This Perfectly Imperfect Life

Miss Boo, being silly Mama (calico) and Bobbi, reluctant snuggle partners I'm thankful for my furry companions, who, despite their quirky personalities, and sudden need to cry at our bedroom door on the hour throughout the night waking us up countless nights in a row now, provide me with a lot of comfort, love, and even entertainment.

Well here I've been posting my 30 Days of Thanksgiving daily to my Instagram and forgot to post them here. Silly Chick! So to catch up, I'm going to share November 1st through yesterday here now, but for those who don't know, I've not only been doing the 30 Days of Thanksgiving posts for a number of years now, but I also have an attitude of gratitude on a daily basis, I just don't always share it daily like I do in November.  November 1 I am thankful for our little bit of Heaven on earth in the mountains. More than words can tell you! The beauty, quiet and solitude does both of us much good. Our dock became a part of my morning routine (last week while we were at the camper on vaca) and I look forward to many more mornings out here in the future!  November 2 I am thankful for The Marine (aka the Hubbs). That man, right there in the corner of this photo. Who strongly prefers not having his photo taken, which is why I have to sneak one from time...

What you're seeing here are my favorite shots from today. The weather was perfectly Autumnal all day. Sun up to sun down, classic September! Perfect. Windows open wide to chilly breezes & nonstop sunshine inspired me to start decorating for my favorite time of year! Yes folks, and so it begins... 

Yesterday, I wrote about my recent writing struggles here  and not knowing where it was coming from or what to do about it. Yesterday afternoon, during an email exchange with bestie G, I had an epiphany, which I did elude knowledge to in yesterday's post, but it didn't hit me until I was hashing it out with G. As I read one of her replies, I thought to myself that it it feels like this writing block is final and something has died inside of me. And then I thought of Ceasar kitty. I stopped writing (again) to take care of him starting in November and cared for him right through New Years, until I had to have him put down on 1/2. And once we found out he had cancer and it was only a matter of time, it was awful time for me. I'm in mourning. I know 'he was just a cat' some would day but I was in my early 20s when I got him and now I'm nearly 40! (That's not helping the writers block either btw - I'm 16 months away from 40?!) Being home day in d...

Yesterday, on the second day of this New Year, I had to say goodbye to my beautiful boy, my sweet Ceasar. As heartbreaking as it is, it was the best and right thing to do for him. He was 14 & a half years old and had cancer. We found out on 12/14, but he was doing well despite it, especially once his upper respiratory infection cleared up. We didn't know how much time we had but we were glad to have more with him. And then throughout New Years Eve day, he began to decline and it continued throughout New Years Day. I knew the signs, I'd been through it before with my other boys. (Except one which passed on his own). My last boy. The last of my first kitties. All gone. I just can't believe it. My heart is heavy and sad. I am thankful I have my girl kitties. I can't imagine how awful it would be to come home to an empty house. Between my unpredictable health and being home so much, they are such comforting companions! Oh but how I will miss my beautiful bo...

Thankful for The Furs.  Sent from my iPhone

Today was the fur girls 12th birthday! Miss Boo is in the top photo, her sister, Mama, is in the bottom photo. What a blessing my cherished Calico's have been and hopefully will continue to be for many more years to come! And you know you and your husband have lost what's left of each of your minds when you both sing Happy Birthday to the kitties in Polish! Hope your Sunday was a lovely one. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

'Bleeding Heart' in my garden. Camellia 'April Blush' in my garden. Miss Boo waiting for Hubbs to get home. Mama kitty's way of telling me to feed her. Now. Breakfast bookclub this Thursday. Despite this being a funeral home, I love the house! These are a few of my favorite things from the last week.  What are some of yours?

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

New favorite slippers in a new color! (Have them in red). Winter sunsets. My kitties, especially when they're extra cute! Amaryllis! Seed & gardening catalogs! My final "Friday Favorites" of 2012!  Here's to many more in 2013! What were some of your favorite things in 2012??

Happy Eve before Christmas Eve! I spent much of yesterday, the first full day of Winter, nursing an awful migraine and drinking copious cuppa's of tea while going between our bed & my favorite chair in the living room (where I can gaze upon all of the Christmas decorations).  But the day wasn't a loss: I posted my 24th Adventures In Gardening column on The#gardenchatBlog ! (Next Saturday is my first anniversary of writing my column for the blog!)  I also caught the first glorious moon-rise & sunset of Winter. This morning, after watching CBS News Sunday, a longtime Sunday morning tradition, we got out for a long walk at one of our favorite local parks.  I was resistant at first, wanting to stay snuggled in as the kitties were under the tree this morning. Feeling the cold air and hearing nothing but the wind, our feet on the ground and at times the river sloshing against the banks was exactly what I needed! Especially with this darn migrain...

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Pinky, our eldest kitty isn't doing well. We have an appointment with the vet tomorrow. (The vet wasn't in today or we'd have taken Pinky in today). I know it's time and I can hardly stand it. It's so awful, watching his decline, waiting for the sign(s) that tell me it's time so he doesn't suffer (any more than he may be already). Pinky, my first kitty, 4 months shy of 14 years old. I was just 23 when I got him as a wee kitten. Now I'm nearing 37. And crying like a baby as my heart breaks. Again. A year ago today we lost our Tuxedo kitty.

My furry creatures like Miss Boo here who made me laugh with her determined intent to snuggle on the scarf I was knitting earlier this evening!

We had to put our kitty down today; it was the right thing to do so he wouldn't suffer any longer or more than he was. It's one of the worst decisions one has to make. Absolutely heartbreaking. But, knowing he was suffering, knowing that anything done wouldn't change the outcome or return his quality of life, knowing he would only suffer more if we didn't make this decision today, it was truly the best thing for him. I love him too much to let him suffer needlessly. In a matter of two weeks he lost half of his body weight, his left kidney shrank to the size of a pea, his right balloned abnormally and his bloodwork was the extreme opposite of normal. 'Sudden onset of incurable/acute kidney failure.' When I took him two weeks ago because he wasn't acting like himself, his bloodwork was fine, his weight was normal as were the size of his kidneys. But this is apparently common in 'Tuxedo' cats (along with urinary tract infections; his were un...