what I like about... // Leo.

Disclaimer: I started writing this post the night that Leo chewed my phone charger. I was pissed and needed a reminder of why I love my dog. 

Quick recap: Leo is my dog. He is a 12-month old yellow Lab who we took in last October when he was a puppy baby. I never ever expected to be a dog owner, but Chad always wanted one and that little Leo completely won me over. Now I get to have my boy (and Karma our cat) with me all day long...and I love it. If you are not a dog lover like I, feel free to skip over this post. :)

what I like about... // LEO.
01. When he gives me the 'I'm so cute and I know it' look by putting his head on his front paws and looking up at us.
02. My nicknames for him: 'Boo-Boo', 'Lee-Lee', 'Boo'. He has heard me say them so many times that he actually responds to them now.
03. I am trying to sound as un-corny as possible, but when we first got Leo, Chad and I worked as a team and figured out what he wanted and how he was to fit into our life that would be the best for all of us. A tiny little preview what is to come once there are baby Hestekins.
04. His floppy dark tan ears.
05. His dark chocolate eyes.
06. How smart he is -- he understands the command 'back up', plays tug-of-war, can find any ball we throw at him, and runs to the door when I say "who's here?".
07. Swimming with him is always an adventure. As is driving in a car with him -- he loves those windows open.
08. How he always sighs like the weight of the world is on his shoulders when he lays down.
09. The white tip of his tail and the white diamond shape on the top of his head.
10. How much he loves Chad. The quintessential picture of man's best friend with those two.

*Even though Leo rocks, there are things he does that I can't. stand. Namely: chewing through two pairs of my shoes, two of Chad's shoes, one printer charger, one computer charger, three phone chargers, one pair of underwear, and one thousand tissues.

what I like about... // my younger sister.

H + me rockin' our marching band shirts back in Mankato....and yes, she's always been this cute.

Just like I did with my older sister for her birthday, I had to continue the trend and share some things I like about my younger sister. Hannah's birthday was earlier this week, but she's singing in her high school tour choir right now (I think somewhere in Missouri right now) so she won't see this until she gets back -- that excuses my tardiness, right Hannah? :)

what I like about... // my younger sister Hannah.

01. She's 17. Which means she's still in high school. Which means she knows about trendy things like The Hunger Games and Modcloth and Pinterest (and hers isn't filled with pins about bulletin boards and free worksheets like mine). 
02. She's 17. Which means I get to teach her things like what rated-R movies are worth her time, what spots in the parking lot should be avoided, and when to apply for financial aid in college.
03. She's the creative soul in the family. She has such a perceptive mind -- she's the only one that thinks of adding handmade name cards to the Thanksgiving table.
04. She watches shows like Doctor Who. Which automatically makes her the hippest younger sister ever.
05. She pulls off ray-ban sunglasses, skinnies, and cardis like a pro. I sometimes wish we were the same size.
06. She's grounded.
07. She's giving.
08. She's funny + goofy -- like the rest of the family.
09. She's caring + sensitive.
10. She's faithful to God in all that she does. I pray as her older sister that I can help her continue to be.

The end of my sap-fest. :) 

what I like about... // february.

The next installment of my 'what I like about...' series is about February.

Now, my husband and I used to be very melancholy about this month, wishing for its swift departure out of our lives and just bring us to March. But not this time around. This time, we've got events, things, and to-do lists to conquer.

what I like about... // February. 

01. Melting (as of right now). Even if there might be more three more huge snowstorms here in Wisconsin, it's nice to know the sun can still warm the frozen snow.
02. My trip to a professional development conference next week. This is my first one for my career and I'm kinda excited. Which is really nerdy. But I'm still excited. :)
03. A wedding in three weeks. Family. Food. Pretty dresses. My neice and nephew. Photo possibilities galore -- what more could I ask for?
04. Valentine's Day. I love pink, remember?
05. Getting one month closer to student teaching. It can't come soon enough.
06. Lip balm. Silky smooth.
07. The beginning of Lent. An important time to reflect on sacrifices.
08. It's a short month. Not as short as it usually is, but it's still short...

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Curious about my desktop background picture? Check out Smashing Magazine -- they do really fantastic monthly installments of new backgrounds. View February's post here.

Here's the rest of my what I like about series.

what I like about... // my older sister

Before 2011 was over, I sat down one night and wrote down blog ideas and features that I wanted to do here on project simple life. One of the ideas that I wrote about was what I like about... and every week I would post about one topic that I like in my life from great to small or recent to older -- if I like it, then I want to celebrate by sharing it with you. 

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The first what I like about... is in honor of my sister, Laura, who is celebrating her birthday today! Happy Birthday Lo!

I'm pretty sure birthdays are an excuse to share old pictures. Here we have: older brother Kyle in the red, me in the white sweatshirt, and the girl in the pink is Laura!

what I like about... // my older sister

01. She's already done everything that I plan on doing. And has done it well. Married for (almost) four years. Been pregnant. Two kids. Maintains a house. Driving manual. Proper application of liquid eyeliner. Changing a diaper in 23 seconds flat... you get the idea. So whenever I have a question with the aforementioned topics, I know she's my girl.

02. Inside jokes were invented by and for sisters. A few of ours are "Howard...Censored!" and "Don't estomp your last season Prada shoes at me honey."

03. She taught me valuable things in life. I owe her for my knowledge of how important it is to keep a to-do list, how vital the role of a wife and mother is to a person, how to properly pluck my eyebrows, how to balance on the middle part of our old swingset, what Walgreens register rewards are, how wonderful Amelié is, how to make tissue pom-poms, and basically how to care for other humans every day. 

04. She's a bookworm. It seems that every book I like she's told me about. 

05.We share a common love for peanut butter on graham crackers, diet soda, wavy Lay's potato chips, and chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.

06. She's the only one in my family that will eat the dark meat of chicken or turkey.

07. We think the same when taking pictures. If we are shooting the same subject, we'll be standing or squatting right next to each other.

08. She created the two most beautiful children on the planet.

09. People say we look the same when we smile.

10. Every single girl should have an older sister. This I know for sure. I'm sorry for those that don't. Truly. I look up to mine so so much.