Our newest family members

Whew I realize it has been a long while since I’ve written anything here. One of my excuses is our new family members. A week ago we adopted two baby kittens. Most evenings when I finally make it to the computer (which has also been later than usual as my already busy life now has more distractions and more things to do) I have two little warm bodies that like to curl up in my lap. Also I have been falling behind on the basics of upkeep on the computer. My inbox is growing and the messages that are unread also continue to multiply. Time spent in the kitchen seems greater and though I say things are going to change I haven’t quite figured out how to put that into motion yet.

But let me say these kittens are adorable. They are very young. I didn’t realize how young they were when we got them. I was under the impression they were about 7 weeks old (when I met the woman that had them she said they were around 6 weeks and a week had passed). It turns out they are now just 6 weeks and we’ve had them a week. I feel bad that we took them away from their mom so soon.

The little boy is Mojo. He is white and tabby (I had decided I didn’t want the usual tabby – ya know the brown and black ones and that’s what I got) and adorable and affectionate and playful and well, he’s a kitten. He adapted very well to the change. He does like to have contact with others. When the kids are playing he is generally right there playing along. When he gets tired he will find a spot that is preferably touching another but if not then he is close by. Just before coming to the computer he fell asleep on the kitchen floor close to my feet where I was standing. If PM is sitting reading or playing with his ‘guys’ or Lego Mojo will sleep very close to him.

The little girl is Star. She is a black calico. Bits of rust colour on her with a little spot of white on her tail, mouth and one white paw. For her, the adjustment to the new environment was harder. For the first day she was hiding out wherever she could find a spot that seemed safe and well covered. I felt so bad that it was so hard on her. I felt like we had made a mistake in taking her away. Within a couple of days though she was charging all over the place, eating well (though that seems to be up and down) and always playing with her brother.

The two of them are either sleeping or playing. They will wake up (or more likely be woken up by the kids) and play around then crash again. Occasionally they will make their way to the food for a quick nibble.

At first LB was a bit more observing of them but keeping her distance (she had been scratched when we were first visiting the kittens). But now she is constantly all over them. I found there was too much of my interfering with the kids and the kittens. Stop! Gentle! Put them down! Listen to what they are saying! They don’t want to be picked up like that! And on and on… She picks them up and plunks them down in the litter box. Sometimes it looks like she is mauling them. Sometimes they complain a little and other times they just accept it. Mojo is more likely to let her take him all over whereas Star will meow a bit more at this. The kittens are not being hurt (if they yelp I definitely step in) though perhaps they could be carried in a nicer way or even left alone for a minute or two. I’m sure we will work it out. At first I was concerned about the kittens being totally traumatized and now I trust they will fight back if it really doesn’t work for them (or run away and hide).

All in all we are thrilled with our kitties (well I’m not sure about Thomas)…