Miles, Miles?! Where Are You?

Most of you know my kitty Miles--the "he" that was actually a "she"?

Since we have moved, Miles and my other kitty, Scout, have discovered that they love lying outside on the deck, especially when it is sunny.

I, too, am enjoying the deck--taking my morning coffee outside with me and sitting there listening and watching the world wake up.

A few days ago, I went outside with my coffee to enjoy the start of my day. The two cats followed along. I thought nothing of this since it was getting to be their usual behavior.

Scout is a very large cat weighing about 20 pounds. Miles is rather small even though she is full grown.

I'm sitting there--drinking my coffee, listening to the birds. I look around, and Miles is gone!!

She had squeezed herself through the fence posts and into the woods!! It was still dark outside, and I came inside to get a flashlight. The trees are very thick now and there is a great deal of underbrush.

I could hear her walking around, rustling through the leaves. I started to follow the noise of her walking, calling her. The further I followed her, the further away she went from me.

So, I decided to come back up to the driveway and sit and wait. I sat on the step to the shed, calling her softly, "C'mere Miles! C'mon! You need to come back! You're going to get lost in there! You need to come home!"

I waited and waited, and I could hear her walking closer and closer to me. I continued to call her--urging her to come back--to come back home where she would be safe from the road--safe from being lost.

And suddenly, her head popped out between the fence posts, and I brought her back inside.

As I was sitting there calling her, it brought to my mind how patiently God waits for us--calling to us--"Come home where you'll be safe", "Come to Me where you will no longer be lost", "Come to Me, come to Me, come to Me."

Sometimes it takes some of us a little longer than others, so we must be patient and encouraging, just as I was with Miles. But, God is calling--

"COME TO ME AND I WILL KEEP YOU SAFE AND FREE FROM HARM"

Needless to say, this kitty is NOT allowed on the deck without direct supervision--walking the straight and narrow, she is! Just as God is directing our lives, I'm directing Miles' life.

Please be sure to stop by The Power of Your Love for the Weekly Memory Verse, and while you're there make sure to read Super Sunday. I've been away from blogging for a period of time, and this somewhat explains the situation.

Beth

All Is Well!

And here is Miles, sleeping peacefully this morning after her surgery. She did well. Scout (my other kitty) seems to have forgotten who Miles was during her brief time away.

There is a lot of growling and grumbling from Scout--just like when Miles first came to live with us--when we thought she was a he!!

I'm expecting that in a few days Miles will be up to her usual antics--which means I'm thankful that all my yarn is now in a closed door craft room!! Funny though--these cats know this yarn is in that room. They are continually trying to sneak in there!!

Have a wonderful Sunday, filled with God's love!!

Beth

Miles Update!

Today is Miles' big day!! She is going to be spayed today, and hopefully will sleep through the rest of the day after her surgery. Poor kitty--but this will save both her and me a lot of distress.

Please join me at The Power of Your Love for Then Sings My Soul Saturday and a continuation of "The Power of Praying Through the Bible".

I also have a prayer posted on The Lighthouse of Prayer here. My prayer is the last one listed on this post--in the comment section that is entitled "Prayers Lifted to the Throne of God". Please join me in uplifting my son to Our Father.

Thanks so much!!

Beth

News About Miles

For those of you who have never had the wonderful experience of meeting my kitty, Miles, I've posted two pictures of him so you may become acquainted with him.



As you can see, Miles is an adventurous kitty--defying laws of gravity to jump and perch in Christmas trees, loves getting tangled up in my yarn (which has been reorganized and put out of his reach), and attacking my older kitty, Scout, as she just happens to be walking by. I don't have a picture of this feat--happens just too quickly!

He is now of the age where I would take him to the vet to be neutered, and I was hoping, so hoping that this would settle him down--just a little bit!!

Well, Miles has been acting strangely lately. He has been trying to go outside when I leave for work and when I come home! He has never been outside, and I thought he was just getting to the age where he wanted to go "tom" around (you know what I mean!).

Last evening, he started meowing as if he were in pain! He was following my son and I around, rubbing himself all around our legs as we walked and just being an altogether nuisance!

I started thinking about this--I was given Miles in the spring as a gift when I was ill. I was told that he was a male, and I NEVER LOOKED!! I just assumed that he was a male since that is what I was told!

I said to my son, "I think this cat is a girl!" His reply, "No, way! He can't be a girl!" I told him that we had better look!

So, between the two of us, we anchored Miles for just a minute and checked out this situation. To our surprise, there is no male paraphernalia on this kitty.

MILES IS A GIRL!!! And not only that--he/she is a girl in heat!! Oh, no!!

Andrew sent Lindsay a text message regarding this most upsetting situation. She called and is hysterical that we didn't even know that our boy kitty is actually a girl!!

Now we have Miles (should I change his/her name?) meowing around here all night long, trying to get outside, and well, all I have to say is that it just isn't pleasant!

This is what happens when we just assume something!

Beth

HOUSTON, THE CAT HAS LANDED!

I think we have a problem here!

Yes, Miles has found the Christmas tree!! It took him a few days to get over his actual fear of the tree--standing back, looking at this and I think wondering why we now have a tree in the house.

But, as you can see his fears are now completely gone!! He has decided that this tree is his to climb, take a rest in and even try munching on a few of the branches!! And he doesn't just climb the tree--he stands back and jumps into it--shaking the entire tree. I'm surprised the entire thing hasn't fallen over yet. I know that my tree won't be up as long as usual this year.

What am I going to do with this kitty??

In answer to the questions to Firefly's Hot Pepper Jelly recipe--it is easy to make. If you can boil water, you can do this!! As for the taste--I've always found it hard to describe tastes--but this is a little sweet and tangy at the same time. Not too tangy--I don't care for things that leave an "afterburn" in my mouth!! We used red hot cherry peppers, but you could use jalapeno or I imagine any type of pepper that you would like. Lindsay did the chopping of the peppers, and we thought maybe it would be too hot because she told me that her "lungs were tingling" as she was chopping. But, it turned out just the way I like it. It really is delicious with cream cheese and crackers.

Lindsay is flying home tomorrow, and I more than likely won't see her again until the springtime or perhaps even the summer. As always, this time while she is home flies by so quickly. I always miss her more after a visit until I get back into the mode of her not being here again.

She won't always be in Texas, but I know that she will not be returning to live permanently in Pennsylvania. She and Tyler are now talking of moving to the Boston area after he finishes his last degree which should be sometime this coming year.

Oh, and a big congratulations to Tyler!! He is finishing his Doctorate's degree in cognitive psychology, and he is having his first paper based on his research and experiments published this Spring!!

No, I don't understand all that he is doing or even sometimes saying, but he is a wonderful young man who encourages my daughter. I am thankful that she has him in her life. He has given her opportunities to further her education that I could not possibly begin to do. He loves her, supports her and has helped her overcome a lot of insecurities that stemmed from our own family life while she was young.

And speaking of congratulations--a huge one to Lindsay, too! She achieved a 3.9 average last semester while working full time! This daughter of mine amazes me!! She is not letting our past hold her back but moving forward in her life.

I'm off work tomorrow, but Andrew will be taking Lindsay and Tyler to the airport. I don't like good-byes, so we'll say them here and not at the airport.

Tomorrow, I really need to rearrange some things on my blog--I see I still have my Christmas projects listed--and then the reorganization of my yarn! That will be a BIG job, but one I actually am looking forward to.

Make sure to stop by for your Weekly Memory Verse. I've almost got this week's imprinted into my brain! Do you think I should include a Mr. Linky for those who want to participate?

K--that's all for a while!!

Beth

AND THE WINNER IS......

Oh, first I have a couple of things I have to attend to before I announce the winner!!

For those that have asked about the snow falling--just visit here, and it is very simple to add snow falling to your blog. So, I'll be expecting to see snow fall around me very soon!!

And, I just have to share these picture of Miles. He is so cute when he is being good:

Here he is lying on a shelf that my son made. Of course, he cleared off everything that was on this shelf before he decided to perch himself there.


And here he is, just getting ready to take a nap, I think. He is really yawning, but in reality, I think he's laughing at me taking his picture!! He's thinking--"Just wait until she goes to bed, then I'll see what I can get in to. She thinks I'm so cute!! I'll show her just how cute I can be!!"

What?? Oh, the winner of the little angel. I almost forgot!! Okay--here we go!

There were 35 wonderful comments with beautiful Christmas songs. I love each and every song that you do!!

So, instead of using a random generator, I decided to do things the old-fashioned way because I'm just that kind of girl!!

First, I had to decide what to use for the container for the drawing. I finally decided on this Christmas mug:


Then, all the names were written on small pieces of paper, folded and placed into the mug:

And, finally, I had my son draw a name from the mug to choose the winner:

I know I took a picture of him holding the name of the winner because we both looked at it!! But, for some reason, this picture is not on my camera this morning!!

AND THE WINNER IS:



CHERIE J!!!!

and here is Cherie's comment:

Definitely O Holy Night. Every time I hear that song it just takes my breath away. It truly inspires me to worship Christ!

Me too, Cherie, me too!!

A big congratulations to Cherie!! I really wish I could make all of those who entered an angel. If you really wish you had a little angel, just let me know. I'm in the spirit of CHRISTmas here, a giving spirit, and I'd be more than glad to make you an angel. Just let me know, and she'll be on her way to you--a CHRISTmas present from me to you!!

Beth

Ah Ha!! Caught in the Act!!

Oh my!! This is what I walked into when I came home from work today!! This is one little kitty having himself a whole lot of fun at my expense!!


As you can see, Miles is at it again!! And I just have to wonder where he is getting this yarn!!

And be sure to notice in the second picture--he has even managed to somehow remove the tank from his water dish!! So not only is there yarn everywhere, but water, too. And he is looking at this like "how in the world did this happen?"

This is after I have reorganized my yarn in boxes with lids, cleaned my closet and placed these boxes on the top shelf just so he can't reach them.

The only thing I can think of is that he has a stash of this somewhere, and when he is bored he gets himself a ball of yarn and just plays and plays (and makes a big mess!).

Oh, well!! Off to clean up the water and the yarn--once again.

And Kelly--in response to your question about using store bought croissants for the Christmas breads--I don't think that would work. But, I'd consider using frozen bread loaves instead of making the bread dough if you really wanted to try them.

K--that's all for a while!!

Beth

Cleaning Game Update, Market Bag On The Way!

The mess that Miles made is cleared away and cleaned!! I detangled only the good yarn and just threw away the rest. I know, I know--it seems a waste to throw away this yarn, but they were scrap balls of cotton yarn. They could have been used for something, but I would have been all night detangling them, and I just don't have the time or the energy!!

I did not reorganize my yarn or my closet--that will just have to wait for another day!!

So, Tornado Tuesday is completed, and another $1 to my jar!!

If you'd like to join in on the Cleaning Game, just click on the picture on my sidebar, and it will take you directly to Grammy's where you can read the rules and receive each day's challenge.

And, I LOVE this day's challenge:

Today, the task will be to pamper your self.
It can be as easy as Jump in the tub and relax.
Put your feet up and relax.

Hmmmm.....I'm going to have to try to remember how to do this!! Maybe Grammy really does know me!! Maybe she knows I need to relax a little more than I have been doing!!

Just so you don't think that I've forgotten my Christmas projects in the midst of The Cleaning Game, here is a picture of Lindsay's market bag so far:


This is about 1/4 of the way completed. It goes along pretty fast, so I'm hoping to have this finished and move on to my next Cara project soon. What shall I tackle next?

Off to update my "Love Dare".

K--that's all for a while!!

Beth

The Cleaning Game--Tornado Tuesday

Oh, I was thinking I was a day behind again!! But, I'm not--this is the task that Grammy has posted last night to be completed by this evening.

Today's task is to organize 1 thing.

You can organize your yarn
organize 1 cabinet or drawer
Just pick 1 easy thing to do.

It is up to you what needs to get
organized for your self.

What?? Organize your yarn, organize a cabinet or a drawer? I wonder it that includes that closet I mentioned yesterday?

Hmmm...seems pretty odd, doesn't it? That Grammy would mention yarn, a cabinet or a drawer when I just posted pictures of all the mess that Miles has made. But, no the timing is wrong. She just must know more about my life than I think!!

If you want to learn more about The Cleaning Game, you can just click on the picture in my sidebar, and you'll be directed to Grammy's site!

Progress is being made on Lindsay's market bag!! I don't have pictures yet. I'll wait until a little more is completed so you can see how pretty it is going to be. I'm pleased with my progress so far.

And PLEASE, remind me in January, 2009 to start for Christmas of 2009 so that I am not being overwhelmed like this again!!

I'll be back later to let you know about the completion of my task. I don't know--I'm looking at this closet right now--it looks a little bit too much to accomplish in one evening. So, maybe just the yarn--which is still on the floor!!

K--that's all for a while!!

Beth

The Cleaning Game--Update!!

My original post was at 4:30 this morning. I am home from work now, have cleaned out my purse, and I paid myself $1. So, I'm off to a good start.

But, this what I really should have done instead:

This is Miles, my kitty. Don't you think he looks just so innocent lying there on the floor?

WELL, HE IS NOT!! HE HAS DONE IT AGAIN!!

This is what I encountered in my dining room this morning!!

And into the kitchen to make my coffee!! See how he has the yarn wrapped around his water dish and into the box that he took out of the trash can??

I just don't know what to do with him!! I think the solution is this:

Hopefully, one of the tasks will be to clean out your closet. Then, I'm going to put my boxes of yarn on the top shelf where (hopefully) he cannot reach them.

This mess was from one of two boxes that contain yarn, and believe it or not, I have a stack of book on top of them just so he can't get into them!! How he ever managed this, I just don't know. How I slept through all of this, I just don't know that either!!

Off to post my latest Love Dare! Stop by and visit!! Come to think of it, Miles is quite a challenge to love sometimes, too. He's lucky I love him so much!!

K--that's all for a while!!

Beth

To Do Today

Let's see!! I have a lot to get accomplished today, so I thought I would make a list:

• Go to work from 8-12 this morning.

• Finish the two traveling scarves that I need to send out this weekend.

• Mail out my dishcloth exchange that should have been there by now.

• Update my "Love Dare" on "The Power of Your Love".

• Do something on Christmas projects that I have started.

• And, oh, yes, clean up the mess that Miles has again made with my yarn!! This kitty, I don't know what to do with him!! I have all my yarn in boxes with lids, and he still managed to get into one of them. He took the lid off, and last night I came home to this--

This is only a portion of the mess he has made. Luckily, it was only balls of scrap yarn, but still---

Well, with so much to do, I guess I'd better get started now!!

To see and hear "Then Sings My Soul Saturday, please visit here.


K--that's all for a while!!



Beth