Goodbye Simon!

Today, Andrew buried Simon. We found him under the porch last night. When he left the house on Tuesday night, he must have gone under there to die. He will be greatly missed by his family. He didn't belong to us, we belonged to him! He was an amazing cat and Andrew said that we will never see his equal! Here is one of Lexie's many pictures of Simon, taken in January.

Thanks for your prayers!

No Kitty

After looking for Simon, our sick cat, for most of Tuesday, he finally showed up late afternoon. He kind of staggered out of the pasture and into the yard. I brought him into the house and we gave him more medicine. I also cleaned him up. He made himself at home in Lexie's room. Lexie's room is one of his favorite places in the house. We continued to medicate him through out the evening.

We woke up afternoon morning and he was no where to be found. He had somehow found a way to open the pet door and go out. He never came home yesterday. I spent the whole day looking for him. I am concerned. Andrew said that he's either dead or laying low and recovering. I'll let you know if he shows up.

Bobcat Fever

We moved here with two pets: Blackie, our 12 year old dog, and Simon, our 7 year old cat. We got Blackie from our next-door neighbor in San Antonio, Texas. She was so good with Lexie, who was 2 at the time. Blackie welcomed both the boys into the family and was always very protective of them. Even at 40 pounds, she thought she was a lap dog.

We got Simon from good friends in San Angelo, Texas. His mama was a stray cat, who showed up at my friends' house and had her 4 kittens in their closet. We were taken with Simon immediately. I thought I was allergic to him, so I spent several weeks rubbing him on me. In the process, I fell in love with him. As soon as I realized I wasn't allergic to him, we brought him home. In 3 hours, Blackie and Simon became best friends.

Blackie and Simon went to Germany with us. Here is a picture of them on 'their' chair in our German apartment.

In March, we lost Blackie, along with our new puppy, Red. We think they were eaten by a mountain lion. The kids and I have had a hard time with her loss.

Well, on Sunday, Andrew told me that Simon had a fever. I checked him and noticed he was sick. He refused to eat and drink all day Sunday. Yesterday, I took him to the vet. He was diagnosed with Bobcat Fever. The reason it is called Bobcat Fever is because bobcats carry the protozoan in their bloodstream. It is transmitted from a tick and almost always fatal. The vet gave Simon a shot of Imizol to try and kill the protozoan. He also got a shot of Metacam to lower his fever, so he would want to eat and drink. We also went to Dr. Fain in Eureka Springs for Monolautin and Pawier. Monolautin is a supplement that has an anti-microbial agent that can protect the immune system from a range of infectious agents. Pawier is vitamin supplement for pets.

This morning, Simon is no where to be found. I think he is hiding. Please pray for his complete recovery!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the best daddies in the world!

The Daddy of my children.

My Daddy.

My Daddy-in-law.

Twins

Michael saw a Lego Star Wars shirt in Walmart and had to buy it for Zachary for his birthday. Zachary loved the shirt and knew Michael loved it, too. So, Zachary went to Walmart and bought Michael one for his birthday. They also received cell phone from Papa for their birthdays. Here is a picture of my boys being 'twins'!

I've always liked to dress them alike or similar. Here they are with Lexie and Papa in September 2002.

Grandma Elly (my mom) liked to buy them matching clothes, too.