Sweet bunny boy

I have sad news in the furgalicious department.

Feffer has gone to heaven. :(

It's been a long time coming, as Feffer was nearly eight years old and the past two and a half years he has been going to the vet. A lot. Finally, his little hind legs were tripping him up so much I couldn't stand seeing him like that any longer.

I went ahead and made the decision to have him put to sleep because I would be heading back to Auburn soon, and I didn't want Girl Tuesday to have to worry about him if he got worse. I also made the decision because rabbits have very fragile spines, and I worried, with the way he was falling all over his cage, that he would snap his spine. Maybe it's not possible, but maybe it is. Ultimately, I just couldn't stand to see my "firstborn" (term used loosely, obviously) suffer anymore, and I think he was kind of getting tired of it, too. (He didn't finish the few craisins I put in his bowl, as well as the corn cobs I left for him when I went to bed.)

I was a wreck making the decision. First, I'm on the fence about ending lives, as I value all life. (See, I'm not a pure liberal.) Second, October is a popular month for death in my family. Grandaddy, my father, Roxy Go-Go, and now Feffer. Third, well, he's my baby. Fourth, we've been through a lot together - homes, boyfriends (again, term used loosely), colleges, jobs, happy times, sad times - I could go on. Basically, he saw me from being a fun-loving, party girl in college to being a fun-loving, borderline party girl who's a full-fledged grown up.

I was able to take all of his supplies to the vet so they could make good use of them, and I dropped him off with his favorite vet techs (along with some favorite treats). I wrote him a little note. And after I had done everything I needed to do, and felt like I had said my goodbye sufficiently, I went to Walgreen's and stocked up on SmartWater, Reese's, and Kleenex. Then, I went by McDonald's and treated myself to a large, real Coke and a hot fudge sundae (no Bailey's).

By the time I got home, I actually felt better. I was afraid this was going to devastate me more than I am already.

I am also comforted knowing Feffer and Roxy are reunited. Maybe Feffer will introduce Roxy to Lady (the only dog I have ever owned, and she was THE BEST DOG EVER).

Happy Monday: Furgalicious Edition

This evening or tomorrow morning I will be snuggling away with "z bebes." I only have Feffer with me in Auburn because I'm not so sure about the cats. Tux and Boston, no doubts. But Pru, well, she's special. She doesn't do cars. She likes to dart. She fills with terror when others have to get in the carrier. So, I'm debating whether or not to bring her. I don't want her to dart into the parking lot. I don't want her to vomit her intestines. I love my Pru-baby. I also don't want to separate her from Tux and Boston. The three of them are a good team.

Feffer will be reunited with his feline siblings.

Tux will have some Vera to snuggle in.

Prudence will have someone to sleep with.

And Mommy will have her Boston Go-Go again.

Living it up

I'm linking up with Kelly's Korner for "Show us your Life Fridays". This week is living rooms. I'm doing my Auburn one, since it's where I live now (but stay on the lookout for my Birmingham mantle!). Keep in mind the room is mostly finished, but I still have a little more to do.

The Auburn condo is really small, and considering I love to entertain, I have to make the best of my space.

People ask me all the time about my furniture and "things" around the place. So, I'm going to fill in some of my decorating tips and where I got the things, as much as I can remember.

I think the best way to describe the theme of this room is "things I LOVE." I originally wanted to do an animal print theme, but it turned into a room that defines me. (By the way, I am going to have to SEARCH to see if I have anything from Pottery Barn in here. I haven't noticed it yet, and you all know how much Girl Sunday loves her Pottery Barn!)

This is the living room from the front door. My "studio" (not quite complete) is to the left, my bedroom to the right, and, duh!, the "kitchen" (te-niny!) is in the back. Also in this picture, in the bottom left, is the rabbit cage.

This is the view from my "studio". To the right is the entertainment center.

Here is the view from my bedroom. Obviously, the entertainment center has some work to be done on it. I got it at Lowes, but you can find wire shelves almost anywhere - Lowe's, Home Depot, Target, KMart, Wal-Mart, etc. Be sure the shelves can hold at least 350 pounds each, and that it is wide enough for your TV. (Back when TVs were square we didn't have to worry about that!)

To the left of the sofa are my beloved books. I found the "Peace" and "Dream" wall art at Target this summer. The bookcase is from Pier One, about six years ago. It's their "Dakota" bookcase, back when "Dakota" was black iron with copper undertones. 

This is the detail on the table and chairs under the pink flower (from Ross). I LOVE this furniture set. The copper color is beautiful and really helps tie the room together (I broke a rule and mixed metals, as well as black and brown). The result is actually better than I ever would have thought. I think the key is using tonal browns, so the colors blend and complement with the black.

All Most of my books. I love to read! I haven't read all of them yet, but I have read most of them. The top shelf is philosophy, books to read, and Christian. The second shelf is humor and literature (the picture has a cute litte frame story ... maybe I will share later). Third shelf is history and reproductive health. Fourth shelf is lifestyle and reference. And, finally, the bottom shelf is yearbooks, and miscellaneous.

Also in this picture is the best glimpse at the sofa's color and texture. As with most things in this room, I also love my sofa. It's brown velvet, but it has gray undertones, which help tie the brown into the black accents the developers used. I got the sofa last year at Auburn Furniture and I think it's by Broyhill.

Here is my favorite chair. I got it last year from Pier One. On clearance! And I saved a good bit extra by opening a credit card with them. The chair is purple velvet, and when I got the picture of the pink flower, I had originally intended to put it in my bedroom, but I saw it sitting in the den, next to the chair, and realized it went really well in the room. The chair pulls out the purple used in the painting, so it's not so intense in the room.

I mentioned earlier about using browns that are tonal. The best example of that is this trunk (in the bottom of the picture) I got from Target. It was originally a bedroom linen trunk in Birmingham, but now it is my "coffee table". Notice how some of the "reeds" (is that what they are?) are black and some brown and there are varying shades in between? That's what I mean by tonal.

Onto my console. I got the shelves at Hobby Lobby on clearance, and the table at Target. The glass candle holders are from TJ Maxx, and I put coffee beans and tea lights in them. I ALWAYS keep fresh flowers. Just because :) The turquoise/blue/teal vase in the back has dried roses from my old resident manager. (The vase is also from Pier One, about six years ago and I believe is called the "Peacock Vase". Again, it has some copper in it to help tie the room together.) I used to have a bulletin board covering the fuse box, but it fell and I need to work on that some more. :(  The peace sign is a Girl Sunday original. It can be found at my upcoming craft business' website.

When I have parties, I clear the console table and use it to display food or paperwares.

"There was an old bunny who lived in a cage under the TV ..."

Yea! Feffer is back in Auburn! Sweet Bunny Boy is almost eight years old (i.e. really old for a rabbit).

Thank you for visiting! I look forward to seeing what everyone else has done with their living areas. And, thank you, Kelly, for hosting!

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Oh, Boys

I've been having boy problems lately. (Perhaps, lately is an understatement ...)

It seems that my old next door neighbor only thinks of me when I'm in Birmingham. Let me just put this out there: he's in Auburn, not only does he know where I live, he's been to my place in Auburn, and he knows my car. Last week, I was sleeping away, minding my own business, when I hear my phone whistlin' at me. "What's up" he says. "Not much [lie]. You?" I respond. "Same here. Just thinking about you."

The nineteen-year-old me would have thought, "Awww. How sweet."

The jaded me thinks, "Why do you do this when I'm not in Auburn?" and then the Black Eyed Peas start floatin' through my mind. When the phone rings at two in the morning it only means one thing, baby.

So, do I channel the former me or stick to the BEPs?

I say there are only two people who can get away with calling me in the middle of the night. He's one of them. The other, he's sleeping. Why can't my dear former neighbor learn to do that? (Seriously, if you need someone to talk to in the middle of the night. Or take you to the hospital. Or bail you out of jail, but only if it's some trumped up charge or for a good cause - I'll be there for you. 'Cause I'm nice like that.)

In other boy news, The ex-Boyfriend was in true form yesterday. He was over to pick up his cats, as divided per the verbal break-up agreement, after being out of town for a week.

First, I asked if I gave him my old quilt. It's basically a navy blue, was on my bed for a few months, and is not the gray comforter he has. I made that very clear.

He SO brought over the gray comforter.

"I vaguely remember something other than white," was his response when I tried to explain for the ga-zillionth time what I was looking for.

Then, I noticed little Zoe has a crab claw growing out of her front right paw.

He seemed to be under the impression that cats' nails molt. No they don't. So, Zoe-cat stayed with her mommy an extra night so I could drop her off at the vet this morning.

In conclusion, my old neighbor needs to make a point to text me in the middle of the night when I'm in AUBURN and The ex-Boyfriend needs to learn the difference between gray and blue and a comforter and a quilt. (I think he's been schooled on the nature of cat nails.) And even though he has those moments all the time, The ex-Boyfriend is a much more reliable pick to keep company with than the old neighbor. Someone better man-up before I go back to the familiar four-year-long road I had with The ex-Boyfriend.

There will not be no birthin' babies on the Pottery Barn

Y'all, don't judge me.

I have 11 cats living in my house. And a rabbit.

First, the rabbit, Feffer. He's old and he behaves and the only person he ever showed interest in was my old neighbor.

Then, my boyfriend has had Mister Cat since before we started dating.

Then, when I was getting ready to move out of Mom's house, I had the opportunity to get some cats of my own. Two. The Go-Go Girls, Boston and Roxy.

Then, I had the opportunity to get just one more cat, Prudence. Y'all, I have a soft spot in my heart for black cats. I don't know what it is about them.

THEN, a little over a year ago, just when I thought I was beginning to get settled in my new house, I started hearing these kitten cries coming from the privacy fence that shields my complex from the not-so-fancy apartments behind us. Zoe and Miso came to join what I had already begun calling the Furgalicious crew.

Raising the babies, Zoe and Miso, was a lot of fun. In hindsight, of course. So much fun that I began wanting to raise more kittens. "It'll be the first time in two years I haven't had kittens!" I would moan.

Quickly, I got over that and decided I wanted a HUMAN baby instead and decided to focus my efforts on finding a husband.

Well, y'all, all I can say is: be careful what you wish for.

The day before I left for Auburn to close on my condo and begin a new stage in my life, and maybe get to work on that finding-a-husband-and-getting-a-human-baby-of-my-very-own business, this very pregnant cat, a kitten herself, shows herself after crying at me from the bushes all week.

This Cat Momma knew what she was doing. She knew I would be sympathetic, but she knew I would make her stay outside. So, she waited until Mom and the Boyfriend were both at my house to make her debut.

She looks just like Zoe, and we all know the Boyfriend has a much softer spot in his heart for animals than a good, strong, Southern girl any day.

"I promise I will take care of her," he said while looking up at me from the ground, hovering over this Cat Momma who had decided to worm her way into my Grand Plan.

I went straight to work in the guest bedroom, trying to pack up what would be moving with me, but it was just too much, y'all. Cat Momma was ruining my plans to use the spare bedroom as a place to put all the packed boxes and I was getting increasingly overwhelmed.

So, I did what any one with half a grit for a brain would do and I surveyed the danger zones: the big, un-lidded Rubbermaid boxes with stuff I can't bear to get rid of, but have no place to put any of it, and the bed. Oh, my beloved Dakota bed, with the beautiful, DISCONTINUED Pottery Barn bedding.

Y'all, God bless him, if you leave the Boyfriend in charge of something as important as removing bedding from the premises, it probably won't get done. (Case in point: I had boxed up my champagne flutes and white wine glasses before Cat Momma put on her show, but I didn't have a safe place to put them since Cat Momma took over the spare bedroom. I told the Boyfriend to find a safe place for them, as I was leaving, and, guess what, y'all? That's right. They still haven't been moved! One week later. I shouldn't be talking, though. I can't seem to move them anywhere, either. Except for the guest bedroom, where the birthing suite is.)

But, I digress. I took charge the best I could and I moved what I could to the guest bathroom. Then I removed my beloved Mia quilt and shams from the premises to go on and make their new home in Auburn.

I still don't know what his contribution to preparing the guest room as a birthing suite has been, other than UNpacking a box and cutting it apart for the Cat Momma to NOT use after all, all while leaving the contents of said box on the den floor. Or maybe it was using my fine stainless to serve wet food to Cat Momma and leaving the spoon next to her bowls to dry. Or maybe it was squirting the calorie supplement for Cat Momma on the lid of one of my out-of-season clothes containers instead of putting it on the food, like the directions said.

Oh, well. At least I can say that I saved the Pottery Barn quilt from being the delivery medium of choice for Cat Momma.

Y'all, all I have to do now is figure out how to reconcile that I will be living in a quagmire for the next week and a half or so while trying to keep my hands off five stinkin' cute kittens that just had to be born under the Dakota bed.