Saturday, February 1, 2014

Half assed lotion -- try # 1

Crumble up/knife shave some beeswax into the bottom of a 2 cup measuring cup
Drizzle in some calendula infused olive oil to get to around 4 oz
Put in a spoonful of shea butter

Stick the whole thing into a pot of water like a double boiler
Heat until mostly melted
Pour in a few ounces of aloe juice and drip in a dropper full of vitamin E oil
Heat whole thing until melted

Allow to cool for a bit and then transfer the whole thing into my immersion blender container.
Put 6 drops of geranium oil on top and let sit for a while.
After the oil on top of the aloe juice forms a soft skin on the top, blend with immersion blender for a few minutes and then let it sit for a while more.


It didn't turn out well. I don't know why I thought it would. The aloe sat in beads in the lotion, it had a bizarre consistency, and it got moldy really fast. That was a serious bust.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Loss and kids

Last month we discovered our sweet friend T-Rex the cat is not going to be with us much longer.

I took him to the vet because he was breathing a bit hard, and I was petting him and felt a lump that seemed weird. Worried that he may have some kind of intestinal blockage or something similar, I took him to the vet.

Not a big deal, he's young he'll be fine. The vet advised me that there was no lump, but that she was concerned about the breathing. Maybe it's heart worms... but they are treatable. She advised I get a lung X-ray for my panting kitty. Then we will know better what might be going on. Off T-rex went to the back for an X-ray and out came the vet looking concerned a while later.

"He has fluid around his lungs, it doesn't look good," she informed me soberly. We discussed options and I gave the ok for her to aspirate the fluid around his lungs to make him a bit more comfortable and check him for leukemia. She came back looking a bit confused. It wasn't fluid around his lungs and she wasn't sure what it was. He was also negative for leukemia, so she thought it could either be FIP or some sort of hernia where some of his organs were up around his lungs.

After some more discussion, and texts to my husband, and tears, I decided to have him checked by a ultrasound tech. For that he stayed at the office until the afternoon and the mobile lab went to the vet to check him out. Turns out he has granulomas around his lungs AND on one of his kidneys (remember where I was told I was crazy and he didn't have a lump?)

This is probably from dry FIP and we have no clue how long he has. He has been on fish flavored steroids for a month now, but his kidneys are now huge. I can feel them when I pet him. The panting is gone after the steroids though. He seems relatively comfortable but he's really slowing down--- at only 1.5 years old.

It's been a blessing to have him with us this long. He's our "foster failure" --- one of our first foster cats who we just couldn't part with. He loves life, loves the girls, is gentle and friendly with huge ears and inquisitive eyes.
Cuddling with our foster mama cat

Ok OK, i shouldn't have put the wreath on the cat tree

Helping us with our Easter celebration


We've been discussing sickness and death with the girls. It's been hard to discuss but I feel like it's better to take the mystery away from this process. They've known he was really sick from the moment I brought him home from the vet, and they know soon he won't be with us. I gently remind them occasionally that he is still sick and is unlikely to get better. I remind them to be gentle with him. That's all I can do for now.




Thursday, April 25, 2013

They grow and grow and grow

My tiny girls are much much bigger now. I can't believe I haven't really posted for two years! Ivy turned 3 recently and Lorelei is now 4.5.

I'm trying to decide if I should start blogging again. I'm wondering if I have enough to say. I always have plenty of pictures, but not the words to go with them.


Thursday, July 7, 2011

On letting go..

No, nothing bad has happened... I realize now that the title of the post sounds like it did. But I have been overly stressed, grabbing at straws and trying to figure out how to make things happen, which I saw this quote on someone's Facebook feed. I added some texture and a nice font and thought I would share. Maybe it will help someone else too. 



Remember

Friday, June 3, 2011

Ivy turned 1!

We had a fun cake smash with Ivy when she turned 1! Actually we did it with her little buddy Maddie because they are only a few weeks apart, one baby at a time.

Cake smash

Cake smash

Cake smash



She had a great time exploring the messy cake, and an even better time when we let her sister jump in and help.

Cake Smash

Cake smash

Cake smash

Happy late Birthday to my beautiful tiny girl!

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Anti-procrastination month follow-up

I'm setting this to auto post on the 1st of June, so I can't cheat and not follow up. Hah! Tricking myself even!

Here's my list, with notes of what I've done (and links to blog posts if I blogged them)

Craftiness:
Finish the stuffed bunnies I am making as baby shower gifts (all three of these babies have been born now!) finished 2 bunnies, planning to sew a (simpler) tiger or elephant for #3. 5/3
Add straps and applique to Lorelei's sun dress I started last year added applique-- having problems with the straps
Make pillowcases for Lorelei
Make a pillowcase and mattress for the doll bed
Make the "sunshine" pillow I bought supplies for
Paint Lorelei's Letters for her room
Dye "festival dress"
Dye the experiment underwear
List the dyed stuff I have sitting around on Etsy!
Finish Lorelei's birthday silks having some problems with the colors. First attempt has been made

Photography:
Fully edit my personal bluebonnet sessions
Get friend's maternity session booked and shot Done! And edited too! 5/6
Get John's newborn session at least booked Shot and edited! 5/30
Schedule C and A's toddler pictures

House Work:
Finish sanding bench 
Varnish bench
Finish digging new flower bed
Buy pots for tomatoes
Plant tomatoes
Put mulch and path gravel down
Start on the second bench




Stuff not on the list that took over some time:
*Finished our porch  ceiling that has been messed up for a few years now! I'm so glad that is done...
*Went on a 9 day trip to Virginia--- shot a wedding (mostly edited!) a set of graduation photos (done!) a set of portraits for a friend (done!) ad a whole bunch of family photos (about half done)



Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Tomato Planting

From a few weeks ago.. so behind on my blogging, but at least I got them planted before I went on vacation!
I bought pots and even planted my tomatoes (given to me by a neighbor) the same day.

Notice that mound around the pepper plant? Ivy's been digging


 Dirt around her face...

 Yep... gross tasting.

Lorelei loving the rainbow-ness of the new pots. They were a bit more expensive than the plain ones, but solid plastic (not hollow walls) and hopefully will last quite a few years. Plus, they make me smile.

I put them in front of our big drive in gate, because we rarely open it and that expanse was just dying grass in the Texas sun. We can't put permanent beds there obviously because we do use the gate sometimes, but it sure is nice to see something growing there!