We adopted a new dog into our lives. Her names is Zoey, and she’s a small Chihuahua. If a picture tells a thousand words, then eighteen photos of Zoey tells a nice story. And if a picture tells a thousand words, then a movie tells a million. Here’s a million reasons why we love our new girl:

Our dog Lady has been weak lately. We’re working with the vet to try to figure out what’s wrong with her and help her.

My husband Andy found these two baby pigeons in our planter by the front door yesterday. This was not a cause for rejoicing. We have already been conducting a long egg disposal campaign in the backyard palm tree for the past two years (the dogs love to lap up the raw eggs). Just when we thought the egg laying was easing up in the backyard, we see these two ratlets with useless wings in the front. We wondered why they hadn’t been eaten by cats yet. We thought about taking them and putting them in the cat food bowl our neighbor puts out twice a day. That would give the kitties a real feast. But we laughed that off to sick humor and left them alone, hoping the neighborhood cats would finally notice them and eat them. Maybe the cats were waiting for them to fatten up a bit first? We should see…

Well, it doesn’t distress me to tell you that the little vermin were gone in the morning. I guess the cats decided they were finally plump enough. The cats probably already knew they were there, right? I mean, two birds in the bush…

Andy went looking around the yard and found the signs of carnage accounting for one bird. The other, I guess, was hauled away to another cache in the sharp-toothed mouth of a feline filcher.

I guess it just goes to show: here today, gone tomorrow. As much as I may morbidly gloat over Nature’s predation over these creatures, the truth is "you could be hit by a bus" any time so you might as well live, love, and laugh– even if it is sick laughter about poor little baby birds!

Some people make fun of me for posting photos of my food (my husband included). No, wait– people make fun of me for taking photos of my food. The posting part is beyond belief. Other people say, "I love your food pictures!" Or, "Thanks a lot, Daniel. Now I’m hungry!"

I like taking photos of food because food is beautiful, food is delicious, food is comforting and nourishing. Eating is not being hungry. Eating healthy food is being healthy. A good plate of food is supposed to delight your eye and make your mouth water. A good plate of food is an accomplishment– it means you earned your food, you planned your meal (or improvised it), you prepared (and/or cooked) your food, and you plated it with love and gusto.

This meal was a collaboration between me and my husband. He marinated the chicken while I was at work. After I came home, he grilled the chicken while I soaked some croutons in Caesar dressing, tossed in some bagged romaine lettuce, and shredded some parmegiano reggiano cheese. While I was slicing the rind off part of the cheese, I nicked my thumb and drew a bit of blood (it didn’t get on the food). Andy put a bandage on my thumb and I put it up to his lips so he could "kiss it and make it better." I smiled and said, "That was almost worth getting a boo-boo for." And then we ate our meal together.

So I take this photo to celebrate the glory of food, to express thanks for the food I receive, and to remember the love, humor, and partnership that went into making this simple meal. It is a blessing.

We didn’t go out to a fine French restaurant or the Compass Room with its 360º view of the Valley. No. This year we just got Pizza Hut stuffed crust pepperoni pizza and chicken wings. We watched Bounty Hunter which, little did we know, ended with the phrase "Happy anniversary, darling." And we took a walk around the neighborhood. A nice simple afternoon / evening together.

Halva floss, yogurt soda, and sesame bread sticks from Aziz Market. We’re pretty adventurous eaters here at the Smithers–Greene.

Review? The halva floss tasted good, but I thought halva necessarily meant made with tahini (sesame butter) as many "halvas" are. Now I guess it just means candy. The yogurt soda was unique– pungent, goaty, and tart. Very strong flavor that would probably go best with Greek or Middle Eastern food. The sesame sticks are, well, less sweet than your typical breadsticks. They are heavily coated with sesame seeds which gives them a slightly bitter taste. Good though.

As I lay in bed early the morning about this same time last year, I heard thunder, saw the occasional flash of lightning, and then saw the color of the sky change into a natural sepia tone. It was such a phenonmenon that I got out of bed early, turned off the house alarm, got my camera, and went outside to capture the moment. I originally blogged this on my main site, danielgreene.com but decided to blog it here as well since it was my view from our home. It also happened to be taken just outside the windowed door in the previous post.

Pretty view through the blinds looking out at our patio and backyard. I’ve been holding onto this photo for a while but just wanted to share it because I think it’s so pretty. It also makes me feel grateful to have a home with a patio and backyard, to live in a beautiful city, and to live with a handsome husband and our two playful, loving, funny dogs. It’s the little things.