About

Joe and I at our wedding, August 14th, 2010

Joe and I are recently married but have been together for almost 6 years now.  In April 2009 we purchased our first home together, an 80 year old farm house sitting on roughly 5 acres in Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula.  We have a variety of outbuildings including an enormous pole building, two smaller barns and a variety of old chicken coops and sheds.

Joe has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan Tech. and now works as an engineer at the Keweenaw Research Center just a few miles from our home.  I have a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering and an MBA, both from Michigan Tech. as well and currently work as a Pharmacy Technician.  In our spare time we enjoy fixing up our farm, spending time with our numerous animals, exploring local historical sites, and learning one of the many crafts we’ve taken up including – sewing, brewing beer, weaving on one of our three looms, woodworking/building, cooking, basket weaving, quilting, car repair etc… the list could go on and on

Buddy was our first pet…he is an almost 12 year old golden retriever-irish setter mix dog that is finally starting to slow down with his arthritis and a geriatric ear disease that knocks him off balance occasionally.  He enjoys eating sticks, walks and long naps in our sunroom.  He used to demolish pillows but has given up that activity for a calmer lifestyle in his old age.  Buddy had a rough first 6 years of his life but has become more dog-like in his past 6 years with us. He learned that water means swimming and tennis balls mean fun, he loves to roll in the snow (when he can get himself to lay down in it), walk in the woods and track deer and bunnies. He loves to take naps on the couch and in bed and he is good at sneaking in occasional visits to the liter box. He loves car rides, his three cat friends, and almost any kind of food.  He also semi-enjoys his puppy friend but she also exasperates him on occasion too! Buddy rarely barks but whines and groans and makes a variety of other noises for our enjoyment.

Buddy enjoying a stick in our field, July 2009

Ocean is a middle aged (7-8 years) cat of unknown origin who was rescued from a home that had almost 40 animals in it.  She is very cuddly (mostly in the middle of the night) and extremely loud. She is the first one to say good morning and runs to the door in the evening with the dog. She loves food… She eats her food, our food, dog food – any sort of food she can.  She loves catnip and her scratching post and chasing her toy mice around the house. She loves napping in her special spots which include the futon in the sun room, a cozy basket in the closet and on a blanket on our linen shelves.  She also enjoys spending time with her dog Buddy and best cat-friend Pinga.

Ocean hanging out on Joe’s suitcase after he got home from a business trip, December 2009

Pinga is a youngish (5-6 years or so) cat who has been with us for a couple of years now.  She enjoys catnip and people food, milk being one of her favourites (especially our raw, whole milk!).  She loves Ocean the best, and especially dislikes Chloe and Cora.  Often times we find the Ocean and Pinga together.  She loves sitting on the window ledge in the kitchen above the radiator and enjoys lounging on the dog beds or in the recliner when we’re gone.  She likes to play with toys and is very willing to chase fingers and toes that wiggle underneath blankets for fun.

Pinga sitting on the dining room table, August 2009

Cora is our newest animal.  She is a purebred German Shepherd and is full of energy at about 18 months of age.  She loves to put stuff in her mouth and has eaten holes in a number of pieces of my clothing along with eating books, shoes, trash and anything else she thinks is important.   She loves bones, balls and stuffed animals as well as dog cookies and all kinds of water.  She is adorable when she is fast asleep and is very intelligent and quick to learn when she is awake… although her puppiness often overwhelms me even at 18 months!  She is finally learning not to bite and for the past few months she has been free in the house while we’re gone during the day.  She still bothers the cats sometimes but she has learned to behave around Buddy and has turned into a great dog addition to our family!

Cora lounging on the sofa, October 2011

We also are the owners of about 70 chickens across 4 different breeds.  They lay a variety of white, light-dark brown, and blue-green eggs. If you’d like to learn more about them and our decision to get chickens you can see my Chicken Coop Tour post.

Our flock enjoying an afternoon snack, January 2010

As of April 2010 we are also playing host to two dwarf bunnies.  Grendel is brown and Bathilda is Black…we know they have crazy names They love toilet paper rolls, cat toys, hay and dried fruit.  They also enjoy some occasional bird seed and of course fresh fruits and veggies. They don’t like to be picked up very much but are curious and social if you just pet them.  They groom themselves and each other like cats and are most awake around dusk. We’re enjoying their company!

In October 2010 Chloe came home to us.  She is our largest cat and has been through a handful of families.  She is very bossy and pretty mean to the other two cats.  Chloe and Ocean have come to an understanding and co-exist peacefully, Chloe and Pinga do not like each other and try to avoid each other at all costs.  Hopefully someday they will learn to enjoy each others company too!  Chloe is incredibly snuggly with us and purrs and licks and is very sweet.  Her favourite spot is either the middle of the kitchen floor or napping on the back of the couch in the living room.  Recently she was put on a diet after having reached 20 pounds when she should only be around 10 pounds.  She doesn’t love the diet but we’re hoping she ends up healthier and happier after she has been on it for awhile.  Out of all the animals Chloe likes Cora the best and often plays with the dog which is very strange but it works!

Chloe, October 2010, exploring the top of the fridge.

Our newest animals are two house finches.  The smallest and possibly easiest to care for animals around here unless you count the occasional mouse.  Ginger came to us from a coworker of mine who no longer wanted her because they had so many birds.  Dill came to us from the pet store when we thought Ginger might need a friend.  Dill also had a friend with him and for about a week we had 3 finches but Ginger murdered Nutmeg and we ended up with only two finches.  We didn’t know they would be so mean or we would have kept them apart indefinitely.  Ginger and Dill were them separate for a few months but recently I have put them together again and they are always snuggling together on their perch and nothing bad has happened since! They chirp and sing from a shelf in the kitchen where the other animals can look and listen but not hurt them!

Finches and Ocean, July 2011.