Feline Friday with Rory

Happy Feline Friday!

This week, I have a really good excuse for the lack of blog posts...we were visiting our girl in Texas! We hadn't seen her since Thanksgiving, so you can imagine how happy we were to spend time together! I hope to share some pictures of our  visit.

Of course, we also got some quality time with Rory. I was pleased that Rory remembered me right away and even jumped up on my lap for some cuddles!

We got to see a little more of Rory's routine. She's a busy girl! Every day when Bailey comes home from work, she leans over and Rory jumps right up on her back! She is so happy to see her meomy that she immediately begins kneading. We call that "making biscuits". 😉

 

Bailey knitted Rory a lovely blankie which she enjoys immensely!

Occasionally, Rory goes out on the balcony (wearing her harness, of course). She's not too keen on the balcony these days.

 But she IS keen on the catnip Bailey has growing out there! Being in Texas, it's green and tasty all winter.

 

 Apparently VERY tasty! Check out her paws!

 

  On cooler evenings, Rory still wears her outfits -- although apparently there has been some shrinkage. Strangely, they're a bit smaller than they used to be!

But Rory's favorite activity these days is camping! The inside pillow is sooooo comfy that it's not a wonder she is constantly hanging out in her tent. I wish I could fit inside!

As you can see, we sure enjoyed seeing BOTH of our Texas girls this past week!

Happy Feline Friday!

jp

Feline Friday

Did you know that cats get a new winter coat each year? It's true, but maybe not in the way you think!

Lily has decided that MY winter coat is now HER new winter coat! The minute I take it off, she curls up on it!

Too bad I have to move her each time I need my coat and find her wearing it. It's too cold for me to go without MY winter coat!  I guess we're sharing now!

 😎

Recipe: Homemade Salsa Verde

My daughter recently shared a recipe for homemade salsa verde. It seriously couldn't be easier...even I made it successfully!

You should be able to click on this image to enlarge it to see the recipe.

This easy recipe came from a Tex Mex cookbook in Bailey's boyfriend's growing collection. He has taken up cooking seriously in recent years, and her culinary skills have improved because of him! Even I've become a TINY bit more competent in the kitchen as a result of his suggestions and recipes. (I still have a LONG way to go...)

There are only a few ingredients in this recipe (tomatillos being the main one). Pop them in the blender, push the button a couple of times and you're done! As a bonus, I even whipped up a small batch of homemade guacamole.

The salsa and guacamole were really tasty with grilled chicken tacos, another recipe from the kids in Texas.

Even though she's very far away, I'll concede that there are a few good things about having a daughter in Texas...authentic TexMex recipes being one of them! 

jp

Scrapbooking: Pocket Pages for the Win!

 
 
So a few weeks ago I got back into the massive scrapbooking "catch up" (is that even possible?) project I started last year. It had been so long that I didn't even know where I'd left off. Then it all came back to me. 

2003. That's a LONG time ago!

I scrapbooked a LOT back in those days, but apparently I skipped over events that seemed overwhelming or problematic for one reason or another. As it turned out, some years were mostly SKIPS without a lot actually scrapbooked! Moreover, it became really difficult to add pages to my post-bound albums so I just sort of gave up. Last year I switched them all to 3-ring binders, which makes it easy to go back and FINALLY finish. Binders are the best thing ever.

 As I've mentioned before, pocket pages and smaller size page sleeves have turned out to be my saving grace. They're much easier than making traditional 12x12 scrapbook pages for every event, and you can match the size of the pocket page to whatever needs to go in it.

For instance, I had saved Bailey's 6th grade schedule, and it fit perfectly inside a 5x7 sleeve. A few other school pictures are on the back side.

 

 In the box of 2003 photos, there were several photos that hadn't made it to the scrapbook the first time around. In this case, there was only one photo of this event (Bailey's first time BABYSITTING!) and back in those days, I didn't like doing single-photo pages so I guess I just skipped it. (WHY??) This picture and story fit perfectly in a small sleeve.

I also ran across several photos that I skipped for other reasons but now (with the passage of time...sigh...) I thought too adorable to leave out. These three "bus stop" pictures fit nicely in a 6x12 sleeve without much fuss.

 Back in my "early days" of scrapbooking, I also skipped over of my own events. I know that it's not good to leave yourself out of the scrapbooks, so as I've found pictures of myself or my activities, I've added them in. I have very few pictures of myself teaching classes, so I was actually kind of happy to add these convention photos to the album using a traditional page.

I'm also not a fan of holiday scrapbooking, so I had skipped over all of the holidays, too. (Are you sensing a theme here???) So this time around, I had no choice but to finish Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Pocket pages made it easy to add those events in between my traditional 12x12 pages.

In going through my 2003 stuff, I realized that I'd also skipped over events for which I had newspaper articles. I probably intended at the time to take them to Memory Bound to color copy but never got around to doing it so they went into the album AS IS. It was actually great to have those articles because they pretty much took care of the journaling for me.

I've slogged through multiple Christmas pages and can't wait to finish up the journaling so this album can be officially done.

After all...2004 awaits! :)

 ONWARD!

Feline Friday with Rory

 Wondering what Cousin Rory in Texas has been up to lately? Let's take a look!

She went for a VERY brief stroll out on the balcony and quickly decided it wasn't for her, in spite of how cute she looks in that harness. The balcony over the parking lot feels scary, but I'm betting she'll love being on a harness in a real yard someday!

Since you've seen her last, Rory's ears have somehow grown even larger.

 

She's also been enjoying the tent we sent her for Christmas. Here you can see her "camping in nature" (enjoying bird/squirrel videos on YouTube).😺

 

Oops, she also developed an interest in Parks and Rec. Well, it's KIND OF nature-y.

 As you can see, Rory has been pretty busy lately...but never too busy to sit on her Meowmy's lap and just be adorable!  

 

Happy Feline Friday from Rory, y'all!
😊

2018 Fitness Habits

I'm absolutely one of the least athletic people you'll ever meet. As a child, I was always the last to be picked in gym class and came to believe that I simply wasn't capable of doing anything physical. So even though I'd always been an active/busy person, I had never really exercised until we joined our local gym a few years back.  Since joining, I've noticed a big difference in my overall strength, flexibility, and stamina. And I think that regular exercise also contributed to good blood-work numbers I received at my physical last fall. (Check out this post from my first few days at the gym back in 2008! I have indeed made some progress since then when I considered it torture! LOL)

In October, our gym got some new equipment which allows you to track your progress. I happened to be trying out one of the new bikes when the manager offered me a key fob so I could track myself. I wasn't sure I wanted to do that but he encouraged me to give it a try. (Really, why not?)

As it turned out, I found that tracking my progress was highly motivating! I set up a weekly goal and each time I use the equipment, it counts toward that goal. Once I started tracking my progress, I was motivated to go to the gym more often. Funny how that works! :)

Because I was motivated to track my progress, I decided that I could surely make time to go to the gym every day. After all, it's very close to our house and open 24 hours a day. So I started going every day, either to run or bike. 

 I'm dealing with a sore foot right now so, I've added the elliptical and rowing into my rotation of gym activities. While I'm there, I watch YouTube videos on my phone and the time flies by!

Once I started going every day, I realized that I could get onto the "biggest user" list that the gym posts every month -- the people who go most often. This list is not for the "most fit" or "people who work the hardest". To make the list, you just have to show up. That I can do! LOL

 

So by making the gym a daily habit, I made the list in November, December, and January. And silly as it may be, that in itself has been motivation to keep going. When you consider where I started back in 2008 (read that old post, if you haven't!), the fact that I've managed to get myself onto any gym list at all is pretty hilarious! :)

 

Can I keep up with going to the gym every day? Maybe not. But I can certainly go with more consistency and be more mindful of how I'm spending my time there.

In January, I also decided to step up my yoga game and make it a daily habit. I've found that I get the most benefit from a home yoga practice by doing a little each day.  I've been doing yoga regularly for two years now (Yoga with Adriene) but not every day. 

 

In January, my daughter and I joined Adriene's 30-day yoga journey and for the first time since doing 30-day challenges, I did not miss a single day. YAY! I've kept it going through February, too. I find that making check-marks on my yoga calendar is motivating! Silly, but it works for me.

So what's the point of this blog post? I've found that by being physically active each day -- consistently -- this "chore" has turned into a habit. Now I don't come up with excuses to miss the gym or do my yoga. As a result, I feel better, I sleep better (because I'm REALLY tired on some days!) and I'm getting stronger. 

I'm still not athletic, but showing up for myself -- on the yoga mat and at the gym -- is making a big difference in my well-being. And that makes it worth it!

jp

Feline Friday: Lily, AKA...

Here are some little known fun facts: 

Our Lily is named after Harry Potter's mother. Her middle name is Ginevra, after Ginny Weasley in the Harry Potter series. Our daughter named her in the height of the Harry Potter era!

I don't usually use Lily's given middle name (it's hard to say and even harder to spell!), opting for "Lily Marie" instead. Heck, quite often I don't even use Lily's first name!

 Instead, Lily has developed quite a long list of nicknames. Here are the names she goes by:

Peaches (probably the most used)

Peaches Marie
Doodlebug

Lily Marie...and its more formal version

Lilian Marie 

Missy...which morphed to

Missy Kaboodlecat

Chica

Darling Drawers (I know...LOL)

Lilliputian (literary reference!)

Girlfriend...which morphed to

Girlfriend Kitty

Kitten Cat

LilyBean...(a reference to her toes) which morphed to

Beanum

Baby Dollface....which morphed to

Dollface Girl

Tiny Tidbit...which morphed to

Tiniest of Tidbits (a variation)

 Tiny Tidbit of Everlasting Joy... and
Tidbit Drawers (I know...)

Precious...which morphed to

Precious Moments of Kitten (causes Spouse to cringe)

Tiny Tot...which morphed to

Tater Tot

Marvelous Morsels of Meow (sorry...)

Snookie...which morphed to

Snookums

Peanut Drawers (which is used a LOT)

Amazingly, Lily recognizes all of her various names! She never fails to come when called...especially when food is involved! :)

Whatever you call it...
Happy Feline Friday!

jp

Feline Friday

This week with Lily:

MONDAY: Wash Day

So helpful!

TUESDAY: Ironing Day

Lily is not allowed to touch the hot iron, so she pressed her blankie FLAT just by sleeping hard on it!

 

  WEDNESDAY: Sewing Day

She is "SEW" CUTE!

 THURSDAY: Market Day

Lily advertises for Feliway in her spare time!

 

FRIDAY: Cleaning Day

 Lily washed her feet until they were WHITE! :)

 SATURDAY: Baking Day 

Lily suggests that EVERY day be Baking Day!

 

SUNDAY: Day of Rest...Lily's favorite day!

Lily enjoyed watching Moana this week! 😊

 We hope everyone has a nice weekend! Thanks for stopping by!

jp

Feline Friday: Cat Cam!

We recently got a security camera which is linked to our phones. I feel like I just crawled out from under a rock, because I've recently learned that this is the way home monitoring (even baby monitoring!) systems work today. I have to say that the idea is great...especially if you have a cat! 

*** THINK CAT CAM!! ***

It's like we've suddenly gained access to The Secret World of Cats!

We like our camera (cat cam!) so much that we bought one for Bailey, too. Now when she's away, she can make sure everything's OK at home -- and with Rory! It's fun to peek in on her to see what she's up to all day!

(SIDE NOTE: In case anyone is wondering, we've confirmed that cats sleep A LOT of the day away while their meowmies are gone! They should be very well rested!)

Recently Bailey left a bird/squirrel video playing for Rory, just to keep her company when Bailey went to work.

 

Sure enough, the camera caught her watching it during the day! TOO CUTE!

 

 

Then it was back to bed for Rory!😺 The cat cam reveals all!
jp

Still Catching Up on Scrapbooking

UGH.

DOUBLE UGH.

Last year, I made a commitment to myself that I was going to get my scrapbooking situation back on track. I started strong, but then life got in the way, as it always does. The very sad situation with Tinsel really took the wind out of my sails and for a long period of time, I just didn't feel like scrapbooking.

On a happier note, my new-found obsession of genealogy also got in the way. I spent a lot of time working on my family history albums, which was time very well spent.
 

 

 And I finished a Florida trip album set which I'd started too long ago.

 

 And I made a very full summer camp album for my daughter, a project that needed to be done.

I also converted several post-bound albums to 3-ring binders and sorted through mountains of photos as I prepared to "catch up" on my family scrapbooks.

So when I think about what I accomplished scrapbooking-wise in 2017, I was actually pretty productive...just not on the tasks I planned to complete! I did the "B" items on my list and left the "A" item undone. Scrapbooking projects with a fixed beginning and end (like my Florida album) are always easier to complete than chronological albums which don't have an end in sight. It's only natural (and not a bad thing, really) to focus on those "low-hanging fruit" projects, because they can give you a sense of accomplishment and motivate you to keep going.

But my "A" list scrapbooking still looms so this weekend I decided to get back to it, and I couldn't even remember where I'd left off. Turns out I left off in 2003, mired in some journaling for the state fair. The last time I worked on this project was probably June. SIX MONTHS, PEOPLE! Good grief!

Sometimes it's harder to get back into something than it really should be. It's harder to go to the gym after a long absence than it is to go regularly. Chronological scrapbooking is a little bit like that. The longer you let it sit, the harder it is to get back to it.

But this is important to me, so I jumped back in and finished the journaling for the fair pages then moved on to the next event and the one after that. And I'm not putting it away. Each box of photos will continue to sit out on my table as an ever-present reminder to GIT-R-DONE.

This year, I need to figure out one day a week to really focus on this scrapbooking project. If I'd just dedicate time to it, I'd get it under control. I tell new scrapbookers to schedule time for themselves, but I need to more consistently practice what I preach.

That's my commitment to myself.

AGAIN. 😉