Black Cats Don't Like Snow

long time with no update

2011-12-05T21:47:00.000-08:00

mommy has been consumed with all the things going on with the daniel kitten that she hasn't had time to help me blog. the daniel kitten has had various therapies and doctor's appointments and mommy is usually pretty exhausted all the time. i try to help out by purring on top of her. the daniel kitten also spent thanksgiving in the hospital so mommy is dealing with that because she was also sick and she was the one who gave him the cold. her cold has turned into a sinus/bronchial infection so she's even flatter than normal.

mommy is broken up over ginger jasper being so sick, especially because he reminds her of my brother finian. she and i send our prayers and purrs to him and to his humans barrie and carol.

calming down

2011-06-29T15:41:00.000-07:00

i have informed mommy that it has been two months since she helped me post and that this is unacceptable. she told me that if i wanted to make phone calls and yell at people for her, she would help me blog. we compromised on me cuddling her at all opportune times and being her petting cat while she yelled at social security and various doctor's offices.

another reason that mommy has not posted much is that she has been gone to a family wedding, the promise walk for preeclampsia (we raised $200), family gatherings, a family funeral, and all the errands she has to do with the daniel kitten. the daniel kitten also objects to her being on her laptop when he is awake so she has to sneak on when he is taking a nap, when daddy is home, or when the daniel kitten is asleep.

summer has come to northern california and we had a week where the temperatures were in the 100's. we have air-conditioning so i did not notice too much but mommy whined about having to go outside to do errands or to work in the garden. some snails also ate her beans and some of her basil so she has been grumping about that. she replaced the basil and put down some snail bait that is so icky that she had to shower after using it.

the daniel kitten is pretty much all recovered from his hospital stay. mommy still has to give him shots but that will hopefully be over soon. his crawling has gotten faster and he is almost walking on his own. i am not approving of this.

=^..^=

mom!

2011-04-26T19:50:00.001-07:00

my mommy has been very lazy in updating the blog for me given that she is home all the time... well, except when she's taking the daniel kitten to appointments, picking up his medicine, or doing errands with him. still, she should be helping me update more frequently.

i have been very sad to hear about my friend ginger jasper and his troubles eating. mommy has been checking his site daily and we have been purring and praying for him.

the daniel kitten has been home for a month and a half now and unfortunately mommy and daddy are still having to give him shots twice a day. he doesn't like it but his blood clot not dissolving and moving would be worse.

the daniel kitten is still refusing to sleep in his crib so i've been sleeping in there instead during the day. it keeps me out of the daniel kitten's reach and it's a nice quiet place... unless the little monster is in his nursery.

=^..^=

mommy is home again

2011-03-18T22:28:00.001-07:00

mommy and the daniel kitten got home from the hospital last night after being gone for 2 1/2 weeks. mommy told me how much she missed me and that she asked daddy every day if he could bring me to visit. unfortunately, the hospital does not allow therapy cats.

i have not let mommy out of my sight today and have snuggled her extra hard. she has been stuck in bed with a migraine so i helped her rest today. i know it was not her fault that she was gone for so long -- she had to make sure the daniel kitten was cured. unfortunately, he came home requiring shots so she and daddy have to give them to him twice a day.

i even snuggled the daniel kitten tonight because he is having a hard time adjusting to being home. he petted me. i think i could learn to like him.

=^..^=

purrs needed

2011-03-01T22:24:00.001-08:00

the daniel kitten is critically ill and in the pediatric icu at uc davis medical center. mommy has been with him since she took him to the doctor on sunday and ended up being in three hospitals and transported by ambulance twice.

he caught some kind of virus that attacked his lungs and he is on a ventilator. he almost had to go on a special machine to rest his heart and lungs but he managed to make it without them having to do it.

mommy is completely flattened from everything that has happened.

please purr super hard for the daniel kitten and add some purrs for mommy.

northern california kitty now

2011-02-25T09:53:00.000-08:00

mommy hasn't posted for me lately because we have been in the process of moving... to northern california to be with daddy. his church called him full-time.

it was a nasty night last night with wind and rain and pounding on windows. mommy had wanted to spend the morning in bed with me and my siblings and her laptop... but her laptop battery and power cord simultaneously died. with much growling, she called compaq and they are getting new ones out to her... by tuesday. she has a computer-free weekend and she is NOT happy about it.

at least she is updating my site on daddy's computer.

walking to help mommies like ours

2011-01-03T14:22:00.000-08:00

our mommy is participating in a walk to raise money for preeclampsia awareness. the daniel kitten was born too early because mommy developed a bad form of preeclampsia called hellp syndrome.

lazy mommy

2010-12-02T15:31:00.001-08:00

i have been urging mommy to update for a long time but she is lazy!

daddy is still working up north and mommy is getting used to being a single mommy on the days he is gone. she has gone up with the daniel kitten two more times since i last blogged and the last time, she drove by herself.

the daniel kitten is also still in therapy and may be starting speech therapy soon to work on his eating and his language development. he is starting to really sit up on his own and pull up on things to stand up. mommy has yogurt snacks for him which are like pounce/greenies for kitties.

my siblings and i have been loving up mommy when she's home. she had all 4 of us on the couch with her when she got home on tuesday. auntie jo jo is a good babysitter but we miss mommy.

=^..^=

the new normal

2010-10-13T12:47:00.000-07:00

daddy has had his church job for 6 weeks now and mommy has gone up with him twice. auntie jojo has taken care of us during those times. when mommy is home, she spends a lot of time on the couch due to fatigue and i've been helping her during those times by snuggling her and purring for her.

the daniel kitten continues to improve though slowly. he now has therapy twice a week and may have more if he is accepted into the local state-funded center. it's a stress for mommy and daddy because the daniel kitten HATES therapy and fights them tooth and claw.

mommy wanted me to make the following announcement from her site:

NaNoWriMo has come around again and in an effort to make my 30 days of writing mean something, I've decided to kill people off (or just write a character with your name into the story) for a donation. Here's how it works:

Date: October 15th to November 30th (NaNoWriMo runs from November 1-30.)

Charity: March of Dimes

How This Works: Here is the link to Daniel's band on the March of Dimes site. Click on that link to donate. I'll check the band daily for who has donated. I don't care if it's a large or small amount. If you donate, I'll write you into the story by either killing you off in the manner in which you choose (with some restrictions) or by naming a character after you. Once you donate, leave me a comment and let me know how you want to die/if you want a character named after you.

Restrictions: No ritual cannibalism. I reserve the right to veto the method of death if I find it too gruesome. (Ahem... Pisco.)

mommy will post a link to her nano page and to the daniel kitten link when she gets it up.

=^..^=

chchchchanges

2010-09-23T15:01:00.000-07:00

daddy has an interim pastor position at a church that is 7 hours north of where we live. he is up there 4 days a week and at home the other three days. mommy and the daniel kitten stay down here except for the weekend of 9/11 when they went up north with daddy. our auntie jojo came and took care of us that weekend. mommy says that this is not the most ideal situation but it means that daddy can earn money to buy us cat food so she is dealing with it.

mommy changed out our litterboxes on monday and put in new ones. my brother cullen was afraid of his new litterbox and ended up using the bed as a litterbox. mommy was not amused. it meant lots of laundry for grandma (who helps with the laundry) and a lot of clean-up by mommy. not a good thing.

the sort-of good thing about mommy being a single mom is that she's more tired and thus will be on the couch for lap snuggles.

=^..^=

the kitten is mobile!

2010-09-02T13:14:00.000-07:00

the daniel kitten isn't quite crawling yet but still way too mobile and getting into trouble! mommy had to put up a baby gate this weekend which is high enough for me to get under but low enough that the daniel kitten can't get under it. it means that we can get to our food and litterboxes but he can't.

the daniel kitten also now will chase us and stalk us which does not make my brothers and sisters very happy. he chucked his bottle at my aunt alyssa and hit her which made my mommy laugh (alyssa is a crabby cat and does not get along with mommy) and mommy and grandma joked about duct taping a swiffer pad to his tummy to clean the floors.

sigh...

=^..^=

sad news

2010-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

my aunt kelly (the black and white cat who lives with grandma and grandpa) went to the rainbow bridge today. mommy didn't know until they got to the vet that aunt kelly was going to the bridge.

please pray for my grandma and grandpa.

=^..^=

mommy! where are we going?

2010-08-16T16:11:00.001-07:00

mommy! where are we going? do you need to buckle me in?

making life easier for mommy

2010-08-06T14:54:00.000-07:00

mommy got diagnosed with fibromyalgia right around the time i posted last so grandma (daddy's mommy) came over and helped mommy and daddy rearrange the house and figure out a schedule for housework to make it easier for mommy. the fibromyalgia makes mommy tired and gives her pain in various joints so she needed a housework schedule that keeps the snuggery clean but also gives her time to take breaks.

mommy's special fibromyalgia vet just put her on a medicine that helps with the pain and she is hoping it works.

in the last three weeks, i have done my part by snuggling mommy when she's been lying on the couch, especially when she is in pain. daddy has taken over some of the sweeping for mommy but he leaves early to go work for grandma and grandpa so he sometimes can't. i would help with the sweeping, but i am a cat and am immune from housework.

the daniel kitten is doing better with his physical therapy. he is sitting up almost completely on his own and he is almost crawling. (he is "creeping" according to mommy which means that he is dragging himself across the floor.) he will also take things off the table when he is sitting on mommy's lap.

=^..^=

mommy! when are you going to give the daniel kitten some tuna?!?!?!?!?!?!?

2010-07-15T11:48:00.001-07:00

=^..^=

i purr the fifth

2010-07-14T16:29:00.000-07:00

daddy found a lizard with no tail in the bathtub this morning. he asked all of us who did it.

i am saying nothing.

(it was probably freya.)

=^..^=

lap kitty

2010-07-08T12:35:00.002-07:00

every time the daniel kitten is on mommy's lap, i come over and try to grab lap time too. whenever daddy is feeding him, i take over mommy's lap. today, i took over her lap when she was about to get up and go to $tarbux for internet time.

at night, i sleep at her feet. i think mommy would prefer that i sleep on her but i give her something soft to touch with her toes.

i hope the daniel kitten is still sleeping when mommy gets home so i can have more lap time.

=^..^=

indoor huntress

2010-07-05T14:26:00.002-07:00

mommy is still marvelling at how i managed to catch a bird by batting under the screen door. she was gone doing errands and daddy was home. daddy took it away from me and let it go outside. mommy is referring to me as miss artemis now. :)

the daniel kitten is getting physical therapy now to get him caught up on his development. he gets very angry with mommy when she does the exercises with him but she practices sitting up correctly with him, tucking his feet under him when he is on his tummy, and she is playing clapping games with him. i don't want the daniel kitten to crawl because he will be able to chase us but mommy says he needs to do it.

independence day was yesterday and people were setting fireworks off everwhere even though doing that was a $1000 fine. mommy commented on how she thought we were being bombed with all the explosions outside. the daniel kitten slept through it and all us kitties were in the living room with mommy.

=^..^=

father's day

2010-06-19T15:02:00.001-07:00

i wanted to say "happy father's day" to all the daddies of human children, dogs, and cats. i know my daddy is going to enjoy his day tomorrow in san diego where he will be preaching and then having a fun day with mommy and the daniel kitten.

=^..^=

snuggle time with the daniel kitten

2010-06-10T19:30:00.003-07:00

mommy is making me post this. this was taken after the daniel kitten's bath on tuesday night.

=^..^=

no job yet

2010-05-31T13:36:00.003-07:00

mommy has not found a job yet but she is still working really hard at finding one. on the plus side, this means that she is home a lot and can give me love.

she is also working with the daniel kitten to get him crawling and sitting up. he's supposed to be doing that by now but he's a little delayed. mommy says he will catch up by his 2nd birthday but i can tell that she's kind of worried about it.

=^..^=

mommy turns 30!

2010-05-23T19:47:00.003-07:00

mommy didn't get any of the jobs she applied for but daddy got one as a youth director for 10 hours a week. this is making mommy purr.

mommy turned 30 on may 19th. the sunday before, daddy's mom had a party for her and mommy's parents surprised her there. mommy and daddy went out to dinner with them that night and they came to see us the next morning. grandma brought stinky catfood so i snuggled her.

mommy possibly has an interview tomorrow so purr hard for her.

=^..^=

purr request

2010-05-13T14:44:00.001-07:00

mommy has had THREE interviews this week. (for all the furries, this is a GOOD thing as it means the potential for green papers to buy tuna.) mommy had an interview this morning with a company she believes in and it would be for a position that she'd do well.

so... please purr extra hard for mommy that she gets the second interview tomorrow.

=^..^=

the hunt for green papers

2010-05-10T15:07:00.002-07:00

mommy and daddy have been busy on the hunt for green papers. mommy has interviewed with several places and daddy has two interviews coming up. because we don't have internet at the snuggery, they have to do much of their searching at the local library where the daniel kitten can have storytime and play.

the daniel kitten is starting solid food again which means A LOT of clean-up for mommy and daddy. he likes sweet potatoes, bananas, apples, and carrots so far and mommy is trying to get him on whole milk and apple juice. thankfully, the wic people gave her vouchers for formula this month so she can supplement as needed.

=^..^=

huntress

2010-04-26T00:41:00.000-07:00

i am an inside panther and i love that lifestyle; but we have birds that sing in the middle of the night, and mommy sometimes asks me if i would mind going and clawing them on the shoulder and telling them to be quiet. i would probably rather eat the bird and also... do birds have shoulders?

i have done lots of hunting of mommy's bookmark. it is made of white string and has a book charm at one end with a cross charm at the other. mommy sometimes forgets that i am stalking it and puts it in her lap when she reads in the evening. i jump on her lap for love and then run off with it, causing her to have to get up, chase me, retrieve it, clean it (mommy is a germphobe), and put it in the back of the book she is reading. my sister freya (who is one of the kleptopaws in the the house) taught me how to do this though instead of the bookmark, she likes to go after mommy's hair instead, especially after mommy showers. (mommy thinks her suave ocean breeze shampoo has cat pheromones in it.)

mommy was sick and headachey this weekend so i had lots of cuddles with her. i slept at her feet and then within petting range when she was waking up. (i am one of her wake-up snuggle kitties) my brother cullen has done multiple rounds of tabby therapy with her which i know mommy appreciates. freya just attacks her hair and finian bats her with his floofy tail or head-butts her until he gets pets. she might be going to the human vet in the morning because she has had some kind of stomach problem that has not gone away for two months now. i will have to do lots of snuggling tomorrow.

=^..^=

fun site

2010-04-19T16:47:00.003-07:00

mommy discovered a site called postcrossing where you send a random international person a postcard and another random person sends you one. she currently has five postcards "travelling" to belarus, canada, russia, taiwan, and norway. she and i are excited to see the countries from which we will receive postcards.

the daniel kitten is having a very grumpy day today. he does not want to play with his toys or do anything but be held by mommy or daddy. mommy thinks he is either getting too hot or that he has new fangs coming in. (he just got 4 new ones.)

=^..^=

strange birds

2010-04-17T17:32:00.002-07:00

we had lots of noise last night. it kept mommy awake and made the daniel kitten wake up at 1:45 am. mommy said they were "ghetto birds" but i cannot understand why these birds are so loud and why they were hanging around last night because we do not live in the ghetto. there were also loud noises and mommy was wondering if there was a crime being committed or if there was an accident and people were being taken to the hospital.

(jen's note: "ghetto birds" are a nickname for police helicopters that we picked up when we lived in ohio. the place where we lived had the largest fleet of them in the nation. we also live a mile from a major hospital and we wondered if people were getting transferred to or from there by helicopter.)

we like having mommy at the snuggery. i get lots of snuggle time while she reads though she really does not like me stealing her bookmark. (why does she use one made of string if i am not supposed to steal it?

=^..^=

all together now

2010-04-08T20:30:00.000-07:00

we are all down together at the snuggery. the daniel kitten started sleeping down here on monday night and mommy is down here tonight. so far, she thinks the neighbors are loud so she has the windows closed.

tomorrow, we have to put mommy's clothes and the clean laundry away. we also are getting a tall bookcase for daddy's spare books (which mommy did not want him to unpack) and also for the printer and some of mommy's computer stuff. mommy has promised to make it a cat-friendly bookcase so that there is a place for us to sleep on the lower levels.

the daniel kitten had his first birthday yesterday and had to go to the human kitten vet for a check-up and shots. he weighs 18 lbs 3 oz. now which is bigger than all of the cats at the snuggery and bigger than all the cats at grandma and grandpa's house except for alyssa who is probably 20 lbs now. in the evening, the family had a party with cake and presents. mommy is in shock that the daniel kitten is a year old now considering that a year ago, she was fighting for her life and they had to take him out of mommy's tummy to save both their lives. mommy says she feels very blessed to have a happy and healthy baby. we just hope he doesn't scream too much any more.

this weekend is going to be very busy because mommy and daddy are having the church ceremony recognizing the daniel kitten's baptism in the nicu last year. daddy had to do an emergency baptism because the daniel kitten was so sick and they planned on having a special ceremony for his first birthday. mommy's parents and her evil twin brother are coming down and there are some other family members coming. mommy's mommy brings us tuna so i am very excited that she is coming.

=^..^=

in california with no internet

2010-04-02T16:04:00.002-07:00

greetings all!

i have been without internet for a month because there is none at the snuggery where my siblings and i live with daddy. mommy has been staying with daddy's parents with the daniel kitten so she can recover from the toll that everything has taken on her health. when she came over to clean today, i dictated this entry to her.

the move was not fun. we drove for 3 days in the car but mommy did make sure we had nice hotel rooms to explore at night with windows and places to sleep and survey our kitty domains. she put freya and i in the snuggery before everyone moved in and we decided to take refuge in the linen closet. cullen and finian came the next day and joined us. daddy and mommy have been busy making the snuggery into a home for us. the only bad part is that we are exiled from the bedroom so our only places to haunt are the living room, kitchen, and linen closet! i am not amused!

there is a gang of wild cats that patrols outside and mommy "cat-proofed" the garden so they can't dig there. she also planted lots of seeds so we'll have flowers that bring the butterflies and bees. we will hopefully be able to watch them out the windows. :)

mommy and daniel are hoping to get to move in soon. mommy will be with us tomorrow because she has to make a special dessert for easter on sunday. i am looking forward to getting lots of snuggles and maybe helping a bit too.

=^..^=

chaos ensues

2010-02-23T17:00:00.003-08:00

sorry for not posting for a month. mommy got sick and her mommy (my grandma) flew her and the daniel kitten to california for a week to get better. during that week, daddy had to go to california too for a family emergency and it was decided that we are going to move out there. i am excited because there will be no snow!

mommy and daddy are busy packing. my siblings and i have inspected every packing box, inside and out (mostly inside in my case). our catsitter has come over to watch the daniel kitten and help pack as have some of the neighbors. we move this weekend and will be california kitties now!

mommy also wants to say "thank you" to everyone who supported her in the haiti blogathon. she raised $125 for the people in haiti and had fun writing her murder mystery.

mommy is getting tired and needs to take breaks so i will see if i can paw her to post again.

=^..^=

mommy is blogging for haiti

2010-01-19T19:24:00.003-08:00

mommy is doing a blogathon to raise money for the earthquake victims in haiti. she will be spending 12 hours writing a murder mystery as her theme. i do not know what an earthquake is but mommy was in a BIG one when she was a kitten. i think it was as big as the one in haiti though the damage was not quite as bad. she has promised that there will be a black cat in the story, so i approve.

on sunday, i was walking by the daniel chair when he reached out and touched me. i was a little affronted but i let him pet me. mommy has been rubbing his head and back like one would pet a kitty so i think he is learning what to do. he has a gentle touch, anyway. i have also discovered that mommy can give me pets with one hand when she is feeding him or doing "tummy time" with him, so i will climb on her lap and have snuggles then.

=^..^=

all melty outside

2010-01-14T20:33:00.002-08:00

the sun has come out and the white stuff is going away. i am a happy panther.

mommy has been really busy with work lately and i keep forgetting to claw her into updating. daddy is trying to find another church where he can tell people about Jesus so he has also been busy. the daniel kitten is being a 9 month old -- mommy and daddy are trying to get him to be on his tummy so he can learn how to crawl. when he learns to crawl, he can chase us kitties so i do NOT approve of this.

someone gave mommy a snuggie for christmas and she loves it. i love it too because it creates a perfect black cat lap spot. the best thing: it gets even softer after mommy washes it.

=^..^=

happy mew year!

2010-01-01T20:39:00.002-08:00

mommy did not help me update for awhile because she was flat on the couch with an ear infection. i helped her lie on the couch with her head on a hot water bottle. her vet finally gave her ear drops and after two doses, she apologized to us cats for all the ear drops we have had to have.

mommy took the daniel kitten to seattle for christmas to see family and got to visit my aunt emily who is a calico cat. emily was ok with daniel and having the daniel kitten gone meant that daddy loved up on us kitties.

there is still lots of white stuff outside. i am so NOT impressed.

=^..^=

too much white outside!!!!

2009-12-15T15:55:00.002-08:00

mommy and i woke up to a snowscape on saturday. it was completely white outside and the temperature was below 0F. mommy was not happy because she had to go down to great falls to do some christmas shopping with daddy and the screaming thing. while she was down there, she met some kitties at petco who were being adopted out by pet paw-see. she did not adopt a new brother or sister for me because we will be moving soon and she also knew that the daniel kitten was enough of an addition for us. she did buy some catnip mice for us from the organization.

mommy stayed in on sunday with the daniel kitten while daddy had church and nursing home service. she has had the electric blanket on since saturday and i love having a warm place to curl up.

i discovered yesterday that with the space heater on, the underside of the daniel kitten's "dude recliner" makes a very nice cat cave.

don't think this means that i like the daniel kitten -- it's just a warm spot.

=^..^=

not fair!!!!

2009-12-06T19:10:00.003-08:00

my humans left us for THREE WHOLE DAYS to go see a church for daddy that is very far from montana. they got home at 2 a.m. this morning and i meowed my disapproval at them. thankfully, they left us lots of food and water, probably enough for a week. as penance, they put the heater on and i have had a cat sauna since then.

it also snowed a ton yesterday. this is not fair!!! it is the opposite of me outside!!!

the daniel kitten is also getting his fangs in so he is very mewy. mommy could not get him calmed down this morning so he screamed for a whole hour and a half. i was not happy but i did feel a little bad for mommy who was trying to catch up on sleep from her adventure. daddy was home this afternoon and took care of the daniel kitten so mommy could sleep.

=^..^=

finally an update!

2009-11-28T17:12:00.004-08:00

excuse the lack of updates. mommy has been participating in nanowrimo and daddy does not know how to help me blog. (yes, mommy needs to teach him how. unfortunately, this results in much hissing back and forth between them so mommy just does it.)

on sunday, mommy set up the playpen for the daniel kitten so he could roll around and try to crawl in an enclosed space. he was not using it that afternoon so i decided to check it out.

(mommy says to ignore the mess -- she's been busy and hasn't had time to pick up.)

daddy told me to get out of the playpen but mommy grabbed her camera and took pictures instead. she then put the daniel kitten in to see what would happen.

(note the lions on the feet of his sleeper.)

so far, i have suffered the injustice of having to share the playpen with the daniel kitten a few times a day. mommy tells me to be patient and let him explore because it is much better than him crawling around outside it and chasing me. i can also get out on my own -- he can't.

=^..^=

daniel kitten is teething

2009-11-07T16:10:00.002-08:00

the daniel kitten has been crabby and meowy lately. mommy says that he is teething and that one of his fangs is coming in. i don't remember being that howly when my fangs came in but i also was not living with mommy and daddy at the time so they cannot remind me. mommy keeps his pacifiers in the freezer and she gives him human kitten tylenol from time to time. she also rubs red stuff on his gums which is supposed to make them stop hurting. he is also drinking twice his normal amount of milk and eating some yucky runny food which mommy says means he is growing. i do not like the runny human fruits and vegetables but i would not mind if mommy gave me some of the rice cereal.

he is also starting to learn to crawl. this is not good. if he can crawl, he can chase us and i do not approve of this at all! mommy said that she will put up barriers that we kitties can jump over and escape the daniel kitten but i do not know how long that will last.

=^..^=

special day coming up

2009-10-27T12:07:00.002-07:00

saturday is halloween, which is my special black cat day. mommy and daddy will still be away in the morning but hopefully home in the evening so i can have tuna.

speaking of tuna, grandma and grandpa were here this past weekend and grandma gave us all kinds of stinky goodness. (the smell of it makes mommy vomit so we don't get it often.) grandma also spoiled me with lots of playing and petting. i like grandma.

mommy is home sick today and the evil white stuff is on the ground. i thoroughly object to the latter thing -- snow is icky. it made it hard for daddy to go into town today to get tea for mommy! i am curled up at mommy's feet helping her nap. i am a good black cat.

the daniel kitten has his 6-month vet appointment on thursday morning. he will have to get lots of shots and mommy/daddy will probably have to get a special shot for the pig flu. i hope this one doesn't make mommy sick like her flu shot can.

=^..^=

mommy needs some help!

2009-10-17T18:30:00.002-07:00

my mommy is the charity liaison for blogathon.org and she's trying to find some charities for cats and dogs to feature on their site next year. (blogathon 2010 is not until july 31st but she always has something happen to her in the middle of her planning so she's doing it early.) if you know of one (especially a dog charity), could you please leave a comment.

thanks from mommy and me!

=^..^=

daniel kitten on twitter

2009-10-11T14:03:00.002-07:00

mommy is exhausted from the daniel kitten not sleeping last night (or this morning or this afternoon) so she asked me if i could announce to all of you that he now has a twitter account to make it easier for mommy to update.

the link is: http://twitter.com/danieljameskm.

it snowed a little bit on thursday. i am not amused.

=^..^=

six months old!

2009-10-08T19:54:00.005-07:00

the daniel kitten turned six months old yesterday. mommy can't believe that it was six months ago that she was very sick at the BIG vet in great falls, having to have him taken out of her tummy. she still has ouchy spots in her tummy from it and had to see the doctor today to make sure those spots didn't need to be worked on.

he now weighs more than me, my brother finian, and possibly my brother cullen. (my sister freya is a little plump so he might still weigh less than her. mommy and daddy tried giving him rice cereal (rice powder with some human kitten formula) and he ate it right up. freya decided to help though.

we're a messy eater.

hi. i'd like some please.

mommy also wanted me to post the next picture of daniel to show how big he is now.

mr. sneaky smile wrapped in the blanket that mommy made for him.

=^..^=

left behind

2009-09-24T12:24:00.002-07:00

mommy and daddy and the daniel kitten left this morning for cali-fur-nia to visit daddy's family and go to an interview for a church job for daddy. my babysitter is coming over to play with us while they are gone but i am still very unhappy. i tried to come with them by curling up in mommy's BIG black bag last night but she made me get out. i tried going outside with them this morning but mommy caught me.

what is a black cat to do?

=^..^=

mommy's bad week

2009-09-17T15:47:00.002-07:00

mommy was sick on monday so she went to the vet. after seeing her vet and getting her icky pills, she was driving to get something to eat when someone crashed into the back of her car at 35 mph. (mommy was stopped at the time.) mommy is fine -- just a bruised paw and a sore back/neck but the other driver apparently wasn't wearing their seatbelt and has other injuries. mommy's car is totalled and she is waiting for the montana highway patrol to send her the paperwork to make a report.

this is good news for me because it meant that she could not take me to the vet today for my check-up and shots. it is bad news in all other ways.

mommy also has a question for y'all: my sister freya goes crazy for her after she showers and wants to lick and clean her. do any of you do that to your humans??? mommy thinks it's something in her shower gel.

=^..^=

the hernias are gone

2009-09-11T16:25:00.002-07:00

mommy and daddy left my siblings and i at home from wednesday afternoon until today because the daniel kitten had to have surgery on his tummy down in great falls. he had two hernias that were left over from him being born early and they had to wait until he was a certain age to fix them.

i heard mommy talking on the phone and she said that the daniel kitten slept through wednesday night even though they were expecting him to be howly over not being allowed to eat or drink. the surgery took only an hour and he was allowed to leave the surgery vet about 1 1/2 later because he had a wet diaper. mommy said that he was grumpy when they brought him to her because he was hungry and all they would give him was water. (he had never had water before.) after they got back to the motel and fed him, mommy said that he was like his usual self.

last night, they all went and visited mommy's aunt dori and uncle david as well as my cousins chief and fluffy. mommy's cousin joe and his son will were there too. they spent another night down in great falls and came home today.

right now, he is asleep next to mommy and me in his dude recliner. i am on mommy's lap catching up on my petting. i was deprived for two days, you know!

=^..^=

sadness

2009-09-04T20:40:00.003-07:00

my friend mr.sippi went over the rainbow bridge today. mommy and daddy and i are very sad. he and his mom used to go visit the daniel kitten's site when he was in the hospital. i know my mommy really appreciated it.

please purr hard for his family if you're a cat and pray if you're a human.

=^..^=

the daniel kitten cocoon

2009-08-23T18:57:00.004-07:00

the daniel kitten got a blanket from one of mommy and daddy's former parishioners who died last week. this blanket is extra soft and when he is wrapped in it, he sleeps very well.

mommy jokes that this blanket makes a "daniel cocoon" because the only thing visible will be his face. it is very good to have upstairs in her study so that she can watch daniel while daddy is out teaching people about Jesus.

i have custody of one of his other blankies though.

=^..^=

the screaming has begun

2009-08-16T12:51:00.000-07:00

the daniel kitten is starting to get his fangs in and he is screaming a lot because of it. mommy finally called the vet today and they told her that she could give him some kitten tylenol. it made him stop screaming and put him to sleep. mommy is also making sure he has all his chewing-on things at hand so he can gum on them. please purr for me and my siblings and for our mommy and daddy -- it might be a very loud couple of months.

mommy had to work last wednesday so daniel went to his babysitter for the first time. when daddy went to get him, he slept all afternoon. i wonder what he did with his babysitter to make him so tired! he will go to his babysitter again on tuesday night so mommy and daddy can go out to dinner for daddy's birthday.

=^..^=

finally back online

2009-08-08T12:09:00.001-07:00

i apologize for not writing for two weeks. mommy had the blogathon and then she had a busy week at work getting ready to go to canada with daddy and the daniel kitten so daddy could interview at a church. then, she and daddy and the daniel kitten were down in missoula for two days to see the special baby eye vet for daniel. his eyes are better and he will not have to go back thankfully.

mommy wants to thank everyone who supported her in the blogathon. she raised over $300 for the preeclampsia foundation. her blogathon site is here.

=^..^=

weekend plans

2009-07-24T22:13:00.002-07:00

just a reminder that mommy is blogging here tomorrow for blogathon 2009. if you want to sponsor her and help other mommies who have problems keeping their human kittens in their tummies, click here.

if you want to help mommy stay awake, she is "geeky.lutheran" on gtalk and "gracefulfemina" on aim.

=^..^=

blogathon helper

2009-07-16T18:25:00.002-07:00

my mommy jen is the charity diva for blogathon 2009. she has been busy with the daniel kitten so i did one of her charity highlights for her. you can read it here.

don't forget to visit mommy's blogathon site and sponsor her.

=^..^=

snuggling with the daniel kitten

2009-07-12T17:43:00.002-07:00

mommy is home on wednesday and thursdays again and those mornings are spent snuggling with her and the daniel kitten. he likes to sleep and mommy will let me curl up next to him. it is good when he sleeps because he yells when he does not get to.

mommy got a special picture frame for work and she is going through her photos right now to find good pictures to put in it. it takes pictures from the computer and does a slideshow. i have told her which pictures of me she should put in. i think it is mostly for daniel kitten pictures though.

i have scabs on my chin so mommy has to clean it every day. i hate it when she cleans it but she has told me that i will have to see the panther doctor if it does not clear up so i am tolerating it.

=^..^=

please sponsor mommy in the blogathon

2009-07-01T19:56:00.002-07:00

here is a message from my mommy (jen):

I'm participating in Blogathon 2009 to raise money for the Preeclampsia Foundation as I'm a survivor of HELLP Syndrome. Please sponsor me. No amount is too small and it is all very much appreciated. My Blogathon site is here.

mommy had to deliver the daniel kitten early because of the hellp syndrome and she is raising money to enable researchers to find out what causes it and how to treat mommies who get it with their babies.

=^..^=

the daniel kitten has such cool stuff!

2009-06-28T12:42:00.003-07:00

the daniel kitten has such cool toys! he does not know how to play with them either!

me playing with the hanging thingies on one of his daniel chairs that vibrates

grandma convinced mommy to let me play with the chair and sleep in it until daniel is old enough to appreciate it.

=^..^=

mommy is busy

2009-06-22T21:14:00.002-07:00

grandma and grandpa left on the 13th. mommy has not had time to help me update because she and daddy are now having to take care of the daniel kitten on their own. mommy calls him "little bear" because he gets growly when it is his feeding time.

they had to take him to a special eye doctor in missoula last week. mommy is still traumatized from having to watch the exam. (she has told me not to ask.) they were only gone overnight. it was a lot of driving though and the daniel kitten did very well and did not complain through any of it. i would have been howling the whole time.

there are birds nests outside a lot of the windows and i wish i was an outside panther so i could go birding!!!

=^..^=

pictures of the daniel kitten

2009-06-11T14:18:00.008-07:00

here are some daniel pictures that mommy told me that i could post. currently, he is up in the study with us in his daniel chair that vibrates.

this is from when they baptized him in the hospital during his first week. daddy's paw is on top and mommy's is on the bottom.

the daniel kitten and mommy when she got to hold him for the first time in april.

the daniel kitten during bathtime

mommy with the daniel kitten now that he's home. (yes... mommy knows that she's short.)

daddy reading to the daniel kitten.

me supervising daniel's diaper change.

mommy appreciates that i am a very helpful panther. daniel was being howly on tuesday morning and she was sitting on the recliner with him and had her prayer shawl over her. i jumped up, curled up around the daniel kitten, and purred until he went to sleep. mommy appreciated me being a lap panther and grandma would have taken a picture if she had her camera near her at the time.

grandma and grandpa (mommy's parents) are here for the week and grandma has been giving us stinky wet catfood to make us like her. i already like her because she pets me and cuddles me but i don't mind the extra snacks.

=^..^=

freya meets the tomkitten

2009-06-08T17:13:00.002-07:00

my sister freya was upstairs with mommy and decided that she wanted to meet the daniel kitten. she was about to go nose-to-nose with him when he shot puke out his mouth and it almost hit her. down the stairs she ran and into the bedroom. she is hiding and sulking right now. mommy is laughing. she says that it was worth the clean-up to see freya almost puked on. i am glad that the daniel kitten does not puke near me!!!

=^..^=

the kitten is home

2009-06-07T17:15:00.002-07:00

the daniel kitten arrived home today. he is very small and meows a lot. mommy let me smell him while daddy was feeding him and then i came and investigated while mommy was sitting with him. i think i will have to help with feedings. they smell good.

=^..^=

tomkitten homecoming

2009-06-06T09:31:00.003-07:00

mommy got a call at work on thursday saying that the daniel kitten was getting ready to come home and that they needed her and daddy to come stay at the hospital with him for a couple nights so that the nurses could make sure they knew how to take care of him. this put mommy into a tailspin because she and daddy were not ready to be getting the daniel kitten so soon.

my babysitter drew came over on thursday night and helped mommy and daddy put the daniel bed and the daniel table together. mommy and daddy also did lots of cleaning so the evil machine was out and running a lot. they are in great falls now with him and i know people are talking about mommy and daddy not getting much sleep. i do not understand this but i am a black cat and i sleep many hours a day. maybe i can help them with this problem?

=^..^=

tagged!

2009-05-23T14:34:00.002-07:00

huffle got tagged to do a shopping meme and made her mommy do it. even though her mommy did not tag my mommy, i still asked her to do it while she was sitting at the hospital today with the daniel kitten. so mommy, what have you never bought?

well sweetheart...

1.) i have never bought dog food.
2.) i have never bought cigarettes.
3.) i have never bought brussel sprouts. (my family calls them "gag bags".)
4.) i have never bought birkenstocks (though i want a pair).
5.) i have never bought baby formula though that will change shortly.
6.) i have never bought a food processor.
7.) i have never bought chard.
8.) i have never bought one of those carpeted cat towers. don't look at me like that! you and your siblings have lots of ledges and windows.

thank you mommy!

=^..^=

update on life other than the daniel kitten

2009-05-22T13:31:00.003-07:00

mommy has been gone a lot so i have not been able to use her laptop to update this blog. she is back to work again so she can save some of her mommy leave for when the daniel kitten comes home. she is also in great falls on the days when she is not working.

last night, my brother cullen and i had to snuggle mommy because she got home from two days in great falls and was not feeling well. her ickiness turned into a migraine and so she stayed home from work today to sleep and try to get some rest.

daddy is gone to great falls right now and is also having a hard day because a teenager in the community was shot and killed last night. the phone started ringing at 2 a.m. (waking us all up) with calls from other pastors in the community trying to set up grief counseling for the teenagers at the high school in town. mommy is very sad because the mother of the teenager was one of the nurses taking care of her the night the daniel kitten was born.

on a good note, mommy and i received a package on tuesday. it was a kitten present of bathtime stuff for the daniel kitten from huffle and her mommy. i will have to have mommy help me write a thank-you note and i promise to use my best paw-manship.

other than that, i have been watching the birds and bunnies playing outside. it is spring here and it seems like all of our wild neighbors are out playing.

=^..^=

spring is here!

2009-05-10T14:42:00.002-07:00

mommy has been taking the laptop with her to great falls so i have not been able to get on to blog.

the daniel kitten is doing well and gaining weight. he is one month old now and growing big. the only problem is that he tends to cough up his food when mommy and daddy are cuddling him. he managed to cough some up and make it go down mommy's shirt last sunday. he got away with it because he is cute. i don't think mommy would tolerate it from me or from my siblings.

when mommy comes home, my brother cullen and i have snuggle time with her. she loves it though she gets a little cross when i jump onto her tummy scar or when i put my claws into her chest.

spring is here and the snow is (hopefully) gone. there are lots of birds and bunnies outside for me to watch. i like being a window cat when it is sunny. mommy likes it because she says it warms me up nicely.

=^..^=

snow is icky

2009-04-30T18:52:00.002-07:00

mommy and daddy are finally back. daddy was in alaska and mommy was in great falls with the daniel kitten. they were supposed to come home yesterday but they got too much snow and the road got closed. i was not a happy panther!

mommy told me that the daniel kitten is breathing on his own now and she got to hold him for the first time this weekend. he is smaller than me still but she said that won't be for long. he is having problems eating and pooping so they are having to give him medicine for his tummy.

mommy got to help give him a bath and she said that he did not like it. i can understand that. i did not like baths when i was a kitten.

=^..^=

time with mommy

2009-04-18T14:31:00.002-07:00

mommy and daddy have been down in great falls every day with the daniel kitten. mommy calls about him when she gets up in the morning and before she goes to bed. she says that he is doing well and that he will be able to come home in 8 weeks.

mommy still has a sore tummy from where they had to take daniel out. i have to be careful on her lap because she winces if my back paws end up on her incision site. she does not have fur so she does not have to worry about it growing back. the fur has never grown back over the spot on me where they made sure i was not going to have any kittens.

i am happy to have her home again. i missed her when she was at the hospital with daniel.

=^..^=

new little tomkitten

2009-04-13T14:53:00.002-07:00

mommy got home on saturday night. daddy had tried to explain to me why i was suddenly left with my babysitters but i'm not sure i understand. mommy had her tomkitten but they are making her keep it at the hospital until it is much bigger. are they afraid that my sister freya will eat it?

mommy has been spending her home time sleeping on the couch. i have helped her as much as i can. my brother cullen is also helping her. she and daddy are having to spend part of their day down in the big city so they can see the daniel tomkitten so she is tired when she comes home.

mommy also wanted me to share the link to his caringbridge site:

http://caringbridge.org/visit/danieljameskm

=^..^=

tomkitten comes early

2009-04-08T18:54:00.003-07:00

This is Jen, Edda's mommy. Edda hasn't been able to blog since Sunday because I got really sick and they had to take me down to the special hospital and take the tomkitten out. The tomkitten's name is Daniel James and he was born on Tuesday morning (April 7th) at 3:46 a.m. MDT. He's in the NICU for the forseeable future and I'm in the hospital for at least another few days. I miss Edda and her siblings terribly and wish I could have them down here with me. Thankfully, Edda has her favorite babysitter and her daddy will be home tonight.

Thank you for all the purring done on my behalf. Please continue to keep Daniel and I in your purrs and prayers and thoughts.

mommy on bedrest

2009-04-02T19:24:00.002-07:00

the tomkitten in mommy's tummy is making her blood pressure too high. bad tomkitten!

because of this, mommy's vet has ordered her to be on bedrest for four days until they can get her blood pressure down. mommy is growly about this because she hates bedrest. i do not understand this but i am also a black cat and i like my naps.

daddy will be gone for most of it and he has asked my siblings and i to help mommy stay in bed. this means extra snuggles for us but also probably no blogging. please think good thoughts and purr hard for my mommy.

=^..^=

broken cat sauna

2009-03-31T18:47:00.002-07:00

we had icky white stuff on sunday. i am not a happy black cat!!!

in addition, my cat sauna (mommy's space heater) broke on sunday. i like using daddy's space heater because it is on the floor and more powerful than mommy's but still... it took mommy three days to try and replace my cat sauna and the stores aren't selling them right now. what is wrong with those stupid human people running the stores?!?!?!?!?! i am a black cat! i need a working cat sauna!!!!

daddy is sick now so he was on the couch today with me and my brother cullen. mommy is going to have to spray the stinky stuff on the couch to kill the germs even though she has the same cold. she was very sick last week with a throat infection so cullen and i had to help her sleep and take naps. the tomkitten in her belly is also doing strange things so she has had to stay lying down.

=^..^=

warming up here in montana

2009-03-21T17:54:00.002-07:00

mommy is very happy. she got to wear her flip flops for the first time since september this week. i guess spring has started and that means that there will not be any more snow... i hope. (mommy hopes so too. last year, they got a surprise storm in april and mommy had to be plowed out of the driveway so she could go to work.)

daniel (the tomkitten in mommy's belly) is making her hold on to water so two fingers on her right front paw are swollen. (she can type with the other 8 fingers on her front paw so she can transcribe my post for me.) her back paws are also a little swollen so her doctor had to give her a special pill to make the water leave. she also spends a lot of time with her swollen paw in the air to see if gravity will not help the water go away too.

=^..^=

catching up on the panther front

2009-03-12T17:37:00.002-07:00

i have not posted in a couple weeks because mommy (who helps me blog) has been having a hard time. things are crazy for her at work and in daddy's parish so she comes home and curls up under a quilt on the couch most days.

daniel (the tomkitten in her) is kicking hard and has learned how to stick his foot between her ribs. the kicking is so hard that she has problems sleeping so my brother cullen and i have to help her with it.

today, she woke up with her paws all swollen and her vet had to give her splints to wear to get the swelling down. she also has to watch her salt because her mommy and her vet think that it was too much salt that started the swelling.

on the good side, her sinus infection is gone unlike mr. hendrix's mommy who is on her second antibiotic.

we had cold and snow here this week and last. mommy is not happy because she really wants to wear her flip flops. i am not happy because it is very white outside!

=^..^=

lenten cat

2009-02-25T16:46:00.002-08:00

it's the beginning of lent in our house which means that mommy and daddy give things up or take things on. mommy is giving up swearing and daddy is taking some things on though he hasn't told me or my siblings what that is. daddy is already a vegetarian but mommy is not eating meat on fridays until after easter or on certain days like today.

mommy and daddy have church tonight but the daniel kitten in mommy's belly is giving her tummy problems so she is not feeling like going. daddy is also almost out of ashes and is trying to come up with a substitute. i suggested black furs (as i have some to spare) but i don't think he liked that idea.

=^..^=

mommy does not like taxes

2009-02-22T13:46:00.001-08:00

mommy is stuck at her computer today with her checkbook and email putting numbers into forms. she has to do this every year and it makes her very grumpy. she cannot find one of daddy's pieces of paper right now (i think it is called a w-2) and this is making her not happy.

i would be up in the study helping her with it but my sister freya is up there and gets crabby when i am in there with her and mommy. (mommy jokes that it is freya's study and that freya lets her borrow it.)

the white stuff is muchly gone from the ground here (which makes mommy very happy) but it is still not warm enough for mommy to wear her flip-flops outside. mommy is looking forward to that weather very much!

meanwhile, daddy was skiing with his church kittens yesterday so mommy and the others and i had a sleep-in morning with my cat sauna on the whole time. i was a happy panther!

=^..^=

valencat's day

2009-02-16T18:43:00.000-08:00

for valencat's day, mommy gave us tuna with a catnip garnish. i also got to sleep in front of my cat heater all day.

life is good. except for the white outside.

=^..^=

noooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-02-13T19:19:00.001-08:00

it is snowing outside!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

it is all white out there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i am a black cat! what am i to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

=^..^=

guests

2009-02-08T13:12:00.002-08:00

mommy was in great falls yesterday for a meeting so daddy had one of his church people over. i was a good panther and came out to love him up and help them make german potato dumpling soup. i even let steve (the man from church) pick me up and pet me. mommy has been praising me and telling me that i am a good panther for that. she even brought my siblings and i home some catnip mouses.

mommy had a bad back this week so my brothers and i had to take care of her. (my sister freya is her bodyguard -- the rest of us snuggle her.) i think the tomkitten in her tummy is kicking her in her back. i don't think this is fair -- we're not allowed to rabbit-kick each other so why does the tomkitten get to do it???

=^..^=

the type of kitten in mommy's belly

2009-02-03T19:22:00.002-08:00

when mommy got home from her special pregnancy vet appointment today, she told me that...

i'm getting a little brother.

yes, it's a little tomkitten in mommy's belly who was more interested in playing with his feet and doing somersaults than letting the person take pictures of the inside of mommy's tummy. it's a healthy tomkitten though so mommy and daddy (and the rest of the family) are very happy.

it's name will be daniel james and it will be leaving mommy's belly in late june.

super bowl plans

2009-02-01T13:47:00.003-08:00

it's super bowl sunday here in the usa and i have a simple super bowl plan for today:

sleep.

mommy wants to watch the commercials (she says they are the only good thing about the super bowl) and daddy wants to watch the football so i will have two laps where i can take a nap and get cuddles.

mommy is going down to great falls on tuesday to get high-definition pictures of the kitten in her belly. she will find out then if it is a girl or boy.

=^..^=

sadness

2009-01-30T18:13:00.001-08:00

mommy and i are sad today because my friend carolina crossed over to the rainbow bridge.

Godspeed carolina! may i see you again one day!

=^..^=

my experiment

2009-01-27T18:56:00.002-08:00

huffle suggested that i try purring on mommy's tummy to see what the kitten in her belly would do. i couldn't feel it move because mommy had a quilt over her as well as a t-shirt on but mommy said that the baby was moving. then again, mommy was also home on the couch because the baby was making her throw up. she has had that happen a lot lately. i didn't know that she would not be going to church so i woke her up at 7:30 because i thought she had to be up that early. oops! she was happy to have snuggles though.

it has been cold with lots of wind this week. i am not a happy panther because it makes the windows cold and i am a window panther. mommy is not happy because it makes the air outside colder and makes her skin all nasty and dry. mommy says that it is supposed to get warmer. i am hoping she is right.

=^..^=

snow coming back

2009-01-22T16:18:00.002-08:00

we had nice warm weather for a couple days but the snow is coming back!!! i am not a happy panther and mommy is not happy because it means she has to drive to work in it.

mommy definitely has a tummy right now. the kitten in her belly is moving and clawing at the outside which is not making mommy happy at times because it keeps her awake and it has made her sick for the last two days. (my brothers have been on "mommy-helping" duty today.) she is also only allowed to pick me up now because my brothers and sister freya are too heavy. it's good that i like being picked up and cuddled. :)

for those who wanted to know, i can't feel the baby moving in mommy's tummy yet. mommy says it will be another few weeks before i can feel it. my brother cullen likes to sit on mommy's tummy when she lies down and purr which she says makes the baby happy. i will have to purr on mommy's tummy sometime and see what happens.

=^..^=

silly mommy and daddy

2009-01-18T18:32:00.002-08:00

this morning, mommy forgot the stuff she was going to take to church so she had to come back in. i was being a window panther and she climbed through the snow to the window and was trying to make me follow her fingers with my nose. silly mommy! i am a much more dignified panther than that!

(response from jen, edda's mommy: "RIIIIIIIIIGHT!")

when daddy finally got home today, he was dressed in his pastor suit... which is all black like me!!! silly daddy! you are a human, not a panther!

(mommy is feeling better by the way and the kitten in her belly is just fine.)

=^..^=

plz iz can it be caturday?

2009-01-17T17:29:00.003-08:00

mommy has the title on an image she is trying to make for the desktop background on her work computer.

it has warmed up a lot and i like being a window panther. the sun has been shining and the snow is going away slowly. mommy says we will get more but she seems to like the snow going away too.

mommy had a stressful week and had to spend wednesday and thursday under a quilt on the couch. her panic attacks were too bad for her to work on wednesday and she had a stress migraine on thursday. i spent as much time cuddled up with her as i could and i think it made her feel better.

=^..^=

snow everywhere

2009-01-10T16:02:00.002-08:00

we eventually got the big drifts of snow plowed away last weekend and mommy was able to go out and do what she needed to do. we have not had any new snow but what we have has been blown around so it is white almost every day outside. it also warmed up this week so we have had ice. this has not made mommy or daddy very happy.

she worked all five days of her week and she was happy about that because she was not able to do that during the first part of her time having the kitten in her belly. she was always happy to cuddle me when she got home this week and i slept with her as much as i could.

mommy and daddy saw mommy's vet on tuesday and they got to hear the kitten's heartbeat! mommy also felt the kitten move for the first time last night. i can tell the kitten is growing because mommy is starting to have a bigger tummy.

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major snow day

2009-01-02T18:35:00.002-08:00

mommy was leaving for work this morning when someone from her work called and told her not to come in. the roads were icky up north and only emergency vehicles were being allowed. she came back in, put her sleepy pants back on, and settled in to cuddle with me.

when we got up from the cuddle, mommy looked outside and the world was completely white. the wind was blowing all the snow around and there was a big pile of it by the garage door. mommy decided that she would stay in today after all. :)

the wind has stopped blowing and the white has settled down. daddy has to shovel tomorrow because mommy is not allowed to shovel with the kitten in her belly. i think mommy wants out of the house tomorrow but i don't know if she will be able to go.

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first day of 2009

2009-01-01T13:37:00.002-08:00

i helped mommy sleep in today before daddy came in and decided that we were going to watch the rose parade from pasadena. if mommy wasn't eating and was on the couch, i was on her lap or at her feet making up for the 5 days of cuddle time that i did not get! mommy seemed happy to have snuggle time with me.

it is still white outside and i am not a happy cat. why does winter have to come?!?!?!?! i know mommy is not happy about having to drive to work in the snow tomorrow. she might not have to work the whole day but she does not want to have to get up and drive up there. thankfully, daddy gave her $30 in itunes gift cards so she has some new music.

mommy also has her new laptop up and she said she would post some new pics of me next week.

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happy new year!

2008-12-31T18:17:00.002-08:00

mommy and daddy are back from seattle. mommy was hissing about the traffic there -- apparently, the people there cannot drive in good weather and are even worse drivers in snowy/slushy weather. i am glad that i was not up there for their big snow -- it would have been very confusing for a black cat like me. mommy said that she and members of her family had to dig the snow and ice out of her grandma's driveway. i don't think my paws would have helped with that!

mommy and daddy also had to climb through some big piles of snow to get to a car that could take them to the airport on saturday morning. again, i am glad that i was not there -- i would have been buried in the snow and mommy said that she almost was!

they had a good trip though. they stayed with mommy's grandma and got to see mommy's parents and members of mommy's family. they left us (!!!!) but we had our favorite babysitter. mommy's godmother also made us catnip toys with the bestest catnip in the world. (mommy says it comes from a place called pike place market in seattle. wilbur, does your mommy get you catnip from there?) we have played with our catnip toys all evening. :)

mommy said she missed us but she had to love up her grandma's kitty whose name is emily. emily is a calico cat and looks like a smushed-together version of my brother cullen and i. she is fluffy and black with red tabby splotches. i would like to meet her someday if i can go to seattle with mommy.

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meowy christmas

2008-12-24T18:15:00.002-08:00

my babysitter couldn't come over to help mommy wrap presents on monday because there was too much snow. my sister freya and i "helped" though. i helped mommy hold down the fleece she was cutting for a blanket and then the two of us "helped" mommy wrap presents by playing with the towel on which she was wrapping them. first, i noticed this black thing moving and started chasing it... before realizing that it was my tail. then... freya started chasing my tail. mommy sure rolls her eyes a lot when she is using wrapping paper and tape. we also held the wrapping paper down for her. we are good helpers. :)

mommy was home today except for her and daddy having to go to church. i got snuggles in the morning and then mommy played with us using a long piece of leftover fleece. we played so much that i got tired and had to take a nap!

mommy and daddy are home tomorrow after noon and then until friday night when they leave for great falls to go to the airport. while they are home, mommy will be trying to transfer her files over to her new laptop. i can't wait to blog from it!

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too cold for black cats

2008-12-19T19:21:00.002-08:00

it was -42 counting the windchill on saturday. mommy tried going into town but got sick all over herself and had to deal with her stomach contents freezing on her. (daddy went out and cleaned the car in the freezing weather.) i had to give mommy extra cuddles because she was bundled under blankets. she was sick again on monday but she had gotten an electric blanket so she had a way to keep us both warm.

there has been lots of snow and i have been very confused because it is all white outside. mommy has tried explaining it to me but i still do not understand the color white.

mommy is going to see if my babysitter can come over and wrap christmas presents for her on monday in exchange for love time with me. i hope she can come over. my babysitter is very nice.

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winter in montana

2008-12-12T19:27:00.002-08:00

it is supposed to get below 0F this weekend for the first time this winter. it is not too much of an issue for me because i am an indoor panther and can stay warm. mommy is not happy because she has to go outside and drive to work in the cold. she is wondering how she ever used to like winter! we are also supposed to get snow.

mommy was home yesterday because she was feeling icky so i gave her cuddles and we watched a show on animal planet called "growing up black bear". as mommy and daddy tease me about being the black bear cub, it was fun to watch.

right now, i am being a bookcase kitty and curling up in the corner of a bookcase in mommy's study. my sister freya is very mad that i am in her study but mommy is not letting her beat me up.

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more snow!

2008-12-06T18:16:00.002-08:00

it snowed on tuesday. mommy was not happy because it made her commute very bad. it was the most snow we have had this winter and i was very confused by the white world outside and me being a black cat. i meowed at daddy to try and get an explanation but he did not have one for me.

i woke mommy up at 6:30 this morning, forgetting that it was not a work day for her. she rolled over and went back to sleep for another 7 hours. i curled up with her toward the end of it and went to sleep at her feet. my brothers found spots in the living room and we all took naps with her. mommy appreciated it when she woke up and found us.

no kitten pictures of the one in her belly because mommy has not found a scanner that works yet. she will try to have them for me to post in the next week or so.

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headaches and kitten pictures

2008-12-03T19:53:00.002-08:00

i saw mommy's pictures of the kitten in her belly. i agree with her -- it still looks like a sea monkey! mommy will scan them this weekend so that i can post a few on here. both mommy and daddy were very excited to see what the kitten in mommy's belly looked like on the ultrasound screen. mommy said it was waving its little paws at them!

mommy is home today with a headache. thank goodness for mary (her headache vet) who found a medication that mommy can take to make her headache go away! she felt better by the afternoon but still stayed down to rest. it meant extra cuddles for me, so i'm not complaining!

off to take the christmas tree apart!

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kitten pictures

2008-11-30T15:15:00.003-08:00

mommy has to have an ultrasound tomorrow. she told me that it is for taking pictures of the kitten in her belly. i asked if she would find out whether it was a tomcat or not. she said that she would not this time but she would probably find out when they do one in february.

mommy has been home for the last three days because of thanksgiving. i have enjoyed having her home and i will be sad when she has to go back to work tomorrow. she has been giving me lots of cuddles.

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thanksgiving

2008-11-27T19:06:00.002-08:00

it is thanksgiving in the usa today so mommy advised me to make a list of things for which i am thankful.

i am thankful for...
-my mommy and my daddy
-my brothers cullen and finian and my sister freya
-tuna
-windowsills on sunny days
-mommy's crocheting when she leaves it unattended
-my friends online
-places i can make into cat caves
-laundry piles on which i can sleep
-days when mommy is home on the couch and gives me extra snuggles

mommy and daddy did not have anywhere to go this year so they had a quiet day at home. mommy made lasagna and garlic bread and they had a nice dinner together. maybe i will get tuna later on for my thanksgiving meal.

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still have a sick mommy

2008-11-23T16:31:00.003-08:00

mommy is still sick with the cold that daddy and some other people gave her. she has been in bed for the last four days and my brother cullen and i have kept her company when she has been on the couch sleeping or watching tv. she thinks she is probably crazy but she wants to go to work tomorrow. i don't know if i want her to or not. i get extra cuddles if she is home but if she goes to work, she can buy me tuna.

the montana state bobcats were beaten soundly by the university of montana grizzlies yesterday so i am not a happy panther. mommy watched part of the game with me but she's not a huge fan of american football so she tried to find other things to watch. i just hope the carolina panthers win their game today.

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message for huffle

2008-11-21T19:48:00.002-08:00

psst! huffle!

give your mommy and daddy much cattitude when they take you to your panther doctor. pee in the carrier if necessary.

also... tell your mommy that mommy appreciated the comments on her pregnancy blog. she can use cheerleaders, especially ones that give unsolicited advice. ;) (mommy told me that the previous comment was supposed to be sarcastic but she honestly appreciates cheerleaders of any kind. advice is, i guess, also good in any case.)

i have been keeping mommy company and sleeping with her the last couple days and purring for her. she says that it has made being sick less icky. i have liked having her curled up on the couch. i get unlimited laptime even if it means that she isn't buying me tuna. (she says i have to eat the stuff in the refrigerator first. however, i can't open the packets by myself so i need her to help me!)

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switching places

2008-11-20T15:46:00.003-08:00

mommy is home sick for the second day in a row. well... yesterday, she was gone to great falls to see her headache vet. she almost collapsed on the floor when she got home because she was so exhausted. today, she has been sleeping most of the time. this sickness is not due to the kitten in her belly though -- daddy gave her the cough he had and she has lost her voice. she is trying to get better so she can go to work tomorrow to earn money to buy me tuna.

while mommy is up here on the laptop, i have taken over my sister freya's computer spot. usually, freya curls up on the camping chair next to mommy. freya is not around though so i am taking over the chair! i hope freya does not come upstairs and make me give it back!

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life here on the montana prairie

2008-11-15T14:05:00.005-08:00

it is very windy today. mommy came home from church and errands with her hair blown in every direction. i am glad that i am not an outdoor cat because i might be blown away.

i asked mommy about the questions you all have and she suggested i interview her so she can answer all my questions at once. here's a picture of the two of us. mommy says to forgive her for the messy hair -- it hasn't been the same since the wind blew it around. her comments are the slanty-typed ones.

-hi mommy.
-hey princess.
-my friends online have questions about the kitten in your belly. will you answer some of them?
-sure. let me turn the space heater on first so you can have your black cat sauna time.
-everyone wants to know what it is. do you know yet?
-nope. we won't know until around february 15th at the earliest when i go have a picture taken of the kitten in my belly by a special machine called an ultrasound. are you hoping for a brother or a sister?
-khyra asked me that last question. i think i want a sister but i will be happy with whatever comes out. what are you and daddy going to call the kitten?
-if it is a tomkitten, it will definitely be "daniel james". if it is a little girl, we like "kathleen moira" or "katie" for short. we also might just name her "cady moira".
-huffle's mommy wanted to know how your vet appointments have been. huffle said you can scratch the vet if you don't like what is being done.
-i wish i could scratch my doctor (what we call the human vet) if i didn't like what was being done! actually, i like my doctor. her name is michelle and she is wonderful. she is happy with how i am doing. when i go in, they take a urine sample to make sure things are ok and they listen to my heart/lungs. they also have taken blood to make sure that certain things are at appropriate levels. i am excited for the next appointment because we might be able to hear the kitten's heartbeat.
-will i have to bathe the kitten?
-no. daddy and i will give it baths in the sink like we did with you when you were much smaller.
-will i have to feed it? will it give me tuna?
-no. daddy and i will feed it, mostly me. i don't think it will be able to give you tuna until it is much bigger. you only get tuna on special occasions anyway.
-how big is the kitten right now?
-it is the size of a jelly bean. oh wait... in cat terms, it is about the size of one of your paw pads.
-that small?
-yes, that small. it will get much bigger very quickly though.
-when does the kitten come out of your belly?
-the estimated due date is june 20th. it could be before or after that date though.
-will it love me? will you still love me?
-of course you will still be loved by daddy and i. you are our love panther!!! the baby will learn to love you as it grows up and we will try very hard to teach it not to pull your tail.
-will there be lots of visitors when it comes?
-there probably will. the only ones you have to be nice to are your grandmothers (who will probably give you tuna to make them like you -- the rest you can ignore or hide during their visits.
-i think that is the end of my questions. thank you mommy!
-no problem, sweetheart. if your friends have any other questions, they can go to my pregnancy blog.

here is the t-shirt mommy was wearing today:

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mommy's vet appointment

2008-11-13T19:02:00.001-08:00

mommy's vet appointment about the kitten in her belly went well. the kitten is not big enough for them to be able to listen to its heartbeat yet and they cannot tell whether it is a tomcat or a little girl. mommy is doing well except for being very tired these days. i have to give her lots of cuddles on the couch.

it is nasty and snowy and windy outside. i do not like it one bit!

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busy week!

2008-11-10T19:07:00.002-08:00

we got snow on election day. that made me very nervous and the next day, i kept chirping at mommy who was on the couch sick with a migraine because i didn't know what to do with snow. it is white. i am black. it is the opposite of me!

mommy also reminded me last week that my sister freya and i had come to live with them 5 years ago! we were adopted from a vet in granville, ohio near where daddy was doing his pastor training. they adopted my brothers cullen and finian from there one year before they adopted freya and i. we were a surprise adoption and mommy said they fell in love with us when they first saw us. i was 4 months old when they adopted me. freya was 8 weeks old, a squirt of a kitten, and had been fostered with rottweilers. they adopted me with her to teach her how to be a cat!

mommy has a vet appointment tomorrow to check on the kitten in her belly. she is a little bit nervous but i think it will go ok.

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noooooooooooo!!!!!!!

2008-11-05T18:37:00.002-08:00

it snowed today!!!!! it is all white outside!!!! what is a black cat like me to do??????

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what to do with a human kitten

2008-11-02T20:16:00.002-08:00

here's a picture of the cat-o-lantern mommy carved for my black cat day:

many of you know that mommy has a kitten in her belly that will be coming out next june. i need to know what to do with a human kitten. do i have bathe it? can it pet me? will it give me tuna? those of you who live with human kittens: can you give me any advice?

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