I don't even know what day, April 27, 2011

well it's been a while, again, since we've posted.  Murray is currently the most "advanced" kitty.  He's playing with the big kitty, Winston, like they are equals.  Lilly and Enan are still a little fussy... they don't eat their grown-up food like Murray does, so we're still supplementing with the bottle every now and then.

The good news is... THEY USE THE LITTER BOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WA HOO!  And here's the proof...

that's Enan going #2!  Notice the lack of trash cans, toilets, humans, and baby wipes in this picture.  It's really a beautiful thing.  Most of you have no idea.

Anyway, the boys have been getting some interest.  Lilly is spoken for!

We're operating under a "first-pick-up-and-take-home, first served" policy.  We're hoping they'll be ready to go to their permanent homes next week!

Day Seventeen

Wow!  Busy week for the kitties!  Let's see if we can recap.  

Murray opened his eyes!!! And they are beautiful!  It's getting really difficult to tell him apart from Lilly!

Lilly found a home!!!!!!!  She won't be packing her bags until the first of May, but someone has spoken for her!  We are all so excited for her.

Enan is still smaller than Lilly and Murray, but he's growing too!  He weighed in at 9 oz. on Monday.

Everyone is getting so playful!  They are spending a lot of time out of their rubbermaid, exploring all kinds of things.  And they're always so hungry!  Growing kitties need lots of milk action!

So here's what everyone wants... PICTURES!

Look at bearded mama giving them their 2nd Dawn bath!  Confession: I have no clue which one that is!

All three sleeping in my office on April 12.

The three, sleeping in the office today, April 14.  Bottom kitty (6 o'clock) is Lilly, (going clockwise) next is Murray, next- face hidden is Enan.

Day Eleven

Today we slept in.  It was glorious because we were so worn out because of all the excitement from yesterday.  It's such a great life being a kitty in this house! Yesterday we got to play with some preschool kiddos at the church and they were strange and new to us...  they weren't like the big people we have been getting to know.  Their hands were soft and their excited voices eeked with wonder.  They scared us but made us feel loved at the same time.

Bearded Mama shut the curtains so we didn't know when the sun came up.  He stirred us to tell us goodbye on his way out for work.  The next thing we knew Orange Lady was scooping us up and carrying us to her white car.  We soon arrived at the office.  Mr Rick let us play in his office after lunch.

In the evening Orange Lady and Bearded Mama came home and tinkered around in the kitchen for a while with their dinner.  Finally they came to visit us.  Although Enan, the last to be named, told us about a dream where Bearded Mama came to feed him and give him extra attention... we were glad to get woken up.

Today, on day eleven of our lives we finally got to hang out on a real couch, in from of a real American TV.  We are truly becoming American house kitties and couldn't be happier!  Whomever gets to adopt us will be the happiest humans!  Even though Winston, the young orange cat, lurches around when we are on the couch, having the freedom for roam and crawl has been great.  We are stretching into new muscles and discovering new textures and smells.  This world is full of wonder and we cannot wait to learn and discover more!

Little Murray is the last to open his eyes... maybe tomorrow? 

This looks like Enan (left) and Murray (right) but who knows!?  It's so hard to tell without looking at their eyes! 

A sleep chain on the big person couch.  Winston is totally jealous right now.

Left to right: Lilly, Murray, Enan

And little Enan trying to climb my pink shirt... or at least thinking about climbing it.

over and out.

Day Ten

The Kitties got new digs!!!  Check out their Rubbermaid!

No climbing this... at least for now.  I think they grew overnight!  At least Murray and Lilly did.  I'm a little worried about the tiny one.  He isn't as active today as he has been.  They're all eating... they go crazy for the bottle of formula milk.  Now that we know how to poop and pee them... they're feelin' good! ...which means they're super active!  They really like the sound of their own voices... so they are starting to share those with the world a lot more.  Which is great, but just means that my office basically has a revolving door to church members and staff.  Thank God I'm an extrovert AND can get work done with people in the room.

I continue to be shocked by the generosity and the grace shown these kitties.  People are helping to foot the vet bills, offering their kitty-sitting services, and stopping by to feed the little guys and gal.  It's really touching.

Oh!  check out the arm around the shoulder action happening in that picture!  How cute is that!!!??

Day Nine

The kitties are new celebrities at MPBC.  Everyone hears them, has fed them, and is continuing to embrace them.  These little ones are going to have so many god-parents.

...We're starting to wonder why they aren't um, going to the bathroom, like we suspect they should be.  We take them to the vet.

I need to interrupt to tell you that Mixed Pet Vets at South End is the best veterinarian's office in the whole world.  They really took care of these kitties.

Here's what we learned:

• "Open Eyes" weighs 7 oz., good heart rate, male, a little bit of a bloated and firm belly... need to watch that.

• "Closed Eyes" a.k.a. "Murray" weighs 9 oz., good heart rate, male, pooped in the vet's hands.

• "Half Open Eyes" a.k.a. "Lilly" weighs 9 oz., good heart rate, female

• Fact:  Mama cats can conceive multiple times during one "pregnancy."  Meaning, Mama Cat can get pregnant by one boyfriend and then go get pregnant by her other boyfriend a day later!  She holds all the babies inside until the youngest ones are ready to face the world.  

• So we think Open Eyes is actually a little older (conceptually speaking) than Closed Eyes and Half Open Eyes... fascinating!

• Three kitties DO climb styrofoam.

Anyway, it's been a long day for the three.  Time to go home, eat more, pee more, and sleep more.
Oh yeah, and we are beginning to accept that we are going to be the caregivers for these three for at least a month.  Wonderful.

Day Eight

The kitties' first day at work.  Thanks MPBC staff for embracing them with your love, support, and bottle / dropper feeding sills.  This is Murray, eyes still shut, a little slower than the others today, not all that interested in the bottle.

The others are eating and sleeping well.  Their box is starting to reek of ammonia.  Yuck.

Day Seven

We are still hearing scratching and squeaking in the wall of our bedroom!!!

Justin takes the plywood off the wall to find MAMA CAT... and kittens #4 and #5.

Mama Cat runs away.  Now we have 5 kittens!!  We leave all 5 in the box in the outdoor room where they had been discovered.  We wait...

...We come back 4 hours later, Mama Cat has taken kitten #3 and #2.  Now we have 3 kittens.  We wait again for the return of Mama Cat for her lost kittens...

... 10 hours later, no sign of Mama Cat.  We still have 3 kittens.

By this time it's getting colder and we're worried about the little ones.  We bring them in, conceding that MC isn't coming back for them.  We bottle feed them with the supplies intended to get ONE kitten through ONE night.

A word to the wise: even kitten rescues do not take kittens who are not yet weaned from Mama or the bottle.

The three curl up in a ball of furry kittenness together in the box... the second night.

Day Six

One got stuck between two walls today, must have fallen from the nest mama cat had made.  Two more fell a long way down... landed on a pile of leaves behind the hot water heater.  The stuck one decided to squeak for help, sounded like a hybrid between a cat and a mouse.  The two decided to sleep behind the hot water heater; they were hidden by the leaves in the corner.

I went out to do laundry this morning, knew I had found the mouse that we'd been hearing from our bedroom.  It sounded muffled from our room.  Now it wasn't.  It was clear, got louder and more insistent when I opened the door.  I looked up above the washing machine and saw gray hair poking out from behind a piece of plywood.  I freaked out, knowing I'd found the mouse, waited for Justin to come home to "take care of our mouse."  It squeaked all morning, I could hear it through the walls of the house.

Justin got home before me.  When I pulled into the driveway he was sitting on the porch with the "mouse" in his hands.  I knew it wasn't a mouse... but what was it!?

enter: kitten #1

Two hours later after driving around trying to find a vet or rescue to take the kitten, we returned home with kitten formula and a box.  Went back to look for the mama...

enter: kittens #2 and #3

...We put the box in our guest bedroom, away from our big cats, hoping they will make it through the night, the first night.

Day Five

Kitties [must be]:  Still dark.  Still cramped.  Still hungry.

From the inside of the house we hear scratching and squeaking.  We're certain we have a mouse colony living in our floors, walls, and attic.

Day One

Kitties: Cold, sticky, cramped, blind!  Oh yeah... hungry...zZZzzzzzZZZZzzzzz.