new coffee machine. new cat toy

I've never really been much into drinking coffee though I do like the taste. It's more how time consuming it can be that turns me off the most. I can't be bothered with grinding the beans, preparing it, and then waiting for it to brew. Plus with a regular coffee machine it's hard to only brew one cup. I have always been jealous of my sister's single-cup coffee machine. When my coworker found this amazing bundle I couldn't resist! He found a machine, the Verismo system by Starbucks, that makes single cups instantly.

AND comes with enough pods to make 70 beverages!

As I was trying to take everything out of the box, of course, the kitties needed to be little 'helpers'.

There were several layers of things to come out and every time I'd turn around Cleo had already found her way back into the box. Even when Waldo wanted a turn she stayed put.

After everything was out I couldn't believe all the pieces that it came with. There is a container that holds the water, and (this part I find extremely handy) a container that holds up to twelve empty pods. The pods automatically fall into this container after use! I was slightly worried about where I was going to find a place for it because my kitchen counters are already so full.

But it was really simple to put together and, with it's slim physique, I was easily able to find a place for it.

And then it was time to test it out! I slipped the pod into the slot and closed the handle.

I pushed the button and my espresso was ready in an instant!

It actually took longer for the soy milk to froth (which only takes 70 seconds). Once it was done I added it to my espresso so I could enjoy it as a latte.

It smelt delicious and was better than most coffees that I've had before. I think that it was definitely worth the buy as those 70 pods will last be a long while. Since Jade has now started working on the weekends, I got up and made her a coffee before work so she could enjoy the experience as well. Then it was time to enjoy my delicious latte.

And it was time for the cats to play around with their new toys. A box.

And some Styrofoam.

mini photo shoot. blue tutu with black and white heels

After Jade and I got back from our shopping extravaganza last week, though we were exhausted, we decided to have a little impromptu photo shoot. She was trying on her new black and white heels and I thought they looked so cute together with the tutu. I went to take a picture and, though she looks amazing, I didn't like that the background was so busy.

I got her to move near the door so that there wouldn't be so much jumble and it would put the focus on her.

Jade asked me what she should do and I told her to just move around and try different things like fluffing her tutu or showing off her shirt.

 I suggested crouching down and looking ethereal. I think that she did a fantastic job capturing just that.

Cleo ended up wanting to hog some of the attention. You can see the bond that they have with each other by the way Cleo looks at her and wants to give her nose kisses.

Once I started taking pictures we were joking around about how Jade is going to become a foot model now.

I got a good laugh out of her by commenting on how I was going cut off her head cause I'm such a noob.

I am by no means anywhere close to being a professional photographer but for the minimal lighting and space I had I think I did a pretty decent job. It also helps that my model is so pretty and easy to work with.

cat saturday. oh the places Cleo and Dash sleep!

Cleo and Dash have their own typical spots that they like to sleep in. Even though there's only a couple random places they've been found, I didn't want have them feel left out!

Cleo often worms her way under blankets. You won't know she's there until she pokes her head out.

I've caught her sleeping on the arm rest with all four legs draped along the sides.

I've also found her sleeping squished under the coffee table with her legs shooting straight out behind her.

Or next to random objects (she was sleeping before I looks this picture).

Dash really likes to sleep on the cat couch I bought for them. Especially when it's in the sun.

The strangest place I've found Dash sleeping is laying directly on my pillow. No parts on the bed.

herb planting. two weeks later

I felt I should give a little update on how my herbs are coming along. So far they're looking great! All but one have started growing. Some are looking huge and you wouldn't have guessed that I'd only planted them two weeks ago.

Let's see how the ones that had already sprouted last Friday are doing. Catgrass is definitely looking biggest with its tall shoots. But it's starting to bend down a bit. I think I may need to move it to a new home soon. Chamomile is looking taller and seems to be growing another set of leaves.

Spinach is also quite tall. It's started sprouting a second set of leaves now. Basil is getting so much bigger than before cause it's leaves are getting rounder.

Catnip is also sprouting a second set of leaves and it's looking mini but strong. Dill is so skinny I can't believe it's holding itself and the leaves up especially with being so tall.

The rest didn't even sprout their little heads till this week. Mini bell peppers are looking really strong and healthy. I'm surprised that it's growing as fast as it has in the last week. I think that its leaves are my favorite out of all my plants. Lemon balm is still tiny but pretty decent for being less than a week old.

Parsley took much longer to grow than I thought it would have. But it's looking pretty good so far. Mint is really small as it barely poked it's head out. I thought that maybe it wouldn't even take this year (which would have been disappointing since the mints are what I'm looking forward to the most).

Peppermint has the smallest sprout ever. I didn't even see it coming up until yesterday. I've heard that mints are much more difficult to grow compared to other herbs because they're so finicky. Lavender is the only one that has yet sprout. I've read that it can take up to 21 days to start growing so I haven't lost hope yet!

I need to take the weekend to read up on when I should thin my herbs (aka kill all but one of my little sprouts per herb). Also I need to find out when I should transplant them to their forever homes. I have a feeling catgrass will be coming to that stage soon. If that's the case I will need to find planters for each of them (or maybe a long herb windowsill planter for a couple of them) and I will need to buy some soil. I'm really excited for them to start getting bigger and fill my desk with their amazing scents and color.