Burstall Lake

Nothing quite as pretty as a mountain lake.  Nothing quite as amusing as baby noises as she tries to figure out how to reach something.

Ground Squirrel at Kanaskis

This little guy was chomping away at vegetation and pretty much ignoring us as we wandered by appreciating the glacial and geological forces that created such incredible scenery!

Photographer Kitty - A camera for my head

 

Molly is struggling to compete for attention with the small human - mostly because her mom spends a lot of time sitting attached to said small human staring into space - instead of playing with the feather toy.  In good news, I have Molly chasing after mice (Zoe has always been good at it).  I promised the cats that I would bring them back a package of Martha Stewart Balls (we left all ours up north) and some more springs (if I can find them)  (Cat springs continue to be a difficult comodity to locate).

Zoe has taken to napping nearly exclusively in the Kitty hidaway... and Molly likes to be where ever her human's perfer her not to be.  Zoe let me cut her nails today without much bother and I'm 0/3 attempts at clipping Molly's nails... this is once again going to be a 2 man job.  Ah Molly... such a teenage cat you are.  At present - as pictured above - Molly is using my camera as a pillow... while lying atop a pile of papers and odds and ends that can't possibly be comfortable.

I've yet to decide whether to feature photos of the small human here.  Part of me wants to share her and part of me worries about posting her picture here.  You'l just have to take my word on her cuteness and if you know me well enough and haven't seen pictures.. let me know and I'll happily share.

Spring Time - first hand

This is the first time in 5 years that I've seen the first plants of spring burst out as I've always been north when spring was happening in the south and south before spring happened in the north.  These horse tails are keeping company with new aspen leaves, coltsfoot and blueberry flowers - the valley has gone from snow covered to the fresh green of spring and hopefully soon I'll get to see some lillies and orchids as spring progresses.  I'm missing my Ontario spring plants - I've yet to see signs of trout lillies and trilliums here, but I may yet be surprised.

Molly the fridge-top cat

I'd like you to note that not only is this cat on top of the fridge (where she isn't supposed to be), but she is now full sized for a cat we think.  She is slowly becoming less frightened of the baby - but is giving her lots of space.

Molly remains Molly - most incoridgible

Zoe has been helping out by catching toy mice for me every time the baby cries.

Policeman's Creek - and winter is back!

Here is Police Man's Creek the other day... the weather the day before allowed me to walk outside in just a t-shirt - Its supposed to hit +20 C in the next week - so I guess I'll just smile and nod and enjoy the weather right now.  

Three Sisters

Spring has come and gone and appears to be back - going to head out for another walk I think...

Baby Knitting Project #1 - Otis Hat

This is my first knitting project in a long while - a little hat for the baby.  I've missed knitting - so its been fun to have the needles in my hands again.  Here the hat is being modelled by a yet unnamed stuffie - as the cats declined to be hat models for me.

In other current news, I'm avoiding watching the hockey game... its causing me pain to see the way things are going.  Hoping this is just a blip and the next game looks a lot better.

Zoe Helps Me Sew

After many years of thinking about it, I finally got a sewing machine.  Now, all I have to do is learn how to sew as its been a very long time since Gr. 8 home economics class.  Thus far, I've read all of the instructions, fingured out how to wind a bobbing and thread the machine and sew a straight seem.  On the recommendation of a good friend, I decided to make my first project a receiving blanket.  I've picked out some fun flannel material - but I have to wait to do the project as we did all our laundry yesterday and it could be a few days (and maybe a baby) before we'll have enough laundry for another load and I need to prewash the material.  In the meantime, I'm working on a knitting project for the baby - a little tunic dress - I'm about 1/3 done.  This is also a first for me - the first thing I've made that isn't a sock, mitten, scarf, hat or dishcloth.

I wanted to look at how cutting I'd have to do after I washed the material - which immediately attracted the attention of Zoe who came to lie on the material and then hunted down a toy mouse and brought it back to the material for a wrestling match.  I have no idea how the mind of a cat works... Cats are weird, but loveable.

Mountain ID: Mount Rundle

This long mountain stretches from here to Banff.  This is not the classic view that most people think of when they think of Mount Rundle - as it is often photographed from the Vermillion Lakes in Banff.  Still and interesting and imposing bit of rock.

Mountain ID: Ha Ling, Lawrence Grassi and the Ship's Prow

The Ship's Prow is on the left end of the photo - it looks a bit like a sinking boat.  Ha Ling is the peak on the righ side.  It is the first mountain hike that I did with S. many many years ago.  Its a bit of a haul to get up there - but offeres a neat view of the valley.

Mountain ID: Cascade Mountain

This is Cascade Mountain - one of the prettiest in my opinion.  It is also very useful, since it  helps me figure out which way is Banff.

Spring is thinking about visiting the mountains

To balance the overwhelming abundance of photos of my 2 cats and make up for taking so very few landscape photos since breaking my foot just over a year ago - I though I'd share this shot of the 3 sisters on a fine spring day whilst we enjoyed the beautiful weather on what could be one of our last stroller free walks.  It was actually warm enough that I was able to wear just a t-shirt by the end.

Its been both busy and quiet for the last few weeks.  The weather has also been flipping between spring and winter as it seems to be in the rest of the country.  Although, most of the snow in the valley has melted, there is still lots adoring the mountains.

The kitties are doing well.  Zoe is contentedly asleep after eating her breakfast, and Molly is sitting on the table beside me, enjoying pets and waiting for me to finish my breakfast so she can lick the spoon (yogurt) or get me to play the feather toy game with her.  She's still such a total spaz, but pretty.

There be large rocks here - sometimes called mountains

A peaceful afternoon in our household.  S. is learning how to play Dix-it by watching and episode of Table Talk. I'm fiddling with pictures.  Molly is napping in the cat-tree and Zoe is sleeping on the bed.  We enjoyed a bowl of proper home-made chicken soup for lunch and we are hoping that C, C, J and R are having a safe drive home this afternoon - since it was amazing to see them yesterday.

This is before the dump of snow we are currently getting.  The mountains are just poking out of the clouds on a bright day.  Now they are coverd in a good bit of snow as it continues to snow heavily here.

Molly is mewing for a belly rub.  She is such a suck sometimes.

Anywho.. better go be useful.  

Cuddling in the Cat-Tree

Here is the prime realestate for Cats at present and look just how nicely our two little felines who hissed and threatened to kill each other last summer are sharing it.  If the lighting wasn't so bad, I think I'd have to find one of those on-line cat sites to post it on.

You have to love Molly's giant feet hanging out in the second pictures and the way her little arm is snuggled around Zoe.  We have good kitties... or I'm just terribly biased.

Molly Undercover

Our cats have been troopers over the last month of moving, airplanes and hotels and new places.  I think it has actually made them closer to each other, although I may be biased by the fact that the two of them are snuggled together on the top of the cat tree and look quite peaceful.  Zoe as usual has surprised us with her resiliancy.  She has actually done incredibly well and done a lot of things to help Molly, who has definitely struggled more with the transitions.  Zoe is a mom at heart who I've seen come and comfort Molly when she's mewed with stress.  That said, for the most part, Molly has done okay.  Its just that Zoe has been extra caring towards her and Molly has been content to be mothered.

Molly has also grown inches in the last few weeks.  She is now noticably bigger than Zoe.  They have also taken up some new habits.  Both seem more inclined to crawl under blankets (please check for a cat before sitting on the couch or bed).  We have gotten them two new toys.  One called the hideaway which has some toys, scratch post and a hanging space with two windows for sleeping in or using as cover when you play.   The other is a small cat tree with a tube and a sleeping platform which doubles as an excellent stratching post.  See next post for more info on the tree.

We are also adapting.  We've recovered a bit from the stress of moving and managing all the bits and pieces we needed to get done in the last few weeks and are slowly gearing up for the next lot of changes.  We aren't at all sure we are ready, but I guess I hear no one every is.  

Kitten in the Hole

Molly has spent a good bit of today curled up in her hideaway.  I think she misses the feather toy... We do plan to get another one, just as soon as we get a chance to get to buy one.  She also, I swear, has grown inches since we've moved.  She already has about 2 inches in height on Zoe standing on all fours and maybe a bit more when they sit between each other.  She did, however, come and snuggle up to my knees when I was taking a nap earlier.

Kitty Sleeping Preferences Differ Between Cats

Zoe likes to sleep on soft comfortable surfaces - especially fleece.  She also preferes elevated locations that give her good sight lines of the surrounding area and plenty of sunshine is a bonus.  She espouses what one might describe as fairly typical cat sleeping preferences.

Molly, on the other hand, prefers to sleep in locations that are littered with hard, uncomfortable objects, preferably ones that the nearby humans are atempting to use.  In this picture she is on top of a physics text book, and a pile of papers, a few pens and who knows what else.  Yesterday, she fell asleep with the phone handset underneath her.  She does not appear to like sleeping in a patch of sunshine and is just as happy sprawled out on any solid surface - floor, box-top, inside of box, table, window ledge etc.  She does like high locations and also secret locations like deep in the closet and her current napping spot is curled up on a kitchen chair under the table.  You'll note that her legs are usually sprawled out unless the appartment is really cold.

And that is today's cat report.

You aren't playing with me!!

Molly loves interactive play with her humans.  She chases her feather toy with an enthusiasm and athleticism that impresses me.  She can also be amusingly demanding of it as she walks to the middle of the play area and rattles off a series of indignant meows and mrrs and chirps.  She really knows how to express herself. (Sometimes this is a bit annoying - especially before I've had breakfast.

Molly has learned to more or less stay off the counter and to get off when told.  Zoe never goes on the counter and aside from between 6-7 am in the morning - she is usually well behaved, but she worries that if she doesn't make sure I'm awake and know she is hungry then I won't feed her soon.  She generally resorts to applying generous kisses, nuzzles and head butts to me and then walking on me - although occasionally she expresses it by trying to chew on the the alarm clock.  Some days I can get her to settle down and snuggle until 7 and other days I have to send her out, so I can sneak some minutes of semi-sleep before I need to get up for work.

Zoe has recently been joining in more and more with the play.  She is actually much better at it than Molly - conserving her energy, using cover and moving shockingly rapidly for a creature that spends a good part of her life sleeping.  Last night we got her into a game of pounce the mouse - which she hasn't been so much into since we've moved up here (they were much more into chasing and pouncing toys in the south - I think because we had a long hallway.)  She was right into it with her hunting call and some serious pouncing and mauling of the toy mice. She'll even pick them up with her mouth and carry them around.  Molly is generally indifferent to mice, but as I've said before likes her springs - although she has made it clear that they are a poor substitute for the feather toy.

We went to our first flea market of the year.  We are working on selling off stuff that we don't need, aren't using, don't want to store etc.  I'm simultaneously trying to combat the build up of stuff in at work - spending quality time with the shredder and generously (depending on your point of view) passing on some resources to others - as has been done to me numerous times leading to some of the crowding.  The cats are enjoying having boxes to perch on at any rate - although presently Molly is patiently waiting for me to come play with her - but senses it'll be after i get some food into me.  Oh.. wait.. there is a sad little mew - "soon?" she asks.  I'm such a sucker :D for my cats, I'm almost afraid of how wrapped around her little fingers our baby is going to have me.

My Precious

Ah - Zoe - hoarding her precious little mice toys!!  (Or possibly resenting me taking this picture of her in an undignified pose.)  She does really like her mice - Molly could care less about mice, she likes springs better because they make her chase them.

As for Molly, she's sitting her supervising me making cupcakes.  Earlier she offered to help, but I explained to her that as much as she is a scrupulous hand washer, people would appreciate her putting her paws into my cupcakes, so she is settling for a supervisory, paws-off role - although, I suspect she'd really like to find out what it is like to have cupcake batter all over her paws.