Photo Finish Friday - Kansas Skies

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  You may have heard about the wild weather we've had over the last few days here in the MidWest.  Here at Ao4 Headquarters, we had 30-35mph winds, with 50mph or more gusts.  Pretty wild stuff.  Or as we say, "Very Kansas-y."

Here I am, checking things out:

"Wow, is that ever--COW!--beautiful!"

Sorry.  I thought I saw a cow blow by.

Here's a shot Mom took off the deck:

Ah, Kansas!

It was pretty crazy, but ... very beautiful!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Meeting

Hello, everyone.  It's me, Cammie.  The other day, Maggie and I were involved in a very important meeting ...

"And then we should nap for a while, and then ..."
"Umm ... girls?"
"We're kind of in the middle of something here, Mom."

Apparently, she wanted us to move.

"Is she gone yet, Maggie?"
"Not yet ... we can wait her out."

Something about wanting to vacuum the living room or something.  I'm not sure.  She came back later - she could see how busy we were!

Cammie!

Wordless Wednesday

Mags and Cam

Shark Attack!

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  Is it Shark Week?  No, it's too early for that, isn't it?  I don't mean to alarm anyone, but I've had a sighting already!

Long-time readers of the Ao4 Digest know that we have a bit of a history of sharks here in our corner of the world.  It seems the Great (Red and) White frequents our area.  Hopefully, this link will take you to previous reports; if not, please enter the word shark in our search engine and you'll get there.

Anyway, Mom and Dad moved our carrier (AKA 10 Downing Street) downstairs into the Studio.  We went down to check it out yesterday.  Since the door was open, I went in to have a little snooze while Mom did her quilt-y things.  But SUDDENLY ...

"Oooh, this looks ni---"
"BOOM!"

It's like I had been lowered down in one of those shark cages -- only someone left the door open!

"Just when I thought it was safe to go back into the Studio ..."
"You're going to need a bigger carrier.  Ha roo roo roo!"

"SHARK!  SHARK!!!"
"There's no hiding from the Great (Red and) White!"

Hmm.  Fortunately for me, the Great (Red and) White had just eaten lunch and was almost as ready as I was to settle in for a little nap.

"Just let me catch a few Zs, then it's back to the shark attack."
"I really need to figure out how to shut the door on this shark cage."

Thankfully, the shark moved off to hunt in other waters after her nap.  I think I'm going to like having the shark cage down there.  I mean "10 Downing Street".  I mean ... you get the picture.

Cammie!

Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  Is anyone else struggling with this time change thing?  I mean, one minute I'm fine ...

"It's like those guys in Chicago sang, 'Does anybody really know what time it is?'"

... and the next, I'm all like:

"Can't ... keep ... my ... peepers open ..."

I asked Cam what to do about it ...

"Cam ... I'm struggling here ..."
"Just give in to it, Maggie.  By the way, dinner will be early now!"

Oh.  Well, that's a definite positive!  Is anyone else struggling with the time change?

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Serene Scenery Sunday

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  This week, for Serene Scenery Sunday, Cam and I thought we'd take you along on our morning walk.  We went on one of our favorite parts of the Hudson Trail.  Mom said we should get close together, so she could get a good shot of us.

"Huddle up, Cam-a-roo!"
"I'm not she meant this close, Mags."

"I just don't want to be accused of not being accommodating."
"I think we deserve treats."

Thanks for coming with us!  We hope you're all having a wonderful Sunday!  Keep it serene!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Rainy Day Plans

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie.  We have a warmer day today, so rather than getting more nice, fluffy snow, we have rain.  That's OK, though, because with that, we have lots of mud and puddles.  I love a good puddle!  Unfortunately, that means that after our walk this morning, I had to get a shower and a blow-dry.  Now that that's over with, I plan to do some of this:

"Oh, yeah, Mom.  A little to the right.  No, MY right.  Yes.  Right there!"
"Got it, Cam!"

Maybe a lot of that.

What are your plans today?

Cammie!

Snuggle Time

Hello, everyone.  It's me, Cam.  So, I was just hanging out on our bed in the breakfast room, when Maggie came in and -- well, let me show you.

"Is she cute, or what?!?"
"Zzz ..."

Yep.  Just snuggled on in.  I wasn't planning to nap myself, but ...

"YAWWWWWN!"
"Zzz ..."

... her sleepiness is contagious!

If anyone would like to join us ...

"I'll just move over a bit closer to the windows ..."
"Zzz ..."

... there's still plenty of room on our bed!

Cammie!

A Little Help Here!

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie.  As many of you so insightfully deduced yesterday, I was playing with my Eggplant, when suddenly it was empty!

"Mom?  A little help here?"

I looked over at Maggie, and she had a similar predicament!

"My Artichoke is empty, too!  I can't believe this!"

Oh, sure.  Mom "claims" that she had already put treats in them and that we already ate them, but STILL!

"BUT IT'S EMPTY, MOM!"

Please send help.  Thanks in advance!

Cammie!

Wordless Wednesday

Cammie!

Putting My Foot Down

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie.  Even the most pleasant, easy-going girl has to put her foot down occasionally.

"Excuse me.  I don't think you're quite done rubbing my belly."
"❤  Sorry, Cammie!  I'm on it! ❤"

She forced my hand. Err ... paw.

Cammie!

Drifting Off

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  As Cam told you yesterday, we got hit with more snow and some windchills in the teens-below-zero.  How delightful!

As windy as it was, we had a lot of drifting, and sadly, open areas like our front yard don't have very deep snow.

I'm not sure where it drifted off to, but I'd like it back.

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

PS:  The views expressed by the Siberians on this blog do not necessarily reflect those of the bipeds who reside at Ao4 Headquarters.

Serene Scenery Sunday

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  It's here!  Our latest bunch of snow and frigid temps - about 5-6 inches of snow, with lots of fluffy drifts, and the last time we were out, the windchill was -17℉ (-27.22℃). For some reason, our mom isn't willing to take off her gloves to snap a couple iPhone pix of us, but here are a few pix from yesterday!

This is doing a little neighborhood patrol:

"See anything unusual, Mags?"
"Not realllll-BIRDIE!"
"Ooh!  Chickadee!  Good one, Maggie!"

Here we are,   on our charging mat  relaxing on our bed:

"Zzz ..."
"Zzz ..."

And lastly, here I am, making another weather check:

"Oh, it's coming, alright!  I can feel it!"

Yep, fresh snow and subzero temps -- what a Serene Sunday this is so far!!!  We'll try to get Mom to take a couple photos!

Cammie!

In Brief

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  As you know, I love a good TV show.  There are some shows, however, that ... well, parts are good and parts aren't that good.

We just finished watching a season of the British legal drama show The Brief.  Here's a summary of my review:

"Oooh!  Trains!"

"Oh, blah blah blah and blah, Henry."

So that's my view of The Brief.  In brief.

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Just Checking

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie.  As Maggie mentioned yesterday, we're expecting another snow storm this weekend.

"I can't smell it yet.  Can you, Mags?"
"Nah ... I can't either.  I think it's supposed to start tomorrow night."

We'll be sure to keep you posted!

Cammie!

Who's Coming Over?

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  A few of you asked about Cam's photo yesterday - wondering if it was cold and windy out.  A hearty "YES!" to both questions!  Most of the day, our windchill or "real feel" was hovering at about 5℉.  That's -15℃ for our international readers.  And ... it should explain why there haven't been many outdoor pix of us lately.  This weekend, it's supposed to be even colder, with snow.  "How could it get any better?" you might be wondering.  Well, guess what happened yesterday?!?

"Now this is a great-fitting box!!!"

That's right - some nice delivery person left a big box on our doorstep!!!

"No, Mom.  I'm good.  I'll be here a while."

Isn't it a beaut?!?  I think a couple of my kit-cat friends could squeeze in there with me; pups friends and I could take turns.  Who's coming over to do some boxing?!?

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Wordless Wednesday

Cammie!

Whatever

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie, here today to ...

"What?  I'm talking to Dad."

Yeah, whatever.  I guess I need to go.  Or something.  Maybe something about "off" ... "furniture" ... "blah blah blah".  Whatever.  If she was serious, she wouldn't be taking my picture.  Am I right here?

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Contrast

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  Since Cam and I did close-ups yesterday, I thought I'd balance things out today with a distant shot.

"Ha roo!"

I even made it more opposite-like by going into black and white mode.  Pretty cool, huh?

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Sunday Close-Ups

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie.  We didn't know what to post today.  For some reason, Mom hasn't taken any pix of us out in the lovely snow that fell last night.  Something about "cold hands".  I don't know.  (By the way, we did get blizzard conditions here, but only 2-3 inches of snow.)  In lieu of snow shots, we thought we'd allow our Mom to take some close-ups.

Here I am:

"I have my leash ready, in case you want to go outside, Mom."

And here's Maggie:

"I'm ready for my close-up!"

I guess I was photo-bombing in the background!

We both went for the "looking off into the distance/ennui" kind of look.  What do you think?

Have a peaceful Sunday, everyone!

Cammie!

Toy Fun

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  Remember the other day, I showed you my "Cammie Only" toy? Right - the one that  the Jaws of Steel  Maggie would destroy if she played with it.  It's really a fun toy and I have more pix to show you!

Here's a shot of me enjoying it that day:

"First, chew it a bit like this ..."

"Then check from the other side.  There might still be some toothpaste in here."

Mom squirted some of my toothpaste in the crevices so get me to chew on it more.  Usually, I just pick the treats out.

I'm focusing really hard in this next shot:

"Oooh!  There's a tiny piece of kibble in here, too!"

Toothpaste AND some of my special kibbles!

"This is so much FUN!!!" 

It's a great toy.  And don't feel bad for her, Maggie got a stuffed chew toy, too!

Have a great weekend - we're getting ready for a blizzard today!

Cammie!

BOOM!

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  There I was, just doodling down the street, when ...

"Wait!  What's this?!?"

"BOOM!"

Oh, sure.  It was nothing.  This time.  But had it been something, the neighbors would have me to thank for keeping our city safe!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

It's Cute When Kit-Cats Do It!

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  Great news - Mom and I finished another quilt!  She hasn't even posted a finished shot on her own blog yet, but because I was so instrumental in helping, I get to post a sneak peek!

Take a look:

"All done except for tossing it in the wash!"

Oh.  That's actually the back.  Here's a look at part of the front:

"Umm ... Maggie?  Could you please ... umm ..."
"What?  I've seen the pictures!  Everyone thinks it's cute when kit-cats sit on quilts!!!"

Seriously.  What a double-standard.  What's good for the kit-cat should be good for the honorary kit-cat, right?!?

Anyway, go team Ao4!!!  Another quilt ready to be enjoyed!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Wordless Wednesday

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Not This One

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  Just a quick one today to let you know how much fun I'm having with this toy.

"I love this toy!  ...and the special stuff Mom put in it!"

Oh.  No.  Maggie has something else.  She's not even allowed to have this one under supervision.  Her jaws of steel chew right through this kind.

"Nope.  Not this one!"

She'll show you her toy another time.  This one's all mine!

Cammie!

President's Day

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  Happy President's Day to one and all!  Our mom was doing a little photo mumbo-jumbo, putting Abe Lincoln's hat and beard on me and George Washington's wig on Cam.  She thought it would be a "fun" post for today.

Fortunately for all parties concerned, she couldn't get it to come out right.  I know - really too bad, isn't it?

"Whew.  Close one."

In keeping with the day, here's a quote from President Lincoln himself: “Whatever you are, be a good one.”  Quite profound!

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Serene Scenery Sunday

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  We did receive our Valentine's gift of snow - then got some more, then got some sort of frozen styrofoam-looking pellets.  That all may have happened a few times; I can't remember.  Anyway, because it's a frozen wasteland out there and our photographer is afraid of slipping and falling as she tries to fire off a couple shots of us ... we have this for our Serene Scenery Sunday photo:

Maggie and me by the fireplace

We hope you have a lovely Sunday!

Cammie!

PS:  Yes, our bed is right up against the fireplace, but only because it's never lit.