Weekend Update (no, not that Weekend Update...)

I didn't get as much done in the garden as I wanted to--in fact, all I really got "done" was watering the things already planted.  There is lettuce (almost enough to pick) and kale (doesn't look so good...I don't think it likes the warm greenhouse) and a lot of sprouting things in both the greenhouse and the garden (I think, but I'm not sure, because the list is not right here:  asparagus (2 stalks, 5th year...I think I need to plant another plant), beets, cilantro, lettuce, kale, carrots, peas, lots of green onions and mint, some garlic, maybe some winter potatoes (or they might just be weeds).  The peach tree and grape vines both have blossoms and the tiger lilies are poking up in the front yard...probably we'll get snow this week, right?

We spent Friday night at the ski apartment--the girl stayed with a friend, so it was just The Boy, Mr. IM, the dogs, and I.  The snow is starting to melt and it is definitely mud season.  We're planning to keep the apartment through the summer and probably for next season as well, so we spent some time cleaning and sorting what was up there to switch out winter for summer stuff.  We also had a nice walk around Breckenridge and picked up some tourist magazines to decorate with. This was the first time the "new" cats stayed home "alone".  They all seem to be alive, so everything must have gone well.  (Their new game is for Alice and BOGO to chase each other and see whose tale is the fluffiest, while Sid watches)

Saturday I graded a giant pile of neglected papers and Sunday after church we spent some time looking for a new bed for The Girl (the rickety loft was removed a couple weeks ago).  In our search The Boy found his dream bed--a loft with a desk underneath (Um, wait...didn't we just remove that bed?)

So, an exciting weekend all around!

Coco (Puff?)

So her name, according to The Girl is Poco (because she thought that's what Mr IM was calling this cat) and I think she should be the BOGO cat, because she is...In any case, (not so) little Coco has staked out the master bedroom as her domain. We worried for a couple days that she wouldn't ever come out, but she has even ventured into the bonus room a couple times (only to rush back to safety when a dog is sighted).  Last night she participated briefly in what the Boy called (I believe this is near to his quote) "The triangle of anger"--in which all three cats were in the bonus room, creating a triangle around The Boy, growling at each other, but none so angry or scared that they would leave the group. Unfortunately, I did not catch that event on film. In fact, there are few photos of BOGO, because she is slightly elusive...
 Here is one with glowing eyes, as she hangs out in the "cat hole" in my closet.

 Coming out of the cat hole...yes, I need to clean my closet...


And...that's it.  I'll try to get more later.  You can see in the cat hole picture how big her paws are--she is also very skinny, but is not a little cat.  She is going to be something, once we fatten her up.

In related news, she is considering taking over the Christmas letter, since she is occasionally called "Coco Puff", which is similar to Puff Tiggy (in that the word "Puff" is included).....it makes as much sense as you should expect from a family who let their cat write the Christmas letter....

Welcome, Coco!


Update since I started writing...I was calling our friend, BOGO and the Mister started as well. The Girl thought we were saying POCO, so we now call her a weird combination of all of those (Although I think she knows BOGO is her name and comes running when I call her!)

Sid

There really isn't much to say, other than we are suckers.  The Boy missed Tigger (we all do), so we went to the Dumb Friends League to get a cat. We found Sid (Obsidian)...

 He is about a year old. As you can see from his artistic work on the temporary carrier, he likes to eat cardboard.

 He was found wandering around an apartment complex.  He is very friendly and maybe not very bright, but it is hard to tell, because he's a cat. He had dental surgery the day before we brought him home and had some extractions.

 As you can see, he has settled in quite well...I think he thinks he is king of the castle.

He is very interested in Alice, she isn't sure she likes him, but can't stay away...

 He is pretty big (skinny, but long, as demonstrated by The Boy) and floopy--like Cass the Cousin Cat was---when picked up he is rag-doll like most of the time.  He slept one night with the adults (during his "locked in the Master Suite introduction to the house") but has spent at least part of every other night on The Boy's bed.  Last night Alice was bedroom surfing and came across Sid...who growled until The Boy said, "Cool it, Sid"...which he did.

 Liberty is terrified of (all) cats, so she is not pictured anywhere and the BOGO cat is hiding, sort of, still...but as you can see, Sid and Morrison are developing an interesting relationship.  Sid seems to enjoy dog food as well...

Welcome, home, Sid!

Puff Tiggy, the rapping kitty...

Tigger the Cat not only gets to claim the title of oldest pet at the Ranch, but also the author of the yearly Suburban Christmas letter.  Tigger was a shelter cat.  We actually went to adopt a kitten and ended up with a half grown cat.

As a kitten he was excited to fetch--chasing and retrieving a bouncy ball for hours.
MJ, our resident mommy cat, tried for years to teach Tigger to clean himself and to purr.  The cleaning he has never really mastered, however, in a shocking turn of events, seems to have learned to purr since MJ passed away.
A couple of years ago he gave us a scare...we noticed that one of his eyes always seemed dilated.  After a bunch of tests at the vet, we came to the conclusion that he did not have diabetes, as the vet feared, but rather had apparently fallen off something and detached his retina.   He never has been a terribly coordinated cat...but seriously.
These days he is content to sleep on the chair of death in the kitchen or in the death closet upstairs as he ponders what is worthy of publication in the yearly letter.