♥♥♥ Saying Good-Bye to Tamara ♥♥♥

♥♥♥ Tamara ♥♥♥

9/15/1993 - 6/6/2012

*****

Today is truly a sad day in our house as we are saying good-bye to Tamara.  She has been in our lives for the past 18 1/2 years and she has left a mark forever in & on our hearts.  I will admit, throughout the years, she hasn't always been the most friendly cat, to others. BUT she was always my kitty ... even when she didn't love anyone else, she still always loved me.  As she aged, especially in the last 5 years, she became more & more friendly to others, which was nice, especially for the kids.  They've definitely enjoyed getting to know a different side of her ... the side she has always showed to me.

The kids haven't known a life without Tamara.  Soon after Terence & I moved in together we got Tamara from the animal shelter in Lompoc.  We weren't allowed to have pets in our apartment but that wasn't going to keep me from getting her.  She & I hit it off immediately.  We didn't add another cat to our family for about 2 years (Kaipo) and we kept adding from there.  Yet through it all, Tamara is the cat that outlived them all.  Amazing.  She is blind, deaf, arthritic, has dementia and lots of other issues ... and at the end of the day, we don't want her to suffer.

We love her ... I honestly don't know what I'll do when I wake up tomorrow & she's not there.  A life without Tamara is unimaginable to me.  I'm just so heartbroken.

*****

Tamara posing pretty

Sunning herself

Enjoy a catnip toy

Snuggling with my baby

Me & Tamara

All snuggled up to keep warm!

R.I.P. Tamara girl ... life will NEVER be

the same without you!!!  ♥

Christmas Vacation

We have done a whole lot of nothing during Christmas Break this year & I think we're all pretty ok with it! We've slept, watched tv, napped, ate ... and that pretty much covers it. We did get out on Christmas Eve for our dinner but other than that, we've been pretty homebound ... and it's been great.

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Calob hanging with Tamara

Callie hanging with Kit

(and the new outfit Grandma Judy bought for Kit)

Tamara Sunbathing

Tamara snoozing in the sun today.

Another Ragnar Relay Success!

A month ago, July 24-25 (yes, I'm bad), Terence competed in his 3rd Ragnar Relay. His team did great again this year! They finished 4th overall AND 2nd in their division!!! Super fantastic! Here are some team pictures.
After the run ... they're all still standing! Yay!

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On July 29th, we had record heat. I know, people will talk about how hot it is/was where they live and while I don't disagree, this was record-setting heat here. Let's just say, the hottest days EVER! So that means something! Most people here don't have a/c and aren't prepared for heat like this. I felt pretty bad for Tamara too. She was definitely suffering. Someone suggested (I think it was Jerrie) trying a frozen washcloth. Who knows if she liked it or not, but we did try it.

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Close-up of Leo's rocks ... nice & colorful

Callie & I watched "Jaws 3-D" yesterday

Cat Shots

I love my cats! In case you were wondering or questioning my love for them, I truly DO ♥ my cats!!! I love taking pictures of them in all their kitty glory. Here are a few shots I took last week.

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Tamara snoozing in the sun

A close-up shot of Nalu looking right at me I was heading out the other day & saw Nalu sitting like this, in quite the funky pose, so I figured I had to take a picture ... he's such a silly boy
And here's the same "pose" from outside. Jerrie, do you see the fear in his eyes? He did NOT like me standing outside at all ... ha!