Kitten Clarification.

Mo is actually from the litter that was born this summer.
Full Story:
Last year when I was in England T called and said there was a 'dump cat' living in the barn. Dump cat is what we call cats that have clearly been family pets and suddenly show up at the farm because people will literally drive down the road and dump their unwanted pets in my ditch. It is how ALL of my cats came to be living with me. So anyway- T asked if we could keep the cat as a barn cat and I said no because I couldn't really afford another cat at the time. So T talked to her parents and they agreed to pay for dump cat (who became known as Cleo) to live here. That included shots, food and getting her spayed. Well by the time I got home from England she had not been spayed yet and was pregnant. So when the vet came out to geld Titan I had him give Cleo her shots and he confirmed that she was indeed pregnant. So the kittens were born about a week before I left for New York for camp (5 of them). You aren't supposed to spay a cat right after it has kittens so we had to wait a few weeks and I was going to be in New York. T was supposed to get Cleo (now known as Mama) spayed ASAP but she didn't. By the time I got back from New York Mama was pregnant again. She had another 5 kittens. I found a home for 1 from the first litter and 1 from the second litter but was not having much help from T and her family in finding them homes. Last week after asking T to come over and clean up the mud room about 10 times (this is where the 2nd batch was living since it was too cold for them to be outside) I lost it. I cleaned the room myself and left T a message that they needed to come and get the kittens. I had even begun billing them for the cat food since they weren't providing enough. They came to pick them up and I kept one from the 1st litter (since I figure the little ones will be easier to find homes for at the shelter). So they ended up taking 4 kittens from the 2nd litter, 3 from the 1st litter and Mama to the shelter. They decided not to keep Mama because it was going to cost $70 to spay her. If they had decided that in the beginning I wouldn't have had to clean up after 11 cats for months but I suppose then I also wouldn't have Mo and Chance wouldn't have his best friend.

I have been scolded.

I have gotten in trouble by those who know me about not blogging this week. I am sorry. I will catch you up on everything.

I picked up Boyfriend on Monday. So happy to see him! His plane was delayed by about an hour due to snow but he has finally arrived. We have been hanging out for most of the week. I worked on Wednesday and Thursday but other than that we have just been bumming about.

Chance is good. He is getting very good at sit and is getting better about lay down. He still thinks he is a lap dog and should be allowed on the couch and bed- we are working on that. His new best friend Mo (the kitten I kept) has been following him around all week since the other kittens left. Mo sleeps on the dog bed with Chance and Tess. He also 'hugs' the dogs as much as he can by putting his front legs around their necks and 'kissing' (aka licking) their faces and ears. I will try for a picture of that but for now you will have to settle for pictures of them taking a nap together. Mo also loves Tess but she doesn't seem to feel the same way about him and is constantly getting up and walking away from him when he tries to cuddle her. She really hates it when he goes up and tries to 'kiss' her- Chance loves it, any good attention is apparently readily accepted whether it is from a human or a cat.

Titan is good. We have about 3-4 inches of snow on the ground and Titan and Gus are enjoying it more than the mud that we had before. Titan still seems like he is getting bigger everyday. I thought that maybe his growth would slow a bit in the winter (you know like how their hooves slow a bit) but I think he is going to continue to grow at this ridiculous rate until he is 3 or so... he is going to be a freakishly large giant but I love him dearly.

I am still working at the bookstore and I still love it. I got all of my Christmas shopping done today and I am THRILLED about that. I do NOT like shopping- especially with huge crowds and all that jazz. I am also still looking for a 2nd job but have not found one as of yet since I am over qualified for every position I apply for. However I can't apply for a higher position because I haven't taken my boards yet and I haven't taken my boards yet because I can't take the review class yet and I can't take the review class yet because it isn't offered until January. I should clean out the take room again- I always have stuff in there I can e-bay... I know I have 4 brand new stable blankets just sitting there...

I love Saturdays and Sundays are good too.

Yesterday was great. I worked from 10-2. I am quite enjoying the job as we just sit and chat about books when we aren't helping customers.

Then I came home and worked with Titan. He was amazing. It was like something in his head clicked. We had nice round circles (no more cutting in nonsense, thanks Jean!). He had nice even gaits, extended out when I asked (he prefers to just jog along rather that extend out into a proper trot), flat knee, deep hock- It was AMAZING! I was so proud of him. I also played with a heavy western saddle pad with him. Bumping him all over his body, throwing it up on his back, bumping his legs, he could not have cared less. He was such a good boy.

After that I went to a nearby town where they were having a haunted hayride. I was one of the people at a station scaring people. It was so much fun! I actually got hit in the face by one lady when I scared her and she swung her arm at me- I think it was a reflex to the Freddie mask I was wearing. A good night was had by all and they raised LOADS of money for the new playground and park! My throat still kills today from so much screaming.

Today I got up and worked around the house then my cousins stopped in for a little visit. After that I went out and worked in the barn with T for a bit. Then 2 friends came out to see the horses but one brought her non-horsey boyfriend (boring) and so didn't stay long which was a bummer because I hadn't seen her in a while. Then 1 friend and T stayed for dinner and we played parcheesi. It was a pretty nice day. Titan worked well but was a little distracted at the loads of people watching him as the friends, T, and several neighbors were all there.

I also got my new memory card in the mail this week so there will be many more pictures soon! But until then here are some new kitten pictures. They are getting SO big and started opening their eyes this week (don't worry I didn't use the flash in their tiny little eyes). I named Lucy right away and had no clue what to call the others. My friends 2 year old daughter named Norman and Walter (I know funny names for a 2 year old to pick), my neighbors 2 year old granddaughter named Simba (even though the kitten is a girl, we don't care) and then Boyfriend named Marty.

All 5- (l to r) Norman, Simba, Marty, Lucy, Walter

Miss Lucy

Simba, Marty, Norman and 1/2 of Walter

Marty

Simba

Mama- taking a break and hanging out in the office with me while I write.