May 7, 2009

Our sweet SarahGirl

SarahGirl

October 15, 1996 – May 4, 2009

This is intentionally going to be short and sweet. I considered not even speaking about this, but SarahGirl was a family member and it wouldn't be right to not mention her passing. We got SarahGirl when she was four months old. We had just said goodbye the previous year to our Chocolate lab, Brownie, who lost her battle with cancer at only four years old.  I was a little hesitant about getting another dog so soon, but I'm so thankful that we found SarahGirl. We could not have asked for a smarter, sweeter, more gentle, more loyal, or more loving pet.

HayHay was only three years old and BigT was only twelve years old when we got SarahGirl. She's been a huge part of our lives and like I said, she was a member of our family. She never slept outside a day in her life. She was either in one of the boys' rooms or in our room at night. We all miss her dearly! The only comfort for me is knowing that she is not in pain any more and she is at peace.

I know that she lived a great life and I know that she was so ready to go to sleep. I could see it in her eyes.  Even though no one really knows, I choose to believe that SarahGirl is in Heaven right now. Maybe she can even run and play like she used to. In my mind, I'd also like to believe that she finds Daddy in Heaven. He loved SarahGirl, too.

Sweet Sarah Jessica Barker

Note from BigSis:

Sweet Sarah Girl, Sarah Jessica Barker.  We miss you already.  You're the sweetest dog I've ever known in my life, and I can't believe it's been more than 12 years since you came into the family. LilSis' and SirHoney's household won't be the same without you.  I can't imagine visiting them and not seeing you.  I'm glad I got to see you again and give you an extra hug when I saw you 2 weeks ago.

I have so many memories of you running laps like a racehorse around HayHay's backyard fort when you lived in Texas.  And the Easter egg hunt when you stole an egg and hid it in your mouth for later munching, nonchalantly pretending that you didn't have it stashed away.  And remember the only time you came close to biting someone?  That kid had teased you and teased you, and you could have easily taken a huge bite out of his leg.  Actually, you probably could have taken his whole leg off, but you let him go with a warning nip.  You're definitely the epitome of a gentle giant.

Sarah, I know in my heart that you're in Heaven right now with Brownie, Wolfie, Warren, and all of the rest of our four-legged friends that aren't here with us any more.  Daddy loved you too, so I hope you two have found each other.  Other people will disagree with me, but I know how special and precious you are, and I don't see how the God I know would create you for such a short stay on this fallen planet.  I believe we'll see you again, and I can't wait for that day.

We love you, Sarah, and we're going to miss you so much, especially LilSis, SirHoney, BigT and HayHay.  You're the best dog ever, and we were so blessed to know you and to have this many years with you.  We'll see you later.

~LilSis

May 1, 2009

LilSis Disclaimer: This is a first here; but I would like to make it known that I am not responsible nor did I contribute in any way to this post. (I think BigSis is trying to get back at me because she thought the YouTube video was crude that I posted once with the 80s workout queen farting throughout her entire workout.) I have a weak stomach and never would have been able to take these photos. So, with that said, continue reading this post at your own risk…

You read that right. I didn't say “Hammer Time”. I said “Hairball Time”. If you have cats you know exactly what I mean. The weather is warming up and that means only one thing…shedding and lots of it! And shedding means hairballs, no matter how much I brush these guys. This time of the year, it's commonplace for me to come home from work and find a little “present” on the carpet waiting for me.

When this happens, I could start looking for a company offering carpet cleaning services near me. Sometimes, if the stain is particularly large or dark, this is the best course of action. But if it is only small, or light in colour, I can usually deal with it myself. That being said, occasional visits from a carpet cleaning company will do your carpets the world of good.

Even though my carpet is new and light in color, I don't freak out. If I'm gifted with hairball barf, I let it sit and get dry and crunchy. Sorry to be graphic, but that's the best way to clean it up in my experience, and if there's one thing I have massive experience with, it's the gross things that come out of cats!! I've seen two very elderly cats through kidney failure to the end, so there isn't much that turns my stomach when it comes to cats. I've learned to breathe through my mouth and to go to the happy place in my head. Nuff said. 😉

I talked before about how to clear up cat urine odor and also my magic potion for barfage and poopage. I really wanted to share some before and after photos from this week's Hairball Fest, just so you could see that my potion works and there is hope for your carpet if you're in the mist of Hairball Time!

But when LilSis heard I was doing this post, she said: “NO!! SAY IT AINT SO!!” She isn't down with this topic, so out of respect for her and her sensitive stomach, let me add a warning. If you're easily offended or grossed out, or if you've never experienced the joys of these little kitty issues, then come back to BigSisLilSis tomorrow. If you're brave and want to see the evidence, read on, friends!

So these are my darling furkids:

Gaby Baby

Ashy Poo

And these are the presents they left me recently:

From Gaby...actually a hairball and not poop

And from Ashy

After the evidence had dried and was removed, here was the damage left on the carpet:

Gaby's stain...

And Ashy's stain

Now, after applying my magic potion just once, here are the results! And with no chemicals!

Gaby's mess all gone...

and Ashy's mess all clean!

Voila! Sorry LilSis, but if this post could help just one person, it was all worth it! 😉

~BigSis

February 28, 2009

Happy Caturday!  Thanks to ICanHasCheezburger, we can start our weekend with a laugh or two!  You KNOW by now how much I love me some Cats in Hats:

These two kitty pies aren't in hats, but they crack me up…look at their cute little expressive faces.

Enjoy your weekend, friends!

~BigSis

February 9, 2009

There's no better way to start off a Monday than with a laugh, right? This cracks me up.  I dare you not to laugh.

more animals

~BigSis

December 21, 2008

Drum roll, please!  Our goal for the SPCA Bake Sale was $3000, and our total so far is $3005!!  We have commitments for more online donations before the end of the year, so we may see that total go even higher!  Woo hoo!!!

We are SO thankful for the wonderful response of the other tenants in our office building, for the online donations from friends and family, and for the support we received from the building management staff.  Above all, we know that this tremendous success is humanly impossible.  A few girls working for a week or so cannot logically bake enough goodies and sell them in one day to make $3000.  It just doesn't make sense.  The only answer is that God did this, and we give Him all the glory for this event!

I talked about the brownies and bars the other day, and thought you might like to see a complete list of what we had for sale.  Here's what came out of my itty bitty kitchen:

• Pumpkin Cranberry Bread
  Vegan Pumpkin Bread with Walnuts
  Strawberry Bread with Pecans
  Chocolate Sheath Cake
  Gingerbread
  Root Beer Bundt Cakes
  Outrageous Oreo Brownies
  Outrageous Brownies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts
  Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
  Caramel Bars
  Texas Pecan Pie Bars
  RazzMaTazz Bars
  Soft Peanut Brittle
  Almond Toffee
  Fudge in Christmas tree and gingerbread man shapes

Here's what K and her sister L did:

• Banana Bread (with and without nuts)
  Cranberry Orange Bread (with and without almonds)
  Spice Cake
  Snickerdoodles
  Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
  Rice Krispie Treats
  German Chocolate Rice Krispie Treats
  Chocolate-Dipped Pretzels
  Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Crunch
  Santa's Whiskers
  Peanut Butter Cookies
  Sugar Cookies
  Chocolate Chip Cookies

Our coworker SA did some incredible cream cheese pound cake and peppermint bark, as well as crafting our lobby signage that was so crucial in driving people up to our location.

So it was truly a team effort, and we're all just THRILLED with the response we got!  Beyond thrilled!

Here is a photo of our goodies just before the customers arrived.  There were also two other cookie areas out of camera view so this isn't even a complete picture of the massive amount of goodies we started with.  You can see that we had a TON of stuff all packaged and labeled, and even had some backstock stashed in cabinets since it wouldn't fit on our tables!

SPCA Bake Sale Goodies!

And here is what was left after 8 hours of sales!  That's it!  Are you kidding me?!

This was all that was left!

So, after celebrating a great day that lasted 12 hours from set-up to clean-up, I stumbled home to face the mother of all messes in my kitchen.  These were just the items that had to be hand washed!  When, oh when, will those cats earn their keep and learn to do a dish or two during the day!  ^..^

Mother of all kitchen messes!

Before I sign off this topic for a while (and start to plan next year's event, God willing), I wanted to share a little of what we've learned about bake sale success during our 2 experiences.  We aren't experts by any means, but we've definitely learned some things!

• People love chocolate, especially brownies.  Have plenty!  Have more than you think you can sell!
• People love peanut butter.
• People like things that are decadent and that they wouldn't make themselves.
• Lots of people dislike nuts so leave them out of recipes if they're optional.
• People like BIG items – big slabs of bars, big pound cakes, big cookies.  Our smaller items sold the slowest, even though the recipes were incredible.  The small size just couldn't compete for the attention of people up next to the hefty items, even if there were lots of them in the package.
• People love rice krispie treats!  Go figure, they aren't an item I especially care for, but I'm in the minority.  They sell like hotcakes.
• Items in colored treat bags that can't be seen clearly don't move well.
• Cute packaging sells great though, even if the item can't be seen through it.
• Putting out samples of an item lights a fire under it's popularity.
• If you're doing cake or bread, frosting or even a drizzle of glaze will pretty it up and help it sell better.
• Some items are just too unexciting to sell well.  For example, I thought that good traditional gingerbread would be a great seller at Christmas.  It turned out to be really slow.  It just couldn't compete in a world full of rich brownies!
• Pray, pray, pray!

So, one last shout out to K, L and SA for their hard work.  You girls worked like crazy women, and it paid off!  Thank you to building management for your fabulous support of this project.  Thank you, of course, to our fellow tenants, friends and family for buying our goodies and contributing online!  And most of all, thank you to God for blessing this event.  We are SO thankful and humbled that You answered our prayers!

Now.  What can I bake this weekend?

~BigSis

December 17, 2008

Did you ever meet anyone who didn't love brownies?  I haven't.  I think most people love them, like I do, even though I'm not even a sweets eater.  Monday's SPCA Bake Sale would certainly make that point.  We sold all of our brownies and bars, and we started out with quite a few of them, cut into big generous slabs!   Here's what we had:

• Barefoot Contessa's Outrageous Oreo Brownies from Culinary in the Country.  These are as big and fat and thick and rich as they look!  Crackly on the top, moist and fudgy inside.  They make me happy. 😀

Barefoot Contessa's Outrageous Oreo Brownie

Check out that Christmas Oreo red filling!

• Barefoot Contessa's Outrageous Brownies with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts from Food Network. These actually sold out before the Oreo version, which surprised me.

Outrageous Brownie with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts

• Caramel Bars from my recipe file.  They're full of caramel, oats, walnuts and chocolate chips. I need to post the recipe; they're so good and easy!

Caramel Bar

• Pecan Pie Bars from “The Pastry Queen” by Rebecca Rather.  Oh. So. Yummy.  That's all I can say.

• RazzMaTazz Bars ( I used cranberry jam instead of rapberry, so I guess these would be CranMaTazz Bars instead) from CookieMadness.net.  In addition to the jam, they have white chocolate and almonds. Very rich, delicious and pretty too!

• Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars from the back of the chocolate chip package, or RecipeZaar.  These are a classic, and everyone loves them. Especially BDot!  I like them full of pecans, but not everyone is a nut-lover, so I left them out for the Bake Sale.

All of these beauties were sold, and I know we could have sold many more brownies.  Several people walked in the door asking, “Do you have any brownies?”  Alas, we had to break the hearts of these folks who came in after the last outrageous crumb went out the door.  Next time…even MORE brownies!

Do inquiring minds want to know how many bowls it takes to make a batch of outrageous brownies?  Check it out:

Outrageous mess for outrageous brownies!

I think it took 3 bowls (maybe 4) for these brownies, and let me tell you, they were worth it!  This is my new favorite brownie recipe.  Thanks, Ina!  As soon as I recover from this baking extravaganza, I'll be back with more details on how the SPCA Bake Sale turned out.  Meanwhile, make some friends…make some brownies!

~BigSis

December 15, 2008

Today is the BIG DAY that we've been looking forward to and working toward for weeks now! Today is the BAKE SALE we're holding to benefit the Dallas SPCA, and we're aiming high: $3000!

If you're in the Dallas area, come on by! The sale is Monday, December 15th from 9:30 am until 4 pm.

If you can't come, you can contribute to the SPCA through this special link set up for our event until December 31st.

Donating through this link in December will ensure that your contribution will go towards our team's goal of $3000. Above all, we ask for your prayers for this event; that we would raise a miraculous amount of money for this incredible charity, and that everyone would see that the only explanation for the success was the Hand of God!

~BigSis

December 8, 2008

We mentioned the other day that I'm organizing a Bake Sale for December 15th (yes, I am truly insane to dream up a project like this at Christmastime). 100% of the proceeds will go to the SPCA here in Dallas, and our goal is to raise $3000. Yep, I said $3000 (I guess I'm insane AND overly-ambitious). Seriously, I'm doing this with two of my awesome co-workers (K and SA) and K's sister L. We love to bake, we love animals, and we know that the SPCA and other animal organizations are in a real financial crunch right now, so it just makes sense to try to help them before the end of the year. The sale will be held in the conference room of the office building we work in (thank you to the building management), and we're extremely excited to do this. We could each make a cash donation to the SPCA, but if we can invest that cash into baking supplies, and leverage it for the SPCA, so much the better!  We believe our goal is doable, and we're praying that God will bless this event!

Having said all of that, what does a girl's kitchen look like before she starts a 9-day baking spree of this magnitude?  Here it is with some of the ingredients queued up ready to be called into service.  This little bitty kitchen has no idea of what is about to happen to it!

Pre-Bake Sale Kitchen

Closer view of the left...

...and the right

Well, now you know.  It started out neat and clean and organized.  Here's one shot of Day One…still pretty neat.

Baking Day One

I'll post some more pictures mid-spree (it's going to get messy next weekend, and dare I say – ugly) and post-spree! I'd say “wish us luck”, but I don't believe in luck, so pray for us! And if you're in Dallas, email me for the particulars on the sale!

Ladies, start your ovens!

~BigSis

November 19, 2008

Here is another example of what TomTom does when he doesn't get what he wants.

Usually, it's a body part that he bites, instead of a file folder!  I was working at my laptop and happened to have my camera handy so I was able to snap this shot. He decided to “chomp” down on my files because I told him to get off my desk.  Again, he was mad because he didn't get to go “exploring” in the garage.

You can't say that he doesn't have personality, and attitude!

~LilSis

November 18, 2008

Can you ever get enough of cats in hats?  I can't!  So I'm bringing you more of what cracks me up.  These furkids own one of my coworkers, K, and her sister, L.  May I present Beau, Brady and Bruschi (Patriots fans, ya think?) in alphabetical order to avoid any hurt kitty feelers:

Beau in his favorite baseball cap

Another pose from the handsome Beau

Brady may be hissed off, but his whiskers are gorgeous!

Brady working those gold peepers

Adorable Bruschi loves the chicken hat...

...can't you tell??

Thanks for sharing the photos of your cats in hats, K and L!  We love them!

~BigSis