Catnip

In honor of our newest family member -- Egghead, the cat -- I'm calling this post  Catnip -- little minty tidbits about what's  going on in the Hen House.

The Only Tidbit About the Cat 

Egghead is a sweet cat -- happy to sit on your lap and purr, but capable of some silly play. We're all making the adjustment to him -- with Zo Peep doing the best.   Little Zo Peep has shown amazing responsibilities and cleans the litter box every morning when she first wakes up.  She also keeps Egghead's water and food dish full.  They sleep together at night -- so cute.  I'm so impressed with my First born girl.   

As for me - I am still not cognizant that Egghead is always at my feet.  I've stepped on the poor animal more times than I'd like to remember.  Also, I have -- on 3 occasions (how shameful) -- inadvertently trapped him inside a closet/cabinet into which he had slipped  as I was putting away items.  That cat can move quickly.  

Libby Doodle Doo is still hot and cold with Egghead.  Sometimes she is openly affectionate and crouches down to pet him.  Other times she visibly shakes in his presences and runs to me to be picked up.  She definitely freaks out if she is laying down (in her crib, on the changing table, etc) and Egghead comes anywhere near her.  Does anyone have any suggestions on how to help her get more comfortable with this cat?  By the way the Doodle  has a pronounced fear of dogs, too.  I'd like to help her overcome these fears, but am flummoxed on how to do it.

 

We did have one scare with Egghead that I'd like to share.  Five days after we had adopted him, Zo Peep and I were stopping in a local grocery store on our way home from a doctor's appointment.  As we entered the store a notice on the Community Bulletin Board caught my eye -- a poster for a Lost Cat with a picture that looked EXACTLY like Egghead.  I read the description on the notice -- brown nose: check, silver grey stripes: check, white paws and chest: check.  Even the description of the cat's personality fit Egghead -- loving, playful, likes people.

Zo Peep exclaimed, "That's XXX (Egghead's real name)."  And she began to cry.  

What was I to do?  What would you do?  Egghead was a stray who was turned into our local shelter.  What if this family has been searching for him all this time?  I couldn't ignore this family's plight -  so I pulled out my cell phone and called.  Fortunately, the woman told me that they had found their cat the previous day and that SHE was so happy to be home.  WHEWW!  Wish the family had included info on the poster that the cat was a She -- would have saved me (and especially Zo Peep) some anxious moments.  

I mentioned before that Egghead is a playful cat.  He loves playing with toys -- but not the cat toys we bought for him.  His favorite toys are Zo Peep's dirty socks, some furry white mittens (the Peep calls them her Polar Bear mittens) that belong Miss Peep and  an inflated latex balloon.  It's hilarious to watch the cat play with the balloon.  I want to try to capture it on video.  Hey, maybe I'll have a submission for America's Funniest Home Video (Note to self -- this may be another Lucy Ricardo money-making scheme).

Little Zo Peep -- Future Painter

This is the last week of school and Little Zo Peep has been bringing various projects home every night.  Last night she brought home some paintings that she did in art class.  One is a rendition of the caterpillar in the Eric Carle book The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

I really like her layering of color in the body of the caterpillar. I also think the sun she drew was very cute and expressive  I'm showing some close-ups of those elements:

I also fell in love with a painting/crayon drawing she did inspired by Van Gogh's Sunflowers. Her brush strokes in this painting are lovely. I think I'll get this one framed for posterity.

My Days As A Stylista Are Almost Over

Every day Libby Doodle Doo is expanding her vocabulary. It's wonderful hearing her express her thoughts and emotions with words. But one of her recent verbal additions was met with my grave disappointment.

About 10 days ago when I was dressing the Doodle in a cotton short-sleeved sweater, she pointed to the sweater and said, "Itchy."

OH NOOOOO!!!! Libby Doodle Doo is expressing her opinion about the clothes I have selected for her.

I've been down this road before with Zo Peep -- I know where this is all heading. First, she'll reject clothes I select because of comfort issues Then, she'll reject clothes based on color. And finally she'll reject clothes simply because Mama has selected them.

I LOVE putting together outfits for Miss Doodle. I LOVE hearing other folks compliment me on her style (really my style). This one little word -- Itchy -- signifies the beginning of the end of my career as a baby stylist.

I only hope that in the last 18 months Miss Doodle has absorbed some of my talent to make stylish choices in the future. That talent hasn't shown up in her older sister.  I have to admit Zo Peep doesn't have any sense of style -- she's a comfort-all-the-way chick.

Don't Forget to Vote

If you haven't already voted for the six best photos from my first week of Doodle pix -- please do so. And tell your friends to vote too. The more votes the better. Looks like there are some clear favorites so far.

And thank you Helen for the photography tips. I'm going to try some of those in this week's photo sessions. By the way, I wanted everyone to know that Libby Doodle Doo doesn't have freakishly big man hands (even though it looks that way in photo # 15). I was laying on my belly looking up at her when I shot that photo -- thus distorting the size of her hands. I've got to be careful of angles as I take these photos in the future.