awwww… We hadn’t taken any sleeping baby pictures yet because we are so afraid of waking one or the other up, but Noah was taking a ridiculously long nap so I snapped one.

Noah figured out how to go backwards on Tow Mater, now he can get into stuff with his brother.

Petting the elephant

Ezra stuck trying to crawl over Tow Mater

Folding Laundry

Hanging out in our jammies

Their faces clearly say nap-time!  We received these shirts as hand-me-downs, aren’t they cute?  I promise I was going to put pants on the boys, but after wrestling with Noah for 5 minutes, who btw is way easier to dress, I gave up.  Ezra picked out the flames himself.

Also, I was only able to get one pic before baby attack!

Yesterday this cat tried to attack mine through the window.  It was hilarious!  She kept trying and she was growling and smacking the window, giving both my guys the stink eye!  (we have tried to rescue her, but she is very wild, she is the momma of the kittens I rescued last spring, my neighbor feeds her, so she hangs around, but I have never seen her attack my cats)

For the next couple of weeks I will be going through a test run of midnight feedings.  Yesterday I managed to find kittens to foster.  They are very young and need to be bottle fed.  I am feeding them every 2-3 hours during the day and every 4 hours at night.  Last night was my first night and it didn’t go so well.  The kittens weren’t used to bottle feeding and just couldn’t get the hang of it.  I felt so bad that I couldn’t deliver the nutrition that they need.  I swung by the vet this morning and got a small syringe and let’s just say they are now little eating monsters!  I don’t mind getting up a couple of times a night to make sure these little guys get a good start to life.  I know they will be a lot of work, but it will be worth it.  

The group (six total, three black/white, two all black, and one black/white/charcoal)

One of the little ones in my hand to show the size

Yes I am aware of the fact that we will likely travel to Ethiopia before they all find homes.  I have a back-up foster home for when the time comes.  They just couldn’t do all the work of bottle feeding.

Carter being a pretty good sport, Jackson would never have allowed this

Here he is with all of the onesies, I think he was upset his mom didn’t think of tucking the tag in.

Jackson checking out the clothes my mom bought, it was hard to get him to move for the picture (he likes to roll around in the clothes)

The matching outfits my mom picked out, fire trucks of course!

The matching outfits my dad picked out, love the overalls!  (notice who is nearby)

I scored a free changing table pad yesterday and Carter just had to give it a try (it was brand new!)

The cats love hanging out in the nursery, they are making sure everything is just perfect for Tom and Jerry.  By perfect I mean, small teeth holes and maybe a few claw marks!  Oh, and a lot of cat hair!

• Sweaters
• Wool jackets
• Hats (baseball caps not included)
• Feathers (as in cat toys)
  
• Woven baskets (like this one that we keep his toys in)
  
• Simple brand shoes (how can anyone be afraid of these?)
  
• Mens Dress shoes
• Carter (the cat, and I guess he is quite scary.)
  
• Small electronics (cell phones cameras remotes)
  
• Leather belts
• Singing cards (any occasion)
  

• Skirts (denim skirts are okay though)
• Dress shirts
• Dress slacks
• Some kid toys that move on their own

Now tank didnt use to be so afraid of things. In fact, most of these fears have developed in the last year an a half maybe two years. Most started when we moved from our house in mesa, to maricopa.

BTW. He also used to be super cute. What happened?

Here is a close up for you:

Carter – Seen here in his native jungle habitat.

I mean runs around the house, full speed, peeling out on tile, leaping over furniture, scaring dogs 8x his size wild. Carter LOVES christmas. I mean loves it. He loves to take the stockings down. the garland down. and normally, he just naps, and removes lights and ornaments from the tree.

Not this year. He’s working on taking the whole thing down.
Carter in action:

(sorry for the lame cell phone video. Its all i had on me in a pinch)

Work-Outs: Let’s just say I took the week off! I was so lazy this week and I blame it all on Matt, had he not spoiled me so much for my birthday weekend I would not have been so lazy. It was really hard to get back to normal life! Matt woke up early and rode his road bike all week, he loves riding early in the morning, while I am content to be in bed.

Gardening: Things are sprouting away. It is so nice to see some green out there. We are having a little sunshine problem, with the sun being low in the horizon and our acacia trees getting so big, little is making it through to the garden. I am going to come up with some sort of reflectors out of used political signs to get a little more light on the garden. Thankfully this is only a problem for about four months out of the year.

Random Stuff: It finally is feeling like fall! I am so excited, the weather is absolutely gorgeous. I can keep the windows open all day and enjoy the fresh air. We were finally able to turn off the A/C for the year. I hope to keep it off until May again.

Cabinet Matt hung for me on my birthday, complete with kitty shelf.

Carter’s new favorite napping spot

That is why I was shocked today to find this:

and this:

I don’t know what Sammy did, but Carter showed him who was boss.

Running and Push-Up Updates:  Let’s not talk about exercise this week.

Pets:

Carter has a favorite room in the house and it is the nursery.  Hopefully he is willing to share when Tom and Jerry get here.

Carter with Sammy

Carter in the crib

Gardening:

This week I chopped back my basil and decided to dry some for future use.

Me and the basil (not all this basil could be dried, you just pick out the good leaves and no stems)

One of the three spiders that we later found in the basil while pulling off the leaves (yikes I was holding three spiders and didn’t know it)

The dried basil (I also filled the little jar that fits in my spice rack)

I like going at a slow pace preparing for their arrival. We don’t know how long the wait will be, and if everything was already finished I believe the wait would be harder to go through. This nice slow pace gives me hope for the future, while keeping me here in the present.

Do you think he will at least by me a present with it?

By the way when I said I was posting pics of the cats Matt said to me I need kids.  Ummm yeah I do!!!

One of my favorite Christmas gifts.

I never had the privilege of using a food processor before and I am in love! I asked for it in hopes of making baby food, but last night I had to give it a try. I chopped up an onion and graded a block of cheese. It was super quiet and fast, and not nearly as whiney as the hubby! (Actually Matt can be very helpful in the kitchen, so I shouldn’t complain about him.)

My mom got braces today. I am totally shocked! I am also probably spilling the beans for her, but she should know I blog about almost everything. She is discovering the joys of what you can eat with braces and the lovely soreness that you usually have for about a week after each appointment.

Click to enlarge

For those that dont know, Tank is a little special when it comes to people, and behaving. He either likes you, or he doesnt (Just ask Stephanie’s brother Jason). The dog also has separation anxiety, making for more issues that we should allow.

F-minus is the greatest comic since farside.