Laurin and Kelly Talk

Our Newest Family Member

This is Twinkle - at least that's her name for today - our new baby guinea pig. We went rodent shopping today and we fell in love with this furry little sweetie! She loves snuggling in cleavage, so guess who's got a blogging and twittering buddy now?

Erin has been hauling Earl the Cat around the house like she's Olivia moving her cat Edwin, and Earl is not pleased. He also weighs nearly half of what Erin does so I thought getting her another vastly smaller pet to move around might be the way to go.

We went to three different pet stores and looked at all manner of hamsters, gerbils and other rodents, but the guinea pig's lovely demeanor and perfect size won out. We picked the smallest piggy of the bunch and I love her coloring- she's like a perfect black and white cookie with a little caramel drizzled on.

I had no idea there were so many variations of mice and hamsters, and if you've never seen a robo hamster up close and personal it's worth a trip to the pet store to check them out. They are bonkers!

Weblog World - Great Gift Guides 2008

Featured Post Through Christmas

Kelly, of course you know today is Black Friday, arguably the busiest shopping day of the year. I typically don't go shopping for Christmas on this day, more due to procrastination than my desire to avoid crowds or anything.

Not As Imminent As I Thought, But Still Likely

Kelly, I tweeted recently about my belief that Earl the cat is trying to kill me. Then I saw this fun quiz you can take to know for sure. I gave Earl the benefit of the doubt on many of the questions, but as you can see there's a pretty good chance he's up to no good. Thanks to Canned Laughter for the link.

89% is not exactly irrefutable proof, but I'm not taking any further chances!

In case you were wondering, I was hurting for a post today, hence the cat post. We definitely can't blow NaBloPoMo with only 10 posts to go. I have a Thanksgiving turkey post that wasn't quite ready, so it'll be up tomorrow. This you've gotta see if you want to cook your bird in half the time!

So I had this post in draft and didn't know if it would ever see the light of day. It was greenlighted today when I was in a webinar and Ginger of Attention Target Shoppers said people e-mail her all the time asking for posts about her dog. No one has actually ever e-mailed me to say they need more Earl the Cat, but I think it's just understood because he is seven kinds of fabulous.

Related Posts: Mah Top 5 Novelty Lolsites

Löopa Gyro Bowl - Plus My Debut as Business Consultant

Kelly, check out the Löopa gyro spill-resistant bowl that swivels, dips and oscillates to keep snacks from spilling all over the couch, floor, car or really anywhere a snack can be consumed. Lately my kids consume their snacks inside the magical adventure forts they construct out of everything in the house which isn't bolted down.

The Löopa has a weighted inner bowl that rotates 360 degrees, remaining upright no matter how your kids grab or turn it. Neat!

Bonus use: Cat Bowl. Stay with me. Erin carries Earl's food bowl all over the house trying to lure him out from under the beds in order to wear stuffed animal clothes and jewelry, and for other non PETA-approved activities. He's surprisingly compliant once caught.

As a result I'm forever sweeping the cat food that drops from the bowl from under the furniture and the beds - the only places Buddy the lab can't reach. I'm annoyed and Buddy is constipated.

As I know other kids stalk the family pet like this, I'm thinking the Löopa people also need to package and market it as a pet bowl. I'm pretty sure a high-priced business consultant would have charged them thousands for this little nugget.

Technorati Tags: Loopa,"kids products","snack bowl","pet food bowl"

 

 

Hi Kelly! - Random Friday Thoughts

Accomplishments for the day:

Got to spend a little time shopping with a friend and scored some Hollywood Hook-Ups, those bra thingies that turn your regular bra into a racer-back friendly one.

I'll be channeling Brett Somers/horrifying my husband with a $12, but surprisingly expensive-looking, version of the vintage Ted Lapidus style huge sunglasses on our vacation next week.

Dropped my kids off for a 3 hour play date. That was exhausting.

Took another peek at Life on an Island, a blog I'm starting to check every day, and one I think you will like. Heather and Mynda are friends blogging together and they have beautiful pictures of Whidbey Island, WA, and the most interesting tales about puppies, beach walks, assorted island wildlife, and fun general hanging out time. Come to think of it, I'm starting to get a little envious.

Those Island Girls really sucked me in with the posts about the duck who laid her eggs in a barrel planter on their deck. After 11 ducklings hatched, Mama Duck marched them
down to the pond. I was riveted!

I found the Island Girls through a comment they made on The Pioneer Woman. Seems they are also fans of those apple dumplings of Ree's. I'll bet you could connect all bloggers via "Six Degrees of Pioneer Woman's Dumplings".

Organic Pet Care

Hi Kelly. I'm tired, but happy to be visiting my parents in Mississippi where the mosquito is the state bird. I think I prefer the Florida no-see-um to the Mississippi run-for-your-life-see-um.

Speaking of annoying critters, my daily e-mail tip from Ideal Bite this morning was about how to rid your pet of fleas and groom them using organic products. I've been eyeing the Eco-Me kit for dogs and cats from Delight.com. You make your own shampoo, flea treatment and more with essential oils.

My parents dog Cleo, a Vizsla, could really use a product called "Hound Smell Begone". I wonder if they make that? As Cleo was playing and howling at the kids in the back yard yesterday my daughter shouted, "CLEO IS MAKING HOUND SOUNDS!" I think that's hilarious.

Finding a new pet

Hey Laurin, my sis was telling me about this great web site Petfinder.com. I vow to use it when I'm ready to take on one more thing to feed and clean up after.  You put in all your criteria i.e. animal, breed, age, size and your location and a list of all available rescue and adoption organizations pop up.  It's not just dogs and cats.  There are currently 346 hamsters available, 1 hermit crab and 173 pot bellied pigs.

 

You could even find an iguana (there are 93 of them)!  

   

And IF I got another dog, I have to admit I LOVE Bugsy from New Jersey.