icanhaspnutbutr??

He goes outside, puts his nose to the wind and sniffs repeatedly. And for a long time.

Last night, leaving our friends house, I took Mike’s arm and said “Do you smell that??”

It’s Spring. And it’s definitely in the air.  Coming soon to a frozen land near you……

With the warmer weather Bustopher is going out a lot, almost too much but I can’t say I blame him. If I had been cooped up inside for months on end I would be a bit stir crazy myself. I know that once the first nice evening comes around, whether the snow is gone or not completely, that he will go outside and we won’t find him for hours. There’ll be so much for him to check up on; all the neighbors he hasn’t seen all winter, new places the mice moved in to, the neighborhood animals he hasn’t tormented since Fall, all the old haunts- neighbors decks and basement windows, mostly- that he needs to re-acquaint himself with.  He’ll be busy. And muddy when he returns.

Happy February!

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Well….. there’s just been no excuse for our absence. Sorry……..

We have been busy with lots of things like Christmas, managing the cold weather and the mountains of snow that’s come along with it and lots and lots of play, including playing with sticks and string, Bustopher’s newest and best. game. ever. He can’t get enough of it.

Any time I sit down on the couch to play with sticks and string, my most curious little tuxedo guy is right there next to me to ‘help’. Uh, yeah right.

 ”dis best game EVER!!! ah hode it for you, K?”

Bustopher enjoys the sunroom couch the best and who can blame him?? A room full of sunlight for most of the day?? How perfect for a cat! He’ll curl up with anything.

 ”literary cat dreams of big book deal, resting for inspiration”

And Harmon is still being his creaky old self. He’ll be 16 this year, an old guy. Once in a while he gets the kitty spirit in him and tosses his toys around, runs back and forth through the house with ‘big eyes’ and gets feisty with his brother, but he’s slowing down quite noticeably, and seems to have some trouble with stiffness, especially in one leg. I hear it making ‘creaky’ sounds a lot. He remains as snuggly and as loving as ever though, never refusing a lap, warm blanket or nap time with me. Most nights he curls at my feet in bed, warming them, and we’re looking to make a set of steps up to the bed to make it easier for him to get up and down. We love our old guy, and will do what’s necessary to make him comfortable.

 ”i hope santa brings me new catnip!”

It’s been c.c.c.c.c.c.c.c.c.cold and very snowy this winter. Bustopher has given up on attempting to go outdoors and often is seen gazing wistfully out the patio doors, probably dreaming of mice, fresh green grass (he probably thinks he doesn’t barf quite enough) and nightly roamings. When the weather is decent and the patio is cleared, he will go out and sniff the air briefly. He isn’t the only one dreaming of Spring.

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Don’t you just wanna be a cat sometimes???

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While the humans enjoy the good life in Minnesota during the summer, Bustopher has his own brand of summer fun. Since he can’t go boating, swimming, kneeboarding or tubing or mow his way through a plethora of summer vegetables and fruits, he has to make up his own fun.

He’s pretty good at it too. Here’s his version of Hide and Seek-

Then of course, a string game while laying on Griffin is always a good past time.

Griffin had been at summer camp for a week and was hanging out with Dad telling him all about it when Bustopher decided he needed some QT with his boy. This is a pretty rare occurrence as Bustopher doesn’t often choose Griffin for a snuggle partner.

More Hide and Seek- this time with fresh clean laundry

And of course, just general mischief……especially with Harmon

And no day passes without several snacks of peanut butter. That just would never do.

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It’s a sad and bittersweet weekend around the blogging world as bloggers of all types gather to share memories of our dear comrade Sher from the food blog ‘What Did You Eat?‘ who passed away so unexpectedly last weekend.

Sher had a very special fondness for my Harmon (the top photo for those of you unfamiliar) and always sent me kind and thoughtful comments about him. It was clear that she had an affinity for all animals, whether she had met them or not. One particular post I wrote last year concerning an emergency surgery for Harmon that left me very apprehensive elicited a kind and thoughtful email from Sher. The fact that she took the time to reach out to me was very touching.

She was a Wildlife Rehabilitator and cared for baby squirrels that had been abandoned or lost. Her posts on their antics, and her cats reactions to them were so funny and full of mischief. I loved seeing how those squirrel babies would grow and flourish under her care.

Her cats were the love of her life. I loved reading her first-hand accounts of their daily lives, and I bawled through her posts about losing her beloved Upsie, and again when the gorgeous Sundance passed away.

And then there was the food she made- she had a particular fixation on meatballs, which I completely understood. Her photos were lovely, the recipes simple yet full of flavor. Sher regularly participated in Weekend Herb Blogging and was a member of The Daring Bakers.

Our blog world has lost a treasured member, but for me I am blessed to have known her and grateful that she was part of my cyber-world.

Godspeed to you, Sher.

This weekends special edition of cat blogging is being held at Paulchen’s Food Blog.

Tags: Weekend Cat Blogging // 3 Comments »

Bustopher had a rough week- he went in for a teeth cleaning and the v-e-t had to pull out two of his canines as they were both nearly dead.

The top left canine has been broken since I got him in 2001- somewhere in his sorrowful past he had the trauma of breaking a tooth, and apparently that trauma damaged the lower on the same side as they both were so bad that the v-e-t said she was surprised that they hadn’t started to fall out. There was little or no root on either one, and pockets of infection in both. The poor guy had been living with the pain for who knows how long.

The good thing is that once the infection heals with antibiotics, he should be in terrific shape, no pain and no issues with eating. We thought he had some odd eating habits, but it never occurred to us that it was due to such a big problem. I had put off having him undergo a dental exam for quite some time due to the expense and now I hope that everyone with a beloved feline will have some inkling to get a good cleaning done and hope that no other kitty has issues like this.

Already, after just a few days, he seems in much better spirits. He does have pain medication and I give him a dose right in his cheek each morning, but he doesn’t really seem to be in a lot of pain, although this has greatly decreased his ‘bitey-ness’ for obvious reasons. Whether that changes permanently remains to be seen. He looks kinda goofy without any canines on one side, but for the end result, I can live with him having a lopsided look.

Weekend Cat Blogging is once again going Down Under to the beee-yoo-ti-ful Puddy and Kate’s place, A Byootaful Life. Stop on by to see the round-up, and look for Kate’s post on whether or not you’re in the Special 40%.

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Transformations all around this past week: Spring finally gave way to Summer, and just in time Harmon went in and had his annual shave. The poor guy had looked so miserable that first day the temperature soared to near 90F, and his glee could not be contained two days later when he came home with his new look. He rubbed up against every surface in the house and begged us endlessly for petting. Every year I think he just adores the feel of his bare skin, and we love petting him when he feels as soft as fine suede. He does look a bit funny in this state, as his bare skin reveals his big tummy much better, but it’s just one of his many endearing qualities; He’s chubby. Really chubby.

The funny thing is that he gets quite bashful at first about his new look and doesn’t want to go outside for a few days. When he does, he pokes his head out the door and looks around the yard as if he is determining whether or not anyone will see him. Yesterday he finally got out and the first thing he did was roll around on the patio on his back, waving his big feet in the air. I imagine the surface felt so great on his skin.

Weekend Cat Blogging is being hosted by Stella, Sprinkles and Stifler over at Stellaluna’s Diary. There appears to be some interesting activity involving what appears to be a reluctant hamster and a bored looking cat so head over there and see what’s going on.

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Nothing too exciting has been going on with the cats these days, unless you count Bustopher’s ‘Night of Terror’ earlier this week. Since we don’t know what happened to him outside prior to his racing into the house all puffed up, terrified and soaking wet, and because, as his nature he doesn’t like to talk about the bad things that happen to him, we just won’t speculate. Suffice to say, it was a tough one but he seems to have recovered well.

The cats take any opportunity they can these days to enjoy the sunshine as our spring continues to be a cold, wet and often cloudy one. Here, Harmon recharges his solar engine splayed happily on a wide variety of catnip toys, including the poor mousie being rather smushed under Harmon’s expansive belly. Normally by this time of year Harmon has been to the groomers for his annual shave, but I am not willing to bare him to the elements when the temps refuse to reach normal digits and he still favors a cozy blanket for a sleeping spot, so we wait, with fingers crossed. It just can’t stay this cool for long!!!

Can it??

Weekend Cat Blogging is being hosted by mischievous Laura the Catnip Queen at What Did You Eat? Go and see her rather unorthodox way of enjoying the humble weed.

Tags: Weekend Cat Blogging // 5 Comments »

This cat lives for the moment each day when he hears the snap of the peanut butter lid. Now if only we opened that jar just once each day it would be a lot easier to deal with him!

Weekend Cat Blogging is being held over at Chey’s Place. It’s Springtime! What is your feline up to???

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The weather has been cool but decent and it’s keeping the cats busy, hence the lack of visibility here. With warmer spring weather comes all sorts of activity outside for us humans, and the cats love nothing more than ‘helping’ us with various spring tasks.  It seems that no matter what we’re doing, there is a certain tuxedo cat right at our heels, lending expert advice or quite possibly, making for all kinds of distractions. It was really nerve wracking trying to stain a fence with his incessant need to be underfoot all the time, and heaven forbid we should venture into the attic space in the garage without his guidance. The one thing he really isn’t particularly interested in helping with is mowing the grass.

And of course, let’s not rule out the fun of the occasional early morning adventure of ‘Bird Chasing’ in the house. I swear I often rue the day Mike made that cat door……

simply because we never anticipated the fact that once Bustopher captured some poor critter who was being forced to become his friend that he would try to bring it inside to play, or share with us. We have chased more mice and poor panicky birds around our kitchen than we care to recall. And let’s not even talk about the ones that require no chasing at all.

But then again, they both have free reign for going in and out without further destroying the screen or making us nuts with the opening and shutting of the screen door.

And there is the new scratching post; this has been a huge source of amusement and mischief.

Bustopher’s favorite game is something we like to call ‘Cat Spinning’. He lays on the base of the post, grabs the center and yanks himself around and around, propelling himself with his back feet. I’m sure it feels great to stimulate his back with the pressure and the pile of the carpet, but if you happen to toss a few toys on the post as he spins, well, the mischief level amps up considerably. Often we see some pretty heated rivalry going on over who gets dominion on the post at any given time. Bustopher, being the Beta, simply acquiesces regularly and Harmon sits proudly by the post, appropriately regal, when he gains the upper hand. It’s not like he wants to use the post, really; he just wants to assert his Alpha.

There are moments of peace and camaraderie too.

Here they contemplate the huge crow that landed outside on the patio. I can imagine their conversation:

“Look at dat huge bird!”
“Are you gonna go get ‘im?”
“No way….YOU go get ‘im!”
“No YOU!”
“Maybe we both stay here and pretend we don’t see ‘im”
“Oh good idea….Dat ok wif me”

I don’t blame them for laying low. The scratching post is way more fun than chasing a huge bird with a sharp pointy beak.

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