Holiday Cat-astrophes

"You better watch out, you better not cry" might be a good behavioral deterrent for little kids, but there's no gimmick that works on pets. "Santa is watching" does not prevent Phineas from gnawing on the Christmas tree. If I hide an elf on a shelf, you'll find Matilda up there with him (probably biting him, actually). You better believe that both of my cats are on the naughty list.

Really, who can blame them? This is a season of enticing foods, drunken strangers, and tail-pulling babies. We bring a perfectly climbable tree into the house and put shiny temptations on every branch. It's no wonder that every year we experience a bit of cat-related holiday mayhem. Just look at our Thanksgiving aftermath...

Our kitty mishaps have ranged from amusing (Tildy's obsessive pilfering of faux cranberry vase filler and Phinney's sneaky turkey tasting) to slightly stressful (like the cat + dog chase that led to a broken mirror). 

The key to avoiding disaster is simply to know your pets. Between Phinney the plant-nibbling ribbon-swallower and Matildor the Destroyer, we have our hands full.

• If we're expecting a house full of guests, I know that Phinney will hide under the bed until the party has died down- but Matilda loves to mix and mingle. I put a bell on her collar to prevent her from getting underfoot.
• Ribbons are Phinney's ultimate temptation. A pricy trip to the emergency vet in the middle of assembling wedding invites taught us to keep loose ribbons and bows out of reach, and to skip the tinsel on our tree.
• Matilda likes to bat at baubles, so we tie ornaments onto the tree.
• Phineas has a sensitive belly, so we don't overdo it with the treats.
• Knowing that Tildy holds grudges (she's been hissing at my brother for years now), we're careful to make slow introductions to new people and animals.
• Like many cats, Phineas can't keep his teeth off of the greenery- so we avoid poisonous poinsettias.

So, a few questions for you in the comments section:

How do you keep your pets out of trouble during the holidays?

-and-

What's your most memorable Christmas Cat-astrophe?

Here & Now: Fetching Phineas

I love my cat. Well, both of my cats, but Phineas especially. The squeaky little fellow just melts me completely. What's not to love? He's about 11 pounds of purring, snuggling, tabby goodness. And he does tricks!

I can tell that you're skeptical, so you have to indulge me by watching this video montage of my darling Phinney playing fetch.

Stockings Hung with Care

Our apartment is sans fireplace, which means that Santa's going to have to find an alternate point of entry, and I had to make do without a mantle. I hung our stockings with fleur de lis picture nails on a bare wall in our living room. They were shimmery and festive, but something was missing...

They needed a personal touch, but I'm not handy enough with needles and thread to take on embroidery. Instead I drew out petite banners on black paper and scribbled in all of the WarLock family names...

Now it's perfectly clear where all the coal should go!

We're sharing with the kitties, so most of the stocking stuffers will be catnip treats. Matilda loves unwrapping her own presents (last year she even retrieved them from under the tree), and we figure that Phinney will be thrilled to have paper to shred and new toys to play fetch with. There will be a few presents for Adam and I as well, and since I'm doing the shopping, I already know I love them!

We're looking forward to two more sets of thoroughly stuffed stockings when we go home to Washington for the holidays. Adam has a large family, and this year each person is responsible for contributing some goodies to three other stockings. Everyone will end up with a fun assortment! My family saves the stockings until very last, to be emptied and giggled over as we finish our coffee. 

Are stockings part of your Christmas tradition?

How to Make Perfect Paper Snowflakes

Here & Now: Our Living Room

I don't know if you can tell from this photo, but energy levels are pretty low here today.

I find myself in the mid-holiday doldrums, and since we polished off the last bits of Ferdinand last night, I can't blame it on the tryptophan! After a lively weekend with my family, I'm downright exhausted. But, before I add a shot of espresso to my hot chocolate and start lighting this place up for Christmas, I thought I'd give you a few peeks at our living room.

I used my family's visit as an excuse to shuffle the furniture, and I'm pleased with how it turned out! As you might remember from my Where We Blog From pictures, my desk used to be situated by the window, an arrangement that wasn't terribly welcoming to guests. I switched the positions of my workspace and our petite sofa, and finally the living room looks just right. My desk is now nestled into a corner with our bookcases, creating a snug home office. The settee now has a better angle on the television and the perfect vantage point for our busy street view. There's more floor space for Phinney's antics and more wall space for art!

If you're an astute observer, you'll notice I've got new art on the walls. The large piece is actually...

My beloved feather placemats, aka my blog header! Daily use had caused them to molt heavily, and they were looking pretty pitiful on my table. The frame and matting was a freebie from an old job, and I'd never found artwork that was a good fit- but I loved the antiqued gold edge on the frame, and it was the perfect focal point for my new gallery wall above the couch. So, I simply layered in the placemats for an abstract look that compliments my soft neutral color scheme!

I'm using a neutral palette for my holiday decor as well, with lots of silver and gold. Adam and I are getting our very first Christmas tree tonight, and I can't wait to show it off!

Ferd the Bird

The blog may be quiet this week, but my apartment is certainly not! Adam and I are hosting a Thanksgiving feast, and the preparations have definitely thrown my OCD switch. Totally normal to rearrange your bedroom furniture in expectation of dinner guests, right?

We finished our grocery shopping this week, and Adam and I spent more time interacting with potential turkeys than we did with potential new kittens (Phineas was an easy choice, obviously). After a lot of weighing and examining, we chose a hefty young bird, toted him home, and named him Ferdinand. I'm training him to be delicious.

Ferdinand is being brined, so I keep peeking to see how he's enjoying his salty apple cider bath. Every time I take the lid off our pets appear, eagerly sniffing.

Isn't that the most gloriously full refrigerator you've ever seen? 

The cats agree. "If we pull this off, we'll eat like kings!"

Tildy the Cat is dying to get her paws on Ferd the Bird.

LOL. "I can haz Tanksgivins?"

Okay, back to work. Pies to bake, cranberry sauce to make, a linen closet to reorganize (hey, it's possible that someone might look!). 

Dare to Dream: Rugs

Carpet may be the most common renter's woe. Carpet worn bare over years of use, carpet harboring the former tenant's pet's fleas, carpet wearing stains that you hope had nothing to do with the former tenant's pet. Adam and I have faced all of the above in our current apartment alone. Someday when we live in our own home with herringbone wood floors we're going to reminisce about the carpet angst of our youth. Like the reasonably attractive but obviously defective remnants in our Seattle apartment. Not only did the unbound edges continually unravel, the carpet coughed up enormous poofs of synthetic fluff, even after six months of weekly vacuuming (and even more so after it choked and killed my vacuum). We'll think wayyyy back to the very, very green wall-to-wall carpet of our last Spokane apartment and have a good chuckle. Oh, how green it was.

My current complaint is perhaps the most common of all. Our carpet, even now that it's passably clean, is just hideous. The bedroom is swathed in matted orangey-brown plush (gag), and the living room sports dingy loops of gray, mauve, and blue. A posh tiger rug can only help the situation so much.

So, here's a dare-to-dream that I think all of you renters out there can relate to. I dream of covering up this hot mess with a much prettier area rug (that I could roll up and take with me when I ditch this joint). Something with a practical, show-no-dirt pattern that compliments my neutral palette...

Clockwise from top left, Dash & Albert Diamond Indoor/Outdoor Rug in Charcoal/Taupe, Modern Damask Wool Tufted Rug in Silver from World Market, Hooked Quatrefoil Rug in Mocha/Charcoal from Shades of Light, Dash & Albert Diamond Indoor/Outdoor Rug in Khaki/White.

Of course, rolling in at about half a month's rent, all of these practical investments are sadly out of this girl's price range. Ah, dare to dream.

Party Fouled

The WarLock Family's Halloween Party has been cancelled! Turns out that not even pie and free booze can distract our Bay Area friends from something else orange and black this year.

Which means that I have swathed my house in cobwebs for nothing.

Even Tom sheds a tear. A single molten tear.

Boo!

A Curious Memento

Our Phineas has grown so much since we introduced you to him in May. He's now quite a lapful, and strong enough to make Tildy think twice about tackling him. And he's losing his baby teeth!

I know, this probably elicits as many "ewwws" as "awwws," but I'll be keeping this tiny relic of Phinney's kittenhood in our cabinet of curiosities. I can't help being sentimental! I just adore every tooth, whisker, stripe and spot on this cat. He's something special- so here's to hoping that he doesn't grow up surly like Matilda!

Happy weekend, friends!

Best Things in Life

When I was a freshman in college (and away from home for the first time in my life) my Mom sent me dozens of postcards. I remember how reassuring it was to find one waiting for me in my otherwise empty mailbox.

This one has always been my favorite.

Illustration by Simon Drew

On the back she's written, "hope you're feeling a little brighter today and your outlook is cheerier." Years later, when I'm feeling worried and overwhelmed, this happy thought in familiar handwriting is just as comforting. Plus, I do love me a green-eyed tabby cat and a clever pun.

Speaking of handsome kitties, I've just entered this photo of Phineas in a contest on Martha Stewart's website. The prize is a year's worth of kibble, and I'm thinking it's about time that one of these spoiled cats of mine started bringing home the bacon! 

Life at the WarLock House

Another mellow morning in Berkeley. It's gray and chilly today, so I'm lingering over a second cup of hot tea before I venture outside. This afternoon's errands will have me zig-zagging all over town, so I'm sipping extra slowly...

Tildy is savoring some quiet time as well, lounging on her favorite chair in my newly-lavender dining nook.

Poor Matilda. Her moments of peace are always brief thanks to the pesky new kitten.

Phineas

Meet our new little boy, Phineas WarLock!

 Adorable, from the tips of his tufted ears to his tiny brown toes.

Adam and I had been talking about a second cat for quite a while now, thinking that our Matilda might be a much happier girl (and might get into less mischief) if she had a feline companion. We thought right! After just a day of stalking and sulking, Tildy has discovered that her new baby brother is an excellent playmate! We're so happy that the cats will be able to entertain each other when I start leaving for work during the day (soon!).

When not pestering his sis, our stripy scamp enjoys galloping around the house, using Adam as a jungle gym, and being a snuggly little mama's boy (and that's just fine by me).

12 legs and a tail- Phinney loves octopus! We're going to have to sneak it away from him to get it in the mail...

I'm sure Phineas will be making regular appearances on the blog. After all, he's a pretty handsome addition to our decor!