Sunshine, Moving & Dog Training: Summer 2012 Recap

After being away from the blog for longer than expected, I am finally back! Thanks for (re)visiting Two Cups Of Happy. Now I know most bloggers are crushing on fall right now and posting about pumpkin spiced lattes & apple picking, but I didn't blog all summer. I think we have some catching up to do.

We moved!

The dog, the boy & I are now living solo. We found a small two bedroom within our price range in the North End of Halifax and B was moving out of the city to do some more schooling so the timing was right. We miss B and it's been lonely at times, but we are happy with our choice to live alone. The perks are nice... I even have a craft table now. I feel so spoiled!

Moving to this place was quite an adventure though. We came in a few weeks in advance to do some painting in the bedrooms (landlord approved!) and noticed that the place was left in horrible condition, ie. filthy. After two weekends of cleaning, we finally moved in on August 18th.

We trained the dog!

We've been having some leash-pulling issues with Abby since she was adopted and her off-leash boundaries have been non-existent. We tried to manage on our own for a while, tried a harness, a Halti head-collar but nothing worked. Because we were getting frustrated and were not able to give her the energy drain she needs, we bit the bullet and hired a trainer. We used Ted from Unleashed Potential and saw a tremendous difference in her within the first couple of sessions. Overall, she has been doing really well but today she had a slip up which involved her sprinting at top speed across a football field to where there were 6 dogs romping around. It's a process...

We crashed weddings!
Okay, so we didn't really crash them, we were invited. We went on two roadtrips to New Brunswick in June for our friends' weddings. They were both lovely and we got to rent a car and getaway for a few days. So nice.

We enjoyed the sunshine!

In case your not all caught up on the weather in Halifax, the summer of 2011 was brutal. It rained nearly every day. This summer was the complete opposite. We had beautiful weather! Here I am on the US Coast Guard vessel at the Tall Ships Festival.

I definitely took advantage of the sunshine with long walks on the waterfront with friends, BBQ's, lunchbreaks in the Gardens, hikes at Point Pleasant Park and even some seaside dining in Lunenburg. Every summer I vow to spend more time outside, and this summer I feel like I kept that promise and then some.

This summer was pretty great. Lately though, I've been embracing our new season, so be on the lookout for a fall fun list coming your way sometime soon. Thanks again for stopping by my new and (hopefully!) improved blog. Hope you have a great day!

TWO CUPS OF HAPPY is relaunching!

You asked for it! I'll be blogging again starting OCTOBER 5th. Come right back here to see some of the things I have in store for you. It's going to look a lot different around here. I'll be changing up the design and plan to post more consistently. Here are a few posts/series you can expect to see in the coming months:

- Lazy Girl's Guide to Cleaning (finally!)
- Halifax Shop Love
- Designer/artist crushes of mine
- My new apartment tour (yes, I moved.)
- Happy lists

PLUS: more Abby, recipes & crafts

See you then? :)

.

Hi to all my lovely blog readers. I'll be taking a short break from blogging. Blogger is giving me some grief with uploading photos and I need some time to myself. Don't worry, I'll be back soon enough.

xoxo
Janelle

bribery & affection.

Abby & I lazing around on a Monday night:

Sometimes I bribe my dog with graham crackers to sit next to me. Is that sad?

She likes men better. Probably because they don't smother her with unwanted love like I do. Right?

That must be it.

la poesia y la naturaleza

Words by Pablo Neruda, Graphic by Quality Peoples

One of the best things my undergraduate Spanish minor brought to me (besides my handsome boyfriend) was an appreciation for poetry. I can't say that I read poetry regularly; in fact, it's quite the opposite. I rarely do. But throughout my university years, when my studies would require it or when I came across a piece in a newspaper, I would consume it hungrily.

I took several courses that required extensive poetry reading in Spanish (my third and severely neglected language) and I loved it. But my interest in reading poetry fizzled after completing the courses and I didn't think about it for almost three years, until this weekend.

Yesterday, I went for a long stroll through Point Pleasant Park with Abby & a friend of mine, CH. Being surrounded by nature, reminiscing about our childhood travels and camping trips somehow reintroduced the idea of reading poetry again. I don't have the words to explain exactly why this interest suddenly reappeared, but it relates to the feeling I get when surrounded by nature. I'm one of those people who are captivated by the ocean. It makes me want to paint, draw and write. It's an endless source of inspiration for me.

So then why don't I just write poetry? That is because I can't appropriately express nature's inspiration in poetic form without it reading as my pathetic attempts at writing poems in my middle-school diary. His eyes are like the ocean, deep and untold. BLEGH.



Instead, I'll leave the writing to those who do it so well, like Pablo Neruda. All it will take is a quick trip to the library tomorrow.

Do you read poetry? Who is your favorite poet? I'm open to suggestions.