A Long Week

On May 11th, Jimmy and I started on our road trip to meet up with my dad in Iowa so I could stay in Michigan for a week. I don't know who was more excited to see me when we got to Morenci: the cats or my mom. Russell's eyes lit up when he realized I'm capable of petting and scratching, and my mom was likely more excited to see the baby bump.

I was kept pretty busy all week between the cats demanding affection, editing family photos I'd taken Friday before leaving, shopping with my grandma, shopping with my cousin, wrapping up baby shower plans, and then the reason I was back in town, the baby shower. We had the shower on Saturday the 18th and I walked out with a lot of loot gifts. I only had 3 hours of sleep the night before and I was exhausted, but I really enjoyed seeing everyone that came. After I've gotten everything sorted through and ready to put away I'll do a post with photos! For now I'll just post some cat photos I took during the week.

I miss being back in Michigan, but I'm happy to be back in Nebraska because of my comfy bed and my weird animals.

New bunny + DIY cage

Jimmy and I had been discussing getting a bunny when we still lived in Jackson, but our apartment was too small to have a big enough cage that I would be comfortable with. Now that we've moved we have the space for a large DIY cage.

Cage Supplies + Items Featured in Photos:
2x Whitmor Storage Cubes 4-pk from Walmart
White Zip Ties
4 Bolt Snap Clips
2x Mainstays Vinyl Protector Runner, Clear, 24" x 72"
What's Inside:
Sterilite Small Cat Litter Pan, Marina Blue
PetsPick Pine Bedding (for use in litter box)
Kaytee Timothy Hay 96oz
Small World Complete Feed 10lb
Purple Hay Feeder
2x Ka-Bob Holders, Chews, and Apple Sticks
Mineral and Salt Wheels
Glass Water Bottle
2x Terra Cotta Pots
2x Cat Ball Toys
2x Ping Pong Balls
Girl Scout Cookies Box
Brown Packing Paper

Decide how large you want your cage! We did 2x2x4. We connected the panels together using the included connector pieces, but many instructions I've seen online use zip ties. We only used the zip ties for the cage door on one of the ends to make it easily opened. It was more of a pain to use the connectors, but we felt it created a much more stable enclosure.


For the door we used zip ties along one side and 4 bolt snap clips (2 along top, 2 along opposite side of zip ties) to keep it closed. We set the cage on top of floor runners that certainly did not end well! I'd recommend using some sort of easily cleaned flooring underneath. Something they can not end up destroying! I thought about buying a sheet of cheap vinyl flooring.

In the end we had two extra panels that we considered setting up across one side with a dowel underneath and some sort of surface on top to create an extra level that he could jump up on, but we decided against it because he wasn't fully grown at the time and we didn't want to risk him hurting himself.

Rabbit cage... or dog cage?

Now onto bunny photos!

Petsmart Online Window Shopping

One of my favorite things to do is online window shopping! I have wishlists on websites such as Amazon, Petsmart, and Walmart. In this post I'll link to some of the items on Petsmart that I've been eying or have added to my wishlist, and at the end of the post I'll include a link to save you money on orders from their website through Sunday, April 21st.

Nylabone Advanced Oral Care Liquid Tartar Remover for Dogs
I've been meaning to purchase an item such as this for Sandy and I'll likely be ordering a bottle sometime in the near future as she's 15 years old with bad breath.

Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo - 28x25x57
I've never had a cat tree, but I can guarantee Sunny would be one happy boy if we got him one! This is one that I've had in my wishlist. The maintenance guy boarded up the broken cabinet doors and my poor cat can't jump up to play in his cabinet playground anymore. A cat tree is definitely on the list of things I'd like to purchase soon.

GNC Ultra Mega Hip & Joint Health for Cats
Sunny is getting close to being considered a "senior", although he's missed the memo. I've purchased this product before in the treat form and he LOVES these so much. He hasn't shown any signs of having arthritis, but I wouldn't mind stocking up on these to start giving BEFORE he gets creaky. I will definitely be purchasing these again.

SynoviG3® Joint Support Soft Chews for Dogs
As I mentioned, Sandy is 15, so joint support supplements are necessary for her. I've never tried these before, but if I get the chance I will certainly be buying these.

Sunny thinks he needs photos of himself on here.

And onto the link to Petsmart to save money when you place an order from now until Sunday, April 21st.

Save $15 on orders over $60, $20 on orders of $100 over, or $30 on orders of $150 over at PetSmart.com! Offer Valid 4.15 – 4.21

Dear weather,

How dare you taunt us with 78° weather yesterday afternoon and then violently plummet! Thunderstorms last night that soon turned into high winds, freezing rain, and snow. I woke up in the middle of the night with achy joints from the sudden temperature change.

One of the really fun things about living in a trailer in the middle of nowhere without anything to block the wind is the fact it shakes when it's gusty enough. Sleeping last night was oodles of fun.

Seeing as today I refuse to get out of my warm bed, I've been working on my baby registries. I'm unsure as to whether or not I will be able to have a baby shower in Michigan, but if you would like to buy something for the baby please send me a message on Facebook (or wherever you need to contact me) and I'll send you links to registries or you can search for them on the websites! Right now I'm using registries through Walmart, Amazon, Babies R Us, and "treasuries" on Etsy.com. I'd love to have a giant library of children's books if you'd like to send books!

It's a....

GIRL!

Photo catch up!

Our "lovely" orange, brown, and white kitchen.

We learned it may be possible to build a snowman inside.

We still haven't learned how to rewind this Defendor "tape".

The Easter bunny got me an xbox!

Sandy never ever gets fed and helps herself to treats.

A month later

I intended to start posting on here shortly after moving in, but it's been a month and we finally got our internet set up today.

For those that are not aware: I'm pregnant (due July 26th), Jimmy got a job promotion in North Platte, NE, we got married February 10th, and moved to Hershey, NE on March 1st with Sandy and Sunny. For the time being we live in a not so well maintained trailer that is nestled alongside a busy highway and is just down the road from 4 very busy railroad tracks.

The problems have slowly been getting fixed and as of today we have internet and a hopefully fixed oven! Cooking with an oven that shorts out every 5 minutes if it's not set to at least 400 degrees is frustrating! The garbage disposal works once again after 2 screws, half a dozen bobby pins, and some pieces of broken plate were removed from inside the sink, cabinets with broken glass doors were fixed, a window in the living room was sealed shut, and maintenance said he'll be putting the fence in the front of the trailer up later this week.

Yesterday the ever so great Easter bunny got me an Xbox 360 and we played Halo 3 together while cooking dinner. We had hickory smoked ham, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, split potato dinner rolls, and a key lime pie that we didn't end up even opening. No matter what my eyes will ALWAYS be bigger than my stomach.

I'm scheduled for an ultrasound on the 3rd and as long as the belly monster cooperates we should finally know gender!