Happy Halloween!

The winner of the 2009 Cronin pumpkin design contest is... me!

But Keith gets all the credit for doing the actual carving.

Happy Halloween everyone!

Photo Friday

Who can resist such a sweet girl? I'll tell you who can't...I always call Keith on my way home from work.

A few weeks ago I called him as usual.

We figured out that I was about 2 minutes in front of him,

and instead of saying, "I can't wait to see you"

he said, "Aw, you get to see Darcy first!"

Now we know who the #1 girl is in his life.

Chili and Football

I love fall! Well, ok, I'm more of a spring/summer person and am happiest when it's sunny and 70 degrees, but I do love the things that come along with fall... like chili and football!

Keith and I love Leiper's Fork! It is such a cute little village with a great community spirit. There are always events- from the annual Christmas parade to Heritage Day to Lawnchair Theatre to Jazz in the Fork- and the whole community comes out. This weekend we went to the Leiper's Fork chili cookoff. It was about 45 degrees and cloudy. Perfect chili weather! We tasted 14 different chilies and sampled some salsas. Then we had to vote for our favorite. We both chose chili #1, a hearty and meaty chili, although #11, a white bean chicken chili, was a contender. It was such a fun way to spend a "chilly" Saturday afternoon.

The rest of our weekend has been dedicated to football. Saturday night we met some friends to watch the Auburn v. Kentucky game. I didn't really care which team won, but some of our companions are die-hard Auburn fans. Needless to say, they weren't too pleased with the final result.

Maloree, me and Ryan

Today Darcy is donning her Titans jersey. It hasn't brought them luck yet, but maybe they will make a respectable showing against the Patriots this afternoon.

Photo Friday

Keith's parents are at the beach this weekend (where it's 85 as opposed to 47 in Nashville- jealous!) so Keith and I are dog-sitting this guy:

Live on the Green & Dog Days

Every Thursday night for the past 2 months there has been a free concert on the courthouse lawn called Live on the Green. Obscure (to me at least) but really good bands play, people bring chairs and pets, and there are tents where you can buy refreshments and/or the cds of the artists. How cool, huh! Keith and I decided to stay up late even though it was a "work night" and we finally made it to the last one. Definitely worth it!

Saturday we braved the cold and the possibility of Darcy being a little terror and took her to Centennial Park for Dog Days. (NOTE: Usually, Darcy is an angel, but she has a tendency to get nervous in large crowds of people and overly excited when there are dogs to play with.) Dog Days, sponsored by the Nashville Humane Society, is a day all about- what else- dogs! There is a walk called the Mutt Strut first thing in the morning. Then they open the tents where you can register for free stuff, buy toys, and even get your dog's portrait painted or picture taken professionally. Darcy wasn't into having her portrat drawn or picture taken (see photos below), but she did rack up on the treats. There are demonstrations of police dogs, classes, contests, and tons of dogs to be adopted. It was a fun way to spend the morning during our self-declared LAZY WEEKEND!

This dog was shipped from Germany at 6 weeks old for the low cost of $15,000 to begin his training. He climbed this 7+foot wall, refused treats from anyone but his master (Darcy would never have the self control), and demonstrated his attack skills. Impressive!

Jack, Aimee, and Nick met us at the park for Dog Days.

Our family

Photo Friday

October is "Adopt a Shelter Dog" month! All of these precious faces were rescued:

Keith and I adopted Darcy in March 2008. Read her story here. When the rescue organization found her she looked like this:She still has crazy, curly ears and a big smile, but she's filled out a little (especially her big fluffy tail) and her boysenberry shampoo has done wonders for her coat.

Sunday is Jack's adoption anniversary- yay! Aimee first met Jack at Rutherford County PAWS. He was pitiful... limping, scraggly and scared. She brought him home, cleaned him up, and now he's the smartest, most loyal and beautiful dog! He always gets the compliments when we go to the park, and he knows it too! You can tell in his strut :) And yes, it's true, he unlocked the door when Keith and I locked ourselves out last year!

Keith's parents adopted Oscar after their longtime (18 years) poodle Pepper passed away. Oscar (originally Malachi) lived with an elderly woman before going to Happy Tails where the Cronins found him. Yes, he has a stubborn streak and yes, he can be a little demanding (7:30pm is Cheerios time and he will let you know), but is he not the cutest thing you've ever seen!

And there's somebody here waiting for a loving home! Of course, I realize that not everyone is in the position to add another member to their family, but you can still do your part. Volunteer at a local shelter a couple of days a month, be a foster parent for a week, or donate money, food, leashes, etc to a local rescue organization. You could make a difference in a sweet, helpless dog's life!

**Nancy, Keith's aunt, also is a proud adopted mom of Pappy.**

Ole Miss v. Vandy

This weekend was the Ole Miss v. Vanderbilt game. Ole Miss started off the season ranked #8, then rose to #5, then up to #4 before losing to South Carolina, which dropped them to #21. We really needed a win on Saturday and the Rebels didn't disappoint. Several friends were in town for the game so we tailgated until kickoff. It was a perfect day for friends and football!

The Girls

Samford Friends- Ann Claire, me, and Beckysome of the group at our tentMaloree and me outside the Vandy stadiumBy the end of the game the Vandy fans had cleared out as this picture shows.Today the football watching continued with the Titans v. Jacksonville Jaguars game. It didn't turn out very well for Tennessee, but Darcy didn't let the score dampen her spirit.