Happy 4th of July!

What are you plans for this weekend? I hope all my American friends get a nice long weekend even though Independence Day falls on a Thursday. Me? I have to work Friday, so I'm going to make the best of my Wednesday night and all of Thursday. My holiday weekend started out perfect -- I come home to sunflowers!!!

Most of them look like this, but I have three sunflowers in full bloom! 

Just waiting for those finches to come feed on them! *birding heaven*

Today is also very special for another reason. This is the day my puppy turns the big ONE! 

We had plans for a grill out at one of our friends'. She is the owner of Scuffy's brother, Buddy. 

But she had a last minute trip to Florida, so we're watching Buddy instead! This afternoon, we're heading out to one of the biggest dog park in Charlotte to meet up with Scuffy and Buddy's other brother, Beckham! It's a dog playdate birthday party!!!

I can't believe how much Scuffy has grown. I know it sounds silly, but I never thought i was capable of raising this little munchkin from 8 weeks to now! What with all the potty trainings and spankings and snuggling and cuddling, this little baby stole my heart completely!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and beautiful weekend! 

We're off to the pet store to get some birthday treats for the puppies!

Elephants Never Forget

Hi blogger friends!


I know I've disappeared from the bloggy world for almost a month!
I hope you're all doing well and posting more regularly than I have been (gonna go through my blog list and catch up on your lives!)


Just want to take a moment to help spread the word about an fundraising initiative to raise money for a film / documentary that spreads awareness about the plight of elephants around the world.



Please take a moment to go to their website, read up more about it and decide if you want to

1) donate
2) spread the word
3) all of the above.

There is 24 more days to the end of the campaign. If everybody chipped in a little and spread the word, it can be done!

Boston Terrier + Mini Schnauzer + Beagle =

Here's Scuffy and his band of brothers! Clockwise : Scuffy, Beckham and Buddy!
Don't you just love their faces!! I want to squeeze them all!! Looking forward to playdates!

Puppy love : Dog-sitting for a week

J's parents are out of town so we get to babysit little Daisy for a week. The happiest kid in town has to be Scuffy, because he now gets a playmate to play with.



Scuffy completely adores Daisy. He follows her wherever she goes. He lets her have his treats and wants her to play all the time. Daisy is, however, more chill. She likes to have her peace and is annoyed when Scuffy gets into his playful moods.

But it has been five days, and Daisy has begun to accept Scuffy's presence. They're so cute together. Although Daisy is two years of age, Scuffy is heavier, and almost bigger in size.



Besties forever!

Puppy love : Potty training

I'm sorry if you did a search on google for a beginner's guide to puppy training and found this page.

This is nowhere near a guide to training your puppy, but our grueling experience in the very first week of getting our little Scuffy Nuts. If you're here because you wanted to learn how to train your dog, I sincerely hope you get something out of reading this. On the other hand, if you are an experienced puppy handler, please do not shake your head and close this page after reading. I would appreciate lots of guidance and constructive comments! I'm also still learning! :p



When we brought Scuffy home, he was only eight weeks old. Our very first mistake was to treat him like an adult doggy, since we were so used to Boops and Daisy (my in-laws' dogs). They were pretty trained when we lived with J's parents. We forgot Scuffy needed to learn everything Boops and Daisy already knew.



So Lesson #1. Potty training.

--------------------------------


How to get Scuffy to understand not to do his #1 and #2 in the house?

We still don't have 100% success. However, it has only been the first week. So even though it has been frustrating, we are not discouraged.

Every time he pees and poops in the house, we make him sniff at his mess, smack his bottom and take him outside. We bought a clicker and use it when he successfully does his #1 & #2 outside, and heap lots of praises at the same time. Just be careful not to overuse the clicker, it loses its meaning if the clicks are used randomly and not associated with good behavior.

I take him outside first thing when I wake up in the morning, and also do it just before we go to bed. During the day, I take him out every 2 hours. I read somewhere that the puppy's age in months is approximately the number of hours it can hold its pee. 8 weeks = 2 months = 2 hours.

We try to keep his eating and drinking to a strict routine so we can anticipate when he needs to go potty. We feed him three times a day, but leave the water bowl out for him to drink whenever he needs to.

But i watch him like a hawk. Especially when he drinks more than usual. Now, I can usually tell when he walks in funny way, like he needs to go. Scuffy is also getting the idea. He whines when he needs to go and then I let him out. So his potty training is coming along, slowly but surely! Woo-hoo!


Phew! And this has just only been one part of living with Scuffy!! There's so much more to tell, and even more to learn!

So sit tight and stay tuned for more Adventures of Scuffy Nuts Russell III!

Latest Addition to the Russell family

Remember this?

Well, in short, my friend Gwen's dog had given birth to 3 little puppies. I went over to visit and fell in love with them, only to find out they were all spoken for...

A week later, Gwen sent a text to say that my favorite puppy has not been picked up! She asked if I wanted to have him. Hell yea! Whoever didn't pick him up is missing out! This has gotta be the cutest thing alive!

Well, so we went and got the puppy. We've been potty training him (not easy), teaching him to sit (relatively easy) and leaving him in his crate when we're not home (VERY TOUGH!) This little guy has got the saddest whine ever.

To make things worse, we found fleas on him. So we gotta take him to the vet's tomorrow for his first round of shots and to de-flea him. But he has been such a good doggie. He let us give him a bath, and sat so still when we flea-combed him.

Did i mention that his name is Scuffy Nuts Russell III? J had 2 male dogs when he was young. Both were named Scuffy Nuts and Scuffy Nuts Jr. So naturally, this little pup is the third.

As for his Chinese name, we call him Xiao Bao Zi 小包子。He is 1/2 miniature schnauzer, 1/2 boston terrier, also known as a mini boz. We felt 'Boz' sounded very much like 'Bao Zi' in Chinese, which means "Bun", and reminded us of our time in China. So he was thus named.

Here are some pictures we took the first night we brought him home.
Warning: the following pictures may make you melt like butter.

World Elephant Day August 12!

Via

Friends, August 12 is World Elephant Day!


If you have even a tiny speck of affection for these gentle pachyderms, please help do one of following:


1. Spread the word about World Elephant Day, to increase awareness. A little action goes a long way. Someone might give a little donation, a teacher might introduce it into his / her class some time next week. You never know. Share the link on your Facebook status, tweet about it. Share it on your blog. Just start talking!

2. Don't buy souvenirs made of endangered animal parts. World Elephant Day is by extension bringing awareness and attention to illegal wildlife trade. Why anyone would want an antelope horn or tiger paw eludes me. Go to WWF to find something you can be passionate about. It don't have to be elephants!

3. Buy green products. Like this Elephant Poo Paper!

4. Support the African Elephant Programme. For most of us, the gift of money is the simplest way of showing your support.

5. Here is one more way to help! To show my support, 50% of my sales on Etsy in the month of August will go towards the African Elephant Programme. If you have been thinking about getting something from my Etsy shop, or want a customized item, here is one more reason to buy now!


Disclaimer: I do not look to profit from option #5! I'm just showing my support through this, it's not a shameless plug! :p

Birding: The Chronicles of the 3 Orphaned Starlings

This is Starling 1 & 2 on Day 20, before they took off. :(



The story thus far.

J and I found the our little starlings just one week old. Barenaked as newborns can be. We took them in, lovingly cared for them, hand fed them till they became strong, with their feathers all grown out.

Every day while I was at work, J would take them outside to work on strengthening their wings. Very soon, they started to flap their wings frequently. We kept them outdoors during the day, so they could be exposed to sunlight and the sounds of their surroundings.

I came home from work on Day 18. J placed the biggest and strongest starling on a post. He clapped his hands twice, opened his palms and the bird flew to him. My jaw dropped. What has he been teaching them while I was away??? I picked up the second biggest, it perched on my arm, flapped its way to my shoulder and sat there for a bit. I almost shed tears of joy. However, I also knew that our days with these babies is coming to an end. We didn't name them after all. Aside from Little Runt, they were all called "Chickies" collectively.

Keeping them in the house has been a challenge because they keep flying out of their box. We keep the box in the bathroom when the lizards are out of their tanks. If we have our air on, they sleep in the towel-lined box next to a small space heater to keep them warm.

Day 19 - In the evening, we took the chickies outside to work on their flying. They pecked around at bugs they found, and the bigger two were testing their flight a lot more. We were worried about Little Runt who seemed more eager to stay in his box. I set out a shallow dish of water. Starling 1 & 2 took a drink for the first time! Starling 2 even took a bird bath and splashed around in the water! When the day was done, we had quite a difficult time trying to get them back into their box.

Day 20 - I took them outside again yesterday morning. Once Starling 1 got used to the surroundings, he took off, flew onto a branch in a tree. I followed him with my eyes until i could see him no longer and whispered a heart broken goodbye.

Starling 2 hopped behind the bushes, and refused to come out, so i turned my focus on Little Runt. I tried to coax Little Runt to fly, but he seemed content hopping around on the ground. I read somewhere that fledglings need a day or two on the ground before they start to fly. So I went inside the house.

When I came back outside, I could not find Starling 2. I figured he took off just like his bigger brother. Feeling very sad, i called out to Little Runt to feed him. I found him on the ground so I picked him up and was getting ready to feed him. Now I keep their food in a glass bowl and whenever I feed them, I clink the bowl a little with my chopsticks. I think they got used to the sound, because when I clinked my bowl this time, Starling 2 flew out of nowhere and landed on my bowl! I was so surprised, but fed him anyway. After 2 mouthfuls, he flew away. Little Runt took off behind those bushes as well.

At this point, I simply gave up. I stopped chasing after them. I don't think I am meant to keep them anymore. It is time to say good bye and set them free. They will have to learn fast in order to survive, but I believe they're smart little birds. I came outside several more times during the day and caught a few glimpses of the chickies each time. I convinced myself they were doing great, and so this chapter has come to an end.

Such a strange way to experience motherhood. Now I am feeling the empty nest syndrome.

Birding: Our Pride and Joy

So, a week after taking these birds in, they're still alive and well! They've grown out most of their feathers now, but they have very fine, cute tufts of feathers sticking out the sides of their heads which make them look so adorable. If you look at the picture here you will see how they have grown!

But my, are they LOUD. With each day, their chirps grow stronger and shriller. Every feeding, as I pop my head over their box, they start chirruping in anticipation of food.

I read on some website that starling babies need food that's high in protein and fat, and they recommend cat / dog dry food. So I have been feeding them cat food, pre-soaked in water to soften, and then mashed into pulp. Then I use a pair of chopsticks to feed the mashed up cat food down their throats. In the beginning, I was so afraid they wouldn't be able to swallow their food. Even though i mashed the food up into really soft pulp, they would reach with their necks stretched out, beaks wide open so i could shove food down their throats. It was a little worrying to feed them like this, and it's a miracle they haven't choked, but I guess that's just how little birdies eat!

Over the week, we have gotten to know each birdie a little better. There is a pecking order (pun not intended) even amongst these three. There are two bigger birds who grew faster and stronger. Then there's our little baby, we call it 'Little Runt'. The two bigger birds bully Little Runt during feeding times. They step on her to make sure she doesn't stretch upwards to compete for food. But Little Runt is content to let them trample all over her! J and I make sure she gets enough to eat though.

We have since moved them to a bigger box, but they continue to grow bigger every day. I'm glad we are able to care for them. I don't know what we are going to do, but we'll take things one step at a time.

Birding: Surrogate Mothering for 3 baby Starlings

We always knew that we had a starling's nest in our roof, where the vent is. Last evening we heard the distressed chirping of a bird. After further investigation, we found a baby starling on the ground, right below it's nest! It had fallen out and was chirping for it's mama's attention.

So we looked up at the nest, and seen another baby dangerously close to the edge. It was chirping and sticking its head out so far we were afraid it was going to suffer the same fate as the first. True enough, in a few minutes, I saw the little thing fall out. I wasn't quick enough to catch it!



As we were about to leave for a friend's dinner party, the nest was too high for us to replace them, so we hurriedly filled a box with some earth and laid the two babies in it and kept it in the house. When we returned, it was quite dark. We were afraid to find a third on the ground. But we did.

We didn't know how long the nest had been abandoned. I haven't seen Mama the whole day today. Usually, when we are gardening outside, we would catch glimpses of the mother flying in and out of her nest, presumably bringing food to her babies. And why would the starlings try to leave their nest one after another?? I think it's safe to say that something has happened to the mother and these poor little babies have been abandoned.

We knew they needed some food, but probably something with protein in it. So we had to make do with some almond nuts we had at home. And since they were only babies, I had to chew them up, and feed them regurgitated nuts. Once they were nicely settled, I had to call someone.

It was a Sunday night, nobody was going to assist me, I knew.

So I left messages with the Raptor Center, and googled a little more about caring for young starlings.

I found some pictures which helped me guesstimate that the babies were about a week old. And then I read some more, and realised that i should not have fed them until we have contacted a wildlife rehabilitator. Well, too late now. But the birds seemed to gobble everything up and were fine with the nuts.



I changed their bedding and lined the box with fresh towels instead, to keep them warm throughout the night. This morning I checked on them. They were still breathing and each of them did a little Number Two, so I took that as a sign that they're doing well! I'm going to work now, J will have to watch the birds while I call the Raptor center again at lunch. Hopefully I get some help and answers.

Memorial Day Weekend at the Chadbourne Farm

How was your Memorial weekend?

I had tons of fun visiting my in-laws at their temporary residence on Chadbourne Farm in Hoffman, NC. Hoffman is in Asheboro, near the towns of Southern Pines and Pinehurst. It's a rider's paradise as there are many trails and ranches. My father-in-law had arranged for some riding lessons for us.



Here's me and my buddy Ace, who was ever so patient with me learning to ride. I don't look too confident in the picture! At one point I was telling him to stop and go at the same time! But he was a very steady and gentle horse who's used to beginner riders, so when in doubt, he would stop when I was giving him crazy mixed signals. Such a well trained horse! I think he's a Tennessee Walker, I'm not too sure. I'm also proud to say I actually saddled my own horse before I rode!




Here's the cosy living area we lounged at.




This was our room for the weekend. Isn't it pretty?



And there are charming little nooks and crannies just like this all over the house. I loved it! It would be such a dream to live on a farm, tending to horses, growing veggies in the yard, crafting and quilting the day away!


Be sure to check out Chadbourne Farm if you're in the area! I'm not done exploring the area so I'll be back sometime soon!

Birding: Robins in the yard!

I found this nest in a tiny tree right outside our house one day.

And observed it for awhile to find out it belongs to the robins!

And then about a few weeks later (should have noted how many days had elapsed!)





Look at these little babies! You can only see two in this picture but there are three in the nest! Even though the tree was a small one, J had to lift me off the ground in order for me to peek in. And I just found out it isn't true that the mother will abandon its babies if we touch them. The mother bird recognizes her babies by sight and sound, and not by smell. But that doesn't mean I went and touched them! I kept my respectful distance and watched through my binoculars (every day) as Mama and Papa Robin took turns feeding their little ones with freshly dug worms, fussing and keeping watch over them.

I can't wait to watch them grow and learn to fly!

Meanwhile, I have also 'discovered' a starling's nest in a hole in our roof! It is too way out of reach for me to observe, but i have seen Mama/Papa Starlings flying out of that hole on several occasions and heard tiny chirps coming from the same place! Oh how I wish I could see them too!!


Isn't Mother Nature just amazing!

Happy week ahead! May it be full of growth and nurturing! xx


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Don't forget about ElephantisLove Giveaway celebrating my one year Etsy anniversary. GO forth and spread the love!

My Day in a Nutshell

On the very rare occasion I get a weekend off, this was what my day looked like:



8:00 AM - I got to sleep in till 8!! And i rolled out of bed and onto my yoga mat.




9:00 AM - I made myself some coffee while I got started onto some early morning crafting!


11:00AM - I didn't get done until about 2 hours later and then continued with some chores like sweeping and cleaning the bathroom.




12:00PM - We haven't got our washer and dryer yet so we drove to J's parents' to do our laundry!




1:00PM - While a load was in the wash, we trudged outside to do some mushroom foraging.




2:00PM - We trekked over to see the neighbor's (very friendly) cow. Poor sod, she is always so happy to see us, I suspect she is really lonely. She bellows real loud when she sees us coming, and bellows again when we leave.

4:00PM - The laundry didn't get done till now, and then we drove home.




Via

5:00PM - It started to pour, but we were getting ready for our movie night out! J was going to see Underworld with his dad and brother while my friends and I got tickets for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.



Via

6:00PM - It was growing darker by the minute and still pouring. Even so, Birkdale is a pretty place at night! There were only parallel parking lots available. I aced the parking bit, even though I held up the traffic for a good while.



Via

9:00PM - After we cried buckets, the movie ended. I got home and read a bad review about the movie here. Didn't think it was very fair, but certainly spot on about Hanks and Bullocks' non-contribution, as well as stellar performance by Von Sydow. I still think it's an ok watch, certainly a standard Hollywood tear-jerker.


Hope you had a productive weekend like I did!

On the grapevine...

Our carrots are all harvested. This is the lot.
I feel sad that we've been growing them for so long only to be devoured in ONE sitting.



We shared some with our dragons...



who by the way, is shedding. Verne is, at least.



Then I got busy crafting again, so there're new items in the Etsy! Whoo! This one is my favorite so far!


And i've finally learnt how to play "Dream a Little Dream of Me" on the guitar! Still practising and nursing swollen fingers.


Enjoy your weekend and be productive!

Santa's surprise?

This is going to be a morbid post.



But we found a dead mole in our driveway.



Poor buddy. R.I.P.

I hope that's not what Santa brought us this year!

The latest Russell addition

Hey Don Vito! We found you a buddy! Meet Verne on the right!

Verne is only 1.5 years old, a baby by Don Vito's standard, who is 4.


Sadly, bearded dragons are solitary creatures, as we've found out the hard way. No, no animals were harmed in the process, but Don Vito put on the biggest display of dominance last night. He did multiple head bobbings, his beard turned grey in annoyance and he kept climbing on top of Verne (again, a display of dominance in not letting the bottom dragon bask).

So we separated them the very next morning.



Here is Verne, safely and happily settled in his new environment.

I hope the J-man is NOT starting a collection.

Hola! Mexico!

So the $600/pax Expedia package got us an all-inclusive 5D4N deal at the Gran Bahia Precipe Coba Resort in the Riveria Maya area. A pretty sweet deal if you ask me because it included airfare, accommodation, meals and drinks for the week!

The Gran Bahia Precipe Coba was about an hour's drive away from the Cancun International Airport and we had pre-arranged private transfer to take us to the resort. On the way, along the Riveria Maya stretch, the front facades of all the resorts we passed were so large and grand, we couldn't help but feel excited about what was in store. I imagined myself to be bowled over by immaculate, minimalist zen looking grounds (like the resort two doors down) but instead, found ourselves chauffeured into the main lobby that enchanted with quiet old world rustic charm.

As we were transported to our 'villa' in one of the trams, we passed many restaurants, pools and lush greenery. I was attracted to the pop of colors - the orange buildings, washes of blue walls, but the J-man was more interested in the lizards lounging in the sun. We had also seen road signs that indicated the variety of life forms roaming the grounds.

First thing we did, of course, was to check out the beach. Grabbing a couple of drinks from the beach bar, we settled lazily on our deck chairs for the rest of the afternoon (and the whole of the next day). The sky never looked bluer, and the waters crystal clear. I think I just found heaven.



J and I agreed that it wouldn't be a proper trip to Mexico without visiting one of the New Seven Wonders of the World - the Kukulkan Pyramid. So we booked a day trip with the resort to Chichen Itza, with a bonus of swimming in one of the Cenotes (sinkhole) afterward. This was a full day trip beginning with our pickup at 830am, driving two hours to our destination, food and refreshment all provided. We had 2 tour guides - Riccardo who looked after our general well being (distributing water, keeping time and head count) and the other, the very knowledgeable Gilberto, our archaeological guide who is also of Mayan descent. His presentation was very detailed and he reminded me of one of my history professors in college. Although factual and informative, if J and I weren't all that interested in Mayan history, he would probably have lost our attention in the first ten minutes. In any case, i learnt that the Mayan word for lizard is tolok and the female equivalent is sh'tolok. And when locals say they have 'Mayan chicken' on the menu, they most definitely mean 'iguana'. The J-man perked up at that, but was disappointed to find out that it wasn't included in the lunch menu. Nope, I don't think the 20 other people in our group would be pleased to try anything that exotic.


Mayan chicken anyone?



The Kukulkan Pyramid of Chichen Itza

The other highlight of the day trip is cenote diving. Even though the one we went to is probably really, really touristy (read: complete with fake stalactites and all), it was an exhilarating experience stepping off the edge and plunging into the deep depths of the unknown. I can still remember the crazy butterflies in the tummy, the adrenaline just before you take off, and then the absence of sturdy concrete beneath the soles of your feet, the minute-too-late-regrets as you plunge into the pool below. I think the older we get, the more we think, the more worried we become (explains the creases on the forehead!) As I waited in line, I remember worrying about hurting my back, when the kid in front of me was attempting his second dive! Err.. Pish posh! I can do it too!



The next day, we booked an hour and a half snorkelling trip out to a bay that was about a 15min catamaran ride away. We were not too lucky that day, the waters were extremely rough, my mask way too big for me, and my underwater paranoia took ahold. I gave up after half an hour. No point driving myself into a frenzy trying to stay afloat, keep water out of my mask and trying to focus on the not so many sea creatures swimming by. I did float around a sea turtle for about a minute or so before it decided to come up to the surface right where I was. I freaked out, fighting the currents trying to swim away from it.

That snorkelling trip did me in, and I chose to relax by the pool (in the deck chair of closest proximity to the bar) for the rest of the day. Did i mention that the mojito was the resort's best drink? About 6 mojitos later (i think), we overslept and missed our Japanese restaurant reservation. We stepped in about an hour late, but they graciously accepted our tardiness and sat us down for our meal. J was looking forward to some uni (pronounced: ooh-knee) aka sea urchin sashimi, but was sorely disappointed. We could only pick from the set menu and their most exciting item on the menu was probably raw salmon.

That said, the food at the resort wasn't too bad. There were a few buffet locations, and the buffet spread at each location was varied enough to keep you interested even after 5 days. I'm not a picky eater. My motto is "When hungry, put food in mouth". I was pretty satisfied.

One thing to learn, maybe, 2 Colombian friends taught me to say "Por favor, me puedes dar agua."

May I have a glass of water please?

Very useful, considering how liberal the bartenders can be with the alcohol. Also, with intoxication comes incoherence. I think learning "agua" would suffice.

Feed the poor animals of Joplin, MO

With the recent Joplin tornado devastation, many pets were rendered homeless but lucky to still be alive. J and I were looking at the website (I forgot which) via Twitter at the pictures of all the poor little babies and was so on the verge of adopting a little puppy except that oh yes! we don't have a place of our own and the MIL is busy enough with tidying up after 2 doggies. BUT I found a little something EVERYONE can do!

Answer a trivia question at freekibble.com and they will donate 10 pieces of kibble per answer to feed dogs and cats in the animals shelters.

Click on the pictures below and spread the word!





Poor little kitty cats and doggie poos :(