Adventure Kitty!

Our precious black kitty has made a full life out of his nine years. At this stage, I think he qualifies as retired, but he will not give up the opportunity for adventure. Whether it's an open closet door, a closed cabinet he thinks should be open, or a fuzzy rug begging him to play rough, Sergio is up for the challenge.


Last week we had a cricket in our apartment. Thankfully, he didn't make much noise and so Justin and I didn't lose any sleep. However, Sergio found him fascinating and the first chance he had to pounce, he did.

Now, I must catch you up on the facts. Sergio used to be a great outdoor hunter, and even a good fighter who's reputation preceded him (I heard the stories, even though he didn't belong in our home until the last year). But, as is the fate of many domesticated kitties, Sergio had his front paws declawed-and he has been king of the indoors ever since.

When Sergio found the cricket, he brought him to the living room-his boxing ring, if you will-and made the most of his find. Without claws, he had no sword power, but his batting and catching skills matched even that of a young kitten. Up in the air Sergio would toss little Jimminy, and then hold him to the carpet with his paws. Carefully, he'd release him just to watch him for signs of life, then pounce on him before the little cricket even had a chance to catch his breath.

Heroic in his endeavors, the pride over his victory was evidenced by his smug face, and the licking of his lips as he swallowed the 5th of six crunchy legs. His predator instincts satisfied as his hunter DNA released on the poor little insect.

Of course, we were happy to see the bug go, and to know that our king of the jungle has not lost his wild skill.

In Memory 9/11

I was a senior in high school the evening of 9-11-01, and had an accounting test as part of my homeschool co-op. None of us could believe we were still holding class, especially because we had a scheduled test. However, our teacher explained the importance of staying focused and moving ahead, even in the midst of tragedy, so following a prayer for our nation and families directly affected by the plane crashes, we proceeded with our test.

The rule was that when we finished a test and turned it in, we could quietly occupy ourselves with reading or whatever until everyone in the class was finished. Following the submission of my exam, I decided to write a poem and this is what poured out, almost word for word without stopping. Sometimes lyrical poetry is the easiest way to turn something over to God, and to pray, and to try to encourage others.

God Is Good

God is good, all of the time,
When I'm poor as a mouse and don't have a dime.
He loves me even when I'm ungrateful,
He's always near me, ever faithful.

Rejoice in the Lord, all you peoples of the earth,
For He is the sole One responsible for your birth.
He knit you creatively piece by piece,
And made you a daughter, a grandpa, a niece.

If God cares for birds who are so tiny and small,
Won't He watch over you both short and tall?
Praise Him above with all of your heart,
For all He has done for us from the start.

He gave us salvation, took our sins away,
Repent to Him now, just do it today.
Christ gave up His live so that I may live,
I'm so very thankful that I am His.

So now during trial of life and of patience,
I look to Him to uphold me with His graciousness.
I know for certain that I am loved,
And always watched from up above.

God is in control, He always is,
His mercy and grace He surely will give.
I'll make it through this uncertain time,
For God is good, all of the time.

Windy night in the big D!

If you ever need help blowing up an air mattress, I have the ccontact for you! My soon-to-be 16 year old cousin (Danny) has the mad skill to not only play baseball like a star in the making and to drive his sweet Ford Focus like a pro, but he also has enough air to get his bed firm and comfy when the pump gives out!

I pride myself in knowing that I can accommodate up to four extra people in in my two bedroom apartment because of my double guest bed, and my queen air mattress. Not only that, I purchased a battery powered air pump to make the process simple and seamless.

What I didn't realize, was that if you leave the pump uncharged, in it's box in the closet for over a year, that it will take more than an evening to re-charge the batteries. So, at 11:00pm last night when we're preparing the beds, I whip out my pump and turn it on just to realize it's starting at only half power. When the mattress reached 4/5 capacity, my magnificent pump slowly groaned to a mild grumble with barely the strength to keep air from coming back out of the mattress.

I was worried that he was going to have to sleep with his rear end dipping to the floor through the limp air mattress, or try to fold his long body on our shorter-than-he-is couch, but at the last minute, we decided to test his lung capacity and he proved that he is truly winded-in a great way! Several power puffs, and his bed lay firm and full, ready to support a young man who earned his night of sleep :o)

On top of that, Justin and I had such a fun time eating, talking, playing cards, touring the Rangers stadium, and drinking bubble tea, that it was sad to wave goodbye this afternoon. Just another reminder how precious family is, and how grateful I am to have a family that gets excited about visits and visiting! I have been blessed abundantly!