Mom’s Musings

ALMOST

My husband snapped some quick pics while we were on a little walk tonight.

Isn’t it wonderful? We have a self-walking doggie. She’s quite conscientious about holding the leash until you take it from her.

Enjoy visiting some more Wordless Wednesday participants!

Thirteen Pets We Have Had (or still have):

• Dogs (Currently, just our old doggie Lassie. Our girls are hoping for a new puppy. This is a test to see if Daddy reads this blog.)
  
• Cats (The neighborhood cats who run away from home, or never had a home, come here to be fed, loved, and fixed.)
  
• Cockatiel (The most lovable, personable bird I ever met.)
  
• Parakeets (Never really got a friendly one.)
  
• Finches (Messy!)
  
• Goldfish (My husband’s outdoor goldfish receive royal treatment.)
  
• Gerbils (Many. At one time. Interesting! Update: Our daughter who cared for the gerbils will tell you how many we had.)
  
• Hamsters (My favorite was named Precioso. We kept his habitat in our bedroom, and I grew to enjoy the noise of his squeaky wheel at night. Very tame and friendly critter.)
  
• Guinea Pigs (Habitats require DAILY cleaning. Very stinky little critters.)
  
• Rabbits (We are partial to lop-eared bunnies.)
  
• Ducks (Indian Running Ducks are fun; have you ever seen them?)
  
• Chickens (The prettiest chickens, in my opinion, are the Auracana breed. The plumage can be a variety of colors, and they lay blue eggs.)
  
• Toggenburg goats (Just two of them, a momma named Nanny – of course – and her kid.)
  

Today is a BEAUTIFUL morning in our corner of the Pacific Northwest. A gentle breeze is ruffling the new leaves that are out on some of the bushes, and the sky is blue and only slightly hazy with clouds. Ahhh! It truly feels as if Spring has arrived, and will stay with us.

My day began this lovely morning with a trip to the veterinarian. We’ve been noticing for maybe a couple weeks that our dog Lassie seems DEAF. Usually she is terrified of noisy equipment sounds, but didn’t seem to even notice when Rick was using the chainsaw last weekend to do some tree trimming. Also, she has been shaking her head every so often, actually, quite often. So, off to the vet we went, first thing this morning.

Our vet informed me that one of the first things to go as dogs age is their sense of hearing. Thus, it is POSSIBLE that the dear old doggie is indeed becoming deaf. However, this may not be the case. The vet found that Lassie’s ears were waxy, so she cleaned them with something that softens the wax, followed by warm water irrigation. Next, the vet noted that Lass has a yeast infection in her ears, so the old doggie received a dose of Mometamax in each ear also. I will continue to administer that once a day here at home.

Lassie loves our vet, but was relieved to leave when all was said and done. Enough messing with the ears already! I’m hopeful that her sense of hearing will be restored, at least in some measure.

Here’s a shot of Lassie being camera-shy:

Favorite comic:

MUTTS, by Patrick McDonnell,

Starring Earl and Mooch.

If you love your pets,

Love to hug trees, want world peace,

Check out this “funny.”

My girls are fans, too

Of pets, the earth, and cute clothes

Inspired by the MUTTS.

For more Haiku, visit Jennifer over at Playgroups are No Place for Children and Christina at A Mommy Story.

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

For this Thursday Thirteen
I offer you Thirteen Tips for Healthy Living. The first seven have to do with physical health, and the remaining six with mental well-being. These are suggestions for your consideration, not a pretended panacea:

• Go for a daily walk.
  
• Eat fresh fruit and veggies daily.
  
• Enjoy indoor pets, including cats and dogs.
  
• Wash your hands after using the toilet, changing the baby, caring for pets, before handling food, or, in other words, Keep your hands clean!
  
• Sneeze into the crook of your arm if no tissue is available, in order to stop the spread of airborne pathogens.
  
• Floss your teeth daily (Brush them, too.).
  
• Remove all wall-to-wall carpet from your home, and cover mattresses and pillows with dust-proof covers.
  
• Do your part to live peaceably with others, especially those in your own home. Romans 2:18 is a Bible verse that expresses this thought.
  
• Think about praise-worthy, beautiful things more than “the dark side” of life. I’m especially thinking here of what “food” you feed your mind. Garbage in will yield garbage out, eventually.
  
• Treat others the way you would like to be treated, including your children and spouse. Matthew 7:12 is a Bible verse that speaks of this: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.
  
• However, don’t be a Pollyanna who PRETENDS that everything is OK. Sometimes things ARE bad, or dangerous. These things can be dealt with in a responsible way, but pretending that something is good doesn’t make it so.
  
• Set priorities for your day, based upon your current calling in life, and do the work in order. This way you won’t be overwhelmed by stress, or the tyranny of your TO DO list.
  
• Cultivate the habit of THANKFULNESS. As a Christian, I am first of all thankful to the Lord for all His undeserved blessings. But I also mean, say, “Thank you!” to the people in your world.
  

My admiration has continued long,

Though distant first my budding affection;

As you showed kindness, the bonds became strong.

Apart from you I suffer dejection.

Once, fighting and violence marked my days.

Unmitigated hormones led to strife.

The aid you offered helped me change my ways;

I solaced myself with domestic life.

To express one’s love, it is the season;

This Valentine’s Day: Honor you on it.

For hiding my love there is no reason,

So I give to you this humble sonnet.

Nobody else can match your stroke or pat.

Please accept these loving words from your cat.

This has been a lovely Sunday. We enjoyed a time of good food and good conversation with a couple of families from church this afternoon. Judging from the quietness in the house now, I think most of the family is napping for a bit prior to leaving again for church this evening.

I haven’t posted any photos in a while so here is one of our lovable, affectionate, bossy Gigi:

Here is another photo of Gigi, this time with Reb. They are reclining on the rug that Kayla made for Rebecca recently for her birthday:

Rick purchased a new camera to take along on business trips. The main requirements for this camera were that it had to fit in his pocket, and be equipped with an optical image stabilizer. The little Canon Power Shot SD870 IS fits the bill. I promise, I will learn to use this camera, so that I will not be so dependent on the rest of the family for photos! Here are some photos of our kitties:

This is our kitty, Bonnie Boy. He once upon a time lived a few houses away, but decided to adopt us. He especially adores Rick.

You’ve met Percy cat before. Here he is, indulging his curiosity, following Rick around as he experimented with his new camera outside this evening. Hmmm . . . Percy really likes Rick, too.

This is Lucy cat. Now, this kitty likes me. She sleeps by my feet, but then during the night sneaks up near my face and starts purring loudly to let me know she needs a midnight snack. If I don’t oblige, she steps back and forth across my face, which is scary, since she weighs over 20 pounds and has sharp claws.

This is our kitty Gigi with Lydia, Seth and Rebecca. Poor Rebecca isn’t feeling very well. Forgive me for posting this photo, Dearie, but I needed to include all the cats in the post (for some odd reason).