Well, I went into the kitchen today and got quite a surprise. I heard whimpering and turned around and Nikita had one of her kittens by the back of the neck and was carrying it around the house! Ooooook! I soon learned that sometimes if the kittens are being handled too much and the mother just wants a new nesting spot. She had the kittens in the corner of our dining room, but after they were born I moved them into our bedroom in a box. But I'll admit, seeing them there all the time makes us all want to hold them and pet them. So I ended up moving "the box" back into the dining room where she had them. It's also set back in a corner between furniture so she probably feels safe back there. I also found that with the kittens back there, we're not as tempted to go and touch them. Plus, I think Nikita enjoys being a bigger part of our family now rather than set back in our bedroom.
I'm also preparing more for the NCLEX. I have to work up the motivation to finish the work from my summer classes (English and Philosophy). That way nursing can be my number one priority.
Oh! I almost forgot! Ok, let me back up a little. I have started trying to save money on groceries. I've done a good job clipping coupons and taking them to the store with me. I've been lucky enough to start saving $5-$10 each time. But lately I have been starting to save nearly $40!!! I'm so proud of myself LOL I needed to buy a new air freshener can for our spray machine thing. I had a coupon for $1 off. That was going to make it about $4 a can. But I looked at a whole starter kit that was normally close to $10 on clearance for $6. I took another look at some old coupons I had clipped and I had a $4 off coupon for a starter kit. I got a $10 starter kit for $2!!! YAY!!! I'm getting there! I also saved $5 off of razors for Marty. They were about $8. The refills were around $5 and I had a $3 off coupon. I got $13 worth of "premium" razors for $5. Marty tends to break out real bad with cheap razors, so I wanted him to try something of better quality. I found a $3.50 off coupon for kitten food that only cost $4 something at Walmart. Plus the manufacturer gives $1 to an animal rescue center of your choice! How cool is that?
I'm hoping to start posting online coupon links for everyone to start getting great deals on things. Especially when you combine it with a clearance price. You can end up saving 90%!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
Things I'm learning about Newborn Kitten care
Like I said, when come across something new I research the heck out of it. With this being my first time at having a cat have kittens I needed to know what to expect. So here's what I'm learning so far:
1) Newborn kittens nurse the first 24 hours receiving a heavy dose of antibodies and vitamins through the queen's colostrum. Just like human mothers produce a fluid that isn't white like milk, so do cats. So it's very important for the kittens to nurse this first 24 hours.
2) The mother will lick her kittens bellies and behinds to stimulate a bowel movement and urination. This continues for two to three weeks.
3) Keep food, water, and a litter box nearby for the mother to use. Offer food and water frequently. Just keep it out of reach of the kittens. The mother should eat a high quality cat food, preferably one for kittens because it provides the extra vitamins and nutrients. Her appetite will double in the next one or two hours.
4) The kittens should nurse every 1-2 hours. They should have a round belly and sleep quietly. If they are restless and not nursing, they may need a supplement. If they get weaker they will become still and not cry.
5) The site that I read from says to weigh the kittens daily. They should start around 100 grams and go up 7-10 grams a day. By day 14, they should be double in weight.
I suppose this is mostly what I need to know right now. I'm going out today to get a good quality kitten food for Nikita. A vitamin supplement probably wouldn't hurt and was recommended through www.peteducation.com. I'll check with the vet. I probably should have done all of this before the kittens were born LOL
1) Newborn kittens nurse the first 24 hours receiving a heavy dose of antibodies and vitamins through the queen's colostrum. Just like human mothers produce a fluid that isn't white like milk, so do cats. So it's very important for the kittens to nurse this first 24 hours.
2) The mother will lick her kittens bellies and behinds to stimulate a bowel movement and urination. This continues for two to three weeks.
3) Keep food, water, and a litter box nearby for the mother to use. Offer food and water frequently. Just keep it out of reach of the kittens. The mother should eat a high quality cat food, preferably one for kittens because it provides the extra vitamins and nutrients. Her appetite will double in the next one or two hours.
4) The kittens should nurse every 1-2 hours. They should have a round belly and sleep quietly. If they are restless and not nursing, they may need a supplement. If they get weaker they will become still and not cry.
5) The site that I read from says to weigh the kittens daily. They should start around 100 grams and go up 7-10 grams a day. By day 14, they should be double in weight.
I suppose this is mostly what I need to know right now. I'm going out today to get a good quality kitten food for Nikita. A vitamin supplement probably wouldn't hurt and was recommended through www.peteducation.com. I'll check with the vet. I probably should have done all of this before the kittens were born LOL
Nikita had her kittens!
Good thing Cody was up early today (for him on summer break that means 10 am). I was up sick the night before and took Phenergan to stop the N&V. But when Cody came in to tell me Nikita had her kittens I jumped out of bed right away.
A few weeks ago I turned our walk in closet into a "safe room" for Nikita to have her kittens. Wouldn't you figure she chose the bare floor in the dining room corner to have them? LOL She only had one kitten at this point, so when it looked safe I offered her box (with towels and newspaper) to her and she climbed in right away.
Despite my wild fascination with the whole "Miracle of Life" process, I tried to hang back as much as possible. I tend to over-research topics when they are presented to me and I read that it's best to leave the birthing queen alone. When they are laboring and feel threatened (or a big audience) they will actually stop. So I put up some boxes to give her a sense of privacy and she seemed so much at ease.
Cody and I got to see her deliver 4 more kittens. She has a total of 5. Fortunately, none of them were stillborn. I watched kitten delivery videos on youtube and a few of them said stillbirths aren't uncommon. I didn't want to see her deliver a stillborn kitten, but I was prepared. Thank God she didn't.
After she was done I removed the wet newspaper and left her with some old towels. Actually, I think that worked out really well and I recommend it to anyone who has a pregnant cat (queen). Put a few layers of old towels down in a box with several layers of newspaper on top. After she delivers just pull out the newspaper so she has clean, dry towels under it. She will lick her kittens constantly and that with a combination of the dry towels will dry them off and help them keep their body temperature up. Just in case something went wrong we had a small box with a heating pad on "Low" and a blanket on top. A sort of "warmer" for the kittens. But my intent was to let Mother Nature (& Nikita) do her job.
I was really proud of Nikita. She really knew what to do and took over. The kittens basically nursed all day and night. She stayed with them, except for a couple of short walks within eye shot of her kittens.
I did have a little scare when I thought I felt another kitten inside of Nikita. I was worried because after Nikita had her 5th kitten she still pushed a little. So I was very concerned about another kitten being left behind. I called a nearby vet's office, who suggested I bring her in. It was $75 for an office visit (which I really don't have), $100 for Xrays (to see if there were any more kittens), and $900 for a cesarean if there was another one in there. I REALLY don't have that. I got kinda emotional at that thought because I knew I couldn't give her all of that and if a kitten was left behind she would certainly die from infection.
But I took her to the vet anyone. They took Nikita and the kittens back. I told them that she was a stray that I took in one day when I saw her nearly passed out under our living room window. The cat that we adopted (Sara) was spayed to prevent pregnancies that we couldn't afford (& to do our part for decreasing the kitty population). I was trying to do the right thing by rescuing this cat and now I was being confronted with a situation where I HAD to chose to possibly let her die. I was so upset.
The lady came out a short while later. She said the vet felt Nikita's belly and although it was hard, there were no more kittens. But she wouldn't know for sure unless an x-ray was done. Because this was a stray she wasn't going to charge us. Thank you Lord! I appreciated that SO much!! I wanted to do what was right, but I couldn't afford it by a long shot. Fortunately, Nikita would be ok.
So I took Nikita home and laid her in her box with her kittens. I put the box on my bed and laid there next to them until I fell asleep. I needed a quick nap so badly!
I fell asleep to the sound of whimpering kittens being warmed and loved by their mother. It was so wonderful!! Here are the pictures I took on my phone (please forgive the poor quality). There are two orange ones, a black one, a white one, and a gray one. Now I know who the kittydaddy is. The black and white one prowling the neighborhood!
A few weeks ago I turned our walk in closet into a "safe room" for Nikita to have her kittens. Wouldn't you figure she chose the bare floor in the dining room corner to have them? LOL She only had one kitten at this point, so when it looked safe I offered her box (with towels and newspaper) to her and she climbed in right away.
Despite my wild fascination with the whole "Miracle of Life" process, I tried to hang back as much as possible. I tend to over-research topics when they are presented to me and I read that it's best to leave the birthing queen alone. When they are laboring and feel threatened (or a big audience) they will actually stop. So I put up some boxes to give her a sense of privacy and she seemed so much at ease.
Cody and I got to see her deliver 4 more kittens. She has a total of 5. Fortunately, none of them were stillborn. I watched kitten delivery videos on youtube and a few of them said stillbirths aren't uncommon. I didn't want to see her deliver a stillborn kitten, but I was prepared. Thank God she didn't.
After she was done I removed the wet newspaper and left her with some old towels. Actually, I think that worked out really well and I recommend it to anyone who has a pregnant cat (queen). Put a few layers of old towels down in a box with several layers of newspaper on top. After she delivers just pull out the newspaper so she has clean, dry towels under it. She will lick her kittens constantly and that with a combination of the dry towels will dry them off and help them keep their body temperature up. Just in case something went wrong we had a small box with a heating pad on "Low" and a blanket on top. A sort of "warmer" for the kittens. But my intent was to let Mother Nature (& Nikita) do her job.
I was really proud of Nikita. She really knew what to do and took over. The kittens basically nursed all day and night. She stayed with them, except for a couple of short walks within eye shot of her kittens.
I did have a little scare when I thought I felt another kitten inside of Nikita. I was worried because after Nikita had her 5th kitten she still pushed a little. So I was very concerned about another kitten being left behind. I called a nearby vet's office, who suggested I bring her in. It was $75 for an office visit (which I really don't have), $100 for Xrays (to see if there were any more kittens), and $900 for a cesarean if there was another one in there. I REALLY don't have that. I got kinda emotional at that thought because I knew I couldn't give her all of that and if a kitten was left behind she would certainly die from infection.
But I took her to the vet anyone. They took Nikita and the kittens back. I told them that she was a stray that I took in one day when I saw her nearly passed out under our living room window. The cat that we adopted (Sara) was spayed to prevent pregnancies that we couldn't afford (& to do our part for decreasing the kitty population). I was trying to do the right thing by rescuing this cat and now I was being confronted with a situation where I HAD to chose to possibly let her die. I was so upset.
The lady came out a short while later. She said the vet felt Nikita's belly and although it was hard, there were no more kittens. But she wouldn't know for sure unless an x-ray was done. Because this was a stray she wasn't going to charge us. Thank you Lord! I appreciated that SO much!! I wanted to do what was right, but I couldn't afford it by a long shot. Fortunately, Nikita would be ok.
So I took Nikita home and laid her in her box with her kittens. I put the box on my bed and laid there next to them until I fell asleep. I needed a quick nap so badly!
I fell asleep to the sound of whimpering kittens being warmed and loved by their mother. It was so wonderful!! Here are the pictures I took on my phone (please forgive the poor quality). There are two orange ones, a black one, a white one, and a gray one. Now I know who the kittydaddy is. The black and white one prowling the neighborhood!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
It FINALLY arrived!
After almost exactly two months after graduation I FINALLY received the ATT giving me authorization to take the NCLEX. I suppose the timing is good. I got one of my laptops back today. So now it will be easier to get my two classes done for the semester. For my English Comp class I just have a 3500 word essay to get done. For Philosophy I have two finals, an essay, and a couple of discussion postings to do. Then I'm DONE! I'm scheduled to take the NCLEX on August 4th. So that will give me some time to do some extra studying for the exam.
Still no kittens. She'll probably have them the night before the NCLEX. HAHA! She sure does sleep alot. Sara is getting more relaxed, but I think she is still a little scared of Nikita. Nikita is getting protective and slightly territorial. She never hisses, she just stares Sara down. That gets Sara nervous and she hisses at her. So when I see Sara kinda cornered I intervene by picking her up and walking her into the next room. We will see!!!
Still no kittens. She'll probably have them the night before the NCLEX. HAHA! She sure does sleep alot. Sara is getting more relaxed, but I think she is still a little scared of Nikita. Nikita is getting protective and slightly territorial. She never hisses, she just stares Sara down. That gets Sara nervous and she hisses at her. So when I see Sara kinda cornered I intervene by picking her up and walking her into the next room. We will see!!!
Monday, July 13, 2009
CoverGirl Outlast Lipstain Review (BzzAgent)
First of all I want to let everyone know that I belong to a website that is totally cool. The whole point of it is to tell others about products that you try and love (or maybe don't love). After building your way up, you are able to join a "campaign" where a manufacturer will send you their product to try out and tell others about it. The name of this site is BzzAgent.com and that makes me a BzzAgent! LOL So anyways, with this review I am NOT told what to say. I tried this product and this is my honest opinion.
Ok, with that being said, now on to CoverGirl Outlast Lipstain. It comes in a nifty tube that is like a thich Sharpie. The part you apply the lipstain is like a thick marker. It says it has a great scent, but I thought it was too light to really notice.
I tried the Cinnamon Smile color. I have to wear lip color that has a brown shade or else it looks too bright and orangey on me. So I chose this. Unfortunately, it came out more of a red color on me. Not saying this is how it will work on everyone, but that's how it did on me.
I do like how you are able to adjust if you want just a little or more intense color and you can line your lips with the sharper point. And it doesn't feel heavy on your lips like traditional lipstick can. This is definitely a bonus during the summer months.
Because this is a lip STAIN it is meant to stay on your lips longer. I found it did ok. Alot of times I end up applying my makeup in a rush and then realize I need to brush my teeth, so one morning I ended up brushing my teeth AFTER I applied the stain. It stayed on pretty well. So I was pleased. But the staying power isn't that fantastic after that. It might just be because I don't apply it too heavily because the shade doesn't come out right on me, but it didn't last so long.
The price tag is around $7 or $8 on the store shelves and there are $1 off coupons available. Even given this information, I'm not sure I'd spend my money on it. It was ok, lasts longer than lip gloss, tends to be drying (I had to apply chapstick after each application), and nice and light. But don't expect to put it on in the morning before work and it to be there a few hours later.
It's JULY?!
Wow! Seems like this summer is really going by fast! It's been a rough summer, no doubt. Lots of work to get done, lots of waiting, and lots of new things occurring.
Where to begin? Well, May 15th I graduated from Georgia Perimeter with a degree in nursing. Just before I graduated I submitted my application for classes at Grand Canyon University in Arizona for my BSN. But before I can "officially" be a student there and start my nursing classes there I have to have my RN license. The state has my application and now I just need to wait for my authorization to test. At that point I will schedule my date to take the NCLEX. If I pass, I will be an RN! Officially!
In the meantime, I am able to take the remaining core classes that I need to get my BSN. I'm taking English Composition 2 and Philosophy. Those are two subjects that I figured I would LOVE to take. I love writing of course. I just love writing free style. I guess I do good writing with a pre-determined topic. I just don't enjoy it LOL Philosophy is hard on an exhausted brain. I'm so drained academically. And it doesn't help both of my laptops stopped working the day before classes started. I should get one of my laptops back this week. YAY! But in the meantime it's meant using the business center where I live, one of my husbands offices, and my father in laws house. I just want the luxury of doing school work when I'm ready again.
Anyways, I rescued a stray cat from the neighborhood who seemed more like a rogue, "Mafia" kitty. So I gave her a good Russian name, "Nikita". Turns out she is PREGGO! BIG TIME! Well, now she is. I couldn't quite tell at the time. So I'm caring for her till she has her kittens. She is so lovable. We've decided to keep her after she has her kittens, but once her kittens are old enough we have to let them go. I've never dealt with this situation before. It's also a situation I never wanted to be in. We finally decided to adopt a cat earlier this year, Sara, and we made sure she was already fixed. I firmly believe in doing the responsible thing and having pets spayed or neutered. I love the ASPCA and used to donate money to them each month until this summer rolled around. Then money became tight LOL But still, you have to live what you preach right? Anyways, I'm excited and scared about these little kitties coming :-)
Cody is about to start 8th grade. Master of the Middle School before he becomes a high school freshman. Wow. I can't believe he's gotten this far! He's still my baby! Ugh. His best friend came to stay with us for a week and a half. He just got done having his pacemaker removed and while he was here his incision started getting infected. So I played nurse and took care of it. It's much better now :-) But having two teenage boys is exhausting! Especially when all they do is eat. But that's the joys of parenthood.
Colin is really starting to mature this summer. He turns 5 in September. Wow. But he misses the cutoff here for starting kindergarten so he'll start next year. But fortunately we found out that our church is going to be having a pre-k this year! I'm SO happy! So now we just need to get him registered and ready to start! He shocked me the other night with 2 loose teeth. Down at the bottom in the front. He ended up pulling them out! I was so proud of him for not freaking out. I did have to teach him how to blow out the pain when it got to be too much. Well... he did it! Silly boy.
Well, anyways, I'm about to get off of here but I just wanted to make note of JULY. Wow. It's been July for almost 2 weeks now but it just dawned on me. Something isn't it? LOL
Where to begin? Well, May 15th I graduated from Georgia Perimeter with a degree in nursing. Just before I graduated I submitted my application for classes at Grand Canyon University in Arizona for my BSN. But before I can "officially" be a student there and start my nursing classes there I have to have my RN license. The state has my application and now I just need to wait for my authorization to test. At that point I will schedule my date to take the NCLEX. If I pass, I will be an RN! Officially!
In the meantime, I am able to take the remaining core classes that I need to get my BSN. I'm taking English Composition 2 and Philosophy. Those are two subjects that I figured I would LOVE to take. I love writing of course. I just love writing free style. I guess I do good writing with a pre-determined topic. I just don't enjoy it LOL Philosophy is hard on an exhausted brain. I'm so drained academically. And it doesn't help both of my laptops stopped working the day before classes started. I should get one of my laptops back this week. YAY! But in the meantime it's meant using the business center where I live, one of my husbands offices, and my father in laws house. I just want the luxury of doing school work when I'm ready again.
Anyways, I rescued a stray cat from the neighborhood who seemed more like a rogue, "Mafia" kitty. So I gave her a good Russian name, "Nikita". Turns out she is PREGGO! BIG TIME! Well, now she is. I couldn't quite tell at the time. So I'm caring for her till she has her kittens. She is so lovable. We've decided to keep her after she has her kittens, but once her kittens are old enough we have to let them go. I've never dealt with this situation before. It's also a situation I never wanted to be in. We finally decided to adopt a cat earlier this year, Sara, and we made sure she was already fixed. I firmly believe in doing the responsible thing and having pets spayed or neutered. I love the ASPCA and used to donate money to them each month until this summer rolled around. Then money became tight LOL But still, you have to live what you preach right? Anyways, I'm excited and scared about these little kitties coming :-)
Cody is about to start 8th grade. Master of the Middle School before he becomes a high school freshman. Wow. I can't believe he's gotten this far! He's still my baby! Ugh. His best friend came to stay with us for a week and a half. He just got done having his pacemaker removed and while he was here his incision started getting infected. So I played nurse and took care of it. It's much better now :-) But having two teenage boys is exhausting! Especially when all they do is eat. But that's the joys of parenthood.
Colin is really starting to mature this summer. He turns 5 in September. Wow. But he misses the cutoff here for starting kindergarten so he'll start next year. But fortunately we found out that our church is going to be having a pre-k this year! I'm SO happy! So now we just need to get him registered and ready to start! He shocked me the other night with 2 loose teeth. Down at the bottom in the front. He ended up pulling them out! I was so proud of him for not freaking out. I did have to teach him how to blow out the pain when it got to be too much. Well... he did it! Silly boy.
Well, anyways, I'm about to get off of here but I just wanted to make note of JULY. Wow. It's been July for almost 2 weeks now but it just dawned on me. Something isn't it? LOL
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Waiting on the ATT
Ok, I graduated from nursing school on May 15. Finally on June 18th the paperwork from the school made it to the state (talk about a long wait in itself). It is now July 7th and the state STILL has not processed my paperwork (and that of most of my classmates). Until the state processes the paperwork and sends us our authorization to take the state board exam, we are in limbo. We aren't licensed RNs and we can't get jobs in hospitals! This is just a little, I mean ALOT, absurd! We have families to take care of! We have student loan payments that are going to come due before we know it. And Atlanta hospitals are FILLED! It's nearly impossible to find an RN job in the Atlanta area. But I will remain positive about my chances of even getting to take the state boards and eventually getting a job. As hard as it gets I know God will look out for us. And unfortunately we have made the decision to put adding a new little member to our family on hold for now. Fulton Paper got sold so we are unsure about Marty's employment future. It's so scary and money is SO tight right now. It's situation critical! But we're trying. I'm almost done with my summer BSN pre-req classes! Can't wait until those are done. Ugh! :-)
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