Critters and Flowers

It’s become a bit of a zoo around my house lately.

As many of you know hubby and I have three cats, Rocky, Truman and Baby.

The two boys, Rocky in the front and Truman on the back, have Dad trained pretty good when it comes time to nap on the couch. We lovingly tell Dan he has become the old cat man. And of course all the in house critters know Dad is good for a tidbit or two (or three) when he is sitting on the couch eating.

 

  Our third cat is Baby, the white one on the left. Her and Truman are enjoying some sun. Baby doesn’t give up her sun spot to any of the other cats.

Ok, so those are OUR critters.

 

I don’t have a picture of her because it’s hard to get a good one of her through the aquarium glass, but we also have a resident ball python snake. Her name is Samantha, Sam for short. She’s about 7-8 feet long and as big around as my lower arm. I really don’t mind Sam. She is in a 50 gallon aquarium with a very well secured top on it. She is around 20 years old and actually belongs to my stepson. When he was going through a divorce about 5 years ago, she came along with him when he came to stay with us for awhile. He isn’t here anymore but somehow we still have Samantha. That’s ok though. She doesn’t bother anyone. I don’t mess with her other than to make sure she has fresh water. When it’s time to feed her that’s up to her dad to do, not me.

  Then we have Isabella, Bella for short. My step daughter is going through a divorce now and is staying with us for awhile. Bella came along with her, plus her black lab / pit mix dog. I don’t have a picture of the  dog yet. Her name is Abby who is around 10 years old and she is the sweetest gentlest dog.

Bella the skunk has the run of the house but she’s actually pretty shy and pretty much stays in the bedroom. She’s de scented. When I was up late the other night I heard her trying to sneak down the hallway. Kinda hard to be quiet  when you have such long nails and are walking on tile. Anyway, I heard her head into the bathroom to snoop around and was able to grab my camera to take a picture of her as she was coming out of the bathroom. When she feels you are invading “her” space, she raises her tail and stomps her front feet at you. The cats weren’t too thrilled with her at first but they have come to tolerate having her here.

So there you have it, 3 cats, a snake, a skunk and a dog.

  Then the other day when I walked out to the mailbox I saw this in the front yard. Hubby says it’s a deer track (which I thought it was) and it’s probably from a big old buck as big as it was. We live in the middle of a good sized suburban city but it’s not unusual for us to see deer, especially late at night and early in the morning.

 

Now for some pretties.

  My irises blooming in the flower bed in the front yard.

 

 

 

 

One of the lilacs from one of the two bushes my kids got me for Mother’s day three years ago. Being the third year for them, I finally had quite a few blooms this year. I love the smell of lilacs.

 

 

 

 

  And finally, our neighbor brought me over an assortment of peonies from his bushes. Every year when they bloom he either brings over a nice bunch, or comes and tells me the peonies are ready and “come pick all you want”. Which I usually do.

We have such nice neighbors.

 

On the health front: Still coping with my depression and anxiety. Probably will be a life long battle. We adjusted up my dosage on the Effexor. I have to say the depression is pretty much gone. Now if I could just get rid of the anxiety too. It’s better, but still frequently there. I have been getting out more, even going places by myself, which in itself is a big improvement.

Sorry it’s been so long since I posted, just hasn’t been a lot to write about. Keeping busy crocheting for the babies for God’s Tiny Angels. I should have a post about my newest donations in a few days as I have a box of items just about ready to ship.

Until next time, take care and hug your loved ones.