The Wide World Beyond the Carrier

The kittens have all been moving around quite a bit more lately, but one thing they hadn't done is leave the carrier.  The carrier is one small part of their bigger pen in the Kitten Room, but it's - so far - the only place they know.  (Besides Elektra's supervised adventure into the hallway.)

However, ever since their eyes opened they've been more curious about their surroundings, and what lies beyond the carrier.  They've each been to 'the edge' and peeked over, but none have been brave enough (or coordinated enough) to make the huge leap* down.  Until one day, Hugo knew he had to be first.
*It's about an inch and a half.

But he couldn't do it alone, so Vladimir came to offer some brotherly support.  And with their powers combined, they made it!

The girls soon followed their lead.  They all seemed to get a burst of energy from what they had accomplished and were soon rolling around, wrestling, and awkwardly trying to bat each other's faces.  M is a good mom, and joined them outside the carrier to keep an eye on things.

Hugo viewed this as an invitation to try and wrestle with her.  She very patiently let him crawl all over her face and bat at her nose for a few minutes, while Elektra and Miranda watched to see what would happen.  Or maybe they were trying to learn some new moves?

The kittens all seem comfortable climbing in and out of the carrier, and do so quite often.  They're getting more animated every day, and often move towards me when I greet them.  This morning, all five of them were outside of the carrier when I stopped in to check on them.  They had clearly just woken up, and little Vlad was in the middle of a big morning stretch - outside the carrier, of course.

PS - Notice Elektra, still snoozing away in the background!