Alli

Alli doesn't get too many posts these days, although she was the 4th post on the blog. We love her so much and she's been such a good cat for us. I heard someone say that strays find who needs them and we definitely need her! I remember coming home from stressful days at school in those first years when we lived in the house where she found us and it was stress relief to pet her and hear her purr, and still is today! She's been around for 12 years now and we can't imagine life without her!

She doesn't get to the vet often after a traumatic period of taking her daily for hurt paw bandage changes (insert loud groan) but I did take her recently for a well visit and am so glad she's happy in her carrier. I put it out the day before her appointment and it was easy breezy to get her in right before her appointment. It was a stark contrast to the first time I ever tried to get her in a carrier to have her spayed and ended up with scratch marks all over me. I ended up calling a friend to come over to help after trying many different strategies myself (including an unsuccessful attempt at wrapping her in a towel to try and trap those nasty claws!!) and she effortlessly grabbed her by the scruff of the neck and had her in the carrier in 1.8 seconds. Lesson learned!!

Alli is so patient with the kids! Willow went through a phase of not caring for her much when she was younger due to Alli pawing at Willow as she would walk by, but I think Alli found her unpredictable (imagine that!!) and was just trying to keep her safety bubble. Now Willow doesn't usually go out of her way to pet her but will pet her if she comes over. Owen has always loved her and is so cute when he sweetly talks to her. 

Alli has slowed down a bit in the last few years. She has playful moments but is usually curled up somewhere sleeping. Some of her favorite places are Willow's bed (top bunk), Willow's bean bag (if its not covered in stuffed animals), the window seat Chris made for her out of the kids old changing table pad (she loved it when they were little!), any box she can find, any bag she can find, or the foot rest of our glider. She sure makes naps look tempting with how comfortable she looks!

A seat with a view!!

She discovered Willow's container of Lego instructions. After much pawing around she did settle down in it for a nap. 

Alli has a pretty predictable daily routine. It starts with sleeping on my bottom or curled up next to me most nights. If not, she's usually on the bottom stair as a "guard cat." When my alarm goes off, she'll join me in the bathroom to eat while I use the bathroom:

When I get in the shower she'll hop up on the counter and lay on my sweater for the day if there's one there:

When the shower goes off, she hops down to meet me at the bathmat for some attention:

After I leave the bathroom she usually finds a place to go back to sleep. If she wants in Willow's room she'll sit by her door until I go in to get Willow up (or meow for me to open it sometimes). She usually hunkers down for a nice long nap. Chris says she'll usually come down around lunch to head outside. Depending on the weather she'll do her business and come right back, or stay out for a bit. We don't think she ever wanders too far from the house. She enjoys napping on the front porch swing or sitting on the grill cover in the back. If it's rained, she usually gets a drink from the puddles on the mat around the trampoline. On cold days she'll come back in and hop up on Chris' lap to help get her warm. He even claims (hee hee) that she hopped up on the computer desk in front of him and put her paws on his chest to literally insist on being held (which she doesn't like...trust me...I've tried to get her to like being held), then stayed there for 20 mins. He has no witnesses so I'll claim to still be her favorite. ;)

If it's a weekend, I usually end up on the couch for a nap while the kids have quiet time (aka screen time) and Alli will curl up with me for a while. I have been known to find her and "help her" come to the couch with me.

She usually sleeps all afternoon and we usually see her next around dinner when she'll get in the way while we cook (occasionally getting stepped on) then wander around the table while we eat, occasionally hopping up on my lap to lay down while we eat. She often will go sit at the back door to be let out and either kid is happy to let her in/out. She might hang out downstairs with us for the evening or work her way back to Willow's bed. When we come upstairs for shower/bedtime she'll find her way to the bathrooms for attention or will sit outside the bathroom door in "guard" position. During bedtime stories she usually makes her way into one of the kids' rooms with us. After I come out of the room, she's usually hanging out in the hall or the top of the stairs for attention. When I go downstairs, she's ready for her treats. If I'm working on school work, this is usually what it ends up looking like:

or if I'm doing exercises (rarely!!!) she's laying down in "guard" position next to me. 

She's a pretty special cat to us and we're so grateful she's around!!