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Thursday 8th January 2004 The kittens are growing fast, Arwen comes out of her box more often now, to stretch her legs and get some hugs from me. Because of my birthday a few people came to look at the kittens and Arwen keeps a close eye on the visitors. I am allowed to come real close and touch her children, as long as they don't squeal. But my mother got an angry paw from Arwen because she came too close, so I feel very special that I am allowed to touch the cuties. I always thought cats are amazing creatures, but those miniatures are even more amazing. When they are sucking with their tongues half sticking out around the nipple you just get swept away and fall in love.
Friday 9th January 2004 This mornign I weighed the kittens again, the boys squeal the loudest when I pick them up and Arwen reacts immediately. Their noses aren't as pink as the first days now and also the outer rim of their ears has a light colour now. The umbilical cords of three kittens has already fallen off, only the smallest girl still has hers. When I weighed them this morning one of the girls outpaced her brothers, she weighs 138 grams now. The heaviest boy is 137, the other boy 133 and the smallest girl weighs a 130 grams. Very good weights, and I'm very proud of Arwen.
Saturday 10th January 2004 The last umbilical cord had fallen off as well. You can see the kittens growing, they grow so fast. Their noses are brownish now, one darker than the other. Arwen leaves her box more often now and can't stop giving cuddles. When I open the door from the room they're in she walks out immediately and runs to the livingroom where she'll play her standard "catch me if you can" game. And she'll sharpen her claws on the climbing pole. She's constantly in my way, just like old times. This morning I had to go to fitness in Berkel and I did some groceries afterwards as well, when I came home I could hear Arwen meowing behind the door of the small room (where the computer is as well). So I made a pot of tea with Arwen and then took her back to the room and drank my tea behind the computer. Arwen is nursing and purring now, I think she's more at ease when I am around.
Sunday 11th January 2004 Except for male 2 all the kittens have already doubled their birth weight. The smallest girl who only gained 13 grams yesterday has gained 20 grams today, I did see her suckle a couple of times when the others were sleeping. She should have weighed 156 grams after one week and already weighs 163. Male 1 is 3 grams heavier than his doubled birth weight now and female 2 weighs even 7 grams heavier than her doubled birth weight. Male 2 still has to gain 5 grams to equal his doubled birth weight, but he'll get there tomorrow no doubt. I'm very proud of Arwen, because they aren't even a week old yet and already doubled their birth weights.
Monday 12th January 2004 All of the kittens have gained over 10 grams each, only this time it's a bit less than on previous days, just 11-15 grams. They look healthy, all fluffy and round. Arwen looks well too, her fur has a nice shine and feels soft. I'm waiting until their eyes will start to open. That could be any day now, so I'll keep a close eye on them.
Wednesday 14th January 2004 Female 2 only gained 7 gram today and yesterday it was just 10 grams. The others have gained 16-18 grams today. It's a big difference, but she's still growing, I'll keep an eye on this one. Last night before I went to sleep I took a good look at those little faces and Female 1 with the blue nailpolish had turned into a Chinese. Her eyes were open, just a little bit. And male 1 already had one eye open, just a tiny chink. So cute! They can also lift their heads already, not that easily, but every day a bit longer. Perhaps the eyes of the other kittens will open today. I have also made a decision regarding the names, this afternoon I will give them one. I have four names starting with A and that all mean sunrise or sun and that's rather appropriate. They were born during sunrise on January 6th and they are all real suns, they brighten up my life now and will brighten up their new employees in the future. Now I still have to decide who gets which sunny name.
Thursday 15th January 2004 I gave the kittens their names, they are now called: Amuntë which means sunrise, Ancalë which means Radiant one, the girls are named Anarinya, my sun, and Anarórë, sunrise. Anarórë, the kitten that only gained 7 gram yesterday made up for that today and weighed 19 grams more this morning then she did yesterday, she grew most of them all. I am not sure which of the two girls I am going to keep, Anarinya or Anarórë, it is still hard to see, but they both have beautiful names and so do the boys. Except for Amuntë (the biggest one) all kittens have opened their eyes. I pick them up once in a while, but then they start screaming and Arwen looks angry. Unfortunately. I can't make solo photos of them, I can only photograph them when I do not disturb them. Tomorrow night I have to take Arwen to the vet, to remove her stitches and check her out. The kittens will stay at home, it is much too risky for them to go there, I do not want them to get sick.
Saturday 17th January 2004 Yesterday at the vets everything was just fine, he removed the stitches and said that her cut healed perfectly. Arwen was less than an hour away from her babies, they slept on a pile when she was away. And this morning I couldn't notice that they had been alone, they gained weight like they have before. Ancalë is a big screamer, he squeels enormously when I want to weigh him. I thought I heard Amuntë purr yesterday, not completely like adult cats, but it was there. And I saw Anarórë make licking movements, towards her own paws, not actually licking yet. The girls are still darker than their brothers, so perhaps the girls are seal points and the boys chocolate points. That is possible, but according to chance it's more likely that 3 will be seal point and just one chocolate point. I will just wait and see.
Sunday 18th January 2004 Anarórë gained less weight than the others, but after gaining 19 and 17 grams for two days in a row it's not that bad. Right now she is drinking while the others are sleeping, so she is catching up again. This morning I heard one of the girls purring, Arwen was purring, and I heard a tiny purr as well. Very sweet, according to the kitten calender they should purr after three weeks, but this one's a lot sooner! You can notice their hearing is starting to develop as well, they move their ears more, they begin to stand wide open, that way sounds can come in more easily. Sometimes, when they hear strange voices, some of the kittens appear to hiss. Mouths wide open, but no sound.
Wednesday 21st January 2004 The kittens become more active every day, they can walk a little, before they just pulled themselves forward, it's a bit shaky, but that will change soon enough. They use their eyes more as well, they look around more. They can hear better too, you can see them moving. I see them making licking movements more often now, like they want to clean themselves. Anarórë was first, then Ancalë followed, I've seen him do it more often as well and Anarinya did it too. The difference between the two females is becoming larger, Anarórë is slightly lighter in colour than her sister Anarinya, both have dark noses, but Anarórë is lighter just above her nose. I can see a small difference in the males (who are lighter in colour than their sisters) as well. Ancalë seems lighter than Amuntë. The ears stand wide, especially with the girls, they sometimes look like modern Siamese with those bat ears, but I know that it'll be ok when they grow. Anarinya has the widest and largest ears, from the beginning and the boys have the smallest.
Saturday 24th January 2004 The kittens are starting to be aware of the boundaries of the box, they walk (stagger) to one of the sides and then I can hear their nails scratching against the cardboard. They also look at eachother with much care as well, I saw Anarinya licking her own paw today. Sometimes it looks like they want to play, they climb all over eachother and touch eachother gently with their paws. The first exploration as it were, I'm enjoying this enormously. Today I took one of the girls on my lap, Arwen didn't agree of course so then I put her with Arwen in the blue fuzzy cat"basket". I took some pictures while they were in there, not all are clear, a few are.
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Monday 26th January 2004 The show was great yesterday, very nice to see such a large number of Thai/Traditional Siamese together. And Farao was there as well, he's so handsome. He has his own website nowadays, take a look at Cattery del ThyMar, he's still working on it, but had a Tonkinese visitor and was very tired. I also got some small bags of cat food from several brands, the kittens won't starve, but more importantly they will be able to get adjusted to several types of food. The kittens gained well today, the low weight gains of two kittens was just a small glitch. The males Amuntë and Ancalë weigh almost the same again, the females differ 9 grams in weight now. Anarinya has the largest ears, it becomes more apparant every day. Her face seems a bit smalle than Anarórë's face. I cannot detect such differences between the two boys. The kittens become more active, the walk more, bite themselves and eachother. Their teeth are growing, in the top jaw they already have their front teeth (incisors) and the eyeteeth are coming as well, just tiny tips of it. They also try to stand up and look over the edge of the box, so sweet.
Wednesday 28th January 2004 The kittens were three weeks old yesterday, they look like mini cats already, they've got everything on them. Their whiskers are short though and their teeth not completely grown yet. Yesterday Arwen moved the kittens to the climbing piramid. I guess she thought, children from a Pharao belong in a piramid, so that's where they are right now. I gave them a soft fleece blanket and put some old towels in front of the entrance, that way they won't fall if they climb out. Now they can get out of the piramid and get in again without any help and they do so now and then. Arwen thinks they go too far away though and tries to get them back. I also pick up the kittens and cuddle them so they will become the sweetest kittens ever!
Saturday 31st January 2004 Today the kittens had visitors, twice even. In the afternoon Hans, Ina and their daughter Suzan came by, Shiwa, Basha and Osiris were born into their loving home. Suzan will be the new staff of one of the boys. For this occasion I put the kittens in their blue fluffy basket and took them to the living room. Ancalë spent a long time on Suzan's lap, he felt very comfortable there, normally he's the one who screams the loudest when you pick him up. The kittens were photographed by everyone, so there is bound to be one that is good. My own photoshoot earlier today only worked partially, most photo's were not sharp, only some of them all were. I will keep trying of course. In two weeks Ina and her other daughter Lizet will be coming to visit again, and I am sure Suzan will come again too. In the evening more visitors: Henriëtte, Tom and Ainee. They prefer Ginger cats themselves, but visiting kittens is always nice, no matter how they look like. Next week I'll go round their house as a catpedicure. Their senior cat Katja is walking with some difficulty, probably because her nails are too long, so I'll see what I can do about it. Anarinya and Ancalë are very active, they crawl out of the basket numerous times and are the most quiet when you pick them up. Anarinya spent some time with my mother during the evening.
Sunday 1st February 2004 Since the kittens are much more active I introduced their first porridge, a mixture of kittenmilk and Nutrix riceflower, but it wasn't a great success yet. I put some of it in their mouths for taste, they ate that, but wouldn't eat from the spoon, let alone from the dish. I will keep trying of course, they have to get used to solid food anyhow. I saw Arwen deliberately bite the whiskers off. I'm not sure why she does it though, perhaps it tickles on her belly when they drink. I will inform if other catmommies do this too....
