To the very bestest dog EVER - Jax!! You all know how absolutely crazy I am about this dog, and we have had 11 years together today. If dogs could talk, the stories he could tell! ha!
This picture of Jax NOT wanting to get out of bed pretty much sums up our day! ha! Note how he lays ACROSS the bed and leaves me with NO room and how he doesn't lay on the blanket I put on the bed for him. I get no respect! LOL!
This is Jax telling me to STOP making Christmas presents that take hours on the computer (I'll explain later - remember, family reads), STOP addressing Christmas cards, and STOP putting Christmas stuff out and just pay attention to him! So, that's what I'm about to do!! (after blogging of course!) :-)
And I need to puff her up a bit, but I refer you back to Jax's sad face. I gotta hurry and get to the couch with him! ha! It will wait! 
My favorite new item this year is a gift from one of my student's last year. 
Guess who is 12 today? Ms. Fluff (aka Nala, aka other names not so nice ~ ha!) and Mr. Trouble (aka Simba). Awww...I'll have to scan pics of when they were kittens sometimes...SO cute. Tan will love it! I know how she loves cats! tee-hee!
In other fur kid news, Jax (aka the best dog EVER!), is having bladder issues again. He goes to the vet on Wednesday. Send some doggie thoughts his way, because his momma gets super nervous when he has to go to the vet. You know, he is almost 11 now...don't you love that grey face?
SIMBA!!! He's at it again, and he is currently winning the war against my toads. I am NOT happy about this! For one, I love my toads in the pond. I love listening to them at night. It sounds like camping. For years, they have managed to escape Simba. He has stalked them and lost. Until now. I stepped on one about a week ago that he left on the dining room area rug. URGH! I couldn't see it in the pattern of the rug - gross! Then, a few nights ago, he caught a little one and left it on the bedroom floor so I'd find it as soon as I got up. Thank God he didn't bring it in the bed!
How could I not love that face! This is the face of the BEST dog in the world!! He has been by my side and gotten me through many bumps in the road of life. Jax is 10 1/2 years old now and was by my side as my constant companion through a very lonely marriage. I didn't really have the close friends I have now when I was married. I pushed most people away so they couldn't see inside and know what my life was truly like. My ex-husband was "out" 5 or 6 nights a week, but Jax, he was always there and happy to see me. He was there through the crying, depressing divorce days and re-adjusting to a new life. And he's still here...I don't know what I will do when it's his time to go. There will never be another dog like him for me. He holds a very special place in my heart. 
Mr. Trouble, aka Simba, is sick! :-( He took a trip to the vet this morning, and I was expecting a terror. But, I guess he felt so bad that he didn't even fight us. He will be embarrassed for me to tell you that his anal gland ruptured...ewww! It wasn't a sight easy on the eyes. But with meds and a good clean up (while under some serious sedation at the vet), he will be fine.
The first one you will probably meet when you walk in the door is the sweetest, best dog EVER, Jax. I love this dog more than anything in the world (Kevin knows and has made peace with it - ha!). He is getting old and is sleeping most of the time now, but still has a ball of energy that comes from nowhere when I walk in the door. It doesn't matter if I am gone 15 minutes or 8 hours, he goes nuts! I tell ya, no one else is crazy about me like that! :-) He follows me everywhere I go and is a good snuggler. (when he doesn't have gas and he can run you out of the room ~ trust me on this) The ottoman is really a dog bed: 
Next, you are sure to meet Simba! He thinks he is a dog, so he has to greet people too. And you best acknowledge him or he WILL tell you about it. He will stay at your feet meowing until you talk to him (and he answers back) or pet him. Simba is my hunter and likes to play rough. He really is a dog trapped in a cats body. He even comes when you call him. He is usually in trouble and is featured here quite often for his shenanigans, so I am only giving you this picture of him sleeping...I'm sure he'll get in trouble again soon! 
And then, there is the semi-normal cat, Nala. You probably won't meet her because she is a normal cat in that she likes to hide when people come over (especially if you bring little people with you). She is fluffy and everyone wants to pet her. She loves to snuggle but only with me. She really doesn't like anyone else. She has attitude and everyone calls her the mean cat, but she isn't mean. Promise! (even though she did bite the cleaning lady once...whole other story). What makes her a bit abnormal for a cat is that she is clumsy. She can't jump very high and will often miss jumping on the bed and fall off. It's really comical.
See the fluff:
Then, for summer's only, we have Nibbles, the guinea pig. She is getting very spoiled this summer and expects a treat of some sort everytime we walk by. Kevin says only I could spoil a guinea pig! This picture is the only time all summer that Nala has paid her any attention. 
Only about a week and a half and it's off to school again for Ms. Nibbles.
And last, but not least, there is the backyard pond full of fish...well, 7 of them. I lost my fish that I had in the pond diaster earlier in the year. I had one of them for 4 years, so I was upset. But these guys are my new ones. There are 4 big ones and 3 little ones. I have them where they know when I turn off the pump to come to the surface and eat. When kids come over they love to feed them. 
Oh, and the pond is full of tadpoles. We are about to be over-run with frogs/toads. And, being a teacher, I wanted to watch them turn to frogs up close and personal, so I have a few in a container on the kitchen counter. But that is it - for now - no more pets!
Simba has moved on from the lizards and snakes of last year...now, he is much more interested in the toads in the pond and moles!! So far, I have been able to save the toads he has caught...or Kevin has b/c that is who I yell for to help with the situation when Simba emerges with toad legs hanging out of his mouth every way imaginable! I love the toads in the pond, so it upsets me when he finally catches one ~ especially when he brings it INSIDE and lets it go! Those toads can JUMP! LOL! 
he dead moles at the foot of the bed! Not one, but two! He was on a roll last night! Luckily, they were already dead. And, thank God, he has not brought any of his kills INTO the bed! The first time this happened, a few weeks ago, I woke up in the middle of the night and stepped right over it on my way to the bathroom...thinking it was a rolled up sock. I can't see a thing without my contacts in, so imagine my surprise when I put them in! yucko! This time, I knew the minute I saw the little black spots on the carpet...plus the fact that both cats were watching them intently! ha! Moles are the freakiest looking critters I have ever seen!! They gross me out, but I am glad he is quite the mole hunter b/c they can really screw up the yard and flowerbeds...just why, oh why, must he immediately bring them inside? yuck! Aren't they ugly???
I started today working on that research project that I have procrastinated on...I am about 1/3 of the way done...it's a pretty intense project that I've put off. Oh well, it's a little too cool to be in the flowerbeds in the mornings anyway. So, I'll try to do a little bit each morning! I will be SOOO glad to be finished with this one! 
To relax, I started on the flowerbed extension today. Remember, yesterday it was just tilled up. Today, I planted all the the free plants I scored and started on the border. I also transplanted a few of my plants and got three of the beds ready for mulch. I do love working in the flowerbeds!! 
I didn't even scream! I froze for a second, because I almost stepped on it AND it was heading straight for Jax who was laying in the sun while I gardened!! So, I grabbed a shovel and proceeded to stab it until I was certain it was dead. And, then I thought - GREAT, the snakes are already out! urgh! 
Jax relaxing after his snake scare. "Whew! That was a close one! Thanks for saving my life Mom!"
"Eek! They are so dramatic - let's nap!"
And, in case you doubted me wanting me to be my spoiled, rotten cat in yesterday's post ~ check her out here:
I mean, really you have to live with her to appreciate her quirks and "lovely" personality. There are people who fear this cat! ha! She is really fluffy, and everyone wants to pet her. The problem is - she really only loves me. She tolerates most other people. Yesterday, she blocked Jax (the 80 lb. boxer) from the doggie door. She sat in front of it and would not move. He tried several times to get past her, and she hissed at him and scared him to the back of the house. She will meow and carry on at the bottom of the sink in the bathroom until someone (usually me) picks her up and turns on the water so she can drink from the tap. But the funniest thing about Nala, is that she CAN'T jump. She is the clumsiest cat you have ever seen. Sometimes it takes her three tries just to jump up on the bed ~ you can't help but laugh!
Friday night was scrap night with the girls & my friend, Donna, who recently had the twin girls, stopped by with the babies!!! So...for a few hours, we stopped and ooohhed and awwwwed! Aren't they cute and small and precious??? Look at these baby feet!! 
Kevin and I may get to babysit soon and give the Mom and Dad a night out. How scary is that? ha!
Saturday, we piddled (is that a word?) around town and around the yard. The nice weather (70 degrees!!) inspired one Lowe's trip!! We also rented two movies ~ Michael Clayton (with my man, George Clooney) & Eastern Promises (watchin' it tonight). Michael Clayton was good. In the middle, I was starting to think, where is this going? But, it all comes together in the final 30 minutes. George does not disappoint, ladies, it is a rental that even the man will enjoy. And, we were also excited to score the next season of the Soprano's. We are soooo hooked! 
Check out Mr. Handy Man this weekend!! Kevin installed a new shower head in the guest bath AND new floodlights in the backyard. He installed the whole kit - not just changing the bulb! ha! I broke the last one we had - don't ask!
I cut back all the crape mertle's and all the dead stuff in the flowerbeds over the past two days ~ check out my burn pile! I am super excited about that! LOL! I am a country girl after all! 
Now ~ on our trip to Lowe's we checked out patio possibilities ~ still no firm decision on what to use, but picture a patio off the deck where I have my tarp down killing grass. It will be in front of the steps too - I just figured my wussy dog wouldn't walk on the tarp! ha! 
Speaking of the dog ~ my sweetest doggie! Today was his 10th birthday! My baby is getting old!! :-(
Simba gives him some birthday love ~ a little butt in the face and tail wrapped around the head. This cat will rub all over him and is most annoying! ha! 
And finally, Kevin got the grill working again (Mr. Handy Man this weekend!). The grill was a little messed up b/c we used it as a smoker some. Now, she is back in business and Kevin grilled burgers for lunch and is grilling chicken for dinner! Yummy! 
All in all, a GREAT weekend with NO master's work!
