Dear Kittens,

1. I'm eating cranberry orange yogurt for breakfast and it's really good! I like to eat plain yogurt with jams mixed in, but we had this leftover cranberry sauce just sitting in the fridge and so I put it in my yogurt and Oh My Bod! I'm a genius. At yogurt. And maybe toast, but let's just stick with the yogurt right now.

2. My parents are coming down to help us decorate our tree. We're going to have pastrami sandwiches to celebrate Hanukkah. Look, we're not Jewish, this is the best we can do. Did I already tell you that I decided this year to decorate the tree with only paper and felt because of a certain dog that'snever seen the wonders of a Christmas tree before? I've made up a bunch of ornaments and we're all set. This way none of my gorgeous glass ornaments will be shattered all over the floor, which would make me cry.

3. A while back we got this giant shadow box. It's six feet tall! The idea was that I was going to fill it with interesting stuff and it would be art. Except, I am completely stymied by this thing. It's so massive, how does one even start? Should there be a theme? And if so, WHAT? Mostly I just stare and it and wonder what the hell to do with it, but I think I will need to get serious after Christmas.I mean, it's already hanging on the wall. There's no way to ignore it. Plus, our living room is so freaking boring when it comes to art right now.

4. I started this group on Flickr called Regulation Type Broad. It's where regular women take photos of what they're wearing. This coming week I've decided to take a photo of what I'm wearing every single day. Even if what I'm wearing is pajamas. Because sometimes, I will not lie, that is what I wear all day long. Anyway, if you're on Flickr and you'd like to join, let me know and I will send you and invitation.

It is time for me to party in the shower. With the soap and the water.

Love,

Catie

p.s. if you're interested in that shampoo I recommended go to www.chazdean.com That site has the full line of products and describes each shampoo and the hair type it is best suited for. I'm still loving this shampoo a lot! Right now I'm using the lavender one, but I think I prefer cucumber aloe.

Here is some stuff for you to know about:



1. Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturizing Lotion. If you tend to be dry and uncomfortable in the winter- this stuff is AMAZING. It's unscented and it feels so good on your skin.



2. Huggable hangers at The Container Store. These hangers do not leave any weird indentiations on your clothes and because of their very thin profile, they make your clothes take up less space than other hangers. Also, your clothes do not slip off these hangers.



3. Smart Wool socks. www.smartwool.com They are expensive. They are also worth it. They help prevent blisters, they're very good looking and a lot of them come in sizes so you can have a really good fit!



4. Dark chocolate caramels from Trader Joes. These are amazing treats. They are rich and delicious and the most perfect after dinner sweet. I eat two of them after dinner and they totally satisfy my sweet tooth without being a ton of calories or carbs!



5. WEN shampoo. www.wenhaircare.com This is a weird shampoo. It's sulfate free and it seems more like a conditioner than a shampoo. I got the cucumber mint formula and I was very wary. But! I love it! It's very invigorating to my scalp, my hair feels truly clean and is really shiny. It also does not weigh down my hair, which is important since my hair is so fine and so straight. There is another forumla for damaged hair, but I tell you this, I would not recommend that forumla unless your hair is REALLY damaged. I also recommend not using QUITE as much as is recomemnded. The directions say to use 16-24 pumps, but I get by with 10 pumps nicely. I expect longer and thicker hair needs more, but you get the idea.

dear kittens,

1. dog class tonight was awesome. we had a subsitute teacher. her name is fran and while her energy is completely different from mike's, she leads a great class and she really put us through our paces. i'm so super ppleased with how well murray is progressing and every time he does well in class it makes me forget all the stuff (coming when called) that he totally sucks at.

2. i worked on a small craft project and got it finished in two days. which is great, because i plan on making a ton of stuff for our christmas tree this year, so now i am free to do that. well, not TOTALLY free because i am doing a few handmade things for christmas, but those are mostly evening projects that wil not take me long.

3. tomorrow is thursday! this week has flown by for me. i'm having lunch with a friend and then i hope she might be interested in helping me shop for window treatments for the living room. the living room window has been a pain in my ass for some time. why window, why? hopefully i can find a good solution tomorrow that will not be super expensive.

and now i go do the sleeping thing.

love,

catie

Dear Kittens,

1. There have been lots of changes in the house, but I'm waiting to take photos because I haven't totally decided on the art for the rooms where the changes took place. I always procrastinate about wall art. I have so many great pieces, I just can't decide where to put them!

2. Thanksgiving went off without a single hitch. We didn't forget anything and everything was delicious. My parents are totally in love with the dog. I think that's great, but man, Murray was super annoying over the Thanksgiving weekend because he was so poorly behaved. I'm glad to have things back to normal.

3. I have a bunch of crafts I need to finish up. It's hard all this crafting and what not, do you know? You probably have no idea. You are just a little furry kitten who only thinks about pouncing on things and napping. Oh, you.

4. I ordered two new pairs of jeans today and one pair fits perfectly and the other pair is too small. They are exactly the same size. I mean, clearly they are not exactly the same size, but they both SAY they are the same size. When will I stop being amazed by this? My guess is never. The one pair that fits is nice because they are perfect for rolling up and that's exactly what i've been wanting. Would it be wrong to use fusible webbing to keep my jeans permanently rolled? Will I regret it? Pls advise.

5. I have been eating a lot of peanuts lately. Roasted. Salted. In the shell peanuts. I had no idea there there was such a difference between various bags of peanuts, but there are. I got some from Target that were really horrible! The ones we have now are super good. Every peanut is perfect. You know what's really good? Eating peanuts and some sort of carbonated beverage like DIET COKE. Oh my dog. That is so wonderful. Highly recommend. A++

Love,

Catie

Dear Kittens,

1. Why does Seamus use his brain piercing meow on me when he wants out? Also, why does he need to go in and out and in and out so much? Stay put, Kitty!

2. I am wearing these pima cotton pajamas from J. Jill right now and they are the softest pajamas in the entire world. The only bummer is that the pants are very, very long. I guess I should start wearing high heels with my pajamas so they don't drag on the floor.

3. THANKSGIVING! We're deep frying our turkey again. This works out so great for us because we have a tiny oven and a tiny kitchen. With deep frying the turkey it means the whole cooking process goes super fast. I am a fan of this.

4. Andy had to go into work for a couple hours and then we're going to lunch and to run some errands. I shop at a small Italian market and the aisles of this store are very narrow. I love doing holiday shopping there because most people are in a good mood and it's all very festive and cozy in there. Listen, sometimes people are in bad moods, but I still love it.

5. Several years ago I hand knit a bunch of scarves and now I think I want to get rid of them. I never wear them and while most of them are nice scarves, they are entirely too warm for the sort of weather we get around here. I am on a purging cycle like you would not believe. I want to get rid of EVERYTHING.

6. My dog is really cute. He's a pale wheat color and he's got a giant button nose and he's fluffy. Also, we had friends visiting yesterday. They've got 2 little girls and on of the girls is a total natural at dog training. she's FIVE. She lead Murray around on the leash for the whole afternoon having him do various commands. AND HE OBEYED HER! He was completely exhausted after they left.

7. I should probably shower and what not so I am ready for my lunch date with my husband.

8. I decided this year that I am going to only have paper or felt ornaments on my tree. Usually our tree is a sight sensation of silver glass ornaments, but I have no idea what Murray's level of interest will be in the tree and I would rather not lose any of my ornaments due to puppy fail. I'm really looking forward to making new decorations and having a cute, homespun type tree.

Love, Catie

Kittens,

Typepad has started this new feature that makes posting short tidbits very easy. So, maybe I post more tiny little deals.



Like right now I will tell you about the new products I'm using that I love.

1. Aveeno Intensive Relief Hand Cream. Not greasy, stays on through washings and moisturizes like nothing else.



2. Lipstock Cream. www.lipstockist.com This stuff is amazing. I'm not sure if it's too shiny for most men, but it's super hydrating, not sticky or waxy and it leaves my lips feeling great even after just one application.



3. Jane Iredale Eyegloss in Mauve Silk. This color is great for just about every eyecolor. It wears nicely and it's the perfect amount of sparkle without being glittery.



Love,

Catie

Dear Kittens,

1. I'm finding it very difficult to negotiate the human social scene at dog parks. The first dog park I went to was in the desert and everyone was super friendly and the dogs were all awesome and it was great. Then I started going to dog parks around here and man alive, it's been a whole other scene. Or maybe it's me. I mean, it could totally be me. I think it might be me because I've been to a few different parks in the area and I'm getting the same vibe from all of them. Maybe my problem is that I am not a dog park person. My dog is 100% a dog park dog, though.

2. A little bit more on this, I am not a socially awkward person. I'm friendly and able to have conversations with complete strangers without issue. But at the dog park, I'm a bit stymied. Is this what it's like for parents when they go to the park with their kids? You've got this one, very generic thing in common aaaand that's it. Anything  beyond a couple a few minutes and the conversation just sort of dies out. Except, there is this core group of people who seem to know each other well and they stand around chatting.  

3. I'm watching V right now and I wish Andy were home watching it with me. Wash and Inara! And Juliet! And the dude from Party of 5. What was his name on Party of 5? Something sort of girly, right? Bailey? Was that it? I'm enjoying it, but I'm fairly easy to please. I do not give up on actor's former characters easily. Like when Terminator 2 joined the cast of X Files. I kept yelling at Scully to watch the fuck out because you knew he was going to kill her.

4. I have been sooo tired lately which means I am napping during the day which brings up to almost 11 pm and I'm not tired enough for sleepytime. Who knows what my deal is. Maybe it's my lady cycle, maybe I'm just really tired! You know what's funny to me is when the animals go to sleep before I do. Murray is all, "uh, whatever Night Owl, I'm going to bed."

Love,

Catie

Dear Kittens,

1. I just finished eating one of the est oranges of my life. So juicy! So tart! And yet also sweet! I know it's early for good citrus, but here I am with a bunch of super great oranges in my refrigerator. I mean, I am assuming that the rest of them are as good as the one I just ate. There is nothing worse than having one god orange and then 4 shitty ones.

2. I am 100% done with this warm weather. I am sick of all my summer clothes. I just want to wear skirts and boots and tights and sweaters. This happens at the change of every season. I am always ready to move on earlier than the weather is. Damn weather.

3. I think I mentioned that Andy is Las Vegas for the week. I do not enjoy Las Vegas because I am a grouchypants old broad who would rather shop than gamble and could care less about shows. There are two great things about Las Vegas. The people watching and the restaurants. Man, it used to be that the only food in Las Vegas was buffet food or prime rib and lobster for $5.99, which no way is that not going to be fantastic, right? Anyway, I am envious of Andy and these amazing dinners he gets to eat. I am also envious of the fact that Andy does not have to get up in the night to let an orange stripey cat in the house or out of the house.

4. I've been using a new product that I love. It's called Vacuum Cleaner by Dr. Brandt. It's not cheap, but it works! It's specifically meant for blackheads, but what I've noticed is weird little bumps that Ive had for years are slowly disappearing.

5. And now I tell you a secret. I recorded this documentary about Bon Jovi a couple weeks ago and I am watching it again. Because I am in love with Jon Bon Jovi. SUE ME. I cannot help it. I've got to go because it would be sad to miss a second of this. I will not mention this is the third time I'm watching it.

Love,
Catie

Dear Kittens,

1. Sometimes Murray will pen Seamus and then start aggressively sniffing him. Seamus is unusually tolerant of this, but he does sometimes meow in a soft, annoyed way. It makes me think that Seamus is the petite intellectual brother and Murray is the jock brother who is freakishly large. Of course, Seamus did his fair share of bullying when Petey and Roo-Roo were alive, I have no idea why we feel sorry for him now.

2. My computer broke a long time ago and since then I've been using this mini laptop we got for traveling. This computer is awesome for travel and really sucks ass for every day stuff. It's totally taken all the fun of the Internet away for me. Andy has ordered me a new computer from Dell, but apparently they are growing all the parts themselves and waiting for them to be vine ripened and so who knows when I will be allowed to enjoy the Internet again. Maybe before I die. MAYBE NOT.

3. Andy is in Las Vegas this week for a work deal. I have three goals for the week. The first is to take care of myself. That means going to bed early, eating well and exercising. The second goal is to paint the master bedroom. The third is to read every day. Read a BOOK, I mean. The Internet and magazines do not count.

4. The master bedroom is getting a makeover. New furniture, new paint, new artwork. Essentially, it will stop being a pit of clutter. We're both super excited about this. It's been a long time since our bedroom has been a truly nice place to spend time. The house in general is coming together very nicely. We're finishing up long over due projects and the end results are so nice! I'm painting the bedroom a medium shade of taupe that's heavy on grey. I want that room to feel sort of cave like. You know, not dank and clammy, but cool, dark and cozy.

5. Today is Murray's first birthday. He's lived with us since January. That's 10 months of a puppy bouncing his way through our lives. Bounce. Lick. Bounce. Lick. Body slam. Lick. Bounce. He's gone from looking like a roasted marshmallow to a caramel to divinity. He's super friendly and really cute and sort of an asshole.

Love, Catie

Dear Kittens,

I have a friend who is making a movie. To raise funds there is an Ebay auction. Bid on wonderful handmade products! I donated a set of cards.

Go support an independent filmmaker!