My porch .......

The porch at my front door embarasses me. No matter how often I sweep and clean it off, I never know what may be lurking there. I'd hate for company to accidently step in some of the strange things I find. Yesterday morning there was the back half of a rabbit deposited on the mat. Later in the day I found the innards of some unknown animal. Then this morning I look out and Mazie Grace had a rat that she was tossing around and playing with.



Mollie Ann was very interested in what was going on. I think she wanted to play too.



Once Mazie Grace starts to eat, I have to leave for awhile, since I can't stand to watch her. Five minutes later the porch was clear once again.

I've been a bad blogger ......

I've been terribly neglectful of my blog. I have no excuse other than laziness and procrastination. I also want to apologize for my lack of comments on your blogs. I do read your blog posts every day, however.

I've been enjoying summer. Since we got the pool in operation, I've spent almost every afternoon in the water. We had several days near 100 degrees with high humidity. One afternoon the heat index was 112 - that is almost unbearable. The last few days have been simply gorgeous with lower temperatures and lower humidity. Temperatures will be up near 100 by the end of next week, however.

We've been getting tomatoes and cucumbers from the garden. I love fresh summer vegetables. I wish we had planted a larger garden so I had extra to can and freeze. We used to have a larger garden at the back of the yard but the deer would invade it every night and munch on everything, so we gave up and went with the garden squares closer to the house.

Mazie Grace brought a mouse into the house the other morning and let it go. It ran under the china cabinet in the diningroom She sat for awhile, waiting for it to come out, then got bored and went in the other room for a nap. Mollie Ann sat on the scratching box in front of the china cabinet and watched for awhile, then she fell asleep. I have lazy cats. Hubby went to the hardware store and get a mousetrap and we caught the mouse. Why do we have cats?




Mollie Ann waiting for the mouse to run to her.

Another winter storm ............

Much of the Northeast got slammed with another big snowstorm last night. This winter has been brutal for a lot of people. We got a little snow mixed in with rain yesterday afternoon, but it was melting almost as fast as it fell. This was my front yard when I got up this morning.



You really can't see the snow. It showed up a little better in the backyard.



You can see a little dusting way back in the corner of the yard. Also you can see a little on the pool cover. How I wish it was hot enough to be in that pool with the sun shining and a gentle breeze blowing. I'd be floating around with a cool drink in my hand and some good music in the background. There would be thick, juicy steaks on the grill along with corn on the cob. Homemade ice cream would be in the freezer. Oh, excuse me, I was daydreaming ... back to winter and snow.

We have been lucky this winter compared to some of you folks. We've only had 2.5 inches of snow since the first of the year and a total of only 10.5 inches for the whole winter. We seem to live just to the south and east of most of the storms. I'm not complaining. If I see snow once during the winter that's enough for me.

Mollie Ann has completely recovered and is back to her usual pushy, demanding self. Mazie Grace is still not eating in the house, but I found the remains of two moles, a bird, and one unidentifiable creature in the yard. She has been busy hunting her own food. She has always preferred prey to manufactured food.

I've been trying to make myself get off my butt and do something. I did clean out kitchen cabinets yesterday. I should get some paperwork together for the tax returns, but I'm going to grab my Nook and my blanket and relax for the rest of the evening. There's always tomorrow .....

Back again .........

First, I want to thank each of you for your thoughts and prayers for my Dad. He passed away around 4:00 Saturday morning. I'm glad his suffering is over and that he is at peace. He lived a good, long life (96 years). He wanted to be at home and I'm thankful that we were able to keep him there until the end. We had services for him this afternoon. My brother-in-law played the guitar, and he and my nephew sang a beautiful hymm. My cousin, who has been farming Dad's land since Dad sold his cows, is being deployed to Afghanistan this week and couldn't attend the funeral. He wrote a touching rememberance of Dad that his son read. It was truly a celebration of his life.

We don't usually have many visitors, but over the weekend there were lots of people going in and out. Maggie May is terribly upset over all the strange people smells in her house. She never has been a friendly cat - usually hiding under the bed when someone comes and staying there for at least an hour after they leave. She had been crying and pacing the floor all night, until I finally calmed her down a few minutes ago. Mazie Grace is out and about on her nightly hunting expedition. Last night was very productive - she had a squirrel and a bird for breakfast this morning. Mollie Ann is in the garage curled up on the rocking chair, resting after filling her fat belly.

Our weather has been sunny but cool. It finally feels like fall. We haven't had a frost around my house yet, so my flowers are still blooming. The tomato plants look better than they did all summer, and I have lots of little green tomatoes that will probably never ripen. We will have to start getting up leaves before long - they are falling fast. I haven't gotten used to the idea of fall yet, and before long Christmas will be here. Seems the older I get, the faster time flies.

I'm off to catch up on your blogs - if I don't fall asleep first.

Please vote ............

Tomorrow is election day. I hope everyone regardless of party gets out and votes for the candidate of their choice. Voting is a right and an obligation.

I haven't seen the little black dog again. I hope he found his way home. Our next dog will find us one of these days. If one doesn't show up at our door, we'll visit the local SPCA.

The cats are not getting along any better, but they do try to avoid each other. Maggie May is the main instigator of trouble. She is very jealous and has quite a temper. Hubby was petting Mazie Grace the other afternoon, while Maggie was sitting close by watching his every move. He was ignoring Maggie, so I told him he should pet her too. When he tried, Maggie hissed and growled at him and tried to nip his hand. A few minutes later, she jumped on his foot and tried to bite him. She wouldn't let him touch her until several hours later when all seemed to be forgotten and forgiven. Maggie thinks she is the top cat in this household.

I may not get to update my blog for awhile. My Dad is not doing well, so I've been spending most of my time trying to care for him. He is refusing to eat or drink anything, so we have to continually force liquids into him. I'm afraid he won't be with us much longer, so I want to spend as much time as possible with him.

What's been going on ........

Nothing exciting going on here.



We decided it was time to cut down our over grown shrubs.



We took two huge trailer loads to the landfill.



Then, we planted new shrubs that hopefully will never get that big.



I made a larger shelter for Mollie Ann and put it on the far side of the shed. No one has used it. Mazie and Mollie both use the smaller one I have on the deck. I may move it closer to the house. I put insulation in this one using rigid foam insulation so it will be cozy when it gets cold.



We just finished staining the deck and pool deck again. We put a thick coat on this time, so I hope it will last several years.



We've been picking up walnuts every other day. The black walnut tree is full again this year. They are very destructive to lawn mower blades, so we have to get them up.



And, I've been busy trying to keep the peace with these three females. We haven't had any bad fights yet - just lots of hissing and growling. I think they are beginning to accept the existence of the others. All three are in this picture. It's the first time the three of them have been in close proximity. You can just see my tomato plants in this picture. I'm still getting a few small tomatoes and some cherry tomatoes. It won't be long before I'll clean out the garden beds.

As you can see, we've been busy, but not with fun or exciting activities.

Computer problems and cat shuffling ......

I use HughesNet to access the internet. I have a dish similar to our DirecTV dish on the roof and receive signals from a satellite. Wednesday night I lost my internet connection. It is very rare for me to lose the satellite signal, but since we were having heavy rains moving into the region, I thought that was the cause. I tried several times thursday to get online and still had no luck. Of course, we were in the middle of our heavy rains, so even though I was beginning to go into withdrawal, I assumed everything would be operational as soon as the rain departed.

Friday morning I awoke to clearing skies, so I sat down at the computer to check my email and blogs. I still couldn't get online! Now I was really getting a bit anxious and was feeling online withdrawal. I called the local firm that originally installed my dish to report that I was having problems. They came out that afternoon and had me online in no time. The cover to the receiver on the dish was cracked and water had gotten inside, so they replaced the cover. I have now caught up on my email and blogs. Life is back to normal.

We are still shuffling cats around in order to prevent fights. The nights that it was raining, we kept Maggie May and Mazie Grace in the house so Mollie Ann could stay in the garage. I got Hubby to buy a larger tote and some sheets of foam insulation to make another shelter to put behind the shed. Directions for the shelter are here. We'll keep the smaller one on the deck since Mazie Grace likes to sleep in it. Maggie May is still determined to kill Mollie Ann. That seems to be her major goal these days. She sits on the deck watching and waiting for her to come. I have to bring her in the house so Mollie Ann can come up to eat every evening. It keeps me busy trying to keep the peace around here with three female cats.

Shelter .........

We finally got some much needed rain yesterday. It was a real treat. It's been a long time since we had a cool, wet day. We're hoping for some more tomorrow.

I did worry about little Mollie Ann, however, since she has been living in the wooded area beside the house. I had seen instructions for a simple shelter for feral cats in a recent issue of the Humane Society's magazine All Animals. I had an old storage tote that I wasn't using, so Hubby and I cut a door in the side, put an old towel in it, and set it on the deck. We may move it behind the shed so it will be closer to where Mollie Ann stays during the day.

I don't think Mollie Ann has used her shelter yet. Mazie Grace discovered it this afternoon and she spent all afternoon sleeping in it. That's her in the picture. At least I know that one of the cats will use it.

Our nightly visitor .............

Several weeks ago, I caught a glimpse of a strange cat several times when I went outside. Once I saw Mazie Grace chasing it across the back yard. Then I started to notice that occasionally all the dry cat food that I would put in the garage for Mazie Grace would disappear if we left the door open after dark. Hubby and I both came to the conclusion that this might be another homeless cat dropped off beside the road by a heartless and cruel person.

We started putting a bowl of dry food beside a bucket of water on the deck every night. I would watch at the window. Every night as soon as it gets dark, she comes up and eats her food and drinks some water. She seems to stay around the deck all night. I don't know where she hides during the day. If she sees any movement at the window she will run off, so she is very scared. I can't get a good look at her, but she appears to be gray and white.

I've got to try to gain her trust so I can get my hands on her. If she is not pregnant already, I need to get her to the vet quickly. Of course, Maggie May and Mazie Grace are not very happy that this stranger is coming around their house.

I cannot understand people who will take a cat or dog they no longer want and drop it off beside the road - left alone to hunt for food or starve. All of our pets except Maggie May have been throw aways that we have taken in. They all have been sweet and loving animals. Looks like we may have cat number three.

Deer and kitties ....................

I hadn't seen the albino deer lately, so I was hoping nothing had happened to him. Last night I looked out the kitchen window around 8:30 and saw him in the field beside the house. He later came up in the yard with his three friends and they chased each other around the back yard. I was relieved to know that he was okay. I wish I could get a better picture, but it's always too dark when he gets closer to the house. I'll keep trying.



We have been a lazy bunch lately. Mazie Grace has been sticking close to home since her week away. This is how she spends her days. Every once in awhile she'll get up and turn around, but that's the extent of her activity. She'll go out at night for a couple of hours and then she's ready to come back in. I think she gained a huge appreciation of home while held captive somewhere else.




Maggie May thinks she is the queen of the neighborhood. She loves to chase any dogs who happen to invade her yard. I just hope she doesn't pick on the wrong dog one day. She caught a bird last week and was so happy and proud of herself. She's been trying to get one for months. She would spend hours stalking and lying in wait for one.

I have been even lazier than the cats. My left shoulder and neck have been hurting nonstop for the last four or five days - my arthritis is acting up. I can ignore it for awhile, but then I get really aggravated by it. I think it may be a little better today. The garden is wilted and turning yellow in places. I've been watering, but we need a good soaking rain. We've been eating squash, cucumbers, and onions. The tomatoes are still green and aren't growing very fast - they need water now to make big juicy tomatoes. I'll keep trying my rain dance.

Come on out and play with us Mr. Mole .....................

Maggie May and Mazie Grace have been hunting moles. Since all the snow melted and it got warmer, the moles have been busy little creatures. They've dug tunnels all over the yard. Mazie Grace has caught a couple this week. Maggie May has never caught one, but she wants one bad. She will sit and stare at a mole hole for hours waiting for it to come out. If she ever manages to catch one, she will be one proud and happy cat.

I've been trying to do a little spring cleaning. I've gotten one bathroom scrubbed from top to bottom and I'm working on the other. I spent the morning removing old grout and putting down new in the hall bathroom. Since I tend to be a perfectionist, anytime I attempt a job like that it takes me forever. Once the grout dries, I will scrub down the walls and woodwork. ( I lead such a glamourous and exciting life.)

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It's cloudy today, but it's still suppose to reach the mid 70s. We're finally having some nice warm weather. I have a lot of clean-up work to do in the yard and I'm anxious to start planting in the garden. It's really beginning to feel like spring.

Camouflage ...............

Mazie Grace and Maggie May were so glad to see the sun today. They both went out early this morning and played in the back yard until I brought Maggie May back inside a few minutes ago. They chased each other through the leaves and had a jolly good time. They both seemed to blend in with the colors of the leaves.

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It was a gorgeous day - in the 70s and sunny! I spent as much time outside as I could. A welcome relief after our days of rain.

Cats and snakes ...............

Maggie May did not go outside at all the first two years of her life. However, when Mazie Grace moved in with us, Maggie May didn't understand why Mazie Grace got to go outside and she didn't. Maggie May has her Daddy wrapped around her paw, so he gave in to her crying and let her go outside. Now she wants to be outside all the time. She chases grasshoppers and butterflies, and she actually chased the neighbor's dog off the deck. I'm hoping all the exercise will take a few pounds off her, since she has gotten quite chubby. I prop open the door to the garage just enough so she can run inside if she needs to.





Mazie Grace enjoys having Maggie May outside to play with. They will chase each other and play hide and seek in the flowers. In the picture above Mazie Grace is watching a mole hole, waiting for the poor critter to come out and get eaten. She still hunts but not as much as she did when she first came here. There's always food in the dish, so she doesn't have to catch prey in order to survive.

I have been occupied for the last week with problems at my Dad's house. One of the aides saw a black snake in the basement when she went down to wash clothes. Of course, everyone was then afraid to go in the basement and were also uneasy in the house. I got an exterminator out to remove the snake. The exterminator seemed to think there were possibly more snakes in the insulation on the ceiling of the basement. They came back and removed all the insulation and did find another snake.

We then had to clean a lot of junk out of the basement. I took away seven pickup truck loads. The exterminators came back today and sprayed the basement and all around the house for pests and put down mouse bait. I'll go back tomorrow and take a few more things out and give it a good sweeping. Hopefully that will take care of the problem.

After working all weekend at Dad's house, I came home with a renewed determination to tackle the junk around here. It's so easy for things to accumulate in a garage or in closets. I'm going to go through and donate to Goodwill or freecycle everything we don't use.

Now, where did that mole go? ..............

Hubbie gets up early and usually leaves for work before I get up. This morning after he got to work, he called to inform me that there was a mole somewhere in the house. Earlier, Mazie Grace had cried to come in and he failed to see the mole in her mouth before opening the door. She dropped it in the livingroom and it scampered off under the sofa. He said she looked for it for a few minutes, then gave up and went to the food dish, ate, and went back outside.

I wasn't very enthused to have the creature somewhere in the house, but I figured one of the cats would eventually catch it. A couple of hours later I noticed Maggie May creeping around and looking at the electric baseboard heater in the livingroom. I got a flashlight and checked - sure enough there was the mole. I called Mazie Grace inside, since she is the big huntress in the family, and showed her where the mole was..

Mazie Grace saw it hiding in the heater, and she taunted it for a few minutes, but it wouldn't come out. Maggie May was sitting a safe distance away watching, not quite sure what to do. Mazie Grace got bored rather quickly since it wouldn't run and she left the room. I retrieved her and informed her that since she brought that creature inside, she had better catch it and take it outside.

I got a yard stick and prodded the mole so it would run out of the heater. I thought at least one of the cats sitting there watching would pounce on it. But no - they just watched it run around and back under the heater. I tried again, this time it ran under Maggie May. She made no attempt to catch it and didn't seem concerned that she was sitting on it. It ran back under the heater.

By this time, I was scolding the cats, calling them lazy and useless, and threatening to cut off their food. They didn't seem to mind - they were sitting and watching me chase the mole around with the yard stick. I finally got the mole over to the front door, opened the door, and got it outside. Once it was on the porch, Mazie Grace wanted to go out and get it. No way!

I had to have a serious talk with the girls later. I reminded them that they were cats and it was their job to keep rodents out of the house, not bring them in. Do you think they listened?

Relaxin' ...........

Maggie May



Mazie Grace

Wish I could get that comfortable! Since the weather has gotten so hot, both girls are staying up all night to play or hunt and sleeping all day.

Maybe we can be friends ..........

Maggie May and Mazie Grace are gradually becoming more used to each other. Mazie Grace tends to ignore Maggie May, and Maggie May keeps her eye on Mazie Grace the whole time she is in the house.

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We've been letting Mazie Grace in several times a day. At first we closely supervised the two cats. I did not want them to start off by fighting, because I was afraid they would never be friends if they did. I think Maggie May was afraid of Mazie Grace, she definitely did not trust her. This is the first time Maggie May has even seen another cat since she was just a tiny kitten..

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We would let Mazie Grace stay inside until the hissing started, then we would put her out. So far, we have not had any fights and we are not having to supervise as closely. Each day they seem to get a little more comfortable around each other.

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Hopefully one day they will become friends and will learn to play with each other. Mazie Grace is not a house cat, she does not particularly like being inside. She has not learned the rules of being inside, such as "don't jump up on tables, etc.". I guess it all will take time.

My baby girls ........

Maggie May --



Mazie Grace --