Wordless Wednesday

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!


Cat totem
Originally uploaded by jenianddean

Tuxie Tuesday

Josie loves hunting red bug. No matter how many times she catches it, she's never been able to eat it, though. This is one of Mom and Dad's favorite pictures of her bug hunting because you can see her eyes so intensely. (It's a little grainy because of we had to turn the flash off or it made red big kinda disappear.)

Ghost stories

Dad let me listen to some ghost stories from NPR online, mainly because he wanted to hear Neil Gaiman read his 30 second story, and it was nice Dad and oldest boy cat bonding, but the story I enjoyed most was Zombie Cat (just past halfway down on the page) because it was spooky, but funny, too, (and it featured a cat) and that's the kind of horror stories I like.

Maggie Monday

IMG_2500a
Originally uploaded by jenianddean

Guess what? While mom and dad were on vacation this past weekend, they found out were Maggies come from....Maggie Valley! hehehe

Thanks so much!

I just want to thank everyone so much for the nice comments on my third year blogoversary. I think I had something around 37 comments (that's almost Daisy numbers there!) and over 100 visitors on Thursday -- unbelievable. The cat blogging community is so amazing, I count my blessings every day that I'm a part of this.

Blogoversary -- 3 years in review

I started blogging three years ago today! I started a little while after my Mom and Dad had been blogging. They had abandoned their first blog for a fresh start and were really enjoying it, and it looked fun so I figured I'd give it a shot. I really had no idea how long I'd be able to keep it going. Originally I started just to post some pictures so Dad could see them at work and so I could tell a few stories. I never imagined what an amazing community this would have turned in to, and what an important element of my life (next to naps, food and face brushes) this would become. Now a day without visiting my friends' blogs and checking for comments is an incomplete day.

So as part of my Three Year Blogoversary, I present a timeline of events from the past three years of Jasper McKitten-Cat, the blogger.



Monday, October 25, 2004 at 12:02 a.m.
I posted my very first post, followed five minutes later by one of my favorite pictures (taken by Mom) and what has been my profile picture ever since.


Monday, October 25, 2004 at 7:32 a.m.
I post about my neighbor kittens, not knowing at the time that two of them would become Josie and Huggy Bear, my sister and brother.

Thursday, October 28, 2004
My first comment.

[OK, at this point I am realizing that there is a lot here and it's not that easy to decided what is a significant event. I hope to not overlook anything. Maybe a brief nap...]

Tuesday, November 2, 2004
I started using Blog Explosion to get more visitors and exposure. (Apparently since I have not used it in quite some time I am no longer listed there, but at one point I was pretty highly rated among pet blogs.)

Saturday, November 6, 2004
Josie is introduced officially as my sister on the blog. She even took a nap on Mom's chest. So sweet from day one.



Sunday, December 5, 2004
After Huggy and Josie's brother and sister from the litter were both adopted out that left just Huggy Bear. Mom and Dad took him back for adoption day one more time, feeling heart-broken the entire trip. They had totally fallen in love with him (tell me you didn't see that one coming).

Sunday, December 12, 2004
After not being adopted by some stranger, Huggy Bear joins the family officially!



[I forgot how much Huggy Bear and Josie napped together as kittens...]

Wednesday, January 19, 2005
The kittens get their tags from Boomerang Tags. I haven't had a tag yet, although Mom and Dad mention it all the time. Speaking of, I guess we should order new ones...

Sunday, January 30, 2005
My first cat comment, this one by William! I linked to his blog and have been reading it ever since.

Friday, February 11, 2005
Two more cat comments, Ginger, and Merlin and Shadow. Two more blogs that I have followed for over two years now. Wow!

Saturday, February 19, 2005
I meet Timothy Dickens.

Thursday, February 24, 2005
Scooby, Shaggy and Scout's Mom Lynne visits for the first time. (Scooby started commenting on March 15.)

Friday, March 25, 2005
Max makes his first comment on one of Mom's favorite pictures of Josie.



Tuesday, April 5, 2005
Josie and Huggy Bear (and eventually Maggie's) mom had her third litter of kittens, three little ones who quickly found homes on their own.

Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Josie hunted down her first bug! She's been a keen huntress ever since.

Wednesday, May 11, 2005
I linked to the cat dance thanks to Timmy. This one became a permanent link because it makes us all smile every time we see it.

Tuesday, June 7, 2005
Midnight, our most consistent feral visitor at our apartment, came for his first visit.



Wednesday, July 6, 2005
Our first encounter with Gracie, our favorite sticky little person.

Saturday, July 9, 2005
Momma cat's litter of ten kittens (yes, you read that right) -- including Maggie! -- is outside on the neighbor's back patio. At this point, Mom and Dad pretty much knew it was up to them to care for these little guys. (Maggie is the third from the right.)



Saturday, July 20, 2005
Adoption day for many of the huge litter of kittens.

Wednesday, August 3, 2005
Mom and Dad take momma cat and get her fixed. After four litters in just over two years, the poor girl deserved a break!

Monday, August 8, 2005
Maggie is the last remaining kitten from a litter of 10. Amazingly we found some of the nicest people to give good homes to these kittens.

Friday, August 12, 2005
Maggie has to go to the vet for her eye. The poor thing had to have it removed as the upper respiratory infection that troubled many of the kittens had gone to her eye causing a retina prolapse. She went through the surgery without a hitch, and has never missed a beat.

[As of August, I am now getting visits from Edsel, Oreo and Diva Kitty. The number and frequency of visitors builds from here, and although I'd like to mark everyone's initial visits, it's getting difficult and I don't want to miss anyone. Take it that your visits are noticed and very appreciated.]

Sunday, August 21, 2005
We are introduced to Maggie for the first time as our sister.

Thursday, August 25, 2005
Maggie's first night on her own out of the carrier.

Friday, September 9, 2005
Maggie gets her first collar, the yellow version of her current collar. She lost it a few months ago, and Mom and Dad just found it when they cleaned out the garage. It was behind a ton of boxes, which reveals a little secret of where Maggie plays in the garage.

Sunday, September 11, 2005
Oh, I really don't even want to mention this one ... our sanitary clipping. Mom and Dad took HB, Josie and I to the groomer to get cleaned and trimmed (seems I'm so floofy that sometimes the litter box and I don't get along and I can get messy). Well, they buzzed our bellies. Embarrassing, to say the least!



Thursday, November 10, 2005
We got our four black and white cubes. These will appear many many times in the blog throughout the years.



Thursday, January 12, 2006
I did a search for myself and saw I was listed on the Top 10 Sources for Cats. The link has since changed and I'm no longer there, and there are a lot more than 10 links, but it was fun being listed.

Sunday, January 15, 2006
We get our first "red bug" ... a laser pointer!

Monday, January 16, 2006
Josie slept through the Golden Globes as Aunt Kelli visited from Iowa and we got one of Mom and Dad's favorite pictures of her...



Saturday, January 21, 2006
After we killed the old vacuum Mom and Dad went out and bought the Yellow Monster (aka Dyson). Despite all the hair we shed, we have yet to be able to kill this one.

Friday, February 10, 2006
Our first tag and we submitted our paws to the Paw Pawtraits Contest. That was quite a challenge!

Saturday, February 25, 2006
I made it onto the top of the fridge. I didn't think things could get much better until we moved to our house and found the top of the cabinets over the fridge!

Monday, February 27, 2006
Huggy Bear got his pink mouse. He took it and used his deep deep growl to keep us all at bay. He still has this mouse, with much less fur, but will still hunt it.

Wednesday, March 8, 2006
Recovering from my first teleporting party at Magoo's place.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Joined Gorgeous Gingers and the Tuxedo Gang.

Sunday, March 19, 2006
Gracie was very little when I let her start brushing me. She's still my favorite sticky person, and I'm still a little cautious when she brushes me.



Friday, March 24, 2006
Our first Secret Paws gift, from Sebastian and Yaffa.



Saturday, April 1, 2006
Tapeworms ... worst April Fools news ever!

Saturday, April 15, 2006
My 4th birthday. I forgot I share a birthday with Luna!

Monday, May 15, 2006
We missed signing up for the Catolympics, but really enjoyed seeing the results.

Saturday, May 27, 2006
We got our first Zoom Groom! Love the Zoom Groom. Also, Dad captured this cool picture of Huggy Bear pouncing Maggie which makes Dad think of the "creature" from Lost.



Saturday, June 24, 2006
We all loaded up into harnesses and carriers and went to the Mobile Pet Med to get our shots. This was quite an adventure because there were a lot of droolers, and we were pretty heavy in our carriers. But everyone liked seeing us.

Saturday, July 29, 2006
Mom and Dad tell us we're leaving the apartment and moving into a house!

Friday, August 11, 2006
I made a rare video post, this one of a friends cat who likes to get vacuumed?!?

Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Mom and Dad found a kitten named Mitzi and found a home for her.

Monday, August 21, 2006
Another great Secret Paws from Yaffa and Sebastian!

Wednesday, August 30, 2006
My first post from the new house!

Thursday, August 31, 2006
Oh, remember Luna's horrible vet ordeal where she was let loose? Thank goodness that had a happy ending! (September 28, 2006)

Wednesday, September 13, 2006
We helped Mom and Dad paint the kitchen. (Lots of new house adventures in September ... new spots to sleep and play and Mom and Dad projects to snoopervise).

Monday, October 9, 2006
Our first visit into the garage. This would become one of our favorite hangouts.

Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Mom and Dad carved a pumpkin into a kitten!



Friday, November 24, 2006
The red couches arrive and Josie claims the long one by the windows as her favorite napping spot.

Monday, December 28, 2006
Maggie loves to play in the Christmas tree. Even though Mom and Dad didn't catch her in the tree they found her missing collar in the tree. She needs to hide the evidence better next time.

Thursday, January 11, 2007
Maggie claimed her orange blanket on Mom and Dad's bed.

Friday, February 2, 2007
Mom and Dad get a new bed ... king sized with more room for us!

Thursday, February 8, 2007
Mom and Dad dress Maggie in her purple striped t-shirt. She was not amused.

Monday, February 26, 2007
We got our Kitty Kozies from Timothy Dickens' Grammie! We love our kozies!



Saturday, March 10, 2007
Huggy Bear's shortest outdoor adventure ever, when he darted into the garage when the big door was up. I think he was more surprised than anything, especially when Dad carried him through the front yard to the front door.

Friday, April 6, 2007
My first Floofy Friday!

Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Our first Tummy Tuesday!

Monday, April 30, 2007
Huggy Bear caught a big moth that had the nerve to fly into the house. Let that be a warning to other bugs out there!

Monday, May 7, 2007
My first Mancat Monday!

Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Our first Wordless Wednesday!

Thursday, May 24, 2007
Josie put on her harness and leash and went out on the back deck with Mom and Dad!

Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Pictorial of Maggie descending from her high, high perch in the garage.

Monday, June 18, 2007
Our stroller arrived.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Maggie's first stroller ride ... short but sweet.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Ginger nominated Maggie as a Rockin' Girl Blogger. That same day we got our cool Secret Paws gift from HRH Yao-Lin!

Friday, August 3, 2007
Maggie's first full walk in the stroller.

Monday, August 13, 2007
We are featured in Karen Jo's limericks!

Tuesday, September 4, 2007
The front door didn't latch fully and Huggy Bear, Josie and Maggie had a brief adventure on the front porch. Mom and Dad ushered them inside quickly.

Monday, September 10, 2007
We receive the Nice Matters Award from Meep!

Thursday, September 27, 2007
My first Thursday Thirteen!

Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Victor Tabbycat gave us the I Love Your Blog Award!

Thursday, October 25, 2007
Happy Third Blogoversary to me! (And the end of this long, exhaustive post!) Thanks to everyone for visiting over the past three years. We look forward to another exciting three years of blogging. And now, after all that typing, I think I need a nap.

Wordless Wednesday

Tuxie Tabby Tuesday

Josie and Maggie are doing a really good job of patrolling the backyard for sassy squirrels and naughty birds. They are keeping watching from the office while I blog. I would hate for a squirrel to sneak up behind me while I'm on the computer. Thanks sisters! Keep up the good work!

Maggie and her long arm

Oh, Mom and Dad thought this was such a funny picture of Maggie! I don't know how she managed to twist and stretch and pile the comforter just right, but it made her arm look unnaturally long. If her arm was really this much longer, I'd have to stay way out of swatting distance from her!

The cat's in the bag

Dad says there's an expression that says, "The cat's out of the bag." That makes no sense to me, because, obviously, if there's a bag, there's going to be a cat in it. In this case, Maggie's taking her turn. And when she's not looking caught, she's chewing on those great string handles.

Freaky Friday

Can you believe the nerve of this sassy squirrel? Prancing around on OUR deck. Shaking is floofy tail at Huggy Bear, Josie and Maggie. That squirrel is lucky there is a screen between them. Josie was so mad at that sassy squirrel that she was talking to him giving him the business. I think we need to have Daisy the Curly Cat come over and have some powerful thoughts about the squirrel like she did those birds at her house.

Squirrels!

Thursday Thirteen #3 -- Pink Ball

Since yesterday was Wordless Wednesday with Huggy Bear and his pink ball, I thought I'd carry on with a Thursday Thirteen about the picture.

1. Yes, Meep, Huggy Bear does carry that ball in his mouth a lot.
2. He hunts the ball at night mostly.
3. When Mom and Dad are watching TV Huggy Bear will bring the pink ball in to them in his mouth and proudly drop it at their feet.
4. After bringing them the pink ball, Huggy Bear usually plops down in front of them and gets pets.
5. Huggy Bear is a boy, but all his favorite toys are all pink.
6. He also has a pink mouse that he has hunted until the fur is all gone but Mom and Dad can't bring themselves to get rid of it because HB still hunts it.
7. They bought him another pink mouse on his birthday, which he played with but now Josie hunts it instead.
8. This pink ball was a gift from Aunt Tiffany.
9. It came with a poorly designed spinny thing that couldn't stand up to the strength of Huggy Bear.
10. So Huggy Bear killed the spinner and took the ball instead.
11. But it's worked out, because he has more fun carrying the ball than he had spinning it around.
12. He will sometimes growl when he has his toys in his mouth, I think to let us know that it's his and he's killed it.
13. In the picture Huggy Bear was rolling around tossing the ball around and using the banister rails of the stairs to rest his feet and push himself after the ball.

Wordless Wednesday

Huggy with his favorite toy
Originally uploaded by jenianddean

An award!

Victor Tabbycat gave us the I Love Your Blog award and we all couldn't be more honored.



I means so much to be honored and there are so many wonderful blogs out there that deserve recognition. I don't want to miss anyone, but let's see ... I want to give this award to Scooby, Shaggy and Scout, Daisy the Curly Cat (I'm sure she's collecting a few of these), Eric and Flynn (just love their adventures and mouse hunting), and Magoo, Smudge, Bella, Dolce and Baci. I could go on and on, really, and will probably come back and edit this to add more, but even if I didn't list you here, consider yourself loved.

Tabby Tuxie Tuesday

Tabby Tuxie Tuesday
Originally uploaded by jenianddean

All of us have totally been enjoying the beautiful summer, I mean, fall weather. Mom and dad have had all the windows open and it's been awesome. Josie has been hunting birdies and squirrels all week. She really knows how to give them the business.

On Saturday, she and Maggie had one of their afternoon naps in the family room window. It gets great afternoon sun plus the girls could keep a close eye on the squirrels from this window.

Operation Happy Sock

Aunt Cathy shared another link, this one a little happier than the last ... it's about Operation Happy Sock, and effort to recycle mismatched socks into catnip cat toys for shelter cats. What a great idea!

State Fair

Mom and Dad are going to the South Carolina State Fair with Aunt Lisa and Uncle Brian and Gracie and Clara Ann. Maybe they'll bring us back a funnel cake or a new stuffed toy to hunt! Little Gracie is our favorite little person because she is now three and plays nicer and likes to give us treats and throw toys to us. And hopefully if we don't get a funnel cake Gracie will smell like one and we'll be able to lick her fingers!

Sad story with hopefully a happy ending

Aunt Cathy passed on this sad story of a little cat who was shot with a .22 in the jaw and gut, and the special people who are trying to help her. The poor little thing! Another reason for us to stay inside and sniff the air through the windows.

Floofy Friday

Happy day! Here I am taking a little nap on dad's pillow last night. Don't I look so floofy?!?

The reason it's a happy day is because we had THREE deliveries to our house today. The FedEx guy, the UPS guy, and the DHL guy - which means three or more boxes for us to play in. For me the FedEx delivery was the best. It was two large boxes and will really help me with my blog. Can you guess what it was????


A NEW COMPUTER! YIPPEEEEEEEEEEE!! It's so much faster than my old one and the monitor is bigger and flatter (more room for me on the desk now). I'm going to make this a short post so I can get back to importing all my bookmarks and pictures.

Happy floofy Friday everyone!!!

Please send your prayers

Mom and Dad just learned that their friend's four-year-old daughter is facing a dire battle and needs all the prayers she can get. Her's is such a heart-wrenching story, but I'm sharing it here because you are all such an amazing support group, if nothing else for thoughts and prayers, which at times like these can mean so, so much. So please keep her in your thoughts. We are very excited for her that she will be going to Disney soon thanks to Make-a-Wish. (Also, Mom posted a picture of her with a huge -- I mean HUGE -- dog when she was at the Mayo Clinic. I think it's a Newfoundland dog, but I guess they let dogs in once a week as therapy ... kinda like Timothy visiting his Grammie, I guess.)

Whiskers Wednesday

This is our first Whiskers Wednesday. We usually do Wordless, but mom took these pictures of me and Josie and thought they were perfect for Whiskers Wednesday. I have really long black and white whiskers. Mom says they are tuxie whiskers, but I have to disagree. I'm not a tuxie, I'm a ginger. Sometimes moms are a little crazy! Our aunt Nikki tells her cat Hokie that he has long whiskers because he has such a floofy backside! The nerve!! If my mom told me that I would leave her something very special on her pillow, if you know what I mean.

Note:You can really see my nose freckles in these pictures. Mom also loves those!!



Josie has pure white whiskers and eyebrows. Mom was zoom grooming her and she was so happy. She tossed her head back and showed off her cute little whiskers and her little pink nose.

How to become and outside cat

Aunt Cathy posted visual instructions on how to become an outside cat.

Cute story

Golden retriever nurses 6-week-old kitten.

Desktop meme

We were tagged by Kashim and Othello and Patches and Mittens of the Big Piney Woods with the desktop meme... (they both have really nice desktops worth looking at).

This is Dad's desktop at work. He has Maggie's tunnel picture on it right now because he likes how the green tunnel creates an area for the icons to sit. He also has the Yahoo! Widgets in the lower left corner (needs to straighten the calendar since it changed to October and is smaller than September). (This used to be called Konfabulator before Yahoo! bought it, as they battle Google to see who can buy up most of the internet. I think Konfabulator is a much more fun name than Yahoo! Widgets.) Dad has also used icons from the Icon Factory to spruce up his desktop icons. (Although with Halloween coming up, he may switch to this wallpaper from the Icon Factory.)

This is the desktop at home that I do my blogging from. Right now it has a picture of Josie with her plume tail from the afternoon that Mom and Dad put her on the harness and took her on the deck. We have two rows of shortcuts on the desktop at home, the left is the standard icons (except we use Firefox now instead of IE, even though we've left that icon up) and the right row is Mom's games she likes. She's been playing a lot of hidden object games (Mystery Case Files), along with the classic Bejeweled, Alchemy and Diner Dash. Dad likes to put the trash in the bottom right corner (and old Apple holdover, plus who wants your trash with all your good stuff?).

I know I'm supposed to tag a handful of other bloggers (and this is where I stink at memes) but I'm usually behind on these, so please tag yourself and comment that you posted one if you want to play along but haven't been tagged. Consider this an open invitation to play tag.

Birthday cake all around!

Mom and Dad made stinky goodness birthday cakes in the shape of a 3 for Huggy Bear and Josie's birthday! They made it out of Elegant Medley which is my new favorite stinky goodness. (This was the one with egg souffle, which is super yummy!)

See the three's cakes. We even got to use fancy flower plates!

I'm trying not to look too much like a pig as the boys and girls share plates.

It was so good I didn't even mind getting nose-to-nose with Huggy Bear to eat cake.

Happy Birthday Josie and Huggy Bear!

Happy Birthday to my sister and brother, Josie and Huggy Bear! It was three years ago today that Mom came home from a trip to find a litter if four kittens. One was this sweet little tuxie who turned looked like Mom's first cat (the one who came before) and Mom fell in love with Josie right away. While we found homes for two others, Huggy Bear turned out to be so so sweet that he just belonged with us.

As a kitten Josie liked to play on the stairs of the apartment, and look down from the high perch.

The kittens would sleep in the pine straw around the shrubs. Frisky (the tabby) looks so much like Maggie (and momma cat), except he was a boy and a huge ball of energy. The other black was Huggy Bear's twin, Curly, and the first to be adopted.

This is Huggy Bear early after becoming a part of the family.

These two have been such a meaningful part of my life. I was two when they came into my life, and I learned what cat-family is all about, playing together, cleaning, snuggling, biting butts and wrestling ... you know, all the great cat stuff you do with siblings. I can't believe three years have gone by this fast! HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY, Josie and Huggy Bear! Thanks for being my sister and brother.

SSSTTTRRRRREETTTCCCHHHH!

SSSTTTRRRRREETTTCCCHHHH!
Originally uploaded by sharkgrrl

Dad was jumping from Flickr accounts visiting some of our cat blog friends' pictures and did a search for photos in Columbia, SC and found this one. I thought it was worth sharing.

Thursday Thirteen, #2 (Best Napping Spots)

For my second Thursday Thirteen I'm going easy ... the thirteen best napping spots:
1) Window sill ... especially when the windows are open.
2) Sink ... can't beat it on a warm summer day.
3) Half wall in the bathroom ... kind of like the sink for a cool spot because of the tiles, but it also puts me in the perfect spot to get chin skritches.
4) Cat stand ... we have this metal plant stand that has a special spot just for me to curl up in. It's great because my fur hangs down through the square holes in the stand and I can feel the cool air under me. I also like it bunches because no one else sleeps there.
5) Laundry ... clean, dirty, folded or balled up doesn't matter to me.
6) Dad's pillow ... this is a very brief, drive-by napping, usually about a minute when he's getting ready for bed, watching either The Daily Show or Cash Cab After Dark. He has a nice cervical pillow with the hole in the middle, which is great for curling in.
7) The empty side of the bed ... when only Mom or only Dad is in the bed I like to sleep on the other side. Oddly, I have less interest in the bed when they're both there.
8) Up on a box ... the garage still has plenty of good boxes to sleep on, and that usually means being up in a high high place.
9) Back of the couch ... this is Josie's number one spot, usually looking out a window.
10) In front of the fireplace ... Huggy Bear likes this spot because he's black and so is the fireplace so he blends in really well.
11) In the closet ... Josie now likes to sleep in the master closet, I think because when Dad brings the ironing board past her she attacks the strings hanging from the ironing board.
12) At Mom's feet ... when Mom is on the computer Maggie likes to curl up on her feet.
13) On our Kitty Kozy in the stroller ... while Josie isn't the biggest fan of the stroller when it is outside, she loves to sleep on the kozy (from Timmy's Grammie) inside the stroller, so Mom and Dad keep the stroller open and inside so she can nap and get comfortable in it.

Wordless Wednesday

Tuxie Tabby Tuesday

Josie is the huntress in our family. Look how keenly she is watching out our back window. I think she either saw a little lizard or a birdie. She is teaching Maggie her hunting skills. She is a great big sister.

Who's that mancat in the window?

I just can't believe it! I know my mom has been talking about getting a new kitten, but how in the world could she go out and get another handsome, gorgeous, ginger mancat?? Doesn't she know I'm enough ginger mancat for one house? I just don't know who she thinks she is. You can see how incredibly gorgeous he is this picture. Look how he's looking back at me...