What to name black kittens was the question I posed all the way home on their four hour journey. And also, where to put them to keep them safe. Why was I giving myself so much more work, right when things were really quite peaceful.

I finally decided to let my husband cut a corner off one of the grow-bed structure so that the 36” crate could fit in the corner that only had 35 inches of space. Ugh. I hope I don’t regret this. So the kittens would be housed in a crate in the greenhouse only to be rescued from the heat during the midday sunshine.

Now the names…. We love the black zucchini from the garden and my husband prefers black pepper, while I like my salt. So, I decided Zucchi and Pepper would be appropriate kitten names. And sure enough Pepper is the one with more white markings.

Not what in the world would I want another black kitty? I did not actually. The mama cat had some other kitties with calico, but she hid them right before we came to visit. And they were a little wild.

Well that’s what has comes of country life. Trying to re-home kittens and looking at endless pictures of dog’s on the internet to see if there is a dog fit for the country.

And after looking for the right dog, after our last passed away, has not been easy. We were on the fence about a puppy, because they can be so naughty and chew up everything in sight. So las week while thumbing through the Facebook, I saw Charlie.

King Charles the third seemed like just the perfect dog. I was so hopeful that he would transition smoothly. And so far, Charles has lived up to his “regal” mutt characteristics. His timidity and soulful expression shows that he really is a softie at heart. He definitely has the “feelings’ thing figured out ans wants to love rather than hurt.

Every dog has a back story if they are re-homed later in life. Charlie is six years old, same as Honey. I had some nerves about that, but life will just have to march on now. Charlie was a street rescue puppy from Texas that his last “mum’s brother” adopted a few years ago. He lived outside there. His very first “person” may have been abusive, as Charles will snap a new things in fear. So far he only snapped at Honey a couple of times. Thankfully, his new “dad” put down the law and chewed him out verbally. The last time he snarked was over the back door and back deck possession. But that was also addressed immediately. He has not done anything since Saturday. It’s all just a learning curve about what is his or not.

I praised him when he snarled at the cat trying to get at his food. I don’t want him to let them run over him on the food-dish or hut thing. He needs to know he can eat in peace and not be bothered. Charlie takes his “sit pretty” treats very well, and is gentle at his take. So we have tried a few photo-ops with this command.

The other pleasant surprise is that he is a clean kennel dog. He prefers to do his business at a distance from living quarters. Yay! The last two outdoor mutts we had were non-selective. Those “bombs” are awful on the Sunday shoes!

My biggest “unbelief” came when on the fourth morning here, he slipped under the electric fence to go wake up Cocoa the horse, to tell him to come and eat breakfast. He was so gently in his steps ahead of the horse. Huh? Perhaps, these morning round conversations were actually heard. Charlie slipped back under the fence and away we walked. Perhaps also, Cocoa is more blind then ever before. He is 23 years old this year.

There is the new pet stories. I have been a little busy to keep up with my journal. It is full-on garden season. We also went to farmer’s market twice. The greenhouse was pretty successful this year. Now on to some more weeding and weed control!