Springtime

The grass is growing and it's warm outside, that must mean it's spring! I got to go outside (on a leash of course) and I nibbled at the grass. Lena is not as interested about going outside, but she does love it when Daddy opens the patio door for fresh air. Things are pretty normal here except for the new vacuum. This one is stronger than the old one. It still makes horrible noises but it got more of the dirt, dust, and fur in the carpet. I'd swear the carpet is a shade lighter than before like when I first came to live here. Daddy brought down the plants and put them outside where I can't eat them. He's talking about getting catnip seeds for a pot outside. Yummy! That should be awesome. Daddy's not sure if I like catnip or not (25% of cats don't have the gene that makes them go crazy for catnip) but that could be because all the catnip I have so far has been dried. The fresh stuff should be better. But even if I don't go crazy, I'll get to eat plants!

The V-E-T

Daddy had the cat carriers out for a few days and this morning he put Lena and me into them and drove us to the VET! I didn't like the other kitty smells and being handled by strangers. Daddy kept me calm as the vet poked and felt me all over. I hate that! I growled a lot. Worst of all the vet didn't try to placate me with treats! The good news is that I am a healthy cat (except that I gained a pound since last time) and I got my shots. Yes, getting shots is good news because I didn't try to bite anyone while it happened. I stayed pretty calm on the drive and I didn't fight hard to get in the carrier. I'm glad I have a good vet otherwise I'd act a lot worse.

Happy purrday to me!

Yesterday was my (estimated) birthday! I got to go outside (there was snow everywhere so I stayed on the sidewalk and got cold quickly), Daddy got me a can of my favorite cat food, and I got lots of play time. Most importantly I got well wishes and friend requests from around the world! Thank you everyone! I want to have many more purrdays with my Daddy and Lena!

Daddy is home!

Last Saturday Daddy packed up his car, even his computer, and left! It's that time of year again. We had Thanksgiving last month so now it's Christmas. I'll just hop up on the table. Let's see what we have. A can of my favorite cat food, toys in a package, a note. Oh dogs, Daddy is going to be gone a while.

Sure enough the people with the eager dog came over and made sure we had food and water. Five long days later Daddy came back! I was so happy to see him! I ran into the garage and explored all over and in his car. I got in the trunk twice and tried to figure out how to get into the back seat from the roof. Oh, and I got to go outside. Daddy walked along to keep me out of trouble. I sat on him several times and purred. I'm so glad he's home. Now I find out he'll be here for several days, much longer than a weekend, before going back to work. I'm so happy! Humans get things as gifts on Christmas. Cats get humans!

One year

Over the weekend, I passed the one year marker. It's been a good year but my no means perfect. My cyst caused the biggest problem. When he took me to the vet's office to have it removed, I thought I was being abandoned again, or worse! But when they brought me down hissing and growling, Daddy called to me and I was stunned into silence instantly. I wasn't abandoned! He came back to save me! We grew closer the next night because I had to wear this stupid collar. I couldn't reach my favorite rubbing spot on my nose so he did it for me. I purred really loud. I wasn't the greatest patient, even by cat standards, but my Daddy stuck with me. I hope year 2 is uneventful but even if it isn't we're sticking together.

Happy Fourth of July

What a week. I found a new way to get Daddy to fill my food dish in the morning. First I get up on his bed and plop down around his head on the pillow. I purr and gently kneed his head. I follow him when he goes to the bathroom and shower. When he's drying off I remind him of his first important task and lead him downstairs to the food dish. I'm patient but the excitement builds up and I let it get the better of me.

Daddy had friends over in the middle of the week. He got to sleep in (I got fed extra the previous night so I wouldn't ask him to give me food at dawn). When his friends came over Lena and I got to go outside. We had to wear our harnesses, which stinks. Lena went inside after a few minutes. I stayed out more, but wearing the harness was really lousy. I got irritable and when I started kitty swearing I got carried inside. But over the afternoon I still sneaked outside a few times. I never go far, just to lie on the sunny sidewalk or nibble on grass. It's a chance to go somewhere I don't get to go. But inside I got petted and played with by nice people. Lena had a good time too, but she's less socialable and spent a lot of time asleep.

Friday Daddy's other friends came over. It wasn't too interesting. I made rounds and got attention. I knew these people better so I wasn't as curious. I still ran out when they left. But I got caught soon.

Today Daddy went to see the people he adopted us from. He showed them pictures and was told we look very happy. He held a kitten. It fell asleep in his hand. He was amazed at how small it was. Daddy is tall. He likes bigger things to cuddle like adult cats. Kittens are just too tiny for a good hug. Remember humans, fully grown cats are more fun! We don't need to be litter trained and we're smart enough not to gnaw on power cords. We still love to play and we know how important it is to be part of a family!

Update

Well Daddy should have updated my diary weeks ago. A bunch of stuff happened to me. Most of it is good.

First Daddy got a grill. This is good for me because when he grills he goes in and out so much that it's easy for me to sneak outside. He tries to keep me in, but he gives up and settles on watching me outside after a while. As long as I stayed in sight, it was OK. Naturally I couldn't leave well enough alone and went around the corner of the house. He said next time I'll be put in the bathroom as he grills. He's kidding right?

Daddy also went to visit his family this weekend. We didn't get to go. The nice people with the little dog came over to play and feed us. It was good, but they're not Daddy. He came back early and we were happy. He brushed me and got a lot loose hair I lost through stress. But we're together again. I'm going to take a catnap now.

Rollercoaster ride

I've had an interesting couple of weeks. Good and bad. First the bad. Daddy took me to the vet a while ago for my cyst. I expected it to get popped again then go home. But no! He left me there! Nooooo! I got examined again then the vets jabbed something in my arm and I went to sleep hoping for Daddy to save me. When I woke up parts of my head were shaved, I had trouble closing my right eye, and my mouth was sore. Worst of all, I had this big collar around my neck! How could I scratch my face or clean myself with it on? It took a long time for me to wake up. Then they picked up my kitty carrier and started moving me. I growled and howled but then I heard a very welcoming sound, Daddy!! He come to take me home! I didn't fuss at all. I was so happy to be back.

The nasty vets said not to climb stairs until the antithetic wore off, but I showed them. The second the kitty carrier was open, I jumped out and ran upstairs and hid under Daddy's bed. I wanted to go where I felt safe. I slept a lot that night and next day. Daddy gave me some canned catfood which I ate soon enough, then I had some dry food. Daddy also made me take yucky medicine. Later that week I had to go back to the vet so they could check my progress. They made me wait so long I didn't want to be touched by ANYONE. But I was getting along fine. A few days later I ran out of the medicine and learning how to get around this stupid collar.

Finally I got the stitches out. It was painless. I still look like I'm giving the evil eye to people, but apart from that I'm normal. I still ask before jumping on Daddy. I still fight and chase Lena. I still make demands. My fur is growing back so you can hardly tell it was shaved.

Then last weekend when the weather was nice, Daddy opened the patio door and a mini-human walked up and talked to me. I was the perfect kitty gentle-cat and didn't do anything Daddy disapproved of to the mini-human. I sat there and made welcoming meowing sounds. Because of that Daddy decided to get me and Lena a harness so we can go outside! It was a rough start, but we finally got to touch what we've been watching for months. We went outside several times by ourselves with Daddy holding the leash. There are many dogs in the neighborhood and Daddy has to look out for us.

Oh, the neighbors got a little black and white kitten. We greeted her by meowing. We wanted to see her up close and be friends, but the neighbors had to go. Bye little kitty! We hope we see you again!

Again with the cyst!

Yesterday morning was awful. First Daddy put me in the kitty box for a drive to the vet! I just went 2 months ago, why do I need to go again? The cyst I got before hasn't gone away despite Daddy's best efforts. This trip was to find out if more drastic measures should be taken. They do. This cyst can get worse so we have to treat it now. Soon I'll go back and have it removed. And they'll clean my teeth too.

Daddy was just looking out for my health, like any good Daddy should do. I forgave him and sat on him for a while. Then I got packed up again! This time with Lena! He took us to the place where we adopted us. No! Daddy you said we'd never go back. Please don't give us up! My old foster Mommy and Daddy were there. A bunch of people poked at us, but we didn't leave our carriers. So we're not being given up again. That's good. Everyone just wanted to see how I was doing. That's even better.

Daddy took us to another vet in the Petsmart and got ID chips injected into is! Then Daddy took us back to the Almost Home people before getting cat food and leaving for home. Don't scare us like that!

Lena forgave Daddy pretty quickly. I was a little miffed for hours. At least the injection doesn't scratch. We're all safe and happy now. I took a long nap behind Daddy's monitor and got treats and rubs. Life is good.

Stupid Cyst

Last week Daddy found a cyst on my head and took me to the vet on Thursday. The good news I'm in good health and put on over a pound since he brought me home. The cyst seems to be taken care of and is healing slowly. I have a good vet at least. He tried to keep me calm with food. Considering how I usually act with vets, I was pretty good. You should have seen me! I growled and hissed almost the entire time. Hey, at least I didn't bite the vet or struggle much. The only time I stopped was when I was accepting my bribe or when Daddy picked me up and held me. Daddy brought his big fluffy bath towel with me for me to rest on. That helped a great deal. A little bit of home in a strange place.