Sunday 13th January
Yippee, I had ten hours sleep last night, as I was brave enough to leave this room, and let Richard sleep in here. I went back to my bed, and was only disturbed occasionally by Scarlett and G. Rich told me that they kittens were awake at 6 this morning, but he ignored them and went back to sleep!!

When I woke up, I could hear them awake in here, so asked Rich to get me a cup of tea, and waded into the kitten box. Silly thing to do, with bare legs and bare arms.

I was mobbed, and found myself crouched precariously in the box, with 4 kittens on my knees, but they all went quiet them, looking at me with adoring eyes :) I went downstairs to get them something to eat, leaving Rich up here with them.

When I came back, I found him laughing as 4 kittens were running at speed across the bed. I told Rich to make sure they did not leap off the bed, and started to offer them breakfast, one at a time.

They were not that interested in food this morning, and I think they had worn themselves out, as they slowly made their way back into the kitten box.

They are asleep now, but that was not before Frankie had leaped off the bed and make a bid for freedom underneath it !!! He met some of his new family last night, one 4 year old little boy, who is really looking forward to having him come to stay. He is only going a few miles away from us, so that is really nice :)

Lily is restless this morning, she has 'fed' them and settled them down, but she's not sleepy herself. She will be after their next lively session, which wont be too long away now. Usually one more run about and then they sleep for most of the afternoon, which is when I get most things done around here.

Saturday 12th January
One sentence springs to mind as I sit here at this machine.............sleep, lack of sleep.........total lack of sleep, and it makes you feel obsessed with wanting to crawl back into bed!

The kittens have learnt how to 'party' at 11 at night................and at 4 in the morning, ....and at 6 in the morning..........and at 8 in the morning, when I wanted a little lay in today........

Lily decides, when they wake, that she wants ME awake.........so she sits by my pillow and tells me to open my eyes! She then asks to leave the room.........for 5 minutes., so I have to get out of bed, and wait for her to come back in!

As soon as I have the time now, I have to move them out of this room, they will be 5 weeks on Tuesday, so they are old enough now. Then I will start to get some sleep again. I am going to try to do this either today or tomorrow, it depends on how the time goes.

On another subject....Frankie..........now that boy can eat, and is growing, growing and growing. The girls are still proving a challenge, but patience 'will out' in the end, and I am making sure that they do actually get some food a few times a day.

A couple of girls have been seen using the litter tray, but dear Frankie, has not quite got the idea yet.........another reason why I have to move to the bathroom to effect good litter tray habits, before they get into bad ones!

You will see in today's photos, Rich sitting in with the babies, as they climb all over the quilt and him. Those were taken while he was supposed to be home from school on 'home study' leave .........well, he was studying the kittens and the television ............and my duvet............

Friday 11th January
I have to say, that these little babies are becoming really quiet cute and cuddly. When they are awake, they do like having someone sitting in with them, and they love to climb all over you, as you will see from the photos with Tim and the kittens. Tim is always covered in towels, not because he has come out of the shower, but because he says that it protects him from being scratched, and he claims that they like the towels to climb up!

He has taken a real shine to Frankie. But Frankie does tend to make himself known!!!
Frankie eats anything........he has eaten milky mix, biscuits, chopped chicken, whiskers kitten food, he just tucks in!

The other 3 girls, They'll get there ...........

A couple of the girls have been seen going into the litter tray to wee. I always think it sounds sad, when you write how excited this makes you feel! But it is a really good sight!!! And they get a big cuddle and kiss on the tummy afterwards!

At this age, their tummies are just sooo cute, and it is hard not to keep nuzzling them, lovely soft, warm cuddly tummies.

I am tired today, very tired.

Lily stole some kitten food, that had the kitten milk in it, Lily woke me twice in the night to go to the toilet .............sigh...........she is NOT stealing any of this food today!!! I am tired. I want some sleep tonight!

I bought a small scratching post yesterday, but I am waiting until they move out of this little area, before I let them have it. If I put it in the area they are living in, they will escape...........some of them are not far off that now, so the bathroom is only days if not hours away.......

Thursday 10th January
Another week drawing to a close soon. And I have managed to get out of bed in time, so far, to get the children off to school! It was touch and go again this morning, I really must set an alarm tone that is irritating enough for me to leap out of bed!

I have reached the stage now, where I really think I am going to have to move them into the bathroom area. They are so mobile, and despite my best attempts, the little monkeys keep escaping...................and this room has too many dangers at the moment.
I didn't want to move them into the bathroom this time, because it is much easier to get the children to sit with them if the tv is on in here, somehow, the bathroom does not have the same appeal!

But Lil is not helping with the litter training this time!

She insists on leaving the room to toilet. Because I have 2 other trays in the house with the Cat Attract cat litter in, she no longer feels drawn to use the one in here, sigh.
So we had a few laughs last night. Little Frankie obviously needed to pass a solid motion. Now when a baby does this for the first time, it gets a little upset, and runs around squealing. I recognise the sound, and told Rich to keep and eye on him, and make sure he goes in the litter tray. Bless him. He made such a performance out of it ( frankie that is), and Rich in the end, had to help him out with the last bits, otherwise he would have run around the area with it still attached! I was impressed that Rich actually did this, although he was unimpressed at being asked!

I have found a couple of other little 'remains' in their bed area, so I have put these in the litter tray. I want them to learn that this is where the toilet area is. I have also scooped up some of Lil's 'wee', and put it in the tray. Normally I would remove anything as soon as it has been deposited, but I have to leave a little 'something' there, so that they can get used to the smell of the area. This should only have to be for a very short time.

As for eating, Frankie has turned into 'Hoover Boy' ( sorry Danielle and Lewis) but honestly, he tries anything and really tucks in, making him now, the largest of the litter. Tim has fallen completely in love with him.

Shiny, will eat selected things, mainly a milky type of mix.

The other 2 girls, still think I am trying to poison them, I am sure!!! We'll get there eventually. Their weights are fine, so I am not worrying.

So this afternoon, I am off to Argos, to buy a small scratching post, and anything else that I think will help with the move to the bathroom. But it really is the very best place to litter train them, and should only be for a very few days.

As for the older ones in the house. Well, they MOB me when I am making the kitten food up ..................it becomes quite farcical at times!! Especially Gollum and Carrie!

Oh well, off to go and feed myself now!

Wednesday 9th January
Well, a few things to talk about today, but I think I will start by the fact that I am SLEEPY. I was all ready for bed at midnight, having given the kittens plenty of time to crawl all over my poor legs, leaving them nicely scratched! As I got into bed, they decided, that actually, they did NOT want to go to sleep after all ........and all came running out of their sleeping area, full of life and making lots of noise. Lil stood amongst them, grumbling. She wanted to go to bed, she wanted THEM to go to bed, I wanted them to go to sleep!
I made sure that all the lights were off in the room, making it nice and dark. I have conditioned the other cats in the house, that when the lights start to go low, it means it is time to be quiet as everyone needs to sleep.

Well, it took them about ten minutes to get the message. I used the light from my mobile phone, to keep guiding them back towards the sleeping area and their mum, who was now laying down waiting for them.

At last I got to sleep.

Only to keep sleeping through the snooze on my phone alarm. It was only a text message that finally 'brought me to life', and I reluctantly crawled out of bed!

The photos for today, were taken yesterday. I couldn't resist taking one of the other 5 Siamese in the family. Somehow they were ALL squeezed on the small chair in the kitchen, in front of the heater. How they all got on there, bemused me, but they were all fast asleep.

The other photos show the babies having a happy time with Timothy, in their kitten box. They are very sociable little things in the evening, especially when the boys get back from school. The boys coming in, is cue all felines, old and young, to wake up!

Tim really loved having them crawling all over him, although he put a towel over his legs, because he said their little claws hurt his legs.

Frankie was spotted eating some kitten biscuits! And 3 of them managed to have some 'supper', before bed. I have also managed to get a few to eat some 'breakfast' before they crawled back to sleep with mum.

I can hear the odd squeal now, I think maybe they are fighting over the milk in the box, or Lil is washing them, as there is no sign of them running around in the outer area.

I am hoping to grab some breakfast now. I have fed all the other cats, sorted the litter trays, hoovered downstairs, fed the babies,taken the boys to school, emptied the dishwasher etc, my tummy is rumbling, and I need to eat!!!

I have a meeting at 2pm today, so I don't have quite as long as normal to get organised and grab a little cat nap.

Please babies, don't wake up, the second I lay my head on the pillow!!!

Tuesday 8th January
Well, I did actually get out of bed in time, to get the children to school, but I think it is fair to say, that it was touch and go! These snooze buttons on mobile phones are dangerous, as you can almost hit them in your sleep. Something in my mind made me actually look at the time, and I realised it was 07:15.........the kittens were quiet, Lily was quiet, everyone else was quiet, but I crept out of bed.

I quietly woke the children, telling them to be very quiet, as I did not want the kittens woken till I came back from school, if possible.

We all managed this.

When I got back and came into here, they all squealed and came out to see me.

I am not doing very well at all though, with getting them to eat anything else. I think they are still thinking that I am trying to poison them!!! It is always a great relief when I stumble across something that they actually LIKE, as they cannot feed from their mother for ever!

I have made a new arrangement of their living quarters, which has enabled me to put a litter tray in it. I am not sure that it is working though, as Lil is insisting on using the trays outside the bedroom, so she is not showing them how to do it!

If there is no progress by this time next week, then they will need to move along to the bathroom, as I have done with the past few litters. They are still a bit young at the moment, and mum is still cleaning them up very effectively!

They like the Cat Attract Cat litter though!! I have only put a small sprinkling in the tray, enough to get them used to the feel of it. As soon as I see any little toileting 'accidents', I put them in the tray, so that they get used to the idea that this is where they should all 'gather'.

The photos that I have taken, tried to show you their new housing arrangement, but I am not sure that I managed to 'do it justice'. It looks a bit chaotic in the pictures!

All I have done, is to add a large 'dog crate' onto the extension box, and made the sides of the kitten box higher. They have more space to run around, Lily is happy as she can see that they are safe, and there is a place for the litter tray. I have also put a teddy and cardboard boxes so they have places to play when they are awake. And then when they are tired, they can scamper back to the warmth of the kitten box.
They are all quiet now, snuggled up with their mum!

Monday 7th January
Well, a rushed start to this morning, as it is back to school.
Quite simply, I did NOT wake up!

My alarm had been going off since 06:15, and I kept hitting the snooze button, in my semi sleep.

Fortunately the children's dad is here, and he came in at 07:50 and told me that if my children were going to get to school someone really ought to wake up!

Well, that was a mad rush, but they are at school now. I shall miss them today.
Lily got up in the ensuing rush.............

I came back to the bedroom after letting the children go, only to find that the little monkey had moved all her babies out of the box, and they were running all around the room.

Now, I don't mind them stretching their legs, and they seemed to be having great fun exploring this place. BUT they are not allowed this freedom until I have them litter trained. Otherwise I will find little places around the room, that THEY have chosen to use as a toilet!

Later today I will make some modifications, to help them start the process of toileting where I want them to.

I know how important it is that they learn from an early point, to toilet properly, it makes a difference when they go to their new homes.

You will see from the photographs that Richard has been spending time with them in the box. He seems quite smitten with them at the moment. They will miss him today!
I am going to sign off now, and maybe grab a few minutes extra sleep, as I have a late night tonight, as Scouts starts again. I will leave Rich in with the kittens and cats while Tim and I are out. He'll enjoy that.

Sunday 6th January
I am sat in the kitten box writing this, and I have a little kitten, crawling over my knees, and nibbling at me. It is easier to sit in here, and get uncomfortable as they don't squeal if someone is in here with them. They have got used to someone being with them when they are awake.

The hoover is going on downstairs as the Christmas Tree has just been taken out and there are a large number of 'needles' all over the floor. The television is off so that they can hear the sound.

I have just weighed them, the first time for a few days. Frankie, weighed 410g, he is so very nearly the heaviest now. And I have to say, that I am suspecting that he may indeed not be Lilac, but actually be the same colour as his mum, as I am sure there are stripes developing on his tail, and in he daylight, he has that lovely pale colour.

Sadly for me, none of the girls seem to be tabby. I say sadly, as I had hoped one would, so that she could take over the 'mantle' from her mummy.

I may therefore consider finding a home for the fourth one. At the moment, only 3 have a home, as the plan was to keep back a tabby girl. Sometimes fate knows best, and maybe I am meant to have a rest!!?

The largest girl, who at the moment I am calling Suki, ( this is a name her new family have given her) weighs 412g, which is only JUST above Frankie. Previously she was a long way ahead. She is the most reluctant of the bunch to take any extra food from either plate or spoon.

The next smaller baby is 378g, and young Shiny has caught up almost, at 360g.

As they are more active at this stage, I do find that their weight gains are not at quite the same rate as when they were newborns. It wont be long before they are running around and wreaking havoc. They will be 4 weeks on Tuesday. and I must sort out that litter tray for them. I am not totally convinced they are ready for it at the moment, which is why I am stalling on getting it out. When I clean the bedding later on today, I will have a better idea.
And the man is coming to look at the washing machine tomorrow, yippee, that will make life easier for me!

They have all gone to sleep now. I gave them an eye wash, and a good check over this morning, so one of the photos shows them after they have scuttled back into the box to the shelter of mum. No one likes eye washes, lets be honest!!

Oh yes, AND last night, I slept next door in MY bed. Rich came back in here and slept in HIS bed. So I feel a slight sense of 'normality' returning to this house :)

Well, as normal as we can be!!

Saturday 5th January
I am late writing this today, as last night I went out, so it is a late start to everything !
While I was out, the boys kept an eye on the cats, and I get the feeling that Tim did most of it!

But both boys are really enjoying the babies now that they are at this stage. They are becoming quite sociable, and like to crawl all over the boys.

I took some amusing photos last night ( they will probably be the only ones, as at the moment they are fast asleep.........) Tim was playing chess while sitting in the kitten box. He said he wanted to 'play chess with them', and to see how long the pieces stayed on the board. The kitties seemed to enjoy that, and it made Tim giggle.

I am getting into more of a routine giving them some extra food now, and they are becoming more used to it. Although their main food is still the milk that they are taking from Lily.

Their most lively time of the day is from about 7pm at night, when they are awake, doze briefly, and then wake again. We are not into the afternoon, which is usually 'long nap time'.

Little Shiny is no longer little Shiny, and she has pretty much caught up with the others. In fact, when they are running around, it is not so easy to tell the 3 girls apart. The largest girl, is the quietest of the 3. She seems to like to sit on Richard's lap. Rich said that he thinks she will become a good 'lap cat'.

Lily is being a good girl, and has not managed to steal any more milk!

Although it makes me laugh when I am making it up. Gollum, Carrie and Scarlett seem to appear from nowhere when I start the process, and look at me longingly!! But I dare not give them any either. Gollum will follow me up the stairs, I'm surprised I have not fallen over him yet!!!

Friday 4th January
Another short entry I am afraid today. I am tired this morning. Having these babies, is very lovely, in the sense that they are gorgeous little things. They are at the stage where the children like to sit in with them now and cuddle them. Rich was squealing earlier as they were clawing at his toes!

I found a little 'solid motion' in the box this morning, so one of them has obviously started to need the litter tray. So I must organise getting one small one in the box. I am going to put a layer of 'pampers mattress liner' in the tray, and a small sprinkling of Cat Attract. It is always a relief to me when they are all using the tray.

I have also started to put some milky mix onto a plate for them. I have done this twice now. Little Shiny was great, she got the hang of it straight away. The largest girl, was horrified! Frankie took some last night, but was not interested this morning. The middle girl, is not sure, but will have a little lick. We'll get there, it just takes time and patience.

Lily on the other hand. Well, she loves this mix. She loves to clean it off their little paws, she likes to steal it if I am not looking, so I have to be vigilant. Why don't I let her have any? Because it upsets her tummy, and I pay the price in the litter tray later on. As I did last night. I turned my head for a second, and she was in the plate, gulping it up, sigh. Last night, as it started to take effect, she was in and out of the litter tray. Waking me every time, by sniffing my nose to tell me she was about to go again. Which meant I had to get up and clean out the tray every time. So I am tired this morning.

The babies are suckling again with their mum. apart from one, which is squealing and heading for Richard, who has just got back in the box!

In fact now they are all awake and squealing, so Rich is on kitten sitting duty while I write this. It is hard work this time of day.

I have just taken a photo of Shiny with Richard and one where Lil and the others were still inside the box.

Thursday 3rd January
I think this morning I will let the photos 'do most of the talking'. You can see from them that the babies are really getting much more active. They are at the age where they get more mobile as each day goes by, and more adventurous. Frankie is trying to escape from the box already. I have piled a few blankets in the box, so that they can practice climbing on them. And when they are awake, I do try to get someone ( although mostly me) to sit with them. They are becoming much more cuddly, and most certainly respond to my voice. They were asleep this morning, when I sat in the box. I said, 'good morning little ones',

their little eyes woke, their ears stood up, and they came our running to greet me.
I am going to stop now, as Lil has just jumped into my arms for a cuddle and a purr............she's sooo special

Wednesday 2nd January
Well, we are into the New Year now. festivities over, and Spring only a couple of months away!

Since I last wrote, on Monday. the kittens have become MUCH more lively, and much more noisy! They no longer poke their noses out in curiosity, they almost run out into the main bit of the box now, and YELL .........

Lily hates this, as she gets very anxious, so when they are awake, someone really does need to sit with them. As they are now 3 weeks old, I am offering them a little extra food now. They seemed to cotton onto this very quickly, and I was greeted by a 'dawn chorus' this morning, that told me in no uncertain terms, to get them breakfast, and be quick about it!!! Their squeals have the same effect on me as my children as babies when they would cry. I move QUICK !!!!

I sit in the box, and offer them some food, they are very vocal, climb all over me........and this goes on for about half an hour. Lil leaves the box, almost gratefully. She eats, and leaves them to me. Then when they start to quieten down, she comes back, and starts to help settle them down for sleep. This whole process in the morning, takes about an hour. Last night, it took 2 hours to get them sleepy, and it involved my laying with my head in the box with the babies, while they investigated me. Then they were quiet during the night. I confess, it was just before 11 when I got up this morning, so they had gone 12 hours without disturbing me.

The photos this morning, show Shiny ( who has just broken the 300g mark, and Frankie, on the tray, waiting for 'extra breakfast' . Then I took one of them afterwards, with Lily trying to settle them down. I think they seem quiet now. Lil has just gone for a 'whizz around the house', having just checked that they are quiet!

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone!