Goodbye, my sweet friend...

I snapped these photos about 3 weeks ago. Chip was visiting up on the deck and thought the top of the fountain would be a good place to hang out until I tossed him some peanuts.

Chip, you brightened my summer days with your funny antics and your peanut-stuffed cheeks.

My sweet little friend met his end this afternoon at the claws and fangs of the well fed house cat who lives next door, and who has taken to laying in wait in our backyard. He has also caught and killed at least a half dozen birds that I know of in the short time that he has lived next door.

My little Chip, you will be missed more than you can imagine.

Donna

Romeow and Juliet...

"O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?"

(click to enlarge any photos)

A Valentine love story, played out in photos, with a pane of glass separating the two potential lovers...

It was a frigid Saturday morning when Juliet first spotted Romeo sitting on the balcony outside her window.


It didn't take long for him to come closer, unable to resist her feminine feline charms.

Baby... I mean Juliet, tried prying open the door.

Not having any luck, she called in reinforcements to help...

..unaware that I had already bribed Mr. J with a dog biscuit to act as a chaperone, keeping the ill-fated lovers apart.

After hours (and I do mean HOURS), Romeow finally gave up and sought greener pastures (good luck with that in this New England winter, Romeow)... In reality, I only thought Romeo had gone. But about an hour later when I opened the slider to let Mr. J outside to do his business, Romeo appeared out of nowhere and ran lickety-split into our house! Now Romeo is no stranger to our yard. I think he spends more time here than he does at his own home. We have an abundance of little chipmunks, squirrels and birds because we feed them, and unfortunately Romeo and his brother, who are outdoor kitties, find our yard very enticing (grrrrrr). Because it was so bitter cold and because Romeo did run into our house (which he has never done before), I put on my jacket and carried him home to his rightful owners, where hopefully he will stay and live happily ever after.

I have been flat on my back for 9+ days with the nastiest case of bronchitis ever, therefore I haven't been posting or visiting anyone, I'm sorry to say. Back when I was a smoker (I quit on July 4, 1994, my Independence day), I would get bronchitis and/or pneumonia quite regularly. Happily, since quitting, I've rarely gotten either.

Wishing you all a wonderful week. I, for one, am hoping to feel good enough to get out and take Mr. J for a walk later this week as it is going to hit FIFTY DEGREES here in New England - a true heat wave after our bitter cold winter!

Enjoy the week, everyone!

ROMEO CLARIFICATION: I just wanted to clarify some Romeo facts. Romeo lives a few doors down from us and is a well fed kitty. He is not forced to be an "outdoor only" kitty (that would be too cruel, especially in our area during wintertime). Rather he is a kitty who is allowed to roam free whenever his little heart desires (which happens to be a LOT, with one of his favorite places being our yard). I just didn't want anyone to think he was being forced to live outside. His owners were there when I brought him home, so clearly he could have headed home whenever he wanted. And Sharon, we have talked about how we would love to keep him for our own, too. He is a gorgeous, affectionate kitty and we'd love to have him join our indoor only gang, but I'm afraid we would be charged with cat-napping :(

Donna

In need of Forever Homes... Alabama

About a week ago I received an e-mail from Jeff Howard who authors this Adopt-A-Pet blog . He asked if I would help spread the word about their organization. Anything I can do to help a shelter or pound animal find a home, I will do. I've grabbed one of their buttons for my sidebar (there are many styles to choose from). If you're an animal lover, you might want to grab a button for your own blog to help direct people to their website and/or blog.

You can easily use the Adopt-A-Pet site to find the perfect pet to fit yours and your family's lifestyle. Just enter your geographic location and then choose the type of animal (cat, dog, etc.), even a specific breed (yes, there are MANY purebreed animals waiting in shelters for their forever homes). You can also choose by age, gender, or size. You'll find photos and a short description of the animals patiently waiting for a home of their own, and information on who to contact to start adopting one of the best friends you'll ever have in your life!

I plan to feature a few animals on a regular basis on my blog, alphabetically, state by state. So without further ado, here are two dogs and two cats from Alabama who would love to find that special person to live out their lives with! Just click on their names (under their photos) for more information on their size, age, personality, etc.!

ALABAMA


JIMBO


BUDDY


POSSUM

CLOUD

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and an extra big thank you to those who grab a button for their side bar!!!!
Donna

The end-of-winter blahs....

It's snowing... again... tonight... here in New England (although these photos were taken during the snowstorm 4 nights ago)... I feel like crawling under the covers and hibernating until spring arrives, and it looks like I've got company...

"Ugh.. More snow? Could someone throw another blanket over me?"

"Please... don't wake me till spring..."

Luckily the snow from 4 nights ago was gone by the following afternoon... Hopefully tonight's will be, too.

That's the only upside to late spring snows... they melt away so quickly. Okay, the other upside is that they are beautiful...

But boy, oh boy, I can't wait to look out over the backyard and see green grass and flowers blooming! The kitties and I are getting anxious for some warm spring weather!!

Donna

Fun Photo Pumpkin Project!!

Try saying that 3 times fast!! (Click here if you want direction son how to create your own photo pumpkins)...


As I was going through old family photos (thinking some might make cute Halloween blog banners), I got a bright idea for a Halloween decoration… Photo Pumpkins! (I love the one of Frankenstein holding the girls up by their ponytails!! Needless to say, it's the girls that are family, not Frank:)

(click on any photos to enlarge)

So I printed out some favorites of my girls and my Halloween kitties, painted up some pumpkins, and voila!


I made them double-sided, putting photos on both the front and back of the pumpkins. On one of them I used my photo software to change the color pictures to black & white


They look nice arranged in a group, but they really take center stage when displayed alone (especially on a pedestal dish with some Spanish moss!)…


I made one for each of the girls and one for me… I painted them in three of my favorite cottage colors – creamy white, soft green, and pale robin’s egg blue, but they could be done in any color.


Tomorrow I’ll share how I made mine in case any of you would like to try this project…

And don’t forget – you have until midnight tonight to enter the autumn/Halloween giveaway. Good luck to everyone who enters!

Comments update... Wow! Thank you so much for all the compliments on my photo pumpkins! I had one comment request, asking me to list the supplies today since the instructions will be posted tomorrow (good idea!!). So here are the specific supplies/brands I used (but definitely adjust to fit your needs - different sized pumpkins, different paint colors, etc.)
1) Fake pumpkins (mine were from Wal Mart: tall pumpkin 5" across/8" high; short pumpkin 7"across/5"high (I would have bought white or black pumpkins if I could have found them but had to settle for orange, which is a harder color to paint over); 2) Family photos (sized down to fit pumpkins and printed out on my HP ink jet); 3) Sealer (Delta all purpose craft sealer) You can skip this if you are not changing the background color of your pumpkin; 4) Acrylic craft paints (whatever colors you choose... I basecoated all my pumpkins Black (for distressing purposes) before painting the 'finished' colors... I used Delta Light Ivory, Delta Village Green, and My Studio Robin's Egg Blue (mixed with Light Ivory), and black for stems and decorative trim around photos; 5) Brushes (foam brush for overall painting, medium round for easily painting around stem, long liner for painting decorative trim around photos); 6) Decoupage Finish (Plaid Royal Coat); 7)Varnish (Delta Gloss Varnish); rag strips or ribbon for stems (optional)...

See you tomorrow!!

Donna

An Award and a few more "shades of blue"...

"Oh, yes, I am the big guy of the house..."

Here is Spotty, who prefers to sleep on a big dog bed rather than a little kitty bed....


...and here is his sister, Tiger (who wouldn't get out of bed this morning!)... They both wanted their pictures taken in their blue beds and/or bedding for the Sadie Olive "shades of blue" inspiration...

And they're also pretty certain that the reason I received the following award is because of the "cuteness factor" that they bring to my blog on an ongoing basis!


I received the "Arte y Pico" award from Angie at Sandals and Daisies (I just love that blog name!). Angie has just recently started blogging and you won't believe all the furniture she's been transforming. She posts lots of "before and after" photos of the thrift store and flea market finds that she's turning into treasures! I know you will all enjoy visiting her blog as much as I do... So thank you, Angie, and welcome to blogland! (Spotty and Tiger want to welcome your Cooper and Cashew to blogland, too!!)

1) You have to pick 5 blogs that you consider deserving of this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also contribution to the blogging community, no matter what language.
2) Each award has to have the name of the author and link to his/her blog to be visited by everyone.
3) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that presented her/him with the award.
4) The award winner and one who has given the prize have to show the link of "Arte y Pico" blog so everyone will know the origin to this award.

I have so many blogs that I love to visit, and I just tagged some not long ago.. So I would like to present this award to:

Tales From An O.C. Cottage - You will fall in love with the O.C. Cottage (actually, there are several of them as M writes about her's and her sisters' cottages)... And what a delight they all are! You will see cottage decorating galore, beach decor, cottage gardens, projects, the cutest kitty photos e-v-e-r, and you will not be able to leave without smiling and laughing at the witty writing!!

At Home In The Country - Wait until you visit Jill, 'at home in the country'! Join her as she anxiously waits for her dream house to be built by Bob the Builder (yes, that really is his name!). She finds the best thrift store/flea market items for the best prices ever, and you will fall in love with her little fuzzies, Socks and Coco Bean (the kitties) and Molly (the sweetest little doggie!)...

Pink Icing on the Cake - You must visit LeAnn's blog - yes, it is as yummy as it sounds! It is cottage personified! You should see the update she just did on her kitchen! She also used the neatest color combination on an old dresser she recently painted. Her home is done in all my favorite colors and you will love visiting her! Don't miss the banner across the bottom of her blog - I LOVE those colorful Adirondack chairs all lined up!!!

Life on Bonnie Lane - Kady just seems like one of the sweetest people, and she is just about the proudest momma ever (you'll realize that as soon as you read her blog!)... Kady lives in her dream house, situated on the bank of a river, and she loves her family, her home, her gardens, and life. I love reading about all of them and as a mom, I just loved her most recent post about her son :) Oh - and she cracks me up!! A funny lady!

Little Red House - I really enjoy visiting Mary at her home/blog! She has a great writing style that always leaves me smiling (very cutting edge humor!)... She also happens to take the most incredible photos I've ever seen! In fact, her photography is sooooo good that one of her photos has just been published in the August 2008 issue of Old House Journal!! And if you're a "Chip" lover like me, you must check out her most recent post!

So thank you to all these lovely bloggers... You all inspire me and make me smile whenever I visit you!

Donna

Mission Accomplished...

"A cat in the house, no longer a mouse."

"Two cats in the house and still a mouse" is more accurate at our little cottage! (But you can tell from the photos that they really do try!)

Last night this little guy (I call him Fievel) decided he could no longer resist the smell of peanut butter on a cracker, so here he is in his little "have a heart" trap before being set free into the great outdoors, where he will hopefully live a very long and happy mouse life "somewhere out there, beneath the pale moonlight..." (An American Tail)

Donna

Spring has finally sprung!!!

Oh happy days here at the Cottage! We are all soooooo excited because it's the first warm day where we've been able to open up the windows!! Can you all see how excited Spotty is? (Yup, that's his excited look!)... My, oh my, what a wonderful (Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah) day!

Donna