'tis the season....

Wishing all a very Merry Christmas

from 

Bonnie and Aslan

More about Aslan (of course)

Sunday morning and it is raining out. It looks cold, but I haven't been out yet.....later I will make my way to church. We might get a bit of snow later today, but I will believe it when I see it.

I have managed to send my Christmas card to the printers. The printers I have used for the last several years has closed, so I am using a new one. My neighbour works there, so it was a natural choice. I haven't gotten them back yet.

I have also been painting some Christmas decorations. I bought some ceramics to paint. One set is snow babies, but Dawn said they look like Teletubbies, and now I can't get that picture out of my mind. They are not finished yet, but hopefully they won't look like the tv characters when they are done.

My dear little Aslan has been more active in this last week, though he still makes the upstairs his go-to place. He has not stepped in my wet paint yet, though it has been close a few times. I quickly get my pallet off the desk when he jumps up to inspect what I am doing. I have not been so quick with the laptop, and he has managed to make things pop up that I have never seen before. Yesterday he managed to make everything elongate horizontally, but after some playing around with various settings I managed to get it back to normal. Right now he is somewhere in the basement hiding. I put the dryer on and the noise frightened him.

Heather came to visit yesterday, and Aslan, seeing her, ran and hid. Of course. After a while, I coaxed him out and brought him down to see Heather. After a bit, he settled and then enjoyed lots of love from his 'first mum'.

What's up?

My brushes are interesting it seems

Checking out the kitchen, and watching the Captain, who he

is still not sure of.

His perch in the kitchen window, watching birds

Aslan likes to cuddle

Monday

Well, I had better figure out how to get some energy this week. Next week looks to be a busy one. One night I am off to a local Home to help out with carol singing, and then Thursday and Friday, off to the school to help out with a children's Christmas shopping party, that is, if it is still on. The teachers have gone on a work to rule and extra curricular activities are cancelled as of Monday. I'm not sure if the shopping party will fall into that category. I suppose this is better than a strike. At least the teachers will still be teaching. They have been without a contract for at least a year.

 Aslan has an appointment with the vet, and has to be there at 7:30 Wednesday am. And then there is the Bible Study Monday and Choir Thursday, plus a music lesson. This lethargy or tiredness or whatever it is had better take a hike, or at least limp away. I have things to do.......and I haven't started Christmas Cards though I have them back from the printers, and I still have ornaments to paint. Before I know it it will be the middle of December and I still won't have things done. Oh, and there is trying to decide what to get for my girls, etc. Wish me luck.

Aslan Gets Braver....

6635
+......sort of. He is still making the upstairs his home, but he has decided that I am not as fearful a [[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[.person as I was in the beginning, besides, I am bringing him his food.....
He is willing to let me pick him up, and then when he is on my lap he purrs and prods and rolls over, liking very much a back pet, ear scratch and tummy rub, all the while singing quite intensely.
It will be two weeks tomorrow, since he arrived, and though he won't venture downstairs yet I think he has made great progress. I am trying not to be impatient and let him decide the time to be brave. I did carry him down yesterday which he allowed though I could tell he was very nervous, and soon decided he wanted to get back to the safety of upstairs.

Wednesday.....five days since the above writing. Aslan has come a long way. He has now visited the main floor several times and last evening we had quite a little tour. The Captain was off to darts, and Aslan and I walked the living room and kitchen and then he and I took a little tour of the basement. He checked out all the little places and disappeared for a bit, so I called him and he ran right upstairs to me. He is now eating in the kitchen and actually came downstairs this morning without being coaxed, to have his breakfast. He still is very timid when he sees the Captain, which is why last night was a good time to have Aslan check things out.

Aslan likes to be on my lap, and purrs as he flips from one position to another. He likes head scratches and chin rubs and to be held close. Oh he is a joy, and I am thankful that I decided that it was time for a new friend. He definitely needs a scratch post, since my legs will not hold out much longer. :) 

As I write this he just appeared and is now sitting on my desk, watching what I am doing with the keyboard.

7888444

I was going to erase all the numbers and weird things you might see in this post, but I will leave it, as it is Aslan's message to you.

The Taming of the Kitten

Tuesday:
 This is the beginning of the 4th day, and I feel I have made progress with little Aslan. I know where he is, and when I look at him he doesn't skitter away. He took treats from me this morning. He is doing rather well on his own, eating and using the litter, which is a good thing for sure. He looks at me, and I can see that he is just not ready to trust me. Time, it will take time.
He let me give him a little scratch on his head this afternoon, without backing away. Sound the trumpets....Dah dah!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wednesday am : Success via a tweet from @1catshepherd where a cat meowed. I went upstairs and sat on the floor and played the tweet and quick as a wink, Aslan was out. I had put the food dish in the middle of the floor and he started to eat. Then he came over and let me pet him, as he investigated this human sitting on the floor blithering away at him. He purred so loud and kneaded. I don't need to tell you how thrilled I was at this progress. He stayed out for about a half hour while I was seated.

He took a treat from me hand several times

All was well until I stood up. He watched me while I swept up loose litter that he had managed to get all over the floor by his box, but then, when I moved toward him, he headed back to his hidey hole.

More progress is needed before he really feels comfortable, but it's a wonderful start to his 5th day.

I am one happy gal

making progress with my new pal

He has captured my heart

He's a handsome boy

such a joy

He's Here....

but hiding..... My newly adopted kitten came this morning (Saturday) and after a little search of the house and saying hello, he found his way up the stairs and under my bed, where he has remained. Heather said it had been a stressful day for him. He cried all the way here in the car, so that would have been over an hour.

Oh, he is a handsome boy. Other than pictures I hadn't seen him and when he arrived I was so impressed with him. Hopefully, he won't be shy for too long, but I must remember that he is used to having 3 other kittens to play with, and that he was a very wild little boy as the summer began. Heather managed to coax him and the others, little by little to come to her. He was very affectionate to her when they arrived and gave me a bit of a head butt and purred up a storm. He loves to knead, and seems to do it all the time, though not when he is resting, under the bed.

I struggled with a name for him, but finally settled on Aslan, which is Turkish for lion. It is the name of the lion in C. S. Lewis's  Narnia books. Also, one of the lions at Oaklawn Farm Zoo had that name. Heather said this little fellow has a broad nose just like the zoo's Aslan, and as I had considered that name, I felt that he would be Aslan.
I have no pictures as yet, of course, since he doesn't want to pose yet......

Here we are in the 3rd day, and little Aslan has decided that perhaps he will be a phantom cat, who emerges from his hidey hole when no one is around, and eat and use the litter box. He even played with his toys. I haven't seen him since yesterday afternoon, when I discovered him under a chest in the Captain's computer room. He purred loudly in my arms, and rubbed his head against my chin, but at the same time wanted to get down. I fed him some wet food on my finger, then set him down with the food. He gulped some down, then made a mad dash for upstairs, which is where he is now living.
I am now waiting on his table on the second floor. "Your dinner/breakfast has arrived sir."

I keep saying, "patience, Bonnie, patience...." I think he is not only frightened, but also lonely without his litter-mates. I will see what today brings, but I should say that it is a good thing that no one hears me talking to the walls, saying "come kitty, come see mommy", or other such close to the edge sayings........

More to come........

WHOA......!

This year is racing away to its conclusion without me......the days whiz by and this month is almost over. Whoa..I say, whoa, slow down. Of course it doesn't matter what I say the days come and go like someone is clicking through a series of pictures, not taking the time to enjoy each one....click, click, click.

It isn't as though my days are so full of activities, that the time passes quickly. No, far from it. I have to keep pushing myself to get anything done. The routines of the day are just that, routine.....every day is the same, mostly. Even in my little reminder book, I write the same things. Do this, do that, go here, go there. I wonder if others feel this way. It isn't that I am looking for something exciting to happen. Excitement would probably lay me low. No it isn't excitement, it is........meaning? Oh, did I just write that? Mmmmmm. I wonder why.......

While I contemplate what I just wrote, let's take a look at a few pictures I snapped. They are not that great, but show a bit of autumn around here.

the sumac are quite lovely

I do not know why a bee would search through bird

seed. It stayed quite a while and was joined by a few more.

Poor little scruffy looking Goldfinch. Must be molting,

getting winter feathers

Before I finish this post, I must tell you that I have decided that I am going to get a kitten. It has been a long time since Sadie died, and I have missed having a four-legged friend in the house. Heather has beautiful kittens, born in their barn, but tamed with love through the summer. I just made the decision this morning........now I am finally excited about something. Stay tuned.........

October Already?

The air has changed with the season. Warm and sultry has become cool and clear. Jackets are needed in the early morning, and the evenings. A whisper of frost is biding its time just around the corner. Fall has arrived and with it harvest time. The orchard is a busy place, with ladders clacking, tractor huffing as it moves bins into place, pickers laughing as baskets fill, and buckets thumping as drops are picked up, thunk, thunk, thunk. A busy, busy time, with the tractor moving bins well into the evening.

The chickadees are occupied with gathering their favourite seeds. I didn't realize that they actually hide seeds and know where the seeds are left so that they can be retrieved later.

Mr. Squirrel, and little chipmunk are also gathering seeds. I do think the squirrel just eats them as fast as he can, but chipmunk fills his/her pouches to overflowing then runs to its home.

My weed  flower garden welcomes sparrows and goldfinch who swing in the wind and eat the drying seeds. Skunks are busy through the night ripping up the grass to find bedtime snacks.

Lack of rain has caused many wells to go dry. Ours is very low, and I now must visit the laundromat rather than do laundry at home. I haven't made a trip yet, but soon. It is aggravating to not be able to do it here, but at least I still have water. A good many here do not, and some have been hauling water all summer.

A busy time - and I wish I had the energy that the wildlife do. I am, in fact, stalled, as the days pass by. Except for daily tasks, I accomplish nothing. It surprises me that I am even writing this post. (It has taken a while) I keep waiting for a thunderbolt of energy to get me moving out of my lethargy. I have so many things I need/want to do, but can't quite find the spark of vitality required to get started........

This and That

This is going to be one of those posts where I write a little bit here, and then go away for a while, only to return and add a little bit more. There are so many things racing around in my head and yet nothing in there is probably worthy of writing about.

**Bright spot in my week - A little chickadee trusted me enough to come to my outstretched hand, and take the lone sunflower seed I was holding. These little birds are so trusting, unlike the doves that flutter away when they see me.

I have decided to give up trying to keep the squirrel from eating the seeds from the feeder. It is a losing battle, and if I take it away, I won't be able to watch the birds up close. I can sit about 3 feet from them, and several chickadees, 3 woodpeckers (Downy) and a Nuthatch will come.

Finally, we received a very good amount of rain this past week, and it was so desperately needed, not only for the crops and orchards, but to dampen down the forests, and the wildfires that were burning across the province.

I've been spending much more time watching the Olympics, and have watched more TV in 2 weeks than I would in 6 months. I do enjoy watching the competitions.

I attended an Alzheimer information session at a neighbouring Community Hall, and it was very interesting. Included were facts on dementia, how to recognize the signs, and ideas on how to cope. It is so sad what happens to people who suffer through this brain injury. It dawned on me only here that this age related dementia is classified as a brain injury, as brain cells are dying. It opened my eyes to the fact that a stoke victim can have stroke dementia. This is what the Captain is dealing with.

I am about to do something that I have said I wouldn't do. I am taking the Captain to the Camp. He wants to go, and he wants me to take him. I had said I would drive him to the camp  to see if  he had left a car key out there, and somehow it became I would take him overnight. So.......... we shall see how it goes.........

August 26:  Well, I managed to get through not one but three nights, (I thought we were going to stay two nights). The camp has definitely become a 'man's camp' though at one time we spent time there with the girls when they were young. The Captain's grandfather built the camp and used to guide hunters on the river and in the woods. I will not say more about the inside of the building except that after I got over the 'yuck' factor I managed alright. There is no electricity or running water, so you know where I headed several times through the day.
    Now the outside is a whole different story. It is what I always loved about the camp, and was glad to spend time in the great outdoors. Here are a few pictures of the area. It is right on the Medway river, and the big pine is probably 200 years +. We can't be sure.

The water is low in the river due to it being so dry

This is the camp, with a boathouse in the foreground

Another view through the trees from the river's edge

Steam rising from the water

Not a great shot, but it is the top of the old pine.

I was happy to get home to a hot shower, but I am glad that I took the Captain. He struggles to get around, and I am not sure how many more times he will get to the camp. I am not keen, despite the view, to stay overnight any time soon. I kept thinking, 'if I only had a vacuum cleaner', "if I only had hot running water."
 
I have now done my good deed for the year. I think my arm is getting sore from patting myself on the back for being so brave.

Till next time......

Odds and Ends

Rain is falling this morning and it is much needed. The ground is so dry and crops are suffering. People are being cautious with their wells, and a neighbour is hauling water. Usually it is September before we really worry about the water level. The brown patches in the lawn outnumber the green patches. I am amazed how hardy the wild flowers are, still growing and blooming.

I have a wild flower/perennial garden this year. I didn't get out and do the necessary weeding this past spring, for a few reasons, and so my garden is made up of weeds wildflowers, and the perennials. It looks very scruffy, but the butterflies and the hummingbirds seem to enjoy it. I have Brown eyed Susans growing, and I haven't had them for years. I must have been pulling them thinking they were weeds.

Here are a few pictures that I have recently. Greatgrandkitties and the garden after the rain.

Sully and Piper - one of their favourite sleeping spots

Brown eyed Susans

Raindrops on the Magnolia leaf

Weeds Wildflowers

Sky and clouds after the rain

My grandkitty from Ironwood, Franklin

More Memories

I took so many pictures while I was away, and thought I would share a few more.

The girls (Heather, Rae, me, Dawn &Lindsay

Not sure whether the tide was heading out or coming in

Eva brought her kayaks. Colton helping Eva 

get them down the bank

Dawn's first time in a kayak. She loved it.

Eva is giving Dawn pointers

Heather and I watched this crab scuttle along

Our birthday cake.....yummy

Heather brought beautiful flowers with her

A view from the deck

Colton & Rae - Titanic shot

Lindsay and Dawn relaxing

One of the many Hermit crabs

Eva and Heather planning something....

I just wanted to share a few more moments of my

wonderful time away.