Life with Stevie

Stevie at a Civil War Re-inactment

Some of you may or may not know that my "mentally handicapped" uncle lives with us. He came to live with us after my grandmother passed away. It was a natural move because Stevie and I have a relationship  more like a brother and sister than uncle & niece. We are also only 9 years apart.

To say he is "mentally handicapped" is unfair. In my mind there are just some things he can not do. Big deal.  In some ways he is very smart. Just ask him about the "Beatles".

Today I walked into his living room and found him watching Cspan. The British House of Commons was on. He was talking to one of our cats and said, "I love watching this show. They are so funny when they fight". See, he is smart. 

The New Year

Well, here it is. A New Year.  Did you make any resolutions? I have made resolutions in the past and have always felt pretty good about it. One year my resolution was to try different foods. Maybe even exotic. That year I ate goat, conch, squid and some things I couldn't even pronounce. It was a lot of fun and I found I even liked goat. Most resolutions require we improve ourselves somehow. Diet or exercise perhaps. Diet & exercise resolutions don't always work out for me.

This year I am approaching my resolutions a little different. I am going to make a new resolution at the beginning of each month. (Is that a resolution?)  It takes the pressure off having to do something for a entire year. If I can't keep a resolution for a month, I can start over or just try a new one. I like this casual approach to New Year resolutions. I'll let you know how it goes.

Where's the snow?

It is a cold and dreary day out today. The sun has not shown itself all day. We are 12 days away from Christmas and still no snow.  I haven't lived here long enough to know if this has ever happened before. The no snow part. The dreary seems to be a common occurrence during the winter. I must confess, I wish there was snow. Lots of it. 

We have strawberries!

We have been waiting to eat fresh strawberries all spring. Last year the bunnies got to them before us. We got smart and planted some in our rabbit proof garden. Well, we didn't take in to account the chipmunks. 

Just yesterday as I was looking out my kitchen window I watched a chipmunk jump on the rabbit fence and make his way into the garden. I don't really mind. Chipmunks are so darn cute!  

The dogs even got in on the action. I dropped a strawberry on the way into the house.

Monday Kitten Update

The kittens are changing daily. They have moved from their cardboard box to a crate.  No need to worry, the crate has all the comforts of home. 


One of the milestones they made last week was learning to use the litter box. By nature cats are very clean so using a litter box comes natural to them. All three had it figured out in a day. 


They are more playful and have become more aware of the world around them. After eating they  play, bathe themselves and then nap.

We have started to wean them off of the bottle and move them toward solid food. This move is a gradual one and starts by making a "mush" (kitten formula mixed with kitten food).  We started feeding them this with the bottle and will move to placing it in a bowl. This process can get a little messy as they figure out how it works. 

Sharing the love

We had vistors last week. Looks like the love went both ways.

It doesn't get any better than this.

Test Drive

I was setting up a new crate or "cat playground" for the kittens and had a little help. Seems my cats are in charge of quality control.

Tess & Scamp give a "thumbs up".

Henry approves.

I am happy to report everything checked out fine. 

Lazy like a Sunday Morning

Each morning after feeding the kittens, I grab a hot cup of coffee, climb back into bed with the kittens and slowly move into my day. That's when this happens:

Not a bad way to start your day, huh?

We Have Names!

We received many great suggestions. Thank you! You are all very creative. 

Here is what we decided to name them:

Meet Loki. 

Loki was the Norse god of mischief.

Meet Teddy.

Teddy is named after a friends kitty. He looks like a teddy bear too.

Last but not least........

Meet Baxter.

He just looked like a Baxter.

Thanks for all of your help naming these little dumplings!

A Day In The Life of Kittens

Yes, more kitten photos.  This may go on for a while. I hope you enjoy watching them grow. If you don't then there is something wrong with you. Seriously, how could you not love kittens.

They continue to grow and develop. They have started to play with each other and are becoming a little more steady on their feet. The best part? When they make eye contact with you.

They play.

Eat and Sleep.

Life is good.