F.B. & I both love animals. So I thought I would share some of our pets!

Popcorn: Popcorn is my cat. She will be 15 years old in July. We got her when I was 10 years old from the Philadelphia PSPCA. She sleeps on the end of my bed every night. We named her Popcorn because when she was kitten, she would eat popcorn. hehe. I think she is a color point or calico cat.

Coco: F.B.'s family got Coco (Coconut) about a year ago. I got to meet him in January this year. He's very friendly and doesn't bark too much. He's a silly dog! He's still a bit of a puppy. When Ate Malou would put him in the garage in the evening, she would pick him up like a big baby. She said he was a spoiled puppy, hehe! I think he is a mix between purebred dog & a mutt. He is more F.B.'s sisters dog.

Pusa: (Cat in Tagalog.) Pusa is a stray cat. He is also a dirty cat. But he is very friendly and loveable. He always hangs around F.B.'s house. I got to meet Pusa in January. He loves to pet and scratched on his head. He also LOVES food. He would meow the silliest meow when we were eating lunch. We would feed him the leftover scraps. Pusa really loves F.B. The one night we were putting Coco in the back yard and Coco started barking, Pusa walked all the way out back, looked around the corner of the house at F.B., Coco & I and went "MEOW?" As if saying, "What is going on out here?!" One time he managed to get into F.B.'s house and his sister found Pusa curled up on her bed! Haha!

There are alot of stray animals in the Philippines, where ever we went we usually saw stray cats and dogs. I remember being in Manila and coming out of Starbucks with F.B. and seeing a cat curled up on the sidewalk. I would always point out all the cats and dogs we saw while driving or walking around. I can't help it, I like animals, hehe. There was another stray orange cat that would come around to visit at F.B.'s house also.

My Rats: I got my first two rats Sugar & Spice back in October 2007. I got my newest rat Cinnamon in February 2008. I've always loved rats and mice but never owned any until last year. I had a Ferret for 4 years and after she passed I didn't want to get another Ferret so I decided to get rats. While reading & researching I also discovered you can litter train rats! Rats are very intelligent creatures and some say they are as smart as a 2 year old. They are very curious and affectionate animals. They will make you laugh at their antics! Rats love affection just like any other animal. They are very social animals. They will let you pet them, kiss them, scratch their heads. My girls have even learned their names and will come when called!

Sugar:

Variety: Pink Eyed White (PEW)

Genetics: Most commonly two copies of the albino gene (cc), but can be caused by having multiple dilution genes, for example blue, mink, and pink eye dilute (ddmmpp), or pink/red eye dilute Siamese/Himalayan

Description: To be as white as possible, devoid of creamy tinge or staining. Eyes pink.

Sugar is my cautious girl. She gets scared easily sometimes. She likes to weave her head back & forth to see better. She has the loudest sniffer you ever heard, hehe! You can hear her sniffing from across the room! She's also my chunky girl, she's bigger than Spice & has the cutest little belly! She also doesn't mind kisses. When she eats she will sneak out of the bed look around, run and steal a piece of food from the bowl look around then run and go hide to eat. She'll repeat the same process for every bite of food! She likes to hoard treats in her bed. She also loves to spend a great deal of time fixing her blankets just right, pulling and pushing them with her teeth and paws. Sugar never sits still long enough for you to pet her.

Spice:

Variety: Himalayan

Genetics: One copy of the Himalayan gene and one copy of the albino gene (cch), or two copies of the Himalayan gene selected for pale body colour (chch)

Description: Body color to be white, free from stains and even throughout, with points a rich dark sepia. Eyes red. Note - Colour areas: 1. face - not to extend upwards from eyes. 2. ears - not to extend downwards from the base. 3. forelegs - not to extend upwards beyond the elbows. 4. hind legs - not to extend upwards beyond the ankle. 5. tail - not to extend beyond the tail root. 6. feet - to be solid colour throughout, devoid of any white.

Spice is my troublemaker. She likes adventure. She's more active than Sugar. She's also smaller. She loves to pile everything & anything she can find in the cage in front of their bed. She'll also get exasperated with you when you straighten things up. She likes things a certain way. If you try to put a ball or a wood chew in the tissue box or bed with her she will throw it right back out at you! If you keep it up, she'll sit there- give you this "look" (Left eye open, Right eye squinted) & give a great big *huff*. If you try to kiss her, she'll use her paw to push you away. Spice also loves to chase Sugar around the cage and annoy her. She's an antagonist. Spice will let you pet her & scratch her head until she falls asleep on you. Then she will grind her teeth & make her happy noises. Spice also loves to explore she will tunnel through my blankets on my bed. And she's loves to jump and climb. She can jump several feet sometimes! She is very quick and you have to keep your eye on her or she will escape.

Cinnamon:

Variety: Berkshire

Genetics: Split on the H locus for the wild type gene and a more recessive h-locus allele (eg H/h)

Description: To be symmetrically marked, with as much white on the chest and belly as possible. The white shall not extend up the sides of the body, the edges shall be clear cut and devoid of brindling. Back feet to be white to the ankle, forelegs to be white to half the leg. Tail to be white to half its length. The body color shall conform to a recognized color variety. The white area shall be pure and devoid of any color or staining. A white spot on the forehead is desirable.

Cinnamon is my hyper active baby! She is constantly on the move, jumping, running, sniffing. She never sits still (until she's asleep! Or chewing on something!) She is the most affectionate of all my girls. She will climb up on my neck and sniff in my hair or cuddle on my arm. She's is my antagonist. Cinnamon is my youngest rat but she is now the alpha rat. It took her a little while to establish that role, because Spice used to be the alpha rat. Cinnamon loves to chase Sugar & Spice all around the cage. She just loves annoying them! She is very curious & also an adventurer like Spice! Sometimes When she's sniffing really hard it sounds like a duck! And she's turning into a little butterball! Cinnamon is not shy about eating or where she eats. She will walk right up to your bowl or plate and if she likes something she will steal it off your plate. She once tried to walk off with a whole piece of fried chicken! She's my troublemaker. So far she has chewed a hole in my laptop wire, camera wire, my new sony camera wire & a PS3 control. That's her bad habit. You really have to keep an eye on her!

Rat Varieties: http://www.hawthorn.org.uk/varieties.asp

Please come and check out the Rat Chatter Forums if you own rats or are interested in getting some. This is a great community!

I feed my girls a mix diet that I make myself. It is healthier and cheaper than buying a pet store brand. This also works, because I eat alot of plain cereals so I can feed myself & my rats with 1 box of cereal.

My Mix Includes:

Cheerios
Shredded Wheat
Rice & Corn Chex
Total Cereal
Bran Flakes
Granola Mix
Almond Slices or Slivers
Sunflower Seeds (in shell or without).
Banana Chips
Raisins
Tri-colored spiral pasta, (Spinach & Tomato flavor)

For extra nutrition I also feed my rats:

Nutro Natural Choice Lite

My girls go crazy over these treats:

Yogurt Drops
Yogies
Ultra Bites- Veggie Puffs
Yogurt covered raisins
Yogurt covered peanuts

I also give my girls veggies and fruits as treats sometimes. Some of their favorite foods are: Apples (without seeds) Strawberries, Applesauce, Fruit Yogurt, Peas, Spinach, Tuna, Salmon. They also love the whipped cream on Starbucks Frappucinos & Rice Crispy Treats occasionally.

Another favorite treat of my girls is dried chicken leg bones. I let them dry overnight before giving them to the girls to chew on. It helps their teeth. They Love them! They go through them pretty fast!

Spice had a vet visit Friday December 5th, the day after I got back from the Philippines. She was beginning to get a mammary tumor under her right armpit. (Spice is 1 year 2 months now.) She was scheduled today for her mass removal.

I dropped her off around 8:30am this morning and was able to pick her up at 5pm. She looks pretty bad right now. It was a much larger incision than Cinnamon's spay. The stitches even go down her arm a bit. They shaved alot of her fur and here is also alot of dried blood around the incision and also on her belly. I took a picture but it looks a bit graphic so I won't post it on here. I'll wait a few days until it looks better before I post a picture.

The surgery cost $284. Not really an expense I needed right now, but what can you do. Pets are like children. She has a check up next Tuesday and the Vet has her on the antibiotic SMZ-TMP

She seems alert, but uncomfortable and in a little pain. The Vet did give her Banamine after her surgery so that should help with the pain. She keeps trying to clean her fur off though. I'm going to try to clean her fur off (not near the metal stitches) tomorrow with some saline and gauze.

I've got everyone separated in the Ferret Nation again. I locked the levels so Spice has the entire top level for her hospital cage. I also removed the other level so she is on a completely flat surface. Cinnamon & Sugar will be in the downstairs part of the cage for now until Spice can live with her sisters again.
















P.S. When I was in the Philippines I bought 'Mary Queen of Scots' by Antonia Fraser. The only other history book I had on Mary Queen of Scots was the one by Alison Weir. But that mostly covers her husbands death. I'm really enjoying this book, it is keeping me interested just like Alison Weir's history books.

Updated 12-11-08: Spice is doing better. She is still pretty uncomfortable from her surgery but doesn't seem to be in any pain. She sometimes gets jumpy and wants to climb and other times she'll sleep for hours. She has a little bit of trouble holding her food because of the stitches on her right arm. So she's been eating alot of soft foods, peas, mixed veggies, spinach, scrambled eggs.

Here is an updated picture from her surgery. The stitches are definitely looking alot better than they did her first night home. (Pretty big incision.)

Christmas Eve was a good night. Exchanged some gifts with the family and watched Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase.

I got to talk to F.B. on the phone for about an hour. I'm really missing him, after being together for 2 months 24/7.

And I even got some pictures of the ratties in the Christmas Tree!

















Spice was doing much better. She was running along the back of the sofa last night, climbing & getting into trouble. Today she was not as good. When I woke up Spice seemed okay but around 2pm when I got offline with F.B. I noticed Spice was sitting slumped to the left downstairs in the cage. Just sitting there, not moving. I took her out of the cage and she was having trouble walking she seemed paralyzed almost. She also kept falling over.

I posted over at Ratchatter where I am a moderator. We think she may have had a stroke and she most likely has a pituitary tumor. I took some videos, in case I need to show the vet. And I also posted them at the forum. You can see she has been getting worse as the day goes on:

This Afternoon: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v60/slcreedgirl/?action=view¤t=spice.flv

This Evening: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v60/slcreedgirl/?action=view¤t=MOV03179.flv

Currently: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v60/slcreedgirl/?action=view¤t=MOV03185.flv

Now she can't pick herself up when she falls over. She is laying wrapped up in a baby blanket on me not moving. Her eyes and nose are running alot of porphyrin & I keep wiping it off with a damp washcloth. I'm going to keep her with me tonight, she is not looking good. I've been giving her pedilyte & ensure in an oral syringe because she's stopped eating and drinking. I have to call the vet in the morning and take her over to see what we can do. Spice is around 14-15 months old.

This hasn't been a very good Christmas for me. I've been upset all day and wasn't even able to eat Christmas dinner with the family. I have a horrible headache & stomach ache so I came upstairs to lay down for now.

I thought I would share some pictures of the girls enjoying corn on the cob and yogurt peanuts. Hehe. They just love corn on the cob occasionally. Spice especially LOVES it as you can see from the pictures, hehe! (They clean the cob better than a human!) They love yogurt peanuts for a treat too. Though they all have different ways of eating them. Cinnamon will eat the yogurt off and leave the peanut. Spice will eat the yogurt, take the skin off the peanut & then eat the peanut. And Sugar eats the whole thing! Cinnamon is my chunky monkey. Ever since she had her emergency spay she's really chunked up. She weighs 1 pound 2 ounces, while Sugar & Spice weigh 15 ounces each.

Spice:

I had Spice laying with me tonight because she still wasn't doing so well and I didn't want to leave her alone in the cage. Around 5:40-5:45am she kept doing a chirping sound and I woke up to check on her. She still wasn't moving... I picked her up and while I was talking to her she started doing this weird squeaking or gasping noise. I kept saying her name and listening to her chest to see if she was breathing but after awhile her heart stopped.... and she passed away around 5:55am....

I guess it's okay... because I was praying so hard tonight that she would pass away at home. I didn't want to have to go to the vet later and pay to put my baby to sleep... I can't stop crying now. I took her downstairs and my brothers and Mom said goodbye to her. I brought Sugar & Cinnamon downstairs too to say goodbye to her. Sugar started licking her and Cinnamon would just lay her head on Spice's belly. Sugar ended up doing the same thing so they were both laying there together with their heads on Spice's belly... my poor girl... I miss her....
















Slideshow of my girl:

Fall is here and that means all things pumpkin! I love pumpkin!

Besides the traditional Pumpkin Pie...


Or Pumpkin Bread that I love to bake...


There's a few other pumpkin treats this time of year!

Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte!


Wawa Pumpkin Spice Cappuccino!


Tastykake Pumpkin Pies!


Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins!


 Coffee-Mate Pumpkin Spice Creamer!


International Delight Pumpkin Pie Spice Creamer!


And this is a new one... but I want to try it! Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts!

Spice was was not doing well today. She was very lethargic, had alot of porphyrin around her eyes and she was not walking well. She was so weak she was trying to drag herself. She was also not eating or drinking.

I took her to the vet around 5pm tonight. They think she might be dehydrated from the antibiotic. The antibiotic has been giving Spice alot of diarrhea. They gave her some fluids. They said I can also give her baby food or water in an oral syringe. (I also picked up some pedilyte to keep her hydrated.)

Also she's lost weight. Before her surgery she was 401 grams. And now she is 351 grams. The vet still wants to keep her on the antibiotic though. He said to continue with it, and said to call if anything changes. She still has a recheck appointment on Tuesday for her stitches.

She also has a strange scab on her back that the vet looked at and said to keep clean. After some research and help from my friends on Ratchatter it seems it's most likely Baytril Burn. She had a Baytril injection before her mass removal almost 2 weeks ago.

12-17-08: My brother was playing with Sugar in a cardboard box and she wasn't having it. She chewed herself right out of that box!



In other news; Spice had her checkup tonight. The vet said the stitches are looking good and she's a good rattie for not chewing them. She has another checkup next Tuesday as the stitches aren't ready to come out just yet.

3 years ago I decided to get pet rats. I had had a pet Ferret for 4 years but she passed away from adrenal cancer.

After our Ferret passed away, I wanted another small animal pet. I had always loved mice and rats, even as a kid, but I never owned any as pets. Our Ferret was litter trained and after reading about rats online, I found out they too could be litter trained which was interesting to me. I didn't know too much about pet rats at all 3 years ago!

October, 23rd 2007 I purchased my first two pet rats. Sugar and Spice. Sugar was a PEW, Spice was a Himalayan. Sugar was shy & sweet. Spice was outgoing and spunky.


Care:

3 years later I've owned 20 rats. 8 have gone to the Rainbow Bridge. 3 are rescue rats, 17 have been from various pet stores in my area. (As of 2017 I've owned over 50+ rats.)

The number one con about owning rats is their short lifespan. Rats only live approximately 2-3 years. The other big con is females are very prone to developing mammary tumors. (Typically they develop around or after 1 year.) I've had 5 females that developed mammary tumors and 3 of my girls had to be put to sleep because of them. They are usually benign but tend to impact quality of life as they grow. Not all females get tumors, but they are very common.

This is the downfall of owning pet rats. Pet rats are so susceptible to tumors, cancer, abscesses, respiratory infections, etc. (Rat Health Guide). But when you're a rat owner, you take the good with the bad. They have so much personality, are so smart and have so much love and affection to give, that it makes up for the short time they are with us... any rat owner will tell you that. It's also the reason most rat owners have more than 1 rat. They definitely get into your heart even though they aren't with us for very long.

And just because they are so small doesn't mean they are cheaper when it comes to the veterinarian. I've had tumors removed, had a rat spayed and neutered. Each costing in the triple digits. So anyone that says a rat is a cheap "pocket pet"; they are quite mistaken. Owning a pet rat is definitely a commitment, like any other pet. Cat or Dog, etc.

Females are more active and outgoing, hyper even! Male rats are more laid back, lazy and tend to like being cuddled or pet. Female rats are about half the size of a full grown male rat. Male rats do have a musky odor that can be controlled with bathing or by neutering. (Males or Females?) Hairless males do not have any odor.

They are very clean animals. If you've ever seen a cat bathe him/herself, a rat bathes itself about 10x's more a day than a cat! They don't generally need to be bathed but light colored rats can get red streaking around their neck or on their body from grooming or other rats grooming them. This is because their saliva, tears, (even snot!) have a red pigment called porphyrin. and after awhile even if you do keep your cage very clean you might want to give your rat a bath occasionally if they smell a bit. (I usually bathe mine with baby shampoo every 2-3 weeks or so in the sink.)

There are so many different colors and varieties of rats it would take forever to describe them all. (AFRMA Rat Varieties.)

Why multiples? 

Rats are very social animals. They do best in pairs or groups. Especially if you're out at school or working for a certain number of hours each day. Having a pair of rats is ideal, because they keep each other company when you can't be around.

And once you've owned 1 or 2 rats, rat lovers are very susceptible to GGMR (Gotta get more rats!) Rats are nocturnal but they easily adjust to your schedule. Occasionally at night time, I might hear a few squabbles or some chewing, but for the most part they are pretty quiet at night time.

Rats aren't just social with other rats. They are extremely social and curious about their human owners! In the morning when I wake up, or when I come home from work, there will be a dozen little faces peering out the cage at me, waiting for attention.

Having been a rat owner for 3 years now, in my opinion; rats are the most well rounded pet. They are as affectionate and loyal and sociable as any cat or dog. And smart! Rats are one of the most intelligent of the rodent species. You can teach a rat to respond to its name, just like any dog. It always gives me a smile when one of my rats is at the other end of the sofa or bed and I call their name and they come running over to me. It's just amazing what they are capable of! You can even teach them tricks! They are extremely versatile and adaptable to any situation.

Oh boy and the agility of a rat! A rat can jump vertically almost 1-2 feet and horizontally up to 3 feet! They are great climbers too. Rats do not have paws. They actually have individual fingers. (4 fingers and a nub thumb on their hands. 5 toes on their back feet.) And they love to climb! They will scale the inside of their cage and sometimes even hang from the ceiling in the cage. I call them "little monkey's." They actually use their tail when it comes to climbing. Their tail also helps them to balance. When you're holding a rat, it will probably try to wrap its tail around your arm to steady itself. (That Wonderful Rat Tail). A few of my rats that love to explore have even climbed to the top of my 5 story bookshelf!

Nutrition:

Rats are similar to dogs in another way. You can actually feed them certain types of dog food. You want the protein to be between 15-20% and the fat to be between 5-7%. Lower is better. (Article on Rat Nutrition). Rat's are similar to humans in that they also have a sense of taste. They can taste salty, sweet, sour and bitter.

Of course they need a well rounded diet. A staple diet of either dog food or rat lab blocks. I use Nutro Natural Lite  or Harlan Teklad 2014 lab blocks for their staple diet. (I don't use Nutro anymore- they changed the protein content) I am currently using Native Earth 4018 Lab Blocks (not available any more since petfooddirect was taken over by chewy.com in 2016) I currently feed my rats: Oxbow Regal Rat as of 2017.

Added to that every few days are fresh (or frozen) veggies and fruit and sometimes even baby food or baby rice cereal. Some people make their own well rounded mix. (I used to use a mix similar to Suebee's more for treat purposes that I fed once a week.)


Rat's can pretty much eat anything humans can, though it's not always good for them. It's always best to check the Forbidden Food List before feeding any new food to your rats.

Rat's love treats. A few treats I keep on hand for my rats are: Banana Chips, Yogurt Raisins or Peanuts. Gerber Graduate Puff's, Milk Bone Dog Biscuits, Spiral Wheat or Tri Color Pasta, Yogies.

They also love to chew! Anything and everything if you don't keep it out of their way! I always say, "Pet rats will teach you not to be materialistic!". And it's the truth! They will chew on ANYTHING! I've had many a phone charger, laptop wire, headphones, lamp wire, book bindings, etc; chewed by one of my pet rats. (Thank God for Ebay!) If you're not comfortable with something being chewed- it's best to place it out their reach! I actually get most of my sheets, pillow cases, comforters from a 2nd hand store. If you let the rats hang out with you on your bed, they will indeed chew a hole in your blanket!

Playtime:

Speaking of hanging out on the bed or sofa. Once your rat gets used to being handled by you and trusts you. You can pretty much let them hang out with you around the house where ever you are. I'm usually walking around my house with at least 1 rat on my shoulder! When I watch TV, there's usually a few hanging out with me, same goes for when I'm on the laptop or reading in bed. And surprisingly once your rat is litter trained you shouldn't have many accidents at all! Even better if you provide a place for them to relieve themselves when you have them outside the cage. I usually have a plastic carrier open on the sofa, etc for them to retreat too. I've had a few brats though that won't stay with you and just want to get down on the floor and explore! We used to have a ferret Super Pet Ball for my rat Nutmeg who loved to roam around the house!

For their chewing habits you can provide wooden chew toys from the pet store, give them tissue boxes to hang in or chew, empty paper towel or toilet paper rolls, rawhide chew sticks for dogs, I also give mine Super Pet Chilly Chews or 8 in 1 Cheese Chews. And you can give them cooked and cleaned chicken bone legs to gnaw on also. (Rat Toy Ideas).

You can take your rats outside with you if you're brave enough! If I do take my rats outside I never put them on the ground unattended. If I walk around I might have 1-2 on my shoulder. If I go to the park I use a Plastic Carrier or my Marshall carry sack. (Leashes made for small animals aren't ideal, rats can wiggle right out of them!) I love taking animal and nature photographs so I've taken quite a few of my rats to the park with me to get pictures. If a rat is well handled and trusts it's owner it will not run off. My rats usually stick quite close to me. Being outside usually intimidates them. (I only take 1 rat out at a time, when outside. The others stay in a carrier.)

Cage Care:

Wire cages are generally better than aquariums for pet rats. Wire cages allow air flow, while aquariums restrict ventilation. (Which can lead to heatstroke or even respiratory infections.) The only problem with wire cages, is the flooring. If the cage has a wire floor you will need to cover it with fabric, metal pan, etc. (Wire floors can cause bumble foot infection if not covered.) Rats can also get a foot caught or tangled on a wire floor which can lead to sprains or broken bones.


I own a Ferret Nation 142. The cage comes with two big plastic pans that cover the wire floor in the cage and can be taken out and cleaned when necessary. You also need at least 2 cubic feet per rat. (Cage Calculator). Bar spacing is also important. 1/2" bar spacing is ideal but most cages usually have 1" inch bar spacing.

My Ferret Nation cage has 1" inch vertical bar spacing and for the bigger rat's it's not a problem. But for smaller younger rats, I've had two escapees! The solution to this problem was to cover the outside of the cage with hardware cloth and zip ties! (Choosing the right cage article).

For the inside the cage, I myself use fleece or baby blankets from the Dollar Store to line the cage floors with. This is cheaper and cleaner than using Yesterday's News, Aspen or Care Fresh. (Care Fresh can sometimes contain mites- one way to prevent this is to freeze it before using.) Using fleece or fabric is a greener way of taking care of your rat's cage. It's also cheaper because you're not constantly throwing away used cage lining. I usually do one load of laundry a week (unscented detergent) just for the rat's stuff. I only get rid of the fleece or baby blankets when there's so many holes chewed in them it doesn't look like fabric anymore! (Do not use pine or cedar shavings. They are toxic to rats.)

Using fleece or fabric is also more cozy to your pet rat. They love to burrow deep down in the blankets or fleece when sleeping. I also put plastic igloos and plastic houses in their cages for them to sleep or hide in. (You will usually find all of your rats piled on top of each other sleeping!)

I usually do a full cage cleaning once a week with hot water and a little bleach. I empty their litter pans every few days. (I don't use litter or anything in the litter pans.) I will also change some of their sleeping fabric or blankets in the cage during the week if they begin to smell. (Rat urine doesn't have an odor in small quantities).

Overall:

If you've never owned a pet rat before you would be surprised how each one has a completely different personality. Some are shy, some are outgoing, some love to be cuddled, some don't like to be held, some over eat, some are lazy, some are playful. They are just like people with their own individual personality.

And yes some rats love to be pet just like a cat or dog! When they are happy (or nervous). They will make a teeth grinding noise and boggle their eyes. This is like purring for rats! They also love to be scratched behind their ears or nose. They are extremely social, curious affectionate creatures. Once you have owned one rat, it will probably not be your last! If you decide to get more rats, here is a good article on introducing new rats to your current rats!

You can also find me on Star's Rat Rescue Forum. I am a moderator there under the username: christianchickslc. Come over and share with us about your pet rats, or just pop in to learn about them!

The countdown is on. I leave for the Philippines Monday! Yesterday I was out sick. There's been a virus going around at work and I caught it. A lovely little head cold. Blah. I spent Thursday in bed. Oh well... the first time I visited the Philippines I gave F.B. a cold. And in January his family was passing around a cold & I ended up catching it. So I guess it's my turn again to give him a 'sipon' (cold in tagalog.) Going to sleep in most of this weekend and finish packing on Sunday. So maybe I can get rid of this cold. Been taking extra vitamin C all week.

✯ PR Sample ✯

It's my favorite time of the year! Pumpkin Everything! Whoo! And Glitter Lambs has an awesome Pumpkin Fall Collection out right now. Four sparkly glitter bombs: Pumpkin Spice, Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Cupcake. 

Last Saturday we had overtime at work and I worked 8 hours. I was exhausted by the time it was Friday. Lucky for me Monday is a holiday and we aren't having any more overtime for awhile, so I get a 3 day weekend, yay!

My Valentines was okay... I started with another cold this week a sinus head cold and by Friday I was feeling worse and F.B. & I had a misunderstanding and I was upset with him so I just slept in on Valentines Day and didn't meet up online with him for our "date". This morning I didn't either, but I was just feeling so sick I took some NyQuil and went right back to bed and didn't get up until the late afternoon.

F.B.'s mom had some personalized sheets and pillow cases made up for my parents and a set for me too. They arrived on Valentines. F.B.'s Dad had mailed the package. He's a ship captain and happened to be docked in PA so he mailed the package while he was in the USA. My sheet set is purple. The 2 pillow cases match the sheets.











I texted F.B. and told him they arrived and then I got a text message back from him later asking if there had been anything from him in the box. I hadn't noticed it way at the bottom of the box under the sheets. Turns out he had enclosed a package in the box with my valentines cards and a letter as a surprise. He even sent me San Mig coffee & lemon mint Closeup toothpaste in sachets and a Watson's mint lip balm, because he remembered I just ran out of mine. That was sweet of him, I wasn't expecting a package. Too bad I didn't look in the bottom of the box until Sunday morning! I would have gotten my Valentines gifts on Valentines Day, haha!













Cinnamon turned 1 years old today. She's had such a full year. Getting to know her sisters Sugar & Spice, getting an emergency spay in May, losing her sister Spice in December and gaining 2 new sisters Ginger & Nutmeg. We had a little party for her, I bought ice cream cake for the family and the ratties enjoyed a slice too for Cinnamon's birthday, they really enjoyed themselves!

















































Saturday I also gave my new car a wash and discovered some scratches along the front of the hood... like someone almost brushed against it by walking by with something or I don't know what! There's 4 actually. 2 were very light and came out when I rubbed compound on it and then wax. The other 2 are quite deep and look like 2 fine white lines against the black paint. I'm hoping it's not very deep but it's not coming out with rubbing the compound with my hand and the white scratches are distracting against the black. My dad has to get a new pad for his buffer & is going to try buffing it out. I guess if it doesn't come out I'll have to take it to the dealership for repair. Sigh. Saturday after I came out of work from overtime someone has scraped their door against mine and there were 2 big scratches on it then! I had to use the compound on that too, but it was just in the wax coating. What the heck?! I don't make any payments on my car until March and it's already getting scratched by morons in parking lots! Arrgh!