26 days old and in the last 24 hours they have suddenly, as one, left their nursing basket and played out and when given a plastic can lid with kitten food on have got all greedy for proper food. Growing up fast.

3 weeks old and really entertaining and dangerously cute now.

Despite us spending the better part of Saturday making a nursery for Toots and her Tots, today she somehow managed to jump over the high gate carrying each of them in turn and nestle them under the little pew seat in the lounge. So, we figure Toots knows best and will let her get on with it. They all look happy enough and its quite nice to have them so close to us. Little tawny was first to make an attempt to escape Mum.

“…if…. I could… just.. reach…. the..ball… thingy”

Her adventure starts here! This kitten was the first to open her eyes, the first to purr, the first to interact with us and now we were lucky enough to be there when she tried to leave her first home and birthing box. Watched by Mum she tried to clamber out. Its just as well that we had a few hours earlier finished work on the ‘nursery’ – the back porch area enclosed now using a gate that Hector made.

There are signs this morning of blackbirds starting to nest low in the honeysuckle in the front garden. Wonderful. They have missed the last year or two.
We moved the sink pond from the yard to the front garden. It was hard work coz its so big and heavy, but worth it. Its visible from the lounge now and you can hear the trickle of the water spout.

The kittens are two weeks old today. When I got up I was delighted to discover that there were new developments. All four are playing together. One was audibly purring! And most lovely of all, one rolled onto its back and on seeing me reached its little paws up to grab my finger and play with it. Interaction!

Today, for the first time, I watched as two of the kittens played together. They are 12 days old now and getting more and more aware every day.

As I stepped out of the front door this morning to go to work I saw the first 3 swallows of the year. Wonderful!

Using up a free night in a nice hotel we headed south to Bristol and Bath. We had a wander around Bath but it was full of Japanese tourists and throngs of people so we didn’t stay too long. We did though take a wander up to see the Royal Crescent and watch some people in whites playing Crown Green Bowling; resulting in a firm decision to play the game ourselves when we are older! The sun was shining and the climate 300 miles south is SO much more advanced towards proper spring. There were even road side stalls selling strawberries. WOW!
Hector took me out to dinner in a good beer pub near the Severn Bridge and I ate WAY too much. Calves livers and then Creme Brulee. Lovely. Slept badly coz my tummy hurt! Serves me right.
Before driving home we went to see the bridges at the Severn and the sun shone again. We paid our toll to drive over one and then drove up along the Severn towards Gloucester and then north and home.

When we got back it was to find that all 4 of Tootsie’s Tots have opened their eyes. Awwww.

Got up early today and the 9-day old kittens are starting to open their eyes. The tawny one hasone eye open and one almost open. The others are all putting theirtiny paws over their eyes when the light is on. They are cuter by the day and changing quickly. I am VERY attached to all of them now. Its not going to be easy to see any of them go to new homes.

While I was at work this morning Tootise had her Tots. 4 kittens (so far!) Three look to be mostly grey and white and one looks to have a few patches of tabby. When I got in she met me at the door and took me to the wooden box that was the ‘maternity’ unit and had clearly only just had one of them. She looks very proud of herself and is purring like mad.

And one hour later….

Sunday 30th March. Chris and Fiona came over, more simmering down at the Spa and back in time to go to the pub for a drink before the quiz started. Its always good to get the old grey matter exercised. We decided on a team name of So Cozy with Sarkozy. At least two other really good teams were in – and we made a so-so start – especially when we made lte changes to some answers replacing correct ones with wrong ones. But, the end result was we were first, embarrassingly yet again, with a score of 135.5 out of 150. The team in 2nd place scored 119.5. Pub landlord Donald told us we were banned! Many a true word spoken in jest!