Toesday

So... remember yesterday when I asked you to pay attention to Marigold's toes?

Because those toes would be important on Toesday?

Well, today is Toesday.

Have you noticed something about Miss Marigold's toes?

"HEY! My toes are down there!"

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Miss Marigold has very distinctive toes.

The only white-toed mittens in the litter.

But they aren't just white mittens.

Marigold toes are white, but paws are not...

which leaves an arched line between her toes and paws.

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These are not the only white-toed mittens in the house.

Someone else has distinctive toes.

White toes without white paws...

with an arched line between her toes and paws.

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Do you remember who brought Mama Dahlia to the feral community?

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Do you remember the relationship to this house?

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Do you recognize these toes?

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Given his friendship with Dahlia... 

Given the existence of black kittens...

Given the existence of distinct toes...

I am likely to proclaim it more likely than not that

"Maxwell... You ARE the father!"

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We're calling Maxie "the big sister" now.

She doesn't like them either.

Oh... and those pictures of Marigold?

So nice, I used them twice.

You're welcome ;)

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I'll be away for a couple of days.

My daughter, who graduated from high school on Saturday (sigh),

has college orientation this week (yikes).

We're traveling to campus and leaving the babies in good hands.

You'll see me again on Friday.

Have a good week.

Happy (Almost) Mother's Day!

Okay, so it IS actually Mother's Day. But this young lady...

... is (almost) a mother.

(Yep. She's almost a mother in the way that you can be almost pregnant. 

There's kittens and they're coming!)

And because she needs a place to raise those babies of hers...

We're baaaaaaack!

(Did you miss us?)

We've opened up the doors at Teeny Tiny Tabby Town for a (potentially) limited engagement because this very special little girl needed us.

And because sometimes you just need a furry shoulder pad.

And so...

Meet Dahlia.

Dahlia's beginnings might sound familiar to our regular readers. She came from a feral cat colony known to us. The one that's run by our favorite kitten catcher.

So feral, that Dahlia is.

Our Dahlia is so feral that she's the the anti-feral. She's a kitty who simply didn't belong to that outside community. She's friendly. She's sweet. She's the most affectionate cat I've met in years (and that includes my own cats). She's clearly known people. But she's also been abandoned... whether that came before or after the pregnancy we'll never know.

Her arrival at the kitten catcher's colony came through a chain of kitties who are already familiar to us:

Our last mama in residence, Miss Mama Mae (or "All the Way Mae", as she was affectionately known)...

Who was the Mama to our last foster failure Mistress Max...

Brought a certain tuxie boy to the colony...

One who looks just like the little lady above (but much bigger)...

(And I've searched for his photo and can't find it for now, but I'll insert right here later)...

Which would make him Maxie's dad (who we call Maxwell Sr)...

And HE...

Brought our new little friend Dahlia to safety with the kitten catcher.

The vet tells us that Dahlia is just a baby herself. 

She's probably no more than 8 to 10 months old. 

Just a baby having babies.

She made herself at home right away.

She unloaded the toy box, but I haven't seen her play with a thing.

She's barely even taken time to put her whiskers in the window.

Although she IS kinda interested at what's going on outside her door...

(Yep, that's Max)

We've got time to get to know Dahlia before her kittens come. Vet estimates that we have a couple weeks to go. 

Maybe she'll sit still long enough to get a decent picture by then.

Welcome back to the Kitten-Go-Round. We'll have new ones for you soon.

Sunny Sunday

"Hellooooooooo. What's new?"

"Max is just laying here... looking at the big warm light bulb thingy in the sky..."

"And waiting for the Mama Lady to finish watching basketball..."

"Sigh... Max is bored with basketball."

"Let's destroy something while discussing the awesomeness of Max's whiskers."

Three's Company

Come and knock on Mae's door.

She's been waiting for you.

She's got a loveable space that needs Max face.

Three is company too.

Max and Ruby are very jealous that Mae has a special spot all to herself. They spend the day knocking on the door, trying to play with her through the glass, and shooting between my legs every time I try to go in or out. So... Mae gets company every day for a few hours, which seems to make everyone happy.

Kind of.

"What is that small one doing up here with Mae?"

Get used to it, Mae. You have a sister waiting at your new house.

Dude, Where's My Phone?

I know it's around here somewhere. I had it last night when I was surfing the kitty blogs. It was right here when I was reading Robyn's blog... and when I clicked over on that fun link about the cat selfies... Where can it be????

"How you make this work? Are Simba's whiskers in focus?"

"This would be SO much easier with thumbs."

"You see Simba now?"

"Hi Mama Lady!"

"Simba, why you hogging the phone? Let Ruby have a turn."

"Which part does Roo touch to make the clicky noise?"

"Does Ruby look okay?"

"Is this better?"

"Hey, Mama Lady? Roo is tired of 'selfies'. This is good enough, okay?"

"Max has this covered."

"CHEESE, MAMA LADY!!!!"

"Whoa, that flash is bright!"

"Much better... now how about a close up of Mae to remember her by?"

"Wait, she's WHERE?"

"Oops..."

Found it.

Excuses, Excuses

Turns out that I had a very good reason for not posting last night...

A mother-daughter blanket on an exceptionally cold night :-)

Mae was there first.

Then came Max.

They snuggled and purred together there for close to an hour.

Max got her sniff on and then she was gone.

But Mae remained... for about 3 more hours.

She would have stayed all night, if I hadn't decided to go to bed

(where Simba was waiting for me).

I'm not certain this was an expression of love by Max as much as it was "claiming the Mama Lady." She's very possessive of her place with me, which is on my chest and under my chin. She demands "top position" when the other cats are there snuggling too. She will come flying out of nowhere to claim that spot as soon as she senses I've got feline companionship. Yep, she's a brat and they let her get away with it. Good thing the other kitties prefer my legs anyway.

We Have Had JUST About Enough of This!!

"Ruby does not like the word 'winter'!"

"Come to think of it, Ruby does not care for the word 'arctic' either."

"Don't bother asking how Roo feels about the word 'vortex' either. You won't like what she has to say."

"Please make it stop."

"Ruby said 'PLEASE'! Why is it still winter?"

"WHYYYYYY??? Why? Why? WHYYYYYYYY????"