Morning fun: Candied walnut shortbread and Caraway-Pine nut-Red Pepper-Smoked Gouda savory biscotti.

The shortbread is the walnut version of the pecan and almond versions. Of the three, the almond is my favorite. ( Pecan shortbread post, Almond shortbread post )

The biscotti – more on them in another post but suffice to say…VERY good! -Especially with a glass of wine.

A gloomy day but we all headed outside just before noon.

“Phhht you darn kitten!”

Bear is off to Beardog Point after being a bit pestered by Auggie.

But Auggie was not to be deterred…

The kitten wins.

On to the adventure:

I did not climb that ladder.

Hard to see but there are 2 trees very close…a very small one and a medium small one. Auggie went up the small one and got higher than he wanted to be.

I think he would have come down on his own, but he was obviously a bit distressed and so was I.

I knew that between the slope and the snow, there was no way I could safely go up the ladder, so arranged the blanket to entice Auggie onto the ladder. The blanket has an open weave that I knew his claws could grab and I thought the appearance would look safe to him.

Success.

That darn leader is darn heavy and by the time I got it over there, etc., etc. and Auggie down, I decided to put the ladder where I will probably need it next…

It is warm, sloppy and melting today and I haven’t had to clear any of the roof yet, but it is to get colder and it is only mid-December so it is likely we will get more snow :) !!

After all of that, I came in, took several Advil and had an early cocktail hour before a 2:00 p.m. late lunch.

Fun and Adventure on a Saturday.

Hard to tell in this late afternoon photo but we had another mostly sunny day and it went from -7 to 8F today!

I think Auggie feels the cold but he LOVES to be out with Bear so after our 2 afternoon walks, I let Auggie out with us while Bear had his after walk treats.

I think Bear enjoys him being out for the after-walk…they nose-touch and generally mosey about together.

I’ve not had a problem getting Auggie to come in. Bear’s feet seem to feel the cold and Bear is happy to come when I call – then I call Auggie and rattle the bag of feline greenies and Auggie comes running also.

I wish I’d measured Auggie: nose to tail when I first got him. I think he’s grown quite a lot…but it would be fun to know length and height. I only know weight and he is just under 10 pounds from a start of slightly over 3 1/2 pounds.

Growin’ up and havin’ fun!

*** After the lunchtime walk, we all took a brief Jeep ride. I’ve been taking Auggie for short rides to help him get used to going. Today was the first I took them both. All well. Auggie is still a bit vocal. Bear nosed the carrier several times which calmed Auggie so we’ll do joint trips now. Bob got much better about car trips after going in the motorhome so when it gets warmer, we’ll give that a try!

No fire was going at the time, but they are both in front of the woodstove and Auggie is in the spot Bob preferred when there was a fire going.

Bear…I’m not sure what happened…he might have been loath to get in his chair with Auggie at the same level. Auggie plays with his tail, with his feet and then tries to snuggle up. I’ve counseled Auggie that the reverse order might work better, but generally speaking, Bear is a bit suspicious of close contact!

Auggie will also try to twine around Bear’s legs, but this is generally after a sneak attack and again, Bear is understandably skittish after being pounced on.

Overall, I am still amazed at how much Bear tolerates from Auggie considering his general opinion of cats. Bottom line, it is fun and it is heartwarming that they get along as they are.