Sure Honey, Say It All You Want, We Believe You...

Now my husband resembles my daddy in many many ways.  They both speak in about the same manner.  They are both quite jovial.  They both have the same evile sense of humor.  They both enjoy talking about history... oh wait, make that any kind of debate!  They can both start up a joke and carry it (if you're in the US, think Drew Carry's show Whose Line Is It Anyway?) which is cool, because my husband and I do this at home as well (we're trying to teach my children too).

There is one other thing which my husband does that my daddy does which made me know that he was the man for me.  Picture a man sitting in a comfy chair.  Now picture a cat either sitting beside the man, laying on the armrest of the chair, or even laying ::gasp:: in the man's lap.  You will find the man, when he thinks no one is looking, stroking the cat (supposedly as if he didn't know he were doing so) quite knowledgeably while saying, "I don't like you cat.  You know, I don't even know why I feed you.  You are completely worthless, you know.  If you were a dog, you would fetch my slippers.  I really don't care for cats at all.  I have no idea why we keep you around.  Perhaps we should have you for dinner.  Oh wait, we don't have a pot big enough!" and so on and thus and such and so and so, all the while saying this in a coaxing tone while the cat accepts his or her due praise, purring and purring and purring.

"I often make it my job to make sure that dad's pillow
is warm when he's ready to go to sleep!"

"We all help guard dad's piano."

"You can see that dad & Mister Kitten just can't get along at all."

"Dad helped mom do this one by suggesting the line.
Then mom knew which cat it worked with.

If a Bird in Hand is Worth Two in the Bush...

... how much is a bird in the kitchen worth??  Yesterday dad woke up to a bird in the kitchen.  It was a full-grown bird who ran right into the closed window when dad came into the kitchen.  Dad went and got a blanket and managed to catch it in the sink.  He went to the front door and released it outside.  Dad noticed where we'd gotten it on one wing but our new toy was okay and flew away.  We're not sure why dad took our toy away.

"Did it go that way??"

We're all very good hunters and mom & dad don't mind when we hunt things that come into the house by themselves.  Any mousies that try to eat our stuff had better beware!!  We find them and leave them for mom & dad so they know how much we love them.  (But for some reason they don't give us treats!!  We think they should give us treats for doing that!!)

"Christopher taught us everything we know about hunting!"

Our yard is full of birds.  We like that.  Mom doesn't know why there are so many birds around.  She doesn't know all of the different kinds we have.  We know that there are blue jays, cardinals, woodpeckers, and finches.  Mom won't put out bird baths or catfeeders (that's what she calls birdfeeders) because she says we have enough toys as it is!!  There is a tree out front that has a squirrel who taunts us.  More squirrels live out back.  Behind our backyard there is a biiiiiig field where a farmer grows hay.  Sometimes we find voles to bring home to mom.  But she makes us take our toys outside.

"We brought in more toys when Mister Kitten

was a baby to try to teach him how to hunt."

Mister Kitten didn't join the Teenage Mutant Ninja Kitty Horde until we moved into our new house.  So he is the only one of us who wasn't trained to hunt by Christopher.  Chris taught us that you should never ever ever put your presents where mom or dad will step on it.  Not only does it make mom or dad yell but it might make mom fall down.  You don't want mom to fall down.  Then she hurts.  We are good Nurse Cats so we try to keep everyone in the house as healthy as possible.  That means making sure they don't overdo and take lots and lots of naps.  Sometimes we put our heads on mom's hand when she's on the computer to tell her it's time to stop.

"Time to stop mom!!"

"Mom would rather we use a pet bowl"

Why Don't We All Just Nap Now

I spent half the day in Nashville (major city half an hour to forty-five minutes away from us) going to see my orthopedist.  Okay, I'll admit it, we also stopped off to see my mother, but that wasn't as long of a visit.  It did give us a chance to see Miss Kitty (in case you might be wondering, yes, this is where Mister Kitten's name came from).  Miss Kitty is my brother David's cat.  But she can't live with my brother David because there is a ::shudder:: dog at his house (there have been other reasons before that... college, roommate's cats... and so on).  Miss Kitty is a Delicate Kitty of the South ::paw to forehead:: who is now about 15-16 years old (don't quote me!!).

Miss Kitty was rescued from underneath a local school building (our parents are both retired teachers) at the instigation of my brother David.  She was quite skittish and quickly became David's Cat.  Over the years she has deigned to permit feeding by my mother and dad, and now she has mellowed to the point of even allowing some petting from people other than David (read primarily my mother & dad, although other members of the family have been granted permission as well).  Miss Kitty is a delicate black & white long-hair.  She is absolutely gorgeous, assuming that you get a chance to see her. 

This has become a wee bit easier in the past year since she began sleeping in front of the living room heater.  It sits beside the couch and there is a comfy chair in front of it, making a neat corner.   Mother has put down a soft soft pillow and Miss Kitty lays herself down like a Victorian lady on a fainting couch.  It's sad for me in one way, to see her fading away, but on the other, so nice to see a cat who could have been left alone have such a wonderful loving home (and having been spayed!!  sorry... whole family are sticklers about that!).

Once I got home, I had a phone call to make, and then one last therapist to see (discharge day!  whoot!).  But it was sooooo exhausting that Mister Kitten and Star put me to sleep.  No!  Really!!  I didn't want to go to sleep.  Nah-uh.  They made me take that nap!!  I woke up when my husband got home to see Zaphoid laying on top of me, which never happens, so I know it was a catspiracy!!