Until the real thing comes along...

Marquette with his mouse.

Tacumwah with her mouse.

Me with my mouse.

Sitting up with my mouse.

Mommy went to Wal*Mart today. She brought home, among other things, some small catnip mice. Tacumwah got to the bag first, so Mommy gave her a mouse. Then Marquette stole Tacumwah's mouse and ran off growling with it in his mouth. Tacumwah got another mouse. Mommy had planned on rationing the mice, but soon all three were in play because, of course, I had to have one also. So the photos for today are the three of us with our mice.

Mommy was complaining about her Wal*Mart bill. She said that most of it was for pet supplies and that she had to stand on her feet at the Georgetown Library for almost 4 hours or 1/6 of her 3-day workweek to pay for these items. Let's discuss this, shall we?

$11.52 - canned dog food

6.24 - Milk Bone dog biscuits

10.94 - cat litter

1.52 - Pounce cat treats

1.94 - catnip mice

1.64 - dinner bowl for me (Is THAT all she paid for it?)

$33.80 - total or 35.7% of a $94.47 total.

That total does not reflect shallots ($2.48) which can be classified as either an ingredient that Mommy uses in her wine reduction sauce or a toy for Marquette to bat around the house.

Some shared items include milk at $2.72 a gallon, cheese at $5.00 for an 8 oz. package, ground chuck at $5.78 for 2 1/4 lbs., and ice cream at $5.96 for two small pints. (It is doubtful that we will get any Haagen Dazs.)

Now let's get a definition of the word pet: a domesticated animal kept for companionship or amusement.

There, you see...I am NOT a pet. I am an integral part of and a working member of this household. My job description includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Personal Trainer - As a personal trainer I keep Marquette in shape so that he will not get fat. I perform this duty several times a day. If you hire a personal trainer you can expect to pay anywhere between $25 -$90 per hour for his/her services.

Natural Healer - As a natural healer I reduce stress and anxiety and lower blood pressure. Do you pay for mood elevators or blood pressure prescriptions? The costs of these meds can be many dollars per day. Neither of my mommies is on meds for these issues.

Entertainer - Have you gone to the movies lately? Then you know that two tickets, cinema popcorn and soda can run you $30! I give two performances a day, in the morning and the evening, 7 days per week. (No matinees. I am too busy resting between performances!)

Family therapist - As the family therapist I allow Mommy to vent about whatever concerns her. I soak up tears and listen without interrupting or judging, letting Mommy lay all her concerns on the table so that she can see how minor they are compared to the concerns of most other people. Expect to pay an average of $100 per hour to converse with a family therapist.

Pest control management - As you know from one of my first posts, I successfully eliminated ALL of the garage crickets when I was quarantined in the garage. (Dexter did kill one when he was quarantined in the garage with the other Ohio kittens.) Last night I killed a small spider in the hallway. I keep my skills sharp by stalking, pouncing on and destroying the catnip toys. When we move to the farm I will be ready for any foreigner who enters the cottage! Orkin is currently giving a $30 discount on their service, so you can just imagine what they must charge to come to your home!

I rest my case!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

A so-so day

Trying to nap under the dining room table.

Cat on the counter! (Tacumwah)

Today was just another lazy day. Mommy was home and we worked on the Blossom Ridge Farm blog. Mommy also made spaghetti sauce and it has simmered most of the day. I probably won't get any sauce. Maybe I can beg a noodle. And I did get some of Mommy's famous cheese blend. I got some Asiago and some pecorino romano cheese. Yum!

Mommy did laundry and washed dishes. She was going to go to Wal-Mart and buy me a new dinner dish but she didn't make it. She will go tomorrow. I can wait. The food tastes the same on the saucer; it's just a personal thing.

Marquette thinks Mommy may be a little down. He has a special relationship with her. He says it is because when she found him, she put him under her shirt next to her skin and he stayed there a long time and transfered all of his mommy associations from our mommy, CTL, to Mommy. He follows Mommy all over the house and always wants to know where she is. He checks on her during the night, often sleeping across her neck with his face touching hers. I don't understand their bond though I do understand bonding because I have bonded with my brother and he is my best friend. Today, I guess, Marquette took a short nap with Mommy. He told me that he thanked her for rescuing us. "You are welcome," Mommy told him, "and thank you for rescuing me." I must ponder what that means.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Working on my blog!

Me, tonight, writing my blog with Mommy.

It has been a lazy weekend. Mommy had to work Saturday and Mommy Bonnie went to the Good Life Show at the Coliseum where they sell green products. She is still trying to go green as much as possible in building our new cottage.

Well, our power went out Sunday night when I was typing the second sentence of my blog. We lit the house with powerful flashlights and we had heat because of the gas fireplace. Tacumwah was right...the gas fireplace is wonderful and we did lie near each other enjoying the heat.

When Mommy went to feed me on Saturday night after work she couldn't find my bowl. Why? Because Mommy Bonnie found it on the floor smashed to pieces when she got home from the green exhibit! Now I will never tell how the bowl was broken and who broke it, but I am sad that my bowl is gone and that I have to eat my dinner from a saucer. Mommy promised me a new bowl when next she goes to Wal-Mart.

That's it for today. If there was more to write about, we have forgotten it!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Stand tall like a Meerkat!

Maya - one of the kitties Mommy rescued in Ohio!

Me peeking through the stairway leading to the loft.

Another day. It has been fun around here. I beg for food and get lots of handouts like cold meat, cheeses and, last night, I got pasta with a cheese blend Mommy makes from pecorino romano and asiago cheeses. It also has grilled onions! It was yummy!

The top photo today is of Maya. Maya is a sister to Sofie and Dexter, and she went home with the mother of one of Mommy's co-workers at the library. Diane is the mother and Jennifer is the co-worker. Jennifer is going to have a baby girl. It is due on Mommy's birthday!

Tomorrow Mommy is going to have lunch at Ziffles with her dear friend, Karen. I bet it will be at least a 2-hour lunch! On Thursday Mommy is going to go caching with another dear friend, Rick. They are also going to have barbeque at the new restaurant, Moosewood. Mommy should be tired of barbeque after having it for two days!

Have you seen Meerkat Manor? Mommy saw the first two seasons but did not want to watch the third season when Flower dies. : ( Anyway, I often stand up on my hind legs and look around. Sometimes I stand on my two hind legs but resting on my butt, but other times I stand all the way up straight and tall for a very long time. Mommy says I look like a Meerkat. She hopes to get a photo of me standing up like that one day. Miss Becky at the library said I probably had to do that when I was a kitten to look around to see if there was any danger. That thought makes Mommy sad.

I have to sign off for now. Mommy had a bit too much Tabor Hill Classic Demi Sec this evening and thinks she should go to bed.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Hibernation mode

Marquette The Perfect.

Another bath from Marquette.

Sleeping on top of the cat igloo.

Here are some photos from last night. I don't know if it is the change in weather or not, but the three of us have gone into hibernation mode and slept most of yesterday. Mommy Bonnie sat around and did research on insulation for the cottage and worked on stuff for her job. Mommies took time out in the afternoon to watch the latest Indiana Jones movie which they thought was a fun movie. And Mommy read her mystery book.

Mommy went after a cache yesterday that nobody found and, of course, she found it. She said it was hard. Her friend, Rick (Lead Dog), will be over this week and they will do 26 caches together, or will attempt to anyway. Mommy loves to cache with Rick. They have done some really hard caches together with Mommy, of course, leading the way! Rick is good at picking out Mom and Pop places for lunch, or a really good pub, and they almost always have a good lunch and cold beer.

Mommy's Aunt Jane will be in from New York for a week and my mommies will go have brunch with her and Grandma in Logansport the Sunday that she is here. They will be joined by Mommy's two brothers, Conrad and Charlie, and their wives, Sharon and Kathy Lynn.

Well, Mommies are on their way to camp this morning to get it shut down for the winter. They will stop by the farm and see what has been done and take some photos for the Blossom Ridge blog.

Look for an update to the blogs in a few days. This will be a busy week for Mommy because she is having lunch with her friend, Karen, on Wednesday, will be with Rick on Thursday, and may go to Logansport on Friday.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Snuggle with a buddy!

Snuggling this morning with my brother, Marquette.

Still snuggling.

On the chair.

Marquette on top of the cabinets!

I heard Mommies talking this morning and they said I had been here for 40 days and that I had come a very long way! I know that I feel very comfortable here now.

Mommy says cooler days and cold nights are coming and that soon something called snow was going to fall from the sky but that it doesn't hurt when it lands on you. She said that, at that time, I will be very happy that she rescued me. I already AM happy. Tacumwah said that I will really like the gas fireplace when Mommies turn it on. She likes to lie in front of it in the winter and she has invited me to join her.

Mommy Bonnie is working late tonight because of the yearly inventory at her plant. She works late EVERY night.

Mommy is going shopping today at Sam's Club. She said she will drop a bundle there.

Mommies are hoping the basement walls are being poured today for the cottage. There is no rain in the forecast for at least a week. I guess Mommies are going to have to go to camp and get the camper winterized.

And so it goes here on Blossom Ridge!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Tacumwah

Tacumwah on MY chair!

Last night Tacumwah jumped up on MY chair and scared me to death! She decided I needed my face washed and trapped me in the corner of the chair. When I tried to escape, she grabbed me with a death grip and insisted on washing my face. I was so frightened I just let her have her way. She still won't play with me, but we are making progress! And I do have a clean face! Hmmm...Mommy just pointed out that Marquette and Tacumwah are both spending a lot of time washing me. Do you think they are trying to tell me something?

Not much on tap for today. I was told that we have to work on the Blossom Ridge Farm blog.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Lots of photos today!

Mommy loves these two photos of Marquette washing my face!

Miss Stephanie said I look like I am smiling...and she is right!

I let Marquette have the top bunk.

Which twin is me?

Mommy going after a cache.

Going down!

Patrick trying to revive Mommy!

It has been a few days since I have had time to post to my blog. Things are going well here.

Mommies went to camp Saturday and came home Sunday. I missed them and ran to the door to greet them when they returned.

Tacumwah is treating me well though she still won't play with me.

Mommy hurt herself geocaching. She went into a storm drain in Ft. Wayne on Friday afternoon to get a cache and had to walk stooped over. She was limping by evening. Then Sunday she went after a cache in a storm water drain at Huntington University, and the old man she was caching with made her go down the drain to retrieve the cache while he and his geodog, Patrick, just stood around and watched. In all honesty, Mommy is in much better shape than her caching partner, Lead Dog, so she volunteered to retrieve the cache. Of course, now she is paying for it! She has a couple of days off to try to recover and she said tomorrow she is taking completely off to read and to work on the blogs with me so she can rest her leg.

Marquette The Perfect barfed! Yes, he did! He got into the trash can and swallowed a small piece of stiff plastic that was on Tacumwah's eye drops for security. Then he barfed it up! I bet that hurt! Now we have to have a kitchen trash can with a lid on it...and just when we were getting the hang of tipping it over and spreading coffee grounds all over the kitchen floor!

Yesterday Mommy Bonnie forgot to put Little Bear in his kennel before she left for work. When Mommy came home on her lunch break from the library, Little Bear met her at the door. "Oh, oh," Mommy said. (Little Bear has a nasty habit of lifting his leg on furniture in the house!) Mommy found some poop in the master bedroom on the floor and, yep, it belonged to Little Bear. Tacumwah, Marquette and I had loads of fun batting the little round turds all over the bedroom. Marquette and Tacumwah tried to bury it. Mommy was amused, and then she cleaned it up. Mommy Bonnie sure heard about the incident. Mommy hasn't found all the places Little Bear may have peed. Usually Tacumwah, Marquette or Millie sniff an area, and when Mommy walks over to investigate, it is a place where LB peed.

If you are a follower of this blog and have pets of your own, send their photos along with their name and something you want to say about them, and we will publish them!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Hey, what's with the photos!?

Another unflattering photo!

Once again my daily photo is anything but flattering. It is interesting to me what Mommy thinks is cute.

Tacumwah and Marquette are racing around the house while I am stuck writing my blog. I wouldn't join them anyway because Tacumwah wouldn't like it.

Mommy has moved all the cat items (litter boxes, food bowls) back into the bedroom now in our little cat corner. She hopes Tacumwah will remember to go in there to use the potty. Marquette and I already use the potty in there.

Not much going on here today. Mommy finished her book and I think she is going to do laundry and make a nice dinner. She might pick up a cache or two and begin another book. She said we need to work on the Blossom Ridge Farm blog. I guess there is more to do today than I thought. I better take a nap so I am rested.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

My name is NOT Phat Boy!

This is MY chair!

I am NOT a wide body!

I don't care WHAT that photo shows...I am NOT a wide body! I get sooo tired of hearing that I am fat and when am I going to deliver my kittens! I get called Phat Boy, Wide Body and Porker all the time. I am told that I am going to be a 20-pound cat! Leave me alone already. My body turns everything into fat. I can't help it. Gizmo is the same way. We don't eat a lot but we just pack on the pounds. We didn't get a good start in life, alright? That just means that there is more of us to love! And I really don't care if I have to have a new hole drilled in my collar because it is getting tight! Mommy Bonnie made a comment about a cat named Garfield. Who is Garfield anyway? Both of my mommies are not slim, but you wouldn't know that to hear them call me names. Pot-kettle.

I had a slight coughing fit this morning. Tacumwah ran over to check on me. I was really surprised. She doesn't like me, but she wanted to make certain I was ok.

I have a favorite chair now. Last night my brother and I slept in it together but Mommy Bonnie didn't get a photo. Mommy puts me on the sofa next to her when we work on my blogs and I have been lying next to her the last two days...at least for a little while. I like to chase the arrow on the screen. And last night I had the run of the whole house for the very first time. I jumped on Mommy's bed but didn't stay. I was in and out of Mommy's room all night.

The windows are open today and we are getting fresh air. Mommy went to Wal-Mart and bought us some food. I can't wait until dinner! I guess she is making her famous Greek pork roast tonight for Mommy Bonnie. Maybe I can try it.

Mommy Bonnie wants me to drink milk for my bones, but I keep turning down milk and ice cream. I don't understand what Marquette sees in it. Tacumwah and I don't like those things. Give us meat and cheese!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Blossom Ridge Farm blog

The URL for Blossom Ridge Farm is http://blossomridgefarm.blogspot.com. For some reason Blogger doesn't like that name and thinks Mommy is creating a spam blog. You can click on the link and it will take you to the second blog where you will learn all about the vineyard, the veggie garden and the cottage.

I haven't done much today. Mommy found a small fang on the floor in the kitchen. It isn't mine. So now she has a fang from me and one from my brother, Marquette. Whatever is she going to do with them?

It is time for dinner and I am hoping I can get Mommy off the sofa to feed us. It is one of the highlights of my day! She has been very busy creating the Blossom Ridge Farm blog today. It took ALL day! She is tired.

I guess the basement won't be started until Monday, so Mommies won't have to drive down to camp until the weekend to take photos of the excavation. That is nice. Mommy would like to finish her book. She said to tell my readers that she is reading John Grisham's The Innocent Man. She reads it every spare minute she has. It is non-fiction and she highly recommends it!

A dreary day

Me (R) and Marquette after playing hard!

It has been a few days since I have posted to my blog and I have been very busy adjusting to my freedom!

I finally started venturing out of the bedroom but I still feel safest in that room. I have been in the living room and the loft, wrestling with my brother and playing in empty boxes in the loft. The photo is of the two of us after playing really, really hard! Unfortunately, I don't seem to be losing any weight from all of the exercise.

Mommies went to the farm on Sunday and fertilized the grapevines. On Monday evening they closed on the mortgage for the cottage. Then, yesterday, the basement was dug out and, in the next couple of days, the basement should be poured. I guess they are going to drive down and take photos of each stage and will be starting a second blog about the development of the property and the building of the cottage. I will give you that URL when I get it in case you want to read about that part of our lives.

Anyway, things here are ok. I am still taking my antibiotic and am almost done with it. Tacumwah is still not the friendliest cat with me but she does sniff me without hissing or growling. I give her a wide berth.

I don't have any more news right now.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Smile for the camera!

Me (L) and my brother, Marquette, on Friday

Big Simon, little mouse

Little Dexter, BIG mouse

Bebe Dexter

Mommies haven't left for camp, so I have time to upload some more photos.

As promised, I have uploaded Miss Marra's photos of Simon and Dexter. We will have to get her to send us more recent photos, and also Miss Stephanie since we don't have a good photo of Chuckie or Lily. Next I will need to upload photos of our land near where my twin and I were born.

The first day of the rest of my life!

Me on Thursday

Marquette and Tacumwah napping

Yesterday was the first day of the rest of my life! Mommy got the phone message at work that my fecal was negative! Oh, happy day! After dinner she opened the master bedroom door and opened my world to so many more possibilities. But here's the thing...I didn't want to leave the safety of the bedroom. So Marquette came in and we played until Mommy thought I had had enough. Tacumwah came and went and wasn't friendly at all.

This morning the door was opened again. Mommy even carried me into the living room, but I quickly retreated to the bedroom where Marquette followed and we played for a very long time. Tacumwah still came and went, checking out my food and water bowls and my litter box. She sat and growled and hissed every time Marquette or I got close to her. I don't care about her. I love my brother and he is my best friend.

Last night Mommy Bonnie was very mean and told Mommy Kathy that I looked like I was pregnant. Well, I don't! And once I get to wrestle with my brother on a regular basis, I will slim down.

Miss Marra emailed some photos of Simon and Dexter to Mommy yesterday and we will try to post them this weekend. Simon is my age, and Dexter is just a little dude, although bigger than in the photos I will post.

So after talking to Dr. Chastain Thursday about my baby fangs not coming out, guess what? I lost both of them on Friday! All I have now is my big boy fangs! Mommy asked where my baby fangs were, but we can't find them anywhere.

Mommies are going to camp today and spending the night. I will miss them. Mommy said she would try to come home early tomorrow. Mommies have to be at camp Monday evening for the closing on the mortgage for the cottage.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Day 26 of my quarantine...back to the vet's!

Millie

Gizmo

Little Bear

Gennie

Mommy's favorite photo of Tacumwah.

No photos of me today. It was time to upload photos of the other pets who live here. Millie is the oldest and Mommy thinks she is 15. Little Bear is the Chihuahua and he is 11. Gizmo is about 8. Gennie is a girl. She layed her first egg last spring and she is about 9 years old. And, of course, Mommy wanted a decent photo of Tacumwah posted.

My fecal went in to the vet's today...and so did I! I gave Mommy quite a scare last night when I couldn't be coaxed out from under the bed to play paper and string. Mommy said I felt like I had a fever. When I took my medicine without a fight she was really concerned. She thought for sure I had an infection and gave me half of an antibiotic pill left over from a cat named Riesling. Then she slept with me all night, checking to make certain I was still breathing. This morning she expressed her concern at the vet's office when she dropped off my fecal and they thought Dr. Chastain should see me (Dr. Jamie was busy doing surgery).

Dr. Chastain was a guy, like me! He took my temp (dang, I hate that) and told Mommy it was on the high side of normal. He felt me all over and listened to my heart and checked between my legs and my front paws and he said I was fine. He watched me walk and decided to let me have a few more days of pain meds. He checked my teeth and saw that I was teething and still had those danged baby fangs along with my big boy fangs. So he gave me 10 days worth of antibiotic, I think more to make Mommy feel better. I had lost an ounce of weight (big deal). Dr. C told Mommy I was a very handsome boy and a very good boy. And they didn't charge Mommy for an office visit. She was very happy about that.When we got home I put up a terrible fight when Mommy tried to give me my meds.

Mommy decided to go geocaching and got all ready to go. But then she decided she didn't want to go...that she wanted to stay home with us. So she and I took a nap together until dinner time.

Tomorrow we get the fecal results back. Mommy and I are hoping they are negative. Even if they are, she is going to only allow supervised play until I am better from my surgeries.

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~

Day 25 of my quarantine...the end is in sight!

Me in the cat igloo today.

Me inside and Marquette on the outside looking in!

I had a visit from my twin today! We didn't play much because I discovered the cat igloo after all these days in quarantine and decided it was a pretty cool place to hang out. I didn't want to get out...even to play with my brother! In fact, when Mommy came to check on me after a trip to Huntington, she couldn't find me! I kept quiet as a mouse (mice aren't really quiet, you know) and she looked everywhere...in the bathroom, in the closet...and when she finally spotted me I almost scared her to death! Nobody uses the igloo, so she didn't expect to see my head framed in the opening. Of course, once I was in there, Marquette decided that he just had to try it out.

Mommies went to Huntington today to pay for and pick up the building permit. They also paid for the heating and plumbing permits for Mr. Rex to pick up. Soon we will have electricity on the land because Mr. Rex put a box there and REMC will come and give us temporary electricity. Also the septic man will come back and finish his work so the basement man can begin to pour the foundation.

I guess the grapevines are starting to look really nice. Mommy says that grapes are the most beautiful crop in the world. I will upload some photos of the land soon as the work on the cottage progresses. Remember, this is really tiny...only about 1200 square feet. It is big enough for us though, as my mommies downsize for retirement.

Mommies put an ad in the Huntington Tab for the camper and will also be placing ads in other publications in the hope that it will sell quickly. Then they ate at a Mexican restaurant in Huntington that they like.

Mommy had a slow leak in one of her tires and had to take her car in to have the tire repaired. She bought herself a small air compressor in case her tires get low again. Mommy Bonnie had loaned her the one she owns, but Mommy said it was time to get her own.

My feet are still tender, so I will not be allowed unsupervised play with Tacumwah and Marquette until I am completely healed. I only have enough pain meds through tonight. Tomorrow my fecal goes in and I am hoping for an all-clear on Friday!

~There is no such thing as a free kitten.~