Ellen's Video a Mover & Shaker

Remember Ellen's video of her teething posted back in May? The video made its way into the 300's yesterday on Google Video's "Movers & Shakers". So, it looks like Ellen got her 15 hours of fame!

For all the kitten videos on this blog, click here.

Quick Update - Cathy is "Well" and Other News

Sorry, friends! Since my previous post, an awful lot has happened. First, Cathy is much better; thank you for praying!

Let's see...

• Lee burned his hand,
• Cathy got over her cold and cough,
• Cathy has only 7 shots left,
• Lee won a PocketPC at a Microsoft event (yeah!),
• Lee finished his summer class,
• Lee is now considered (unpaid) "support staff" at church,
• We refinanced our house,
• Ellen went home,
• Mom got her license,
• Lee got a new devotional bible,
• We started a new diet...
• and we'll be finishing remodeling #2 soon.
  

We're currently catching up on season 2 of "24"... it's too hot to do anything else!
I'll supply some details tomorrow, or later tonight. Thank again for praying!

A Time for Everything

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven" - Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3

Well, my summer class if finally over. Those was four grueling weeks of class, but I finished. During that time, I studied a church in Fullerton called Eastside. Nice church...

I started reading my daily devotions from the NLT. I received a copy of "The One Year Bible NLT" and decided I like it. There is a daily reading from the OT, the NT, a psalm and some proverbs. At the end of the year you have read Psalms twice and Proverbs 4 times. It is working out pretty good for my devotional reading, although I have been reading the daily allotment as well as "catching up" from January.

We also started a new diet... I've been on Atkins for over a week now. Cathy is still fat-free, so she's eating veggies and fish with the occassional bit of lean chicken. The Atkins-for-Lee & Low-fat-for Cathy thing was making it very difficult to cook (Cathy essentially prepares two separate meals), so some meeting of the minds was in order. It turns out that The South Beach Diet (article) is a refinement and, if you will, an update on the role of carbohydrates and fat in a diet. So, I can transition from Atkisn to SBD without trouble, and it really helps Cathy plan meals. So now I'm on the SBD.

Finally... another good thing kinda came to an end. Ellen the Kitten went home with her new parents a few minutes ago. We're going to miss her, but we're happy for her. She'll get spayed in approximately one month, so I'll see her again. But we are limiting contact in order to facilitate her bonding to her new mommy and daddy. *sniff*

Ellen chasing her tail

Ellen Eating

Update on Ellen the Kitten

Cathy took Ellen to get tested on Saturday, and I got a call on Sunday indicating that everything came back negative! Yeah! So, it is confirmed that Ellen is as healthy as she looks.

The other cats all investigated her now that they are allowed to touch her. Zechariah was quick to pin her down and bathe her... :-)

She eats solid food now, so we're about done weaning her. As soon she gets spayed, she can go home to her new mommy & daddy, who have picked out a new name for her. So we'll get to enjoy Ellen for a few more weeks.

Ellen playing with a ball

Ellen is growing... here she is, playing with a jingly ball.

Ellen is Growing Quickly

A quick update on Ellen the Kitten. First, she began to use the litte box without any assistance from us. We still have to teach her to bury her eliminations, but she is already well on he way!

Just yesterday I noticed that her claws are retractable now. And she is able to lunge at things and bite.

Ellen: Teething & Weaning

Ellen has been teething and likes to nibble on everything. Anything she comes across goes directly into her mouth... and it tickles if she finds your finger.

We're also weaning Ellen; she is almost ready to eat solid food. Here's the videos...

This is becoming the "Kitten Blog"...

OK, this one is in focus. Here's Ellen cleaning herself. Wow, she is growing quick! The end of the video is really cute!

Video of Ellen the Kitten Eating

Here's another video... it went live after the other two. Notice how her little ears bob in rhythm when she is drinking milk? That is sooooo cute!

Videos of Ellen the Kitten

The video on left is of Ellen the Kitten being treated to her postprandial massage. On the right is a (sorry) out-of-focus video of Ellen cleaning herself!

Ellen the Kitten is Growing!

On the left is Ellen from May 7th, on the right is Ellen from May 14th. With one week between the two, you can compare the photos for how Ellen is developing and thriving.

This is a praise! Thank you for your prayers.

Ellen is now able to drink directly from the bottle. She started doing this on Friday. She also started cleaning herself and has become much more playful.

When she eats, Ellen's little ears bob with her sucking on the bottle. After her meal either Cathy or I will give her a belly rub which she enjoys immensely! She's not nearly as boney as she was just a week ago!

When the videos are verfied, I'll post links to them. To see videos of Ellen, click this Google Video search or click on the categories for kittens or Ellen.

Ellen is Doing Better!

So, Ellen started walking on Thursday (05/11), and she is no longer dehydrated. She also had an "explosion" in her cage which Cathy had to clean up, but now the little kitty has had solid stools. She is crawling around a lot more and has a healthy appetite.

Based upon this, I think Ellen is out of danger, and God has granted our requests for her well-being. I'll get to see her soon, so I'll snap some photos and upload them!

I'm Concerned For Ellen

Ellen, our new bottle kitten, is not responding as quickly as I hoped. She has not attempted to eat from the bottle yet, so Cathy and I have been feeding her with a dropper. The poor kitty has the runs and is dehydrated. We have decided to take her to the vet tonight where she will at minimum get some water into her system.

Ellen must have been without her momma for an extended period. Perhaps she was the runt of the litter, and her momma was moving the nest and was unable to come back for her. Ellen has fight in her, though, so I keep praying and hoping for the best.

I believe Ellen does have a fighting chance. She just woke up a little while ago. When I checked on her, she was looking around for a nipple. I was able to feed her 1/4 teaspoon. She went back to sleep on my chest. *sigh*

Your prayers would be appreciated.

Update at 8:31 P.M.: The doctor says Ellen should be O.K. It apears the worst of it is over, and her color (gums) is good. Apparently the gums are a good indicator of overall kitten health. Anyway, no antibiotics, just continued loving care.

New Bottle Kitten - Ellen

Ellen came to us last night. We have no history on Ellen at all except that the people who dropped her off at the shelter said she is two weeks old. As you can tell, Ellen's eyes are already open.

Ellen is rather weak and is not taking the bottle directly. Currently, Cathy is feeding her with a dropper. She'll need some extra love and close care for the next few days, and I've been praying for her as well. Lord willing, Ellen will be more active and eat well in a week or so.

It is just one kitty in this litter. Assuming she is two weeks old, we'll get her tested in another two weeks, and then she can interact directly with the other cats.