Today I would like to introduce another of our cats. Desdemona - Desi for short - joined the family six years ago this month. There is no amazing story of how she came to our home like Beemer, and no touching story like the arrival of Penny and Abbey, but with a face like that, who needs stinkin' fanfare...? It was a day in the middle of August. My daycare children were playing in the back yard while I prepared lunch. A seven year old girl ran up to the back door and told me, "Gina, there's a cat in your yard!" I went out immediately to shoo away what I assumed was a stray because I didn't want the children in contact with a potentially diseased or dangerous cat. To my surprise - and delight - it was the precious little gray ball o' fluff pictured above. She had just strolled into the yard and by way of introduction walked directly up to me and gave me the "bump and slide" greeting against my leg. Well, apparently an aura surrounds me that lets cats know I am powerless to resist their feline wiles...
"It's funny how dogs and cats know the inside of folks better than other folks do, isn't it?"
- Eleanor H. Porter (1868 - 1920), Pollyanna, 1912
I picked her up and whispered, "If you want to be our kitty, you have to be the one who will let me hold you like a baby." I flipped her over on her back in my arms (she weighed no more than two pounds) and petted her belly...she immediately agreed to the arrangement, so signifying with a purr that was bigger than herself!
Desi adores spending time with the daycare children...she has always had a playful, yet gentle personality. Many times she plays right along with the kids...I think she thinks she is one of them! One of her first interactions with the children was to climb into the back of a little plastic toy van with her front half, then run and push the van across the playroom...the first cat powered vehicle in the world! In her kittenhood she also would fetch her little foam ball...just like a dog! In the morning as the kids arrive, she positions herself in the doorway so they will see and greet her even before they see me. She comes around at nap time and snuggles up with her little friends. 
Last Wednesday night we went to another Allman Brothers Band concert. Scott and I have been going to see these guys perform for 14 years... They rock! We have honestly lost count of the number of times we have seen them in concert, but we're pretty sure i
Tracked: Sep 02, 14:31
Desi treated us to an an awfully good upside down view today... Could she be jealous that Abbey is featured on my header and she is vying to be the official face - I mean belly - of Upside Down Cats? We'll keep this photo on file, Desi...in case of
Tracked: Sep 09, 19:55
Desi doesn't fetch her ball like she did when she was a kitten, but would you agree that she still loves it? Maybe she's dreaming about fetching...
Tracked: Sep 12, 14:45
On Sunday Scott and I were enjoying a quiet evening at home when we suddenly heard the startling sound of breaking glass very near...at our own house, in fact! It was a rare day of late...cool and not as humid so we had the door between the house and the
Tracked: Sep 12, 14:46
I've been backed into a corner by a ten pound critter named Cooper... Since he's our most recently acquired feline friend, I thought I had some time before introductions were necessary...I mean, after all, Abbey's been with us for 13 years and you only m
Tracked: Sep 12, 14:58
Last Wednesday night we went to another Allman Brothers Band concert. Scott and I have been going to see these guys perform for 14 years...They rock! We have honestly lost count of the number of times we have seen them in concert, but we're pretty sure it
Tracked: Sep 20, 22:29
Last Wednesday night we went to another Allman Brothers Band concert. Scott and I have been going to see these guys perform for 14 years...They rock! We have honestly lost count of the number of times we have seen them in concert, but we're pretty sure it
Tracked: Sep 20, 22:30
I miss our Christmas tree a little bit this year. It would sure feel more festive here at home to have our tree up and decorated again... Our Cooper cat, who is barely two years old would certainly ruin our tree, were we reckless enough to put it up t
Tracked: Dec 14, 16:07
Here's a sight to make you smile... If I didn't know better, I would say it was our Desi as a kitten... Thanks, Cousin Rachel, for sharing the December page of your cat calendar! This is too cute for words, so I won't detract from your enjoym
Tracked: Jan 05, 13:00
We have a couple visitors staying at our house. As guests go, they are the very definition of low-maintenance. They have made themselves completely at home in our extra bedroom. They occupy themselves all day while Scott and I are working. They are fast
Tracked: Jul 30, 15:00
This is the totally un-posed scene I encountered as I returned to the nice cool house after mowing the lawn and other assorted yardwork on Saturday. I guess you'd say Saturday afternoon was a lazy time for several of our feline friends.
Tracked: Aug 05, 15:59
In a pathetic play for attention, here's Desi displaying her best Upside Down Cat this morning... Isn't that the name of a yoga pose? ...It should be.
Tracked: Aug 06, 19:02