Welcome to the Wednesday Cats of Catster! Every week, we share a story from one of our cat-loving Catsters. This week is about Crystal and her soul cat, Ivy.

Hi, Catsters!

The last time you heard from me, I discussed how I prepped for Ivy’s arrival and how much preparation actually goes into adopting a new cat.

This week, I wanted to touch on Ivy’s first few weeks with us, and some of my favorite first memories with her.

Since Ivy was still a kitten when we got her (in my eyes, she’s still a little baby!), she was doing all of the things kittens usually do! Sleeping A LOT, zooming around nearly just as much, and doing a ton of exploring.

We lived in a duplex at that time, and even though it felt like a tiny-ish home for us humans, it obviously seemed a lot bigger to her. Everything had to be inspected – everything. No stone was left unturned, no cupboard left unsniffed, and no crevice or crack proved too small for her to fit into. This led to a lot of cat-proofing around the house.

She arrived during the summer months, and for those unfamiliar with South Africa and its weather: it was hot. Really hot. However, I had to keep all of the windows and doors shut at all times to ensure she didn’t escape and get lost. Of course, she was curious about the ‘big outside’ and sat by the windows frequently to have a peek at what was going on out there.

At the time, I was also the person keeping our local ‘Garden Centre’ in business, coming home with at least 4 new plants every weekend. She took a liking to one plant in particular – and that plant paid the price dearly! Luckily, it was a True Bamboo plant and not toxic for her to munch on.

Ivy figured out where we kept her dry food and treats in record time and tried to crack open the container multiple times a day until I finally shut it away behind closed doors. She was actually very clever when it came to this and was caught red-pawed one day! The container had been standing on the counter, and she was on top of the counter trying to knock it off so that the lid would pop off.

Of course, her cute pink bed was completely unused! Instead, much to my delight, she slept curled up next to my face or in my arms. She still does this to this day, and it never fails to melt my heart.

Shower time was especially interesting, with her sitting on the shower mat or the toilet with a puzzled look, trying to figure out why the humans get into a big box to be sprayed with water. Kitty-nightmare, much?

After a while, I began noticing that she was bored. Seeing as she was an indoor cat, she needed a lot of enrichment. This was when she got her first proper cat tree, which she ‘helped’ to assemble.

As soon as the box arrived, she seemed to know it was for her! This cat tree is still with us and gets used daily!

These memories are but a drop in the ocean – we’ve gone through so much in our three years together, but I will treasure the first few months of her kittenhood forever!

What are some of your fondest memories with your kitty?

Catch us on Catster.com next month, where I’ll be talking about the dreaded F-word: FLEAS!