Today, May 16, the baby turns 10! Even though he is now in double digits, Simon will always be the baby. He is the definition of innocence.
Simon may be the youngest cat in this house, but he is the one who has been with me the longest. Simon was only age 1.5 when he was adopted. I had said I could not handle kittens again and wanted an older cat. But Simon’s disposition is so sweet, I adopted him even though he was younger than what I was looking for. His personality has been a perfect fit.
Simon was with Jude for a very long time until Jude passed away last year. They were very strongly bonded. For 5 years, I had a bonded trio of Jude, Simon and Jolene. With Jude gone, Simon is most closely bonded with Jolene.
Simon tries to interact with Flower, but Flower only tolerates him. Simon is our Chief Cuddler. Everyone who meets Simon falls in love. He is the sweetest, most loving cat. He is perfectly behaved at the vet office.
Every night, Simon sleeps in the bed with me next to my pillow. If I need to get up in the night to go to the bathroom, he follows me there and back to bed to be sure I am ok.
With Jude’s passing, Simon is now the only boy in the house with the two girls. For me, it’s so strange to just have one boy. I had four boys before Jolene, who was my first girl. Of the six cats that have chosen me to be their person, I have had four boys and two girls.
In the new house, Simon is very alert to mice and will meow if there is a mouse in the live trap in the basement. His favorite toys are the toy mice. He likes to pick them up by the tail and fling them around. I’m glad he has not had the chance to try that with a real mouse!
His confidence has grown in the new house now that we are safe away from the neighbors that were harassing us daily. Simon likes to patrol the house and be sure everything is safe. He enjoys his Hedgewatch out the windows looking at birds and bunnies.
He enjoys hanging out in cat tents and running up and down the stairs. Simon frequently plays with Jolene. They are both strongly bonded and groom each other often.
No matter how old he gets, Simon will always be my baby. He has been with me longer than both girls. He was so young when he was adopted. His personality has a perfect fit with Jude and then with Jolene. Simon is not discouraged in trying to win over Flower. He still tries to engage her.
A frequent phrase in our home is “Simon is a good baby.” It is very true. Simon is the picture of pure innocence.
Today Flower turns 16! (We think.) Her age is based off what the vet thinks based on her health and physical condition. From what I know of Flower’s background, I knew when I trapped her that she was at least 10 years old. The vet used the condition of her teeth and eyes to estimate her age.
As you all know, Flower was with me last year for her 15th birthday. The fact that she has made it another year to have another birthday is a pleasant surprise. Based on what her physical condition was like when she was trapped in November 2024, I have been treating her as a hospice case (rightfully so, based on her medical).
I did not think Flower would make it to the end of 2025. The time we have now is miracle bonus time. Little did I know that Jude would be the one we would lose in 2025.
Flower has good days and bad days. Right now, she still has more good days than bad. I know that at some point that dynamic will change. For now, I am honored that she has chosen me as “her human” to care for her in her retirement.
In addition to the multiple broken bones Flower experienced from the dog fighting ring, she has arthritis, kidney disease, and is going blind. Every day is a struggle to get her to eat. I have to offer food almost every hour.
Despite her physical challenges, I know that Flower is happy and it is not yet her time to go. Flower embarks on her “Tour de Agua” every morning. It’s kind of like the Tour de France, except Flower does a circuit around the house stopping at all four water stations. This cat does not pass a water bowl without having a drink.
Flower is extremely intelligent and still engages in baby sign language and story time. She chirps and looks for me at certain times of day.
Since moving into the new house, safely away from the daily harassment and physical injuries we experienced from the neighbors at the old house, Flower has started to play.
Flower started to play once we were in temporary safe housing. I didn’t think with her disabilities that she would play, but she does. Flower likes to rub herself on toys. Her favorite toy is the catnip banana. She also likes the rainbows and the fish made by the same company as the catnip banana. Flower will lay down and rub all over the toys.
On her medication, she can do two pet steps to look out the window. Flower enjoys looking at birds, squirrels and bunnies. Flower now has a ramp at the new house that she can use to access my bed. My bed is now her “home base.” It is where she spends most of her time. She moves throughout the day to be in a sun puddle.
Flower still uses her warming mats and heat disc for extra heat for her arthritis. She wears a cape that was specially made for her with her arthritis to keep her warmer on her morning Tour de Aqua. It is like a small sweater without sleeves, so I do not have to manipulate her arthritic arms.
In the new house, Flower has slowly become more tolerant of Simon and Jolene. She does not hiss at them much anymore. She does not engage with them, but she no longer hisses and growls at them. If she thinks they are in her path where she wants to go, she does the “Flower stomp,” an aggressive stomping motion to intimidate them to get them to move.
Simon still tries to play with Flower. Flower just runs away.
One significant point of progress, for those of you familiar with human development, is that Flower now engages in parallel play with Simon. This puts her at about toddler stage of development. She is comfortable being on the rug playing with a toy, while Simon is a few feet away on the same rug playing with his own toy.
While Flower may not interact with Simon and Jolene, parallel play is a significant breakthrough.
Flower is also more tolerant of Jolene now. When Jolene gets scared, she hides in the bed, which is now Flower’s territory. Flower does not seem to mind, if Jolene does not get too close to her.
Last week, for the first time, I had all three cats in the bed with me. Flower was on one side and Jolene and Simon were on the other side. Flower was okay with this. She even walked around and kind of over Simon and Jolene to get to her ramp so she could get water and use the cat pan. Flower was also okay with returning to the bed with Simon and Jolene already in it. This is significant progress.
It seems to be more that Flower accepts Simon and Jolene are here and kind of ignores them. The one who had really won Flower over was Jude. I think if anyone stood a chance to get Flower to interact more with another cat, it would have been Jude.
April 9 is Flower Day in Honor of Flower’s Birthday. To celebrate Flower Day, the ask is that you do an Act of Kindness. Flower experienced so much evil in her life. We want to combat that evil with good. If you would like to celebrate Flower’s birthday and honor this extraordinary cat, please consider doing an Act of Kindness.
Flower has been on this blog intermittently over the past 8 years for you to follow her story and everything she has been through.
Despite her rough life, Flower is very loving with me. She purrs. She licks me. She loves to be pet. She lives chin scritches. She is very calm at the vet office and allows all handling. I always tell Flower she is “grace under pressure.” Her demeanor is so calm.
I don’t know if Flower will make it to 17 with her medical issues. I try to treat every day with Flower as a gift. I don’t know when she will take a turn for the worse or when her bad days will start to outnumber the good. I’m just trying to give her the best, most comfortable life I can until then.
Happy sweet 16, Flower! We love you!
This little cat has been through so much. Please consider doing an Act of Kindness for Flower Day on April 9.
Six years ago today, I brought Jolene home with a cone on her head. She took the cone off while in the carrier on the ride home. Jolene had her spay and the first of many dental surgeries that year. Jolene had been dumped at the shelter in a box with her kittens. The kittens had all been adopted. They waited to do her spay because the kittens were newborns and she was nursing when she first went into the shelter.
Jolene is now 11 years old. She is the life of our home. Jude was the soul of our home, but Jolene is the life. Things would be very boring without Jolene. She is a busybody and has to know everything that goes on inside the house and outside from her window. This is why she is our Lead Hedgewatch-er.
With Jude, Simon, and Jolene, I had a rare, bonded trio. Jolene ran herd on the boys. Jude would always think twice before playing with her and often thought better of it. Simon may be bigger than Jolene physically, but she always wins. Everyone knows who is in charge. Jolene is the Queen of our household.
Jolene gives Flower a wide berth. Even Flower knows not to go after Jolene. Flower does not like the word “no.” Pretty much the only time Flower hears “no” is if she tries to go after Jolene. Flower and Jolene are the same weight but built differently and have vastly different personalities. Jolene is very respectful of Flower and a little scared of her because Flower can be grumpy.
In the new house, we are settling into new routines and still trying to decompress from the intense abuse and trauma we experienced. Jolene rarely transports stuffies in the new house, and I’m not sure why. In the old house. Jolene would move her stuffies around every day. Maybe she knew how much danger we were in there and she was moving them so that she always knew where they were for when we had to flee.
In the new house, we are safe. Maybe she doesn’t need to move them around here because she knows there is no reason to leave this house and she can leave her stuffies without worrying about them.
There is a neighbor cat named Snowball who likes to come onto our back deck and look at Jolene through the window. I joke and say Snowball is her boyfriend. Every once in a while, she will look out that window that Snowball can reach to look in and I wonder if she is looking for him.
Jolene is the one who was traumatized the most by the neighbor abuse and is still trying to overcome that. It breaks my heart. Prior to the neighbor abuse at the old house. Jolene was a friendly, happy go lucky cat. She would go up to anyone who visited and came out of her carrier at the vet office like she owned the place.
Since the neighbor abuse with the noise, ruptured ear drums, attempted arson, and nightly awakenings to the sounds of “fire” the last two months we were there, Jolene has become more fearful. She now hides whenever anyone comes to the house, which she never used to do. She doesn’t just hide when they were here. She hides the entire day, genuinely terrified, after what we experienced at the old house.
I will never forgive the abuse we experienced at the hands of those people and what they did to us. Jude and Jolene were impacted the most by their intentional cruelty.
I truly hope the longer we are in the new house that Jolene will realize we are safe here and go back to being her normal friendly, outgoing self. She gives so much love to all of us and is truly the life of the house.
Jolene has checked out every single window in the new house. She has relaxed enough that she is now okay with seeing people outside and does not hide when she sees people outside. She only hides when people come inside.
Jolene regularly watches our very kind neighbor, Frank, when he helps us with the snowblower. Frank has even joked that he knows he is being “supervised by the furry residents” when he helps with the snow.
Simon loves playing with Jolene and cuddles her too. With Jude gone, it’s just Jolene and Simon who are very strongly bonded. Flower still lives in her own little world. Flower tolerates Jolene and Simon more now that she did when she first arrived. Progress with Flower moves very slow.
Ironically, when Jolene does get scared and hides, she hides in the bedroom with Flower. Flower seems okay with it.
Jolene brings so much joy and life. You truly notice when Jolene is subdued or when something is wrong. She is constantly running around playing, observing, and being the center of the house.
I never expected to end up with a third cat when I was volunteering at the shelter in wait for a cat friendly dog. I am so blessed that Jolene picked me out. After watching all her kittens be adopted, Jolene deserved the best forever home.
We love Jolene so much. Thank you for bringing the LIFE to our lives.
One year ago today, Flower finally went into the live humane trap. One of my friends called Flower my white whale. Flower lived in the house next door and was kicked out when the dog was taken for neglect and abuse. She was outside for six years (at least) before I was finally able to trap her.
We lived across the street from people who were involved in a dog fighting ring using cats as bait and doing boom cars to advertise drug sales. I kept finding injured, spray painted cats. I had trapped four and got them to safety. Flower was the fifth and final cat I trapped. The neighborhood had really declined due to two houses across the street. When gunfire started, I knew it was time to leave.
I said I would not leave that house until I trapped Flower and got her to safety. I never thought that I would be her forever home.
The animal shelter that had helped me with the other injured cats I trapped and provided evidence for the dog fighting ring was full when I trapped Flower. They couldn’t take her. I said I would foster her. To be honest, it’s a good thing they were full. I am pretty sure that given Flower’s age and medical condition, she would have been euthanized. (At least one of the other cats I got to them had to be euthanized due to the injuries from the dog fighting ring.)
A few years ago, I saw Flower with a broken front arm. It was obvious it was broken. It was hanging at an unnatural angle. Even when she was hobbling on three legs, I could not catch her. Last October, she was limping along. I tried to trap again. Flower is extremely intelligent. She avoided the trap for years.
On November 3, 2024, she went into the trap. To this day, I wonder if she is happy, she went into the trap? I hope she is.
I had tried to find a home for Flower. The longer Flower was with me, the more I realized that she had chosen me as her human. Not only that, but I honestly don’t think anyone else wants to handle her. People are afraid of Flower because she hisses and hides. She only does that because she was tortured by humans. She’s traumatized by what happened to her.
When I trapped her and got her to medical care, the vt confirmed she did have extensive injuries. All four legs and her pelvis had all been broken at some point, along with other issues as well.
Flower was with me as a foster child for about four months when I thought I had found her a forever home. It didn’t work out. People were interested in Flower, but when they met her or learned about her medical needs, decided they could not handle her. That’s honest. Flower is a senior special needs cat who has been through a lot of trauma. She has “issues.” I lovingly call her “spicy.”
Flower has captured the hearts of many people on the internet and has fans all over the world. She used to get her own update on our social media sites daily, then twice a week. Now, she is in regular rotation as a permanent family member.
I am Flower’s forever home. She chose me as her person. After 6 years, she finally trusted me enough to go into the trap. I do believe she chose me.
Flower follows me around the house. Now that she has a ramp, she sleeps in my bed. She purrs. It took months before she started to purr. At first, it was barely audible. Now, her purr is quite loud. She loves sun puddles and looking out the window. She has never tried to escape the house or go back outside.
Flower is extremely intelligent. She is carrier trained and knows baby sign language. I read a bedtime story to Flower every night. Sometimes Jolene and Simon listen too. Flower’s favorites are Goodnight Moon and Toad and Frog. Those are the ones she seems most interested in looking at the pictures. She moves her head around to look at them.
I’ve known that Flower is a hospice situation due to her numerous health issues. I didn’t expect her to do this well or live this long. I never expected her to outlive Jude. Jude’s passing came out of left field. Jude was the one that Flower tolerated the most. Jude won her over. He was the only one of my three that Flower did not hiss at.
Given her medical condition, bones, and eyes, it is estimated that Flower is 15 years old. She has a birthday in April. She will be 16 in April 2026. November is adopt a senior pet month. I wasn’t planning on adopting another cat, but this time last year, Flower picked me out and went in the trap.
I fully intended when she went into the trap that I would get her medical care and get her into the shelter. I never anticipated that they would not take her and I would need to try to home her on my own. I also didn’t anticipate that that home would be me. She lets me pet her. She licks me.
Every day I wonder, “are you happy you went in the trap?” I don’t know. I hope she is. The hardest part of all of it is that I know she would do best as an only child. At the same time, I feel like she chose me as her person. Unfortunately for her, I had three cats when she picked me out.
Flower has been a trooper through the move. She is the one who did the best when we were in temporary housing. She did not seem as happy in our new house as she was in temporary housing until the ramp arrived. Now that she can use the ramp and get into the bed, I think she is ok.
I hope Flower is happy. I really do. She’s so spicy, it’s hard to tell.
Flower is a natural bobtail. She looks like a skunk from the back but a cow from the side. She is a beautiful cat. My heart breaks when I think of what she has lived through. I try not to think about it. I want to give her as much love as I can in the time she has left. I hope she knows she is loved.
Simon was adopted on November 1, 2017. He was a year and a half old when I adopted him. While Simon is the youngest cat in this home, he is the one that has been with me the longest. Simon has also been through two moves with me now. Simon moved from the apartment to our first house. Then, Simon moved from the hell house to our current home.
Simon is 9.5 years old. He may be turning 10 in the spring and approaching senior status, but Simon will always be the baby. He is pure innocence. I had Kip and Kitty from the time they were kittens. I called them the Dynamic Duo. I remember kitten phase and can’t handle kittens. Since then, I’ve said I would adopt adults. Simon is the youngest adult cat I have adopted.
Simon is the sweetest cat. He sleeps with me in the bed every single night. We were so fortunate that we were able to all stay together through this vert rough move we just went through. I was worried we would have to be separated for 3-4 days. Turns out, we had to be in temporary housing for 3-4 weeks. I am so grateful we were all together. The cars came through the ordeal better because we were all together. They are not unscathed, but better than if we had been separated.
Of the three cats, Simon is the one who has been handling the move in stride. It may be because this was the second move for him. The hardest part for Simon is that he is grieving Jude. Simon was with Jude from the day I brought him home. Simon and Jude were very closely bonded.
While Simon is also closely bonded to Jolene, bis strongest tie was with Jude. Simon is our Chief Cuddler. He just loves everyone and wants to snuggle everyone in the house. Simon gets as close to Flower as he dares to get once she is asleep. Flower hisses at Simon when she is awake.
Simon loves playing with small toy mice. He can often be seen on cat cam throwing them around in the air, batting them, and carrying them from room to room. If there are cat toys under appliances and furniture, it’s because Simon put them there. When we were in the apartment, I used to take a yard stick to fish out all the cat toys from under the refrigerator every week. I was regularly pulling out 20-30 toys a week. There are not as many toys under appliances in the house. This is a bigger space than the apartment.
Even the vet office says that Simon is the sweetest cat. He fully cooperates for his exam and vaccines. Simon is very loving.
His only downside is that Simon is afraid of everything. He is so sweet and innocent. He is easily scared. This made it extremely difficult to get him to safety in the old house both for tornado warnings and for neighbor attacks when we were being harassed and assaulted.
The other challenge with Simon is that he chews cords. I’m not sure if that is something from his kittenhood, but when Simon is being naughty, he tries to chew a cord or string. I must hide all cords as much as possible.
Everyone loves Simon. Sweet and innocent are the words that describe him best. “Simon is a good baby” is a phrase heard frequently in our home. Simon is a very good baby. He is such a precious soul.
When I adopted Simon, I had been approved to adopt him in October. I asked the shelter to keep him until November 1 before I picked him up. I did not want a new cat near Halloween and have him scared on Halloween on top of being in a new house. I thought it would be too much. I’m glad I made that decision, now knowing how scared he is of everything. It was the best choice for Simon.
This marks 8 years that Simon has been with me. He is the perfect baby. Simon’s name comes from three places. First, from The Saint so that Simon has a link with Kip and Kitty. Second, from Paul Simon so that he has a link with Jude (and now Jolene). Third, from the Chipmunks.
Simon knows his name, and it fits him. When I sing Paul Simon songs to him, it’s typically either “Everything about it is a love song” or “Loves me like a Rock.”
Simon is the only boy in this house now. It’s Simon with Jolene and Flower. It’s so strange. I’ve always had boys. Jolene was my first girl. Now, Simon is the only boy. There is a lot on his little shoulders. He is the youngest cat in the house but has the most “seniority” since he has been with me the longest.
Happy Gotcha Day, Simon! We love you! I am so honored to be your mom. Simon is a good baby. He is the most gentle and innocent soul.
August 24 is Jolene’s birthday and this year the Queen turns 11! Jolene brings so much life and love to our household. Jolene has my girl baby name. She is the first female cat I have ever had.
While she is small, Jolene made it apparent from when she first arrived that she oversaw Jude and Simon. Jude liked to cuddle Jolene and was cautious in playing with her. He was truly gentle with Jolene and played rougher with Simon.
Jolene and Simon play almost like kittens! Jolene is typically the one who starts the play session, and she likes to win. Often, Jolene and Simon will chase each other up and down the stairs. They also cuddle each other and are truly bonded.
Flower lives in her own little world and hisses at the house cats. Jolene is afraid of Flower and gives her plenty of space. Jolene does not go near Flower. Sometimes Jolene appears on cat cam at night checking on Flower when she is asleep, but it is more of a general “let’s check the entire house” than a specific check on Flower.
Jolene’s favorite toys are carrot and ghost bear. Her stuffies are moved around the house daily. Jolene enjoys transporting them to different places. Sometimes she even puts one of them in a carrier. You know that Jolene is feeling well and in good spirits if she is moving her stuffies around.
Jolene loves attention and will often arch up like a little horse for pets. She loves to be picked up. She is quite the work driver, as she likes to sit in my lap and knows what work times are when I should be sitting. She follows me everywhere. Jolene goes to the basement every morning to check the live traps for mice. She follows me down to supervise laundry and the emptying of the dehumidifier.
Whether at the vet office or at home, Jolene knows just how she likes things and has the nickname Miss Sassy Pants. She is adept at wiggling her way out of things and looking cute when she does not want something to be done to her – like her nails trimmed or her ears cleaned.
Jolene had been found dumped at the animal shelter in a box with her kittens when she was 5 years old. All her kittens were adopted first. Jolene was in a cage at the back in the corner on the bottom. She pawed to be let out, and the orange caught my eye. When I took her out of the cage, she hugged me and would not let go. She picked me out.
Each August, we try to use Jolene’s birthday month to bring awareness to adopt the moms. Adopt the shy cats, the seniors, the differently abled.
In addition to being a mom, Jolene is differently abled. She has a genetic condition that resulted in needing almost all her teeth removed. She has four teeth. She also gets motion sickness when traveling in the car. The motion sickness is unfortunate, as she loves traveling in the car. Thankfully, she does have vet prescribed motion sickness medication so she can enjoy car rides when needed without vomiting.
Jolene brings so much love and life to this house. We love you, Jolene! Happy Birthday to the Queen!
Jude Raymond Anderson passed away on July 21, 2025, in his loving mom’s arms after a brief but brave fight with cancer. Jude was born February 14, 2012, and his Gotcha Day was February 14, 2014. Jude was adopted from the Humane Society of Rome in Rome, NY.
Jude is survived by his mom, Rachel, siblings: Simon Freckles Anderson, Jolene Mamba Anderson and Flower Sunday Anderson. Jude is predeceased by Kitty Molecule Anderson and Kip Quark Anderson.
Jude truly embodied his name and “took a sad dong and made it better.” He came into our lives after the passing of Kip to be Kitty’s companion. Jude was with Kitty for three years, and for most of those, Kitty fought his own cancer battle. Jude was strongly bonded with Kitty. I know Kitty is welcoming him in Heaven and they are cuddling in the sun.
While Jude is loving and accepting of everyone, (even winning over poor traumatized Flower!), Jude’s strongest bond in his life was his time with Kitty. To Simon, Jude was a mentor and an amazing big brother. Jolene is in charge but would still let Jude be man of the house. Flower accepted Jude as her protector, and he was the first of the trio to win her over.
In his Hedgewatch duties, Jude was head coworker. He helped his mom through grad school and supervised writing of the thesis. He would sit in the cat bed in front of the window next to the desk for the past six years of coworker duty. Jude made friends all over the world as part of Hedgewatch. The family would like to especially thank our Hedgewatch family in the UK for your love and support during Jude’s illness.
Jude loved to talk. He always wanted treats and would often get his siblings to join in his shenanigans to try to push up dinner time and get more treats throughout the day. Jude was extremely intelligent and easily trained. He was carrier trained for all meals and was also well trained in the tornado safety plan.
In the apartment, Jude would cling to the screen on the sliding glass door, earning the nickname “Spider Cat.” Jude would go out on the porch to look at birds and could be trusted to not jump off the porch. We were going to travel the world together.
Jude slept in the bed with me every night.
Jude was my best friend. He was there for me at the worst times of my life. He was there for me at the best times of my life. Jude was so full of love and life. He genuinely had an easy-going personality. He never met a stranger. Jude won hearts – everyone he met and everywhere he went.
All you need is love and a cat. Jude was more than a cat. He was a beautiful soul. He gave me so much more than I deserved. It was an honor to be his mom for the time we had. Jude will always be my valentine.
The family would like to thank the staff at Adana Veterinary Clinic for their compassionate and expert care over the years. They are truly the best cat hospital around.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please donate to your local no-kill animal rescue In Memory of Jude. Or, if you prefer, save your donations for when we can move to a safe location and are able to accept help with the move.
If love could have saved you, you would have lived forever.
It’s been 10 years since I started this blog. Back in the day, (mid 2000s) I had a facebook. I deleted my facebook for my mental health. I have no regrets and have not looked back. Once I finished grad school, I decided I was “done” being on the internet and all the drama that goes with it.
In 2015, a coworker suggested I start a blog. She commented that stories I told at work about my life and what I experienced and noticed throughout my day were often comical, and other people may like to read. I decided I also wanted to use all my own original photography and have never used a stock photo on this site.
I pay for my domain and hosting and try to keep things clean and ad-free for you.
While some of my earliest posts may have been comical, I do realize that a lot of posts are more serious as I have navigated challenges in life. I try to focus on downsizing, minimalism and simple living, but life happens. We minimize our belongings to focus on the things in life that really matter – the relationships.
From the comical post era, I will say that one of my personal favorites was the post about the time my yoga pants went to yoga.
The cats have featured on this blog many times. I try to do a birthday and a gotcha day post for each cat. We now have two social media accounts – a twitter and a bluesky. I have made some new and treasured friends sharing my cats on social media. There have been many times over the past 5 years when the pet accounts on our social media have kept me going.
There is a lot of drama right now with these neighbor issues after we were attacked and physically injured two years ago. We are harassed daily; it prevents me from working and sleeping. There are a lot of moving parts, many of them legal, but I am trying to get us out of this situation and to a safe place. I can’t give a lot of detail right now due to safety.
However, once it’s all done and we are in a safe place, I have stories to tell about the journey we are now on to try to get to a place of physical safety.
A few weeks ago, there was gunfire here.
Right now, I’m trying to post on here once a month. It is a struggle with trying to get us to a safe place to live with all the legal and other logistical parts involved. I am also having some very serious health concerns now.
I just wanted to take some time out to acknowledge that this blog has now been here for a decade. It started June 2015. I wanted to be sure I made a post for the anniversary before June 2025 passes us by.
If you are any kind of praying person, we would appreciate all the prayers and positivity you can muster right now. I’m trying to get us away from these abusive neighbors and to a safe place. Finding housing that will accept four cats is the challenge.
I will not give up any one of my cats. They are the only family I have left. My entire purpose of buying this house in 2018 was to keep us all together. I love this house. I researched it back to when it was built and learned its stories.
Due to violent neighbors that have already injured us and continue to threaten our safety daily, we are not safe here anymore.
So please pray we can find a place to live.
Hopefully the next decade of Rewind Live Slow will be able to get back to more of the comical aspects of past.
Happy Birthday, Simon! Today the baby turns 9 years old. Simon is the youngest cat of the three. Simon is our Chief Cuddler. He is very loving and enjoys cuddling and grooming both Jude and Jolene.
Simon will often look at Flower like he wants to cuddle her when she is sleeping, but Simon is afraid of her. Flower hisses at the house cats because she is afraid of them. Simon is so sweet and so gentle. He is afraid of Flower because she hisses at him when she is awake.
Simon loves to play with Jude and Jolene. Simon and Jolene often chase each other up and down the stairs. At night, Simon will cuddle on the bed with either Jude or Jolene to sleep. He can often be found grooming his siblings also.
As the baby, Simon rarely performs coworker duty. Typically, when Simon appears in the office, it’s because it is getting close to a break/snack time or mealtime. He also knows when the workday is ending, and it will soon be family time. When Simon does do coworker duty, it is typically in the last hour of the shift, as he knows family time is fast approaching.
Simon is so sweet and innocent. He is afraid of everything. He hides during thunderstorms and when the lawn is being mowed. He is also afraid of the basement and has been challenging to train for tornado preparedness. Simon takes a long time to learn that something is safe.
He loves the banana toys and the silvervine sticks. He also plays with small felt mice. He is the one who takes toys into the kitchen and loses them under appliances. I must use a yard stick almost weekly to fish toys out from under kitchen appliances.
Simon loves sleeping on the square cat bed in front of the window. He can often be seen cuddling with Jude or Jolene there. He also enjoys watching the birds out the window.
Simon is very sweet and loving. He absolutely adores his siblings and just wants to love everyone. He gets confused that Foster Flower fears him and won’t let him cuddle. He is afraid of her because she hisses at him! Poor Simon has so much love to give. He just wants to love Flower also for the time she is here.
Simon loves all his family members. He sleeps with me every night. If he is not cuddling Jude or Jolene by my side, then he is laying right next to my pillow in the bed. Simon also loves to be under the blankets. It makes him feel safe. Sometimes he hides under the comforter when there is a thunderstorm.
If Jolene brings life to this house, Simon is the one who brings the love.
April 9 is Flower Day. While we do not know her birthdate or age for certain, I am going based on information I know of her history and information from the veterinarian regarding her physical condition. Today, we are celebrating Flower’s 15th Birthday.
If you would like to participate in Flower Day, the ask is that you do an Act of Kindness in Honor of Flower to counteract the extreme abuse she has suffered in her life. I’m sure you have read the prior three installments of Flower’s specific story. In addition to the blog posts specifically about her, Flower has appeared and been mentioned on this website on and off for the past 6+ years.
Flower had another medical appointment back in March to look more into her physical injuries and to see if there are any other issues. The vet office was sure that they found Flower’s unicorn – a forever home with a person who would be perfect. It was an older woman in her 80s, whose cat just died from kidney disease and her home is not a home without a cat.
However, when the vet did a more thorough examination of Flower including extensive bloodwork, combined with her behavior at the vet office and the behavior I report that she does in my home, it has been determined that Flower is a hospice situation.
Flower will be staying with me until a decision needs to be made regarding her quality of life, pain levels, and euthanasia.
It is not fair for this other person who just lost their beloved cat to take on another cat who is at the end of their life. At the same time, it would not be fair to Flower for her to leave me now. She is terrified of other people. Flower growled at the vet office. She has failed every meet and greet with anyone interested in adopting her. Flower hides. If she goes to another home now, she will hide for weeks or even months.
How would that person know she is in pain unless they have a camera on her all the time like I do? How would they be able to give her the medication she needs daily if she hides from you.
If Flower only has a few months to live, it is not fair to her to have to spend her last few months learning to trust a stranger.
Flower is afraid of my house cats. Yes, it would probably be best for her to be an only pet. However, she is very attached to me. She rubs on me, licks me, and allows me to administer her medication every day. She does not hide from me. I have been working with this cat every single day when she was outside for the past 6 years before she finally went into the trap. How long would it take for her to get used to a new person?
Part of the reason why Flower is so scared of the house cats – Flower is going blind. This is one of her MANY medical issues. She is not blind yet, but her vision is very poor and getting worse. She can see them, hear them, and smell them. But I think sometimes they get close to her before she can register they are there, and her default is to hiss because she does not have enough time to decide if they are friend or foe.
The house cats have been nothing but patient and kind to Flower. No one has hissed or growled back at her. When Flower hisses at them, they run away or give her more space.
Is this a perfect situation? No, it is not. But this is the best situation for Flower knowing that she is at the end of her life.
The vet office has given Flower a medication for her arthritis to try to improve her quality of life. It can take 4-6 weeks to work – IF it works. At this point, I am trying to keep her comfortable and let her know she is loved. When it gets to a point where she is in pain from the arthritis and the pain cannot be managed or her quality of live decreases, it will be time to say goodbye.
I am still calling Flower a Foster. I never planned on having a fourth cat. I was completely shocked the shelter here would not respond to an injured cat. I truly thought she would only be with me for a few months and then would be adopted into a forever home. I didn’t realize this is a geriatric, medically complex cat. She would have died outside this past winter if she hadn’t gone into the trap last fall.
She is with me as a hospice until she passes. There are people who foster pets who are hospice. It is called fospice when that situation happens.
Flower is no longer available for adoption.
If Flower had been taken in by the shelter last fall, she would have been euthanized. She is truly a hospice situation. She is too medically complex for rehoming.
She will be staying with her foster family permanently until it is time for her to be euthanized from her injuries.
Yes, she would do better being with someone where she could be the only pet in a home. However, it is going to be more stressful for her to leave me and learn to trust a stranger at the end of her life. She is comfortable with me. I know her habits now, I’m home a lot, and she has a camera on her all the time. (Sometimes I wake up to 50+ 10-30 second videos of her just stretching or rolling over in her cat bed.)
I’m trying to show Flower all the love she never had. I’m treating every day like it may be her last. Now that I know she is hospice, I’m glad I took extra time to show Flower Santa on NORAD at Christmas and included her in our family activities. Will Flower see another Christmas? I don’t know. But at least I know she had one Christmas with me inside, warm, fed and loved.
I’m not sure if Flower will have other birthdays. I hope that she does. I want to show her all the love she didn’t have for so long. We will see. These things are beyond our control. It all depends on her ongoing medical status.
Today we say, Happy 15th Birthday, Flower! Please do an Act of Kindness for Flower Day on April 9 to push back on all the evil Flower has experienced in life.
rewindliveslow 