Top 25

The Cat Fanciers' Association seems to think these are the Top 25 kittens, cats, and more cats (wouldn't that make it top 75?). Sure, they're pretty impressive. Really, who can beat kittens 1, 2, 4, 7, 23 and 24 (just to name a few), or champions 2, 5, or 13, or even premiership 4, 16 or 19. These are all impressive cats in their own rights, but I say that a little guarded knowing these Cat Fanciers have not met any of us.

Mom's a winner

We always knew Mom was a winner, but Blingo told her she was a winner today. (Dad, we've always questioned, but Mom says because she's a winner, he's a winner, too.) Mom and Dad use Blingo when they search online for fun toys for us and sometimes Blingo gives away prizes. So since Dad referred Mom to Blingo, and Mom won, Mom and Dad are both winners. Unfortunately, they won movie tickets which means they'll be going out to see a movie some night, but that's OK because when they come home we lick the butter residue off their fingers...

Cat TV

This Saturday Mom was cooking in the kitchen and burnt some pecans (it wasn't her fault, she was following a new recipe and the time was off), but she ended up opening the kitchen windows to air the kitchen out. The weather was nice and crisp, but not cold, and we all gathered in the window to enjoy some fresh air. While relaxing we had a sudden surprise -- birds! A whole bunch of sparrows landed in the yard near the window, pecking at the ground for a good long time before taking off again. In our old apartment we never had birds around so now that we have a house and a yard we are so excited to see our own birds! I can't wait for Spring now. Who knows what other pleasant surprises it may bring?

Climbing the bed

Mom and Dad upgraded from a queen to a king sized mattress around Thanksgiving, but since they couldn't decide on a new bedroom suite, the mattress has just been on the floor. Last night, Mom and Dad picked up a simple bed frame to get the mattress up off the floor like it should be, which ended up raising it seven inches. Doesn't sound like a lot, but it's just enough to challenge our jumping legs. Josie cried to have Dad lift her up, Maggie looked like a spider monkey leaping onto the bed, and once half made it-half missed it and made Dad laugh as her little head just popped up over the foot of the bed then suddenly disappeared. They'll get it down. Me, I just used the bedside table as a step. I like to consider myself the thinker of the bunch.

At one point last night, Mom checked and all four of us were under the bed. That made her very happy (even though she'd prefer we'd all be in bed with her). Still, as soon as Dad's up and out of the house, I fill his side of the bed.

Cat headlines

Mom and Dad saw the teaser for this news article about missing cats (fortunately, not local) and I also stumbled across a story of a cat in a plane for three weeks. (Will Samuel L. Jackson make a movie about cats on a plane?) It really bothers my parents when people treat pets like animals. There's a difference, and we deserve respect. (Read the plane story second because it's happier.)

Update: Did you see the Weekly World News? A fat cat owns 23 old women! Wow!

My perch

I love a good high perch, like my stack of boxes in the garage. When I lived in Iowa, I had a spot at the top of the stairs so I could oversee everything. When we were in the apartment, I lacked any real high ground. Now that we have stairs again, I have reclaimed my spot at the top of the stairs.

From here, I can see the front door as well as all the upstairs action. The only thing better would be if cat stand (a plant stand that I eventually claimed and had Mom move all but one plant off of) was placed up here to give me a little higher vantage point. The only danger from this spot is dusk and dawn, when Dad decides he doesn't quite need the light, but in the dim light I blend in just a little too much and almost get stepped on. It is also very entertaining because Maggie will dart between the spindles and walk on the wrong side of them like an acrobat.

What do we eat?

Scooby, Shaggy and Scout's Mom asked what we eat, since there are four of us, with ages ranging across four years. Although Huggy Bear and I run a little heavy, we still have open feed. We eat a mixture of Purina's Indoor Cat Formula and Purina One Advanced Hairball and Healthy Weight Formula. Mom and Dad would like to see Huggy Bear and I trim down a bit, but Josie and Maggie do well with the feeding system. Hope this helps...

Face time for HB

Huggy Bear complained that he doesn't get enough face time on the blog. It seems that there are lots of pictures of the girls, and plenty of me, but not many of him. Guilty, I guess. It's not intentional, I explained to him, and he did agree that his short, dark and handsome features don't always translate in pictures, but I did manage to capture some good ones today. So this one's for you, HB.


Huggy was enjoying some time on the table in the kitchen by the window, checking out the outside. The weather already warmed back up from Thursday and I think he was hoping for some activity in the backyard. Maybe we'll see birds soon...

Cat Woman

When we lived in Davenport, Iowa (my first home) Mom started buying these local sculptures by an artist named Isabel Bloom. She was trained by Grant Wood (artist known for American Gothic) and was "the thing to collect" in that area. Some of you may have seen the greenish cat sculpture that we'll sometimes nap with (under the cat-stand in this photo). Well, Mom was looking at the Halloween sculptures online (we like Scaredy Cat) when she found Cat Woman. I think she really needs this one, even if it means we give up some of our cat treat fund so she can buy it. (It's OK, really, because I don't eat the cat treats anyway...) (Also, Huggy Bear said he found a dime on the desk this morning and that Mom can have that, too.)

What's new, pussycat?

Well, I've made the switch to "new blogger!" (now in three delicious flavors) so please let me know if you see any glitches. Mom noticed the titles on the last two posts with pictures weren't showing up on Internet Explorer, but Dad could see them on Firefox ("another example of why you should use Firefox," Dad says...). I am happy about having labels (although I don't know what to label this, so how about "purr")!

Speaking of naps...

Josie's couch, for sure...

Without a doubt, Josie has laid claim to the red couch by the windows, especially the back left cushion. I was very proud of her the other day when she shared the back cushions during a nap with Maggie, and double-decker-napped with Huggy Bear. I've taught them well, I guess. (Mom and Dad didn't get a picture of me, but Josie actually even let me nap in her spot briefly.)

Josie's big yawn

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Nap, anyone? After the temps were up in the 60s on Monday, things are dipping down into the chilly 30s with the threat of freezing rain. I guess this means we'll be doing some extra napping on Thursday...

Cardboard playhouse

I wonder if I can convince Dad to build us something like this?

Dad's wallpaper

I'm not implying that I'm Dad's favorite, but this is his wallpaper on his computer at work. Mom took this picture of me a while back when I was napping and my hair was all separated and pointy. Dad says he gets lots of comments from people at work about this photo, and people try to guess what it is (they're usually wrong).

Is it springtime already?

I overheard the weather forecast for this weekend: 75 degrees on Saturday! You know what that means ... open windows for us!

Dad got a great picture of HB and Josie on the couch together this morning when he came down for breakfast. I've been lax about posting pictures, so I promise to get some up this weekend.

Maggie's blanket

Maggie has her favorite blanket. It's a very soft orange throw that ended up at the foot of Mom and Dad's bed one night, and once Maggie started nuzzling it and curling up and sleeping with Mom and Dad, it has stayed at the foot of the bed. The issue is that Mom and Dad got a new, pretty bedspread and orange just doesn't fit the color scheme (it really never did fit the color scheme, but it was soft and warm and Mom and Dad like orange...). So Mom is on the hunt for a beige replacement. Personally, I think it's just another excuse to wander around Target. It's risky to play games with our favorite things. After the move, plant stand (aka cat stand) moved into one of the upstairs rooms, but it just hasn't felt right, so I haven't been sleeping in it. So I have to wonder, even if Mom finds the right feeling blanket, will it feel right to Maggie?

Poor Mitzi

Remember Mitzi, that sweet little kitten that showed up at Mom and Dad's doorstep just a few days before they moved from the apartment to their house? Mitzi crossed the Rainbow Bridge today. It seems that she wouldn't stay inside, so eventually her mom would let her go out and explore. Dad told her mom over and over to get her fixed and she wouldn't be so eager to go out. She was set to go to the vet on Friday. But last week she disappeared for about three days. When she showed back up, she wouldn't lift her tail. Today, she was bleeding and the vet said it looks like she'd been hit by a car, her tail was broken and she lacked rectal function. Sadly, there was only one option. Dad is sad and frustrated. He knew it was a risky choice for a mom, but thought this was someone who needed a loving cat in her life to give her something to care for, and that might be right for both Mitzi and her new mom. Looking back, Mitzi stood no chance on her own back in August, and Mom and Dad had few options since they were getting ready to move and couldn't bring another cat into the mix. We just wish things had worked out better for this poor little soul.

Dad wanted me to add that one of his patients had to send her cat to the Bridge after discovering severe diabetes. This cat, eight or nine years old, had been rescued from neglectful owners and Dad reminded her that she gave the cat good years before crossing the Bridge. To make things even worse, a patient called to let them know his wife had her third miscarriage. It was a tough day at the office for Dad.

Dress Up Your Pet Day

Now this is a holiday we don't need to celebrate! Who comes up with this kind of insanity?!? (Dog people, I'd guess...)

Dirty clothes

Is there really any better spot to nap than a pile of dirty clothes?

Cat's in clothes? I don't think so!

This is Prissy ... Mom's brother's dog. She had gotten a lot of mats in her hair so she ended up getting a summer cut in the winter. When Mom and Dad were down visiting, she was chilly so Mom put her in the only clothes she could find: a sun dress. Now there's so much wrong with that last sentence, but let's focus on the key issue... if we would tolerate it, Mom would dress us in silly clothes. No doubt about it. I worry when I see the Target bags coming in that maybe she bought some silly t-shirt for us. She hasn't yet, but I've heard conversations about trying their luck with Maggie or Josie.

Holiday recap

I wanted to take a minute and talk about the week between Christmas and New Year's...

After Mom and Dad returned on Tuesday from Mississippi, Dad's parents (Nanny and Pop) showed up with Aunt Kelly. Aunt Kelly has been wanting to meet us for a long time, and she showed us all kinds of attention. But the one we really warmed up to was Pop. He scored points with us by helping Dad install a new garbage disposal in the kitchen. This new disposal is so quiet we don't even run away when Mom switches it on! So Josie would sit by Pop all the time to show him our appreciation, and the rest of us made sure we put our stink on him (he is going back home to a dog so we wanted to make sure Sassy knew we'd been around...) Nanny, Pop and Kelly left on Friday at 11 a.m. and Aunt Tiff showed up around 1 p.m.

Aunt Tiff brought us presents! We got a neat whirly toy with fuzzy balls and kinky strings on it that Huggy Bear enjoyed growling at and dismantling. She also brought us these cool stuffed mice and toy jacks and some of our favorite treats. She stayed until today, when she had to go back to Atlanta and get ready for school (working on her fourth degree, if you count bartending school). One night Aunt Tiff was watching TV on the couch and Maggie curled up with her and fell asleep, which we all know is the biggest compliment of all.

We'll miss all the company, but we know they'll be back visiting soon enough. Today, with the house empty except for Mom, Josie and I have been curled up with her as she reads her second book of the new year. (See... still keeping that resolution!)

Neil Gaiman's cat

Dad likes to read Neil Gaiman (and his journal) and he wrote about going on walks with his cat, which always seems to sound better when a real writer writes about anything. Dad read me the post, but it was the picture of the pretty pretty Princess in the snow that got my attention.

Starting the year off right

Now this is the way to spend January 1 -- curled up in bed with Mom! Maybe that'll be my resolution ... more naps with Mom. I think I can keep that one.

Happy New Year!

Huggy Bear really enjoyed the New Year's party last night and gave a few toots with the noise makers before deciding that was just too much noise. We stayed upstairs early on, but after dinner Mom let us out to enjoy the fun! Dad watched us closely to make sure no one left the doors open. Overall, it was a fun night and a good way to start the new year... Hope ya'll had fun too!