Quilt, Christened

Willow is usually first to find a new quilt and take a nap on it.  And she's done it again.

*Yawn*

Monday was such a beautiful sunny day that Caroline and I took an impromptu field trip to the zoo in San Francisco. The zoo sits right on the coast -- a block from the beach - and it is usually foggy and cool there, even on the hottest of summer days. To our delight, even there at the zoo the sun was shining and the air was balmy and full of springtime.  And we could tell that the animals were happy to be basking in the spring sunshine, too.

No, he's not dead.  He's just dead to the world.

Gosh, I sort of feel like a nap now.

My MVP

My MVP pick from Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl:  Chamomile, the boxer mix.  Just look at those blue eyes!

I'll watch frolicking puppies over football any day.  And the bunny cheerleaders were hilarious, if somewhat comatose.   If you missed it, you can watch highlights here.

Getting into a playful spirit

I don't know about you, but I'm having a hard time getting into a holiday mood. It's only just getting chilly here in Northern California, so the weather feels barely fallish, let alone wintery. And we are all absorbed in helping the student of the house wrap up her first semester of this new school-from-home situation and prepare for final exams. (Physics is traumatizing all of us around here, although we do joke about how we can now measure the speed of flight if Caroline hurls the physics text across the room.) For some reason, just keeping my head above the clutter of housework and daily business feels like plenty.

Yesterday, our neighbors across the street were out in force, blaring Christmas music through the neighborhood as they put out their vast assortment of holiday decorations. It should have added a fun and festive feeling, right? But I was annoyed at the blasting music outside when I'd hoped for a quiet morning, and I was feeling generally un-Christmasy, almost downright Scrooge-like.

I am determined to ease myself into a relaxed holiday mood. The tree will come up this week, I think, and once that is done I know I'll feel more Christmasy. But for now, to cheer ourselves, we did something that always helps: we went to the animal shelter to cuddle the cats. There is nothing that'll make you smile faster than seeing the butt-wiggly, pouncey cuteness of an energetic kitten.



They really know how to live in the moment, kittens do.



They can find fun in the simplest things.



And they can play while lying down or sitting still.



I feel much better now.

Cat Spotting

I've had a busy day getting all the Christmas decorations up -- but in the middle of it all, managed to get this picture of Gemma on the stairs when she spotted a cat sneaking out the cat door.

Kitties Always Help

It's not easy being a seventh grader, and Miss C is experiencing some angst about school and friendships and adolescence. So today after school we made a stop at our local animal shelter where C is a well-known and long-time volunteer kitty cuddler. We love our local shelter -- it's a no-kill shelter, and they really work on socializing the kittens so they'll be good pets. When you're feeling frazzled and emotionally worn down, a room full of kittens will cheer you right up. Trust me.

We plunked ourselves down on the floor and started rolling little balls around. The kittens watch with wild and mesmerized eyes, and cannot resist coming over to play. Inevitably, they end up crawling all over us, purring.

Isn't this one a beauty?

This fellow was fascinated by the camera lens -- seeing his reflection, maybe?

This little girl would love a comfy home for Christmas.

This guy raced around playing with a little felt mousie, and then plunked down to do some serious cleaning business.

This guy spun himself into a frenzy, raced across the room and shot right up the wall. I know how he feels.

C and I came away feeling soothed and contented, and the kitties were tired out and ready for naps. By the way, all of these kitties are available for adoption at the Healdsburg Animal Shelter, if you're in the area and thinking that you could use a furry companion.

My, your dog is handsome...

I am trying to carry my camera with me every day (or at least have it in the car) so I can take pictures when I see something that captures my eye. And the other morning, I spotted two gorgeous Weimaraners waiting patiently outside Starbucks while their owner was fetching coffee.

I'm not yet brave enough to ask people if I can take *their* picture. But it's not hard for me to approach strangers to admire their dogs ... and asking if I can take the dogs' pictures was an easy step from there.

So here are these beauties. I love how these dogs look so calm and regal (unlike a certain tail-waggy, rambunctious lab at my house...)

Just too cute

I know, pictures of fluffy little kittens are just too precious. But life around here has been dull lately ... lots of work, making my way through my 12 hours of continuing legal education, pruning the overgrown shrubbery in the yard, other mundane things like that... Hardly blog-worthy events.

So, I thought I'd post a few of the pictures I took yesterday at the ranch. I tell myself I'm not going to take more kitten pictures, but they're just so dang adorable.



Some of them are very timid around people, but still curious...



... but if you sit still long enough, they come out and get distracting by anything moving and then have to pounce.



This rather cranky guy just watched the kitten shenanigans from his royal spot in a tub of dirt.



(C'mon, confess, those kitties made you smile, didn't they?)

Animal Paradise

I have written before about the ranch nearby where we go several times a week to care for two gorgeous horses whose owner can no longer ride them. We were there yesterday, grooming and getting lots of horse affection.



This, of course, is Caroline's dream place come to life. But wait -- can it get any better???



Thanks to the heartless people who abandon unneutered animals down by the river nearby, various feral cats have made their way to the ranch where there are lots of cozy hiding places and abundant food. And now that spring is here, they are having kittens. This is Caroline holding a kitty who opened its eyes probably just a day or two ago.

And rest assured that the Ranch Ladies (the owners of the place) are handling this responsibly. As they locate feral cats on the property, they catch them, have them neutered and given appropriate shots, and then work with Forgotten Felines, an organization that rescues feral cats, assesses them for domestication, and finds home for them.

So, as they find kittens around the ranch, they try to get them used to people so they can be adoptable all that much more easily. That means that Caroline can poke around the place to look for kitties and play with them to her heart's content.

Oh, look! There's one now!



When you've not been around tiny kittens in a while, it's easy to forget how small and funny they are.



Pretty cute, huh?



This guy totally cracked me up -- he's constantly surprised by the existence of his back legs and tries to chase them and bite them.



The black cat looking on is his adoptive mama. She's a spayed female who actually lives here, and she's taken some of the feral kitties on as her own babies.



Ranch Lady's hand rubbing this guy's tummy gives you an idea of how tiny he is.



"Is that the paparazzi?! AACCCKK!"

Will You Play Ball with Me?

I was sitting there on the floor in the kitchen while Caroline was doing her homework... and this picture happened.

I think it's one of my best ever...it's just so Gemma.

Willow

Every morning, Willow lounges on the back of the couch in the living room where she can bask in the sun and watch the goings-on in the front of the house. And every morning, as Roger and Caroline head off to school, I wave from the front window and pet Willow for a bit.

This morning she looked so lovely that I asked her if she'd model for a photo shoot. Being the social animal she is, she graciously agreed.



Now, I know photos of other people's cats tend to be a bit boring. But really, isn't Willow just lovely?

As Tyra Banks would say, isn't she FIERCE?**



But even the best models get tired of posing. It's so strenuous, you know.



** And speaking of FIERCE, how cool is it that Christian won on Project Runway?! I loved all the designers' collections (which is not usually the case) but was charmed to see him so emotional and speechless and -- momentarily -- without ego. I'll be watching my People magazines to see if Victoria Beckham shows up in big ruffles and skinny pants...

Cats and more cats

After a solid week of rain last week, we have been enjoying bright sunshine. We made the most of it yesterday by heading up to the ranch after school to visit the horses.

I've mentioned before, I think, that there is an uncountable number of cats hanging around up there. The ladies who own the ranch moved in with 4 neutered cats, but they live in a rural area where feral cats roam and cold-hearted people have been known to drop entire litters of kittens off to fend for themselves. Because these ladies feed them (and gather them up for trips to the vet for health checks and neutering from time to time), they've made themselves at home there. There are cats almost everywhere you look.

So we were not the only ones out enjoying the sun. The cats were out in full force, lolling and basking. They were on the roof of the shed...



and on the hood of the truck...



and following us around to lounge on the ground...



Clearly, the car hood option was the majority's choice for primo napping.



A few just watched from the shade, wary of us.



And this shy little one stayed in hiding.



This fellow found a comfy spot in the sun in the middle of some nice, springy bushes. Do you think we can't see him because he's hiding behind that sprig of leaves?!



With all the picture taking of the cats, the horses got jealous and demanded to be photographed too. So, here's Ranger...



and here's Romance.

A Day on Animal Planet

This was the view from my windshield as we arrived at the ranch to visit Caroline's step-horses (you know, the two beautiful horses Caroline has been given permission to visit and ride and treat as if they are her own). It was clear when we left our house, but we encountered quite a downpour when we arrived.

Pygmy goats don't come out in the rain, but they're still curious.



And, as usual, there were kitties huddled everywhere, staying dry.



Eventually the rain stopped, so Caroline got in a bit of horse loving and grooming.



From there, we went to my sister Laura's for the late afternoon and evening, leaving Roger to watch the Superbowl in peace. But we had a better time: watching Animal Planet's Puppybowl! If you have never seen this, you must follow the link and click on the video to watch some of the puppy highlights. Basically, they show puppies tumbling around a tiny football field space, romping and biting and stumbling all over themselves. It was wonderfully entertaining, and the half-time kitten extravaganza was hilarious, too.

C'mon, what can possibly be as cheering as watching puppies romp and kittens play?