Here'sCinnamon. 
This is her most recent photo.
To know how Cinnamon and Spice came into mylife, you must first hear about Cleo . Somehow I got it into my headthat I had to have an Abyssinian cat. I read up on cats and surfedthe web. I wanted to be an educated cat owner. Since Abyssinians weredescribed as dog-like and I had a dog, I thought there's amatch.
Now, I never intended to own a dog either. Asa child my family ran through some pets. I can vaguely remember adog, a cat, a rabbit, and a bird, but none made much of an impressionon me. I really didn't consider myself a pet person.
Then I met Bucky and that's Bucky's story .
S.A.B.R.E. was extremely upset as well at mybad experience with an Aby (see Cleo's Story for details) and promised tokeep me in mind for another cat. At the time, the end of March 1996,I didn't want another cat. Some time in May, they contacted me abouttwo Somali kittens (known now as theRed Family ). At first I washesitant, and not sure I was ready. When the time came that they wereready for adoption, I flew to Chicago to pick them up. The whole triptook 6 hours, and cost less than a trip to the vet.
At first we thought we'd get only one, butMark, my ever supportive husband, said, "Let's take both?" So, when Itold them that I would be interested in taking both kittens, theywere happy that the kittens would be together. And thank God we did,because I don't know how we would have kept one of them entertained!They are so sweet and affectionate. Mark would say when we first gotthem,"What did we ever do to deserve such sweet kittens?"
"Cleo", I'd remind him.
Cinnamon and Spice are, without a doubt ,thesweetest cats I have ever known. I have spoiled them, and they havetrained me to cater to their every whim. Nevertheless, they are sweetand good-natured.
They talk to me and I'm not sure what theysay sometimes. I start with I'm hungry or pay attention to me or rubmy belly and work back from there. They are not lap cats althoughthey have bestowed themselves upon our laps whenever theymight feel like it.
Cinnamon is a little more intense than Spice, who is just plain laid back.They both adore Bucky and they allow him to sniff away, so they areokay in his book.
The first time Spicewoke me up in the middle of the night meowing at me, I thought he wasLassie. I got up, "What is it, boy?" I asked, thinking he would betaking me to rescue his sister or something. Of course, he led me tothe kitchen and I realized he just wanted food.
I have since realized that these cats reallydon't want me to sleep more than 5 hours at a stretch. I think theyjust get lonesome and want company, my company, not Mark's company.Sometimes they are happy with just a belly rub combined with somechin rubbing which I can perform with my eyes closed. Cinny kneads merelentlessly until I wake up.
They do love to be on top of things. They areusually on top of the printer when I'm at the computer. They haveseveral cat trees which they use and climb. They like the top ofchina closets, the top of the refrigerator. Sometimes I see Spiceeyeing a shelf on the wall, and I tell him, "Don't even think aboutit." They are great companions and go with me everywhere I go (in thehouse, that is).
We had mice in our old house and I gotcomplacent after I got the cats, thinking, "With two cats, we'llnever have mice now." Wrong! The mice took over the place. Spice evencaught one once, played with it and let it go. "Well, they're notkillers," I thought, and we went back to setting traps.
After we moved to the new house, Cinnamondidn't speak to me for several days. When I walked into a room, shewould turn her head and walk out of the room. It was very deliberateand very noticeable. After a couple of days, she wanted someaffection so I complied and begged for forgiveness. She bestowed herforgiveness upon me.
The move didn't seem to bother Spice for aminute. It took them a couple of weeks to start sleeping with usagain (at least to my knowledge).
Here'sCinnamon. This is her most recent photo.
To read about our typical day go to:PetPerks
Bucky tries chinese herbs, hear all about it:My ChineseHerb Experience
How I got Cleo is a whole other story!!Cleo'sStory
To read other stories my mom has written on subjectsother than me, go to her page.
If you want to see more pictures of pets,just click
And Spice's most recent photo.