pets

A little bit of baby talk…

Posted by: melissa in about me, animals, kids, marriage, pets 2 Comments

I need to get something off my chest. I have been married for eight years, together for 12. I am a 35-year-old woman with a husband, a dog, a cat and a tortoise. No children. This is nobody’s business.

Since the day Dave and I stepped off the plane returning from our honeymoon, I have been asked about kids. That was in 2008. That is eight years of the same question regarding my uterus.

I don’t know why people think it is an ok question to ask repeatedly. I have friends who can’t have children. I have friends who have lost children. What if this was the case with me? Do you want me to say that to you when you ask this question? Honestly, I want to know. I want to know if you want to feel as uncomfortable as you are making me.

Luckily, for me, this not the case. I am 35 and honestly just got to know myself. I feel as though I just learned how to take care of myself. So maybe right now, I don’t feel 100 percent ready to take care of a child.

People who know me know I love kids, so this is not a shot at people with kids or kids in general. I have nothing but respect for parents. I watch some of my best friends work full time and raise children. It blows my mind.

Yes, Dave will be an amazing dad. Yes, I will be a great mom. This will all happen when we and my body are ready. Until then, we will continue to focus on our marriage, our friends, our family and our adorable animals. And I hope you will do the same.

28Apr

A little bit of birthday and baked chicken…

Posted by: melissa in cooking, dinner, food, pasta, pets, recipe Comments Off on A little bit of birthday and baked chicken…

Yesterday I turned 35. I woke up expecting the fear of old age to set in, but it didn’t. I thought maybe I’d be sad that the days of my youth are officially over, but I wasn’t. I woke up and thought let’s do this. The outpouring of good wishes, love and even flowers was amazing. Gosh do I love my birthday.

I celebrated just like any other 35-year-old would. I drank copious amounts of wine with Dave, ate sushi and stayed up till 4 a.m. Facetiming with Tomdee (my best friend who just moved to Denver). Needless to say I was hurting today. I spent most of the day on the couch cuddling with Ivy, watching The O.C. on Hulu (Judge away. That show is freaking fantastic.) and napping.

Once 4:30 rolled around, I was like crap Dave will be home soon and LOOK AT YOURSELF. So, I showered and did what any amazing wife would do. I cooked.

It turns out all those things you just have laying around your kitchen, if you combine them, they make a meal. When I say this, I mean I typically run to the store that day to get what I need. I think most of us do. I dug around a bit, searched the Bible of recipes (Pinterest) and voila! a meal. By the way, did anyone else’s Pinterest get messed up today? I got kicked out of my account like someone was trying to hack it. I tell ya, the popularity from this blog is getting out of control.

Anyway, I went with the baked garlic parmesan chicken. Basically you mix together mayonnaise, garlic and parmesan cheese. Plop it on the chicken and bake it. Super easy. Then you top with Italian seasoned bread crumbs, which I didn’t have. I had plain. Like who even uses that? But I did have all the spices to make my own because I am a pro in the kitchen these days.

Then I decided that wasn’t enough. I wanted to add a veggie or something. I found frozen tortellini and thought why not? Keep in mind I am basically a zombie moving around the kitchen at this point. I went back to the Bible (I promise to stop calling it this.) and found a delicious sauce, whipped that shit up , threw some bread on the side and called it a day.

Well, not exactly. I was rushing around in my zombie state and almost overcooked the pasta. I am a maniac in the kitchen. Like stay out of my way, I have a million things going on. (It would literally be the worst cooking show.) I was rushing to strain the pasta and still had my oven mitts on. One got wet. I then went to get the chicken out of the oven with said mitt and burnt the crap out of my fingers. So, lesson learned, don’t use a wet mitt. After that ordeal, I decided I was better off on the couch with my animals. So, if you need me, that’s where I’ll be.

7Apr

A little bit of two cats, two eyes…

Posted by: melissa in animals, cats, crafts, painting, pets Comments Off on A little bit of two cats, two eyes…

If you were to cut my heart open, you would find that a large chunk of it is purely devoted to my love for animals. When I was asked to paint wine glasses featuring not only one, but TWO one-eyed cats, my heart swelled. I have never painted animals before, so I was extremely nervous. I mean it’s basically like painting someone’s child. Pet owners are crazy! I know. I am one.

Frankie Jean (the darker one) and Jovie Jade are one-year-old cats, who coincidentally, are both missing an eye. Frankie and Jovie were adopted from C.A.R.E Rescue in Columbia, SC. When Frankie was found, she was a sick little kitten with a terrible eye infection. In order for her to make a full recovery, her eye had to be removed. Jovie was hit by a car as a small kitten and had many injuries, including a broken mandable. As a result of the trauma to her face, her eye also had to be removed.

Frankie and Jovie, currently living in South Carolina with their loving owners, are happy and have no idea they are different from any other cat. They spend their days running around as fast as they can, climbing on their cat tree and taking naps in their favorite sunny spots.

In addition, like me, they love social media. Frankie and Jovie are the co-owners of their Instagram and Facebook accounts. Their goal is to raise awareness for special needs animals and prove that they deserve happy fur-ever homes as well. Also, they’re kinda famous.

27Jan

A little bit of Ivy…

Posted by: melissa in cooking, food, pets, recipe Comments Off on A little bit of Ivy…

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I am an animal lover. Like the crazy kind that chases dog walkers down the street, so I can pet their dog. I would break my television before I would watch another Sarah Mclachlan commercial. I cry at animal videos, happy and sad. And sometimes I cry about injured animals completely out of the blue. It’s awful, but it is something I want to turn into a positive at some point this year, whether it is through volunteering or dog walking.

Knowing that, you can imagine my love for my own animals and how sad I am to be traveling on Ivy’s sixth birthday. She is an adorable corgi with an abundance of energy and a bark you can hear down the street. She will fetch a ball until she cannot physically move and she loves, loves, LOVES to cuddle. She lays at the end of the bed to protect us every night and hates to have her feet tickled. She loves playing under a blanket and enjoys my midday dance parties.

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We got her nearly six years ago when we had our other dog, Clover. Clover is a corgi mix we rescued from a shelter. She is a sweetheart, but from the beginning we could see the difference in the two dogs. Clover was a ball on my lap on the way home. Ivy barked the entire way. Clover was a bully with her toys. Ivy was timid and scared. After two years together, they started to not get along. It was heartbreaking. After more than a year of vicious fights, terrible bites (both the dogs and us), numerous vet bills and even a dog whisperer, we had to separate the two.

I have been against getting animals and giving up on them for as long as I can remember. This tore me apart. Fortunately, Clover adored my angel of a mother, who graciously took her in. After a week or so of tears and lots of anger towards Dave, I came around. Visiting her now, I see how happy she is and Ivy is much happier being the alpha dog.

Right now, I work half at home and half on the road, so I have the privilege of being home with Ivy most days. She has gotten me through some bad times with a cuddle and lots of licks, so because I am missing her birthday, I thought I would make her some pumpkin peanut butter dog treats. IMG_6722 (1)

The recipe was only four ingredients, whole wheat flour, eggs, pumpkin and peanut butter. It was super simple, which I like. Mix, roll, cut and bake. I didn’t have any fancy cookie cutters, so I used an empty pill bottle to make circles. This recipe made a lot of treats, and I swear she knew I was making something special for her. Happy Birthday, Ivy. Thanks for all the smiles.