Memorable Events of 2022

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2022 has been a year with more memorable events than most years.

My health. For most of the year, from the surgery at the beginning of the year until early fall, my health seemed to be sputtering; it was the longest period of my life to be uncertain that my health was good to excellent. Fortunately, it seems that I have recovered and am back to feeling as healthy as in recent years. Every other time I was concerned about my health was much shorter in duration: the month before and after pregnancy in 1989 and the month after a surgery in 2006.

Pets and family. 3 kittens…oh my! They are getting a little older now but still quite capable of causing havoc. The last time we had a kitten around was in 1985. The first baby in over 20 years has arrived in my extended family…and he adds a whole new dynamic to family gatherings. The milestone 70th anniversary of my parents adds to the list of memorable events in this category.

Home and Travel. Moving from Maryland to Missouri was a big undertaking and we’ll probably look back years from now, seeing it as a pivot point in our lives just as the move from Texas to the east coast In 1983 turned out to be. On a smaller scale, the week in London, Ontario was memorable for time spent in another country (the longest since my trip to Mexico City in 1966 when I was in elementary school) and the amount of time I was on my own in a new place.

Changes in the world. Queen Elizabeth II’s death is on my list this year because she was queen for my whole life…a constant in the world that I consciously knew would not last but that I will miss. The other change is one that reversed something that was constant for my entire adult life and increased my confidence that I would receive the care I needed when my husband and I decided to have a child (which we did successfully and without complications); when Roe v Wade was overturned, I became anxious that younger women will not have access to the same level of care that I did.

I am hoping that 2023 will be a little less memorable!

Zooming– December 2022

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Kittens – holiday lights – plants in winter – a great blue heron….pictures made possible by the Zooming capabilities of my three cameras: phone (Samsung Galaxy S10e), small point and shoot (Cannon PowerShot SX730 HS), and bridge (Canon PowerShot SX70 HS). The one I have with me all the time is the phone; the point and shoot fits in a coat pocket so it is easy to take along, the bridge camera I need for the optics (i.e. the greatest optical zoom of my cameras). Enjoy the December zoomed images!

Kittens! – Month 4

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Month 4 with our 3 kittens…..they are still kittenish but beginning to make cat noises…and always trying something new. Here’s my notes for what’s happened with the kittens over the past month.

Two of the kittens (Sooty and Puma) like the cat hammock that we kept from our first cat. It’s been in storage for almost 20 years because our next cats didn’t like it!

We tried putting up our Christmas tree…gave them time to adjust to it without ornaments. They climbed it, knocked off branches…then got sick. We opted to forego a tree completely this year even though we think now they were sick from something contagious that they all got and then recovered.

When they were sick, my husband let the kittens have the run of the 1st floor (except for our bedroom) during the night rather than sequestering them in their suite….and we’ve continued now that they’ve recovered – keeping the main bedroom and bathroom a kitten-free zone at night. We hear them at the door occasionally. I am the first one out and about in the mornings. I got my camera and photographed the kittens right after I emerged earlier this week: Pooky as in the hallway near a scratching pad, Sooty was comfortable in a pile of jackets my husband had left in a chair after the kittens knocked over the coat rack (damaging it a bit), and Puma was already waiting for my husband at the bedroom door.

It didn’t take long before all three were at the door…Pooky got nervous and retreated to the scratching pad. As soon as the door opened, they all streamed into the bedroom as if they had never been there before.

Sooty is the only one that likes the bathroom sink…and he doesn’t want to be bothered by anyone needing the sink.

When I was in Texas, I noticed some ‘space cats’ catnip toys. The cats will be getting them as part of their Christmas.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, week 1, week 2, month 1, month 2, month 3

Decorating for the Holidays – Part 1

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Decorating the house for December has been different this year. It’s our first season in our Missouri house (old decorations in a new situation) and keeping the kittens safe is causing us to reconsider some of our decorating.

I decided that the pinecone wreath one of my sisters made for me more than 20 years ago needed to be refurbished; it was beyond my skills, so I took it to Carrollton and my sister stabilized the cones with wire and hot glue. We opted for simplified additions beyond the pinecones; I bought a new bow, and she attached it. When I got it back home, I realized I didn’t have any place to hang it that would be safe from our 3 kittens (the glittery bow would be too tempting them to chew).

It’s now hanging in my office in the basement…a kitten-fee zone.

My daughter and son-in-law helped us set up the tree on Thanksgiving. We didn’t decorate it right away…waiting for the cats to get bored with it. The kittens never got bored with it…climbed up through the center of the tree dislodging some of the branches. We took the tree down after 6 days when it appeared that the kittens were nibbling on the white plastic.

On the plus side, the old Christmas cards are not drawing the kittens’ attention. I have giant scrunchies with cards on the pantry door, the door to the basement, my office door, and one of the upstairs bedrooms.

There are also cards (with magnets taped to their back) on the two metal doors in the house (the doors to the garage and front).

Since we’ve turned off the gas fireplace completely, I put cards around the metal frame of the upstairs fireplace as well.

There are still a few other places to put old Christmas cards. I am glad I collected cards over the past 30 years…realizing that there won’t be many new ones; few people send cards any more…including me.

We have a wreath that we’ll put on the front door. My husband bought a magnetic hook as soon as we realized the door was metal! More on our decorations in a week or so…..when we decide to declare them ‘done.’

Unique Aspects of Days – November 2022

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I had a hard time picking the top 10 unique aspects of my November days. There seemed to be a lot of firsts happening during the month!

New electric lawn mower. I made a few turns around the yard with my early Christmas present before our yard crew showed up. Next year I will be doing the yard. I will probably do some spot mowing on a warmer afternoon as soon as all the leaves are off the trees – mulch the leaves into the grass for the winter). What a luxury to have clean air (i.e. no gasoline motor fumes) while I mow!

Cooking a big pumpkin. I’ve always bought pumpkins small enough to fit in my oven previously but the one this year was a left over from my son-in-law’s pumpkin carving event and it was large. I had to cut it in half and then cook each piece separately! I baked and made soup with some of the puree but most of it went into the freezer.

A gaggle of Greater White-fronted Geese. The group was migrating through Hagerman on the day that I stopped on my way down to Carrollton. It was my first time seeing this species.

Pumpkin Custard Quiche. I used some of the pumpkin puree from the large pumpkin to experiment with a high protein dessert/breakfast. I used 2 cups of puree, 8 eggs, pumpkin pie spices, sugar, milk, 8 ounces of Swiss cheese and walnuts on top. Each of the 6 servings were about 21 grams of protein….and my parents ate their whole serving! This is an experiment that will likely become a favorite recipe.

1st snow at our Missouri home. It happened while I was in Carrollton, but I enjoyed it vicariously through pictures my husband sent.

2 Bald Eagles soaring above the highway in Oklahoma. What a great sight driving home from Texas. One was an adult and the other a juvenile. No fighting….just graceful flying back and forth above the highway.

Learning to use a blower to create a pile of leaves. I’m very adept making leaf piles with a rake…but was overwhelmed with the leaves in my daughter’s front yard. She had a new battery powered blower. There was a trial-and-error period but then I managed to move leaves around trees and under bushes…and into piles for her to vacuum up with the mulcher. I depleted 2 batteries (good thing she had 3 that worked with the blower).

Rice Pudding Quiche. After the success of the pumpkin custard quiche – my next experiment was with rice pudding. I used the small carton of rice left over after having Chinese takeout to make rice pudding (with milk, eggs, raisins, drizzle of molasses) with Swiss Cheese (making it more quiche like). Next time I will use a bit more milk since it was a little too dense…but it was still tasty (I drizzled some honey over it to make it sweeter). It’s a good way to use up rice!

Cranberry and tomatillo salsa sauce for Impossible Burger meatballs. Our appetizers for Thanksgiving were Impossible Burger meatballs (purchased frozen…heated in oven). I had barbeque sauce and marinara for dipping…then made a third sauce with chopped cranberries (heated in microwave) and tomatillo salsa. All the sauces were warmed just before we tried them. Everyone agreed that the cranberry and tomatillo salsa was a great flavor with the meatballs – and it looked festive too.

Experimenting with Christmas tree decorations. The kittens are changing our thinking about decorating this year. We put our artificial tree up in the center of our living room using an outdoor umbrella stand for the base (to keep them from knocking over the tree). Right now, we are letting them get bored with the tree, but they’ve managed to dislodge lower and middle branches (they climb up around the center of the tree). We don’t want to use hooks to attach ornaments. I experimented putting Beanie babies on the branches and the kittens knocked them all off as they move around the inside of the tree. So – a series of unique experiences that isn’t over yet!

Kittens! – Month 3

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Month 3 included a big milestone for our 3 kittens: they handled minor surgery well; Sooty (the male) was neutered and Puma and Pooky (the females) were spayed. They were a little less active for a few days after the surgery but resumed their more boisterous activities within a few days. We had our big cat tree turned on its side and put away the wand toys that encourage jumping until the females got their stitches out a week after the surgery. All three had their claws trimmed before their surgery; that might have discombobulated them more than then surgery…they couldn’t grab onto carpet as they raced around the house or their scratching posts (or things they are not supposed to grab onto!).

My husband is still enticing them into their suite for the night with a late evening snack. Restricting their access to 2 rooms has helped keep the odd thumps in the night to a minimum. They adjusted to the time change without incident although my husband updated a lamp in their suite that was on a timer to not change to new time which might have helped.

Sooty (the male) is still the largest of the three. He is the only one that likes the cat bed that my daughter gave us since her cat didn’t use it.

They all like to sit (sometimes nap) in upholstered chairs – usually one at a time rather than sleeping in a cuddled group as they did when they were younger. Pooky is shown in an old rocker recliner. She is the only one with different colored digital pads.

Pooky and Puma weigh the same…but Puma looks bigger because her fur stands out more.

Puma might have the loudest purr; I hear her more often than I do the others.

I am trying to train all three kittens to not jump onto the kitchen counters. I have a magazine that I used a few times to gently nudge them off….and usually now I simply pick up the magazine and they exit the counter. They still seem to enjoy watching the action in the kitchen from the back of the couch!

The Rubáiyát of a Persian Kitten

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Oliver Herford’s The Rubáiyát of a Persian Kitten is available from Internet Archive…it was published in 1904 with his drawings….showing that the antics of kittens were as amusing more than 100 years ago as they are today. The swatting of the ink bottle on the desk might date one of the sample images I selected, but the motion of the kitten is familiar… and equally disastrous for any small breakable/spillable object on a counter or table…as we experience every day with our 3 kittens.

Enjoy browsing this book online: The Rubáiyát of a Persian kitten!

Kittens! – Month 2

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The second month with our 3 kittens has continued the small adventures within our household.

The kittens had their first visit to the vet…which confirmed our suspicion that Puma was a female rather than the male her foster family had thought. The kittens took the visit in stride, traveling together in a large cat carrier and not being too traumatized by their first shots. They will have more shots in the coming month and are scheduled for surgery in early December (we don’t want more kittens!).

Their favorite toys often have dangling (snake like?) parts….like my husband’s shoes. They are hard on feathers (note the white fluff on the blue rug from the toy Pooky is clawing and knowing). My husband is on the hunt for toys that are more durable than feathers.

They are big enough to not generally sleep in a pile like they did when we first got them. They often are in the same room for their naps though. In the picture below Puma is in the blue chair, Pooky is in the box and Sooty is curled up in the gold chair. Note that my husband still leave things precariously perched on the end table….when the kittens play chase through the room, those items often end up in the floor!

The cats like high perches for both play and sleep. The cat tree is still popular (and shedding carpet fibers from their antics). Puma likes the bar stool in the big bathroom. She has to endure Pooky grabbing for her tail….but the height makes it worth the hassle.

All the cats seem to like being on top of the suitcase. I must always keep it zipped!

The unique aspects that we’re noticing at the end of the second month are:

  • Puma leaps the highest.

  • Pooky is the most vocal and will stay cuddled in a lap the longest.

  • Sooty is the biggest and can be the bully…maybe he’s feeling the pressure of being the only male. On the flip side, he enjoys being picked up more than the other kittens.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, week 1, week 2, month 1

Settling in, developing new routines – 4th month

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Our 4th month in Missouri was calmer than the first 3. There is still a lot to be done but we stopped pushing ourselves to keep the pace we had earlier. There are boxes to be unpacked but they are in the storage area and not things we use frequently.

The kittens got their first visit to the vet and are engaging in all our indoor activities. More about them in an upcoming post.

Our yard is looking much better than it did earlier in the summer when it was so hot and dry. We have a yard service for this season so all I am doing is pulling weeds in the flower beds. I am cutting roses to bring into my office. I am also making big plans to transition caring for the yard to myself (the new lawn mower will be electric!) and putting in more bushes (American Beautyberry and oak leaf hydrangea are at the top of my list).

The morning routine in my office has changed slightly because it is dark when I first get there – no watching the birds at the feeder while I enjoy my 1st breakfast (dark chocolate). It is also cooler. I’m using the halogen lamps to flood the room with light and provide a little heat.

Our thermostats in this house are not as sophisticated as the one we had in Maryland. We’ve stayed on ‘Cool’ so far; it’s chilly in the morning but comes on once or twice in the late afternoon and evening. The wall heater in the main bathroom is wonderful – something we haven’t had in any of our previous houses…another aspect to appreciate about this house.

Travel. I did my monthly trip to Carrollton TX…and we made several local outings. We haven’t started the day trips as quickly as I thought we would but October is a prime month for being outdoors and enjoying the fall. I am anticipating my first travel not associated with the move or family in the coming month.

I got out our Halloween decorations (one of our neighbors has a very elaborate Halloween yard) and discovered that they don’t work very well for the front porch in this house; the front door is a muted red…does not go well with orange…and there is not nail in the door. I may just put the decorations inside. On the plus side – the front door will work very well for our Thanksgiving Indian corn and our Christmas wreath…once we add a nail.

I’ve decided to wait for volunteer activities or in-person classes. I would miss too much since I already am committed to be away from home a week of every month. When I am at home…I need to finish the unpacking and continue the hone everything about this place into the home we want.

Kittens! – Month 1

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The first month with our 3 kittens has been full of small adventures for the whole household. They quickly got comfortable outside their sequestered area. Sometimes they were quiet enough for us to take pictures.

When I started packing for my trip to Carrollton, one of them decided one of the bags was a good perch….and he didn’t want to vacate.

While I was gone, my husband experimented with them out of their room during the night. The first night was OK but the second one they wanted to play most of the night. So - we’ve reverted to enticing them into their room with a late night snack.

The kittens like my husband’s office. They sometimes attempt to take over his keyboard and monitors. He has tried putting towels and boxes over the electrical cables on the floor to discourage their biting on the cables….they prefer the towels for naps. They still get into the extra office chair, but it will soon be too small to hold all three at once.

Puma discovered the receipt bin and Pooky joined him…tussle ensued. Typical behavior when they meet anywhere in the house.

The kittens have broken two glass coasters as they race around the house and over/under end tables. One end table fell over sending a coaster flying and another was swept clean when the racing kittens used it as part of the route through the den…another coaster flew and shattered. I’ve put the remaining glass coasters away and we are using unbreakable coasters.

It is now impossible to keep them off the kitchen counters completely. I made a small bouquet with items from the yard. The roses and crepe myrtle are still in place, but the wavy grass seed heads are bent and scattered. Maybe they looked too much like a toy to the kittens.

Overall – it’s been an eventful month and we are anticipating continued kitten adventures.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, week 1, week 2

Settling in, developing new routines – 3rd month

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It seems like the “settling in” picked up speed during this third month…the things we are doing now are the ones most important to making this place the home we want.

Kittens. Getting three kittens was a milestone for us. We had been without a cat since mid-January; even though we missed having a pet, we also realized it would be easier to make the long distance move without one. Once we were here, we waited until we had the house unpacked enough to be safe for kittens. And so – now we have 3 kittens (siblings) that are keeping us busy tweaking their environment to be safe for them…and not have too much damage to the furniture, drapery, etc. Having kittens will limit the travel we do together through the end of the year…but they provide an abundance of entertainment to make up for it.

Travel. I will be in Texas one week of each month to help enable my parents to remain independent in their own home….and celebrate their 70th anniversary in December. It’s not quite a routine yet but getting close; the way I handle laundry and snacks for the road and packing is becoming more consistent every month! And my husband is keeping busy with the kittens and visits from my daughter.

Birdfeeder. We now have 2 bird feeders….both visible from my office window. The one that seems to be the most popular is on a pole with our three holly trees around it. The birds seem to feel very secure coming there. The screen from the window blew off during a storm (I simply picked up and put it in the storage area of the basement)….so I can usually photograph the birdfeeder and bath through the window. I plan to clean the window frequently and enjoy the birds!

Yard. What a difference a month makes. The rains have been more consistent, and we’ve been able to reduce the frequency our sprinkler system comes on. Learning how to winterize the system is ahead of us…but not until we get closer to freezing temperatures. I am making plans to mow the yard (electric mower) probably beginning at the end of this season so I can enlarge the beds for shrubs, bulbs, and perennials in the back yard. I’d like to get bulbs planted this fall.  

State parks. We are starting a project to visit local and state parks. I’ve got a map showing all the parks within a 100-mile radius. They’ll make for some great day trips!

Previous ‘settling in’ posts: 1st month, 2nd month

Ten Little Celebrations – August 2022

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The celebrations I noted in August 2022 are part of the continuum of transition to Missouri – our new home.

A neat garage. I celebrated how organized our garage looked after we set up the bunk bed frame for all the camping gear! Sometimes a quick and simple task can have a bigger impact than expected on our perception of place.

A rainy morning. It was a relief – and celebration - when we finally got some summer rain. The August temperatures have also been a little cooler than in July….and our grass has turned green again.

Roadtrip home. I celebrated my shortest time ever for the drive from Carrollton to Nixa. It was a Sunday so traffic was light…and the weather was dry.

Finding boxes of Atkins shakes. My husband only likes one flavor of Atkins shakes and I’d been challenged to find them in prior grocery shopping weeks…and then there were two on the shelf at Walmart! I celebrated (and put both of them in my cart).

Sooty, Pooky, and Puma. Celebrating new pets. Their antics are fun to watch…they demand interaction…challenge us to make small modifications to our household routine for their safety.  

Kittens napping. After times of high kitten activity (with 3 of them there are frequent chases, tussles, and a general tendancy to move small toys everywhere in the house), we celebrate some quiet time when all three are napping.

Mango chicken salad. I selected something new from the menu my daughter was ordering from….and celebrated the result!

Spider bite not infected. I went to Urgent Care with a bug bite different than I had ever experienced (painful and it looked different). They identified it as a probable spider bite and cautioned me that it might get worse before it got better. I got a tetanus shot and perscription strength topical antibiotic…celebrated that they said it did not look infected (and it never got infected although it is taking several weeks to heal).

Taking pictures through my office window. I like taking pictures through my office windows. A storm blew off one of the screens…and I’ve left it off. I haven’t taken many pictures through the window yet…but I am celebrating that I now have the physical setup to do it. I’ve seen chickadees and finches on the bird bath about 4 feet from where I sit….and a hummingbird investicated a plant nearby.

Coursera anatomy course. I celebrated completing another anatomy course (Anatomy of the chest, neck, and abdomen) from Yale on Coursera. Every module was well presented and interesting.

Unique Aspects of Days – August 2022

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Most of the uniqueness in August was associated with our move to Missouri….although not as directly as back in July.

A juvenile grackle on our bird feeder. We had gackles under our feeder in Maryland too but they must not have nested nearby because I didn’t ever see a juvenile. They are smart birds and don’t seem to be as noisy around our house as the ones I see at the Josey Ranch Lake in Carrollton TX….maybe because there are not as many of them.

3 kittens. It’s been almost 40 years since we had a kitten in our house…and it was only one back then. 3 of them make for many unique experiences…usually positive.


Did not want a breakfast burrito. A McDonalds breakfast burrito has been my favorite mid-morning snack on driving days…but recently, it just did not appeal to me at all. Glad I realized how I was feeling before I made the purchase!

First time to vote in Missouri. The primary was in early August. We had registered but didn’t yet have our permanent driver’s license…fortunately the paper copy was sufficient. The polling place was convenient and not crowded. Evidently it was a new polling place.

Setting up a compost ring. I used some cedar edging with prongs that pushed into the soil to keep them in place. I was pleased with the way it looked on the first day and even more pleased with how fast the compost is ‘cooking.’

Urgent care for spider bite. I had never gotten a spider bite….wasn’t sure that it was a spider bite (since I didn’t see the spider). It seemed to be getting worse so I went to Urgent Care on the 3rd day. They said it was a spider bite…gave me a tetanus shot…topical antibiotic…instructions to come back if a list of symptoms developed. Fortunately none of the dire symptoms happened but it is taking considerable time to heal.

Ice pack on spider bite helped. The spider bite on the back of my calf caused considerable pain which was a new experience…as was the relief of 10 minutes with an ice pack!

Puddles and cruise control. It was a little scary to drive through a puddle…and have my cruise control turn off. It wasn’t raining very hard at the time but evidently the water had accumulated enough to slow the car too suddenly and a safety mechanism engaged.

Rat trying to get into flour canister. Definitely a unique experience I would prefer had not happened. I went into my parents’ kitchen one morning and found bits of brown plastic all around a metal canister. The plastic has been the seal on the canister which the rat chewed partially through….but not completely.

Using  the self-scan in a Missouri grocery store for the 1st time. They haven’t been doing it as long as my store in Maryland so there are a few kinks…but not too bad.

Kittens! – week 2

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Two weeks of kittens…their antics are entertaining and, sometimes, worrying.

They have an affinity for anything like a cable or cord. Sometimes they just bat the ‘snake’ with their paws but other times they try to bite/chew or tangle themselves…which could be damaging and even tragic with electrical cables. So – my husband has covered the cables in his office with beach towels or big pieces of cardboard. It has worked reasonably well so far…the cats seem to enjoy sleeping on the cord coverings even more than the desk chair (like day 3 and 5).

One morning I noticed that all the pillows that had been on the window seat in our breakfast area were on the floor. I’d thought the cats would enjoy looking out the window there and seen them on the pillows previously…but not seen any behavior that would have resulted in the pillows being pushed off. Then – I noticed Sooty playing with the pulls of the blinds. She was having great fun…jumping and pouncing to catch the fob on the end of the cords. So – I tucked the cord/fob into the top of the blind…and the pillows have stayed in place since.

We are still sequestering the kittens in their room/bathroom at night. They are enticed in with a last meal of the day in the bathroom. One night my husband started the process at the usual time, but the kittens were playing a lot; he got them back and enjoying their meal…closed the door. And a few minutes later they were making little meows still wanting the run of the house. Since then, he has waited until they are quiet and then provided their last meal of the day….and they are OK with being in their room.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5, week 1

Kittens! – Week 1

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One week of kittens….and we are all still in get-acquainted mode. My husband is managing to corral them into a bed/bath for night time but it takes a before-bed-meal as an enticement. We heard their first full meows when he was carrying the plate of food back for their night area…trying to avoid stepping on them as they all swirled around his ankles. They are generally up by about 5:30 AM; we hear them playing; by 6:30 they are indicating they want out and breakfast too.

They have gained proficiency on the cat tree – rarely jumping from the top to the floor like they did initially (we almost put the tree away but they learned to take intermediate jumps very quickly) …and they like to play on the tree as an added challenge to there activity on the floor.

Puma was the first to discover how to get into the tube part of the tree but the other two quickly followed; sometimes the tube has two of them at one time.

They like small toys and with guard one after intense play (hoarding it from siblings). A soft drink box became another part of the obstacle course in our den….the cats alternating between high levels of activity and napping. The highest activity level seems to be immediately after breakfast but there are other bursts throughout the day.

Early to mid-afternoon seems to be their quiet time. Sometimes they enjoy the office chair but there can be quiet times in the tree as well….as long as they are on separate levels! (Below – Pooky in the tube, Sooty, Puma at the top)

My husband serves their food on one plate – divided into three piles. He maneuvers to let Pooky (the female and smallest) to have the first bites). Puma and Sooty follow.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4, day 5

Kittens! – Day 5

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The kittens were contained in the room with the futon overnight and we started thinking about continuing that indefinitely because they are so rambunctious when they have the run of the whole 1st floor. We introduced the donut (round tube with openings on two sides, dangling toys in the openings) that our adult cats enjoyed so much. The kittens used it very differently….not as a place to curl up for a nap….rather an obstacle course they could run through or around taking a swing or bite at the toys as they entered or exited. Action was too fast for good pictures!

After a lot of running around, they still enjoy a nap together in the extra office chair…but only if my husband stays in the office with them! They all want to play if there is a human moving around in their vicinity.

The big discovery of the day was the cat tree. It’s been in front of the piano room windows from the beginning but they didn’t notice it immediately. Puma was the first to climb it and he went all the way to the top the very first time. Sooty followed --- also all the way to the top. Their little claws are sharp; my husband has bigger scratches than me because he kept trying to rescue them before they jumped down from the top of the cat tree. We moved a chair close to the tree to give them an easier path up and down. The chair may need to be reupholstered after they graduate to adulthood!

This is the last daily Kittens! Post…but I will do some weekly posts.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3, day 4

Kittens! – Day 4

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The kittens became harder to photograph by the 4th day because they were much more active and the light was not bright enough to freeze the action. Sometimes they all three seemed to be playing a game of tag that ranged all over the 1st floor. They still went to the drawers under the futon but not as often.

Sooty is the most adventuresome and he is the only one that wants to be picked up. He wanted to climb up my leg but I managed to dissuade him before he put his claws out all the way (and into my skin). He discovered that the upholstered chair in the living room is a quiet place that, so far, he has all to himself; we’ve put a pad on the seat for him.

Puma is probably the largest although not by much. He likes a central location where he can see all the action. He was the first to try climbing drapery (which prompted us to take down the ones that were most tempting to him).

Pooky (formerly Suki) always seems to be in the thick of activities. She is probably the smallest and is the one my husband watches to make sure she gets her share of food.

All three of them play with toys differently than our adult cats did. They use their teeth a lot. They tore apart some older toys and tried to pull an automated wand toy across the room by the feathers on the end of the wand (that toy has been put way…saved for later). We’ve noticed that the scratching pads surrounded by a ball trough move on the wood floor which sometimes makes them even more fun – but also makes noise. Overall – I notice a lot more noise coming from the first floor when I am in my basement office!

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2, day 3

Kittens! – Day 3

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The kittens’ third day at our house was another milestone…the doors were opened to let them out into the whole 1st floor of the house. They played hard with each other and with us…lots of mad running to hiding places when anything startled them. Their favorite sleeping place was the extra office chair in my husband’s office….in various heaps. They’ll soon outgrow the chair…at least for all three at once.

Sooty was the first to do a lot of things – find the low window/door where he could look outside, jump up on the kitchen counter using a couch as ‘steps,’ explore the inside of the grand piano using the bench and keys as ‘steps’.

We renamed Suki to Pooky (we remembered that Pooky was Garfield’s bear in the comic strip…decided to spell it the same way) because Suki sounded too like Sooty. She is a little more timid than Sooty but often follows his lead on some adventures. She might be the smallest of the three.

Puma is more reclusive, but he is out and about when people are not too close. He, like the other cats, likes to sniff everything. They all like the small mouse toys with catnip inside.

In the early evening, a thunderstorm made some loud noises and they all retreated to the drawers under the futon; that is their ‘safe’ place.

We sequestered them in the room/bathroom overnight. Overall – they did very well in the larger space although they didn’t like the large cat tree. Maybe its size is overwhelming for them right now.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1, day 2

Kittens! – Day 2

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We kept the kittens in a room, attached bath overnight. The next morning it was already obvious they were less timid. All three of them liked the string toy! From top to bottom in the image below: Suki, Puma, and Sooty. Note Pumas fully extended paw!

Sooty was the first to play with the ball in the round toy. Puma liked the bell that hangs from the center of the arch. Suki found something of interest in the sheet I had put over the futon (note the books on the floor which she had knocked out of the bookcase as she exited her hiding places there). They all retreated to the drawers under the futon when they were startled (and they apparently slept there). Occasionally they made turns into the carrier but didn’t stay.

We opened the door on the other side of the bath into my husband’s office. They started exploring. The synthesizer/electronic keyboards provide interesting height and texture for them (Suki in the picture). My husband was a little concerned about them chewing on cables so he unplugged everything that he could and keeps an eye on them. They all investigate the smell of everything (Puma at the multiple outlet strip).

My husband’s office chair is a popular place. My husband commented that Sooty (top) and Suki (on seat) were taking over the office.

Overall – by the end of the day we were both agreeing that the kittens were going to be ready to come out of sequestration on day 3. Stay tuned for their 1st day of adventures roaming the 1st floor of our house.

Previous Kittens! Posts: day 1