Ulla and her belly

This was taken yesterday :)

Ovo je slikano jucer :)

Iščekujemo bebe :)

Pripreme za macice su vec odmakle, sada uistinu imamo sve, osim male digitalne vage.

Kutija za macice je napravljena u domacoj radinosti, pobojana i pazljivo pripremljena da primi malene kada stignu.

Za sada su je prihvatili decki, dok Ulla najradije boravi kod mene u krilu. Uzivam dok traje...

Slikice kutije su malo nize, u postu ispod.

Kittening box

I said I did not buy anything for my cats for Christmas, but I did make something...it cannot be considered a gift as it is meant for the next generation.:)
Scroll down for photos. (more can be found under our facebook profile, Umpertoeko Recknagel)

Yesterday it was painted, today I have finished the interior part.

A sheet of foil was put on the bottom, for thermal insulation, then a towel and a sheet to make it soft and cosy, absorbent pads, another sheet, and blanket on the top.
When the time comes I have planned to strip away the layers.

It is meant for Ulla, but boys adopted it right away, at the moment both of them are sleeping in there...while Ulla sleeps in my lap and purrs.
It is such a pleasure, I have to enjoy while it lasts, when kittens come I suspect she will no longer be the sweet dependent little bug.

And now...let me present you...our whelping box:)

What will you put for your pet friends under the Christmas tree?

I have been receiving some pet related Newsletters in my Inbox, and this holiday season, probably like every other, there was a lot of talk about gifts for pets that owners can put under the tree.

I decided not to buy them anything special.
They already have all they need, and I have gone through obssesive shopping for cat toys and all things kitty nice when Harski came. To be honest, not only were we stocked up better than average pet show, but Ulla is still getting every now and then a toy our first one did not like.

Instead of running around, looking for something nice to buy them, I bought food for homeless cats and spent extra time playing with my feline family. I think they like the deal.

What was your gift to your pets for holidays?

GEtting ready for the kittens

Ulla is growing, it seems that every time I look at her she just got more rounded. She has trouble finding sleeping position, and in a way she reminds me of a whale on Australian beach.

We are getting ready for the kittens, today the whelping box was made and painted lilac-pink. For now, Meke is the only one using it. Ulla still prefers top of the closet as her hideaway, but I hope she will change her mind soon.

We have all things ready, homeopathic remedies; for mum and for kittens, flashlight, as because of the harsh weather conditions we are running out of electricity every now and then, absorbent pads, sheets, disinfectant, scissors...and who knows what else, all prepared in my bedroom on the table.
The only things missing are scale and nose suction for babies.

I am grateful to breeder friends who left me their phone number and said I can call anytime.

As the day is coming closer, I must say I am really getting excited. I am looking forward to meeting kittens finally.

Ulla has changed a lot, she is constantly looking for company. She likes to have her belly patted gently, and if she can, she will sleep in such a way that she parks her belly on my hand. And she has turned allof her engines on, so she purrs and purrs and purrs. Like she is trying to make up for her childhood when she was too busy to purr, or do anything feminine.
I did not feel babies moving yet...but there is time.

We have a new blog

So, we moved :)

It is Christmas time on its way, and I am making an inventory of what this year has brought me. God knows I have time...that is the only thing I have to spare at the moment...and it feels unusual as it is usually the only thing I was always short with.
Life changes....:D

This year has been full of surprises for me, I think I can say that up to now it was one of the worst I have had.
But behind the sad days, there are some gifts I am learning to appreciate just now.
Yes it was hard. I have had my heart cut in half and I at the times I felt so sad I could not even breathe...but I survived and I still believe that to give it all is the only way, no games, no aces in pockets, no faking. Open your heart, do your best and yes, it might get broken, and it will most likely get bruised, but the one who is not playing with all one has, is the one losing even if it might appear the other way.

I have faced some health problems, and I it had thought me not to take my body for granted. It is sturdy enough to take us a long way, but it is not made of Vibram that we can overuse it and not listen to its signals...if well taken care for, it can make the ride if life much more fun.

All of my work plans and ambitions were crashed, but it gave me a chance for a new insight and check up of my OWN goals, not the ones that were put upon me due to the obligation to fulfill expectations of others.
I also learned that when rainy clouds come, my family is the shelter I can run to.

I have lost some of my friends, some walked away with the sunny days, some showed themselves not worthy to carry the name...but in return I have gotten the most wonderful things happen through complete strangers, or people I would not expect it from.
If it goes for a little comic made from a photo, a most thoughtful Christmas gift, or health advice I got it all...at the time when I had my head down as I started to wonder if anyone cares that I exist.
A complete stranger put time and effort to make something nice for me, which thought me, nice things happened when least expected, and they usually come from Finland.:D

And as the year is coming to the end, I am thinking what is it that I have to give. It is easy to give when there is a bank account to support good ideas, gifts can be big and flashy and sometimes hide that the meaning might be missing.
On the other hand it is challenge to give when the finances are an issue, but it brings us to the roots of the giving...it is about sharing and showing we care.

This Christmass, as each one in the past 11 years, I will be spending helping serving the warm meal to homeless people.
Looking at the small place my world has contracted to, I felt a bit sorry for myself today. Until I bought a paper homeless people sell so they can at least earn some money.
There was an article in there about a man who is on the streets for years, and one paragraph had a title in bold letters saying that sometimes he gets only two meals a week.
I came home, took the flour and sugar and starting making cookies. This year there will be no fancy gifts under my Christmas tree, no shiny wrapping paper and no ribbons.
There will be a home made jam, small hand sewn bags of cookies, and forgive me for not being around the table myself at the lunch time, I will be adding the meaning to this year by giving the best I can- dignity to the ones who have really lost it all.

Wishing you all a happy holiday season, and I hope you will find the time to dig into your closets, the skeletons who are hiding in there might have grown some flowers which wait ready to be recognized, and while you are in there, see if there is a warm piece of clothes you do not really need, or some shoes which are out of fashion, and take it with you, together with some cookies or extra food, to the closes shelter for homeless.