Meet Pema and Shiva, our new kittens!!

Craig and I became cat parents again on Tuesday night! We adopted two little 3.5 month old boys who are litter mates. They were born on August 7, 2013 in Racine.

Shiva, the one with the black and white spots.

Pema, the one with more black fur.

I went to see them at the Wisconsin Humane Society on a lunch break last week. We didn't end up adopting them then because Craig and I were nervous about the fact that they had upper respiratory infections. After talking to some friends and reading more information online, we realized that it was a pretty common thing, especially for cats that had been outdoors like they were.

They were originally named David and Dougie and we changed their names to Shiva and Pema. Shiva means "auspicious one" and is actually the first yogi. is named for Pema Chödrön, a Buddhist teacher and nun and the name means "a lotus." They have girlie sounding names because cats respond well to names that end in a and i or e.

On Tuesday night, we ventured out to the Wisconsin Humane Society to see two other pairs of boy kittens. They didn't end up feeling like the right fit and at about 7:30, a half hour until close, we asked if we could see "David and Dougie." The adoption counselor had to ask permission since we were past our limit of the amount of kittens we were allowed to see. We got permission and once we played with and held them, we realized they were a great fit for us. Pema was instantly purring in my arms and Shiva was still a little shy at that point.

Pema on his cat perch. 

This is my first experience adopting kittens and Craig's second. I am loving every minute I get to spend with them and watching them learn new things. Every morning, I run into their room to cuddle them and they purr and purr and crowd around me. The routine seems to be that Shiva sits on my lap to get pet and Shiva comes up on the couch behind me and kisses my cheek. He's done that consistently for the last three days and I love it!

Pema likes to chew on things, just like his brother. His favorite thing seems to be to run away with a cat wand toy and growl. 

Shiva was so shy and scared at first and we were worried he wouldn't come out of his shell. He's so loving and fun now. I think he's going to be my cuddler in the future. 

I love when they cuddle like this!

They get a checkup at the veterinarian on Tuesday and then we'll find out if we can start introducing them to Tanzi, our 7 year old male cat. I am hopeful that they'll all get along and that Tanzi will be happy to have some playmates and cuddle buddies again.

We're so excited to finally have found a pair of male kittens that are fun, loving, and at an age in which we can nurture them to turn out the way we'd like them to.