Monday, Feb. 29th- the last day of the month

My precious little Mocha must be feeling a tad better because she as least came out to lay in the chair beside me here at the computer and I like that. She is shivering so I cannot decide whether that means she is cold or stressed??? Plus, Coco is feeling bad as she cried when I reached to pet her and tell her I love her after I returned home today.

I had agreed to meet my daughter and best friend to go to Radford College to hear Trump , who is a presidential candidate speak. We all met up and then headed downtown (ours is a little town) . The place was definitely abuzz. People were Everywhere - like bees at a bee hive. The parking lots were already filled to capacity , so we finally just gave up and headed off to have lunch together at a Chinese place in the next little town.

We were celebrating my friend leaving town with her daughter and son-in-law to go to California where the kids have been offered better jobs than they can find around here. My daughter paid for the lunch to send her off. Then we stopped off at a place called Plato's Closet to see if they would take any of the clothes that Joyce had and they only took one pair of jeans for 5.00. Bummer. I had never been in there so it was a nice new adventure for me except that my knees and calves were hurting so bad I could hardly stand it. Plus, bad eyes made me sad that the pleasure of shopping might be another gift I might be forced to give up in the future. Just the little things that we as women take for granted all of our life-can end.

We headed back to our meeting place and said our good-byes and I started to cry. I am so happy for her - I guess maybe change is just hard for me. I have been so blessed by her friendship . She is the one person that I could call when it came to an animal tragedy so maybe I am feeling vulnerable ??? That is one feeling I do not like. If it were not for my animals I would just load up and go with her, but my animals have always held my heart.

I did get to see my beautiful daughter too and that was a gift too. I treasure her more than she will ever know. As we parted I went by the vet's office where I had to pick Cowboy's remains up and of course that brought more tears. First I was surprised that his container was so small - in a pretty paper bag -then at home I was surprised that his container was so large compared to DH's -it was about 1/4 the size. I placed them together and told them that I miss them both. More tears , so I guess this is just one of those challenging days. It certainly was beautiful -very windy but beautiful. Tomorrow will be colder -but still that is getting me one more day closer to Spring.

 

Sunday, Feb. 28th - Month Almost Gone

Today was such a Beautiful day ! Spring cannot be so very far away - I always start to smile when I think I have lived through another Winter! Yea. The ground is so totally saturated that the water is still running down the driveway and the valleys -all heading toward the creek and then into the lake about a mile down the road.

This is the last of my fleece caps. I just figured it up and for 21.90 I made 16 caps. That adds out to approximately 1.38 a cap - BUT- that does not include the lining that I already had so if you add that it brings it up to approximately 2.78 for a nice, soft -double lined fleece cap that will last a very long time and is Very warm and comfortable.

                                                         

I decided to show this take of them also because this is one of my experimental projects too. It is called Winter sewing and you use milk jugs -turned into mini greenhouses to plant your annual flower seeds with the expectation that the seeds will know the proper time to germinate and come out to be much stronger plants than just started the regular way under lights where you have to harden them off. Since I do not have heat in my building now I do not have enough room in the house to start my seeds and I have reverted to try this ??????? We will see what happens. ~smile~

I would call this Friday Miscellaneous

My poor little pups are still not feeling up to par. Just too look at them you can see it. No tail wags and they do not want to eat? I am at such a loss as to how to handle it. They each took a small bit of food this morning -enough to get their breathing pills down them. In a couple more hours it will be time to try to get another breathing pill plus a heart pill plus Mama is still on an antibiotic. This vet has their breathing doing good now but this ongoing sickness that has had them down since Thanksgiving is just breaking my heart......

I spent 3/4 of my day setting up a new cell phone service and turning off the Verizon cell phone service because Verizon would not fix the problem. They had told me four days ago that the service would Fix Itself ! I had been down this road many times before and the service would definitely NOT FIX ITSELF! They always had to do something on their end of the problem. Well, at least it is fixed now and ten dollars cheaper too and every ten dollar definitely counts.

I switched to a service called Boost which runs off of available wifi and if that is not available then the cell towers. I had ordered a twenty dollar phone just to see IF It was Possible that it would work in this house with the metal roof and in this rural area where so many people cannot get service. Would you believe it works Perfectly and I do not have to fight with no cell phone extender now. Yea! A phone that you pay for that works!

I did manage to make it to the Sewing Room and come out with two new caps which I really like. I did not like that with 3 cats in the house now that there were more cat hairs to fight with???

I believe I am totally wore out just from the stress of  dealing with other businesses. At least the Boost people were very nice and very helpful when I had a problem and I could understand them. I needed help and they supplied it and it was all fixed within 30 minutes.

Bad Weather Thursday

The wind here was terrible. It snapped the ropes off a a big tarp I had covered a storage trailer with. Parts of the roof had given way and I was just trying to protect the treasures that I have store inside.

But I was very blessed because two hours down the road from people several people were killed . I know one was a 78 year old gentleman. There are horror stories. I looked at the pictures of some of the destroyed homes and thought -that could have been mine. How in the world do people come through things like this? We think we have some control over our lives but really we do not. We are just blessed.

I am still having trouble getting the cats to adjust to the little stray. She actually got away from me today and I managed to snatch her up just before a neighbor's cat came calling????? Hurry up SPAY DAY!

Poor little Bandit just wants some peace in the household once again. Me Too!  ~smile

I did manage to make it to the Sewing Room again today and I was so pleased to complete two more caps. They are so nice and soft and warm.

Well, better hunker down for another extremely windy night and the temperature is dropping . The doggie door keeps blowing wide open so I will have to shut it . Brrrrr!  I hate winter and I Hate Storms.

Stormy Weds.

My little Coco was not feeling so great this morning, but at least she ate and took her meds. I am in the same boat with her. Sooo much pain -it hurts to move any way and makes it so hard to concentrate on doing anything. But, I KNOW I cannot just not move as that hurts too and makes it worse in the long run.

So I painfully wobbled out to the front porch and fed the birds. I was hoping this mother cardinal would come closer for a picture but she was too cautious so I had to settle for a long distance shot . It is dark and cloudy today so it is hard to get a clear picture.

After feeding the birds and inside chores I fixed a green smoothie and fixed a dose of the Oil Of Oregano for the pain. It does not take long for that to kick in and make it bare-able for me to head to the sewing room. These little guys were already up and enjoying their new morning.  I love their happy sounds.

 I was simply thrilled to be able to complete two more caps for the day. Of course I was sending prayers of love for the two that will receive these - come Christmas. It will be for a granddaughter and great-granddaughter duo. She is such a great little Mother and I am so proud of her and her precious little bundle of joy.

As I left the sewing room to put the caps up I noticed that  my little "Parlor Princess" is still sound asleep so I "snuck" up on her and snapped a pictured.

Of course she heard the sound of the camera snapping and wanted to know why I was bugging her. lol

I headed to the computer and passed her Mama - Blondie in the living room doing a good stretch. I need to do that too. Pups are so much smarter than we are.

They are calling for some bad storms the rest of the day and it has started Pouring Buckets of rain and wind and Thunder so I am posting this early - just in case we would lose electricity.

I am going to rustle up some dinner - either the stir fried rice cauliflower (no real rice -the cauliflower is just chopped up to look like rice and be healthier for you) or maybe the cabbage and noodles????

Sending you love and hugs and hopes for peace, love and NO PAIN!

Tuesday Ham

It was pouring rain this morning when I woke up  . I did the house chores and got online to check the weather and they had issued a flood warning???? Hum????  I watched it for a while and then texted my acupuncturist to cancel my appoint because if I go out and a hard rain comes that causes flooding I cannot get back up to the house so I did not want to be caught in that position. Better to just stay home and be safe. Plus, that money went on the fuel for this month anyway. I really wish I could have gone as she went on a vacation to Belize and I wanted to hear stories of Sunshine and fresh fruits and veggies . But, poo - have to wait a week now.

To dissipate my disappointment I headed to the sewing room to work on another cap and an unexpected helper showed up -the new adopted gal- Miss Gabby.

She is turning into quiet a "Ham". She is a typical female though-some days she is sweet and loving and other days she is Bossy and Controlling. I didn't want hairs on the caps and she had "other-plans".

But, we did come to a meeting of the minds and I ended up with two new caps. It doesn't matter that they are twins as they will be sent in two different directions this Christmas.

After I had my lunch I took a wild hankering for popcorn? My hubby was ALWAYS the one to pop popcorn and I Really do miss that. I had tried last week but since the popcorn was 3 years old it did not want to pop and I burnt it BLACK.

I was determined to not do that this time and I found a wee bit that was not that old and I came up with some nice popcorn which I munched on while I watched a program and rested my back. That was I was not in the same pain I was the first day I started this cap project.

I have let the stray kitty loose in the house today for the first time. She is still in heat -here it is 8 days later???????????????? I am hoping the exercise to wander around a while will help her to sleep better at night and thus, ME too. lol   So far Miss Gabby is the only one to hiss at her.

I was also very disappointed  today to notice that mealy bugs had all but killed one of my coleuses. Darn bugs - you just cannot have anything it seems -be it outdoor plants or indoor plants?  I have doused them with powder and also took clippings which I gave a bath to -just trying to save anything. Will just have to see what happens. I was just trying to make it till Spring and that is just a few weeks away now. It sure did not pay to let down my guard.

Monday Sewing Treat

The birds and I both got a nice early start this morning. The weather was beautiful and I got everything accomplished. I spent a few extra moment rubbing the donkeys ears this morning , just appreciating him. He has had it hard this month and I really do not think he will make it through another hard winter. So, I am going to enjoy him this summer and always watch for his "whiteness" in the field. He has been a great little guy and a good guardian to the sheep.

                                                                         

I looked around and saw an unbelievable amount of work. Work that takes strength that I am losing due to this constant pain. As I was coming back around the building to shut the door I noticed a small lump of plant material laying on the ground. I almost did not even notice it . But I stopped and sorted it out and it was 3 flowers and a tulip bulb??????? Now where in the world this came from I have no idea. But, I cannot stand to see plants not where they are suppose to be - In The Ground! So, I grabbed a digger and put the tulip in a little tulip bed there close and then carried the 3 balls of roots around behind the building where I had started a little flower bed of flowers my daughter had brought and dumped in the yard last summer. The earth was thawed and the soil was soft enough to dig and put these where they will have a chance. They each had a little piece of green peeking out at me , kinda like waving Hi.

I checked on the bird feeder as I came in to take my shower and the little stinkers seemed very appreciative.

Then I had my shower and fixed my morning green smoothie while I took my eye supplements and got on line to try to order a phone??? This turned out to be another one of those things that seem like it should be quick and easy and ends up taking an hour and half?????  I still am not forsure if it went through. I got one blip telling me it had not and then one note telling me it did- so - who are you to believe???? They sell used phones -But - you cannot talk to them on the PHONE to ask if your order went through or not??????  If it did I will get rid of Verizon because they did not fix my service -they just told me it would Fix ITSELF!  So, I guess I will give it a week to see if I receive a phone in the mail and if I do not then I guess I will try again??????

Miss Rosie was keeping an eye on me so now I finally Fled to the sewing room to finally get to work on those New Caps that I got that fabric for yesterday and have been dying  to get my hands on.

I learned new lessons, of course -so my brain should feel Exercised. lol I learned that fleece can Shift on you -both while cutting it and while sewing it ! I learned having eye challenges does not mean I cannot enjoy sewing yet. I learned I am still Good at making bloopers . LOL

I learned that we can still take Flat pieces of fabric and turn them into beautiful objects that others can enjoy. I also got to do a comparison on top stitching that inner lining that turns into the cuff. The first one I did right on the very edge and I did not like the way it looked so the next one I did a good 5/8 inch from the top and I liked the look of it much better. I have an adult granddaughter who loves My Little Kitten and one of them will have her name on it for Christmas. The other one Might end up going to the women's shelter as I think that might make a nice Gift there at Christmas. I like the little swirly one too. But, since these are double they are so nice and soft and WARM.

Here is the link again for the caps.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViTe-Vaa72M

I also learned that Your Back can start to Complain Terribly when you sew! I had had a friend tell me this lately when she was working on a project. I had said that you would not think something so "seemingly " simple would hurt so much??? I do not know if age has anything to do with it or not-But - It sure can hurt and I had to take an hour's break while I ate lunch. I also dug out that oil of oregano and took a big breath and put it under my tongue and let my mouth catch fire and be so darn miserable for a few minutes and then felt the pain ease up to where it was bearable. I need to find out how many times a day you can safely do this??????

Sun. Feb. 21- A Brand New Start To a Brand New Week

     It started out a very beautiful morning - almost like a spring morning .Then it started pouring down rain! Buckets of it for a while. I was on the computer and noticed I had a note from Jo-Ann's about today being the last day to use a 60% off coupon. Humm??? I REALLY wanted some fleece to complete those caps I had started on and a friend had just given me a belated Christmas gift of a Jo-Ann's gift card??? So, I pumped up my enthusiasm and my courage and took off.  These were the colors I chose and I could not use my coupon because all of these were on sale. Bummer??

                                                                     

      BUT - I happened to notice this piece of metallic fabric and realized it would be perfect for a pattern I had just ran across for a dress for the American doll that our Sewing Guild dresses. Last year I had been too overwhelmed to participate but maybe if I apply myself I can pull this off while I still have eyesight to help with?????

                                                                           

     This should be something you might find very interesting if you do sew. One of the gals at the Sewing Guild meeting had mentioned that Harbor Freight carried rotary blades in their Carpet section and the store was just  next door to Jo-Ann's so I decided to check it out. You can see they say Carpet Cutting Blades but they really are 45mm rotary blades and they say on there for carpets and quilts! lol One lady who has a quilt shop said that is all she uses . There were two blades in a pack and they were 1.99 ! I thought that was a real deal.
     My pain level today was terrible . The Tylenol and the Adleve and all of those things do nothing for the pain so I just decided that was a waste of taking something bad for my body to start with. I looked at the Oil Of Oregano and I have been using it mixed with the coconut oil to use as an oinment but this time I remembered they had said it helped pain internally so I took 5 drops under my tongue. I HATE that stuff as it sets me on fire - but after I got my breath back and about half an hour down the road it eased the pain up about 50%. So, that makes it more bearable. I will be glad when the new herb comes later in the week -we will see what that does. Right now I am just grateful for toning it down a little. Yea!

New pair of cloud booties

     It was almost a peaceful kind of day - except for the cat in heat still screaming -this makes the 5th day. Do you think it will EVER let up???? If only it would then maybe she would be spayed before time for the next cycle????? I wish I knew a turn-off button. lol

     I was pleased to get another pair of the booties finished. I am getting near the end of all the yarn I had caught on sale and I will be glad. lol  They are nice but I am kinda getting wore out on them. My eyes are giving me trouble so I must Persevere, just in case ????

                                                             

      Miss Gabby has been in one of her sweet, lazy moods today just kinda chilling , letting everybody just do their own thing, more or less. I think she is really getting pretty.

                                                                   

     This is the poor little stray who I "Think" I am going to call Shadow who is trying to survive a heat cycle  until she can be neutered next month. I think my ears are raw. lol  I have noticed a certain way she holds her mouth it makes me wonder if someone has kicked her in the mouth and broken her jaw when she was little because it does not look like it closes right. When I take her in for her surgery I will ask them is they will take a peek while she is out? You can barely see her little pink tongue kinda hanging out  But , at least she can eat the dry food I give her and she has grown like a weed the past  three weeks since I found her in that storm. I am just keeping my fingers crossed I can assimilate her into the family with Gabby and Miss Rosie , the sewing cat.?????? I am taking it slow and easy with all of them.

     I spotted something very dangerous and was glad I was in the house with this candle . I happened to notice the flame started shooting way up out of teh container it is in and it got higher too. I don't know what caused it but it did not look good to me.

     Blondie and her son Bandit were at least moving around a little bit today and I am grateful for that. They have had a rough time with this stupid doggie flu and Blondie is on different meds AGAIN - the fourth or fifth time since Thanksgiving? I just want them to all be well and happy and wondering if it will ever happen.

     I am grateful for another pair of the booties made - at least that is one more Christmas gift for the elves to put away. lol

     My cell phone extender quit working 2 days ago and when it does not work -my cell phone does not work. I called them today and got a nice young lady who could not fix it so she transferred me over to a not so nice young man who just plum did not fix it and said it would fix itself??? lol   They say you get what you pay for - BUT - sometimes that is not even true. 

Friday Ends the Week -boy they fly

     It seems even the birds are enjoying life more as the temperatures have risen above freezing and the white stuff is leaving here. I have a friend in town and his place is still covered in snow and his driveway is covered in ice! He has to park down on the highway as he cannot get in his driveway.
     He had taken me yesterday down to the mill to get my chicken feed. You would know his heat in his van went out and I thought I would freeze to death. That did not help my fibromyalgia -it make it very mad at me and the pain was unbearable.
     While the ground was frozen this morning I took the car up to the chicken building and unloaded most of the feed while I could get to it. Got everybody taken care of and came back to the house only to discover the fibro pain was unrelenting. I was finally in tears when I called the doctor and left a message with his nurse. I told him I did not want to take those 5 meds he had offered because of all the side effects and could he explain why he would not let me have my Tramadol back that they use to let me have for pain???
     Then after dark he returned my phone call and said Tramadol was not listed for use with fibromyalgia any more! That he did not know what else he could do for me?????? My heart was broken. How in the world can people live with unbearable pain every day -every second of their life and get no relief? I have been watching my diet -I have been doing yoga - I have been using those enzymes which help but I cannot afford the price for enough of them to do the job and I have made an oil of oregano ointment which helps a tiny bit? But the pain today has been absolutely overwhelming and I was so desperate-had to be plum desperate to call a doctor to ask for help and then get told he could not help???
     Well, I had 7 pills left I have been hoarding for the last year -so I slipped one out and decided to sacrifice it for some relief. It only took about 40 minutes and I could feel the pain easing up. What a wonderful feeling- it is hard to believe that some people are allowed these pills when they need them and they really do make the pain go away and I am not allowed this privilege any more? I was not a bad person all my life - I do not deserve any bad "karma" - why has my life taken this turn? I keep searching for natural ways to help myself but for some reason this pain is bigger than me?
     But for the moment I am enjoying this wonderful feeling of not being engulfed in pain. What a wonderful feeling. I am so sleepy after not sleeping for months -but I do not want to sleep - I would like to enjoy each little minute of  almost no pain. How wonderful.

                                                                 

     O, I did something interesting. I had read a story last year about a man who used what he called Winter sowing ???. I had read his story several times this year - fascinated ??? That was how he started his seeds for all of his flowers for his beautiful home. This is the link to his story.
http://www.agardenforthehouse.com/2012/11/winter-sowing-101-6/  He also has a wonderful post about his African Violets .
     Then the other day my Grit magazine had an article about it too -so my interest was really perked.
My daughter-in-law had saved me some milk jugs and I had picked up a small bag of dirt at Wal-mart , as they did not have a big bag so I figured this would satisfy my curiosity.
     I drilled holes in the tops of the jugs and then cut them in half leaving a two inch "hing". Then I drilled holes in the bottom of the jugs and added my dirt. Next I watered the soil down and added my flower seeds and covered them with a light layer of soil and re-watered. Next they go outdoors -into the freezing cold and they say that nature will take care of the rest. That the seeds will "know" when it is the proper time to sprout and then you can open your jugs on warm days for the air to circulate . It is suppose to make for much hardier plants -so I will see. I figured that since I had had such good luck experimenting with my first winter garden that I would just try my luck. I believe you never know -unless you give it a try.
      Now I just wish they would find a way you could grow squash without those squash bugs and borers killing your plants just as they get ready to bear?????? All that work and I only get 2 or 3 fruit. It is heart breaking.
     You would not think that little project would have wore me out - but it did. I was so tired , but mainly from the pain - it just saps your strength.
     O another thing today I fixed stir fried  "cauliflower-rice". It is not rice at all but the cauliflower is chopped so fine IT resembles rice and it much healthier for you. It is good , but needs a little "TWEAKING". ~smile~
     My stray kitty is still in heat - still going strong with her cat-er-waling. I think this is day 4 - will it never end?????  I hate to wish my life away -but I will be SOOO grateful for the 8th to come so she can be spayed and that will fix that little problem. Yea! Then I can at least start letting her out of the cage more. Since she has been getting food now she has really started to GROW!  lol

Hump Day

     I woke up this morning as a Ball of Pain. I truly Hate fibromyalgia . I did not want to move because of the engulfing pain and I could not lay still  because of the burning pain . So you choose between Pain and Pain and eventually Pain wins because I have critters to take care of that I love.
     I got the heart meds down all of my pups -and breathed a sign of relief -turned around and Blondie threw up all of her breakfast. My heart just sank . I cleaned up the mess and put everything in the washer and came back to check on her and she felt terrible- just like me when you have the flu.
     So, I called to make sure the vet was in - got dressed and grabbed the snow shovel and headed out towards the car. I was glad I had shoveled when the snow was fresh because Now when I had to shovel to the front of the car to check my leaky radiator -the ice on top of the snow made it difficult for me to remove. But " I think I can, I think I can" - won out and I got the snow moved , the hood up and antifreeze added to the radiator for the trip.
     I put the shovel in the vehicle -just in case - and went back in the house and got Blondie and ever so carefully we took off. The creek was down manageable so we forded it and eased up onto the highway. I said a good prayer and took it out of 4 wheel drive and off we went.
     Once at the vets he said she had a intestinal infection and gave her shots and me pills to bring home. I came straight home as it was cold and I did not want to have to leave her in the car alone anywhere. He did say it was infectious and might spread through the others ???? Just what I did not want to hear - AGAIN!
     I heated up the pizza my daughter had left and then double layered and took off to do outside chores. Locked the donkey up to eat while I fed and watered all of the poultry. I kept making the wrong turn to go down to the chickie condo and had to remind myself I did not have to go there -thanks to that raccoon. It will just have to stand empty till Spring or Summer and I can work on it to repair the damage he did . It will take that long to repair the damage he did to my heart.
     I am running out of chicken feed early this month - I guess they ate extra due to the extreme cold we have endured. I will have to go get some within the next couple of days. Darn this month has hit hard with that huge heating bill? I will have to get into my dwindling savings again. I will have to figure out something different about the heat for next winter??? Wish I could move to where it was warm all year long. That might even help this fibromyalgia???
     At least all of the birds are good today and the little chickens are singing at the top of their lungs. I read a true story yesterday about a lady who had to have all of her birds destroyed due to some disease that got in her flock and she titled it  - "The Day The Chickens Stopped Singing" and it broke my heart. As I listened to my gang they always UPLIFT my spirits as they are always singing and celebrating the new day. It is a beautiful thing to be so grateful and appreciative of the gift of a new day for each of us and what we can do with it.
     I turned the donkey out and headed to the house , but decided to shovel the mud off of my little pavers going around the turkeys. I will need to work on that path this Summer . Just the short section I put down really did help me when it came to shoveling that snow -it made it so much easier.
   

     As I came in the house I made sure to fill up the bird feeders and they were as busy as grand central station. I said hi to the little chickadee as I headed to the shower.

     

     As I came back out from my shower I was glad to get a snapshot of this little finch. Normally there are so many titmice that these guys have a hard time getting in.

     I managed to pull off another pair of the cloud booties , but this pattern is Driving Me Crazy . I am at the point I am not enjoying it anymore and will be throughly glad when I am finished with these. I am only grateful that I will have these completed ones for Christmas. Since my eyes are giving me more trouble I am grateful to have an early start .

     By now I was hungry and a friend had put a bug in my ear when she had fixed some mung beans and added mixed vegetables and curry powder and turmeric -I added a little salt too and they were really a nice change. I would never have thought of adding the mixed vegetables ?? These were a little out of date so they needed using .

     Mocha , the parlor princess actually got out of our bed and came out for a few minutes . I was very pleased to see her. The  little stray cat is driving me nuts because she is in heat and letting me know at the top of her lungs?  Her appointment to be neutered is the 8th of next month so I will be very grateful! I certainly was right about not wanting any kittens. lol  Technically its not the kittens - (little balls of fur -who wouldn't love them - it is the responsibility of the lifetime home and with me being 65 I am not for sure how long that lifetime will be, so I am trying to be forward thinking. But there are so many little furbabies at all of the shelters and pounds that need loving homes without more being brought into the world by carelessness.  I say this as Miss Gabby is poking her claws into my flesh as she kneads me in the love of her new home. She is glad to be out of that cage in the shelter. lol

Tues. Feb.16 - Seems to be the only way to keep up with the days

     I could hardly believe how much Ice was everywhere when I stepped out this morning to carry warm water. It was so slick I had to come back in and get a different pair of boots. The temperatures were above freezing so it was starting to melt but the ground was very soggy under the ice and hard to keep your footing.

                                                                             

     I was so glad to get back in the house in one piece. I was working in the house and heard what I thought was a cat calling - kind of a rough call and my heart was sinking because I do not want another cat around - visitor or other wise. I opened the door to see if I could see the "Sound" but could not -then noticed the bird feeders needed attention. 

      I am still working with my little camera trying to get a better focus. I finally gave up and went back in and worked on another cloud bootie. I know I have to finish the yarn up or I will get dishearted and quit and I do not want that. I was having much trouble just seeing today.

     I looked out and decided I would carry the trash down to the highway -all the way down to that little grey strip. I did not want to risk my car sinking out of sight in a soft spot or getting hung up on the ice. So, I pulled on my highest boots my daughter had got me for Christmas and took off.

     When I got to the creek - I learned a lesson. The water was up and as I waded out in it - the currest was stronger than I anticipated and it almost swept my feet out from under me - SO - I Learned to Go SLOW and take tiny steps and keep my feet as close to the bottom as possible. I was very glad to make it across and back.

    As I walked back to the car - I noticed these weird tracks????? This was where the cat sounds had been coming from I had heard and the tracks went up under my car and then out the other side and up the side of the house -ONLY - these were some REALLY BIG tracks for just a plain kitty cat????

Hum???? I don't like the looks of these?????

     Well, at least the little birds have their tummies full tonight. 

     I had been on Facebook trying to see what my family were up to and had noticed last night that my daughter had had to put her beloved dog to sleep. It caught me off guard , as I loved Joe as one of my own too. 

     I had only got to know him the last 3 years and we had become very close. He was a black and tan coon hound-but very different in personality than any I had ever met before. We thought from some kind of abuse he had endured before she got him. He distrusted most all human beings and hated men. The day I first met him was just like we had known each other our whole lifes and that was the way it stayed. That night he very SLOWLY put one paw at a time up in my lap and circled his whole body into as small of a ball as a 90 pound hound could squeeze into and balled up in my lap. Well actually my lap and both arms of my chair. It was so very funny. So naturally when I heard the news I started bawling.  I guess it hit especially hard after being so close to my Cowboy on Saturday. Giving up these little animals just breaks my heart. I wonder why I keep wanting another one when it hurts so bad????? My thoughts have been that I know I am in my "Golden Years" now and will not have as many years to shelter the next . That was one reason I wanted these last two kitties to be older cats -but love just has a way of wrapping around her heart - or at least it did with Gabby the manx from the shelter and then the little stray had no say so in the matter. She just had to settle for what she could find and we will put it in God's hands.

     I once had a friend who raised registered dairy goats and he took top notch care of them -from weighting them to weighting the amount of feed it took to produce a certain amount of milk. These animals received the BEST care and deserved it too because they were top of the line milkers. I asked him one day if it ever bothered him when he sold an animal because we knew they would not receive the same kind of care they had been raised with??? He said no, because the people who purchased them were then responsible for their actions and not him.  

Snowy Monda

When I awakened this morning that old white stuff had snuck in while I was sleeping. I had hoped it was quit last night -but no - it came back and I had 9 inches of the stuff to deal with. Thank goodness this time it was fluffy snow so I pulled off shoveling my paths without throwing out my back this time , but with a pulled shoulder muscle it was still painful.

                                                                         

Bandit was holding the house down for me as i ran in a few times to warm my hands and face up.

The birds were definitely ready for me to make sure the feeders were topped off. It was hard getting pictures of them through the snow.  I tried every trick I could find in my camera manual but with not much success. 

While the birds were eating I munched on left over pizza that my daughter had left from yesterday just before the snow arrived. It was a pleasant treat.

Then I chatted with a friend on the phone and we had fun catching up -until she told me she would be leaving for the Summer as her daughter was moving to California and she was going out too.  Ouch - life changes FAST. 

Later while I was on the computer I heard the sound of  a CAT around back. I could not get my eyeballs on it as I did not want to go out in the snow again - but I thought - O NO! Please not another cat?

I heard the sound of a motor and my dear , sweet neighbor barreled up on his tractor and in two shakes he had my driveway plowed to where I could get out if need be.  Mr. Bill Burton is a Saint in my eyes as he tries to help anybody that he can . Good neighbors are such a blessing.

Our crazy weather is now calling for heavy rains tomorrow so there is a flood warning posted as the snow will be melting and the rain will be -well , you know WET! I hope my creek does not get too mad as I have to drive through it.. I Hate WINTER TIME! 

A Heart Breaking Saturday For Me

     I took Cowboy this morning to the new vet for the second opinion and it was not good news. The wound had turned into cancer and she said even if they did surgery to remove it -it was such a massive place it would take a quarter of his head . I understood but after all those trips back and forth to the other vet over the past two months just hoping it would heal and to realize you are at the end of your road with one that you love -it is heart breaking.

                                                                                     

He was born in the wild and my girlfriend had trapped him and his brother. She had kept his brother and in order to make sure my hubby would fall in love with him I had named him Cowboy because my hubby always loved Any old cowboy movies.We were just born during that time frame. Today we still have bad guys and sheriffs -they just look a little different. 

Doug fell for him and just about everywhere you would see one - you would see the other. Even when my DH would go hunting he would say in the back of 72 acres he would see Cowboy sleeping in a tree waiting for him to come home.

He was always a perfect gentleman - he just happened to be one of those kitties when you loved on him - he drooled .He just loved that loving any way he could get it - even if he had to ASK for it.

He had not eaten last night - only licked at his tuna briefly so I knew he needed help.

 But I thought we were just going to go to this wonderful new vet who was going to do surgery on his ear and everything would be alright and we would have another Summer together. IF only my neighbor's cat had not come down and did this to him. People just do not know the heartache  they cause others by not keeping their animals home.

But by the time we got there he was covered in blood . That place had broken open and it was a mess.

I knew he was suffering but he still reached out for his loving.

It's so hard to make that decision , but I had that same feeling when my hubby was passing -it is beyond your help then. I could not bury him now due to the frozen ground and below temperatures so my daughter paid to have him cremated and I will have his ashes with DH's . They will be together once again.

I had trouble gaining my self composure back to drive home. Driving through tears can be rough.

When I got home I grabbed a gallon of warm water and ran out to give the first round of chickens a drink - ?????? But when I got to the second cage I realized there was blood all in it. Two little seabrights lay in pieces and the third had been ripped between the bottom of the wire and the wood door frame. That dern raccoon had hit again. That stupid trap had failed Again and now I had lost 3 more birds. I had bred these 3 from a little rooster my son had given me and then carefully bred them down 4 years to get a pure breed that was beautiful and I was so proud of them. To have them die such horrible deaths was just killing me.

I walked around for the next hour and half  searching for my old live traps that I had - but I could not find them ANYWHERE! They have just vanished into thin air. They are much stronger traps than this new -thinner gauge wire trap. I finally gave up and put a fresh left over body into the trap and put it INSIDE the cage and shoved a cinder block up tight against it so it does not wobble around. The back where the body is at is now against the wall of the cage so he will not be able to just go to the back and try to reach in and flip the catch. Normally he will not come back the next night because he has eaten -but since we are having this bitter cold -we will see.

I did get smart and grab my last two little Cochins from the last apartment and take then into the main building -where -SO FAR - that stupid animal has not figured out a way in and I Pray that he does not.

So my heart and spirit are badly bruised tonight. It is hard to lose someone you love - no matter how many legs they have or don't have.

Love to all.