Yesterday wasn’t just St. Patrick’s Day, it was our fur baby’s ninth birthday. What? Oh, you thought that the bug was our only child? Sorry to confuse you. We actually have THREE children; Indie (the first fur baby), Oliver (the second fur baby) and THEN came Hailey (the third human baby). Yeah. We used to be “those” people who always talked about their cats. We weren’t cat people, we just really dug our cats. All of our friends did too.

Anyway, who would have ever guessed that this teeny-tiny little pip-squeak of a kitten…

would have grown to this huge, ginormous lump of warmth and fur that I just can’t get enough of:

He is always meowing for food. Ever since he was just a tot. I remember when we were picking out our new kitten friend for Indie; Eric specifically pointed at Ollie and said, “I want the whiny one”. Yes, ERIC picked him out! We didn’t have a name picked out for him and at the time and Eric’s band was recording an album with the singer from a band called “Cousin Oliver”, hence, the little whiny black and white kitty became “Oliver”, Ollie for short. I’m pretty sure he was meant to be a big cat, take a look at his limbs in this picture…he needed to grow into them!

He and Indie have a love/hate relationship. They fight like brother and sister (which, in fact, they are half siblings, we believe. That story for another day) and they love each other just the same. Often times, you will find them curled up on a chair or the bed together, keeping each other warm. Usually, Ollie is hogging most of the space but Indie doesn’t seem to mind.

So, yesterday Hailey helped make “birthday cakes” for Ollie and when her daddy came home, we iced them, lit candles and sang to him. I think it made a nice little memory for Hailey, who just a few weeks ago reminded us that “Ollie’s birthday’s coming up”. The kid has an incredible memory. She really did a great job helping with the cake baking (click to enlarge).

The day we brought Hailey home from the hospital, Ollie growled at her and didn’t seem very happy with our new addition at all. Since then, he and the bug have become pretty good buddies. He tolerates her shrieks and using him as a pillow or a horsey for her toys better than I would have imagined. We’re still working with Indie, she keeps her distance for the most part.

Our cats will always be considered family members to us, not just our pets. Happy birthday, buddy-boy! We love you!