Rufus, my original fur child.

How was everyone's Wednesday? Kick-ass, I hope!

Tonight's post is random. I could only think of two things to write about: how glad I am that summer weather has finally hit Milwaukee, and a certain fur child.

First things first. It's officially summertime in the Milwaukee area, and about damn time. The past two days have had on again / off again thunderstorms, and our garden is kicking into high gear. Soon, our raspberry bushes will be in bloom with fruit, and my tiger lillies will finally come around for the season. 

These photos are from last year, I just can't believe such beautiful things grew in our yard.


And when I think of beautiful colorful things, one special little furry man immediately comes to mind... 


Rufus. My first fur child.

About seven years ago, right after Zak and I met each other, I adopted a cat from the Wisconsin Humane Society. The adoption counselor told me that he was a 'special' kitten, was borderline not rescuable when they found him, and who may not ever fully warm up to people. All I saw was the cutest little boy, ever. 

Rufus is definitely not your typical cat. While he is very handsome, he prefers to be admired from afar. He does not  like to be held or cuddled, and is overall pretty wild. But he never ceases to amuse me with his curiosity and antics.

He makes a great gargoyle...

...and is surprisingly adventurous. He didn't mind checking out snow...

Okay, that was all Zak. Rufus wasn't really wanting to put these on.


He makes a great portrait subject...

His current favorite activity is lounging in an old box, watching the birds. Must be nice.

While Clay the puppy and Blue the dog are animals that actually enjoy human company and therefore get most of our attention, Rufus is my original fur child. Our home wouldn't be complete without him.


You do the talking: Are you a cat person, or dog person? 
I used to be a cat person, but Rufus changed that. He's cute, but pretty bonkers. I'm now more of a dog person.

Groundhog Day Blizzard of 2011

The past 24 hours have been pretty incredible, thanks to the massive Groundhog Day Blizzard of '11 that passed through Milwaukee. Last night, I experienced things I had only read about in history books... high winds, snow that blew up instead of down, whiteout conditions and thunder snow. It was Nature in all of its power and glory. Destructive, yet beautiful. I could barely peel myself away from the window to get some sleep, and in the morning I awoke to bright sunshine and stark white.

Our backyard looked like it had whipped frosting poured over it an unevenly swirled about.
And yes, I just compared a blizzard to frosting. This is a food blog, folks.

The drift to the right of my car was about 5 feet high!

Even our covered front porch (1/2 level up from our driveway, and a full story up from the street) had drifts!

 It was quite a bit to take in. Zak and I were grateful that everyone we knew had spent the night at home and safe from the storm. I was pleased with our two kind neighbor men who came over to help Zak finally fix our snowblower, which he hadn't figured out how to get started since we purchased it in September. Today was definitely the day to get it operating!


Our dog Blue loved the snow, and Zak even brought out Rufus the cat to try it out.

Snow Cat?

He looks pretty hesitant...

Time to head back indoors. Brr!

The whole ordeal was pretty hilarious. Surprisingly, Rufus didn't mind going in the snow. Perhaps we'll try again tomorrow!


The killer icicles continue to grow and become more sinister-looking...

How's the weather where you live? Did you experience any bit of this crazy, region-wide storm? Have you experienced a "Storm of the Century" before? I am admittedly a history nerd, so I thought it was a pretty wild experience to have witnessed this blizzard! 

Whirlwind Spring

Friends, has an entire month really passed by? I've been a busy gal! A few big updates:

1. We bought a house.

Closing is April 30th - coming up fast! We can't wait to move in.

2. My 'Maid of Honor' duties have been in full effect.

Stefanie's bridal shower was a couple weeks ago, check out this awesome cheesecake from Simma's Bakery, with chocolate ganache and raspberry layer. Mmmmmm.

Currently, I am recovering from the great bachelorette weekend of all bachelorette weekends (more to follow).

3. I was a model / actress in a wedding showcase at The American Club in Kolher, Wisconsin. Golden Chic Events put on the extravaganza, check out this link for a full recap.

While it's been busy, and will get busier with work, I have a bunch of great stuff planned for Backstage Pass... including a Celestial Seasonings Tea giveaway!

Stay tuned within the next few days for all of the details ;-D