedroom.

I am especially going to miss these 2! We became great friends over the course of the Bachelorette. But, they will hopefully be moving to city soon, and we will for sure stay friends, despite the slight distance.
photo stolen from facebook :)

Now it's on the aftermath of the move...

My goal is to get rid of about half of my stuff. I'll let you know how it goes.