30 Days of Gratitude: Day 7

Jack the amazing sleeper cat

Today I am thankful for my pets. I know that is so freaking cheesy, but seriously I'm so thankful for my lovely animals. They are such cuddly balls of fur that I really love coming home too. As you can see Jack is a little bit crazy, which isn't too far off the mark. He's the old man of the crew. I found him outside one of my old work places over 10 years ago. He was standing outside the back door just huddled up. I thought he would bolt when I opened the door but he just sat there so I scooped him up and brought him inside. I had to hide him in one of the rooms until I was off and prayed the entire time he wouldn't have anything wrong. Thankfully he vet said he was in really good health, just malnourished and really depressed. Yes cats can get depressed. Someone had obviously abused him and in the process cut his whiskers down to nubs. He hit the jackpot in our house though because he was a spoiled little rotten kitty and now is my shadow. I'm really the only one he tolerates for long periods of time. He's trained my mother to give him treats every time she comes to visit. It's hilarious. I'm so thankful for him though because even when I've had a bad day or a long day he's here and ready for me to sit down so he can curl up next to me on the couch. Such a relaxing feeling just sitting there petting him and being still.

Fleur the princess

Fleur is our little princess. She is really a hot mess of a kitty. We got her as a companion for Jack when we moved. He needed a friend to entertain him while we were at work and school. We got her when she was three-four weeks old. Her mother was killed, or at least that is what the lady thought. We looked at the three, two girls and a boy, but knew with Jack being male we didn't need two males fighting it out so we wanted a female. I picked up Fleur first and immediately she curled up and went right to sleep. Just so cute. I couldn't handle how cute she was that night. It had just finished raining and we were having dinner with our parents that night. I knew when she went to sleep I would keep her, she was too cute not too keep. She's a unique little one. Fleur doesn't jump beyond the bed. Other cats jump up on counters, but not her. She just watches you until you pick her up and put her on the counter. And she loves water from the faucet. It's really funny and sad at the same time. And she LOVES to lick. She wakes you up form a dead sleep licking your face. She licks water bottles, faucets, bathtub walls after showers, if it has a speck of water she will lick the heck outta it until it is bone dry. Like I said, she's unique and by unique I mean special. But she can be a cuddler and at night it's quite calming to have her cuddled up next to your hear.

Mayhem the monster

Last, but certainly not least, is Mayhem the monster. He certainly lives up to his name. He is named after the mayhem commercials from Allstate. you can't see it too much in this one, but he looks like he is wearing a tux with a little tie down the center of his chest. Stef first saw him in our old place. He was a tiny kitten going to town on the stairs by our front door. I put food out for the mom and hoped to try and catch them both, but to no avail. Fast forward a few months to our move and he popped up on our back porch. I am assuming the mother was killed and he was left to fend for himself. We had been putting food out for the strays in the area {a bad idea to many, but I'm related to a Dr. Doolittle and I can't let an animal go hungry} so they wouldn't be hungry and eating the neighbors trash. It took a little time but I was able to scoop him up and was supposed to give him away but I couldn't handle giving him up as I had grown attached. Over a year later he's my shadow as well. He's still skiddish around others {He doesn't like people that are not my sister or I really.} and he still scratches like a kitten, but he's my little monster. I love him beyond measure though. He is really cute in the morning when he hasn't quite woken up yet and he will snuggle up and purr to no end. It's a nice way to wake up in the morning :)

I'm thankful for these little monsters. They bring me such joy and while they are more than a little nuts, they make me happy at the end of a really long day.