That Crazy Cat!

I'm a cat person, always have been, always will be.  I grew up with lots of cats and a few dogs, but for some reason the cats stole my heart.  I know some people think they are sneaky, aloof or unfriendly, but I beg to differ!  We currently have one furr baby, whose name is Emme.  She is a Ragdoll (seal bicolor) and has the cookiest, craziest personality and is such a sweetheart.  Ragdolls are very large, laid back cats that don't have a mean bone in their body.  They are big, furry, floppy and have the most beautiful blue eye's you've ever seen!  You can read more about Ragdolls here.  

OK, back to our kitty...Our cat is pretty hilarious.  First of all, she plays catch.  Yes, she has this little crinkle ball (which is falling apart & I can't find a replacement) that she plays fetch with.  We throw the ball she goes running and sliding across the tile, pics it up with her teeth and brings it back.  So cute.  She is also our resident exterminator.  We live in AZ, so we have lots of gross spiders and bugs.  She finds them and chases them until we can run over and kill them.  She likes to dismember crickets, yep that is one of her past times!  LOL. Something else she does that I think is pretty crazy is that she can catch flies Mr. Miyagi style!  She will stalk it until she catches it.  It is crazy to watch!  She'll follow it around till it gets close to the sliding glass door and then she'll jump up and catch it with her front paws!!  Then she somehow manages to eat it.  Gross, I know, but hey we no longer need a fly swatter!  OK, on to some cute stuff.  She loves to sleep  up on the computer desk while I work and she loves to jump up on our bed for morning cuddles.  If you don't pet her, she will use her paw to very gently touch you on the arm and give this tiny squeak of a meow to let you know, "Hey, mom and dad, I need some love over here!"  She also LOVES to sleep in and chew on boxes.  She also has perfected the Ragdoll flop - which must be taught by momma Ragdolls, as they all do it - they like to sleep on their backs with their legs all splayed out.  It is hilarious.  Finally, she loves to greet our company.  She runs out, rubs up against them, gives them a sniff and a lick then trots off.  So bizarre, I seriously think she's half dog, but I promise you she smells MUCH better and never drools....well, unless I get out the Temptations cat treats!

So, as you can see, I love cats, especially MY cat.  So here's some pics of our beauiful girl...

Up on the cabinets.  Ragdolls are not supposed to be big jumpers, she obviously didn't get the memo!

The crinkle ball.  It's nasty, but I can't find one even remotely like it!

How can you not love a face like that?

Helping me pay bills.  If she could only get a job! 

Sleeping in daddy's XBOX box.  I swear it looks like she's smiling!

She was relaxing in the rocking chair while we watched a movie. 

Helping big brother sort the LEGO's. 

Here is one of her glamour shots (No, I did not pay for these!  She came with a whole set of them!)  She got these at about 6-8 mos old.  Notice how light she is in these pics compared to some of the newer ones - it takes 3-4 years for them to fully mature.  Her real name is Sweetshadow Whispurr of Echoglen.  Yeah, she doesn't come when I call her that! 

She even got to meet the class hamster.  Squeakers wasn't too excited, but Emme was lovin' it.  One time it got out of its exercise ball and she cornered it until we got there.  What self control, she didn't even take a nibble! 

The Ragdoll Flop. Chillin' in little brother's room.

Razmataz

I just completed making this Razmataz tutu for a friend of mine who bought it for her 3 1/2 yo daughter.  I was delighted to see two pictures come in within hours of her getting the tutu!  I love how this little princess has the biggest grin on her face!!  It was over 100 degrees when this photo was taken, which goes to show you how happy she was with her new tutu!  She is such a doll and looks so cute in her new

Razmataz tutu!

Come out, come out, wherever you are!

I make tutus, yes, we all know that.  I have a guest bedroom that has been converted to the 'tutu studio,' which by the way is a pain to clean out when we have company, but I digress!  Anyway, all of the cutting, prepping and packing happens in this room, so it boggles my mind how I find bits of tulle ALL over my house.  I mean everywhere!  A lot of times I will find it stuck to bath towels after they come out of the dryer.  Never have I had a bath towel in my front bedroom, how does this happen?!?  Another time, I was out with my friends and one of them was like, "Uh, you have soom tulle on your boob."  Once again, how does this happen?!  But the one place I found tulle that I thought was extra crazy was on my front porch!!  I was sweeping the front porch, why, I am not quite sure, as I think I've only done that like twice since living here :), when I look down and see a piece of purple tulle stuck to my welcome mat.  I had to laugh at this.  I tried to sweep it off, but it was good and stuck, so being the lazy lady that I am, I just left it there.  I figure my guests ought to know they are entering the tutu zone, which comes with the hazard of possibly walking out of my house with tulle stuck to their rear-ends, in their hair, on their shoes, orLord knows where else!  I never know where I'll find a piece next, it's like I'm playing a little game of hide and seek with it.  So to the tulle, I say, "Come out, come out, wherever you are!!"

New tutu bug Offering....Tinkerbell!

Oh how I love this new tutu!!  Every little girl has dreams of being a princess or fairy and this tutu fits the bill perfectly!  I ordered some green tulle for a sports tutu but new it would be the perfect color for a Tinkerbell inspired tutu.  I came up with this super cute tutu, which I of course named, Tinkerbell.  It is made up primarily of an emerald green tulle with a few strips of apple green tulle in there as well.  It is completed with a two-striped sheer organza apple green bow.  I made this tutu in a size 2T for my website and am offering this extra tutu at a discount of $15 shipped!  Please email me at melanie@tutubug.com if you are interested. 

Beef Skewers

Oh how I love beef on a stick!  This super simple recipe is simple and yummy.  I purchase London Broil steak when it is on sale and have the butcher cut the meat into 1/4" slices.  This will help with a LOT of the prep work so I highly encourage you to do the same.  I also buy 2-3 steaks at a time and make a little assembly line with the marinade, then freeze the beef in the marinade so when I take it out of the freezer, it is marinating as it thaws.  For side dishes, I usually serve with white rice and brocolli.  And surprisingly enough, my picky eaters actually eat this!  Anyway, here's the recipe:

Beef Skewers

Serves: 4

2 lbs (approx) London Broil Steak cut into 1/4" slices (each slice will be about 3-6" long)

1/2 c. Soy Sauce

1/3 c. Vegetable oil

1/3 c. Brown sugar

1-2 tsp. Fresh garlic (or more if you like) or 1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 Tbsp. Ground ginger

Combine soy sauce, oil, brown sugar, garlic and ginger in ziploc bag.  Add meat and mix to coat.  Place in fridge to marinate for 8 hours or overnight or put in freezer for future use.  Take wooden skewers and saok in ice water for 5 minutes.  Then skewer beef of sticks and grill on medium for 3-4 minutes a side.  Serve over rice with a side of brocolli.

Leftover beef is great in an Asian style salad the next day.

Purple Platinum

What girl doesn't like a little purple and platinum in their life?!  I had a client who wanted a tutu as a gift for her flower girl and wanted it to match her wedding colors.  Her colors are going to be purple, platinum and cream.  This is the custom creation that we came up with.  The final product turned out soo cute!  I hope that I get a picture soon of the little flower girl wearing her new tutu!