Joe & Kendra 15: Mother/Daughter Pregnancies are So Not Icky

[lezajenda]

4 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

One of the things holding me up is nervousness about having a litter box in my house. I'm not sure where I'd put it so that it's out of the way and safe from my inquisitive pug.

We use a pet gate to block off one bedroom for the cat to keep our small dogs away from her food and litter box.  It's shorter than a baby gate - short enough for most cats to jump over but tall enough to keep the dogs out.  Something to consider ?

[HeartsAFundie]

5 hours ago, VBOY9977 said:

It’s another girl

https://www.tlcme.com/shows/counting-on/articles/joe-and-kendra-s-gender-reveal-for-baby--3

I thought the gender was revealed already, especially since the name Everly was brought up as a possible name choice. 

[OrchidBlossom]

5 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

The kitty litter discussion has been very informative to me. I've got a small senior dog who pees outside (aside from the odd accident), and while I've lived with people who have cat, I've never had my own.

My building has mice. Even though I avoid leaving food scraps out and have traps, the cocky little assholes run through my living room at night. My senior pug isn't much of a hunter, and I've been considering fostering a cat. One of the things holding me up is nervousness about having a litter box in my house. I'm not sure where I'd put it so that it's out of the way and safe from my inquisitive pug.

Another girl for Joken. Are they the only pregnant Duggar couple thay we know of right now? I wonder who will break the pink streak.

There are so many litter options nowadays, I wouldn't let the concept get you down! I'm sure you can find something that suits you. You can get spiral entry boxes, top entry boxes, you can buy cute benches to store litter boxes inside of that dogs can't reach. So many possibilities!

If you do decide to foster or adopt, go through a shelter (big plug, used to volunteer in one, adopt don't shop) and make sure they understand what you need! They can definitely set you up with a former stray or a younger cat who will have the prey drive you need. I think someone messaged this upthread but there may be a few icky encounters before the mice (hopefully) learn to stay away. But you'll be giving a kitty a good home and hopefully teaching mice to stay away.

[Natalie22]

6 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

The kitty litter discussion has been very informative to me. I've got a small senior dog who pees outside (aside from the odd accident), and while I've lived with people who have cat, I've never had my own.

My building has mice. Even though I avoid leaving food scraps out and have traps, the cocky little assholes run through my living room at night. My senior pug isn't much of a hunter, and I've been considering fostering a cat. One of the things holding me up is nervousness about having a litter box in my house. I'm not sure where I'd put it so that it's out of the way and safe from my inquisitive pug.

Another girl for Joken. Are they the only pregnant Duggar couple thay we know of right now? I wonder who will break the pink streak.

I had a very interesting Behavioural Ecology course taught by a prof who specialized in rodent behaviour and who happened to live in a very old farmhouse.  The most humane and effective way to deal with mice is through using traps.  They seem gross to us, but they are a quick and pain-reduced death compared to other ways.  Cats aren't particularly great at hunting rodents (they prefer birds or small amphibians/reptiles), but they are fairly good at changing rodent behaviour.  I would suggest a multi-pronged approach (since it sounds like you live in a building and not a single house so it won't be possible to plug all the entrances).  Traps to really get them, cat to change behaviour.  One thing to note, traps only catch ~10% of mice.  That means if you have 10 mice in your place and 10 traps, only one trap should catch something.  So if you set out a bunch of traps and they are mostly all used quickly, that is a really bad sign and you should probably look for professional help.  In any case I would recommend talking to your landlord and/or your rental protection group to get something done because they can be a major health hazard if not taken care of.

Slightly more off topic, but if we're ever able to travel again, mice seem to really hate the smell of bounce sheets.  So if you're away for a while and want to keep the population down, I'd recommend putting them all over your place before leaving.  

[TeaGrannie]

Irish Spring bar soap was a successful deterrent in our tent trailer. Just rough the bars up occasionally to make the scent strong. 

[adidas]

5 hours ago, HeartsAFundie said:

I thought the gender was revealed already, especially since the name Everly was brought up as a possible name choice. 

I hope they don’t use Everly! It’s a nice name but not with cousins Ivy, Evelyn and Evangeline all around her age. 

[Chewing Gum]

The Bates already have an Everly right? Why do we think this is a name they'd use? 

[Bluebirdbluebell]

2 hours ago, Chewing Gum said:

The Bates already have an Everly right? Why do we think this is a name they'd use? 

It's very popular and trendy. It's close in style to Addison. It seems like a name Joe and Kendra would use. 

[VeryNikeSeamstress]

Thank you for the cat and mice advice!

@lezajenda if I try to gate my pug out of an area in my place (which would likely wind up being the sewing room), she'll never let me live it down. If I'm in my sewing area, she'll sit outde the gate making chirping noises and giving me the big sad eyes until I pick her up and put her on my lap. She pretty much always needs to be close to me when I'm at home.

@Natalie22I've got a few traps out. So far the only one that has panned out has been an electrocuting trap. I'm hoping that the presence of a cat will help. I know my downstairs neighbor has a rather feisty young cat and she doesn't see mice as often since she got him. Plus watching her cat playfully chasing my pug is possibly the cutest thing ever.

I'll definitely try Irish Spring or Bounce sheets. Having an apartment that smells like clean laundry isn't a bad thing.

As for my lanlords, they're bullshit slumlords. Getting anything dealt with is an uphill battle.

[IsmeWeatherwax]

@VeryNikeSeamstress I have 3 cats. 2 boys, 1 girl. A few weeks ago, I discovered mice in my house! I have 3 cats. not 1 of my 3 cats attempted to sort the problem. I actually had to buy mouse traps! Did I mention I have 3 cats? So they are now referred to as The free-loading lazy slackers ?. Eldest boy cat was a feral kitten and my girl was a stray. They have adjusted so well to the life of luxury!

[ophelia]

I think our cats would be more scared than the mouse if they ever encountered one.

[wendy-sparkles]

I think i'm kind of pulling for an Everly at this point? Or an Eva, Yvonne etc. Can't wait till they start having boys again : Evan, Ivo, Ivan. *chef's kiss*

[EmiSue]

1 minute ago, wendy-sparkles said:

I think i'm kind of pulling for an Everly at this point? Or an Eva, Yvonne etc. Can't wait till they start having boys again : Evan, Ivo, Ivan. *chef's kiss*

I think Claire's middle name is Yvonne, so we might not have too long to wait before that shows up somewhere. 

[wendy-sparkles]

2 minutes ago, EmiSue said:

I think Claire's middle name is Yvonne, so we might not have too long to wait before that shows up somewhere. 

Thank you for this excellent intel! Little Yvonne even has a great chance of getting her own letter to herself! Who could be mad about that

[nolongerIFBx]

17 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

The kitty litter discussion has been very informative to me. I've got a small senior dog who pees outside (aside from the odd accident), and while I've lived with people who have cat, I've never had my own.

My building has mice. Even though I avoid leaving food scraps out and have traps, the cocky little assholes run through my living room at night. My senior pug isn't much of a hunter, and I've been considering fostering a cat. One of the things holding me up is nervousness about having a litter box in my house. I'm not sure where I'd put it so that it's out of the way and safe from my inquisitive pug.

Another girl for Joken. Are they the only pregnant Duggar couple thay we know of right now? I wonder who will break the pink streak.

Fostering a cat would be a good idea. You'd find out if cats are for you and if the cat was a hunter. I also have mice. Unless they are really raising a ruckus (squeaking), my cat couldn't care less. And I hate poisoning them because they go into the walls to die and they smell so awful until they decompose. Been very tempted to send my cat on vacation and bring in one of our barn cats for a few days!

I am trying these sachets to see if they help: https://totallythebomb.com/sachets-to-keep-the-mice-away .

(Basically cinnamon sticks, red pepper flakes, anise, and cloves.)

Edited December 1, 2020 by nolongerIFBx

[SassyPants]

And if it was a Duggar daughter PG with a girl, I might think Vivienne could be an option, but I don’t think so with Kendra and Joe. They seem to like more trendy and cutesy. I don’t think Ivy, Evelyn or Evangeline qualify as cutesy. 

[Expectopatronus]

On 11/27/2020 at 9:20 PM, baldricks_turnip said:

I've noticed this too, mostly in Joy's parenting. I don't know if a lot of routine and structure is superior, but it's my #1 coping strategy. I only have one toddler and one baby and we have set meal times, nap times and bed times. It keeps everyone happy and limits meltdowns from overtiredness. I always know when my next break is and can count down to it on a shit day.

That being said, I have two children and I don't plan on more. Before turnip #2 was born we were already reaching a point with #1 that we could fudge the timetable when needed, skip naps for a big day out or keep her up super late for a special occasion. There will come a time with #2 that some freedom and flexibility will return. I'm guessing with the Duggars having a new baby every 18-24 months with no end in sight they learnt to just get on with life with little ones in tow. I envy it a little but don't think I could manage.

In general, you’re right but not all babies settle on routine bedtimes. My kiddo has a set time for meals, bath, stories, etc and we have been trying for months to get on a routine bedtime. Nope. Some days she will and other days she screams, kicks, flails etc when I try to put her in her crib or get her to lie down. My friend’s second kid was the same. First one agreed to bedtime and the second is now almost four and still won’t go to sleep. I’m so blinking tired and I would love it if kiddo would go to sleep! 

[SassyPants]

4 hours ago, Expectopatronus said:

In general, you’re right but not all babies settle on routine bedtimes. My kiddo has a set time for meals, bath, stories, etc and we have been trying for months to get on a routine bedtime. Nope. Some days she will and other days she screams, kicks, flails etc when I try to put her in her crib or get her to lie down. My friend’s second kid was the same. First one agreed to bedtime and the second is now almost four and still won’t go to sleep. I’m so blinking tired and I would love it if kiddo would go to sleep! 

I might give some latitude if this was a mother other than a Duggar, but the Duggars have shown that they neither understand nor respect the idea of routines or schedules. Staying up late into the night, Duggar Time...it flies in the face of schedules and organization.

[allthegoodnamesrgone]

7 hours ago, Expectopatronus said:

In general, you’re right but not all babies settle on routine bedtimes. My kiddo has a set time for meals, bath, stories, etc and we have been trying for months to get on a routine bedtime. Nope. Some days she will and other days she screams, kicks, flails etc when I try to put her in her crib or get her to lie down. My friend’s second kid was the same. First one agreed to bedtime and the second is now almost four and still won’t go to sleep. I’m so blinking tired and I would love it if kiddo would go to sleep! 

This was my second one, she's 20 and she STILL hates sleeping.  We had a pretty standard bedtime of 8:00 pm for the oldest for the longest time, he was a great sleeper. The problem was BOTH kids would be up at 6am, the later they stayed up the earlier they got up too.  I had a friend who's son would sleep until 9 or 10 am if she put him down at 11:00 pm so she did, she was also a SAHM and hates mornings, maybe Gideon is like this.  She did mention it was past his bedtime, but it seemed like Austin got home pretty late from work so perhaps she kept him up late so he could could see daddy.

[Satan'sFortress]

Cat advice??

Like a complete fool, I bought one of thise 1960s retro tinsel trees this year. It is kitchy and shiny and out of character for me. But, pandemic happened and made me want something crazy.

So, as soon as I unpacked it, I remembered that tinsel is deadly for cats & sure enough, my newish kitty started to try to eat it.  I put it away, but want to be able to have it out safely. Any ideas ? Or just too risky?

[Giraffe]

@Satan'sFortress whatever you do, do NOT pull it out! Depending how far down it is it could rip the cat’s insides. If there’s anything hanging out of their mouth, use a scissors and cut it out. If the cat seems to be in distress it’s important to get to a vet. 

(But they can pass it just fine, too)

https://www.catster.com/lifestyle/ask-a-vet-what-should-i-do-if-my-cat-eats-string

Edited December 2, 2020 by Giraffe
Impossible ≠ important

[artdecades]

I see all those photos of cats and Christmas trees and am grateful for being Jewish so my cat will never know what he’s missing. 

[Expectopatronus]

2 hours ago, Satan'sFortress said:

Cat advice??

Like a complete fool, I bought one of thise 1960s retro tinsel trees this year. It is kitchy and shiny and out of character for me. But, pandemic happened and made me want something crazy.

So, as soon as I unpacked it, I remembered that tinsel is deadly for cats & sure enough, my newish kitty started to try to eat it.  I put it away, but want to be able to have it out safely. Any ideas ? Or just too risky?

As long as the cat doesn’t seem to be in distress, you’re fine. I can remember as a little kid seeing tinsel in the litter box at Christmas. Our cats all lived to their late teens. I don’t use it in my house because a) I don’t want my cats eating it and b) I don’t want the mess but my parents used it throughout the 80’s and 90’s. 

[Jigsaw3]

I had a mouse problem and put traps near their hole in my closet where my foster cats couldn't accidentally set off the trap and get hurt. One day as I was putting on gloves to dispose of a sprung trap + dead rodent, my ex-stray foster kitten nipped around me into the closet, grabbed the corpse, and took his prize off to his spot in my living room. He was SO proud of himself, bless him, even though the trap had done all the work.

(Don't worry, I quickly retrieved the mouse and threw it away, before the kitten could get blood and guts all over my nice furniture!)

[Natalie22]

18 hours ago, VeryNikeSeamstress said:

Thank you for the cat and mice advice!

@lezajenda if I try to gate my pug out of an area in my place (which would likely wind up being the sewing room), she'll never let me live it down. If I'm in my sewing area, she'll sit outde the gate making chirping noises and giving me the big sad eyes until I pick her up and put her on my lap. She pretty much always needs to be close to me when I'm at home.

@Natalie22I've got a few traps out. So far the only one that has panned out has been an electrocuting trap. I'm hoping that the presence of a cat will help. I know my downstairs neighbor has a rather feisty young cat and she doesn't see mice as often since she got him. Plus watching her cat playfully chasing my pug is possibly the cutest thing ever.

I'll definitely try Irish Spring or Bounce sheets. Having an apartment that smells like clean laundry isn't a bad thing.

As for my lanlords, they're bullshit slumlords. Getting anything dealt with is an uphill battle.

Urgh, sorry about the landlords.  If your situation ever changes and you're able to find and afford a better place (as a Vancouverite I get the odds), it might be worth calling the health authorities on your way out.  That way they're forced to take action but you don't lose your home.