Mojo's Medical News

Mojo has always been the most challenging of my boys as far as medical issues. He started off sick and thin when we got him. We've worked through lots of different treatment regimes with him, and he has drastically improved in the two years we've had him. We brought him home from the facility in February 2005. April he had his teeth cleaned, and was referred to the vet school for an ear polyp. In May he had ear surgery to remove the polyp. The sore on his face remained, so we worked for 7 more months to get that cleared. We did a food trial, eating only Venison and Green Pea food. He was also on a multitude of medicines, raning from the simple, like a Pepcid for indigestion, to immune-suppressants for severe allergy problems. He was also on steriods and antihistamines. Finally in December he was clear and able to be tested for allergies. He is allergic to EVERYTHING! In January 2006, we started the immunotherapy, or allergy shots. He responded beautifully, and has been off all medicines, with the exception of an antihistamine every now and then for over a year!

Fast forward to April 2007. Mojo is doing great...we're still giving the allergy shots every two weeks, and he handles them like a real trooper. He can eat anything that he wants. He weighs close to 10.5 pounds. Life is good for Mojo. Overnight his world changes. A HUGE abcess pops up on his chin. He goes to the vet school for an emergency check-up, where more biopsies are taken. He is sent home on antibiotics for a monthand pain meds for a week. Mojo does not tolerate antibiotics well. He became quite sick again, lost a good bit of weight and just felt miserable. We treated the nausea with Pepcid and this would work for a couple of days, then we just had to increase the dose. We made it through and Mojo went in to see the dentist and his favorite dermatologist to see what the problem was, and to try and figure out what caused the abcess. Mojo spends the day there and gets lots of x-rays. It is decided that his teeth need to come out because they are rotten and decaying. After about 4 hours of surgery Mojo is able to come home with three canine teeth only! He is on pain meds, and you guessed it, more antibiotics! He started out sick from the anesthesia, then sick from the antibiotics, then sick from the pain meds. We had to resort to giving fluids and an injectable form of pepcid to help him through. Slowly he started feeling better and eating better and looking better.

We saw a small sore on him arm after surgery, but figured it was just from the IV. Well, Mojo kept messing with it, and washing it, and chewing at it, so it became a huge sore on his arm! I took him in to be seen, and yep, he was given more antibiotics, and some ointment for his arm. After two doses of the antibiotic he was sick as a dog again. We stopped them, and spoke with another vet for a different treatment option. We have been working with her for over a week now, and the sore is looking better. It may take another couple of weeks for it to heal completely, but at least we are seeing improvements, and Mojo is not sick. I won't say Mojo is thrilled with his new treatment option, but he is tolerating it pretty well.

Here is a picture of the sore. The scab is actually bad for healing at this point. The point of his treatment is to soften the scab, so the skin realizes there is a sore there, so it will heal it like it is supposed to.

We start with a layer of BioDerm, or fake skin! This stuff is extremely sticky, but it works like a charm.

Next, we get wrapped. The store didn't have any red wrap, which is Mojo's color, but he is doing ok with the teal!

Next, he gets taped at both ends of the wrap, so it doesn't slip down his arm.

Lastly, we get the e-collar on, and he is not happy. He doesn't think he can eat, drink, or walk properly with this collar on. We take it off several times a day for him to eat, but you have to watch him like a hawk, because he can have the bandage off in a matter of seconds!

We hope that two to three more dressing changes and we will be able to stop, but we'll see. I know Mojo will be a happy camper once this is all over.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SMOKEY!!

Happy 11th Birthday Goose...I know this is a bit late, his birthday was April 14th, but I did want to write something about him. Smokey is the first cat that I got as an adult. It seems like fate that brought me to him. In 1996, I was about to graduate from college. My sister and I were going to move into an apartment together, and we were both going to get a kitten. It was exciting times! We both started out wanting boys, simply because their surgery would be cheaper. Color didn't really matter, just a nice personality. A friend in our parents hometown had a cat that had just given birth, and we could come and pick from her litter. We drove home, and there were two adorable long haired girls that were just perfect! So much for our cheaper surgery theory! So we took pictures, and started thinking about names, and buying toys and beds and all kinds of neat things for them. We were ready. Our parents went and picked them up on a Friday night, because they were coming down to help us move on Saturday, and they would bring the kittens with them. They arrived, and we got all the moving done, and played with the kittens, and I noticed my kitten, Tigger (she was a brown tabby) wasn't standing well, and didn't act like she felt good. I showed mom and we decided to take her to the emergency vet because it just didn't look right. It took a while to find one, but we finally arrived and the took her back to be examined, and she died while she was back there. I had only known her for a few hours, but I was heart-broken. I hated that she had made the long journey to my place when she wasn't feeling good. It was either a virus, or a vaccine reaction, so we had to keep an eye on Dasha in case it was contagious.

On Sunday, I graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill, but didn't have a new kitten to go home to. My sister picked up a paper for me, and I started looking in the classifieds for kittens. There were quite a few to choose from, so I started calling around. My friend and I went visiting kittens the next day, and most of the ones we found were no longer little kittens at all! It was disappointing. I called another lady that night, and she said she had 2 kittens left, but had 3 people coming out to visit, to not come by, but call the next day and see if she had any left. I called the next morning and she still had 2 kittens! After work, my sister and I drove down to look at the kittens, and I was hoping they would be small enough to fit in with Dasha. There was a little white kitten, and a small greyish black one with some stripes on it. They were living on a screened porch with a bunch of adult cats that kept growling at them. I felt bad having to choose, but I chose the one with the stripes because he was the smallest of the two. He could fit in my hand, and he laid in my hand the whole way home and slept. I chose the name Smokey because he had black and grey and white on him...the colors of smoke.

Smokey as a baby. He was about the size of a Beanie Baby!

Smokey was a nervous kitten, but he loved to play and jump! He and Dasha became instant friends. They played together a lot.

It was fun at night just to watch Smokey and Dasha. They were very entertaining!

As Smokey grew he loved to lay in a comfy spot with his stuffed animals. He was still a nervous boy, but had started laying on me, if I laid on the bed to read. He had multiple favorite spots around the house, one being a towel on the bathroom counter! If we had guests over, they rarely saw Smokey. His safe zone was my bedroom, under the bed, or in the closet. He loves a closet!

Smokey's bad habits would include opening my dresser drawers and pulling clothes out! He loves my pajama drawer, which is the bottom one. He can open the bottom two drawers. The best time to do this is of course in the middle of the night!

Another bad habit when we lived at the apartment, was trying to open the bathroom cabinets, but not succeeding and letting them slam closed again. This too was most fun during the night. I got smart though, and started leaving a hand towel wrapped around the post in between the two doors! He could play all he wanted, but it didn't make noise.

Smokey was my only boy until Devon came to live with us in 2001. Smokey was 5 at the time, and I think having those 5 years alone with him has helped him to thrive. He is now a very trusting boy. He loves to lay on my lap, regardless of where I am in the house. He still loves to lay on the towel on the bathroom counter, and a comfy blanket on the bed. He is spoiled, but he's my boy!

I still hate that Tigger died, but I'm glad that I was able to find Smokey and give him a life that he deserves. Happy Birthday again Smokey...you're my special Goose!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TANNER!!

Tanner's birthday was April 7th. My baby boy is now 5 years old! It is hard to believe that he is that old...it seems like only yesterday that he arrived at the house...

Tanner was 13 days old, and weighed 7 ounces, when he came to us with his sister Riley, and they were a fussy group! They didn't like the taste of the formula we were feeding (KMR) because they were used to a surrogate mom's milk. She was doing an ok job with them, but she had kittens of her own that were much larger and older than Tanner and Riley, so they weren't getting what they needed, and were not gaining weight. They were a bit weak and dehydrated when they came to me, but with the help of a friend who rushed over after a frantic "Get over here and bring a heating pad!" phone call, we got them eating. It took almost all weekend for Tanner to want to nurse on his bottle. Riley understood a bit earlier. He finally caught on, and we knew the drill. Tanner liked the short squatty nipple on the bottle, and Riley preferred the long skinny one. As long as they had the right nipple, they would eat fine!




This is Tanner after almost 6 weeks at our house! What a cutie!

Tanner and I went through a lot together. He developed ringworm and we spent months treating that. Once he was ready to go to adoptathons, I wasn't ready to let him go. It took some convincing, but I was finally able to adopt him!

When he was almost two, he was diagnosed with his heart condition, Hypertrophic Obtrusive Cardiomyopathy. He is handling the daily medications like a trooper.

In the last year, Tanner has become a real snuggle bug. He sleeps with me everynight now. He lays at my feet and stretches out...he takes up most of the bed, but I'll not complain. It's just nice to have him in there! He has also gotten so he will sit beside me on the couch some nights.

His favorite pasttime is definitely playing! He loves for me to sit in the floor and play with him. He likes to do flips over my feet while trying to "get" a toy!

He talks a lot more now that he used to, and he enjoys talking to and waving to his birds outside. Some nights he'll put on a show for them and dance around on the rug in front of the doors!

Tanner is a happy boy that loves life! I hope he'll be around for a long time to come...Happy Birthday Tanner!

Smokey and the Vet School, part 2

Smokey finally made it to the vet school for his allergy testing. His appointment in February was cancelled because the doctor's flight was delayed. We went this past Wednesday. He was not too happy about having to fast overnight or the car ride over to Raleigh. He loves to talk in the car, so I enjoyed hearing him because he doesn't talk at home a whole lot. He has a very high squeaky voice...it's like it never changed from when he was a kitten.

Once we made it to the vet school, and I got him checked in, Dr. Murphy came out to get him pretty quickly. We chatted for a bit, and off they went. When Kim picked him up later that afternoon, Dr. Murphy commented on how loving Smokey was, and how he just wanted to be held! He is a snuggle bug and loves getting hugs.

Smokey got a mild sedative to help him hold still while he was being tested. He got his side shaved, and they marked on his with what looks like a Sharpie where the test pricks were going to go. Here he is just a few minutes after being home...he was starving! You can see the black marks very prominently, and also some sores where the testing was done.

Smokey was so happy to be home...he's been quite talkative, which is unlike him. He loves to play and is a frisky kitten! It takes him an office visit to make him truly appreciate his good life at home.

We found out that he is allergic to 12 things.

• Dust Mites


• Eastern Oak Mix (trees)


• White Hickory


• Red Maple


• Elm Mix


• Johnson Grass


• Orchard Grass


• Yellow Dock (weed)


• Rough Pigweed


• Giant Ragweed


• Fleas


• Cockroaches

Since the serum for the immuno-therapy can have up to 14 items in it, we were all set, and his serum will include all things (except fleas). The serum should be here in a couple of weeks, and we'll get started. Once I know the schedule for the shots, I'll post them here. I will be doing the shots at home. I feel comfortable with that, since I've already gone through this process with Mojo. Mojo is currently on a once every two week schedule, which is nice. I'm hoping to get the boys on the same day, once Smokey gets to the maintenance phase.

After a few days, the black dots were fading on Smokey's side. The shaved area is so warm and soft...I just love rubbing it! I told Smokey we may just have to keep him shaved...he wasn't too happy about that.

Spring is in the Air

Spring is in the air, here in the south and that means two things...

1) Fun Stroller Rides

and

2) Allergies!

We'll start with the fun stuff...Stroller rides! I took Devon out this Sunday for a walk around the block. Now that I'm off the crutches from breaking my fibula in February, I thought a walk would be nice. Plus, did I mention that it was in the 70's here? So I grabbed Devon and we were off. It's been a while since we have used the stroller, so he started out talking a bit frantically. Once we crossed the street, he settled down. He loves to talk while he is out...I secretely think he wants to see if folks will come out and look at him! I forgot to take my camera out with me, but here is a picture of him from last fall in the stroller. Next time we go out, I'll take the camera along...Devon is a bit hard to see here, but he is sitting and looking proud!

Spring also means allergies, and poor Smokey is starting to flair up a bit. His eyes are a bit swollen, so I've started the eye ointment again to see if that will help. He goes next week to be tested for allergies, so I hope we can pin point the culprits and get the immuno-therapy started soon! I'll try to grab a new photo of Smokey tonight...he is a bit camera shy!

Did I mention that it was in the 70's on Sunday? It was a glorious day here...the sky was blue, Carolina Blue, I might add. I took advantage of the day, and when I got back from my walk with Devon, I grabbed a book and a chair, threw on some shorts and headed outside! I sat in the sun with my bare feet in the grass and read for a couple of hours...it was a fantastic way to spend a Sunday afternoon. It's supposed to get into the 80's by mid-week...Spring is definitely right around the corner...

More Snow Pictures

Since it is in the 60's here, and spring should be just around the corner, I thought it would be nice to reflect on the few snow days we had this year. Here in the South, we were once again cheated from any substantial snow amounts. Flurries are pretty and fun to watch, but you don't get out of work long enough! In 2000, we had a large snowfall...over 20 inches. We were out of work, and stuck at home for a week...it was great! My tip to you all is to not watch Food Network when you can't get to the grocery store. In either 2001 or 2002, we had a nice ice storm and we were out of work for almost a week then too. It wasn't quite as fun because we didn't have any power. It is amazing what all you can cook on a grill though. Luckily we had gas logs in the fireplace, so we could keep the downstairs fairly warm. The cats enjoyed sitting on blankets in front of the fireplace! For the last several years, we only received a few snow showers. I suppose that is better than nothing at all...maybe next year, we'll get a big one! Until then, here are some pictures of Snow in the South.

The cats love watching the snow fall, and also all the birds eating and flying around! This is Sophie and Tanner...

Let It Snow!

It's been a while since I've posted here, but we've had a couple of very light snowfalls. The boys all enjoy watching it snow, and watching the birds eat like pigs! We have a bird feeder outside the back door, and it attracts all sorts of birds...we have been impressed and surprised with the variety!

Here is one of the three doves that we've seen in the yard...they even get up in the larger feeder we have.

But this is supposed to be about birds and the crazy boys in the snow, so let me get on with it! Here are a couple of pictures from the first small snow we had in January on the 18th.


These birds were enjoying the food we had out for them. The snow was really coming down, and looked very pretty, but it didn't stick to the roads to become a problem. Here in the South it doesn't take much snow to completely shut towns down...we simply don't have the equipment to clear the roads.

Here's Pirate enjoying the snow...we put him down, and he just ran around like a crazy cat! He loved it!

Devon was a little more conservative. He wanted to go out, but then once he was there, he was ready to come back in. I was able to snap this photo of him though before he stood at the door.

The other boys were happy sitting in the nice warm house, snuggling on blankets spread on the couch!

Our next snow came yesterday, February 1st...another Thursday. I didn't put the cats out this time because it wasn't long before it switched to sleet and then to freezing rain, and that is no fun to be out in! We've added another feeder to the pole and the birds were wild...we probably had about 30 at a time sitting out there. There were birds there about all day long too. The cats loved it. Here's Sophie and Tanner watching out the back door.

It is hard to see in this shot, but there are birds in the grass all along the fence :) We sprinkled some of the sunflower chips on the porch hoping to get the birds closer for the cats. There were a couple that came up there, but I didn't have the camera ready! By the end of the day, all of that seed was gone.

The other boys, Mojo and Smokey, spent their day sleeping in a nice warm spot! Tanner and Devon decided that they were cold after watching the birds all morning, so they snuggled on the couch together...it was a love fest! I'll close with some snuggle photos.
Here's Mojo, in his favorite bed. He got this as a birthday present when he was 9 years old from PC. It is a Christmas bed, but we leave it out all the time because he is always laying in it!

Smokey loves to lay in the this bed and look out the window. Normally, there is a nice, warm, morning sun streaming in for him, but today is cold and dreary.

Here's the love fest of Tanner and Devon snuggling on the couch...I know you've all been waiting patiently for this photo! Here you go, and I hope it will keep you warm where ever you are! Happy Snow Day!

Smokey and the Vet School

Smokey went in for his appointment with the dermatology department on January 3rd. He was not too happy when I had to grab him and drag him out from under a chair! Once he was in the carrier though, I was able to feed the other cats...Smokey had to fast overnight, so everyone fasted overnight! We got in the car and headed off...Smokey also likes to talk in the car, but he is pretty quite about it. At least he doesn't get the frantic sound in his voice like Tanner does.

We arrived and checked in, and finally were called back, to review the history of Smokey's swollen eyes with them. They are all wonderful at the vet school, and made Smokey feel very comfortable. He acts nervous, but he was actually purring the whole time! Once the Doctor came in she mentioned that she was going to have another department, Opthamology look at him as well, so they were going to keep him for the day. I was able to leave and come back in the afternoon to pick him up.

I came back over and spoke with the doctor. She told me what the treatment plan was, and helped me schedule an appointment for later in the month for another evaluation. We are giving Lysine to every cat in the house, every night. They are loving the canned food treats! Smokey is also taking Terramycin eye drops 4 times a day until we return. He's actually getting them 3 times on days when I'm home a lot, and twice on days that I work. It's been a week now, and his eyes are looking better and he is acting very frisky, so maybe this is helping. Smokey was ready to go home! He is very quiet in the car on the way home...doesn't say a word!

I was able to get a picture of the Brick we dedicated to Dasha while I was there. Smokey was hanging out in the carrier, not being very photogenic. Maybe when I go back, I'll try to get a shot of him.

Happy New Year!

To celebrate the New Year, we had a group of friends over to work on our scrapbooks. We had fun and are all ready for 2007! I went around when the clock struck midnight and tried to find all the cats to see how they were celebrating...they were not very exciting...




Devon was laying on the back of the couch!



Sophie was trying to get a glimpse of what was happening in the scrapbook room...
Pirate was laying under a table...




And Tanner was just looking pretty! I couldn't find the others at the time to get their pictures...I think the older boys were sleeping somewhere because it was way past our normal bedtime!

On New Years day, we took down the Christmas Tree...surprisingly enough it still looked about the same as when we put it up. Maybe the boys have grown out of playing with the ornaments so much! I caught a few of them messing around the tree, or stretching up in it, but they didn't knock anything off, so it was fine for them to enjoy it. One last view of the tree before it goes away for another year...

Home for the Holidays

Tanner went home with me to my parents house for Christmas. He is a pretty good travel partner, although he talks a lot...especially when a good song comes on the radio! His favorite artist would be Jimmy Buffett. He'll sit very quietly and listen when I put a cd of his on. So, I try to play him as much as possible when Tanner is in the car. We stopped once for a rest break for us both...I put Tanners leash and harness on him and he sat in the grass for a few minutes. The fresh air helped him to appreciate his carrier and to keep quiet for about 30 minutes.

Once we got to mom and dad's house he was much better. He enjoys exploring and eating mom's many plants. We don't keep live plants at our house for this reason...he loves to chew on them and of course they die. We have a couple of artificial trees, and Smokey still eats the leaves like they are real! I told you my cats were crazy.

Tanner would enjoy exploring more if my parents dogs didn't bark at him. He isn't used to that sound and even though he is at least twice their size, he's too nervous to do anything about it.

Delilah is the smallest of the dogs...she has some health problems, but still enjoys playing and being held.

Here she is laying in the hammock that we had bought for one of their cats a while back.

Samson is a bit larger, but still only weighs about 6 or 7 pounds. Tanner could easily show him who is boss, but he just won't stand up to the dogs. Sam loves to play fetch. He is big enough to jump onto the couch, but not the bed. We have gates up so Tanner has some 'safe' areas of the house...the dogs can still look in, but they can't get to him.

Mom and dad also have a gorgeous long haired orange cat named Chester. He is super sweet and loves to be held and snuggled. He and Tanner like to sit and growl at each other, but that's about it. I'm not sure how old Chester is, he was just dropped off at the house one day when he was a baby. My parents get a lot of animals that way, since they live in a rural area.

After a few days here, Tanner and I headed back to our house. He did pretty good, but demanded I change his towel...guess it wasn't fluffy enough for him. I put two in the carrier for him, and he slept soundly for about an hour. I was thankful to be back home!

I'll be posting more pictures on the blog since I now own my very own digital camera! I have the Sony DSX-H5...it is awesome!

Vet School Visit

On Friday, Tanner went to the vet school for his annual cardiology check-up. He was not the happiest of cats, but he did very well. He had to get his blood pressure checked, and since they do this on their tails, he wasn't thrilled. I think he was thinking they were about to do something else back there, so he was cautious! It went fine though and he gets to have his tail squeezed again this Friday...what a lucky boy! :)



He stayed at the vet school most of the day because they had an emergency case come in, but that worked out ok because my sister and I were able to do a bit of shopping while he hung out.

We came back in the afternoon to pick him up. The doctors came in and said he has progressed mildly, and they've decided to put him on another drug in addition to his atenolol he currently takes. He is now on Enalapril in the evenings. He still takes his pills like a champ, and so far we've not had any adverse reactions to the new pill. We go back to our regular vet on Friday to have the blood pressure (tail squeezed) rechecked, and to do another renal panel. He had blood work done at the vet school, and they gave him a pretty green bandage...how did they know green was his color? He was not too happy with this bandage when he got home and started trying to walk around though...I took it off pretty quickly, but not before snapping a few photos!


Here he is on the table with his bandage...how cute!








If you aren't going to take it off, I'll just wash it off!








More updates on the rest of the gang coming soon!

Cousins

I have lived with my sister since I graduated from college, we'll just say, several years ago :) She and I get along well, and have lived in a few places since then. We started in an apartment, then bought the townhouse, then sold it and moved to another apartment, and are now in the new house. Well, I should tell you a bit about her cats...mine aren't the only ones that are crazy! In fact, I think hers are a bad influence on mine! :)

DASHA - This was her first cat, and she got Dasha the same time that I got Smokey. Dasha was a long haired ball of fur, and she looked like a Christmas tree when she sat down. Unfortunately Dasha died suddenly when she was 7 years old. She and Smokey were good friends.



SOPHIE - When I got Devon in 2001, he was such a little terror at times, that the vet suggested we get another kitten to help him. Sophie became that helper. She is a good girl most of the time, but can be a bit annoying. She hasn't quite grasped the idea that I should sit or lay down when I am in someones lap asking for attention! She was good for Devon though, and they have become good friends. She is one of the most social cats we have...she is always looking for someone to rub her tummy, even a complete stranger isn't safe! We once had a repair man over to fix something, I don't remember what, and he bent over to pick something up, and she jumped up on his back! At least she has grown out of that habit!

When Dasha died, we were fostering a kitten named Pirate. We'd had him for about 3 months, and he was starting to grow on us. He only had three legs because he was born with just a partial back leg. It would bang on things when he jumped and always had a sore on it...so the rescue group we were with decided he would do better to have it removed. They were right! He got along so much better once it was gone. It seemed right that we take him in since we had been through a good bit with him already, and we had a void in our home. He got along well with Smokey, Devon, Tanner and Sophie, so it was a natural choice.

PIRATE can be a bit ornery, but that makes him unique. He loves to spin around on his one back leg! He is one of the best cats because he can't get on the kitchen counters! He loves to play and can run up and down the stairs with the best of them. One of his craziest ideas is that he thinks he is Canadian! The Canadian national anthem came on during the Olympics and he just talked to the tv and raised his front arm, like he was saluting or something. We would ask him, "are you Canadian?" and he was just talk and talk.

Those are the crazy cousins...Everyone gets along quite nicely most of the time. We had a few rumbles every now and then, but nothing serious. I think they are just having a bit of fun! Craziness abounds at our house!

The cold and flu season

Tis the season for coming down with a cold, and that is no exception for the boys. Tanner had been sneezing for several days and just laying around. He becomes a real snuggle bug when he doesn't feel well...a definite momma's boy! He is doing much better now though...we like to treat with extra canned food, and pump it full of L-Lysine. This seems to help keep things from getting worse. We were lucky with him, just about a week of sneezing and a runny eye, and we were all better. Here he is just sleeping away. Poor Baby!

Smokey on the other hand is battling, what I think is allergies. He has had issues with his eyes swelling and itching for several years now. Typically I can treat him with an antihistamine and he clears up, but lately, nothing seems to be working. We have an appointment with the vet school dermatology department in January. I hope they can test him and find out what the cause of his reactions are, so we can help him. He will be seeing the same doctor as Mojo. She is the best, and has done wonders for Mojo! I wonder if the vet school gives a multiple pet discount? This will make my third cat that goes there...I hope Devon doesn't start to feel left out! :) Here's a picture of Smokey when his eyes are swollen and irritated. He has a bit of colored discharge, so I've started him on a different eye drop...they seem to be helping him some. I'll have to give him some lysine too!

Well, I hope the boys will all start feeling better soon, and that it won't spread to the other cats in the house! Next time I'll introduce you to the cousin cats that live with us too...they belong to my sister...more on them next time.

Decorating for Christmas

We took time on Sunday to start decorating the house for Christmas. We have a ton of decorations so it takes a while to get everything put up. We started with the tree, and of course the boys were big helpers. They enjoyed jumping in the box the tree comes in, and playing with the cords for the lights. We have an artifical tree because Smokey and Mojo are allergic to the real ones. It is one of those pre-lit trees, but it needs more directions to be able to hook all the lights up a bit easier. We finally had to just turn the tree another way, to put the row of unlit branches in the back! We tried everyway possible to get them to work, so we just gave up.

Decorating is the most fun part, so we started unloading box after box of ornaments. We are definitely going to need a second tree next year, maybe even a third! I collect ornaments for each of my boys throughout the year, and Smokey has a ton...I think he has more than I have! Each boy is designated a color, so I look for things that remind me of them, in their color. They also get things that aren't in a particular color, if it means something. For example, Smokey is known as 'The Goose', so when I found a Canadian Goose ornament, I had to get it for him! I'm not sure if I'm mentioned what their colors are before, so here they are...Smokey is purple, Devon is blue, Tanner is green, and Mojo is red.

After a while of decorating the boys were tired...Here's Tanner sleeping in an ornament box...I'm surprised he fit!







Devon loves tissue paper, and enjoys shredding it...he was in hog heaven when we upwrapped all the ornaments, and there was a huge mound of tissue paper in a chair!






Smokey and Mojo spent most of their time sleeping! Where is their Christmas spirit? They thought it was a good day for a nap...Here are the sleeping boys.
At last, the finished product...I think it turned out nicely this year. We'll have to see how many of the ornaments are on the floor when I get home for work today. Typically we just pick them up and place them higher on the tree, so by the time Christmas gets here, the bottom half of the tree is not decorated!