When it was finished she had to bring Mr. Rat up to check out their new toy!

I always turn on the shower before I get in and let the warm water run out anything that has been sitting in the pipes all day…so tonight as always I turned on the water than left the bathroom for literally a few seconds. When I returned I opened the curtain to see Nari sit in the tub just out of the flow of water…So I decided to help her out with her curiosity of the water…To my surprised to enjoyed being in the shower. She looked like a drowned rat afterward but at least we know that if we ever have to bathe her it won’t be so hard. I love this cat!

Zack and Cokie put together a “U” “S” “A” made from some Blue Morpho butterflies and two other species that I am not sure of but they were red and white and one of my co-workers and I decided to make two Patriotic Mealworm King Cakes.

It was a pretty fun day and I am glad we have something for the guests tomorrow that has some American colors in it.

The past 11 days have allowed her to get comfortable with us and our home…and boy is she comfortable. She watches TV, attacks monsters under the blankets, and will even climbs in the shower sometimes…while the water is running…

She has some hiding places that she believes we know nothing about and as you walk by she attacks…never using her claws, though, which Phil and I are happy about.

We are so glad that we decided to get Nari. So far she has been the best!

So Audubon has been doing more for employee appreciation in the last year, and now that I am in a better mindset than I was 6 months ago, I can appreciate more of the things they are doing…One thing that I have learned in the last few months is that you can’t squeeze blood from a turnip. What I mean is that Audubon has slowly but surely been climbing out of the recession. At one point, and I can remember this, Audubon made sure that all of their employees knew how much they were needed and appreciated. Now that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, they are getting back to showing this more (who can go wrong with ice cream?). I am really glad that I moved away from that negative frame of mind that I got caught in and can see that while this place his its share of politics, it’s has more good points and rewarding moments than I could get anywhere else. I can honestly say at this moment that I love my job and I love the people that I work with….most of them…

So, Friday we had an ice cream social at the Insectarium. It was delicious Haagan Dazs and it was  left in the freezer of the Common Room (the lunch/meeting/office room). Today, the left overs were found and we converged on the poor, helpless, 2 gallons of cookie dough and chocolate chip ice cream. They never had a chance…We tried every plastic and metal utensil we could find to get the yumminess out, but everything kept breaking….So Jayme brings out the garden trowel! Cleaned of course…we’re not animals!

I have pictures of the event but since they have ANI logo’s on them I am technically not allowed to use them.  However, if you can imagine 5 people who all LOVE ice cream, they just found a means of scooping the sweet goodness into cups, and they are acting like they have never had ice cream before in their lives, than you have your picture. It was so much fun to let loose at work and have everyone on the same level.  It was a good day! 

We decided that we were going to go to the St. Tammany Humane Society because they are a no kill facility. They had quite a few kittens to chose from and it took us about 30 minutes to make our way to the little tortoiseshell that was waiting, quite calmly I might add, in the last cage. When I picked her up she rolled on her back and both arms flopped to the side, her eyes closed, and the purring began. I think I just looked at Phil and he knew that I wasn’t leaving that building without that cat. So now…we have a 4 month old cat…we think is a Ragamuffin or Maine Coon. She is the sweetest kitten I have seen. She isn’t very hyper at all and goes through separation anxiety when we leave the room to go to the bathroom…

Phil has bonded with her nicely which surprised both of us because he has always claimed to be a dog person and always vetoed the idea of having a cat. Now that she has been home for a few days…and the tape worm is gone…she has let her personality show more each day. She and Phil are pretty inseparable and the pictures prove it… and I’m kind of partial to her too!

After 8 years and 2 deployments the Hub finally graduated from College. He received his Bachelors in General Management and I know that he was supper excited that it is finally over and we can move on.

Now the next chapter in our life will be starting sometime at the beginning of next year. Phil has decided to go back into the military. Air Force this time instead of being a grunt in the Army. He puts his packet in for an officers position in September and hopefully we will know something by November. If he does get commissioned that it is off to OCS for 3 months while I stay here. We won’t know where we will be stationed until he finishes with OCS. Military Intelligence should take us to some pretty interesting places and we both see this as the next big adventure in our life. After this…KIDS!

Some of my fondest summer memories from growing up was being at the beach. Up at dawn and flashlighting the crabs through the night, who needed to sleep when you have waves and sand and a pool and Lord knows what else.

This year my parents totally outdid themselves by giving all of us a trip to that beach we grew up on. Not only were we there for a few wonderful days but the condo that we stayed in was out. of. this. world. I wish the entire family could have been there but I’m so glad my Gina Bina was there!

Thanks Mom and Dad…and I am definitely in favor of this “grown up” Christmas!