A new addition to Redwoodshire- Horatio

Horatio is the newest resident of Redwoodshire.  He joined our family this past week and has already made himself at home.  Though I prefer animals when they live with other people, he was hired to be the "Head Mouser" of Redwooshire.  He really acts more like a faithful dog than a cat, which we find quite humorous.  He loves to be around us, and follows us wherever we go- inside and outside.  He and lady genevieve make quite a pair.  Though she is gentle and loves him most of the time, she's not fond of the fact that he enjoys playing with all of her toys.  She swats him out of the way when she can get to him.  Despite her behavior, he follows her around and wants to play all the time. We are still trying to teach her to be more gentle with him.  Though she can get a little jealous, more often than not she likes giving him kisses and petting his fluffy coat.  Only 5 days together, and it's already clear to us that these 2 are TROUBLE.  Today, Horatio knocked a un-capped pen off the side table onto the floor.  Apparently, genevieve then picked it up.  The Laird walked into the Great Room, and found lady genevieve and Horatio sitting together on the couch.  Pen in lady genevieve's hand, moving back and forth, playing with Horatio, and unfortunately writing on the couch!!  We hoped that Horatio and genevieve would be buddies, and so far we've been lucky to discover that he is truly a fun-loving, friendly little kitten.  He loves to be outside.  

His mousing skills have yet to be tested.  We are hoping he will have many years of great success protecting Redwoodshire from all the many small animals that roam the land here; primarily the mice, rabbits, snakes, chipmunks, & squirrels.  

He is quite cute (most all kittens are), however, sometimes I think he thinks he's one of my children.  He cries and whines when he's not getting my attention.  Why me?  He always has to be up in my business, no matter how many times I pick him up and send him on his way.  Despite all these things, I think he's growing on me.  I especially enjoy watching lady genevieve and Horatio play together- it's truly hours of entertainment!

This makes me "HAPPY" every time!

(Though this doesn't follow the theme of this blog, it is too cute not to post- maybe we can learn some new dance moves?)

Recently heard the Happy Song by Pharrell Williams at a wedding.  Ever since that day the Laird has been singing it to and with lady genevieve.  Every night when we sing in the rocking chair before bed, I ask her what songs she wants to sing.  For a couple months now, she's responded with "Peace", which is for "Peace Like A River".  But lately she's been asking for "Happy".  Unfamiliar with the tune, I just sing, "happy, happy, happy" to my own tune.  Lady genevieve responds with... "no".  She knows I don't sing it right.  Ever since she was able to bounce in the Johnny Jumper, we've had "dance time".  Though she's always had it in her, she's recently become quite a little dancer.  We've caught a few recent dances on video.  Here is one that cracks me up.  There is another version of the same day in the "genevieve" tab above.  Where did she learn these moves?  I feel like she could have been in the music video and done a decent job.

Cloth Training Pants conversion

So we use cloth diapers on little lady genevieve.  And in a matter of time, she will be ready to start using the potty.  So I have been looking for cloth training pants ideas.  I read reviews of a handful of commercially made cloth training pants.  I found that commercial made training pants are just as expensive as the cloth diapers; which is somewhat disappointing considering the amount of time you use them for potty training.  I decided to google DIY cloth training pants to see what others have already come up with in this area.   I found this DIY Cloth Training Pants tutorial, and decided to go with this style training pants for the little lady.  They are a simple conversion of the basic Gerber training underwear.

WHAT YOU NEED:

3 pack Gerber training pants $7.99.  I went with plain white, since I wanted to use cute PUL patterns.  

Stay dry fleece (there are different kinds of fleece, so ask for the active wear fleece).  Fleece is very absorbent and wicks wetness off the bottom.  I used color coordinating fleece to line the underpants- which adds to the cuteness factor.

PUL- Joann Fabrics has a small section of supplies for making your own cloth diapers.  They have a few different patterns of PUL that you can have measured and cut, or you can buy the 3 pack of pre-cut patterns in a pack.  It's a better deal to get your material cut, however I found that the pre-packaged fabric had cuter designs.  

Like the tutorial, I traced the thick padded area on to a piece of wax paper (somewhat transparent), and used it as a pattern for my fleece and PUL.  I found that I needed to cut the PUL a little longer on the front and back to fit the outside of the underpants.  

I used 4 pieces of fleece for the inner absorbent pad.  I sewed them together with a straight stitch at each end.  Then I sewed that pad into the inside of the diaper with a zig zag stitch, all the way around.  Then I attached the PUL to the outside of the underpants with a zig zag stitch.

A very simple little project!  The underpants are still a little big for lady genevieve, but it will still be a little while before she's ready to take on the potty.  We will see how they work out in a few months.  I showed her her new big girl panties, and she cried when I tried them on her!  They are not intended to be completely waterproof (like cloth diapers).  The goal of these underpants is to help prevent big messes (with a little extra absorption and a waterproof layer down the middle) for those inevitable potty training accidents.  Easy to make.  Inexpensive.  Good for the environment.  Very cute.