Friday Four and More: Six in the Sun, 2017, and Six Weeks Old, 2007
These sunny September mornings remind me of so many other sunny September mornings at the basement door where nearly every cat in the house had gathered. I wanted to share one of them all gathered at the door from some time in those years. And you’ll see that September is also special because a decade before that, in 2007, they were six weeks old! I have a couple groups of photos shared from around that time below this photo.
I actually think I remember this photo from 2017 because of trying to puzzle out the two at the bottom when I took the photo then wanted to share it. I shared it on Instagram, but never shared it here. On those warm mornings I would open the basement door to the sun and they would all come down, either galloping down the steps as a group or arriving in pairs or singles, taking their places as they arrived, soaking up the sun in their favorite way.
Of course, Mimi was right-at-the-door because she knew we’d be going outside, and of course we did because, just because, and also because it was still prime gardening time for me, so lots to take care of out there. Mewsette was just beginning to come outside with us every so often, and when that became more regular she was at the door with Mimi.
From the top, Jelly Bean is on the left and Mimi is on the right. Next level is Basil sitting up next to the door making sure to get sun on his forehead, something he always loved best. Giuseppe is crouching in his famous cricket posture and soaking in the sun next to Basil.
In the back, Mr. Sunshine is curled up on the bottom of the cat tree where it’s totally warm from the sun warming the carpet and reflecting back on him. Mewsette is doing her sisterly duty of cleaning him up, licking his forehead and face.
I will always remember these simple moments in everyday life with all of them.
Photos from the archives in previous years
Six Weeks Old, September 10, 2007
Two littles having a nap after play in the bathroom. They are just about six weeks old and it was hard to believe how fast they grew and developed.
When I went looking for photos of them that I hadn’t used yet for this week’s “from the archives” photos I found these on just about exactly the same date, just these three photos, and I didn’t even remember them, but how cute—and, hey, isn’t that Mewsette and Jelly Bean? That kitten on the bottom certainly looks like Mewsette’s expression and in another photo it’s her nose, a little shorter and more rounded than all the others’. And Bean, on top, had a distinct shape to his face from very early on, a round muzzle but deep divots before flaring out into wide cheekbones unlike the others’ smoother cheeks, already wider set ears with brushes of white hairs, and his eyes were distinctly horizontal and leaf-shaped, pointed at the corners even then, where all his siblings’ were round. Here’s a closeup so you can see Jelly Bean’s face a little more clearly.
How purrfect! Of course, I’ve been thinking of them, especially as things settle down here and I get back into a routine (challenging as that has been). Last night I decided I’d post the photos this morning.
This morning I opened the photos and did my best to adjust the motion blur ( that old Olympus was pretty worn out by this time so it didn’t capture the kittens all that well) and in the third photo I saw the dabs of paint color on their ears: the kitten on the bottom had yellow, which was Mr. Sunshine’s color, and the top kitten had green, which was Giuseppe’s color; Mewsette’s was red and Bean had enough white hairs in his ears that I used that.
I could easily mistake Mr. Sunshine for Mewsette at that age, but Giuseppe’s face was entirely different from Jelly Bean’s, then and now. Giuseppe has always had more of an Oriental breed influence, especially on his longer and narrower face.
Well, maybe I just needed to see the two of them as kittens last night, and so I did. And maybe since we lost Jelly Bean I have mistaken Giuseppe for him more than once (more on that in another post). And maybe they decided to come for a visit this weekend and this was how they chose to do it. No matter how it happened, I still feel their presence. Below is a full photo of the mess they made before their nap.
At the bottom edge of the photo you can see the edge of a cardboard box, and that’s probably where the other two kittens are sleeping, and considering that if the two in the photo are probably Mr. Sunshine and Giuseppe, then it would be Mewsette and Jelly Bean napping in the box. They are there, even if unseen.
Tomorrow is Pet Memorial Sunday with Chartiers Custom Pet Cremation and for the past few days I’ve been making 20 memorial gifts for Deb to give to attendees who have submitted a photo of their pet and a 50-word tribute. Also, September is a magic month, I always feel the presence of more than my physical reality as the light and temperatures change and bring to me memories of Kublai in his last days and the time of my gentle introduction into their visits. One thing I will always remember is the joy of those four kittens and how they loved me from the start as I loved them.
Below, more kittens from a week before this photo, and a very young Mimi!
Photos from the archives in previous years
August 31, 2007, the Little Four
Twelve years ago today this is what the Curious Quartet looked like, just about one month old, and they’ve totally trashed their playroom once again. I’ve been intending to share photos of them from their first months every few days and totally failed in that, but I can still share the cuteness of a day with black kittens and their mom now and then.
You’re not going to show that one where they’re nursing while I eat, are you?
Well, Mimi, I felt really bad for you not ever being able to get a bite to eat without kittens nursing from you.
That’s all well and good, but I look horrible. And that one where I look like a beached whale and I’m showing every nipple on my belly?
Mimi, you are one cat who no one could ever describe as a beached whale. You’re just having a rest while your kittens admire you.
Do you have to?
In the interests of total disclosure, yes.
I’m so embarrassed.
Mimi, everyone knows that’s not what you look like now. Everyone will be glad you’re not having babies anymore! And you are beautiful!
Photos From the Archives and Vintage Photos
Photos pulled “From the Archives” were taken by one or another digital camera of mine between 2002 and, well, yesterday, but usually they are older than that, and I had never had the chance to feature them. Vintage Photos are from my film archives back to 1983 when I purchased my Pentax K-1000 camera. They’re a fun way to “introduce” other members of my feline family who came and went before I began blogging, and to illustrate my feline family in general from days gone by.
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Feline Photos from Portraits of Animals!
They have to do everything in groups of three, or four…or five. A friend gave me a new bed for them, and this is the result, four of them in the bed immediately, even if they don’t all fit. Jelly Bean is laughing because everyone is lying on top of him. How can I tell them apart? Well, look at those expressions! Read more and purchase.
Copyright
All images and text used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission, although links to your site are more than welcome and are shared. Please ask if you are interested in using and image or story in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of an image or a product including it, check my animal and nature website Portraits of Animals to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.
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Beautiful shots of your beloved house panthers.
Those little beans were irresistible. The big ones were too.