Letting Go

These past few weeks, the lesson seems to be "let go".

All kittens are gone, well Via is being fostered and still looking for a home. Even Java found a new home. Java left yesterday and this morning I missed her meow and her morning greetings. I miss the kittens too but for some reason, Java was really hard for me to release. Maybe because she was the last one to go. She has been hanging out in our neighborhood for over year - and she was always in my garage in the morning. Now, she is gone (which seems to represent everything else going away in my life) but I know she is going to go enjoy her new home. Plus, Jinga was there to greet me in the morning.

That is just one example of my letting go lesson. It seems everywhere I turn, I am having to relase someone/something. I don't do this lesson very well - and I sometimes leave claw marks all over what I am suppose to be letting go of. I need to remember letting go is a process. I am walking thru it -some days better than others and always without a lot of grace.

I have to remember, nothing absolutly nothing, happens in God's world by mistake. And whatever i am letting go of is so that God/Universe can replace it with something more wonderful.

And no post would be complete with out photos of the dogs. And they deserve it - they have kept a bit of my spirit alive this past month and keep me busy. It could be a run in the park, roll on the blades, a swim in the lake,Maddie's snuggles , bath zoomies , when Maddie brings me her jolly or just a nudge with a paw or nose. thanks pups - xx00 Mom lady

WW - Kung Fu Kittens!

WW - How Pike Feels about a Camera.....

WW - Hello World It's me Via!

More Kitten Videos

Today they are 6 weeks old.
So, I shot a few videos. Unfortunately, it is so dark. I want to take some outside, on the grass, if it EVER stops raining.


Espresso has a home - a good home! Megan and Gabby will be taking him/her. They have already purchased things for Latte(new name). Excited for all of them.

Pike has a lot more white on him the older he/she becomes. Pike even has a few white eyelashes and white wisps on the ears. Pike always wants to snuggle with me and so does Kona - aka Conan the Barbarian - the crazy cat. Even Megan and Gabby couldn't believe how bouncy/playful/mischievous Kona was being. That is the one Billy wants to keep. Imagine that!

Decaf has always been melow. But it seems the older she gets the more playful he/she has become.

Via is just a beauty. Very sweet and likes to get in the mix with the black pack once in a while. Via and Decaf are the first to eat and snuggle with mom.

My vet office told me to bring them in and the techs will "sex" them for me. Now just to find the time to do that ;-)

Java's Crew New Home

The Java crew is almost 6 weeks old.

This week I had to move them into their new home. Pike and Kona thought jumping out of the pool was fun. The tower was a wee too small so I hooked up an old/broken Dog crate.


They are eating the kitten food I have in there and even using a litter box. At first they thought the litter box was a jungle jim - silly kitties. When I come out - they all meow and try to run up to the door. Billy took Pike in to meet Maddie. They were face to face and my little Maddie just sniffed . Maybe Maddie knew it was a baby - maybe she didn't. But she didn't go into prey mode or chase. Maybe it was Billy's presence that kept her acting a fool.

Java really isn't happy being in her new house. I am sure she isn't. She did often jump out of the pool - to go relax away from the babies. She is feral after all - so putting her in a cage - she almost seems depressed. I put her shelf and hammock up high, thinking she might be smart enough to know she can go up there. Hopefully, she will snap out of it soon.

WW - Java's Crew Up Close

WW - Java Crew One Month Old!

Growing Fast....

Kittens are growing so fast.
As of yesterday, everyone had their eyes open. They actually hear too!
When I talk they kind of move their heads in my directions.

To me, the orange are the strongest and most healthy. They seemed to advance first.
There is one black one that is crawling ALL over and if I make sounds - crawls to me. He is the only one that doesn't squeak when I pick them up.

I can't tell which are male or female. Billy said he can and rambled them all off to me. But at the same time, some he said were male looked just like the ones he said were female. I am going to keep looking and comparing to photos on line.

We cleaned up the area since Java has been so friendly. Since all the kittens are moving, and some faster than others, I was worried they would start to get lost. So, we bought a little baby pool yesterday and put them in.
I'm a sucker for the orange ones
And a sucker for the black ones
Heck - just I am just a sucker for all of them!

Billy really wants to keep one. Financially, we can't. If he wants to pay for food, litter, shots etc. - we can keep one. But, I have heard that story before and that isn't how it happens.

I made the mistake of telling Hadley about the kittens - who in turned told Dad about the kittens. He gave me a stern lecture last night before I went to bed. Funny, how even at 40, a harsh lecture from my dad can make me feel small and question/doubt decisions I make. How I feel after a conversation/lecture - well, no one can make you feel anything. I have to remember feelings aren't facts. I tossed and turned most of the night (not to mention getting whacked by Maddie's "cone of shame" every so often). So, I woke up feeling like someone hit me over the head with a hammer and really angry. Oh well, this too shall pass.

On the dog front, Maddie's spring time allergies returned - oh joy! So, she is in her lamp shade for the past week. I have been letting her sleep on bed with me (I know - bad bad bad) but she can't fit comfortably in the crate with it on. If I put her in there, she just cries and cries - which sends Jake and Sneek into a tizzy fit. Sleeping/Snuggling with Maddie is a lot different than the labs - she is always next to me and smothers me with bully kisses during the night.
Here is a pic of her in her cone and can't you just hear her saying "B*tch get this thing off me!"

One week

One Week old

Day 5
Day 4
Yesterday, was day 7 . Trying to get her to move the babies to a clean blanket. It's not happening. Billy is able to get close without her running away, and so am I. I sit out in the garage and watch the kittens - sometimes travel from one side of her to the other. Or watch her try and get comfortable so they each have a nipple. We watched a black one and the orange one fight for a nipple the other night. Their paws are so cute. I watched the lighter orange one try and get her nail out of the blanket to crawl over Java - squealing the whole time.

I am trying to figure out how to contain them once they are able to really move. Too many hiding spaces in the garage. I thought about an xpen - but I know Java will jump it - but maybe I can put a tarp on the top. I don't think a dog crate will be large enough for her, the litter box etc.

I feel bad Jinga has been vanished from the garage, especially with the heavy rain we had. We set up a crate on the front step with a tarp over it - but I don't think she is using it. I miss seeing her in the am and am worried she isn't eating properly, not that she can't stand to loss a few pounds. I see the neighbors cat at the porch food bowl more than I see Jinga.

I can't tell the difference between the 3 black ones. The orange kittens - one is darker and one is lighter so that is easy. The orange kittens seem much more active than the black; and talk much more. I am kind of smitten with them.

Watching them is actually very interesting to me - a wonder of life I have never seen. Billy is still a kid in a candy store with them - reading everything he can. He comes in telling me the latest info he finds via the net - suggestions, changes we will see, etc. Glad he is taking some responsibility raising them. With all that is going on, I am glad to have him help.

Java Crew Day 2 & 3

Java and Crew Day 2


Crew day 3

Day 3
Well, here we are at day 4. I am getting a little out of hand with the photos. But I can't help it. Sitting in garage and watching her amazes me. When one is out of the fold or on the opposite side of her nipples, they wiggle their way back; sometimes climbing over her back to get to the right side..

The orange ones are always squeaking - and I find it irresistible! They are little piggies - always looking for her nipple.

She doesn't run when I am out there. Unfortunately, she bolts whenever Billy comes out. i know it hurts him and he is trying to gain her trust. But, Java isn't there with him yet.
I have yet to touch the crew. Billy has handled the kittens. I try and tell him not to - but well, he is going to do what he is going to do. He is ultimately a cat person and is like a little kid in the candy store with the kittens. This is the man who saves baby birds and builds them boxes in trees and feeds them worms.

We are both a little obsessed with the little ones, and i think probably being too watchful. Java isn't eating her kibble so we are loading her up on wet food. Grammy and Grampy gave us some wet food their cats won't eat. So now we are just trying to find out a flavor she likes so I don't over buy on one she won't eat.

I put a clean blanket out in the garage, hoping she moves them but she hasn't yet. Good news is that she is using the litter box. I also put a box and a dog crate just in case she wants to move them.

So, that is the short version of what is going on.

More photos to come as they start to grow.

Surprise!

As part of my morning ritual, I visit the two cats that we feed in the garage, Jinga and Java .
Java didn't run this am - and as I looked closer - well this is what I saw once my eyes focused;
She later moved and I got a closer look;

Wonderful, I thought. I ran in to call Billy. We have tried to catch this little girl for the longest time. She is so skiddish and completely feral.

Neither of us have ever seen or taken care of newborn kittens. In speaking with friends, we will let Java do her job and try not to interfere. We won't be using the garage for a while, to hopefully keep her and her kittens safe.

I will try and blog the journey of Java and her kittens. I guess I should think of names while I am at it. Since mama is Java, guess the kids need coffee names. So far I have Verona, Sumatra, (don't like that one), Espresso, Pike, and Via. Hoping by time I come home, I won't need to find any more names ;-)