Giving a little love

I really don't get into holidays much. I don't have boxes of decorations for all seasons that I unload out at the most precise times of year. Maybe now that I'm a homeowner, I'll eventually start collecting and decorating...if my husband will let me.

We had some holiday spirit at work for Valentine's Day. I'm part of the company's art department. We're creative types, so for the second year, we decided to exchange DIY Valentines.

Last year, I used porcelain pens and made personalized XOXO heart mugs for all the girls. The best part is they all use them still, some daily for their coffee or tea. So my challenge this year was to come up with a gift that was equally original and still useful. I struggled for a few days until I remembered a pin I had come across during wedding planning.

Sold

It started with an innocent look. Devin saw "model homes" signs on his way back from work one day. We decided to take a look, just for fun. They were small, split level houses that were nice but not suitable for us. The agent in the office suggested that we visit another model location close by to check out a few models that had more to offer.

While Devin grabbed a brochure outside, I walked right in the first house. I immediately fell in love with the space, motioning excitedly for Devin to catch up to me. He turned the corner, saw the kitchen and open layout, and immediately talk went from "This is nice" to "This is what we could do for this room."

Putz in a box

She enjoyed the early stages of unpacking after the move to Omaha.

Have you ever seen Simon's Cat on YouTube? It was either my former boss or a former co-worker who shared it with the office one day.

Simon's Cat is a series of cartoony videos that portray random behaviors that make cats so awesome. One video, "The Box," has always stuck out to me because the portrayal fits our cat perfectly.

Nap time.

Empire, or Putz, as she's now more commonly known, has an obsession with boxes...and bags for that matter. I'm sure most cats do, but we get a total kick out of her. I swear she would spend her whole day boxed up if we provided her food in one.

Spending time with Devin's sister's hamster, Missy.

She takes naps in them, chews on them and spits out little cardboard pieces, plays "I'm undercover and I'm gonna scare the crap outta you when you walk by" and even crawls in one at night like it's her bed.

Really, she'll claim anything box-like as her own. If she judges the item as too small because she's only able to squeeze her head into it (like a 12-pack box), she will then plop herself on top of it.

In the purse.

Bringing bags home from the grocery store is like heaven for her. She pretty much tries to crawl in them before we get a chance to set them down. She can't resist. Any female visitor who leaves an open purse on the floor is giving her an open invitation to rummage through it before she rests on top with her front paws tucked inside.

Putz claimed the box as soon as the shoes were removed.

I mentioned she sleeps in a box? It's true. Recently, Devin's mom stayed with us, and she had two pairs of new shoes...still in the shoe boxes. Putz scored double that day. She has since chewed off one corner of each of them, essentially breaking the boxes, but she still uses them as beds. One is on top of a dresser next to the window where she begins her sleeping routine at night. At some point she often makes her bed on my legs until morning.

Note the chewed upper right corner.

Maybe she just needed a little more room?

Putz retreats to enjoy a weekend sunrise in her bed after I wouldn't feed her before 6 a.m.

Such an odd creature. But she will crawl out of her box and be sprawled out on the floor in front of the door, just waiting for a belly rub, when I get home. I treasure this because that's about all the petting I'll be allotted the rest of the night.

Here's to having someone (or something) waiting to greet you at home at the end of the day. Maybe we should curl up in the chair and enjoy some vino while we wait for Devin to come home. What do you say, Putz? *Cheers*

Sausage and stuff

We've had our KitchenAid mixer for a couple years, but we've never let it exercise its full potential. There are so many attachments you can add on for seemingly endless functions, including a variety of pasta rollers, grain mill, ice cream maker and more. Devin recently decided to purchase the meat grinder and sausage stuffer parts, and away we went!

Empire strikes

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Often when I get home from work I’m still working, either editing photos or continuing to compile more Wayne State history for a time line over the past 119 years. I’ll take all the extra hours I can get. But I don’t mind it as much because I get to be with Empire the Taddy Put.