Mr. Simon

Just thought I would update everyone ( all 7 of you hehe ) on Mr. Simon, as the neighbourhood children have decided to call him instead of just plain ole Simon.
He adores the children, all of them! He is becoming the neighbourhood cat. We live off the main road and he was obviously an outdoor cat and we just cannot contain him in the house even though we tried.. He spends time every day with any neighbour who happens to be out in their garden or roasting hot dogs by a campfire ( yes we live in the country ). He is always on the lookout for a back scratch. Considering how badly he was abused he certainly has a lot of trust in people.
When I get home from work everyday he comes bounding across the lawn to greet me and then becomes my shadow, even following me to the field when I take the dogs for a run. He also likes to go along and supervise when the dogs all go swimming.. He is always in every night and sleeps on the bed with us and at least two of the dogs.. He gets the best spot on the bed..

To remind you of what he looked like in May.. Here is his picture ( May 2010 ) two weeks post amputation and the day I met him and decided he was mine. He was about 7lbs then and weighs 12 now. It is hard to believe it is the same cat.

This next picture is Simon about 2 months post amputation. 

This one was taken last week when I was getting the groceries out of the car and he decided he wanted to sit in my seat..

Children and Dogs

Raider wants a cookie, and can I have one too please....

But I don't want to go to bed... well then can Chauncy go to bed with me... please...

This is an old one, over 10 yrs ago when Caley was a puppy and so was Emma . Emma adores animals and I like to think this is where it started. She has grown up with Caley, Chancy and Raider. Hard to believe Emma is almost 11 and chomping at the bit to go to Vet camp at the Atlantic Veterinary College..

Picture of Raider

My awesome son in law put these two pictures together for me using Photoshop....

Wish I could do this but when I have a very talented graphic artist for a son in law why bother hehe

We survived Earl

Earl came ashore as a Cat 1 so it was not as bad as Jaun. There is certainly damage and lots of trees went down but we were spared any serious damage. The only thing that happened here was we lost Bill's building ( metal pole frame with plastic cover ) and when it went it damaged his van. Now before any of you feel any sympathy for him, let me tell you the story.. The building was over at our daughters for a couple of weeks so they could use it for a yard sale ( it is very big ) and afraid that it would go down in the hurricane Angie wanted it moved and I suggested that it be taken down rather than moved.. I mean it's a wind catcher. But Bill and friends moved it and Bill insisted it would not go anywhere ( sound familiar ladies ). He put lumber down on the frame and drove his Miata in it.. I suggested that was a big mistake but what did I know. At the height of Earl we could see it moving. As I was on the phone calling my son in law for help Bill said, "I'll get rope and tie it down" ( like that was going to help )  There were too many things for this to crash into.
While I waited for Bill and my Steven to show up with tools ( Bill was looking for rope  )  I stood on one of the poles that was in the air and almost immediately it lifted 3 more feet. Not sure whether to jump off or hang on, I hung on and it did drop and then I got my ass off of it. It was like a gaint balloon. The only thing that kept it from going was the fact that now it was wedged against Bill's van which he so thoughtfully parked beside it. As we worked to get it taken apart ( in torrential rain as well ) you could hardly see or get a grip on the poles to pull them apart once the bolts were out. Neighbours Bob and Sally showed up and the extra hands certainly helped get it safely down with no more damage to anything or anyone. Men never listen... As I can say was good thing it was his Van that got damaged and not my car...

Hurricane Earl

We are preparing for Hurricane Earl which is supposed to begin hitting us in about 15hrs.. or 9am atlantic time tomorrow. Wish us luck...