Never quiet.

Superman and I have always had animals...even before we had kids, we had cats.  We got our first dog when Buttercup was three or four, and since then, we've always had dogs, too.  Throughout the years, we have also had birds, hamsters, rats, a chinchilla, and fish.  They have always added to the chaos and joy in our home and in our lives.

The past few years have been hard where our animals have been concerned, as well.  That was to be expected, if we had ever really thought about it:  the animals you get when your kids are little will be old when your kids leave the nest.   We didn't think about it, though, and the losses of the past few years made the transition to empty nesters even more bittersweet.  We've lost four animals in the past two years. It felt as if we were losing more of our family with each loss.

Beans went first in 2021.  She declined quickly and, while not a nice cat (hey, some just aren't nice), I was sad for her decline...she was only 12 and we had gotten her when she was six weeks old.  Wasn't she beautiful?

Majestic Beans 

Sam-I-Am passed in January of 2022.  He was our last link to our lives in So Cal.  He was born in the carport of our California home and moved with us the next year.  He was just shy of 18 when he died and he lived an amazing life and was cool until the very end.

Sam-I-Am was always irritated by us.

My sewing room cat Clementine disappeared in May 2022.  We suspect strongly she was taken by an owl.  My heart broke with this loss because she was just three years old and was the sweetest cat ever.  She was definitely my cat...this loss was brutal, to be honest.

My little Clementine--sweetest cat ever.

Finally, our beloved Lucy Lou died in July 2022.  She was almost 16 years old and was the most loyal girl ever.  She taught me to love dogs.   Fortunately, she declined quite quickly...she was still going for walks two weeks before she died...but man, this one was hard.  You know they can't live forever, but still...

Miss Lucy Lou

I know a lot of people decide not to get any more pets after the pets they had when their kids were younger pass, but I just couldn't see doing that, despite the fact that we were also dealing with our beloved Honey having terminal bladder cancer.  She has far surpassed her six month prognosis and, at 14 months post diagnosis, is still living her best life. The tumor is still growing, though, albeit slowly and we know her time with us is limited.  Animals are a source of joy and life in a home, in my humble opinion.

Honey - she has big dog energy and the sweetest girl ever.

So, in June, while my heart was still hurting over Clementine's loss and I was grappling with Honey's cancer, we rescued Leo-Leo.  He's a two and half year-old little mutt who was in an abuse situation and is getting braver by the day.

Leo-Leo--tries so hard to be a brave boy.

At the end of summer, we adopted Olive and Georgia, a bonded pair of female cats who are about three years old.  We needed cats...the mice in the yard were waving to me as they went about their day's work.  Really.  My daughter started referring to me as Snow While because there were so many bold critters in our backyard.!!  Anyway, between our combined efforts, Olive and I have mitigated the mouse problem quite effectively and there is peace in the kingdom again.

This is Olive...Georgia is very shy.

Finally, in November, we adopted Miss Emma, another rescue in need of a forever home.  She was a special case and needed a special home and we felt privileged to become her family.  She's a fierce little thing who is going to rule the entire house when she's done.

Miss Emma - a backyard breeder mom dumped in a shelter, this girl is stealing our hearts.

So, there you have it.  If you're keeping count, we have four dogs (including Jack--not pictured), two cats, two birds (with no names), and possibly two fish (we will know in spring how many survived in the little pond).   Housebreaking through a snowy winter has been quite an adventure, but it has been a small inconvenience when contrasted with the happiness these pets bring.  The joy our animals bring to our lives is worth the pain of losing them when their time comes.   Our home is not very quiet and is never boring, and I wouldn't have it any other way.  

When the winner of "Who is your favorite human?" leaves the country...

When he wasn't travelling, Superman loved to begin his days at home playing "Who's your favorite human?" as he would dole out treats to the dogs...

Jack is a pretty boy!

Jack, our youngest at only three, has taken the end of the game hard...despite the fact that Superman was, in fact, really just a close second to Jack's true favorite:   Buttercup.  Jack loves Buttercup the most, but the same day Superman left was the day classes started at the college for Buttercup, so she's gone all day this week, too.

Buried in his Minion blanket...Jack is sad.

Even his Minion blanket isn't cheering Jack up...

Poor Jack!

Poor Jack.

 

 

Animal Humor

I've shown you dog beds and cats bed over the past few years, but I haven't often shown you how they often end up being used...

Cajun has taken over the dog bed that Lucy normally sleeps on.   Watch the "conversation" they had at that point.


Cajun is sleeping peacefully on Lucy's bed.

She notices someone approaching..."Oh, great, here comes
that whiner, Lucy, again."

"Oh, hey, Cajun.  Can I have a turn on my bed now?"  "No"

"Oh, okay, Cajun, never mind.  I'll just sleep under Mom & Dad's bed."

 Yes, people, that is how things go in our house.  The cats and the dogs share so well, don't they?

Frugal Animal Beds

With four cats and two dogs, I always have animals laying around.  Seriously.  They're just laying around all over the place.  In the past, I've spent money on animal beds, but oftentimes, they were cheap material that couldn't stand up to washing and I need to wash them...a lot.  I needed a better, but still frugal solution.  Two rag towels, an old floor pillow, and twenty minutes later, I had a fully washable dog bed.  It turned out so well that I wanted to make some more animal bed covers, so I headed to Target and bought their $3.50 bath towels and made two more.  (The rag towels worked well, but I didn't take pictures.)  Here is how I did it:

We just use old pillows for animal beds.

Lay one towel on the floor.  Lay your pillow on top of the towel, closer to one edge of the towel.  Leaving the same amount on the opposite edge, cut off the excess.  Don't discard as you'll be making an envelope closure for this pillow.  (Great tutorial on envelope closures here.)

Lay the pillow you're using on one towel.

Now, pick up the pillow, but leave the portion of the towel that had been under the pillow in place.  Take the piece that you've cut off and lay it on top of the towel, matching the cut-edge to the outside edge of your towel.

Putting the finished edge on the inside makes this a quick project.  Your

envelope folds are already finished.

Now you'll take your second towel and cut it to a length that is one half the width of your pillow and lay it on top of the other two pieces of towel that you've already cut, making sure to put the finished edge on the inside of the pillow, just like you did with the second piece.  Pin all three layers together and sew around the outside edge. 

Sew all around the edge...in some places you'll be going through three layers

of towel...just be sure to catch those inside edge.

Flip your pillow cover right side out and insert your pillow.  Lay it on the floor and see who gets it first.



Cat bed?

Dog bed?  Either way, this one is in Buttercup's room now.



Well, either way, cat or dog, it is an animal bed that cost $7 and twenty minutes to make.  It is oh-so-washable.  Just what we need in this menagerie!

If you don't have a serger, you can just zig zag the edges.

Oh, and you'll have extra toweling.  I cut mine into squares, serged the edges, and got myself a bunch of new washcloths.  Not bad for $7!!

Too funny!

I bought a new painter's tarp because I want to make some pillows and an ottoman cover.  While I was sewing, the unused portion was on the floor.  (I know, I know.  I should have picked it up and immediately folded it...but I didn't.)

The tarp was quickly claimed and became the source of quite a few minutes of entertainment for the kids and me.

Lucy becomes fascinated by the tarp.

"What is it?"

It stopped moving, but she's not letting it out of her sight.  Getting closer didn't help.

 Maybe a different perspective will help.  She came around to the other side and waited.

 And waited...and waited...and harumphed the way dogs will.

The wait was finally rewarded!  At last...movement begins again.

"Ninja, come out!  I got you fair and square!"

Lucy's persistence pays off and Ninja finally comes out to play.  Oh, I scooped the tarp up and folded it neatly.  That will teach me to leave things on the floor, even "for a minute".

Don't Blink or You'll Miss It!

Our dogs are clean!

There is a young mom a few miles a way who does an awesome job dog grooming. Since I am not a good dog brusher (I have issues with consistency), our dogs really needed attention after 100 inches of snow this past winter and serious rain this spring. Didn't she make them look beautiful?