"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett

I was at the bookstore a few months ago and I almost picked up this book called "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett. Instead of buying it, I thought I would just check it out from the library. I found out the waiting list was so long, that I wouldn't get the book until April 2011. I made my request and forgot about it. Last week I saw a copy on my coffee table so I picked it up and after just a few pages I knew I would like it. My daughter's book club at work was reading it and Evan was trying to finish it before the next meeting. She finally gave me her copy this weekend. It's a great easy to read book.

Bea and her teddy bear

With all the talk about who is getting their forever homes, Bea found something to snuggle up to that won't be leaving. Daisy and Rosie have new homes and hopefully Sunny (mommy) will too. Poor little Haz, no one seems to want a male cat. I'm working with him to improve his cuddle game, which at pet fairs is very important. I've also found out he's a "stress" eater, so I make sure he gets something to eat after we get home of the fairs. Working in the studio today finishing up the 100+ valentine cards for our troops. Will post photos when I get them done.

Sunny may have a new home

I have my fingers crossed that Sunny may have a new home this week. She was at the "Other Living Things" pet fair on Saturday along with several other foster cats. She had nice cuddle visit with someone looking for a lap cat. Sunny is really chatty and I finally figured out that she is a big time lap cat. When I'm on the computer, Sunny is right there - see photo. Sunny's new mommy asked that she get another physical from her vet to make sure everything is OK before signing the final papers. We only need to find a nice home for little Haz now.

Merry Christmas 2009

This was one of the Christmas cards I made for my son for his present to his sister. He gave her the cash to pay for a very $$$$ parking ticket she got last month. Parking tickets in San Francisco are more like a mortgage payment! Anyone want to guess how much the ticket was?
This is the first Christmas my son hasn't been home. He's on a different deployment cycle, so won't be back until next year.
This morning we are getting ready for what we call the "Itatani food fest". Coming from a really large extended family we all get together for the holidays. It will be a smaller group this year, only 40 - 60 people.

Kitten Invasion

Mommy cat (Sunny) and the kitten have invaded my inner art studio. If I'm working on my computer and it's close to nap time, everyone piles into my office. Good thing I have two office chairs so we don't have to share. Had a major break through with Haz. He's not one to want to cuddle a lot but last night he let me hold him for 30 minutes but of course as soon as he woke up he farted and pooped on me. Usually it's Daisy that does that. Good thing I had my "please don't poop on me" shirt. Sunny, Haz and Bernie will be at a pet fair this coming Saturday. Here's the link to the store which I've been told is a pet boutique so it won't be as stressful as the last pet fair.

The perfect ornament

My hubby is not into the whole Christmas decorating thing. In fact I've sold off most of my collections for all the grief I get every year. This ornament actually made Mr Humbug smile and he asked when was I going to post it on my blog. :)
One of our good friends found it and had to get it for him. Two of his favorite hobbies, scuba diving and bee keeping all in one ornament!

Holiday Treats 2009

I'm not much of a baker but I'm a really good at bartering! Laurie, one of my card making buddies (she's in channeling Martha Stewart mode right now) made some great caramel candy for our Cornflakes(card making group)holiday party. They are really really good (how can you go wrong with mass amounts of butter and sugar!) so I swap some of my yarn stash for a big box of caramels. I made little bags to hand out to our neighbors along with some of our honey. I had to bag them up quick or I would have eaten them all. :)

High Maintenance Kittens

My foster kittens are so high maintenance. Had to take Daisy into the vet's last night. She now has to be given 3 meds 2X a day and a change in her food. I have to also stop her from nursing so I'm getting ready to have mommy cat Sunny go another foster home. Because of all the tummy issues, I have to clean the nursery twice a day mopping up the floors and washing the bedding. This morning I wipe down the walls,floors and bathtub with a little bleach. Then I search the rest of the house for any "little" accidents. I thought I was over furry butt washing, but the Dr. told me Daisy needed a little more help with keeping things clean. Group photo of the fur babies and Haz in a rare moment of sleep.

Iris Folding Green Card

I'm always looking for something interesting for my free card class I do down at the Japanese Senior center. Diane was nice enough to share one of her ideas about using tea bag wrappers and iris folding card. Not only is this a "green" project, the ladies will love it. I have to break my habit of crumbling up the tea wrapper when I open it. I'm so use to throwing it out right after I open it. :)

Kitty Butt Warmer

The kittens have found out how to turn off my computer by stepping on the surge protector's on/off button under my computer table. I found Daisy sitting on a transformer and wondered why she wasn't moving from that spot. All I could figure out was that it was warm and her butt was cold. She sat there for about 30 minutes, which in a kitten's world that is a long time. :)

Kittens Go Green

After weeks and weeks of cleaning a litter box filled with clay litter every two hours (it's better for kitten to use non clumping litter) and dealing with all the dust it causes, I broke down and searched for something better. One cat litter kept coming up as the best but it's name "World's Best" wasn't enough to convince me. I clean up the kitten nursery twice a day sweeping up all the clay litter they track everywhere and bedding. Now that Rosie, Bernie (Bea) and Daisy have been spoken for, I broke down and got the new "World Best" corn litter. OMG what a difference it makes! No more dealing with dust (it was causing mommy cat to cough) and no more clay litter sticking to everyone's paws which then gets flicked on to the walls and tracking it everywhere. I have to work with Daisy to get her use to this new litter. It's amazing the small places she has found to do her business.

Tomorrow is the big day for Haz and Mommy cat Sunny who will be going to their first (and we hope last) pet fair.

Photo: Haz and Rosie

A little snuggle time

Daisy is getting a little snuggle time in with mom before she heads off to the pet fair this weekend. Now that Sunny is no longer in heat, she is a very sweet and gentle cat. We have high hopes that she will find a new home before Christmas. Rosie (sleeping in the photo on the left) and Daisy have a cuddle date set up for Wednesday so one of them will have their forever home after Christmas. Poor little Haz will have to do the whole pet fair dance since boys are harder to find homes for. I swear his legs grew an inch this past week. It's hard to get a photo of him since he's always on the move!

Big day for the kittens

This morning we took everyone in to be "fixed" but Little Miss Daisy (1.6 lbs) and Rosie (1.8 lbs) were not big enough so they got to come back home and have breakfast. Sunny, the mommy cat is in heat again so we got her the doctor's just in time. The big news for the day was that Boris (on the right) is not a boy but a girl. Boris who's new name is now Bernie was the kitten I wanted to keep when we first got the litter back two weeks ago but the rescue person said she was a he. Since we don't think Mr. Purrcy would tolerate another male around the house, Boris/Bernie was not an option for us but she was always my favorite. I had to make a big effort not to get attached to her. We had decided not to keep any of the kittens but now that Bernie turns out to be female, I may get an early Christmas present. Daisy is super cute too and I know once someone holds her, she will have her forever home. Haz and Sunny will be ready for adoption at the end of next week. In the photo Daisy, Bernie and Rosie in the back.

Faux Holly Berry Card

Today is my day to volunteer at the Yu Ai Kai, the Japanese Senior in downtown San Jose. I know the ladies really wanted to do a Holly Berry type card but it take way to long to make. So I came up with what I call "faux Holly Berry". It has all the layers but no cutting. I used the Cricut cartridge "year of the child" and cut out the snowflake starting four inches and working my way down. I know it should have glitter but time is an issue so I used white StarDreams paper to add a little shimmer instead. The picture looks blurry but it's all those layers that make you think it is.

Cornflake Christmas

My card making group is meeting tonight for our holiday party. Since I'm on a triangle box roll, I made one for everyone in the group. I found these cute table name card holders (Michael's) in the shape of the Christmas ornament. They are flat on the bottom so they are perfect for my box. I used Christmas paper from my huge stash so not all the boxes match. I added a California lotto ticket which is now at 100 million.

Little Miss Daisy

Keeping up with all the kittens is a lot like have a new born in the house. Feeding schedule, cleaning up the litter box (every two hours) and social time. Having to make sure Mr. Purrcy is down for his nap out in studio or outside before the little ones can come out and play. Everyone has to be picked up and cuddled so they aren't afraid of humans. Little Miss Daisy (the runt) is doing well but is still very small compared to her siblings. She looks even shorter because of her white paws. I've been told they will be ready for adoption at the end of next week.

Over The Top Cookie Exchange

I was asked this week to help design something for an upcoming cookie exchange being done at a local private school. My buddy said there were prizes for the best tasting cookies and best presentation. Everything has to be homemade and since neither of us bake well, that was the biggest challenge. I was in the middle of unpacking all my Christmas decorations when I saw a small snowman from See's candy, not sure why I kept it but that gave me the inspiration for the cookie exchange. Snowman with snowball cookies (round Russian tea cakes made really really small) in a forest of trees. The Snowman doll (it's a woman) was handmade by Carol Kennedy, a local doll artist. The triangle boxes (one for each person attending the cookies exchange) holds the required 6 homemade cookies, which my hubby baked. With only a few days to work on it, I think it turn out well enough to win a prize. :)
Update: Won Best Presentation award

Bee Keeper Doll

Isn't this just too funny!!! It's a great doll for any beekeeper.
I've been busy cleaning up after the kittens (every two hours the litter box has to be cleaned out) washing bedding and sweeping the floor. I've also started to decorate the house for Christmas which means dragging in several super sized plastic containers of all my Christmas decorations. On top of that I went to visit my "dealer" (a retired antique dealer selling off his inventory) of vintage items to stock up on my booths. Let's just say my house is a hot mess right now.

Doll and photo by:
wee-mee whimsies