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Blue and Daddy read the paper together one summer day

Dear Daddy,

It's been 10 years since you passed away. I miss you and think of you often. Your death was the beginning of the end of our entire family and for that, I find myself still mourning. I haven't had a Christmas or a birthday that's felt right since you've gone. Even if things weren't perfect, we had our great moments, long late night talks and heart connection like no other. I know you loved me, even if the words were tough to come by, and I know you did everything you could to give us all everything we ever dreamed of. You were ahead of your time, in so many ways. I only wish you were here now to see some of the changes that have happened in the world. You'd have been thrilled to be a part of it...if only you could.

I wonder if you've been reborn or if you're in heaven or just part of the stars now? Wherever you are, know I'm thinking of you and miss you so much and wish so deeply that I could see you again. Perhaps one day I will.

Until that time, I'm thinking of you. Always.

With all the sad news of Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson passing away, I thought I'd post a small token of sweetness here, just to lightly brighten those gray clouds a bit.

I can always count on Spencer to find a new place to sleep that just doesn't make sense to me. Here he's sleeping on the bathroom counter, between two sinks.

Silly Pouff.

...the best cat, ever.

Stanley Pertwee Kokopelli 1991—2003

Six years ago, today. I lost my best friend. He was the most perfect, sweethearted and loving cat I have ever known. His name was Stanley and I only had him in my life for just five years before he passed away suddenly and unexpectedly at the age of 12 from HCM.

I know so much more about cat health and have so many more medical resources, I know I could have prolonged his life and prevented him from needless suffering during his last days, but I can't get a "do over" on this one. God knows I wish I could.

I wrote much more about Stanley's story in one of the chapters of CiCh. If you'd like to read it, let me know and maybe I'll get off my ass and post it.

Six years feels like infinity without you, Stan. I still cry when I think about how much I miss you.

I can't wait until I get more photos lined up or a bigger story to tell, but I had to share this...

...Last night Twinkles or Sprinkles...not sure which one, came over to me with tail raised high. I gave him a little pet and I heard the first purr from any of the kittens in this litter. It was so completely endearing and lovely that I felt myself swoon. This one little kitten is going to be a big love muffin. I can tell, already. In just a day or two, I'm already noticing their willingness to come over to me when I enter the room. I'm very glad for this! Soon, I may have some very lovey-dovey kittens to work with!

Someone lied about their age! Either that or someone wasn't sure when the kittens were born (which was first thought to be June 1). Oops. These guys are either supremely advanced or they're FOUR weeks old! More like it. Two of them weigh almost one pound, which tells us, yes, they are older than we thought!

Thing is-I was prepared for them to be younger, so I've been scrambling to get a tiny litter pan made up for them and have given them a handful of starter toys-just simple toys that won't frighten them. I think one kitten figured out the pan, the others did a poop-attack all over their bedding so wooo. That was so much fun to clean up!

Pixie thinks it tastes like chicken. That said, she bit on the foil, then walked away. She didn't eat any of it...so far. I will find a replacement thing to use for the baby litter pan. Hmmm...but what?

They seem aware of the toys, but would rather beat each other up, then play with toys just now. I need to get my hands on them more, too.

Regardless of their age, I know one thing for certain.

OHMYGOD...THEY'RE SO CUTE!!!!!!

Am I right or what?!

Yesterday I decided to let Gabby out of the big dog crate. Part of my reasoning was that there was no way I was going to be able to get close to the kittens while she was still in the crate. She's very hissy and after almost two weeks here, she's no calmer. I also think it's unkind to keep her confined to a small space. She needs to be able to stretch her legs, sharpen her claws, destroy the room...I mean, be able to look out the window.

This afternoon, I found Gabby on top of the dog crate, not too happy to see me. I just talked to her and acted nonchalant. She didn't move. No surprise. I wanted to sit on the floor, near the opening to the dog crate so I could finally handle the kittens. I was grateful Gabby didn't attack me while I was sitting there, messing around with her offspring. I kept thinking that my 30th High School Reunion is on Saturday and I don't want to go to it if my face is full of bloody scratches.

That said, might make for some interesting conversation.

Here's the view from inside the dog crate. Gabby has the craziest markings on her legs! They're beautiful! Too bad she'd rather rip my hand off then let me pet her.

I got to handle the babies! They are so sweet. Just barely 3 weeks old! They do drunk-walk and don't hiss at me! I "think" I have two girls and a boy. The kittens, above are named: Sprinkles and Twinkles.

Here's Pixie.

They're sooooo cute! I'm soooo happy to FINALLY be able to hold them, even if it's only for a few moments. So, here we begin. Another group of kittens. Another attempt to properly socialize them, so they'll be great adoption candidates and a happy, confident member of their new families-to-be.

Yesterday we did our third run for The National Brittany Rescue NBRAN and New England Brittany Rescue NEBR. Even though we don't know much about dogs and are both allergic, what the heck! We love these guys! Plus, we were not taking my car, so any puking would be done in Sam's. Woohoo! I mean, oh, well it would be terrible if that happened to someone else's car, of course.

Our passenger's were Cole, left and Bria, right, as well as Toby, who rode shotgun and napped most of the trip.

These dogs all got along great. None of them wore an annoying e-collar and Cole was the only one who wanted to eat anything loose in the trunk, including a roll of paper towels and a big plastic water dish. Of course, I stopped her before anything bad happened, but now we have some tokens of their travels with us in the form of teeth marks.

The drive was fairly uneventful, other than a sudden heavy downpour which slightly woke up the dogs. Yeah right. They slept through it all. None of the dogs barfed, pooped or peed in the car. They didn't even make a sound. Are these real dogs?

I must say I was very impressed. It was a restful trip for everyone, other than Sam, who had to drive in the crappy Father's Day traffic. I was happy to be in the back seat with the dogs, so I could take photos and pet them as much as they wanted.

The pick up and hand offs went swimmingly well. While we waited in Danbury for our passengers, we saw another car pull up with a dog in it! A woman got out of her car and a second woman got out of another car. They both began to talk and pet the dog. We realized they were doing a transport, too, since the woman who came with the dog, didn't leave with it. Pier One must be a hot spot for transports. Sam said it was like a great cruising spot for dogs.

Good luck, pups! I hope you'll all be happy in your new homes. It was a pleasure!

To see more photos of the dogs, you can visit my Flickr page.

Socks the Kitty.

I guess I got a bit cocky, there. After finding out that Gabby was trying to bust out of the dog crate, I thought I had her all set up to be comfortable, but I was wrong. I heard yet another racket coming from upstairs in her room and after going to investigate, I saw what looked like Gabby stuck under the cat carrier that was leashed to the dog crate. Ugh.

I grabbed a broom to move the carrier out of her way and it lightly touched her side. She FLIPPED out and RAN AT ME, so I backed away from the open dog crate and let her run free in the room. She quickly disappeared into a time continuum of some sort because I couldn't find her even though I've fairly well cat proofed the small spaces. I remained calm, if embarrassed, and used the time to clean out the dog crate and have a few seconds holding each of the kittens. They ALL hissed at me, but I didn't care. They're so soft and cute. It was nice to hold them. I *think* I have two girls and a boy, but I'm not positive and I didn't want to handle them for too long.

I called our Director and confessed my foolishness. She told me the kittens would be moved and I might as well just get used to not seeing any of them. But wait, I really closed off all the tough places to hide! Maybe it would be fine? No way, I was assured, would this mama go back into the crate.

I accepted the guilt of being stupid and set up my pet cam to try to catch what she was doing. I was worried she'd stop feeding the kittens.

I got one shot of her outside the crate, looking in. I got lucky because I went to see a crappy movie (Land of the Lost) and while we were out, Gabby went back into the crate to care for her offspring. When I got home, I found her nursing them, so I quietly closed the dog crate door and covered it back up. For that, I'm very grateful.

All is well. For now!