Day: February 3, 2014

Lydgate, Potluck

Leilani and Sonja have the fun and easy job

while Andy has to carry everything









Kanoe s Birthday Party

Leilani, with a lot of instructions and a bit of help from Rosemary, sewed a cat for Kanoe:

She also made a nice card (and I did not catch the suger until I saw this photo)

The Party was at Kumu camp









Big Waves, North Shore

I don’t know how to photograph waves, but they were big and impressive. 30+ feet (more than 10 meters)

At least we got cute puppy photos…

I suppose one can kind of see what kind of waves they were…

We are better at photographing nice sunrays

… and puppies…

… and more rays …

… and a sunset …

… one more try with the waves…

Na Aina Kai

Na Aina Kai Gardens were open 2 weeks ago:

















Kid, pets and what else is new….

We had a rough time since Leilani came home. First she was affected by the flights, then a bit sick, and then … life is hard if you have to adjust to 4 new family members I guess…

These photos were taken when she first met the puppies. She had no idea what surprise was waiting:

This is the beautiful Christmas card Leilani drew for us:

We had lots of fights, temper flares and meltdowns, but also good times and our new pets are very cute and funny for the greater part. I have laughed more in the last month than in the year before that I think.

The puppies got 2 baths already:

The cats and dogs are now learning to live together. Benu has no fear (or at least does not show it) but Jahi still stays mostly in the bedroom. The back-door is open most the time while we are around, but we do have an eye on Benu so he does not go outside, he is not yet vaccinated and also has not been leash trained.


The dogs sometimes still corner him, or chase him a little when he runs, but I worry a lot less about them hurting him now. Twice a day they get yelled at, or sent outside for cat related crimes, but they behave worse with shoes and plants, especially bromeliads, bananas and lilies. They only ruined one pair of Leilani’s shoes so far, but chewed a bit and hid visitor’s shoes, and our flip-flops a lot. Bromeliads they shred completely. My nice front garden suffered quite a bit… They don’t take baths in their indoor water bowls anymore since we gave them a wading pool.

A few days ago Leilani donated an old teddy-bear to the dogs. (When we bought toys for them we made sure these don’t look like actual animals…) It’s not really a chew and wild-playing toy, they sleep with it and sometimes carried it around a bit. But when they carry it, it looks a lot like an animal. A kitten-sized and approximately kitten-colored very limp animal.

We sat in the kitchen with Benu, and the dogs ran in, Jet carrying the bear, Julie chasing him. Benu’s hair stood up straight, he looked like a cartoon cat in an electrical circuit, and growled and hissed at the same time and was ready to jump at the dogs… He looked very relieved when I snatched the bear and showed him, and he realized it was a toy and not his sister… Leilani was pretty much rolling on the floor, laughing.


The kittens sleep in our bedroom with the door closed. They have a litter box there, that they only use in emergencies. In the morning I get up, and the 3 of us go to the bathroom, the kittens used the litter box there at the same time, but now they are too big, and after Benu stepped into his own poop I make them go sequentially.

The bedroom door is closed so the kittens don’t sneak out of the house while we are asleep, I want them leash trained first, and the dogs behavior safer. On the other hand the puppies don’t make it through the night, so the door still has to stay open, or I clean the puddles (and occasional pile) in the morning. I also get up between 2 and 3 and take them outside (I have to carry Julie, as she is too tired to walk downstairs at this hour, but once she steps into the wet cold grass she’s awake…)

Benu

Jahi

The kittens are surprisingly well behaved, the squirt gun I got for training them is still in it’s original packaging in the drawer, Jahi is upset for half a day if I even yell at her, but a firm “No!” and shaking my index finger at them (I learned that trick from my mom) has always worked with her. Benu was a bit more persistent, especially trying to get to our food on the table, but still stopped after just firm talking, just a few more times. The kittens know their names and come when called, but have not learned any tricks yet.

Benu

Jahi

The dogs also know their names, also our names (most the time), the command “sit”. Julie knows “Pfoetchen geben” (shake paws) and Jet is working on that. They are also working on “Platz” (lay down), “Stop” and Jet on “Sing” (make cool yawning sounds). Both of them walk on the leashes fairly well for young puppies and like to go on walks and hikes, and lost their fear of car-rides.


Jet is very headstrong, and behaves much worse than Julie, jumping up, nipping Leilani and sometimes even us, barking for no reason, crowding and chasing the cats, but when treats are involved it shows that he is just as smart as Julie.


We have a new range, and Andy installed it all weekend long, as the plug was in the wrong place, half the installation parts were not included, and the Home Depot sold him the wrong parts the first time he went back. (Thank you, Andy). I already made oven-roasted veggies today, and was very happy after living without an oven for 1/2 a year…

We have no dishwasher, since I got the wrong one, and the old one has been scrapped already. Fortunately the Home Depot exchanged, even though it was probably mainly my mistake, for not paying enough attention. Another 4 weeks wait for the right one.

We signed a contract for a solar PV system, but then lots of electrical problems were discovered. We might have to rethink the system, which means headache and probably a different company.

Leilani drawing the kittens

Puppies having no shame

Leilani made a pillow last summer at the Humane Society summer camp, sadly someone peed on it… I don’t dare wash it:


Playing Settlers of Catan