Welcome to Chica's 21st Birthday Partay!!!!

Today, Sunday June 24,  is the day..my 21st birthday!!!   Mom asked Ann of Zoolatry to make her a graphic for my 21st birthday - I love it!  Thanks Ann.

Thanks to each and every one of you for joining us this week to celebrate me and making it so special.  It was fun sharing memories of my long life with you and in turn learning more about you too.  I have had an amazing life - from being found at a Florida strip mall to moving to North Carolina and getting used to sooo many new brothers and sisters.  We have moved 6 times in my life but as  long as Mom and Pop were there - I was home.

Since the theme for this party is 21 - Mom found some info online about why the 21st birthday is so important....

Some say it’s significance originated from knighthood rituals of long ago. A boy began to learn about becoming a knight at the age of seven when he was taken on as a page. He graduated from page to squire at fourteen and became a knight’s assistant, caring for his equipment and training with him until at the age of 21 he would become a Knight.

In Elizabethan times 21 was the age of consent for a man to marry.

In the US today, 21 is the age that you can purchase alcohol.

The symbol of the 21st Birthday has traditionally been the key. It is believed that the meaning of the key is that the birthday boy or girl is now a senior member of the household and given a key to the house. 21st birthday gifts, invitations, decorations and cakes are often fashioned around the design of a key.  (my21stbirthdayideas.com)

Mom asked me to choose a song that best describes my life and I chose My Way by none other than Frank Sinatra (heeheehee) Of course Mom could not get the embedd to work on the laptop but you all knowe the song and singer!

 I appreciate your friendship and hope to be around for some time to come! Help yourself to the salmon, shrimps and ham, niptinis (of course) and assorted toys, and even a jungle gym!  Mom got me two cakes for the party - one to celebrate that now I can legally drink and the other is key cake -  "You got the key to the door, never been 21 before"! Let's PARATY!!!



Our good friends Derry of Fuzzy Tales and Sparkle  also are celebrating their birthdays that day too. Wendy's LOL spot features me - so check that out! Make the rounds and be prepared to party yntil the sun comes up!

P.S. Mom did all the posts this week on a tiny borrowed mini laptop!  Very frustrating as she could not access her photos, put on any new ones...She says she can't see straight anymore either!!!  I don't believe her but I know she loves me lots for doing this and caring for me all these years!

Caturday of Chica's 21st Birthday Week

Me as a young cat

One day until my official birthday!!!!!! I can't wait  for tomorrow but this whole week has been just super fun. 

Mom wanted me to tell you how feisty I still am. The other morning I was on the bed to wake Mom up and Yoko came up too. I didn't like that so I whapped her good. She surprised me and whapped back...next thing we know we are both whapping and growling at each other. We woke Mom up with all our commotion and both got put off the bed. It wasn't my fault!

Me now

We also had a big thunderstorm today and loud boom followed by a flash of lightning just outside the window really scared me.  Back when we lived in Florida, Mom and I were sitting on our lanai as it started to rain.  I didn't mind storms then so we stayed out in the porch.  Suddenly lightning hit the transformer right behind our house and made a huge ball of light that traveled down the wires away from us with the loudest  bang we ever heard!  Mom and I scrambled to get inside the house and I was very very skeered of storms since that day. (That ball of light blew up all the appliances inside all the houses on our street.)  Whenever I hear thunder, I crawl on my belly to the closest hidy place - under a bed or sofa.  If Mom is home I just go cower by her.  The storms here in the mountains are not so loud and violent so I do much better now.  Are you skeered of storms too?

We had some folks ask what food I ate after the last post about why I have lived this long.  Well, Mom tried cooking the food herself but none of us ate it.  So she feeds us Wellness canned food - no grain or Evo or Pet Guard.  She has to alternate the flavors since we are all very picky - especially me!  For dry which we don't get but a few as snacks, we like Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover.  Mom tried Wellness dry but we would not eat it.  Sometimes you just have to go with the flow and give us what we will eat.  I like my food with extra water to  soften it and with juice from the can on it.

I guess I should stop talking and let you all get to the munchies today - fresh salmon.  For games and toys - we have some that will sharpen you whapping and hiding skills!  Be sure to come back by on Sunday for the official pawty and don't forget to visit Derry and Sparkle too.  Enjoy!

Friday Fun for Chica's 21st Birthday Week

Young me, still living in FL doing by Jabba the Hut impersonation!

As I said in the last post, I have mellowed out a bit in my older years.  Since I have been like 17 or 18, I have developed a new habit of going over to Mom when I want something and raising my paw to tap, tap, tap her.  If I can't reach her from where I am, I still tap the air which must look like I am waving.  Mom doesn't know how this came about but it seems to get me what I want!

Another thing I do is shake all over like a wet dog to dry off.  But I am not wet.  I do this when Mom gives me extra water with a plastic food syringe.  She squirts water into the side of my mouth behind my fang and I swallow it.  When I am done I stop and Mom says do your shaky and I shake all over.

A couple of you asked me yesterday what was the secret to my long life.  I talked this over with Mom and the only thing we can say is switching over to no vaccines and high quality food.  When we lived in Florida, both Yoko and I went to a regular vet, got all the vaccines and boosters yearly and ate kibble - Purina or Fancy Feast.

When we moved here 14 years ago, Mom found a holistic vet who did not believe in vaccines so we never got another one!  The vet also told Mom to feed us good high quality food - it took Mom a while to completely switch over for all of us but she did.

Now, I still have chronic renal failure which I have had for 6 years and Yoko  has high normal thyroid and kidney values but we have been treated all along with homeopathy, herbs and other natural treatments, no drugs.  This vet got Mom to stop using only western medicine for herself and she uses all natural things on her and Pop too.

It may have to do with good genes too.  Many of the feral cats inbreed with their own and it caused physical problems.  We don't really know where Yoko and I came from but we were pretty healthy as youngsters.

We have a big bash planned on Sunday for my official birthday so do plan on stopping by.  Our good friends Derry of Fuzzy Tales and Sparkle cat also are celebrating their birthdays that day too.  Make the rounds and be prepared to PARTAY!!!!

In my old age I still like whapping a paper bag for fun and napping it it after.

For today's noms we have beef rolled in cream cheese - one of my favorites.  When Mom has cream cheese on toast I run over and beg for some.  She sets some aside on her plate to dip her finger in and let me lick. MMMM MMM good.  Even when she stopped eating cow's milk cheese, I like goat chevre like that too.  To me cheese is cheese!

To go along with the noms - a passel of nip toys of every kind.  So enjoy and eat up.  Did you all like the mice yesterday!!!!  That was fun.

Thankful Thursday - Chica's 21st Birthday Week

This is me when I was little in a fish tub Pop brought home from the restaurant he cooked at. I loved this tub - mostly cuz it still smelled a little like fishies!

Back to this birthday business!  Yesterday I asked for questions from you all and got some interesting ones.  Oui Oui asked if I had a special friend.  Nope - just Mom.  I guess I would have preferred to be the only cat.  I never liked any of the others that came after me.

Going along with this question CCL Wendy asked how I reacted to all the other cats in the house?  Well, I was not very happy.  I would growl at them, grumble and swat.  If I was playing with a  toy and another cat came by I would just get up and leave making growly grumbly noises as I left.  I wanted to play be myself, nap by myself, eat by myself nd have Mom all to myself.  The other cats got the message with all my noise and left me alone.  Mom called me Queen of Mean but I was never mean to her or  Pop! Nobody messed with Chica in our house!

Both Prancer Pie and Animal Shelter Volunteer Life asked if I was more vocal now that I am older.  Strangely enough I am less vocal.  I guess I have mellowed out with age. In the past 4 years I have become very laid back.  I don't like a lot of commotion so I prefer to watch from the sidelines but I don't grumble or growl at anyone much - only if the other cat bumps into me or pesters me too much.  I actually will groom the young ones - unheard of before. Mostly cuz they were all afraid of me.  The newest ones didn't know me in my grumpy prime so they don't  run when I come near.

I would not venture to say that Yoko who is 19 is my friend but I do tolerate her lots more than I used to. We will often share the same chair or both get on the bed with Mom.  Years ago I would have chased her away.We are both very old now and get spoiled by our beans - as it should be!

I am very thankful to have had such a long loving life with Mom and Pop.  Who would have guessed I would live to age 21?  Being fiesty certainly helps.  And I am very thankful to have all of you as friends.  I love that we know kitties from alll over the world now!  The internets is such a cool thing!

Me at our newest NC house in 2009.

Today's toy and snack will be live - real mousies to chase after  and to eat.  We have plenty for all so don't lag behind.  Have fun!  Be sure to come back for more stories on Friday!

Wordy Wednesday - Chica's 21st Birthday Week

Me Chica picking on Yoko again!

More stories for my birthday week.  As you can see from the pic above - I was a terror for poor Yoko when I was younger.  I was two when Mom and Pop added her to the household, thinking I would like a playmate - NOT!  I preferred to be the only cat and stalked Yoko whenever I could.  All I had to do was just sit and stare at her when she was playing with a toy I wanted and she would slink away scared to death!  I always got what I wanted. hehehe

I loved to play and had games I made up to play with Mom.  One was called Pennies!  Mom would slide a penny on the terrazzo floor from one end of the room to me and I would pounce on the penny and catch it.  It was like penny hockey!  I was good at it. Mom would keep them coming one after another!

Another game I played was catch - Mom would throw a jingle ball high in the air to me and I would jump up on my hind legs and catch it - almost every time!  I guess I was a bit of a jock then!

I also liked to play hide and seek with Mom.  She would go hide behind a door or someplace like that and call me.  I would slowly walk through the house looking for her, peeking behind things and under stuff until I found her.  She would jump out with a whoop and I would run and hide for her to find me. 

My favorite hiding place was the bathtub.  I would lay on the tub floor and wait for Mom to find me.  Sometimes she would be right there but stay quiet so I would lift my head up to peer over the tub ledge with just my ear tips and eyes visible!  She laughed when I did that and thought I was so smart and cute!  I am!

I only play for a few minutes at a time now but up until 2-3 years ago, I could still catch the balls Mom threw to me.  Now I just like to push them around the floor.

Me today - I would rather be quiet and nap!

Help yourself to ham apps and grab some bitty balls to play with.  We have plenty of food coming. Ya'll come back.  Do you guys have any questions for an ancient kitty like me?  I would be happy to answer your questions in the next post - fire away!

Tortie Birthday Tuesday with Chica

My first Christmas.

Welcome back to my 21st Birthday celebration - all week. Today Mom wants me to tell the story of how I escaped, not very long after she found me. I guess I was used to being outside and wanted to get back out even tho I loved my new home.

I would try to get out when Mom and Pop opened the door but they were quick and caught me every time...unitl one day. A neighbor came by to tell Mom something just as it was getting dark. You know how some people stand in the doorway, not in and not out of the house with the door partly open? Well, that is what happened that night. I took the opportunity to go out and scooted as fast as I could out into the dark.

Being a black tortie makes me pretty hard to see at night. Mom just hollered at me to come home and took off after me in her bare feet, afraid that if she took her eyes off me for a second, she would lose me. This was a new place for me so I was stopping alot to smell the smells and listen to the new noises. Mom caught up with me in a neighbor's yard and scooped me up.

Me a few years old and still in FL

"Darn, I was just having some fun." I didn't want to go in yet so I leaped high out of her arms and was on the run again.

Mom was right on my tail running thru people's back yards not caring if they saw us or not! Mom caught me again about three houses down when I stopped to sniff a cool scent on the ground. This time I thought she was gonna squish me for sure. She was holding me so tight and telling me to stay put.

Mom seemed pretty upset so I just stayed quiet until she got back to the house. She gave me a good scolding and lecture about how I would get lost in a new place if I went out like that again.

I never tried to escape that house anymore but did get out a couple more times in our new house in another neighborhood in Florida. I always waited until we had company who were not used to cats. They didn't watch for me and I could just slip out when they went out. But this house had a chain link fence all around and that stopped me every time. I didn't know how to go over it like the neighbor cats did so I just stopped and looked at it and Mom or Pop would scoop me up and bring me back inside.

I guess Mom should have named me Houdini for trying to escape so much! I don't do that anymore - I love being inside with Mom and Pop and all the other cats. We have tasty shrimps today to nom on and feather toys to play with. Stay a bit and have fun. See ya tomorrow.  This is fun celebrating all week like this!

Chica's 21 st Birthday Week Long Celebration

Me shortly after Mom found me.

My birthday is Sunday June 24 but this year Mom is featuring me all week long on the blog to celebrate my life of 21 years.  How often does a kitty live that long?  We will have an open house this week with lots of food, beverages and games and toys so do drop back in. The big party will be on Sunday with all kinds of surprises.

For each post I will tell a story about me - some fun thing I do or a good story from my younger days.  I am Mom's first cat. It was fate that she found me just after Christmas in 1991.  She was living in Florida then and was at a strip mall and noticed a bunch of people  talking to a kitten.  That was me!  I was trying to get inside the store and was on my hind legs, pawing at the window for all I was worth.  I was ignoring everybody.  People were trying to get me to come to them but I was not going to do it.

Mom came by and talked to me and I turned right around and went to her!  I knew she was supposed to be my Mom.  No one knew how I got there or who I belonged to.  Mom had to get me some kitty supplies so she put me in the car in the shade and went to get food, litter and all the good stuff.  I sat on her lap in the car when we drove back to the house, looking out the window.  I knew this was the my forever home.

Mom did try to find out if I was lost - she called the animal shelter, looked in the paper and asked everyone nearby if they ever saw me before but no one had.  I think someone dumped me at the shopping center - their loss!

Mom didn't know much about cats, never mind torties like me.  I did what I wanted when I wanted.  I didn't like to be petted back then - I preferred to sit in the same room with Mom and Pop and be with them.  Mom kept me inside but I had a screened porch to play on and I liked to be out there.

I had a very loud purr and would sleep on their bedroom dresser at night purring so loud Pop couldn't sleep.  He would put me outside the room and shut the door.  That made me mad so I would pummel the door with my front paws! Of course they let me back in. They didn't realize then that I made the rules!

Come back tomorrow for more stories about me!  Help yourself to all the goodies and hang out with me for a while today.  I am so very grateful to have me sooo many great cats since we began blogging in 2009!

P.S. We still don't have a computer so we don't have access to our photos. Mom has to sneak some at work or use old ones we have on the blog.  I am feeling much better and so is Snowball who is still on antibiotics for his UTI!