spring has sprung

I finally feel like I can say Winter 2011 is OVER.

We took the babies outside on Easter because it was so beautiful out. I don't let them out of my hands, though. I'm a nervous kitty momma. Bubba didn't get to go out because he is NOT a fan of being held, unless it's by John. So he watched from the sunroom.











I am thoroughly enjoying the sunshine and warmer temperatures. It's exciting to see the various plants that are coming up in the yard. I especially love the tree with pink flowers, they are so pretty right now. I know next to nothing about gardening, but it seems like there are quite a few flowers that are coming up on their own so far. I have a lilac bush and a hydrangea plant in the front yard, and a dogwood tree in the back. There are lots of hosta plants coming up along the sides of the house and I know that they fill in really well. Maybe I won't have to do a ton of work to get some curb appeal!

Introducing...

Giving you guys a break from the incessant OMIGOD MY WEDDING IS NEXT MONTH posts with this lovely photo:



This is Bubba! He is a six year old tabby whose parents were being forced to move and could not take their pets with them. I got an email at work last Wednesday about the animals. (There was also an 11 year old border collie/german shephard mix that needed a home). Being the sucker that I am, I texted John and fibbed a little teensy-tiny bit that if he didn't find a home he would be euthanized and asked if we could meet him. Of course he said yes! Who can say no to an almost-dying kitty!?

Don't worry, I came clean to John that night after I'd already scheduled the meeting. (Muahahaha).

So anyway. Last Saturday around 2pm Bubba arrived at our house. He came right out of his carrier and started making himself at home. He tore into the buckets we keep the cat toys in (seriously, he hopped right in, like in the picture above, and started throwing out every toy he could find). Milo and Marley made a mad dash for the upstairs once they realized what was playing with their toys, and little Nala parked herself right under the rocking chair to keep an eye on the intruder.

We decided on the spot to take him. Not that there was any choice! How could either of us say no after meeting him? I was a little hesitant because he was not up to date on his shots and had not been to the vet in 3 years, but he was strictly an indoor kitty so the chances of him having anything were slim. And our cats are very laid back, so the chances of a cat-fight occurring were also slim.

After Bubba's parent's left, he got a little more uneasy with us. Before they left they had mentioned that they thought he was about 9 years old, which was older than we were expecting. He sure seemed it that first day - he was very cranky! He claimed the toy area as HIS spot and none of the other cats were allowed within a 2 ft radius of him. [Side Note: My next task is to actually post pictures of our new house because then you would understand what the "toy area" is. People walk into our house and are like "What is this, a cat farm?!" There are so many toys, ha]. He also hissed at our cats - which I totally expected. And our cats hissed right back. Even Milo! I have never seen Milo hiss. He is seriously the most laid back and easy going cat in the world. Anyway. Bubba did not really like me or John that day either. Which I completely understand - it's got to be awfully stressful to go on a 45 minute car ride and be dropped off in a strange house with three strange cats.

We gave Bubba his space for the next day or two. By the end of day two, the three male cats were able to walk by each other without freaking out. Nala was a different story. Maybe it was because she is the only female, or maybe because she is the youngest, or maybe just because she is SO SPOILED, I'm not sure. But she was NOT happy to have a new kitty in the house. She was seriously being a huge brat. If Bubba went somewhere that she was not happy with, she'd run right after him and pounce right in front of him, which terrified him. Nala has always been allowed on the counters in the kitchen for two reasons. 1.) I seriously can't yell at her. She's too cute. She's my baby. 2.) She doesn't listen. Mommy-fail. Milo and Marley really don't go on them much. So the counters are Nala's. When Bubba jumped up, oh man, cue the start of Kitty World War I. I am sure she felt threatened, like we were replacing her or something, so I tried to not get too mad at her. But I would say by Wednesday, she and Bubba could walk by each other with no growling, hissing, or swatting. They touched noses a couple times, and generally were getting along. They are still not BFFs, but that will come with time.

Yesterday Bubs had his first vet appointment and he did really well! The vet changed his age to 6 and said he was very healthy. He tested negative for FIV and handled his vaccinations beautifully. I cannot believe we now have four cats, or that I just wrote an entire post about my cats, but it makes me feel good to have rescued our third cat. And really, Marley was a rescue in my opinion because who wants to live in a pet store? Yes, we paid for him, but I just could not bear to leave him in that smelly, overcrowded store. And ohhhh, the cuteness! So, I tell myself I've rescued all four of them. And here are pictures of the other three, just so they don't feel left out:

Nala, Queen of the Counters:


Marley, always my little man:


And our gentle giant, Milo:

Nala

Yesterday John and I celebrated our third anniversary together. It's hard to believe that three years have gone by since we started dating. Life seemed so carefree three years ago - he had just returned from his deployment to Afghanistan and was not working, I was still working for Disney and in school, we both lived at home and had virtually no bills.

One year later he was working as an independent contractor for Fed Ex and I was just starting my new job with a construction company and we had a nice little routine of spending our weekends together. Our first year also brought us Milo who quickly stole our hearts and became our gentle giant.


Our second year started off with an engagement ring and our first apartment. I was finishing up school and John was working as hard as ever with his route. It was an adjustment to live together but it was an exciting time to be thinking about our future together and booking our wedding. This year also brought us our spunky little Marley who continues to melt our hearts everyday.


This year did not bring any major milestones. Not much has changed in our lives; we still work at the same jobs and we still have too many bills to pay each month. John likes to spend his free time with his new X Box while I like to experiment in my new (and bigger!) kitchen. We don't have a lot of extra money since we are planning our wedding that is less than ten months away (!!!) so John decided we should spend our anniversary wisely. Instead of fancy gifts and an expensive dinner, we paid a little donation to the Connecticut Humane Society and brought home this beautiful little girl:


I swear it wasn't even my idea to get another cat - John was slow at work one day and stopped into a humane society and saw how many little kitties were without homes and being the softie that he is, he came home and told me that we should get another one for our anniversary. We were both a little hesitant at first. We didn't want to disrupt Milo and Marley who got along so well - Milo was John's baby and Marley was mine. What would a third cat bring to the table? We went to one shelter and no one really stood out to us. (Of course, in a perfect world I would just love to give all of the homless kitties homes). We didn't want just anyone, we wanted someone who would complement our boys (and I secretly wanted someone who would cuddle with me). We left the first shelter convinced that getting another cat just wasn't for us. As we continued on with our day I remembered that there is another shelter near the curtain store where we were headed. We stopped in there not expecting to find anything as it is much smaller than the other shelter. We got to the last row of kitties and John spotted her. She was in a separate room because she had a cold and she was also recovering from hernia surgery. We instantly fell in love and asked one of the workers how we would go about adopting her. Less than an hour later and we were in the car heading home. Needless to say, we did not get curtains that day!

She is such a love. She sleeps in between us every night and she loves to curl up on my chest if I'm laying on the couch. She has a ferocious appetite - we think her previous owner failed to feed her enough everyday because she is VERY small. She wants her brothers to play with her but they are taking their sweet time getting used to her. I think with time they are coming around - Marley already plays with her once in a while and today I even caught him sleeping near her on our bed. Milo is his laid back self as always, observing from a distance and keeping an eye on things.

I can't think of a better anniversary gift.