Happy 1st Birthday Wink!!

October 23rd was Wink's First Birthday! Anneli baked her a special cake and we had a birthday party. Anneli planned it all (without our knowledge!). She invited Meme, Pepe and Aunt Val! Wink LOVED her presents!

They're Back!!!

The kids are home! After a long, long drive from South Carolina they got home about 1:30 this afternoon. Wink was so happy to see the kids and the kids were so happy to see her.As soon as they got home, Christopher started writing in his journal some more.
Anneli went right to her dollhouse after greeting her good friend, Wink.After eating a little lunch and enjoying ice cream at Pralines (Chris's favorite place!), we came home and here is what we are doing at this very moment.

Wink is watching from the kitchen window as Anneli plays in her little pool outside.

She doesn't take her eyes off Anneli!

Anneli is full of energy!

What did you feed her Mom & Dad!?

Christopher is quite the opposite.

He is EXHAUSTED from his week long adventure in South Carolina!

I sure hope he sleeps tonight!!

Playdate!!!

The temperature got a little warm today. It was the first day since April that we had 90 degree temps! It's hard to believe, since it's already mid-July! Anyway, I was afraid it was going to get too warm in my parents home with no air conditioning for their dog Lily, who Shaun & I are taking care of while they are gone to SC with our kids! I brought Lily over this morning so she could be in the AC at our house and hang out with Wink and I. It might not have been such a great idea...

Here is a picture of Lily riding in the car, on my lap, to my house across town. Guess she's not the biggest fan of a ride in the car!

Wink, our kitty, and Lily have briefly met before. They weren't friends, but they weren't enemies either. Lily was petrified of Wink. Below is a picture of Lily on the couch thinking she is safe from Wink, but guess again dog! Wink would jump up out of nowhere and scare the poor dog! They weren't too sure of eachother, but I think Wink just wanted to play. She has really missed the kids this week. I will also admit, Wink was very possessive of her home when Lily was visiting. We had never seen her this way before. It was entertaining to watch. During Lily's visit, she just couldn't relax, she was always watching out for the cat.
When Shaun got home, we drove Lily back to her house so she could calm down and have a relaxing evening. I have never seen her so happy to leave our house! When we pulled into the yard, she was sooooo excited to be home.

I don't see how Lily could be so afraid of our sweet little friendly Wink.

Isn't she precious.....

It Was a Long Day...

What a peaceful afternoon...

Run, Kitty, Run!!

This morning we had some friends from church over. The girls, Anneli and her friend Elisabeth, had a blast playing with play dough, Littlest Pet Shop, stuffed animals, and of course with our kitty Wink. They got Wink to sit in a stroller and they pushed her around and around the house. It was funny to see how the cat would hold on to the stroller, but she didn't jump out right away! We couldn't ask for a better cat!

Watching Anneli play with Wink reminded me of my cat when I was growing up. I was probably about her age and I had a calico cat named Dusty. I'm not sure if Dusty liked it, but she tolerated strolls in my doll carriage, being put to bed in a baby cradle and wearing dresses and hats. What fun my sister Jess and I had with our kitty! I'm so glad that Anneli can have a friend like that too! :)

Did you ever have a special pet like 'Wink' and 'Dusty'?

New Addition to Our Family!

On Friday, April 24th, we adopted 'Wink' from the Connecticut Humane Society. We went there looking for a kitten and when we saw her we (Anneli, Christopher, Meme and I) fell in love instantly. She is a 6 month old domestic shorthair cat with the most beautiful eyes!! She is the sweetest, most friendly cat we have ever seen. She is more like a puppy than a kitten. She loves to cuddle, sit under the table when we are eating, to follow us around and is the sweetest little thing! We love her!!

FYI--We couldn't come up with a name for her that we could all agree on. Anneli wanted to name her Flower and Christopher wanted to name her Finny--so we compromised and kept the name the Humane Society gave her, 'Wink'.