Catnap

Exactly what I would like to be doing on this rainy day...

If only it were this easy...

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Taking the Audit section of the CPA exam two weeks from today.  After narrowly missing a passing score last time, I have broken out the big guns this time.  It also helps that I now work for an awesome company who will finance these big guns, of course. :)

I went the self study route the first time because there was no way that these ($3,000) big guns were in my budget at that time.  Do I feel in anyway more prepared?  I'm not sure.  I think that anyone who has experienced this CPA exam challenge would agree with me that it's impossible to ever really feel prepared.

I do know three things though.
1) I've already studied a ridiculous amount and am extremely tired of all topics audit but..
2) Starting tomorrow, you will find me studying at least 3 hours of each day between now and the 20th and..
3) I would love to try this osmosis kitten's method of study.

I call this Mr. Ace's "I'm going to kill you in your sleep for ruining my life" look.  If a glare could kill, I would definitely be dead as many times as I have seen it.

Merry Christmas from everyone in our house except the aforementioned angry feline!

There once was a girl

And she met a boy. And the boy was great and they liked each other very much.

But the boy had a cat. And the cat, he didn't much like the girl.And so he tried to hide from his feelings and from the growing affection between the boy and the girl.And he tried to use male bonding to drive the girl out.And he tried to have a heart to heart (or head to head) with the boy about the girl.But the boy's mind could not be changed and so they got engaged and then the next year the girl brought her things to the house of the boy and his cat. And the cat expressed his displeasure.But the girl did not leave. So, the cat laid in her freshly laundered towels.And he again expressed his displeasure. He said, "Why are you here and ruining my life?"But the girl did not leave. And eventually the boy and the girl decided that it was time to once again bring balance to the house. And so, in their most spontaneous and least thought about decision of the year, they adopted a girl kitten.
And she was happy and cuddly and wonderful.And they named her Halo after the boy's favorite video game at the time. And she kept the girl company through long nights of Xbox.And she served as a guard of the girl from the cat, albeit sometimes a sleepy one.And they all lived happily ever after. Except the cat who is suspected to be incapable of happiness. The end.

To puppeh or not to puppeh?

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I have mentioned at least once here how much I want to have a dog. While there were a few years of my life that there wasn't a dog in my house growing up, they are too far back for me to remember. Over the last few weeks, many people in my life have been getting themselves adorable puppehs (or in the case of Stephanie, an adorable and extremely comical rescue) and it has reignited my pining for one of my own. The weekly-ish visits with my "parents" dog just aren't cutting it anymore.

So, Doug and I have been discussing it and have come to the decision that it might be a good time to get a dog. I currently have my eye on both a cute beagle mix puppeh or a 3 year old Westie (the breed I grew up with) girl that is being retired from breeding. However, I can't seem to commit to this decision.

What is holding me back you ask? I have no idea but one minute I am gung ho and excited about getting a dog and the next I'm worried about the cat's reaction and how it will change our routine. My good friend Sarah told me that it is as simple as one question: "Will this puppeh enhance your quality of life?" But is it that simple? And so, dear internets, I ask you to please give me both your pros and cons on this issue so I can add to my confusion. :)

Milestones

I officially have one whole giant box of assorted wedding things. As shown here with our cat Ace.and

As of last Friday, we are officially under the one year mark! Hoping Stephanie gets a call back from the chaplain confirming our reservation this week!

I guess now that we have the box of stuff and the chapel, we are really going to do this thing, huh? This is, of course, if the several thousand in deposits we had down before this wasn't enough to convince us. Or that whole love thing, you know. :)

The Cat

I have just spent at least an hour looking at posts on Ihasahotdog. Pictures of puppies with hilarious captions always make me happy. This particular one struck a chord with me because our cat is the reason that I can't have a dog.

When I met Doug's cat Ace, (although all we call him is cat) I think I, being a major dog fan, was somewhat predisposed not to like him. And for a long time I didn't. He didn't appreciate my presence in his house and was pretty grumpy. I didn't like that he wasn't interested in any sort of bonding activity. Cats just aren't friendly like dogs are, and for a lifelong dog owner, this was hard for me to accept.

In the last three years, we have developed a relationship of tolerance and sometimes affection. We had him front declawed so that I no longer get hurt when he decides he is in a fighting mood. And I have even come to accept the fact that the times he chooses to be affectionate will never be at a time convenient to the humans.

So, that just leaves one thing. He hates dogs. Near Memorial Day last year, we went to the local humane society (Please opt to adopt) and got a beagle mix who ended up only spending one night with us. When the cat met the dog, a completely different side of our sleeps-22-hours-a-day feline was revealed. We honestly thought that, if given the chance, the cat would kill. Their first interaction included the cat going straight for the poor dog's neck with his teeth and claws. We kept them separated and returned the dog the next day. We just didn't have the time then to properly deal with getting it to work between them. I think I cried almost that whole day.

Since then I have been reading about how to acclimate dogs and cats and have been working on a plan. We have agreed to wait for a second try until we are able to move to a bigger house with a fenced in yard so that each animal will be able to have plenty of space. However, that has unfortunately not stopped me from pining with every adorable dog I see.