Meet Toby.

 

 

Hey Everybody,  This is a bad picture, but as you can imagine, the subject is a wiggly little monster.  Who is this you ask?  Meet  *Toby*  ..... ahhh, isn't he a cutie? 

 

 

 

 

 

Exactly one week after losing Harry, when my heart was far from healed, this little boy showed up in our bushes at the front of the house.  I was working in the garden when I heard his tiny voice.  I went into the garage to get a shovel and I heard a little tiny meow.  I stopped in my tracks thinking... no, it can't be..... I walked over to the bushes and out popped this little tiny baby.  Cute as a button and he walked up to me cautiously. Even though I tried to resist the urge to go pick him up, I just couldn't.  It wouldn't hurt for me to comfort him a bit and check to see if it's a boy or a girl?  No, of course not. 

 

 

 

Crap!  It's a boy!  Did I mention how cute he is?  So, here in the midst of my grief, the universe decides that I need a sweet little 5 week old boy...... a CUTE 5 week old boy.  No.  I'm not ready for this I thought.  This would be wrong.... I mean, I just lost my Harry.  So, I crunched up some food for him and crossed my fingers that his Momma would come back for him.  That was at 2:30 in the afternoon.  He had not eaten any food at 7:30p.  He was too young for that food.  I took pictures and sent them to hubby.  Let's let him decide..... yea, that's what I'll do....

 

 

 

So, Hubby arrives home and I take him out front to meet the little one.  But instead, we hear only crying... scared crying.  Help! crying.... he was stuck underneath the steps.  He had crawled into a crack under our steps and couldn't find his way out.  Luckily after putting my fingers in the hole and calling him a few times, he came out.  My husband's first response was "Oh my goodness!"  I think he was shocked at how cute he was as well.  He said "You better go get this boy some food or he'll starve!"  Hubby and son took him inside while I went to Target and got him some baby mush supplies. 

 

 

 

 

He needed some help getting started eating the mush, but took to it pretty quickly.  He ate like he was starving!  Momma never did come back for him.  He is pretty small so we figured that he just couldn't keep up with the group and got left behind.  But that's OK.  I miss my Harry.  He will always be with me, but this boy makes the hurt go away a little bit. 

 

 

 

I guess you have figured out by now, that he is a part of our family now.  He is almost 10 weeks old and full of energy!  I love love LOVE this boy!  He is the prettiest kitty I've ever had!  (Shhhh, don't tell the other kitties!) 

 

 

Here's to being just one kitty short of being the crazy cat lady! 

 

 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving everybody!  I already have everything I could wish for and am so thankful!!!   PS- Hubby says Toby is my Christmas gift, hmmmm, I wonder if he'll sit pretty under the tree with a ribbon on his head?  :)  











Homemade Yogurt

Hello Again Everybody!

I've been dipping my toes into the world of cheese, butter and yogurts.... wow!  So much fun!  We love fresh mozzarella and now I can't see going back to buying the bricks at the grocery store.  Not only for the taste, but the price is so much better.  For the price of a gallon of milk, I can have a pound of yummy mozzarella and get some ricotta as well! 

Last week I made my first batch of yogurt.  I had tried a different method once before but I didn't like the consistency at all.  With the method I used this time, it came out perfectly.  The only adjustment I think I'll make next time is to let it sit for 8 hrs instead of 7.  This will give me even firmer yogurt and more of a stronger taste.

You will be amazed at how easy it is!  Again, why pay for something you can simply make yourself!?  Why pay for something when I now know exactly what is in my yogurt?  Here's what I did. 

I took a quart of milk and heated it slowly to 185 degrees Fahrenheit. While it was warming, I turned my oven on to preheat at 350 degrees for 2 minutes.  Turn it off when two minutes is up.  You want your oven good and warm, but not hot.  Let it sit while you finish heating the milk.  I then cooled the milk down to 110 degrees F quickly in a ice water bath.  It's a good idea to use stainless steel so you can go from hot to cold with no *ahem* accidents..... Once the milk is cooled, stir in 2-3 Tablespoons of a good quality plain yogurt.  I used Greek yogurt.  Be sure that it is plain and says that it has live cultures in it. 

Now place a lid on your pot (preferably a tight fitting lid), wrap it in a kitchen towel and sit it in the oven.  Now wait for 7 hours for a good yogurt that is slightly loose in consistency or 8 if you like a Greek style yogurt.  You now have plenty of time to do all the things moms like to do during the day, like laundry, dishes, ironing.....you know, all the FUN stuff!  :)  You may want to check the oven to make sure it hasn't cooled off too much.... This happened to me and I just turned my stove to warm for about 30 seconds and then turned it off again. 

Ok, now it's 7-8 hrs later.... you are tired from all that shopping, I mean, cleaning you've been doing all day..... take the pot out of the oven and remove the lid.  You should see a cheesy texture on top and maybe some separation of curds and whey.  Stir it up and place it in the container that you want to store it in.  It will be more loose right now, so don't worry, it will firm up in the fridge.  Set it in the fridge overnight.  The next morning you are ready for smoothies, plain, or spiced up with fruit and granola! 

Try it-- you will love it!  OH!  Don't forget..... save 2-3 Tablespoons of your yogurt and put it in the freezer..... for your next batch of homemade yogurt.  :)

Enjoy!!

If they had time to see....

Here's my beautiful son.  The light of my life, the reason I get up in the morning.  This guy will be turning 11 in just a couple weeks.  ELEVEN!  How did this happen!? 

He is such a blessing.  Hubby and I had been married 5 years before he was born.  It took us over a year to conceive him and had just about given up when we found out that we were expecting.  We always said that if we had trouble getting pregnant that we wouldn't do a bunch of medical procedures to make it happen, so I was thrilled beyond belief when I finally got pregnant.  I kinda always knew that I would only get one shot at this because we haven't gotten pregnant again.  So, yes, he is a huge blessing. 

That's why I'm a little saddened by our recent parent teacher conference.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I really like his teacher.  She is a ball of energy and she expects him to do well.  She pushes her students to excel.  He is having the best year he has ever had in public school.  But, he needs help.  He's behind in his math facts.  His spelling isn't great.  According to her his comprehension in reading isn't great either.  His social skills apparently need some attention as well.  She even asked if he had ADD. 

What bothers me is that she has made 2 assumptions that aren't true.  He's behind because a) he was homeschooled for second grade and b) he's an only child.  OR he must have ADD.

She assumes that he stays to himself and is shy because he's an only child.  No, it's because he was bullied to the point that he stays away from people until they prove that they are safe to be around.  She also assumes that because he is behind in his math facts and all other problems that homeschooling him is to blame.  NO!  He did great homeschooling and got the attention he needed to really understand something.... and he hung out with great kids....

I was just so frustrated because she just assumes...... she doesn't have the time to get to know him.  She has just put him in a category and there's very little that we can do to get him out. 

I'm not angry with his teacher or the school.  I'm mad at the system that makes her work with so many kids that she can only go on her own assumptions - quickly assessing the situation so that she can quickly place him and his problems in a box.

Here's to another year.......

We are so lucky!

Hi Everyone, 

Sorry it has been such a long time since I posted last.  We are finding our new normal without Harry and bringing a new boy kitty into our home, so things have been crazy.  What made things even more crazy is Sandy.  I'm sure you have either seen reports on Sandy or if you're anywhere close to the east coast, you probably felt the wrath of Sandy. 

Luckily, we made it through with no damage and with only 1 hour without electricity.  We stayed warm and cozy in our house while others lost theirs.  Watching the telethon on TV raising money for the victims of Sandy was so heartbreaking.  We knew it was bad, but we had no idea how horrible it was.  We were lucky to not be in the direct path.  We felt so bad for these people we had to do something.  What we could do wasn't much, but we donated to the American Red Cross for Sandy relief. 

We believe that sometimes, you have to give even if you can't afford it. 

I remember when my husband was out of work we were on an extremely tight budget.  We were getting by with his unemployment and my part time job income.  We had just learned that my husbands unemployment benefits were going to be cut soon, when a friend at my work had an emergency spleen operation and needed help paying bills.  I couldn't give much, but I handed over a 5 dollar bill.  The very next week, Eric got a job offer.  So, we have learned that things will work out, so you shouldn't be greedy if folks are hurting.  It will all work out. 

Look around your home today and love it.  Love the land, love the things needing repair.  Love the things that aren't as pretty as you'd like.  Love the house that maybe you feel a little cramped in.  Love the house that you call home.  Today there are families out there looking through piles of muddy rubble looking for anything they can salvage from their home.

Life has taught us yet another lesson in enjoying every minute because in that same minute, everything could change. 

Losing Harry

Hey Everyone, 

Today my post isn't going to be filled with my normal goofy stuff.  Today I'm going to write about the harder side of life.  With every life, there also comes death.  I had to face death just two weeks ago.  I am just now ready to talk about it. 

On Sunday, October 7th 2012 at 11:30 am I was happy at home.  I was cleaning the bathroom and enjoying the routine of it all.  I then heard a cry.  Not an ordinary kitty cat cry, but a sad, scared cry.  I walked out expecting that my timid mama kitty needed some attention.  But instead, in the hall I found my Harry looking as if he was having a seizure.  My first thought was he's having a seizure... meds, he'll need meds.... vet appts.  I went to him and honestly I wasn't overly concerned because my DiDi kitty as you know, has had these episodes before..... he just needed to get this over with and then we'll get him to the vet for meds.  But my boy didn't get it over with.  The longer it lasted the more freaked out I became..... what seemed like minutes was only seconds when he was taking rasping breaths.... sticking out his tongue.  By now, I'm crying..... yelling his name..... Harry!  Harry!  Come on buddy!  Harry!  I tell my son to call Daddy to see what we should do..... Through tears I give him the phone number...... 

His body then went limp, but I still thought he would come back..... flicker his eyes and wake up.  But he didn't.  I'm rubbing him sobbing..... This can't be happening.... he's only 4 years old.  My son is on the floor with me rubbing him, but surprisingly calm.  I tell my husband over the phone that I think Harry has died..... no pulse, no signs of breathing..... all in all it was about 2 minutes. 

I put his body on a towel and laid him in our sons bathroom until my husband came home.  We were all in shock.  We decided that we would have him cremated, so that if or when we move from this house we could take him with us. 

Now, I know what some of you are thinking.  He's a cat.  It's not like I lost a family member or anything.  But for someone like me..... it is like losing a family member.  I had plans for that boy..... I was hoping to move to a bigger piece of land someday so he and his sister would have a lot of room to romp.  I was going to put his 5 week old picture next to his 5 year old picture on facebook on his birthday..... I was looking forward to at least 17 years with him.  I wanted to see him grow old.....

But he was taken from us just moments after giving him treats and playing with him.  After doing some research, we feel he had the same thing our DiDi has.... Hypertrophic Cardio Myopathy.... thickening of the heart walls.  Very hard to detect and often the first symptom is death. 

We had his remains sent to Valley Pet Crematory.  We did a private cremation and received his beautiful box of ashes back just a couple days ago.  We have his collar sitting on top of his box.  They did a wonderful job.  Seeing the box pulled away any healing we had done since surrendering his body to our vet.  The hurt felt as fresh as the day it happened.  But he is home now.  He will always be in our hearts. 

The only good thing that came out of this is that we were home and by his side when it happened.  We know that even though his life was short, it was a comfortable and spoiled life.  :) 

It's still weird not having him snuggle up with me under the covers, (yes, he insisted on being under the covers!)  his sister lays next to me instead now.....

My son is handling it ok.  At first he was just mad.  This cat loved Ashton from the very beginning.  Ashton's energy never scared him. He would follow him around and just rub him..... so, this has been tough on my son.  After he was over being mad.... he cried and cried.  When we got back his ashes, he said a few words and put his ashes on our shelf.... kissing the top of the box. 

So, that is the story of losing our boy Harry.  I could go on and on telling stories of how sweet he was..... but I won't. 

It's time to say goodbye to my dear boy. 

Enjoy the every day.

Hello Everyone,

Fall is here.  Sunset comes earlier and the air is chillier.  I'm looking forward to the coming holidays and everything that comes with it.  Snuggling up on the couch with my kitties, reading a book with my son and eating up yummy food.  I've learned alot this year and one thing I've learned is that life is so precious and we never know when our time is up.  We need to enjoy the everyday.  The pretty predictable, dare I say boring parts of our lives are probably the ones that we would miss the most if taken away from us.  So love on your honey, squeeze your kids and cuddle cuddle cuddle those pets. 

Love every second.

Until Next Time Friends.....

The story of Tater and Wormy.

Hey Everybody,

This past spring I read a post on Homestead Acres where her kids enjoyed catching caterpillars and keeping them.  She said they really enjoyed watching the process of them going into the cocoons and later coming out a butterfly or moth. 

So today, I tell you the story of Wormy and Tater.

Wormy was a sweet little caterpillar than was hanging out by our door at our store.  We don't know how he got there since apparently none of his "host plants" are no where to be found around the store.  So we decided to take him home.  He is a Black Swallowtail caterpillar and the things he likes to eat is dill, carrot, fennel and other herbs.  So, we put him in our carrot patch in the backyard.  There he stayed until one day I noticed that he was no longer Wormy, but a woody looking cocoon.  He is now waiting for spring in our sitting room. 

We were shocked and surprised that Wormy completed his cocoon so soon, so we decided to bring in one of the Tomato Horn Worms.  We named him Tater.  We had him happily set up with green tomatoes in a fish bowl for about a week.  Until this happened.

See those tiny white things sticking off the back of this horn worm?  (That's not Tater by the way) Those white things are wasp larvae.  The wasps basically inject eggs into the worm and the larvae eggs grow and grow until they basically eat the worm from the inside out.  This is actually a good thing for gardeners because these little buggers can devastate your garden!  However, our Tater didn't have these eggs on him and he was easily as big as the one pictured here.  So we thought we were in the clear.  But one day, he stopped pooping.  Which in the worm world is bad news.  They can produce enough frass that you need to clean the fishbowl daily!  Then the next day, he had tiny white eggs appearing on his body.  So I took his little self out to the garden and said goodbye. 

There you have it.  The story of Tater and Wormy.  Wormy we'll see in the spring.  Tater Tot, we'll catch him next year in the tomato bed!