CAT SUNDAY SURPRISE

Are you sitting down?

 Let me preface this by saying that this coming Wednesday, Babygirl had an appointment at the Vet clinic for a spaying at 8am.

This picture was taken on Labor Day evening. In fact, this picture was going to be today's picture.  Does anything look different about her?  She looks normal right?  Maybe gained a little weight and maybe we overfed her a bit but she looked healthy.  Went out to feed her Friday morning and this greeted us:

A litter of newborn kittens!

WHAT THE HECK?   Did she LOOK pregnant in that other picture?  It's the weirdest thing.  We've seen pregnant cats before and it's usually pretty obvious. She did NOT look pregnant.

This picture was after we picked them up and put them in a box with a towel.  I didn't take a picture of the graphic moment we saw the pile of kittens as there was some blood and birth remnants.  Don't need to photograph that, seeing it was enough, ha.  Babygirl was sitting on the rocking chair cleaning herself.  The kittens were already clean too (though the porch was a bit of a mess, ha).

We immediately brought them inside along with her.

Here they are.

Five little kittens.  Four of them look healthy and have fat little tummies.  One (actually, #1 in this pic) is a bit weaker and had some blood around his mouth when we brought them in. We think she might have started giving birth on the rocking chair or table and this one might have fallen off.  Then she moved to the corner behind a pillow on the porch floor and had them there.

At first, we put them all on the screened in porch.   She went crazy being inside and decided that the screens might be an easy way out.  We stopped that right away (no damage, thank goodness) and moved the family inside.  We set up a cardboard box and some towels.  She fed them and we tried keeping her inside but she is not meant to be inside right now.  She will stay and feed them and clean them and then starts running around wanting out in a panic.  Per the vet, we don't want her to get so stressed that she abandons them or stops producing milk entirely.  We decided the best move is to let her in and out: she goes out on the porch and sleeps on the chair or table and stays outside...

...and we open the door, she comes in, feeds them, cleans them and then gets restless again and wants back out. We are NOT letting the kittens be outside for their safety, so this will have to work. After some more consultation with the vet, we decided to get bottles and formula so we can supplement them when she is not around or at 3am in the morning, etc.

It was off to Tractor Supply (love that store now) on my lunch break to get some supplies. 

 We got a can of KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) and two bottle sets (one for each of us to use).  We figured the full set with cleaning brush and different nipples was better to have around instead of just a bottle, in case some other baby animals make their appearance out here someday, ha.

We also bought a jumbo plastic litter pan (to keep them contained, for now anyway, ha) and some pee pad liners and extra blankets and towels.

So, this will be our life for the next few weeks.  Already have one adopted out when they are of age.  Vet has graciously agreed to check out all the kittens for free and once she is at the right point after initial nursing, she will be spayed so she does not have to go through this anymore.  Vet said they will reach out to us in a few weeks.

Never a dull moment!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Another hot weekend.  Today will be some yard work in case we have some rain later this week (that's in the forecast).  But it will be done in stages, ha.

A good hearty meal is always good.  A salad to start and then some pan seared pork chops and fresh green beans, shallots and mushrooms.  Yummy!

Babygirl says hello.  She's a sweetie, still a little aloof but coming along.

Everyone stay cool this weekend!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

AUGUST!  AUGUST?  Where has the year gone?

It's hot for sure, we are having "feels like" temps of over 100 degrees.

I made some of our favorite chicken, Pollo Asado.  It's a marinate that has seasonings and then achiote paste that gives it the distinctive red color.  This will be wonderful on the grill when we eventually get that set up but until then, we roast it in the oven and it's still wonderful (but we do miss the char marks, ha).  Then we roast some corn in the final 15 minutes when we bump up the temp to 425.  So yummy.

Babygirl likes to sit on the porch railing now.  She discovered the chair in the corner offered easy access to the railing.  Now she loves it up there.  

Hope you have a nice weekend.  Stay cool!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Another HOT week has flown by.  Is it really already almost AUGUST?!?

We used the last package of our meatloaf from the freezer.  Time to make more!  We had one of our favorite meals, meatloaf, mashed potatoes with healthier butter and non-fat dry milk in the potatoes, and then sautéed green beans with onions and tomatoes.  So good!

We gave Babygirl some toys and she's having fun with them.  Of course, I have to check the yard for them before I mow, ha.

Speaking of, I have to mow today. I did the edging over the course of a couple of hours yesterday and today will be mowing.  Easiest to break it up into parts.  It's just so hot right now.  Everyone stay cool!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

It was a HOT weekend.  SO hot.  I was going to do yard work but I chickened out, ha.  I will do a little each evening when I get home from work.  

I didn't get a chance to post this yesterday so here it is a day late.

On the 4th, we had our semi-annual tradition of BBQ rib dinner (Daytona weekend is the other time).  I made pickled red onions, a low fat coleslaw with no sugar.  We love it, as it compliments the sweetness of the bbq sauce.  2nd Man made some homemade bread and I made the ribs.

Here is Babygirl.

In a series of two pictures.

She was ready for food and when she is...

...she lets us know for sure!

She will be spayed soon.  Since we know she has to stay in for a bit to recover, we are trying to get her used to being in the screened in porch. She freaks out in the house and we don't want her to be stressed and trying to recover at the same time) so we've been letting her come in the screened in porch and get used to it. We have a bed for her and a littler box.  She eats there from time to time so we think she'll be OK.  

Hope your week is off to a good start!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Boy, it's been a hot week for sure.  But thankfully, no rain so today (in the heat) is mowing time.

We had a lite dinner the other night.  Some veggie potstickers, done in the air frier,  Garnished it up with the green onions, drizzled on some low sodium soy sauce substitute and had a delicious meal.

Babygirl had her delicious meal and then took a nap on the comfort of the porch.  She's living her best life that's for sure.

Now I'm off to mow and edge

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Ugh, it's been another rainy weekend.  Heavy rains Friday afternoon, so it was too wet Saturday morning and then another rain of round came in Saturday afternoon.  Then Saturday night/early Sunday morning, MORE rain.  No flooding (out here) but just SO wet. 

 

2nd Man made one of our faves, an Asian stir fry (but he roasts the pork and the veggies are just sautéed in the seasoning liquids so it's very low fat. Pork, veggies and great flavors all over rice noodles.

Can't go wrong with that!

Babygirl and Jack, just chilling on the front porch before one of the monsoon rains. His ear is clipped so he was trapped and neutered at some point but we don't see him very often.  "J" said he goes down there to eat too so I guess he's a nomad at heart, ha.

#catdistributionsystem

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

 It's another rain on and off again weekend.  Did manage to get some yard work done. More on that later this week.  Time for some good food.

2nd Man made us some carnitas, just seasoned roasted pork and then filled some corn tortillas and topped with chopped onion and cilantro.  Of course, I had to make our new favorite margaritas, ha.

Our Ring camera captured this.  "A cat is lying on the porch".  Ya think?  Ha. She is living her best life, that's for sure.  The only thing she needs is a catnip 'rita, ha.

#catdistributionsystem

 

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

 Another week has flown by.  And of course, it rained.  Again.  And again.  And now it's too wet to mow.  Ugh.  So I did other things but we still had time for some good food.

2nd man made some healthy shrimp pasta.  This was simple, shrimp with some olive oil and pasta water mixed with fresh lemon juice and zest.  We used whole wheat pasta as well.  Then we topped it with some fresh basil.  Of course, we had a salad first and I made some more of those whole fruit margaritas.  It was a great way to end a Saturday.

And speaking of a wonderful way to end a Saturday...

Here is Babygirl taking her post dinner bath on the front porch.  She's such a sweet little thing.  We'll soon be taking her to be spayed.  She won't like that process at first but it will ensure she is able to live a long and peaceful life out here.  

#catdistributionsystem

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Another week has flown by.  This weekend I'm taking a break from outside stuff and trying to focus on some inside things.  Our guest room is the current storage room for stuff that we haven't moved to other rooms.  Time for some good food and some kitty cat pics.

We had some turkey meatballs, with orzo, homemade sauce, so low fat mascarpone and fresh basil from our herbs we have growing in pots.

Babygirl was sleeping under one of the rocking chairs on the front porch.  I snuck outside to get her picture and of course...

...she woke up and looked at me like "really? I'm trying to sleep here!" (we also warn her about cat tails and rocking chairs, ha). 

#catdistributionsystem

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

 It's been a weird weekend. 

It rained almost every day last week.

The ground is soaked.

The grass is tall.

We were looking forward to the big racing this weekend but then the shocking sudden death of one our favorite drivers has made it all so somber.

To top it all off, the weather in both race locations is not looking good for racing (Indy 500 & Coca Cola 600).

We did manage to get some good food in.

2nd Man made Pozole (a Mexican pork stew).  Lots of dried peppers to make the complex flavors.

The end result is so good.  Topped with sliced radishes, onions, shredded cabbage, avocado and cilantro.  And check out the margaritas!  I made those, it's a recipe we had always wanted to try using our Vitamix and whole fruit.  OMG, we are obsessed!

Here is Babygirl, while I was outside working on the Zen Machine, sitting next to the truck, as if to say "well, OK, when are we leaving and where are we going?"

#catdistributionsystem

As this posts, the Indy 500 is starting, weather holding so far...

Then this afternoon/evening it is the NASCAR Coco Cola 600 in Charlotte, we'll see how that goes.

But of course, all of this tempered by the death of NASCAR superstar Kyle Busch.  He had just won a race a few days before he died but had been battling a respiratory illness for a week or so prior.  Turns out he had pneumonia and it turned into sepsis and he just didn't make it.  So sad.  RIP Kyle.

Let us all, as it says above, remember and honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice on this special weekend and keep their families in our thoughts.

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

 Another week has flown by.  We were busy doing stuff after 5pm the last few nights and I didn't get a change to post.  Today we'll have the semi usual post, while I'm outside mowing and edging.  It's a NIGHTMARE because of the rains we've had but hey, we live here now and I can work outside as often as I need to, ha.

Weekend is easy with some roasted chicken and veggies.  We remove the skin before eating of course, but it looks "prettier" for the picture like this, ha.  Carrots, sweet potatoes and beets.

Babygirl loves hanging out on the porch.  She lets us pick her up briefly now, so baby steps. She follows me all over the yard, except when I get the mower and/or trimmer out.  Then she disappears until I'm done, ha.  Understandable.

#catdistributionsystem

OK, time to go outside and get some stuff done before rain comes (again) later this week.

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

 It's been a good weekend.  After Friday of course, when we had another insane rainfall amount (a little over 5").  NO mowing this weekend, which is a shame because it is definitely getting out of control.  

But at least we had some good food.

2nd Man roasted us mahi-mahi and then glazed some carrots in agave syrup.  SO good.

I made an arugula and mixed greens salad with shaved Parmesan, homemade vinaigrette and sunflower seeds.

Caught Babygirl "hiding" behind a weed, ha.  We will be honest though, she does blend in with the grasses and ground at times, ha.

Hope you all are having a good weekend!

GOOD FOOD AND KITTY CAT SUNDAY

Another week has flown by.  The other day, the Zen Machine was returned after its "spa time" and it will be mowing time.  The weather has turned unusually cool, and we'll take it!

This is one of our favorite, quick, go to meals.  We roasted some chicken and asparagus.  Yes, we do pull the skin off before we eat it, It's just prettier in a picture with it on there, ha.

We like asparagus so much, we are thinking of a special raised bed just for that (starting to make our garden plans for later this year) because it's a perennial.

Here is Babygirl enjoying the same cool weather. Still a little skittish at times but coming around.  When we go out and "talk" to her, she rolls around like this.  You think she is fitting in? Making herself comfortable? Ha.

#catdistributionsystem

GOOD FOOD A METEOR AND OUTSIDE KITTY WEEKEND

 Happy weekend!  Well we had a good weekend with a little overhead excitement thrown into the mix.

First up, we had some good food.  2nd Man made this dish using some whole wheat noodles with cubed pork, mushrooms onions and seasonings.  So good.

Jack, the one eyed kitty, eats at the end of the porch so he's not as nervous coming all the way up onto the porch.  He is SO feral, could be a factor of him only seeing out of one eye.  He is probably just having to be extra cautious.

Now for the excitement...

We were sitting here on Saturday afternoon and heard a huge boom.  "J" texted us and said "please tell me you heard that", we did but weren't sure what it was.  She said her windows rattled and plates in the cabinets made noise as well.  We didn't notice that (maybe the house being so new, everything is still tight).  We weren't sure if a plane had crashed or a pipeline had blown up.  Calls started pouring into local media and police.

A couple of hours later, NASA confirmed it was a large meteor, weighing about a ton, streaking through the sky at about 35,000 mph before breaking up just a few miles away.  Though not yet confirmed, it even appears one house North of Houston was struck by a piece that came through the roof, the attic, the ceiling, struck the floor, cracked the slab and bounced back up, hit a TV and went through the wall!  I guess that's what 35,000 mph does, ha. 

We would like to have seen the streak in the sky.

Or maybe not, ha.  

GOOD FOOD AND OUTDOOR CAT SUNDAY

It's been a productive weekend.  Saturday was errand running day, bought some things we needed.  Then Sunday, we got more stuff out of storage, including our dining room table from the old farmhouse so we can use it on the screened in porch.  I have to put the legs back on it and get it all cleaned up but it should be fun to start working on that space.  

In the meantime, time for some good food and a kitty picture!

2bd Man made some piccadillo, a dish using ground turkey and lots of veggies, sautéed/simmered in a tomato based sauce.  Served with some cilantro lime rice.  It was delicious!

We have a ring doorbell and it sends us alerts.  It uses AI to see what is in the image and then sends an alert.  How is this for a specific alert?  So what was there when we looked out the window?

A brown cat sitting in the chair!  HA!

This is babygirl just relaxing in a chair on the porch.  Side note, that's one of our trash to treasure finds from the apartment recycling area.  We knew we'd use it for something but didn't know it would be a spot for our farmhouse kitty!

#catdistributionsystem

GOOD FOOD AND OUTDOOR CAT SUNDAY (FIRST CONTACT)

 Yep, we're going to start a new post on Sundays, since we have several outside cats coming and going now, ha.

First up some good food.

I always love when 2nd Man makes a frittata.

We went to a Farmer's Market a week or so ago and got some peppers.  They are always so pretty chopped up, ha.  Like a sunset.

Mixed it with onions, mostly egg whites (to keep it healthier) with a couple of whole eggs, a few other herbs and seasonings and then some low fat cheddar that we love to use.  Put it all together...

...and out comes a wonderful, filling dish!  Breakfast, lunch OR dinner, it's always good!

But here's what you all really want to see:

Look!  I was able to not only get this close for a picture of baby girl (yeah, we need a better name, ha)...

...but we are able to TOUCH her!

It's brief, she's still a little skittish, but she's just the softest, sweetest little kitty.  She's starting to trust us and that's a good thing!

Stay tuned for further updates!

#firstcontact