6.30.2011

International Box Day

My boys love to be in, on, or around boxes and there is always great excitement in the house when boxes are about.  So I thought it would be easy just to go to my picture folders and they would be teeming with box shots.  They were not.  Perhaps I just don't have the camera out when the boys are boxing.  I am pretty certain that I'm not alone in thinking cats love boxes, otherwise International Box Day would not have come into being!

Here is Casper box diving into my Paw-it-Forward loot which was ready to mail out...I had to seal up the boxes in a hurry or he would have made off with something - LOL!
Jimmy had only been with us a little while when generous Pam from the Califurrrrnia 5 (no blog yet but we're hoping) sent us this amazing package filled with goodies for the boys...you can see Jimmy jumped into the box immediately and made a selection



This is Archie diving head first into the Paw-it-Forward package that Amy from House of Cats sent us.  It was laced with nip toys and the cats loved it!
When I realized that I didn't have any pics of Ben in a box, I put out a shoe box with the hope of coaxing him in for a shot.  He almost went all the way in, then decided just to have a chew on the tissue instead - LOL!

I think it still proves the attraction of a cat to a box is undeniable!!!

6.29.2011

Happy 1st Birthday Jimmy!!!


It is Jimmy’s first birthday today (or as near as I can figure after consulting with Chrystal), he is a mancat now and I wanted to share a little with all of you about just what a fantastic cat he is!  As most of you know, Robert and I adopted Jimmy from Chrystal’s private rescue and his name was Ash.  We drove almost 850kms (each way) across one province and three states to get him with the help of Chrystal and Amy from House of Cats each driving their separate legs of the journey to meet up with us. His start in life was not tops but a friend of Chrystal’s found him and whisked him away from his humble beginnings, along with his sister and a few puppies, to the cozy cathouse where he became a Winnie’s Wish kitty.  Chrystal’s kitties are raised on pure love (okay maybe some food too) and Jimmy is one of the happiest, most affectionate and well-adjusted cats that I know.

He is a cuddling, head butting, nose kissing, crook-of-the-arm sleeping bundle of joy who follows me everywhere, purrs up a storm and loves to have his tummy petted.   He is mad for toys and can make a game out of anything. A piece of paper is just as much fun as a catnip mousie, but even better is the cagey cotton swab, or prohibited ponytail holder... if he can get his paws on such celebrated kitty contraband (let's not even mention cufflinks or collar stays)!  He is crazy for his brothers too and will stalk, pounce, and wrestle with each one, not to mention cuddle, groom and snooze with them also.  He is a counter surfer and a make-up bag diver and a cheese monster.  He swaggers, gallops and sideways trots, he cannot jump as high as his brothers (yet?) and I believe this is of some frustration to him because he wants to tightrope walk the upstairs bannister too but believe me I'm fine with him staying on the floor - LOL!  He is a talker with a funny high-pitched trilling mew.  He is hilarious, earnest, silly, loving, clever, fun, brave, gentle, happy, mischievous and a delight to have around.  Robert always says about Jimmy “that cat has personality to spare!!!”  Jimmy is loved desperately and he rewards us EVERY day in so many ways for taking a chance and adopting a kitty we had never met before.  I thank my lucky stars that we decided to open our home to the little gray ball of fluff who grew into a sleek and wonderful mancat.

Happy Birthday Sweet Jimmy!

Please think about visiting Chrystal's blog (the links are in the first paragraph of this post) and adopting one of her wonderful kitties...you won't be sorry!

Special thank you and big purrs from Jimmy to talented and generous Ann from Zoolatry for his birthday graphics :-)

6.24.2011

Ben's Ears

Did you know that of all my boys, Ben's ears are the softest?  Somewhere between gossamer and velvet of the finest texture is the substance Ben's ears are made of.

I could stroke his tiny tufted bat-cat ears for hours :-)

6.22.2011

Irresistibly Sweet Blogger Award

Hi cats and kittens, our friends at Bengal Business gave us a cool award.  If you haven't met James and Lars yet, pop over to say hello!

Now we are supposed to tell you seven unknown things about ourselves...hmmm this might be difficult since our lives are an open book, so how about we tell you six lesser known things about us and one thing you DEFINITELY didn't know...

1. Even though Archie looks long and lean he is actually the heaviest of the cats
I'm secretly tubby
2. Casper has a twin sister but she is not deaf
meet Fluffy
3. Mum doesn't like Ben's high wire act
sheesh mum I'm a big boy!
4. Jimmy gives mummy nose kisses every day!
I'm adorable non?
5. Archie has spots AND stripes
my coat is cool!

6. Ben is a Daddy's boy

cuddle me papa!

7. We've lived with a woofie for almost a year!
Hi I'm Rio
We would like to pass this award on to out sweet friends Niko and Goro

6.16.2011

Thursday in the Garden

::Three Paw Taps::
As mentioned in my last gardening post I thought we would move to the back garden this week, it is in full-on jungle mode since we got home :-)

This is our standard Viburnam (about 5' high) that we just planted last June, my parents gave it to Robert for his birthday.  For a while there it wasn't looking like it came through the winter so I was delighted when it produced eleven fragrant snowballs!

We call these Johnny-Jump-Ups, I don't know if that is the real name but they are like super tiny pansies.  I never planted these they just appeared on their own :-)

Columbine

Between the Columbine, Astilbe and some weeds I have this plant, which I think might be a Rhododendron!  It has never flowered in the three years we have lived here but always seemed to have some buds on it so I never yanked it out.  This year it had lovely pink blooms.

The ferns, which are my favourite are almost as tall as I am (5'8")!!!
Another Peony ready to burst open

My Bleeding Heart is almost finished but we had loads of blooms this year


Thanks for stopping by kitties, hopefully there will be more new flowers next week :-)

PS - it has been pointed out that my kitties can not be seen in the garden, well I thought I should explain that because they are city kitties, my boys stay indoors so they supervise the garden from the safety of their windows.

6.13.2011

Mancat Monday

Real mancats love each other :-)

Casper and Archie

I'll bath you

then you bath me

then we'll just snuggle together

6.09.2011

Thursday in the Garden

::Three Paw Taps::

Hi All, while we were away it seem things really exploded in the garden.  We left brown grass and twig-like trees and when we returned a jungle had sprouted!!!  I thought I'd share a few pictures, but please remember that we are Townies, so our garden is very small!  Let's go out to the front...

Giant Allum
Peony ready to burst open
I planted Irises a two years ago and last year we only had leaves.  This handsome fella was the first one out and I'm happy to report that five more followed!
This poor little Weigelia doesn't get enough sun, but it managed to make some flowers :-)
Chives blooming
Our mystery tree which is very tall and reaches past the roof of the house.  We think it might be some kind of ornamental Cherry, it doesn't produce any fruit.  NOTE***  Thanks to Lizzie & 3 Kitties we now know this is an Ornamental Bradford Pear!  Yay :-)

The last of the Daffs
and finally, I bought this Hydrangea NINE weeks ago and it still looks fantastic!!!  Does anyone know if I plant it will it bloom again next year, seeing as it is a potted variety?
I hope you enjoyed the tour, next week we'll look at the back garden :-)

6.08.2011

Meow Meow Meme

There is a super fun meme going around called Meow, Meow.  Thank you beautiful Simba (from Simba’s Antics) for tagging all four of us; here are our answers:

PS - mum did a little editing and added her answers in there too!

1) Where do I like to hang out?
Casper – My cat bed at the window in the sunroom
Ben – On the upstairs bannister...drives mum crazy
Archie – The crow’s nest of the cat tree
Jimmy – In the bathroom sink
Mum - My new king size bed

2) Who is my kitty crush?
Casper – My lovely mouse, Artemisia
Ben – My beautiful Clementine
Archie – I don’t have a ladyfriend (sniff, sniff)
Jimmy – Girlcats?  Yuk! (Jimmy's still a little young)
Mum - I have a girl crush on Neytiri

3) What is my favourite scent?
Casper –  Men's shoes
Ben – Anything coming in the open windows
Archie – Salmon water
Jimmy - CHEESE!!!  (Jimmy is a cheese monster)
Mum - bacon cooking (even though I'm a vegetarian now) reminds me of childhood

4) What is my favourite tv show?
The boys - We don’t really watch TV so we’d have to say
Bird, Squirrel, Dog and Mouse TV that we see outside
Mum - I'd have to say Cat TV; watching the boy's antics

5) What is my favourite movie?
Casper – Cat Ballou
Ben – Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Archie – The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing
Jimmy – Cat Woman
Mum - Enchanted April (sorry guys I broke with the cat theme)

6) What is my favourite bit of feline wisdom?
Casper – A fool and his kibble are soon parted
Ben – Don’t put all your kibble in one basket
Archie – Walk softly and carry a big kibble
Jimmy – Kibble makes the heart grow fonder
Mum - Learn to accessorize with cat fur  - LOL!!!

Now we have to select three more friends to tag and we choose fellow Canadians:
Wendy's 3D Cats
Hope you guys enjoy playing as much as we did :-)

6.07.2011

Swirling Revisited

Back in March of 2010 when I had just started blogging and didn't know about the CB or have any friends or followers yet I wrote a post called "Swirling" which nobody read.  I'm going to re-post it now because I was reminded of it when we were just away on holiday and my sister was staying at the house to look after my darlings.  I would ring her and ask how the boys were doing, she would reply "there was swirling when I got home today." :-)

Swirling (3.26.2010)

Is anyone else familiar with this phenomenon? I imagine it is more obvious in multiple cat households but it can certainly be experienced with just one cat. I love it when cats swirl and when my cats do it all at the same time there is no better feeling. Swirling is decidedly pronounced first thing in the morning or when one arrives home after some absence. It is the whirl of cats around your legs. Trusting, upturned faces and tails aloft they seem to be one continuous curving, twisting line, of purring cat form. It is the best welcome home after a crappy day, and the most cheerful start to any morning. Swirling is acceptance, support, love, validation and optimism all rolled into one delightful gesture.

6.06.2011

Wedding Pictures :-)

Hi all,

Since we did not have any guests at our wedding, we hired a photographer to capture all our precious memories of that day.  The fabulous husband and wife team of Joshua and Miho Fletcher who together are Fletch Photography (check out their Facebook page) were a delight to work with and made the arduous task of posing for almost two hours fun and effortless.
I nabbed this impromptu shot of Miho and Josh at work

As I mentioned last week our pictures will not be ready for a few weeks (I imagine it takes a ton of editing when the subjects are as old as we are - LOL!) but I wrote and requested a few early shots to show family and friends in the meantime.  I thought I would share the following pics here:

The dress...
The traditional Hawaiian ceremony and lei exchange...
The newly married couple...
Flat cat wedding guests...
Hawaiian happy :-)

6.03.2011

Friday's Final Hawaii pics

Hi all, let's go up into the mountains and see flat cats at the Inn where mum and dad got married
poolside

in the rooftop gazebo

getting Zen

at breakfast

leading up to our room

our room that we shared with mum and dad

on the meditation lawn

in the coffee grove


waiting for mum and dad's ceremony to start...