Christmas time is here

Emily is enjoying the Christmas lights. She is a good girl! Not like another feline (ahem, Willow) who has already knocked over my sad little Christmas tree.

Many of the homes near my apartment building have decorated for Christmas. A little sparkle is a welcome sight when it is dark and drab. So far, we haven't had a lot of snow. Any snow we did get has melted quickly.

I will have Christmas week off. Then I'm back to work for a couple of days and have an extra, extra long weekend. It has been so busy at my end that I haven't had time to do my usual "fun" stuff to celebrate the holidays. I know it is pricey but I would very much like to order another of these fancy pants hot chocolates :)

We did have a bit of freezing drizzle earlier this month. I would rather walk in a snow storm than freezing rain. The freezing rain can look pretty, though! I spent the afternoon cleaning and wrapping some presents. I will be meeting with family and a friend on my time off. I'm also hoping to take my camera out to the park for some photos. Quiet walks in the park are soul soothing.

I will close for now. If you celebrate Christmas, I hope that you have a beautiful season. This last photo is of Willow. Surely this innocent looking feline can't be responsible for a Christmas tree upset ;) Take care all and Happy Christmas!

Gray November Days

Hello. We can't believe we are almost at the end of November and that the holiday season is just around the corner. Emily is enjoying the heated cat bed in this photo. Sadly, that cat bed is no longer here. It was falling apart. Miss Emily sure did enjoy cozying up in it, though.

In our area, there has been no snow. November has been a dreary, windy, and rainy month. There are still a few trees that are holding on to their leaves. It seems that there are the only smidge of color to be found.

A few weeks ago I went with a friend to visit another friend. She lives out in the country and is rasing chickens. I didn't realize chickens could be so "cuddly"! Not that I tried :)

Willo and Emily have been cuddly, though. A few weeks after I got over my October virus I caught another bug. Ugh. I have heard people blame this on the mild, rainy November days. I will be thankful when I stop coughing and get my energy badck. Hopefully, everyone else and their felines are doing well!

A Virus, a Vacation, and a Blaze

Hello! It has been longer than we thought since our last post. Since the last time we touched base a lot has happened. I had a vacation! Yeah! But before the vacation, I got sick with a virus. For the first few days of my time off, I slept. There were no walks in the park or extra visits. Thankfully, extra rest helped and I was able to enjoy the beautiful fall colors in the park. The photo above is Willow supervising my work in the kitchen :)

My favorite time for a walk in the park is when the sun is beginning to peek over the horizon. Everything is awash in a beautiful gold glow.

The birds are singing and the air is crisp, fresh.

The world feels brand new! Hopeful. About half way into my vacation, I felt more up to visits, shopping etc. My Mom and sister came for a visit to celebrate Thanksgiving. It was very low key but, I think, more enjoyable because of the low stress. Last week, there was a fire in my building on my floor. My neighbours were able to put out the blaze but there was damage from the sprinkler system and smoke. One thing soon became apparent to me was that Emily hides when loud noises happen. I was able to quickly put Willow into a carrier but not my Emily. Has anyone any experience, or gentle advice, on how to deal with this? How can you coax a terrified feline into a carrier when alarms are blaring etc. In other cat news, Emily had her annual vet visit today. I'm happy to relate that she gained a little weight, her blood sugar was good and she even allowed the vet to trim her claws! Emily is the sweetest little fluff you ever want to meet but she hates her claws being touched. She was a very good girl and when she got home I gave her a rare favorite treat!

Take care and I hope to visit you all soon.

Autumn and Allergies

Hello, We hope everyone is doing OK. My allergies are working overtime this year. It feels like a bad cold. Willow and Emily are OK. This is Willow. Cooler weather mean more cuddles.

The leaves in this area are at about 20%. I just realized that, if all goes well, I will be on vacation starting late next week. Please let everything go OK! (silent plea!) I did get out this morning for a walk in the park. I think it did my heart good.

Emily and Willow both have their annual "once over" on my time off. I take them in on separate days as I can only carry one of them at a time.

Take care and I hope to visit your blogs and get caught up in the next while :)

UPDATE September 1---Request for Purrs and Good Thoughts and Prayers

Willow and Emily are fine. My sister, A, lives in the country and feeds stray cats. One of the kittens is quite ill. "Kit" is about 4 months old. My sister took "kit" to the vet twice. The vet said Kit had a 50 percent chance of survival. My sister is doing subcutaneous fluids, syringe feeding and ordered a snuggle safe to help Kit warm up. Yesterday, she was doing ok but today not so much. I have never met this kitten but my heart hurts for my sister and for this tiny fluff. If you think of it, could you please pray for my sister and this tiny feline. With thanks UPDATE Kit passed away last night. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read, comment and/or send healing purrs, prayers and good thoughts. I never even met Kit but my heart wanted her to get well. My sister, A, tried her very best and, even though it didn't have the outcome we were hoping for, Kit was loved and cared for even if for a while. Take care and hug your pets.

Quiet Times

Hello all! My staycation is over and I'm thankful for the "sometimes" slower pace of my time off. I was able to walk in the park, shop, visit, read, and do extra chores. Willow is getting ready to celebrate her birthday soon :)

I like to take my photo walks in the morning. The light is beautiful. A cardinal enjoying the early hours in a tree.

I used my bird app to try and locate birds in the trees. I think this is a gold finch and it was grooming it's feathers.

Another photo from my walk in the park. The sound of a small waterfall is relaxing.

Emily enjoying the heated bed! With the rising cost of most items and unexpected expenses (hello, laptop!) I haven't had a chance yet to get Emily and Willow a gift for their birthday. Perhaps a heated bed for the colder months. Autumn seems to be making an early appearance this year. The leaves started to turn in early August. Take care! Be well :)

We are back!

Hello! I hope everyone is having a relaxing weekend. We are trying out a new computer so there is going to be a steep learning curve. I'm looking forward to having a vacation soon.

Life has been hectic lately. But I will make sure to plan for my time off. One of the first things on my list is to take Emily to the vet.

I'm hoping to have a few visits and get some shopping done. Willow has a birthday coming up soon. I'm hoping to find something for the two of them that they can use.

Perhaps I can go for a walk in the park. We will close for now. But before we do could you please send good thoughts/prayers for my Mom's cat, Pearl. She has been losing weight and they are going to run some tests tomorrow. Take care and have a lovely week!