life with howie

until he gets bigger, howie is a dog in a purse. if those chihuahua owners can do it, then we labrador owners can too! we went to the habit for a burger, and howie came along. he loved it!

howie is also the best poser ever!  he is hard to see on this sheep-skin rug. they match.

howie loves to play and eat bones. that smiling face is almost constant. he is the smiley-est dog ever. he and jack are having a blast together!

baby howie goes to the vet

my sweet baby in his first visit to the vet.  look at those paws!  he is going to be huge! he is such a good boy.  i adore this little guy. he is so sweet and loving.  he almost always has a huge goofy smile on his face.  he follows me absolutely everywhere. i mean, literally everywhere. he is an angel, smart (easy to house-train), and loving. so happy he is in our family.

we bought a house!!

we got to move into our new house today!  we are so excited about it! my boys have a big backyard to play in.

we got a puppy!!

my friend from work had labrador puppies. i was talked into going and looking at them. whelp, you know what that means. WE GOT A PUPPY!!

jack is obviously a proud big brother.  introducing baby brother howard levi (howie) aka rooney. he's a triple named dog. #lotsofnicknames

howie is the cutest puppy ever. i mean, seriously!  so handsome! love this little guy

we took this pic the day we brought him home. he never sits still. it was amazing to get one good pic. so excited to have howie in our lives. we love him!

life of a cruise ship nurse: noumea, new caledonia

 first views of noumea, new caledonia. it is so green here!

 i love sailboats too!  there is something so beautiful about them sitting in the harbor

 look at all of those different palm trees!  i love them!

 local teens hanging out after school. not much to do around here

statue in the town square. i love the greenery all around.  it is so gorgeous. 

hanging out with friends.

 ok, i literally have no idea what this statue is of or what the significance could be to noumea or new caledonia.  i just liked it. it is surrounded by beauty.

 interesting tree. more greenery.  i am obsessed. can you tell it was winter at home while i was in the so. pacific?  desperate for some greenery!

 for sale

 housing

 coke. you know it!  i just can't stop. 

shopping.  for a wedding dress. no way!

 school

 old dilapidated buildings that i love.

 st joseph's cathedral

 this cathedral is at the top of a hill. you can see it from all around.  the views from the top are amazing

close up

 archway

 the clock tower

 a view from the church.

 the slums. i think most of the housing around here are the slums

 asian quarter. i think this is simply spectacular.  china town in the south pacific!

 a couple shots of the mountain-side. so green and lush.

life of a cruise ship nurse: sydney sail away, australia

sydney sail-away might have to be done in multiple posts as well.  so many great pics!

 scenes of downtown sydney. i absolutely love big cities. there is something so magical about them. look at all of those cranes.

 before coming to sydney, i had no idea that they had a space needle similar to seattle.

 a view of the harbor bridge from the ship

 australian flags atop the bridge

 another view of the bridge

people can climb the top of the bridge.  i think they are insane!  they are strapped in with a halter and then they hike.  i heard it is like $400 usd to do this.  absolutely insane! i am terrified of heights.  you could not pay me to do that!

 the bridge and the opera house. what a view.  i could never tire of this. i love sydney!

 that crazy clown face amusement park again. i really do love it.

 luna park aka crazy clown face park.

 one last shot of the harbor bridge with the sun setting.  we are off on our adventure to the south pacific!

 the sun setting on the city and the opera house.

 a farewell shot of the sydney opera house. see you in 2 weeks!

life of a cruise ship nurse: sydney, australia part 3

sydney, australia part 3. i could not choose which photos to include. hence 3 parts to sydney. hopefully the 3rd one is the last.

the sydney hospital.  of course i found the hospital.  i can't  help it. no matter where go in the world, i always find the hospital or take pics of the ambulances or fire trucks.  it is a part of me. 

 st james church, sydney. across from hyde park

 this is st mary's cathedral in sydney. it is stunning.  it is huge!  i took this pic from hyde park

 st mary's cathedral

 despite it being fall here in sydney, the flowers are stunning and in full bloom in hyde park.  this pic of st mary's cathedral turned out gorgeous.  it is so spectacular!

 space needle.

 we happened to be in sydney during mardi gras.  we went to the parade.  there were literally hundreds of thousands of people at the parade.  i could not even see the parade.  it was crazy.  it is always fun to attend local events when you are traveling. although we did not stay long, i could not see a thing!

big coke billboard.  i love diet coke.  it is my favorite thing to drink.  i take a coke pic everywhere i find one.