The Most Photogenic Cat EVER!

Here are some cutie patootie pictures I took a while back of Miko with my new camera. It helps that this cat is the most photogenic cat on the planet. Enjoy!

Life Updates

I know I've been horrible at posting in the past several months. I've probably said it before, and I'm sure many of you "aspiring writers" know what I'm talking about. I think about this blog all the time. I think about all the things that I want...and need...to write about. I will go visit Dooce to get my daily dose of comedy, reality and Chuck...and I'll think to myself EVERY TIME, "Gosh...I really need to get writing. I miss it so!" And then I go back to obsessing about Facebook. I mean, this was the reason that I originally got my laptop (I'm now on my 2nd one), so that I could write without having to sit at a desk all day. So, I guess I should update everyone on what's been going on...or not going on...in my life.

*I am MORE than ready to get my right hip replaced. I went to see my ortho doc about a week ago to beg him to work his magic for a 2nd time. He told me that we needed to get an MRI of the right hip because "God forbid we get in there to replace the hip, and the bone itself is fine, but you've got a huge tumor wrapped around it." Wow. That's comforting. So, I had the MRI and the next day, this man (not my ortho) called to "break the news" that my bones were dying. Umm...duh! This guy was so relieved that I already knew about it. I guess no one told him that the MRI was for confirmation, not diagnosis. Anyway...I am planning on getting my hip replaced at the end of March. Emphasis on the "I" am planning because who knows how the doc will feel by then.

*My mom found out a couple of months ago that her cancer had progressed. Please don't freak...it's not THAT bad. However, ever since they found the cancer on her rib, it's been pretty tough on her. She's broken it (the SAME RIB!) at least five times now. We were in Biloxi, staying at the Beau Rivage, laying in bed (probably watching some CSI show) when she says, "Feel my chest right here!" I put my hand on her side...right where her evil rib is...and BUMP, BUMP, BUMP! It felt like she had a rib baby in there trying to kick it's way out! Of course, she went to get scans soon after that, and sure enough, the cancer had grown. To someone who is not in this situation...this sounds really bad. And don't get me wrong, it's bad. BUT...she doesn't have any cancer showing up in organs, which is VERY GOOD! They've started her on an oral chemo which unfortunately made her extremely sick at first, but now they've found a pretty good level. In fact, as I write, she's in New York visiting some Breastcancer.org buddies!

*In the past few months, we've lost 2 of our precious "furry" babies. Angel, who belonged to G's mom, and has been here the whole time I'VE been here (which is over 8 years) had been an outside kitty for the past couple of years due to some unfortunate "potty" incidents. One night, G and I came home from being out and she ran right in front of the car. It was a horrific accident, and poor G was DESTROYED because of it. We were all pretty much hysterical about it, and it took a long time for G to get past it. He wouldn't hurt a fly...he even SAVES spiders and lets them loose in our yard. It's tough to lose an animal in ANY way...but it's especially tough to have to watch an animal lose their life like that. Also, we lost Isabella. She died very peacefully in her sleep. In fact, that's how I found her...very peaceful...but I knew she was gone when she didn't run to greet me. She was my very first kitty on my own. She was born in Michigan, and I've had her since she was only 8 weeks old. She was NOT the most friendly kitty in the world...in fact, the vet called her "the spawn of satan"...which to everyone who knew her would be hilarious. But every time I picked that cat up, she would wrap her front paws around my neck and "hug" me. She loved ME...and that's all that mattered. Unfortunately, for us AND her, she was sick most of her life. She had a horrible allergy to fleas. Even just one flea could make her deathly ill. It was extremely hard to care for her and keep her free of fleas. She was 11 years old. We will miss you both...and see you on Rainbow Bridge!! :)

*G and I are doing great...but we're still not married...or engaged. I know SO many people are confused by this. And my mother has gotten to the point where I can't have a conversation with her without "I'm ready to be mother-of-the-bride!" coming out of her mouth. But...we're happy. Insanely so. And even though I'd LOVE to be "the little mrs.", I can't help but just be thankful that I have such an amazing man in my life...and that we've made it through some really tough times together. We've been together almost 9 years now...and the man still makes me laugh like I'm 4 years old every single day. I still get butterflies when I see his headlights pull into the driveway. He is truly the love of my life, and I can't imagine living without him...Mrs. or no Mrs.

*We are currently "reinventing" our house. So far, we've done the living room and dining room. We've put in new floors, painted, and added some new furniture and gadgets. For the longest time, we never had anyone over to our house because it was just...well...disgusting. Now, we have a place we can be (and are) extremely proud of. I'm going to try and put together some "Before & After" photos to post so everyone can ogle it together. :)

*Speaking of photos...I bought myself a Nikon D60 in October, and I am absolutely in love with it! Photography has always interested me...especially the editing part of it all. I recently purchased Adobe Photoshop, and I'm still getting used to all the bells and whistles. My hope is that I can learn how to create some amazing images. And who knows? Maybe I'll take some photographs good enough to frame and hang on our "new" walls!

*This past October, I went to Vegas for the first time. My mom, her best friend and my aunt all went. It was a Breastcancer.org event, and I am THRILLED that Mom wanted me to be a part of it. We stayed at the MGM Grand (which is fabulous) and did the whole "touristy" thing. It was so amazing, and I can't WAIT to go back! If you'd like to see some pictures of our trip...please go here! All of us got a little crazy and decided to ALL get our first tattoos! So, one night, we all went to the Palms casino and were lucky enough to get our tatts done by Johnny Huntington (he was on the TV show "Inked"). When he heard about my mom and Aunt Julie's breast cancer stories, and that they wanted to get pink ribbon tattoos...he decided to do their tatts for FREE! He is such an amazing guy, and we had a great experience with it! I got one on my butt (well, really it's ABOVE my butt, right by my hip scar) of a symbol meaning "True or Real" and scripted "G" below that...for, of course, G! I told everyone that if G and I ever break up, I'll just tell people that the "G" stands for God...which is entirely true too! ;) It was a great trip all in all. And here's a tip to anyone who is thinking about going to Vegas: We didn't make ANY plans. We just went with the flow of things. I am SO happy that we did it that way because we weren't under any pressure to run around crazy. It was calm, relaxing and oh-so-FUN!

*I've gained weight. Ugh. For those of you who know "my story", you know that I used to be absolutely HUMONGOUS...and I ended up losing close to 100 pounds. Unfortunately, I've gained about 30 of those pounds back. It really ticks me off, too, because I promised myself I wouldn't ever gain weight again. Yeah...so much for promises. Granted, it's tough to lose weight when your BONES are dying...but I've done it before...I should be able to do it again.

Well, that's all the updating I have in me right now. I really want to get back into making blogging a habit, so maybe this is the start of something good! I hope everyone is doing well! I look forward to "getting back in the groove" of this thing!

**Love to all as always!**
~MareBear~

Warm Fuzzies

**I love watching football...especially college ball. I am a HUGE Auburn fan (even though they sucked wind this season) and there's something about the rivalry each year that really gets me going. However, my absolute favorite thing about watching college (particularly SEC) games, is the sportsmanship between the teams. After a major tackle or pile-up...there's something amazing about when a player from the opposite team holds out his hand to help a fallen opponent. And...at the very end of a game...the cameras will catch the most amazing sight of all...BOTH teams, on their knees, hands on each others shoulders...thanking God for giving them Life and the opportunity to do what they love. It brings tears to my eyes every time.

**Stockings are my favorite thing to open on Christmas morning. Before I started having Christmas with G and his family, I would always do Christmas with mine. Every year, the first thing we would all open would be our stockings. We never got anything "big" in our stockings. It was always something like: chapstick, candy, toothbrushes, small toys, razors, shaving cream, bubble bath, body spray, or maybe...if we were REALLY good that year...a CD or book!! Now that I've been doing Christmas with G for the past nine years...we open our stockings last. It took a lot of getting used to...the very first year, I headed straight for the stockings first thing. That warranted a lot of nasty stares of astonishment! Funny how traditions are different in every family. Yet, it's still my favorite part. There's something about digging in a big 'ole sock, not knowing what treasures you're going to find. The past couple of years, I've been the one to "put together" the stockings, myself. And I was so incredibly blessed this year to have my amazing mom come to OUR house early Christmas morning. I was so excited to "make" her a stocking. I bought a fluffy pink one and filled it with the small treasures that I get so giddy about. After we had all opened our gifts, I took down all the stockings and passed them out to everyone. When Mom looked up and saw that she had a brand new pink stocking, filled with goodies, her face lit up like a....well...like a Christmas tree! Tears sprang to her eyes as she said, "Oh my...I haven't had a "real" stocking since I was just a little girl!!" I could see in her face the excitement that I felt all those years when I was a kid and SHE would hand me my stocking to dig through. So you see, sometimes the best gifts aren't about the gift at all...they're about the memories that they bring back.

**Most of you who read this blog know that I watch Spongebob Squarepants. What most of you may NOT know is that I watch it literally every single day. There's one particular episode (and you mom's out there who have kiddos may recognize this one) where Spongebob and his best friend Patrick order a huge TV to be delivered to them. Once the TV arrives, however, they toss the TV aside and rejoice over what a big BOX they have! Well, of course, cranky 'ol Squidward, who lives next door, can't understand why these two would waste their time in a box, when they could be inside watching a brand new big screen TV. Spongebob tries to explain to Squid that using your IMAGINATION is so much better than anything else. After a lot of back and forth, Squidward hears a lot of noise and excitement coming from the box. But when he rushes over to open it...all he finds is Spongebob and Patrick sitting alone in the box. Sponge tries to explain again that all it takes is IMAGINATION! Finally, Squidward jumps in the box and tells the two creative ones to take him to Pirate Island. Sponge and Patrick immediately close their eyes and start IMAGINING the world of Pirate Island. But because Squidward doesn't know how to use his IMAGINATION...he can't make it to Pirate Island. In the end, after Spongebob and Patrick go to bed...Squidward decides to try it one more time. And even though things don't go exactly as he planned, he finally sees how wonderful using his IMAGINATION can be. Ahhh...if we could only be more like Spongebob. When I was a kid, we didn't have a lot of money. A cardboard box was made into a fort, a "house", or even just a place to "hideout". I think it's super important for us to encourage kids now...especially in the age of Nintendo DS's and Cartoon Network...to use their IMAGINATIONS. Just one more important lesson I've learned from watching Spongebob Squarepants.

**I have to mention this in my "Warm Fuzzy" post because it is the epitome of warm and fuzzy. For Christmas, I bought myself and G a down alternative comforter. Down alternative because we think G has some major allergy problems. Anyway...if someone asked me to do a commercial for this comforter...I would do it. For free. I have no idea what I did before I had this thing. Every night, as I'm getting ready for bed, all I can think about is sliding in between my Chris Madden sateen sheets and under that deliciously soft comforter. It's seriously helping me sleep at night. My favorite place to be in the whole world is snuggled up with my honey right as we fall asleep. NOW, I can be in my favorite place and be the most comfortable I've ever been! How can I ask for anything more?? :)

I'm sure I'll think of more "warm fuzzies" later, but for now...that'll do.