This is Willow at 8 weeks old, we have only had her for two days on Nov. 28, 2009

New Kitten

I should probably share that we did adopt a new kitten, the day before Thanksgiving. She was so small when she chose us (one of the kids was along for the night and said that the kitten looked at him with these eyes that pulled him in) and is growing so fast! Willow is our newest family member and boy is she a social being. I am glad her temperament is so different from Onyx but she shows all the signs of being a good mouser. It is rare to be in the house without Willow demanding some type of acknowledgment! It's a good thing there are five of us to give her attention!

moving on

It is amazing how many people feel for you when sharing the loss of a pet. I even received a wonderful gift from the big boss, thanking me for all the hard work I do for school (it was the book Bad Kitty by Nick Bruel because the illustration of the cat reminded me of my furry friend). Of course I cried when I found the gift at my desk as it was from one cat lover to another.
I have been searching my digital pictures for ones of Onyx(I have lots as he was such a funny kitty) so I can make a few scrapbook pages. I was up late one night and saw a mouse scurry across the floor. Okay, here is the first reason we got a cat - mice! I am ready to get another living breathing affectionate mouse trap. don't get me wrong, we all miss Onyx and know he was a special kitty but he had a job, and it was to convert mice to poop. Now the family will begin the journey of finding the perfect "mouse converter".
To help me keep my mind off of cats and kittens I have been checking my favorite crafty blogs. Happy day! There is a blog hop going on and I have been looking at all the wonderful "festival of lights" projects for the cuttlebug blog hop. I think I just might make some fun embossed name place tags for Thanksgiving, that is if I can find the time to complete 23 place cards and clean the house and prep a fancy dinner and check black Friday ads - I just love Thanksgiving and the gathering of family! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

sadness

I have learned you can not confine a cat. After several weeks of trying to heal a cat, we decided the suffering has been enough. Our furry friend just hated being confined, weather it was a "kennel" or a room. He would bang himself up trying to get out and his broken leg became a compound fracture. It was destined to become infected (can a cat use a litter box without all four legs?!). Before things were awful we decided to euthanize our beloved pet. Everyone in the house "bucked up" and gave lots of attention to our furry comrade but still in the end we all bawled like babies. Onyx was such a good companion, never clawed the furniture, always quick with a purr and an hug (as well as demand for food!) and kept the mice out of the kitchen. Several days later after the fateful good-bye we still miss him and look to get a furry purr at the end of the day. sigh. We are constantly remembering when Onyx did this or that but I know my adult (and almost adult) children really cared when they provided Onyx with the meal of all kitty meals on his last night - shrimp. Farewell Onyx, we will always hold a special place in our memory of you.

Okay, so after some cat lovin' and computer competition (the feline felt compelled to cover the keyboard as he purred contentment and slept!) I decided to check some blogs (being as how I was so busy petting and hugging the cat and couldn't have fun scrap booking!). Well happy day, I found a "win a prize" type of thing. Turns out if I share the good news (which is hard because it means more competition but I just can't resist sharing crafty ideas) I could enter to win a cuttlebug. OOooh, my latest wish -for item! So here is the link... http://svgcuts.com/blog/?=p3672. And by the way, I also wish for the SCAL software...hint hint family!

confine a cat?!

Our furry friend came in one morning after a night of hunting, with a really bad limp - walking on three legs type of limp. We took the feline to the vet. to confirm what we knew, he had a broken leg, totally broken leg, like two pieces from one. His left rear leg just dangles. Poor kitty. We (the whole fam.) is so sad and hoping he can mend but it is hard! The vet said to keep him from walking and more importantly jumping up on furniture. How do you do that with a cat?! We borrowed a pet kennel, designed for a large dog, (thank you uncle Bruce!) but after adding the litter box, the cat only had enough space to lay down. How do you keep an active cat from being active? And it isn't for just a few days - it's for six weeks! And still our beloved pet may still have a gimp. I have resigned myself to having a three legged mouse trap but worry about getting thru. the next six weeks of nightly meowing/howling. We keep him comfortable (with vet prepared pain pills), cater to his needs by bring the food and water to him as he lounges on the comfy feather bed (when we can catsit) but he still wants to walk around, jump up on couches and be independent. Sigh. So how do you confine a cat so he can recuperate!? Isn't confined cat an oxymoron?

WooHoo!

Perfect Pages, Everyday Grid Layout
Complete Scrapbook Kit!
After a couple days of scrapbooking and commenting to my mother how I am running out of paper (and money), I returned home today to discover a box had been delivered to me. It was from Colorbok. I had remembered I completed a survey for the company a few weeks back and if I was one of 100 first responders I would receive a thank you gift. Well I did get an email telling me I was one of the first 100 and a package would be sent soon. I quickly forgot about it (it WAS several weeks ago) and wasn't sure if I really was a "winner" but today's gift changed that! It was a great thank you package. First was a Perfect Pages pack with over 70 pieces, and I thought what a great prize but underneath was a complete scrapbook kit with over 1,000 pieces! Whoo Hoo, just what I needed. Included were at least 2 doz. papers with coordinating embellies and a 12in x 12in postbound Album!. I am so excited I just had to share a picture of the goodies! A big fat thank you goes out to the COLORBOK company! (if I had an Umlaut it would be above the last "O")