Silver

We have a temporary new cat. Saturday night Loofa started petting this kitty I had never seen before across the culdesac. When we started going in she followed us over. I picked her up and was shocked at how skinny she was. I figured she was a stray at that point so I put some food out for her. She's been attached at the hip since then. She appears to have kittens so I'm waiting till she is done nursing to take her to the shelter. I wish I knew where they are. She is a sweet kitty, very friendly and mild mannered. I'm guessing she was house trained as well. If anyone wants her, let me know. She's still practically a kitten herself.

Dead Chickens

Brother B and I had a discussion today about where eggs come from. He started asking if they died when they were cold. I said yea so then he started accusing me of killing them when I put them in the fridge. When Loofa sat down to eat, he said "Are my eggs dead?" Then Brother B said "Mmm, I like chicken, I'm going to call eggs chicken now."

In Memorium

Bonnie was born July 16th, 1992. Her mom came to our door when just my dad was home, while the rest of us were on vacation. Bitsy (her mom) was a pregnant stray so my dad started feeding her. He always acts tough around the cats, but he definitely has a soft spot for them. Bonnie was a blessing because she was born only a couple days after my kitty, Ben, was killed by a wild animal. She was born with a little grey spot on the top of her head, hence the nickname of Spot. My dad called her Bob at first, then my mom chose Barnabas. After a while we figured out she was a girl and she was named Bonnie. It was pretty fun to watch her grow. She was a quiet kitty, but affectionate. It is hard to lose a pet that you have known so long, but they enrich our lives in irreplaceable ways.



Naptime with mom (Bitsy):

Sorry, you can't go on vacation with us:

One of the many and varied ways we tortured her:

Someone appreciated the basement clutter:

Once again everyone knew I had a white cat due to the fur all over my clothes:

Bitsy, Bonnie and Bub:

Soccer

Brother B just finished up a week of soccer. He had a fun time and it was good practice before soccer season starts. I signed both him and Ephant up for the city league starting in August. He was pretty proud of how well he did, especially with how many goals he made. I was glad to see him enjoying himself so much.

Just Some Cuteness

Running Just as Fast as I Can...

I finally started running a week and a half ago. It is going suprisingly well. I've had some pain to work through, but it is not unbearable. I feel like I'm getting into it faster than last time. I know it is not because I'm in shape, I think I just have a better sense how to breath and move this time. I have just a few weeks to get up to a 5k so I can run with my sister in Utah in August. Then I'll be running the 5k Run for Sight in September with my friend. I never would have thought I'd love running so much that I'd actually crave it.

My favorite thing to listen to on my ipod while I run is my Rush Limbaugh podcasts. Gets me nice and riled up :)

Zoo Trip

We had beautiful weather Saturday so J decided it would be a good day to go to the zoo.

Here the kiddos are sitting high up in the moutains in an eagle aerie:


Fake waterfalls of the Pacific Northwest:

Proof of zoo animatronics:

Pretty good view of the cougar. He kept pacing back and forth checking us out:

Fefe's latest silly face:

Pretty typical Fefe look:

J's favorite animal, the otter:

Happy Birthday J!

J turned 32 last month. It wasn't the best birthday ever since it was on Sunday. I owe him a better day. We gave him a ukulele and a backpacking tent. I bought him a bike helmet too, but turns out he really didn't want one. He said he'd wear one if I insisted, but I don't care. For dinner we had chicken curry, one of his favorite meals. That, on top of a nice Sunday nap made for relaxing day.

Fetch

Just a couple cute pictures of our littly doggy:

Playing with the Baby

Swaddling

Fefe loved swaddling when she was smaller. I decided to try it recently just to torture her. Amazingly she enjoyed it. It lasted about a minute before she struggled out.

Pay Off

After years of swimming lessons, Ephant and Brother B have finally passed Level III. They were extremely excited. It is a relief for me to have them swimming this well too. This means that they are officially allowed to swim without supervision. We went to the pool the other day and Fefe Loved it. She held me pretty tight at first, but eventually she kept trying to dive out of my arms.

I Am Not a Constant Gardener

I like to keep my yard looking nice, but I'll be the first to admit that I do not have a green thumb. I pretty much do the minimum and expect a few losses as a result. That being said, I worked pretty hard on this one. I didn't spray the first year, but sprayed regularly after that, pruned, etc. We've had this apricot tree for about 4 years now and it seems to have contracted death. We had a peach tree too, but it only took a year to die. We've had a lot of fungus problems here, a complication of our wet climate I would assume.