Monday, March 20, 2006
Mr. Man had his second respiratory vaccine check up this morning...
...and because a couple of the vet people commented on how sweet natured he is, even for a kitten, it reminded me of an almost unbearably sweetthing that happened maybe a week and a half ago between Mom and Mr. Man. Although Mr. Man is very active, as kittens his age are, and full of Mexican Jumping Beans as well, when he is being handled by The Mom he is in his element and loves, loves, loves the Mom. It is true that, by the time he reaches the stage where he understands that he needs to watch his claws and teeth around her she will probably be criss-crossed with scratches on her arms and legs, he is normally very settled around her (unless she decides to provoke him to play, which I try, usually unsuccessfully, to discourage) and likes nothing better than to sit in The Mom's lap and be cuddled and petted. One morning recently, while Mom was in the bathroom on the toilet, naked, awaiting bathing, Mr. Man invited himself into the bathroom and jumped up on her lap for some cuddle time. When I entered he was settled on her thighs, purring loud enough for me to hear, and Mom was tending to him with a huge, soft grin. I couldn't bear to break into their reverie so I settled on the floor and waited, for almost a half hour, until Mr. Man was ready to hunt down and bedevil The Little Girl, again. It was the sweetest thing I've witnessed in a long time. Although I was nominally sure when I decided to bring Mr. Man home that it would be a good thing for Mom, this convinced me that he is better than good for her.
A couple of days ago, while he was on her lap in the evening (I try to see to it that there is always a towel between Mom and Mr. Man but even this doesn't completely prevent scratches, especially on her arms), Mom said, only half joking, that when "she" (I think she will never be broken from referring to him as "she") passes the kitten stage, we'll just have to get another kitten. Of course, we won't; two cats is quite enough for this household. But, I think, Mr. Man is sweet natured enough (significantly more sweet natured that The Little Girl, even though The Little Girl is significantly more sweet natured than The Big Girl, who was not sweet, at all, except to me, and would tell anyone who cared to ask to their face that she was not a sweet cat) that "s/he" and Mom will be buds for life. I'm sure, now, especially from what the vet said, that he is going to be a much bigger cat than The Little Girl, who is small, anyway, but I think both his technique and Mom's lap will adjust and she will "end up" with the lap cat she's wanted for a long time. He, I am sure, will be devoted to her and she to him/her.
Even though Mom's light went out about 0100 this morning, I'm going to try getting her up at noon, today. Although we still appear, from the window, to be "snowed in", it's warming up, the snow is rapidly melting, the sun is in it's element, the house is warm and bright and I'm thinking that shaving an hour off her normal sleep cycle won't be hard, today.
Later this week, when downtown hits the 70's and it's in the 60's here, I'm planning on scattering a bag of wild flower seeds all over our yard, front and back. I'm hoping this will help control our usual weed growth, as well as turn our yard into a fantasy of color within a month or so that will last through the spring, summer and fall. This should encourage Mom to get out and examine what I hope will be our beflowered yard as the weather warms.
I called her clinic in Mesa this morning. As it turns out, their lab guy will be there at the time Mom is there on April 4th, so I don't need to push her appointment earlier in the day, which is good. Getting her up at 0600 is hard, but not nearly as hard as getting her up at 0500 or earlier.
A couple of days ago, while he was on her lap in the evening (I try to see to it that there is always a towel between Mom and Mr. Man but even this doesn't completely prevent scratches, especially on her arms), Mom said, only half joking, that when "she" (I think she will never be broken from referring to him as "she") passes the kitten stage, we'll just have to get another kitten. Of course, we won't; two cats is quite enough for this household. But, I think, Mr. Man is sweet natured enough (significantly more sweet natured that The Little Girl, even though The Little Girl is significantly more sweet natured than The Big Girl, who was not sweet, at all, except to me, and would tell anyone who cared to ask to their face that she was not a sweet cat) that "s/he" and Mom will be buds for life. I'm sure, now, especially from what the vet said, that he is going to be a much bigger cat than The Little Girl, who is small, anyway, but I think both his technique and Mom's lap will adjust and she will "end up" with the lap cat she's wanted for a long time. He, I am sure, will be devoted to her and she to him/her.
Even though Mom's light went out about 0100 this morning, I'm going to try getting her up at noon, today. Although we still appear, from the window, to be "snowed in", it's warming up, the snow is rapidly melting, the sun is in it's element, the house is warm and bright and I'm thinking that shaving an hour off her normal sleep cycle won't be hard, today.
Later this week, when downtown hits the 70's and it's in the 60's here, I'm planning on scattering a bag of wild flower seeds all over our yard, front and back. I'm hoping this will help control our usual weed growth, as well as turn our yard into a fantasy of color within a month or so that will last through the spring, summer and fall. This should encourage Mom to get out and examine what I hope will be our beflowered yard as the weather warms.
I called her clinic in Mesa this morning. As it turns out, their lab guy will be there at the time Mom is there on April 4th, so I don't need to push her appointment earlier in the day, which is good. Getting her up at 0600 is hard, but not nearly as hard as getting her up at 0500 or earlier.
