Tinker Bell

On the 16th we had to say goodbye to one of our family. Tinker Bell was 13 years 11 months and 1 day old. She was all Jeanette's and has been since Jeanette was 4 years old. This is a challenging transition for Skylar to not have her baby great her whenever she goes to her room. This is the blog from when we got Tink. 

Whiskers on Wednesday

My kitties are also little piggies.

I got baby Peeta I am pretty sure he was born at the Shelter then as soon as he was old enough to wean he was transferred to the vet clinic where I picked him up as soon as he was stable. He had a cold from the shelter. I know there are some pets that really do have eating disorders you know where they don't know where their next meal is coming from. But Peeta my fat black kitten has no excuse he's always crying and looking pitiful. I free feed my cats which means I have two bowls of dry food that are available to all 6 of the cats all day long. My husband splits two cans of cat food between three cats once in the morning and then treats. I walk into the kitchen and there is a cat begging like a dog for a treats. Especially if Cocoa is inside the cat can eat and sleep like no other. Peeta just constantly wants attention like any other male baby (haha). Well Cocoa is usually picky about treats and he is a very spoiled Siamese but we are trying a new one to help with their dental hygiene. They are called Greenies....

Well the old version of treats had Catnip flavor.. but these.. ohmigoodness Peeta ate some and immediately had a reaction. Being hyper and darting around looking into space. So funny! 

Whiskers Wednesday.

My family has six cats.. .

My daughters cat Tinker Belle. Tink is almost 8 years old and we adopted her in 2007. She can't function without Skylar. 

My Baby is Cocoa he's about  6 years old. He showed up at the bus stop one morning really starving. I couldn't stand for such a beautiful Siamese to starve. We have had him at least 4 years.

My kitten is Peeta. He is 3 years old and he is one of my foster failures from volunteering with the cat rescue. We have had him since he was old enough to be away from his mommy and was separated from her in the pound.

Peanut is my reluctant family member. An Army wife asked me to watch her cat for a year while her husband was deployed. He's been here for the past 4-5 years. He's 5 years old.

Sydney was the other foster failure. I was fostering her before I got Peeta and we adopted her after Peeta she is 4 years old. We have had her for the past 3 years. 

Mittens is my special needs princess. She is 10 years old. We have had her for 5 years.She was adopted from a rescue in Huntsville.

 Today's story is about how big brother Cocoa takes care of us... Here is a video of Cocoa doing black ops coming home from the bus stop. He used to keep on our flank and check under every car and the drain, and door etc.. Last year neither child of mine road the bus to school but Cocoa would often walk other children to their bus stop. When we go on family walks the neighbors always comment on how crazy it is for a cat to walk with us without a leash (shh don't tell Animal Control). This morning Cocoa ran outside as we were walking William to his bus stop and as I watched William cross the street.... Cocoa followed actually Cocoa was ahead of William but ran back across the street to walk William across the street then down the side walk to the bus stop with me tailing behind. Cocoa is always big brother... One day the family was enjoying the sunshine out in our back yard and I decided to let the kittens out to play (Peeta and Sydney) Cocoa seemed to walk in circles around them keeping them close to the house. When William was little and he was crying one day while I buckled his seat belt Cocoa climbed in the car and got in-between William and to make sure he was okay. Cocoa goes for car rides sometimes. He's not particularly thrilled with the idea but he gets in the van/car willingly! The other day I was bringing the kids home from school and Cocoa sat in the middle of the road and the bus driver who arrived at the same time had to sit and wait on Cocoa to move. The next time I saw the bus driver I apologized for Cocoa's lack of common sense. He said he would never run over my beautiful cat. I always worry that either Cocoa is too friendly and someone will snatch him up (becareful to those who think about stealing him if he is inside too long he WILL spray!) or maybe they think he is a pest... Some people just don't like animals! *shocker* I know! So as independent as he is I just can't keep him inside full time. I think we have too many roosters in the hen house... I don't know. Cocoa has changed a lot during the past 4 years. Being a very spoiled indoor outdoor cat has its own problems and challenges such as someone has attacked my cat several times and each time it happens its $300 vet bill ugh.. I love my cat. Something has been biting him in the butt and it becomes abscessed. So I do worry about him. He has made good friends with my neighbor Julie. We went out of town and I asked Julie to feed him once a day because if he had to stay outside for the week I did want her checking on him. Now he thinks breakfast comes in three helpings --stinker! She says he has done the same thing to her playing chicken with her van like he does with the school bus.

We are at the school Mommy where are the kids?

I am your co-pilot forever right mommy? 

Him following William to the bus stop this morning.


and another issue we are having with Cocoa is outdoor housing!! He's so stubborn its dipped down around 20 degree's lately and he wants out.. I am like Cocoa you dont' really mean it. I let him out and within 5 minutes he's back in and then back out again. A few years ago I found two types of small dog/cat houses at the big box chain stores.

The inside is made of a thin foam like material and the outside is thin plastic.. If I remember correctly it can even be used as a carrier? But I haven't as you can see what I thought was weather beaten just may be another animal trying to find Cocoa? Maybe? Whatever has been biting him? I need to replace this ASAP but on a low budget. We've tried the coolers and the totes but I really don't want them on my stoop you know what I mean and Cocoa didn't really go in them when I had a cat I was trying to rescue before is the reason why I made one. I also bought a dog house (like a real one for a German shepherd) Cocoa has no interest in that either! 

I just can't find a small cat house that is weather proof or semi weather proof to go on my porch.. I guess I need to find a wood worker to make me one *sigh*

I would really like to find the plastic shell I used before one more time so if you have any leads on cat houses for outdoors let me know! 

no Lowes does not carry this!! Crazy! 

Cats on Tuesday

Peanut was playing with William's race track. I love how they got hung up in his tail and he would play it off like he wasn't going to swipe one lol

365

Every year I think I try to do the Photo Project 365 and every year there is a brief time I am just not feeling it or loose my camera. Some of my days are boring to most of ya'll & are spent at home so this year I am NOT going to do the photo project however I will try to take a picture every day. So the best way to make a New Years Resolution is to not make one. Lets give this a try. Here are my photo's from last week

Peanut vs Cars

Skylar Thursday January 5th at Gymnastics

Today at the doctors office

My geeky side.. high on my Christmas Wish list was this inexpensive thumb drive I wanted for my car. Yes its R2-D2 and yes I even spoil my car (last year she got cleaning products!)

William is probably the world youngest techie. Yes that's him on his Innotab, He also has a Itouch, a DS, a DSi, and use of his dad's laptop and his sisters Leap pad! 

William's best friend James on Saturday at James' 3rd birthday party!

Skylar after church on Sunday in her new dress I finally got off layaway she had been wanting it since Easter. Boy it is loud though! The skirt is like tissue paper!

Totally out of focus are some of my pictures thank you Otterbox or Iphone 3... Piece of crappola lol

Black Ops Cocoa

Every morning we walk my daughter to the bus stop. Since the bus stop is where we found Cocoa she goes with us most mornings. When she is inside she is relaxed and just a lovey dovey cat. Outside her ears are back and she is on alert. Rick had been laughing about her maneuvers for awhile. I said you know its like she is in Special Forces or something with the dark fur around her face lol. I said she is Black Ops Cocoa!

Cats on Tuesday

I know these pictures are horrible taken with my Iphone. The Iphone 3 camera sucks!

At least they used TP

Tinker Bell on the ledge... its a LONG way down.

Cocoa is finally learning that being in the house isn't all bad. Skylar was sitting on the couch and Cocoa laid down on the next cushion. So William was very careful to climb on the couch and not to climb ON Cocoa... He sat down beside her but Cocoa got up and jumped down. William groans Ohhhhmmm aww

Crazy Cat Lady 3

So my sister in law's name is Beth and she is a pharmacist and her husband is a Lutheran minister. They don't have any kids but they are a blended family... of cats! They have about 14 or 15 to be exact.

My husband's aunt has about 6 I think.

So when I started feeding Cocoa James told me pleaseee no more cats we have reached our cat lady quota for the family lmao. I have disappointed him because now we have about 5 cats being fed LOL

Cocoa
Cocoa started hanging around the bus stop a few months ago. She looks like a full blooded Siamese Cat. She was very thin and very sweet. There is a house actually where the bus stop is but they have a cat and the cat didn't like Cocoa. So I fed her at my house and now she won't leave. I am very attached and William loves her. Cocoa doesn't want to come inside she is very nervous being inside. So she stays in the front yard. If we walk to the bus stop she comes after us. If we walk around the block she walks with us lol. I took her to the vet she has no chip and she looks pretty healthy. I can't believe someone would abandon this cat!


A few days after Cocoa got comfortable She brought a friend, we saw this orange cat and Orange Cat had a collar but was too afraid to come near us. Finally Skylar got to pet her by giving her a bunch of treats. Now she is still scared, hanging around the back yard and no collar *shrugs* I call her Lucy. (Like I love Lucy lol)

Lucy

Then there is our other household cats....

Peanut is our house cat. Peanut is about 2 years old and came to us because I was friends with another Army Wife who had to move in with someone who was allergic to cats so I was going to keep Peanut for the year her husband was deployed. Well a few months into the deployment she left her kid here for 24 hours and I told her to come get her kid and cat and now I am stuck with Peanut because I couldn't see her throwing away yet another animal. Although Peanut and I aren't getting along he is mean to the other cats and I want to indict him on Avian homicide RIP Lily and Attempted Rodent homicide for seriously injuring Skylar's hamster Munchy. Rick thinks he is cute because if William cries Peanut will come to investigate.

Mittens is my ball of anxiousness. I swear she is half rabbit. She is considered a Hemingway cat. She has 6 toes on one foot and no tail. She is 7 years old and I adopted her from a rescue after my sweet Lightening passed away in 2009. Mittens stays in my room 99.9% of the time and only comes out to find me. She isn't very photogenic because she is scared of everything and doesn't lay down.

Tinker Bell is my 4 year old cat. Actually she is Skylar's cat. We have had her since she was a baby. She stays upstairs too but wants to be with Skylar every second. Its like Mary had a little Lamb but its Skylar & a cat.

I think seriously all I am missing is a black cat to be happy lol well maybe hehe