All quiet on the feline front...

For the past two days, I have not heard one hiss from the cats. Everyone is getting along, playing nice, eating together at the same time, and sleeping within inches of one another. Miracle of miracles.... or just four good cats. Mickey was the last to quit hissing.... I'm chalking that up to his reluctance to give up his baby-cat status.

When we took Sweet Pea to the vet, they told us that he's between three and four years old, a little bit older than we guessed him to be. He's still the youngest cat of the four, and he acts like it-- always needing the most attention.

We've been lucky with the cats that we've found over the years... except for one when we lived in Clear Lake that we named Groucho (because he looked like he had a bushy mustache)... all have stayed with us and become part of the family. (Groucho went to the shelter when he started relentlessly attacking the others-- and it wasn't play-fighting, either.)

If we still had AngelBoy, keeping Gatsby and Sweet Pea would not have been an option here, unless we had kept them outside. AngelBoy would not have tolerated more "company" in his little blue-eyed kingdom, and I would have been constantly following him with the canister of carpet-cleaning spray. I can still see those blue eyes of his in my mind, bless his little mischievous soul. I honestly try not to think of that beautiful fluffy cat because it still bothers me that I had to "put him down."

Even the chickens are getting along now. They've been out of the coop for a few days, walking around the yard and pecking in the dirt for bugs and worms. Audrey has not given up her Queen of The Coop title, and she lets the other hens know she's the top chicken. Prissy has given us three eggs, and Scarlett has also given us three. The Araucana (Mammy) has not laid any eggs at all, following in Audrey's Araucana footsteps. We're hoping that Mammy will gift us with one of her pale blue/green eggs. Scarlett's eggs are deep brown in color, and Prissy's are pinkish-beige, so it's been easy to tell which eggs are from which hen.

The weather has turned summery, and this morning we had breakfast on the front porch. We have had sunny and warm days, and it seems like we're on another planet, after the hard freeze we went through not long ago. Seems like it's already a somewhat distant memory. My husband is still working on the pipes for the cottage and the barn, but the house is done and has worked perfectly since his repairs.

I put up the Valentine decorations yesterday..... there are little Valentine trees dripping with red hearts, velvet heart boxes all over the living room and dining room, old Valentine cards, and little bits of red and pink heart surprises here and there. Mickey and ShadowBaby grew up with all these "extras" so they never touch anything; Gatsby proved his gentlemanly manners at Christmastime, and he continues to be a great non-touching cat; Sweet Pea has taken note of all the hearts but hasn't bothered one of them, not even the shiny red hearts dangling from the brass tree in the living room. Which is pretty amazing, considering he's been here less than a month. Maybe the other cats advised him that the way to my heart is to not touch all the pretty stuff.