Sparky is the Cat of the Month for August
Sparky is one of Sage’s kids, he’s got her long hair but is totally different personalitywise. Well, they both bite, so they have that in common as well. Sparky is big and beautiful, and he knows it. He walks around with his fluffy tail floating along behind him and poses strategically in sunny windows so his white ruff is lit up. Unfortunately he has lost a front upper fang, sometimes giving him a demonic, sneering look when his upper lip gets caught by his lower fang. He’s fairly sociable and would be happy to be carried around like an infant prince all day. Like some royalty, he has his mood swings and is also happy to sink his teeth into you when he feels like it.
Pogo (who you will meet later) is Sparky’s pal; they often snuggle together in the window seat at the top of the stairs, or wash each other’s face on the bed. One day I was sharing the window seat with them, looking through a book on Monet—seeking inspiration. I took a break, laying the book down, and came back to find Pogo resting his head on it. So the book inspired me, though not quite as I had planned. The result is “Monet’s Cats” which I feel is one of my very best works. You can also see this pair in “A Quiet Moment Between Two Friends” as they keep watch over the backyard.
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Sage is another cat from Spencer, Indiana. She was one of three feral kittens we tried to capture and tame, having success with two. Sage looks like a miniature Maine Coon cat—long hair, tabby markings, fuzzy feet. She’s a shy kitty, friendly with us but quick to remind us of her wild side with a fast paw packed with claws. 
Chessie at last gets her turn to be Cat of the Month. Here is her story... Several years ago while living in Spencer, Indiana, my husband and I took a walk down near the railroad tracks not far from our home. I seem to remember there was a small craft fair or something going on at the time. On the way back home, we discovered a skinny grey kitten entertaining a handful of people on the corner. She rolled around inviting belly rubs, just too charming to resist.
An informed young girl let us know the kitten was a stray and shared her fear that the kitten may wander off and fall into the nearby river. Hindsight tells me that of course the kitten would not have carelessly fallen into the river to be swept away. But we were easily swayed and scooped up the ball of grey fluff and took her home.
Later watching her sleep, we agreed she looked just like the railroad cat Chessie and that’s how she acquired her name. It didn’t take long for Chessie to fit into our household of kitties. As a youngster she developed a curious manner of flinging an arm over the shoulders of any nearby cat and vigorously licking the top of the other cat’s head. In her slightly crankier old age she’s more likely to swat than lick any nearby cat!
After the death of my beloved lap cat, Abby, I wondered which of our cats would step up to take over the evening lap-time ritual. That cat was Chessie—every evening after dinner she arranges her not so tiny self (the kittenish figure is long gone) on my lap for a few hours, stretching out her paw to touch my arm every now and then to remind me that hands are for chin rubbing, okay?
The May Cat of the Month is....a dog! Unable to control his boundless energy and enthusiasm, Rudi insisted on being featured. The cats, particularly Chessie who was next in line, are understandably disgusted. 
The cats have not been pleased with this new member of our family, but Rudi is gradually fitting in. He's discovered the joys of long walks (his nose never stops exploring) and splashing in the pond on a warm day. And we've discovered the fun of playing fetch and trying to avoid those wet doggy kisses.
April brings us spring, which I always see as a time of new possibilities, of new beginnings. So it’s fitting that Rosie is the Cat of the Month for April, as she has been given the chance of a new beginning.
OK, this is a little late, but the cat of the month is ... drum roll please—Muffy! As I write this, she is happily squirming around on my lap, purring out her contentment. Muffy is around 17 years old and may or may not be 
Muffy is a beautiful, cranky, sweet, very needy kitty. She makes her presence known with first gentle then ever more insistent taps of her paw on my pant leg. Anytime I sit down (and I mean anytime, anywhere) it is clearly an invitation for her to sit on my lap. When I am painting, she’ll often sit on the table that holds my palette and paints, inching closer and closer to me til I’m close enough to be poked by her paw—claws gently extended. I’ll put her down on the floor, she hops back up, over and over.
Muffy and 
