One Year Later

Yesterday, May 10th, was my kittens' first birthday. It was also Mother's Day--go figure! In any case, I wanted to let you all know that they're doing fine (and I am too--after the magical surgery, I no longer go into heat and I finally lost most of that pesky kitten weight!), as well as share the pictures that the kittens' adoptive parents were kind enough to provide.

First, Mommy-Jess's own Mommy and Daddy adopted Jake & Cap, the two orange tabby boys. I barely remember them, and I think they have trouble recognizing me. But they both have my bib and Charlie's (their daddy's) eyes, and Jake's fur is all thick like mine (and like his brother Manny's, but Manny's is longer). You can see them together along the left side (C on the top, J on the bottom). They both look a lot like their brother Max, too.

In the following photos, Jake is first and Cap second.


I had fun traveling with Mommy-Jess to see them this weekend, even though they hissed at me and I threw up in the car. =( And there was this big yellow dog who made my tail go all poofy! But she was actually a nice dog and we made up soon after.


Max, the gray kitten (and the one we called "Brady" for a long time), is doing great. Like C&J, he has his mom's bib and his dad's eyes. His adoptive Mom says his fur is really as soft as it looks... and considering he has some of my genes, I'm not surprised.


The black fluffy kitten, who we called "T'Challa," is now named Manny. Jake's fur is similar to his, just a bit shorter. Here he is with his first adoptive Mom. (Update: Manny lives with a new family now!)

And Chloe, formerly called "Cali" and then "Mallory," is loving life up at Hackleboro Orchards in Canterbury, NH. Her colors are sort of the reverse of mine--I'm calico with some tabby markings, and she's a tabby with some calico markings!

It's amazing--someone was finally able to get a good shot of her face. =)

I wish I could see them all, but my time with them is over. They're in the hands of their adoptive Mommies and Daddies now, and I appreciate those folks' efforts to occasionally check in and let us all know how they're doing. We love them all from afar, and we're so happy that they've developed well. They're all very happy, very attractive young cats. =)

Just for good measure, here's one last photo of me now, since the last ones you saw were either me pregnant or me right after giving birth/nursing, neither of which are very flattering images.



Thank you so much for reading! I hope all of your own cats and kittens are doing well, and that this blog has served as a reference for any future mommies going through a similar ordeal. I've loved sharing this process with you, and you can get or ask for updates about me and Cap & Jake through Mommy-Jess, who is easy to find on both Livejournal and Twitter.

Love,
Emma

Their Last Week

The four boys -- Cap, Jake, Brady, and Marshmallow (the black kitten) -- are leaving this weekend, and Mallory is probably leaving on Tuesday.

They're so very playful now! They love to play with yarn and climb peoples' pant legs, and they all definitely still love playing with each other. They're going to miss each other, and I'm going to miss them a little, but frankly, I want Mommy-Jess to myself again. I run into her room after her whenever she opens the door, and I even have to put myself between her and the kittens sometimes so that she'll pet me and not them! They're pretty grown-up now, in my eyes -- they don't seem to need me much anymore, unless they want a milky snack. And it hurts even more now that they all have teeth!

They're all more or less consistently using the litter box and eating solid food. Mommy-Jess seems very happy about this. And Jake purred for the first time yesterday!

Brady. This picture came out quite dark -- or it could be Mommy-Jess's screen. Either way, he's gotten so big and handsome!

The three-tier sleep-system -- Brady's on the top, Marshmallow's in the middle, and Mallory is on the bottom. The Oranges were sleeping on chairs.

Little Mallory never looks at the camera!

Relaxing Jake.

Marshmallow, with the litter box mess behind him. The carpet under the boxes is lined with newspaper, but they love to tear it up...

Mallory and Jake, playing with yarn.

And Cap, with his "who's that wakin' me up??" offended face.

That's about it. I'll be back at least once more to reflect on life-after-kittens. This was my first and will be my only litter, as Mommy-Jess made me an appointment for the girl version of what happened to Charlie at the end of next week.

I am very, very tired and very, very sore. The whole pregnancy process is exhausting, my friends.

Love,
Emma

Kitten Faces!

Happy Saturday! Mommy-Jess still doesn't have a new computer, so we're just hoping that this post works. Brief update first, then hopefully we can get a good picture post going!

I should note that since I'm not spayed yet and the babies are beginning to be weaned, I have gone into heat. =( And Charlie is, obviously, neutered now, so there is NO RELEASE. It is driving me crazy! I just want to go outside and find some Tom and dzohfvgouihdfov. But Mommy-Jess won't let me. Maybe I'll feel better once I'm spayed.

The kittens have all begun taking to the solid food. Mommy-Jess had to sit down with some of the more finicky ones and hand-feed them until they figured out what the gooshy brown stuff was, but they've all at least started to eat.

(Mommy-Jess says her method was to take a little chunk of wet food in one hand, the kitten in the other, and gently force open the kitten's mouth and stick the wet food in. Once the kitten realized it tasted good, he or she would take more food without being forced. The kitten still had a bit of difficulty realizing what the food was doing in a bowl as opposed to coming out of my milk-filled tummy, but Mommy-Jess scooped some food into her hand and let the kitten eat of of that before pushing him or her over to the bowl. And it worked! We'll see if they remember what to do tonight...)

They're still pooing on the carpet, but litter box training takes time. The best method, apparently, is to put the kittens in the litter box about a half-hour after feeding and rub their paws in the litter to simulate digging and burying. It's working somewhat -- there is waste in the box! -- but the results still aren't consistent. Hopefully in another week or so, they'll get it!

And now, what you've been waiting for -- PICTURES!

Cap! Isn't he the cutest little dear?

And here's Jacoby, offended by the flash going off in his face.

T'Challa (his -- yes, T'Challa is male, go figure -- prospective adopter has not chosen a name yet. I suppose she'll start thinking about it when she comes to see him next Thursday), looking all surprised.

Playful Brady!

Jake and Mallory eating, with Brady looking on. Mommy-Jess's camera ran out of batteries before she could get a face-shot of Mallory, but she promises she will by the next post.

That's it for today!
If you know an available Tom, will you please send him my way? Thanks, everyone.

Love,
Emma

We're back, for now!

Mommy-Jess asked me what I wanted to write and I told her and she says she's going to post it from work. First I said to give people a computer update: Mommy-Jess's laptop is working, but at half-speed and on a very annoying desktop monitor. It takes up so much space that I have no room to sit and walk around and knock over her jar of pens anymore! She seems very frustrated with it. I hope she can save up enough money to buy a new one soon. (Humans and their silly money.)

Next -- yay kittens! Mommy-Jess finally put down a second litter box, and I've been trying to show them how to use it. They seem to be catching on. They also seem to be sneaking into the food bowl that I share with Charlie, because a diet consisting solely of milk does not result in solid waste! But Mommy-Jess says that it's time to start them on their own solid food anyway, and I think she's going to tonight. This is good, because my poor belly is all bruised and bloody from their teeth pulling it at all the time. It hurts.

Gray ("Teddy"), Little Orange (formerly "Creamy," now "Jacoby" or "Jake"), and Calico ("Mallory") all have confirmed homes. Things are a tad up in the air for Black ("T'Challa") and Big Orange ("Cap"), but Mommy-Jess says she's pretty sure that she's found homes for both of them as of today. 

And... a few pictures. No videos today, but soon, hopefully. Mommy-Jess is looking into getting a new laptop! Donations accepted through PayPal! Comment for details! ;)

That's me! And the babies. Left to right, we have T'Challa, Mallory, Jacoby, Cap, and Teddy. This was taken last week, when they were actually staying in the playpen. They roam the whole house freely now, mainly because Mommy-Jess and Jae can't keep them contained.

Annnnddddd Mommy-Jess says her work computer wouldn't let her upload more pictures. Big photopost as soon as possible! Promise!

Love,

Emma

Leave of Absence

We're on a temporary hiatus over here because Mommy-Jess's computer is fried. More updates ASAP.

Kittens are doing fine. They're out of the playpen and running around, and prospective adopters are coming for the first time this weekend!

Kittens Climbing Playpen!

Aren't they adorable?

Well. Mommy-Jess "is turning 21" today. I'm not entirely sure what that means, but she seems really excited about it so I'm going to go stare at her with my ears turned back for a little while.

Kitten photodump, plus new videos!

Good morning, everybody! The kittens are three weeks old today, so I thought I should get Mommy-Jess to take a few more pictures and videos. The kittens have been moved into a playpen now, because they're starting to get feisty and playful! They're a little too much to handle sometimes, but they're my babies so I try not to mind too much.


Above, you can see all of the kittens asleep, last night, in the nesting box.



Here's Cali and the two Oranges. Look at those groggy, beautiful blue eyes!



They are getting so playful. That's Little Orange (or "Creamy") on his back on the left, and then we have Big Orange ("Cap") , Cali, and Gray having some kittenish fun.



Cali and Gray, play-fighting. I think Mommy-Jess was trying to get Cali's face, but she tucked it under Gray's body riiiiight at the last second.



There's Creamy, Cap, and Cali. Boy, we love our 'c' names, don't we?


And finally, we have Cali again, playing with Gray and one of the Oranges. =)

And here's a video of Cali learning how to walk:



Finally, a video of all five kittens, and myself, in the kittens' new living space!