He's A Kitty Cat

One of the things keeping me busy lately is this little fella. He's our cat number seven, Tirri the white siamese. He's been living with us for a month now and settled in nicely. Back when a friend was looking for a new home for her two cats, I told her Tirri can absolutely come live with us if she doesn't find a home that would take two cats. I had already forgotten all about it, when she contacted me and asked if I had really meant what I said. I said yes, and two days later Tirri arrived!

Tirri is turning ten in a few days, so he knows what he likes and those things are sleeping, eating and playing with cat teasers (as long as he doesn't have to jump). No kitten shenanigans either, which is lovely! Tirri immediately chose one of our armchairs as his nest and loves taking naps in it, occasionally with another cat next to him. At night he sleeps in the bed with us humans.

As a siamese Tirri has gorgeous blue eyes, even when he doesn't have the mask siamese are known for.

Tirri and Nivek sleeping. They are almost the same age (Nivek turns eleven in January and Tirri is ten in a few days) and seem to enjoy similar things. It's so nice to see the cats coming along well!

Tirri absolutely loves humans and likes being held. He seems very happy with the fact that my other half works from home and thus there's a lap available all day long. And just as I suspected, seven cats is not that different from six cats, especially with Tirri settling in so well and being a calm and well-behaved cat. So we are bordering crazy-cat-personness, but maybe not there yet ;D

Progress with Magnus the Kitty

Magnus the kitty came to live with us in March 2014. He was very shy and not that used to being around people, as he had been donated to an animal shelter at 6 months old and had possibly not been handled much before that.

That's why it was a great moment for me when Magnus finally voluntarily lay on my lap! He's taken a liking to my other half and jumps on his lap, but he's been much more careful with me. That's most likely due to the fact that my other half works from home so he spends a lot more time with Magnus, whereas I go to the office five days a week and have been traveling a lot this year. It's so rewarding to see how Magnus has opened up and to finally have him purring on my lap :)

We did coach him to come lay on my legs by having my other half sit next to me, have Magnus on his lap, then he put Magnus on my lap and slowly inched away ;D But it still counts as Magnus stayed on my lap for minutes and seemed to be enjoying it!

Demon Hunter's Day Off

I just had to get some less imposing pics of the Demon Hunter costume while at it ;D So this is what Demon Hunter's do on their days off.

Oh look, a kitty!

Don't you love me, kitty?

That's better!

Freedom! My hair is so long and thick it gets really hot under a wig ;D

Kitty Cats!

I bought a new lens for my camera on discount, and turns out it's the best kind of lens: the type that's perfect for taking photos of cats ;D I thought I took pics of all the kitties, but apparently Magnus is just so photogenic that most of his pictures came out great.

Magnus is a big boy now. He's soon a year old. That's Mör all foggy in the front!

Magnus in the sun. He has this exquisite shimmer in his coat that comes out in sunlight, it's impossible to capture but apparently should proves that he's a purebred bengal cat. It really doesn't matter, he can't go to cat shows anyway and he's a dear no matter what his genes are, but the glitter sure is pretty!

Nana looking grumpy as usual. She's turning ten soon and loves to just lounge on anything soft and warm. Humans qualify ;P

Nana with her awesome tusk!

Guess what this is?

Magnus loves my chiffon dress, so he pulled it on the floor from the laundry rack it was drying on and dove right in.

Then he took a thinking break pondering how to get out of the dress ;D

Finally! Freedom!

This is how he likes to sleep. With feet going every which way.

More of Magnus

Magnus the bengal cat has been doing great integrating into our cat pack. Magnus is now ten months old. When he came in the beginning of March, he was scared of human touch and stayed hidden for a few weeks, only coming out to eat. I think the turning point was when we discovered Magnus' great love for ham ;P

He still doesn't come to sit on anyone's lap, but I think it's close. He occasionally brushes against a shin of his own free will, and accepts being petted. He even purrs when touched, but sometimes it might be not from joy but being a little unsure of himself. Sometimes he clearly enjoys petting, pushing the top of his head against your hand and stretching out on the carpet, relaxed. He still sometimes hangs out on top of the huge wardrobe that was his safe place for the first weeks, but less and less, he loves to nap on the armchairs in the living room or on the bed. He doesn't enjoy being picked up, but he tolerates it, and also lets us clip his nails and clean his eyes, which is a great show of trust.

Magnus also loved our cat sitter and let her pet him, so I'm expecting him to become a very social cat some day! I think his breed ensures the natural curiosity, which is great for him getting used to new things. Even if something is a little scary, he still goes to have a look, instead of hiding.

He's also getting along with the other cats well. Magnus can be a bit rough when playing, but the adults then just stop and go away, I think that's the way young cats will eventually learn. Magnus loves feather toys and runs and jumps around until he's exhausted.

When he came, we were so worried when even the finest cat foods didn't get him to eat. Turns out he only wanted raw meat! But nowadays he eats canned food too, and occasionally tastes dry food too. He has grown well and seems to be pure muscle.

Like all kittens he's mischievous, occasionally attacking toes under a blanket or scratching something that's not allowed, but mostly he has stuck to his huge pile of toys (and hunting plastic pots of pepper sprouts from the hydroponic planting thingie...)

I'm really amazed at how fast he has made progress. In three short months he has gotten used to new humans and cats, started to eat new foods and he even sometimes listens when you tell him no. He's a very active but sweet cat, and I can't wait for the time he wants to come to my lap :)

Magnus the cat

On newest addition to the cat pack finally got a name. He's Magnus! Magnus has gotten a lot less shy, he now comes to beg for food with the other cats and takes food from my hand. He doesn't like to be petted but loves to play and isn't scared of my other half or me anymore. He also plays with the older cats and doesn't really mind if someone hisses at him, what a brave little cat. His favourite toys are balls, a light foam ball and a tennis ball make him bounce off the walls!

He likes destroying things and scooping water out of the water bowl ;P And hanging out on top of the 230 cm high closets in our study.

Magnus is a seven month old bengal cat.

Lounging in his favourite hideaway.

Enjoying life on top of a speaker.

Light in the House

Finally the sun has come out! It feels like spring when it still should be the coldest time of the year, but I'm not complaining. The streets are dry and the gravel has been swiped away, so I can take my spring shoes from the closet. In celebration I took a few pics of our apartment when the sun was up, it seemed like such a precious moment.

Mörkö taking a nap.

I got this plant from Ikea's discount department, I have soft spot for sorry looking plants.
Back when I got it it had three leaves in total.

My other half wanted to get a bed, so we found second hand one. I've had a mattress on the floor for years, but actually having a bed is quite nice, you can hide stuff under it! And cats too, they can hide themselves under it.

My orchid grew some more flowers and buds. The fuggler was my other half's gift
to me, and the vintage postcard of a Messerschmitt plane was my Valentine's gift for him :)

And a kitty picture! Our newest addition to the family still has no name, but he's now comfortable eating with humans or other cats present. He still doesn't like to be touched, but it'll come with time. He is such a handsome cat, I love the spots! So far he's broken two cups and shredded a magazine, stolen beef from my plate and gnawed at things (not the chewy things I got him, but on other things, naturally). I had forgotten how mischievous kittens are...

Kitteh!

We have a new family member. He still doesn't have a name and is feeling very shy. He's a six month old bengal kitten that came to us from an animal shelter. He likes to hang out behind the clothes dryer and on top of closets, but that's okay, it was clearly quite a shock to come to a new home.

I'm expecting earning the kitty's trust will be an interesting experience, I've asked for tips from a friend who works with rescued cats so I'm prepared! At the foster home he already played with humans, but wouldn't let anyone pet him. Here at our place he has sniffed my hand and my other half's hand, so we are clearly becoming friends slowly but surely :)

I was so worried when the kitten wouldn't eat the dry food we gave him, but the problem was that he wanted some real meat. Once that was in the cup, he ate it all!

The kitten came from Kissojen Suojelu, they have an excellent blog telling of the everyday lives of their foster homes, have a look! It's only in Finnish. Update! Kisu also has blog posts in English, you can find them via this link!

Friends with Kitties

Here's a few pictures of me and the cats who all look like they don't like me ;D They are such darlings!

Nana is so not interested. She likes to be in high places and probably just set her eyes on the shoe shelf above the doorway.

Mörkö has so many better things to do right now.

Nivek does not care, even when I babble to him.

Möttönen just looks bored. With crazy ears.

Kitties.

My other half tucked in the kitties and they looked super cute!

Crazy Lady Cat

Möttönen receiving much wanted attention from my other half. He really knows how to make Möttönen a happy little kitty by rubbing her ears just the right way while she lays on his lap belly up ;D

Kittens!

The weekend was somehow busier than I expected! On Friday, my other half and I went to have a look at a lovely kitten. He turned out to be maybe a bit too shy for our cat pack, the other cats would run him over, but he was super sweet. I took a ton of pictures, because who could resist kittens? There were six in the foster home, if I counted right. Surkis, the kitten we went to meet, is about seven weeks old and an orphan.

This is Surkis, he's still looking for a loving home.

So fluffy, and his paws are huge!

I love red cats, the larger kitten on the left was gorgeous! On the right is Surkis' sister, she's even smaller than Surkis.

Surkis' favourite hobbies seemed to be staring at toys and eating ;P

This is the season when abandoned cats and kittens are found by the bucketful. Some are wild, like Surkis' and his sister's mom, who had to be put down. The kittens were real fighters, they were lively and growing well, and had lots of company from the other kittens. Surkis wasn't the kitty for us, but if he seems like a match for you, pop to the Kissojensuojeluyhdistys page and find out more! They also have many adult cats waiting for homes, and there are soon more kittens coming, or so I heard.

The Orchid Is Blooming

The orchid I got from the supermarket early this summer is blooming! I'm usually totally useless with flowers, but the orchid and I really hit it off. This is the second time it blooms and now it has even more flowers than the first time.

We are moving on Friday and the apartment is a mess, most of the stuff is packed already and the cats love piles of boxes. They climb up on top of the boxes to take naps! I'm hoping our wallpaper will arrive on Tuesday so there would be enough time to put it up before the move, but we'll see. I still have some Christmas cards to paint and a flyer to design, but my other half will handle the last of the packing, so it shouldn't be a problem. I'm so happy everything is almost done, moving house is so stressful! 

Möttönen hiding in the kitchen shelf.

I hope the kitties will be fine with the new apartment! They haven't been too stressed with the packing, especially Möttönen is really enjoying herself. We have boxes that come flat, and as soon as you fold out a box, Möttönen will jump right in the check it out ;)

I might not be able to update the next few days, but I promise nice pics of the new home next weekend!

Outfit of the Day

This is what I wore yesterday. We went to have dinner with my parents, then to see Näsilinna palace because it was open on the night of the museum's, and continued to a party. A long day but lots of fun!

Top - Gina Tricot

Belt - Only (maybe, it's super old)

Skirt - H&M

Shoes - Spirit Store (second hand)

Then some shots of how to take outfit pictures with cats ;P

Nana wants some attention.

Then looks super scared ;D
You can also see the back of the top, it's really pretty.

Nana the Supercat! With a grumpy Möttönen below.

And finally they both pose nicely!