after birth

Question
we have taken in a stray pregnant cat who gave birth to 5 beautiful kittens Saturday. They all seem content and i have not heard them crying excessively.
The question i have is that mommy cat seems to leave them periodically and lays around the room. she does not seem to stay with them for long. also she keeps wanting to go outside. we did let her out and she came back quite quickly.
hope we are doing ok as we are new to this. we have two other cats who we keep separate from her at the moment.

thanking you
Kim

Answer
Hi Kim, It is not unusual for mom to want to take a break from the kids ...especially if she is in a new home. As long as the kittens are being fed and seem content I would not worry too much. When she goes outside though she could be getting bred again ! Yes, they can come into heat right away !! arghh...
I don't know if you will be able to stop that as this is an outside cat but I wanted to make you aware.
It is also nice if you can continue to keep your cats away from her and the babies  as you don't know what she may be carrying and you don't want it spread to your cats.. also she will be more relaxed with no other cats around.
Don't worry if you are new to this.. it sounds like mom-cat has everything under control :)
Just enjoy the babies and this experience.
Teresa