A Week of Purrr Fun

Well it's been just over a week with Raven and Hawk, and all is well. Ok, the dog and kittens aren't napping together, but we are getting there. Last night Takaya and Raven lied next to eat other a foot away, no gate. The only time it got exciting was when I went to close the door and needed to move everyone.

Each day, the kittens get to explore new parts of the house. The kids are LOVING having these small things around and I cannot believe how the kittens just let them do stuff (gentle stuff) to them. Raven especially. Hawk has calmed a lot, and I know with another week of trust, she'll be just fine. Her purr loudness level is up about six notches already.

On Saturday night, we let the kids have a "sleepover" with the kittens in the basement. KJ was tickeled pink to wake up with a kitten next to her. Seeing her with easy going cats has been really good - she actually has been a bit hesitant to pick them up. She has never been able to "play" with a cat, so having two has been awesome.

Watching Raven and Hawk play is fun in itself. My vet friend said it would be "more fun than a barrel of monkeys". He wasn't wrong.

I hope a few more days and gates can go down and dogs and cats can live in harmony. Something that hasn't happened in this house in over five years.

On this day of love...

I am thinking about marriage. What ones work, what ones don't. Why does mine?

I just head from a friend that her 10 year marriage is over. Apparently it's not been in good sorts for a few years, something that came as a surprise to me. I also heard that another friend of mine just got engaged, not someone I would have thought was looking for that "ever after". I guess you can't predict everything.

So where does my marriage stand? Good. A work in progress, but that is what it's all about. I didn't marry Mr. Romantic, but I truely believe I married my soul mate. Because he doesn't allow me to settle. He doesn't give in, or give up on me. He challenges me, makes me laugh, frustrates me, and loves me for who I am.

Sure, there are moments that I wonder when the flowers might arrive as a surprise to my office. And maybe one day they just might. But if they don't - I still know he loves me. How? As sick as he is, he just walked the dog in the rain so I didn't have to. He said "go" when I found two new kittens to bring home. He said "just do it" when my puppy was sick and I knew it wasn't going to be cheap. He keeps buying my scrapbooking stuff cuz he knows it makes me happy.

And really, in a day and age where more marriages seem to fail than succeed - I am happy to say we are succeeding. And I am confident that will continue, because we both know each other is worth it.

So Happy Valentine's Chris - I love you.

Takaya

Today has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster. And while we don't have a final answer, I am feeling a bit more at ease than I did this morning.

After almost of 24 hours of her not being able to keep anything down, the sound of her snoring right now is incredibly peaceful. She spent the day in the hosipital, on IV and drugs, and while the diagnosis isn't totally sure, it at least doesn't seem to be the end.

I know at the old age of ten, her years around are less than more. But I'm not ready to see her go - not yet. Aside from this bout, she's in pretty good shape for an old girl. She's been with me through everything. She was our first family member, and came to us right after we bought our first place. The kids adore her, she is Chris' daily pal for his walk. It would be lonely without her.

So while she needs to go back for a little more care tomorrow, I am optamistic that she is on the mend and hopeful that this is just a blip in her world.

Babies back in the house

I knew it would not be long before we got another cat. In my life, I have lived a total of five weeks without one. Five long weeks. That was from the moment I moved out of my parents house until my room mate got Madison. Maddie and I were buddies, in fact, I was the only one Madison liked. So when Lia moved out, her "gift" to me was the cat.

Madison and I did a lot of growing up together, and when she died at the well lived age of 16, it was a tough good bye.

Harley came along just over a month later. She was a nice cat, but try as we did - she never fit in. And while I was sad to see her go, I knew it would not be long before a new furry friend came along.

I've been stalking all the kitten sites. Watching, waiting. Chris was ok with getting a new cat, and even agreed to getting two kittens. He wanted to wait a bit, but knew when I found two black kittens, well let's just say I got my Valentine's gift early.

So as of this afternoon, we have officially welcomed Raven and Hawk into our lives. While I picked the names (kinda going with the theme like Takaya) the kids decided who was who. And in the six short hours we've had them, it seems like the right names went to the right cat.

Raven - who is a little larger and a little fluffier than her sister is the trickster of the two. A little more bold, and seemingly the dominate of the two, she's goofy and silly. Her purr is loud like a Raven and I am sure she will be the one who loves everyone.

Hawk, the smaller and shorter hair kitten is a bit shy, watches from her post and attacks her sister from the side when she is least expecting it. Her purr is soft and she is slower to trust. She will be the most loyal, but to whom - well it's too early.

I am happy to have babies in my life again - this is the first time ever than I've been able to get two at once. Something tells me it's going to be more than I expected, but double the fun!

A Scrappy Weekend

Last weekend, Skrap N Chat celebrated our two year birthday!! TWO YEARS! I can't believe it's been that long that fast, but it has!

We celebrated with a crop, naturally, and the girls totally rocked the gallery with great creations. I got to play along too, which I loved because - well let's face it, I like to scrap. Here is what I came up with:

Happy Birthday Skrap N Chat - it's been a great couple of years and I am looking to even more fun in the future!!