How to make a homemade cat door

We live in a modest ranch home. Due to our home’s size and floor plan, we do not have a good place on the main floor in which to put our cat’s litter box. When we moved into our home we decided that the most logical course of action was to put it in the basement and leave the basement door cracked so that our cat would have access. Our basement isn’t finished, and since our cat is a jerk sometimes and poops on the floor, this was really the only good solution.

Here’s the problem: we now have a cat and a baby. This was just fine until The Baby began to crawl. Since our cat is fat fluffy, we couldn’t expect him to leap over a safety gate to enter and exit the basement. We purchased a cat-door at the hardware store, but our cat was too fat fluffy to fit through it. So we (by “we” I mean my husband) made one ourselves.

1. Mark the area on the door to be cut with pencil
2. Take the door off its hinges and saw out the hole for the cat
3. Frame it with corner molding (in Lowes/Home Depot with the wood trim)
4. Paint molding to match your door
5. Hang piece of white fabric behind door (not pictured)

Here are the results:























Uh-oh… make sure baby doesn’t fit through the hole. NOTE: measuring the width of baby's shoulders doesn't work since they can maneuver them to fit through many a tight spots like the birth canal or, say, the new cat door that your husband just made.



An award for me?
Weeeeeeeeee... Thanks to MommyK at Great Walls of Baltimore for honoring me with an award! With the exception of an honorable mention in a science fair, I never won anything! Oh, and I cheated - I picked the leaves off of plants to make it appear that they didn't grow as well with rock music as they did with classical music. They actually didn't grow as well, I just wanted to make it more obvious. Anyway... Thank you!

Good eats for you and baby

The Baby in 9 months old and is starting to eat “regular” food, which I pick apart into minuscule pieces because I am afraid he will choke. On Saturday he ate his first “regular” meal with us. It would have been a picture-perfect moment had we been gathered around the dining room table. We were eating in front of the TV. I know, I know. At least The Baby wasn’t watching TV. He was busy cruising along the coffee table. Whenever he cruised by I'd pop a piece of food into his mouth. It was probably pretty white trash, but whatever.

We had macaroni and cheese (homemade, but left over) and chicken avocado salad. Avocado is perfect for babies and not-quite tots. It's soft, good for you and at once both flavorful and bland (is that possible?). Here’s a recipe, courtesy of my brother's wife Bibi, that is great to make for you and serve to your little one.

Chicken Avocado Salad
(Servings: 2 and a half)

2 boiled and shredded chicken breasts (or ¾ package of Purdue Selects or other pre-packaged cooked chicken breast strips)
1 ripe avocado (firm, but you should be able to press into it)
Grape tomatoes (I use about a dozen)
Fresh cilantro leaves to taste
Grown ups only: 1 sliced jalapeno pepper

Shred or cube chicken, cube avocado, slice tomatoes in half, add cilantro (if you have it-we had none on Saturday) and mix together. The oil in the avocado acts as a binder for everything so there is no need for mayonnaise. This is yummy made with hot or cold chicken. It's great on toast, on a bed of greens or in a wrap. Plus, it’s EASY. I tore up pieces of chicken coated with avocado for The Baby. He dug it.

Here's the recipe for Great Mac and Cheese. It’s sooo good and, if you don't do the onions, it's just as easy as Easy Mac.

Eating is for babies! Or not.

The Baby has decided eating isn't for him again. Yesterday he had three and a half bottles all day. He usually has six. He’s not doing much better with solids. Daycare said he ate less than half of what he normally does. He did gobble down about two tablespoons of apples (recipe below) and oatmeal at home, but got super mad when I tried to feed him yogurt. I have my fingers crossed that he isn't gettinig sick again and that he just goes through phases.

I was happy he ate a little, but then I did something that made me feel AWFUL. I wiped his mouth, something he hates only a little less than wiping his nose, with his bib and I accidentally scratched his face with the Velcro closure! I didn’t realize what I did at first. He had braced himself against my wipe and afterward just sat there with a red face and his mouth distorted into a scream, but no sound emerged. I’m sure you parents are familiar with the soundless scream. It means they are so mad that they can’t even breathe enough to scream. When they catch their breath, watch out! About half hour later, a nice patch of brush burn appeared on The Baby’s cheek to remind me that I am a mean, vicious woman.

On an only-somewhat related note, if you ever ask your husband to get apples and he returns with an entire tote of them, here is a simple baked apple recipe that works for you and for the baby!

“Baked” apples
Peel and core apples (however many you want)
Chop and put in microwave-safe bowl
Sprinkle liberally with cinnamon
Add a half-inch of water

Microwave for 5 minutes. Put all in the blender or food processor and puree. Freeze in icecube trays and pop the cubes into a freezer bag. It was so good that I used the rest of the apples to make the same thing for us – just don’t add water and during the last minute of cooking crumble some low-fat graham crackers on top and dot with a tiny bit of butter. It’s very dessert-y but super good for you!

From the Pump Room:
I pump in a handicap bathroom, which is a single bathroom. It’s small but private. People seldom use it. Just pumpers and dumpers. Dumpers are the folks who don’t want to poop in the public bathrooms where others can hear them, so they go to the handicap bathroom. The pumpers are left with the smell (hey, thanks!). When someone wants to use this bathroom (aka The Pump Room), they are almost always able to. When they are not, they will rattle the door handle in disbelief for 10 seconds, wait two seconds, and try again. Do they think their hand is just playing tricks on them? It gives me a panic attack every time.

One time I walked in on some guy getting dressed. Apparently it functions as a dressing room too. This is how seldom people use this bathroom. Naked Man didn’t even bother locking the door. Okay, he wasn’t naked. He was, lucky for us both, just buttoning his shirt. I felt like a real jerk, though. Should I have knocked? Is this sexual harassment? (especially since I just stood there), who is he anyway? I take no chances in the pump room. I check and re-check the door. I’ve been known to scamper across the bathroom, boobs out, just to eyeball the lock to make sure it’s flush with the handle and really locked.

This post was totally inspired by a post on thenest.com. There are others out there who pump in bathroom stalls, get shy boobs and are equally as paranoid as me. Yippee!

Unrequited love

I feel bad for the baby. He loves the cat - I suspect more than he loves me. Whenever the cat comes into the room, he absolutely beams. If the cat gets anywhere near him, The Baby can hardly contain himself. He stops what he is doing, smiles from ear to ear. He is a captive audience. Once or twice the cat sniffed his face. I thought The Baby was either going to get up and applaud or fall over in a swoon. He doesn’t realize that these disinterested sniffs are the human equivalent of being snubbed.

You might imagine that we’ve got a cat who struts around the house with feline confidence, which, let’s face it, borders on arrogance. We don’t. Our cat is neurotic, the vet says so. This neuroticism is baby induced. From the day The Baby came home, the cat has slowly been licking his belly bare. He’s now working on his legs. The vet said that it’s a pretty common thing for nervous cats to do.


More Homemade Lullabies
My poor husband. I’m not being modest when I say that I can’t sing. The whole cat ordeal inspired The Baby and me to make up another song. It’s suppose to be blues-y. I’m not real sure what that means. I just belt it out in a breathy/sassy voice.

Cole loves the kitty, but the kitty don’t care,
he walks right by him with his tail in the air.
He says, “hisssssssssssssssssss.”

Cole wants to grab his fuzzy gray ears,
and that’s just what the kitty fears.
He wants to pull that tail so much,
but Mom and Dad say, “You mustn’t touch!”


From the Pump Room
Well, I’ve done it. I’m backing off. After a week of super poor production and major frustration I’ve decided to start supplementing with milk rather than with formula. I just am not producing enough to cover the majority of his liquid diet. I’m going to pump two or three times a day.

Homemade Lullabies

I can’t carry a tune. Not even in a bucket. So it is no surprise that I don’t really remember any lullabies or kids’ songs to sing to The Baby. What is a surprise is that I sing to him – and often. He likes it. It calms us both down and gives us something to do.

Back in the spring, when I was still counting his age in weeks, I found myself singing Jingle Bells to him because I knew the words. One desperate day I sang 99 Bottles of Beer – the whole thing (I subbed milk for beer, natch!). He was on his back and every time I got to the part about “you take one down and pass it around...” I’d move his hips and legs in a big circle. He liked it, and when I stopped he cried.

Since then, I’ve wised up and bought a sing-a-long CD with all kinds of kid favorites. But as I write I find myself a little nostalgic for the old days (aka maternity leave) when it was just me and my buddy on the couch making songs up and hanging out.

Here are our two favorites. All can be sang to the tune of Itsy Bitsy Spider (it’s the one I know). If you too suffer from the inability to remember lullabies, hit print and change the name!

Song number one
Little baby Cole sat upon his mommy’s lap
On came a song and they began to clap
Off went the song – the room was quiet once more
So mom and baby Coley played upon the floor.

Little Baby Cole, played upon the floor.
Mommy fell asleep and she began to snore.
Cole kicked his legs and laughed at his good luck,
But his laughing and his playing woke his mommy up.

Song number two
I’m daddy’s little helper
Cute as cute can be.
When something needs fixin’
He can count on me.
We hammer and we saw until the job is done,
Then we put away our tools and have ourselves some fun!

Anyway, the year has finally caught up with my musical repertoire. The holiday’s are upon us. The baby and I can now sing Silent Night and not feel completely ridiculous. In less than three hours, we’re leaving for Ohio. The doctor said the trip would be fine. It’s at least eight hours, so wish me luck! The Baby is on the downside of a cold/double ear infection combination.

From The Pump Room:
I am jealous of you ladies with an office. I pump in the handicap bathroom at work because it’s the only private room and it locks. I won’t miss the disinfectant smell or the view of the sink and toilet this weekend!

I’m worried about my supply. My morning pump is down to a total of 4 oz! That used to be my biggest session – I’d get 8-10 oz. I pump 5 times a day and I’ve only been getting 15 oz a day. Every ounce counts, right? Then why do I keep obsessing over it!?

Pass the squash

The Baby isn’t a great eater -- yet. We started feeding him solid foods when he was a little over four months old. I had out washcloths and bibs (and the camera), but all the food ended up in his mouth. Who were these children in pictures and video clips that had sloppy smiles and food from ear to ear? My little guy didn’t even need a bib! It finally occurred to me that if he won’t eat more than five friggin’ bites of something we’d never experience the fun get-the-camera-honey moments that I so craved.

Since he tended to button his lip after anywhere from two to 10 bites, I didn’t want to waste food by buying little jars that instruct you to discard leftovers after a day. Until recently, one of those jars would have lasted a week in our house! So, I decided that I would make The Baby’s food myself. All I needed was a mini-food processor (or blender), a couple of ice cube trays and freezer bags. It’s much easier to toss out leftover green beans when you know you still have eight servings left and that one serving probably cost you less than 10 cents (I didn’t actually do the math).

In the last week or so The Baby has been eating more in general (except when his gums are sore :(). Yesterday, he ate two sweet potato cubes and about two ounces of peach yogurt for dinner. Alas, he really is quite a gentleman in the highchair. The messiest he’s ever been was on Tuesday when he actually gagged on and puked up the sweet peas that I had so lovingly pureed for him. I’m still keeping a bib and a camera handy – just in case.

Here’s what he’s tried so far:
Acorn Squash: Loves it!
Cut squash in half, clean seeds, turn cut-side down on a baking sheet and bake (or roast as a better cook might say) for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. You can also do it in the microwave for 10 minutes. Just lay squash upside down on a micowave-safe plate. Let it cool down and gently rip the skin off. Puree in blender or food processor, adding milk/formula/water to thin out to desired consistency. Pour into ice cube trays and freeze. Pop out into freezer bags. Note: I've also combined acorn and butternut squashes for a The Baby-approved squash medley.

"Baked" Apples: Loves it!
Peel and core apples. Place pieces in a microwave-safe dish, sprinkle with cinnamon, add a 1/2-inch of water and nuke for 5 minutes. Puree apples in the water. Note: for older infants, you could just mash the apples.

"Baked" Pears: Loves it!
Follow above directions, omit cinnamon.

Green Beans: Bleh!
I used a bag of frozen beans. Be sure to read the ingredients. Beans should be the only thing listed. Cook according to package instructions. Puree in blender using the water they cooked in to thin out to desired consistency. Pour into ice cube trays and freeze. Pop out into freezer bags.

Sweet Potatoes: Loves it!
I bake two potatoes in the microwave. Let them cool down and scoop them out of the skins. Puree in blender or food processor, adding milk/formula/water to thin out to desired consistency. Pour into ice cube trays and freeze. Pop out into freezer bags.

Peas: Hates it!
Same directions as green beans.

Butternut Squash: Loves it!
Same directions as the Acorn Squash. But I’m going to give you a recipe that will make your husbands, friends, mothers or whoever else tastes this, think that you are a domestic goddess (well, really, you are!).
This is from Allrecipes.com and is especially quick if you are making squash for your baby anyway.


Adults-Only Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

1 large butternut squash (buy a small one to make for the baby while you are at it!)
6 Tablespoons of chopped onion
4 Tablespoons of butter (I use light)
4 oz of cream cheese (I use light)
3 cups of water
4 chicken bullion cubes
1 teaspoon of marjoram (optional… if you’ve never heard of it, you’ll never miss it, trust me!)

Cut squash in half lengthwise, clean seeds, turn cut-side down on a baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Let it cool down and gently rip the skin off. At this point I usually puree squash for The Baby and do the whole ice cube thing and put the large squash in a container until I’m ready to make the soup. To make the soup: Puree the squash and cream cheese together and set aside. Sautee onions in the butter and sprinkle with marjoram. Add water and bullion cubes and bring to a boil. Add in the squash/cheese mixture and heat but do not boil.

mmmmmmmm…..