May 4, 2020

Cat Antics and Ambitious Projects

Right now, I have to pee so badly! And I really want to go get some ice to chew on while I write this. 

The problem? Both of the kittens are sleeping on my shins (I'm sitting on my couch with my feet up) and I don't want to disturb them. If you have cats, then you totally know the feeling ;)


So yesterday's post was rushed--I was tired and it'd been a long day. I wanted to write about going to pick up the kittens--it was a new experience for us! As I mentioned, we adopted the kittens from a rescue. The rescue is called Friskie Felines of Michigan--and it's run by a woman named Vickie (and her husband) from her home.

I cannot even describe the respect I have for Vickie and her husband. They take in kittens that people find "abandoned" (I put that in quotes because Vickie said that a lot of times, the mama cat leaves her litter to get food or something and comes back to find that her babies are gone). Or, in other cases, kittens are found in bad situations and need to be rescued.

Vickie takes them into her home and cares for them around the clock until they are old enough to be adopted. Do you have any idea how much work that is? I didn't either!

Yesterday, when we went to pick up our kittens, I got to hold a teeny tiny kitten--SEVEN DAYS OLD! Its eyes weren't even open yet. Vickie said that someone gave the kitten to her when they were raking their landscaping and found it (I don't remember if it's a boy or girl). 

The kitten has to eat every three hours, and luckily, Vickie also has a mama cat from another litter thats she'd rescued... Vickie puts the mama cat in a crate with the lone kitten and that mama can nurse the kitten. If she didn't have a mama kitten to be a surrogate, then Vickie would have to do the work herself by bottle feeding. Every THREE HOURS.


I've never really understood how non-profit animal rescues work, but seeing Vickie at Friskie Felines has given me a whole new respect for the people that do this work every day. I'll describe our night with the kittens last night, but I will first say... yikes! Having kittens is just as hard (if not harder) that having a new baby. They are just as demanding. (And still so cute that you don't mind, haha. Like now, for instance--I want to get up but I just can't possibly disturb the kitties!)






Anyways, normally I don't promote particular charities, but after seeing the work that Vickie and her husband do from their home (I can't even tell you how many cats they take care of there!) I wanted to post a link to donate to Friskie Felines if you are feeling generous. I assure you that the money is going toward true cat lovers that put their entire lives at the feet of these cats! (Here is their Facebook page, and you can donate there if you would like to) Whenever I donate to a cause, I always like to know where my money is going--and I was happy to donate to Friskie Felines! (And of course, if you are local and looking to adopt a cat, definitely look at the cats/kittens they have available!)

Okay, so yesterday, Jerry, Eli, and I went to go pick up the kittens from Vickie's home (they don't have a shelter--they literally take care of all these cats and kittens in their house!). When we got there, Eli said he'd never actually seen a kitten in-person before. My heart broke when I heard that! Once I thought about it, I guess I wasn't surprised, but I felt bad that it was his first time seeing kittens.

And he got to see a nice spectrum--from the seven-day old kitten to babies who were about 4-5 weeks to ours who are about 8-9 weeks old. When we left, he kept talking about how cute they all were. (Noah was being a typical 15-year old and was still sleeping when we left at 10:15 AM--so he didn't go with us.)


Holding the one-week old kitten was a new experience for me, and I almost couldn't stand how adorable all the kittens were! There were some gray tabbies that nearly stopped my heart from beating.

After bringing home our two solid black kittens, I have to say, I am totally in love with them. They have the cutest personalities! And it's so funny how different they both are, even though they look identical (except that one has long hair and one has short hair).

And no, we STILL haven't named them *eye roll*. I need to make a vet appointment for them this week, so I have to come up with names, but we just can't decide. So far, Chick and Duck seem to be at the top of the list ;) I love the idea of naming them Chick and Duck (perfect for our Friends theme) but actually calling them that feels odd.

They slept really good last night! I put them in my bedroom (with a litter box in our bathroom) so they wouldn't have full access to the house--just the smaller space of my bedroom and bathroom. Jerry had his alarm set for 4:30 AM, and when he got up, the kittens decided that they were ready to play. I got up at the same time, and just watching them was very entertaining! 






Once Jerry left, they finally settled down at about 6:00. Then I went out to the garage at around 8:00 to finish the drywall. I got all four walls done! Next step is the ceiling, which I'm completely dreading. I'm going to rent a drywall lift, though, so hopefully that will make it easier. Then comes the taping and mudding--which you know I love (that is sarcasm, by the way). It felt good to get the walls done, though. Now I can have a little of my garage back (the sheets of drywall were lying on a pallet in the middle of the garage, taking up so much space).

Next, I worked on another batch of face masks that I'm making. I got some fabric from my mom, and a request for masks from my brother's girlfriend, Alex. I really like her, so I decided to make the masks she wanted; and then I figured since I was making those, I might as well make the biggest batch I can. I haven't counted them, but there are probably about 50 more?

Right now, all I have left to do is attach the elastic for the ears. I should get them done tomorrow.

I'm pretty worried because I sent off a huge batch (50+) of envelopes containing masks on Monday, and NOBODY has received theirs yet! I spent SO much time working on those, and I can't even tell you how frustrated and upset I'll be if nobody receives them. I'm going to go to the post office tomorrow and talk to them to see what may have happened. 

For this next batch, I plan to do a drawing--I'll select people at random rather than "first come first serve". Again, the fabric was limited, so there isn't a lot to choose from. Since I'm giving them away for a donation, I love the phrase "beggars can't be choosers" ;)  Jerry uses that phrase a lot, and it helps me feel better when I make things for people without charging them. If they were paying a lot of money for them, then I would feel a need to make it perfect. I don't want to put that much pressure on myself! So I'll give them away for a donation again 

FIRST, though, I want to talk to the post office and find out what the heck happened to the first batch. How can 50+ envelopes get lost in the mail?!

Anyways, if you're waiting for a mask, I apologize--not a single person has received theirs yet!--and I will let you know what I find out. 

And if you still need a mask, I am working on them now... hopefully I'll be able to send them out by the end of the week!

11 comments:

  1. We are seeing mailings for work take up to 10 business days due to the current environment, even though the USPS official notice only says 4 days delivery time on their website. I bet people will start seeing them soon!

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  2. I've heard that the Detroit USPS hub is super backed up because of the stuff going on with Coronavirus. I have a friend who lives in Toledo tracked a package of hers that sat "idle" for 10 days in Detroit! So don't worry too much, I'm sure they're just very overwhelmed.

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  3. Apparently many postal workers are sick with Covid, so mail is running slower these days. Hopefully everything will get there.

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  4. I wouldn't stress too much about the mail yet! USPS is super behind right now with everything going on. I had a girl mail me something from the same state (maybe lives 3 hours away from me) and I didn't get it until over a week later! I hope everyone gets their masks soon, that was so generous of you!

    I also had to play catch up here on all your posts! These kittens are ADORABLE and I'm so happy that they found a loving home like yours!! I can't wait to hear about more of their adventures and hear their names!! I love the names Chick and Duck too but I also think Fun Bobby and Chip Matthews might be fun too! ;)

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  5. We will let you know the minute our mask arrives! Thank you SO much for your kindness and creativity!

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  6. Katie - Is there any way you can stop the Uncle Ben advertisement from continually popping up on your page. It is so frustrating. To read one of your posts, this advertisement pops up at least 3 times, if not more. Thanks!

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    1. Hi Cheryl! Thanks for letting me know. Another person has said the same thing. I haven't seen the ad, but I did tell Adthrive about it (they handle my ads for me) and they are looking into it right now to block it. If you happen to see it again, would you mind taking a screenshot and emailing it to me? They said that will help them track it down. I have been very specific with Adthrive that I don't want pop-up ads on my blog, because I HATE THEM when I'm on other sites. Hopefully it'll be resolved soon!

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  7. Kittens are so fuzzy and adorable! And when they sleep in cute poses it makes me melt. Your two new kitties are so cute.

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  8. I'm not sure who you are but I ran across your column today n have to say ty for the positivity in it. I to love love cats/kittens. I have 1 of each a dog n cat n luv them... Plz tell me where to find your 'vlogs' in the future. Ty.

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  9. I LOVE the idea of Chick and Duck!

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