our ben is in heaven

We had to put our Benny to sleep yesterday. These pictures are from his last day with us. It is so heartbreaking to lose such a special friend. And when I say special I truly mean it. This cat has been amazing.

Randy and Kaiden fell in love with him at first sight at the animal shelter. He was instantly Kaiden's new best friend. He was 2 years old and would carry Benny around all day long like a rag doll. They were inseparable! Benny would just sit by Kaiden and watch him play and follow him around everywhere. He was also Randy's favorite animal in the house. That's a pretty special spot to be in considering :)

We take in LOTS of animals. Some we keep and some we find homes. We have had lots of kittens in and out of our little house and Benny is always their adoptive mama. The kittens attached to him instantly. He always let them try to feed off of him, snuggle up, and clean them like they were his own babies. He was very nurturing to these little guys who desperately missed their real mama. It always amazed us what a big heart Benny had.

But Benny has never been quite right. He didn't have normal cat instincts. He couldn't walk a straight line, balance on a high table or counter, or jump up. He always had a slightly funny walk too. When you would hold Benny he would go completely limp and relaxed. Nothing would startle him or make him run about. We always thought he was just a very chill kind of cat. But the last couple of months Benny started having extremely violent seizures. He started going a little crazy and confused, not knowing quite where he was. Turns out he had a neurological problem. He truly didn't have a single cat sense. He couldn't tell if his feet were on the ground or not, he couldn't tell if his face was in or out of his water bowl, didn't know if his butt was on the ground when he sat, and things just got worse. But this whole time Benny was still happy and even more loving. He never acted like he was in pain(unless in a seizure) and that is what has made this so hard for us. We could tell he wasn't the same cat because he got this blank stare and you could kinda tell there wasn't always someone home upstairs.
But now Benny is home. He was a good cat, a good friend, and will be missed so so much. WE LOVE YOU BEN!

April 14

Sorry we've been lacking in the interesting post department lately! We've been working our butts off over here!

We've been trying to take what little time we have together lately and make it fun. Like yesterday we went over to one of our favorite restraunts, Sweet Berries and had ice cream. We've been going to the beach in the evening or early morning or just exploring, finding special little spots to enjoy.

Just hanging out at home has been the nicest when you're so busy running about. Lots of tickling, movie watching, and GI Joe playing. Cake baking, bike riding, and mud racing are also always on our to do list!

Hopefully soon the busy schedule will calm down a bit. Maybe in a week or two? Until then I'll probably just be posting pictures!

Hi! My name is...

Mr. Happy

Mr. Mischief

Mr. Cutie

Mr. I didn't do it

Mr. Crazy Head

Mr. Bossy

Edit: The outfit is actually kind of a funny story. Randy's mom bought this little dress outfit - shorts, dress shirt, vest, and matching bow tie - for church when Kaiden was 18 months old. I didn't even know we still owned it until Kaiden came out wearing the teeny tiny shorts, the shirt that is so small it shows his belly, and the vest. He asked for the bow tie on and then put on his hightop converse shoes with flames on the sides. He asked me to go out in the backyard and take some pics of him and I was all for it!!! He was all velveeta for this photo shoot!

pirates invade the park!

This is the first time we've been able to get together since Joshua and Sianna moved away. Kaiden was getting pretty upset that we haven't seen his friends and would cry saying, "I told you Joshua just left me behind!". But when the kids saw eachother and embraced in a HUGE hug everything was better. Within 10 minutes they were already arguing and bickering like old times! Some things just never change :)

Joshua and Sianna brought easter baskets filled with treasure and pirate gear. They had a blast taking over the entire playground. They even got a few prisoners who were willing to play along with them.

We miss our friends and wish we could work our schedules so we could see them alot more often. But summer is coming quickly and will be spending lots of time at the beach with them!

long lost post

This post is from a while back. Must have gotten lost in the shuffle!

Today Randy and Kaiden went to one of their favorite places to visit - Animal Services, aka the pound. They love taking the dogs for walks, in the feilds to play catch, or just run around. It breaks their poor hearts seeing them locked up in those cages! Luckilly when they went this time there were only 4 dogs! Animal Services has been working their butts off trying to find these guys homes.


Check this big guy out! Randy said his head was bigger than his! I think he's pretty handsome :)

There is one big room full of cats. Cats EVERYWHERE! It's funny watching them all interact with eachother, seeing who's boss and who's a lover or who needs an attitude adjustment. There is also a room just for kittens. That room is sooooooo hard to resist. You know if you step foot in there you will be fighting your heart on taking one home!

Even if you aren't in the market for a dog or cat its really fun to visit. The dogs AND cats are excited for the attention and love!