Welcome to the Blogging from A to Z Challenge for 2026!
My theme this year is things that I'm grateful for.
It's a broad and varied theme but was surprisingly easy to fill in each letter!
I'm starting with animals, well - because I wuv them!
We are sadly down to only one pet in our house.
DaisyMae
She was born in Sis1's barn in May 2015 and her brother & sister still live there, however they moved into the house.
I am her human, altho she can tolerate the Spouse. When we first brought her home, I sat on the couch for hours while she snuggled up against me until she got comfortable enough to explore.
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Day 1
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She slowly started to explore and discovered the fish!
She's weird that she will be snoozing in on the bed and when we go into the bedroom, she will look horrified and run & hide. But if I go lay on the bed, she'll get up there and snuggle with me. If the Spouse goes in there, she will again wait for me before hopping back up there, and she will lay on his pillow with him and let him pet her (but only if I'm there!)
She's slowly letting the grandkids see her - if she's laying with me, she waits to see what they're going to do before hiding. She might get as far away from the grandson as possible, but still be on the bed, watching & ready to run. But the granddaughter? She's gone!
This pretty girl is "Passionate Kisses" a Paint/Arab mare.
She actually belongs to Sis1, but she was 'my' horse for the search & rescue mounted unit.
She will be 23 years old next month and has since been retired to the well-deserved position of "Pasture Ornament".
Daisy wasn't always our only critter.
Last year, we had 2 others cross the Rainbow Bridge within 6 weeks of each other.
Maddie & Rusty
Madison aka "MaddieMoo"
gotcha day July 2012 - April 2025
She chose the Spawn from the Humane Society, but once we brought her home, the Spouse became her human. This picture was actually taken at the vet's office before they helped her to cross.
Rusty aka "Orange Boy"
gotcha day April 2017 - May 2025
Another adoption from Sis1's barn, but he'd been dumped there. And he was such a nice boy that we couldn't resist bringing him home. He took to being an indoor cat very quickly, but also knew the harness meant he could go outside!
The rest...
Skeeter (top) I brought home as a kitten in September 2000 and he was 11 when he got a kidney stone.
He'd been my shadow and always came when I sat down and announced that I had a lap.
Chester adopted me from the Human Society in 2002. They said he was 3 or 4, but we had him for 14 awesome years before he passed away in his sleep.
Maggie was also dumped at Sis1's barn and her tiny little body popped out 5 or 6 huge litters of kittens before I took her in 2006, got her spayed and brought her home. The Spouse was her hooman, but she loved everyone. We lost her to a Grand Mal seizure 3 months after Skeeter.
Jack was the best Beagle anyone could ask for. He knew who was supposed to be around our house, so the neighbors were all fine when they were out in their yards. People walking by just got a quick glance. But if anyone came up our driveway? He'd bay at them. That was the only time he really ever made noise, other than when we messed with his tennis ball. Heart disease finally got him at almost 15 years old in February 2018.
Princess Daisy.