Dogs

Beachy Birthday

Posted by Lisa Eirene

So this is 39!

For my birthday this year we made the trek to Depoe Bay to spend the weekend at an AirBnB house at the beach with friends. I’ve been looking forward to it for months! Saturday I went to the gym and then we packed the car and left after lunch.

The house we rented was SO GREAT!!!! It was called the “OctoMojo House” and it was a block from the beach with amazing views of the giant winter waves. There was a nice deck (which would be great in the summer time) and a hot tub and you could hear the ocean. The house had two bedrooms on the main floor and then a loft bedroom upstairs with even better views.

We unpacked and our friends, Sam and John, hadn’t arrived yet so we decided to take advantage of the nice weather and go for a walk on the beach!

You think Logan and Bella were having fun in the sand?!?! It was kinda gray and cold but it was dry so that’s all that mattered! We walked and ran and got super dirty. Then started to walk back to the house.

Our friends arrived and we made dinner. Pork tenderloin they had been marinating all day in lemon, ginger, soy sauce and garlic. It was delicious! We had salad and couscous, too. And fancy Trader Joe’s cheese with crackers while we cooked.

And opened a bottle of wine I’ve been saving for almost a year:

After Logan went to bed, the four of us got to chill out in the hot tub and listen to the ocean and just catch up on life. It was nice! And relaxing. I loved being able to hear the waves. And smelling the ocean air.

Sunday was a lazy day. It was stormy and rainy and the waves were even bigger. Breakfast was delicious omelettes made by Michael and Samantha. I actually got to enjoy my coffee while it was HOT. 😀

Then Logan and I went for a little walk outside in the drizzle.

Sam and I drove up to Lincoln City to Mo’s to pick up takeout lunch. It was nice to get away for a bit and have some time just the two of us. We got an order of Mo’s famous clam chowder and an order of clam strip appetizers.

I’ve wanted to try Mo’s for years but the lines are SO LONG we never go. I’m glad we finally got to try it! It was delicious! Creamy and tasty and hot on a dreary day. After lunch Logan took a nap, I took a short nap and then chilled with some hot tea and a good book. 🙂 Eventually there was a little break in the rain and Logan was still sleeping so Bella and I went for a walk on the beach just the two of us. It was nice!

Sunday night dinner was made by Samantha, with me helping prep the veggies. I brought chicken thighs and she brought the stuff to make an AMAZING curry dish! All fresh ingredients. She even showed me how to use fresh ginger (which has always intimidated me so I never bought it, now I want to try it!).

We opened some wine, turned on some great music and hung out in the kitchen while the boys did their thing in the living room. Then dinner was served. Curry chicken and veggies on top of mashed potatoes! SO good! Topped with fresh cilantro and green onion.

After dinner, Logan ran laps through the house 😉 and then went to bed and we played a few rounds of my new Family Feud board game (super fun!), more hot tubbing and then to bed for the great night of sleep I’ve had in awhile. Breakfast the next morning:

Scrambled eggs with green onions and diced jalapenos, bacon, topped with cheese, a side of toast and fruit salad. Monday the weather was just perfect. There was blue sky and rainbows.

I love the beach. Year round, doesn’t matter the weather. Stormy, sunny, whatever. The beach is in my blood. Someday, I will live at the beach. 🙂

New Addition

Posted by Lisa Eirene

I took Friday off from work and went down to Cat Adoption Team in Sherwood. I used to volunteer there a million years ago. I loved being a volunteer! It was so enriching to spend my weekends cleaning cat cages and socializing the kitties to get them ready for adoption.

I’ve definitely felt like there was something missing from my life since Yggdrasil passed away. 

I wasn’t ready for another kitty for a long time. I definitely grieved for those first few months after he died. I cried a lot. I was heartbroken. I was sad. I missed him. I still miss him. But I’ve felt lately like I wanted to think about getting another kitty. Maya has been coming out of hiding since Yggdrasil died. She never used to. She was 100% bonded to him and did not like people. But once she was all alone, she started coming out at bedtime wanting pets and cuddles. It’s been sweet but she still hides most of the time.

I went to CAT with an open mind, prepared to not adopt anything. I found two boys that seemed to have the personality I was looking for. The first was a kitten.

His name was Sonny (his sister was Cher). He had a big personality already! So cute, so fluffy, so affectionate. I picked him up and he immediately became a purr machine. I was in love! I seriously thought I found the cat for me. I decided to keep looking, just in case, and found this guy:

His name at the shelter was Billy Bob. He just turned 1 at the end of October. He had a kitty cold from the shelter and one side of his neck was shaved from an IV so he looked a little funny. 😉

I met with Billy Bob in a private room and he was such a lovebug! He was super chill and sweet and loved to cuddle. He was SO SWEET. I was a little freaked out that he looked so much like Yggdrasil, but I do love tabbies. He’s a brown tabby, with white paws and a white heart on his chest.

He jumped up on my lap and we cuddled and he got comfortable. I kind of felt like he picked me. So I ended up taking him home. They sent me home with some eye drops for his kitty cold and he was super quiet the entire drive home. He just chilled out in the carrier. When we got home I set him up in the bathroom, where he’ll be for a few days.

I put one of Bella’s blankets in the bathroom (so he gets used to Bella’s scent) and he immediately made himself comfortable. He got a makeshift litter box, toys, food, water and a cat scratcher. I dimmed the lights and just let him calm down.

He seemed unbothered by everything. He did really well in the bathroom. He didn’t destroy anything (like a kitten probably would). I checked on him often and we cuddled and I brushed him (which he LOVED).

By Saturday night, New Kitty was sick of the bathroom! He kept trying to escape. He did so well in there, though, and didn’t destroy anything. He just chilled.

On Sunday afternoon when Logan was sleeping, and Maya was hiding in the bedroom, I let the kitty out to explore. He walked around the whole house (except for the two closed bedrooms) and explore every inch. He rubbed on the walls, sniffed everything, was particularly curious about Maya’s cat dishes and Bella’s water dish, and then went into the living room to meet Bella.

I had this fantasy that Bella and New Kitty would be best friends. I was trying not to indulge in the fantasy just in case…but New Kitty was FEARLESS. He must have lived with a dog before. He walked right up to Bella, sniffed and rubbed his head on Bella. I have an adorable video on Instagram if you want to check it out.

I *think* his name is Stevie. We are trying it on to see how it feels. I love his little white paws. They are so cute! After making the rounds and checking everything out, he picked his spot:

And we relaxed and watched newest season of the Great British Baking Show on Netflix. 😉 I ran some errands later in the day and when I got home, Stevie, Michael and Logan were all cuddling together on the chair watching Star Wars. It was pretty adorable.

On Monday, I was off from work and I let Stevie out of the bathroom to roam free. He found Maya under the bed and they both just sat under the bed next to each. It was pretty adorable. Maya pretty much lives in the bedroom, so it’s no surprise that she’s hiding right right. The fact that they aren’t hissing, growling or fighting is a great sign, though.

Last night I woke up in the middle of the night and saw this:

Needless to say, Stevie seems to have made himself comfortable with our family right away. 🙂