The Wild Cat Comes In

Gracie, our wild cat, took a little trip to the vet last week to be spayed and get a rabies shot. She was a very good girl in the crate, which amazed me, as she threw a fit whenever I tried to bring her in the house! I picked her up the next day, and was told she had been in heat. Whew! Glad we went ahead with things. Due to her "condition" we were instructed to keep her in the house for 2 weeks. Ahhhh! She's wild!

Well, I am pleased to say that Gracie is now a happy little house cat. She shows no desire to run back out into the cold (wet) wild. I thought she would be freaked out in the house, but no....it's her new playground. She took right to her litterbox - how did she know what it was? She has only ever used the great outdoor clay of the mountains. But hey - I'm not complaining!

Gracie has also taken right to sleeping in the bed with us. She attacks our moving feet, then just cuddles right up. Now I have a dog AND a cat pushing me out of the bed! Zoey and Gracie have become great friends, although I do think that Zoey is a bit worried that she might lose even the tiniest piece of my heart and attention. I'm glad they get along!

Now the question will be....will she want to go back outside. We really wanted and in and out cat. Outside to catch and eat those little mousekins. I'm hoping she will enjoy returning to the outside for fun and frolic, and come inside when the weather is not so pleasant. Regardless, we love having this sweet fuzzy gray girl in our family.

Gracie...our wild cat.

Not sure if this will play....it's the snow falling!

Gracie...just waiting for a juicy bird!

Here you can see our bird feeder and one of our big fat cardinals...

Snow Day

We had a nice snow today...it just kept coming...a little of it stuck! Now the fun part will be going into town in the morning, as we are supposed to get somemore tonight.

Still making gnocchi...

Here Josh and I are rolling the gnocchi...Zoey
finds it all so amusing.

Making Gnocchi

Preserving a family tradition

Here I am in the kitchen, peeling some HOT boiled potatoes, in preparation for making some Italian Gnocchi. My husband's mom taught us how to make this delicious potato pasta before she died, and we try to keep the tradition going. We made a huge batch, and had some for Christmas Eve dinner, and for leftovers that week with our son and daughter-in-love. Yum!

Parents in Black

Here's our most recent family portrait...taken for our church directory. Man! No one told us the background was black! I love being a floating head! Oh well, it hides those extra pounds!

My resolution to not make resolutions

Once again a new year rolls around, and we give thought to our resolutions for 2007. For the past several years, I have resolved to NOT make any resolutions, as I am not great at keeping them. So instead, I will think of things that I would like to do differently this year.

1. Walk more. I did pretty well with this for a while last year, after receiving a Type II Diabetes diagnosis. However, I did not follow through. So, my goal will be to walk more and more often.
2. Eat right. Ditto for the above. I just love to eat, okay? And I love to cook! So, I guess this year my goal will be to try to make delicious dishes that don't over do it! ooooh...sounds like a cookbook title!
3. Pray more. We all pray when we feel we are at last resorts. Prayer should always be our FIRST resort. If we really believe what we say we believe...then prayer is the way to go. I want God to really show Himself to me this year....really WOW me. So, I need to pray, and spend a lot of time listening, too!
4. Stretch. I want to stretch myself in lots of ways...physically, mentally, spiritually; in giving, in reaching out, in loving, in being real; in my gifts, in my crafts, in all that I do. Lots to work on there.

Okay. That's enough. If I even attempt all these areas, I will be doing well in 2007. How about you?

The Big Snow of '06

We had a nice snow storm this time last year. Here's a picture on our deck, with Harold, the snowman.

Joel, Robin, Josh, Suzi and Louie

Reflections on 2006

What a year, 2006. While our life in the mountains has remained relatively quiet, this past year has brought major changes in the lives of some of our closest friends. We've seen 20 year jobs disappear in a blink, loved ones die suddenly, babies born and more.

In all this, I know one thing, that God is sovereign, and He is love. There is a plan, and so often we can't see it. Keeps us holding tight to His hand, one step at a time.

So, what will 2007 bring? Hopefully we will see fulfillment of some dreams, the beginnings of other dreams. Maybe Father will give us some insight into why some things have happened, or if not that, He will begin healing up those open wounds so that all will be strong, and ready for whatever He has instore.

I pray that this year we will have....
lots of people to love and time to love them
songs to sing, both old and new, with old friends and new friends
food and fitness (can they actually co-exist?!)
laughter
fun
coffee
good books and movies
revelations divine
passion for the Word
a desire to grow spiritually
freedom to be all that we are in Jesus