Another Day in the North

Got my dose of afternoon fresh air, big snowflakes and exercise with Caryn today.  Despite the wet snow, it all melted since it was 39 degrees.

Found areas today on our hike that had absolutely NO snow....dang it.  I'm probably the only person hoping for a good snowfall soon.  I'd be happy with 4-5 inches of snow.

Ne Ne was happy to see us return from our 2-hour snowshoe walk.  She's such a sweet little cat, always wanting to sit next to use to us at the kitchen table, listening to our conversations about life, family and politics.  She's such a good listener.......

Thankful

Yes, feeling thankful.  After five days in Southwest Wisconsin, I traveled back home to the north woods today.  My parents are doing good, but just waiting now for my dad's next surgery on March 2.  I'll be back to help the folks in 2 1/2 weeks.  It's tough with cancer....appointments, monitoring, surgery, pain and just trying to live a normal life.  I'm thankful my dad isn't going through chemo or radiation because that would totally rob him of a somewhat normal life.  I told my dad that after this surgery to remove more tumors in his bladder, he can then enjoy a wonderful summer, with NO APPOINTMENTS!  For now, we won't think about the fall months.  Just take one month at a time.

When I arrived home today, Bike man pointed out our amaryllis was blooming.  There are still more unopened blossoms just waiting to open. Don't you just love the color?  

And my sweet little Annabelle!  She was so happy to see me, along with the other three felines.  My BIG cat Aiden hasn't left my side since I got home.  He is my 24 pound lap cat!!!  Zero degrees outside, no problem.  Aiden will keep me warm....better than a blanket ya know!

PS.  28 years ago today, Bike man and I welcomed our son Christopher in our lives.  I thought for sure I was having another baby girl, but was totally surprise to give birth to a baby boy!  Love you Chris....we are so proud of you. 

Favorite Spot!

Everyday it's a different location. Each cat like to choose their sleeping spot for the day. Annabelle likes the glider chair, but many times I find her on the very top of the cat tree. Life with multiple cats.....what can I say!

A full day at work today, a meet & greet tonight with our favorite candidate for the 23rd Senate seat here in Wisconsin, and lastly a delicious fresh veggie pizza with lots of sauteed kale and feta cheese. Life seems extremely busy all of a sudden.....oh yah, it's spring!

Very Laid-Back

He's just a laid-back cat, always watching and observing his environment. Sometimes he'll just sit there and stare at you. Aiden's 23 pound body doesn't always fit well in certain places, but he's unaware of that and doesn't realized his own large body can cause space problems.....poor cat. Everyday I look at him and tell him he's a kitten in a big boy's body! He just looks at me and meows!

House of Fur

Manny - our Ragdoll

It's all about them, I mean, the cats. Our house has become a cat sanctuary. There's never a dull moment, or a place to sit! Come on kitty, MOVE over!!!!

Aiden - our Maine Coon

One thing I've learned about Maine Coon cats, is watch out for the massive claws. Aiden paws are the size of a dog, except add really sharp claws! I don't play with Aiden very often because of his huge paws that can quickly grab anything. His favorite toy? A drinking straw. Thank heavens for cheap toys!

A Comfortable Niche

How is a woman suppose to pack? Come on Manny! Guess he wants to come along too!!!

Visitors

Yippee, visitors this weekend!!! The Son and his girl Trisha are here for a couple days. Enjoyed a dinner out tonight at the local bar and grill. Guess who's also happy the kids are home? Annabelle, Manny, Abbie and Aiden......it's play time!

She Eats What?

I realize that cats love to chew on house plants.

But fresh oregano? Really? Every day Abby munches a little here and a little there. Maybe she's our healthy conscious kitty cat!

So did you guess my animal paw prints from last night? If you guessed river otter, you guess correct. We have a lot of otter's that live near us because we live in a bay area with two islands close by. It's not unusual to see otter's swimming along the lake bank during the summer. Several years ago I even spotted an otter that popped up and emerged from the lake ice to sit near a downed tree. It's not every day that you see a creature emerge from underneath thick lake ice.

It Doesn't Take Much

......to make him happy! No need to spend money for heavens sake, when you can give him a drinking straw. No expensive cat toys in this house!

He'll play for hours, meowing loudly as if he caught a mouse.

By tonight the straw will be in shreds. But that's ok, I'll just give him another one tomorrow! Maybe on Tuesday I'll give him his favorite plastic pull tab from the frozen orange juice container. Just goes to show happiness comes in many small ways.

For me, happiness means a nice strong cup of espresso with lots of cream!

~Happy New Year everyone ~

Abby

Crabby Abby......she's coming around. She's had her bad days, but most days now are good days. Some animals just need extra lovin! Nice kitty, kitty.

Crabby Girl Just Showing Her Love!

I'm not really sure why, but Crabby Abbie gets excited when I come home from work.....especially when I'm wearing a jacket. It never fails, when I wear a jacket, Abby gets the uncontrollable urge to jump up on my shoulder and perch there for a while. Thank heavens for the jacket, otherwise I couldn't stand her big claws! We need to clip that massive claws soon.

First time in a long time that I went out running in the dark, well, not really. The full moon lite my running route, it was so cool. Not use to this time change yet. Was I scared running in the dark? Yup, just a little. Kept thinking a deer was going to jump out from the wood and snort at me!!!!

PS. Don't worry, I actually wore my red blinkie light tonight so I would be visible to cars. Thank heavens for bicycle lights.

Headed For Home

Headed towards home this morning. Made our route along the Mississippi River heading north. Stopped in Trempealeau for a lunch break and spotted this river barge heading north. Won't be long and the barges will stop moving for the winter months.

Arrived home and immediately started unpacking. I only turned my back for two minutes and suddenly I find a cat snoozing in my suitcase. Come on Manny, I'm still unpacking and your getting kitty fur all over my clothes! Geez

What is it with cats and suitcases? Abby couldn't resist laying across Bike man's bag. Something tells me our feline friends were excited to see us come home.

Happy to arrive home and get back to our normal schedule.

Camera Ready

I couldn't pass this picture up. Some people just get all the love.....feline love that is! Looks like Manny boy is enjoying a warm lap, wouldn't you agree?

Love the Warm Temperatures

With a temperature high of 55 degrees this afternoon, the kitties were happy when I left the sliding glass door open. Birds, chipmunks.......life is good for all the felines in this house!

More yard work today, however, I couldn't resist building another fire with the totally perfect pine cones that dropped to the ground for a second time. This is the year of the PINE CONES and they are covered in lots of pine pitch.! For the third time since September, we've raked pine cones, pine needles and now oak leaves. This was it, no more raking......I'm raked out. Bring on the white stuff.

You couldn't ask for a better fire starter. Pine cones covered in pine pitch are perfect. Want a campfire? Just call me......1-800-campfirequeen!

He Doesn't Know.......

The gentle giant doesn't know he's extra large. He is continually knocking things over and walks through the house with heavy paws. Poor thing.....life is tough for a big giant! I can't help it however, I still love his 18 pounds of silky fur. Just for precaution, if you hear him coming in a full run......just get out of the way or you'll be knocked over! Guess Big Boy is as close as you can get to a feline version of a dog........Maine Coons, you just gotta love um!!!!

Serious Business

Catching mice is serious business. Just ask Aiden.....the big boy!

That's no toy mouse hanging from his mouth. Aiden, the big boy, caught a mouse and held it by the tail for five minutes while he walked around the house growling. I learned something new about Aiden. He takes his mouse catching very seriously! Found the mouse the next morning.....dead, but not eaten. Guess it's more fun to play than eat......

Oh Manny

Silly Manny pants! He really likes to snooze on the dining room table. Don't most cats like to curl up and sleep in a soft cozy spot.....couch, bed, blankets???? Oh boy, what do ya do?

Let's Try Again

So this is what I wanted to post last night, but Blogger was hiccupping again. Bet you didn't know there was a pirate in the house! Every time I come home from work and see the pirate hard at work, I just smile.

It didn't take too long and our fourth cat Manny is feeling right at home. I'm so relieved since Manny spent two days under the bed. I was really getting worried, but slowly Manny is exploring the house and warming up to the other cats. In fact, I caught Manny and Annabelle playing together this morning....wow. Spent 30 minutes this morning helping Bike man haul Manny and Abby to the Vet. Manny needed some updated vaccinations, and Abby needed to be re-checked for an infection she was fighting 3 weeks ago. Everything went well.

I almost hate to say this, but it rained all day. It was a cold rain. Just can't believe it's June 23 when you consider the weather here in Wisconsin. High of 59 degrees today. Can someone please assure me that it's summer. What happened to that 90 degree weather we had a month ago?

I'm trying really hard to be happy, and cheery despite the cloudy, rainy conditions. Ohhhhh sun, please return.

Rain Held Off

Bike man and I headed out on the road bikes after work tonight. I felt like the east wind was laughing at me saying, "ha, ha, I'm gonna make you work those quads." Legs were sore from yesterday, but the hills tonight helped work out that soreness. Looked like rain, but the rain held off......that's a good thing. (20 miles/Tainter Lake route)

Manny update: tonight Manny is exploring the house. He finally emerged from the bedroom where he has been hiding since late Saturday. He's still weary of the other cats, hissing at all three cats, but I know it's normal cat behavior. Yup, go ahead and call me the crazy cat woman!

Hey, It's a Turtle!

We decided to stop and move a snapping turtle off the highway today. Bike man picked him up and his head immediately started snapping back and forth.....yikes. He was a big boy about 14-15 inches. About a mile down the road we found another smaller turtle trying to cross the road. Of course we stopped our bikes and once again removed the turtle. Decided to do a long ride today with decent temperatures and mostly cloudy conditions. I haven't done a long ride on Ruby yet this season, so my body spoke to me loud and clear towards the end of the ride. Rehydrating was the key to relieving my sore muscles! (44 miles)

I called my daddy-0 this afternoon to wish him a Happy Father's Day. My mom and dad were busy today going through all kinds of stuff.....stuff that needed to be weeded or set aside for their daughters. I know it's hard going through years of stuff, but it's a chore that has to be done. Thanks mom and dad.

Manny update: He spent all day under the bed, but finally pulled him out and introduced him to other areas of the house. I was getting worried because he hasn't been eating, drinking or peeing in the cat box. I was able to get him to eat some soft cat food, but he still hasn't had any water. Decided to separate him again tonight when we go to bed. I want Manny to feel safe at night. I'm hoping tomorrow will be a better day for Manny......he's such a sweet cat.