Dec

25

6th Annual Cavalcade of Kittens

Filed Under Kittens Off Topic | 4 Comments

Due to the acquisition of a new canine mascot, The Mackenzie Finishing School for Felines opened its doors quite late in the season.

daisy carrot
Daisy and her carrot. The carrot has, alas, now gone the way of all dog toys that are in any way destructible.

tucked-up
When playtime is over, this is one cuddly snuggle-pup.

It wasn’t until September that we brought home our first batch of foster kittens. The kitties we take in are big enough to eat on their own, generally five to six weeks old, and we keep them until they’re at least eight weeks, two pounds, and in good body condition. It’s so much fun, and so rewarding to watch them grow from sometimes shy, teensy little klutzes with short stubby legs to sturdy confident pre-teens who sprout legs and run thumping and banging around the house.

6-1
Our first group of cute blue-eyed Snowshoe kitties were Lila, Lucinda, and Ellison.

lila 3Lila enjoys the patio.

lucinda-2Lucinda appreciates a comfy cat bed.

ellisonEllison chases his sister’s tail.

It turns out that Daisy loves, LOVES kittens, in fact she was likely to love them to pieces, so close supervision was necessary at all times. These kitties weren’t the least bit shy, and didn’t bat a whisker at a pushy puppy licking their ears and chewing them up all over. In fact they purred and tussled back in a sort of very fun baby-animal Fight Club.

playing in boxLila was Daisy’s favorite tussle partner.

kittens dreamEllison got his licks in too. :)

threes a crowdCo-drinking.

vending machineKitten vending machine.

Everyone survived the foster period, these three went back to the shelter in fine fettle, and were snatched up by adopters at once.

The second batch consisted of three fuzzy tabby sisters: Mamie, Sadie, and Paisley.

tabby-breakfastBreakfast time!

she did itShe did it. (Mamie and Paisley.)

mislabeledSadie is shocked at the egregious mistake in the labeling.

Unlike the Siamese, these tabby girls weren’t so sure at first about the whole dog thing. They established boundaries that were a valuable part of Daisy’s education. After just a few days they got over it, the Fight Club resumed, and a splendid time was had by all.

sadie daisyIn between rounds, Daisy and Sadie enjoy the afternoon sun on the front porch.

When they first came in, these girls were a tad bit shy. It didn’t take them long to figure out that humans, big cats, and dogs were okay, and to become friendly kitties. Mamie was the friendliest of them all, in fact I took to calling her “Mamie the Everpresent,” because she was just always there.

mamie 4She liked to be upside down, and was Daisy’s favorite tabby tussle partner.

kitty-nirvanaDH Dana calls this one “Kitty Nirvana.”

dishwashersWe have a drought in California, you know. To save water, we have our kittens wash our dishes.

The tabbies went back to the shelter for adoption and were snapped up in no time.

Since then, I’ve had a weather eye out for more kittens, but so far there haven’t been any that were in the appropriate age group for the foster program. Still checking daily!

Happy holidays to you and yours!
Kay

By Kay Mackenzie
Kay’s Etsy Shop

Dec

3

Chestnuts roasting etc.

Filed Under Holiday | 1 Comment

Yes, it’s beginning to look a lot like that time of year! A very fun month full of nostalgic holiday music, scheming and shopping for our dear ones, and get-togethers that all seem to happen on the same day. This year it’s Saturday the 12th. You?

ugly-xmas
Here’s a little Christmas roundup from the blog.

A few years ago, genius designer Holly Mabutas put up the most darling free Santa pattern over on her blog. It’s still there, go check it out!

And here’s a photo tutorial of how I handled a large piece of white appliquéd over other fabrics, without shadow-through. The hard sauce on the Plum Pudding!

Holiday cheers,
Kay
By Kay Mackenzie
Kay’s Etsy Shop