Bringing the Boy Home!

Sunday was the Day of the Return. I didn't want to get caught by surprise again, so I came prepared.

I could defecate in there. Shane's kept it as a drum and it's been taking up space under the sink. At least this way it could have a use (but hopefully not!).

The drive down was uneventful, but pretty. I listened to a short Agatha Raisin mystery and a sermon to fill most of the time (It was Sunday!). I beat the SC crew to the rendezvous Zaxby's by 15 minutes or so. I hopped straight into their car in the drive-through.

Nana and Pop were gracious enough to buy lunch for everyone. They saw a homeless man and drove over to give him a mana bag before we parked to eat. We saw another van drive up first and hand out coats before we drove over! It was nice to see people trying to spread God's love!

We sat, talked, ate, and enjoyed each other's company before transferring the luggage. Shane had a goofy smile on for the picture, so Pop helped him make it more natural.

Pop didn't stop when Shane hit the natural smile, though! 

Darkness starts after 5 PM in the fall, so things were getting dim as Shane and I pulled up to the barn. Carrie was helping Ellie with the evening chores. She took a time out to catch Shane as he launched himself at her!

Shane's learned that things change whenever he's gone for long enough. He spotted the new trailer right away and met Eowyn at the barn Honestly, I was surprised he recognized the differences in the trailer to know it was a new one!

Shane noticed Carrie had moved around the couches after the pee incident, as well. He might have said something else, but Loki was ecstatic and barking! He missed his boy!

Shane did some pushups to earn some electronics after running around like a madman. Loki helped.

Carrie fell asleep on the couch while we all watched some TV to end the night.

Shane had his Happy cat.

I put Shane to bed later and locked everything up. That included taking Loki out for one last bathroom break in the cold.

Then it was time to grade! I got in a full day's work between driving and grading.

Next week is going to be a short one for school. There's only two days and then we'll have some holiday time together as a family. I'm looking forward to it! 

The Pets Update

The pets are all eager whenever someone disappears into the main bedroom. I've been forced to learn to open the door a crack to check if any cat is already heading for the gap at speed. Tuski wants to be a ninja like Max (and she's harder to shoo out of the room when she does break in! She hunkers down under the bed).

The cats beg in the morning to be let outside. Carrie gets the final call, but I'm happy to let the "barn cats" play at being barn cats.

And it's cute when they play with the dog. Loki was trying to keep an eye on Laura walking Ernie in this shot, while kitty-kitty was keeping an eye on him. For what?

Tag of course!

Meanwhile, Max has no interest in dogs. She's happy to explore and the first one out the door. She ranges the farthest of all the cats. 

Aria is "my" cat. She's clearly claimed me and hunts me down wherever I sit to Carrie's great delight.

"Look at her! I want to take a picture."

Apparently, I used an incorrect look.

Tsuki is Carrie's favorite. I try to send the occasional kitten pic to boost morale if I feel it's flagging.

Tsuki has decided Carrie is her mother. She attempts to nurse. Nurse. She will nest, nibble, and suck on whatever blanket is on Carrie. I've never seen anything like it before.

And that bond with Carrie is the only thing keeping the cats in the house after they've had multiple "accidents." Aria's the only one who's been caught, but we've thrown away pillows and cushion covers.

Carrie's theory is that the kittens have peed anywhere they can nest and that smells strongly of dog or other cats. Loki's been banned from the couches for the cat misbehavior! We've picked up blankets, blocked the cat door into the guest bedroom, and provided a new litter box.

So far, it's been popular. Which is great, because cat pee is the drip of death to fabric.

I didn't want Loki on the furniture originally, but it feels unfair to change things now that I got used to it. It's fun to watch him bounce around after the cats!

Happy still loves him, at least.

I caught her giving him a kiss right on his face.

We really should work on leash training with Loki, but I'm not in a hurry to take him anywhere.  I suppose he could come on a hike, but he'd also neeed to get a collar and/or microchipped. 

Cat Problems

You can be cute and annoying at the same time. Exhibit A:

The kitchen sink is more annoying than the bathroom one. I turned the water on. 

We won't talk about how Shane balanced the dirty plate.

And why do you need to steal the dog's food? 

A fun picture or Carrie giggling can balance out some annoyance. In this case, the picture was evidence the kittens had been up to mischief.

And then there's outright trouble. We've caught Aria peeing outside the litter box. First it was a towel I dried Loki off with. Then it was on a blanket behind the dog cage. Then we noticed the dog bed smelled, too. Then Shane left the closet door open and I noticed her peeing on his snowpants.

Cat pee is terrible. All of those items are trash.

There are standing orders to keep doors to all bedrooms closed. I asked Carrie about getting another litter box in case that was the issue and have said, "She can always go back to being a barn cat."

Maybe Tsuki or another cat has done it, too, but I've only caught Aria in the act. It seems like a new problem, but she could have been wetting Loki's bed for a little while (It's not like we actually smell checked it frequently).

I would be okay with letting the cats outside more often. Any time they choose to use the bathroom outdoors is one less we have to do anything about.

Thought I will admit, I do feel a small amount of trepidation about letting them out. It's based on "How would Carrie react/feel if one didn't return?" 

Carrie seems fine with it and aware of the possibility. There are hazards outdoors and a cat's curiosity could keep one walking. So far, Max ranges the farthest. She's come back with ticks several times while the kittens stay close and tick free.

Happy cat has joined the morning outdoor romp. She stayed on the porch at first.

Then she started to range a little further out.

Shane has started to think of Happy as "his cat." Tsuki's claimed Carrie, Aria likes to bother me, and Max does Max. Happy started off her indoor career sneaking into Shane's bed to sleep. She likes to hide most of the day, but she's very tolerant about him snatching her and burying his face in her fur (no matter how many times Carrie says, "Don't do that.").

So Shane got nervous when all of the cats came in but Happy. He went out to look for her. Carrie followed a little bit later and found her on top of the hay bales. She had to climb to the top to retrieve her.

Will Happy get to venture out tomorrow? I don't know myself. I'm not used to being the hesitant one, but I'd just as soon leave her in. Carrie's the one who opens the portal to the yard each morning.

And that's the full cat update. The kittens are full of energy, cause trouble, zoom around, and wake Carrie up at night. They also curl up next to her and she falls back asleep making happy murmurs, so it somewhat evens out (I get to deal with any grouch/tired the next morning!).

I'm Stuck With Them

Carrie's started to post pictures of the kittens tagged as #barncatfail.

She's not wrong.

They've moved in.

They're both high energy and adventurous. Aria ("My cat") takes the lead....and gets up and into all sorts of places.

Including surprising ones! Carrie heard noises coming from the cabinetry and found Aria on the inside.

She shut the door, perhaps in disbelief, and when she opened it again Aria was on a different level!

It seemed impossible, but Carrie discovered the builders left a kitten highway with priority access doors. Aria taught Tsuki her trick and the kittens have accessed the shelves through the top and the bottom.

They're brazen about jumping up on counters and looking for food. No matter how many times I drop them off, they seem to hop right back up.

I've caught them standing in the sink......and yes, I turned on the water. They still come back!

Thankfully, no one has jumped in the trash can (but I caught Aria looking!).

I would have thought Carrie would be more concerned about the kittens clawing and climbing up the couch, but kittens get a pass no other species does (Rank favoritism, I say!).

Morning and night, the kittens get an attack of the 'zoomies' and start tearing around. I sleep through it, because I shut the bedroom door. Sometimes Carrie falls asleep on the couch and wakes to a kitten ricocheting off her chest as her sister jumps over her head in pursuit.

 Carrie's started to let them outside for morning barn chores to run off some energy.

And she's been letting Max join them.

That surprised me. Carrie is such a cautious person it seemed odd at first.

However, it makes sense. Max is 14 years old. There's no telling how many years she has left and she loves being outside. She leads the kittens to the door and starts singing and pawing.

So far, she's always come back. She ranges farther than the kittens and I had to herd her away from the corn one day (I was worried she'd lose track of where she was if she ventured in!).

Happy doesn't get to join the outdoor festivities. She ran off into the woods once and we're not chancing a repeat. That was a rough night with Carrie having a panic attack, Shane crying, and me tromping through the woods on a winter's night that I'd prefer only happen once in my l ife.

She's adapted to the inside life. We've given her a middle name due to her jelly rolls: Happy Fat Cat.

Loki loves all his feline friends. Carrie's taken to throwing him out with them in the mornings.

By himself, Carrie will sit on the porch when let out. With the cats, he will happily romp around and use the bathroom. If anything, he'll herd the kittens back closer to the house at times!

He doesn't think it's fair that Carrie secludes him to dry off when he comes inside.

Not that we have the crate inside anymore, because Aria has started to pee on anything that smells like wet dog.

We don't know why. Cat pee is a terrible thing, so the crate and dog bed went outside. Loki hates them, so don't worry about him.

If there was any drama, I'd have grounds to return the kittens to barn cat status. But all the cats get along famously with each other and the dog.

Max, Aria, and Tsuki even eat together.

Happy is the odd cat out, but she's usually sleeping somewhere and doesn't seem to care.

The only drama worth mentioning is comical. Sometimes Max gets fed up with Loki and he takes it as a cue to play. She'll growl, hiss, and charge.....and he'll end up bounding after her. He'll try to imitate her swipes and paws the air!

Shane's on permanent litter patrol, but I end up doing a lot of double-checking. With him at Nana and Pop's it's somehow become my job again.

Carrie does take care of a lot of things I don't want to do. Like worming. Her vet tech training comes in handy.

And Aria's curiosity earned her second place in line.

Happy didn't learn much from Aria's mistake either!

Learning when to make yourself scarce was an important part of my childhood.

So.....4 cats. That wasn't in the marriage vows, but if it keeps Carrie sane and I get to keep my dog it's the way it's going to be.