Star, the Baby, and the Big Bowl

Last night an old friend came to visit with her daughter and new grandson (three months old!).  Zaphy and Mister Kitten were brought out to meet the baby (Thomas was asleep on my bed).  They immediately went, "Oops!  Gotta go!  Something to do!!"  Star, however, was fascinated.  He watched as my children cooed and played "beep" with the baby.  He looked up while I was playing peek-a-boo, "Wow mom!  Look at that, that is so cool!"  When it was time for the baby to leave, he was very very tired.  And, as babies are wont to do, he didn't want to go to sleep and was crying.  Star immediately jumped up into my lap where I was sitting next to 'Gamma', who was holding the baby.  Purrrrrrrrrr, "Don't worry baby!  It's going to be okay.  I am sending you purrrrrs."  He was so cute! 

He reminded me of my late cat Christopher.  When my children were born I had my family cradle (which has been on rollers for years) by my bedside.  Of course we had already introduced all of the cats to the baby's scent.  We let them look at the baby while I was holding her/him and praised them.  The minute I put the baby in the cradle, Christopher jumped into the cradle and took up a spot at the end of the cradle, purring.  The other cats came to see what this new 'kitten' was lying down in my bedroom.  Christopher would let them look and take a sniff but the minute one put his paws on the edge, he would give them the 'Top Cat' stare, letting them know that this was his kitten and that he was protecting it.  He did this until the baby moved to a regular crib.

 "Okay mom!  I need to have a nap now!"

This morning, Star wandered into the kitchen.  He looked up at me and yawned.  He almost looked like he was about to ask for a cup of coffee!!  Then he trilled at me, "Mom?  It's time for breakfast!"  I walked him over to the food bowls and pointed out that there was already food in them.  He touched his nose to the Big Bowl (if you're not sure what that is, it's a locking lid garbage can bought for the purpose of holding cat food!).  "Star, there is already food in the bowls, it's perfectly fine."  He looked at the bowls, looked up at me with distain, and touched his nose to the Big Bowl again.  "No, mom.  I want fresh food.  Out of the Big Bowl!  Pleeeeease!"  ::rolls eyes::  "Okay Star." and I proceeded to give him a wee bit of fresh food on top of the old, which was really all he wanted.  I mean, how can you resist such a cute baby?!

It's just cupboard love!  ::grin:: (value t-shirt)

Okay Thomas! I'm Stopping!!!

I've been working from the "bottom up" so to speak in the shop trying to get out the black t-shirts, sweatshirts etc.  There were a number of places where I didn't have to do anything but I was getting pretty tired and not noticing it.  Harumph!!  "Oh Noes!!  Mom!  Me-om!!  Timmy's in the well!!"  What?  There is food in the bowls.  There are no cats wanting out.  There are no cats wanting in.  "But Mooooooom!!!!!  Meeeeeee-ooooooooom!! [headbutts] Timmy is really really really in the well this time!!"

After a number of headbutts I started to get the picture.  Thomas felt that I had worked long enough on the website and needed to rest.  Yes, Thomas!  I'm stopping!!  He's such a taskmaster!!

I think that I neeeeed this mousepad...

I just wish that the silly thing would show the front of the mugs on the bottom!  Geez Louise!!

Mom! Me-om!! Timmy's in the Well!!

Thomas has this habit of telling us "Timmy's in the well!  Hey!  Hey!  Come quick!  Come quick!!  No, really!!  Timmy's in the well!!"  Usually this means that another member of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde needs to go outside or to come inside (I'm still not sure how he does this!).  Or it means that the bottom of one or more of the bowls is showing.  "Oh noes!!  Mom!  Me-om!!  Timmy's in the well!!  Quick, quick!  Open up the Big Bowl!!"  Now yesterday he did the latter about three times.  He only approached to taste the food once.  The other two times he was doing it for another cat.  Because, as you can see in the picture, Da Boys are just starving to death!!  Oh my!!  If the Big Bowl isn't opened they just might faint on the spot!!

This is, indeed, the order in which Da Boys usually eat.  As you might expect, it's the order of the pride, Thomas, Mister Kitten, Zaphoid, and Star.  This is a site you only see once a day.  Otherwise it's only a nibble here and there.  But the bottom of the bowls must not show least the Teenage Mutant Ninja Horde Starve!!

points to the large pet bowl... I'm about to go in and change the store

about so that the sections are by products... hopefully this won't change the link!!

Can I Have My Feet Back??

Thus far this morning I have:
1. Fed the cats, this entailed putting all of the perfectly good food which was left in their bowls back into the Big Bowl* and then refilling the bowls (primarily with the same food that was in them beforehand).  If I had not done this, the cats would have starved to death in a dramatic scene reminiscent of Shakespeare (we have very well-read cats).
2. Let Thomas out into The Snow because he is brave enough and tough enough to take it.
3. Let Thomas back in from The Snow because he's not that tough.
4. Watch Mister Kitten dart out into The Snow and wonder how long it will take him to realize that this was a Big Mistake.
5. Finally figure out which door Mister Kitten has deigned to dash into the house from The Snow; because he is so paranoid and there was no other cat out to dash ahead of into the house.
6. Have my feet quietly and softly attacked by a Ninja Kitty.

Can I have my feet back now??

*The Big Bowl contains the Real Food.  All other food is stale and suspicious.  There is no telling what it might contain.  Mister Kitten is sure that it might just be poisonious.  Ergo, if there is a human available, it is always best to have the bowls refilled or refreshed with food from the Big Bowl.

The Sleep Diet

My normal routine in the morning is to get up, and then fairly early in the process, weigh myself.  This morning I was about 43# overweight (I've been fighting this for about three years or so).  However, I'd gotten up early so I just went back to sleep.  Now a routine is a routine for me (as well as the cats) so when I got up the second time, you guessed it, I weighed myself again.  Wow!  I'd lost three pounds!  I didn't have time to think about the Sleep Diet because the Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde were quite insistent that I come "get food out of the Big Bowl neow!!"

This morning has seen an increase in the Changing of the Cat Guard.  Star has been content to stay on the bed with me; but Mister Kitten, Thomas, and Zaphoid have decided that I need to keep getting up and down so that I can let them in and out.  ::head:wall:repeat::  This wouldn't be as bad if Zaphoid didn't insist that he needed to come back in from the back (and scratch at one of the bedroom windows); which means that I have to go down through the Wreck Room (we have a split level house).  And then there is the fact that I can't really tell when Thomas and Mister Kitten are ready to come in; although Thomas will sometimes come and 'knock' at the other bedroom window.

 

mousepad (other items available)

It's waaaaaaaay too late...

So why am I up??  Because when I checked my google stats there were referrals from Dr. Grumpy's blog.  Now, I didn't actually bounce up and down and go running up and down the block screaming at the top of my lungs about it because:

a. It would make my legs hurt.
b. The weather wasn't the world's best.
c. I had absolutely no idea how that happened.
d. I'm just not that kind of person.
e. All of the above.

But you have to understand that Dr. Grumpy's blog is one that was called to my attention by one of my very dearest friends (waves at Heather) who has even now decided to go back to school to see if she has what it takes to become a doctor herself.  I know that she already has both the empathy and the cutting wit (we've gotten drunk together at medieval events) so what she's got to figure out is if she can take the intense study and hours.  This blog kicks butt and takes name.  If you haven't read it yet, you should.  Go ahead.  I'll wait.  ::hums tunelessly::

Back yet??  Okay.  At any rate, all day this graphic has been rattling around in my head.  Although actually I would be more accurate in saying 'again', since I've had this idea before, but it was Winter Holiday time and I couldn't manage it then.  Family graphic interruptus and I stopped to work on the graphic below.  I'm in the middle of reorganizing the shop & putting up a new section for folx having babies.  No one ever writes, no one calls, no one comes to visit on Easter ::wipes tear::  well, the cats are always wanting food from the Big Bowl... but truthfully, keep an eye out and let me know what you think of how the categories are looking and if anything has been taken off that makes you go, "NoooOOOooo!  I was planning to get that when my paycheck comes in!!"  Vielen Dank!

 

White T-shirt (more items available!)

Whoot!  I can now take PayPal!!

Mugging or The Saga of the Pulled Pork Sandwich

As you may recall, my husband brought home two plates of goodies home from our friend's birthday party last night.  One of these plates contained pulled pork BBQ made by another friend who is part of a crew which has taken 4th in the Memphis BBQ competition.  So for lunch today, I made sandwiches.  mmmmmmmmmm  Because of the weather (okay and the fact my kids are gone this weekend), I'm a wee bit tired, which meant I ended up eating lunch in bed.  Cats like being on the bed.  Treats often come from the bed (they live in the headboard).

"Whatcha eating mom??"
"This is not for you"
"But it smells gooooooood!"
"You may not have any of this.  This is my sandwich."
"Mooo-ooooom.  Please?!  Cats neeeeeeed it!!"
"No."
::sigh::  "Cats have treats??"
"No."
::sigh::  "Okay." ::henchman whispers into ear::
::narrows eyes at cat::
::thinking::  "Cats lick the plate?"

 

Need an apron for the grill?? Or looking for something

else, we got tons of thing for everyone!!  No humans on the barbie please!!

Breaking News Story!!

Yes, it's true!  The cats are still sleeping on the bed!!  Well, except for emo kitty, who is still emo.  Zaphy has been spending all of his time on the landing in front of the door to Jennifer's room.  His head resting on the top stair, waiting for her to come back from her father's house.  "Where is my girl??  I can't meow in front of her door in the morning, pleading for her to let me in so that I may lay on top of her and clean her ears if she is not here!!  Oh wooooooeeeeee is meeeeeeeee!!"  The other cats think he is silly and spend their time as always.  Thomas started out on the other side of Dale, then on the top of Dale's head, moved in between us, and ended up on my body pillow.  He stayed there for the rest of the night, even though I got up twice.  Thomas loooooves me!  ::grin::

this graphic just got changed to make sure that it fits well on the t-shirts

more of the graphics in the shop will be changed as well! 

Right now Star is sitting beside my chair so I should probably see what he wants.  ::pause::  Ah, a cuddle and after some "Show me!" it turned out that the food bowls need renewing from the Big Bowl™.  Of course, he couldn't eat from any of the bowls but his bowl.  You know that multiple cats in a household establish a hierarchy.  In this house it goes, Thomas/Mr. Kitten with Thomas usually winning the staring/pushing/height contest, Zaphoid, and Star.  Although I should say that I have occasional staring contest with the alpha cats so that they know who is the real Alpha Kat in the house!!

My husband's Christmas present shirt came today.  This is a Good Thing since he can go show it off to his brother.  ::weg::  I may have to get him the coffee cup for his birthday which comes up next month... muahahahahahahaha!  I made the icon for this a little larger so that you can see the "dictionary entry" on the graphic.

 this link goes to the page that has both the cat and the plain graphic

Today I am but a servant...

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde is paying absolutely no attention to me at all today.  Well, except should their water or food need refilling.  Ah well.  Last night I was treated to some lovely views of Zaphoid and later Zaphoid and Thomas.  You see, my husband put out a packing blanket in hopes that my son would put leaves on it and carry them out to the street.  He left it on the porch in disarray.  So at various times, when I stepped out onto the porch I found 'da boys' curled up on the blanket.  ::grin::  They didn't want to come in, they were having too much fun lounging gracefully on the blanket.

Give Us Food or We'll Eat Your Toes

I came into the kitchen this morning to find Oberon in such a state that I feared for my toes.  No, really.  You may not know this, but when cat bowls are completely empty, cats will eat your toes.  So when you come upon a member of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde in the kitchen prancing about and saying, "Feed me neow or I'll eat your toes!", it behooves one to check the cat bowls immediately!

Thus, I rushed (okay, I went as fast as I could given two bum knees) over to the Big Bowl™ and the cat bowls (one for each member of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde).  It was just as Oberon had said.  The bowls were empty.  Obviously the cats were going to starve to death and we would be subjected to having our toes eaten.  Ergo, I opened up the Big Bowl™ and began filling the cat bowls with the supervision of Oberon.  He was well pleased and our toes were saved... at least until the next time the bowls are empty.