Kittens are the Best Medicine

I would like to present to you the cutest kittens in the entire world ... who now have NAMES!!!

Drum roll, please.

Introducing . . . . .

Alice

and Dorothy.

Their personalities fit their names perfectly.

Alice ...

Alice in Wonderland ...

brave, practical, funny, adventurous.

Dorothy is using the wastebasket as a cat fort.

Dorothy ...

Dorothy Gale, who was swept away to Oz, and made success of the situation ...

resourceful, friendly, and kind.

Dorothy (sitting) and Alice (laying down) on the bench at the vet on Tuesday.

These kittens are the most wonderful things that could have appeared here right now. No one can be stressed or depressed when there are kittens around. I wish I could show you the Mini-WWF battle that's going on between them from the middle of the bedroom floor to the bathtub. Dorothy just jumped up from behind the shower curtain, and shoved Alice off the edge of the tub.  They sound like ponies as they run back and forth.

Dorothy (left) and Alice (right) snuggling on the cat tree.

The babies are both working to develop their computer skills. I absolutely have to close my lap top if I'm not right here, because I never know what I'll come back to. Within the past few days, one or both of them has (1) changed my screen resolution, (2) turned off the wireless connection, (3) edited a blog post, (4) typed a whole row of Question Marks (think about that one ... it requires the shift key), and (5) tried to send email. I'm fairly certain that they would figure out how to download Kitty porn if left to their own for too long. 
[edited to add ... I had to scramble to fix this post a  few minutes ago, because Alice published it while it was still a draft, before I could add any of the photos.]

Alice wants to help.

Alice, gnawing on my knee.

 

I'll get back to writing about the garden and all of my renovation projects tomorrow.  Thank you for indulging me this time to show you the kitties.  This is a big deal around here, and I REALLY wanted to share it with all of you. Expect to see more antics with Alice and Dorothy from time to time, with lots of photos, as they grow and become full-fledged members of the menagerie. Maggie and Amy are NOT going to be happy.

Dorothy in the sunshine.

I visited a friend's rose garden on Thursday, and I have pretty pictures to show you. I think I should have them up tomorrow. Till then ...

Have a great weekend.
Connie

(written by Hartwood Roses.  Hartwood Roses blog.)

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

I downloaded the photos from my point-and-shoot camera this morning.  As I looked at this one, taken while I was in the parking lot at the vet's office yesterday, I was amazed at how much it says about me.

Capitals baseball hat on the shifter.  I'm a HUGE hockey fan ... have been for years ... it's great that the Caps actually have a team worth rooting for right now.  This hat is the latest addition to an already-out of control collection.

Lavender sachet hanging from the vent.  Lavender is my very favorite scent ... not the cheap, pseudo-lavender you usually find ... the genuine article.

Knitting needles tucked beside the seat.  I almost always have some sort of handicraft to work on while I'm riding in the car.

Kitties.  LOVE the kitties!!!  They were totally priceless during their check-up with Dr. Stamp.  I know it's a treat for the office to have healthy, happy kittens to play with ... it's a welcome break from the usual crop of sick and injured pets that they see so many of.  Most everyone who was there had to come see us to give the babies a hug.

Speaking of the kitties ... we are almost ready to announce their names.  The Husband and I have been using our current-favorite names for a day now, and it's starting to feel pretty natural. 

(written by Hartwood Roses.  Hartwood Roses blog.)

Monday Musing

I ran to the outlet mall this morning.  Back to school sales are a great time to hit the Gap Outlet and get some new jeans.  Theirs fit me perfectly ... I run in, run out, no angst or stress ... life is good. 

As I was on my way home, taking the round-about way on country roads to avoid the MASSIVE traffic on I-95 south, I put one of my current favorite CDs into the CD player ... Eminem's "Curtain Call".  It's a shame that there's not a single song on that CD that you can let your kids hear, because some of the stuff is actually pretty decent advice.  Here are a couple of quotes from "Lose Yourself", a song from his movie "8 Mile":

If only you had one shot,

or one opportunity,

To seize everything you ever wanted,

One moment,

Would you capture it

or just let it slip?

My very favorite lyric would make a great needlepoint pillow, or cross-stitch sampler for the wall ... edited, of course.

"Success is my only (expletive deleted) option -- failure's not"

Pretty good words to live by, I do believe.  Whenever things get tough and I want to give up, this can get me going again.

In case you're surprised by my choice of music, let me tell you that I listen to just about every kind of music out there.  Hard Rock is my favorite, but Alternative, Pop, Country, Metal, Motown, etc., are all represented in my CD collection ... which is gradually being sucked over to my iPod.  (I love my iPod!) 

Right now, in the CD player in my Jeep, I have Eminem, Lady Gaga, Maroon 5, Metallica, and Dire Straits.  What's in your CD player, or on the playlist of your iPod?

Here's another dose of Cute Kittens for you.  They still don't have names ... we're working on it.

(written by Hartwood Roses.  Hartwood Roses blog.)

The Newest Members of our Household

I am proud to announce that, as of 3:00 on Saturday afternoon, we are now the proud parents of TWINS!!! (Kittens, that is.)

Aren't they just the cutest things you've ever seen!!!

I first spotted these little babies at PetsMart two weeks ago, when I went in to buy cat food.  They seemed friendlier than your average stressed-out kitty in the adoption area, and I knew that they would find homes pretty quickly. 

Friday, I was back at the same PetsMart, this time for dog biscuits.  I went to look at the 'kitty zoo', as I call it, and these kitties were still there.  I took a picture, talked to them, and went home.  I already have two indoor cats, one outdoor cat, and two big dogs at home.  Three of the four indoor pets are on meds, and maintenance needs for them can be overwhelming at times.  But, there was something about these little babies that drew me in.

While the Husband and I were running errands yesterday, I asked if we could go check on the Kitties ... hoping that they had been adopted and I could stop thinking about them.  They were still there.  We cuddled with them, trying to decide which one to take.  I liked the long-haired one, Husband liked the other one.  They are unbelievably cute together ... so we adopted them both.

Here they are in the carrier, while I got gas at the convenience store on our way home.

We set up the guest room/Husband's office as the kitty isolation area.  The room is as kitten-proof as we can make it, we put toys and the cat tree in there for them to play with.  Their food, water, and litter box is set up in the attached bathroom.  Once they get a clean bill of health from my vet tomorrow, we'll see about beginning the process of introducing them to the rest of the menagerie.

Some introductions have already taken place.  Both of the other cats have spent time with their noses stuffed under the bathroom door, sniffing and hissing and growling.  Introducing new cats to the family is always entertaining.

These sweet baby girls need names.  Their 'names' at the shelter were Emma (already have a dog named that) and Caitlyn (niece's name), so new names for them are necessary.  Part of me wants to do some sort of 'rosey' names, without being overtly rosey ... for example, I got Cindy (the Siamese you see in the sidebar) for Christmas in 1993.  I wanted a Christmas-y name for her, but Holly or anything like that seemed too obvious.  We named her 'Cindy' after Cindy Lou Who in the Grinch, because of her enormous blue Siamese eyes.

What do you think of 'Alice'?  Maybe 'Daphne'?  If you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

I'm going to go play with my new kitties now!!

Happy Sunday, Everyone!

Connie

P.S.  This video does the best job I can offer of explaining why we HAD to adopt them both.  It's two minutes of intense CUTE!!

Flowers on Friday ... Sunny Yellow Roses

Many of the yellow roses in the garden are blooming quite nicely right now. 

Detail of 'Zeus'

(Climber, introduced in 1959)

Seedling MR08/2

This is one of my Hollywood Cemetery 'mama rose' seedlings from 2008 that I am evaluating.  Like human children within the same family, seedlings are hybrids and they show traits from each of their parents, but they are usually different from each other in some degree.  A individuals in a batch of seedlings can vary quite dramatically ... the hope being that one or two of the babies is special enough to introduce to the market.

Seedling P08/1

This little beauty came from a seed I harvested from 'Peace'.  It had quite a bit of mildew earlier in the year, but it is spotless now.

'Freedom', a Hybrid Tea introduced in 1984, has been blooming almost non-stop since it arrived here in June.

'Gift of Life' is a little-known Hybrid Tea, introduced in 1999 by Edmonds Roses.  I think I remember something about a portion of the profits from this rose going to a charity.

The miniatures, still in their one-gallon pots because it's been too hot to do any prep work on their new garden by the barn, are blooming like crazy.  This is 'Gold Coin'.  The plant is barely 6" tall right now, the flowers are 3/4" across, and it's been blooming for a solid month!

The flowers on 'Woodstock' , another teeny mini, start out canary yellow, and the outer petals take on a reddish cast as they age.  Ralph Moore, the hybridizer, said that this rose is named for the bird in "Peanuts" comic strip, not the famous music festival in New York.

This miniature is 'Yellow Doll'.  I love the teeny, shaggy flowers!

The flowers on 'Fiesta Gold' sometimes look like little bitty dahlias.

I'll finish this morning with another view of 'Zeus'.  I love this color yellow!!!  This perfect flower is on one of the potted roses in the nursery, if you can believe it.  It's fully 4 inches across!  It sort of looks like a water lily, doesn't it?

We had two thunderstorms last night, with torrential amounts of rain.  This morning, it's been raining on and off.  It's a day for inside projects ... I have a million of 'em.

(written by Hartwood Roses.  Hartwood Roses blog)

Cool White on a Hot Day

The heat and humidity have been brutal this week.  While I was walking around Hollywood Cemetery on Monday, even the breeze off the river didn't offer much relief.

I think I'll cool things down a bit this morning, and I'll show you some more of the lovely viburnum that was blooming so beautifully. 

At least I THINK it's a viburnum.  Some of them look so much like hydrangeas that I have trouble telling them apart.

I'm figuring it this way ... as hot and dry as it has been, if this was a hydrangea, it would be all wilted.  This shrub wasn't even one little BIT wilted.

After wandering around the cemetery with my camera for a couple of hours, I was most CERTAINLY beginning to wilt.  After resting in the shade here for a few minutes, I packed up my gear and headed for home.

Thank you for all the kind comments you leave here whenever I take you to Hollywood Cemetery.  It's one of my very favorite places, and I'm glad you don't seem to be tiring of it.  If you're anywhere near Richmond, Virginia, it is definitely a not-to-be-missed place to visit.

(written by Hartwood Roses.  Hartwood Roses blog.)

Hollywood Cemetery in the Heat

I was in Richmond on Monday, I had my camera with me, I was close to Hollywood Cemetery, so I made a quick side trip to see how the roses were faring.  Most of the ones I saw were not good.

Remember Mama Rose?  The unknown rose I use as my profile photo?    (I first introduced you to her in THIS POST from January)  See how horrible she looks now?  Two successive summers of drought have all but done her in. 

I think I have identified her as 'Autumn Sunset', which is not historic or rare or unusual, so her loss (if the cemetery chooses to remove her) will not be tragic.  I will always have a huge affection for her, since she is the 'mama' of two very nice seedlings that I am currently evaluating.

This rose, whatever it is, is in even worse shape than Mama Rose.

This statue appears to be mourning the condition of her beloved roses.

Some of the roses are in pretty good shape.  This is Safrano, close to Mama Rose, and it looks great.

So does the Tea rose near the grave of Jefferson Davis.

It even has buds!

While we're at Jefferson Davis's grave, let's take a look at some pretty graphic storm damage.  I can't believe that this enormous tree took out the light pole when it fell, but left the statues untouched!

This thing is HUGE!!

The base of it is completely hollow!

I found other roses, too ... ones that are not affected by the heat.

They just don't make markers like this anymore.

I'll leave you with this photo, my favorite one of the day.  It's a viburnum, not a rose.  I love the light, the way the shrub cascades over the monument, and the composition of the crosses in front and behind.

It's going to be hot again today.  Is it September yet?