Kitty!

Announcing Claire's official first word: "kitty".

At home and at day care, Claire is exposed to her feline friends with adults saying and signing "kitty". For the past couple of days, Claire has been mimicking us and says "kitty" back to us.

Yay, Claire!

Tummy Time

If we catch Claire at the right time and in the right mood, she really does well at tummy time. She adores the mirror (sounds vain, but most (all?) babies like mirrors) and really gets her head up. Sometimes she lifts her head and feet and is balancing on her belly button.

Franklin wants in on the action.

Getting Acquainted

Christmas Day

Matt and I had a nice, quiet Christmas Day at home this year. I was certainly not about to fly anywhere at 35 weeks pregnant, so we enjoyed the day together with our little tree and the animals. It was a beautiful sunny day, so we took Sunapee out to Fort Funston for his favorite activity.

The sunny day also highlighted the streaks on the living room windows, so Matt went to work, with an audience.

Relaxing the Rules

Matt captured this charming dog/cat moment the other day. Franklin was a little startled when Sunapee first joined him on his chair, but quickly settled back in to continue his nap.

Whose Food Is This Anyway?

Occasionally, we will pour Sunapee's food before he is sitting, waiting, drooling. This allows Franklin the opportunity to sample the dog food and it seems he likes it as much as his own.

Cats and Sinks

For some odd reason, cats like to sit in sinks, curl up and nap in sinks, drink out of sinks. Here we have Marin enjoying this spot on a nice sunny day with Franklin next to her on the warm granite.

Cat in the Ceiling

After the walls in the kitchen and dining room were in place, we had the HVAC guy return to punch a hole in the dining room to install the heating vent and punch a hole behind the microwave for ventilation. Unfortunately, I had marked a reminder on the ceiling but that was not the right location. The HVAC guy took my sketch as an indicator of location and cut a hole, to discover the duct was not there. Matt's just thrilled at the prospect of repairing a 5x5" hole, but we hadn't started it yet.

We return from a walk yesterday afternoon to discover Marin IN the ceiling. I had seen her peering at it from atop the old fridge, but figured she wouldn't be that curious, right? Wrong! She managed to jump from the fridge into the hole in the ceiling, but couldn't figure out her escape. I had to convince her to reach out of the hole paws first, which was challenging as she doesn't speak much English. She did eventually reach out, after a few failed attempts by me to pry her out via collar. Hopefully she didn't eat any insulation (not as much of a concern with her as it would be for puppy, tho she has been known to gnaw on wires) and we dusted her off, sent her on her way and immediately started the patching process.

I guess she'll do just about anything to get away from Sunapee.


Update 6/3/08: She did it again. I came home from boot camp at 7:10 am and while I was talking to Matt as he sat at the counter, I noticed a furry brown face looking at me from the ceiling. The wall patch was on the floor. This time, however, she decided to explore the crawl space more fully and went missing for several minutes, while I tried every trick I have to get her attention (which isn't much; she's the least responsive of the 3 animals). She eventually came out and jumped back onto the fridge. We then moved the fridge to the other side of the dining room while it awaits removal.

Critters and the Kitchen

As they say, a tired lab = a happy lab. As I say, a tired lab = a happy Susan.

Can you find the cat in the picture below?

Hint:

This is the usual interaction between dog and either cat. Cat sits up high, out of reach. Dog moves around, up, down, up, down, occasional bark, begging the cat to play. Cat growls, hisses and swipes to communicate refusal. Which is really too bad. The cats' play time has been considerably reduced since the kitchen project started and even further reduced due to the fact that all of their toys are the right size for a mouthy canine to ingest.
Someone has given up on the cats for the night.

Cats and the Kitchen

The kitchen has really turned into a feline jungle gym. The uncovered dishwasher was a big favorite for a while. It is wrapped in a thick felt blanket, making it a warm, soft haven with the key bonus of being unreachable by puppy.

At this point, you can see I was unpacking all the storage boxes. Any cozy space will do for this cat.

Cats and the home upheaval

How are the cats feeling about all the change in the house, you ask? Well, now that the plastic walls are down and they can resume full reign of all 1048 square feet, they are thrilled. They are a fan of the cabinets
They are a little less enthusiastic about the 20 pounds of curious canine.
Marin chooses fight and will hold her ground and even growl and hiss at Sunapee when he comes to check her out. Franklin, however, prefers flight. Unfortunately, that makes for a fun game of chase for Sunapee and an extremely poofy orange tail.

Alien Cats

The kitchen space was invaded the other day by glowing eyed felines.

Tycho & the Cat Tree

Our friend Dean came by Saturday to check out the demo and provide an opinion on the removal of the wall. He had 5 year old Quinn and 2 year old Tycho in tow, leaving Jennifer home for a hopefully quiet day with 3 month old Tate . While Matt, Brian and Dean enjoyed time dodging lead paint in the demolition zone, I happily entertained the kids in the clean half of the apartment. Quinn was content to sit and watch Shrek 2 but Tycho had a ball wandering between rooms and was most interested in the kitties. What he really wished to do, of course, was climb the cat tree. I think Marin was happy I kept him from climbing.

Cat on the Move

Franklin likes any opportunity to climb in a suitcase. In this scenario, he liked my weekend bag. I wonder if he just wants a vacation from sleeping all day?

Oh, to be a cat

Getting up and out for work this week has been extra hard - despite the various holiday events. I think it has something to do with knowing I will only work 2 days each over the next two weeks and all the year end madness and of course the preparations for an audit which starts Jan 7. Whatever the reason, just as I was about to leave this morning, I see the critters in some of their favorite spots and I really just wanted to do the same. I'd probably supplement the curling up with a book or some Tivo, but the result would be the same. A relaxed day without the stress of human life. Sigh.

Chim chim-in-ey, chim chim-in-ey, chim chim cher-ee

With my parents in town this week, Matt and I had many things on our respective to-do lists. Matt & Dad worked on wiring, electrical, cable, baseboards, etc. Mom & I worked at reducing boxes and organizing, painting the baseboards and of course had a meal planned. In the early afternoon, we were all in the midst of accomplishing these tasks when we were all rudely interrupted by a curious cat. Franklin tried his paw at being a chimney sweep. This prompted a snicker from my dad and an emergency quarantine in the bathroom for Franklin. What followed is not for the faint of heart - bathing a pissed off cat.

Here he is post-bath, still plenty dirty:

Felines in a Frenzy

Any literature you read about cats will tell you that they do not like moving. They do not like change, new places. Ours do not particularly like cars - well that may be more a byproduct of not liking being trapped in a 2 cubic foot carrier. They have survived the ordeal, including 3 hours stuck in the bathroom in Sausalito, where they cried to be released and curled up in the safety of the sink. After about 24 hours huddled in the new bathroom (see below), under the bed and in their tree house, Franklin & Marin have been let out to explore the entire 1048 sq feet. I think they will love having more space to chase each other.

The Packing Continues

While Matt & the boys laid more flooring, I kept packing in Sausalito. Hard to fill boxes when they're occupied though.

Cats & Dogs

The cats had their first "close" encounter with a dog this weekend. Former house guest Greg came by with his pup Bridger to drop off moving supplies (and rid his home of same). This was the first time Franklin and Marin have shared a space with a dog - and they didn't share for long. Suffice it to say, the cats were overwhelmed and only came out from hiding a few hours after Greg and Bridger left - while carefully looking, listening and sniffing for any sign he was still lurking.

Cat and Mouse

Make that cat and Bluetooth optical mouse.

As any cat owner knows, cats love to invade computer space. Whether you're working at a desk, or sitting on the couch, just about any cat will jump up and wedge itself between your hands and the keyboard. Also, if you ever receive an email from us with random all-caps words, know that Franklin likes to lounge on the Caps Lock key.