{ Idaho: the Critters }

For the past three years, Mike and I have gone to Idaho to visit my family over Labor Day weekend. In 2008, we'd been dating about five months...and he was the first guy I'd ever brought home to meet my family {I should probably clarify: Aside from a disastrous six-week relationship when I was 20, he was also the only man I'd ever dated.} It was a big deal. In 2009, we'd been married less than two months, and my family threw a big reception for us. It was amazing! And a big deal. Mike's family also made the trip and finally got to see where I grew up. In 2010, we actually went the weekend before Labor Day {that's when I was able to get time off}, and Mike's parents again joined us for part of the time. It was a fun, relaxing, laid-back long weekend.

My littlest brother, Obediah, with his two new horses, Teko and Bandit. I can't remember which is Teko and which is Bandit, but they are both gentle as kittens and love people. They think they are people. While both horses are very accustomed to humans, they are young {three and four years old} and need to be broken/trained. Obie has his work cut out for him--but if any not-quite-16-year-old guy can break two horses, it would be him!

My Dad petting two of his babies, Hokey Pokey {the Shih Tzu on his lap} and Ali {as in alley cat}. Or maybe that's Tu Tzu on his lap, and Bitty {as in bitty kitty} that he's petting. I really don't know. My parents have two Shih Tzus, which I can rarely tell apart when they're next to each other and never when it's just one of them. They also have two black cats with white markings, which I can never ever tell apart. Why they have nearly identical duplicate pets, I have no idea. It's probably to confuse the visitors. Come to think of it, Obie is following in their footsteps, getting two dark-colored horses, each with a blaze down his face, and I can't remember which of them is which either! Is it a conspiracy? I honestly never realized this before. It probably reveals some deep-seated psychological damage. I ought to suggest professional counseling for their duplicate-identical-pet issues.

Gus. Or, Angus Dougie McDog. This is sad. Gussie is now in the Happy Hunting Grounds. He was an old fellow, probably 12 or 13. {And there was only one of him.} Goodbye, Guster-buster. I'll miss you.

Either Bitty or Ali is an incredibly laid-back feline and will let Obediah do pretty much anything with her. As evidenced by this one photo, representative of numerous un-catlike poses that Bitty/Ali nonchalantly allows Obie to put her in. Bitty? Ali? Bali?