A very long run today

Pictures: Fun with Goldie.....and one of Holly, the kitten who, when I fed her, would hold up her paws as if to say "Hallelujah". Sweet, such a sweet baby...

Goodness, I ran 17 miles this morning. It took me 2 hrs and 40 minutes so not too bad. I was freezing and should have worn a long sleeve shirt. Of course, because it is AUGUST, I didn't but at least I didn't have a sleeveless on. I got my new pink shoes on Saturday and because of the strange way my old shoes with new inserts in them felt, I decided to wear my new ones. Good decision since my legs still feel good today. My long run with new shoes didn't bother me either so very happy about that. Not the smartest move ever...

I don't know if it's because I know I have to get up early or what, but I just couldn't sleep last night. I couldn't last weekend either before my first longer than usual run. Now today, absolutely no food sounds good. I just choked down a HyVee blueberry bagel, which normally, you would have to beat me back with a stick, but forced myself to eat it. NOTHING sounded good except for a certain kind of Smart Ones frozen meal that I didn't have. I almost thought about getting a little hamburger from McD's, but didn't feel like driving the entire mile to go get it. Sad, huh?

I will take tomorrow off running since Andy has to be at work very early. I need to get some rest too so that will be good. I have a lot to take care of tomorrow. Ugh.

Kitty news: I took Sadie to her home with her owner Steve. It was where she came from anyway so I'm sure it didn't take her long to get used to it. I saw a beautiful mom cat that Steve is taking care of. She's got some absolutely gorgeous kittens that are clean and chunky so that was great to see. Steve is also a sucker for cats and is a really nice person that I hope can help out Paw Prints if he can.

I took the itty bitty kittens back to Beth on Sunday. After cleaning the kennel out four times Saturday (once after only 30 minutes- I swear one minute it was clean, the next was armageddon) I had a breakdown and needed to spend more time with my kids. I was actually spending more with the cats so I felt very out of balance. She is such a gracious person and took them back with no issues. Now I have Velvet and her four remaining babies. If I didn't mention before, one was an early adoption. The new owner had a lot of cat and caretaking experience so Beth thought it would be ok to let her go. She had another kitten pal to cuddle with so that was good.

Because all I wanted to do today after the long run was to lay on the couch or floor, I didn't get much cleaned up, but I'm glad that it doesn't take several hours a day to take care of older kittens with a mother. That is a case in point why kittens should never be taken from their mother. I do feel guilty for taking them back. They were growing well and they were so thankful in their kitten way when I would feed them and just hold them close to me. I just have to be patient and remember that in two very fast and short years, I will have both kids in school and will have more time to take care of itty bitties like that. I just wish that it wasn't necessary.

Well, I am trying to get pictures of my kittens, but they look mad or all you see is a blurry tail, so will keep on trying!

Sadie is leaving tomorrow

I will miss Sadie. She's the tiniest full grown cat I have ever known at just over 6 pounds. She's a sweetie. I was worried because when I got her, she would hiss a lot and even when she was rubbing on my leg. She's just a darling and I will miss her. She is going to a wonderful home with her sister, Socks.
I am still bottle feeding the itty bitties (as Beth calls them). They are such an entire mess. I cleaned this morning as I do every morning and by the time I got home at 4, it was a disaster. I think Momma cat Velvet is getting worn down, but she needs to be in there with the itties in the night and she wants to be with her babies during the day as well. I'm not sure if she can overdo it, but I'm making sure she's getting lots of food and love. She is behaving normally though so I'm not concerned at this point.
One of the long haired puffball babies, Renegade, has a really bad eye infection. He's been to the vet twice so we're hoping this round of medication will work.
Besides being a pain to take care of and clean up after, those kittens are such a gift. I was feeding them last night and they start purring almost immediately after I started. I can feel their tiny hearts beating so fast and I know that because of Beth and her generosity, they are still alive. Otherwise they would have been left to die at Animal Control. It's just sad but a fact. I hope some changes are made there soon...we are hopeful.
I still need 5 pledges, so if anyone reading this would like to pledge for me running 2 races, one of which is a full marathon, please send me an email. Thank you!
As for running, I have to get new shoes so bad. My feet and lower back are hurting, especially my feet. I am going tomorrow. Don't think I will get my next long 15-16 mile run in with the new ones as I will need to break them in. Hopefully they come in pink like my current shoes.
Well, my kids are full of energy. I don't know where they get it and I wish I could bottle it for my own personal use, but of course I can't.
Time to play!

Kittens, Kittens, and more Kittens

Here are the before and after pics of what I have mentioned below....

Boy, are kittens messy! The mom cat Velvet is taking good care of all her brood plus her foster kittens. I'm glad I (or rather, Velvet at MY house) can help Beth out as she was getting really tired from getting up to bottle feed 13 kittens! These are the ones that Animal Control picked up and didn't take the mom with them. Duh. It's not like humans...they need their mom!

I also wanted to mention that I have received some pledges for my marathon running. I thank you all so much for your generocity. I did name one kitten after someone's cat who passed. I hope it is ok, but our soft orange kitten is now named Maggie. She's a darling!!!!!

Anyway, I wanted to post pictures of what Beth and Kris did at a lady's house who befriended Beth because of the grant. She has had several of the cats in her yard have babies and needed that to stop. Because of the grant, Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue was able to have her adult cats spayed and neutered and has taken in the kittens produced from these adults. Her yard was in disrepair because she was just not able to take care of it. She is 88 years old and works to pay her property taxes. She does what she can and really does love these cats. I think this is a tremendous story of heart, which started with Beth, who decided that this lady deserves more. And when I say lady, I mean Lady, not as in, "Hey lady, get outta my way!". It's supposed to mean Lady who cares and who we care about. There's so many stories like this in Sioux City and we are doing our part to make a difference in their cats' lives as well as their lives too. These people deserve our respect and love.

If you can show someone an act of kindness, whether or not you get recognition for it, I would strongly suggest it.....it can make someone's day, week, month, year. You never know, but just try it!

A realllly loooong run today

After having a pretty good day, nice and warm, kittens doing well, friends coming to play, it has turned to crap. Some of the reasons I won't say because they don't concern me, but concern a close relative. The other reasons are my wonderful boys, who decided that during a Wii bowling game, they wouldn't stop taunting and teasing and bugging and pushing and all those things that boys do but not in the same five minute time span, fell apart tonite. So now I'm hearing screaming and "no mom, I don't want to go on the porch and sit by you" or anything else. He's screaming for daddy but then says the next breath that he want to be by himself. I don't understand children. Yes, love them, but don't understand them. These are the boys who carry around little kittens and say "I love you" all the time.
Well, I just had to vent a little. They don't want me so I am leaving them alone since they
are wanting dad, and if I show up, they pitch an even larger fit. One of those "wonderful" moments that I never thought I would hear. I know they don't really mean it, but it still cuts to the core.
Today started at 4:45 am. I got up and was running down my hill at 4:49, and I ran back up the hill at 7:24. I ran 15 miles and was pretty happy with the result. I wasn't down for the count the rest of the day (I will have to update you tomorrow to see if that's still relevent) and was very busy for the amount of running. Life doesn't stop when you're training for a marathon!
I have my weird eating habits post-running that are quite annoying. If I think of something that will be good, I almost center on that and any other food is a little discusting. Today I centered on fried pickles from Ickey Nickel. They are the best ever anyway, but I wanted them so I got some for dinner tonite. No, that's not all I'm having, but are so yummy! I look forward to being able to eat more as my metabolism increases, yet it's sort of a task to find good things to eat when I am an endless pit. I can't fill up on jalapeno chips and granola bars now can I?
I wanted to just fill you all in on my running for the day. Not sure about weather tomorrow morning and don't think I will choose to run in the rain, so we'll see about the morning run. I was thinking of doing a 3-5 miler.
As for the cats, Sadie should be going to her home this week. I have tons of kittens too little to adopt out. I am hoping the mom can handle all of them as I know I will not be able to get up and bottle feed and still function with the boys during the day.
I named three more girl kittens....one is Maggie, one is Merrily, and one is Sunshine. If I had the pics on this computer I would post....probably tomorrow. I would love to re-name Squiffy "T-Bone" since he's so tiny, but I think Squiffy fits him. He's doing great.
I'm up to only needing 5 more pledges to meet my goal. If any of you pledgees are reading, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are making a difference! That's what life is all about, isn't it!?

An interesting world

This is Gorgeous, pretending to be scary as I walk down the stairs.

I have been taking care of cats and kittens for the past week. A lot of cats and kittens, but mostly kittens. Did you realized how messy kittens are? I didn't realize the extent until I had so many of them. We have the three that came from Hazel's yard, who are the sweetest kittens and should be ready to adopt out in another week or so. Then we have the two long hair ones that are about a month old. I was bottle feeding the dark gray one, Ruffian, and her brother was pretty independent. Then we got Velvet and her five kittens. She took in Ruffian and Renegade as her own kittens and has really taken care of them. I have Sadie back from being spayed and declawed as well. Whew! I clean the litter boxes at least twice a day and boy, do they go through the food! I am still bottle feeding Squiffy once or twice a day. He is in the habit of climbing up on my shoulder and falling asleep. I thoroughly enjoy that part of it!

I have an answer to Goldie's messy problem, ie peeing on the bed. She has a huge amount of crystals in her urine, which is fairly common in cats and most likely causes them to pee where they are not supposed to pee. So $300 later and two rounds of antibiotics, plus prescription cat food (grrr, a point of contention between me and the cats), she is still peeing on beds. I'm hoping another day will help a lot. This food is supposed to prevent the crystals from forming at all, so the problem SHOULD be eliminated. We shall see. My patience with Goldie is running short, but she really did have me at "meow". I don't know why I love this grumpy, crusty cat, but I do.

Beth had a meeting with our mayor, Mike Hobart, and I found that he is a very nice guy. I hadn't met him before and didn't really have any preconceived ideas, but Beth had to brag to him about my "Running for a Paws" campaign. I told him I was looking for another 12 pledges for $1 per mile for the last two races of the year ($35 per pledge) and I would run the full Sioux City Marathon. He pledged! That motivated me and I got five more pledges that day. So now I need a few more to meet my goal and help Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue save more animals!

I will be running my arsk off starting Monday or Tuesday. I will be starting the training to be able to complete 26.2 miles without hurting myself. I will not look for a specific finish time, although the competitor in me wants to beat the time I had before. Then the realistic person in me wants to tell that competitor to shut her pie-hole and realize that she's not in her 20's anymore and that THIS marathon has HILLS, unlike the past two.

Anyway, if you are reading this and feel like you could support my efforts, it will cost you $35 at the end of October and would make me very grateful. I appreciate all the support I have received from my friends, family, and especially from my husband!

Anyway, I think I need a new pair of hot pink running shoes from Peak Performance. The last pair I got have over 500 miles on them and I know, with all the extra miles going to be put on my feet, that I need new shoes. Maybe I should get a tatoo to go with it. Hey, my b-day is before this marathon, so me thinks this is a good idea....now for that design....and where to put it!

Pics of the babies...

The picture on the top is the mom cat, Velvet meeting the orphan kitten Ruffian that I wrote about the last few times. She (yes, I confirmed it is a she) is thriving with her new family, as is her brother Renegade.

The next picture shows a little runt kitten sort of climbing on Velvet. Ruffian is the dark gray one and Renegade is the light grey one. I have bottle fed the runt of the family and I have named this on Squiffy. He's doing better than when they came to my house from Animal Control via the vet. If you are new to this blog, please read the last blog I had and it will explain the terrible conditions that the cats there are, I mean WERE subject to. Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue did in fact rescue the rest of the cats from Animal Control yesterday. The only one they couldn't take is a quarantined cat, who was quarantined because it scratched someone. Ohhhh, a cat who scratches? It's like babies that cry, it's gonna happen. Anyway, I assume this cat will be rescued when it comes available.

Velvet and her brood are in a room now and are really settling in. She is happy, purring, and is very affectionate. They are quite a mess, but it's so worth seeing that they are happy and healthy and not starving anymore! Oh, such is the life of a cat rescuer...

Why I do this.

It has been a roller coaster day today. I urge everyone to read this entire blog, as I have a request at the end.
I have the three kittens that were taken from a ROOF and they are thriving. Only one has eye goo left and I'm still treating it. They are very playful and fun to be around. I got two more little three week old babies on Tuesday, one of which has to be bottle fed kitten formula. They were left on someone's doorstep. They are so small, they can fit through the kennel bars. I couldn't figure out how one, Ruffian, was getting through until today when I saw the stinker pry himself through. I don't know if it's really a "him" yet but should be able to tell soon! He weighs about half a pound and has long hair (basically a puffball), plus he doesn't know how to clean himself because his mother is supposed to be doing that. He is so aware of what is going on. He watched me "disappear" a few times so when he got himself out of the kennel, he went to the bottom of the stairs and mewed. They are so strong and so smart, I think we fail to recognize how mature these THREE week old babies are. I am determined to get them to the age where they can feed themselves and get forever homes. Yes, I have connected with them.
Today, Beth called me and said that Kris (they are the co-founders of Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue) went to Animal Control to temper test a German Shepherd. Her daughter went into the cat room (or as I like to say, the room of death), and found that first of all, it was full, and second, the cats had no food or water. Some cats had litters to take care of, which is especially impossible when they are not being fed or watered. Kris found the food and fed them. Luckily, she kept her fingers as the cats were STARVING. Some of them didn't even have litter boxes.
When I was told of some of the things going on (it wasn't just about starving cats AND KITTENS, it's more about them being mistreated because "they're just going to be euthanized anyway" - WTF?????), I just was overwhelmed. I cried and cried and cried. It's so much easier to deal with life when I don't know of some of the evils, to pretend that they don't exist. But I DO know what is going on. It's NOT ok. I HAVE to do something.....I digress....

I will cut out a lot of extra detail, but I ended up with a mom kitty with a litter of five. This mom cat, Velvet, was starving. She ate and ate when she got to the vet and she is eating and drinking the kitten formula now. Velvet has even taken in the orphan kittens I just wrote about, Ruffian and Renegade. She has cleaned the one and has nursed them. What a cat. And she would have been killed ("euthanized") had Kris not been at Animal Control. Or she would have starved to death. Now she is sitting in a nice temperature controled house with food, water, litter box, and love. She just purrrred and purrrrred and I honestly believe she isn't scared anymore. Not that it matters, but she and her babies are absolutely beautiful.....gorgeous....I just don't understand.

Animal Control has these animals in their care and isn't caring for them. This is a city contracted position that was given in good faith that proper humane treatment would be implemented. THEY are the ones who get control of the animals removed from abusive and negligent owners. I wouldn't trust them with my computer mouse, let alone a living, breathing animal who requires basic care. Something needs to change. They are failing us as citizens, as taxpayers, and as a society.
I am asking anyone and everyone who wants to help me, even if by just providing your name, that you support a change, please contact me. I don't expect you to rally, or wave protest signs, but just show support as we try and make some changes to protect our innocent animals of Siouxland. I will NOT use your name for any reason without your consent either. Please email me at runningforapaws@cableone.net, post a message on this, or message me on Facebook- Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue is a member and you can send messages without being friends. Of course, I would love the friends as well, so if you do that, be sure you message me and tell me you read this blog.
We need help, support, voices. If you are outraged by just this (and trust me there's so much more that is NOT in this blog and it is NOT humane treatment), please let me know. I would appreciate it!
Tomorrow I will post pictures of our new family members.

Mrs. Park was adopted!

I found out last night that Mrs. Park was adopted. So happy! I also became friends on Facebook with someone who has been nice to my "paws" cause and Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue in general and are hoping to do a story tomorrow to be broadcast on KTIV. Chili's restaurant here in Sioux City has been so generous to help us raise money and will give 10% of requested receipts to SPPR. We are allowed to put things in the store so patrons can see come cats that are up for adoption and about SPPR in general. I hope this goes well and can give them some relief on the ever increasing vet bills.
Beth got NINE kittens today....all of which are sick and have eye goo issues. I have three and the remaining are at the vet. I feel so bad for this bunch of babies. I don't understand why this happens...if it's unclean conditions they are in or what, but I will find out. The wonderful lady who asked SPPR to take these kittens is in need of help with her home. This story is not over and I will keep you updated. It will be interesting for sure...
I had better go. I'm making my famous "mushroom puffs" for appetizer/dinner for me and my hubby. Mmmmmm, good!
There's so much to comment on. Just wish these little 5-6 week old kittens well as they're in tough shape.

The Race Went Well

I ran the Pioneer Days 5k in Sgt. Bluff on Saturday. What a steamer!!! It started at 9am, which was about an hour too late in my book (actually, I like to run about 6 am so it was 3 too late!). It was the hottest day of the year and was already 80 by the time the race started. The humidity was high as well, so it was tough on my non-humidity-tolerant lungs.
I had a goal in mind of 22 minutes but after the first mile, I knew that wasn't going to happen! There were 66 total runners and for the first time in my running history, I won the women's division! I finished in 23 minutes 30 seconds or thereabouts. There isn't chip timing so it's all done by hand. I knew there were two women close behind me and once I put my "kick it at the end of race" song by Kanye West on, I hauled it to the finish ahead of them. I came in about 10-12th overall, so I was happy with it. I did take my shoes and socks off immediately after and walked for about 10 minutes until I stopped pulsating since it was sooo hot and sweaty. My three boys were at the end cheering me on, so I was a very happy runner.
There was one thing I can complain about...there were no mile marker! Come on!!! I think I paced the first mile at 6.5 minutes so when I didn't see the mile marker where I expected one, I didn't slow down all that much....could have turned out to be a good thing, but I remember them there last year. I know it's a short race, but mile markers are really important to pace-dependent people like me.
Ok, there's one other thing.....there was a very nice man (he congratulated me at the end) who was running front of me when the wind was blowing past him, then into my nose. Ewww. I actually slowed down a little because I was going to gag. My goodness. I even remember him from last year. I don't quite get that level of stink, but then again, maybe he ate a head of garlic the night before or something!
Anyway, it's the best finish I've had in a race so no more complaining. My upper calves are strangely sore today. I am surprised since I run on hills and I figured I wasn't going THAT fast, so why should they hurt?
I didn't get a picture of me with my medal, but was trying to upload and it wouldn't take. Until next time! More adoption stories this week!!!!

Race on Saturday Morning

Bonnie & Clyde

Lovie is the orange kitten who loves to sit and be petted and purrrrrr.

Mrs. Park is to the lpretty gray one and was the cat we found (or found us) at Stone State Park on our first camping trip as a family. I'm scared to go back since the cat hotel has no vacancy!

Tomorrow morning marks my first race in quite a while. I feel bad that I have neglected the racing, but I was making a return trip last weekend instead of running the Mighty Mo, and spending lots of time with my boys on the other weekends. Oh well, no regrets!

The humidity came today so I shall be huffing and puffing my way through the flat and boring course at 9 am, which is too late for me. I love to run first thing so I am sure I'll get those typical cramps and get all crabby at the people in front of me. Sometimes I make the best observations when I am grumpy! Hopefully though, no one will be carrying loose change as the one guy did in Des Moines. That's still a head scratcher to me!

With a heavy heart, I will be taking my remaining kittens to Petsmart tomorrow. They may be returning Sunday if they don't get adopted, but I will miss them if they do. I just hope and pray they go to loving homes. I saw Mrs. Park today and she wasn't too upset at me..she let me pet her and she purred for me! The mom cat I have now is Sadie. She meows. All the time. I actually gave her a chill pill yesterday since she was driving me to put earplugs in. That can't be good for her, but she's just a tightly wound up cat. At least now. Some mom cats are just very different for a while (Goldie was for sure) even after the kittens have moved on.

Well, better go balance my check book and clean the litter box, my absolute favorite things to do! More updates after my race!

There is hope...

I had a good fast run this morning. I could have run more, but Andy had to get to work, so I left it at just 5 miles. It was nice and cool too, which is a huge difference to the way it was in Wilmington. I do have some hope for a great run on Saturday morning!
The boys have beckoned me to see the red lights guarding the bathroom. They put their mini lanterns on the red blinking light and put one on each side of the door. Yes, the bathroom is guarded! They are so cute and I love their creativity....at least most of the time! Boys can sure come up with some interesting things to do with other things and to each other! At least they haven't quite learned how to make the armpit farting noise that they so desperately want to! Time to go watch the bathroom doors again to see if any goblins come across!

More info than I can handle!

There has been so many things these past few weeks! Because of the grant money that Siouxland Paw Prints Rescue has received, we have been able to spay/neuter 15 cats that would not have been otherwise! Beth has called the people who have advertised free kittens in the paper and offered the reduced price, as long as they qualify. Many of these people are so grateful to Beth for this and have been able to have their cats spayed and neutered because of her idea to make these calls. It's such a neat thing to be a part of!
Six cats have been adopted from PetSmart since Saturday so I am taking Mrs. Park and three kittens there tomorrow morning. Two cats were adopted today, so we are hopeful that all the cats that I have will be adopted by Sunday. I will take three more kittens on Friday. They are wonderful so I am certain they will find great homes very soon.
Goldie has had a urinary tract infection so she hasn't been displaying her best behavior when it comes to NOT using the litter box. If the infection clears up and there are no other issues, we will have to find her another suitable home where there are no other cats or she can be indoor/outdoor. This will break my heart into a million pieces because I truly love this cat, but I cannot have her pee all over areas unsuitable for cat pee. I will exhaust all my resources in trying to fix this problem as a responsible owner should, and if it can't be fixed, I will find her a happy and healthy home, as a responsible owner should. And I will cry if she has to leave, as a responsible owner should!
There's more going on, but you should read another blog, done by my sister, to get updates on that....it is http://whatiswrongwithme-randee.blogspot.com She has a very entertaining writing style and is currently a medical mystery, so I urge you to check it out.
I am running in a race (Finally) on Saturday in Sgt. Bluff. It is a 3.1 miler so should be a great fast run. The course is flat and I won the 30's age group last year and am hoping to again this year. We will see! I have been out of it for a while so I hope I don't choke the last minute!

Chili's is partnering with Paw Prints the entire next week. They will donate 10% if receipts if those patrons request vouchers to do so. It must be requested, so if you enjoy eating out, please visit Chili's next week and ask for your voucher! I am making table displays so hope you enjoy those too!
Enough for now. Hope to have good kitty pictures tomorrow. It's almost impossible to take pictures of cats by yourself and have them turn out, so we'll see...again!