New and Improved 'Nip!

As the Rudester reported on Monday, when the 'rents went on vacation our 'nip plant bought the farm. It was pitiful and I know that this photo is hard to look at. But that's what no water and 90+ degrees will do to a plant. We were very, very sad.

Now, I have to give credit to the 'rents. They felt bad that there would be no 'nip crop to enjoy on those long summer evenings, so Mommy went out and found what was sure to be the last living 'nip plant for sale in our little corner of O Hi O. Daddy was a hero and planted the new nip so we can have party-time on the deck again!

...Extra added value - when the plant is watered, Rudy gets a little sippy. It's all good kitties!

Happy Mother's Day!

One more photo of Puff and her kids. Rudy is in the middle of things as usual. All of us here in O Hi O wish all of you Moms, 'rents, Mums, Mommys, Mothers - whatever you are called, a very Happy Mother's Day. We salute you for being loving, selfless and always being there when we need you!
Smoochies!

Photo Hunt - Mother/Mom

Here's Puff and the little squirt with the circle around him is Rudy. Puff was a very young mother, she surprised the 'rents with her pregnancy. This photo is almost 11 years old! (and so is Rudy!). Puff was a great mother. I wonder what she thinks now when Rudy chases her - he's not the best son a mother could ask for. She was spayed as soon as the kids were weaned. Rudy's siblings all got great homes and we got Rudy.
Thanks Puff...I think!

The Cat's In The Bag

What you see here is Powder exploring the joys of a paper bag with the handles removed. She really enjoys a good game of "kitty in the bag"...as long as the bag isn't a plastic one. You see, way back when, before I was born, Powder had a little "incident" with a plastic bag. She was just an itty-bitty kitten playing with a plastic shopping bag and she got her neck stuck in one of the handles - she panicked and ran and ran and ran through the house with Daddy trying to catch her to remove the bag. Powder ran under the sofa and proceeded to get the bag (and herself) caught in one of the sofa springs. Daddy had to put the sofa on it's side and cut the bag from her neck. To this day if she even hears a plastic bag she runs away from it. To this day, if a bag comes in the house - plastic or paper, Mommy cuts the handles off of it!
Good times kitties..good times...

Little Stories From The Past - Diamond

Hi - Parker's Mommy here, When we adopted Diamond we did not know that he had a Luxating Patella. We learned a lot about it after we found out poor Diamond had one.

He starting showing symptoms early in 2004 (he was almost 2 years old). When we would walk Diamond he would go lame in his right leg. After a visit to the VET and X-rays, we took him to Mission Med Vet to have a consultation. It was clear from the X-ray that Diamond had to have surgery. So that's what we did. Diamond was less than thrilled. We worried that he would be a bad patient, but that wasn't the case. Diamond was a very good patient and his recovery time was fast! We gave him pain patches and he loved to take his medicine because they were wrapped in treats! We also learned that it's probably a good idea to have pet insurance when you adopt because surgeries are very expensive!
Diamonds fur grew back in no time, but we did call him "turkey leg" for a little while. He didn't like that very much. We even got him his own bear to sleep with because he had to sleep in a crate for 2 weeks after the surgery to keep him from walking around at night. Daddy had to carry him outside to use the bathroom because the doctor said he could not use the steps.

I'm happy to say that Diamond has never had any problems with his leg since the surgery. And we are very, very grateful about that!

Little Stories From The Past - Puff and Powder

Mommy says when she looks at this photo of Puff and Powder she sees a pattern that has lasted for 11 years. Puff has always been pretty fearless, always the first to investigate, the first to check out something new. Powder, not so much. Shy and sweet, Powder always chooses to stay behind her sister and observe from a safe distance.
Powder is still in her Autumn Funk, but we know with patience and love she'll come out. When she's good and ready!

Little Stories From The Past

As an adult, Mommy has always had kitties close by. This very old photo is of Mommy and her best friend T-Gray back in 1981. There was a room full of people playing cards that night, but T-Gray always wanted to be where Mommy was. He was a very outgoing cat. Mommy says that if he had thumbs, he would have probably wanted to join in on the game!

Little Stories From The Past - Puff and Powder

Puff and Powder, May 1998

Puff and Powder had been living with Mommy and Daddy for a few days when this photo was taken. You can see how much smaller than Powder is than her sister. They were still getting accustomed to life in a house and living with a doggie. It was a big, big world for those two and they did not know all of the wondeful adventures that were ahead of them.

Mommy loves this photo - she always gets a smile on her face when she sees those two little kittens that were born in a barn!

Little Stories From The Past

This is a very VERY old photo of Mommy and the kitty who started it all. I have told you about T-Gray before. You can read his whole story in two parts, here and here.

Mommy was still in undergraduate school living with her roomates in this picture. She and T-Gray were still getting to know each other as he had only been with her for a few days, yet Mommy was smitten with that kitten! Later in the evening on the very day this photo was taken, Mommy learned the importance of having a screen for the fireplace because curious kittens love to walk into the fireplace in the middle if the night after the fire has died. Then they like to walk all over the house with ashy paws.

T-Gray learned that same night that he did not enjoy baths...

Mommy learned that kitten claws are very sharp and so are little kitten teeth!

They both learned that love is really all you need.