Watching a family emerge

Back to the quiet of the weekdays. I'm sitting up in the family room with Delilia and the kittens, just marveling at the wonder of new life. All the kittens have gained weight their first 24 hours. I'm still a little concerned about Catwings, as s/he is still smaller than the littermates, but every time I check, s/he is nursing as vigorously as the others.

I've been a little surprised at how often Delilia leaves her brood to get some love for herself. It does seem like the kittens are asleep when she leaves, but I guess I expected more protectiveness than I am seeing. Don't get me wrong - I love that she is so willing to have us cuddle her and hold her kittens. She seems to particularly enjoy curling in her next while resting her head on my palm. But it also gives me the even stronger suspicion that she once had humans who loved her. What happened? Did they abandon her when they discovered she was pregnant? Did they move? Regardless of what happened in De's past, I can see that she will charm someone quickly once she is finished with her mothering duties.

The kittens are moving around a bit. This morning after De left her nest, Tag crawled towards me and found my hand. Kara seems to be quite the sleeper, and Raiden and Catwings can often be seen rooting around for the nipple. There already seems to be some preference for who each kitten cuddles with. Kara and Tag are usually side by side, as are Catwings and Raiden. I often chuckle at the pile of them sleeping on top of each other. Usually one of the kittens on the outside will rear up and burrow into the middle if s/he seems to be getting cold.