The Walker Blog

Gus Laughing (11-12-10)

Posted by Steve and Cat Walker | Videos of Gus | 3:08 PM

Gus in the Snow (December 18, 2010)

Posted by Steve and Cat Walker | Videos of Gus | 3:07 PM

November Update

Posted by Cat's Litterbox | Pets and Life | 6:14 PM

Where to start?? Right after Mindy Jo passed, Cathy had the opportunity to help a friend of one of the MOMS Club members. The family had a cat named Hobo and they had to relocate for health purposes. They asked if anyone could take Hobo for a few months until they were able to bring him to their new place. Cathy asked Steve about it and he said sure. We had Hobo with us for just over a week when Hobo's mom called to say that they'd be able to take him sooner than they had hoped! Just when Toebe was getting to love Hobo, it was time for him to go. This left Toebe very sad and he walked around the house crying and looking for Hobo.

Our neighbor Wendy wanted to adopt a puppy from the Wake County SPCA and had told Cathy about it. Cathy went online to the SPCA's website and saw that they had an October special... $20 cat adoptions! So on Wednesday, October 27th we went to the SPCA to see the kitties and fell in love with two. One was named Quincy and the other was Perry Como. We decided to adopt them both, and we renamed them.

Quincy became "Bing Clawsby"

He is a 14 month old Maine Coon cat!

Perry Como became "Purry Como"

Purry was rescued from a research lab here in NC

The addition of Purry and Bing has been amazing. They get along with Eddie and Toebe and even more surprising, Purry and Elphie really like each other!!

Cathy's parents are coming today for a week long visit and then Steve's dad and Sue Ann are coming next Wednesday through Saturday for the holiday. We're very excited to spend time with them and for them to spend time with Gus!!

We'll post again soon! In the meantime, be sure to check Gus's blog every Tuesday for updates and pictures!!!
:)
The Walkers

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

Posted by Cat's Litterbox | Pets and Life | 5:11 PM

Today is a very sad day in our house. Cathy had to take our oldest kitty, Mindy Jo, to the vet this morning. For a while now, Mindy has been losing weight and not really eating. She's an older cat, and has been in Steve's life since he was in college at UD.

Mindy has had some problems with her kidneys and thyroid and was on medication twice a day. Lately, she got to the point that she wouldn't take her medicine, and started to refuse food. While very sick, she still purred and was as vocal as ever.

Cathy took Mindy to the vet this morning and they basically said that the most humane thing to do would be to let her go to a better place. It was a heartbreaking decision, but one made out of love and compassion. Mindy was a wonderful cat and loved Steve more than anyone on the planet. She was "his cat" and he was "her person." They shared a love that radiated throughout the house and it was always a pleasure to watch them interact with each other.

At 11:30am Mindy passed on to a place where she is joined by Bob and Tommy. We are sure that the three of them are playing together and are as youthful as kittens. All three passed from illness and left our family too soon.

While we cannot say that losing a pet is as devistating as losing a child, we can say that it hurts and is painful. There's a hole in our family that cannot be replaced. Mindy was loud, bitchy, and stubborn, but she was a beautiful friend and brought so much love and comfort to Steve throughout her 14 years as his kitty.

We came to North Carolina in June of 2007 and brought with us six cats, a dog, and a tortoise. We lost Bob is September of 2007, then lost Tommy this past February, and then took Hurmin to Cathy's parent's house in April of 2010. We then gained our puppy Elphaba in May of this year, and now we've lost Mindy. That leaves us with Toebe, Eddie, Elphie and Ned.

-The Walkers

Wednesday, September 29th, 2010

Posted by Cat's Litterbox | Family Update | 3:30 PM

So it's been over a month since we last posted and so much has happened! In case you didn't know, Gus has his own blog (he's such an over-achiever) and it's updated every Tuesday. You can find the link to his blog on the side of this blog... definitely subscribe so you can follow his growth and development. He's now 20 weeks and has quite the personality.

9-11-10 Gus @ 4 Months

Gus will light up when he sees his mom. He is, hands-down, a mama's boy. He loves-loves-loves Cathy. He should, she is staying home with him and they spend their days laughing, snuggling, and getting to know each other. Gus is a VERY happy little guy and is always laughing, chatting, and smiling. He likes to be talked to, and will eagerly talk back when he's being engaged in conversation.

A few weeks ago we had dinner at McDonald's (yes... not the healthiest choice, but it was 7pm and we needed to get Gus home for bed) and had salads. Well, we paid for it because we both came down with an EXTREME case of food poisoning. We both were up all night throwing up, and thankfully our neighbor Wendy came over in the morning and took Gus for us so we could sleep. She also ran to CVS and got us some crackers, Pepto and Gatorade. She's an amazing friend!

Two weeks ago we drove up to Indiana to surprise Steve's dad for his 60th surprise birthday. It was a wonderful occasion and it really meant the world to his dad for us to come up. He got to see Gus and he and Sue Ann were both amazed at how big Gus had gotten! It was a quick weekend trip, but we went to the oldest orchard in Indiana, and we enjoyed our time with them. They're planning on coming to see us for Thanksgiving, and Gus will be six months!

Gus and Grandpa Walker

Picture taken by Greta at the party... SO CUTE!!

Back at the beginning of September, Cathy's parents came for a visit and we went to the beach with them. It was a great visit and they were surprised to see how big Gus had gotten as well. They had not seen us since July 11th, when we left Michigan to come back to NC. The visit with them for Labor Day was amazing and we had a wonderful time with them. They'll also be coming back to NC for Thanksgiving, which should be absolutely amazing to have both of our parents here together! It'll be a very special holiday for us!

Family Picture at Wrightsville Beach, NC 9-5-10

Cathy's Parents <3

Gus dipping his toes in the Atlantic Ocean for the second time!

Cathy has been asked by Scholastic to stay on as an advisor for another year. It's hard because she's not in a classroom, so she won't have the chance to go to NYC again (the other advisors get to go back to NYC in February), but she's excited to still participate and be as involved as she can be.

Her business has taken on a new set of products just for parents. She's excited to start making items that parents can use (chore charts, calendars, etc.) and can make them year-round. This summer she did a lot of business with teachers, and did more business this summer than last summer. She would have had more business if she had been here in NC during the peak months (June/July).

Steve is still with Burt's Bees and is as happy as ever. He's been adjusting to some changes that have been implemented, but is as eager and excited to go to work each day as he ever has been. He loves what he does, and is so good at it.

The Bengal Boys

Gus and Steve and their matching jerseys that they wear to watch the Bengals play!

Saturday is Cathy (and her twin brother Scott's)'s birthday. She'll be 34! We'll be going to Outback for dinner, because it's Cathy's favorite place to go! Our friend Jen will be coming with us and it should make for a nice birthday for her. She's so happy to start her 34th year with Gus. She's wanted to be a mom for the longest time, and her birthday will be very special because of having Gus in her life.

The weather here in NC is FINALLY starting to cool off. We're looking forward to the leaves changing colors and the weather to get out of the 90s and 80s and start cooling into the 70s and 60s!

We'll write again soon!

The Walkers

Saturday, August 21st, 2010

Posted by Steve and Cat Walker | e-Mealz | 3:16 PM

e-Mealz

So when Cathy and Gus returned home from MI we decided to start using e-Mealz for our dinners. Cathy's friend Aimee had told her about it while she was back in MI, and she got really excited at the thought of actually being able to make dinner and it be easy. Steve was excited at the thought of Cathy actually cooking and us not having to eat out all the time. Besides-- with Cathy staying home with Gus, we really can't afford to eat out anymore!

Anyway, Cathy has been doing AMAZINGLY well with cooking delicious dinners for us to enjoy! Here are some pictures of some of the recent meals that we've had thanks to e-Mealz and Cathy's cooking!

Crunchy BBQ Chicken, pasta and broccoli (8-10-10) This was deeeeeelicious!!

Chuck Roast in the crock pot (8-13-10) Very yummy!

Cherry Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (8-15-10) This was a recipe that one of Cathy's former co-workers shared with her via Facebook. It was absolutely to die for!!!

Marinaded steak tips, mashed potatoes (from scratch) and veggies (8-15-10) The steak tips were marinated in Coke (as well as other items)... it was so good!!

Garlic Butter Chicken, pasta, and oven roasted squash and zucchini (8-16-10) The chicken was coated in sour cream and then breaded with potato chips! Then baked and then you add the garlic butter to coat it and then bake a little longer. It was one of the best meals so far!!

One Dish Nacho Bake (8-17-10) The name says it all! Next time we'll add some lettuce and black olives- but it was reallllllllly yummy!!

Baked Spaghetti and Garlic Bread (8-19-10) It was a new twist on an old recipe that Cathy made up!! She did it herself (not e-Mealz) and it was really good!!

Be on the lookout for more pictures of the great things that we're eating after making ourselves at home!!

:)
The Walkers

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

Posted by Steve and Cat Walker | Family Update, Gus | 4:26 PM

Well we are happy to report that we're finally home in North Carolina!! We came home on Gus's two-month birthday! Steve got the call from our attorney on July 9th and he was able to get a ticket for Saturday the 10th.

As much as we hated being apart and not having the first two months together as a family, but the timing worked out well. Cathy's oldest brother David came into town with his family from Arizona. They arrived late on the 9th and then Steve arrived on the 10th. For the first time ever, Cathy's mom was able to see all six of her grandchildren and her three children with their spouses at the same time. It was wonderful!!

We came home to NC on the 11th, which also happened to be Gus's two-month birthday! It was so nice to be home with him! Since we've been home, we found a pediatrician and took him for his two-month well baby appointment. He weighed in at 11 pounds and 5 ounces, and his height was 23.75 inches! That's almost two-feet tall!!

Gus has his very own blog, be sure to check out his blog and follow him!! We also have a lot of videos posted to our family YouTube page! You should check that out and subscribe as well!!

We had our first baby shower yesterday at Burt's Bees. Steve works with some of the nicest people! Cathy brought Gus up and everyone enjoyed meeting him. He was all smiles and was in his usual good mood!

Today Gus is 12 weeks old! It's hard to believe that twelve-weeks ago today we were in Michigan in a fog of bliss! A week from tomorrow Gus will be three months old and we don't know where the time has gone. Gus has become the major focus of our lives, and we cannot remember life before him! We both feel like he's the greatest thing to happen to us, and we've concurred that he's the world's greatest baby.

We'll write again soon...
The Walkers