Friendly Fill-Ins

It's Friday, which means we're ready to fill in some fill-ins. If you'd like to join us for the Friendly Fill-Ins but missed the fill-in statements yesterday, we'll share them again below. Ellen of 15andmeowing came up with the first two, and I came up with the second two.


1. I learned _________ the hard way.

2. Everyone should _________ at least once in their lives.

3. Lately, I've been thinking a lot about _________.

4. I'll never be too old to _________.

My answers are below in bold.

1. I learned the importance of wearing eye protection when doing yard work the hard way.

(It's common sense that eye protection should be worn anytime your eyes could be injured, and that includes when doing yard work such as trimming trees. I got bold one time, though, and ignored that bit of common sense. A few years ago, my elderly neighbor needed help trimming a couple of low branches on one of her small trees. I went over to help her, and I of course didn't take any eye protection with me, not even sunglasses. I figured it would be fine, because we only had a couple of simple branches to cut. And that's when I learned my lesson. My left eye got to know a tree branch pretty well that day, and I was lucky that the worst I ended up with was a nasty corneal abrasion. I couldn't fully open my eye for days, and it felt bruised and had to be treated with ointment for months after that. Ever since then, I have always worn eye protection when doing yard work, especially trimming tree limbs.)

2. Everyone should experience the unconditional love of an animal at least once in their lives.

(Animals can offer an unconditional form of love that most humans cannot offer, and I think everyone should feel that sort of love at some point in their life.)

3. Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the future.

(I know there are people out there who have a tendency to dwell on the past. I'm the opposite. I'm pretty good at putting the past behind me, but I do constantly find myself pondering and attempting to predict or plan the future. Especially with how the world is turning these days, I find myself not only contemplating my own personal future, but also the future of my nation and the world.)

4. I'll never be too old to enjoy children's stories.
(Whether it be in the form of books or movies, there are many children's stories I enjoy despite the fact that I'm an adult.  Perhaps children's stories have more inspiring themes. Perhaps they're filled with more innocence. Perhaps they're just fun. No matter the reason, whenever I need something lighthearted and lively, I find myself reading books meant for middle graders and watching animated movies aimed at kids. I'll never outgrow that. Want a fun fact? One of my favorite animated movies aimed at kids is How To Train Your Dragon, and my calico angel Rosie used to love chasing the movie's flying dragons around on the TV screen. Nowadays, Thimble does the exact same thing.)

Now it's your turn!

To add your link to the Friendly Fill-Ins Linky list, just click HERE!

You can also click on the badge below to add your link.

You are also welcome to complete the fill-ins in the comments below,

or in the comments on Ellen's blog, 15andmeowing.

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Can you believe that the photo Eddy is sharing today isn't even a blooper? Just look!

In order to get at least a couple viable photos of Eddy, I recently opened the window to distract her. So what if it was below freezing outside? We'll be sharing more photos from that frigid photo shoot over the next couple of weeks.

Happy Friday, friends!

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Flashback Doodle of the Day

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Tip of the Day

Yesterday, we discussed wiping off furry feet and human shoes after going outdoors in the winter, in order to reduce exposure to products such as salt, or ice melt. There is another good reason to wipe off those furry feet after going outdoors, and that is to remove snow and ice from the paws and the toes they contain. When a dog or cat goes outdoors into the snow, their paw pads, the fur on their feet, and the areas between their toes can all collect snow and ice. This can of course be cold and uncomfortable, so when they come in from outdoors, be sure to wipe off their feet so that they can remain dry and warm. Especially if your furbaby is short or if the snow is deep, also wipe off their belly and anywhere on their body that might have collected cold snow. Also thoroughly wipe off your own feet when you come inside, or remove your shoes, in order to keep the floors dry and warm for your furbaby's paws.

In line with the above thoughts, if your pup or kitty goes on walks, consider taking a dry towel with you when there is snow on the ground. Snow and ice can clump up and get stuck between your furbaby's toes, and those with especially furry feet can attract extra snow and ice on their feet. So, if your furbaby is outdoors for an extended period of time, do consider taking a dry towel with you and removing snow and ice from on and between their toes throughout the walk. This will allow them to remain as dry and comfortable as possible when outdoors in the snow.