Boots! His full and proper name is, Boots Patches Creampuff Sorrill. Creampuff because the little spot on his forehead looks like an overstuffed creampuff!
Boots was I believe, my next child! I had wanted a little kitten for so long, and one day my parents brought home information from the vets office about how to care for cats and what they needed, that was how they broke the news that we were getting a kitten! We bought the food dish, water dish, play things, and a litter box. Most of the items for the kitten were in my room, and before bed I would play with a stuffed cat, pretend to feed it, water it, use the litter box and go to bed at the foot of my bed. On a nice summer day, we drove to the country to retrieve my kitten! The little one they brought out was literally a little one! He looked as though he couldn't have been weaned long, and the collar we had bought him was far too big even when it was shrunk to its smallest size! He fit in the palm of my moms hand, and the palm of mine, and he was a little ball of black and white fluff! He was a bit sick, ear mites, fleas, and worms, but I loved him deeply! I had thought of some names but mom offered the name Boots, I thought it fit and Boots was born to us! We went to Midland, the farm supply store, and bought a carrier for our new addition, and some flea shampoo! When we got home, Boots had his bath, and the poor little dear looked like a drowned rat! Of course Boots didn't stay little for long! He's now a rather massive cat...He's still my sweet little boy, and thankfully came out of his terrible kitten age where no toes were safe hanging off a bed...
For now I'm on my cat children, and will post about them in order of age, and then my other children as I don't remember exactly when I got each one.
Muffy! Full and proper name, Muffy Tina Tiger Lillian Sorrill.
Next came Muffy! Muffy was NOT at all an expected addition to our family...In 2001, my mom, sister, grandparents on my moms side, and I all went to Nebraska for a family reunion. We made about a week of it, going to the family reunion and staying with family for a few days in Colorado which was a LOT of fun! Well apparently my sister had a horrible feeling in her gut one day that she told mom about but not me...Apparently again after that horrible feeling dad had called to say Boots, who was about a year old then, had run out on him and had been lost for a day or two...Well this was kept from me until we arrived at my grandparents house. I looked that the wee kittens and enjoyed them, and said I wish I could have one...Then they broke it to me saying, "Pick one out..." I was shocked, and then learned this kitten was to be a replacement...I had noticed Muffy before we left for our trip because my mom said, "That one looks like a cat I had called Muffy Tom." Well if I were to pick a kitten, I wanted the one that reminded mom of her childhood cat Muffy Tom, so I chose a fluffy yellow and white kitten, grandpa looked it over and said, "This is a girl". So I called her Muffy Tina instead of Muffy Tom. I cried almost the entire way home...I had my hand in the little box Muffy was in and she let me pet her and cry, she has always been my little furry rock, she knows when I'm down and tries to help. I fell asleep before we got home and woke up at home and cried more...The next morning with Muffy getting acclimated, we began to make LOST posters for Boots...About two days after that, and right after putting up the big posters on the poles around the neighborhood, my dad was working on checks, Muffy was by the water dish in the kitchen, and Blondie our dog was relaxing, the windows were open and dad heard a little meow...There was Boots sitting on the steps wanting in...But of course dad, not being a cat person, wasn't thrilled that he now had two cats...But he dealt with it and I was thrilled!
Sox. Full and proper name, Sox Prince Moonbeam Starboy Sorrill.
Soxy came about from the cat that up until about two years ago, lived where my dad worked. He was part of her first litter inside, and after dad gave away my favorite kitten Acrobat, I pleaded that he not give away Sox! On the way home from Springfield one day, I twisted my dad's arm and mom finally agreed that we could have Sox! We went to dad's work and picked him up, he was a glorious little addition to our family. He was quite laid back, and very gentle, but he's also a bit goofy...He likes to get into odd positions and he has a patented "cute and innocent act". This cat KNOWS he's cute...So when he's in trouble, he flops onto his side and rolls around giving this look that says, "I'm so cute! You won't hurt me!"
Cleo. Full and proper name, Cleopatra Melinda Shemelba Donshea Sorrill.
Cleo was another unexpected addition to the family. She is also Sox's half sister, she was born to that same cat where my dad works. Cleo's life did not start with our family, she went to one of my dad's bosses. Sadly it would seem she wasn't given proper attention, and her littler box was in the garage, and she also wasn't let out enough to use it consequently she peed around the house...Being fed up with her, the boss brought her back and tossed her in with her mother...Who hates animals...Dad brought her home until we could find her a home, because Scruffy, her mother, would have likely killed her...Well she worked her charms on us, and dad thought she'd been through enough and we kept her!
Sweet P. Full and proper name, Sweet Peter Holstein Moo Cow Sorrill.
We have no idea about Sweet P. he was a stray that showed up at our house, and simply never left...For months he didn't fully trust us, and though he wanted attention he was afraid to approach...In time, I was able to calm him enough that he approached one Christmas Eve, we played in the door, he entered, and the next day he came in and never left! He is our little clown, and for the LONGEST time no one but me could come around him or hold him, he would let me do things he wouldn't allow from other people. He loves to follow when given any attention, I'm the only one he rolls over to his back for, and he has the tiniest little meow! Which we hardly ever hear...We call him our little cow.
That is all for my cats. After we gave away Easter and Alex, we acquired another Easter and Alex from the same man who took our other rabbits. This time however, Easter was male and was consequently fixed after trying to impregnate Alex on my sisters lap...We built them a lovely hutch, open in the front with chicken wire, enclosed on the other sides with closer chicken wire on the bottom and a lid on top. I hate to go into detail about them because their demise still hurts me to this day...One night, some very, very, abused dogs got loose...They went to a neighbors house who fed them, but their hunger was not satisfied...They ripped open the bottom of the hutch pulled one of our rabbits out and killed it, and the other may have died of fright...Its still hard to think about them, I felt horrible for them and the dogs and was horrified and angered by the owner for treating the animals that way!
I also had two snails, Gary and Selena. I found a snail shell one day and decided to bring it home, later that day when I went into the kitchen I noticed my shell had moved across the table and was still moving down the edge of the table...There was STILL a snail in it...I kept him as a pet and named him Gary, Selena was found by my dad later and I kept them both for over a year before they passed peacefully.
With my snails gone, my sister thought a perfect gift for me for my 15th birthday was to take me to Springfield for a movie and trip to the mall. While there we found painted shelled hermit crabs! I fell in love! She bought me three, one with a tye dye shell, one with an Asian motif, and the other I can't remember well...Gary was the biggest and scariest...He was the tye dye one we thought was pushed onto use because he was mean and they wanted to rid themselves of him...Anyway I brought Gary, Selena, and Squishy home, within a week Squishy and Selena were dead by mysterious means...We think Gary killed them...But Gary, the evil one that pinched me and always scared me lived on and on...He died a few years ago and though he was evil, I cried...
Edward. Full and proper name, Edward Oliver Robert Pattinson Sorrill.
Later I became mother to a beautiful blue Beta fish named Edward. Edward had quite a fine personality, he liked watching his food before attacking happily. He loved playing dead...to my dismay...I learned a lot about caring for Beta's with Edward, but he lived with us about two years before passing on...I believe he was ill and old and the combination just took him...
Ferdinand. Ferdinand has no real fancy name, he's just Ferdinand Sorrill.
Ferdinand joined our family a little over a year ago, and he is a bit flashy and thinks a lot of himself! He expects royal treatment, and delights in puffing out his cheeks to show mommy how manly and scary he is! He's an all around sweet fish and I love him to bits!
Nemo is another of my children who has gone on...She was a red platy fish and was born in our fish tank. Dad gave her very little chance to live because he back was completely crooked...She lived a good life and even had children. I named her Nemo before I knew she was a girl, and she was named for Nemo from Finding Nemo because of her crooked back.
I don't really have any good pictures of Comet...She's my chocolate brown pup that lives at Grandpa and Grandma Staff's house. I named her Comet because of how fast she ran around the house! She's a sweet puppy and has had several litters. Grandpa had her fixed free when a place in Quincy was fixing animals for free. She has since plumped up, but she's still me sweet little girl. She was hit slightly by grandpa when she got behind his truck so she is blind in one eye, but she follows me on ALL my adventures! The best part is if she runs ahead of me, she stops when I stop and waits for me! She's too sweet!
Lily is another of my girls, she is Comets sister and lives with Comet, she also just had her first litter of puppies. She, like Comet, is a stray that just showed up one day. Poor thing was so skidish, but with time she's allowed us to pet her. She has incredibly long legs, a slender body, speckled and black fur, and ears that are constantly cocked.
My last children were three frogs! I raised them from wee tadpoles! When I was in fourth grade I believe, we went to a farm that was owned by the ex husband of our former teacher. We were allowed to catch tadpoles and take them home, I caught a bunch and brought them home to raise. My sister and I shared them, and though most of them escaped after they became frogs and consequently died...the others were later freed at the lake here in town.
Well that is the story of my children! They may not be human, but they are mine and I adore them!
Love,
Christina
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