Monday, July 7, 2008

Freebies....

While we were at Mr. Gabby's picking up Braveheart, this small gray speck crossed Jeremy's path. Jeremy is my tender-hearted warrior. I heard "Mom! Look!" and turned around...he was holding the smallest kitten I had ever seen. Mr. Gabby remarked that she was the runt of the litter....one half the size of her litter mates. She would have fit into a tea cup! Mr. Gabby encouraged Jeremy to put her in his pocket and take her home. His words to Jeremy, "she'll just die if she stays here", were all it took to melt his heart. One look from Jeremy's big brown eyes, asking the unasked question, melted my heart. How could I say no?



I didn't think she would live...she looked like a small skeleton with gray fur. He named her Meeci...the pan of milk next to her holds one cup! But, she is putting on a little weight and I think she will survive.

When we got back to the car and Jeremy showed his brothers his treasure...the other two boys jumped out of the truck and went in search of Mr. Gabby....tradition in our home in regards to kittens is one for each. (I may be re-thinking that one). Mr. Gabby was willing to part with one more. He does have a huge dairy farm after all and needs those barn cats!

Josiah let Elijah pick....(another tender-hearted warrior...willing to do without to give to his little brother!). A beautiful orange tabby found his way into Elijah's arms...meet Teddy Roosevelt!



Teddy is...hhmmmm...shall we say....feisty! He regularly beats up his sister....we keep a squirt bottle on hand to keep him in line. His temper matches Elijah's (however I have found that the squirt bottle has no effect on Elijah ;) ). They make quite a pair.

Here you can see the size difference. Meeci weighed 10 ounces when we brought her home. Teddy was more than twice that! Mr. Gabby was right...she probably wouldn't have lived much longer.



And in a rare moment of peace and quiet (now if I could just get the kittens to sleep at the same time the boys sleep!).


And now we are on the hunt for a kitten for Josiah. Called the humane shelter...can you believe $80 to adopt a kitten? And they chip them for you too! (Do they read the reports about how chipping animals is causing tumors/cancer?). Josiah wants a Calico kitten - we've never had one.

So here I am...a Mama who is allergic to cats...with kittens living in our home until they are big enough to go out. They are in a HUGE cage which helps...but oh my...my itching eyes and nose. Stinging Nettle tea is my only relief right now. However, I have to admit, we are all enjoying a lot of laughs during play time :)

16 comments:

  1. sooo cute! I love your kittens. :)

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  2. So cute!
    We're on the hunt for some barn cats ourselves. Around Charlottesville you can adopt a "barn cat" for free - apparently feral cats that they've spayed/neutered. Alas, Mark's not interested in driving 2 hours and 1 $50 tank of gas to go get a "free" cat.

    :)

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  3. We have a litter of sweet kitties right now. They bring the children such joy ... and I'm kinda partial to them as well.

    Smiles,
    Lea

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  4. The kittens are adorable! Meeci is so tiny!

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  5. Oh, if only I lived closer to you! I have...uh...several kittens. LOL I have them in all colors, white/gray (a couple with a touch of black), black/orange/white, orange/white, one white with orange and black specks. I wonder if you can mail cats......... I'll have to post a picture of our funniest on my blog, a kitten we call Adolph Hissler. This little cat has a black streak that makes it look just like....well, you'd just have to see it. LOL Thankfully, its personality is NOTHING like Hitler's. It's one of the most lovable cats I've ever had.

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  6. I posted a picture:
    http://tobequiet.blogspot.com/2008/07/funniest-cat-i-ever-saw.html

    Enjoy your kittens! I love kittens and cats.....most of the time. :-)

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  7. Too Cute!! What a way to bring laughter into a home...especially w/kittens! What joy... not the allergy part, though. ;o)

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  8. Cheri,

    That's two super-charming posts this week. You take great photographs. I'm getting to experience love for animals through your blog (we can't have pets where we live, much less farm animals).

    ~ Diane

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  9. Awwww, they are so cute! I love kittens and cats. When you said you were allergic I thought I bet she is drinking a lot of nettle tea. A few sentences later you confirmed it! What a sweet mama.

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  10. Awww..
    I would love to have a kittie too, but my daughter-in-law and my brother-in-law are allergic. And I want them to come visit.

    However a stray dog showed up at DOD and Mom's today. I pitched a plea to Patrick, so far he is not going for it, but I would love to have a dog!

    Those kitties are so sweet. How did you arrive at the name Meeci?

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  11. Say, you bring your boys over here and you can have 13 kittens! They are sweethearts! Got them all ready for you!

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  12. They are so cute. I myself am allergic to cats but if my daughter ever wanted one I wouldn't be able to say no.

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  13. Cheri,
    I think because she looked so much like a tiny mouse! I vote with you for a puppy!

    Lynn,
    Wish you were closer :)

    Andi,
    That is the funniest kitten ever!

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  14. I have always said, that it's part of God's design in nature, to make kittens and puppies SO DARN CUTE, so that their owners can easily find homes for them...even when the litter is prolific! Looks like your family is doing its "fair share" in ensuring a smaller number of stray kittens on the Tennessee highways & biways. :) May they bring you all many hours of happiness - and do a bang-up job of "varmit hunting"! :)

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