Da Boyz Are Two!!

Happy 2nd Birthday to my sweet dudes!!

Two years ago today, Sir Archibald Winston and Sir Poppington Neville were born to a mama cat somewhere...and a few weeks later, they were sealed into a Rubbermaid bin full of winter coats and five additional kittens, and unceremoniously, anonymously dumped on a warm June day at the sanctuary for Animal Friends Connection.

Thing is, they were dumped outside of a rarely-used door. It was pure luck that the seven tiny kittens inside were found. It was traumatic for the people who found them. All seven kittens had fleas, sores, and upper respiratory infections. One, Angel, succumbed to the URI. She had been taken into a foster home with Archie and Popcorn, while the other four went to another foster home.

Archie bottom left, Popcorn bottom right.

Archie (top), Angel, Popcorn

The original find. Angel was buried under the coats
and was found during a double-check later.

Tiny, woebegone Archie.

Tiny, woebegone Popcorn.

Despite this rough beginning, the other kittens survived, thrived and found homes...but alas, these sweet brothers were barely a year into their new life when they were returned. Marian took a chance and sent a picture of them to me just when I was in the market for a bonded pair. I'd been looking for kittens, but something about the two faces staring at me from my phone was irresistible. A week later, I was driving to Lodi to pick them up.

It's been just shy of six months, but I feel like they've always been mine. I adore these boys and their sweet personalities, their kittenish souls, and their rumbling purrs. Every day, they greet me at the front door after a long day at work, and I'm left smiling, a puddle of Meg Goo as I drop all of my stuff on the floor to give priority to cuddling with my boys for a few minutes before the evening chores take over.

Gone are the tiny, weakened kittens that were dumped like garbage, and in their place are two handsome, healthy cats with glossy coats, muscular frames, and bright eyes. They love their Tuna Time, their catnip mice, and the top tier of their cat tree. They love watching the noisy blue jay that keeps coming to yell at us, wrestling with each other, and washing each others' faces. And most of all, they love being near me, whether we're all on the couch together, or sleeping on my bed at night.

Happy Birthday, my dear Doodlebugs. Here's to many, many more.

White legs = Archie. Orange legs = Popcorn, and he's also
slightly bigger.