Secret Paws is here!

Hooray! Hooray! It's one of our favorite days! Our Secret Paws package arrived! We got a  very intriguing package from Crepes, Rocky, Niles, Mrs Peabody and Doodle from Cat in the Fridge.


Maggie was the first to investigate the box.


Being the oldest cat I have to set a good example and read the card first.


We got a tin of really cool Christmas colored balls to play with. (You'll see these again...)


And look! Cat grass! We needed this!


Huggy Bear helped me pick out a catnip mouse to play with. He was so excited that he got blurry in the picture.


But really, how could you help but not get excited with all these cool gifts!


Maggie likes to check out the box and make sure Mom and Dad got everything out.


Josie showed up a tad bit late to the opening, but she still got to pick out a ball or two to play with.


There were peppermint striped balls, and green ones, and they jingle when we bat them around.


Josie had trouble deciding.


Huggy Bear had no trouble deciding -- it's the crinkle butterfly for him.


I was partial to the heart-shaped mouse from the tin of catnip mice. I kept knocking it under the dresser so Mom and Dad would have to get up and get it for me. It's a really fun game. I highly recommend it.


And then there was the Catnip Stogie! This this is amazing! It is compressed catnip in the shape of a cigar. Maggie just couldn't contain herself. She licked it and put her stink on it so we all knew it was hers.

There were Temptation Mix-Ups too -- some of our favorites! (I know I got a picture but I don't see it right now...)

Thanks to all the cats at Cat in the Fridge for the great Secret Paws! We are having so much fun with all the awesome toys. We can't wait for the grass to grow so we can eat it.

[We made a mini version of this post on the Secret Paws site.]

Stinky Goodness cake and gifts

So as is our tradition I got my Stinky Goodness cake in the shape of a 10 for my 10th birthday last night! As an added bonus, Mom diced up some chicken to go along with it.


Here I am licking the juices off of the cake. It was so good.


Then I shared it with my brother and sisters. You can see I stay up on the counter so I can eat in peace. I'm not much for competing for food.


I don't play with toys a lot, but Mom and Dad know I like a good scratcher, so they got me a new wavy scratcher from Target, then loaded all our scratchers up with nip. Maggie and I really liked the nip!


You can see I even shared with Josie. It's good to share -- a lesson from a mature mancat. I also got a toy mouse from Aunt Tiff. I plan on hunting it later... it has an elastic string to hang from the door, and I love to chew those in half!

Thanks for all the birthday wishes. My cat friends make me feel so special!

The problem with a new toy

New toys are great, they really are. There's only one problem -- ownership.


For example, here's Josie with a fresh catnip sardine from our Secret Paws. But you can see Maggie entering from the right.


Then here's Maggie saying, "Let's discuss sharing that catnip sardine."


And finally, right before Josie ended negotiations by taking off to the living room. Although she did remind Maggie, "You've got to sleep sometime..."

Tuxie Tuesday: Josie versus the squirrel

OK, it wasn't only Josie who noticed the squirrel, but she was certainly first and the most animated about it.


As soon as Josie saw the squirrel on the deck out back she stood up on the back of the couch and started pawing at the window frame, just itching to get out and chase the squirrel.


We all got very excited and rushed over to see what the commotion was -- well, all but me. I was just hanging out in the kitchen hoping for some chicken. (You see, I know we're indoor cats, and there's no use getting overly excited about an outside thing -- especially when the windows are closed.)


But this is what all the fuss was about. And even with Josie attacking the window and huffing and generally being upset that he was there, this little guy still hung out, scratching himself furiously, for a good minute or two before disappearing high into a tree.


As a reward, Dad got us some fresh nip from the pot out back. Mom and Dad get nip every year to grow, but this is the first time it has made it past the July heat.


It was some good nip, too. HB ate his, Maggie and Josie tussled over some more. As Josie shows here, it was nose-licking good!

Thankful Thursday

I want to thank everyone for all the nice birthday wishes. I had a big hairball by noon yesterday, and Aunt Tiff said that if you're puking by noon then you've been partying pretty hard.


As you can see in this picture of Maggie, we're all recovering from a little nip hangover from the birthday party. I'm going to make it by to visit everyone who commented, but it may take some time. (I just don't know how Daisy does it!)

Thanks again to everyone for their nice birthday wishes. All the visitors and nice comments meant so much.

Tuxie and Tabby Tuesday: The Movie

This is something new ... video uploaded directly to Blogger, and edited on Adobe Premiere Elements. I think I've uploaded one or two videos through YouTube before, but I wanted to try this one and see how it does.

The video is clips of Maggie and Josie enjoying the catnip canes that Aunt Tiff got them the other day. I think Dad's favorite part is the very beginning when you can hear Maggie licking the cane. Mom likes the middle, with Josie rolling around in a catnip haze.



Almost forgot ... Happy NOMS Day everyone!

And if you know someone looking for a couple of cats, there's a pair of Bengals in need of a loving home ... pass it along. If nothing else, check out these beautiful cats.

Aunt Tiff comes bearing gifts

Aunt Tiff came in to town Friday night, and like any good aunt she picked up some toys for us. She got us some more catnip canes. These are "Nautical" catnip canes, and they are yummy! Dad even shot a video of us with the canes that we will show after he plays with it some and if he can get it to upload. (We had a Maggie movie for today, but You Tube is taking forever to upload it, so we'll see about video.)


Maggie has her catnip cane technique down. She hugs it, bends it, and licks it to death.


Huggy Bear wanted two canes, and since he's a big boy, Aunt Tiff said OK. (Please ignore the box from Sam's in the background. We've loved it so much that it has been in the kitchen longer than it should have.)


Josie took a very careful inspection of her catnip canes. She was so intent on her cane that she didn't even care that Huggy Bear kept smacking her in the face with his tail. I think she was a little high on the 'nip.

I also played with my cane, but to see that you'll have to wait for the (maybe) video.

Cleaning the desk, blaming the catnip

I decided to help Mom clean the desk last night. She had left just the slightest amount of water in a cup on the desk, and I know she did it so I could knock it over and help clean up the desk. I only cleaned one side -- a few empty envelopes, one bill waiting to be mailed out, the mouse pad (optical mouse on a glass desk top doesn't quite work), and some notes from the theatre where Mom volunteers. I don't know if Mom truly appreciated my efforts, because she came behind me and cleaned it up again, and said things like, "I love you, Jasper, but you can't spill my drinks like this..." which totally misses the point that I was helping her clean up.

If she considers what I did making a mess, then maybe I should blame the fresh catnip she gave us the other night. She was out getting some herbs for dinner, and clipped off some catnip from the plant outside.


Josie liked the fresh catnip the most. Maggie rolled on it some, and played a little.


Huggy Bear was cautious in his approach to the fresh catnip. I think he likes his out of a bag...