Happy B-day NewAnglican...

I have been thinking about it and I can't quite remember when I officially met JRD. I know I didn't know him our freshman year of college. I was hanging in some strange circles freshman year. I do know that I got to know JRD when I started dating his roommate our sophomore year. He seemed like a nice guy and I know he had a crush on my roommate, so it was all good.
We became better friends each year after. He and the rest of the boys hung out with me only because I was A's girlfriend. I was always around and they put up with me.
Our senior year was full of chaos, breakups, and my gaining custody of the boys. We officially became the Circle of Friends and they officially became "my" boys.
I can tell you that my friend JRD became like an angel our senior year. He talked me through many a hard time. I was thankful for him. I can never explain just how much that meant to me!

So, years later, JRD and I are still friends. He just went for an interview recently for a really great job... Here are some things he should have put on his resume...or at least some reasons for you to want to get to know him!

1. He is the cleanest person I know. When he was little, he stood OUTSIDE the sand box so he wouldn't get dirty... I kid you not!
2. He has very fresh breath.... Ask his wife... he brushes his teeth like every 20 minutes!
3. He has a dry, witty sense of humor. More than once, I have snarffed a drink all over the place because he made me laugh, mid-drink.
4. He is well read and can have a conversation about just about anything!
(he really can talk about things besides the book of common prayer, I promise)
5. He is the most spiritual person I know.
6. He has a favorite font. How many other people can say that?
7. He has a very lovely wife whom I dearly love.
8. He had the coolest wedding on the planet... and I got to have a little part of it.
9. He is the one we all go to for deep talks. He is the one we lean on in times of trouble. We only hope we have done the same for him.


Happy birthday my dear friend. I wish you many many more!!!

Another Quiz...

Those of us Pirates and even some non pirates have been taking quizzes lately... What is your pirate name? How evil is your blog? (How in the world can my blog be 62% good when Hugh's blog is 78% good??? hee hee) What useless talent are you? (I was Latin) What old classic movie are you most like? ( I was the Godfather... Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday)

And those have been fun and all...
Here is a new quiz for ya. Something that came from The Message...

Love from the center of who you are; don't fake it. Run for dear life from evil;hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.
Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Help the needy, be inventive in the hospitality.
Bless your enemies; no cursing under your breath. Laugh with your happy friends when they're happy; share tears when they're down. Get along with each other; don't be stuck up. Make friends with nobodies; don't be the great somebody.
Don't let evil get the best of you; get the best of evil by doing good.

Romans 12:10ish...
The Message

So, how do you rate? I don't know about you but I would be getting a pretty bad score recently.
The one that really kicked me in the butt: Don't be the great somebody. How many times do I need to remind myself that? How many times do I feel the need to be the great somebody. "Hey everybody... look at me!"
I swear I need sticky notes of that one all over my office! OH and the NO cursing under your breath business... hmmm.
Geeze!
I am working hard on being a friend who loves deeply, even when I am not so fond of my enemies.
It will take time, but it will come. More practice in the Hula Boola for me.
Until then friends, how do you rate?

pamper yourself...

My nose has been in a book for the last few weeks. I haven't had time to do the fun things that I love. I haven't had a chance to hang with the knit wits, talk to and be silly with the pirates, even hang out and say goodnight to BT! Ugh, life is crazy!
So I treated myself today. I looked at my droopy hair and my sloppily painted toes (the old nail polish was aptly named "computer geek") and decided I needed something different!
So, I went between meetings and got a hair cut and some brand new cutie cute toes!
I had never had a pedicure before this summer.
What a treat they are!!! I love them! I am hooked now!
Here is wishing something small like a new hair cut or new toes will help bring some light into your day too!


p.s. I took 5 photos of my feet and none of them turned out right. They don't look that freaky in real life do they?
I will try to post photos soon of the cute toes!

Ahhh Summer! Bye old friend! I will miss you!
Now heat, go away!!!

NO BIG SHOCK HERE!!!

My pirate name is:

Captain Bess Bonney

Even though there's no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you're the one in charge. You can be a little bit unpredictable, but a pirate's life is far from full of certainties, so that fits in pretty well. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from fidius.org.

I make scarves.

Yeah, you know I learned to knit this summer. It has become a great way for me to relax after a long day. It is a time killer when I am bored out of my mind, which lately hasn't been so often. And it has been a way to hang with friends. My Knit Wit group rocks.
When we get together, we have to find the comfiest chairs... so we usually go to Starbucks, although I hate coffee. What they lack in their supply of tea, certainly they make up for in the comfy chair department, so I go.
We sit and talk about stuff.
Breezy is the teenager of the group, so she usually fills us in on the life of a high schooler and we just laugh and laugh and remember the days. Tracy and I just are thankful we don't have to re-live being a teenager. We listen to music from the ipod and sing quietly. I mean, Starbucks has their share of freaks, they don't need us to add to the numbers.
We laugh and laugh till at least one of us cries. A prank call to Aaron (of The Story of Anthony) always happens. Poor Aaron! I don't know why we pick on him, but we do!
We each come with our own project to work on and we help each other out. Breezy is still learning, so she is making sample potholders. Tracy makes baby booties and kid outfits.
I love making hats, so I am usually working on one or the other, but now I am about to start working on a Polly sweater for Hugh. We love hanging with each other and being part of a group.

It all began though, our little group, with the scarves.

Let me explain. My friend Tracy hasn't been my friend for very long, so the details of this story are sketchy at most.
I will tell you the little that I know, and maybe you will understand.
Tracy was sort of a wild child in her younger days. She was in love with a boy and was dating him when he decided to move to Texas. She followed him here and then not long after, he stopped calling her. He just left.
That was the biggest gift he could have given her though because she found Steve. Steve is such a great guy! They married and not long after they were married, Tracy discovered she had ovarian cancer. It was serious.
She needed surgery and chemo stat! So it happened and these newlyweds, still glowing from the new union, had to realize rather quickly that they would not have a baby of their own. Steve had to walk every day through the nursery in the hospital, to get to his sick wife. Life creates the cruelest jokes sometimes.
Tracy has healed and now they are hopeful about adoption. They have filled out paperwork and gone though all the steps to adopt a baby from one of the Russian orphanages.
They know that at any minute, they could be called to go to Russia to pick out their baby. They also know that they must bring gifts to all of the orphanage workers. What a racket.
So, we make scarves. We make them for the workers and for the kids and for everyone Tracy needs to impress when she goes to Russia. We make scarves because we love Tracy and Steve and want them to have a gift from heaven.

The news from Russia is not good. They have stopped adoptions recently. The scarves just sit, ready for cold necks. The babies wait for parents while the government gets itself sorted out.

Until then, we will continue to knit scarves, baby blankets and little booties. We will sing and laugh and prank call Aaron. We will love each other and pray. That is the best we can do.

I literally work in a closet most of my day. I have an actual office, but I am never there. So as I sit in the closet, and as I travel between classrooms, I hear and see lots of interesting things.

Things I heard/saw today...
* The picture above is a gift from my little friend from "Nahlens". Notice the happy face? Notice the blue skies. He is healing so beautifully. :) I look forward to seeing his smiling face every day.

* ANTS!!! This morning, I discovered my closet is infested with ants. Could it be the fact that I eat lunch back there every day? hmmm... Anyway, I noticed a nice little line of ants, all going to one location, all working together. Then, there was this one ant... wandering away from the group. I thought, "You go little wandering ant!"
In life, I feel like that ant most of my life! I am either wandering away from the group because I am being defiant, or just because I don't know what the heck I am doing... Usually the latter, is the case. No matter what, I admired that little wandering ant.
I feel your pain, friend.

* Walking in the hallway, I saw a little boy peeking his head out of the bathroom. As soon as he saw me, he sang at the top of his lungs..."I feel good, na na na na na na na."
Yeah, honey, somedays after going to the bathroom, I am ready to sing that too!!

* From a substitute trying to teach safety..."If you get hit by a car, you might die, and that would be sad." uh, yathink?

* From the classroom next door, "What color IS Miss Muffett?" -isn't that up there with "what color is God"? Wouldn't we ALL like answers to that question that keeps us up nights!

* Thirty bright shining fifth grade faces tonight at the PTA meeting all singing "Lift Every Voice and Sing."
I was a slobbery, crying mess by the end of the song!

Hi. My name is Susie and I am a control freak.

they say the first step is admitting...

Say it slowly... I can do better. I don't need to take control...of everything.
I will not try to take over someone's classroom.
I will not make teachers cry.
I will be nice and represent the Hula
Boola to the best of my ability.

Scars...


Ok, here is a newsflash. I am not the most graceful person on the planet.
I try not to wear white shirts any more since every white shirt I own these days has some sort of stain on it.
I run into things, too, all the time as a matter of fact. I am considering a big padded bumper for the foot of the bed.
Hey, what's that bruise on your leg? Oh, the one that is the same height as the bed? Well, the corner of the bed moved in the middle of the night and attacked me.
So, this summer, on the mission trip, we did some climbing. Not huge mountain climbing mind you, just some treading on slickish rocks. So, surprise surprise, I fell.
I can actually hark back to the scene. I was trying hard to walk as carefully as I could, but something happened. My footing was off and I slipped. I didn't fall far, but I fell hard. My camera came crashing down on the rock and so did my butt and my right arm. All got bruised pretty badly.
Soon enough, I got bandaged, on flat land, and chastised by a bunch of teenagers for being so clumsy. Nothing like being chastised by teenagers to make you feel old and stupid. Oh and thank goodness this happened at the beginning of the mission trip so I could hear about it all week! What great fun that was!

So, three months later, the bruise on my butt has healed but the scar on my arm from the fall is still there.
I have been looking at that scar recently. I could get some "stuff" and make it heal, or I could leave it there. It is sort of a battle scar for me. A memory of sorts.
It becomes a division of time, in a sense. Did you know me before or after I met B? Before or after I moved to Indiana? Before or after the scar? See? It is a mark in time.

Today is September 11th... another passage of time. Everyone always says, "Where were you when you heard the news? Do you remember what you were doing?"
I remember I was giving my first graders a test and wondering if my husband and pen pal were all right.
September 11th changed our lives. It changed our world in so many ways. It made us angry. It made us stop trusting. It made us realize that we were vulnerable to our enemies. It also created heroes of great proportions.

Katrina is similar... life will be different now. Because of Katrina, people are living in churches, at homeless shelters, in major sports arenas. I know that Katrina has changed lives and has totally taken away more than I can imagine. Our schools are full and the town seems to be busting at the seams with so many bodies. Like I said before, Texas has opened up it's Big Tex sized arms and said, "Come on in y'all! Pass the fajitas!"
But that is the greatest part! I think it has given us hope. It has made us gain faith, and forced us to become the face of God to strangers. It is making us love, accept and grow. It is making us work together and wrap our loving arms around each other and heal each other.

My arm won't ever be the same again after that fall. I am convinced of that. Neither will we as people be the same again. Hopefully, because of this, we will learn, grow, and open up our hearts to each other like never before. We will mark our lives by those scars.... and we will be better for them.

Annie... Pet Art from Hugh...






More Art... this time from Hugh... Man Genius... and BESTEST of all!!!
Isn't this awesome????
:) He rocks!!!

just some art given to me recently from the Boy Genius.
:)
I love that little man!

My MOM...

There is no other way to put it... my mom is.... EXTRAVAGANT.
I had to check the spelling twice by the way!
My mom is so awesome and since today is her birthday, I thought I would create a little ode to her.

My mom and I have been pals for a long long time. My poor dad sometimes feels slighted, knowing that when I call the house, it is really to talk to mom and he becomes the middleman in the process.
My mom is incredibly intelligent. She gave me my love of books and my thirst for knowledge.
She reads entire encyclopedias for goodness sakes!

Me: Hey mom, what are you doing?
Mom: Oh, nothing much, just reading.
Me: Really, something new and cool?
Mom: oh yeah it is cool but not so new...
I am reading all of the Ms in the World Book.
It is great!

Yeah, that is a real conversation I would have with my mom.

She was a speech and drama teacher for years and years so who can even wonder where I got my sense of style? I wear the tap shoes and she wears the medieval capes.
Then, she became an elementary principal. Let me tell you, that was a shocker... going from attitudinal high school kids to kindergarteners that pee all over the place! But she did it in style. I never worked for her, but I have a feeling I would have liked her as a principal. She knew that what was important was teaching kids. She did everything in her power to make sure that happened.

Then, she retired and spends her time making quilts, playing with her crazy cat, teaching adults how to read, and singing in the church choir, and organizing her things. Yeah, she is a Virgo... we forgive her if her cans are organized by color in her pantry and her spices are alphabetical. We love her anyway.

But I think the most incredible thing about my mom is how great she did with me. As busy as she was with speech tournaments and play competitions, and teacher crap, she never never never made me feel unimportant. She always worked really hard to make me feel special, loved, and important. And she works really hard to do that with everyone she meets.

So, this is my turn to make her feel that same way. I don't tell her enough just how awesome she is...
So mom... here is your zoom song, and know just how EXTRAGAVANT you really are!!!
(Yeah, I know it is spelled wrong!)

I love you!

Scrapbooks...

I love me a road trip in the springtime. Everything smells fresh and clean and the wind can flow through your hair as you speed down the highway admiring the bluebonnets. But it isn't spring. It is still considered summer here in Texas and it is hot. H...O...T hot.
So a road trip wasn't really on my to-do list this weekend but since my mom's birthday is coming up soon, we decided to take advantage of the days off to go see her. (yeah for mom!!! b-day post coming soon!!!)
Another purpose for the trip was to sort through boxes of my crap that my parents don't feel like storing any longer for me.
They figure I have my own garage. I can store my own stuff.
Ugh. Close minded thinking!
hee hee.
So, I went through photo albums and scrapbooks, from eighth grade all the way to college. At first, I was ready to pitch them all... put them all in the trash. But no one would let me.
"One day," they said, "you will want that stuff, you will want your memories." I don't think so, but I kept them anyway.
I looked through those books a bit and laughed and remembered great times. I remembered crappy times and got angry all over again.
Now I know why I don't scrapbook any more.

I looked at those books and thought about the people in my life who had come and gone. The pages of the scrapbooks filled with friends who took up my heart those days.
How silly I was and how stupid.

I went to church with my mom on Sunday. They are in the middle of a minister search so for now, they do with "fill ins" from around the area. I knew this visiting minister well. We had staffed Cursillo together. We had talked about Austin College (go roos!) and had laughed. I was excited to see him there, but knowing that he is an older man and knows lots and lots of people, I didn't figure he would remember me.
The service began and it was order as usual... a little singing here, a little praying there. Then it happened. Jack, the minister got up and before he read the scripture, he stopped and scanned the room... he looked directly at me and I smiled. He got bright red and smiled a huge smile back. Then, this 70+ age old man did the funniest thing. He sheepishly waved at me. Like the first graders do to me in the hall when they want to say hello but don't want to get in trouble by their teacher. It was cute. I sheepishly waved back and he began the reading of the scripture.

At the passing of the peace though, I was surprised to see him right at my side to give me a big hug. He didn't know my name, I knew, but he knew my face. I was a friendly face among the strangers.
I realized as soon as he looked at me that I had been placed into his emotional/mental scrapbook. I was sure glad to have been placed there!

I used to think my scrapbook was full...overflowing with friends, people I know who have shaped my life and have an imprint into my future. I didn't think there were any more pages available. I didn't think there was room in my heart for any more love. Boy was I wrong.
So, to my mom and dad, my BT and Annie, the CoF, Ging and Miles man...boy genius, the Knit Wits, the Westminster Youth Connection, Cursillistas, my Renewal Group, and my newly added, Pirates of Penance... thanks for the ride.
Thanks for filling my scrapbook even more. For you, I am truly thankful.

Hugh's Birthday!!! Yeah!!!!


So, my man Hugh is 44 today! Wow! What an amazing thing! And how many amazing things has he done in those short 44 years? I would love to sit on the back porch of my house with him and talk for hours!!! I would love that! Oh the things I would learn! He is my hero.
I imagine he is sitting in his apartment celebrating that birthday. Just for today, he is wearing his Hughman Super Hero cape, eating homemade cookies and drinking the Hughman superhero elixir of life... (With an umbrella of course).
He might have even risked giving away his mild mannered alter ego by marching himself to the dog park in that same cape.
You never know with that Hugh. And hiding underneath the superhero cape, you are sure to find a pirate tattoo of some sort, I just know it! ARRGGG!
If you don't know Hugh, you should. We all should.
He is one of the best writers I know. He can make you laugh, cry, and think so hard your head hurts, all in one blog. He has a way of looking at the world that I love.

Hugh is a teenager trapped in a 44 year old body that is for sure!
He is the class clown in the chat room. (I am certainly the most serious one there.)
He can also channel a teenage girl in no time flat. Hugh also knows all the cool kid popular culture references, and even is daring enough to make up his own.... Hula Boola... totes brill for sure!
Hugh is so cool, his favorite color is black... who else is cool enough to say that?... oh, and lime green! Now that is coolness personified!!! Hugh is so cool that his favorite food is not the normal, "Mexican, Italian" crap. Oh no. That Hugh loves him some sushi.
The best thing about Hugh is his enormous heart! It is brimming with love for everyone he meets, and lots he may never meet.
So, I have asked Hugh lots of questions lately, and he has kindly put up with them all... but I have a few more questions for him in the form of a song that I heard today... (I couldn't help but think of him!)
Lyrics have been changed a bit to fit... please forgive me!

To be that good, it must be taxin’
No such thing as satisfaction
You’re makin’ things happen while I’m relaxin’
Like a Sunday afternoon
My dad used to tell me I was lazy
I got dance moves like Patrick Swayze
I’m the left over turkey for the world’s mayonnaisey
The star next to the moon

Now I know I’m just here to amuse you
And I don’t mean to abuse you
But if I could just use you one time

Tell me what it’s like
To be the queen of it all
The Neiman Marcus of the Mall
And tell me what it’s like to be the one and only
All American Hugh


Every now and then I get to the kneelin’
To thank him for it all
But you probably got some inside connection
So many numbers that you gotta rolodex them
So much muscle that you never gotta flex them
To catch you when you fall

And I know I’m just here to amuse you
And I don’t mean to confuse you
But if I could just use you one more time

Tell me what it’s like to be the house on the hill
The number one diet pill
And tell me what it’s like to be the one and only
All American Hugh


And I know you’re not here to amuse me
But you sure know how to confuse me
So if I could just ask you once again

To tell me what it’s like to be a star on the rise
A breakfast cereal prize
And tell me what it’s like to be the one and only
All American Hugh
The All American Hugh
The all amazing crazy Hugh...



The thing is, Hughman IS the all American. He is the breakfast cereal prize...the bee's knees, THE HULA BOOLA!!!
I love you Hughman! Happy birthday!
Here is your zoom song.

The president of your fan club...
Susiederk.

:)

it is almost midnight my time, which means it is almost Hugh's b-day!
Look for a blog to take this space very soon...
my ode to the hughman.
Susie

The kids are coming in... The rains may have washed them out of Louisiana and Mississippi, but Texas has wrapped its big texas size arms around them and said, come on! We will teach your children. We will love them and support them as we do our own. So they came today. By the dozens into our classrooms. All with parents who said the same exact words, "we lost everything... Please take care of my child." And we did. And will will continue to...


I guess that is the best I can do right now for the world...

Just Stuff.....

I guess about six years ago, the Circle of Friends were all gathered in Mullin, Texas for our annual New Years Eve gathering. We spent some time doing the usual heart-felt but cheesy toasts, to one another, to friends far away, to... blah blah blah. Then the question came up..."what was the best thing about this past year?" As we went around the table, lots of things were mentioned... new cars, new computers, new stuff. Then it was BT (the older and wiser member of the CoF) who spoke up and said, "you know, all of those things that you mentioned, the computer, the car... they are all great things... but they are just stuff. We need to spend time thinking about our year and whom we loved and how we touched other people's lives. Stuff comes and goes, but our friendships, that is what really matters in the world." Boy, were we feeling stupid.


Tonight, I came home griping about the master’s class I enrolled in. I griped about people I work with, I griped about my headache and my hungry belly and the coming of a head cold. I griped and griped and griped, and then I turned on CNN. I sat and stared at the devastation of it all. How stupid had I just been? I got to come home to medicine, a warm bed, the smell of cooking food, a roof over my head, and most importantly, my husband who loves me and listens to me gripe about my petty crap.
I watched the news and realized it wasn't just the "stuff" that people were worried about...it was their relationships with others. It was their family members and their friends. It was the important things that they worried about. And it made me feel sick to my stomach.
I pray tonight for forgiveness for being so petty in time of crisis. I pray for the people who have been affected by Katrina. I pray that they will find comfort with friends and family, as they sort through the "stuff" of their lives. I pray that we can all gain perspective, just like BT tried to impart that New Years Eve. I pray that those precious children of God will be able to rebuild and gain strength and hope. I just pray. I hope you will too.

Another Birthday... These never end!!!

Seems like when I started this, I didn't realize what I was getting myself into. EVERYONE I know has a birthday coming up. This birthday thing may last a while friends. Bear with me.

I was telling someone the other day that this past year, I have managed to get to know three people who are going to seminary, and like about a million ministers. I need to be hanging out in seedier places for sure! So, I have learned something from all of this... ministers are people too. They have issues just like the rest of us.
They have bad days and days when they are tired and grumpy and frustrated with the world. They worry about finances and jobs and the world just as much as the rest of us.
Some days are good and they love their jobs. Other days, they would like to scream, curse and run away as fast as they can. hmmm. Sound familiar?

So, this person who is celebrating a birthday on Friday is someone I only know through chat and her blog, but she is someone who has made me really realize that preachers are people too.
You need to meet her... I promise you would like her. Her name is rev stacey and she has a blog here...

Ok, Stacey is a first year minister and she is still in her 20s. She lives in New York somewhere in the boonies... too far away from civilization to be able to order pizza delivery. She lives with an enormous, I mean gigantic dog. She is going through life one day at a time in her job. She loves it some days, hates it other days, but mostly, I think she is just trying to get by... and listen to God the best way she knows how. I think she is worth getting to know. I know that in the real world, in real life, she and I could be friends... or else she might sick that gigantic dog on me!!!

Stacey, here is your zoom song... enjoy!

I HEART BOOKS!!!


Rev Stacey has kindly added me to her list of links. Trust me friends, if I had a clue how to add links, I would be adding all kinds of people. :)
She also tagged me with this little questionaire about myself. Considering the fact that I write about myself all the time, this shouldn't be a stretch, but it really was!

1. Number of books owned: uh, millions? billions? mostly children's picture books which I love. My mom is to blame for my love of books. Amazon thanks you too, mom...

2. Last book bought: David Sedaris audiobook. This thing cracks me up! Also Stichin' Bitch, the knitter's guide.

3. Last book completed: Uh this is a hard one. As a reading teacher, I don't actually read. Well, I read lots of kid's books, but nothing substantial. I have about 6 or so books that I am in the middle of.. I guess Harry Potter #7 I actually finished....wow! Go me!!!

4. Five or more books that mean a lot to me:
Real live Preacher.com is the best! I refer to the stories all the time!
World According to Chuck, because it is also great writing and he signed it for me! Love that!
Any of the Mitford Series. I love that little minister man.
Reading Recovery guidebook... it is my Reading teacher bible.
About the Author... a great guide for teaching writing in the K-1 classroom.
Who's Mouse are you? my favorite book of childhood. Lots of great memories in that book!

5. Four bloggers I am passing this on to...
my friend Jay... so he can write about himself and not about the book of common prayer.
My BFF ginger... she is a fantastic writer... this will force her to do some writing.
My friend David Mahfood... because no matter what, he is a deep thinker and he can turn this whole quick question thing into a study on religion for sure.
Paula...because even though I just met her, we are soul sisters for sure.

Another Birthday Zoom Song...

please scroll down and read about the zoom song before reading this.
Annie...

There is Annie hiding in the monument to slactitude...

Well, the vet told us August was when Annie must have been born, so I figured I would write a little birthday zoom message to her as well...
The school I worked in when I first met Annie was quite old and had some really strange classrooms. The only doors to the rooms were from the outside. Hallways were for wimps.
I arrived at work, early as usual, and noticed several kids outside messing with something in the bushes. Now, as a teacher, the sight of several third and fourth grade boys messing with something in the bushes is, as a rule, never a good thing.
So, I got ready to face the chaos and went over to talk to them.
There in the tree was the tiniest little kitten ever! She was full of fleas and as thin as she could be. She was so tiny she could actually fit in the palm of my hand. I took her away from the mean older boys and took her inside the school. What was I going to do with this little thing? I couldn't leave her out there for more kids to come up and torture. I had to do something. Luckily, we had a little atrium in our school where she could go and we could keep her safe during the day. But then, what would we do with her after school was over?
I felt responsible! I had found this little thing! I was going to have to take her home. I made the call home and prepared for the worst. Here I was, the cat person, calling the dog person in the family, to break the news that we would be having a cat come live with us. Needless to say, BT was not pleased. But he did go to the store and purchase all the needed supplies for her to live comfortably at our house.
On the drive home, she slept in a box the entire time. I was so worried she was sick... I just knew she wouldn't make it.
As soon as we arrived home, BT made her a bath and gave her medicine for the fleas. She didn't move or fight when we put her into the water. We fed her, we loved her, and we watched fleas jump for their lives to avoid the medicine on her body. Neither one of us thought she would make it.
She was that sick. But something happened because once the fleas were gone and she got some good food in her, she was like a different kitten. She was running all over the house jumping and playing and being silly. She became our cat from that moment on!
That first Christmas when BT was gone the whole month of December, Annie and I became best friends. She slept on his side of the bed and looked after me as much as she could. She and I bonded. She was sure not happy when BT came back home! Her side of the bed was being taken over again. When she was little, she slept so that her body was leaned against my heart. I loved that.
Annie is no longer the teeny tiny little kitten with huge bat ears. She is big and fat and lazy and takes up half the bed, but she still sleeps right at my heart... right where she belongs.