a 'tail' of two catz. vol 1

"hello, my name is meiko. don't mind the other cat in the background, she's not important"

It's been 5 months since I wrote the last blog post on these two four-footed friends and so I figured an update was due! (because that's what blogs are for right?). The last post {here} told how these two don't get along and hissing and fighting were a daily occurrence. Well I wish I could say that they've resolved their differences and lived happily ever after...well not so fast! They have gotten wayy better at getting along, and I would like to point out that no cat had to be brought to the vet because of the aftermath of any fighting.

Here's the deal, Sassy likes to eat and play. Two problems when she tries to eat from Meiko's (the queen bee above and resident cat) bowl and play with Meiko by running around her like she has never gotten attention ever in her life. Which in both of these cases whenever this occurs Meiko hisses and is not too happy.

Regardless, we love them both, and as Sassy gets fatter and Meiko continues to tolerate her (we have even caught them snuggling together once...I got a photo to prove this did happen and it is posted on my instagram).

We'll keep them. So here's to going from a one-cat household to two, and Meiko getting a few more grey hairs because of it ;-)....

Sassy is her real name. She also goes by Sassafras, "black cat", or fat cat..on occasion ;)

Just Meiko. Or "baby kitty".

until next time.

a story of two cats

Meet Meiko.

Meet Sassy

 Meiko is my beloved cat that I picked out back in my senior year of high school when my best friends cat had kittens with an alley cat. So she has been Queen of this house for approximately 5+ years. She has never ever had to deal with another fur ball in her wee little cat life aside from the first 9 weeks or so living at the house with her mother and sibling cats. Until 5 weeks ago....Sassy came along. Sassy also had been Queen of her house but is approximately 2 years younger than Meiko, a little more curious, a lot more clumsy, and eventually going to be a bigger cat than Meiko. 

As the story goes we kept them separated and introduced them to each others smells for the first few days, then allowed them to see each other through the window, then slowly introduced them to each other. A week ago you would have asked me I thought they were making progress - they could sleep in the same room, and with taking turns having free-reign of the house at night while the other was isolated to one room. To say they hadn't changed would be a lie, both were definitely not "themselves". Unfortunately, this week got bad. I know nothing about cats, and have tried to follow the directions, but it reached it's lowest point where last night they just hissed/ growled and cried through the door to each other throughout the night (never happened). Then today whenever they were ever even in adjacent rooms it usually ended up with a fight running after each other. 

So family meeting commenced tonight to decide what to do with Sassy. One we established Sassy is an awesome cat, we love her, but she is so damn nosy and won't leave Meiko alone. Any time she knows she's close by she sneak-attacks. So sadly we're giving them until August 10th. Then we're going to have to figure something out. According to the Animal Humane Society after they get really bad it is time to issue a break, so for the next 48 hours they are going to be separated and not see each other. Then we'll slowly introduce them to each other like we did before. 

The Good:

1) They will freely use the same litter box as each other and have yet to have either cat urinate or poop anywhere except a litter box

2) Last week we got to the point where there were two rooms in the house they could be in the same room and mind their own business; usually the best if they both slept

3) They have yet to physically jump on or bite down on each other - no physical injuries 

4) Meiko is fine if she's in a separate room or sees her in another room

The Bad:

1) They're jumpy if they're in a room by themselves scared that the other cat is lurking

2) Increased hissing and running at each other/ being aggressive in the last 72 hours

3) Sassy sneak attacks Meiko (runs up when she's not looking)

4) Meiko doesn't really give Sassy the time of day and will immediately hiss or growl if she knows she's around

The Ugly:

1) They both kept up the house last night with relentless fighting between the door for the first time last night

One of the first times the two of them were introduced to each other.

Is there hope? 

I hope so, I'm attached to Sassy now and wish we could make it work! If you have any ideas please pass them our way. If we don't figure this out, as long as Meiko lives...there will never be another cat in this house.

Will there be a happy ending?

June, one that I can't say I will forget...but probably won't miss.

If you follow me on instagram: AJKram...this month you have seen more photos of my cats (#Meikogram #MeikoandSassy), libraries, and coffee shops (#NCLEXPrep). What an exciting life I lead...? 

Which means: A) I'm a cat lady  B) I am going nuts  C) I really want to be a nurse or D) All of the above 

I'll leave you to make your choice. 

June 2013

Lasts: hopefully the last time I spend and ENTIRE month studying for a single exam, living in 1504, sitting in a classroom at my undergraduate campus, having our entire home smell of varnish from sanding or living room floor {here},...

Firsts: spending ACTUALLY an entire month studying for a single exam, studying in a library for more than an hour, living without internet or a TV (temporarily), introducing Meiko to another cat (more on that to be blogged about in the future), moving back to my parents home for an indefinite amount of time, basing my accomplishments that day based on how many hours I studied or practice questions I took, moving a full size bed from one city to another (thanx Mel!),...

What I've learned: my studying productivity increases when I have a sense of daily routine, with practice I am a better test-taker, the way I operate best at accomplishing big and overwhelming goals is by taking one day at a time, being realistic bet setting high standards is important, I can do something if I put my mind to it, I have the best (hands down BEST) family and friends in the world, I am really blessed,...

Looking forward to: not spending everyday in a library, having a life where I can do what I want, maybe spend enough time outside to get a tan line, life free of studying, being able to put "RN" at the end of my name, accomplishing big goals and setting new ones, seeing where God has planned for me to work, family road-trip to Washington D.C., being able to start a realistic budget and set financial goals, taking advantage of having Laura live so close by, being able to actually have time to blog again and not feel guilty about it taking time away from studying... 

What I'm missing: being surrounded by friends all the time, time and space to do what I want when I want to, financial flexibility, enjoying the summer sun and all it's festivities

Faves: living with cats again, being around my family, having an excuse to get a coffee drink daily, spending time with my brothers, having my "3rd" brother in town from Amsterdam for most of the summer, being spontaneous with friends, helping friends move into their new homes, celebrating with my friends their accomplishments, little things.  

   

Christmas. Budgets. Bills. & Africa.

Meiko. Still working with my new camera and seeing what settings work best. (Should have moved all the cords!)

Yes you read it. The past month or so it hit me that finances were going to get really tight really quickly coming up on the holidays, birthday gifts, saving money, paying for bills, purchasing everything needed for Africa. It adds up quick I tell ya! I know in the end this trip is one of a lifetime and money is really not that important, but man does it take some creativity to make sure all the accounts add up. So what have I been doing, taking as many shifts as possible; with still having a few days off to enjoy time with the ones I love in hopes to make up for the cost of next month.

Things I've done to make sure I keep track of everything:
- Check list of all the bills due in January before my return
     -> Pay any and every bill possible ahead of time (including but not limited to rent, internet, energy, cell   phone...)
- Budget! Easier said than done.
     -> Go out to eat less
     -> Save as much from every pay check since September to save up for the trip and adding expences of living off campus
     -> Thinking creatively on what to get people as gifts (I LOVE buying gifts for people, and getting something they actually enjoy...it's harder to do on a tighter budget than normal)
     -> Being thankful for the good things I have, and remembering many people go with a lot less

Day 2 of Christmas break: I woke up early to bring a friend to the air port! Then took a shower as fast as I could to be presentable for my moms morning preschool class and help with "Christmas Cake", then ran back home to take a nap before I leave for my first evening shift ever at my job. (3:30pm - 11:30pm) I'll report back and see how I like it.

Last night I got to go to my youngest brothers swim meet, my first of the season. I'm a little sad I'll be missing out on so many swim meets this January of everyone I love. So I'm trying to make it up now, and when I come back!!

   

Zach. He's kinda a big deal. (He might kill me if he ever realizes I put this up here!)

 

I'm really happy so far with how well the photos have turned out, even with the zoomed-in lens and everything. None of these are photo-shopped or edited because the program I had on my computer is no longer due to the fact that my computer crashed and had to be re-loaded; minus all the programming. 

So consider these photos pretty awesome considering the circumstance. 

 Now off to make dinner/ lunch, go to the bank, maybe stop and drop something off for my brother, and then to the hospital for my first work shift over break!

home for the holidays.

Christmas Break Day 1: I slept in and stayed in bed until 11am. I felt no guilt. No responsibility. It was a beautiful thing! I have spent the remainder of the day up until this point making french toast for breakfast, cleaning out my fathers coffee pot (he doesn't do it on his own!), practicing photos on my new camera {here} (thanks mom & dad!), and just relaxing.

So what else to do than practice taking photos of Christmastime at my house, and of course Meiko. The best kitty ever....well you may tell from the photos, she even started getting annoyed with me too! One thing I've already decided is that there is no place like home, wherever that is, than home on the holidays. It's relaxing, it's loving, it's just what I needed!

 

Meiko relaxing under the Christmas tree. It's her favorite holiday too!!

 

No, I haven't cleaned, or set up my room, done laundry, or anything "productive" on my to-do list. It'll get done. Sometimes relaxing and not doing anything is exactly what you need. It was perfect!

How do you enjoy the holiday amidst the hustle bustle?

end of day 5 [refinishing original wood floors]

day 5 - the end is here....well for now

 

 

   

The final coat is finished for our dining room! Well it has been a long week of a messy, strong smells, and stuff everywhere in the house that there isn't carpet. The best part of this being over; our four-legged member of our family is home again. 

   

I really won't miss this pile of stuff in my room (and this wasn't it at its worst!)

 

who couldn't love this cute furry face! She definitely lost a few pounds in protest for being boarded and not eating..poor thing.

Past posts that got us here!

{original} post

{day 1} post 

{day 2} post 

{day 3} post 

day 1 of my summer vacation/ family reunion celebration! Over the river & through the woods!

Welcome to our Home {'Tis the Season}

 

Merry Christmas from my family to yours! 

Christmas 2011

Sunday, December 25th

Minneapolis had a brown Christmas, these are far and few between, so I was happy to take our family photo outside without having to put on appropriate clothing, boots, mittens, and jacket to stay warm. The last brown Christmas according to the weather people was 2006, with a wopping 32 in the history of Minnesota. Like I said, I think of it as a lucky Christmas. We had a beautiful day topping out with the temperature in mid 40s, clear skies, and sunny!

Some of my favorite Christmas traditions include, but not limited to:

• Christmas music while opening presents on Christmas Eve with the Kramka side of my family
• Christmas Eve service @ Church, followed by potluck styled meal with our church and guests of our homeless shelter that we have
• Watching our family cat bounce and bound between wrapping paper, bag, and etc. 
• Sleeping in
• Christmas Breakfast
• Games with cousins

This year was all this and more, and it may have been my favorite Christmas in many years. We had two additional friends that I can safely say are apart of our family. One was a friend of Ryley's from college, and the second is our most recent addition to our family, our exchange student from Amsterdam. My mom can now say she knows how it feels to be a "mother of 5". It was a packed house, and I loved every minute of it!

My wish for everyone is during this holiday season of rushing and busyness that everyone will have a chance to sit back and take a moment to live in the moment, cherish the times you can spend with the people you love, and do something for yourself (go workout! or take an adventure, do something you've always wanted but never had "time" for).

'Tis the Season 

Meiko Christmas Photo 2011

Last Free-Friday for a while!

My day according to my telephone {NO it's not an iPhone!}

           

                                              

 

     

From Left -> Right starting @ Top

1. Meiko {my kitty} loves jumping into boxes & bags, perfect when I need to organize to move out

2. Photo of the TOMS I ordered for nursing school {we are required as students to wear an all white pair of shoes, I thought they were perfect}They are super comfy, and I like to support such an awesome company, {ORDER NOW}!

3. New Local Wood-Fire Pizza in Northeast Minneapolis off of W. Broadway & Marshall Ave. 

4. Best Salad EVER!{From Pizza place}

5. Casual family stroll by the Mississippi River, and a location that I haven't been!

6. Zach showing off his TOMS, {all us Kramka kids bought a pair, Zach even bought a shirt planning on being the trend setter as a Freshman in High School}

7. Coming home to my kitty snuggled on my bed waiting for me = priceless!

Have an AWESOME weekend, I hope you can find time to relax and enjoy good company during this long holiday weekend!    

Let me introduce my kitty :]

Meet Meiko, she's my absolutely adorable 3 year old cat.

Always looking to be inside hiding ~ June 2011

Up high on our railing @ Christmas 2010

  I'm sure soon enough Meiko will have her own category on my blog; I thought I held off long enough to share how much I am undoubtedly a cat lover. You don't have to walk them, they use a litter box, and each have a unique personality. Above are some of my favorite pictures of her; there would be more but I lost many when my computer crashed this last fall :(