Catching Up

Oops, it's been awhile since my last post. Time to catch up a bit. It's been a rough week for us. It's been a long week too. Super ready for the weekend.

Brad got injured while at physical therapy. Yes, that's right. He overdid it and now has a back issue to go along with his knee issue. Well actually his knee is just about back to normal so he'll be released from physical therapy for his knee but will now have to do 4 more weeks of therapy for his back. Oh geez!

We  had a super tense Tuesday night as the threat of tornadoes in our area caused us to scoop up the fur-babies and head out. It was Piper's first time ever being evacuated, she's never had to endure the city's blaring evacuation siren that goes off when there's tornadoes in the area. There I was at 2:30 AM sitting on a cold floor in a package room with both furries, praying for the storm to pass so we could go back home. To complicate the process of getting back home Brad fell in a puddle and ended up losing our keys. I had a near panic attack watching him fall, since I know how much pain he's been in for days now. Due to the darkness and rainy conditions it wasn't easy finding the keys. The fur-babies stayed quite calm during the major emergency part but then once we got home, Cody freaked. I mean, FREAKED. So Brad was thriving in pain from falling, Cody was freaking out and Piper was getting scared thanks to watching Cody. I had my hands full once we finally arrived back home. You should've seen me running from room to room offering assistance and/or comfort to a furrie or a husband. Wow!

Other than tornado season beginning, the weather has been quite nice. Nothing to complain about. Cool and crisp in the mornings yet sunny in the afternoons. Things are very green around here too. Spring has sprung.

So indeed we are ready for the weekend. Ready to relax and chill. Ready for some NCAA basketball live from my hometown of Phoenix. I don't want to root for the Ducks but I suppose I should since it would be nice to see a PAC 12 school in the championship. I'll bet there's lots of excitement in the Phx area this weekend. Big chance to host such an event. 

Quick Snap Sunday

Life As Piper

 

Sugar and spice and everything nice, isn't it fun being a cat, little Piper? She commonly hangs out in her tunnel which fits in our new living room much better. And as most know, toys dangling from a wand she can not resist. This toy of hers is one of my favorites to play with her with. A worm and a fish on the same line. Two toys for her to bat at. 

 

Life as Piper in the new place is quite good. She even gets some sun shining in at her every morning. What more could a cat want?

 

p.s. Yes, I realize the tunnel is upside down. That happens from time to time. Believe me she doesn't care. But as soon as she gets out of it for awhile I'll fix it. Serious cat owners will likely spot that issue when viewing these pics!

 

Codes of Code

Hopefully, Piper reads this, prints it off and commonly refers to this post! These are the rules of living with Cody! Better known as...

 

The Codes of Code:

 

1. Never breathe near anything that is mine!

 

2. All things I like and DON'T like are mine. Recognize!

 

3. If you are laying where I want to lay to rest my weary bones...MOVE!

 

4. If I'm roughing something up and pieces fly off, it's ALL mine. Don't steal a piece and run! I'll growl at you!

 

5. Never try to ride on my back. I'm not your ride to the other side of the room. I'm the only one that should get carried anywhere. 

 

6. If I loved it years ago but uninterested in it now that I'm old, yet I see you playing with it, it's suddenly mine again. Get away!

 

7. I'm self absorbed, the world inside these walls revolves around me...get used to it!

 

8. If mommie buys me the blue one and you the pink one, both are technically mine.

 

9. I can take anything from you, I'm bigger, older, and more distinguished. Go prepare my red carpet.

 

10. If it's broken or smells horribly offensive to me, you can have it.

Oh dear sweet Cody-man, you are quite a trip! Naturally he's shown with Piper's toy! Oops, I forgot, all toys are his!

Look

Well look what my husband wore today! How can I not LOVE this shirt!!! I squealed with delight when I first saw him wearing it. He surprised me with it!

Hey Piper are you trying to block the "P" in pug with your little paw?  Piper likely thinks it should be an Irish cat with Lucky Charms! What's the cutest?...the Irish pug, the man with the pug shirt on, or the sweet cat? 

15 (part 2)

Part two is focused on the second half of Simon's life. He lived nearly half his life in various places and a little more than half was spent completely in Texas. My Sun Devil turned Texas boy!

 

Physically he may not have been huge in size. But his personality was as big as the state of Texas. Not to mention he was always up for having his pic taken. Simon was just one sweet little photogenic stud!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 New Year's toast to Simmie

15 (part 1)

So so close! Knocking on the door! Today I should be baking a cake. I tried my hardest to WILL my little Simmie-boo-boo to number 15. However, it wasn't meant to be...sadly! I cried myself to sleep last night knowing what today was supposed to be. I'm sure he's having cake up in heaven! We miss this little guy terribly! 

 

In loving memory this is Simon's life in pics! There are way too many pics to post. I went through dozens before making these selections but these are some of my faves. Part one focuses on younger Simon!  

 

 

 

 

Quick Snap Sunday

 Family Bingo Night

 

Three pics in one Quick Snap Sunday post. It's a trio of pics courtesy of Dad, Brad, and Peanut. Clearly there was a family get-together last night. We all gathered for some good food, good fun, good laughs, and bingo of course. Even little Peanut, grandma Ruth's dog, got in on the bingo action. The bingo caller(my father-in-law) was channeling Liberace or someone/something from Vegas with his crazy shades. Brad couldn't let his dad have all the fun with crazy shades. He got his turn once he won a round of bingo and was able to look over the bingo prizes to choose from. His mean mug was classic! Glad my camera caught it!

Sadly, Peanut never won a round of bingo last night. But if you look closely on Peanut's Bingo card she was using Skittles as her marks. She sniffed them every once in awhile but never snuck one. Impressive huh? Which is more impressive, a dog that plays bingo or a dog that left the Skittles alone while playing bingo? 



*Side note, to my father-in-law....See I told you, your pic was coming to a blog near you! LOL!

Only When Desperate

We've had a little time in our new area of the world. We are both shocked by the amount of trains we hear going through at different times each day. It's a little out of the ordinary. More so for me than Brad. I've adjusted I think.

As for entertainment and shopping...we hit the jackpot this past Sunday. We discovered an area filled with decent options about 20 minutes, okay maybe 25 minutes away. Yes, a Target was located as well as a Petsmart. Crisis averted...my two fave stores are not too far away. Although my love of Target is on unstable ground in recent months. Is it just me, or have their prices been going up? Is it weird I classify Petsmart as one of my fave stores? It's in my top 3. Seriously! Top 3 status! What can I say I'm a dedicated pet mommie. Shopping for my fur-babies is one of my fave things to do. Never seems like a chore, unlike grocery shopping.

I've visited two grocery stores that are closest to us. Oh my, where should I begin? I felt like I entered a time machine upon entering each of the grocery stores. Well it was either a time machine or I accidently arrived in Europe. Now let me explain. The stores were small, cramped, and totally outdated. The selection of items was widespread in the way that you can get contact lens solution or frozen corn but don't expect a lot of choice in brands. If you aren't aware that is so Europe! Looking for butter in Europe, expect the choice of 2 brands, if that. I had a feeling of European deja vu walking through both grocery stores. Only when I'm desperate for a last minute item to complete dinner will I choose to stop at either of those stores. One of the two grocery stores didn't have a bakery or deli. How is that possible in 2017?

We both agree it hasn't quite hit us that we live in an area of Fort Worth. As Brad said, "I didn't see myself ever living in Fort Worth! Kind of weird we live here now!" We're in limbo as we are not quite recognizing the area as "home" just yet, if that makes any sense. But we'll get there. We'll start to feel more comfortable with the area of town soon. Brad's never lived in Fort Worth. It's a new experience for both of us.    

Back Online

We are finally reconnected to the world. Did the world miss us? Did we miss being connected to all the modern entertainment? Well I will say it was getting old not having internet. I missed internet more than TV. Brad likely missed TV more than internet. He needs tennis and NFL Live to function properly. LOL! Somebody was dragging their feet about having things transferred over. Somebody should have called before they actually did call. What can I say?...I've been busy folks...I've been busy. We've been here for 9 days and just now have been reconnected to the world! My husband was patient with me delaying for the most part! Wink-wink!  I did believe it would be slightly easier than it was to transfer our cable/internet/phone services. I did not foresee us having to switch providers. Our old company does not provide service in the boondocks! Just kidding! We aren't that far out in the sticks. Wink-wink!

Okay so the move is officially behind us. We are in only one place now. It's always interesting having a new place yet still having keys to the old place. We didn't completely finish up at the old place until last Tuesday. Will we ever live in another mid-rise building. Um, NO! I don't believe I could ever convince Brad or even myself to move into such a building ever again. It was a hard move into the old place and it was a hard move out of it. Mid-rise living is okay don't get me wrong. Clearly we didn't hate it too much, we lived there for 4 years. But garden-style is more us. It's more pet-friendly too!

It was a tough transition the 6 days of February. Saying goodbye to Simon then 3 days later having to move. We never would have been able to accomplish all we accomplished with the timeline if it hadn't been for my in-laws. They were a TREMENDOUS help to us. Oh man, I shutter to imagine how difficult the move would have been without their help. Whew! So glad that's all done. Hopefully we won't be moving for awhile.

Our original plan was to only be in this new place for about 3-6 months. I think that went out the window when I finally got to see the new place. Because of Simon being so sick I hadn't seen the new place until the day before we moved in. But once I saw the new place, I could picture staying in it longer than temporary. We'll see how it all goes, mostly depends on Brad liking his job. So far so good, we are all enjoying the new "digs". We have more space!  We happily traded in some of the elite touches the old place had for more space and a more functional floorplan. The bedrooms are bigger, the living room is bigger(Hallelujah!), and the kitchen is more functional. Plus Cody doesn't have to be walked down long hallways and ride an elevator before being taken outside. The longer we lived in the mid-rise the longer the hallways got. The old place was good to us for awhile but I think moving from there was overdue.

The fur-babies are adjusting to their new home. I think each day I notice they are acting more and more 'at-home". Piper hid for the first 36 hours we were in this place. I was prepared for her to be freaked out, since it was her first move ever. Cody of course handled the move like the seasoned pro he is, only a little unsure of things at first.

I began hanging pictures yesterday. Brad still has some boxes with his stuff in them. However, I think they are boxes that simply need to be moved to our garage unit. The last box to be unpacked is the one that contains all the stuff that goes on our TV stand. Obviously we have waited to get that one unpacked until the TV was connected and completely moved backwards into it's permanent home while we're here. So that being said, I'm ending this to go unpack one final box!

P.S. welcome to March! I'll update the scenery on this blog tomorrow! Spring is arriving!