Tag: Little

• Early Morning Confessions

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on August 24, 2026

  1. Look at me posting twice already in one month?! I’m writing this on a day where I did little to nothing. The extent of my accomplishments were washing my bed sheets and vacuuming the house (I tend to vacuum daily or every other day so I don’t know if this actually counts as an accomplishment.) I felt like I needed to do more…and whaddyaknow the urge to write struck!

  2. It’s been a busy month and a half. Some of what I did was great, some was exhausting, some was exhausting AND great. Because I have slight undiagnosed OCD, we are going to go in order of how things happened. Even though none of you will have any idea which order I go in.

  First up – my dad came to visit. He has come to Washington the past three years, and this year we tried to search for new activities. We spent a day in Seattle, went whale watching, ate our body weight in baked goods at my favorite bakery, and Duncan experienced his first ever visit to Olive Garden.

  He doesn’t want to return any time soon. LOL

  

  

  3. A few days after my dad left I had a birthday party to attend. For a small child. Whom I had never met. Honestly, it ain’t no thang. It was nice to see my friend who is in charge of said tiny human. I met her and her husband in Germany (they were also working with me, and they are also from Washington), and I hadn’t seen them for a few years.

  One of my roommates who I lived with in Germany also now lives in Washington, and she was at the birthday party too. So while I might not know what exactly one does as a children’s birthday party without having children of my own, it was nice to see some friends. I was socially zapped after this though. One on one? I thrive. I will talk your ear off and make you feel like the Belle of the ball. Big groups? Catch me in the corner trying to hide or seeking out any house pets.

  4. I briefly mentioned in my last post that Little had a fleeting issue recently. He has since been back to normal, but every single time something happens big or small I am convinced it will be the last thing to happen. I live in a state of constant low humming anxiety, and something I have always wanted to do (to ensure I don’t wait until the last minute) is to make my own paw prints.

  When my last cat died the vet clinic was kind enough to make two paw prints for us, but if Little doesn’t die naturally I plan to have an at home euthanasia. Because of that, I don’t see paw prints happening unless I do them myself. I also don’t want to wait to do them until he is gone, so I bought some air dry clay. It was SO easy to do.

  I plan to make more, but wanted to ensure I had one really good one. Kinda morbid topic, but it’s the reality of life with a pet.

  

  5. Speaking of pets…did anyone reading ever play Neopets? For those who don’t know what I’m taking about, Neopets is an online game that originated in 1998. I played this game right when it came out and I have fond memories of playing at home, and while on vacation with my cousins. I can’t remember when I stopped playing, but it was somewhere in the early 2000’s.

  Imagine my surprise when my friend told me she created a new account and has been playing. Currently. As a full grown adult. I had no idea this was still a thing, and while I am not one to typically play games of any digital variety I have been OBSESSED. My inner child is healing.

  My name is Brittany, I am 37, and I am playing Neopets almost daily. This is my confession.

  6. A group of my friends decided to attend a renaissance faire this month. I had never been to one, but I decided to see what the fuss was all about. Here is what I learned:

  • Similar to what I mentioned about the kids birthday party…I don’t thrive in large groups. We spent most of the day walking in circles without doing much of anything.
  • I have since discovered there are much better faire options, but this one was definitely not my scene. It felt more like a giant farmers market with white tents. They had some shows, but we didn’t stop for any which I would have liked to.
  • Whoever decided for a ren faire to be in the middle of the summer is diabolical. It was so hot. I got sunburned.
  • Turkey legs are a no no. I cannot ever eat one of those again. It made me so sick.
  • I loved dressing up. Probably the only positive overall.

  I would do it again, but maybe with just Duncan. Thankfully I didn’t really have any expectations so I don’t feel like I missed out on anything, but overall this trip was not worth the time or money for me.

  

  

  7. On weekend days when we don’t have any plans, Duncan and I like to go to Barnes and Noble. I will get a coffee, we will sit in the cafe and chat (or if it’s football season he will watch a football game while I browse books), and we will typically run random fun errands after.

  On a recent trip to B&N I noticed a quiet older man (probably in his 70’s) with a bright red beret sitting near the cafe. As we walked past him I realized he was an author with a table set up to showcase his books. I have seen these author tables many times, and because I am a sucker for the library I never bother approaching because I know I won’t buy any books.

  As I sat drinking my coffee I couldn’t stop watching this man. He was sitting so patiently, with his hands in his lap, quietly smiling as people walked past him. And that was the problem, most everyone just walked right past him. In the hour that we were sitting in the cafe I saw two people approach him, read the back of one of the books, put the book back down, and walk away.

  I knew then what I had to do. I don’t know why, but I felt like I had to buy one of his books. Who knows if he already sold some that day, but all I could think about is what if he doesn’t sell a single one. I am being ageist and I will be the first to admit it, because if this has been a younger man I wouldn’t have thought twice. But something about him being older, and having less time to see his books in the hands of other people I just felt sad.

  So I went to talk to him, and unfortunately for me he had four books…all non fiction…all subjects I couldn’t care less about. He lit up talking about them, so I chose book one of a two part series about the life of Ernest Hemingway. My plan is to read it, and then donate it to a Little Free Library so someone else can read it next. He signed the book for me and wrote 2069 as the date, so maybe he is a time traveler and will remember me when I make it to 2069.

  8. After a month and half of no hiking (mostly because of schedule conflicts with me and my main gal Caitlin) I finally got back out for a hike. For some reason, we chose one of the hardest hikes in the area, and my calves were sore for a week. A FULL WEEK. Hiking has not been very enjoyable for me this year, and during this hike I was mad at myself for biting off this much after not hiking for a while.

  We hiked Mount Ellinor from the lower parking lot. There is also an upper lot, but I wanted more mileage. Go figure. The first half of the hike is relatively mild, and most of the elevation is saved for the second half, but by the time the trail turned more vertical I was crying inside. The hike isn’t long, but the last mile gains over 1200′ in just that one mile and I was tapped out.

  Of course, now that a bit of time has passed I want to do it again. BUT, not unless I have been hiking regularly. The views were stunning, but truth be told I hardly paid attention to them because I was starving by the time we made it to the top.

  

  

  

  

  

  I think I was mostly frustrated because I thought I would feel ok on this hike. Even if I haven’t been hiking and even when a hike is steep, I usually feel ok going slow and steady. This one still felt like all the hikes I did a few months ago where I felt like I had bricks on my feet. I was disappointed thinking I was on the other side of my iron deficiency, but I am not fully out of the woods yet. Still, I am glad we did it.

  9. For the past few years I have been wanting to try my hand at growing potatoes. I never ended up doing it because gardening scares me. I often laugh on here about my fear of slugs, but unfortunately it’s a legit fear, and leafy green areas are slug city. This year I decided to give it a try in an elevated planter. I cut 4-5 gold potatoes in half, let them sprout, and then planted them.

  Within just a couple days they were THRIVING. The green stalks shot out of the dirt and I am SO excited to harvest them when the time comes. They have been brewing under the dirt for about two months now, and I cannot wait to see what they look like. Overall this was SO easy. I started small with just a few potatoes, but I know potatoes grow like weeds so I anticipate I will get a decent little harvest.

  Best part? Not a single slug. Going to go knock on wood…

  10. Lastly and most recently my step mom and my younger brother came to visit!! My brothers wife also came, and I got to meet her for the first time. This was such a special and delightful visit. I hadn’t seen my step mom since she came to visit me in Germany in 2019, and I hadn’t seen my brother since 2016!!! INSANE. We kept it low key sharing some lovely meals, and going on beautiful walks. Lots of chats, and lots of photos.

  It’s bittersweet because I often wish I lived closer to more family. It’s just my mom, my sister and I here in Washington. Most of my family lives in Arizona, and I daydream about having a big family nearby to spend time with. Then the daydream is shattered when I think about living in Arizona. Nope. My cold blood could never. Although…no slugs in Phoenix…

  My cup is full after seeing them all.

  

  Q: What’s your confession?

  

  | 13 Comments Tagged Early Morning Confessions, Gardening, Hiking, Little

• April, May, June

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on August 15, 2026

  This is going to be a long post. Grab a beverage, a snack, or a maybe a lap cat to cuddle. In my last post I shared a few highlights from November – May, but there were a few things I missed. In an attempt to keep my online diary up to date I’m going to share a few more things. I hope to find a more consistent blogging schedule, but truth be told I will likely stick to writing whenever the mood strikes. Here are my adventure highlights of April, May, and June.

  April

  Duncan and I celebrate five years of shenanigans, and we went to our favorite little mountain town for an overnight. We went for a hike, we ate at a new hole in the wall diner, and I went for a 2 mile run along the river. We also of course walked around town and I got myself a cupcake. Any excuse to go to Leavenworth is a good excuse in my book.

  This trip was right before I found out I was iron deficient. We had done this hike before, and it definitely felt much more difficult this time around. I was at the end of training for a half marathon, so it should not have been as difficult as it was, but that’s iron deficiency for ya! Either way, this hike is stunning every time we do it.

  

  

  

  

  May

  In May we went back to Leavenworth for my half marathon, which I have already shared. We also managed another hike, and this one was brutal. We’ve done this one many, many, maaannnyyy times. It’s not an easy hike by any means, but again, it should not have been this hard for me. I have been anything BUT patient with myself as I crawl my way out of being iron deficient, but I am working on it. This hike was so rough on my system I had a little cry.

  Nothing like a summit snack to make me feel better though.

  

  

  June

  This one was a busy one. I got three hikes in, and one went so incredibly awful I wanted to scream and kick a concrete wall. The awful hike was the easiest hike I have done this year. We’ve done this one many times as well, but I felt so fatigued it was not a good time. Being at the top was nice, but I have had a hard time enjoying hiking this year so far because of my fatigue.

  Didn’t I say I was sharing highlights? LOL.

  

  

  Thankfully a couple weeks after this hike I was feeling a bit more energized, and I wrangled my pal Caitlin for a last minute trip to Mount Rainier. We typically go to Rainier in September, but decided to go earlier this year. There was still a ton of snow on the trail we hiked, so much that I got a wicked sunburn on my legs.

  

  

  

  This was my second time hiking the Skyline Loop trail, and this time we went counterclockwise which was the move. Less people, and a more gradual incline. I will never make the dumb dumb mistake of skipping long pants when there is snow on the ground. A snow burn is no joke.

  

  

  

  I am officially a member of the sun hoody club. I have been hiking in sun shirts for years, but this year I switched to sun shirts with hoods. I’m not playing around anymore with my sun exposure. Mountain Hardwear has the perfect sun hoodies for people with short torsos like me. I love a good “cropped” shirt and these are amazing.

  Not sponsored, but it should be. I just love their stuff.

  

  I also spent a week in June cat sitting two amazing, wonderful, adorable cats. I was devastated to find out a couple weeks ago that Scout, the grey cat had to be put down after he began having some health concerns. I met these cats in April, and cat sat them for a weekend then as well.

  Collectively I spent so little time with them, but I was surprisingly very affected by the loss of Scout.

  I am booked to spend Labor Day weekend with them, and now it will just be me and Suki. It’s amazing how quickly we can bond with animals, and while I am happy Scout is no longer suffering, I will miss him terribly when I go see Suki next month. Rest in peace sweet Scout.

  

  

  

  Speaking of cats, my bionic man had a mini hiccup of what was likely an IBD type flare. He had a day of multiple pukes, but thankfully it was short lived. I gave him three days of meds to calm the fire, and we have officially started regular sub q fluids for him at home. His blood work showed his kidneys have actually slightly improved (still in stage 3 kidney disease, but improvement is amazing), and the bi weekly fluids should help keep the kidneys and even the digestive system happy.

  I am forever finding the right cocktail to keep things humming.

  

  

  Still reading?? Good, almost done.

  Annnndd lastly, the final of the three hikes in June. Every single hike I have shared in this post I have done before. It was the season of repeats for me. I think I needed to know what I was getting myself into, although as I mentioned that didn’t help me much on some of them. The body is going to do what the body is going to do.

  Thankfully this one wasn’t too brutal physically.

  Mentally it was a bit tough for a moment. We saw a mama bear with two cubs right on the side of the trail. Just when we thought she was gone we kept going and BAM she was not gone. She was in fact closer to us and we stopped and walked the other way. Eventually a solo hiker visiting from the east coast caught up with us, and we hiked together to pass the spot where we saw the bear. The bear made her way into the brush and we didn’t see her again.

  I am irrationally afraid of black bears, but any bear with cubs is a different story.

  

  

  There we have it. I am writing this a month and a half after the last adventure, and thankfully starting to feel a bit better overall. My day to day life is much easier energy wise, but the bigger hikes and running are still wiping me out. I am slowly but surely trying to get back into a groove. I signed up for a relay race back in April before I knew any of this iron nonsense, so I am hopeful I can get into the groove enough to run a 10k with little repercussions.

  The race is in one month. Wish me luck.

  Q: Do you have any irrational fears? I don’t actually think being afraid of bears is irrational. I do however think being afraid of slugs is irrational. I am very much afraid of slugs.

  

  | 38 Comments Tagged Hiking, Iron Deficiency, Little, Running

• Six Months Later

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on June 20, 2026

  Well…I didn’t intend to take six months off from blogging, but here we are. I had every intention of sharing my final two hikes of 2025 and continuing on my merry blogging way, but every time I thought about writing a hike recap I just…didn’t want to. Weeks went by, then months, and then winter did its wintry thing and I had minimal motivation for most everything. I knew I would be bit by the bug again eventually, and I was willing to wait until that happened.

  SO. I’m not going to word vomit every little detail of my life the past six months, but I will share some of the heavy hitters. I hibernated a good bit during the winter, and there isn’t much to report from those few months, but as the frost thawed and the flowers bloomed life became more exciting (and a bit shitty, but that’s life right?)

  First and foremost…because I know we are all dying to know…yes, I did take Little to see Christmas lights in December.

  

  Homie wasn’t vibing like he used to, and I think these days less is more for our car rides. He seems to become a bit nauseated and less interested in longer rides. In fact I don’t really take him in the car much at all these days, but I couldn’t let tradition die. This was one of three highlights for my winter months. Another highlight was a bike ride with my pals. I had ridden this route before, and I knew of all the Little Free Libraries.

  I convinced them to stop at every single one.

  

  I found a book on this ride, which speaking of reading – I have been struggling to get into a groove lately. I read 70 books in 2024, 52 in 2025, and so far this year I have read 17. 2023 Brittany would be so proud of 17, but I have been struggling to focus on most things that require mental focus right now. Thankfully there is a reason for this, but I will get to that.

  The third and final winter activity I was jazzed about was doing some good ol’ community service with my pals. My workplace “adopted” a section of a local trail system and we have had monthly volunteer sessions where we go and maintain the trail. In Jan/Feb/March this was spending two hours picking up trash. It was surprisingly satisfying, and also loads of fun. So much so, that I bought my own grabby device and wrangled some pals to do this unaffiliated with work (but we do all work together, minus our family members.)

  

  Ok, let’s move on to Spring. Two major highlights happened during this time – I celebrated Little’s 18th birthday, and I ran my 9th half marathon. One of these events went much better than the other. Little is the light of my life, and it has been such a gift to see him thrive in his 18th year of life. He is doing amazingly well these days and his birthday was nothing short of wonderful. I bought him a birthday crown, some treats, and he got some time outside.

  

  

  

  

  The back patio has since been pressure washed, it no longer looks like it does in that last photo. But even the grit and grime of winter couldn’t stop Little from rolling around like a hog in the mud. He must be drinking the youth juice because I swear his zoomies have become zoomier in his old age. I’m not complaining, I love nothing more than running late for work because I had to oblige the king during his morning zoomfest.

  It should go without saying Little’s birthday was the event that went smoother than my half marathon. I started training for my half in February, a tradition I have maintained for the past three years. A spring half marathon keeps me active in the winter, but from the start of my training I struggled. I could not find my energy, and every long run became progressively harder. Something similar happened to me last year, but that time it didn’t hit until halfway through my training.

  

  I’m not one to quit, so I pushed through every run and just let my pace get slower and slower. Last year I let my slower pace bother me, but this year I let every expectation go and all I wanted was to finish a run without wanting to die. I finally got to the last few weeks of my training, and I was convinced this had to be my last half marathon for a while. My training was too much of a slog, and something wasn’t right. Normally, I blame any excessive fatigue on my autoimmune disease. This has worked well for me in the past, but this time it turned out to be something else.

  Honestly, it’s probably a combo of things (including autoimmune chaos), but it’s validating to know there was something else brewing too.

  I went to the doctor at the end of April for a massage referral and while I was there I decided to mention in passing I was struggling with extra fatigue than usual. I thought maybe it was hormones, I’m 37 now and we all know what’s just around the corner, but as it turned out I am severely iron deficient. This nugget of news was like a light bulb going off. Suddenly everything made sense. I now believe I have been in this deficient state since March 2025 because I never quite got my gumption of energy back.

  

  My half was scheduled a week after my doc apt. Every fiber in my body wanted to skip the race. Running felt awful, I didn’t want to drive the three hours to the town I was running, and my motivation was at an all time low. The cherry on the cake was when I discovered there were only 28 people signed up for the half. TWENTY EIGHT. This is literally my worst nightmare. I chose a half in Leavenworth, which is a HUGEEELY touristy area and I was convinced it would be a popular race. WRONGO.

  So now, even if I wanted to do the race and let myself walk I was terrified of being last. This is NOT to say there is anything wrong with being last, but it’s an irrational fear I have and my anxiety was through the roof. Ultimately I got over myself and ran the race. Well, I ran/walked/ran/walked. The race was a looped course which was amazing because I got to see Duncan multiple times throughout, and I had him walk with me during some of the moments I needed to walk. I ran more than I anticipated, but I also walked over 25 minutes of the race.

  

  

  I managed to finish the half in 2:31, and I BEAT FOUR PEOPLE. I hardly saw anyone for the majority of the last two laps, just me and the volunteers I bantered with. I thought this would be tough, but being alone actually made it easier. I was able to just focus on myself and do whatever I needed to finish. At the end of the day I couldn’t not run this, I had to get my cow bell medal!

  I’m very proud of my time, and under normal circumstances I wouldn’t think twice about it. It wasn’t the pace that was the issue, it was how difficult it was to put one foot in front of the other. It was how hard I had to work to get air into my lungs, and to move my legs that felt like lead. These situations continue to give me perspective on running as a whole, and I hope to find my way back to runs that are enjoyable. Running doesn’t always need to feel easy, but it sure as heck shouldn’t feel like running with anvils on your feet.

  

  Big shoutout to Duncan for rewarding me with not one, but two gluten free cupcakes from the downtown bakery I love. That’s really why I made the three hour drive. Since the race, I have been obsessed with finding ways to increase my iron reserves. It’s been a month since my race, almost two months since my initial doc apt, and I’d be lying if I said I felt much better. I have been on a few hikes already this season and the first two were really difficult. I am currently taking supplements and have increased my red meat intake, but from my non stop research I know this is going to be a long and slow journey.

  I can’t help but wonder if this has happened to me multiple times throughout my life. I was iron deficient in my early 20’s, and it tends to be a common theme for people who do higher intensity sports (running, cycling.) Back then I blamed it on being vegan, which likely was a huge factor (I still don’t eat red meat much), but it was possibly a combo of running and diet. Who knows, but what I do know is something wasn’t right and I am thankful to have an answer. I’m only running 1-3 miles right now, and very sporadically.

  I’m doing everything I can to ensure I have even the bare minimum energy to get my hike on this summer.

  

  So that’s my update. Now I know why it’s been hard to focus on things, why I have limited motivation, why the world was a little extra dull, and why my running has been hot garbage for a longgg time. My work days are a bit brutal too, I manage for an hour before being absolutely gassed, but the years of practice acting normal during excessive fatigue have been paying off (lol.) I eventually get a second wind halfway through the day, but I look forward to all of that ending.

  I have a three month follow up next month to see if the supplements are working, and I am trying to stay optimistic. I only occasionally wallow reading reddit stories of those who have been struggling for years despite diet and supplement changes.

  I’m hoping to get back in the swing of blogging things. No promises, but I have been hiking which is always fun to share. I managed to scorch the ever loving life out of my legs after hiking in the snow this past weekend. What a rookie mistake. Shorts on top of snow…whoops. Alright, that’s all for now. If you made it this far thanks for sticking around. Also, big thanks to my pal John who checked on me not once, but twice via e-mail. Appreciate you friend.

  Q’s:

  • Has anyone else experienced iron deficiency? Please tell me it will get better…
  • Whatttt is new with everyone?! I have a lot of blog reading to catch up on.

  

  | 63 Comments Tagged Half Marathon, Iron Deficiency, Little, Running

• Early Morning Confessions

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on September 30, 2025

  1. Time for another rapid fire, minimal transition post where I can brain and photo dump multiple things that have happened in my life the past couple months (we’ve had a lot of EMC posts lately.) This post will be cat heavy. Is that anything new though? I don’t think so.

  Speaking of cats…has anyone been seeing the trend on social media where people are buying their cats a concrete slab? I try not to fall prey to these things, but I HAD TO TRY IT with Little. I bought a 16×16 concrete slab for just under $6 and hoped for the best. Naturally, my cat was beyond disinterested in this. It’s fun watching videos of other cats loving the slab, but mine barely even sniffed it. HA.

  2. Duncan and I went to hike Mount Si recently, his first time. This hike is notorious for Canada Jay’s dive bombing hikers for their snacks. I’m not usually one to feed the wildlife, but look…us not feeding them won’t change a damn thing here. People will never stop. Instead, we can opt to feed them species appropriate snacks like bird seed.

  Or, like in the photo below…we can pretend to feed them, only for them to see an empty hand. I call this photo: “disappointment.”

  

  

  

  3. You won’t be able to tell from any of the photos in this post, but my hair is the longest it’s been since 2017. The downside of growing out a pixie cut is that it grows really wonky. I had a mullet/rat tail like section that was longer than the majority of my hair, and this week I’d had enough. I cut the mullet myself, only to ask my mom to help me. It’s not perfect, but at least most of my hair is “even.”

  I will get a proper haircut eventually. LOL.

  4. A while back I agreed to watch my friends kid so she and her sister could go to a concert. The time came, and I had a blast from the past evening. We started with perler beads, where I made the most beautiful creature known to man. Then I introduced her kid to the wonderful world of the N64 (I went easy on him.) And we ended the day with a jump on the trampoline. FULLY equipped with a net, just like the one I had as a kid.

  Safety first.

  

  5. My Garmin watch was acting a fool recently. The elevation gain on my hikes was constantly messed up, it was no longer accurately recording my distances for hikes or runs, and it was just all around spazzy. I contacted Garmin to see if there was anything I could do to help this, and they offered to send me a free exchange.

  The watches they use for this are refurbished, but I figured anything was better than what I had.

  The watch I received was as good as new initially. Unfortunately it had some pixelation issues, but they immediately fixed the problem and I’m getting another “new” to me watch. Black and Decker needs to take notes…(see number 9 in that post.)

  6. Back in February Duncan bought tickets to see my favorite artist for my birthday. The time came, and we set off for the concert at the farm. While I LOVED seeing Gregory Alan Isakov, I don’t think the outdoor concert scene is for me. I was wildly distracted (and annoyed? even though it’s totally in their right?) by the people constantly walking around.

  I was spoiled seeing Gregory for the first time with the Seattle Symphony (LOOK AT that baby child in that post, I wish I could go slap her and tell her to relax her freaking forehead in those photos. This is why my forehead is now wrinkled.) A background symphony is now my standard – inside, no one moves around, acoustics on POINT.

  I still had a good time and I’m glad we went. Greg (we’ve met, so naturally we’re on a first name basis. We’re basically besties) was fantastic as always.

  

  

  7. If you’ve been around here for a while you will remember this post from a year ago. The specific call out in that post is the hubcap story. I lost a hubcap, but it wasn’t the first time. Because this had happened before, when I saw a rogue Toyota Camry hubcap on the side of the road sometime around 2014 I picked it up and stored it for when I needed it.

  I ended up needing it last year, and sadly I have since lost that replacement hubcap. I recently had to get a new tire (my third one this year wtf) and when they put the hubcap back on it must have been the final straw. When Duncan and I parked at the Gregory Alan Isakov concert I notice it was missing. That free hubcap lasted me a year, and I will call that a win.

  I am back on the hunt for another rogue hubcap on the side of the road, wish me luck.

  8. Recently at work we received a random one off Nalgene that we don’t typically carry. I already own a Nalgene, and I use it for hikes where a glass jar will not be a good idea (I exclusively drink and eat out of glass. Yes, I’m one of those.) Because of this I did not need another Nalgene. One is more than enough. However, this Nalgene was very cute and I made a comment about it to my coworker.

  I expressed to him how much I liked it, but I didn’t need two Nalgene’s. He knew we likely wouldn’t be getting anymore of these and he decided to buy it for me. This made the Nalgene suddenly very special, and I am reminded of the magnitude of a small gesture. This made my day, and now I can just rotate between the two Nalgene’s I own. Or I can give my other one away. So many options.

  

  9. I’m getting the itch again to sign up for a half marathon. I truly don’t know what is wrong with me. I swore after my last one I would not run another one for a WHILE. That one destroyed me not only physically, but mentally as well. Somehow after the summer season passes I tend to forget how much I abhor the last few weeks of training for a half.

  I might try to start training earlier and run exclusively throughout the winter. Maybe that will help?

  10. Last, but most certainly not least Duncan and I went on a triple date recently to Ziggy’s Cat Lounge. I went here once last year, and this time it was just the six of us in the room. We had a magical time, and I was reunited with two of their resident black cats. They recently got ANOTHER resident black cat (named Binx, how fitting), and they were all so sweet.

  I managed to capture a photo of Duncan in his element…feeding wild animals (this is a call back to him being Snow White on Mt. Si with the bird.)

  

  

  My favorite thing about this visit is that all of us own cats and are very happy with the cats we own. Sometimes cat owners just want to have coffee and socialize together in public…with other cats.

  Q: What’s your confession?

  

  | 16 Comments Tagged Cats, Concert, Early Morning Confessions, Gregory Alan Isakov, Hiking, Little

• Early Morning Confessions

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on August 25, 2025

  1. I have to sneak these Early Morning Confessions posts into the mix when I have a lot to share, don’t have the mental bandwidth to make multiple separate posts, and am eons behind in my posting. Then again…who even cares/knows if I am “behind?” Does anyone even read this blog anymore? Beuller…Beuller…

  2. Summer has been in full swing over here, and for me that means go, go, gooooinggg. I try to be mindful of how much I bite off per week to prevent any type of burn out/flair ups, but for the past few weeks I have been living the epitome of YOLO. From friends visiting town, to nice weather, to the FOMO of summer ending I have been trying to do it all.

  Duncan and I have been trying to get out on our bikes more this year, and we have spent a few weekends going to an island near us where it’s safer to bike. We have biked here twice lately – one 15 miler and one 20 miler. In the middle of each ride we stopped to have a baked good and some coffee. It’s the little things for me, like finding a gluten free treat at a new to me coffee shop.

  

  3. I went blueberry picking recently and came home with 3.5lbs of berries. I have since made two batches of muffins, and I cannot get enough. The first batch made 12 muffins, and I ate 9 of those within 3 days. Can’t stop, won’t stop with the muffins.

  4. Good thing I have been hiking more than anything this summer (after those muffins), and I had a few back to back adventures this month. First I had a friend visiting who I met while working in Yellowstone. He is one of those hardcore masochists who never seem to run out of energy. We went for a 14 mile hike passing by one of my favorite alpine lakes.

  We had a full 8 hour adventure and it was so lovely to catch up on life.

  

  Next I went for a hike with a girl I met in Germany, she was one of my roommates! She has since moved to Olympia, and is close enough for occasional get togethers. I dragged Duncan with me on this one because she and he are two weirdo peas in a pod. Obviously I am also a part of this pod, but it’s always a special treat with I can combine people in my life smoothly.

  We hiked Mount Storm King, giving us beautiful aerial views of Lake Crescent.

  

  

  

  

  5. Something that really grinds my gears is when the egg carton is not evenly distributed with the remaining eggs. Like…when someone pulls from one side exclusively and the entire carton is off balance when you pick it up. If I stumble onto a carton like this in the fridge I will move the eggs around until they are well balanced within the carton.

  6. Piggybacking off of confession #4, the same weekend of my Storm King/Lake Crescent hike I went back to Lake Crescent that Monday for a bike ride with a few of my coworkers/friends. We planned to bike this section of the Olympic Discovery Trail, and we managed a good 28 miles of fun. This time instead of an aerial view of the lake, I got to bike right next to the lake.

  We stopped at a tiny yet grossly overpriced general store where I bought a canned version of Starbucks Nitro Cold Brew. It was delicious.

  

  

  

  

  7. All this business (I have also been working more) has left me with minimal mental energy to read lately. I have managed to finish a few books this month, one of which delighted my entire soul. I read All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot, and I cannot wait to read each book that follows this one. What a joyful man. I laughed, I cried, I raged (the farmers of the 1930’s have no chill), and I learned a thing or to about veterinary medicine. 10/10.

  8. While I have been active the last few weeks, I have made sure to prioritize quality time with my best pal. Call me crazy, but I can tell a difference in his well being when I am away from home for too long (hence why I don’t go far), and I prioritize spending time with him as much as possible.

  

  9. Buckle up for this one, I am about to pop off. I would be remiss if I did not share with the public the chaos that is Black and Decker customer service. Yeah, I am about to be THAT PERSON. Last summer I bought a portable AC unit after decades without. I’m a Washingtonain, we don’t need AC. Alas, I decided to bite the bullet. I used the unit for around two months last summer and tucked her away.

  Three months ago we got the unit back out, and she was acting like a basic fan. Blowing air, but not frigid air. After talking with Black and Decker customer service they advised me that the compressor was likely shot and they would send me a new one free of charge. EXCELLENT, what great service I thought.

  A full month goes by and I finally receive a new unit. I immediately knew something was wrong when I saw how mangled the box was. I then saw someone else’s address on a shipping label elsewhere on the box, and when I opened the box I found a dirty unit that smelled of a woman’s perfume. It’s ok, I’m fine, it’s 90 degrees when I received the used replacement, but I know mistakes happen.

  I call and get a new agent, he is clearly mortified and ensures me he will make it right and send me a new unit. Another month goes by, I am following up each week, and after my third follow up he informs me they don’t have my unit in stock, but they can send me an upgraded one. Ok, sure, fine, but maybe you could have let me know this instead of waiting for me to reach out?

  I get the new unit, I open the box, and the HOSE THAT CONNECTS THE UNIT TO THE WINDOW (to blow out the hot air) IS BROKEN. At this point I can’t help but laugh, I don’t even know what is going on anymore. I tell them what happened, and they offer to send me a new hose. SURE, GREAT, that would be swell, by the time I get a working unit the summer will be over, but YES PLEASE.

  Fast forward to two weeks ago, which is now over three months since this all started. I haven’t heard anything from them despite them telling me they would send me a tracking number for the hose. Then I suddenly see the package on my steps and I am pumped. Finally this will all be over, and I will be able to chill my bones in the hades heat of the summer. I open the box, and IT’S THE WRONG HOSE. The hose is still missing one of the end pieces, and the other end has a piece meant for a different unit.

  I have reached out YET AGAIN, and they are sending me the “correct” hose. I ended up taping the broken hose to attempt to make it work in some way, but I have lost my ever loving mind at this point, and I will never be buying another Black and Decker item in my life. Thank you for listening. That is all.

  10. My mom left her interior light on over the weekend recently, and when she went to start her car next her battery had died. Duncan and I decided we would change her battery ourselves (mostly Duncan), so we took the battery out of her car and took it to O’Reilly’s for them to test the battery. It was shot, so we bought a new one and Duncan put it in. Meanwhile I changed out her cabin air filter.

  This was incredibly liberating, saving money always gets my serotonin flowing.

  

  Alright. That’s enough for one post.

  Q: What’s your confession?

  

  | 60 Comments Tagged Biking, Duncan, Early Morning Confessions, Hiking, Little

• Early Morning Confessions

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on July 3, 2025

  1. Welcome to another dump of information about what’s been going on in the world of Brittany lately. I don’t know how, but it’s already July. My life has been very simple these days. I use simple instead of boring because I am trying to be mindful of my verbiage.

  Life isn’t boring just because it’s slower paced. It’s simply…simple.

  2. Duncan and I celebrated another year of partnership at the end of April. We had planned to go to Leavenworth, but after driving that direction the weekend prior for my half marathon I didn’t want to drive that way all over again so soon. We decided to spend the day in Seattle instead, something I haven’t done since 2021.

  We went to the Pacific Science Center, somewhere I grew up going often. Sadly this place is a shell of its former self. It wasn’t worth the price, but I did get photographic evidence of my Raynaud’s which was pretty funny. Note the color of my hands next to Duncan’s “normal blood flow” hands.

  

  

  

  3. It’s no secret around here that I love coffee. After working in the coffee world for seven years I think it will forever be part of my inner being. With that said, I am starting to get more into tea as well. I have always been a big fan of peppermint tea, but I have been somewhat obsessed with learning more about herbs and flowers so I can make my own loose leaf blends of medicine in a cup.

  Loose leaf blends make me feel like I’m brewing a potion. My inner child loves it.

  4. Speaking of coffee and tea, a new cafe popped up in my town recently. Duncan and I decided to try it, and upon entering I immediately knew I was going to enjoy sitting inside. The ambiance was top notch. Plants EVERYWHERE. The coffee was good (Duncan said best espresso he has ever had), and we were there during happy hour so I got a gluten free slice of cake for 1/2 off!

  OH, and they had so many board games to play!

  

  

  5. My last haircut was back in October. I have not gone more than 5 months without a haircut since December of 2017. My hairstylist moved, and my backup hairstylist is no longer at my backup salon. A mix of overwhelm at the idea of finding a new stylist and stress in life has caused me to let my hair get to a length I cannot stand.

  The feeling of it on my neck and ears makes me want to shave my head every single day.

  6. I am surprised by how many hikes I have already managed to squeeze in since May started. Not all of them are blog worthy, some are worthy of their own post, and a few are worthy of just a snippet of information with some photos. I’ll share two of the latter.

  I hiked to Lake Angeles with my pals Caitlin and Jackie on a very blustery day. This was my third time hiking here and it’s always a good time. Just over 7 miles, about 2300′ of elevation gain, and a beautiful lake at the end.

  

  

  

  I also hiked to the plane wreck on the Tull Canyon Trail – somewhere I tried to hike to last summer, but missed the turn off. This wreck is extra sad because the plane was sent on a SAR mission to rescue people who had already crashed in ANOTHER plane. Five of eight in the Tull Canyon crash survived. There is good information here if you are interested in deep diving.

  This trail is moderate until the turn off to Tull Canyon, then it gets steep. The hike was around 9 miles with 1500′ gain (all in one spot.)

  

  

  7. I’m moderately ashamed to admit that I have been hyper aware of my skin lately. My face looks like it aged 10 years seemingly overnight. Stress is likely a big contributor to this, but I’m also getting older and that’s just life. With that said, if anyone has any skin care recommendations let me know.

  The caveat is that the products have to be “clean.” I’d sooner let myself look 20 years older than use toxic products.

  8. One of the perks of my job is having first dibs on all the gear people return. With a one year return policy, people return nearly new items all the time simply because they didn’t like them. Sometimes after just one or two uses. We then reprice the items that are still able to be sold and put them into our “garage sale” type area.

  I was able to snag a two person tent recently for a FRACTION of the cost. The people who returned it literally used it once and thought it was too heavy (they likely wanted it for backpacking.) I set it up in my backyard to see how Little liked it. He approves.

  

  9. Little and I are in a bit of a weird limbo. We switched to a new vet two years ago after some struggle with his vet of many years, and I just discovered a few weeks ago that our new vet is leaving the clinic. I am hoarding his medications like a squirrel preparing for winter because I am so overwhelmed to find a new vet.

  We might just ride the wave for a while, and I will take him somewhere new in 6-8 months just to establish a relationship.

  10. Duncan and I went for our first bike ride of the year last week. We parked the car at one end of an island nearby, and biked 7.5 miles to the other end for coffee and a baked good. The weather was perfect, and I hope to do this ride again soon. We then biked the 7.5 miles back for a 15 mile jaunt, and I stopped at probably six Little Free Libraries.

  I commandeered two new to me books, and it was so fun to see what each little box of books contained.

  

  

  

  Give me a good bike ride or a good hike with food and coffee mixed in and I am a happy gal.

  Q: What’s your confession?

  

  | 51 Comments Tagged Biking, Early Morning Confessions, Hiking, Lake Angeles, Little

• Seventeen

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on May 8, 2025

  Last month we celebrated a very, very special birthday. My sweet (and spicy) cat Little turned 17 this year, and I am beyond blessed to have had so many years with my best friend. Truth be told, I never imagined we would get to this birthday. Little has been on a wild ride since he was 10 years old.

  In January of 2018 he had emergency (life saving) surgery for a blocked urethra from a struvite crystal (sadly common for male cats.) In December of 2018 he was first diagnosed with early stage kidney disease. In November of 2020 he was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism, and had to have a radioactive iodine treatment to complete cure it. In May of 2023 he had a vomit fest leading to a misdiagnosis of IBD, when in reality homie was severely constipated.

  This resulted in months of steroids he did not need, and I completely overhauled his diet. I never believed he had IBD and after switching to a new vet I was affirmed in my belief.

  In February of 2024 he took a trip to the ER (on my birthday) after five days without a BM. Three weeks later we were back in the ER for the same issue (we have since dialed in on this.) And most recently, in April of 2025 he had a double ear infection, but received a misdiagnosis of being BLIND…more on that in a minute.

  

  

  So yeah, 17 is a big deal. Despite all the above listed ailments, overall he has lived a very healthy life. His kidney disease is chronic, but ironically this issue has been the least of our worries thus far (aside from contributing to constipation and nausea in his geriatric years.) If you have been a regular reader (or are a real life pal) you will know this cat is my world. Each day with him is a special gift I don’t take for granted.

  When shit first hit the fan in 2018 there was no guarantee his emergency surgery would work. I knew we had to try despite the gargantuan price tag, and here we are seven years later. Worth every penny.

  Admittedly I might be a bit too attached to my cat, and I have extreme separation anxiety after all the chaos we’ve been through lately. This makes his birthday celebrations extra special because I get to celebrate the wins. For his birthday this year he received a new floppy fish toy from Duncan, a new peacock feather from me, and various treats to snack on while us humans ate apple pie. He also donned a very special birthday boy hat, and he was a true sport about this one.

  

  

  

  We also took a special birthday car ride, which is the same as a regular car ride, but with his party hat. He only wore it long enough for me to snap a photo, and then he lounged in the back taking in the sights as we slowwwllyy drove. After his misdiagnosis of having IBD I stopped letting him in the backyard incase the grass was aggravating his stomach.

  Instead I took him in the car (sans vet carrier) to see if he would enjoy it, and the rest is history.

  

  

  Although this celebration was mostly for me to have special memories, I would like to think he had a joyful time. During this day I noticed him scratching his ears and shaking his head, and I then noticed it happening each day after for about four days. I called my vet suspecting he had an ear infection, but unfortunately my vet was on vacation.

  I was able to see the urgent care doctor on shift that same day, but because my cat is so incredibly spicy at the vet she was unable to handle him. He usually gets a big hit of gabapentin before we go, but I don’t think he had enough time for the drugs to kick in. This vet took him in the back room (despite me telling her I’d have better luck getting him out of his carrier if he stayed with me in the original room, but whatever) for ten minutes before finally let me come back to help.

  She proceeded to tell me she did a vision test on him and that he was completely blind. Insert wtf emoji here. I knew he wasn’t blind, but I was so taken aback that I didn’t know what to say. She was about to send me home with nothing more than a quack diagnosis so I asked her if I could swab his ears for her, because I knew he wasn’t scratching his head due to detached retinas.

  Sure enough, double ear infection.

  

  The lesson here is to always be the advocate for your pet. Being a vet is HARD, I don’t deny that, but we know our pets better than anyone and I knew he had something wrong with his ears. Just to be sure, I came home that day and brought out the laser. The vet told me he likely still played with his toys because he could hear them, but I figured if he could hear light then he was a wizard.

  He chased that laser like he was five years old.

  Like I said, this cat has had quite the medical journey, but he is still plugging along bringing me more joy than I could ever imagine possible. Admittedly I have spent the past two years waiting for the next shoe to drop. I obsessively monitor his bathroom and eating habits, his energy levels, his mobility, and his overall demeanor. It seems just when things calm down something else happens, but I am trying my best to enjoy each day individually.

  Anticipatory grief is rough. I find myself getting stuck in loops of sadness for when he is no longer with me all while he is very much still alive.

  

  I don’t want to look back on this time and regret living too far in the future, so I will leave it at this: happy birthday to my geriatric feline, thank you for 17 amazing years thus far.

  Q: Have you ever received a misdiagnoses from your vet? If you don’t have pets have you received one for yourself!? Anyone else have a bionic pet like mine who continues to survive everything thrown their way?

  

  | 51 Comments Tagged Birthday, Cat, Little

• Birthentines Day 2025

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on March 4, 2025

  Another year has passed which means another Valentine’s Day/birthday combo for Brittany has come and gone. My birthday is February 15 (the day after Valentine’s Day), and while I don’t need much on either day, I DO like to keep them separate. I told this to Duncan when we first started dating, and he jokingly referred to the two days as one calling them “Birthentines Day”, and it has stuck ever since.

  While Valentine’s Day is a great excuse to gobble a brownie, and make a special meal, I tend to put most of my focus on my birthday. This year when Duncan asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday, I told him I wanted to run a 5K…together…with him…he would be running too…as someone who doesn’t run. I thought for sure he would push back, but much to my surprise he agreed.

  We cooked a delicious meal on Valentine’s Day, ate a giant brownie, and we were up and ready to go the following morning.

  

  The beauty of my birthday falling on a Saturday this year is that I knew we would be able to find a 5k somewhere nearby. Because my birthday is the day after Valentine’s Day, I also knew we would be able to find a Valentine’s Day themed 5k. How perfect for Birthentines Day. I found a race about 45 minutes away from us, got really excited, but then discovered it was SOLD OUT!

  Back to the drawing board.

  I don’t love driving into Seattle these days, but I knew that might be my only option. I found a race with a 5k, and a 10k option on a looped track which felt too good to be true. I prefer running 10k if given the chance with organized races, so I was able to run the first 5k loop with Duncan and the second 5k loop solo. The run was called “Better Together”, and the website alluded to this being Valentine’s Day themed, so naturally I had to get us matching shirts.

  

  Once we arrived at the park where the race was taking place I knew I might have been very, very wrong about this event. There were no other runners in sight. It turns out this park has “races” every two months or so, and because of this they use the same race bib’s for each run (meaning no themed bibs), some events are smaller than others, and there isn’t really much participation in the theme.

  At least there wasn’t on this day.

  Duncan and I were THE ONLY ONES WHO WORE ANYTHING THEMED. I was momentarily mortified, but honestly I got over it pretty quickly. We got our bib’s, walked around for a bit, and then lined up with the other 90 or so people (SMALL SMALL SMALL EVENT AHHH) to run. The only way to tell this was at all Valentine’s Day themed was the blow up photo op.

  

  

  

  The run itself was nice, the park was a good change of scenery, and Duncan pushed himself more than I would have expected. I kept trying to get him to slow down because I didn’t want him to burn out, but he just kept flying. He was at the early stage of a multi day sickness, which makes his fight all the more impressive! I loved watching him push himself, and we finished his 5k with a 10:45 pace.

  After I left him for my second lap I only had one goal: catch up to and beat the girl in front of me. I managed to pass her AND one other person. I finished my 10k 1st in my age group…because I was the only one in my age group. LOL, I love the little wins. We both paid an extra $6 to get a medal, and honestly the medals were very pretty.

  

  

  Overall we had a good time, Duncan is willing to do another one (no promises on anytime soon) and we both have awesome new shirts to wear at any given moment. We may have been the only ones in Valentine’s themed clothes, but that just meant we got the most compliments.

  We managed to get a compliment from the race photographer as we ran by him, and he took this whimsical shot of us. HAHA.

  

  After the run we made our way to the best bakery in all the land. I had a free birthday reward, and I’m a sucker for all things free. This bakery is insanely busy every time we go, but I did not anticipate we would be fighting for scraps by getting there around 1300. They close at 1600, but when I say they had BARELY anything left I mean it.

  My reward was good for a muffin or a cookie, and obviously I wanted the more expensive of the two. I ended up getting a muffin I would have never chosen if I’d had options, but they had literally ONE muffin left in the entire shop by the time it was my turn. This muffin turned out to be one of the most heavenly items I have ever consumed.

  

  I’m not a peach gal, and despite the peach slices being huge in this muffin the overall flavor was superb. Well done Wren’s Nest. We were able to each get a savory item as well, and after properly entering into a food coma we made the drive back to my house so I could snuggle with my bestie the rest of the night.

  

  This is the first birthday in a while I haven’t gone for a hike, but this was a fun change of pace. I’m officially on the downward slope to 40, which is the most mind boggling thought I have had in a long time. Somedays when I sit deep in my thoughts I truly feel like I just graduated high school. I am still 18 saying goodbye to all my friends I will never see again.

  I am still 24 getting a job at Starbucks and discovering who I am slowly but surely. I am still 22 starting THIS BLOG having no idea I would still be scraping by with it 14 years later. I am still 28 and just letting go of the societal pressures of what it means to be successful, quitting a corporate job and moving to Yellowstone for 5 months. Life is weird. Memories are weird. But muffins are forever.

  Q: We are all just overgrown children fumbling through life, right?

  

  | 52 Comments Tagged Birthday, Brownie, Duncan, Little, Muffins, Running

• Days of December

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on January 3, 2025

  Believe it or not, there was a time in my blogging life where I blogged regularly. Every two to four days I had something to say on this space, but these days I am lucky to squeeze out one or two posts a month. I used to share my daily life happenings, but I have morphed into more of a “just hit some of the highlights” blogger.

  Not to be confused with “just hit the positives,” sometimes highlights are the struggles too.

  November and December move into a slower time of year for adventures and I don’t have many epic new hikes or travel escapades to share. My daily excitement comes from things like the size and frequency of my cats bowel movements, what ancient artifact I have pulled out of my moms attic to dispose of, and surviving the monotony of working in corporate retail.

  I still like to throw in the reality of life amongst photos of mountains and new to me places, but the inspiration to write doesn’t strike as much as it does when I have something worthwhile to share.

  

  While I haven’t traveled anywhere far in a long time because of my sweet fury child, I did have a surprisingly busy December. Each weekend of the month I had something scheduled starting with Duncan’s company Christmas party. Duncan has worked for the same company for nearly four years, but this was the first Christmas he decided to attend the Christmas party.

  When he described the event to me I was stoked. I was hoping to see a plethora of plumbers letting loose with an open bar (call me crazy, but I love people watching those who have less of a filter from afar), but as it turned out the after party is where the real chaos ensues. Duncan and I are both in bed early folks, so we left before anyone got too rowdy.

  The very next day, we went to my pal Caitlin’s house for a cookie decorating party.

  

  When I say party, I mean it was Caitlin, her sister, and her nephew, plus me and Duncan. A small party. I couldn’t eat any of the cookies, but that didn’t stop me from decorating the above photographed handful. I think I’ve found my calling. Please note the cat cookie on the far left in the middle. I was trying to give this cat a realistic…orifice, but instead it looks like he needs a trip to the ER.

  To round out this first weekend of the month, after cookies we took Little for his first of two Christmas themed car rides. I would say it was a success.

  

  

  The second weekend of December was dedicated to exercise and gluttony. In an attempt to keep the holiday spirit alive I signed up for a Christmas themed 10k. I ran a Halloween themed 10k in October and loved the idea of running another holiday race. I didn’t dare show up to the start line without the proper attire, and I found the most perfect sweater to wear.

  

  

  A moment of silence for the most beautiful sweater to exist.

  I think I was more excited about this sweater than I was for the run itself. The run was beautiful, but COLD. (Go figure, it was cold in December.) I am loving getting back into running races because the community of runners is so fun and uplifting. Running is such a personal sport, but people come together to support the personal growth and accomplishments of each other as if we are a team.

  I’m not a fast runner, but seeing small progress is always fun. I no longer run to chase faster times, but I do enjoy challenging myself. I ran this race in 1:01:13 with a 9:51 pace. I was quite chuffed.

  

  

  Duncan was my number one support, and braved the cold to be there with me. After I was finished we made our way to my favorite GF bakery that was just around the corner (the runs in this town might be somewhat planned around the bakery too.) We each got a sweet and a savory, and this was the perfect end to the fun morning.

  

  Weekend number THREE of the month was reserved for cultural refinement. I love classical music, I love listening to the combination of instruments, and I love Antonio Vivaldi. When I saw there was a local concert of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons I knew I wanted to go. The concert was also one of the candlelight concerts I have seen floating around the internet for years, but I always thought they were fake/a scam.

  They are not fake, they are not a scam, and they are very enjoyable!

  

  

  

  Annnddd for the last weekend of December I went for a lovely winter hike with Caitlin and Duncan. We brought a stove/fuel so that we could make a cuppa and enjoy the warmth of the dark beans outside. We hiked the Duckabush River Trail just to the viewpoint for a round trip total of around 7 miles. (It was very cold, but still a worthy outdoor adventure.)

  

  

  Some other honorable mentions for December are: I read five books putting my yearly total at 70 books. My goal for this year is 60 books, but I anticipate I will surpass that. – I wore my cat sweater to work on Christmas Eve and it was the best day ever. After work I took Little for his second Christmas lights drive. – Christmas was calm, cool, and collected.

  NYE was also calm, cool, and collected. Duncan and I went for a hike New Years Day, and I couldn’t have asked for a better way to ring in the new year!

  

  

  

  On that note, I hope everyone had a lovely holiday season. I always enjoy mine, and I always enjoy when mine is over! Maybe this year I will blog more. (Probably not.)

  Q: How was your holiday season? Are you ready when the holidays are over, or do you wish they lasted longer?

  

  | 51 Comments Tagged Christmas, Hiking, Little, New Year, Running

• Sweet Sixteen

  Posted at 5:00 AM by Brittany, on April 17, 2024

  The month was May, and the year was 2008. I don’t recall exactly what I was doing, but I vaguely remember I was outside my moms house as it was a beautifully sunny day. My mom had been gone for the majority of the morning singing at a wedding, and when I saw her car pull into the driveway I smiled and waved as I normally would, having no idea what was about to come next.

  My mom opened her car door, and nestled above her forearm was a tiny black kitten with ears twice the size of his head. I was confused as to who this tiny kitty belonged to, and the moment my mom said she brought this small bat like fur ball home for me I immediately panicked. I was not prepared for another cat (we already had one at the time), and I can’t believe that for a brief moment in time I did not want this small black cat that would later become my best friend.

  Thank goodness my intrusive thoughts didn’t win.

  

  

  Although I was taken aback by this new arrival, I quickly got over my initial anxiety of another cat and welcomed him to the family. He immediately fit in, and was an absolute menace from day one. I couldn’t have asked for a better cat. Fast forward many years, many ailments, and many memories later – my sweet, spunky, spicy kitty has officially made it to the age of sixteen.

  We assume he was around 8 weeks when he came home with my mom in May of 2008 (he was one of many kittens roaming the property at the wedding she was singing at), meaning he was likely born sometime in March of 2008. Last year we decided we would celebrate his birthday in April to meet somewhere in the middle. This year we celebrated again, and will continue to do so for as long as he decides to bless me with his presence. I adore cats, I live for cats, but I never saw myself as someone who would regularly celebrate a cats birthday.

  But now, I can never look back.

  

  

  We chose the first Sunday in April to celebrate, and I bought cupcakes and coffee for my family. For Little I bought fish flakes and a party collar, while Duncan bought him a new whale toy and a catnip filled log thing. Truthfully nothing compares to the cigar Duncan bought him last year, but these are a close second.

  We decided before sitting down to eat and sing HBD we would take Little on a birthday drive.

  

  After we drove around it was time to put on the party collar and indulge in some tasty treats. My local cupcake shop does an amazing GF cupcake (the same place I get the brownies from in my previous post), and let’s be real – any excuse for a cupcake is a good excuse. I can blame this on my cat all day long, but really I just needed a cupcake.

  I’ve thankfully been back on track with Little and his diet to ensure he is no longer getting constipated (if you’re confused by this comment, see my last post), so I plopped a can of his wet food onto a plate and smothered it with fish flakes before sticking a candle in the top. I sent a photo of this cat “cake” to one of my friends and she said at first glance she thought it was apple pie.

  I’m sure he wishes it was.

  

  

  I can’t help but laugh looking at these photos, I am fully aware of how ridiculous I am in wanting to celebrate a cat. However, after the last few years of ups and downs we have had – every single day I have with him is a blessing. I will continue to celebrate his added years as if they were collectable figurines worth hundreds of dollars with zero shame.

  Some people have human children, and some people have cat children. I’ll let you guess which person I am.

  

  

  

  Happy sweet sixteen my Little, I am so thankful you were brought to me all those years ago with your tiny head and big ears. You are my best pal, and I love you more than all the cupcakes in the world.

  Q: Have you ever had a birthday celebration for a pet? Would you?

  

  | 20 Comments Tagged Birthday, Cats, Little

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