Livestrong!

Ann of Zoolatry makes this fur us, isn't it great?

Today is a day of celebration and memory.  Our mommy's life has been up-lifted,crushed and forever changed because of cancer. For 3 years she ran 3 cancer support groups on-line back when AOL was the main way to chat.  Her groups were for children with cancer, young adults with cancer and a group for the parents of children with cancer. The groups were attended by hundreds each week.  She also did intervention support for several local hospitals who would ask her to speak to young patients that were having troubles.

During that time she saw unnatural empathy and amazing bravery from the young warriors in her  world.  Their comedic antics could fill volumes. Their ability to suck every minute out of a good day was amazing.  The lengths they went to make situations better for their families would break your heart. They were Living Strong before there was a term for it.

For all those young warriors, we give thanks fur their contribution to all our lives.

We would like to thanks Ann of Zoolatry and Jan, Milo and Alfie's Mom fur giving us this opportunity to remember openly.

Mommy's memberances.

Friends remembered:

Grandma, Brady, Tara, Harriet, Jonathan, Chris, Josh, Michael, Mom, Jen, April, Peter, Susan, Bob, Cathy, Sue, Christen, Justin, Brian, Jim, Rob, Jennifer, Tim, Angela, Megan and those online friends whose real names I never learned. Your families are in my prayers nightly.

Friends honored:

Autumn, Zach, Mike, Kristen, Mary, Lynda, Sharon, Pat, Wrinkle, Jackie and many online friends.

MoCats!

Mommy not has lots of times to help us Blogs. Seriously kitties, she is staying up all the nights typing, but not fur our blog. Sometimes she starts typing slow, then she gets more of that brown stuff, what Squashies likes to try to bury, then she types fast again.

So we begs her acause we not wants to miss MoCats Day.

So here are some highlights of things what has been going on:
When we goes to BlogPaws we meets sweet Teri, Disco and Brighton riding in their strollar, (Teri was pushing, she not fits in the strollar,) and they gives us our very own "Curlz and Swirlz" swag bag fulls of such wonderful stuffs. Redmousie has been very lonely acause they gives us a oranj swirly thing what is yarn just like redmousie, only i can throws it up in the air and pounce it.  Is my mew favorite toy!  We gots lots of cool things in the bag, even some of that brown stuff what Squashies likes to try to bury just fur Mommy. Mommy takes picshurs but she hasa wait til work is not being stoopid to get them out of the camera.

At the BlogPaws I was in a interview fur the Petfinder.com it was very good, cept after about 10 minutes I was done being held by the pretty ladies and wanted to go splor more, so  I just gets up, and leaves.  Dis the advantage of walking on a leash, I can walk Mommy where ever I wants to go!

So asides from BlogPaws, way backs on August 28, our resident funny lady, Wendy, LOL'ed us!  We just love all her LOLs and spends some time this morning going over the posts we has missed.  Is a gud way to cure the blues this rain has put on us.  Thanks you fur making us funny Wendy, you are special to highlight all the kitties!

Wendy's caption: Their home may be mobile, but TK and Squashies are definitely not!

Wendy's caption: How far the 'mite-he' has fallen!

Hopefully Mommy's big project will be done soon and we can have her back to ourselves.

Happy MoCats Day furends!

Thanks you!

We wants to thanks you all fur purrticipating in ours GotchaDay celebrashun!  We makes a donashun on yours behalfs. We feels gud that we can helps our furends.


So fur the rest of the week me and Mommy wills be going to BloggyPaws.  Hopefully we can reports from there, but you know how Mommy gets distracted and furgets...

Daddy and Squashies, who is pretty shy, will has a Daddy/kitty weekend at home.

Older picshur of Squashies and her Daddy.

Third Gotcha Day CommintAThon!

As you may knows our dear furends Sammy, Andy and Shelly is having a bit of a crisis. So this year we decides we gives our GotchaDay fund to them, acause they are so nice and has always done so much fur us.  We gives $1 for every kitty that commints on this or our "We are Home" post until Saturday.

Help us celebrate our good fortune to has such a good home, by helping our furends keep their home!

We also wants to remember the "Day of Tears", that happens on our second GotchaDay.

We miss you furends!

We are home!

We finally gets home from our trips. We is so very sorry we not gets to blogs much, but the innernets not gud to post picshurs and mommy not has any pashuns.

So this what we did:

After we leeves Canada on July then we takes a nice leasurely tour through UpState Noo York, in search of some cools.  First we goes to Rochester, Noo York where we gets ourVan last year. We stops at the woorld famous Jell-O museum.

Dis ourVan at the world famous Jell-O museum!

Okay so this not the biggest tourist place ever, but LeRoy Noo York is a very nice town. We spends the night there too. I sampled some of the grass in their village green, it was quite tasty!

Then we heads east and spends a night at a rest stops so we can gets to Syracuse, Noo York.  When we gets there we stays the night at WallyWorld acause mommy needs to get the oil changed in ourVan.  When we gets the oil changed, Squashies and me gets to ride up on the lift!  Squashies not thinks this was too much fun and hides in her little hidey-hole under the bed that mommy makes fur her. I not likes the hidey-hole acause I can't fit in it, and I just knows that there are treats in there!

So then we finds this grate campground that has green lakes! (Don't ask Mommy about the picshurs from this part, acause she might starts to cry again.) The water was really green but not in a dirty way. I smells it, and it was not stinky or anything.

This campgrounds had chewy grass, but it was good, and when I goes for my walks in the morning and after dinners, all the childern cames to pet me!  I was quite the star. One ladee takes my picshur with a card that sais "Cat on a leash".  She was doing a scavanger hunt.  She was very happy to see me.

We likes it there lots, and so we stayed a whole week. Mommy takes out ourFence so we can sit outside while she works. But don't worry kitties we not allowed to stays outside by ourselves. (We shows you a picshur of that later.)

All this purrty sure makes a kitty tired!

Then we spends the weekend driving through the back roads of the Adirondack. It was so purrty.  Mommy stops lots to bisit with the peeple that has town fairs. It seems like all the towns was having art shows and stuffs that weekend!  I gets to get out and sample all the grass, but Squashies not want to puts her harness on, so she guards ourVan while we walks.

This me sitting on top of a glacier rock in the Adirondacks. These big round rocks is everywhere in Noo York.

 Then the next day we goes to takes a ferry ride to Vermont!  It started out as fun, but then it gets the hots, and we not allowed to runs our engine or generator. Mommy gets a worry-worry and takes the big water bottle out of the fridge so Squashies and me can get a cool. We both lays down next to it for most of the trip.

ourVan on the Ferry from Port Kent, New York to Burlington, Vermont.

So then we drives through Vermont. Burlington is a nice city with lots of purrty houses.  We drives until 6 oclock cause that's when we eats.  Mommy finds a WallyWorld in Montipeller, VT so we stays there for the night.  The grass their was delectable!

Then we goes to one of Mommy's favorite places: The White mountains in Noo Hampshire- "Home of the worst weather on Earth".  Is ok, kitties, the weather is mostly bad in the winter.

Now I knows you has a picshur in your head about white mountains, but they is not white! But they is very cool. So while our poor Daddy has the hots at home, we was nice cool!
We stays at the Mt.Washington Cog Railway for a few days, as you can sees we has a nice place, and it was free acause Mommy has a park pass.  As you can tells from the picshur, there was plenty of grass to sample. Let me tell you kitties, mountain grass is the bestest!

ourVan at the BaseCamp of the Cog Railway.

Then Mommy has to do laundries so we goes to town. (She not brings us toona like she did when she does laundry in Canada! Hmmph!)


After we has clean laundry we drives to the other side of the mountains to the Mt.Washington Auto road.  We stays there for 2 nights to waits when Mommy not has to work so we can go up. But they not lets us go up in ourVan acause they sais we is too heavy.  I offers to stay down acause I know I'm very heavy, but Mommy sais is all our stuff that is too heavy, not me.

This ourVan at the Auto road parking lot with a beautiful birch forest behind us.

The whole time we is in the mountains it not get hotter than 83f, most days it stays in the 70s. So we tells Mommy she should go up the Auto Road without us. So she rides up.  Mommy loves history so was fun to go up on the 150th anniversary of the road.

We is going to stops now, acause the next part of our trip, we travels to Bar Harbor, Maine.

We hopes you likes our storee!

July in Ontario

So we stays at Laurel Creek most of the times while we was in Ontario fur a monf. We had a pass for the whole time, but sometimes we stays at Mommy's furends' driveways.  Twice we stays with Michelle, and lots of times with CarolAnn.

 

The beach, from the parking lot at Laurel Creek

 The beach at Laurel Creek

 

Most of this parts of the trips is about how CarolAnn shares her fambily wif us. They has dinners and goes to the movies and even goes to the whine countries to gets whiny! (We nots go, Mommy leaves us wif the air condition so we not gets too hot.)  It was VERY HOT!

We has lots of fun when CarolAnn's fambily comes to the van. Speshully when Katie, (CA's daughter,) comes acause she loves kitties and she pets us and gives us brushings.

 Dis Katie and Squashies discussing the merits of red-mousie! 

(Dis a bad picshur, mommy uses her cell phone so she not loose the foto-op.)

Now you would thinks that she not has her own kitty, she spends so much times wif us but she does.  Him's name is Oliver, but him has lots of nick-names. She just has a big heart and loves all the kitties!

Dis Oliver in the window, him not allowed to goes outside either, so we not really meets; but him must be nice cause he is a grey kitty too.

This is CA's beuootifur house!  Mommy sais is amazing in the insides too. But the insides belongs to Oliver so I stays out in ourVan, that belongs to me!

I do goes for lots of walks. Mommy not wants us to feels all cramped so we walks twice a day.

Dis me checking out the sidewalk at CarolAnn's.

Dis me and Squashies in CarolAnn's awesome back yard.

We does lots of fun things in Canada, but we not ever gets to bisit Cat's Cats, acause we only goes to Toronto once and we nots have the times to play.

So then we crosses back to the United States.  And do you know what?  They not wants to sees our papers again!  But the TSA person had to gets in ourVan, and him was lergic to us!  He nots bisits us very long.... 

Anyways, we was very sorry we nots gets to bisit the Canada kitties.  Hopefully, next time mommy can works not so much. We loves our Canada kitties and we has a good time in your country!

Love, TK

Where the wild things are!

Hello kitties! (This postie was builded on June 26, but we decided to shares it anyways. Mommy builds lots of pages then she not posts acause she gets busy.)

Yesserday we goes to African Lion Safari near Cambridge. And we has a very gud time!  We gets to see all kinds of aminals, but bestly we got to sees Lions.  ROAR!  Mommy takes lots of picshurs. But we not can show some acause the big man-cat lion was being norty!

I wants to be a big man-cat lion when I grows-up, not only is him very beautifur, but also acause no one yells at him when he gets norty. No one sais "Lion no-no" to him!

Dis was a very gud time to go, acause all the aminals had babies.

Bison calf, just born. Notice umbilical cord is still attached.

Head butts!

Then the monkees gets on the cars and takes a ride.  Monkey, No NO!

And this stripey-horsey not lets this car goes, even though all other places was empty. No one sais "Stripey-horsey ,No NO!" to him either.

Mommy also sees a bird show. She loves the raptors.

We hopes you likes our tour. We hopes to posts more abouts our trip soon. Including how Casper, Archie, Jimmy and Ben's mommy and daddy helps our mommy gets a parking space for ourVan in Toronto.

OOOO Canada!

 So on our ways to Canada we stops to sees some things, and we spends the night next to the big trucks.  Then we goes to sees the Nigara Falls waters, which seemed  terribly wet to me, but Mommy thought it was purrty.

Then we gets to the border, and after mommy gets all our paperworks ready, they not wants to sees anything but Mommy's little passyport book.  Like we isn't impurrtant!  Then the man in the little house asks Mommy when she was leaving, and when Mommy sais she not knows, the man sais they not wants her to stay furrever.  Then Mommy sais she not going to stay furrever acause our Daddy would miss us too much. So then the man sais we can go to Canada!

So right now we is hanging out in ourVan after having several days of spending late nights at Mommy's furrend frum works.  She is a very nice lady who gives us scritches! But now we hangs out with Mommy at our camp site in Canada. Mommy sais we is in Waterloo, but is not wet here like it was at the Niagra Falls.

We hopes all our furrends are having fun!
Love, TK

Power of the Purrs, and looking up!

Hello every kitty!  I wants to thanks you fur all of your purrs, advices and loves from across the innernets. I feels very Blessed to has such wonderfur furends!

So now fur the good news! 

I has been on Humulin for a long times, but suddenly it stops working for me. We has been increasing the the amounts over the last week, but still it not works.  So on Tuesday the great and wonderful Dr. Siegel puts me on ProZinc.  I starts to feel better almost instantly!

Yesserday, with the harmony of hundreds of purrs buzzing through me, we goes to the V.E.T. for the offishul test.  After they steals my blood, everyone in the room waits for the results.   Suddenly, the great and wonderful Dr. Siegel cheers and does her happy dance. My sugar is normal!   And my Mommy starts to cry AGAIN!  Can you believes it?

Next time Mommy tries to takes me to the V.E.T. I thinks I will has to refuse to go... on the grounds it always makes her cry.

Me at the V.E.T.s yesserday. I loves to hang out in the scale. Is very comfy. This test always makes Mommy happy acause I am doing very good on my weight loss.

I wants to thank you all again, it helped my Mommy lots to has your supports!

We is sorry, and Diabetes worry-worry

I knows we hasn't been posting in a very long time. Mommy has been very busy lately and not has had time to helps us.  We is very sorry to leaves you like that.  We has been bisiting our furends when we cans, but not like we should.  To catches you up:


The winner of the guesses in our last post oh-so-many months ago was Simba and Old Kitty and Charlie, acause our bisitor was DADDY, who comes down on the auto train to sees us. Daddy and Mommy bisited Kennedy and goes on nature drives all over. Then Daddy had to go back home.

Then we gotted to see the orbiter Discovery land at Kennedy.  We stays in Titusville for 3 weeks!

Then we goes down to south Florida to bisit Grandma and Pop-Pop for a weekend, but we kept staying for 3 weeks.  Then Grandma and Pop-Pop came home but we stayed for 3 more weeks.  We not wanted to leave Florida until it gots warm. (But now we is too hot!)

We gotted home from Florida on April 18th.

TK and Squashies relaxing in Florida

And now we was getting ready to goes to Canada to bisit Mommy's work. But then something not-so-good happens.

As you might knows, I has had diabetes since I comes to live with Mommy.  She gives me shots 2 times a day.  I was doing good with my shots for almost 3 years; until 2 weeks ago, when out of no where my insulin stops working.  We is trying a new insulin, but so far it is not working either.  I tries hard to studies for my blood tests and I has losted 3 whole pounds.  But it not works anyway...

I think Mommy is ascairt and she holds me and cries when we gets home from the V.E.T. yesterday.  I not wants my Mommy to has a sad, and I knows the power of the purrs.  So could you gives me some purrs?  I promises I does my part to gets better too.

Love, TK

Our SpaceShuttle adventure- days 6, and 7

Sorry we have not been keep up.  Things have been very busy.
When we last left our story  we had camped a wonderful view on Route 1 all day Wednesday, in a place where the Titusville police said we could stay the night.

As our story picks-up: a park ranger came in the evening to say we couldn't stay, and that there was a 'better' place 4 miles north of where we were. So we went from being 4 miles to 10 miles from pad 39A.  We were pretty sad. But did what we were told...

So we ended up near the entrance to the nature reserve. Actually all of Kennedy Space Center is a nature reserve. 220 square miles of it.  How cool is that?

This was our home for the night.  We dry-camped here, (that means we didn't have any hookups, so we lived on what we had in ourVan,) for the night until late the next day.

Notice the space in front of the campers?  That won't be there by launch time.

STS 133, Discovery Launch Day
When we woke up the next morning, the 1,000 or so RVs at the site had swollen to nearly 5,000 vehicles, as the day watchers came in cars. Every available space was used. It was one big launch party.  People were having fun, and generally being nice to one another.  It was awesome.

 

 

 Mommy went out at lunch, and was sad to see that her new spot was at least 10 miles north of the NASA industrial park.  But she could see both shuttle pads. So it wasn't so bad.

Then it was time to get some work done.  Mommy had orginally taken the day off, but an emergency had her in ourVan, coding a break-fix for a client. (Mommy writes computer code to pay for ourVan and our gushifud.)

As the count-down got to 60 minutes, mommy was still working. I could tell she was stressed that she was going to miss the launch.  30 minutes before the scheduled launch, she got it done, she gave us a skritch, and took her camera and binoculars and set out to find a spot.

I mention mommy's stress only because at 15 minutes to launch they had a "hold" because the range system was off-line. Now the range/tracking system is very important because the computers actually launch and drive the shuttle until it gets into orbit.  So the many steps it takes to get there depend on the tracking system to know when to do everything.  If this system isn't working correctly, it could be very bad.  Some poor-smart-guy, had 5 minutes to get the system fixed, or the mission would be scrubbed for the day. This made mommy laugh at her own small stresses. 

The poor-smart-guy did a good job, and at T -5 minutes, the system was up and running. Now I know he couldn't hear it, but a huge cheer went up for him, where we were. Then they all found a place to see the pad. And the crowd got very quiet as radios followed NASA's transmissions.

Mommy had Auntie SheShe on her phone, who was monitoring the status on the TeeVee.  Now she should have known something was wrong, when they started the final count and she didn't see any venting gases on the pad everyone in our group was watching.  But she figured they were just too far away. That's right, kitties, Discovery was taking off from Pad 39A, and she had her camera on Pad 39B.  The really sad part is that 39A was behind the single palm tree in the southern view. Oh well... 

And then, Discovery was off, for the very last time... (click the photos to enlarge)

 

Rocket booster separation

 Kitties, I know it is impressive, but our mommy's face was leaking when she came back!?!

We had a surprise visitor over the weekend, can you guess who it was?

Our SpaceShuttle adventure- days 3, 4 and 5

 Hello Every Kitty. It's me, Sqaushies with our trip update.

As you can see we're all just chilling and having a great time.  On Monday, we hung out at 'The Home Depot' because they have the best wifi.  We stayed in the parking lot the whole day while mommy worked.  Even though it was very hot outside, we were nice and cool inside.



As you can see from the picture above, we have the bed made up so mommy can store stuff under it.  She leaves the comforter on so we have a place to curl up and sleep during the day.  A kitty has to get her beauty rest.

 This is TK doing what he does, even at home- taking mommy's seat when she gets up. It doesn't matter if mommy is sitting on a hard stool, if she gets up, TK wants to sit there.  "On your feet, loose your seat!"

This is our van in the parking lot of paradise. You can see that mommy is not so good at coloring in the lines!?!

And this is a cow truck that came by to get some stuff at The Home Depot.  TK said I had to get on the truck, because I'm a cow-kitty. But I said "NO!"

So on Tuesday we goes to our camping site. Now we know our furend Daisy is very famous!  And we know that Florida is HER state. But did you know that we are camping on a street named after her?  It is true!

 Mommy forgot to take pictures of our site, but we'll get some when we go back. Because....

Today we are getting ready for the Shuttle launch and our new furends at the campground (they have 3 kitties- we'll get pictures of them too,) said we have to find a place today because their won't be any places tomorrow.  So this is where we are.
 




Not a bad place to have an office!

This is the view out mommy's office window!

Uh-Oh I don't think that birdie can read the sign!

 

 I hope he doesn't get eaten!

 That's our update for today!

We would likes to ask our furends to sends some purrs fur our cousin cat, Riley who is very sick and in the hospital. Get better soon Little Riley, Uncle Tony needs you!