Pet Christmas

We got Oscar a really cute puffy vest for Christmas.

Unfortunately he is a little too pudgy for it. We need to exchange it for a larger size.

Stewie loved his Christmas gift, a new cat bed, so much he couldn't wait until the wrapping paper was removed to crawl in.

Here are a few more pics I took with my iPhone - he fits in the bed perfectly, looks like a cat danish. Despite shoving Oscar with his foot, Oscar finally got a chance to try it out himself. Maybe Oscar was feeling jealous after his too-small puffy vest.

Christmas Themes

As if it's not enough that I have a theme for each Christmas, Aaron and I have started mini-themes for our gifts for each other. This year he wrapped my gifts with a penguin theme.

Couldn't be cuter.

My theme for his gift wrap was "You got a deer - it's a Christmas miracle".

He didn't think it was as funny as I did.

New house: Living room

Aaron and I still have a lot of unpacking to do and won't be starting to paint very soon, but here are some pictures of the living room in the new house, the first room I have unpacked and organized... somewhat. When you come into the living room and look to the left this is what you see.

There is a large window flanked by two built in bookshelves. There is also a lazy cat and pug.

I have included them in the shots for scale.

Directly in front of you is a door out onto a patio and two windows.

To the right is a fireplace... we put the tv on one side and the couch on the other.

It's a brick wood burning fireplace with a wood mantle. There are two small window on either side of it.

And the couch is what you see to the right of you when you come into the living room. So there is 360 degrees of the living room. I am thinking about painting it a light grey. Next up will be the dining room when I can get some shots in bright daylight - which is at a minimum these days.

Pet of the Week

This kitty has possibly the best Pet of the Week name I have heard yet - Cheddar. Imagine the fun you could have with that... "Pass the Cheddar!"... holiday cards of him laying amongst crackers. And Cheddar is a tripod! Cheddar deserves a nice new home for 2010, so if you have one for him go and pick up the cheese!

Cheddar - #9229641

Cheddar is a 4-year-old male cat who was brought to Lollypop Farm after being abandoned and then getting injured. One of his hind legs was so badly hurt that it needed to be amputated by the vet clinic at the shelter, but Cheddar is doing well now and is ready to be adopted! We don't know much about his history, but Cheddar is a sweet and slightly shy kitty. He likes petting and attention once he becomes comfortable. Cheddar really deserves a loving, permanent home! - Lollypop Farm

Squos

The squirrels in our new neighborhood are so chubby. Tina pointed out that they look more like chinchillas than squirrels. I can see it will be a battle over the bird feeders this winter.

Relax

The holidays can be so exhausting. Today is the day to take a load off and relax... like Oscar here.

Stewie is also an expert at relaxing.

Merry Christmas!!!

Here is our holiday card this year. It was a holiday/we moved! card. Today will be a flurry of wrapping paper and eating turkey at Grandmas. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!

Holiday Roadtrip Mix

This year's handmade gifts aren't as "handmade" as other years - we have been so busy with moving and unpacking. This year I burned CD's with my favorite Christmas music.

I made envelopes out of maps in keeping with my "traveling for the holidays" theme. The CD labels came with extra labels and that's what I used for taping the envelopes.

I stamped each CD with our name and labeled them with a Sharpie.

I made them for all our friends!

The Holiday Roadtrip Mix fits right in with my theme. Above is the other labels I made for wrapping, a license plate from the North Pole.

Christmas Theme - Traveling for the holidays

I think I can safely reveal this year's Christmas theme. I have been collecting maps to wrap presents all year - thinking the theme would be a recycling Christmas. Once we moved I thought the theme worked better as a sort of moving/road trip for the holidays. Hah!

I really loved wrapping gifts with maps - they worked out so well.

I made tags that are our our Smart Car and Mini Cooper with moving boxes/presents tied on top.

Stewie was soooo helpful when I was wrapping gifts.

Smoking Guy

I got two of these smoking guys last year in Germany. You put incense inside and the smoke comes out his mouth. I haven't used it because I was a little nervous about putting a burning cone inside a wood object.

I finally gave it a shot and it worked pretty well. This does not mean I condone smoking for real people.

New Starbucks Ornament

My Starbucks ornament collection has been slowly growing.

This year I added a little cold drink cup - love it! This is what I get my iced coffees in during the summertime. So cute!

Christmas Brunch

We had a Christmas brunch this morning with Chuck, Tina and Lauren. I love brunch! We had fruit and sausage bubbles & squeak...

... and Aaron made ebelskiver - stuffed Swedish pancakes! Yum... chocolate inside!

Then we exchanged Xmas gifts. We got Lauren a set of cleaning toys! Not sure if that is a present more for her (or if she actually uses them, a gift for Tina)

She had a good time scrubbing Oscar.

Wall Hanging

Aprille made me this cool wall hanging as a housewarming gift. You would never believe what it's made of... toilet paper tubes!

It looks nice hanging above our Christmas fireplace mantle.

Spritz Cookies

Aaron had a craving for these spritz cookies... we found a recipe in Betty Crocker.

I had a spritz cookie gun that was given to me a few years ago.

I also just bought a vintage one at auction that had completely different patterns!

It worked just as well as the new one...

... and we were able to double the number of cookie patterns!

Cookies - nom nom nom.

Packaging

Someone in the office got an order from ThinkGeek and I just love the packaging cushions that came in the box! First it is recyclable and second it says funny things like "Come with free monkey breath inside".

Jenny the Pug

Have you ever seen the website for Jenny the Pug? I can't believe how much we have in common. We both like to have pumpkin carving parties, go shopping, sit on the beach and bake pies. I think if I were a pug, I would be Jenny the Pug. It would be great if her owners name was Oscar.

Lollypop Farm: Pet of the Week

Look at those big moisty brown eyes! Stuart needs to lose some lbs but what a cutie! Classic Snoopy Beagle dog!

Stuart - #9164825

Stuart is a 6-year-old beagle mix who was transferred to Lollypop Farm from another shelter. At 90 pounds, Stuart could stand to lose some weight, so he’d love an owner who will take him for daily walks. He won’t just like the walks for exercise – because with his beagle background, Stuart loves to follow his nose! Stuart has lived with dogs and cats before, but he needs to meet any dogs in the household before adoption, as well as any children. Stuart is eligible for our Seniors-for-Seniors program, so adopters age 60 and older can take him home free of charge!