Wednesday, December 9, 2009

cats and appreciation

this pic of jasper (aka lil jasper, raspy, tubby, jazzy) kills me. the cats, especially him, love to sit on any homework/paperwork that is being done, as cats are wont to do. he was helping the girl w/ her math homework and had to text his peeps for some help.

last october when the hubs and kids picked me up from work with this scrawny (then) kitten in the car i was a tad bit miffed because we already had two cats and two dogs and i really wasn't trying to start a menagerie. he was a bit skittish as a kitten, rescued as he was from being stuck underneath a fence. a year later he's packed on a few pounds and he's quite a character. he makes funny noises. he's curious and adventurous. until a few months ago he really wasn't a people cat in that he didn't want to be held or come and sit on your lap. the girl is making it her mission to change this by cuddling him every chance she gets. he now sleeps w/ her, much to her cat's chagrin (princess meow meow). since the girl has devoted most of her attention/affection to jasper, meow has become my cat and sits w/ me quite a bit in the evenings. last year when the hubs brought him home he had an idea that my cat wouldn't be around much longer, and he was right. it's been a year this month that rebel died. though i still miss him, i'm glad we have jasper.

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sometimes, when schedules get busy and life seems like there's always one more worry or one more thing to be done, you forget to be appreciative. i'm not just talking about being grateful for your circumstances, because they could always be worse, or grateful for your children or friends, but i'm talking about the hubs. while my day is filled w/ mostly mundane endeavors he's going through a pretty busy/rough time at work lately plus he's doing a lot of the shuttling the boy to karate. it used to be rare for us to have one on one time w/ our kids, but the hubs taking the boy to karate gives the girl and i time together and vice versa when i take the boy. however, this leaves little time for us, as a couple. sometime next week he's going to take a day off and hang out w/ me before the kids get out for christmas break, although the girl gets home at 2pm so we'll have to pack our fun into 6 hours : ) i think this is incredibly sweet because, with the way work is going right now, he really can't take off a lot of days for christmas, when the kids and i will be home together.

and, i really don't think i show it enough or tell him enough, how much i'm grateful for all that he does. it's stressful enough being the only breadwinner right now, but he juggles the finances with incredible skill. he's the one who stresses over the money, he makes it all work. and, when he sees me stressing out about it he totally takes one for the team and finds something positive to cling to. he finds hope and has a plan when it seems like there's no way either could exist.

6 comments:

Penny said...

I was never a CAT person until I got my cat Ramona. I've had her for 15 years and she is really just so awesome. She is super snuggly (sometimes annoyingly so) and she thinks she's people!

One of the really nice things about being in Alabama is the time Teddy and I have had together alone! When we lived in NJ we used to have to take the day off work to spend a day together!

drollgirl said...

love the kitty talk! jasper is adorable!

and you have one good man. i hope you find ways to show him/tell him how much you love and appreciate him. i am sure you do! but maybe you can pour it on kinda thick since he is carrying so much burden so well.

Hotch Potchery said...

I have a cat, and am still not really a cat person...

While I miss our kids, the best thing about empty nesting is all the time I get with Mr. P by myself. We are selfish and like that time a.LOT.

justsomethoughts... said...

sounds like a pretty good guy

cheatymoon said...

Like the appreciation bit. Good for both of you to get the day alone next week. I wish other half would take an extra day off while the boy is at school so we can have a day. :-)

Love the kitty story too. What a smart hubs you have.

Gal Friday said...

Does "the Hubs"(love that) read your blog??? Show him what you wrote...(and I bet he KNOWS what he does is appreciated by you, anyway)

Wait til it's gift wrapping time(unless you have already done that)--the cats will be all over that! One cat I used to have loved to be in and around the wrapping paper and would sit on it or at least near to where the action was. Another cat I had always sat on my desk right on the open sketchbook, and my current cat likes to lay his head half on on typing hand and half on the keyboard.
Jasper is one regal looking feline specimin, BTW. :-)