how to eat an elephant...

I'm just back from a walk with my Katie girl along the canal.

It's a day full of promise with blue skies with a hint of white clouds... still... the mountains are capped in white and the birds are flittering about.

Today I'm back to mudding the boys' bathroom. I've got to move forward every day to make some good progress...

I keep reminding myself...

How do you eat an elephant? ONE BITE AT A TIME!

And so... with one swipe of mud at a time... I inch toward my goal of walls... ready to paint...

Well, I'd just better get to it, right?

My Katie girl is BACK!

Katie (beige) & Fluffy (black)
Charlie (little white fluff ball at 4 weeks old)
Emma (approx 8 weeks old)
My Katie girl... my shadow!
So... off we were heading to Billings this morning when we got down the street near the house we were renting... when a cat looking just like my Katie girl crosses the street and stops in the yard looking at the truck.

I jump out of the truck to see if it was my Katie girl who has been missing for 3 weeks....

She was very timid. Missing her collar... and wasn't so sure about me : (...

We turned right around and brought her home and put away the kittens to give her some space. As soon as she entered our new home... downstairs she went... straight to the food bowl. YUP! That's Katie alright!

She's a little thinner, but in very good health. I think that someone had her all this time. She was lost... went back to the old place... and someone (who??? I don't know!) took her in not knowing how much we were missing her!

So... now we have 4 cats! Yes, I most certainly must be the... Cat Lady....

With our youngest son (almost 12) to watch over all cats... off we went to Billings.

On the Walmart list:

Cat Food

Kitten Food

Cat litter (Feline Pine is my favorite!)

and... an addition litter box!

It'll take a while for all of our cats to get adjusted to one another....

I'm so very very very pleased to have my Katie girl... my shadow... back!!!!

My dear Canon PowerShot S400....

I love taking photos... especially flowers... and landscapes! I fell in love with photography when I was a kid.

I remember the day when it happened...

My uncle Gary was snapping photos with his Nikon SLR 35mm at a family gathering at Meddybemps Lake in beautiful Maine. I remember watching him.

Then he put HIS camera in my hands... and showed me what to do...

That was it for me, the beginning of a passion!!!

I'm so sad to report that my little Canon PowerShot S400 digital elph which has gone everywhere with me... is NOT working correctly anymore...

It's been a fantastic companion for over 6 years! I kept it in the truck... in my bag... it was so small that I could always have it with me!

One time while framing out the house, I left it out on a pile of sheathing. Forgot all about it... till the next day... after it had rained during the night. Well, after it dried out... it was perfect again!

Yes... and it HAS BEEN dropped... I admit it! OK... more than once... But it's got this tough outer case... and NO harm done...

But... I NEED IT!!! I have these adorable kittens that MUST HAVE their photos taken while they are tiny... sigh... look out the window... those snow capped mountains with that delicate morning light breathing life onto the countryside... and what about the vibrant glow of sunset????

And the holidays are coming! And there's family pictures... and pictures of friends to take... and HOW will I share with you the outcome of my last batch of tomatoes??

Can it be fixed? I'll have to find out!

Yes, I admit it... it may be time for an updated version... but this would be such a great camera to pass on to the boys...

UPDATE 11/5/09

Just got off the phone with Canon. He said that what's going on in my camera is a KNOWN PROBLEM called CCD Malfunction with a sensor gone bad.

They will email me a UPS return ticket... and FIX MY BELOVED CAMERA... for FREE!

I'm so thrilled!!!!!!!! Yeah for Canon Customer Service!!!! You have my loyalty!

Made another batch of Salsa today!

We had Nachos for supper tonight... complete with homemade Salsa... and all the fixings... tomatoes, avocado, lettuce, green onions, sour cream, refried beans, seasoned ground beef... forgot the black olives!

May do another version of this dinner in the future, except with taco shells or those taco bowls!

I'm getting ready to can Salsa now! I may have enough tomatoes to make a few more batches! Granny, thank you so much for sharing that awesome Salsa recipe!!!!

little blessings...

Good morning... or good day to you!

Woke up a little early to feed my little hungry white puff ball. He thinks that he should be fed all the time!

We're all enjoying the kittens so much!!!

My family is all off to work and school... the house is very quiet except for the meowing of my little ones!

I'm getting ready to call some of my dear friends and customers! And getting ready for our group leader conference call!

I'm so blessed to be able to work from home! I get to help people have more ooomph in their step... and to be able to breathe deeply without coughing, choking, & crying while they clean!

Thank goodness for the internet that has brought all of us so close together where we can freely communicate... share ideas... knowledge... wisdom... passions... and friendships!!!

Isn't it awesome... and wonderful... and fantastic to live in this technological age? What would we do without computers and the internet... and cell phones?

Eat your veggies!

Everyone's done eating and the food is mostly gone... but wait... didn't anyone have any corn? Why do I have SO MUCH corn left over???

Is it only my family that can't seem to eat 1 can of veggies for dinner? Should I enforce the "No one leaves the table until the vegetables are all eaten"... RULE?

Here's what I'm going to do with all my left over veggies!

1-Veggie collection! I'm going collect all the left over veggies into the fridge or freezer.

2-SOUP! Each week, we're going to enjoy a homemade soup... AND use up those leftover Veggies!

Any other ideas... please DO post in comments!

And then there were two...

(This is Emma. She's 8 weeks old)

(This little fluff ball is Snowball. Just 4 weeks old.)

So... yesterday we took home a female grayish striped kitten from the Animal Rescue Shelter... she's so cute.

This afternoon I was out in the backyard (all wilderness on the outskirts of our little western town) calling for my black fluffy cat... FLUFFY... FLUFFY... FLUFFY....

When I hear a little... MEOW...MEOW...MEOW...

So, I go to investigate and there's a little white fluff ball... all alone... I hemmed and I hawed... oh my... should I??? Sigh... Blue eyes.... all white... with a hint of a striped tail... maybe 4 weeks old.... Every time I called for FLUFFY she would come to me.

OK, my heart strings were sufficiently softened... Yes, I'm turning into the "Cat Woman."

I picked him up... knowing that was it! The point of NO return... And... home he went!

So... now there are 2 kittens in the Parker household... and 1 adult black FLUFFY cat.

We ran little white fluff ball to Dr. Jane. She said he looks healthy and bring him back in two weeks for shots. Home we went with kitty formula and a special little bottle.

Got a new little family member...

We rescued a little kitten from the animal shelter yesterday. She's 8 weeks old and absolutely adorable!

As soon as you touch her.... her purring motor turns on!

I went to take a photo this morning but the camera battery went dead on me... so will post one a little later.

Well, it's house building... I mean finishing day here. Hope to have a working vanity in the guest bathroom today! Follow our house progress over on my house building adventure blog!