Sad departures

On the morning of Sunday, October 12th, we had to say goodbye to the beloved kitty matriarch of our family, Dee Dee, and help her "graduate" from this life to the next. She had battled valiantly with thyroid disease and advanced arthritis for years. But it was a nasty virus that had afflicted all the cats in the house that attacked her compromised body and brought us to the hard decision was had to make. Although she was under the watchful care of the vet as soon as she showed signs of being sick, in less than a week Dee Dee turned from being our smart and affectionate little ginger into a shell of her former self. She couldn't fight anymore. It was time to say goodbye. Her best friend, Thomasina, and her twin brother, Dexter, got an opportunity to say goodbye before Hubby took Dee Dee to the emergency vet while I stayed home with the other sick kitties.

We thought that trip to the vet would be the only one that day, and we went about the business of trying to get the other kitties well.

But, only 13 hours after we said goodbye to Dee Dee...

... we had to say goodbye to her noble twin brother, Dexter, and help him "graduate" from this life to the next too.

Dexter was the first to get the same nasty virus that Dee Dee got. He had shown symptoms of some strange illness on the evening of Sunday, October 5th, and Hubby had him in to the vet first thing Monday morning. Dexter spent that day at the vet in in-patient care, and went in again on Wednesday for a full day of in-patient care (Dee Dee got the same all-day in-patient care too on Tuesday and Friday). We were told they had the equivalent of the "kitty flu", and because they were both having cortisone injections for arthritis, their immune systems were compromised so the virus was hitting them harder than it was our younger cats that don't get injections. We were told that the most important thing was to keep everyone hydrated until the symptoms went away. By Friday evening, we were hydrating Dee Dee with water-filled or pedialyte-filled syringes. Dexter was getting water and pedialyte from a bowl because he could lap water unassisted.

By Saturday, Dexter had moved through the virus and was beginning to get well from the symptoms. He was eating tuna heartily and drinking water. But he appeared wobbly on his feet. We assumed it was just from being weak from the virus.

But by Sunday evening, Dexter was staggering around so badly he couldn't walk to get water or food. Hubby rushed him to the emergency vet while I stayed home with the other sick kitties. Tests at the emergency vet revealed that Dexter's kidneys were failing. The virus had pushed Dexter's kidneys to their limit. His is sodium levels to toxic quantities causing his neurological system to shut down.  We didn't know his kidneys were compromised. He had lost a significant amount of weight in the last two months, but we hadn't discovered what was causing the weight loss before he got sick. Like Dee Dee, Dexter had turned into a shell of his former self in only a week. I could barely recognize my sweet, benevolent prince of a cat. It was time to help him "graduate" with the dignity he deserved.

In Memory of "The Originals"

Dexter was my loyal, noble and ever-present companion for 14 wonderful years. He supervised everything I did from laundry to vacuuming to home improvement projects (he wasn't afraid of power tools). He was gentle and kind with new visitors, children, infants and even my mom's little chihuahua that was smaller than he was. He sweetly accepted the other kitties that we took into our home and put up with all of their nonsense with grace (even when they were mean to him). I always would whisper into his ear, "Dexter, I loved you first... and I love you best" and he would purr.

Dee Dee was the quintessential queen of our little cat colony. She ruled with grace, love and matriarchal dignity. She adored Hubby with a passion and wanted nothing more than to be picked up and carried around on his arm while she licked him after running to greet him at the door when he came home from work or when he first awoke and arose from the bed in the morning. She particularly enjoyed playing hostess to visitors and would greet everyone that came through the front door with curiosity and kind affection. Her fascination and adoration of children and babies was so precious to watch. An extremely intelligent ginger tabby, Dee Dee always had a lot to say about everything and would negotiate with me constantly to get her way (just like a 2 year old toddler).

We were privileged to meet them when Dexter and Dee Dee were only 10 days old. We've known them ever since.

The two kitties were miracles to us. Before getting them 14 years ago, Hubby was highly allergic to cats and couldn't be in the same room with a cat without getting asthmatic. But with faith and prayer, that changed (now he's allergic to dogs... go figure). They came into our lives when we were rebuilding our home... and I was rebuilding myself. Two little furry kitties did so much in healing us both. We've never known life living here at Rosehaven Cottage without them. Our home feels hollow and empty without them here.

Interestingly, Dexter and Dee Dee have never had to know any existence without each other... even now.

We know without a shadow of a doubt that Dexter and Dee Dee are now running and playing like they did when they were young (before the arthritis). They were greeted on the other side by our beloved kitties that had passed on before them—Lydia (2002-2012), Tom Tom (who left us a few months ago in May), Suzette (who left us at the end of this summer) and the garden kitty, Oreo (who left us in September). We are certain all of them are having wonderful times together frolicking about, watching "kitty-vision" and exploring lush patches of grass to nibble on.

I miss Dexter and Dee Dee terribly. My chest aches every day with an ache that is so profound I can't describe it. I weep every day wishing I could see their beautiful furry little faces. But I know I will see them both again someday... and we will all play together like we always did.

Dexter and Dee Dee, you are mine forever and ever.

Filling our home with winter whites and fresh greens

It's been a few years since I've felt up to decorating for Christmas. Usually, Hubby gets out a few select decorations from the attic that will add some festive feeling to our little home but won't require a lot of clean-up once the holiday season is over.

This year I'm feeling peppy and also inspired by some of the ideas I've found on Pinterest. I discovered that every time I saw a photo of Christmas decorations with live mini trees and fresh greens, I was pinning it to either my December board or my Pale Pretty Christmas board. I was particularly inspired by a photo from A Cottage Nest (click here to see it).

I finally asked Hubby if we could depart from getting out the same-old-same-old from the attic and do something different based on what I'd been liking. He was totally up for it.

In fact, it was on Hubby's suggestion that we spend our Friday night date night (the last day of November) hunting for exactly what we needed, so I could decorate on Saturday. I'm telling you, I'm married to a total sweetie!

We hit several stores on Friday evening (I'm a power shopper that gets in, looks, and gets out rather quickly from a store). We were really happy that we were able to find all the sweet little trees at super low prices as well as five of the seven containers we needed at discount stores (two we already had). We even found a beautiful new mirror at an unbelievably low price and then got an additional 20% off because it was dinged a bit on the corner. Sweet!

On Saturday, we hung the mirror over the mantle first (I measured and Hubby set the anchors). Then we headed out to find the last few little items we needed including greens, a bag of cinnamon-scented pinecones and a set of sparkly silver LED candles (an open flame would be a fire hazard among the trees).

We picked up the fresh greens at a local tree lot that had extra branches from trimming the trees they had sold. Once we got them home, I wired together the larger boughs to create the garland for the hearth and a swag for the front door. I used the smaller sprigs to tuck around and between the tree containers on the mantle.

The cats were loving all the fresh greens. I let them sniff, chew, and lick the boughs before I started constructing anything with them (yes, Dexter licks evergreens--even fake ones). Lucy went nuts for the bag of cinnamon pinecones and rubbed all over it like it was catnip. She didn't give up her claim to the pinecones for quite some time. She finally got bored and wandered off after a while so I was able to place the pinecones last. I left some down low for them to sniff and enjoy.

The cats don't climb up on the mantle, so we can have these Christmas trees without incident. This is a wonderful alternative to having a cat in the Christmas tree multiple times a day from now until New Year's Day. We get the wonderful smell of Christmas in our home without the hassle of having to redecorate the tree every morning after a night of feline fun with the enticing baubles and sparklies they can't leave alone.

Now it really and truly looks and smells like Christmas here in our little home! It's been great starting out December like this.

Trees from largest to smallest:

"Dwarf Alberta Spruce" (Picea glauca 'Conica')

"Ellwood Cypress" (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Ellwoodii')

"European Tree" (also marked Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Ellwoodii' 

but looking very different than the taller cypress)

Center "tree" is a rosemary plant cut like a Christmas tree

Chap 8: Motivation is Delivered in Furry Little Packages

Click on any image to view larger and read captions easier

It’s funny how unexpected events in life often come along that add motivation and encouragement when we need it most. We discovered this phenomenon firsthand in mid-September 2000.

We had been at work on the house for a month and half. My brother’s time helping us was drawing to a close, as he had university classes to go back to in mid-September. He left us with so much accomplished on the seemingly never-ending task list we had before us. Josh and my mom had tackled the major task of tiling the downstairs bathroom. As a team, they cut and set white tile after white tile with beautiful, narrow, and clean grout lines in between.





Josh and Mom were also able to grout most of the tile, leaving only the tile around the bottom edge of the tub for us to do.


And it was left to us to lay the large ceramic bathroom floor tiles.

Working on the bathroom and kitchen simultaneously while trying to maneuver around the stacks of moving boxes staged in the living room and bedrooms wore on our nerves and frazzled our sense of accomplishment. It seemed like we had been at this forever and would continue to be at it in perpetuity. It was hard to imagine a time when we could move out of the spare room at my sister’s house and really live in our own house. We had determined that as long as we had an operational shower downstairs and the toilet upstairs, we could move in. We didn’t need a kitchen sink. We didn’t need a downstairs bathroom sink. And we didn’t need a downstairs toilet. That shower was all we needed. But the daunting task of getting it completed with the last tile and grout around the edge of the tub was so overwhelming that we avoided it. And our move-in date continued to be pushed out indefinitely.



That’s when the unexpected life event came along to nudge us.

In mid-September, we drove a half an hour east of our new home to attend a family gathering of Hubby’s relations as everyone came together to attend the baptisms of two cousins. We all converged at the ranch of the in-laws of my in-laws (Hubby says that makes them “outlaws”). I love visiting ranches, farms, or anywhere else that has animals. I tend to have social anxiety at parties and gatherings, so if there’s an animal around for me to focus on, I’m a happy camper.

To my sheer delight, there was a litter of 10-day-old kittens on the back porch of the ranch house. All the young cousins gravitated toward the kittens, whose eyes were just beginning to open. Here were all these kids and me, cooing over the precious little balls of fur.

The mama cat, Skittles, was a blotchy tabby that had spots of red tabby and spots of regular tabby. The sire of the 4 kittens was a handsome red striped tabby that lived at the ranch next door. Both parents were large cats with frames the size of small jungle cats. And Skittles was a hefty mama weighing in at close to 20 pounds. A couple of “kittens” from previous litters were still at the ranch, and it was evident that “big” was part of their genetics.

The newest kittens were all red tabbies except one—a little black striped tabby with white paws, a white bib, and a red tabby undercoat that made him look like a tiny tiger with his black stripes and ticking. I held him and snuggled him. He was precious. The kids at the ranch had handled the kittens since day one, and it was obvious that this little guy had been socialized well in his first 10 days.

I was in love!

I called Hubby over to see this sweet little kitty that had already stolen my heart. Despite being allergic to cats, Hubby was smitten too. He didn’t have any allergic reaction to this little guy and before I knew it, we were making arrangements with the in-laws and reserving this little one as ours. We agreed that we would take him when he old enough to leave his mama at about 9-10 weeks old. And we agreed that we would be coming out every weekend to visit with our little one until we could bring him home.

I decided to name our little kitty boy after one of my favorite movie characters, C.K. Dexterhaven, from The Philadelphia Story played by Cary Grant. We’d call him Dexter for short.


This turn of events gave us the new impetus to get it in gear and get the shower done so we could move in and bring our little Dexter home. It gave us the hard deadline we had lacked up until that point.

Over the next month, we made our weekly visits to the ranch to see our growing kitten and visit with his littermates. The kittens were probably only about 4 weeks old when we went out to visit them and another turn of events happened.

As we sat on the back porch entertaining the kittens with dry leaves, one of the little red tabby kittens began to pay a great deal of attention to me. She came up to me where I was sitting on the porch step, and sat down right between my feet. Then, trying to be like a big kitty, she leaned into my ankle in a wobbly kitten-like way, looked up at me, and asked for affection. I brought her to Hubby’s attention. This little gal was very focused on us, as was her brother, Dexter. The other two kittens were more interested in playing with each other and roughhousing. I knew from past experience, that if you’re picking out a kitten from a litter you should always pick the kitten that is focused on you and not necessarily the kitten that has the color fur you’re looking for.

During that visit, Hubby and I realized that we were going to become the proud owners of two kittens and not just one.

We had to come up with a name for the little strawberry blonde sister we were claiming. We were fans of the Cartoon Network’s cartoon, "Dexter’s Laboratory". In the cartoon, a little boy named Dexter is a “mad scientist” of sorts and he always introduced his blonde tutu-wearing sister as his “stupid sister Dee Dee”.

It seemed fitting to name our Dexter's sister Dee Dee--even though she was far from "stupid" as she had artfully charmed her way into our hearts and into our home.


We had even more motivation to get the shower done and get moved into our house. We worked hard getting a downstairs room in shape to be our bedroom and getting the shower tile finalized and the floor tile laid so we could finally occupy our own home.





The month of October was spent finalizing all the things that were on the “must have” list so we could move in and then bring our kittens home.

I remember vividly the evening of Halloween, when the “cable lady” came and hooked up us up so we could have television reception. We accepted trick-or-treaters for the first time that night while I arranged furniture in the living room and moved boxes around so we’d have one room where we could relax and feel like we were "home".

Over the following week, the final touches were put on the tub and shower. When the fixtures were finally installed in the tub and shower, we could finally move in, and on November 8, 2000 we officially started living in our house when we spent the night in our own bed.



The next day, on November 9, 2000 we drove out to the ranch and brought Dexter and Dee Dee home. They made themselves right at home.



Dexter eventually claimed me as his human. And Dee Dee claimed Hubby as her human with her beguiling little feline feminine wiles. Their presence amidst the continuing work has been the bright spot we have focused on through some difficult tasks and trials. Their love and devotion has dried up many a tear and their antics have brought a smile to our face many times when nothing else could.

Since he was a wee thing, Dexter has monitored and supervised all the work that goes on around the house (including countless loads of laundry in our front loading washer). He will brave just about any power tool in order to remain in the room and supervise the changes we're making.


When Hubby comes home from work, they both run to meet him at the door. And when visitors come to Rosehaven Cottage, they are the self-appointed host and hostess. They fulfil their duties well by greeting the guests as soon as they arrive and giving up their nap time to interact and socialize with everyone until the visit is over.

Dexter and Dee Dee were definitely meant to live here at Rosehaven Cottage as much as we were.

My "Personal Assistant" and the other members of our cat colony...

Last night, our local PBS station aired a show about dogs and cats and why we humans love them. The show featured a humane society facility that has a screening process they perform on both the animal up for adoption as well as the potential adoptive families. For cats, the evaluation helped to classify their personalities into three color categories with three personality types in each color category (a system I was pleased to find is in action at our local rescue shelter, ARF). Being the stewards over our own indoor cat colony of eight, it was highly informative and very amusing for Hubby and I to place each of our own kitties into the category they belonged.

Interestingly enough, two days earlier on Friday I had taken a break from work in my home office to take photos of each of the furry friends I had "assisting" me in my studio at that time. I thought it would be a great snapshot of a typical day running a company from my home office/studio. Now that I've been enlightened about cat personality profiles, I thought it would be fun to match up those photographs with their corresponding personality.

Dee Dee is a "Personal Assistant"...

"Personal Assistant: You’re working on the computer? Let me press the keys. Reading the paper? I’ll hold the pages down for you. Watching TV? I’ll just plop in your lap so you can pet me. I love an orderly household, don’t you? I’ll help you with all your chores, and I’ll help you relax when we’re done. You’ll wonder how you ever managed without me."

Dexter is the "Leader of the Band"...

"Leader of the Band: I’m a cat who does everything in a big way. I not only like to be in the middle of things - I like to lead the parade. I’m an adventurous cat, but I’ll still make plenty of time to show you my affectionate side. I’m the demonstrative type, you might say. Want a cat who’s brimming with confidence? That’s me."

Tom Tom is an "MVP"...

"MVP: I’m a savvy cat who knows the score. I’m pretty unflappable, too. I don’t mind entertaining myself, but a human companion at the other end of the couch and a nice scratch behind the ears always make my day. If you’re looking for a resourceful addition to your team, think about signing this Most Valuable Pussycat."

Thomasina is a "Love Bug"...

"Love Bug: Do you seek affection? I do! If you also like petting, purrs, and paws kneading your lap, I think we might have A LOT in common. I’m looking for 'someone who enjoys quiet times and togetherness.' "

Lucy is a "Party Animal"...

"Party Animal: I’m a cat on a mission: PARTY! I love to play and explore and test my limits. I’d love to play with you, but I can make a toy out of anything: pencils, post-it notes, potatoes. If you’re looking for some laughs and someone to liven up the party, think about inviting me."

That's it for the kitties that were "assisting" me in the office/studio last Friday (they're almost always the ones in there too). Now for the others that were elsewhere at that time...

Gus Gus is a "Private Investigator"...

"Private Investigator: I’m working undercover to keep an eye on you and your household. You may not even know you’re under surveillance. I can vanish into thin air if anyone or anything interferes with my investigation. If you need a cat who knows how to stay out of trouble and will always keep your secrets, I just might take your case. "

Suzette is "The Executive"...

"The Executive: I have to say, I’m a busy cat. First, I’ve got to check out what’s happening out the window. Next, I’ll see if any closets or cupboards need looking into. And then there are my naps –can’t be late for those. I can fit a little socializing into my schedule. Shall we plan on breakfast and dinner? I hope you like kibbles."

Lydia is a "Secret Admirer"....

"Secret Admirer: When it comes to relationships, I’m very level-headed. I don’t leap in paws first, if you know what I mean. But give me a little time, and then I’ll shower you with purrs, head-butts, and plenty of lap time. In the meantime, you may not see a lot of me – but I’ll be thinking a lot of you."

Dexter's all that...

and a box of chips!

I gave up trying to keep him out of them. Dexter has been repeatedly trying to lay in this box of Sun Chips snack bags for the past week now; squashing the bags as he gingerly lowers his big 17 lb. kitty body onto the popping and crunching bags. Every time I caught him, I'd extract him and tell him "NO!". Well, I was busy trying to make something in the kitchen last night and just got tired of fighting him (he knew he'd win eventually). So I pulled the bags out from under him that were getting smashed the worst, got my camera, and took a photograph.

For those keeping score... Mommy-0, Dexter-1

Dexter Sweety

I have this embarrassing pile of boxes in my art studio for shipping items that I sell. It sits there and taunts me with its "unartistic" presence.

And then today, Dexter decides to climb into the one box that provides the most adorable photo opportunity. So even though I still hate the pile of boxes in the background, I couldn't help but shoot and share this photo of Dexter sitting in the most perfect box for him... the Sweety mandarine box.

Dexter is truly a "sweety" in every sense of the word (I can gush because I'm his human). He is a kind and thoughtful male tabby that we see as a benevolent "king" over the other kitties living here at Rosehaven Cottage. His size is impressive with his muscle-y frame weighing in at about 17 lbs. but he is a demure and quiet tabby that will often just come up and tap us on the leg or arm to say, "I'm here. Please pet me." He is a great leash walker and when the leash comes out, he stands proudly waiting for it to be put on and latched so he can go walking in the garden with me. At night, he often climbs up on my chest just before I drift off to sleep and "grooms" me by licking my chin and face (sometimes my hand).

He is my sweety Dexter. I always tell him, "I loved you first, and I love you best."

Dexter Loves the Smell of...

RUBBER!!!!

Dexter loves to rub his face, lips and sometimes his gums on anything rubber. He just adored this rubber mallet when it got left on the floor after one of our many home improvement projects. What a very silly kitty cat!

Happy Birthday Dexter and Dee Dee!

Today, September 6th, is the birthday of the two "Originals", Dexter and Dee Dee. As brother and sister from the same litter, they both turn 7 years old today! [photo at left taken by Hubby]

We love them both so very much that it's hard to remember life before Dexter and Dee Dee were a part of it. They are such loyal little companions that we often joke that they are "dogs in cat-suits".

Each chose their human very early on in life. Dexter chose me as his human, while Dee Dee chose Hubby as her human. Still, they are both equal opportunity kitties when it comes to being lovable to both of us.

As a special birthday tribute, we share some favorite photos of them both as kittens and as grown-up kitties. Happy Birthday!






Above left: Dexter as a kitten looking soooooo cute!
Above right: Dexter drinking from the bathroom faucet (photo taken by Hubby)


Above left: Dee Dee as a kitten. Even then she always found a box to lay in.
Above right: Dee Dee as an adult "scootching on the smooth" (she loves newly smoothed out bedsheets and blankets).

Click here for the story on how Dexter and Dee Dee came to live at Rosehaven Cottage.

Did you know that Dexter has his own line of clothing and accessories? Click here to see.

Did you know that Dee Dee has her own line of clothing and accessories too? Click here to see.

Walking the Cat and Finding Bits of Red

Above Left: Dexter, my beautiful tabby, walking on his red leash in the garden.

Above right: Red canna lilies growing by the pond add a bright punch of red here and there.

Above: A red pomegranate almost ready to harvest hangs down from the bush with the pond in the background.

Above: My wonderfully gorgeous 17 lb. tabby, Dexter, absolutely loves to walk on a leash out in the garden, so I obliged him this evening and toted my camera along. I realized that I was photographing bits of red after I got back into the house and reviewed the photos. The color of his leash must have seeped into my subconscious somehow.

Click here to see Dexter's line of clothing and accessories