You aren't playing with me!!

Molly loves interactive play with her humans.  She chases her feather toy with an enthusiasm and athleticism that impresses me.  She can also be amusingly demanding of it as she walks to the middle of the play area and rattles off a series of indignant meows and mrrs and chirps.  She really knows how to express herself. (Sometimes this is a bit annoying - especially before I've had breakfast.

Molly has learned to more or less stay off the counter and to get off when told.  Zoe never goes on the counter and aside from between 6-7 am in the morning - she is usually well behaved, but she worries that if she doesn't make sure I'm awake and know she is hungry then I won't feed her soon.  She generally resorts to applying generous kisses, nuzzles and head butts to me and then walking on me - although occasionally she expresses it by trying to chew on the the alarm clock.  Some days I can get her to settle down and snuggle until 7 and other days I have to send her out, so I can sneak some minutes of semi-sleep before I need to get up for work.

Zoe has recently been joining in more and more with the play.  She is actually much better at it than Molly - conserving her energy, using cover and moving shockingly rapidly for a creature that spends a good part of her life sleeping.  Last night we got her into a game of pounce the mouse - which she hasn't been so much into since we've moved up here (they were much more into chasing and pouncing toys in the south - I think because we had a long hallway.)  She was right into it with her hunting call and some serious pouncing and mauling of the toy mice. She'll even pick them up with her mouth and carry them around.  Molly is generally indifferent to mice, but as I've said before likes her springs - although she has made it clear that they are a poor substitute for the feather toy.

We went to our first flea market of the year.  We are working on selling off stuff that we don't need, aren't using, don't want to store etc.  I'm simultaneously trying to combat the build up of stuff in at work - spending quality time with the shredder and generously (depending on your point of view) passing on some resources to others - as has been done to me numerous times leading to some of the crowding.  The cats are enjoying having boxes to perch on at any rate - although presently Molly is patiently waiting for me to come play with her - but senses it'll be after i get some food into me.  Oh.. wait.. there is a sad little mew - "soon?" she asks.  I'm such a sucker :D for my cats, I'm almost afraid of how wrapped around her little fingers our baby is going to have me.

My Precious

Ah - Zoe - hoarding her precious little mice toys!!  (Or possibly resenting me taking this picture of her in an undignified pose.)  She does really like her mice - Molly could care less about mice, she likes springs better because they make her chase them.

As for Molly, she's sitting her supervising me making cupcakes.  Earlier she offered to help, but I explained to her that as much as she is a scrupulous hand washer, people would appreciate her putting her paws into my cupcakes, so she is settling for a supervisory, paws-off role - although, I suspect she'd really like to find out what it is like to have cupcake batter all over her paws.