By Mousie, chronicler of family stuff.

Good morning friends.  I have decided to share some of Grammy's knitting with you.  She's been busy over the years with her needlework.  She sells some and donates or gives away much more.  

Now you know Grammy is ANCIENT and I mean really, really old.  So old that she's crochety.  *giggles*  Speaking of crochety... she crocheted a gazillion years ago but gave it up after developing  arthritis in her thumb.  I'll show you her last crochet project in our slideshow ... a grey shawl made for a friend.  

That is when she switched back to knitting which she hadn't done in years.  Oh, through those busy career years she'd pick up her needles and work on a project once in a while ... but months might go by between start and finish of a knitting project.

Then one day a friend saw a sweater pattern and that triggered her urge to knit again.  She picked up her knitting needles and hasn't put them down for more than a day or two at a time over the past 10 or so years.  She has made hats, scarves, a few pullover sweaters, and sweater coats, dog sweaters, a tea and bodum coffee cozies, a few lap blankets for the elderly.  Seldom a day goes by when she doesn't work on something.  In fact, over the past week she has finished two items, one we'll show (a white v-neck pullover) and the other (a shawl) must wait until the recipient gets it in late March.  We don't want to spoil the surprise.

When Grammy learned that she could do volunteer knitting for a hospital she was thrilled.  Chemo hats for the adult Cancer Ward and Preemie Gowns for the NICU.  These are the projects she chose to make because they are small and could be done while travelling on public transit.    She keeps the more challenging patterns to work on at home after she's worn us out.  For some reason she doesn't like us helping her.  Can you believe it?  Why, you ask?   Well...

Sweetie is quite adept at cutting the yarn with her teeth, running off with the crochet hooks used to fix a dropped stitch, and chewing knitting needles.   I like to disturb Grammy and lick her hair to distract her while mummy Whiskers steals into her lap and shares her fur with whatever item Grammy's knitting.   She's so unselfish that way. *giggles*

While the boys aren't into knitting, Etude does like to team up with Sweetie and steal knitting needles, play with knitting markers and toss whatever he can reach onto the floor.    He is a mischief.  Rondo, on the other hand ignores the knitting, sits on the arm of the chair and meows for more food.  He can be quite persistent and annoying, let me tell you.

Well, there isn't much more to say so I'll just post the slideshow with a sampling of her projects.  Boring, I know, but it keeps the old girl out of mischief.  Good thing too since that's our job.

You can see many of her projects on her Facebook page but we'll share a smattering here in a slideshow.   Hope we don't bore you.

https://youtu.be/_ASuODigEr8

Comments are welcomed.  Keep it fun.

by Sweetie, reporter of mischief and mayhem and tattletale.

Good morning, Friends.

Well, do I have a tale to tell!  Yes, I do.

Grammy has been scratching her head lately.  No, she doesn't have bugs.  She's puzzled.  She doesn't understand how after washing clothes and hanging them on the mobile rack to dry they end up with smatterings of fur on them.... and especially on the navy tees she wears as a volunteer at the hospital. As you know fur really shows on navy.  Especially white or pale grey fur.  Well, so does the black and brown but those whites and pale greys are very noticeable.  Yes they are!  Not only that but there's another puzzler.  Grammy noticed the latch that secures the rack from collapsing has been bent close to breaking point.  How can this be? 

Well, the other evening the old dear was stretched out on the sofa resting her aching self watching television when she heard a scrambling sound.  She looked around. Nothing!  Then she looked up! There about 3 feet above eye level was MOUSIE, our timid wee Mousie had climbed to the top of the drying rack.  She was balanced on the rods like a monkey on a branch.  Where?  Right in the middle of Grammy's navy tee.  Yes, can you believe it?  Can you? Let me tell you, you can.  I've seen her do this a couple of times.  *giggles*  What a little monkey!   Yes, Mousie is the Monkey!

Well, Grammy shouldn't be surprised because she's caught Mousie in various places she has no business being.... like on the window ledges when the windows are opened wide and at the top of the screen of the balcony door.  What's she doing up there, you ask?  I'll tell you!  Chasing flit-flies, no less.  You know... those little beasties that are attracted to light on a summer's eve.  I tried that once and tore a couple of holes in the screening. Grammy was not amused but we all were delighted.  Now those wee beasties could get inside and we could ALL chase them around the condo.  Such fun!

Of course, the other reason Grammy was not amused by my antics was this.  I'm not a feather-weight like our wee Mousie. She leaps straight up, grips with her needle-like claws to the mesh and hones in on the little flittery beasts in hopes one day she'll catch them.  I imagine if she had a prehensile tail she'd be swinging from the blinds in attempts to attain her target beasties - aka - protein 1 milicalorie at a time.  But Grammy put an end to that fun game after she caught me.   I guess I'm too heavy for the screening.  She had to dispose of the beasties and then mend the screen.  She can be such a spoil sport.  But then, I guess we understand.  Don't like it, but do get it.  It was a brand new screen installed only days before.  Ooops!

Mousie thinks nothing of racing to the top of the kitty condo and perching there like Snoopy in vulture mode.  Now, I must say I can climb too.  I love the kitty condo for that but even better is (and don't tell Grammy how I do it) to race across the livingroom floor, leap to the back of the arm chair then springboard to the top of the book case.   I loved to hide in Grammy's knitting basket and scare her.  She'd search for me everywhere and think somehow I had gotten out and then panic and hyperventilate.  Oh, it was so much fun to watch her.  *giggles*  But there I'd be crouched above her eye level on the bookcase hidden in plain sight.  If only she'd look up she'd see my ears peeking over the edge of the basket.  Such a fun game that was.  

You might ask why is the knitting basket kept up there!  Why, of course, to keep us from destroying it.  *giggles*

Grammy quickly put an end to that unfortunately.  The spoilsport bought plastic bins, filled them with her stash of yarns and claimed the space between bookcases and ceiling with those self-same bins.  Party-Pooper, Grammy! 

Well, I guess we'll have to put our heads together and find new mischief for tormenting Grammy.  Never a dull moment around Mischief and Mayhem Central. Oh no!  I guess that means both Mousie AND I are the monkeys.  Oops!  Open mouth change paws.

by Rondo, frustrated blogger

Good morning, dear friends. 
As you can see if you read my post yesterday on Facebook Grammy made a fibber out of me.  NO BLOG WAS POSTED!   No it wasn't.  The old girl gallivanted all afternoon and came home 'tired'.  After feeding us she sat down and tuned out our pleas to take dictation.  Not only that, when she did tune in again she ignored us and NOW she's saying she doesn't have time all week to help us with our blog.  So here we are posting a very short one - THAT WILL TAKE HOURS TO TYPE - as we have terrible typing skills and our paws are too big for the keyboard. 

Mousie has the smallest paws so she's been conscripted to do the keyboarding.   I must say she's doing her best to fix mistakes as she goes but please excuse any typos.

Let's keep this short.  We don't want to hurt Mousie's wee digits.  So, back to the delinquent Grammy (Mousie interjects - "Don't call Grammy that! She's busy looking after us!  She's not delinquent!)  Grammy has a busy week ahead so we may not be on Facebook or Messenger as often as we'd like but Mousie will try to post our Thursday and Friday posts.  If you are starved for Mischief and Mayhem may we suggest you check out some Youtube videos or our previous blogs.

Our very first and second - Moth Day and About US  and there are many more... including Whiskers' adventure to Austria in the Category Austria.  And if you still haven't had enough of us you could rewatch our video slide shows.

Our early years - https://youtu.be/_pwLimmkVIo
or you can Toodle around our city with Grammy - https://youtu.be/g-172LP7h60

Well, friends.  That's all Mousie's wee paws can do today.  Hopefully we can spare her next week and get our Grammy in gear to take dictation.  Meantime, have a wonderful week and know that we love you....

Oh, and don't forget!  It's Valentine's Day Friday!  Send your favourite sweetheart love and kisses. 

by Mousie, chronicler of mischief and mayhem

Good morning, friends. 
 
I'm a little bemused and dismayed.  We just the results of my latest bloodwork.  Bemused because Dr. Whitecoat just called to tell us nothing showed up in the bloodwork.  BUT, because I've been  throwing up a small amount of bile in the mornings despite Grammy making sure we eat after midnight.  This is upsetting to both the vettie and Grammy. 

So, I'm dismayed because for the next three days I have to have oral meds to settle the tummy.  This is a two person job and if that doesn't work then Grammy has to stick me with needles for an additional three days.  Grammy says it is a two person task because I am a wriggly little 'monkey' when it comes to taking medications.    I agree.  I am a wriggly little monkey but that's 'cause I don't like medicine. So there, Grammy!   BUT forget me.  I have lots to tell you about the sibs and mummy.

Grammy ordered Mummy Whiskers a new marshmallow bed.  I can attest to you that it is extremely comfortable.  Now, we all have tried the bed out and while we know it was purchased with Whiskers in mind, she's been kind enough to let us give it a test run.  Since then though, mummy decided it should be ours (hers and mine) exclusively.  I'm quite happy about that.  *giggles*

When Grammy checked our room she was so pleased to find mummy curled up in her marshmallow doughnut sleeping soundly.  It was the first time in weeks that she totally relaxed, so much so that she didn't stir when Grammy got out the camera and took photos.  Great choice, Grammy.  Good on ya!

The other item Grammy purchased at the same time was a fishy for us.  The company was quite generous and sent two since our parcel would be delayed in shipping.  We thought that was very sweet of them.

Now here's the thing about these fishies.  They are pretty big, in fact bigger than a catnip banana and almost as big as me.  Our usually intrepid Sweetie was a little put off by it as you'll see in the video collage posted at the bottom of this blog. 

Quite surprisingly, Rondo likes it though he isn't as active as Grammy would like. He reassured Sweetie that it was safe to play with but she is a little skeptical.  She doesn't trust those boys completely, and who can blame her.  They regularly entice her to snuggle with them and then pounce on her and bite her neck.  Nasty little twerps that they are.   Oh, don't get me wrong.  We still love them BUT they can be sweet and cuddly and absolutely adorable for ages.  And just when we let our guard down suddenly they snap and whichever of us is closest, Mummy, Sweetie or little darling me, get the bitey treatment. And it hurts.

So, back to the fishies.  They flip and flop around on the floor enticing the boys to play.  At least that was the idea.  Grammy opened the packages and there inside was a USB cable and inside the velcroed belly of the fish is a device that when charged and turned on will act like a fish newly pulled from the lake.  FLIP, FLOP, FLUTTER.  It is very funny. 

Oh while I remember, if you order one, you need to be able to plug it into a USB port either on the computer or with an adapter for the wall plug.  The wall adapter does NOT  come with it.  The good news is the android adapter for cellphones and apple adapter for the iPad will charge them.  A red light comes on while in charging mode and shuts off when fully charged.   Both fish charged quickly and have lasted a more than 4 days.

Also, there's an internal on/off switch so you can turn it off if the flipping and flopping is too scary for kitties or while they adjust to the action.   Leave it off over night unless you don't mind us playing with it at three in the morning.  It isn't loud but can be disturbing to sleepy humans or startling to sleepy kitties if accidentally kicked by a dopey Grammy.  

So, the fishies are a hit with Rondo, a curiosity for Etude, ignored by Whiskers and me and to be wary of according to Sweetie.  I think after watching the ads of kitties going wild with the fishies that our family is weird. 

Well, that's all for today, friends... except THIS VIDEO Grammy put together for you.  Enjoy.

Your wee Gentle Mousie signing off.

by Sweetie, chronicler of mischief and mayhem and the good stuff too.

Dear friends, 

As you may know Whiskers and Mousie were at the vet again last week. Whiskers has lost on average an ounce a week... which doesn't seem a lot but when you clock it out over the long-term she's losing a pound every 3 months.  THAT ISN'T GOOD. 

Mousie over the past few months gained one ounce. Better than losing but not great.  She is still under her pre-bladderstone weight.  She eats well, most days, but isn't gaining as we hoped she would.  In addition, her heart is beating very quickly.  Her issues are a challenge.  She needs a high salt diet for the kidney/bladder flushing but that raises her blood pressure which isn't good. Add to this her heart murmur and things are dicey at best.  So, more blood work has been ordered and we await the results.  

The reason we headed to the vet last week (besides their 6 week checkup) is because these two continue to throw up occasionally.  Grammy tries to ensure they get 6 meals a day and no more than 5 hours apart but occasionally she cannot manage it.  At those times it is very likely but not definite that one or the other will throw up foamy bile the next morning.  This is irritating Whiskers' throat.  So...

The new routine is to give Whiskers, the main culprit, a small dose of a tummy settler before her breakfast, give the other meds daily for a few days then switch back to alternate days and increase her pain meds to up to twice daily.  It seems to be working.   Only had to administer the tummy settler routine once and she was fine all day and the next morning despite Grammy sleeping 8 hours straight.  This is good as Grammy herself has been unwell and needs her own meds and rest.  

Meantime, both spend most of their time in the bedroom, sleeping and snuggling, cuddling and sleeping some more and join Grammy in the family area in the late afternoon and evening and sleep with her through the night. Of course, overnight the boys join Grammy on the bed too which makes for a crowded bed.

The boys seem to be losing weight slowly, which is how Grammy wants it... and despite regular attempts to snaffle an extra meal by harassing Grammy with mriaows of  60 decibels or higher they are doing well.  Neither is starving, I can assure you, though they would beg to differ.

Entering the kitchen seems to activate a stampede to said room and scream response.   Grammy is learning to ignore them when she enters the kitchen and she has also learned to avoid that room except at their specific meal times trying to plan her own mealtimes immediately after they've been fed.   Too bad we can't get them to race madly around the condo to get fit instead of to get food.  Silly boys.

I, Sweetie, am my usual sweet cuddly self.  I nuzzle Grammy's robe in the morning and again mid-afternoon if the boys haven't usurped my spot for a grammy cuddle. Nights are spent prowling the perimeter for errant dust bunnies and oak leaves.  I must protect the pride.

​Well, other than a few photos that's all for this week.  We'll update Facebook once we get the results of Mousie's bloodwork.  Meantime, life goes on.

by the Mischief and Mayhem crew with Grammy's help.

Dear friends.  
We have created a new video slide show that we hope you will enjoy.  Grammy suggested this would be quicker than making her think through and write a proper blog.  Boy was she wrong.  It has taken us all day... and we mean ALL DAY to put this together. 

It includes us, of course, our family, our in-laws and our friends local and far away.    Check it out, you may find yourselves in there. And if we've missed you, please forgive us.  We tried to include everyone whose photos we had in our albums.

We hope you will enjoy it. 

And if you haven't already done so, go to BIOS to read about our foster/adoption stories and to various categories for us and for our friends - Categories like All About Us,  Family, Other Kitties and Fur Friends and Photos, Videos & Slideshows.

So here is the link for our latest YouTube video.... Facebook Friends and Family 

Dear friends, we love you and look forward to your comments.

By Sweetie, frustrated blogger

Dear friends.  You'll never believe what happened! Grammy, our scribe, you know... the slacker who types our blogs Tuesdays instead of our requisite Monday, has really done it this time. 

I just spent all day dictating the blog...   and I must say, it was a good one.  T is For...  was Terrific, Timely and a Tummy Tickler.  We finally finished it,  she saved it and I asked her to add my profile photo and a few other pictures. 

What does she do?  She puts Etude's photo up.  How could she mistake me for that chubby fellow?  Huh?  Really!  How could she be that dumb?  Then to top it off when she deleted the photo she ended up deleting the whole blog.  Unfortunately, when she tried to pull up her last saved copy she had deleted everything.  That whole beautifully dictated blog is GONE! 

​So much for our generosity doubling her salary.  So, for now... this is all you get, dear friends. a dismal apology from us.   As a consolation we will add in a few photos in a slideshow... but that doesn't make up for such a mishap.   

We are still on the lookout for a new scribe.  Please if you are interested send us your resumes and we'll consider them thoughtfully and thoroughly.

by Gentle Mousie, cuddlemuffin and concerned blogger.  

Dear friends, 
A new year is beginning and that means we have a clean slate to write upon and already it has been marred.  Yes, marred.  As you must realize, we did not post a blog yesterday.  Not from lack of trying.  The scribe, you know - Grammy... well, she slacked off.  Obviously, she has her priorities mixed up.   

Of course, I realize that is the trouble with cheap help.  So, I called the others to a meeting to discuss this issues.  We five, sweet, cuddly fluffballs, sat down and had a discussion. This is how it went.

Whiskers spoke first and suggested we ought to increase Grammy's salary after all, she does do a lot for us as it is. The old dear might be more inclined to focus on us instead of all those other things that grab her attention if we grease the wheels, so to speak.  Rondo jumped up and started to freak.  As the sole breadwinner among the quintet he wasn't keen to cough up more moula.  He felt we were already paying her too much - you know - besides the excess attention! Don't forget all those cuddles we give her and the nightly hair grooming and hand washing while she (tries to) sleeps.  And those mock battles where we pounce on Sweetie to make her squeal that drag the old dear out of bed in the wee hours.

With that, Etude piped in and suggested we might check out what the economic inflation index was for the year and proceeded to do so.  Maybe we could manage somewhere around three per cent? What do you think? That wouldn't break the bank. Rondo wasn't having any of that... he felt we needed to conserve that to pay for the extra cost of food this year - especially now that we have three main diets to consider - and in 5 variations... Weight control for Etude (wet and kibble) and himself (kibble only, please), Urinary for Mousie and Hypoallergenic for Whiskers (which Sweetie can have if she doesn't want her regular food).  

Good point, Rondo. Well, at that point Sweetie jumped up and told the boys they were being stingy... (3% and no increase, pffft!).  She continued...We should be generous and offer Grammy a 40 percent increase.  That way maybe we could count on more cuddles and it would cover the cost of replacing the yarn we destroy when she's knitting.   WELL, I, Mousie, don't destroy yarn but as those that do are siblings and siblings should stand together, I thought that a very good idea.  Yes, a 40 percent increase sounded reasonable.  

With that, mummy Whiskers, who had nodded off while Etude was on the internet checking on inflation rates, woke up and sputtered and shouted out.  Why not bowl the old dear over and offer to double her salary?   You know, she does clean our litter boxes, feed us frequent meals a day, washes all our dishes and keeps our bedding clean ...  AND SHE PAYS THE BILL FOR THE HEATING to keep us warm.  Come on guys.  Show a little compassion here.  It's the NEW YEAR and we ought to show a little generosity here. 

Voice pipes up from the livingroom ... YOU DO REALIZE THAT DOUBLE $0 is still ZERO, don't you?  and BLOGS will be on Tuesdays this month!!!

Talk about ungrateful.    That proves it!  You cannot get good help these days, not matter how generous you are!

by the Mischief and Mayhem Crew

Dear friends.   One more short blog as we wind down 2019.  Grammy is taking these last few days to rest, get a few things caught up and spend some time knitting and cuddling us. We, as usual, will be eating, sleeping, purring and creating havoc for Grammy.  Well, you wouldn't want us to be bored or boring, would you?

So, we leave behind the negative things of 2019 and focus on the positives as we move into the NEW YEAR.  

Those are HOME, FAMILY, FRIENDS, HEALTH, HAPPINESS, a little TEASING and a LOT of LOVE for all.
May you all be Blessed with the same.
Love, Whiskers, Mouse, Sweetie, Etude & Rondo  Oh, and Grammy too.

Dear Readers, Friends/Family all...

Our blog will be brief but heart-felt.  We love you dearly and wish you all joy and happiness now and throughout the coming year.  

May you have fellowship with friends and family and the joys of plenty on your plate, all your needs fulfilled and enough to share with those in need around you. 

Merry Christmas from all of us at Mischief and Mayhem Central 
- Whiskers, Mousie, Sweetie, Etude & Rondo.... oh, and Grammy too.