Friday, December 28, 2007

A very special present

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with lots of love, good things to eat, fun and a few treats under the tree to delight you. Above all else, I hoppe you had a truly happy time. I know I did.

Remember how, back on December 15th, I said that I'd had news of a very special Christmas present, one that definitely was not going to be put into a parcel?

Well it arrived yesterday and made my Christmas 2007 really really special.


I should say SHE arrived yesterday because my special present is a little lady. Knowing how much I missed dear Bob since he died in September, and knowing that I had always dreamed of having a Maine Coon cat, the BM (bless him!) A 12 week old female silver tortoiseshell Maine Coon kitten. We went to see her just before Christmas, fell in love - and she finally came home to live with us yesterday.


So I'd like you all to meet Flora the newest member of the furry family around here.


So far she has settled in very well. Mandy, who bred her, says that she's wicked - and that's perhaps just as well as she has the big boys, Spiff, Dylan and of course Sid to contend with - and she doesn;t seem to be too over awed by them. Respectful and cautious but not over-awed. (Not awed enough, Sid would say - but he's keeping out of the way.)

She met the grandad Spiff (who is now the oldest)at16+ and they had a caustious greeting. Dylanjust stared from a distance. And Sid has disappeared back to his bed in the hope that that thing - whatever it is - will not be around when he next wakes up.


She's eaten well, found and used the litter tray, she slept well through the night and doesn't seem to miss her litter brothers and sisters at all. Perhaps the fact that there are other cats around has helped with that - or perhaps it's the fact that she has so much more space to wander about it and lots of interesting things to investigate in it.


She was fascinated by the television - never having seen one before and thought that the nice running horses on it were there just to entertain her. She's chased the ball around the room, chewed the squeaky mouse, upended the waste paper basket and investigated the contents and now she's fast asleep under my desk, just by my toes - which is where Bob used to sleep and a space that has seemed so sadly empty until today. Sensibly she hasn't tried to intrude on Sid's spot on top of the desk or - as my friend's Maine Coon kitten has done several times - leapt into the bath when it's full of water. But there's plenty of time for that sort of adventure yet to come.


So I expect that you'll hear more about her as she settles into family life and, hopefully, gets to know Sid better when he condescends to come and say hello - at the moment he's being the typical Alpha Male and being distant, difficult and unapproachable. But I'm sure that will change.


And it feels really lovely to have something furry sleeping under my desk again so that I can reach out and feel the soft warmth on my bare feet. I've missed that.


Oh - and I have to include a photo of Flora's Dad just becaus ehe is so spectacularly handsome - she won't grow to be as big as this but he is gorgeous.

11 comments:

Anne McAllister said...

Welcome, Flora! You're absolutely gorgeous. And you have certainly lucked out in the house to which you have come and the people (and cats) who are going to be your forever family. Merry Christmas to all!

Liz Fielding said...

Ah, she's gorgeous, Kate. :)

I used to have a cat that sat on the edge of the bath whenver I was in it. And occasionally leaned a little too close and fell in. He never learned!

Wolfy said...

Flora is just gorgeous. And I am glad she is settling in so well. We used to have a cat that as soon as you turned on the bathroom sink tap she would come running and leap on the toilet seat and up to the sink to play with her paw in the water. There were a couple of times when the toilet seat had not been put back down and she went for the unexpected swim, but never seemed to be deterred. Have fun with your newest addition.

Donna Alward said...

Adorable! My girls ooohed and aaaahed appropriately.

Jan Jones said...

Oh, Kate, how cute is Flora!

Lots of rubby, strokey greetings from me and my boys - who would probably behave a lot like Sid if they met your gorgeous girl in the fur!

Oh - Merlin says to tell her that falling in the bath is Not Sensible. Especially when one is endowed with more fur than the average feline. Been there, worn the towel.

Ray-Anne said...

She is adorable! Who needs TV when you have a kitten in the house?
And ditto what Anne said - that is one lucky girl.
Now - how are you going to get ANY work done with a new girl in the house?
LOL :-)

Margaret McDonagh said...

Oh my, Kate, Flora is beautiful. Please give her a cuddle from me.

My friend has a Norwegian Forest cat who looks very similar and has much the same colouring. Her name is Pandora and she is stunning. She came to visit me on Christmas Day! A fine treat. She was much taken with my screensaver (a hunky man, naturally!) so she has good taste!

I hope Flora continues to settle in well and brings you much love and joy throughout the years ahead. I shall look forward to hearing all about her adventures as she grows up.

Love,
Mags xx

Anonymous said...

Flora is so beautiful! I love Maine Coon cats, and my sister-in-law shows hers at cat fancys. My brother also has two fabulous Maine Coons. A solid black and a silber black one like Flora, both boys though.

And how sweet that she took that special place by your feet. Sometimes animals just seem to know something, don't they?

Anne said...

I've never met a main coon cat, except cyberly, and they sound and look wonderful. Flora looks a real sweetie.

Kate, the best cat TV I've ever experienced was when I went to my sister's place in the country one year to house-and-animal-sit. They had animals ranging from my niece's white mice, to budgies, fish, lizards, a dog and a sheep named Nanny (after my mother - she tried hard to be flattered, LOL.)

Anyway I took my dog and cat, but was worried about my cat wandering off and getting lost, or being eaten by a fox. No need to worry. She found the white mice, didn't she? They were in a glass aquarium, with a nice safe lid on top, but she spent most of her waking hours sitting in front of, behind, beside and on top of the glass box, watching mice balefully, as still as anything with just the tip of her tail flicking. Perfect cat TV.

All the best for the new year.

Madeline said...

Hi Kate, I met Flora on Annes blog. She is absolutely beautiful. My Sadie is jealous because, Flora gets to live with her idol Sid. Best of luck with her. I know she found a good home with you. Mads:)

Amanda Ashby said...

OMG - I want to pick Flora up and give her a great big smooshy (technical term). It looks like you got the best Christmas present ever, Kate and I hope you all have a wonderful New Year.

 

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