It’s Zaturday – Wet Paint!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Zorro here.

Our house has really been a busy place lately. Mommy decided to remodel another room. This time she tore up the living room. Fortunately, she had us stay downstairs while most of the work was going on, because it was really noisy. Ziggy and I don’t like noise, unless we’re the ones making it. Like when we run up and down the stairs when Mommy and Daddy are trying to sleep, and they say we sound like a herd of elephants. We’re not sure what elephants are. Maybe they’re like cats but bigger.

Anyhow, they finally let us come back upstairs when they were finishing the room. All while they were working, the house was a mess. Furniture was piled up in the dining room and the music room. But Ziggy and I still found a comfy place to sleep.

When Daddy finished painting the window sill, I thought it would be fun to get up there and walk around on it. When Mommy came back into the room a while later, this is what the floor looked like:

She didn’t know who did it, so first she checked Ziggy’s paws. No paint. Then she picked me up. Guess what she found. Yep, white paint on my paws. I couldn’t deny it when the evidence was right there.

Mommy scrubbed the paw prints off of the wood floor but wanted to leave them in the paint on the window sill. She said it’s like when parents have their kids put their hand prints in wet cement, and we’re sort of like her kids. Daddy didn’t think that was a good idea, but he hasn’t gotten around to sanding and repainting yet. I kind of hope he leaves my paw prints there.

Now the work is all done. We really like the new room. Ziggy and I have lots of fun chasing each other from one end to the other and sliding on the new wood floor. There’s even a fireplace. On cold days, Mommy and Daddy put a fire in there to keep us warm. Lately it’s been too warm for a fire, but we still like to hang out in there.

Well, I gotta go. It’s time to see what other trouble I can get into.

It’s Zaturday – Missing Daddy

It’s Zaturday—the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog! Ziggy here.

Okay, I think Mommy really needs to rename this “It’s Zunday!” Because this is two times in a row that she’s been late posting. She sort of has an excuse, though. Last week, Mommy and Daddy left the house to go exercise and didn’t come home. (Fortunately, they fed us before they left.) Mommy finally got home late that night and Daddy still hasn’t come home. Mommy said he fell playing pickleball and broke his hip. We’re not quite sure what that means, but they’re not letting him come home. Zorro and I really miss him, so we’re hoping that, wherever he is, Mommy is going to break him out.

A long time ago, Mommy broke Zorro out, too. Before Mommy came, this is what Zorro looked like:

Then Mommy broke him out and brought him home. He looked really sad at that other place, but he’s really happy now. In fact, we’re both really happy. See?

We hope Daddy’s not too sad. It’s been more than a week since we’ve seen him, which seems like FOREVER! And Mommy has been gone from early in the morning till dinnertime. But Aunt Kim and Uncle Chris have taken good care of us. They feed us lunch and dinner too if Mommy isn’t home yet. Daddy says Uncle Chris is a good fill-in butler and Aunt Kim is a good fill-in ladies’ maid.

A long time ago, Mommy and Daddy watched a program called “Downton Abbey.” Zorro and I watched it with them. It was okay, but there weren’t any cats on there. Daddy said that show helped him understand how cats think about their humans. Now he says Mommy is Mrs. Patmore, because she makes our kitty food, and he’s Pappy the Butler. If we think about it that way, Mommy and Daddy are good servants, because they take really good care of us. They make sure we have yummy kitty food…

Fun places to climb…

A comfy bed…

And lots of love.

Whether Mommy and Daddy are our servants or not, we think we’re going to keep them.

It’s Zaturday – Ziglet the Piglet

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Zorro here. Okay, I guess it’s Zunday instead of Zaturday, because Mommy’s slow! She didn’t get this put up when she was supposed to.

Recently, Ziggy and I went to the doctor. Mommy had to find a new doctor for us since we live in North Carolina now. Our old one is in Florida.

I checked out good, but Ziggy is too fat! I’m not surprised. He gobbles his food down then stares at me while I eat, hoping I’ll leave some for him. Daddy calls him Ziglet the Piglet. Now instead of calling “Kitty, kitty, kitty” when it’s time to eat, Daddy hollers, “Sooie, sooie, sooie, pig-pig-pig,” and we both come running! Mommy says it’s a pig call. I don’t care how they call us, as long as they feed us.

Every time Daddy calls Ziggy fat, Mommy says he’s just fluffy, and Daddy reminds her that that’s not what the vet says. I agree with Daddy and the vet. I think he’s getting fat, especially when he pounces on me.  He’s HEAVY! Even so, I don’t want Mommy to put Ziggy on a diet. Since we always eat together, that would mean they’d have to give me less, too. Instead, I’m helping Ziggy get more exercise by chasing him around the house and wrestling with him.

I’m glad I have Ziggy for a buddy, even if the vet says he’s fat. He helps me not to get too lonely. We hang out together in our catio…

and play with our toys together…

and take naps together…

…LOTS of naps. In fact, I think it’s time for another one!

It’s Zaturday – Lonely Kitties!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Ziggy here. Zorro and I were sad kitties last week. Mommy and Daddy left us! They went to Florida and didn’t take us with them! They were gone a really long time—almost a week! We missed them, but Aunt Kim took really good care of us. We got to hang out with Grandma a whole bunch, too. We also had each other to snuggle with.

Zorro and I like going for car rides. When Daddy’s driving, we both get in Mommy’s lap. It’s a little crowded, because she usually has her computer there, too. When Mommy’s driving, she only lets one of us lie in her lap. Zorro always beats me to it. He curls up there and doesn’t move until Mommy stops for gas.

When Mommy and Daddy first got back, Zorro pouted for a whole day. Mommy couldn’t get him to purr no matter what she did. But he finally got over it and forgave them for leaving him. One thing that helped was that the day after they got back, Daddy went to the store and bought a bunch of meat. Then they made a batch of fresh cat food. Mommy and Daddy make really good kitty food. We like it better than the food that comes out of cans. Zorro even stands up for it.

We think we have good parents, even though they do sometimes leave us. But Mommy promised they wouldn’t leave us again until June. We’re not sure when June is, but we’re hoping its reeeeaally far away. Do you think if we try really hard, we can get them to cancel their trip?

It’s Zaturday – We’re back!

It’s Zaturday, the day that we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog.

Zorro here. I know it’s been a really long time since Ziggy and I have been on here, but whew, have we been busy! Well, I guess it’s Mommy and Daddy who have been busy. First, something happened to Daddy. Mommy said he had shoulder surgery. Ziggy and I don’t know what that means, but he came home with this great big thing on his arm and had to wear it for a long time. Ziggy and I were scared of it at first, but we got used to it. Soon we were back to snuggling with him.

Cat in boxThen we all moved from Florida to North Carolina. Ziggy and I like car rides, so we didn’t mind that at all. What was really fun, though, was when Mommy started unpacking. Every time she emptied a box, Ziggy and I got in! Boxes are the most fun thing in the world! Well, catnip toys are pretty fun, too.

Lately, though, Mommy and Daddy have been making lots of noise, and we don’t like that. Even Aunt Kim is getting involved. Mommy says they’re remodeling. While Mommy and Aunt Kim put a new floor in, Ziggy and I hung out on our catio.

For a while, there was white stuff all over the ground, and it was really cold. When I wanted to get warmed up, I just came in and curled up in Grandma’s lap. Grandma has a soft, warm lap, because she wears a thick, fuzzy robe.

Now the room where everybody was working is all finished. Ziggy and I are glad. We like to hang out in there and look out the front window…

…or play on the new floor.

Mommy says she’s not done with the remodeling, though. Next, she’s going to tear up the hall bathroom. That sounds like a noisy job, too, so Ziggy and I are hoping she’ll change her mind. Think we might be able to convince her to play with us instead?

It’s Zaturday – Merry Christmas!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Ziggy here. Yesterday was Christmas! Christmas must be a really special day, because Mommy and Daddy did lots of cool stuff for us. The day before, they brought us to North Carolina to spend time with Aunt Kim and Grandma. We love North Carolina because we get to hang out in our catio and watch the squirrels and birds. This time, though, Mommy wouldn’t let us go out there. She said it’s too cold. I don’t know how cold it is, but there’s white stuff everywhere! The bird feeder is covered, and the stuff’s even on our bar where we like to sit.

On Christmas morning, Mommy gave us a treat of turkey baby food. It was soooo yummy! Zorro even stood up for it.

Then Mommy and Daddy gave us presents! We knew something was going on, because earlier, Mommy sat down on the floor with rolls of paper and a plastic bag with stuff in it. When I checked out what she was doing, I smelled catnip! Zorro and I both go crazy over catnip. Mommy finally had to take everything into the bedroom and close the door, because she said she couldn’t get the presents wrapped with me getting into everything.

Finally it came time to open them. Boy, was that fun! Mommy had to help us tear the paper. She said she put too much tape on it.

The first presents were furry mousies. I got a white one and Zorro got a brown one. The best part was that they were catnip mousies!

Mommy had to finally take them away from us to get us interested in the other presents. The next one had balls for us to play with. Some were fluffy and others had bells inside.

The last presents were bigger. I got a bird and Zorro got a pineapple, both full of catnip!

After opening our presents and playing with them for a while, we were totally worn out. So Zorro took a nap with Grandma…

and I curled up on the dining room chair.

Zorro and I think this was the best Christmas ever!

It’s Zaturday – Kitty Acrobats!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Zorro here. Did you know that a cat can right itself from a fall in less than one second? Pretty amazing, huh? Here’s how we do it. Our backs are super flexible. We bend in the middle so our front half rotates different from our back half. Then we tuck our front legs and extend our back legs, so we can rotate our front half. Then we tuck our back legs and extend our front legs and that lets us rotate our back half. Some cats can do these three steps once and they’re right side up. Others have to do them two or three times. But we go through these steps lightning fast. Since we have the ability to right ourselves, we usually land uninjured. But not always. Cats can still break bones or even die in extreme falls.

A couple of weeks ago, when Mommy and Daddy were sick, I was lying beside Mommy’s feet, and all the sudden, I fell out of bed. Mommy heard a thud, so she doesn’t think I landed on my feet. I’m not sure, because it happened so fast. One second I was sound asleep, and the next I was on the floor. Mommy jumped up to make sure I was okay. I just laid there for a minute, until Mommy made me get up so she could watch me walk. Of course, I was fine. (Mommy worries too much.)

If I ever fall again, I hope it’s falling out of bed. That’s not very far, and the carpet is really soft. I love to climb, and some places I get wouldn’t be good places to fall from. Like the top of the curio cabinet in Florida, especially since the floor is tile instead of carpet.

Or up high in the catio in North Carolina:

Or on top of the upper cabinets in Grandma’s kitchen.

Ziggy doesn’t have to worry about falling, at least not from anything high. He usually doesn’t go any higher than the dining room chair or the back of the couch. He’s kind of a scaredy-cat that way. Mommy says I’m too much of a dare devil and that I make her really nervous when I jump up on high things. I don’t like to make Mommy nervous, but it’s so much fun to look down on everything from my high perch. I think I’ll keep doing it.

It’s Zaturday – Spoiled Kitties!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog.

Ziggy here. Mommy and Daddy say that we’re spoiled kitties. Well, usually it’s Daddy that says that, and Mommy answers, “As it should be.”

Maybe we are just a little bit spoiled. When Mommy is ready to make the bed in the morning, if Zorro and I are sleeping and look really comfortable, she will leave the bed unmade until we get up rather than disturb us.

Mommy isn’t the only one who doesn’t want to disturb her kitties when we’re sleeping. This week, Mommy heard a story about someone named Mohammad who loved cats. His cat, Muezza, was sleeping on his robe when the call to prayers sounded. Instead of disturbing Muezza’s nap. Mohammad cut the sleeve off of his robe.

There are times, though, that Mommy does disturb me. She has one chair that she always sits in at the table. That’s where her computer is. Even though all the other chairs are empty, that’s the one I always get in if Mommy isn’t sitting in it. But I do it on purpose, because when Mommy comes back to the table, she always picks me up and puts me in her lap. Then she holds me like a baby and pets my tummy. It feels soooo good.

Another person who spoiled his cats was Sir Winston Churchill. Mommy read that at dinners, he would sneak pieces of salmon to his cat Nelson. His cat Jock ate dinner with him, and Mr. Cat even had his own place at the dinner table. Mommy and Daddy haven’t given us a place at their table, but Zorro and I are okay with that. They make us really yummy kitty food. We’re happy to eat it wherever they want to put it!

It’s Zaturday – The Sick House!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog.

Zorro here. Mommy and Daddy are sick. Ziggy and I have never seen them sick before, so we feel really sorry for them. We’re trying our best to comfort them. When Mommy lies down on the couch, we keep her company.

They’re spending a lot of time in bed, too. I thought Daddy’s feet might be cold under the covers, so I stretched out against them.

I like to get under the blankets with Mommy and Daddy, too. I’m sure that really helps to keep them warm. A lot of times I curl up against Mommy’s tummy. She says my purring helps her go to sleep. Here, I’m snuggled up between them under the covers.

Mommy said they got the sickness from the office where Mommy sometimes goes to work. Since that place made her and Daddy sick, I’m hoping that means that Mommy won’t go back there anymore. I like her writing job much better than the other one, because when she’s writing, she stays home and I get to hang out with her all day.

Mommy doesn’t know whether kitties can catch COVID, so she and Daddy are being extra careful. When they made our kitty food this week, they wore masks. They’re trying hard to not breathe on us, and Mommy won’t let me lick her face, either. That part’s not fun, because I love to give Mommy kisses on her nose.

Ziggy and I are sorry that Mommy and Daddy feel bad, and we hope they feel better soon. But it’s been nice having them home.

It’s Zaturday – Happy Thanksgiving!

It’s Zaturday, the day we (Ziggy and Zorro) take over Mommy’s blog!

Ziggy here. Mommy said that this week was Thanksgiving. Zorro isn’t sure that he likes Thanksgiving, because Mommy and Daddy left us alone for several hours. Mommy says Thanksgiving is a time for people to think about all the things they’re thankful for.

Zorro and I have a bunch of stuff to be thankful for too. We’re thankful for a nice soft bed to sleep in.

We’re thankful for the yummy kitty food they make for us. (The other day, Mommy turned her back, and Zorro snuck up there and stole some right out of the bowl. He’s usually a good kitty, but he said he couldn’t resist fresh, homemade kitty food.)

We’re thankful that we have two fun places to stay. In Florida, Daddy’s always there, and it’s fun having him around.  There are lots of big windows we can look out. (Mommy calls them sliding glass doors.)   Our cat condo is there, too.

In North Carolina, we get to see Grandma and Aunt Kim. We have our catio there, too. We both love sitting out there and watching the birds and squirrels. But Mommy said it’s wintertime now and it might be too cold for us to use our catio when we go back at Christmastime. I think I’ll be able to handle it, though, because I have a lot of fur. See how fluffy I am?

Zorro gets cold easier than I do, so when it’s cold, he usually stays inside and snuggles under a blanket.

I’m also thankful that I have a buddy like Zorro. He’s so much fun. We chase each other all over the house. He’s also great to snuggle with.

Cats cuddling

We’re thankful for the sunshine and our toys and a bunch of other stuff. But most of all, we’re thankful for a Mommy and Daddy who love us.