Dewey: There's a New Cat in the Cohen Home!

When a neighbor posted that a declawed kitty needed a new home, my heart pounded with excitement. We connected the next morning and learned that the kitty was all the way in San Antonio. While big kids did virtual school in the morning, Spencer and Mommy went on a LOOOONG drive in the morning to pick up our new baby.

Lollipop in hand, we were ready to go!

When we met him in San Antonio, he looked just like an orange muffin, and quickly, we realized he reminded us of the hero in one of our favorite books, Dewey: There's a Cat in the Library! We knew the perfect name for him right away. He was friendly from the start, letting Spencer and me pet him comfortably.

Back at the ranch, we had 2 very excited big sibs, pretending to try their best to focus on school but really preferring to make signs of welcome for Dewey!


We tried to be good kitty parents and let him get comfortable without his big kitty sisters for a bit.

It turns out, Maggie was already in the closet hiding spot in the master bathroom. Whoops. Only minimal growling could have been much worse.

We gave him time and space to explore the master bathroom, and he got comfortable immediately.




We decided that Dewey (and other Cohen kitties) needed new toys, so Spencer helped me choose some new goodies at the pet store.

The introduction to big kitty sisters went way better than expected. Dewey is really trying to play with Nikki. Nikki doesn't care to (yet) but is certainly not overreacting.

Dewey will be 2 next month. While he was silent the entire 2-hour ride back to Austin, we have discovered that he is quite the talker. With a fluffy tail, he is friendly, soft, sweet, playful, and a welcome addition to Team Cohen! (And, he has a cute head tilt that certainly adds personality.)

playful Dewey

Half Birthday Shenanigans

As birthday season transcends upon Chez Cohen each year, we start with the littlest guy. We counted down until he got his half on August 24th, and somehow he is just 6 months away from being four-years-old. While big sibs were doing virtual school in the morning, Spencer and I made cookies and cream cookies for our celebration that afternoon.

3...and a half?

Gilden cousins (and parents) came over for the sweet treat celebration in the afternoon.

check out the cookies and candles

Here We Go! New School, New Year, New Normal

Jon and I decided to transfer our children to a new charter school in Round Rock. In addition to several appealing factors, they stress the importance of prioritizing individualized education for each student. Even in the midst of COVID, the show must go on. Gabi and Ethan began their new school years virtually and were so excited to do so! We had uniforms, smiles, masks, and screens on, ready to start a strange, unique and hopefully successful school year!

(Notice Spencer practicing distance learning in the office.)

Brain break? Recess? Social Emotional Learning? Creative Arts? A break from the screens for sure!


On Day 2, Spencer continued putting the "distant" into distance learning. Thank goodness for a sometimes-independent 3rd kid who can be ignored while we figure this whole new thing out.

The outdoor physical learning you can expect from our award-renowned "Team Cohen Day Care" center ("TCDC"), license pending.