Happy New Year!

Now that Christmas has come and gone it's time to look forward to the new year and hope good things come with it. 

My poor beat up old 'nip pretzel and my new toys I got for Christmas

Are things going to change?  Will they stay the same?  It's going to be interesting to say the least, don't you think?  Whichever way the year turns out, here's my wish to all for a Happy New Year.  Mom and dad will be waking up at crazy o'clock to do a First Day hike at a state park a couple hours from here and I'll be doing what I do best as the photo below shows.  Happy New Year, and may it bring everything y'all want it to.

Zzzzzzzzzzz…...

Downtown at Christmastime

Wilmington has one of the best downtowns to go a-wandering, and that's just what mom and dad did last weekend.  It was a little chilly, but they enjoyed themselves anyway.  They planted their butts at Front Street Brewery for a couple of brews, then made their way over to Copper Penny, a favorite haunt, for some pub grub and another beer (Diet Coke for mom). 

They grabbed some random photos throughout the evening, and managed- in spite of the dropping temps- to devour a single-scoop cup of ice cream from Kilwins. 

Ordinarily they'd have gotten a double-scoop cone, but after their dinner & beer treat there most certainly wasn't room for that.  Dad's favorite photos are of the downtown skyline, especially facing the Battleship North Carolina across the river.  

Thinking himself clever and not quite ready for full frontal anything except in the privacy of home, dad doctored this selfie of him and mom.  I reminded him once again to hang onto his day job.
So Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy Holidays all 'round, and here's to good things (hopefully) in the New Year!

One of these things...

...is not like the others🎝.  Come on, sing along with me.  You remember Sesame Street, right?  ♬One of these things just doesn't belong.🎝 Can you guess which thing...

Not Much for Holding

Disclaimer:  For those who think dad's being rough or doesn't know how to hold or care for a cat-  he does and has for all his 41 trillion years.  He tries. It's me.

And Still More Dad Lap

I know Cleo and I have posted- probably more times than you'd care to see- pictures of her and I sitting together during our quiet early morning reading/laptop time, but this has become such a routine for us (except for when she prefers to stay snuggled in the warmth of her sleeping mom's lap as is the case at this very moment) that I can't imagine not having her snuggled into the space between my left hip and the arm of the chair.  Cat people and their cats do, in spite of what some say, develop habits like this, and in my mind this is one of many rewards reaped from being a cat lover. 

It's one thing that she enjoys sitting with me and watching the screen, or simply snoozing away, not a care in the world, but when that furry little face tilts up and stares at me (she does the same with mom) it just tugs at these old heartstrings. 

As I finish up this post our dear girl is sauntering out from the bedroom for her morning sip, nibble & pee, so I'll just hit "save" and slide over to the right in anticipation of her little stare from the floor in front of me, paws up on the seat cushion as if to say "Good morning, dad.  Here I come.  Move over."

Out and About

Even though there's nothing here about me, dad wanted to share a few photographs taken recently here in Wilmington.  Mom, dad and mom's sister wandered around downtown one late afternoon this past summer and took these shots from a riverfront restaurant at sunset. 

Is that not a glorious westward view?  Dad loves the sun's glare over the river's surface, and although those clouds look somewhat ominous they passed on by peacefully. Dad was heading to work one morning and thought the sunrise sky was worthy of a picture, so he snapped this one. 

A few days before that he came home from work and was awed with the colorful sky at sunset right overhead. 

Beach pictures have become a part of our life here, and mom and dad took these a few weekends ago after a particularly stormy week. 

These were taken at Fort Fisher Beach, and you can kind of see how rough the surf was as it hit the large rocks.  Despite the roiling surf, what's not to love about the peacefulness of this place? 

Yep, Another Early Morning Photo Session

This one with no flash and only the glow from the solar light.  Dark, but blissful.  

Thank-full; a Before and After Post

As usual for some years now, mom and dad enjoy a hearty- but somewhat healthy- Thanksgiving dinner.  As I'm sure we've already said over the years mom has taught dad to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner without drowning everything in gravy, without his once-beloved canned cranberry sauce, and without more side dishes than one person could handle.
Sure, he still misses some of that stuff from time to time, and mom hasn't stopped worrying about his eating habits, but all in all he's learned to enjoy feeling better overall due to a better-late-than-never change in eating habits (thanks again, mom).  This year, in spite of their concerns about my health I even got a little treat, and boy did I relish that tasty burd!
Anyway, here's a little before and after display of our day.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and didn't get too full.  

Mom's pie (unbaked- it's whole wheat dough) and pinwheels from extra dough and extra apples for applesauce

Dad's Stuffing Getting Ready to Jump Into the Bird

Mom's Pie Almost Done

This year dad will get two pots of stock

This piece of turkey started out in her bowl...

 A little post-dinner movie and nap

This Holiday Thing Can Be Exhausting

Bathing Beauty II

Bathing Beauty I

What better spot to bathe than the biggest sunpuddle in the living room.  I was deep into my routine and really didn't pay much attention to the big guy with his phone.  By now I'm like "whatever" when it comes to intrusions into my privacy.  The only things that matter here after a nice long wash-up are a fabulously shiny coat for me and a nice little pool of furry yack for dad (sorry, no photo this time).

Loving the Fleece (and mom's lap, of course)

You know, for all the bitching I'm hearing 'round here I'm not entirely sure I know what the fuss is.  I mean, I'm warm, right?  I'm comfortable, no?  I'm fed, I can sleep pretty much anywhere anytime, and I'm pampered beyond belief, am I not?  I see nothing wrong with dropping temps, do you?  

Nothing's Off Limits

Once again, if mom and dad are stupid enough to leave something on the bed with me around, all I can say is it's fair game.  And I don't even want to hear their crap about all that space/whole bed to lay on/nice warm afghan blah, blah, blah, etc., etc., etc.  

Look at it this way- dad gets to take a little bit of me to work with him, right?

Different Tastes/Different Styles

On Sundays mom and dad almost always have mom's whole wheat flax blueberry pancakes for breakfast.  It's a thing, I guess, and they've had them every single Sunday morning for as long as I can remember.  The big difference between them is the way they eat them.  Mom likes to keep things basic, and enjoys the simple taste of plain pancakes and blueberries.  No toppings, no distractions; just the simple goodness of something natural.  As they should be, says she.
And then there's dad.  As you may recall from his birthday post some weeks ago he received a long-desired refill on his pure maple syrup from New England.  Mom and dad have never seen eye to eye on all things food, this being one of them.  On their first date many moons ago mom invited dad to her house for a breakfast of French Toast, where they proceeded to eat them right out of the pan, unadorned.  Of course dad wouldn't say anything what with them being a new couple and all, but he'd much preferred to have had them slathered with the sticky golden brown goodness of maple syrup (with a hearty slab of butter beneath, of course).  Flash forward to the present and, well, as you can see, like I said above about how they have different preferences...

Mom's delicious pancakes as she prefers them, just as is right out of the pan...

… and then there's dad, his plate full of syrup topped with pancakes.  Of course this photo doesn't really show the full amount of syrup or the depth of saturation the pancakes have suffered.  Ok, I'll give him one for his fruit intake what with the nanners on top, and I guess another for keeping away from butter for years now, but the sea of syrup beneath and throughout the stack are dad's real reason for eating mom's pancakes.  It's okay, dad.  She knows you enjoy them.  She knows you just like the syrup more.  Just don't go whining to her when the gallon jug's empty.