Well I'm afraid to say that our poor little Herbs are now motherless as I removed Amaretto from them yesterday afternoon which meant that they have no mum. I did however, give them a "new" mum in the form of Cacao, the only difference with their new mum is that she doesn't have any milk for them so they have to rely on the food I give them and the dry food. Poor Amaretto looks so terribly out of condition and thin and we just couldn't risk having her with the babies any longer so I'm hoping that within a few days of just being a normal cat with no dependants, her milk will dry up and she'll start to look like she used to before the babies were born. The Herbs don't appear to have missed Amaretto at all but this could be because Cacao smothers them with attention, more attention in fact that their own mum used to give them. I didn't leave Cacao in with them all night though. When I fed them their last meal at about 10pm, I removed Cacao and made sure that I left food out and they were actually without a mum for the night. The reason for this was that although I know Cacao is fine with the babies, and she appears to think they are hers, I wasn't 100% sure about leaving her with them overnight in case anything went wrong. She was allowed back in first thing again this morning and will be remaining with them all day (if she chooses to). The door leading into the back room is open during the day so the little ones and Cacao can choose whether or not they wish to remain in the room or wander about. There's no choice in Cacao's mind at all though because she won't leave "her" babies at all :) My only worry is that if Amaretto isn't around, the Herbs' weight gains (particularly Thyme's) may start to drop but so far everything is going fine and all the weights are stable and no one is losing so I am rather relieved. The only thing I'm not happy about is that Cacao insists on sitting in the kittening box, taking in whatever kittens will go with her, and I was hoping to be able to remove the box this week as the babies prefer the bed near the radiator, just to give us a bit more floor space in the back room. All the Herbs are now much braver when it comes to exploring the whole house and it's not unusual to suddenly find a baby under the dining table or wandering off into the lounge room and I'm so very pleased that none of them are bothered by our 2 dogs at all.

This is really starting to turn into a "Thyme" diary as opposed to a litter diary so I really must apologise to our Herbs new owners because I do feel lately that the main centre of attention (for obvious reasons) is Thyme and the other Herbs are not getting as many mentions. Having said that, I'm going to start this one off about Thyme again just to let you all know the progress we've had. In the last 24 hours, not only has she actually gained weight (a miracle!), she's also been actively playing with her brothers and sisters as opposed to just sitting in the corner. Every time the Herbs were playing yesterday and this morning, Thyme joined in. She also ran around the room with them and at one point, I saw her about to do a wee on the bed, so I picked her up, put her in the litter tray which she hadn't used before and not only did she do her little wee, she also covered it up so I was pleased. I haven't pushed litter training with her at all as my main concern was keeping her alive as opposed to worrying about a mess here or there. So anyway, she appears to be coming on in leaps and bounds again for which I'm very grateful. Now as for our other little darlings, they truly are just the funniest little beings in the world. When they are playing, I could just sit and watch them forever because they interact so well with each other and do the most amusing things. Like this morning for example, Tarragon and Rosemary were chasing each other around the big water bowl, when Rosemary wasn't looking where she was going and stepped straight into the much smaller water bowl that was right next to them. She was most unimpressed with this and I swear that Chives, who was sitting on the bed watching avidly, actually laughed at Rosemary's misfortune. She wasn't laughing for long though because Sage snuck up behind her and bit her on the bum! Their play fights are still such fun to watch and it's still Sage, Parsley and Chives who are normally the instigators. Parsley and Sage, both being boys, definitely have an advantage when it comes to size, however the girls tend to have more stamina and will not back down at all when the boys wrestle with them. I felt very sorry for Sage yesterday afternoon because Amaretto decided (for once) that she would actually lie down with the Herbs and let them feed and I don't know what Sage did but next thing I saw and heard, was Amaretto smacking him one, so hard that the poor little guy fell off the hooded bed, and just sat there, with his back to his mum and the rest of the litters and didn't move. My heart went out to him because whatever he did, certainly didn't warrant that treatment so I went running over and stroked his ears and talked softly to them (whilst glaring at Amaretto!) to try and make him better. Once Amaretto finished feeding them, I gently picked him up and put him on the bed however he was very quiet for about an hour after that. Every single one of the Herbs now drinks water which is very good because the time really has come to move Amaretto away from them altogether as Graham and I are getting worried about her condition. Up until now though, I was concerned that if she's still feeding the Herbs of a night, if I took her away and they weren't drinking water, then they might dehydrate during the night because of the lack of mum's milk. Now that they all know where the water bowls are and what they're for, this is no longer a concern and chances are that tonight will be the last night Amaretto spends with her babies for a few days. The Herbs also no longer sleep in their box as they have a new bed. During the last few days, they have all been more interested in sleeping on the floor underneath the radiator so I put a hooded cat bed there and rearranged a few bits and pieces and they have all now made that their bed area. I am considering moving their kitten box now from the room but will give it a couple of days just to make sure that no one actually uses it any more.

I couldn't believe the amount of show we had when I woke up this morning! Even the babies were peering through glass wondering what the white stuff was. It won't be a long entry as we have quite a lot on today. The Herbs had some fun with "Aunty" Cacao late yesterday afternoon. Cacao came into the back room, took one look at the Herbs and yet again decided to adopt them. She was in her element and the Herbs fell in love with their new mum straight away. It was so funny to watch because it made no difference at all to the little ones that Cacao wasn't their mum, but the fact that she showered them with attention and wouldn't let them out of her sight was more than enough to keep them happy. I let them all play together for a little while then I removed Cacao because at this stage, Amaretto is still feeding the little ones (not much though) and I didn't want her getting to upset. I was thrilled today to see that Sage also now eats the dry food, so that's 3 babies who eat it now which is great because I'm hoping that once the snow stops, I can move Ice back outside and will put Amaretto in the kitten room for a few days so her milk can dry up and she can have a well deserved break from her Herbs. They are really taking it out of her at the moment and she looks so very thin and so tired and we just want to get her back to normal again. Litter training is now improving because I noticed that when the Herbs use the litter tray, they now are learning to cover up their messes. They don't manage to cover them fully but they make a huge effort and try so very hard so I'm really proud of them :) Little Thyme has been playing a lot more again, both yesterday afternoon as well as this morning and she even climbed to the top of the little pyramid (despite the fact that Chives was biting her on the bum as she climbed), and it's the first time she's ever shown an interest in it at all so I was delighted.

I must say one thing before I start of the entry this morning and that is that within the last 24 hours I have been overwhelmed by all the floods of emails I have had with regards to Thyme. I've been truly astounded to be receiving emails from people I don't even know, along with emails' from the Herbs' new owners and countless others. Some emails have been telling me of their own experiences with tiny little ones, others have said how they've been following her progress and that they are praying for her to get well and they all brought tears to my eyes. There is so much kindness and love in these emails and I am very touched by them all. So a very big thank you to each and every one of you for taking the time to write to me as it means so much.

It's going to be a very slow typed entry this morning as I have a girl on my lap who is 5 weeks pregnant and is feeling sorry for herself and wants lot of attention so I keep having to stop to chat with her. I often think that one of things that makes breeding so worthwhile is new owners and I witnessed that just yesterday during Linda and Emma's visit. Just to watch Sage and Parsley curled up in their arms, snuggling in and looking up at their "new mum" and watching the expression on Linda and Emma's faces is really the most wonderful feeling and I know just how much those 2 boys are going to be loved when they are with Linda and that's really a lot of what breeding these beautiful cats is all about. Both boys behaved really well (putting on a good show because I think when they read what I wrote about the Herbs yesterday they were worried that Linda might change her mind!). Another good thing that came of yesterday's visit is that upon discussing the boys pet names' we came up with a great theme idea to call a future litter after. Then again this morning, I learnt yet another valuable part of breeding and that is to ALWAYS make sure I look in litter trays before cleaning them out because this morning I was unlucky enough to put my fingers in someone's poo! Not the most pleasant thing I can assure you. The little ones made me laugh this morning because Parsley was being a very good boy and using the litter tray and he was just getting stuck into it when two great lump fell on his head from above. The look on his face was absolutely priceless. Tarragon and Rosemary had been sitting on top of the cylinder shaped kitten post when it suddenly occurred to then that there is no point in using their energy to climb down the post when they could just fall directly onto the poor unsuspecting Herb using the litter tray. It was so very funny and I'm not sure who was more surprised, Parsley, or the girls. Parsley was indeed annoyed at having his "morning motions" so rudely interrupted whereas it obviously didn't occur to the girls that while Parsley was a soft thing to land on, they would still end up flat on their faces in amongst the litter. Within a minute, the three babies had scrambled out of the litter tray, shaking themselves off and going off in opposite directions. Before any of you ask, no it's not a big drop, and yes I did check to make sure they were alright (inbetween laughing that is). If that little incident wasn't enough, next thing you know, Sage decides to try the same thing except he didn't bother waiting until anyone was in the tray so he'd have something soft to land. He just took a flying dive straight into the tray, landing in someone else's mess I might add. He wasn't hurt either, however he did need to be cleaned off afterwards :) Apart from that, it's been otherwise uneventful this morning but the day is still young! I'm really proud of the first 3 photos, not because they are great photos, but because for probably the first time, they show Thyme actually playing with the other Herbs. In the first image, she is wrestling with Chives. Normally, they try and wrestle with her and she moves away as they are so large and boisterous but this time she really wanted to play. The next 2 images show Thyme sneaking up on (she would call it stalking) Sage and Chives.

Before I start with the actual normal diary itself I want to give you all an update on my little Thyme. Graham and I spoke about her last night and decided to take her into the vets this morning. I phoned the surgery and they told me to bring the litter in at 9:50am. The vet who saw her (my own vet is on holidays) told me the one thing that did bring me a lot of relief and that is the fact that her heart sounds perfectly normal and there's no indication that anything is wrong with the heart. She gave her a thorough check, including a urine test (and when she was holding little Thyme, that was the moment Thyme chose to wee, on the vet and the table and the sheet I had put down) which was also fine. She couldn't find anything untoward that appeared not right with her so I was very relieved to hear that. She suggested that we actually worm her, a 3 day course, followed by 2 weekly so we will be starting that today and to keep doing what we've been doing with her up until now. If Thyme takes a turn for the worse or something goes very wrong, then we can take her back in and the next step will be an x-ray. It is quite possible that Thyme may just be (and I hate this word) the "runt" of the litter and will always be tiny. I know this does happen but we've never had a baby like this before. I am just so very pleased that her heart sounds perfectly normal because I was becoming really worried about that. I guess now we'll follow the advice and start the worming treatment and see how we get on with her. She did also say that the other Herbs all looked fine and were progressing really well.

Now onto the "normal" diary entry. Our little ones ventured out again into the rest of the house yesterday afternoon and they're starting to find their way around slowly but surely. Little Thyme is still holding her own which is good news and in the last 24 hours she's actually been playing a lot more than she was a week ago so I'm hoping that it also a good sign. All the Herbs are now starting to make their presence known well and truly, not by their noise, but by their mess. Why is it that my babies are always so messy???? They put litter everywhere, leave their food everywhere, Parsley did a little wee under my desk today so quite naturally, two other babies walked straight through it, leaving little wee paw prints across the floor! I found a few little poos in rather unsuspecting places as well. (I'm blaming the Oriental babies for those as I'm constantly seeing the Siamese babies in the litter trays). To say nothing of the fact that Chive chews the cardboard box and leaves very tiny shreds of cardboard on the floor, and that is only some of the mess they make. It doesn't matter how many times I sweep the floor, within minutes, it looks likes a mess again. And sweeping, that's another thing.......I wait until the babies are asleep in the box before getting the broom out but lo and behold, as soon as I have made the first sweep, they come running out of the box, straight through the stuff I have swept up and scattering it everywhere. All I can say is thank goodness we don't have carpet here! I'm sure though that all your new owners who are (hopefully) reading this will be very pleased to know that by the time your little ones do actually leave me, they are much cleaner than they are at this stage of their lives :) Actually, having just re-read what I typed, chances are that I've now put you all off having a Schimmel baby, in which case, I guess I could just keep them all. Parsley and Sage will be having a visit today from Linda, their new owner, although I truly don't think she realises what she is getting into with that pair. They are just typical boys, boisterous, noisy, and always starting trouble. But on the other hand, they are incredibly loving and very cuddly, which should more than make up for their boisterous moments. As I've been sitting here typing this entry, I have discovered why they are such messy eaters. Amaretto currently has her head stuck in the food bowl and she is leaving bits of food all over the darn floor! I don't this this is so much hereditary as the fact they the babies tend to copy their mum's actions so if it's good enough for their mum to spill food everywhere, then it's good enough for them. On that note, I shall now finish this entry and go and sweep the floor yet again :) I haven't taken any photos yet today but will take some this afternoon and put them online after that, so don't forget to check back at a later date for today's photos :)

I'm finding it difficult to type this entry due to the fact that darling Thyme is on my lap and resting against my arm. I was relieved when I weighed her this morning to see that she hadn't lost any weight over night and I'm hoping I can get her to make some gains during the day. It's not going to be a particularly long entry because to be perfectly honest with you, I'm feeling very down about my little Thyme at the moment. Some days are really good and full of hope, other days (like today) are the total opposite and at the moment, each day that we have with her is an absolute blessing. Today's photos are really dreadful so I've included what was the best of a very bad bunch. I was very pleased last night to see Tarragon (or it could have been Rosemary) also eating the dry kitten biscuits. Up until now it's only been Parsley but it would appear that another one has decided the biscuits are good to snack on between meals. I removed the barrier again yesterday afternoon but only Parsley and Sage decided to venture out into the house which did surprise me as the day before, they couldn't wait to get out and explore. Amaretto is now spending less and less time with them during the day which isn't a particularly bad thing because it means that she is getting a well deserved break and the babies are not relying on her quite so much for their meals and are becoming more dependant on what I feed them (and hopefully the biscuits). Of an evening though, Amaretto is obviously with them all night long.