and Last but Not Least...

Baby Kitty died Halloween morning. He had been diagnosed with pancreatitis and small bowel disease. In retrospect, I don't think the vet even realized how sick he was. He had been throwing up on and off for a couple of months. He went from 15 pounds to 12. We spent the last 3 weeks back and forth to the vet. He received fluids and would eat his special diet for awhile and then hide under our bed again and just drink water. I was giving him B12 shots weekly and he was on antibiotics. I can't go into the night of his death now. It is all still so painful. I want to remember what a great kitty he was. When he was younger (he lived to be 10 yrs and 1 mo), Chuck used to hit golf balls in the backyard and he would chase after them. He brought us so much joy through out his life. My parents and Chuck's mom fondly remember visiting us in Boston when he was a kitten. They couldn't believe we had gotten a 3rd cat, but once they spent time with him, they realized how special he was. When Baby Kitty was younger and Chuck used to set his alarm at night, Baby Kitty would hear him pushing the buttons and come running to jump in bed with him. Later, he used to follow me to bed every night and jump in bed with me. He loved to lay next to my on my body pillow like a person. If I stopped petting him too soon, he would put his paw on my cheek or give me kisses with his wet nose. In fact, 7 years ago, he didn't follow me to the bathroom to get ready for bed and I went to this love seat we had at the time where he was sitting and picked him up. It was covered in blood. That was the night he had broken his tail and ripped the underside. Chuck rushed him to the emergency vet and he ended up having his tail amputated. He was the best cat we have ever had. When we would board him at the vet, the vet staff would all say goodbye to him and be sad to see him go. He would come away from there looking like he had been at a spa because they had brushed him so much. He purred even when he was hurt or being examined. He cam to story time every night in Patrick's room. He sat on my lap while I watched TV. He slept in any open drawer or basket of laundry he could find. His real name was Scotch but I always called him Baby Kitty because he liked to be held like a baby. He gave kitty hugs with his front paws around my neck. He brought so much love and joy to our lives. Chuck made him a really nice box to be buried in and we had a funeral Saturday afternoon. We said our goodbyes and Chuck started to say the prayer and began to cry. It was very touching. We will never forget you Baby Kitty...

Chuck's Birthday

Patrick made pop-up cards for Chuck that were Halloween themed. They were really creative! We got a package in the mail that day from Grandma and Jack and the boys loved their Count Dracula shirts. Nicholas wore his to school the next day and they took pictures in the pumpkin patch. I made this cake called "Kahlua Fantasy Cake" that was so disgustingly sweet. After 2 bites, I couldn't bear the thought of ever tasting it again. 88% of people who made it said they would make it again on epicurious.com. It was AWFUL! I threw it out last night. We got Chuck a one year study Bible, a Tagine (Moroccan cooking pot), preserved lemons and a cookbook on Tagine cooking. He was really surprised! After 19 years of birthdays that felt great. He also got several nice gift cards for buying some new cookbooks and jeans, a new long sleeved Polo from Great Gran and a book of sermons from Aunt June. The kids made out well, too, with puzzles and money from Great Gran. Speaking of Great Gran, she had knee surgery last Tuesday and had to be in the hospital for quite some time afterward from a bad reaction to some meds they gave her. She got out this past Tuesday and is at home resting. The kids and I are headed up to my folks house after school today. My dad is having stents put in tomorrow. Please keep all of our family in your prayers.

Boy Scouts

This is the Brazos River in southern Texas. Can you believe how big it is compared to the dry river bed it is in N. Texas? We camped with the Boy Scouts near the river. We had beautiful weather. We were a little cold the first night, but we had brought 2 heaters this time. We did, however, forget our sleeping bags. We had some blankets and thermals, so we were ok.

Here are the boys during a rope tying achievement. They had made breakfast casserole that morning for our den.

There were really neat trees at this campsite.

Nicholas loved playing with these centipedes. They were everywhere. The scouts heard a presentation from the Park Ranger. He told the boys that these centipedes release a yellow substance as a defense mechanism that will turn your skin purple. My favorite quote of the weekend was from Nicholas, "Ooh, Daddy, the centipede just spit up on the chair!" Here are the purple fingers....

another cool tree...

These below are from earlier in the month when we went to a wolf sanctuary. Did you know that wolves are extinct in Texas? These have all been rescued.

Here we are the same day shooting off a model rocket that went 900 feet in the air. It was a blast!