I’ve done no writing or exercising since my dad’s stroke. After the funeral last Sunday, I decided to take the rest of the week to recover from lack of sleep and lots of stress. I hope I’ll be ready to start writing and exercising again tomorrow. Life must go on.
On a brighter note…how can anyone not love this picture?
Willow and Oz
The question for the holidays is…how will I be able to keep the cats out of the Christmas tree???
lauralynnelliott.com 
So sorry to hear about your dad! Sending my thoughts and prayers to you and your family. *hugs*
Your cats are adorable and they look big! I get a real tree every year, and my cat (who is 12) has never bothered it other than to bat at the ornaments on the lower branches. If it was a tree without lights and dangling bits I imagine Duchess would attempt the climb, but with the lights etc, she just looks at it, confused. I do keep the less important ornaments (and ones that aren’t glass and other breakable material) away from the bottom. I also don’t use tinsel anymore, because apparently cats can eat it and choke (or throw up, which is just…gross). Anyways, these are just some of my own experiences with having a cat and Christmas trees! 😀 Hope you have a good week!
Thank you, Kat.
The black cat, Oz, is really big. (And heavy.) I’ve had cats and Christmas trees before, but this is the first time I’ve had TWO cats. They seem to get into more trouble together. And these two are quite rambunctious. They still aren’t fully grown yet, so they are very playful. We talked about only putting the cheaper ornaments at the bottom. My biggest fear is that they’ll jump into the tree and maybe knock it down or drop some glass ornaments. Maybe I should just go out and buy some cheap ornaments this year and put only those on the tree. 🙂
When I had another cat a few years ago, we would find tinsel in the litter box….
Sorry to hear about your dad– I recently went through this too, so I know what you’re going through. It’s good you have such adorable cats who love you unconditionally to help you through– they do indeed take a great picture!
Thank you, Ben. I’m sorry you had to go through the same thing. 😦 Honestly, the cats do help. Animals are good therapy, especially since my husband works nights.
Yeah, pets are great! I miss my cats– they went with the kids to my ex’s house when we split, and I work too much to warrant getting a pet right now, but look forward to the day when I can get one. I do get to see the cats when I pick up and drop off the kids, and they still love me and demand my attention 🙂
Getting back to a more normal routine at this point will hopefully help you process, and feeling productive never hurt anybody.
I do love that picture! And hopefully the cats won’t be as much trouble with the tree as you expect.
Best of luck this week, Lauralynn.
J.R., I DO want to get back to normal. I feel like I’ve been in limbo for three weeks.
Aren’t those two adorable? Hubby is threatening to wait and put the tree up on Dec. 23. 😦
Jump back in when you’re ready, we’ll be here.
Your cats are cute. I love their names, too.
Take care!
It’s always nice knowing that all of my fellow ROW80ers and other writer friends are there. What a nice community.
I love my cats. There are named after my favorite couple in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 🙂
Duct tape the cats, or catnip
My cats don’t seem to respond to catnip. What shall I duct tape the cats TO?
That’s understandable. You need the break.
The babies are so big now! I have no idea how to keep a cat out of a tree, but good luck with that. 😉
Claire, I really did need the break. But now it’s time to get things back to normal.
I wonder if the cats are going to grow any more? They are 9 months old, but I’m not sure they’re full grown until they are a year old. Not sure. I guess we’ll just have to see about the tree. LOL.
They’re probably pretty much fully grown now. The boy might get a bit bigger – although my male cat was a tiny little thing, and my brother’s girl cat was a monster, so who knows? 🙂
Kitty love. It’s so wonderful! My three haven’t tried to attack the tree yet, but we kept the breakable ornaments off the lower branches. One of them, just likes to sit underneath the tree like she’s our first special gift 🙂 I have heard that some cats hate the smell of citrus. What about putting a potpourri dish under the tree with some dried orange peels?
That’s not a bad idea. Or maybe get some kind of citrus spray and spray the tree. Or would that kill it? Hmmm. I’ve never had a cat actually tear down the tree, but this is the first time I’ve had two cats, especially ones with this kind of energy.
I don’t think a citrus spray would hurt the tree. You could soak peels to make the spray, but a spray made with essential orange oil would be much more potent smelling. Actually, I should consider doing this myself, now that I remember catching our tabby in the act of ‘christening’ the tree with his own special scent last year!
Cats are good for cuddles when you need them the most. Look after yourself x
Thanks, Emma. Cats are definitely good for cuddles…when they’re in the mood. 🙂
It’s hard to get back into the routine after a lot of stress. The nice thing about cats is that they’re comforting, at least when they aren’t trying to get into the tree. Good luck on keeping them away from it. I don’t know any secrets.
It is hard to get back on track. And you know, I would totally forgive my cats for messing up the tree. But I’m afraid hubby won’t…
Lauralynn –
I am holding you warm in my thoughts, while you begin to heal the rawest places.
I’ve lived with cats my whole life (this year, we have the tiny wild one who wandered out of the woods, and took over the house and our hearts, and two semi-feral 7 month olds who are gradually adjusting to life as house cats in an active family…
And I have an idea for your tree. If you can place a screw in eye hook off to either side, near the top, you can string picture wire, wind it around the trunk, and secure tightly on either side….works great if you can have the tree in a corner.
We’ve decided, in this year where we all seem to have outgrown certain traditions, that we will make a wall tree from sticks and ribbon, and hang the ornaments there…we will put it up where if will be trickier for the daring but bitty Miss Achoo to reach it…
Thank you so much!
The problem with our tree is that it’s not in a corner. The way my house is configured, there are no free corners. The tree is always behind the couch in an open part of the house. If it were just me, I could deal with cats messing with the tree, but my husband is not a cat person and is quick to point out things the cats are doing. However…one of the cats (the female, of course) has taken quite a liking to him, and I often find him holding or petting her. So there’s hope yet! 🙂
That’s an interesting idea you have for a wall tree. You should share pictures when you get it up! 🙂
FYI: I tried putting some tangerine peels in a bowl under the tree. One of my cats was sitting on the tree skirt at the time. Instead of bailing, she sniffed the bowl then tried to bury it. I’m thinking she’s just probably going to ignore it after this and continue to hang out under the tree. (At least none of them have tried to ciimb it yet.)
I might just have to keep the spray bottle handy and give them a squirt until they learn the tree is off limits. They HATE the spray bottle. I usually just have to pick it up. LOL
Spray bottles are fantastic. Once they know what it is, all you have to do is shake it…then they look at you with panicked eyes and run!