July 4 2009

So we all got together at my Mom's for 4th of July. Unfortunately Bob had to work. So he missed out again.

It was a cool rainy day so we set up tables on Mom's patio and had a great rib dinner. Tj was the cook and his ribs turned out great. When the sun went down we all gathered in front of mom's to watch the Fireworks and Blow off some of our own. Rain and all it turned out to be a good night.

Memorial for Kiki Kitty

One summer day about 3 years ago a cute black female kitten with a single white patch on her chest and yellow eyes showed up in our backyard. After we where unsuccessful in locating where she had come from, we decided to keep her. We already had a black cat that was about a year old named Buddah. He also has a single white patch on his chest but his eyes where green. Poor Buddah suffers from food allergies which makes the hair on his behind falling out. He's affectionately known as Buddah the Bald Kitty. So now we had 2 black cats and we named the new kitten Kiki.

Kiki got her name from Erin and Pat calling her kitty kitty real fast and it sounded like they where saying Kiki. So it stuck. We fell in love with her instantly. Kiki was the kitty who loved to give hugs and to snuggle. It took Kiki and Buddah a while to get use to each other but they soon became buddies and loved to play with each other. With in the next 2 years Buddah's bald behind started slowly regrowing the hair. It came back in enough that the only way to really tell the two of them apart was by looking at their eye color.

Kiki would climb in to bed with me every night. If I was laying down with Erin, Kiki would find me and lay between Erin & I. If I was laying down with Pat, there would be Kiki climbing in between us. When I got up to go to my room Kiki would follow and yes, if Bob wasn't working she climb between us too. We Had to kick her out sometimes LOL.

Every morning as I would wake the kids for school, there would be Ms Kiki jumping on the bed to lay next to which ever one I woke up first. Then Erin or Pat would put there arms around her and stay in bed and snuggle with Kiki because they rather snuggle than get up for school. I used to say "Kiki your not helping" .

After the kids where off for School, Bob would arrive home from work and there would be Kiki & Buddah meowing "Feed Me Feed Me". So Bob would go down stairs and feed them. Bob even broke a toe one day while he was trying to get pass Kiki. She stepped under his feet causing him to step funny and jam his toe into the dish washer. It was not a pretty sight.

Through out the day Kiki and Buddah would play & sleep & fight & sleep & then play some more. Kiki also liked to go out side and hang with us in the yard for about 20 mins and then she'd be at that door ready to go back in. If one of us went out and sat in the yard without her she would be at that door scratching to come out.

In the evening it was Shannon's turn. When Shannon went down stairs there was Kiki getting under her feet. If Kiki wasn't sleeping she wanted attention & affection.

When Shannon brought Komniski (the dog) home. Kiki & Buddah said no way Jose. If Komniski came near them, the cats would swipe at her. She was so much littler than them when she first came home. Eventually Komniski grew to be about the same size (well a little bigger) so the cats just avoided her. The dog will leave them alone for the most part but every now and then when the dog gets too close they still will Swipe at her to let Kominski know who rules the house.

Unfortunately Kiki went missing around the time Shannon brought home Olivia. We had thought she had gotten out of the house during all of the excitement of Olivia's arrival. We noticed Buddah & Komniski where right there to check out the new arrival but Kiki had not come around. We searched the neighborhood & the house but we could not find her. I checked with the local animal control and police departments, but no one had seen her. After a week had gone by we came to the conclusion that she had left us the same way she came in to our lives. Every day I would look for her in hopes that I would find her wondering the neighborhood, or that some one had found her and took her in, but sadly I was wrong.

We found Kiki yesterday. She did not leave us. She went in to hiding and passed away. When we found her she looked as if she just crawled in to a ball and went to sleep. I think she may have been sick and we did not realize it with all of the excitement of Olivia being Born. Other than Kiki laying in some strange places a few days before the baby came home she seemed to be her normal self.

We all miss our loving Kiki Kitten very much. She will always be in our Hearts.

New Arrival

On May 29, 2009 my granddaughter Olivia Kaylee Devereux was born at 8:09 pm. She weighed 5 lbs 12 oz and was 19 inches in length.

The delivery went well and I got to be there to see her come in to the world. I can't explain how special I felt that Shannon had chosen me to be there with her & her Boyfriend through this great experience.

The delivery went smooth but Shannon did end up with a fever during delivery. It subsided shortly after Olivia's arrived but, the hospital kept her and the baby in the hospital for 48 hrs instead of the normal 24 hours. They wanted to make sure Mother and Baby were doing well.

Olivia is so beautiful. Shannon brought her home on June 1, 2009 and both Mother and Baby are doing well. Olivia is 2 weeks old and is a very tiny and sweet.