Muffy

This is my dearest Muffy, who mom brought home to me when I was seven years old. We immediately bonded and were inseparable for the 13 years she blessed this earth. She was most definitely my soul mate and best friend of all time. We would eat dorritos together (she liked the spicey nacho, so did I) and I often would push her around the front yard while she sat in the wheelbarrow. Muffy was such a wonderful cat, though most people never got to know her, as she was rather shy. One of the funniest memories I have of her, is when I brought Don home to stay for a weekend and mom had given him a bagel for breakfast. Muffy came over and took his bagel off his plate and carried it away to eat it (Muffy like bagels and Don was terrified of Muffy...she could be a bit of a male-basher from time to time). I could have stopped her, of course, but it was funnier to watch her steal the bagel. Of all the deaths that I've faced, and I've faced many, her passing has been the hardest for me to adjust to. I feel as if a part of me died with her, and I'm not sure that I'll ever get that part back. I think its with her up in Heaven and the only time I'll feel whole again is when I am with her again. I know its odd, but she was my best friend and soul mate.

Sadie

This is Sadie, my mother's cat. My father and I went out to find a grey female kitten for my mother, as she'd been wanting one, and dad decided to get her one for her anniversary. We went to every pet store in town before we found Sadie, the only grey kitten in town. She'd been a stray that the petshop owner had found, and had gotten her shots and then sold her. Not overly reputable, but Sadie was healthy...though dirty. We gave her a bath and she actually changed color she was so dirty. She is a beautiful blue-grey, with two white spots on her tummy and one on her neck. Sadie has a unique personality, and no one quite trusts her. She likes to bite you when you pet her and they aren't exactly love bites. Still, she's sweet most of the time and still pesters me for love when I visit, though I've been gone for three years (seven if you count college). The poor thing missed Muffy terribly, as she seemed to idolize the big cat, but now she's quite content to be mistress of the house. She's even started sleeping in my old room, which she never did when Muffy was alive, because I wouldn't let her (it was Muffy's private place to escape from the kitten, though they got alone fine).

Gracie

This is Gracie laying in the flower pot that I'd seeded with grass, after having my flowers destroyed by being laid on. Gracie is the first cat to be owned by myself and my husband. We adopted her in August of 2001 from the Alexandria Humane Society. She had been a stray, and was found by workers at the shelter. When we walked into the catroom, I knew she was the kitten for us. She had the cutest face I've ever seen and her little tag described her as energetic and talkative. Since Muffy was a talker, I knew I wanted another chatty kitty...though I might've changed my mind by now. Gracie is one of the most talkative cats I know, and she's not even got a drop of Siamese blood in her veins. If you're talking on the phone and she meows, the other person can hear her clearly. Gracie isn't exactly the best listener, either. Her big thing is to eat tape, but if she realizes you're looking at her, she'll try to look around at the ceiling and stuff and pretend she wasn't eating tape. Its rather amusing. Her other trick when she's eating something she oughtn't be eating, is to grab it really fast and run away with it, so you can't take it away from her. I've not met another cat who does this and, while frustrating, it is kinda funny. Gracie certainly keeps us on our toes, but she's quite a joy to have around.

Callie

This is Callie, whom we adopted as an adult from the the Cavert County Humane Society in September of 2001. She was quite beautiful and very people-friendly. She loved to watch COPS and taught Gracie how to lay on her back with all four feet in the air. She'd would just cover Don and I with love all the time, and was as friendly as she could be. Unfortunately, a year after adopting her, she tried to attack Gracie viciously, and we had to give her back up for adoption due to fears for Gracie's safety. As we'd had Gracie first, it was Callie who we gave back up for adoption. I believe she's since been adopted to a single-cat home, where she can get all the human attention she wants without interference. We miss her greatly, and hope she's doing wonderfully wherever she is.

Emmie

This is Emmie who we adopted in September of 2002 from the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. We adopted her after having to give up Callie, because Gracie was lonely for another kitay's attention. She'd lived with Cal pretty much her whole life, and had gotten used to having another cat around the house. Em was about 5 months when we adopted her, and we kept her in the bathroom for the first few weeks after we got her, to allow Gracie to get used to the smell of her. The first night Gracie and Emmie were playing underneath the door and sharing toys. We actually introduced them after a week of this, because they were so eager to play together for real. Both seem to love each other quite a bit and still play all the time. Emmie is a brown/red torbie, as I've vowed only to have tabbies or black cats from here on out. She got named for her shelter name "mismatch" -> she has one brown paw and three orange paws, and her coloring is unusual. We wanted to stick with the "ie" ending (a family tradition), and Don came up with the name Emmie. I think its too cute. Emmie is certainly fun to have around, and one of the most michevious cats I've ever met. She gets into everything, but she's so sweet that it more than makes up for whatever she's gotten herself into. We love all of our cats so much. They're so wonderful to have in our lives.