Last Day of Summer 2014

It is the official last day of summer here in Kiwiland, and this big lots of cloud and rain rolled in about 6pm making it dark early and reminding us of the weather to come.  We know though that our friends in the north have had a pretty wicked winter and are awaiting their six months of warmness.

We slept in and mum mucked around for the day.  She did go for a walk this afternoon while the weather was warmer and got some chores done and more groceries bought.  This evening has been quiet, while mum reads blogs some eggs are boiling so that she has a nice lunch for work tomorrow (mashed eggs + tomato in a roll for lunch).  Dinner is planned for the next two nights and the uniforms are all ready to be worn.

Hope you are all ready for the weekend - Caturday is tomorrow.  Woo hoo!!

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Just helping mum  tidy up the bed.   Hope you all had a fabby day.  Ours was ok.  The mumster had the day off and had a hair appt this afternoon, so went for a walk around the harbour and had a subway sandwich by the sea which was a good tonic.  She got a good hair cut and colour, and of course at the end her hairdresser whispered to her that it would be her last haircut with mum, as she is leaving next week.  We know that hairdressers aren't allowed to tell you where they are moving on to to protect the business, but mum feels a bit peeved as she has been going to the same salon for about 15 years and most of the oldies know her by name.  Her hairdresser has only done her hair for the past 6 months, as her fave hairdresser of six years left last year.  So this is a break up - mum isn't going back to the same salon, the owners have changed and mum doesn't feel any loyalty to them.  She hates the practice of being dumped onto the newest hairdresser when your good hairdresser leaves  She has scoped out a new place close to home and she is going to be brave and try out somewhere new.  Isn't a hassle finding a new hairdresser?

The evening is mild, although the wind is picking up as the weather is set to change tomorrow.  So mum had leftovers for her dinner and between tv shows is doing a little tidy up around the place.  The landlords have been around and got the gardener to tidy up the back yard for me.  They are going to do the front yard next week, and get someone to come and look at the light in mums room, which is currently  a bit prison cell and hopefully can be made nice and smart.

Hope you are all having a good Thursday - it's almost the weekend!!!

Wordless Wednesday

Cat Door

I have got used to my little cat door now, and am quite happy to come and go.  Mum went off to her nightshift last night at 11:30pm and left me sleeping on her bed.  When she got home just after 7am I got up and joined her while she had a snack.  It always helps her to have some toast before she pops into bed, so that the rumbly tummy doesn't wake her up at midday.

The cat door is a little higher than my last one, and at our old place my mum had a stool outside to help me climb in.  I am managing quite well here, and mum figures it is like a bit of a core exercise for me to have to stretch a little bit.  Usually while she is home and the weather is mild the back door is open, so that I can come and go through there.

Another Week

Another week has started.   Mum got herself up and she did go for a walk.  She went to a seaside cafe and had her lunch by herself.  She always feels brave eating out by herself, and even though she had her Kindle to keep her company it was nice to savour a tasty lunch with a wonderful view.  She window shopped but in reality there was nothing that grabbed her.  She is trying to be on a tight budget, and there is no harm in looking.  Of course the one thing we needed, she forgot about.  Oh well.

Groceries of course have to be bought every week, so mum got a pile of those.  Some fancy feasts for me and salad and meats for her.  Things sure are expensive at the supermarkets, and mum often wonders how people afford to feed a family on one income.  She finds it difficult feeding just her and me without spending loads.  From what we read on other blogs, groceries are pretty pricey here.  Steak and lamb are about $27 NZ a kilo (thats about 14 pounds or $22 US), Chicken breast is about $18 NZ/kg (9 pounds or $ 14 US).  Still mum knows that she is lucky to have a job and to be able to put food on the table.

Speaking of which she had a piece of pork with a warm potato salad and broccoli for her dinner.  A peach for her dessert is waiting for her - she is trying to eat her 5+ fruit and veg servings a day to keep healthy.

Hope you all have something tasty for your tea too.

Sleepy Sunday

It was a summery breezy day here, so mum succeeded in  getting a few loads of washing out on the washing line.  Although she loves getting them out in the fresh air, she is missing having a dryer.  The towels were so much softer, and she liked having her clothes washed and dried in the same evening.  She knows though that she is lucky having a washing machine at home and lots of sunshine at the moment.  She shouldn't moan.

Our friend Kim asked about Laundromats.  There are a couple in the city we think (but too far away from where we live), but everybody in NZ has their own washing machines at home.  We were a bit spoilt having a washing machine and dryer at our last house and mum got very used to it.  Our weather is quite mild here so it can dry outside on the line six months of the year, and have to be on a drying rack inside in the winter.

With the windows wide open I did a bit of snoozing around the house in various spots.  I do like mums bed at the moment, it is where I am snoozing as the secretary writes this post for me.  I had my dinner just after 6pm and went to bed at 6.20pm.  It is now 10:50pm and I am still in the same spot.

So the mumster is going to watch the end of the Walking Dead, then pop herself into bed to read for a while.  She doesn't have to go to work in the morning, so can have a late night with a bit of a sleep in.

We can feel the seasons beginning to slip and change lately.  It has been getting darker a bit earlier and mum has been pulling the slippers out more and more.  We know though that we will be due for more sunshine before the summer is truly over.

Enjoy your Sunday - hope you all had plenty of chances for a snooze or two.

Caturday Kitties

 Hi Caturday Kitties!!!  We had a lovely pinkie sunset this evening, with wisps of pink clouds over the harbour.  Although we can't see the sea from our house, it is just between the buildings and the big hills in our picture.   We are appreciating having a bit of a view in this house.

Mum was very grateful to be able to have a wee sleep in today, and then to go and meet a bestie for brunch.  It was a nice morning and mum did a lot of window shopping before coming home.  A few loads of washing, the bed was made, dinner and dishes done and time to rest up and relax.

 Me - well I had to get the blogging done.  There was uploading of photos.

 Dictating to my secretary.

And then checking out all of my friends blogs.

Now it is time for a nap!!!

Enjoy your Caturday my friends.

My Space Now

You got up and went to the shower.  It's my space now!!!  Mum and I had a quiet Friday night relaxing at home preparing for the weekend.  Hope you are all getting ready too.

Vista

We have a little view out of the front bedroom windows.  One is towards where we used to live, which is only 10 minutes walk away, and if we turn our head to the left and look out at the bottom picture the tall buildings are part of the hospital where mum works which is not far away either.

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday Things on the Wall

Gradually some of our things are  making way onto the wall and in their proper places making this place feel like our home.  Mum wasn't sure if these things suited being in the lounge or should be in the bedroom, but we like the three hanging together.  We have never lived in a place with white walls before, so mum feels it needs a little bit of colour in our accessories.

P.S somebuddy asked about our upstairs neighbour.  He is a quiet young man who works at a bank, and is not very noisy at all.  We don't  hear too much, most of the noise we hear is as he comes and goes to and from home as the stairs are by our bedroom window.

Little Bed Tent

This is where I am napping right now, in my little bed tent that my mum made for me.  It has my favorite blankies on it, and it is right by a little window, so I can see out onto my queendom.  I don't even run and hide now when the guy upstairs comes home, I am getting used to random noises.  We don't hear a lot, just when he comes and goes on his steps outside our bedroom.  When he is home though it isn't too bad.

Hope you all have somewhere warm and cosy to sleep.

Sunshiney Sunday

We keep reading that so many of our friends are having wicked weather, and we just wanted to let you know that the sun is shining somewhere on the planet.  We got blessed with a wonderful day.

Things that pleased mum today:

• Finally getting the lid off the nail polish removal bottle.  The child proof lock had prevented her from opening it for 3 weeks.  So now her toenails are Essie Merino Cool, instead of half worn out coral red.
• Finally remembering to buy her fave olive oil at the local market.  Lots of fresh fruit and veg at the supermarket.
• Having lunch with a bestie at a nice cafe and then doing some window shopping while taking a big old walk.
• A nice dinner and a quiet evening on the couch, phone calls with the family and a good couple of shows on the tele.
• Me ready to snuggle with while she reads her book before bed.

Not so impressed that  I backed up onto the litterbox and deposited my deposit outside the confines of the box.  She has seen the website for cat shaming.  She was seriously considering sending my name in.  The clean up made her have a quick little vomit, and kinda ruined her nice afternoon.

Hope you are all enjoying your Sunday and keeping your butt in the box.

Caturday = My One Lost Love

Years ago, my big uncle came for a visit.  He popped in to seem Mum and dropped off his bag and his brown hat.  I fell in love - that thing sure smelled good.  Mum did ask Big Uncle if I could keep it.  He said no.

I still think of that brown hat.

Hope you all had a fab Caturday.

Happy Valentines Day

Mum found this old photo of me just relaxing and enjoying a pat.  Awwww!!

We had the best kind of Valentines Day.  Mum was oncall last night and got called in around midnight and at 6am, which meant she got the day off to spend with me.  She got to go back to bed for a few hours in the morning, then relax and read her book between loads of washing!!

We then spent the afternoon and evening relaxing.   We have finally had some summer sunshine days which was good, and mum  has a good pile of books, lots of lovely fresh fruit, nectarines and peaches and piles of fresh sweetcorn on the cob to enjoy.  There are plans to meet up with friends over the weekend, and little sleep ins planned too.

Hope you all have some lovely plans for your weekend too.

Poppy Bed

Mum made me up a little Poppy sized bed in front of the window.   She was pleased to come home from work and see me sleeping on it already.  It is just the right size to snooze on and see people walking up and down the stairs in front of our house.

She is very impressed at how I am coping with all the strange noises and smells and am not as jumpy as I used to be.  I have also been going in and out of the catdoor, but mostly resting at home.

Wordless Wednesday

Cat Door Success

Today was mums day off from work after working the weekend.  After me leaving a rather large deposit in the litterbox mum demonstrated how the catdoor worked, by holding one side of it open.  I then went in and out to show her I knew what to do.  She went out for a walk for an hour or two, and when she came home I was inside having a snooze, so she thinks the cat door is a success.

Mum went for a walk to try and find some new pants.  Since moving mum has lost some weight and her trousers were a bit loose and dropping off like a teenage skateboarder.  Mum tried on a couple of denim leggings they were called, and she found them not to bad.  So she will have a little think, and see how much money is left after she has paid the bills on payday this week.

Outdoors More

The past two evenings, mum has opened the back door that leads out onto a little deck.  I have been exploring a little more, and am more than happy to come back inside with mum which makes her happy that I don't just run away.  We sure do miss the lovely garden at our last house, but are glad for a little outdoor space.

Sunday Night Snoozes

We have been reading lots of blogs of our northern hemisphere folks, and see all the storms and snow that many are having.  Truly we don't know how you do it my friends.  We are feeling blue as we are having a windy, wet and cold run this week, and mum had to pull out her winter jacket and umbrella to get to work this morning.  The bonus is that we have had the electric blanket on the bed and snuggled together at night.

Mum had finally relented last week and taken the fleecy sheets off the bed and put cotton ones one, so one of her besties told her that it was her fault the weather had turned nasty.  When mum made the bed today, she made sure to put the fleecy sheet back on - hopefully that will bring the summer weather back.

So hope you are all going to catch up on your snoozes on Sunday night too.

Caturday

So, Caturday is almost over here.  Mum was up at 5am to go to work, and boy was it wet and wild out there.  We got asked about the howling.  It has been a week since we moved in.  The first night I howled for 8 hours and hid under the bed, imbetween climbing on top of mum and having crazy eyes.  The next three nights I woke up at 4am with the birdies and howled for about three hours.  

On Thursday mum let me outside for about three hours, and since then there has been no more howling and I now sleep on the top of the bed with her.  She is working tomorrow, and is hoping that once she gets home she will let me go outside again for a couple of hours, and show me the new catdoor so I can get used to my new outsides and that will make me more settled.   She is hoping that she can then get rid of the litterbox inside.  Honestly, she doesn't know how so many of you sort out litterboxes every day.  It makes her quite queasy

So a quiet night at home for us again as we settle in.  Mum will do some more unpacking tomorrow after work and hopefully the rain will have stopped.

Enjoy your Caturday everybody.

Friday Night

Friday night is a quiet night at our new house with the tele on    Mum has to work over the weekend, so a quiet night on the couch is all she is up to.  Luckily the sweetcorn is nice and tasty at the moment, so she had two ears and a few little snacks for an exciting evening.   Mum has run out of feast for me, but is trying some other cat food that I am enjoying for a change.  Now I am having a nap on the bed while mum does the secretary work.   It is a bit chilly tonight, so our heatpump is on keeping us warm.

Hope you all have nice plans for your friday evening.

Back

Hi friends - we are sorry for taking such a long blogging break.  We have missed you all.  As you know we had to move our Chez q headquaters as our landlords wanted to come back to their little house.  Out of all the houses mum has lived in, she thinks she has loved that one the most.  It felt like home and we were all comfy and cosy there.  So for her it has been pretty tough

With only a small amount of time mum had to find somewhere affordable that was close to her work and I could move into.  She didn't expect it to be so tough out there, but it was pretty rotten.  Prices have risen like crazy and mum looked at lots of places.  Even the viewings have become crazy with thirty people showing up, and only getting a minute or two to look around.  

So the house we are in is pretty simple.  It is a small two bedroom flat with a young chap living in the flat above.  As a nervous nelly it has taken me all week to get used to noises coming from upstairs.  On the first night we were here I howled all night - all nine hours of the night.  For the rest of the week, I have only woken up with the birdies and howled from about 4.30am. I also spent the first three days hiding in mums bed under the duvet. So this afternoon , the mum gave up and let me go outside, and I spent about 4 hours exploring.  I did come back in at dinner time and mum is going to let me use the catdoor now, and see if that makes me happier.

So welcome to the new Chez Q and we hope we can catch up with you all soon.