New Flooring

I definitely struggled to get pictures of the hamsters on the new flooring we have in our kitchen and dining room.  I knew they would all need a very enticing treat so they wouldn't just run off while I was stuck laying on the floor to get the pictures.  So the boys got walnut which is their favorite, and Haleth got a pecan which is her favorite.  Anyways, back to the flooring.  I was nervous about the designs for this remodeling project because everything we picked out was so much darker than what we had.  However, the granite is quite shiny, and the black flooring we picked reflects way more light than the carpet could which is definitely not something I had considered so that was a nice surprise.  In general, everything actually looks brighter and more open!  We really love it so much!

In case I haven't said it yet, I think I am finally accepting that Fili has turned into a grumpy old ham.  I don't mind too much, but I think that's mostly because Kili is still a little darling and they look identical.  😂

For the record, I remember their names by saying "Kili is kind".  I never bothered to come up with something for Fili, but at this stage of his life, I think it would be "Fili is fury".  😅  I do love them both and love that they are unique even though I can't tell them apart in pictures.  I totally made a system of always photographing Kili first which is really only because his bin sits on the shelf above Fili and I start at the top and work my way down.  I also use watermark placement to keep the pictures straight.  I gotta say, this will probably be the last time I get identical hams at the same time.  😂

I'm quite obsessed with Haleth.  She such a gorgeous girl and even though she's more timid than any other ham I've had, she is still so sweet and fun to watch, especially when she eats.  😍

Granite Countertops

I have been terrible at blogging recently!  I definitely got out of the habit of taking pictures of the pets regularly which meant I didn't have anything to blog which meant I forgot about blogging, so even when I did get pictures, I didn't post them.  That said, these pictures are fairly old now.  😅  Back in July I talked about our kitchen being remodeled.  That project has been done for a while now, and we love it so much!  I didn't really have very good lighting when I took these, but you can kinda see our awesome granite countertops.  I recently looked at the pictures of our house from when it was listed before we bought it, and I was shocked at how different it is now.  It didn't feel like we did much because the work was spread out over the last 5 years.  Our next project has to be our deck because it's falling off of the house, so that's fun.  One thing I have learned about home ownership is that there never seems to be a shortage of projects to work on.  There will always be something to keep me busy, but I'm not complaining because I love our house and our neighbors so moving seems out of the question.  😊

Fili is fairly difficult to photograph.  He has become more and more of a recluse and doesn't like me touching him that much.  When he is out, he can be a bit wild.  Hahaha!

Kili is still a sweetheart that can be won over with treats.  He actually isn't quite as round anymore, but still just as kissable.  My boys are about a year and 9 months old now so I expect they will start showing their age soon.

Haleth is such a little angel.  I wish I had had the time to carry on the tradition of making Halloween costumes for her to wear.  I think she would have done well with them.  If she is still around next Halloween, I'll definitely make her something nice to wear.  💓

Plants

 I've been very aware of the season changing these last few weeks.  I think I've realized that fall might be my least favorite season in part because I know what follows.  But as much as I also dislike winter, I think by the time I'm actually in the midst of it, I find myself enjoying it and thus winter isn't my least favorite season.  Which by the way, I'd treat fall the same, but where I'm from, the days that I categorize as "fall" are few are far between.  Instead the weather jumps back and forth between cold and hot so fast that I can't find myself enjoying any of it.  At least in winter I know to just expect cold and can at least dress appropriately without changing my outfit multiple times throughout the day.  Hahaha!  Anyways, I've been intentional to start now to form habits and routines that will help me get through the winter blues I normally experience.  It's the little things like opening up the bedroom blinds that normally stay closed so that I can get just a bit more light in the house.  The extra light also helps with all the plants I have now that I didn't have last fall.  I told myself not to buy anymore since I don't know how well they will handle winter at my house, but I bought 2 just yesterday.  😂

Fili had zero interest in looking at my plants.  He wanted to see what else was on the bookshelf.  He also wouldn't touch the lettuce I offered him.  Oh well!

Kili stopped for just a moment to sniff my heartleaf philodendron, but then like his brother, he ran off.  I actually don't have any of the plants in these pictures anymore because I gave them all to my sister who is finally settled into her new house!  In addition to the heartleaf philodendron, I gave her a jade pothos, pearls & jade pothos, marble queen pothos, cream allusion syngonium, zz, asparagus fern, and orchid.  All of these were propagated or split from my own plants with the exception of the orchid.  😊

Haleth was a perfect little model and actually appreciated the lettuce I gave her.  I love going through the pictures to see the progression of the lettuce disappearing.  😁

Orchids

I would say that my history with plants has been a bit odd.  I never really thought of myself as a plant person until very recently.  For a while, I actually didn't like plants that much because I killed so many of them that they felt like a waste of money.  I realize now that the dark, cave-like house we were renting was a big factor as to why so many of my plants died, especially all those poor succulents and cacti.  😢  About 5 years ago, when Joe and I bought our house (which has lots of bright, beautiful light), I also bought a dying orchid from Lowes for half off.  Much to my surprise, the orchid grew a new stem and bloomed.  My success with this orchid (which I understood to be a very difficult plant to keep alive) gave me the confidence to buy more orchids and other plants.  I learned about propagation and gave it a try on some random plants I had received 7 to 8 years ago from various family memorial services.  These plants had been the only ones that survived the cave we were living in and quickly began to thrive at our new house with more light.  My success with propagation only fueled my interest to learn more about plants.

In May, my friends and I quite unintentionally found ourselves at Honey Plant.  The short version of that story is that we were participating in the Fort Wayne Treasure Hunt and were hungry and decided to eat at Big Eyed Fish, but Joe and I forgot to grab masks and as we were discussing what to do, we were standing in front of Honey Plant and saw a sign on their door that said free masks available, so we went in.  We walked out with masks and new plants.  Ever since then, my love for plants seems to have taken a turn more towards obsession.  I'm still pretty new to truly understanding how to properly care for plants, but my plants are thriving, and they brighten up my life.  For the record, we still have WAY fewer plants than we do board games.  😅

6 out of my 8 orchids are currently blooming, so I had to capture some of their beauty!  Fili really wasn't interested in participating in this little set up.  He didn't even want his treat.  But at least he sat still for some pictures.  😊

I can always count on Kili to eat basically every treat offered to him.  He is such a cute ham.  😍

Haleth tends to freeze up whenever I set her down.  She did stretch herself far enough to reach her treat, stuff it in her cheek, and then she sat and stared at me.  She's so stickin cute!!  😊

 

Chilling by the Window

I have definitely been struggling to get some things like blogging and posting on social media back into my schedule and routines.  I know that part of my struggle is that I find myself disliking social media more and more.  But, I'm trying to refocus on the good because it is there if you look hard enough.  I also want to make sure that I am being a part of that good.  I often wonder if posting pictures of my pets, animals, and babies can make a difference and be "good", but these are all things I find joy in and I hope you can too.  😊  So here is the start of me getting back into social media.

Fili has been less interested in being held and I haven't been holding him as much which just continues the cycle.  But I know he is a happy little guy, so he can be left alone more if that's what he wants.  😊

I have not seen Kili awake much but I've also not been spending as much time with my hamsters.  I do know that Kili is happy being held and snuggled.  He's a sweet round boi.  😁

Haleth definitely prefers to hide and wait to come out until we go to bed.  However, whenever I do bride her with treats to come out, she does seem to enjoy being held and having the opportunity to explore.  So I keep working with her.  I call her my sweet wittle yam.  😍

Granite Sample

As I have mentioned before, Joe and I have been saving up to update our kitchen.  Since we made the decision that we would do it this summer, our plans have evolved so much.  The process of picking out flooring and counter top took us a while.  When we were finally in agreement, we headed to Lowes to place our orders, starting with the laminate counter top we picked out.  Much to our surprise, we we told that due to the difference in installation fees, granite has been coming up cheaper than laminate and sure enough, that was true for us.  So we obviously choose to save money and buy granite instead of laminate.  😁  However, this put us back at square one in terms of picking out flooring that matched the new counter top we picked out.  It's been a long wait since placing our order, but today the company is here taking the actual measurements for the granite counter top.  Once that is installed, we'll order our flooring and schedule to have that installed.  We definitely aren't going to have this finished before school starts, but we are fine with that as it will be so much nicer than we were hoping for!  In the meantime, I've been staring at this tiny sample trying to imagine how awesome the kitchen will look when it's finished!  😍

Fili apparently doesn't like watermelon.  That's okay though since hamsters shouldn't have that much of it anyways.  He also didn't want to sit for pictures, but I got one of him.  😅

Kili seemed interested in the watermelon, but also didn't actually eat any of it.  He's always been very food motivated, but now I know that there is something he won't eat.  😂

Haleth didn't really fit on the small square of granite because she refused to get close to the watermelon.  She kinda just froze when I set her there.  I think between the cold granite and the new food in front of her, she didn't really know what to do.  She sure is cute though!  😊

Cutting Board

The last couple weeks have been a weird mix of feeling like time is both dragging on and flying by.  I missed posting last week or even earlier in this week.  Overall, Joe and I are having a wonderful summer break.  But, we have been dealing with car troubles this week.  Thankfully, with a new battery and starter, I think we are good to go again.  Shout out to our friend and neighbor James for driving us around this past week!

I also have to take a moment to talk about this GORGEOUS cutting board!  My brother-in-law Quinn made this!  😍  Y'all should make sure to hit him up!

Fili is the king of tunneling and recently he made his nest against the side of the tub so I've been able to watch him sleep.  He's so stinkin cute!

I recently caught both Kili and Fili awake at the same time, each sitting in the same corner of their own bins, eating a snack during the day.  I love how connected they still are!  Isn't Kili is so precious?!

Haleth is the cutest little teddy bear!  I wish she was a bit more cuddly, but I am okay with her being timid.  Thankfully she can easily be won over with treats.  😊

Chair

The weeks seem to be flying by!  We've made some exciting progress in regards to our kitchen/dining room remodel, but so far it's just in purchases, not actual work.  It looks like Joe may be back in school before all the work is actually completed, but that is fine.  I have definitely been struggling a bit to keep a good routine/schedule going to keep up with all the extra work I'd like to do.  The "to do" list seems to keep growing, but I haven't really felt too overwhelmed yet.  I know I'll get it all done eventually.  And if not, it must not have been too important, amirite?!   😅  But seriously, I am feeling so blessed that I can ease up a bit on work and lists to instead cherish this extra time with Joe.

Fili definitely loves walnuts more than anything else.  A good walnut always makes him stop and eat.  😊

Kili pouched his walnut instead of eating it which really surprised me.  I guess he was worried that I would take it away from him.  😂

I did a really thoroughly cleaning of Haleth's bin yesterday and removed probably 75% of her old bedding for fresh bedding.  I don't do that often because it's stressful to hamsters so instead, each week I normally just throw out the messiest bedding and all the sand and replace both with fresh stuff.  Anyways, she didn't seem as upset as I thought she would be, and I picked her up and held her a lot during the process.  I think she's finally really comfortable enough to handle new situations and changes well without freaking out, so that's nice.  😊