Happy New Year

I can hardly believe we are just a few short hours away from 2008! This year sure flew by. I know as you get older the years fly by faster and faster, but jeeze! Do they have to be turbo charged?
We are going to Don and Linda's tonight. Nothing fancy, just some munchies and drinks. Shauna wants to have some friends over so we'll let her have the house. I want to wish anyone who reads this a very Happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. Thanks for visiting and come back soon!

Weekly Winners Sunday Meme

A really cozy place to sit and read.

Getting ready for the New Year's Eve Party!

The Year That Was

Thanks to Sundry for this end of the year meme. Go visit her and see hers and everyone elses!

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before? Started this blog on blogger.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I didn't make any and probably won't this year either.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? No

4. Did anyone close to you die? My grandmother in March

5. What countries did you visit? Just one, Canada

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? A better car.

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Probably January 12th which was my 50th birthday and why? for obvious reasons although it beats the alternative!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Losing 29 pounds

9. What was your biggest failure? Getting diabetes because I was warned two years ago and did not pay attention.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

11. What was the best thing you bought? My beautiful new family room furniture.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? My kids and my husband for being the awesome people that they are!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? A man in my state that beat and raped a 3-month old girl and ANYONE who harmed a innocent person or animal!

14. Where did most of your money go? Into keeping and maintaing our house.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Getting new carpeting, although I wasn't really, really, really excited, just excited!

16. What song will always remind you of 2007? None

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? Happier b) thinner or fatter? Thinner c) richer or poorer? Richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Traveled

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Worried and worked
.
20. How did you spend Christmas? With family of course

21. Did you fall in love in 2007? Been there for a long time

22. What was your favorite TV program? Currently it's Criminal Minds

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? I try not to hate anyone but see #13

24. What was the best book you read? Kite Runner, hands down!

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? American Idol, I watched it for the first time this year and really enjoyed it.

26. What did you want and get? New carpet and new furniture.

27. What did you want and not get? A new expensive camera.

28. What was your favorite film of this year? Reign over me, I guess

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? We took my family to Buca de Beppo for dinner and I was (and still am) 50!

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? A little less worry about things, especially money.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007? Casual and comfortable.

32. What kept you sane? My kitties

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? No one, really no one at all!

34. What political issue stirred you the most? Probably that ridiculous, useless war in Iraq.

35. Who did you miss? My mom, every day.

36. Who was the best new person you met? A few of my co-workers. They are a lot of fun!

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. Life is too short to waste a lot of time worrying about stupid stuff and to take better care of my body and it will take care of me!

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year. "Every now and then I get a little bit nervous that the best of all the years have gone by"

New Year, New Age And New Dishes

This morning went a lot better than yesterday morning! At least my bumper stayed on and I managed not to pull it off again!

I have decided to get new dishes for my birthday. I know it's not really a exciting thing but I am really sick of the ones I have. They are old and chipped and heavy. I really want these They will take up much less room in my cupboard and be more durable. I'll pack up my old ones and put them on craigslist or something. Can't wait!

Exciting times!

Tonight we go to dinner with the gang. I don't know if dad will be there or not. He's doing good, though.

Dirty Bumpers And Dirty Men!

This morning when I got to work, I backed into a parking spot and backed right over the little post that was sticking up from the cement parking spot thingy (I have NO idea what they are called) about 8 inches, and it hooked onto my bumper. I did not know that had happened. I thought I backed into a pile of snow, and when I pulled forward I pulled the bumper right off of the back of my car! I could not believe it. I had to take the bumper and put it in the back seat because it was too big for the trunk. And I had to cram it and jam it to get it to fit. It was very dirty and when I was done my cream colored coat looked like I fell in a mud puddle! So then I had to walk into the hospital in my filthy dirty coat and try to have some dignity! I took my coat off immediately when I walked into the door!

Tonight Rich and I put the bumper back on. It didn't take us too long. Luckily the bumper wasn't damaged at all so it looks OK. He thought it was funny. How blessed I am to have a husband that can laugh at that, and not get really pissed off at my stupidness!

It is very slow at work and very boring. One of my co-workers and I were looking at a local dating website. Some of the pictures of these guys were hilarious and we were cracking up! Don't they realize that they are supposed to try to look attractive to women? And under "turn on's" they almost all had skinny dipping and erotica! Too funny!

I have one more day to work and then I am off for 4 whole days!!

Post-Christmas Stuff

These holidays sure seem to fly by!

Last night we decided to go to Don and Linda's for dinner, after spending practically the whole damn day just being lazy. I did manage to clean the sink and the toilet of the bathroom upstairs before we went. We had a nice dinner of ham and cheesy potatoes and salad. I brought Linda and her mom some of the magnets that Shauna and I made a few weeks ago. They thought they were really cute!

I did manage to do 30 minutes on my treadmill when we got home. Lord knows, I have not been exercising much at all lately. Got to get back into the swing real quick before I gain any weight.

It was extremely foggy this morning on my way to work. I love fog although it makes me a little nervous to drive in it, I think it looks pretty cool. It's kind of like being wrapped in a blanket when you are outside.

My digital frame is pretty cool:



(Don't look at my dirty table!) I was messing around with it last night. It also has a digital clock and a alarm, plays music and washes the dishes!! Can you believe that?

I got off work at 4:00 today and went to Meijer to by some bread and stuff, and got my Christmas cards for next year. That's about all I am willing to spend on Christmas stuff now. I just get spending burn-out.

Talked to my dad. He sounds much better, getting a lot of rest and looking forward to being able to drive finally on Saturday!

And I am looking forward to Friday, I have a 4-day weekend coming up. Woo Hoo!

Santa Came

Santa came.

It was a very nice Christmas eve and Christmas morning.
Last night we went to my brothers house. We did our gift exchange. I got a box of chocolates and some lotion and bubble bath.

This morning Chris and Marissa got here at about 7:30 ish. We exchanged gifts and ate breakfast. Rich got me a digital photo frame. It's a pretty cool thing. I want to take pictures special for it of family, friends and animals to display. I love new gadgets!

Today we are just going to chill and take a nap. Got only about 4 house sleep last night. Later we may go to Don and Lindas for a while. This weekend we will go and see MIL.

Happy Holidays to one and all!

Christmas Eve

Well, here I am. Christmas Eve and I am at work hoping to get off early, but not counting on it! Luckly I managed to get everything done yesterday. All I have to do today is put together the strata for tomorrow morning so it can sit in the refrigerator overnight.

Yesterday we took my Dad over to his girlfriends house. That's were he wanted to go so who am I to stand in his way? She was happy to see him. This is the first time we have been to her house, or trailer or manufactured home or whatever it's called. It is suprisingly very nice. It's 1800 square feet and has all sorts of room. Very open and airy. I could live in something like that for sure! Tonight we will pick them up to take to my brother's house, and then bring them home again. My dad is not supposed to drive for at least a few more days. He still seems very confused sometimes. It concerns me a little bit and I hope he gets his head straight.

My diet the last few days has really sucked which is not suprising considering the holiday, but I haven't been exercising very much either, and that's not good. I did not check my blood for the last few days. I don't want to know. Denial is my best friend!

LATER: It's 5:30 now. I did manage to get off of work at 2:30 after I bugged a particular doctor to finish her work so I could finish mine, for Pete's sake! I am done with everything I need to do. Just got to get myself ready. Then it's on to laughter, good food and good company!

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Weekly Winners Sunday Meme

I didn't take many pictures this week. I thought I would just snap a few just for this entry. The above picture is of my angel that is sitting in the front foyer. I love her because she has such a pretty little face.




This is one of the treats that I made this week. So very simple and yet I managed to blow the first batch by leaving them in the oven for WAY too long, burnt the kisses and had to throw the whole thing down the garbage disposal! These are very popular and go really fast whenever I bring them anywhere.

Taking Care Of Dad

Dad came home from the hospital today. My brother picked him up and then we were trying to decide a schedule where someone would be with him all of the time. Since it is impossible for me to spend the night there (well, not impossible but I hate to when I have so much to do here) I decided to just bring him home with me. That way I can keep a eye on him and he can just sit there and rest and not have to do anything. I feel better knowing he's being cared for and I think that my mom would approve, too!

He's very weak and looks really tired. His gallbladder was the worst the doctor has ever seen. It's scary to think that he may have dodged a bullet with the infection being so bad. He just needs lots of rest now to regain his strength.

I got all of my presents wrapped and bagged and tagged! Just have a few things to bake. I do have to work on Monday for at least 1/2 day.

Shop Till I Drop

I took the day off today to finish my Christmas shopping. This is my usual MO. Wait until the last pay day before Christmas and shop till I drop. I was expecting it to be really busy at the mall but it wasn't too bad. I had three $10 coupons for JCPenney so I had to make three separate purchases. I had to wait in a line each time but they went pretty fast. After the mall I went to Burlington Coat Factory. They were offering 10% off coupons if you bring in a coat, and I just happened to have 3 coats in the trunk of my car that I have been carrying around for a while. So I brought them there. I didn't really find anything I wanted to give for a gift but I did buy a shirt for myself for $8 so it wasn't a complete waste of time!

Next stop was Border's books where I got this thing for Chris:



It's a "Major Award" puzzle. Comes in a little wooden crate that says "Fragile" on it! I love it! I think he'll get a kick out of it, too!

Then on to Target which was packed. I drove around the parking lot three times before I found a spot. I HATE looking for a parking spot or waiting for a parking spot. I think because I do that so much at work every day. It gets tiring real fast.

I still need to go to a craft store to get a beading kit for Shauna and then do a online certificate for Chris and Marissa for Netflix, then I am done, done, done!

My brother called me while I was shopping. He was at the hospital waiting to talk to Dad's doctor. They did blood work and if he can go on a oral antibiotic, he can go home; if he has to be on IV antibiotics he has to stay in the hospital. He must have had a whopper of a infection with that gallbladder. He still runs fevers and he still is very confused alot. It's scary because I remember when Rich's mom had surgery she never was the same after that! Surgeries and sicknesses are rough on old people!

More shopping to do, dinner out tonight and then collapse on the couch!

Secret Santa Days #3 and #4

My secret Santa gift for today is this:



Cutest little cat change purse!

Now after I saw this I knew that the person who was my secret Santa knew me more than just as a person working in the same department! One reason was although everyone was getting candy and cookies in their gifts, I did not get any goodies, which means that the person knows I am diabetic and can't (shouldn't) really eat it and second that person knows that I have a billion cats!

Later on when I happened to mention that I was off tomorrow, she gave me the final gift. And my secret Santa was Tina who has a office directly across from where I sit. I was glad it was her because I really like her a lot! This is my final gift.



A huge gorgeous Christmas mug and a pack of Starbucks Christmas Blend coffee!! Yum and I LOVE huge mugs for my coffee! It was a very nice secret Santa exchange this year.

My Dad is doing better today, but he sounds somewhat confused to me. I guess he still runs a fever and that concerns me. I hope they don't release him until the fever stays away for at least 24 hours.

Tonight when I got home from work I made the Amish friendship bread. I was a couple days late in making it but I didn't have all of the ingredients so I had to wait until I could get to the store. I just dumped the rest of the starter down the drain. I can't be bothered trying to pass it on right now!

Time to plop my butt in front of the TV to watch more of Criminal Minds.

Secret Santa Day #2 and Dad

Well, my dad had surgery last night. A surgery that was scheduled for 4:00 and actually happened at 8:45. Guess they had a lot of emergency surgeries that day! Anyway, they removed his gallbladder. The surgeon said it was the worst he's ever seen. Why he hasn't been in agonizing pain is beyond me. They could not close up the area that the gallbladder is attached, due to too much pus or something so he has a drainage tube in. He'll be in the hospital for at least two more days, then he wants to just go home and be by himself for a day or two. I'm not sure that's such a good idea. He's still pretty weak and I am afraid he will fall or something. Oh well, I'll let my brothers argue with him. I'm sure he'll end up at his girlfriends anway! She wants him to come there.

Today's Secret Santa gift is this:



Lip balm. It feels really nice and smooth and does not have any taste or smell which is a good thing. I like the little notes I am getting with them, too!

I can't believe this year is almost over. Rich remarked that in two days the days will start getting longer again. Yay! I hate driving to work and back in the dark!

Secret Santa Day #1 and Dad

Today is day one of the 4-day Secret Santa gift exchange here at the workplace. What we do is we buy three gifts from the dollar store, and a $5 gift for the last day. Total invested: $8. It's fun and you can get some really cute stuff for a dollar!

This is what I got today:



For my person I got a little Christmas night light, a little tin box filled with candy, a glass bulb and for the $5 gift, a hot chocolate kit, which includes a huge mug, hot chocolate packets and marshmallows.

In other news, Dad is having gallbladder surgery today at 4:00. My two older brothers are going to be there. As I thought would happen, no one was there with him when the doctor talked to him so, of course, he didn't ask any questions. What about this hiatal hernia that they've talked about? Are they going to be fixing that, too? I guess we will have to wait to talk to the surgeon before he does the surgery! Man, times like this we really miss my mom. She would have been right there, asking all sorts of questions!

I got my blood test results from last week. My A1C is 6.5, which is down .5, which is excellent. My cholesterol is great too: 155. Woo Hoo! Guess this clean leaving is paying off!
No fun but whatever!

Dad

Well, let's see whats going on..

Last night my dad's girlfriend called at about 11:30 to say that my dad was running a fever of 103. and that he was shaking uncontroably with the chills. She wanted to call 911 and he did not want her to. She was pretty histerical. She kept saying that she gave him one tylenol a hour ago and nothing was helping. I talked to my dad and he sounded pretty bad..so I called my oldest brother to find out how to get over there (my dad was staying at his girlfriends house.) My brother decided to go himself, took a bunch of aspirin, gave him 3 when he got there and his fever broke 1/2 hour later.

This morning my brother called me to say that he had taken him to the doctor and that they were going to admit him to the hospital. His hiatal hernia is very big and protruding into his stomach. They don't know if that is causing the fever, but they need to get it under control and then fix that hernia. Crap, I feel bad because I literally was blowing him off as just having the flu and being a baby about it, and his girlfriend for over reacting. Well, fever and chills are signs of the flu

LATER: Well I went to the hospital after I got off of work. He seems much better than he has been. No more fever and no more chills. They are going to keep him and do a ultrasound of his hernia and possible gallbladder tomorrow and then decide when to do surgery. When I left he was sleeping.

I am taking Friday off. We are having our Christmas brunch then but I really want to get my shopping done and don't particularly want to hit the mall over the weekend. I should be able to get it finished on Friday as long as I get a early start! Well, time to watch TV in bed!

Let It Snow

Last night as our guests were leaving it began to snow. This blurry picture was taken after they left when it had snowed about one inch.



It continued to snow all night and this morning we had about 6 inches. Here is my husband and my daughter working diligently shoveling away while I helped by taking pictures!

When it quit snowing we got a total of 9 inches.

Shauna and I then left to do some shopping and it was cold and blowing and wet! I love the look of snow but that's about all I love about it!

Today we baked Almond Crescents for Christmas and made a whole bunch of these little magnets!



Each one is 3/4 of an inch big. They are so cute! I would take a close up picture but my camera does not do close-ups very well. If you click on the picture you can get a little better view of each one.

It's been a quiet but nice day!

Dinner With Friends and Family

Tonight we had Marissa's mom and step dad for dinner.

I made baked Ziti and salad and garlic bread. It was good. The table looked nice and the house was super clean. We even uncovered the furniture in the family room which we usually keep covered with sheets and blankets because of the cat hair. I hardly recognized it!

They brought us a bottle of Merlot to go with dinner. This is how much we drink: we did not even have a corkscrew to open the bottle with. We had to use a screwdriver and pry the cork out! It was pretty embarrassing but we did manage to get a laugh out of it. And the wine was pretty good. I'm not much of a wine drinker but it definitely relaxed me enough. Carmen and I killed the whole bottle between the two of us!

All and all it was a very enjoyable evening and my house is clean so I don't have to clean it tomorrow.

My dad is still not feeling well. He was running a slight fever and my brother considered taking him to the hospital but figured he would wait and see how he is in the morning. He could just have the flu or something. I talked to him briefly and he sounds terrible, weak and tired. Bummer.

Right now it has started to snow. We're supposed to get 3-7 inches before it stops. Rich is excited to use his snow thrower again! I'm going to bed now.

Blood With No Coffee

Had a doctor appointment this morning at 8:30 for some blood work. One thing I always dread about having fasting blood work done is ..well, the fasting. For 12 hours before. Not that I want to eat, but I want my coffee when I get up in the morning before I get my day started. Last night I tried to stay awake a little later so I would sleep longer. I went to sleep at 11:30 and woke up at 5:30 this morning, 3 hours before my appointment. Three hours of wanting a cup of coffee I couldn't have! I stopped at McD's on the way and bought a huge cup and left it sitting in my car. By the time I got out there it was cold but I drank it anyway!

My dad had to go to the ER last night because he was having severe abdominal pain. Seems that he has a hiatal hernia that has gotten a lot bigger. He really needs to lose weight. He has a pretty good size gut on him.

It's Friday, need I say more?

Chocolate And A New Job (Maybe)

Today I inquired about a job opening at my workplace. It's in the same department, just working in a different area as a secretary in the faculty office. I think I have a good chance of getting the job because I am already here in this department and I know all the doctors and everyone else. Plus I have lots of experience with the computer program that they use. There is a couple little issues that may make things difficult for a while if I do get the job, like the other secretaries can be a little bitchy and they may treat me like a newbie. But that's not really a issue because I can be bitchy back, believe you me! It is a higher salary grade than the job I am in now so it would pay much more than I make. Keep you fingers crossed for me!

Lots of goodies on the counter today. Cookies and truffles. I can smell the chocolate right now. My thing is if I don't eat one, I won't eat a hundred!

Sunshine and Better Moods

Well, my mood is better today and the sun is shining as we speak. It's not supposed to last, and we are supposed to get some snow, but at least it's out for now!

I am having my son and daughter-in-law and her mom and step dad over for dinner on Saturday night. I am planning on having baked ziti, meatballs, salad and garlic bread. A real Italian dinner with home made sauce and everything. I plan on setting a very nice table with all of my Christmas dishes and tablecloth and glasses. It should look very nice.

My mind is already running through all the things I have to do beside the cooking. My kitchen floor needs a really good cleaning so that will be done first thing Saturday morning. Then of course the bathroom. And when you have as many cats as we do, I have to be diligent about making sure the cat hair is kept in control. How awful would it be if one of our guests finds a hair in their food or on the table? Gah!! I'll be stressing myself out by the time they arrive!

I actually love to entertain people although I don't very often. I guess when you work full time the weekends tend to be filled with errands and chores and stuff and then it's back to work before you know it. I am looking forward to good food and good company!

Totally off topic and off season but I'll leave you with a picture of my daylillies from this summer!

Crappy Mood

I am in a crappy mood today. I knew as soon as I woke up that I was not going to be in a good mood. If I was still having periods I'd blame PMS but instead I'll just blame the weather or something!
One of the hardest thing about a bad mood day is trying not to be grumpy with my coworkers. Instead I just try to stay quiet, you know, if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all. Hopefully my mood will be better by tonight when I go home.
I've decided that I am not going to EVER do the self check-out at the grocery store again if I am by myself. Every time I do I manage to leave something behind. Saturday I picked up the cutest little ornament when I was at Meijer. It was a little wreath made of blue and silver and sparkly bells. It was so cute! I had to have it!! When I got to the check out I scanned it and that's all I remember about it! I guess I sent it down and did not bag it with the rest of my stuff. When I got home, I wanted to show it to Rich but it was nowhere to be found. I looked in all of the bags, in the trunk of my car thinking it fell out. Could not find it anywhere. So back to Meijer I go. I explained to the girl at the checkout what happened. They could not find it and told me to just go get another one. Of course there were no more left so I had to picked another ornament that was the same price. I was disappointed to say the least, and kicking myself for being so absent-minded and careless.
On Sunday, I had to go to the mall, and would be going by another Meijer. So of course, I went in search of my little bell wreath ornament. They had it so I bought it and made absolutely sure that it was in the bag!
I swore that I was not going to buy any Christmas stuff this year because we have so much, but this ornament was too cute to resist.

Shopping and Icy weather

This whole weekend was spent shopping pretty much.



My family does a gift exchange where you bring a gift for a female if you are a female and a male if you are a male. We limit it to $25. We pick numbers and as your number comes up you can pick a gift from the pile. It's actually pretty fun. Swapping is optional; if you see something you would rather have you can swap if the other person is willing.



This year I bought a huge (2 million candle power or something like that) rechargeable flashlight for the male part of the gift. Rich was practically drooling when he saw it so I guess I am going to have to get him one too! For the female portion I got a wooden box with assorted teas in it and a huge mug. I think I did good and hopefully whoever gets our gifts will like them.



I got approximately 2/3 of the shopping done. It wasn't too busy or crazy. I tried to get out early enough to beat the crowds.



Marie and I went to breakfast and then to the jewelry store in town. I wanted to see if I could get my diamond from my engagement ring set into a pendant. Unfortunately, gold is at about $800 a ounce so it would be too expensive right now. That's OK. I'm not in any rush.



The streets in my subdivision were a solid sheet of ice this morning. Driving out I never touched the gas pedal, just idled all the way. Once I got on the main streets they were fine. They are supposed to be bad tomorrow morning too. I am supposed to go and get blood drawn for a A1C test but I may cancel. It's too far to drive in crappy weather.

I Love Magnets

I love magnets as you can see from this picture of my refrigerator.

I have been collecting them since I can't remember when. Most of them are from places we have been on vacation. Some are from local places like the Detroit Zoo, The Science Center and Greenfield village. Some are from as far away as San Juan, Pureto Rico when we went on a cruise. I try to get a magnet from everywhere I go that is new to me. A lot of them are from vacations we took when the kids were small and I have written the date on the back of them. Some of them were given to me as gifts.

This picture does not even show all of them. There are magnets on both sides and also on a refrigerator we have in the basement.

I have never counted but I'm sure there's hundreds of them .

The worst part is when I want to clean the front of the refrigerator. It takes me longer to remove and replace the magnets than it does to clean it but I love them and they are a great converstion piece!

Meet the Kitties #6 Coco

And last but certainly not least is the baby, Coco.

Max and Toby are her big brothers. Coco was the runt of the litter and is still the runt. She's really small, about 5 pounds and looks to be the size of a 10 month old kitten. She's a grey tabby with brown spots and a small spot on the top of her head.

Coco is the most vocal cat we have. She'll practically meow on demand. She's very playful and loves to chase her brothers. She loves Rich (of course) and follows him around alot. She's curious and will get into everything. She loves to dig in my purse for some reason and if a drawer or closet is left open, you can be sure she's in there!

She hates to be picked up and struggles to get down immediately. She has a cute little tiny face and big brown eyes. She's a tough little cookie, too. She can definitly keep up with her big brothers!

She completes our little cat clan.

Meet the Kitties #5 Toby

Next up we have Toby. He's Max's brother and our biggest cat. He never wants to stay still for a picture so I always have to catch him sleeping or just waking up.

Toby has got to be the sweetest cat in the world. He never picks on anyone, never growls or hisses and wants only to play! We call him our gentle giant!

He will snuggle up with me or Rich on the couch and will literally lay his head on our chest to sleep and purr. He has big huge brown eyes and tons of yellow stripes.

When he was a small kitten and getting nutered, the vet had to call me twice with some issues he had with his teeth so he was under the anesthesia for longer than normal. We think it affected him somehow because he's kind of slow and doofy acting sometimes!

He's my special baby, though!

Meet the Kitties #4 Max

This latest guy is Max. He's one year old. We got him and his two siblings from a person that Rich works with. As you can tell from this picture he gets in trouble alot!

Max has a very inquisitive and intelligent face and the softest, silkiest fur I have ever felt. He's also a little terror. He loves to chase the other cats and will jump out at one of them any chance he gets.! He's very affectionate and sweet, and when he wants to sit on your lap nothing gets in his way whether it's the newspaper or another cat or whatever!

His nick name is Mad Max and he definitely lives up to it! He keeps us and all the rest of the cats on our toes.

I can't imagine being without him now.

Meet The Kitties #3 Zoe

This pretty girl is Zoe. She was rescued along with her brother, Smudge.

Zoe is a grey tabby. She has lots of grey and black stripes and beautiful green eyes.

Zoe has had her share of issues with the other cats. She really just wants to be left alone and will growl and hiss if any of the other cats come near her (except for her brother--who she loves). In the picture above she is in her favorite hiding place, under the dining room table.

She really loves Rich and will stand outside the bathroom door when he's in the shower, follow him into the bedroom and jump up on the bed to be petted. Every night we close her in the bedroom with us for the night because it gives her a little break and some alone time with us ( I sound like I'm talking about a kid!). Then Rich plays with her for a few minutes and she sleeps on the end of the bed.

She's a suspicious little thing who can be really skittish, or really loving! Like all of our cats she is a important member of our family.

Meet the Kitties #2 Smudge

This is Smudge. He's 3 years old.

He got his name because when he was a little tiny kitten, he had a small smudge of black fur on the top of his head. That smudge faded away as he grew but the name remained. Smudge is a pure white cat, I guess they're called February cats. He is sleek and smooth and beautiful.

He was rescued along with his siblings from the garage of an abandoned house by where my daughter Shauna used to live. She brought him and his sister Zoe home to stay with us temporarily until she found a place of her own. She was busy with her life so their care fell to Rich and I and it didn't take long for us to get attached to them. When my daughter moved out, Smudge and his sister stayed!

He is a very sweet cat and very affectionate to the other cats, but he does occasionally like to pick on his sister! Every morning when I feed the cats their canned food, he has to be on the counter eating before I'm even done putting the food in the bowls. Then later he can be found licking out the cans. He has pretty good appetite for such a slim cat!

His favorite thing to do is to lay in any sunny spot or look out of the window and chatter at any birds, squirrels or bugs that he sees.

He's very precious, especially to me.

Meet The Kitties #1 Tori

This is Tori.

Tori is the second cat I have ever had. She is a torti. She's brown and black and beige. She has beautiful brown and black eyes, and a cute little pink spot on her nose.

I got Tory from a neighbor who rescued animals. Tory and her siblings (I can't remember how many, now) were living under a deck. Their mom just disappeared one day. They don't know what happened to her but her kitties were too little to live on their own. They were rescued and bottle fed by my neighbor. Tory was actually about 6 months old when I got her. I was not really wanting another cat at the time but my neighbor held on to her. I guess she knew that I would change my mind eventually. I did and I'm not sorry at all.

She has been the greatest cat. So sweet and affectionate and always ready to purr. She used to jump 6 feet up the wall to get a spider or fly or whatever bug happened to be there. She was also a great hunter. We used to joke that she single-handedly wiped out the population of mice and moles in our city she used to kill so many. One day she even got a little bunny. You can bet she got in trouble for that one!

She also has used up 3 or 4 of her nine lives. Once she was caught in the dryer with a load of clothes. Once she disappeared for two nights; I think she got locked in a garage or shed. Once she got caught in a back yard with a dog and had to take shelter in huge hole that the dog had dug until we could come and rescue her.

She's 16 years old now. Although she is the only cat that we allow to go outside, she never wanders anywhere anymore. She stays in the back yard, laying in the sun or watching the birds fly by. She's slowed down alot but she still is in really good health.

I know some cats can live into their 20's and I'm hoping she's one of them.

Little Old Gnarled Tree

Today's Weekly Winners Sunday Meme picture is of a small old gnarled tree that was given to me by a person I used to work with a long time ago named Sandy. At the time she gave it to me, I liked it well enough but didn't really think it was anything special. Sandy and I worked together for 9 years and were very good friends during that time. She gave me lots of things and I gave her lots of things, too. Souvenirs when we went on vacation and little gifts and cards for our birthdays. We were each others sounding board. We always knew we could trust the other with any secret.

When I left that work place our friendship pretty much died, as work place friendships are apt to do. We tried to keep in touch for a while, but we really didn't live very close to each other, and we were both busy so eventually we lost touch.

I miss Sandy sometimes. We had a lot of fun together. I hope that her life is going well and she is happy.

This little tree pictured up there is very precious to me now, one of my favorite Christmas decorations. Because it reminds me of a very special friendship that I had for a while.

Ciao.

Day One Here we Go

Well, today is day one of the Holidailies posting. A post a day for the whole month of December. This should be fun.

This morning I was awake at 3:30 am. Why oh WHY do I wake up so friggin' early on the weekends? I think I laid there for maybe a hour, then I took a Midnite pill and that seemed to relax me enough to fall back asleep. I then slept until 7:41. At least slept enough to not be dead on my feet tonight.

Well, I got some of my list for this weekend done. I took Marie out to breakfast for her birthday today and I cleaned the upstairs carpeting. It looks pretty good considering how old it is. I also cleaned the area rug in the computer room. It looks better anyway. That was a lot of work and my back hurts now. Plus we did three loads of laundry, Busy day.

I should have gone to the grocery store but I got too lazy. It's snowing out now so hopefully tomorrow it won't be too bad out for driving.

Ciao.