Happy Canadian Thanksgiving, eh!

So, Canadian Thanksgiving was a couple of weeks ago (on Columbus Day), and I have been remiss in posting.  I'll try to catch up quickly....(right).

We (Cathie, Lilas, Walter, and I) decided to head up to Dawson Creek, B.C. (yes, that is the REAL name of the town) to have Thanksgiving with my cousins Andy and Jamie, and their two girls, Tamsen and Rowan.  Cathie and I took her cute little zoomy Mazda RX-8, which aspires to be a James Bond car when it grows up.  It's about a six hour drive to Dawson Creek, through some of the most gorgeous country I have ever seen - part of it on the Alaskan Highway - really. 

Driving up, it was a beautiful sunny day, and the leaves on the trees were stunning - evergreens mixed in with this almost highlighter yellow color of the....not evergreens, and don't ask me what they were.  Of course, on the drive up I didn't have my phone near me, so I didn't take any pictures.  On the drive back, I took pictures, but it was a gloomy day, so the leaves didn't look as cool.  But here are a couple three of my best efforts to show the amazing fall colors up here:

Seriously, they don't even come close to doing it justice, but that's what I got so far.  Beautiful country up here in the fall.  The drive was six hours, so nothing too terrible, and we arrived at the Best Western in Dawson Creek without incident.  And now, I'd like to take a moment to sing the praises of the Dawson Creek Best Western, in the style of Buddy the Elf:  It's amazing!  It's so cute, and they'd decorated for Halloween!  They served REAL continental breakfast there - I made myself REAL waffles with their easy-to-use-if-you're-literate waffle irons and batter machine!  They had lots of different cereals, fresh fruits, yogurt, pastries (fresh ones, not those horrible pre-packaged ones everyone else serves), a bunch of different milks, juices, cocoa - so good!  And the receptionist was nice!  And the room was nice!  And the towels were fluffy!  The only thing I hated was the hide-a-bed!  And it was only for two nights, so it wasn't a big deal!  And I love them, I love them, I loooo-OOOOVE THEM!  Okay, I'm done.

After dropping our stuff at the hotel, we headed over to Andy's house.  I admit, it was awkward at first for me, because I've only met Jamie and the girls once before.  Jamie is always sweet, no weirdness there, but the girls, I think, weren't sure what to make of me.  Rowan got over it the quickest, bless her little three year old self, and showed me how she could jump from stone to stone in the garden without touching the dirt.  So cute!  Things got better when Evan (the son of a friend who's staying with Andy and Jamie) started showing me his longest-play-doh-snake-in-the-world.  Then there was a little piano playing, some shared kitty and puppy loves, and everything was good. 

The decision was made to go to Tony Roma's for dinner (it's next to the hotel), and while I normally support anything to do with Tony Roma's, I have to say, if what we got in D.C. is indicative of what is served at most Tony Roma's, it's no wonder they're closing all over the place.  Not great.  Not even good.  But the company and conversation were excellent, so I survived.  Then it was time to retire for the evening, except for me that was postponed as I worked on school assignments.  It's been a long time since I had to do school work on a holiday weekend.  I forgot how much I hate it.  Anyways...

Sunday, we went to the D.C. ward with Lilas, Andy, and Rowan (poor Tamsen wanted to come, but she was getting over a cold).  It was a nice meeting, a little different - half talks, half testimony meeting - but I realized, as I listened to the little girl in front of me throw fit after fit about not getting her way, that I am turning into a curmudgeon.  I'll have to work on that. 

After church, Cathie decided she needed a better coat because the wind in D.C.?  She is very chilly and strong.  Santa Anas ain't got nothin' on D.C. wind, nu-uh.  So we changed, headed over to Wally World, and ended up getting a bunch of paper, markers (including window writers) and soda.  We headed from there to Andy and Jamie's, where our gifts of paper and markers were well received by the children, and I spent the next couple of hours coloring.  I love coloring!  It's so relaxing. 

See?  Don't I look relaxed?

When coloring ceased to be a distraction, Cathie and I bundled up the girls and ourselves and took a walk.  We ended up at a park next to a school, which had, miracle of miracles, a merry go round!  One of those old metal beasts that you just can't find anywhere anymore.  So of course, we had to play on it.

This is Rowan.  Not bad, considering she was spinning at the time.

And here's Tamsen, holding back her bangs which were whipping in the wind.

Aw, look at these cute girls!

There was also a corkscrew slide, which Rowan and I went down together (twice) with mixed results.  The second time we stuck the landing...the first time, I fell over and took her with me.  Thankfully, I was the one with the camera...but after the giant tire tried to eat Rowan, we decided to head back to the house.

Back inside, we had Fred Penner sing-a-long time, with Cathie standing in as Fred on the guitar.  Then we played I Spy with the I Spy book.  It became very intense, and took all four of us concentrating very hard to find everything.

Where is that darn seahorse?

Found it!

Then, it was time for dinner.  Thankfully, Canadian Thanksgiving dinner is pretty traditional, what with the turkey, stuffing, potatoes, carrots, etc.  I had to square off with Uncle Walt about the beets, though - he felt I needed some.  I disagreed.  After dinner came dessert, pumpkin pie with more whip cream than pie - then only proper way to eat it, according to Andy (I agree).  Then, we watched Megamind on Floyd's (Andy's friend) iPad, and a bunch of the BBC talking animal voiceovers off YouTube (random, but SOOOOO FUNNY!). 

Overall, it was a great experience, and I am glad I got to spend Thanksgiving with my Canadian family.  It was a little weird, coloring Halloween pictures on Thanksgiving, but it was a fun time.  And I made friends with two adorable little girls, and hopefully they remember me the next time I go up there.  Happy Canadian Thanksgiving, eh!

So You Got a Kitten (or Two)...

See, I've never owned an indoor kitten.  All the kittens we had when I was a child were outdoor cats, kept because they killed the rodents residing in the garage.  Once the kittens were old enough to be off nursing, they were moved from the downstairs bathroom to the garage, which became their permanent residence.  The last indoor cat we had, Oreo, was full grown, and she was never my cat - she was all Gillian's.  So this whole owning-indoor-kittens dealie is new, and kind of exciting.  For those of you who have never owned an indoor kitten, a few things to keep in mind:

The kitten will rarely use the bed you bought for it.  If you are within five feet, maybe.  Otherwise, the kitten will find all sorts of random places in which to rest its fuzzy little head, like, for instance:

the bookshelf

the bathroom sink

the bathtub

the footstool, under a blankie (aww...)

on your shoes (especially if you've just taken them off, which I guess has something to do with the warmth, but can't possibly smell good)

or your backpack.

Really, just save yourself the 20 bucks you'd spend on a bed for your kitten, pick an old blanket you aren't emotionally attached to, and designate that the "kitty blankie".  Because odds are, your kitten won't want to sleep on it anyway.

Why won't your kitten want to sleep on it?  Because your kitten wants to be NEAR you.  Your kitten LOVES you, and needs LOTS of love in return.  Your kitten loves you so much, that it will even SHARE your lap with another kitten, just so they both get quality time.

(No, I did not stage this shot, they both climbed up and settled down on their own.)

Keep in mind, however, that if you have two kittens on your lap at once, it is just a matter of time before a WWF-style smackdown happens, and you will want to respond quickly and appropriately, i.e., jumping up so the sparring kittens fall to the floor, so you don't die.

Also, if you decide that you and your kitty need a break - a little personal space, if you will - be prepared to be stalked.  Because, you see, your kitty does not understand the concept of personal space.  Your kitty will follow you into the bathroom, if you let it.  Your kitty will find all sorts of ways to hide in your room so you can't evict it at bedtime (not shown: Angus on the bookshelf by my bed, BEHIND the books, unsure how to extract himself).  And when you do manage to get the kitten out and the door shut, don't be surprised when this happens:

Just try to ignore it, and don't think about Signs.  Even when the door starts thumping.  Even when the thumping moves downstairs, and you're sure that things are getting knocked over, and possibly broken.  Don't freak out, and whatever you do, DON'T OPEN THE DOOR!!  Your kitten is a stealth ninja, capable of creating a distraction in one part of the house and, upon hearing the tell-tale squeak of a doorknob turning, racing back with lightning speed to rush through the tiniest gap between door and jam.  Especially if there's two of them - then they work as a pair, creating a distraction and pushing against the slightly opened door you were foolish enough to unlatch for a brief moment. 

Also bear in mind that, even if the kittens are teeny tiny, the smell of their poo is not.  Scoop every day.  No, really.  No, REALLY!  EVERY.  DAY. or the stench will KEEEL YOU!!!  I forgot to scoop last night after choir practice.  I paid for it this morning >sob<, and now my nosehairs will never grow back. 

While it is a generally known fact that cats cannot abide the sight of someone reading (which means looking at a book, magazine, or paper, and not at them), kittens take it even more personally.  It hurts their tiny little fuzzy feelings, and causes them to get even in a multitude of ways:

1. Jumping up on the table repeatedly to "inspect" your book for you.  Usually by coming between you and the book, then settling down to "read" it themselves.  This is easily remedied by gently scooping up the kitten and placing it on the floor, but often leads to...
2. Jumping up on other forbidden surfaces, like the counter or bar, neither of which are within arm's reach, which means you can either get up and scoop the kitten down, thereby giving it the attention it so ardently craves, even if it's negative attention, or ignore it.  Ignoring it tends to lead the kitten to resort to number 1.
3. Making a game out of attacking your pantlegs.  Because this is no fun while you're walking, but super fun if you're sitting and reading.  Just try to ignore it.  I dare you.  Stock up on band-aids and iodine if that's gonna be your coping strategy.  Also know that, if you do ignore it, the kitten will just resort to number 1.
4. Coming up, settling down under your chair, and then reaching up to delicately hook one solitary claw into your pantleg, then slllloooooowwwwwwllllllyyyyy scratching down your leg.  Starts off feeling like a bug bite, ends up feeling like an electric shock.  My hair is still on end.  Once you are sufficiently spooked, see number 1.
5. (If you are reclining and reading) Jumping up from the floor to the space on your chest between your face and your book, then plopping down and conking out before you have adequate time to react.  At this point, the kitten is counting on its extreme adorable-ness to save it from an unceremonious deposit on the floor.  Even if the cute-factor doesn't save the kitten from the floor, it will just repeat the action until the desired result (you giving up on reading) is achieved.  You CAN always put a door between you and the kitten, but that often leads to Signs-paws, picture above.  Creepy!

Having a kitten (or two) is a blast, but know what you are getting yourself into.  The days of leaving your doors open?  Gone.  The days of privacy in the bathroom?  Gone, unless you're faster than the kittens, or you don't have to pee so badly that you can take the time to evict them before attending to your business.  The days of fur-less clothing?  Gone, so make sure you have a lint roller handy right by the door, because depillating your clothing upstairs ain't gonna cut it.  Don't sit before looking, unless you want claw marks on your backside.  Don't step before looking, because I guarantee the kitten will be there and take it personally.  The kitten will try their darndest to eat what you're eating, and drink what you're drinking, so do not, under ANY circumstances, leave unattended glasses with liquid in them out.  Because if you turn your back, even for a second, the kitten will try to drink out of your glass, and I don't know what Diet Coke does to kittens, but I almost found out.  Thankfully, I'd drunk far enough down in the glass that Angus couldn't get at it.  If you have two kittens, love them equally.  They'll notice if you pay more attention to one and react like the bad kid in class who acts out for attention, so share the love.  And if you do it right, they'll love you back, and consent to be your footwarmers on a chilly night.  Which is nice.







New Arrivals

Saturday was the first day of General Conference, and I was looking forward to it.  I got up, got my Institute journal and my pens, and settled down for a spiritual feast.  I was not disappointed.  It's funny, because I always come away from conference thinking, "That was AMAZING!!" and then two days later I have difficulty recalling the majority of what I heard.  Good thing they put it all on-line, because there are a few talks I know I need to read through on my own. 

After the morning session, Cathie asked if I wanted to go with her and Lilas to a cat show that Jamie's (my cousin-in-law) mother was showing cats at.  Lots and lots of cute fuzzy things to look at, and possibly play with?  Sign me up!  So we headed out to the hotel where the cat show was, and you know what's really mean about cat shows?  For the most part, you can look, but you can't touch.  A room full of cat lovers and all kinds of cats, and we're not allowed to pat them?!  That's sadism, is what it is!  I mean, I guess I understand intellectually - most of the cats are purebred and have pedigree charts that would put many an LDS church member to shame, you don't want anyone with a cold patting them, yadda yadda yadda...I get it.  But but but, there's lots of cat!  And they're CUTE!  And FUZZY!  And I WANTS TO PAT THEM!!!!!

Very difficult to restrain myself, but at least Jamie's mum let us pat her purebred Bengal cats.  For those of you who don't know what a Bengal cat is, they look just like miniature leopards.  Like so:

Yeah, Jamie's mum breeds them, and she had two there, and they have fur that is as soft as a chinchilla's, I'm not kidding.  She actually let us pat them, bless her.  Moving on from the Bengals, Cathie, Lilas and I continued to wander, and found that there were some kittens for sale - Selkirk Rexes (yeah, I didn't know either) and Persians (those fluffy, flat faced cats like in the Fancy Feast commercials).  For the uninitiated (as I was, until Saturday), a Selkirk Rex cat is a mix between a Scottish Rex cat, which has curly, fluffy hair kind of like a poodle's, and a British Short hair cat.  British short hairs have shorter faces, and are solidly built, with dainty little paws that belie the fact that they weigh a frickin' ton (me paraphrasing, of course).  When you cross the two, you get the Selkirk rex, which looks like a stuffed toy covered in chenille - the hair curls, but breaks off, creating kinky fur. 

There were Selkirk rex kittens for sale that day - one of them was way less than the other three, because his fur was not as long or kinky than the others.  The lady selling them was allowing people to hold them (yay!) provided they slathered up with Purell first.  So we did.  Cathie, in particular, took a liking to the discount kitten, so much so that she declared her intention to buy him the next day, after procuring the necessary accoutrements.  8-o Really wasn't expecting that!

After the cat show, we went to Lilas', where Uncle Walter made me some biscuits, and I shared them with everyone for lunch.  During the course of lunch, I discovered that the jelly I have loved since I was small, and originally thought was some sort of spiced peach jelly was, in fact, crab apple jelly that my dear Aunt Lilas makes.  I have been bothering Mum for the past two years to make some more of "that spiced peach jelly you used to make when I was younger", and getting irritated when she doesn't know what I'm talking about.  Mum, I'm sorry.  I assumed it was peach jelly because I remembered the color - which is peachy - and couldn't really place the taste.  I remembered it from Winnipeg.  Sorry I've been bugging you about it...

After procuring the necessary accoutrements for a kitten, Cathie and I headed home to watch our DVR recording of Sat. pm conference.  There was an incident with the DVR, and we ended up not watching it after all.  So we watched Star Trek instead.

Sunday morning was similar to Saturday morning, enjoying conference.  Then, we went to pick up the kitten from the cat show - and ended up getting TWO kittens, because Auntie Cath thought about it long and hard, and decided two would be better.  So, we now have two kittens!  And they look like little stuffed toys covered in chenille!  And they're built like brick houses!  So cute!  So fuzzy!  And they like to cuddle!  And they're cute!  SEE?!!

The orange and white one is a boy, named Angus.  The blue tortoise is a girl, named MacGuyver.  I'm so excited, and I didn't even have to beg!  It was all Cathie's idea!  I didn't even have to use Machiavellian strategy, and we got two kittens!  Woo-hoo!