Ilaiy

Days spent at Kopi feeling at ease because you're there...
projecting a calmness

always thoughtful
and reflective

Laughing with such ease...
smiling and shining eyes
head tossed back, mouth wide open with laughter
days spent laughing

Days with Ilaiy




Ilaiy, we'll miss you more than words can say.
A bit of our sunshine goes with you to California.
That must be why it's so sunny and warm out there.

WE LOVE YOU!!
Marcy (and Mike)

Happy Birthday, Hubbo!

Cat Blogs

As if my blog obsession wasn't going strong enough, Jamie blogged about what has now become my newest hobby - webpages for pets. There are sites for both dogs and cats. Do I have to say what I did next??

I set up pages for each of my kitties, of course!!

G

Tuffy

Aggie

Lucky

Ally

Goings on at the Park

I work accross from West Side Park in Champaign. Things alwasy seem to happen here.

For instance, this morning as I get out of my car:

• I think I hear an orchestra. I think: "OK, they're getting ready for Taste of Champaign later this week....Uh, nope. It's the "homeless" guy in his "home"/car blasting classical music. Normally this time of year, he's got his hatch open and is blasting a rap concert. That's fine with me too - except for that whole noise violation thing.

• There is a man sleeping on top of a picnic table. Maybe you've seen this sort of thing before. I'm sure that I have but there's one difference this time. The man is not shirtless, sunbathing or stoned looking. He's wearing khaki pants and a button down shirt. It's 8:30 (or so) in the morning. What gives????
  

Another New Blog!

I have recently set up two other blogs:

I'm a Quitter

and the ***ALL NEW***

BlogSongs

Little Kitten Loves Dog

I stole this link from another blogger but this video really cracks me up.

Little Kitten Loves Dog

Kitten vs Frontrow (by mattcoats)


Aren't kittens cute?

Stupid...but cute.

My other Blog

I have "BIG" news...if you're interested check out my other blog.

Milestone

Last weekend we went to my ol' home sweet home for my sister's high school graduation. The time has flown (especially for me). I didn't cry at the ceremony - well, I could have while waiting for the nearly 600 names to be called out. BUT:

I am proud of her. She's moving onward and upward! Going to Rend Lake College with a full scholarship to run track and cross-country. Good luck, Mal!

And, I haven't forgotten that this blog is about kitties. Here I am with my parent's "baby" Archie. He's barely a year old and he's a biggun. But very cuddable.

A boy and his cat

*Actually, that's MY cat,
I just liked that title

Sunbathers

I love walking up to a warm, sunbathing kitty and burying my face in their fur. I give my kitties kisses. (I'm a sicko.)

And they're too groggy to reject the love.

If it doesn't have four legs...

I'll kill it...


I should stick to cats.

"April showers kill May flowers"

Visit

Hey Marcy and Mike,

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed coming to see you! I really mean it! It was good to get away and just take time to enjoy my family! I wish I could come back this weekend!

Thank you so much for pampering me!!!! I love you both!!!!!!!

Here's some pictures. Enjoy! Tell all at the coffee shop Thank You. Good people!

Love,
The Mom


My mom and sister came to visit us last weekend. We worked and worked to get ready for them to come, buying a new bed, finishing a spare room and cleaning our fool heads off!!

It was all worth it.

The Coffee Shop - Friday night

We went to U of I on Saturday to try to feed the squirrels. Unfortunately, we only found one. But we did do some people watching.


There was some sort of "poker run" in Sadorus. Although, I've heard the term used many times, I'm not sure exactly what it means, except a large group of bikers riding around to different areas on a beautiful day. It was an amazing site.


The latest photo of my parents' cats. The "baby" is now bigger than the other one. Here he is aggressively cleaning his older sister.

1st Annual Baby Bunny Photos

It seems that each year we're going to find a nest (is that the right term?) of baby bunnies in our yard. Oh, they're soooo cute - I'd love to keep them all and snuggle them.

But, really - we try not to bother them. Last night, my husband was mowing the yard and found this year's "batch o' bunnies". He only picked one up to move it back into its hole but, when he picked it up - I took the opportunity to photograph the little guy...or gal...uh, cutie!!

Last night's photos

Always exciting times at my house - I was cleaning last night. My mom and sister are coming to visit this weekend. (Yay!!!) Surprisingly two of my cats are not afraid of the vacuum. Here's Lucky (my husband's favorite cat) watching me vacuum:

(This picture is a little blurry, but I had to post it!)

Later in the evening, all of the kitties were gathered in the kitchen. Here are three of them:

Aren't they comfy?? While I've been working?

Hmph.

Tuffy-baby

We often marvel at how large Tuffy is. My husband took this photo of Tuffy a while ago.

(Please don't mind my clown pajamas.)

And even though he is large, he's a gentle giant. He's one of our most lovable cats and, well...

Easter bunnies - uh, cats

My friend, gnightgirl, sent these photos to me and thought they'd be perfect for my blog.

She was right!

Cat Tales

We've been coming home lately to find our two "cat drawers" in the kitchen open. Kitty treats strewn everywhere.

Here may be why:




Watch this one until the very end:

Tommy's New Home

My father-in-law sent me some photos of the happy Tommy in his new home.

I think he's so damn cute! I'm very glad he's happy - he's a great housecat.

Letter to the Editor

My letter to the editor was printed in the local paper today. Woohoo!

They edited my letter a little - made it more concise in parts and put in at least one typo. That's a little upsetting because I don't want to look careless/stupid. However, I realize that I wrote this letter to tell about this wonderful organization and to help kitties - so, I'll get over that.

Here's the text of my original letter:

I wanted to write about a wonderful experience I had with a local non-profit organization that helps felines. CATsNAP (Champaign Area Trap Spay/Neuter and Adoption Program - www.catsnap.org) is a local no-kill shelter/foster program and, as their name implies, they run a spay/neuter facility in conjunction with Animal Control.

As a cat owner (with five of my own), I recently encountered a stray cat that decided to call my back porch home. I e-mailed CATsNAP asking if they were accepting animals. Unfortunately, they were full. But, very fortunately - Susan Norris asked that I bring "Tommy" in to have him neutered and vaccinated. What a relief to me to at least be making some progress in the adoption process. When I dropped Tommy off I met a young woman in scrubs. I was talking to her for several minutes before I realized she was the vet, Dr. Gretchen Reid. I got choked up as I attempted to tell her what a generous and wonderful job she does. I told Dr. Reid that I have five cats of my own and just don’t know what I would do with anymore…she told me that she has eight. And she fosters many more. She is truly an inspirational woman.

As it turned out, Tommy was already neutered but Dr. Reid updated his shots and treated him for parasites, etc. I left a donation to help their cause. This is a cause I believe in. We have an incredible amount of homeless animals in the Champaign-Urbana area. Our Humane Society cannot keep up with all of the incoming animals. I encourage you to read CATsNAP’s website and see the statistics. CATsNAP has taken in almost 400 cats from the Humane Society. Cats that would have been “exterminated”. Again, this is not the Humane Society’s fault – there are too many cats in this area that need homes. And for these homeless cats to wander around intact – only creates more and more cats that are in need of homes. It is understandable that not all people can afford to spay/neuter their cat(s), but CATsNAP is a program that provides spaying/neutering for pets of low income families and/or feral cats. There is a suggested donation of $20 to $30 per cat.

Right now, Tommy is staying with us. We will make sure that he finds a loving home. Here’s to hoping all cats are as lucky as Tommy.

**Tommy did find a happy home!