Kitty Treehouse

Today, I went to Etsy Tea Time and got to hang out with some of my favorite Etsy folks for a couple hours! I really love interacting with other Etsy ladies at these events. It helps with my web-based isolated lifestyle that I live every other day of the week.

Danielle of MissPurl taught us all how to fold lidded boxes out of paper! They're so exciting! This might be a great new hobby of mine that is zen-like and relaxing, since knitting has been tough with a cat who loves yarn. They make great gift boxes, and you can use any type of paper (patterned or recycled)!

I was also encouraged by Michelle of SkyIsland Design who thinks I should get a glass bottle cutter and make drinkware out of beer bottles! I've seen other folks selling unadorned versions of this (at designer prices!) and I've been wanting to do it for a couple of years now. It's just one of those things that's easy to forget about when you don't have the right tools. So. I think I'm going to find me a bottle cutter, and get my creativity on!

Now, of course, is time for kitty news: Ruperts mail-order treehouse finally arrived! He was very excited when the box first came in the house, but I think that was due to his new obsession with the outdoors. He quickly ignored my attempts to excite him with the new furniture by staring out the window after the delivery man.

He briefly investigated the enormous cardboard box and its contents, and then went back to gazing out the window. Once I showed him how to roll inside the carpeted tube, he got a little caught up in the playing. He rolled around for awhile, then sniffed (more like wheezed at, since he's still congested and stuffy) the cedar polls and pre-assembled parts.

Once the whole thing was put together, I had to bring his attention to it with bribes and tactful shoelace placement. I think the whole thing's supposed to be catnip-scented, but he clearly still can't smell a thing. He even had a little sneezing fit at one point, but that could have been from his embarrassment at falling off the top perch. (He's now fallen 4 times, but doesn't seem daunted in the least.)


The tower even comes with a sturdy toy mouse that attaches to a screwed-in snap fixture. If he were to get tangled in the string, the snap would release. He's not likely to get caught in that tiny bit of string, but it's a relief to know he won't be endangered by it.

After I stuck one of his favorite toys (a ball I knit filled with stuffing and a bell) into the tube at the top, he played aggressively and then promptly went to sleep up there.

He's now becoming quite fond of the tower. He's had a few play sessions (all by himself! He hates playing by himself when people are around!), trying out all the nooks and crannies. He's also learned that he can climb onto the fish tank from the top perch, and he spent a good deal of time investigating that. It'll probably be more fun when there are fish in there to watch, but he had a good time anyway.

Now, we're tying to figure out how to keep him from taking up valuable bed real-estate space at night. Sean and Rupert both have colds, and they're both wanting lots of sleep. Unfortunately for Sean, Rupert gets to sleep all afternoon in addition to all 8 hours of the night.

I bought Rupert a little stuffed lion (Trader Joes: $2.99!!) and I'm teaching him to snuggle with that when he's sleeping instead of our necks. As you can see from the photo, he loves the lion, but he still likes to snuggle with a person. It's totally adorable! Hopefully he'll give us some space in the bed soon though, and Sean will recover from his cold so he can be happier again. They're a handful to take care of!