October Ends and the Iris

Halloween was a lovely day. Moses supervised yard work! 

This day was spent in the iris bed. I actually started digging it up a bit before Halloween, but put all the photos together because they make more sense that way. 

I went outside to work with technology and a book and gloves! 

There was a lot to do and it took several days and I needed help. 

Halloween, Steve was able to add his muscle to the mess. Iris really need sorted more than once every several years!! 

The most unusual thing about October was seeing Steve's African Violet bloom..again. It had done it twice already this year! 

Finally, in the early days of November, the bed was replanted and ready for the colder season. We will know, in probably May, how they handled the thinning and replanting!! 

Mittens

“One can imagine that if humanity suddenly disappeared from the planet, the cat would shrug its shoulders, raise its tail, and return to its forest habitat, there to live as its ancestors have done for two million years, forever in search of something small, furry, and squeaky to play with.” 
― Eric Chaline

After Mittens supervised the making of the bed, her favorite toy was found. She has many toys, more toys than three cats need, but this little green mouse thing is her favorite. She plays with it all over the basement. She doesn't take it upstairs often, Obi tends to abscond with her toys and they get thrashed and trashed. Mittens prefers to thrash on her own. She often loses the mouse, I generally find it again and the play goes on. Silly Mittens! 

Silver white winters...

...that last through the spring. These are a few of my favorite things!!! 

April has started off where March ended. With melting and snow. 

I was finally able to get around the edges of the house where the sugar snow has melted to put up the new bird feeder. Mom said it was for Mittens, she was right. The feeder has some sort of  a barrier in the middle so the birds can't see Mittens, but oh my! Mittens can see the birds!!! 

 So far we've had chickadees and nuthatches visit. The feeder is not really built for the preferred  black sunflower seeds. Those mixed bags of seeds are ridiculous~ even if they are cheap. I will have to see how I can 'fix' it.

 She watches, attacks the window, gets disgusted, leaves, and then comes back. She cannot stay away!

 All throughout the day there were feathery flakes of snow lightly falling from the sky. Most of them melted. It was fairly warm out, almost 40 during some parts of the day. Debbie and Arnold came for a visit and we stayed outside. A lovely, somewhat chilly, scene for chatting!

 As darkness descended, temps dropped, and the snow started to stick. Mom had a bunch of those tiny yard lights out in the garden last October. I didn't put them away when I was home in November, so when the snows came, they vanished. The warm sunshine has melted things a bit and this light was glowing inside the berm made by the plow.

 HUGE snowflakes on flannel, more favorite things! God was shaking out the down blankets last night.

 This morning, the flocked look was the fashion. Incredible frozen beauty.

 The sparkles made from the rising sun on the fresh snow bring a smile to my face and joy to my soul. Yup, I love snow. And break up is pushed back just a tad longer! I reckon next weekend's Prom will most likely NOT have party goers playing on the bluffs and in the sand.

Last Weekend of March

 Tun of Ironcat.
Kila seems to be an easy mark to laugh at!

Steve made me a trellis for one of my rose bushes. It isn't quite done yet, but I was excited! It will be nice to have the roses on a real trellis instead of one of the many make shift ones I've created over the years. 

 

 Jon was annoyed. He had an idea for a trellis made from metal. However, the cardboard cat below is also a project he is working on. He's been toying with that since around Christmas (or earlier!). I was glad Steve got his mostly done, my rosebush really needs staked. It is tearing up the tulips planted under it!

 

Saturday was full of emotions and activities. In the morning, Jon was down at the park for the AVFD Easter egg hunt. (Athena Volunteer Fire Dept--see link) In the afternoon Jon was a part of an honor guard in a memorial service. The service was for the young man at the end of the second row of boys from the bottom (below Jon's left shoulder). Kyle Teater. Approximately 30 Scouts, former Scouts, and leaders attended. I wished Kyle could have seen how many people his life changed. It made me remember how important it is to love those around you now and not regret you didn't make time for them. When I start to regret, I love those near me more. 

April 2009

 We watched 'Big Hero Six' as a family and then watched the end of 'Real Genius'. Jon decided 'Real Genius' was more plausible. I enjoyed the former movie, it was cute. The latter movie? I'll watch it over and over!

 It appears there was a spot of turmoil in the doll world last night. Mrs. Klein and Amethyst were NOT sitting neatly next to the giant pillow this morning. I can only imagine what might have taken place.

 Easter Sunday has always been a fun day. When we were kids, Janet and I would hide dyed eggs over and over and over. They were played with til their shells were in bits! I remember looking for Easter baskets and finding one of mine one year safely lodged in the dishwasher. That was the year mum got us Trixie Belden. We used to dye and hide eggs and baskets for the boys. With Jon doing eggs by the dozen, we now do things a bit smaller. And place treats in chairs or on place mats. Steve ordered me the watch I wanted and I had him give it to me today. It was on my dresser. I was glad he had an old Ford watch container for it, I might not have found it with all my necklaces and earrings scattered everywhere!  I had picked up a Tshirt for Steve and a camo seat cover for Jon's Bronco (not sure it will work....). While I was out and about, I found these lovely cats. I was NOT going to get them, they were a pair and we didn't need anymore nick nacks. BUT, after dithering for quite a while, I brought them home.

 Moses doesn't seem too bothered by them! As long as he can have his 'paper' to sit on!

 I've been enjoying the rest of this Sunday making dinner. I created a couple of salads--which are tangy. I used my own recipe and NOT Pearl Burras' (Greater Tuna, TX). Jon thinks it is pretty funny. I've also made cookies (I was such a vegetable the last couple of weeks!). I was startled to find a baby alien in the last batch I pulled from the oven. I'm sure he'll taste just fine accompanied by a glass of milk.

Moses, CFI-Cat Food Investigators

One day Moses decided his kibble was stale, which was making mealtimes rather boring. He also noticed that his two leggers had brought home some new stuff and left it sitting untended near the kitchen. Granted, it was not Purina or Friskies or even Meow Mix, but it was fresh kibble. Thus, this bright bag required a thorough investigation. The scent of the assorted flavors drove Moses crazy and he realised he just had to get inside to more fully experience the contents. Thankfully, God gave him 6 toes on each front foot, and he was able to scratch his way through the sealed edges. After several minutes he had managed to make a hole in it. He sniffed the delicious odor and tried to reach the treats. However, it was very hard to maneuver his whiskers through the tattered opening he'd made. Thankfully, the biggest male two legger finally fixed it. The two legger properly cut away the torn and shredded bits of paper and Moses was able to nibble the top shapes off a freshly broached bag. We finish this tale with a contentedly crunching feline who knows a good thing when its carted in from the car!