We had Kittens!

Ok, so as most of you know, I LOVE anything to do with pregnancy and birth. Kinda strange, I know. But I do! I love feeling pregnant bellies, watching babies be born and even giving birth. I even remember when I was a little girl, sitting next to my pregnant cat Snuggles with my hands glued to her belly so I could feel the kittens moving around inside. So ever since we got our little kitty Annabelle last year I've been looking forward to her getting pregnant! (You can imagine poor Steven...he's so good to me) A couple of weeks ago Jake mentioned that Annabelle's belly looked bigger and that she had been laying around a lot (she's an outdoor cat that roams our land so I hadn't noticed). I ran outside and sat there with my hands glued to her belly and sure enough I felt kicks!!! And her belly was definitely round. I was so excited. I couldn't wait until we could watch her give birth. I thought it would be a great experience for the kids too. But I thought we had a while to wait still.

Well, about a week later Jake (our observant one) mentioned that Annabelle's belly didn't look big anymore and she wasn't laying around like she used to. I didn't think anything of it. I knew I hadn't imagined it all (especially since I had to feel her babies kick at least once a day!) Her babies couldn't just disappear! Ok, I admit I'm a little dense at times. It took me while to come to the realization that she could have had her babies! I just didn't think she was that far along. But sure enough, when I looked at her I could tell she had given birth. I was so disappointed! We missed it! And even worse, where were they? I was sure they were dead. I guess mainly cause Annabelle was just having the grandest time wandering around, chasing chipmunks and bathing in the sun. If her kittens were alive, she'd be a good mama and be taking care of them! And I didn't see how she could have carried them long enough. I mean, we just found out she was pregnant! I followed her around for way too long to see if she would lead me to them and finally gave up. I was sure they were dead.

So, when Steven came home that night he got the pleasant job of crawling under the house (in our not-so-fun crawl space) to see if the kittens were under there, since that is Annabelle's favorite spot. The kids and I were all huddled at the small opening trying to peer inside to see with our flashlights, yelling, "Do you see anything yet?" Poor Steven...he's SO good to us! Finally we heard back, "I found them." "Are they alive?" "Yes." Cheers go up from the crowd!!! "How many?" "Two." So, that's why she wasn't that big- I thought. "Are they cute?" "Yes." Steven's answers were short. Lol. "What do they look like? Are they nursing? What color are they? Do they look healthy?" Ok, way too many questions. Let's just wait till Dad can crawl out with them.

And here they are....



The pictures don't do them justice. They are so adorable. It's so fun to have little kitties to hold. The kids love them. We will probably keep one and give one away....we'll see. But we are enjoying them. Their eyes just started to open. It's a fun experience for the kids to watch the process. Oh, who am I kidding. It's fun for me! I guess I just love babies of all kinds :)

The Trail of Honor

Today we headed over to Jackson to participate in the Trail of Honor, a yearly event to honor those who have served and are serving our country in the military. It was quite amazing. The boys had a blast climbing into tanks, watching the helicopter show and Cavalry demonstration, and seeing all kinds of military paraphernalia.


We also walked the Trail of Honor, which takes you through all the wars of our American history, with live soldiers in costume and even demonstrations of canons from the Civil War (it was sooo loud!) They even had the traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall with all the names of those who died. It was very sobering.


Half way through the day we watched 500 motorcycle riders (mostly veterans) come down the highway and join the event. They are on their way to Washington DC. It's the annual Run for the Wall. They travel across the country from California to the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC, arriving on Memorial Day. They ride for those who can't.

It was a great day. We are so thankful for all those who have served our country. We thank God for this great land of America and pray that He will show His grace to us and preserve the freedoms that we have known here...that many have laid down their lives to protect. So that our children and our children's children will still be able to say, "I'm proud to be an American, where at least I know I'm free!"