Tag Archive | kittens

Little Isabel and Rainy Days ~ Part 2 Enduring the Storm

Oct8

Enduring the Storm

Katherine H. Purdy

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Isabel awakened to the pitter-patter of rain on the roof and the delicious sound of bacon sizzling in the skillet on the stove.

“Hey sleepyhead, it’s time to get up!” Eugene sat on the edge of the bed. “Mama said to give you a piggy-back ride to the kitchen because there is water everywhere!”

“Oh boy, I love rrr-rain!” Isabel giggled as they trotted over and around bowls, pitchers, pots and pans collecting water on the floor.

“Mama said we will have to stay in the kitchen all day where it’s nice and warm.” Eugene said as he lowered Isabel down at the kitchen table.

“Good morning, Sunshine!” Mama said as she placed a platter of food on the table.

“Whoo-whee,” Papa said as he entered the back door, dumping water from his hat onto the steps and stood on the rug to wipe his feet. “It’s a great day for ducks and geese,” he said as Mama helped him struggle out of his large, wet coat. “On second thought, it may be too much rain for them too.”

“You’re soaked to the skin,” Mama observed as she handed Papa his slippers. “Maybe you should change and we’ll dry out your clothes by the stove.”

“Oh, I’ll be okay in here by the stove. Besides, I have to go right back outside after breakfast.

“This is a big storm, We have a few tree limbs scattered everywhere and a few saplings have been uprooted. Hope it passes by soon or blows itself out.” Papa shook water out of his hair as he passed Little Isabel’s chair; evoking giggles and wiggles as she tried to dodge the water droplets.

“Mama, can we eat now?” Curtis asked as he popped a piece of bacon into his mouth.

“May we eat?” Mama said with a smile.

“That’s what I asked!”

“Not until we are all seated at the table. It’s impolite to eat before everyone is seated and the blessing said,” Mama answered as she poured hot coffee into two cups. Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky followed by a sickening sound of cracking wood with a loud crash on the roof. “Oh no, the roof!” Mama screamed, turning her focus from the coffee to the window where branch from a falling tree brushed against the window.

Eugene and Curtis jumped from their chairs, turning them over in the process, Baby Maggie started crying and Isabel slid out of her chair and latched onto Mama’s skirt.

“ Hot Coff-coff-Coffee!” Papa shouted as the cup overflowed, splashing on him as he pushed away from the table, his chair slipped, dumping him onto the floor.

“Oh dear!” Mama rushed to help Papa with the coffee pot still in her hands and Eugene rushed to take it from her.

Papa shook his head and headed first to the window and then to the back door. He returned with a small branch in his hands. “I can’t believe it. The tree landed on the back porch roof and not the house; crashed right through.” Papa slowly shook head and took his place at the table and lead the family in prayer.

As Papa prayed, Isabel heard a soft cry. She opened one eye and looked around and caught Mama looking her and so she squeezed her eyes tight until Papa said, “Lord, thank you for keeping us safe and for sparing the roof to this house. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.”

“Not until we are all seated at the table. It’s impolite to eat before everyone is seated and the blessing said,” Mama answered as she poured hot coffee into two cups. Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky followed by a sickening sound of cracking wood with a loud crash on the roof. “Oh no, the roof!” Mama screamed, turning her focus from the coffee to the window where branch from a falling tree brushed against the window.

~*~

Blessing said, tears dried, coffee cleaned up and refilled; the Greene family finally got down to business of eating when two squeaky sounds made their way to the kitchen table.

“What’s that?”

“It’s probably just limbs scraping against the house,” Papa said as he poured coffee from his cup into his saucer and sipped the hot, strong liquid.

“Maybe it’s a mouse,” Curtis said as he reached for another piece of bacon,

“Or a big fat rat with beady eyes and a long skinny tail,” Eugene said while making a scary face at Isabel.”

“A mouse? A rat? Isabel screeched as she stood on the kitchen chair. “Papa, it’s not a rat is it?”

“Oh, I don’t think so. At least not yet. There’s an opening now for mice to get in through that big hole in the porch roof.”

“Oh Avil,” Mama said as she wiped Maggie’s face with a wash cloth. “Don’t frighten the child. The storm is frightening enough.

Almost as if on cue, a loud meow echoed in the room. Isabel slid out of her chair and raced her brothers to the back porch. “Kittens!” Curtis said as he watched three kittens huddled between the tree branches lying on the porch.

“Four kittens and one Mama,” Eugene said as a gray tabby carried a kitten in her mouth and deposited it with the other three, shook water off her head and began to groom the tiny kittens.

“Well, will you look at that? Mama cat knows to bring her babies in from the rain,” Papa chuckled.

“Of course she does,” Mama said gently, “she’s a mother. Oh the poor dears are soaking wet and Mama cat must be so cold and wet. She had to bring each kitten in from the cold wind and rain. Eugene, please bring me the empty crate from the pantry. Curtis, please bring a towel and also bring some large flannel rags.”

Mama made a soft bed for Mama cat and her kittens and placed the bed by the warm stove. “We mustn’t disturb the kittens. I don’t anyone to pick them up. Not yet. Mama cat will give them everything they need and we will feed Mama cat a nice bowl of cream.”

Isabel put her hands behind her back to keep from picking up the tiny, crying kittens.

“Mama, did Jesus send us kittens because of the storm?”

Miss Madison10441101_10203141061280662_7210698404753137386_n

Little Isabel and Rainy Days ~ Part 3 ~ Kittens and the Ark

Oct30

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 “Mama, did Jesus send the kittens because of the storm?” Isabel’s beautiful blue eyes looked to Mama for an answer.

“If He did, it wouldn’t be the first time He sent animals. Do you remember the Bible lesson we have been working on every morning?

Isabel twisted her hair while swaying to the pitter-patter of rain on the roof and windows while keeping her eyes on the kittens. “Noah’s Ark?”

“Yes, that’s right Isabel. You have been listening!” Mama said as she swept Little Isabel in her arms for a hug and butterfly kisses. “We will talk some more about Noah’s Ark but for now, we need to coax Mama Cat into bring her kittens inside the house where they will be warm and safe.”

“How will we do that?” Eugene asked loudly.

“Shhh,” Mama put her finger to her lips and motioned for the boys to join her and Isabel near the stove. “First, we need to stay very quiet. Cats are often afraid of people; especially noisy ones. Now that we have a box filled with soft flannel, we will need to coax Mama inside first. Then she will bring her kittens one at a time. Curtis, please fill that old chipped bowl with cream – not milk. She needs the extra nourishment and then I will place a trail of goodies leading from the tree limbs where she is hiding to the kitty bed.”

Isabel held her breath as Mama picked up the pan of scrambled eggs and dropped small pieces of egg from the porch to the box by the stove.

“Now, we must be very quiet and don’t move a muscle. Sit back at the table, finish your breakfast and try not to make a sound.” Mama said softly.

Isabel found sitting quietly was difficult when something so exciting was happening in this very room.

Papa filled his saucer with coffee again and slurped too loudly as Mama gave him a warning glance. Eugene and Curtis put their hands over their mouths to keep from laughing.

Soon, Mama Cat slowly entered the room. She sniffed the air and then gobbled up the eggs until she reached the warm box. Stepping inside the box, she kneaded the blanket while purring loudly.

“Mama,” Isabel whispered. “Does she think she’s making bread or biscuits?” Mama shook her head with a smile and put her finger back to her lips. Isabel turned back to the cat and watched as Mama Cat rubbed her chin on the corners of the box.

“Mama, does her chin itch?”

“She’s putting her scent on it so that she and the kittens will know they belong there,” Papa whispered a bit too loudly and the cat looked at him, walked to the table, rubbed against Papa’s leg and then sauntered to the back porch and brought the kittens one by one to the new warm bed.

“It looks like we have new members of our family,” Mama said softly and laughed gently as Papa rubbed the whiskers on his chin and shook his head from side to side before giving the family a slight smile of approval.

~*~

“I have an idea,” Mama said as she cleared the table and peered out the kitchen window as she poured boiling water and soap shavings into the dishpan. “It doesn’t look like this storm will end any time soon. Why don’t you children bring your animal carvings Papa made for you and bring them into the kitchen? When you come back into the kitchen, we can make a pretend Ark for the animals and you.”

Eugene picked up Isabel and put her on his shoulders as they dodged water droplets and puddles, jumped over bowls and pitchers collecting the water until they reached the curtain divided room.

~*~

“Guess what, Peter; you are going into Noah’s Ark!” Isabel chirped as she picked up the stuffed Peter Rabbit her friend Sally Anne had given her at their first tea party combined with birthdays for each girls a few weeks earlier. “Now Peter, how will we carry all of the toys Papa made for us?” Isabel placed Peter Rabbit near her ear and smiled. “Very good, Peter Rabbit. You are so smart! We’ll put them in the Easter basket!”

“Hey Sis,” Curtis said as he peeked through the curtain dividing their room. “Are you ready yet? It’s raining too much in here!”

~*~

Just as the children entered the kitchen, Papa entered from the back porch – dripping wet.

“I found it! This is a lot of canvas but it should work,” Papa said as he laid the large bundle on the kitchen table.

“Perfect!” Mama said as she dried her hands on her apron and reached into her sewing cabinet for a pair of large, sturdy scissors. The children watched wide eyed as Mama and Papa worked together to make a tent over the kitchen table which had been moved to a dry spot in the room.

“Let’s read about Noah from God’s Word, the Bible.” Mama reached for the Bible on the shelf as Papa slipped into the other rooms, cutting canvas and draping it over pieces of furniture before returning to the kitchen with two full buckets of water, dumped them into water barrels on the back porch and made another trip. By the time he had finished, Eugene, Curtis and Isabel were sitting patiently on the floor and baby Maggie slept soundly in her tented cradle.

Mama opened the Bible to Genesis and started to read. “Before we begin,” she said softly, “We will act out Noah’s story as I read. So when  we get to the building part what will we do?”

“We will pretend to be builders!” Curtis dipped his head as if to ask forgiveness for disturbing Mama Cat who stopped grooming her orange kitten and stared intently at the boy.

“That’s right Curtis. Now, I would like you to place all of your toy animals in Isabel’s basket and set it on my sewing machine.”

Eugene collected the animals, placed them in Isabel’s basket and placed the basket on the sewing machine at the far end of the room.

Papa entered the room with the bolt of canvas just as Mama began to read.

Miss Madison10441101_10203141061280662_7210698404753137386_n

Best Friends

Oct13

Best Friends

Isaac and Patch were best friends. Actually, Patch was more like a brother or “dad” to Isaac, our “Sylvester or Tuxedo” cat. This photo was taken when both cats were seniors.

Patch was about two years old when Isaac and his twin, Jacob came into our lives. The twins were so small, we had to bottle feed them. They were so small that we made their first litter box out of John’s Justin’s Boot box. I added a ramp for them to climb on because they were too small to jump into the box without help.

We didn’t know how Patch and three old Zippy would respond to the kittens so we kept them in our unfinished basement room. The older cats didn’t know what to think about the meowing in the room and stayed close to the door to the kitty room. When the twins were finally old enough to meet their big brothers, Zippy and Patch appeared to be afraid of the little guys!

For about a week, we brought the kittens into the den for about an hour and let them sniff around and to become acquainted. The first night, John held Jake on his lap to watch a hockey game. Boy, was Patch insulted! His emerald-green eyes looked even greener as he gave us his “I’m not happy about this” look – and then he took off! John searched through the house and couldn’t find him. “He’ll come out of hiding soon,” I said as I helped him look under furniture and into closets. (Both of the older cats could open the closet doors.)

We were completely surprised when we returned to the den and found Patch curled in a ball under the couch! The stinker tricked us!  Zippy, on the other hand, kept an eye on the little guys. By the end of the week all four were best friends!

The first night they interacted, Patch grabbed Jake and cleaned milk off the kitten’s face and looked at me with his “angry” look. He seemed to be asking, “why didn’t you clean the boy’s face?” I had tried to clean them with a washcloth but it took a cat’s skill to clean him perfectly!

The first time we allowed the “twins” to wander around the rest of the house, Patch and Isaac played a game of Hide and Seek. While Patch was hiding, John gathered up the kittens and put them back into their room for the night. A few minutes later, Patch gave the loudest, most mournful cry I have ever heard. Apparently, he thought he had lost Isaac. When I took him into the kitten’s room, Patch checked out both of the kittens and gave them both a bath before he left the room. Zippy was just as protective.

When he was about sixteen years old, Patch started having seizures, resulting in blindness less than a year later. Isaac was Patch’s see and eye cat. Patch was seventeen years old when he gave up his struggle. He passed away in our arms – beside John with his head on my shoulder and Isaac sitting beside him on my lap. Isaac was eighteen years old when he joined his brother and buddies.

The Bible says that there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. That friend is Jesus!

Meet Alice

Jan28

Welcome home, Alice!

Alice in her cage at the Animal Hospital. They let her out often to greet customers.

Welcome home Alice! Hope you like it here!

This is Alice, the newest member of our family. We first met Alice in September when we were moving into our new house. We had let our two Maine Coons, Skippy and Ruby spend the night at the “kitty spa”. As we entered the Vet’s office this tiny kitten greeted us. It was love at first sight. She practically jumped into my arms and started purring and giving me kitty kisses.  The following day when we picked up the Purdy duo, Alice tugged at my heart strings again. I almost couldn’t bear to leave her there!

John took Skippy to get his two-year-old check up last week and Alice was still there. Greeting everyone who came in, running around and enjoying life. John asked about her and they said that someone had seen this tiny kitten walking along the road where someone had left her. Apparently, they couldn’t keep her so they brought her to the vets office. She has been there ever since. Other kittens have come and gone but for some reason, no one wanted Alice – except us. Maybe she was there for us. We both have birthdays coming up and John wanted to get her for me.

In the past, all of our kittens had been rescue kitties or they have literally walked up to our door, waiting for us to take them in. Of course, who can bear to think of a hungry critter running around in the cold needing someone to care for them? I used to say that “every time I pray for a baby to adopt, He sends a stray kitten or two instead.” They were cuddly, sweet and loved to snuggle.  Our Maine Coons on the other hand, are sweet and love to be near us but they aren’t as cuddly as our other cats had been. They will sometimes sit on our lap for a few minutes and will curl up on the bed, begging for a tummy rub and then they wander to the foot of the bed until they get hungry.  John can pick them up for a minute or two but at 16 and 18lbs, that is a difficult task for me. So it seems more like Skippy and Ruby are “Daddy’s cats.” Did I mention their intelligence? They are very smart and love to “hang out with me” but Moms know how it is. Empty arms.

We picked Alice up today and she was still giving out kitty kisses and loves to snuggle with her head against our shoulder, purring so loudly it sounds like a lullaby. She is so tiny! She couldn’t weigh three pounds! For that reason, we are introducing her to Ruby and Skippy slowly, while she is in the kitty cage. For a few nights, the master suite is the nursery. If my other sweet angels cry because the door is closed, I will have to put Alice in her cage. If not, I will have a kitten to spoil and cuddle. (Ruby usually cries if she is not with us so we’re praying she will be content tonight.)  Skippy seems to be fine with our new family member. Ruby ran to her “safe hiding place” after mildly objecting. After all, she has been “the baby” for almost two years. Time will bond them as friends and sisters. I’m sure of it.

"I'll watch out for you, little sis!"

Ruby checking out her competition from a distance. I know they will be best friends!

Play time!

This little gal is fast!

If falling in love with a kitten and having to leave it behind for four months, I cannot imagine what it is like for my friend, Bonnie Sue Walker who has been waiting seventeen months for their little Jedidiah’s adoption to go through and that Wayne will be allowed to bring him from Thailand to live in the United States with them – his adopted family!

Pray for Jedidiah to come home.

Think of what it means to the Lord for us to want to be with Him. To be near Him and snuggle close in faith. Kind of makes one think, doesn’t it? He loves you, my friend, and always has!

“The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying. Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore in lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” Jeremiah 31:3