Christmas!

This year we celebrated our last Christmas in the northwest by staying home.  It was just us - our little, growing family - and although we missed our extended family, it was still a wonderful day.  On Christmas eve, we attended our church's Christmas eve service….

photo borrowed from my friend Jason

…followed by an invitation to spend the evening with some friends and their extended family.  It was fun to meet new people and be a part of new traditions, like eating krumkake (a traditional Scandinavian treat that reminded me of soft, strawberry ice cream in a rolled cookie cone) and participating a family sing-along.  It was a beautiful night.

We got to sleep in on Christmas morning (even Ruby!), which for us is 8:00 am.  She was excited to see the tree with all the presents under it. It was a very sweet moment.

Then we led her into the dining room where her gift from Santa awaited….a play kitchen.  It was a huge hit!

We opened our stockings (even the dogs had a full stocking waiting for them) and then proceeded to make breakfast.  Noa, er, I mean, Santa brought me a Belgium waffle maker since it's my all-time favorite breakfast.  We had a waffle breakfast, complete with strawberries and whipped cream.  It was delicious!!

After we cleaned up, it was time for presents.  This year was really fun because this was the first Christmas that Ruby really got into the idea of opening gifts.  She needed a little help here and there, but overall, she got the concept of tearing the paper and would then show her excitement at whatever the gift was.  She would cheer or yell, "hurray!"  She even put on some of the clothes she opened.  It was so fun to see her reactions.

 Yes, we are all still in our PJs - even mommy and daddy.

This picture cracks me up because it's a totally blur.  As soon as she figured out how to put her new baby in the toy stroller, she was off and running.  This has become a very popular toy in our house.

And the baby isn't the only one to go in the stroller, as you can see.

Later that day, we headed to the Landers' house to join in their family Christmas dinner (thanks, guys!) and hang out.  It was a wonderful time visiting with friends who have become like family here.  Ruby loves playing with their boys and petting their dog, Harley (he's been on the blog before), as well as playing with some of their fun toys (they have a toy ambulance that she loves).  I was able to try out my baking skills by bringing dessert.  I made a dark chocolate peppermint roll for the first time and I was pretty happy with how it turned out.  

All in all, it was a beautiful Christmas.  I'm so glad we could share it with friends, connect with family (over the phone), and develop our own traditions and ways to celebrate such a special day.  

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Decor 2013

This is my last year to decorate this house for Christmas, which makes me sad, but at the same time, I love this house at Christmastime, so it's really a fun, creative thing for me.  I pretty much stick with similar holiday decor but add something new each year.  So, here's what I cam up with (I'm DREADING taking it down because I love it!).

This was just a little centerpiece in the large living room.

This photo really doesn't do our tree justice.  It is an amazing tree.  It's about 8 feet tall, very full, and smells divine (I can't get enough of that pine smell during the holidays).  My friend's family owns a local tree farm and we got this tree from them and are extremely happy with it.  We had such a good time picking it out too.  We were originally going to cut it down, but ended up picking up a pre-cut one in the evening shortly after Thanksgiving.  We were afraid all the "good" trees would be gone, but there ended up being a lot of great choices.  Ruby had fun running through the tree lot and picking out her favorites.  Here's a dark photo from that night.  The pole was used to measure the trees.  

Anyway, back to the decorations….

This shelving unit had a few new things added, like the letters spelling out JOY and the chalkboard printable in the frame.

We refer to this little tree as our "4 Calling Birds" tree.  The mercury glass vases were used to hold Christmas cards and candy canes until I finally figured out a new way to display the cards:

 This photo was taken mid-late December, so the wall is actually fuller now, but I love having the Christmas cards like this.  It's right by our table, so it's fun to look at all the faces of our friends and family and think about them while we are eating or working at the table.  I'm planning on leaving them up through January and then transferring them to the inside of our kitchen cabinets.  Ruby loves to point out people she recognizes, which is really cute!

The mantle this year had live greenery on it (a must!), new letters that spell "merry," red and silver accents and of course, white lights.  I put simple glittery letters on the stockings this year, but I hope to find something a little more permanent since they kept falling off.  Oh, and if you are wondering about that 4th stocking with two letters….it's the dogs' stocking, of course.  

I put together a couple of these peppermint-cranberry candles in the large living room for some color.

This was a quick afterthought and again, the photo doesn't really do it justice, but we strung up Ruby's holiday artwork above the sofa since it was so cute.  I actually really like this display and might take down the holiday artwork and replace it with other pieces she's completed.  Most of these are made while she's in daycare.  Oh, and she likes to show it off to visitors.

The entryway remained the same as year's past with the woodland display.  For some reason I didn't get a good photo of it, but here's a portion of the display.

I think I was just playing around with my camera and happened to just take it randomly.

I made a really simple display on my new end table in the large living room, but I ended up really liking the simplicity of it all.  Ruby pretty much left the glass vases alone, so it has stayed up the entire month without issue. 

Our outdoor light display has stayed the same for a few years now, but it remains one of my favorite parts of our Christmas decor.  Noa puts it all up every year and does a fantastic job.  I know that colored lights are fun, but the white lights are so warm and inviting.  It really makes the cold, dark winter just a bit more inviting.

Big Changes!

The first two weeks of December were consumed by my work schedule.  I needed to put in lots of extra time (and energy) since putting in my two weeks notice at work.  Noa and I had talked about it for quite some time.  With the holidays, the impending birth of baby number two, and an upcoming move this summer, we felt that it would be best if I was home more to support the family.  Plus, I was getting to the point where I felt like I couldn't devote as much of myself to the job as I would like and I felt that  the Humane Society/foster program deserved more.  This was one of the hardest career choices I've had to make since normally I leave a position due to moving.  That's pretty much how it's been for the past twelve years of working with an active duty military spouse.  Technically, I'm leaving due to a move, but the vacancy is sooner than I originally planned.  I have always felt very committed to my work and had worn a variety of hats (volunteer, humane educator, development assistant, and foster coordinator) - it was like the job had become a part of me and by saying good-bye, I was saying good-bye to a part of myself (even if I had turned into somewhat of a crazy cat lady).

My life will begin to look very different in a few months.  I'll soon be a stay-at-home mom to TWO young children and we'll be moving overseas this summer (we're headed to SPAIN!).  I know that there will be new challenges and truthfully I think I'm scared for many of them.  I hope I can meet the upcoming challenges with grace, determination and excitement.  

My last days at the Kitsap Humane Society were pretty busy with a holiday party, making arrangements during the transition, and creating and gathering training materials for the new foster coordinator.  My coworkers were extremely supportive and kind as they sent me off with many words of encouragement (and a sweet Target gift card - woohoo!).  I did have to sport this lovely headband at our holiday party, but the sentiment was sweet.

And thanks to my pregnancy hormones, I cried about a billion times over the job change.  I know that most of my tears were pregnancy-related, although I truly am sad about leaving KHS.  The good news is that we aren't moving yet, so I can still pop in and keep up with the latest happenings.  Also, I get to train my replacement….so really, they can't get rid of me.

Here are some photos from the past year.  I've been at KHS for over three years, but I have the most photos from the foster position since I had to take photos of foster intakes.  Please excuse the poor quality of some of these - animals don't always like to cooperate with iPhone cameras!

This was taken after my first day of work as the Foster Coordinator (about a year and half ago).  Noa and I discussed that one of the stipulations of my taking the position was that I wouldn't take any foster animals home.  I promised him I wouldn't.  I couldn't really, I mean, I had a baby and two dogs at home.  Where was I going to keep foster animals?  That first day, bottle baby kittens (who need constant, round-the-clock feedings) came in to the shelter at the end of the day.  I had no choice but to take them home for the night.  As much as Noa wasn't pleased at first to find a pile of crying kittens in our kitchen, I think he was won over by their diminutive size and little mews.

From that day forward, a large part of my life became all about kittens.  Kittens, kittens, kittens!  I had no idea what I was in for.

Along with the kittens, came mama cats….

I tended to fall for the "projects," who were typically the under socialized, feral kittens.  My favorites of all time, were "the pirates" - named for the faces they made.  These three went into foster care for socialization.  The foster mom adopted one and the other two were able to be rehabbed and adopted out into forever homes.  The picture is really bad due to lighting, the phone camera, and the fact that the kittens were hiding in the back of the kennel, but I just had to share it.  I don't know why I liked the issue ones…perhaps it's the gray (it is my favorite color, after all)?

More ferals…and, yes, I'm holding the next one.  I was working on socializing the little guy.  I liked to refer to those days as "hug a feral" day.  He didn't really like those days.

The three black ones above were just itty bitties, approximately 4 weeks old.  I aptly referred to them as the "hiss monsters." 

And this little one, named Sven, is a staff favorite.  He went into foster care and ultimately getting transferred to another rescue that had free roaming cat rooms.  Sven was wild and needed to be socialized by other cats.  Still, we all fell for him as he was full of personality.  I hope he gets adopted soon.

And then, there was Annie….

Annie came from a hoarding situation (over 100 cats in a camping trailer - yikes!) and was extremely under socialized.  She was pretty young, but not an itty bitty kitten, probably around 5 or 6 months old. She had a kitty version of PTSD, specifically when there were pet carriers involved.  Of course, we didn't know this when she came to us, so when it was time to put her in a carrier to go out to foster care, she went absolutely crazy and tried to maul the person putting her in the carrier.

That person happened to be me.  It was my first bite on the job.  

Not bad, considering I had worked there for a couple of years already and had walked some pretty serious dogs before then.  Still, the bite sent me to the hospital to minimize the spread of infection.  Annie went on to bite a few others after her quarantine was up due to her issue with carriers and being scared out of her mind.  She ended up in long-term foster care and got much better (she can go into a carrier without a fight now).  She was then sent to another rescue who could help her socialize with other cats and get adopted from there.

There were other animals in foster care, though the majority just happen to be kittens.  I did like having some variety though, as kittens begin to blend together in my mind after awhile.

This puppy was in foster care with his litter mates.  He was the biggest of the bunch and was named Moses.  I really loved him!

This cutie was afraid of her own shadow.  A few months in foster care helped her to overcome her shyness and although she is still not a go-getter, she's much happier and friendly towards people.  She ended up getting adopted by her foster parents and goes on frequent trips to Seattle and the beach.  Also, I'm partial to her because her name is Sadie.

Another sweet puppy…this one was brindle and black colored.  Very cute!

Another scardy pants.  Marble was a long-term foster who finally found a forever home and is now very happy and calm.  I like this photo because it looks like he's sticking out his tongue at me.

This chi cross mama came to us with her five puppies and all of them were infested with fleas!!  Mamas with nursing babies go into foster care with their babies until they are weaned.  Then the mamas can come back, get spayed, and get adopted like this mama did.

I also fell for other animals, who didn't necessarily go into foster care, but crossed my path in some form or another.

If I was to ever own a bunny, I'd want this guy.  His hair was awesome!

Doss.  This sweet girl had dealt with some pretty bad food allergies. Thankfully with a change in her diet, she healed up and was recently adopted!  Her eyes were amazing and she was clearly a lap cat.  I don't think she appreciated my pregnant belly in her way.

And then, there was Joel.  This guy has a very special place in my heart.  An older dog, he came to the shelter twice and was struggling with a neurological condition or possibly a tumor in his brain.  He had a permanent head tilt, vision issues, and had to be carried outside, where he would fall over when walking.  My colleague and friend, Laura, and I were with him until his last day and we were given the opportunity to comfort him and be there as he passed on.  It will always be a moment I remember and still brings tears to my eyes when I think about him.  He was a loving, sweet boy.

Speaking of Laura, I have to say that I was so fortunate to work with some amazing people.  Even better, I got to share my office with them.  Through all my positions at KHS, I always worked closely with the Volunteer Coordinator, who has always become a good friend (which is pretty awesome since we went through three volunteer coordinators while I was there….hmmm, maybe it was me?).  

One of my nearest and dearest here in Washington is Amy.  She was the Volunteer Coordinator when I began as a volunteer (I was totally the dorky "student" in her volunteer orientation who frantically took notes and asked questions) and when I for hired on as the Humane Educator.  We knew each other a little since our hubbies worked at the Naval Hospital, but through work, we quickly became closer friends.  That summer, we paired up to run the first and so far, only summer camp KHS has hosted.  It was quite an adventure and we had to work out a lot of kinks along the way.  I'm so glad I got to work on that project with her.  The other fun thing was that were were both pregnant around the same time (she ended up having a baby several months after me), so we were bother dealing with nausea and appetite issues at the same time.  We still remain close and if you've been reading the blog for awhile, you've seen her on it and her cute, little guy, Ben, who is one of Ruby's buddies.

And then there's Laura, who I got to know really well during her two years at KHS.  We worked on volunteer recruiting together and helped each other out with small projects, wording sensitive e-mails, and joking about some of the crazy things that happen at an animal shelter.  She was with me through the changes in my position and agreed to move with me to the main building (which meant being in an office with stinky kittens).  Laura has moved on to another job, but we still hang out and have lunch dates.  See, didn't I luck out with awesome co-workers?

Unfortunately I don't have a picture of me with the most recent VC, Sarah, and we've only been able to work together for a little over a month, but it's been a good match and we get along really well.  Both of us are pretty type-A in the work place and she appreciates my dedication to using a label maker at will.  I'm bummed that I didn't get to work with her for longer.  Sarah's going to do great things at KHS.

Finally, here are a few random photos I came across...

This entire litter had to have one eye removed due to various issues (I think there were 4 or 5 total kittens).  Interestingly enough, these kittens all found forever homes pretty quickly after they recovered from surgery.  It turns out a lot of people like these little one-eye winkers.  

I hosted a kitten shower to bring in donations before our crazy kitten season began and these were favors for the foster families.  They were pretty fun to make.  Now I need to perfect my dog cookies.

The office got dirty a lot and sometimes when we had too many kittens or really sick ones, I had to step in to help clean. In order to minimize the spread of disease, I had to take extra precautions as you can see by my lovely outfit.

Some kittens just loved the camera and were just CUTE!

So, there you have it.  Now you can see that I've become a bit of a crazy cat lady…I just made a huge post with mostly cat/kitten photos in it.  I guess we can all just blame this on pregnancy hormones, right?  

Farewell, KHS.  I will miss you.