Strawberry Fields Forever

Before....

...and after

We love strawberries. Miriam makes an awesome strawberry colada. Therefore, it's critical to have enough strawberries in the freezer for those hot summer days when a colada is just what the body needs. We got this flat from Rogers Farm. It's nearing the end of the season - so get your local berries soon before they're gone!

Of course, it takes a steady hand to prepare a flat for freezing. Mother's Day seems like a nice day for a colada. We'll take some pics and Mir might even post her recipe.

Planting Season

We planted a bunch of coral honeysuckle this weekend. We've fashioned some homemade trellises that we'll attach to the fence as you can see below.

These honeysuckle also attract hummingbirds so one or two more will need to be bought and planted near the hummingbird feeder.

Boxer is guarding our fresh plantings from predators. Isn't he brave?

UF Women's Basketball Banquet

Last evening we attended the University of Florida Womens's Basketball Team Banquet. It was a good time with lots of good cheer and positive thoughts for the future. This is a picture of the team and coaches.

We sat at Ebony Crawford's table - it's becoming a tradition for us. We sat at her table last year when she was just a freshman. She's a lovely young lady with a special mom. (Ebony's in the middle)

There was a good crowd as you can see. As the team experiences more successes we fully expect this crowd to grow. But we have to ask the question - where have you been all these years?

And there we are - yes, we did laugh a lot - looking forward to next year!


Go Gators!

Note: Pictures were taken by Kathy Cafazzo, Associate Communications Director, who does a fantastic job of keeping us fans informed! You can see more pictures at Amanda Butler's home page. Find and click the "scrapbook" link to view them.

Meet Davey

We've sponsored Davey from Best Friends. Read his story:

Little Davey is a naughty thing. But he has a terribly sad story that makes it all understandable. He was found nearly frozen to death in what his rescuer described as a "bad neighborhood" in Cleveland. He was so cold that he'd gotten sick and his eyes were infected. One could not heal and had to be removed. This little muscular fellow with lollipop ears is all thawed out now! He's feeling better at Best Friends, one eyed and all, but he can be ill-tempered sometimes. Once, he was adopted and the family had to bring him back because of growling, overprotective behavior. It wasn't too hard to believe.

Davey will pop his head under your arm for a hug if he loves you -- and pretty well bark his head off if he doesn't. What makes him like one person and not another remains a mystery. But we understand, cutie pie! Davey was born in 1997. He's a Sharpei mix without a tail and would be delighted to have a sponsor.

It's Tuesday

Boxer and Sydney are playing in the picture. It's Tuesday afternoon and the big dogs are stretching their legs and taking care of business. They'll probably get to eat dinner early since we have a Crime Watch/Neighborhood Meeting to attend.

It's been a grey day today - raining mostly. But that's a good thing - of course, more doggie cleanup is required - the pooches haven't learned how to wipe their feet and dry themselves off.

We were watching Dogtown about the Michael Vick dogs and they used a cd called "Laughing Dogs" to calm down some dogs. It was quite interesting and the first time we had heard of this. We're probably going to get the cd and try it with Peanut. Maybe it will help calm her down - especially at night when she gets so anxious.

I must amend my previous post about the bird murder. I may have blamed a cat for a murder it did not commit. Let's be clear, however, that I stand behind every word I wrote - except for it being a cat that committed the murder. Let me explain.

As I was sitting on the deck with Peanut Saturday afternoon, out of nowhere, a hawk suddenly swooped down and chased one of the birds at the feeder. The bird did get away and the hawk flew away through the trees. It would make perfect sense for the hawk to have murdered this particular bird because of the way it was gored and ripped apart. I have never seen this kind of death by a cat. It was quite amazing and interesting to watch and it happened so fast.

I must now go check on the dogs - Boxer likes to eat grass and then throw it up and I don't need a mess to clean up this evening.

Later Gators.

Murder! MURDER!

There was a murder in our yard yesterday. Boxer was the first to act oddly. Then Sydney began acting too interested in an area in the backyard. Miriam noticed her behavior and then noticed....the victim.

This was a particularly gruesome crime. I've seen my share of dead birds, but this was horrifying. It was a violent death. I chose not to exploit the dead animal by putting its image on this blog.

Our best guess is that a cat - unknown to us - perpetrated this crime. This is one of the big problems I have with domestic cats being allowed to roam the neighborhood. They kill for sport or instinct, not for food. I have nothing against cats, but I have something against cat owners who see nothing wrong with their cats wandering around dropping feces, fleas and other problems in my yard. And if my dogs get hold of a cat in my yard, well, that cat is as good as dead. I speak from experience, my friends.

Miriam has suggested that we create a memorial for all the fallen birds in our yard. No, not all dead from cats. Our dogs, particularly Sydney, has killed a few. We have taken measures to prevent future deaths. Make no mistake - each death was very painful for us. Tears are shed when a bird dies unnecessarily.

Peanut has just caused Miriam to spill water on her and her chair and she's looking at me to get a towel. Doesn't she know I'm writing my blog?! Off I go to clean it up.

Good night.