i was doing so well this year!

with the blogging, i mean. i'd been writing pretty consistently for a few months, but obviously i slacked a bit lately. 

i'm still working on the on-line business stuff.  making pouches, making plans for going to some markets/fairs later this year.  a lady i work with is doing some fundraising for race for the cure, and i donated a pouch because i figured it's both good karma and some advertising.  i need to make up some more stuff for my shop and then i might do some search ads on etsy for a week or two and see what happens.  i put a widget in my sidebar, if you are interested!

at the end of february, vincent wandered off.  it's been exactly a month since we saw him last, and i don't know what to say.  while i was out looking for him one afternoon a neighbor helpfully said, "yeah, cats don't do well outside here."  thanks, friend, why couldn't you have mentioned that sooner? he wasn't even a year old! we've looked in shelters and donated money (because seriously, good karma must come in handy sometime, right?!), been all over and around the neighborhood, and no sign of our sweet boy.  since then, tali's become much more friendly.  before, he was always a nice enough gato, but kind of aloof. he didn't cuddle much, and he spoke so rarely that it was always squeaky and funny like he had a frog in his throat. now he sleeps with me almost every night, talks up a storm, and demands lots of pets and cuddles.  this is him in his gato basket in the nook. he patiently naps while i sew, and gets up on occasion to jump on the table and demand some belly rubs.  i had always liked tali, but i'm pretty smitten with the boy now. needless to say, he is not allowed at night anymore. he also doesn't seem to want to go out as often anymore, or as far. i can't keep him inside all the time, that genie is out of the bottle, but i know that larger predatory animals prefer dusk and darkness, so he gets the lockdown during those times.  i feel like the world's worst cat mom for letting vincent out, even though he was usually only out for a bit and came right back. i miss my boy.
that got sad, sorry. you'll be pleased to know the nook is still tidy and in working condition. i finished the mystery quilt and it's totally amazing and i love it. the kids and are i going to the emerald city comicon this weekend (squeee!).  i'm still employed. my sister found out she's having a girl (so new niece on the way!).  it's not all sad around here, but i admit that this month had it's share of no bueno news.    

how is this cat not internet famous?

made a pompom. sprinkled it with catnip. watched tali destroy it.  it was a fun few moments while it lasted! he's sleeping it off now. 

august

it's cliche, i know, to say "the summer has gone by so quickly," but it really has.  suddenly it's almost the middle of august!  what have we done this summer?

i've been doing a lot of knitting with cotton, making dishcloths.  or washcloths.  depends on where you use them, i guess.  the ones above are a double strand garter stitch version; nothing fancy, but they look pretty and are extra thick.  working with cotton yarn so much usually makes my hands ache, but either i'm doing it right or my  hands are getting tougher; i've made a billion things and my hands feel fine (knock on wood). i say "hands," but what i mean is my left hand, with the cyst.  that is the one that gets achey and goes numb.  in any case, i can't possibly keep all the cotton dishcloths i'm making, so a fair amount will become presents.  i have friends having babies, and making smaller cloths for babies is too fun.  the lovely thing about cotton is how soft it gets after being washed, and you can make a bunch of little ones quickly; that way parents aren't stuck with a giant handful of washcloth when giving baby a bath, and because i can make a billion, you don't feel like you have to re-use it. you can clean up baby with a new one each time so you don't run into stinky washcloths!

they boys keep getting bigger and bigger!  we took them to the vet for the first time last week; they were both crazy well-behaved sweethearts and everyone who met them adored them.  tali is a bit bigger than vince at 2.9 lbs, vince is 2.6.  they got their first rounds of shots, tested negative for feline leukemia, and got some flea drops.  in two weeks they go back for boosters and we make the appointment for their fixing.  their distinct personalities are definitely also becoming more apparent.  vince is bit needier than tali; he wants more of your attention, more of the time.  tali is very playful and a bit more outgoing when he meets new people.  they still pal around together all the time, which is nice.  i like that they have each other. i don't like litter boxes, though, or making kids clean them.  i clean them too, don't get me wrong, but i don't think i should be the only one doing it.  why does every domestic chore immediately default to that?! even in my hippie family, when something is dirty or needs to be tidied, the onus falls to me to work on it.  if i were a quieter woman, i guess i'd go with it, but i feel okay saying, "no, it's not all my responsibility."  most of the time, anyway.   

gigantic

 the boys are three months old now!  they are bigger every day, i swear.  all they do is eat, poop, wrestle and sleep.  i love them.  everyone loves them!  it's amazing how two adorable cats make everyone so happy and how we all dote on them. 

tali has been a bit sick lately (he either ate something funky or has worms), and his brother has spent a lot of time grooming him and cuddling him.  next week i take them to the vet for their first shots and stuff, and then sometime soon they need to get fixed.  i'm not looking forward to that, because i hate the idea of my boys feeling bad, but i also don't want them running loose in the neighborhood, leaving babies in their wake.  although let's be honest: their babies would be adorable.  sorry boys, enjoy your nuts while you can! 

i'm that crazy cat lady

except i'm totally not, i swear!  the boys keep getting bigger and bigger.  we've had them for just a few days over a week now, and this is how big they've gotten.  so fast! they spent a few days checking things out, learning about litter boxes, and they've been off and running ever since.

it's hard to get a clear photo of them when they are doing anything but napping, but this one comes close.  the one on the bottom is tali (like tally), and the one on top is vincent, but we call him vince.  they are incredibly fun, needless to say.  my husband at first i think was a bit gun shy about getting two cats, but they have so much fun together! watching them careen throughout the house, knocking each other over, playing, then curling into a little ball of kitten fur is endlessly amusing.   plus, they honestly seem to like each other.  i mean, they tussle like tiny MMA fighters, but if you've found one, the other is right around the corner.

they are also both very sweet and loving.  when i get up in the morning, i come out to the downstairs den and they pop out from wherever they were hiding (right now it's under the couch, but soon they'll be too big for that), purring loudly and peeping, rubbing up against me for pets and loves.

it's not all kitten fun times around here, though.  school is winding down for the girlchild, and there's a more than good chance summer school is in her future.  i have a lot of anxiety about her starting high school in the fall, but i can only focus on now, so i try to keep the worry to a minimum.  as if trying to do that ever works.  the boychik has a job, and i think a new girl he's hanging out with.  he tried to convince me he went to see a will/jaden smith movie by himself this afternoon.  do i look retarded?! some plants died in my garden (i planted them too early) but luckily it's only really getting warm now so i can just plant some more.  new job and life stress is making my eczema just blossom (hoo-fucking-ray!), but i figure itchy is okay.  i can handle itchy.  overall, things are good but busy, and it will be awesome when these boys figure out pooping outside.  litter boxes: making rooms smell like pee since forever.

boys boys boys

they loved the girlchild right away

 well, we did it!  my dream of kittens has finally come true.  they were picked out of a litter of five; all the others were lovely grey kittens, two of them with tiger stripes.  these two, though, were already pals and well bonded to each other.  when talking about getting a new cat, we all agreed that we have the space for two, and we wanted them to have a playmate and friend.  it's even better that they're brothers! 

 

 we have their names kind of tentatively picked out. i've always liked the name vincent for a black cat because he can be named after vince noir and vincent price that way.  and we can call him "vincey princey."the girlchild likes the name tali, and the kitten with the curly tail will likely be named that.  it's hard to pick out the right cat name!  so we're taking our time.  their names may change, we'll see. 

it's been hard to leave the house this weekend, because when they aren't busy being sleepy dolls, they are busy tearing around the house, making tiny meows, head booping us and climbing everyone like mountains.  i already love these little stinkers, even if i have to clean up poop!