A Message from Brayden and Tulip

International Rabbit Day is coming up on September 26. In anticipation, Brayden and Tulip would like to remind of you how incredible rabbits are. You'll have to imagine the speech bubbles above their heads. 

"Hello. I'm Brayden. Underneath me is Tulip, my best friend. She and I are free-roaming, bonded house rabbits. (We use litter boxes, just like cats, but I prefer not to talk about my bathroom habits.) We're crepuscular, which means we're most active at dawn and dusk. That's why we're drowsy right now while Mom is cleaning our territory. Not to brag, but we are charming. I've heard Mom say lots of times that rabbits are the best pets ever. Right, Tulip?"

"Absolutely. Rabbits are smart, curious, playful, and affectionate. Our binkies are the cutest thing ever. We can be trained, but honestly it's a lot easier for us to train Mom and Dad than the other way around. It's better that way. More treats. Of course, that's more important to you than it is to me. You're the more food-motivated of the two of us. People sometimes forget that we rabbits are unique individuals with different preferences and habits."  

"You're totally right. Every rabbit is different. One thing that's the same though? We all deserve an indoor, free-roam home with a family that loves us. I'm so glad we were rescued and ended up with Mom and Dad." 

"Yeah. If any of you are wondering if you should welcome a rabbit or two into your home, Mom has a blog post that talks all about that. Rabbits make wonderful pets but we aren't for everyone." 

"That's for sure. Sometimes even Mom says that we 'try her nerves'... whatever that means. Just because you like to throw my water dish sometimes and I occasionally like to push our x-pens into interesting shapes." 

"Both fun activities. She shouldn't knock it until she tries it. But right now, what sounds like the most fun is a nap. Sleep well, Brayden. I love you."

"I love you, Tulip. Sleep well."

I Finished My Second Quilt

I was so excited to finish my first-ever quilt and I am just as excited about my second quilt! 

I didn't select the fabrics for my first quilt. I'd volunteered to take a pile of donated fabrics home to cut into squares and eventually had the courage to sew them together. I asked the experts in our group to teach me each skill as I went, since I was learning to sew as I was learning to quilt. I struggled and made a lot of mistakes but I'm really proud of that first quilt. 

For this second quilt, I had full control over everything. I started with six pre-cut blocks from our big stash, then picked other fabrics to go with them. I put the top together much faster (and with far less seam-ripping) than last time, despite having to piece more blocks together. While very few of my corners lined up last time, most of them do on this quilt. I was able to do all the steps without asking for advice. Binding was still the trickiest part for me, but even that went better this time. It's exciting to see how much my skills have improved from my first quilt to my second. I still have a lot of basics to master, but that will come with practice. I'm eager to get started on my third quilt! 

As a reminder, all of the quilts that the St. Mark's Quilters make go to Lutheran World Relief, which passes them on to people around the world following natural disaster or war. We accept donations of fabric, batting, and thread, as well as monetary donations to pay for shipping the quilts. Each quilt costs about $4 to get to people in need. The quilt I just finished is our 41st quilt of the year. We hope to finish a lot more, so shipping costs will add up. 

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I photographed the quilt on our dining room table, which is part of the bunny territory. This might be obvious from the bunny toys and open box of hay that are visible in the first picture. It's definitely obvious in this photo, with visible pens and litterboxes. 

Did you spot Tulip, checking out the chair? Bunnies are ridiculously curious, which meant that the second I moved the front chair away from the table, Tulip ran over to check it out. Even though it's the same chair she regularly naps on, somehow it's different and needs a full inspection. Silly bunny!

Bunny Feet

Several people have asked me recently how our bunnies are doing. They are great! After the initial struggles getting them to bond, Brayden and Tulip have had a strong bond for over a year. They are living their best lives as happy house rabbits. They have a large territory (our living room and dining room) where they free-roam 24/7. The two have very different personalities and each has his or her favorite spots where they spend time separately, but they also spend plenty of time together. 

I've written a lot about rabbits over the years... the the joys of having rabbits as pets, whether or not you might be ready to adopt a rabbit (or two- they need companionship), and even the best gifts for rabbits. I haven't written much about their feet. Rabbits have four feet, with five toes on each front foot and four toes on each back foot. Each toe has a nail. (18 toenails x 2 rabbits = 36 units of torture for us and the rabbits every time they need a trim. Rabbits HATE having their feet touched.) But there's something rabbit feet don't have, as Brayden is helpfully demonstrating in this picture. 

Do you know what's missing? Compare Brayden's foot to this screen shot of Google images. 

Rabbits don't have paw pads. Not a toe bean in sight. Instead, they have coarse (relatively speaking) compressed fur on the bottom of their feet. I've made a lot of rabbit crafts over the years and you won't find a single project with paw pads. The next time you see a craft project or a branded product featuring paw pads on a bunny, you'll know it was made by someone who hasn't spent time with rabbits! 

Christmas 2025

It's out of character, but I took very few pictures last Christmas. I'm not sure why, but I didn't insist on a family picture in front of the tree. I didn't take pictures while we opened gifts. I didn't take pictures at my in-laws' house. I did take a picture of Trevor in front of the tree and Trevor giving treats to the bunnies. I paired those with a photo of me reading during the Christmas Eve church service to make this layout. 

Christmas 2025 (affiliate link)

I actually combined two different pictures of Trevor feeding the bunnies since they weren't close enough together to both appear in the frame of either photo. I fussy-cut Tulip and Trevor's hand that was feeding her and layered them on top of the photo with Brayden in it.

It's not my favorite layout - far from it - but I'm glad to have it in the album. 

Bunny Binkies

There are many joys to having house rabbits, but one of the most fun is seeing binkies. A binky is a happy dance that a rabbit does, a high, twisting leap often featuring leg kicks. Rabbits binky when they are feeling playful and full of joy. Rabbits who binky are healthy and feel safe in their environment. 

I get to see bunny binkies often, but they're really difficult to catch on camera since I never know when they're coming.... with one exception. When I clean the bunny area each week and move everything out of the way to vacuum, Tulip and Brayden are almost guaranteed to binky like crazy on the empty carpet. 

This week, I pulled out my phone and recorded video. I got four minutes' worth of bunny antics, which Steve cut down to just under a minute of binkies. Sorry for the vertical video - I wasn't thinking. Enjoy the binkies!

Munching Greens

I love the video of Brayden and Tulip munching their greens and decided to use a still photo to document their cuteness in the scrapbook too. 

 

Munching Greens (affiliate link)

Just like yesterday's layout, I made the layout entirely using BasicGrey. Well, almost. The BasicGrey elements are from four different collections. The stickers I used to spell GREENS are from Imaginisce and I used Stickles to add sparkle to the flower stickers. 

This page earned three points for the Banshees: one for the letter stickers, one for the glitter, and one for the color palette scraplift. The layout that provided the color inspiration is by Gina McLeod. 

I love how my page turned out. I'm looking forward to Game 2. Go Banshees!

Brayden and Tulip, Munching Greens

I haven't shared much about our rabbits lately, so I decided it's time for an update. I'm happy to report that Brayden and Tulip are living their best lives as house rabbits in Casa deRosier. As a fully bonded pair, they spend a lot of time together, but they each have their own interests and hobbies, as well as their own favorite spots in their territory (our living room and dining room). 

Brayden is all about food. He lives to eat and is always thinking about his next meal. He loves every fruit, vegetable, or herb I've ever given him. He likes running through cardboard tunnels, lounging on a tile, and digging at fleece blankets. Brayden hates being groomed and will only willingly accept petting if there is a barrier between him and us. If I lie down on the floor, he will climb up on me almost immediately. He gives me frequent nose bonks when I'm not paying attention to him. 

Tulip loves to play. She particularly likes throwing things, like her set of baby stacking cups. She enjoys dumping water and food bowls (sigh), moving her litterbox, and tearing apart cardboard. She feels the most safe hiding behind the container where we store rice, tucked behind the china cabinet. Tulip is smart and persistent. She is the queen of flops and always sleeps with something overhead. Tulip is a dainty eater and is very reluctant to try new foods. She rejects many fruits and vegetables. She spends a lot of time doing Predator Evasion Practice and binkies frequently. 

Brayden and Tulip both love greens. I took this video of them enjoying a midday meal together. Turn the volume up to hear the munching. 

Aren't they adorable? And so full of personality! Brayden and Tulip bring us so much joy and we're so lucky they're a part of our family.  

Bunny Moon

Bonding Brayden and Tulip was much more difficult and time-consuming than I'd ever imagined. More painful too - I was bitten four times breaking up fights between the bunnies. Thank goodness, they are now best friends who live together happily. This layout documents their Bunny Moons.  

Bunny Moon (affiliate link)

Seeing Brayden and Tulip so happy together is very rewarding and makes all the struggles worth it. That said, I don't think I would ever go through the bonding process again unless Tulip or Brayden dies young and the other needs a companion. Otherwise, I would adopt a pair that is already bonded. 

Scrapping Tulip

I had so much fun putting together this colorful layout about our beautiful girl, Tulip. 

Tulip (affiliate link)

I'm particularly proud of the title work on this page. The patterned papers are from a birthday collection that included die cuts of the words CELEBRATE and HAPPY. I used the T, L, and P as is, then did quick snipping to change the R into an I. Then I cut a U from scraps of patterned paper, doing my best to match the font. 

Silly Girl

There are some traits among rabbits that are universal, but every rabbit has their own distinct personality. Just like people. Tulip loves to play.  

Silly Girl (affiliate link)

In Tulip's world, everything is a toy. If she can get into (or onto) something, she will. If she can fling something, she will. If there is a neat stack of something, she will make sure it doesn't stay that way. She feels strongly that toys belong in the water dish. She's a silly girl. Not a day goes by that she doesn't make us smile. 

Cottontail Cottage

The Cottontail Cottage originally belonged to Trouble, who regularly played in it and occasionally used it as a comfy spot for a nap. We introduced it to Brayden after we'd had him for a few months. He didn't play with it as often as Trouble did, but he enjoyed climbing to the top and surveying his territory. About a month ago, I brought the Cottontail Cottage into Tulip and Brayden's shared territory. Brayden remembered it and went racing to the top while Tulip watched him carefully. She checked it out cautiously and soon was enjoying all the levels... as well as jumping in and out of the second story windows. It's adorable. 

Unfortunately, about a week after introducing the Cottontail Cottage, the buns had a fight. We think the Cottage might have played a role in that. Our best guess is that Brayden was relaxing on the second floor when Tulip jumped in through a window and startled him, leading to him snapping, and her reacting, and both of them trapped in a small place not knowing what was going on. 

Fortunately, the bunnies' bond was not broken and there have been no further problems. But now they only use the Cottage with close supervision. 

Cottontail Cottage (affiliate link)

The inspiration for this layout design is from a National Scrapbook Day challenge called 'Old Glory.' We had two choices: 1) Make a layout that is entirely red, white, and blue but does not have stars or stripes; or 2): Make a layout with stars and stripes, but do not use any red, white, or blue. Obviously, I chose the second option. It was a fun challenge and I really like how the page turned out. 

Best Friends Forever (Bonded Bunnies)

I am thrilled to have been able to make a page about our bonded bunnies. For a long time, we weren't sure if they would ever bond. Thank goodness that they are now best friends. 

Best Friends Forever (affiliate link)

This page was inspired by a National Scrapbook Day challenge called 'Put a Little Love in Your Art." We had to include at least five hearts on the page. But there was a catch. You couldn't use five heart stickers or five punched hearts. You had to have at least five different types of heart. I used die-cuts, stickers, a rub-on, washi tape, and enamel hearts to make my page. I love how it turned out. 

Brayden and Tulip Update

It has been a long, challenging process, but I'm happy to report that Brayden and Tulip have finally bonded! 

Things looked promising back in November when we brought Tulip home. Little did we know that it would take five months and an insane amount of work to bond these two. After a month of fights and little progress, we hired a professional bunny bonder. The rabbits made a small amount of progress, but not nearly as much as we'd hoped. Brayden was acting territorial and was clearly nervous around Tulip, frequently snapping at her; Tulip was acting bossy and would not respect Brayden's clues that he was upset. 

In February, we completely rearranged our furniture in hopes that changing the environment would eliminate Brayden's territorial behaviors and give us a fresh start. Each rabbit had their own large x-pen (16 square feet), which opened into a common play space. 

For two hours each morning and two hours each evening, I let them into the play space to interact. I followed them closely, petting them and soothing them as they approached each other, either cautiously (Brayden) or boisterously (Tulip). My attention was on them every second, because that's all it took for a scuffle to break out. Scuffles were fairly frequent at first, but true fights with fur flying were rare. Over the course of the bonding process, I broke up a total of four fights. (And I was bitten three times.) 

I really wanted this bond to work, so I kept at it. Each day, there was a little bit of progress, which is the only thing that kept me going. We expanded the play space and introduced new toys one at a time. Soon, I could trust both buns not to lunge at each other if I wasn't right there. That was a huge relief. 

As I continued to work with them, Brayden and Tulip were showing more and more signs that bonding was near. They wanted to be together and were approaching each other frequently. 

Up until this point, I had closed their individual cages when they came into the common play area, so that each had a "safe zone" that the other had never been in. Then one day, Tulip zipped into Brayden's cage before I could close it. She explored every inch as Brayden watched. He didn't seem to mind, so I let him into her cage. Same thing. He explored every inch and it didn't bother Tulip. From then on, I kept both cages open during playtime and continued to supervise closely. 

In mid-March, it clicked. The scuffles ended. Brayden started grooming Tulip, having accepted her as the dominant bun. And once he did that, she returned the grooming. I still supervised all their joint playtime just in case, but I could actually relax on the floor with a magazine instead of following them around constantly. Of course, if you put a magazine on the floor, you're going to have a bunny helper. Brayden was highly interested in this article about green foods - some of his favorites!

Another thing that happens when you're on the floor with rabbits - you become a jungle gym. 

As the weeks have passed, the buns are spending more time together and we're supervising less frequently. There have been no issues. They choose to spend most of their time near each other. We separate them when we leave the house and when we're sleeping, just in case. Eventually, that will change. Our plan is to increase their play area to include the entire living room and dining room and make sure that's ok. If it is, we'll put our dining room back together and they'll be together 24/7 as the true house rabbits they deserve to be. 

Sweet Tulip

They aren't tulips, but I was excited to use this bold floral paper for a layout about Tulip. The photos are from her first month with us.  

Sweet Tulip (affiliate link)

We didn't name her, so I can't take credit for her name. But Tulip is a great name for her. It's a reference to the fact that she's a Dutch rabbit. Tulips symbolize love and new beginnings, which is perfect for our sweet girl who was was rescued, young and pregnant. She's bright and colorful and makes us smile, just like her namesake. 

An Update on Brayden and Tulip

Today's layout features the photo from the first time Brayden and Tulip met. 

 

This page earned three points for my Bash Bowl team, Twisted Scissors: 1 point for the tags, 1 point for the full-length border, and another point for using three or more words. Once again, I opted not to use metal on the page just to claim the extra points for that and using punches. I could easily have used metal grommets on my tags, but I don't want that bulk in the album. 

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I'm way overdue on an update about Brayden and Tulip. Bonding rabbits can be a long and difficult process, which we knew going in, but we never expected it to be this difficult. We had high hopes at first that we'd get them bonded after a few weeks. After a month of us working with them with no progress, my anxiety was sky-high. It was clearly time to try something else, so we ended up hiring a professional who has tons of experience bonding rabbits. She boarded them for a week and worked closely with them, during what she calls a Bunny Moon. They were showing progress, albeit very slowly.

Unfortunately, as soon as Brayden and Tulip returned home, there was a fight. I got bit trying to separate them, which obviously made me even more anxious about the whole process. The buns returned for a Bunny Moon #2. Again, there was some progress, but once the week was over, they were nowhere near ready to coexist. We brought them home to separate spaces. It was disappointing, to say the least.

When we traveled to Southern California, she took the buns again in hopes that a final intensive stay would do the trick. They made progress, snuggling happily together for significant blocks of time (supervised). Each day we got a report and it was sounding better and better. Brayden and Tulip clearly like each other and want to spend time together, but they never got to a point where she felt comfortable leaving them together unsupervised. 

Again, we brought them home to separate spaces. However, this time we completely rearranged our furniture so that they wouldn't be living in what was Brayden's territory when he was an only bun. Our hope is that they can learn to get along in the neutral territory. 

The separate spaces are fine for now, but it's not what either of them deserve long-term. We're trying to stay positive and keep up hope that they'll eventually be bonded. We obviously want what is best for both rabbits.

Introducing Tulip!

There is someone new in the deRosier household! Meet Tulip. 

  

Tulip was very young and pregnant when she was rescued by East Bay Rabbit Rescue. She gave birth to six healthy babies in July and was an outstanding mother. All six babies have now been neutered and adopted, so it's her turn to have a forever home. 

When we adopted Brayden on April 30, we planned to find a companion for him in August after we returned from our Europe trip. Little did we know that I'd be diagnosed with cancer three weeks after adopting Brayden and that August would be about radiation, not bunny adoption. While I'm not "done" with cancer, I'm doing so much better and am able to handle the responsibilities of a second bun. 

We didn't go actively looking for potential bunny friends, but when Tulip's profile showed up in my Facebook feed in mid-October, I felt instantly that she was The One. I showed Steve and he agreed. We both felt Tulip belonged in our home. Of course, Brayden's opinion matters more than ours, so on Saturday we brought him to meet her. 

Brayden has met a fair number of other rabbits and he's largely indifferent to them. That was pretty much the case with Tulip. They ignored each other at first. They each ate a little bit (a very good sign) and each groomed themselves in front of the other (another very good sign) and then Tulip groomed Brayden (the ultimate sign!). They stayed together for 30+ minutes with no issues, so we signed the paperwork and brought her home. And then the real work began. 

Rabbits are territorial, so you can't just add a new rabbit to an existing one's territory without going through a bonding process. To prepare for Tulip, we moved our dining room table and put a fence up to separate it from Brayden's territory. He still has access to the living room, entry way, and stairs (with supervised playtime upstairs). Tulip has a separate enclosure, which is about 8" from the fence. That allows them to get near each other if they want, but not near enough to fight if there's a problem. That's Brayden's existing space on the left and Tulip's on the right. 

Tulip settled into her new space right away, investigating every corner. She used the litterbox immediately (hurray!), sampled the water (she's a loud drinker, just like Trouble was), zipped into the igloo, and poked at each toy. 

  

Brayden watched with interest. 

Throughout the afternoon (when rabbits are usually asleep), they were pretty active. Each took a short nap, but were otherwise up and about. 

Occasionally, they mirrored each other (another good sign). As soon as Brayden heard Tulip munching on her apple leaves, Brayden ran over to his to eat. I loved the chorus of crunching!

During the bonding process, we bring the bunnies together to a neutral location (the family room, where Brayden has never been) to get to know each other. Here, Tulip is asking Brayden to groom her. He is ignoring her request. Whether that's intentional or if he's just oblivious, who knows. (We strongly suspect he was taken from his mother WAY too young and didn't learn basic rabbit behaviors and communication skills from her.)

While it would have been wonderful if Brayden had immediately groomed Tulip, love at first sight is very, very rare. Brayden did lunge at her once during the 15 minute session, but otherwise they seemed perfectly comfortable together. 

In fact, just a few hours after that first bonding session, they were lounging side by side, as close as they could get with the fence in the way. Another good sign. 

  

Unfortunately, the evening bonding session did not go well. Brayden lunged at Tulip again. She lunged back at him and nipped. They avoided each other for a bit, then lunged again. I'm bummed. 

It could take weeks (or longer) to properly bond Brayden and Tulip, but we are hopeful. We're eager to give this sweet girl the home she deserves. Welcome, Tulip!