Ursula

This is Ursula. Her mother came into our family as a stray two years ago. Ursula was the first-born of four kittens and one of three that we kept. (The fourth went to my step daughter.)  Ursula is small and she has no tail, but she has a big personality and beautiful golden eyes, which she usually closes whenever I try to take her picture. On Saturday, I was lucky to catch her napping in the sunbeam. A rare quiet moment. 

I am submitting this photo to the iheartfaces photo challenge. I'm hoping that they will love it as much as I do.

Froggy

Four years ago, my son and I planted a hosta in our flower garden. Every winter, the hosta turns brown and dies, and every spring, it comes back as lush and green as ever. I was in the yard on Sunday afternoon, looking for a good place to hang a hummingbird feeder, and I stopped to admire the hosta. Then I noticed that there was a cute little green tree frog sitting on one of the leaves. So I did what any aspiring photographer would do - I grabbed my camera and took the little guy's picture. I had to share it with you, of course. Isn't he cute?  Too bad I don't have a current photo challenge with a green theme. This would be perfect. :)
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I have finally reached the end of my 52 Organizing Missions.

#48 Organize Your Kids & Their Bedrooms - I have a 17 year old son. Getting him to organize anything is a losing battle. I have offered to do it for him, but he has declined, knowing that many of his possessions would simply disappear. He leaves for college in the Fall. Before then, his room will be cleaned and organized. Or else. ;)

#49 Find Your Business or Career Passion - I am 47 years old and still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. I may never know. But I have learned that I still enjoy photography and am working to develop my skills. Maybe one day I might even earn some money from it. A girl can dream! In the meantime, I will do what I do very well - system administration - and branch out where I can.

#50 Create a Debt Repayment Plan - I did this a long time ago. The only debt we currently have is our mortgage and a short term note for the truck I bought last month.

#51 Create a Weekly Schedule Template - I've been using a weekly planner since I attended Seven Habits for Highly Effective People 17 years ago. It has been a lifesaver for me and I would be lost without it. It is my master calendar - recording everything from birthdays and anniversaries to reminders to change the A/C filter. Effective? Very!

#52 Simplify Your Life - My new mantra. I will continue to declutter my home and keep new clutter from building up by following the one in one out policy. I will carefully consider each new request for my time before saying yes. I will slow down and enjoy life rather than blindly racing through it at warp speed.

Through this challenge, I have learned that I wasn't as disorganized as I originally thought, but I still have areas that could use improvement... and I will continue to work on those.
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I've installed a new comments application on my blog, and I'm curious to see how it works. I'm hoping that some of my regular readers will leave me a quick hello to help me out.

Thanks for stopping by!

Furry Friends

It's Tuesday, and I have already submitted my entry for the weekly MCP Project 52 photography challenge! Did hell freeze over? With 90 degree temps outside, I think not.


Actually, this week's topic was an easy one for me: Furry Friends. We happen to have a lot of those running around our house. Sometimes they even allow themselves to be snuggled, and I took advantage of one of those special moments to capture my shot.

This is my son, James, and his cat, Stormie, taking a catnap together. They are the best of friends, and both of them tend to be a little furry. (Sorry, James, but you must admit that the sideburns do give you a furry look.)

For my fellow cat lovers... a few more of our friends  (Ursula, Shadow, and Puck in the background).  We have eight cats in all. 

Just call me the crazy cat lady...

The crazy cat lady who submitted her photo early this week.

Yes!!!

Wind in Her Hair

Some of our friends brought their daughter by for a visit during a recent Scouting event. At first, she was shy around me and my camera, but it didn't take long for her to warm up and start posing. Isn't she adorable?