Happy Birthday, My Sweet Jessie

My Sweet Kitty Jessie

Today is my baby's birthday.

Jessie, my precious silver tabby kitty is 16 years old today. Old enough to drive if I'd let her. Old enough to date. She's smart enough to do those things alright.

Ah, but these are human milestones. Feline milestones come much sooner. Kitties progress from kittens to adult cats by age 1 year. In feline years my baby's age is the equivalent of 80 years for a human. Even so, she doesn't look that old.


Jessie & her furry friends

Just look at her cute face and big bright expressive green eyes. She is so beautiful, even now when she is older and moves a bit more slowly. Her fur is still smooth and shiny, with the most beautiful stripes and patterns. I never tire of looking at her or petting her. She loves her neck and chin scratched gently, purring all the while.

My Jessie is way more than a "pet" to me. She is my companion, my confidant, and my best friend. She has comforted me when I was sad, upset and crying. She cuddles with me and purrs peacefully when I am happy and smiling. She sleeps with me most nights either in her basket beside my bed or up on the bed if there is room. She understands me, and I her. We know each other very well. We can read each other's minds most of the time. I call her my psychic kitty. She also understands what I say to her. She reads my body language and tone of voice, and I swear she understands my words most of the time. I guess she really senses my feelings, my energy and my thoughts more than my words.

She is my precious baby, my friend and companion. We have both grown older. She has a few health problems now. I give her medicine twice per day for her hyperthyroidism, and I give her subcutaneous fluids once a week to help her kidneys function better for her. Always a small slender cat, she is so skinny now since the hyperthyroidism hit. I worry for her health and longevity every day. I weigh her every few days and keep track of her weight trends. She needs to eat more to gain more, but she doesn't gain much. Again, I worry.

I love her so much. The thought of not having her around forever saddens me and makes me cry. Who will comfort me with her soft meows and loud purrs when she is gone from this life?

She is a very good kitty. A loving friend to me. I have tried to be the best mom for her.


Jessie at her scratching post

So enough of the sad thoughts about her getting older and leaving me. (I have tears in my eyes now.) She is still here, and in good health, all things considered. She still brings me joy every single day. I miss her when I must leave home for a few days. I worry about her when I am away.

She is 16 years old today. A Libra girl. My sweet baby. Her full name is Whispering Jessie, because her meow is so soft and gentle.

Happy Birthday my sweet Whispering Jessie! I will always love you.

© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

New Day, New Life

Grandpa Jack and sweet Annelise

My partner Jack's daughter gave birth to a beautiful baby girl last Friday. Mom and baby are both happy and healthy and doing fine. We drove down to southern California over the weekend to visit everyone and meet his new sweet granddaughter, Annelise. She is so beautiful! I have held babies before, but I had never held a brand new just-born infant in my arms. So it was a precious treat for me. See the photo below:

Me and Annelise in the hospital room

Just a day old and so full of life and personality! I was thrilled to be included in welcoming her to the world. When she smiled at me (yes, I know it could just be gas!) it really made my day. Babies are such perfect special beings. They come in and totally change your life forever. They make me wonder and ask more questions. They make me dream and look at everything differently. I think they know what they are doing.

On this trip we stayed in a hotel when we usually stay with relatives who live in the area. Here's a nice view from our hotel window:

Here's a view from our 8th floor balcony looking down at the pool. I was afraid I'd drop my camera or worse! We didn't swim in the pool, but we did have drinks by the fire pit that was down in the pool area.

We also over-indulged ourselves with food and drink on this trip. After a very nice dinner at the local Chili's restaurant, we split a large dessert called Molten Chocolate Cake. A moist chocolate cake, filled with warm fudge sauce, topped with vanilla ice cream and a hard chocolate shell. All drizzled with chocolate and carmel sauce. It was a meal in itself.

Jack attacking the Molten Chocolate Cake dessert. I quickly joined him after taking the photo.

It was a special weekend. Seeing new life blossom and thrive always amazes me. It helps to renew my spirit and passion. It's good for my heart and soul. It makes me realize how connected we all really are.

© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Nurtured By Nature

Springtime on my patio table

It’s been a few days since I’ve felt like posting anything here. My life and my mood have been less than ideal this week. Too much work, too little money, too little time and too little energy. Same old stuff. Add to that some health concerns about my precious kitty companion Jessie, and some partner relationship issues and you have my ingredients for a less than ideal week. Well, at least it’s Friday today. Not that Friday signals the end of the work week for me since I am self employed, but it still triggers some ancient relaxation urges in my psyche.

My sweet kitty Jessie

I want to thank my good friends both locally and in my blogging world for being so psychic and sensitive and for expressing your concern for my well being. I love and appreciate every one of you. You have reached out to me without me even asking you for it.

So here I sit sipping my second glass of cheap Merlot wondering what I will make myself for dinner. When I am stressed as I have been this week, I tend to eat rather haphazardly (which doesn’t help my mood or energy level) and I find myself missing my Mom a lot more than usual. I guess it’s her nurturing and her love that I miss the most. And her laughter. She had a great laugh.

I also miss her more around holidays, my birthday and especially as the season changes to Spring. I have always associated Springtime with my Mom. She loved her flowers and her garden so very much. She was very much like a beautiful blooming flower herself. A bright yellow King Alfred daffodil or a velvety red Mr. Lincoln rose (her favorite). At least in my eyes. She was bright and sunny most of the time. Colorful always. Fresh and vibrant. Full of life. That was my Mom. I miss her every day, but especially this time of year.

King Alfred Daffodils

It’s a wonderful time of year, my favorite season, so it’s not a sad time. I just think of her more as the flowers start to bloom and as I start to work in my garden again. I know she is with me, directing me, telling me what plants to put where and how to plant them. You see, my Mom could grow anything. She definitely had a very green thumb. I used to say that she “could grow popsicles from planting popsicle sticks”. Since her death almost 11 years ago, I seem to have cultivated my own green thumb, when before I couldn’t grow much of anything. I truly believe her spirit lives within me and helps me to continue doing the things that she loved so much.

I love to be in my garden in the Spring. I love the new growth, the new beginnings filled with promise. I enjoy seeing the earth wake up after a cold winter. I love dreaming and visualizing my bountiful harvest while planting the seeds and seedlings in the moist soil. I can feel my Mom in the garden with me. I enjoy my garden and nature in general for the beauty and the feeling they give me, but I also enjoy being in my garden because I feel so much closer to my Mom when I am there.

I’ve neglected my garden in the past couple of years. Oh, I still grew some veggies and a few flowers and herbs, I should say they pretty much grew themselves, but I haven’t really given my garden enough priority or attention to truly feed my soul, make my spirit soar and allow myself to be nurtured by nature, and of course feel closer to my Mom.

So this Spring, I think I must make my garden a higher priority in my life and get out there and plant my seeds, hold my Mom’s hand and harvest some love to feed my spirit. Oh yeah, along the way I’ll harvest some veggies too.



© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Take Care of Yourself

On the road to the "big" city

Sometimes when you live in a rural area, you must leave it and drive for quite some distance for goods and services that are not available in your local community. That includes medical services. Happily, I don’t go to the doctor very often, usually only for well-woman checkups once or twice per year.

Yesterday I ventured forth down and out of the mountains and into the flatlands of the “big” city some 40 miles to the south. It was my day for my mammogram screening and my first ever bone scan. (I am of “that” age now) So I went quite a distance to have these medical services and take care of my physical self. Something I need to pay more attention to as I haven’t been feeling all that well lately. I still have that darned head cold that I mentioned a few days ago. It just makes me so tired and grumpy.

The photo above is a view from the car traveling down to my appointments yesterday. So here’s to us all nurturing and taking better care of ourselves. Below is a daffodil update to nurture our spirits.

Daffodils think it's Spring!