Sipping on the sidelines

One day I had a craving (says every woman).

I had wanted tacos for a meal for probably a good week and a half. Fish tacos, specifically. But with the new house and summer activities, Devin and I just didn't have time for a detailed dinner. Finally we had an available evening, and Devin whipped up some yumminess. You just wait and see.

A good friend and a glass (or three) of wine

Monday night Devin came home and asked if I was ready to go out. It's not a common question lately because Devin has been cooking again, and it's all pretty healthy to complement our gym routines. Well, I wouldn't call my on-again-off-again appearances a routine, but I'm making a half-hearted effort, so I deserve points for that.

The four-day weekend (part one)

The holiday was pretty low-key this year. Since our families' get-togethers were both scheduled on the same day, we decided driving a half hour to my family in Lincoln was more appealing than a two-hour drive to Carroll. It's so hard to split time with each family anyway, and we also wanted to have some time to do our own things around the apartment.

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*

He likes Gray's Anatomy; I like Grey's Anatomy. But we both like vino!

The scientist

The media queen

About as close as I come to a lab. Not exactly McDreamy, is he?

Devin and I are pretty different individuals. He's an athlete who always pushes himself and strives to better his health. I'm a retired "athlete" with little ambition to exercise. He's a science guy with a love for physi-bio-chema stuff and all the big words, Bunsen burners and bacteria that come with it. I chose a slightly more creative route of newspaper ink, airwaves and B-roll footage. It's Gray's versus Grey's. He's a bungee jumping wannabe skydiver, and I'm a tall girl who gets pretty freaked if I look down from 10 feet up.

You get the idea.