And then life got in the way....

As you have probably figured out, some of these posts were not posted around the time they happened.  What can I say, life got in the way.  I had a whole bunch of these typed up and needing minor edits, but never got around to psoting them.  Here they are for your enjoyment, and know that you'll be caught up soon enough!

When Harry Met Sally.....

....or HK met ZC!

I'm sure you're all dying to know the story of how we met and fell madly in love, right? Actually, it's not a very movie-worthy story, and is rather brief, but fun nonetheless.

HK moved to my middle school in the 8th grade. I can recall the morning that he walked into my choir class with his identical twin brother. That immediately made them the topic of conversation for days. It turned out that we had a couple other classes together, and over the next weeks we became pretty good friends. I made the mistake of mentioning to my BFF at the time that I had a little crush on him. Wrong move because the next thing I know he and my BFF were an item (oh the perils of young love!). Actually it was something I got over pretty quickly, and then we entered high school where our paths didn't cross again until senior year.

I remember seeing him that first day in Calculus and thinking he'd really matured over the years, and he was looking pretty good. I evidently ruined any chance we may have had with some embarrassing comment about his finger tapping. Senior year came and went, and he continued to loathe the day I was born (apparently I REALLY embarrassed him).

After graduation I (briefly) went away to college, and HK attended college close to home. I ended up moving back home, and one fateful Saturday at Best Buy, HK and I ran into each other*. We got to chatting, I forced my phone number upon him, he called, we went on our first date, and that's where it all began.

We had an amazing 4 year run before we got engaged during a trip to Myrtle Beach. We bought a house and got married (which was quite a fun day if I say so myself) a little over a year later, and are now living the dream and coming up on our 4-year anniversary. It's hard to believe that we've been together for 9 years, but we both agree it's been the most amazing 9 years of our lives. See, not only are HK and I husband and wife, but we're the best of friends. Sure we have the occasional spat now and then, but for the most part we enjoy every second of every day with each other. There's nobody else I would rather share this journey with, and I thank God for blessing me that fateful Saturday in Best Buy........

(*That's the polite way of saying I caught him looking at my butt)

Meet and Greet

I promised you a post of introductions, and boy do I make good on my promises! Just so you know, there will be a test at the end of the post, as well as a question and answer session, and opportunity for autographs. Kidding....

THE STAFF:

ZC: That's me! Loyal slave to the animals that run our house. Like I mentioned before, I've been an animal lover for as long as I can remember. My family can even attest to that fact, as a puppy was always at the top of my birthday and Christmas list until about age 15 when I realized it wasn't going to happen!

Outside of the animals, I have a lot of interests. First and foremost is spending time with HK. He's my best friend, and things aren't quite as fun when he's not around. Together, we're huge entertainment buffs, so we really enjoy an evening in watching a movie on our home theater system. I'm into all things crafty, and love photography. I'm in the process of saving for an SLR, and can't wait until I can actually afford one!

HK: The man of the house!  HK doesn't have quite the fondness for animals that I do, but he loves them all the same.  Outside of the animals, HK has lots of interests.  I like to think that I'm not speaking out of turn when I say that he enjoys spending time with me!  He also enjoys sports (both playing and watching), video games (just playing, watching drives him crazy), and home renovations (ok I admit I put that in there because I enjoy when he does home renovations!).

THE MEMBERS:

The cat house is the largest exhibit in our zoo, going 4 members strong!

The eldest member is CALVIN (aka Me Boy, Old Codger) who joined us at 11 weeks old. He was the first to join the zoo, and what a ride it's been with codger! He literally makes us want to pull our hair out on a daily basis. He doesn't get along with any other animal in the zoo, so therefore he lives in our master bathroom. Does that tell you our dedication to this cat? We gave up our bathroom (along with any hopes of having a nice smelling bedroom) so we could maintain peace in the zoo. He has a problem with puking, pooping outside the litter box, and hissing at anyone/anything, yet purrs all night long while sleeping in bed with us! It's not any stretch of the imagination that he's unhappy with his living situation at the zoo. In fact, it's the fact that there is a zoo that makes him so miserable. He really needs to be an only cat- strike that -only animal in the house, so at some point in the future he may be re-located to a house where he can be the only one getting love and attention. Until then, we will continue to put up with his antics, and snuggle with him at night!

The next to join was HOBBES (aka Baby Kitty) at the ripe old age of 6 weeks. When we got Baby Kitty, we had no intentions on getting any more. We had a Calvin, therefore, we had to have a Hobbes, right?. The irony that these two are mortal archenemies, and literally hate each other, doesn't escape us.

This little boy is my heart and soul. He's my favorite (I call BS to anyone who says they don't have favorites), and he returns the same affections. He was extremely young and pathetic when we adopted him, and I literally think he imprinted on me. He's pure joy to have in the zoo. He misbehaves just enough to make it cute, but not enough to make him bad! He is the socializer and eternal host when people come to visit. He demands pets from all guests, and will even give you a tour of the zoo grounds if you desire. HK and I have jokingly commented that when cloning becomes more reliable, we would love to clone him.

Next to join the madness was MILO (aka Binder) at 13 weeks old. HK made a comment that he'd like to have a Sylvester cat someday, and I made someday come sooner rather than later! Binder is the fat, lazy one of the bunch. He literally spends hours every day doing nothing, that is until guests come over. He HATES when people come over to visit, and will vocalize his distaste for hours (really it's minutes but that didn't emphasize my point enough). Then suddenly he will accept our visitors and beg for pets. He's also the idiot of the bunch, as you can literally hear the little hamster in his head running on the wheel. However, all these qualities make him extremely funny and entertaining.

The final member of the cat house, is also the only provider of estrogen to the zoo other than myself. MIA (aka Bia) joined the zoo at 7 weeks old. She was the red-headed step child that HK didn't want, but I pleaded for. She has turned out to be the least time-consuming member of the zoo. Nearly invisible, despite her size (we call her a watermelon on legs), we refer to her as our inside outside cat. The only thing she requires is food and a litter box. The anti-social thing doesn't need, or desire, affection from anyone, and can either be found sleeping behind the couch or on one of the dining table chairs.

We only have one member in the canine exhibit, but boy does he keep us busy. DUNCAN (aka Roo, Dunky) joined the zoo at 8 weeks old. This little Boston Terrier is the eternal ball of energy. He totally fulfills what he was bred for (companionship) because he loves nothing more than hanging out with humans. If you gave him the choice between food or attention, he would take attention every time. He brings so much entertainment to the zoo (much to the cats dismay), and he's become the light of HK's eyes. Other than being extremely excited when he's around people, he's actually a very well behaved/trained dog that we love immensely.

Wow, feel like you know us better than your own family? Well, get ready because the next couple posts are going to make you feel like we're best friends!

Welcome to Our World!

Welcome to our wonderful little world that we lovingly refer to as "The Endless Zoo". A world full of love, occasional chaos, and of course animals!

We've created this blog as a way for our friends and family all across the world to keep up with our zoo, and the madness that ensues. Don't fret though. This blog won't be entirely about our animals. We actually do have a life away from them (shocking I know), and have lots to share with everyone.


First off, why don't we do some minor introductions? I've got a bigger post planned for introductions (complete with pictures) in the next day or two, so I'll make this brief.

I find it fitting to continue with the zoo theme, so from here on out I'll refer to myself as the zoo curator (ZC). Which makes a lot of sense considering I have pretty much chosen every animal that has joined our zoo! I've had a love for animals for as long as I can remember, but never fully intended on having this large of a zoo in our suburban home!

As for the hubby, well, I'll call him the Head ZooKeeper (HK). Much to his dismay, it does sum up his responsibilities, especially lately (which we'll get to later). While he doesn't have quite the exuberance for all the animals as much as I do, he's quite the sport and has grown to love each zoo member in his own way.


Now that the short intros are over, here's a couple tidbits about myself that you may want to know before we dive into this "blogworld" together.....

1. I'm honest - brutally honest sometimes. (With the minor exception of our real names. That's more for safety precautions. I'd prefer to not have my identity stolen, or be stalked by some internet weirdo-so these are the names you're getting!) What I mean by that is I don't hold much back when explaining things. I tend to explain in full detail, and sometimes tell you things that you never really wanted to know in the first place. Sorry, it's a quirk of mine, and something you'll have to overcome if you want to continue reading.

2. This goes directly with #1. I tend to cuss--- a lot! For the sake of who might be reading, I'll really try to censor myself (at least the big ones!), but don't be surprised or offended it one occasionally slips out. You can't say you weren't warned!

3. I will make numerous references to my personal beliefs. None of it is meant to spark debates, or offend anyone. It's just that my beliefs are a huge part of who I am. Honestly, I'm a very open-minded person, and truly appreciate it when people don't believe the same things that I do. However, if references about our family's belief in Christianity make you uncomfortable, this may not be the blog for you.


Now that we got those out of the way, thank you for sticking with me so far. You'll also come to learn that I'm pretty wordy (maybe I should have made that #4!), but you'll thank me for it in the long run!



So, without further adieu, welcome to our little blog, and ENJOY!



ZC & HK