Kitten-horses

I'm not sure what marks the official transition from Kitten to Cat, whether it's measured by months or years or stages of growth. In my mind, a Kitten becomes a Cat after a year of living on Planet Earth. (I'm talking a people-year, not a cat-year, which I expect is similar to the length of a dog-year, 7 dog-years for every 1 people-year, though I'm thinking the cat-year:human-year ratio is a little narrower, like 5 cat-years for every 1 people-year, since cats tend to live longer than dogs, but since I'm talking people-years...) And so, in my mind, the pair of four-footed beasts that gallop noisily through my home are kittens. Fuzzy wuzzy kittens. Little baby kittens. See photo of little baby kittens taken on September 3rd, when they were 2 months old, 2 pounds each:

And now, see photo of little baby kittens taken in February, when they were 8 months old:

At 8 months old, Smokey & The Bandit weighed in at 9 and 11 pounds. At her heaviest, She-ra weighed 8 pounds. Ay yay yay. See photo of Smokey taken this week:

As you can see, the cat-bed that once sufficed for 2 brothers is no longer big enough for one. And these boys are still growing! I don't know how much they weigh now, but I wouldn't be surprised if The Bandit's carrying 15 pounds on his frame. And his feet are HUGE!! As are his whiskers and his tail. Oh, let's not forget the ears:

And, Bandit Got Back (to be appreciated by those familiar with the Sir Mix-A-Lot hit):

We've got about 6 weeks left til these Kittens become Cats. I can only imagine how large they will be once they've fully grown (they'll always be kittens to me). And I can tell you for certain, they will only grow more adorable in their mama's eyes!