New Family Member (if only temporarily)

Our cat Emily has been great with kitty for several months. I think the deed happened around Christmas when she was yowlingly in heat. I was afraid she might have her kittens when I was gone last weekend, but Evan assured me she never did. Well, on Monday night before I went to sleep she hopped up on the bed--and she was decidedly thinner. She was also excessively affectionate, more so than usual, which she usually is after having babies. I guess it's her way of seeking affirmation and praise for the great work she's done.

My joy was tempered, though, as I realized we had absolutely no idea where she'd had her baby(ies). Our house is so big and holey they could be anywhere. I had horrible visions of tiny kittens freezing in the 20-degree cold. And it wasn't very reassuring that Emily spent all of Monday night purring in my ear and rubbing herself all over me (not a good night for it either, having been on the plane all night the night before and being utterly wiped out). She should have been with her offspring!

So yesterday I did a little sleuthing. Around 1:00 p.m. she begged me to let her into the mudroom. I let her out then watched where she went. Sure enough, she went where I was hoping she had NOT had her babies. In our mudroom there's a huge whole that someone stuffed with insulation for reasons we don't know. Emily went way back in that hole, far out of my reach, and stayed there the rest of the day. I was concerned about the kitten (we later learned she only had one) inhaling insulation so I begged Evan to get them out. He's used to working with insulation and it doesn't bother his skin. Still it wasn't a pleasant job, especially since the stuff had been used previously by mice and was filled with grody evidence of their habitation. Evan pulled Emily and her adorable mewing baby out, and I declared him my hero! Now mother and baby are safely ensconced in our laundry room. So far I haven't had the courage to tell the kids about the kitten, since they'll never be able to leave it alone and poor Emily will go out of her mind.

For those of you who might be curious, the kitten is black and white, just like her mom (and dad and, I might add, her grandfather. Yes, there's been a little incest going on in the neighborhood).

I'm still riding high on my time last weekend in Washington! Since my birthday today is turning out to be a rather crummy day, I'm extra thankful for all that my family did last weekend to give me a happy early birthday party, especially on Saturday night, which was complete with special dinner, presents, cake and candles. Tucker was up late last night and in the wee hours of the morning feeling miserable and feverish with a bad cold, and Chloe's sick too. That rules out Evan's and my plans to go out for lunch. Oh well. That's okay. I'm privileged to have these little ones to care for. This dying to self stuff is good for the soul. :-)

What am I saying! I hardly have room to feel sorry for myself after the fabulous weekend I just had. And tonight Lindsay and Sue are coming over to watch the new Pride and Prejudice with me while Evan takes Jed to AWANA. And Evan is going to bring dinner home. I always say no woman should have to cook dinner on her birthday. :-)

We got a new oven yesterday! The old one was leaking gas, and when the repair guy came he vacuumed out three vacuum cleaner canisters' worth of insulation that mice had chewed up and spit out! It was time for a new one. The church approved a beautiful electric one with a flat rangetop. No more burner plates to clean! And all the knobs are up top, well out of the reach of little hands. Evan installed it this morning. I love it!

I guess I need to stop frittering time away and get my kids corralled and this house back under control. Amazing how a few days away messes up one's routine, though Evan did a fabulous job keeping the place picked up.