prettykitty03

As I work towards opening my etsy store, I'm trying to move some things over to my new logo and images. And this includes my blog! So I'm moving over to blogspot! I needed to be able to customize my layout and blogspot was just so much easier to work with. That, and sometimes we just need a change. So if you want to keep up with my photos, jewelry and general nonsense, please visit me here.

Could we possibly manage to cram more stuff into our days? But somehow it all manages to get done. Friday was our annual Mission Awareness retreat, so that made for a nice day. But I was slated to make a presentation of my thesis at the academic symposium at school the next day, and I wasn't ready. So I spent much of the retreat trying to figure out how I was going to get everything finished. Throw into the mix the fact that my kids had a tennis tournament and had to play their first rounds that night -- at clubs in different parts of town. Fortunately, my parents and sister came to town, so once I got the kids where they needed to be, I had some help and was able to wrap up.



Saturday morning, my mom, sister and I headed to school for my presentation. The kids' tennis matches followed later in the afternoon. We left at 9:30 in the morning. And my day didn't end until 11:30 last night after the last tennis match was played (three words: incompetent tournament director.) Above is what was hanging on one of the nets at the facility where Tanner was playing. Good to have a sense of humor in these situations.

Today we're home and we are doing...nothing. I'll probably go for a short hike somewhere and make some jewelry. But that's it.

By the way, I got to puppy-sit Smoke for a few hours on Thursday. He made a bed out of my coat and crashed really hard. :-)

I've been reading about a new sequel to the classic Winnie the Pooh stories that was released a few days ago. I don't know why, but the thought of someone other than A.A. Milne writing the sequel makes me sad. Milne based Christopher Robin and Pooh on his own son and his son's stuffed bear. How can anyone else possibly know what happens after Christopher Robin goes to school and asks Pooh to promise "never to forget him -- even when he's 100." The Hundred Acre Wood was magical. Pooh bear and his boy evolved from a father's imagination and was rooted in love. I'm sure that the new book is lovely, but there's no picking up where Milne left off.

You never know what you'll find when you clean out a cabinet.
Guess who? (Hint: if the 70's greenish-shag carpet doesn't give it away, I have two boys. So it can't be them.)

Tonight was the visitation for the father of a dear friend. Funerals, visitations...these rituals always make me a little mooky. This one felt a little strange - and familiar - because my grampa is buried in the cemetery directly across the street from the funeral home. I wanted to stop by and extend the courtesy of a hello while I was in the neighborhood, but the cemetery gates were locked. It's okay -- I'm pretty sure that grampa knew I was thinking about him. This was in the sky as I left. See the descending dove? (Sorry, not a great photo.)



Steel Magnolias was on as soon as I got home and turned on the television. Okay, enough already. I promptly turned it off and opted for a DVD of Bridget Jones for some comic relief.

As if the therapy dog demonstration at work wasn't bad enough for someone who is totally longing for a dog. Allow me to introduce Smoke, the cutest puppy on the planet. And yes, that is my lap that he is crashed on. A woman at the office trains therapy dogs and this little guy came in to work with her today. But she isn't training Smoke, rather she is socializing him before he heads off for training at a women's correctional facility. It's a wonderful program that benefits the prisoners as much as the dogs and those who ultimately receive the dogs. The puppies are often the only genuine source of unconditional love and affection the prisoners have ever known. And wow, does little Smoke have love and affection in abundance. A friend called to say "there was a puppy in the building that you just have to see". So of course I went running. I know I had "sucker for dogs" plastered on my forehead because that puppy made a beeline for me. Within (literally) seconds of me sitting on the floor, Smoke was settled and snoozing on my lap. And my heart was a big puddle on the floor. I finally dragged myself away and left a sleepy Smoke dozing on the floor. *sigh*

Why do cats feel the need to climb on/under absolutely everything? I watched these two looking up/down at each other and it reminded me of the intro to the Brady Bunch. Weird animals.



Aren't these a lovely green? One of the few healthy impulse purchases I've made. But they were so pretty that I couldn't pass them up.

With the urge to get out in the sunshine but feeling very little sense of adventure, I headed over to Powder Valley this afternoon -- and ended up spending several hours there. I wandered along all three trails, looking up at lovely images like these...





...and looking down at fun little compositions like these.











As I was standing up, I looked ahead of me and saw...dude! Look at the size of this guy!!





I don't think he's the huge guy I saw a few weeks ago, but he can certainly hold his own -- and word of him spread quickly with the other walkers. I had a little girl and her brother ask me if I had seen the "buck deer" that someone had told them about. I was able to play back photos, thanks to the wonderful technology of digital cameras. But I hope they saw him for themselves.

So this week is the celebration of St. Francis of Assisi. I'm not Catholic, but he's still my guy. Patron Saint of Animals and the Environment. Plus, our sponsoring congregation is a Franciscan order. Above is one of several St. Francis figures I have around the house. I'm not going to go so far as to have the cats blessed at a church or anything (which is available, by the way), but I am going to give them extra hugs.



While on the subject of animals and the environment, I see this tree on the way into the parking garage every day. It's driving me crazy because I can't figure out what it is. The brush is so thick that I can't get to it. I'm almost convinced it's a persimmon. But for now, it's still a mystery.

Picked up the most brilliant red leaf off of the ground this evening. Wow. Some tree really knocked itself out with this one. I read a bit of trivia somewhere that said that it's not the leaf's decision to fall off the tree -- the tree actually sheds it. Kind of like the landlord kicking out the tenant rather than the tenant choosing to move. I also read why some leaves turn red and others brown. Red = food trapped in the leaves, brown = some type of waste. Obviously what I read was much more scientific, but I really don't care about it that much.



On another fall-related note: the mums out front are packed. These poor plants couldn't accommodate more blooms if they wanted to. This is a big consolation after my miserable attempts at vegetables this summer. ..... Summer. ....*sigh* ... I already miss summer. These early dark evenings are going to get old really quickly.

The odd couple friendship makes this story heart-warming, but the orangutan makes this video hysterical.

A nice photo op on the way to work bright and early this morning....
and another on the way home this evening.

We had a pet therapy demonstration at work today from a group that visits patients in some of our hospitals. Finders is the golden retriever (sibling's name is Keepers) and Elliott is a poodle. They were adorable, well behaved and smart! I've been wanting a dog so badly....this didn't help.

This afternoon, the kids and I walked around Creve Coeur Lake -- my new favorite place. I cannot believe we've lived here this long and have never been there before today. It's maybe 15 minutes away, for crying out loud! The kids and I are thinking about getting bikes so that we can ride there. It was a little crowded because of the beautiful weather, but I will be going back as soon as I can.

(Oh, day seven of the Gratitude Challenge asks that I take a photograph of a place or something that makes me feel grateful. This will work.)

A greenhouse purchase from yesterday, now at home in our kitchen window. There is nothing more beautiful than natural light.

My parents are in town, so I got to do some Saturday shopping with my mom. We went to the greenhouse down the street, as well as a quirky little gift shop. The greenhouse had the most unique varieties of succulents and funky plants (including a goldfish plant! How cool!).







They also had some kale plants the size of our heads.



Later this afternoon, a storm blew in and left behind a rainbow that could be seen from our front door.





The task for day six of the Gratitude Challenge was to call someone and tell them that you appreciate them. Lucky me, I didn't have to call mom -- I got to spend the day with her instead.

Let me just get this out of the way right from the beginning: what a weird night. In many ways, it was very good -- but it was strange. I headed over to the auction to benefit the Episcopal City Mission. It was to be held at a nice hotel in a lovely area, but I heard earlier today that the hotel was also hosting another event this evening. The guests of honor? Mike Huckabee and Joe the Plumber. Oh boy. Welcome to this week's episode of "When was the last time you felt this out of place?" I just held my breath, praying silently that our event was somehow located on the opposite side of the property. I was not encouraged when I pulled into the parking lot and saw this...thing.



To my relief, the auction was indeed held in another building. *Whew*. Some of our folks, however, did not realize this until they walked through the right-wing rally and had to come up with a coherent answer to the misdirected rally cry of "Are you here to take back our country?" (My favorite response, "I didn't know it was gone.") No, we're here to support an organization that provides chaplains to troubled youth who are in the detention system. One hotel, two causes -- one rooted in compassion, one clearly rooted in anger. I was grateful to be in our ballroom.

It was a lovely event and our table was delightful. Although I sat next to this really old man (whose son is old enough to be my father) who asked me point blank if I thought I was pretty. Whuh?? This guy was fearless and full of direct questions about my dating and (ex) marital status. Omigosh, is this dude seriously hitting on me? Then, when he won some City ticket package in the auction, he leaned over to me and said, "This sounds romantic, doesn't it?" Okay, just stop. But on a strange-in-a-good-way note, I got to meet a couple at the table who has a child Drew's age who has also been through some health trauma. He has cancer, but he had actually been screened for Drew's disease earlier in the process. It's not often that I meet anyone who has even heard of his disease, let alone understands what it is. Long story short, they bought my necklace at the auction -- and didn't realize that I had made it until after they had won. And I had the distinct feeling that God was smiling.

What a funny boy -- and such great posture. I'm looking up at him from my desk. It's not enough for him to sit on top of the cabinet; he has to be at the highest point possible on the cabinet.

Day Four of the gratitude challenge -- write a short note of thanks for some of the "negative" things in life. Think I'll make that a short mental note in the form of a prayer. Also on the list of thoughts in general -- a big happy birthday to our buddy Tom and lots of prayers and support to my dear friend Don and his dad.

Day three: name something you are grateful for in your life for today. After a crap day at work, I am grateful that I've had a few hours to settle in at home and disappear in creativity. The kids went to youth group tonight, so I took advantage of the quiet house to make some jewelry. This set is a funky combination of abalone, lava beads, sterling and pearls. It will be sold at a charity auction on Friday night -- hope it does well. Now the kids are home, I've finished a few things that I'm happy with and the day is forgotten.