Hi Steve,
The plan is to trap the mother cat and have her spayed as soon as possible.
Christine has a co-worker who has a trap she can borrow, and she has to make
arrangements with a vet who is used to dealing with not totally tame cats.
She wasn't able to do either of those things over the weekend.
Originally, she was hoping to give the babies more time with the mother, but
when the mother cat moved them, Christine was concerned that the babies
would rapidly become harder, if not impossible to catch, so she took them
when she got a second chance.  She will continue to put food and water out
in the barn so the mother cat will hang around, but by the time she gets the
trap and lines up the vet, the cat might not want her kittens back, anyway.
Sometimes you just have to do the best you can with the circumstances.
Thank you for your concern and support.
Annie

Yes, that is the plan.  Then she will release the cat back to the barn.
Annie

Buddy is doing his best to ensnare a cat slave of his very own. If Christine
were not renting and didn't already have two dogs and a horse, she probably
would be sure to keep him.  She had a cat, who died before she got the
second dog, so I know she has that vacancy and is vulnerable to Buddy's
charm.  I also wonder if her former cat hasn't sent him to her, but I'm not
going to say anything to influence her.  It will be her decision.
I have volunteered to pay for the spay for the mother cat.  I'll probably
send some other financial help to get vet care for the babies.  They most
likely will need worming and who knows what else. I hope the homes she has
tentatively lined up come through.  Of course, she has to find homes for six
now, instead of five. (Unless she keeps Buddy.)
It's so hard for me to be so far away.
Annie

That thought occurred to me, too, that the mother cat was stealing kittens.
Poor Christine, I guess the cat noticed the "sucker" stamp on her forehead.
As for the fostering, I think the hard part is that she is not associated
with a group to help her with the expenses and with placing the kittens, in
case the initial offers don't work out.
I know she had a busy day at work, but I hope she finds time to give me or
call or send me an email update.  I want to know how that little gray one is
doing and if Christine has done more introductions to the dogs.
It's a good thing she kept all the stuff, even the kitten stuff, from her
departed cat.  I'll let her know to contact you if she has any questions.
Thanks for the offer.
Annie