Our Babies

I have decided to introduce you to mine and Phil's fishy babies today!

First up is Chameleon! Chameleon is a Plecostomus, aka pleco or algae eater. He is a type of catfish (all our fish are). We have had Chameleon since he was a baby about 5 years ago! Isn't his belly pretty?

Next is Harley! Harley is a Striped Raphael catfish. She likes to stay inside of her house most of the time, but she will sometimes venture out, especially if Chameleon kicks her out! We have had her for about 4 years.

This is 1 of 3 new additions to our fishy home! Meet Bruce! Bruce is an Eclipse Catfish, aka SunCat. These guys like to hide, so I though I'd get a picture of him in his bag before we released him.

This is B.B. King, our new Spotted Corydora catfish, aka cory cat. B.B. King is much larger than this now and we have had to put him on a diet!

And finally, our last baby is an Albino cory cat we name Mr. Miyagi! He is named that cause his favorite past time is swimming back and forth the front of the tank waxing on and off! haha



I also wanted to mention my outside furry baby we named Muffin! Muffin is not our cat but loves to visit us occasionally and will want me to pet him and will stare at us through our window! We first met Muffin on Phil's birthday, a couple days after we moved into our place. The birthday card I got Phil is above, then Muffin shows up looking alot like the cat on the card! It was meant to be!

What kind of pets do you have?

Accomplishments of 2011

This year was a totally crazy one! It went by so fast, yet played out in slow motion. I feel like I have accomplised a lot in this past year and want to share those moments with you! Here is my list of my "11 Goals for 2011" that I made at this time last year:

11 Goals for 2011

1. Find a DH Job!

- and I can check that one off the list! I just hope that it continues out to be a full time position and things pick up!

2. Find an apartment/house

- another check off the list! We are loving our new place and you can view it here!

3. Learn to quilt - Quilt a t-shirt quilt, a baby quilt, and a quilt for me & Phil

- I unfortunately did not complete this goal, but I kinda think I dreamed too high with this one with all the wedding planning going on! We did receive a quilt from Phil's grandmother and one from my friend Jeff's mother for our wedding!

4. Continue eating healthy and working out

- I did accomplish this goal until the latter part of the year! The holidays hurt me, but I plan on getting back on track! I will list this as goal complete because I did so well for 95% of the year! (that is a made up percentage so don't even try to calculate that!)

5. Use my crockpot

- check! We have made a couple different dishes in the good ole crockpot, including a potato casserole, thai chicken, and chili!

6. Have fun planning mine and Phil's wedding!

- check again! Planning was definately fun, but also very stressful as well! I am glad it is over with, but it was truly the happiest day of my life!

7. Make tooth-fairy pillows for my cousins/nephews!

- this did not happen! Luckily noone has lost a tooth yet! haha I did make the ring bearer pillow for my nephew, Alec, to hold while walking down the aisle!

8. Get a kitty

- this hasn't happened either, but it can't while we are living in our new place cause we aren't allowed to have any pets except our fishies. We did acquire a kitty friend that most likely belongs to a neighbor that comes to visit us and we call Muffin!

9. Continue to read for pleasure as often as I can.

- this I did! Although I didn't read as many books as I did last year, I did read as much as I could with all the craziness going on! I read a total of 18 books and plan to read more next year!

10. Start paying off my loans.

- I started doing this! Big accomplisment here!

11. Continue to blog!

- although I've had some trouble, I have continued to blog as much as I could! I fear though that I have lost many followers due to my absence!

I am happy that I completed 8 out of the 11 goals that I have set for myself! Many of which you may see again for 2012! Come back tomorrow to see what they are!

...and have a safe and happy New Year's Eve everybody!

PPQ: The Best Thing

Goals for 2011

I've decided to make goals for myself for the new year. They really can't fall under the category of "resolution" since they aren't really things I need to change, although I do have few resolutions too.

11 Goals for 2011

1. Find a dental hygiene job!
2. Find an apartment/house for me and Phil after finding that DH job!
3. Learn to quilt - by year's end I would like to have finished at least 3 quilts: My t-shirt quilt, a baby quilt (for my new little cousin due May 1st!), and a quilt for me and Phil.
4. Continue eating healthy and working out.
5. Use my crockpot.
6. Plan mine and Phil's wedding and have fun doing it!
7. Make tooth-fairy pillows for my little cousins/nephews.
8. Get a kitty.
9. Continue to read for pleasure as often as I can.
10. Start paying off my loans.
11. Continue to blog!

Resolutions

• Begin going to sleep earlier and waking up earlier - This will be a hard one to start and I'm afraid that it won't happen until I find a job I need to get up for.
• Start writing down what I eat everyday - I was doing this really well for the first part of my weight-loss program I joined at the Y, but lately I haven't at all.
• Be more patient.
• Hang out more with my friends!

Last year my resolution was to call my family/friends more often and get over my phone phobia. This resolution didn't turn out too well cause I never did. Bad Mariah! I hope this year's goals/resolutions turn out better than last year's!

I've also added the 11 Goals for 2011 to the left sidebar so you can track their progress with my other lists!

• Do you have any goals/resolutions for the new year?
• How did you do with last years resolutions?

The Day I Sort Of Had A Cat

I am very much an animal lover and crave those fluffy hugs! And ever since my Sunshine passed away, I've felt like a part of me is missing. I want a pet badly! More specifically, I want a kitty badly. I feel like a puppy would be hard for me to take care of at this time in my life, but a cat would be purrfect (haha)!

So, I've never really had a cat all for myself. When I was little, my grandparents always had cats that lived at their house but were outdoor cats. I always had a ball naming them, chasing them, and trying to cuddle them though they really didn't want me to (think that little girl Elmyra on Tiny Toons and that was me, and probably still is me!).

When I was about 10 years old, my babysitter got me a cat I named Pixie, but it lived at her house. Then, about 6 years ago I found a tiny kitten (Parker) at the tennis center in the park where I was working that I could fit in my pocket! I called my roommate Corey, mostly because I knew she would want a kitten and be on my side about getting the other roommate (Deb) on board. Well, it turned out that very same day that Deb, who I was so unsure wouldn't want a cat, excepted one (Rory) from someone from where she was working. And that's how I came to partially own Parker & Rory.

After my 2 roommates and I went our separate ways, Parker & Rory went to live with Corey and her fiance Josh. Then, when I moved to Morgantown 3 years ago, I lived with Corey and Josh, and was in kitty heaven once again! Sadly, they moved after that first year and ever since I have wanted a kitty for my own. Hopefully, when I get my job and Phil and I get a place of our own, we will get a kitty or two!

Anna & Pixie circa 1992(?)

Baby Parker (grey tabby) and Baby Rory (peach tabby) when we first brought them home (2004)

Parker, all grown up, in Morgantown (2008) during the kitty photo shoot I conducted

Grown-up Rory in our Morgantown apartment (2008) during the kitty photo shoot I conducted