Mostly Mancat Monday

 Spyro:  I am inspecting the trash basket in the computer room.

Karen Jo:  That trash basket is a cat magnet.  It only holds some plastic and cardboard containers that some cables came in but fascinates all the boycats.  I put it upright and put the stuff back in and five minutes later (or less) some cat has dumped it over again.

Oja: I am on one of the living room couches giving the boycats the stink eye so they will leave me alone.  There are lots of nice fleece blankies on this couch and it is one of my favorite places.

Karen Jo:  You pretend to dislike the boycats more than you really do.  This morning I woke up with you beside me, as usual and Rocio jumped up on my tummy.  Also as usual he started to slowly slide off toward you.  You didn't make a fuss.  In fact you started to groom him a little when he got within tongue reach.

Oja:  I growled at  him, too.

Karen Jo:  That was very interesting.  You would groom him a couple of licks, then make a very small growl, then groom him some more, back and forth.  I think you are beginning to like Rocio.

Oja:  Never!

 Austin:  I am in the compter room, watching out the door.  Oja and Spyro just ran out and I am waiting to see if they run by again.  Oja is doing a lot more running and jumping these days.  Last night I saw her measuring the height of the kitchen counter.  Pretty soon Mom is going to have to move the boxes near the counter, or Oja is going to be able to get up there and eat Spyro's food.

Rocio:  I am resting up after the spat Oja and I had.  Mom opened the closet door to get her clothes out this morning and left it open.  Oja went in there to explore and I tried to follow her.  You should have heard all the noise she made!  First she growled, then she yowled, then she yelled.  I backed off after the yell.  Oja can really yell loud and it's scary.

Nippy Sunday

Spyro: This actually happened last Sunday, but Mom didn't get around to posting about it.  Mom decided that it was time we had a nip party.  First she got out a little fuzzy ball that had been in the nip container for a few weeks and put it on the paper you see me on.  Rocio ran right up and grabbed it.  Then Mom put a generous pinch on nip on the paper and Rocio decided to roll in it.  I just lay beside the paper and watched, sure that my time would come. Sure enough, Rocio wandered off a little ways.  You can just see him in the background.  Then it was my turn.  I licked it and rolled in it and had a great time.

Rocio:  Mom serves up some great nip.  After Spyro crashed (you can just see his feet) I came back for a little more.  Then I just started staring off into space out the window.  Mom checked and there weren't any birds to watch; at least not that she could see.  Shortly after this I got the munchies and went off to chow down on Oja's crunchies.

Spryo:  I do love my nip, but it makes me sleepy.  All in all, we two had a great Sunday.  Lazy bones Oja and Austin napped through the whole nip party.

Caturday

 Oja: The vet visit went fine.  I was just weighed and got my chest felt.  I lost two pounds since December 1st!  I am down to 11.7 pounds.  The vet lady said that I should weigh 9-10 pounds, so I only have one more pound to go, then no more diet for me.  Mom decided not to stay in bed all day today after all, so we should be able to do some visiting, which we haven't been doing for such a long time.

Karen Jo:  Mom is getting thoroughly sick of bed.  I went to bed right after supper last night and got restless almost immediately.  I made myself stay there, though and got lots of rest for my ribs.  The news from my doctor was worse than I was expecting.  I fractured four, maybe five, ribs but there was only a tiny bit of displacement, so no treatment other than bed rest was necessary.  I get to have them x-rayed again in a couple of weeks.  I am going to try staying up and using the computer, but no housework and see how I do. If I start aching, it's back to bed.

Oja:  I wouldn't care if you went back to bed right now.  I love cuddling with you.

 Spyro:  Mom's been taking more pictures of us than she used to, so she will be using whatever one she likes for the post.  This is over a month old, when we had sunshine.  I scared the heck out of Oja this morning.  Since Oja has lost weight, she has been going places she didn't used to go.  I have gotten used to having the area around the computer desk pretty much to myself.  I darted behind the desk and Oja gave me the "rip your ears off" yell.  I didn't even know she was back there; she never has been before.  I came tearing out from under the desk at top speed.

Oja:  Sorry about the yell.  It's a dead end back there and I had no place to go if you decided that you wanted a rumble.  I hate feeling trapped by another cat.

 Austin: I just love all this knitted stuff.  It is sooo comfy.

Rocio:  When I say that I check out ALL the napping places, I mean it.  I don't quite fit here, but I just had to try it.

Karen Jo:  I have seen other kitties sit in that little box, but you are the very first one to nap there.  All the kitties have been having a great time.  Oja hardly hisses at any cat now.  All three boys rassle with each other and Oja rassles with Spyro.  Austin tried to start a rasslin' match with Oja this morning, but she growled at him and he backed off.  When I put Oja in her PTU, all the other kitties acted very concerned.  Rocio pulled at the bars to get her out; Spyro purred at her and Austin tried to make a game of it by playing footsie between the bars.  Oja didn't like that last move at all.  I think Rocio licked Oja's head last night, but Oja trotted away from him so quickly that I couldn't be sure.

Spyro:  I really like the computer room.  I jump up and help Mom with the computer all the time.

Karen Jo: I have discovered one tiny drawback to having a nice big computer desk with room for everything: there is also room for kitties.  My old arrangement was so crowded that only Oja could fit in my lap and there was no room on the desk at all.  Now there is room for any of the kitties to walk all around the desk and get between me and the monitor and walk on the keyboard.  I don't mind, really.  It's kind of cool to watch Spyro watch the cards when I play card games.  Oja has more room to be lap kitty while I compute and Rocio has room to be a lap kitty, too.

Femme Friday

Oja:  I get the blog all to myself today.  Mom has spent much too much time going on about those boycats, anyway.  I am up on the platform getting some sun in a photo from late last month.  We didn't get any sun to speak of today.  I am still sleeping next to Mom as much as I can, but she isn't spending nearly enough time in bed for my liking.

Karen Jo:  For my ribs' liking, either, apparently.  When I got to feeling almost normal again, I started trying to catch up on the housework, a little at a time, then more and more until I overdid it.  Now I am getting the sharp pain again that had gone away.  I am spending tomorrow in bed again and maybe Sunday, too.  I have to get better again, because I have a three day conference coming up in a couple of weeks.

Oja:  The more time you spend in bed, the better I like it.  You could start by staying in bed right through my vet appointment tomorrow.

Karen Jo:  You don't get out of going to the vet that easily.  Herman's foster Mom is taking us in the morning.  It won't be bad.  You need to get weighed to see if you have lost any weight and we have to discuss what to do if you haven't.  You shouldn't need to get any embarrassing procedures done, though maybe a little feeling around your tummy.

Oja:  I don't mind you feeling and petting my tummy, but I don't want anyone else doing it.  You really are going to keep those boycats, aren't you?

Karen Jo:  Yes, I am.  I filled out their adoption papers and send them in with the check for their adoption fees.  I haven't heard back yet, so they aren't officially my forever cats yet, but it is just a matter of time.

Oja:  Rats!  I was hoping we would eventually get rid of them.

Karen Jo:  Oh, come off it.  I have seen you napping nearly together with Austin and only a foot away from Rocio.

Oja:  But they steal my food.

Karen Jo:  You are getting enough from somewhere.  You are still quite the pudgy kitty.

Oja:  It looks good on me.  I look regal.

Karen Jo:  That you do.

Happy Squillions Day!

Karen Jo:  These are my Squillions.  I got them back when I couldn't have real kitties.  I named them after some gorgeous gingers of the Blogosphere, namely Fat Eric, Eric and Flynn.  That black and white kitty isn't really a Squillion, I guess.  Her name is Star.  It's funny.  Now I have four real cats and two of them are gorgeous gingers.  I will see about signing them up once I get their papers and they are officially mine forever.

Snowless Sunday

Spyro:  I always like to be where  Mom is, so I follow her around the house, unless I am napping.  I hate to hold still for the camera, though.  I am up on this thing that looks like a table, but isn't, in the boys' room, watching Austin eat.  I ran outside today, thinking that I would get to stay for a while because of Mom's ouchie ribs, but she came right after me and grabbed me and carried me back inside.

Karen Jo:  My ribs are hardly ouchie any more, unless I try to lift something heavy.  Luckily, Spyro isn't quite heavy enough to set off the pain.  I still can't stay up all day without getting really achy.  Every once in a while I have to get back on the bed and spend some time there to soothe the ache.  I still haven't heard from my doctor what the damage was, so it wasn't severe.  She thinks I may have cracked a rib or two and I think she's probably right.  I should be back to normal in another week or two.

 Oja: Except for eating and using the litter box, I have spent the whole day on Mom's bed.  She got new flannel sheets and they are wonderful.  Every time Mom gets up, I grab the warm spot.  When Mom lies down, I get next to her for her warmth.  Happiness is a warm kitty.

 Austin:  I am in the easy chair in our room.  Of all the kitties, I spend the most time in here.  I like to get up on the bookshelf by the window and look out and I like to nap on the couch.  Sometimes, I like to go see the Mom in her bed and last night I had to put Oja in her place.  I jumped up on the bed and hung out for a while on the Mom, getting just the right amount of petting.  Then I wanted to walk across the Mom and up to the head of the bed to jump into the rocking chair.  Oja was lying next to the Mom and I had to walk past her to get where I was going.  Oja growled at me, so I backed up a little and stared at her.  Oja kept growling.  I don't know why.  I just wanted to walk past her.  I got fed up and lunged at her.  She squeaked and jumped over the Mom.  I walked where I wanted and jumped into the rocking chair.

Karen Jo:  I think Oja is losing in her bid to be Alpha cat.  Whenever Austin or Rocio invite her to rassle, she declines by running away.  I think it is Rocio who chases her down the hall, but it could be Austin as well.  It usually happens when I am in bed and I can't see who is doing the chasing.  I think Austin is going to be the Alpha.  He is the one who starts most of the rasslin' matches, except the ones between Oja and Spyro.  He is the one who won't put up with Oja's attempts to be bossy the most.  Spyro doesn't care who is Alpha, as long as it isn't him.  Rocio doesn't seem to care, either.  Spyro and Rocio nap together, as do Austin and Rocio.  Oja will now tolerate one of the boys napping near her and even touching most of the time.

Rocio:  All I want to be boss of is the toys.  This morning I was chasing a fuzzy mousie all over Mom's bedroom.  I like to drop the mousie in one of her boots, then fish it out again.  I say, let Austin be the boss cat.  He isn't mean about it.  He will rassle with me until I run away, then he will pounce Spyro.  One time we finished our match and the only kitty watching nearby was Oja,  Austin looked like he was going to pounce Oja, but as soon as he started his wiggle-butt she squeaked and ran away.  Oja growls and sounds tough, but she hasn't got what it takes to back it up.  Maybe she is scared of us and is putting up a brave front.

Karen Jo:  I thought of that when Oja was getting used to Herman and Spyro.  It soon became obvious to me that Oja wasn't afraid of them, because she didn't run from them or cower before them, she just doesn't like mancats all that much.  The growling and hissing incidents are getting fewer and fewer and may stop in a month or two.

Karen Jo:  We were supposed to get a big snowstorm with up to a foot falling today and so far I haven't seen one flake.  It has been very cloudy all day, but no snow.  Darn it, there were things I would have gone out and done if it hadn't been for that forecast and the threatening, but apparently empty, clouds.

Caturday

 Spyro: Yes, we are still here.  Mom has a good excuse this time.  At first she was just busy with paperwork and paying bills and stuff, then she fell down and hurt her ribs.  She was in bed all day every day until just a couple of days ago.  At first it was all she could do to get up and feed us and water us and clean our litter boxes, then she had to catch up on the mail, which she hasn't finished yet, and do a bit of cleaning.  A friend of hers came over for about a week to take care of us right after she fell, because she couldn't even do that.  She is mostly better now, except she can't pick up anything weighing more than a few pounds and she can't stay up all day yet.  These are photos that she took before she fell, but we are still doing the same stuff.  I found this heat-reflecting pad that Mom got for Herman and I really like it.  It gets nice and warm when I lie on it.  Notice the nice sun puddle?  We haven't seen any of these lately.  We have been getting snow and more snow and we are due for even more tomorrow.  I ran outside yesterday when Mom opened the door to get the mail and ran right back inside.  Brrr!  I was a good boy while Mom's friend was taking care of us and didn't run outside even once.  You know what?  When your Mom has sore ribs, you can get her up for breakfast really fast by walking over her body.  Don't do it when she is really sore, though, or you will get yelled at.

 Oja:  Here I am in my favorite chair.  I haven't been spending much time here lately.  Mostly I have been lying beside Mom or on her lap while she lies in bed.  I love it.  I purr on her lots.  I even let her pet me more than usual.  Sometimes when I wiggle away from the petting, I hear her sighing.

Karen Jo:  I love having you lie beside me or on me and purr, Oja.  I am just sighing because I miss Herman.  He never got too much petting.  None of the four of you really like to be petted much.  All of you seem to like it for a little while, then wiggle or walk away from it.  Would you believe it?  One time I even had all four cats on the bed at once.  It didn't last long, but it was great to see.

 Austin:  This is my favorite spot in the house.  I am the shyest one, but I have been in to see Mom and lie on her and purr while she has been in bed;  I usually do it when the other cats are doing something else.  Oja still doesn't like me a whole lot, but she is getting better.  One evening Oja was lying beside Mom and I jumped up in Mom's lap and snuggled down.  I slid my head over and laid it on Oja and she didn't react to it at all.  We stayed like that for quite a while until Oja realized whose head it was lying on her side, then she growled at me and I moved.

Rocio:  I can't decide whether I like the ham-micks or the cat beds best, so I keep moving around.  I even sleep in the cat bed in our room that Mom says no cat has slept in before.  She got it for Emma, but no cat liked it before.  I don't know why; it's a nice bed with room for both me and Austin.  I have been spending some time lying on the Mom and purring, too.  She likes it and pets my head and back.  I have a new game. I chase Oja down the hall until she jumps up on the Mom's bed and growls at me.  It's fun to watch Oja run. She moves her back legs together like a bunny hop.

Karen Jo:  I think having the boys around has gotten Oja to exercise more.  I think she has lost some weight or gotten stronger or both.  She is getting up into places that she never went before, like the window sills in my bedroom.  It's a much bigger jump than getting up where Austin is in his picture.  She has also been eyeing the kitchen counter and that is quite a jump for her.  I will be adopting the boys.  I got some of their paperwork today and will start the process tomorrow.  Oja still growls at them occasionally, but she let Rocio groom her for a minute and let Austin lay his head on her for a while.  Spyro loves being big brother to them and they all three have so much fun playing together that I couldn't stand the thought of breaking them up.

Austin:  Hear that, Rocio?  We get to stay!

Rocio:  YAY!