A lot has happened since I posted last. I had another birthday yesterday too. Can't remember now how many times I've hit 29 AGAIN!! LOL! Since having had cancer, I figure that each and every birthday now is a bonus! Sounds a bit grim, but unless you've been there, you won't understand. Each day is a gift.
So, yesterday was my sister's birthday as well as mine. She's five years older than me. Yep, I was born ON her fifth birthday!! Imagine being a five-year-old and having to share your birthday - not only that day, but all the birthdays for the rest of your life! I must say that my sis, Karen, has been very gracious about it - she is never anything less than gracious and I thank her for that. DH and I and the kids and my Dad met Karen and her DH last night at a restaurant in Langley and we had a yummy dinner at the best fish & chip joint around. It was just nice to spend time with family - another thing some people don't appreciate until faced with a life-threatening illness. Karen quilted me a gorgeous table runner and gave me a beautiful tin mini pie plate to keep the little dried miniature pumpkins in that she also gave me. Thanks, sis!
My friend, Connie also gave me a wonderful gift yesterday of an autumn spray of pip berries, mini pumpkins and primitive stars - just beautiful. She also gave me a lovely autumn dishtowel and a bowl of my favourite chocolate/butterscotch and marshmallow squares that she baked. Mmmmmm! I don't really have to share them with my family, do I???? She had me stop by on our way to dinner last night to pick up my birthday gift and between when I spoke to her in the morning and when I stopped by, she had picked up a gorgeous flower arrangement for my sister! Talk about thoughtful! Thank you, my dear! My sister was thrilled and the flowers were just gorgeous!
DH and the kids got me a beautiful pot of Chrysanthemums - my favourite flower - especially in the fall! What a great birthday it was!!!
 |
| Smokey, our new kitty! |
Oh, I almost forgot! I gave myself a kitty for my birthday! That's right! A KITTY!!! In March of 2009, we lost Thomas, our last remaining cat. It was a horrible accident, and a horrible time because I was going through chemo and really not feeling well. Losing him was very difficult. He was an awesome cat, and we miss him so much. He really was one in a million PLUS he didn't mind the birds. It's not easy to find a cat that is OK with birds. I mean, it's REALLY NOT EASY! Our cats were here BEFORE our birds, so they just kind of grew to accept them. Yesterday, Smokey the cat was brought here by her previous owner. I posted an ad that I was looking for a bird-experienced cat. I posted an ad three different times over the past six months. I got some strange responses. I ended up not responding to any of them until....last week. A lady responded to my ad for a bird-savvy cat. This lady has birds and said this cat was very good with all their animals. They have several types of animals in their home and she said the kitty is great with all of them. To make a long story short, we now have Smokey. She is a sweetheart and even Lucas seems to like her.
So, Smokey is a little shy and will take a while to warm up to everyone. She hides a bit, but has been out quite a few times to visit with us. She just needs to get used to the sounds and smells of our house. She's an indoor kitty and knows where the litter box is, so that's the biggest thing. She seems like a lovely, clean, well-mannered little girl. She certainly loves attention and head scratches! She will give you a head butt in the hopes that you will give her a head scratch or two. She even does it to Lucas, who just doesn't know what to do with that! So funny to see the surprised looks in his eyes when she does it!!! I'll have to try to capture it on video!
On a bit of a sad note, my foster bird, Lucy, will be leaving us probably next weekend. The beginning of November marks THREE years that I will have had Lucy. Her mom and dad moved to New Zealand for a work stint, but were unable to take their three birds with them because of New Zealand regulations regarding their native birds. No outside birds are allowed in. So, all of the birds were placed in foster care. I took Lucy. Lucy's mom is a fabulous lady and I love Quakers, so it seemed only natural. Seems like we haven't had Lucy that long, but it IS almost three years. It's gone really fast and Lucy has been such a joy to have here. Yes, I've gotten my share of good bites from her, but really, when you have birds, you are going to be bitten. No different with Lucy! So, we shall all miss Lucy when she goes to live with her mom again. I'm happy for her AND her mom, though, as they belong together and I know Lucy's mom has missed Lucy terribly!
So, while we are thrilled to welcome Smokey the kitty, we will be sad to see Lucy leave us. Such is life and especially life with critters. Each one holds a special piece of our hearts that can never, ever be replaced by another one.
Speaking of kitties, have a look at my OTHER sister's blog to see their new kitty. What a face! Her name is Izzy - is she not THE cutest little one????? And to think that she was DUMPED by somebody!!!!!
Fall has arrived here - on the calendar anyways. We've had beautiful weather and very warm - almost like summer all over again! It's been warm and humid. I'm sure that fall and winter will be here soon enough, so we'll enjoy this nice weather while it's here!
I won a bloggy giveaway this morning! Janet over at Olde Crow Primitives had an Awesome Autumn Giveaway. Her DH drew the names this morning and I came in second place!! The autumn header that you see above was my prize!!!! I'm SO excited!!! Janet even put a parrot on it (I think that is my Maya) - how thoughtful!!
