Looking forward to Spring

Welcome Spring

A little something fresh for the front door.

We spent the weekend doing garden cleanup. Ouch! I am so sore. I need to move more. I really feel it, but all the flower beds are cleaned and fertilized.

 

I have had such a hard time because my Bitty was my garden kitty. He followed me around and would roll and play, jump out when I least expected it. It just felt too darn quiet. The wind would blow a leaf and I would turn, looking for my buddy....

 

Goodbye, my friend

My Bitty

Let me you the story of my sweet cat.  

Ten almost eleven years ago my step Dad pasted away on a beautiful August morning. He was a sweet gentle man and we all loved him. You see my Dad passed away at 43 yrs old. I truly think my Dad sent Ed to my Mom and us. I was grown and married, but I knew Ed longer that my natural Father. Well a week after Ed passed one of my Mom's cats had eight kittens. Now my Mom and Ed had four cats, mostly feral cats they took in and had all but one spayed. So anyway the last kitten born, after all the rest was my Bitty. Smaller then all the rest and a bit weak. After a few weeks the mother cat pushed him away. He cuddled and looked for warmth anywhere...my Mom got worried and took him to the vet. Now the vet gave him fluids and sent my Mom home with a tiny baby bottle to feed him. She told her sometimes the Mother cat senses something wrong, but my Mom wanted to try to save the peanut. I had been there that day and with twelve kitties I thought she was a little crazy. My Mom kept telling me there was something special about this one and that she would keep this kitten and find homes for the other seven. She stayed up all night and held him, fed him and loved him. She continued to care for him.

This would be Jake and Hubby's and one of my granddaughters last visit with my Mom. She was only 67 and in good health. It was a Sunday and we had such a nice time. On Thursday that week I had gone down and we went to lunch, played with the kittens and it was after I left that day she took the little gray one to the vet.

The following Sunday my Mom had a heart attack and went to heaven. Who would guess in a matter of weeks we would lose both my Mom and step Dad?

When we went to her house my Jake who called my Mom Snow White. Her last name was White and it was his special name for her. One she loved...well, he kept saying Snow White wants me to bring this kitty home. I had dibs on the gray tiger cat, but Jake said Snow White wanted him to take care of this one. He wrapped in in a small towel and carried him and his baby bottles home with us. He was so tiny he fit in the palm of your hand. I truly didn't think he would make it. I feel that this sweet kitten is what helped Jake to get through all the family grieving and such. He was only eight  years old. He fed and cared for the kitten, cuddled and loved him.  As everything settled down I found that the kitten was my salvation also, when I cried he licked my tears. Bitty was always snuggling and purring. He went everywhere that I did. Especially loved being in the garden with me. He was always at my computer with me too. I had a big black 18 yr old cat that passed away that year and Bitty became more and more attached. The funny thing is that Bitty would always go to all the people my Mom loved. I always felt her spirit through him.

He grew into a beautiful cat that we all loved so much.

As you know at Christmas he got sick and when I went to the vet he said he had congestive heart failure. We gave him some treatments to release the fluid around his heart and put him on medicine. He went from almost 17 lbs to 9.5 my little peanut had gotten so weak it broke my heart. Bitty was living on water and the treats I put his medicine in. I gave him Fancy feast, tuna, anything to get him to eat, he would give it a lick and walk away. We went to the vet on Thursday morning. I knew he wasn't doing well and he kept going off and hiding. My heart was so sad. The vet gave him a treatment, but it was his time. He left us that night and I am sure he is snuggling with my Mom in heaven. It is her turn to have him to love. I am crying as I type my goodbye to my sweet Bitty.

"and yes, Mom there was something special about this one"

Random thoughts

So here are some random thoughts and a couple of pictures. The pictures are because I got a new camera. A Canon Rebel T3i. I am getting used to it and so far I am liking how the pictures are coming out. There is so much to learn. The random thoughts are coming because I turned 60 last week. I just don't know where the time has gone. Funny it does not bother me being 60, but my thoughts have turning to things I want to do. ( more on that in a later post) My family had a nice party for me and then hubby and I spent the day together poking in antique shops and out for a quiet dinner. My idea of a perfect day.

I received these two glass witch balls on my 50th....wow where did 10 years go?

 

See even my bunnies are laughing!

 

 

 

 

 

Dream, dream, dream

A girl can dream can't she? I am looking through my pictures feeling like there is nothing new to write about. It is still cold here, expecting more snow next week. I am just so tired of this weather. I await Spring anxiously. It is just about 50 days until we open the pool, but maybe we will have to wait for the weather to catch up and maybe it will be July instead of May.


I want to sit on the patio and have my morning coffee in the warmth of sunshine. I want to smell the pretty peonies and just linger here.

 Listen to the water fall. Hear the chirping birds.

I just can't wait much longer, so I am dreaming :)

Happy Anniversary

Forty-one years ago today I married the love of my life, my best friend. We broke ground on our home at the same time....I would have never guessed we would still be in the same home. Us together, that doesn't surprise me. We have had good times and bad. Ups and downs, but that is where the for better or worse comes in. So a son and a daughter and four grandchildren later I want to thank my husband for forty one wonderful years....they have flown by. Love you!

Something new

Well new to me anyway....last weekend hubby and I had a huge case of cabin fever so we went for a ride and ended up at Bernat Mills Antiques in Uxbridge. I found these treasures all in the same dealers booth. I was doing the happy dance for sure. As soon as I have time I will be doing some tweaking. I read a great article in A Simple Life on Waterglassing. It was written by Kris Casucci from Walker Homestead. I never knew why some crocks had so much white inside. It was a great article. Who knew it was how they preserved eggs back in the day?

So let me show you a few of my dream pieces...all found on Pinterest. This first one a cake crock is my favorite. I have never seen one at any dealers. Bet I couldn't afford it if I found it.

Well I needed a glimmer of Spring so I put all snowmen away and brought out some bunnies!

I always get a bit down this time of year. I am happily noticing that the days are getting a bit longer and March is just about here, but winter seems to be hanging on for dear life. I could truly move south in a heartbeat, but my hubby just loves New England and winter. Now last night we had a burst pipe in the garage because our grandson washed his car and did not turn the water off or drain the pipes. Not great to come home to a waterfall in the garage and water running down the driveway.  I sit on a board in town so I had to go to a meeting and when I get home my hubby said well after cleaning up the mess in the garage as best I could I got a phone call....our Grandson had an accident. He is fine but had three friends in the car they slid on black ice and hit another car. Everyone is fine, minor bumps and bruising, but the police made four ambulances take them to the hospital to be checked, again everyone is fine. We have to travel about 25 minutes to get there, get a tow truck, ( 2 cars not drivable) pick everyone up, get everyone home. Hubby handled all the details. Thank goodness. We are exhausted. I hate winter it is so dang cold today and I have to go show houses. Sorry for the rant, I really am tired.

Happy Valentines Day

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentines Day!  

I got this great chalk board last weekend,,,hubby and I drove up to New Hampshire to a place called Sage Farm Antiques. Poked around a bit. This was my big purchase. What a difference it makes using chalk on real slate. My other boards are chalk board paint and it does not flow as easily or clean as good. While this slate has some white spots in it they seem to show more in the picture and less in real life. I love it. I just need to decide where I will hang it.

 The kitties don't like all this rain......ahhhh the mess because the ground is frozen it just sits on top of it. So there is snow, slush and water. But it is February and this is New England~