Pipje was due the evening of the World Cup Finals but of course, nothing happened. This didn't surprise me though as Bonne's owner had told me that his offspring tend to arrive one day later.

The next day, when I woke up (I slept with her in a separate bedroom, waking up every 3 hours to check), she was more vocal and affectionate than usual and I thought it would happen that evening (since cats usually give birth in the evening/night).

After a while, I decided to put her in the bedroom to calm her down and so it started. She was so affectionate and so loving, she just didn't want to leave me. I literally had to put my hand next to her (and she would lay her head on my hand) or she wouldn't stop pacing around. I had prepared 3 boxes for her so she had enough to pick from.

Unfortuntely, I received an urgent call from work which meant that poor Pipje's labour was disturbed. When she was finally settled, the doorbell rang- the couch we ordered in March FINALLY arrived! So, the men carried the couches in while I was running upstairs and downstairs to check on Pipje (who was impatiently waiting for me). Well, later when I was about to sign the delivery receipt of the couch, we found out that the couch was the wrong colour and material so had to get sorted. Stressed, I was!

Finally, I could join Pipje back again and by now, I could see that she was very close to the end stage. 20 minutes later, she gave birth to her first baby- a cream boy (Dutchman had arrived home by then). He looked tiny (decent weight for a newborn BSH but still, it's a been a while since I saw such young babies!). I had bought all kinds of items to prepare for the birth (sterile 'navelstrenggaren', Nutridrops, glucose and a lots of other things) but in the end, Pipje did everything by herself. We had to help her a lot with her previous nest so we thought we'd have to do so this time too. Then, the second cream boy arrived.

As they were both wet and therefore dark, we wondered if they were perhaps lilacs but then our 3rd kitten arrived which WAS a lilac and it was obvious that the first 2 were creams. Finally, our 4th kitten arrived. He was a little quieter than the rest and we were slightly worried but he was totally fine. He's just not the panicked sort hehe. As Pipje was slightly distracted (the other 3 kittens were peeping), we decided to snip his umbilical cord.

We're really happy with this nest, they were all about the same weight and a very happy, active one. Pipje is totally over the moon and so are we!

Periwinkle left the nest today (the last one, the rest left a few days ago) which means our first journey of breeding our British Shorthair is over.

Pip's progeny now live in 5 provinces in The Netherlands. Right now, most are either looking at birds and leaves from a window or playing with their new playmates. One (Periwinkle) who moved today is probably getting used to her new home. I miss them all and it was very difficult for me to see Periwinkle leave today. She really made herself at home at Cattery Purrfect Paws. Even our grumpy moggie, Flabs, loved her.

Pip was an amazing mother and we're looking forward to next year's nest. For now, she can rest and start putting on weight as those 5 fatties sucked her completely dry!

I am happy, I am. Looks like they all have found good homes but I am also sad, knowing that they are all REALLY going to leave in September.

Cerulean, Creme de la Creme and Marjorelle found homes quite quickly and I suppose Periwinkle always had a special place in my heart and I was secretly hoping to keep her (I mean, if no one wanted her, we'd have no choice,right? haha). Then, I received an email from a lady interested in Periwinkle and how could I say no? I do not have the physical space for another kitten and she will have a nice home, with a nice new owner and another British Shorthair cat as a companion!

They're so big already (compared to when they were born) and are funnier and funnier everyday.

Cerulean, the ugly duckling, is now perhaps the prettiest swan. Good personality, not so scared anymore of hands. The calm one.

Marjorelle remains her loving self and has the brightest eyes. Always purring, always curious, always up for anything.

Creme de la Creme is still the big boy. Precise, careful but still the Mama's boy. He and Pip have a really special relationship. I will never forget how happy we were when we saw this bubble coming out of Pip and it didn't look dark like the others. Then, she bit it and a cream tail started to wriggle (he was born tail first and was the last).

Pip is an excellent mother and next year, we'll have another nest again:)

The kittens are so naughty! I can't believe how much they've developed in just a few weeks. They are exploring all over our apartment and have found places we never knew existed to sleep (i.e. in the wooden framework of our couch- which has now been completely stuffed with paper so that they wouldn't get squashed).

Surprisingly (for me anyway), Periwinkle turned out to be the naughtiest and the most curious. I love Periwinkle's fur (the mixture of blue and cream. It's like a water colour painting). We often call her Peri Peri which is a kind of chilli because this girl is spicy! Yet, she is also affectionate, knows no fear and purrs a lot...

Marjorelle is Periwinkle's partner in crime. If Periwinkle is climbing something, you can bet Marjorelle is not far behind. From the time Marjorelle was a little kitty sausage, she was always the one who seeked human contact. When the rest were just days old, they would squeek when we picked them up but Marjorelle always bared her tummy and asked for a tickle (and the moment you started doing that, she would start purring!). Marjo has 2 cute cream 'socks' (more like 'slippers' actually- left front leg and right back leg) and a cream neck.

I suppose you could say that Cerulean is the 'pretty' one. She has nice crispy fur, a compact body, a big head, little ears... Sadly for us normal beings, she might also be the smartest. She was the only one who could play correctly with this Cat IQ Toy we have. Life is unfair. Both beauty and brains;)

Creme de la Creme is Creme de la Creme. He's the relaxed big boy who does as he pleases.  He seems to never worry. For Creme de la Creme, life is a whole lot of eating, a whole lot of sleeping and a whole lot of playing. He also loves getting his tummy tickled and because of his size, he usually practices wrestling with Pip who treats him almost like an equal.

We only have 8 weeks left with them and I plan to enjoy every single minute of it. It'll be hard for us when they leave the nest. We'll probably be sadder than Pipje!

We were watching TV on Sunday evening when Pip came in between us to 'sleep'. She covered herself with a blanket and purred exceedingly loudly. She looked like this:

Dutchman noticed something pink was coming out (it was the mucus plug) which means it's labour time! She did not want her box, she preferred to give birth in the middle of the living room so that's what we did. No one messes with Pip when she wants something!

Finally sometime after 11 (was starting to get worried), the first one (blue tortie) came out tail first. Pip cleans her but doesn't seem to notice the umbilical cord so we had to do it for her. 2nd (blue girl) and 3rd (blue tortie) came quite quickly after that. We thought that might be it but then an hour later, another beauty (blue tortie with a very cream face) came along. Again, nothing for over an hour. This time we knew she wasn't done because she wasn't relaxed and then finally, at about 2.30a.m., we saw a little bubble and hey, it's not a dark one;) She bit through and a little cream tail started wriggling. We have a cream boy (tail first also) as a final surprise!

By this time, Pip was quite exhausted. The other kittens were squeaking. She could barely move but the little boy's placenta was still in her. Everytime the other kittens squeaked, she would run to them with the little boy dangling. So finally, we helped her expel the placenta out and detached the umbilical cord.

Quite dramatic. Living room covered in fluids and blood but you know what, we don't care:D We are SO happy (sh*t, starting to sound 'American')!!! They are adorable and Pip looks incredibly satisfied. She is an amazing mum and the kittens look chubby and are active. Makes me want to keep them all;)

She is so fat! I do not know how many she has -probably 3 or 4- but at the moment, she looks like she might have 5 or 6. Due to the hot weather, she prefers to sleep on the floor.

She is always searching for a nest (of course done at night, ideally in the cupboard where all my beautiful silk dresses are kept...). We got her a ridiculously huge box and lined it with towels but I am thinking it might be a bit too big and not 'gezellig' enough for her after all. Planning to get the 'kittenren' thing when the kittens are around 4 weeks or so.

We've also contacted our vet to see if he can be on stand-by in the event things go wrong. If Pip is exactly on schedule, she'll give birth on June 9th which is a Saturday. Things should go right-after all, Pip has an experience big sister to help her out!