Meet the newest Brewer

This is a cute story about spring training, the Milwaukee Brewers and a stray dog. If the embed doesn't work, here's the link. Enjoy.

There's also this story in USA Today if you want to know more about Hank! So happy this little guy found a team and organization to not only take care of him, but love him!

Thursday Catch-up

I've been very lax about blogging, not that life has been giving me a chance to relax, but starting next week I'll have more time than I ever imagined. All three kidlets will be attending school full-time. It'll be the first time ever (well, since having a baby back in '98) that I won't have a kid at home. Quite a change after five years of homeschooling. Needless to say, lots of school prep of a different kind going on around here. And lots of mixed emotions. For me at least!

My oldest's goldfish Butler died. We thought he died a week ago when our youngest found him on the carpet, but hubby moved water over his lungs and Butler started breathing and swimming again. Beauty, our little black cat, is the one who knocked over his bowl. She's been after him since he arrived from the fair (a prize from a carnival game.) Butler was floating in his bowl so we assume he died from natural causes. But Beauty has yet to provide an alibi. She also stopped hanging around the door to my oldest's room. Circumstantial evidence, but a little fishy if you ask me!

I had a very nice birthday. Thanks for the greetings. A quiet day, but fun. The celebration continued into Tuesday when my parents came up to take me to lunch and later that night the family went bowling. The funny thing about my birthday is I'd picked two things I'd wanted to do. On my day I wanted to go bowling and have lunch, but the place was closed for an employee appreciation party. And the next day I wanted to have lunch at a little cafe I love. Well, that happened to be closed, too. They stopped serving lunch. Lesson learned for next year, call ahead and make sure places will be open!

Did you see this story about George R.R. Martin's name appearing randomly in his A Feast of Crows ebook? Some of the examples are very funny!

Hope you have a nice day!

Kitten Season

In my current work-in-progress THE BILLIONAIRE'S NANNY, my heroine is fostering a cat named Blossom. I fictionalized a real life event that happened at my local animal rescue shelter, a broken pipe flooded the cat house, in order Blossom to need a foster ASAP. But the truth is, even without a broken pipes, most shelters and rescue groups are looking for fosters.

Especially now.

This is the time of year when rescue shelters find themselves overwhelmed by kittens. Kittens are oh-so-cute, but when they are only days or weeks old, they live in foster homes. This puts a strain on shelters to find space for them. Kitten season lasts for months, so many shelters need extra fosters to get them through this crunch time.

If you've ever thought about fostering cats for a shelter or rescue group near you, now is a good time to make the call! You don't have to foster kittens. Older cats need foster homes, too. I can't speak for all shelters, but my local one provides all the supplies a foster needs, including covering medical expenses for the cat(s.) The foster provides the space and care and love. A win-win situation.

I realize some people aren't in a position to foster at the moment. One of those people is me. With two sick cats, I can't take in another right now, but we can still find ways to help. Just check in with your local rescue group to see what ideas they have on ways to get involved outside of fostering.

I know fostering doesn't appeal to everyone. I've heard the following from more than one person: how could they foster a cat, get attached then have that cat adopted by someone else. They say having to give the cat up would hurt their hearts too much. I always shake my head at this because that means these so-called cat lovers would rather protect themselves than help an animal in need. Sure, you get attached. Yes, you will miss them. And there have been lots of foster failures (raising hand, because we ended up adopting Miss Mousie.) But aren't some tears and a tight chest better than having a cat turned away from being rescued because there isn't room for them? Sure, some people will take in strays (we've done it), but adoption events and online adoption databases are better ways for a cat to find a forever home.

Every cat needs a forever home and their own person or family to love them!

And dogs, too! If you prefer woof to meow, dogs need fosters, too!

Hai! Yoda iz Back!

Yoda the Ninja Cat

Iz been too buzy being a ninja to blog for MomE. But she iz worried about me. Iz helping her.

A lady in the white coat sayz something iz wrong with my heart. She sayz Iz need to see heart doctor. We go today.

Iz tellz MomE I only 3 1/2. Iz a Ninja Cat. Iz adorable. My heartz good.

She still worry. Put away little red light thingy I chase.

So we will go to see this heart doc.

I wantz red light thingy back.

Awwww....

I'm in the midst of deadline panic. I'll have the ALA recap on Monday. In the meantime, I'll leave you with what is already my fave Super Bowl 2013 commercial. Seriously, I can't imagine any other ad being better than this one. Take a look...



How sweet is that?

Oh, and I totally spaced on announcing the new blog contest winner. So sorry. With hubby not feeling well and needing to get Spirit back to the vet and a book to write, I'm a bit overwhelmed at the moment.

The winner of a $10 gift card to Amazon or BN.com (winner's choice) is Dru who commented on my post December Contest Winner! Dru, please use the Contact button on the menu bar above to send me your email address and where you want the gift card from. Thanks to everyone who entered.

Instead of a gift card this month, I'm going to be doing something else as a giveaway. I'll have at least one, maybe two, shorter length contests.

Bears

see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!

We had a lion on the blog yesterday. No tiger today, but I must share this bear video that came across my Facebook wall yesterday. I wasn't quite sure what was going on as I watched, but I got a nice surprise! Worth a view.



The Clark County Fair 4-H Dog barn opens today. We'll be there for dog judging, but just today. I decided last year I couldn't spend seven days there. A good thing I made that decision because I really do need to write. A lot of people think because you work at home that you're really not working. But that isn't the case at all. I've gotten much better at saying no. If not, I'd never get anything done!

The kids don't seem to mind since I promised they'd still get to go to fair, and they still entered a few events. A win-win situation!

Well, I'd better get writing before it's time to head over to the fairgrounds. Have a great Monday!

Happy Birthday Chaos!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Today, our beloved Chaos turns seven! She's now considered a veteran and can go back into the breed ring at dog shows even though she's been spayed. Mackenna can't wait to show her there, even though they've been doing Junior Showmanship. (They placed 2nd yesterday at a show in Redmond!)

While the cats are at home with a housesitter (and doing well, yay!), Chaos is here with us in Sunriver having a blast. She's been going for lots of walks. We went geo-caching yesterday and she came face-to-face (well, within twenty feet) of four deer. The hunter instinct in her (Norwegian Elkhounds are used to hunt moose) went into overdrive. I've never seen her ears stand so straight or such a perfect stack. It was really cute.

Right now she's on a nice long walk with hubby while the three kidlets do a two-hour trail ride. They've been wanting to go horseback riding for a while now. After an early morning at a dog show, bike riding, geo-caching, walking and tennis, they let me sleep in so I have a nice quiet house all to myself! I'll head over to the stable when they're coming back in, but hubby's been sending me pics of them heading out!

Here are some pics of Chaos from the time we adopted her when she was 2 1/2 years old. She's such a great dog. We really lucked out when I called the PSNEA Rescue Coordinator looking to adopt a Norwegian Elkhound who needed rescueing and we ended up with one of her dogs. But she felt we would be a good fit and it's been a perfect match.

Fresh from grooming

Go find your own to play with!

Not feeling well.

Hiking Mount Hood with daddy

Chaos and Yoda - the early years

It's not staying, right?

I hope you enjoy your Monday! We'll be spoiling our birthday dog with lots of love, treats and walks. Maybe we can find her some more deer to look at, too!

The San Diego Zoo

We visited the San Diego Zoo yesterday. The last time I was there my mom pushed me around in a stroller!

It is so big. There is a gondola, busses and escalators!

Mackenna and I stared at the map for a few minutes unsure where to start. We must have looked lost because a volunteer wearing red asked if she could help us.

We only had a couple of hours so took the 35 minute guided tour on a double decker bus so we could get an overview of things and then decide what we wanted to go back to and/or see the exhibits we'd missed. The tour shows you approximately 70 percent of the zoo.

After the bus ride, we rode the gondola to the back side of the zoo. Mackenna wanted to see the Giant Pandas so off we went. We had a better view of the female. They are hoping she is pregnant. They'll know in a couple of months. Fingers crossed!

We then rode an escalator back up to that backside part and followed a path through the elephants and other animals. The San Diego Zoo is great, but I must admit visiting it today made me appreciate our Oregon Zoo back home much more. It might be smaller, but some of the pens, such as for the giraffes, seem better suited for them. But the San Diego zoo has a better variety of animals and the landscapes/plants are incredible.

After a quick bite to eat, we took the Big Cat Trail. I must admit this was my favorite part. Especially since all the animals were out and within viewing site. A black jaguar had tuckered himself out with a bone and slept so soundly, reminding me of my black kitties Yoda and Beauty.

This big cat to the left was not a happy camper. The cat was having a stare down with a man and not liking that one bit. At one point, the cat started hissing and growling. That reminded me of a couple of my cats back home!

But even still, the cat remained at the front of the cage instead of stalking off. I'm assuming he/she was looking for away to get through the fence and show the stare-off guy exactly who was the boss. That's what my cats would be doing!

This cat was in the same area as the other one, but the opposite corner in the front. (A very smart feline to stay away from grumpy pants roommate.) As you can tell, this one was just resting. No hissing, just some panting. It was a very sunny day. I just love big cats!

We continued to follow various paths and trails until we reached the exit. We managed to see quite a bit in the almost four hours we were there. It's a place you could spend a full day and not see everything. Our Costco 3-1 passes allow us to go back if we like. Those things were a bargain. But we haven't decided what we're going to do yet with our next free block of time.

Last night was the opening of the NEAA specialty. Everyone dressed up to watch the Veteran Sweepstakes. Chaos turns seven in July and will then be considered a veteran and allowed back in the breed ring. Veterans are allowed to be spayed. It was so wonderful to watch these old dogs strut around the ring.

Hope life is treating you well! We're enjoying our time away from home.

Baby Dolphin

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

If you haven't seen the pics of a baby La Plata river dolphin rescued in Uruguay, here's a link to the Real Coastal Warriors Facebook page that has them. She's absolutely adorable! She was so young when she was found she still had her umbilical cord attached. If you can't get to the Facebook page, here are the same pics on Global Animal.

If you haven't heard about her, here's an article from glogalanimal.com. Isn't she cute?

I really want to finish up the revisions today so better get working on it. I've been fighting something, too, so trying to lay low and just write. I can't afford to get sick. Too much going on right now.

Hope you have a nice Thursday!

Animal Kingdom

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Do you remember watching Mutual of Omaha's Animal Kingdom with Marlin Perkins and Jim Fowler? It started before I was born, but I remember watching it as I grew up. We really enjoyed that show. Now when people say Animal Kingdom, many think of Disney World!

Still recovering. A few things to do today, but not a lot. Looking forward to some more down time.

Hope you have a nice Monday!

Costumes for Cats

This video brings two thoughts to mind:

1) Life should have a soundtrack. Look how much the music adds to all the costumes. If a soundtrack played through our everyday happenings, we would never miss those important moments. I'm also guessing the murder rate would probably drop, too, as well as violent crime since the music would have us hightailing it out of any iffy situation. Forget about going into any dark place alone. And it would be so much easier to find our one true loves!

2) Humans are insane. I fully admit to spoiling my pets rotten. I'm sure people think I'm a crazy cat woman. My dog is totally pathetic with how much we baby her. But all these costumes specifically designed and manufactured for animals? Total insanity. And yes, I have dressed up my pets, but not to this extent.

My Side of the Bed

Here are three of my four furbabies sleeping on my side of the bed while I write. Rocket, Spirit and Choas' version of peace on Earth. If only they would always get along so well! Someday!!!!

In case you're wondering, I sit about two feet to the right of where Rocket is lying when I write. That's why they all congregate on my side. Smalls, our third cat, sits underneath the bed skirt as close to me as she can get without being seen if Chaos is around. If the dog isn't, she joins the other two kitties on the bed. And yes, the cats are thrilled I'm writing again!

Another productive writing day on Friday though I struggled a bit because I was tired. I took my oldest daughter and a dance friend of hers who slept over to the mall to meet other Irish dancers for lunch, ice skating and shopping. I got to chat with the other moms for a couple of hours. It was really fun.

What did you do?

Kitty Exercise

Since my return to Crossfit, getting fit has been a big topic around here. The kidlets have been doing Crossfit Kids since February. If you want to see a cute Crossfit Kid's WOD, check out the Climbing Cutie's blog. I'm even trying to get hubby involved. How could I not? Not only is exercise good for the body, but the mind.

This got me thinking about the other members of our family. The one's covered in fur. What do people do to keep their pets fit? Check out these kitties on a treadmill!



I just love this clip. The two paw walking is priceless! Cats provide so much entertainment. You don't even need to own one now thanks to YouTube!

Our cats don't do much in the way of exercise. They are sprinting and jumping more now that Chaos is here, but that's about it. Chaos, on the other hand, gets tons of walks and plays in the yard to stay in shape so I don't have to worry about her.

What about your pets if you have them? Are they couch critters or active animals?

Doggy Playdate

My friend Tiffany, Rose and I met at OMSI on the east side of the Willamette River in downtown Portland yesterday so Angus and Chaos could meet each other. We've been trying to plan this doggy playdate walk for a couple of weeks now. But we finally managed to get the two together!

This picture is a shot of Portland as we walked. There's a nice path that follows the edge of the river where you can walk or ride your bike.

Angus says hello to Chaos with a kiss. Well, actually Tiffany was trying to get the dogs to pose for a picture. She had her hands full between the dog leashes and treats. Luckily there were enough treats for both.


Good doggies! Well, as long as there are treats involved, the two of them will do whatever you say! But we finally got them to stay and pose for a picture. You can't see her, but Tiffany is right there ready to grab the leashes if need be.

Seriously though, the dogs were very good during the entire walk and got along great! Don't they look so cute together?

Since I was pushing the stroller and taking pictures, Tiffany walked both dogs! Angus liked being the Alpha dog. Must be the male in him! Chaos didn't seem to mind.

Neither of us was sure how the walk would go. She guessed we get about twenty yards and have to turnaround so she didn't even bother wearing tennis shoes! I guessed a little further, but both of us had way underestimated the kidlet and two dogs. We walked for over an hour. This after my Crossfit workout! But it was great to spend time with Tiffany.

I've been in denial over her move to London, but as it's getting closer I realize she'll be leaving in another month. So I'm getting Skype and figuring when I can fly over there to visit. The HMB offices are only a 30 minute train ride from where she'll be living so I can not only see my friend, but meet my editor for the first time! I still have never even spoken to my editor on the phone. Everything has been done via email!

After our walk, we drove to Ikea for lunch and a little shopping. Chaos stayed in the car. She was very happy when we walked through our front door and plopped onto the cool hardware floor to rest. There's no place like home!

And if you want to see Tiffany's Bend house, where we stay when we head to Central Oregon, pick up a copy of the May/June issue of Oregon Home. There's even a picture with my two oldest that was shot when we were staying there over Spring Break.

Where do you like to take walks? Do you prefer to go alone or have company?

Pet Wars

more cat pictures

The cats continue to hiss and growl at Chaos. It's getting a bit annoying. Okay, the dog is big, in their space, eaten their food a couple of times. I'd be a little peeved myself. But still enough is enough. Get over it. The dog is not going away.

We made a tiny bit of progress though. Both Spirit and Chaos slept on the bed while I worked this afternoon. It was so nice to see and quiet. I wished I'd had my camera handy. Unfortunately as soon as I got out of bed to go get the camera, both woke up and let's just say the moment was over. I keep telling myself... baby steps. Just like with Crossfit.

Thinking about pets led me to this quiz:

You Would Be a Pet Rabbit

Playful and hyper, you enjoy being around other people... as long as everyone's having fun. You are easily bored, and you almost always need some sort of entertainment. If you're not keeping busy, then you're apt to get in some sort of trouble! Why you would make a great pet: You're very entertaining, even when you're not trying to be Why you would make a bad pet: Well, personal hygiene isn't exactly your thing... you kind of smell sometimes What you would love about being a rabbit: Playtime... and eating flowers What you would hate about being a rabbit: Being held like a toy

What Kind of Pet Would You Be?

The Animal Eye Doctor

One my three cats, Spirit, has an eye ulcer. We took her to see Dr. Kirschner, an animal eye doctor in Beaverton, Oregon on Tuesday. This was our second visit to the clinic. Since then Spirit has been on daily doses of three different medicines: two types of eye drops (one four drops a day, one two drops a day) and a pill. We thought the medicine was working because Spirit started opening her left eye. She no longer looked like a pirate kitty 24/7!

A trip to the doctor is not easy on Spirit. It's a long drive to from our house, and she does not like the car. Dr. Kirschner took us into the exam room. Poor Spirit did not want to come out of her carrier. I had to get her out while Rose held onto it. Spirit was so frightened, but Dr. Kirschner coaxed her closer so she could examine her. The doctor was very patient and gentle with my freaked out kitty.

The doctor reviewed her record and we talked briefly about Spirit's most recent blood test results from her regular vet. We've repeated the test with the same extremely low platelet count results, but she's showing no symptoms. Dr. Kirschner then checked Spirit with the lights on. Again, I was very impressed with the doctors easy manner that put not only the cat, but me at ease.

Next, Dr. Kirschner checked Spirit's eyes with the lights off. You wouldn't know it was dark from the picture though. My mistake. I thought I had the flash off, but I didn't. It surprised all of us including Spirit so I decided no more pictures when the lights were off. I really need to learn how to use my camera better.

With the lights on, Dr. Kirschner put drops into Spirit's eyes that turn green. This enables her to see things better. She then put on a head device, turned off the lights and checked Spirit's eyes again using the different equipment.

Afterwards, I could see green on the inner corners of Spirit's eyes that day, but she didn't seem to mind them. Must be all the eye drops she has to have!


All done! The examination didn't take that long.

Now that wasn't so bad, was it Spirit?

And good news!

The ulcer has shrunk 50%! We will continue the drops and the pill each day and visit Dr. Kirschner again in a couple of weeks. There's also something else going on with her eyes, but we're taking care of the biggest problem first.

One final picture of the patient and her eye doctor before getting back into the dreaded cat carrier and the evil minivan for the long journey home. Though Spirit looks ready to get out of there!

I've felt the same way when I've been at the doctors!

What about you? Do you mind going to the doctor's or are you ready to get out of their before you even go into the exam room?

Kitties on Patrol

The recon began last night. Captain Spirit ventured out of headquarters to be the battalion's first scout. She kept to the high ground (i.e. the staircase). No doubt the numerous viewings of Star Wars 3: Revenge of the Sith has led to a feline force to be reckoned with. Obi-wan would be so proud of his Tabby-wans.

Spirit peered through the bannister at the large, furry, four-footed creature who had invaded her territory. Trying to make sense of the takeover, she slowly moved lower and lower to get a better grasp of what they were dealing with. A face to face encounter with the large panting beast resulted in hissing. The brave captain stood her ground while the intruder retreated. No shots were fired and no blood drawn. Though if lightsabers had been available, it wouldn't have been pretty.

A secondary scout, Lt. Rocket, set out to join his captain in this daring mission. A meeting on the staircase almost resulted in a fight between the two officers, but clearer minds prevailed when they realized a party of two, both of whom still have claws, made more sense than facing the unknown giant alone. The lieutenant made the crucial error of retreating too quickly up the stairs. The lightening quick Jedi reactions of the tall person who feeds the troops kept the situation under control. The result-no casualties.

Corporal Smalls, however, remains MIA. She is the one with the most experience against this type of enemy but has been suspiciously absent during all reconnaissance missions thus far. The captain asked for an explanation, but has been ignored. The corporal has only been seen in the mess hall during meal times and when she ducks under cover.

Fortunately, the Chaos factor remains low.

So how was your night?

Chaos is coming!

It looks like Sunday is the day!

Chaos had her stitches removed and is doing great. The vet asked the woman of all her dogs why she was giving this dog away. My heart just broke. You see, Chaos belongs to the rescue coordinator. She's giving her dog to us because she thinks Chaos would be happier living with a family. After talking to us about the rescue available, she thought we'd be a great fit for her own dog, who loves attention, but now has to vie with three other dogs. That's true love, don't you think?

To make my life easier, she offered to gather all the supplies we'd need and bring them with her and Chaos. She's going to drive the doggy to us. That way she can see where Chaos will be living. All we need to do is set a time.

And we're not so far away that we can't visit or leave Chaos with her when we travel. I think we get the better end of the bargain, but she's happy for her beloved Chaos.

The kidlets still don't know. Someone sort of spilled the beans this weekend, but both Tom and I were quick to say "No!" to the question about getting a dog. I later called him to explain. He'd figured it out on his own. The kids have been asking questions about Chaos for weeks now. Rose was peppering me about her yesterday.

A few more days. That's all we have to wait. Fingers crossed the secret remains, well, a secret!

Anything coming up in your life that you're looking forward to?

Relief in sight?

I couldn't take it any longer so I went to the doctor's this morning. They put me on antibiotics. I'm hoping this works. Not sure how much more I can take!

I got an update on Chaos. She is recovering nicely. All she wants to do is play though and that's not allowed due to her stitches. The vet also ran a bunch of tests just to make sure she's healthy and everything came back normal!

Not much else to say. It's pretty boring when lying on the couch or bed tires me out!

Is your day boring, busy or exciting?

Angus and the Cats

Given the imminent arrival of Chaos, I decided to see what the cats' reaction would be to a dog. I held onto Angus' collar and brought him into the cat's sanctuary, aka as our bedroom.

To my surprise, nothing happened.

Spirit didn't move until Angus took a step toward her. Then she only raised her head and looked at him. Rocket continued lying in the laundry basket.

I brought Angus a little closer. Spirit held her ground, but hissed. When I brought Angus toward Rocket, he had the same reaction as Spirit. Hissing, that was all. I was so worried they might run! Huge sigh of relief.

Poor Angus though. I think he thought he'd found new friends to play with. Of course, what he really wanted to do was make a bee-line for the bathroom where the cat food was!

Here's a clip with some really cute cat pictures. I like the song, too.



I'm spending another day in bed, what about you?