Birthday Sissie

Because my boyfriend had to work today, we left for La Wallonie when he got back. We had to arrive in time, because it's my sister's birthday today. I got her a beautiful red scarf from Thailand.
We'll be staying here for two nights, so we're leaving in the evening on Christmas day because we have to work the day after.

Grandparents Tour

It was 'visiting grandparents day'.
We dropped by my boyfriend's first and afterwards we drove to my grandmother.
I think it's very important to visit regularly, but I have to admit we haven't made enough time lately. In a few weeks our pictures from our trip will be ready for public. We'll bring some cake along and tell them our stories. They will like that!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving...

Thanksgiving Turkey Kitty

I think this is a good holiday. Stop and think about what you're thankful for, not religious at all. 

I think Christmas in Belgium has been like that for a looong while, but it seems that people forgot about what it's all about. 

I love Christmas, because it brings our whole family together every year. We don't see each other often and I can really enjoy us being together. I'm thankful for my family, because even though we don't always agree and we don't visit every weekend, we care for each other and we love each other. That's what's important, isn't it? OK, it's fun to receive presents, but that's not the main point. 

Here's what I'm thankful for:

• My boyfriend's patience
  Although I'm writing a blog to become the most positive person in the world someday, I still get womenly-like PMS attacks. Even if they're not premenstrual. That makes me a super crazy person who doesn't always respect other's people effort in situations where they really did the best they could for me or others. My negative self takes the overhand and starts complaining and moaning about everything.
  So thanks to my boyfriend who still loves me, even if I'm the craziest (cat) lady on the planet and thank you for your patience!
• My family
  Like I said before, I love my family very much. I'm grateful for still having them around and that everyone's well at the moment.
  I'm also blessed for still having my grandmother around, the time I could spend with my grandfather before he died and that I could stand beside him until his last breath. I still miss him very much, but I have so many great memories about this man and I will never forget him!
  Thank you to my parents, brother and sister for always being there for me.
  I would also like to thank my uncle Jomme and Aunty Ann for all the jokes and funny stories around the Christmas table. I'll really miss it this year!
• My sister
  Same category as the previous one, but a special thanks to my sister. She's the best sister in the whole wide world, because she looks after me and took care of our kitty when we were in Thailand.
• My pets
  I'm also thankful for our kittycats and our dog Fré. They light up my day when I get home. They're so cute!
• Banana
  Thank you Banana. You're my blog's number one fan. Without you I may not have been as persistent!
• My shoes
  Also thank you to my shoes. They fit perfectly and always take care of my feet. 

I have a lot to be thankful for and it's good for me to write it down. In that way I'm really aware of what I got.

What are you thankful for?

All for my Sister

No spinning class for me today.
I went to the Estetika fair with my sis.

Let me tell you something about my relationship with my sister. 
When we were little kids, she was very close with my brother, but when she reached puberty we started really bonding. I took her with me to some concerts and the youth club and we had lots of fun dancing around the house together to our favourite songs. Great times, funny pictures.
She was (and still is) my best friend and I would have done everything to protect her.
I threatened her (potential) boyfriends (only the last one dared to stay - deserves an applause), I drove her around to parties and I became (mental) mad when I found out she smoked a cigarette for the first (and last) time. 

Today (and yeeeeears later) not much has changed. 
I saved her from a creepy sales man today, at a beauty product booth at the fair. I think if he would have tried to approach her, I would have karatechopped him in the balls. Seriously!

Family Walk

For my boyfriend's grandfather's birthday we planned a family walk to the ice cream store.
My sister-in-law and I took our dog with us. At first, I was a little stressed out, because what if they didn't like each other? But I didn't had to worry, because they were the best of friends.
I had a relaxing day and tomorrow it will be even more relaxing, because we'll be doing totally nothing... Next week is holiday week with a day of Amsterdam and a sauna day ahead of us... Finally some time out from work!

x L.

Share Food

Joey doesn't share food, but I do! Only with my sister and my boyfriend.
I made Wonton soup yesterday and gave the leftovers to my sis. I hope she loves it!

My boyfriend doesn't like it when I try to steal something from his plate.
I always do it when he's not looking.

20

My brother became 20 years old today.
I got him a present from David & Goliath a while ago and finally I could hand it over to him.
He was happy and was looking terrific in his new T-shirt!
He's the best brother in the world and I love him!
Happy B-day!

Trippel Henri

It's been a year since my grandfather died so I took my grandmother out on a trip to Maastricht.
The weather was predicted cloudy with 20% chance of rain, but I think they meant 80%, because it was pouring rain all day! But that didn't stop us from shuffling down the market for fabrics for my upcoming sewing projects! We had to run for shelter sometimes, but is was quite cozy and we had a lot of fun.
At the end of our day, we went back home and went to diner with the rest of the family.
She had fun today, she smiled a lot and I like that!

I'm toasting to 'Peter', Henri, right now, with his self-made Trippel beer. 
Santé Peterke! I miss you ©

Warm Weather Equals ...

Warm weather
= Soaking up the sun
= Good company
= Fresh fruits (heart shaped strawberry)

:-)

Acceptance

I had to say goodbye to my grandparents' house today. 
These last few weeks were sort of our steps to acceptance. We had to clean up the house for the buyer. We had to move furniture, we had to clean out the closets, we had to clean up the garden, ... We had to throw away all this stuff, with such great memories. I didn't know how much anger, pain and grief I still had left in me, since he died in June 2012. It made it all so very real.

I packed my things and I took one last look at the house. There were some tears rolling over my cheeks, I stepped into the car and decided I would never ever go back there.
My hero is gone and I will never get him back. It's such a cliché, but I will try to make him proud.
I miss him!

Road Kill

I just removed a dead cat from the road.

I hate it when cars run animals over and the drivers don't clean up their mess!

This is the second time I stop to bring a dead cat to the side of the road. I only do this when the animal is not all smashed apart, obviously. I bring the animal safely to the side of the road and then I check if it's still alive. If it would be alive, I would rush it to the vet...

The first time I did this, the cat was all stiff, so it was dead for a while. Today, the cat was still warm, so the accident happened not so long before I passed by, but he was dead. Poor kitty!

I think you're wondering why I'm so crazy to do this?

Just stop and think about how you would react when you saw your favourite pet sticking to the road, right in front of your doorstep. Wouldn't you wish that the driver went through the trouble of bringing your pet to the side of the road, so that other cars won't run it over time after time? I prefer a body to bury... 

Most pets are part of the family, so I always hit the brakes when an animal crosses the street!

Fat Kitty

I went to the vet with my fat old kitty today.
She's 18 years old and in 2010 she weighed 8,2 kilos. Quite the kittycat, huh?!

When I started my studies as a vet nurse, I decided to put her on a diet and make sure my other cats got premium food too. My parents went crazy if I told them. Like every other pet owner, they were convinced that supermarket food was so much cheaper than premiums. But nothing could be further from the truth!
When you are giving your pet a premium food, like Hills or Royal Canin, it's more likely you have to give a smaller portion than you did with your 'cheaper' pet food brand. Can't follow?
Well, premiums are balanced nutritions. This means, that all the minerals, vitamins and other stuff that your pet really needs, is perfectly present in that pet food. Nothing less, nothing more. Moreover! When you analyse various samples of different lots, the composition will be almost exactly the same. The advantage of this perfectly balanced food, is that there will be a lesser chance of food intolerance, diseases and other health problems.
To give you an example: Salt and sugar, is used in excessive amounts in cheaper foods for flavouring. Pets' bodies need these substances, like any other body. But in a bigger quantity than needed, these substances are dangerous for our health and therefore for your pet too. Too much salt will result in kidney problems and sugar will result in overweight. Giving your pet cheaper foods is like when you would go to Mc. D. every day. We all know how those people turn up, we all watch reality TV...
To come to the point: You will give a smaller amount of your premium food than your supermarket food, because your pet needs less portions to take in the same amount of nutrients. Your bag of supermarket food will be empty sooner than the premiums bag. In the end you will pay somewhere around the same amount of money for both. But with the premium pet food, they will eat less sugar and salt and will live a longer and healthier life. More time to cuddle!

So far for my conviction.
Back to MY fat cat! Eventually I convinced my parents to start the diet. We're feeding her Hills RD for three years now. This is a special prescription diet food to lose weight. It contains all the necessary nutrients and a great amount of high fibres to 'fill up the stomach'. She will stop eating because she's full.
Today she weighed 5,8 kilos. A good result, but it's taking to long for her to lose weight. My parents feed our cats at the same time and don't care if she eats from our other cat's food. Not good, but still, she's losing weight and that's the most important!
Hooray for Pluche!

Quote from the vet: "She looks very good for the age of 18 and she's doing very well!"
Effort pays off!

Last tips for your favourite pet:

• Give them dry pet food, not canned food. It's better for their teeth. Eating dry food is like brushing teeth for them.
• A bag of 'Premium Food' at the supermarket doesn't mean it's a balanced nutrition. Go to your vet or specialised pet store for more information.
  Some special ranges of pet food are only available at the vet.

Dog Walk

Sunny day!
We took a walk with the dog.
Perfect day!

Family Talk

I'm at my parents house this evening.
I love sitting by the fire with the whole family. Just talking about our week.

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone!
I didn't had the time to post today. Our family diner partys are way to fun and foody for that! See you tomorrow (another family diner!)!

x L.

Alien Invasion

I was scanning through some pictures on my boyfriend's cell and found this one...

Proud Sister

Today, I'm very proud of my sister (Actually I'm always proud of her). One year ago she opened her own successful beauty salon at the age of 20.
Congradulations my dear sister! 
Happy birthday!

By the way, that punishmentparty yesterday turned out to be fun.