Almost Wordless Wednesday

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Our Artsy Fartsy Endeavor of the Day:

A certain pup told me that it wasn't fair for the kitties to have all the fun. So, I doodled up a canine version of art we shared yesterday.

 

We've made this one into an ornament, because there's nothing more festive than a gangsta hanging from your Christmas tree.

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Our Tip of the Day:

Our tips these days have been inspired by the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. We have very recently discussed what kinds of vegetables and such in a Thanksgiving dinner can, if fed plain, make decent treats for you kitty or pup. Today, on the other hand, we'll mention some vegetables and other similar foods that it is simply best to avoid feeding your furbaby altogether. In addition to alliums such as onion and garlic, which we've already discussed being toxic on multiple occasions, it is wise to steer clear of feeding your cat or dog foods such as avocado, mushrooms, tomato, and rhubarb, among others. While some such foods are only dangerous in large quantities, or if certain parts of them are eaten, when in doubt, avoid them altogether. Also, of course, be aware if certain dishes being served contain such foods as added ingredients. If you are in any way unsure what a dish contains, simply do not feed any part of it as a treat to your kitty or pup. As always, it is better to be safe than sorry!

Tabby Tuesday

Evan hopes you all aren't tired of seeing him, because he's here again today. He wanted to be your host in this installment of Tabby Tuesday. In honor of this day, Evan decided to show you all a couple of his stunning stripes.

See those orange stripes? Evan is quite proud of them!

What kind of Tuesday are you all celebrating today? Tabby Tuesday? Toesies Tuesday? Tummy Tuesday? Tuxie Tuesday? Tortie Tuesday? No matter what kind it is, happy Tuesday!

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Our Doodle of the Day:

I wish I could take credit for this festively fun play on words.

Alas, though, I cannot. I saw it on my good pal Pinterest.

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Our Tip of the Day:

We just yesterday talked about how plain green beans can make for a good treat for your furbaby, and previously about how the same goes for potatoes. Today, we'll mention a couple of other vegetables that your furbaby can eat as a safe treat on Thanksgiving, or any day. Carrots, for example, are one vegetable that can be very healthy and nutritious for pups and kitties. Other safe options include broccoli, celery, cucumbers, spinach, and peas. As we've said many times before, though, it is very important to feed even healthy treats in moderation, but also to take into consideration any ingredients added to the vegetables. Onion, garlic, sugar, excess salt, and a variety of other potential spices can be toxic or can lead to issues such as gastrointestinal distress, as you likely already know. Again, it is possible for your furbaby to enjoy that upcoming Thanksgiving dinner with you, as long as you choose safe, healthy options for them!

Motivational Mancat Monday

Monday often gets a bad rap, because it means we're back to work, or back to school, or simply back to the usual grind. But, if you think of it, Monday is more like a fresh start. Isn't that nice, getting a fresh start every seven days?

Evan thinks fresh starts are nice. For days, this mom of his hasn't left the front door open because it's been pretty darn cold here in our corner of the world. But, very recently, it warmed up for a bit, and so Evan got some time at his front door. That's a nice fresh start, don't you think?

Now, if only this here human would wipe all that nose art off the door, Evan could have a clear view.

Evan wants to know, do any of you kitty or puppy friends of ours have to suffer through gazing out a dirty window? The furbabies here make lovely nose art, but Evan sure wishes his lazy mom would just clean it off the window already.

Moving on, though, on this Mancat Monday we're also participating in the Sparks blog hop. This lovely hop is hosted by Annie of McGuffy's Reader, and is meant to help spread positivity in this world of ours.

This week, we made a quick little doodle out of our Sparks sentiment.

"If you stumble, make it part of the dance." Courtesy of Pinterest.

Have a magnificent Monday!

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Our Tip of the Day:

Surely I'm not the only one who always feasts on some green bean casserole for the holidays? If green bean casserole is on your Thanksgiving table, keep in mind what all ingredients are used to make it before you let your furbaby try some. A lot of green bean casseroles involve potentially dangerous ingredients, such as onions or even garlic. For this reason, it is likely best to hold off on sharing green bean casserole with your kitty or pup. That being said, though, if you have plain green beans to serve, those can make a great and nutritious treat for that furbaby in your life!

Sunday Selfies from the Assistant

If you visited us on Thursday, you might remember Thimble showing off what a fantastic model and assistant she is. I explained then how I was challenged to do a black and white photo challenge on Facebook. This challenge instructs you to share black and white photos that represent your life, but one of the rules is that there are no pet photos allowed. That was the true challenge, if you ask me.

Anyway, today's selfies are brought to you by another particular kitty who assisted me in this challenge.

Black and white Toby wanted a shot in, well, black and white. But, he sort of forgot to look at the camera. He tried to remedy that, and then even turned on some color.

Let's be honest, getting photos without furbabies is next to impossible here at our house. That's okay, though, this here human doesn't mind one bit. The furry cuties are the only photogenic things around here anyway.

So, Toby is of course entering his furry assistant shots into the Sunday Selfies blog hop, hosted by our pals over at The Cat on My Head.

Happy Sunday to all of you friends of ours!

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Our Doodle of they Day:

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Our Tip of the Day:
A discussion on Thanksgiving dinner foods would not be complete without noodles, would it? If noodles are a part of your holiday meal, it could be considered safe to feed your furbaby a small amount of plain noodles. Noodles can be a good source of energy in the form of carbohydrates, but of course they are best enjoyed in moderation for your furbaby. That being said, as always, also do consider any ingredients added the noodles. Do not feed your pup or kitty noodles that include garlic or onion, for example, or that include any fatty or other sauces that might lead to gastrointestinal upset, pancreatitis, or other issues. So, if your furbaby fancies a taste of pasta, as long as it's plain, they can enjoy a little taste.

Cold Caturday Art

Hello, friends! Here in our corner of the world, it's been well below freezing the past couple of mornings. We barely even hit above freezing throughout the day yesterday. Do you know what that means?

That's right. It's time for snowkitty to start making an appearance. For Halloween it was all things cat-o'-lantern, and now we've reached the snowkitty phase. Truth be told, I was thinking about doing a snowkitty and cat-o'-lantern mashup for next week's Caturday Art. What do you friends of ours think? Yay or nay to that?

Back to today's snowkitty, though. Now, I'm not sure I've admitted this here before, but I have an obsession with buttons. I can go to a craft store in search of nothing but a set of markers or a sketchbook, and come out with a lifetime supply of buttons. Buttons in every size and shape and all that jazz, I love them all. That being said, I used some of my never-ending supply of buttons to spruce up the snowkitty's little scene just a bit.

Of course, today's snowkitty was created for Athena's Caturday Art blog hop. Do be sure to visit Athena so as to see the art of all of our friends!

Happy Caturday to all! If it's cold in your corner of the world, too, we hope you're staying warm and cozy!

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Our Tip of the Day:

Yesterday we talked about offering potatoes as a treat for your pup, such as during Thanksgiving dinner. We focused on potatoes of a more white variety yesterday, so today we're here to talk about sweet potatoes. To put it simply, sweet potatoes can make for a great treat for a pup or kitty. They are a great source of fiber and vitamin A, as well as vitamin C, potassium, and a variety of other beneficial nutrients. Plain steamed, baked, or mashed sweet potatoes would be a great treat to allow your kitty or pup during that Thanksgiving dinner. That all being said, though, do be cautious of dishes such as sweet potato casserole. These altered versions of sweet potato often contain added sugar, sugary marshmallows, and other potential seasonings or ingredients that could be unhealthy or lead to gastrointestinal side effects. So, sweet potatoes are a great treat to offer that furbaby in your life, but do be sure it's of the plain and healthy variety!

Friday Fun

Hello and happy Friday! As per usual, we're going to start today with the always fun Friendly Fill-Ins challenge.

Our hosts over at 15andmeowing and McGuffy's Reader are clever as can be, and this week they gave us these fantastic fill-ins:

1. The best part of where I live is _________.
2. The worst part of where I live is _________.
3. If I had _________, I would _________.
4. My favorite article of cold weather clothing is _________.

As always, I don't know whether I did these proud, but I sure tried!

1. The best part of where I live is my family.
(Though certainly no place in the world is perfect, I really do enjoy my hometown. It's neither too big nor too small, without crazy rush hour traffic, yet with plenty to do. What's more, it's where my family is. I was raised in this town, my parents and sister are still here, and I just don't see myself leaving.)

2. The worst part of where I live is the allergens.
(Of course, allergens exist everywhere. I have learned, though, that my hometown sure does offer a nice blend of allergy and asthma triggers. I live in an area with a decent amount of farming, with plenty of corn and beans to go around. When the farmers start harvesting these, the dust and spores and all that good stuff really get stirred up. That's okay, though. I love my hometown enough to pop some antihistamine and never leave home without a pack of tissues.)

3. If I had a million dollars, I would rescue as many animals as I could.
(If I ever came into a large sum of money, this would be one of the first things I spent it on. I would help as many animals as I could locally, and would also love to help with the rescue efforts of animals all across the globe. I dream of helping as many animals as possible. This probably goes for all of us here, doesn't it?)

4. My favorite article of cold weather clothing is a hoodie.
(I love dressing comfortably, and there is nothing more cozy than a hoodie. I also love my sweatpants.)


Now, up next is, of course, Eddy! Today we have a shot from an older photo shoot, from which we've already shown you a picture or two. The photo shoot we speak of is the one that showed Eddy sitting at the front door. I was so excited to show you all last time how once shy Eddy has finally grown brave enough to gaze out the front door, that I didn't even notice the below shot, with her so adorably looking over her shoulder at me as I took her picture.

When I realized I never shared this particular photo before, I simply had to remedy that today. Isn't she just too cute peeking over her shoulder like that? Not that I'm biased, of course.

Wishing you all a fantastic and fun Friday!

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Our Doodle of the Day:

This weekend is one of the holiday art and crafts fairs in which I'm participating. That means I've been doodling all types of furry Santas and the like, like this bright and bold one here.

This Kitty Claus was actually doodled on cardboard and has since been sealed and turned into an ornament. Christmas kitties are some of my favorite things to doodle.

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Our Tip of the Day:

Continuing on with our Thanksgiving dinner tips, yet another common holiday dish is white potatoes, such as mashed potatoes. When it comes to feeding your furbaby white potatoes, those that are cooked and plain can be a reasonable treat in moderation. When additional ingredients are added, though, then you have to start being extra cautious about offering potatoes as a treat. For example, butter or sour cream might cause gastrointestinal distress, especially for furbabies who are lactose intolerant. In addition, as we've said before, added ingredients such as garlic and onion can potentially be dangerous if consumed by a kitty or pup. So, you sure can let your furbaby try out those mashed potatoes, but make be sure to take into account how they're prepared!

Thoroughly Poetic Thankful Thimble Thursday

Welcome to Thursday, friends! We are starting off, as usual, with the Thoroughly Poetic Thursday challenge, hosted by none other than Angel Sammy and Teddy.

This has been our first round participating in one of the poetical challenges. Though this human is the farthest thing from a poet, we've been enjoying it all the way since the letter A, and we plan to continue with it. That being said, this time around, we're already at the letter V. That means we have a V of a someone for you all to meet.

Viola the Veterinarian

Kitties or puppies,

Cubs or duckies,

Viola the Veterinarian can care for them all.

Whether they're big or whether they're small,

Viola's patients know that she is the one to call.

Do you know a kitty with a tummy ache?

Or a puppy with a bump or a break?

A proper diagnosis is what Viola will make,

Even if the patient is a pig or a snake.

Viola the Veterinarian can bandage a wound,

And her patients always heal sooner than soon.

She can mend a sore tooth,

Whether the patient is aged or bubbling with youth.

Furry or tailed,

Feathered or scaled,

Viola the Veterinarian offers the best care around.

She keeps her patients safe and sound.

As always, we were inspired by a real-life Viola. To visit her, just click there on her name! And, of course, we didn't forget to do a little doodle of Viola the Veterinarian.

As always, we're now moving on to Thimble on this Thursday. 

Always the model, Thimble recently gave this here mom of hers a little extra help during some photo shoots. It all started when someone challenged this here human to do a black and white photo challenge on Facebook. This challenge instructs its participants to take black and white photos of things that represent their life. Here's the kicker, though. No photos of pets, nor those of people, are not allowed. Since roughly 99.9% of this human's photos involve something cute and furry, this was the challenge of all challenges.

While I managed to complete the challenge by following the rules, it wasn't easy. Especially with certain helpers...

You might remember seeing a color version of a photo similar to this one.

This started out as a setup for a shot of some of our Halloween decorations. It ended up as a Thimble photo shoot.

In case you can't tell, this is Thimble going all King Kitty Kong on our Day of the Dead kitties and pup. (We won the kitty on the left from Mudpie and Melissa last year, and we were excited to expand our collection this year!)

Thanks for the help, Thimble!

Of course, we didn't forget about Brian's Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.

Thimble would like to express how thankful she is for her model skills. We are all also so very thankful for all of the blessings in our lives. We are thankful that Halloween was fun and festive, that Thanksgiving will be a time for family, and that wonderful Christmas is on the horizon. And, of course, we are thankful for friends like all of you.

Wishing you all a beautiful Thursday!

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Our Tip of the Day:

In addition to the others we've mentioned, another food you might find on the Thanksgiving table is ham. Is this safe to feed your furbaby, though? Ham, like turkey potentially can be, is often high in fat. Ham is also often processed or treated, and can possibly contain high amounts of salt. These factors can lead to any number of issues, such as gastrointestinal distress or pancreatitis, if consumed in excess by your kitty or pup. And, just as we've said of other Thanksgiving foods, also be aware of other potentially concerning ingredients added to ham, such as onion and garlic. While very small amounts might not have effect for some furbabies, do be aware of the potential side effects that fatty, processed, treated, or seasoned ham can cause.