Silence

Today we are observing a moment of silence to remember and honor those who lost their lives ten years ago.

Caturday Matinee: Kittens!

Two kittens + one box = hours of entertainment!

Swept Up in a Generous Giveaway!

Cats are known to be clean animals; however, after enjoying a few moments in the privacy of the litter box loo, their fuzzy little feet become the vehicles for lots of tiny stowaway litter pieces, which undoubtedly become stuck to the bottom of my bare feet.  My cats smile, thinking they are pampering me with a nice exfoliating foot treatment (bless their hearts), but I'd rather ask my husband for a pedicure (men love to do that, right?)

BISSELL® must have somehow sensed I need a fast, easy solution for litter clean-up that works just as slick on carpeted as well as bare floors.  They asked me to review their Perfect Sweep TURBO© and I was more than happy to oblige.

When the sweeper arrived, Phoebe was suspicious of the contents and insisted on checking it out before I unpacked it.  I suggested she apply for a job as a TSA agent.

After receiving the OK from security, I removed the contents from the box.  Admittedly, I am not great (read: hopeless) with directions and assembling items and since my husband was busy giving me a pedicure, I thought I'd dig in and give it a try.  Imagine my delight when I read this:

Without even having to consult the directions, I was able to easily assemble the sweeper!

Despite the unwavering support of my cats, I did make it go.  I first used it on the bare floors around the litter boxes and it picked up every single piece of stray litter.  Then I attempted cleaning the nearby throw rug (which is always sprinkled with litter confetti) and was pleased with the thorough job such a light little sweeper could do.

Speaking of its light weight, I really appreciated being able to carry it up and down the stairs with little effort.   My full-sized vacuum is very heavy and, truly, I only need a light sweeper in most daily cleaning situations, so this fit the bill.

Because it is rechargeable for up to 60 minutes, I can carry it around the house and do a quick floor clean up in all my rooms, which is especially helpful when you have a cat that sheds a lot (cough, cough, Saffy).

So yes, the Perfect Sweep TURBO© is a definite win in this house.  With three cats, we tend to accumulate lots of loose litter and tumbleweeds of cat fur.

BISSELL® is offering a generous giveaway to U.S. Catladyland readers!  Simply comment on this blog post by Sunday, 11pm CT to qualify; a winner will be chosen using an online random number generator and announced in Monday's post.

The giveaway package includes:
Perfect Sweep TURBO© 
Pawsitively Clean™ by BISSELL® pew! Pet Odor Eliminator
Stomp 'N Go©
Fur Get It!™

You can follow BISSELL® on Twitter or "like" their Facebook page to learn more about their products and deals!  If you like deals, please take note that BISSELL® is offering a $5 off deal on their Perfect Sweep TURBO©  -- simply use the code "perfectsweepcat."

Good luck!

Let Me Eat Cake!

Want to help animals affected by Hurricane Irene?  Without spending a dime?  Today, Freekibble and Freekibblekat is donating all kibble raised to Central Vermont Humane Society and North Carolina Animal Protection Society. All you have to do is answer a trivia question (correctly or incorrectly) and ten pieces of kibble are donated to the aforementioned shelters, who will then further distribute them to other animal welfare organizations in need.

Additionally, if the kibble number reaches one million, HALO, Purely for Pets will match the donations!  Freekibble is hoping to reach 10,000 meals and you can be a part of that!

Wordless Wednesday

Wilted by Guilt

Smirkin' at Workin'

How the girls are spending Labor Day:

Phoebe can't even be bothered to stand up and retrieve the toy.
She exerts as little labor as possible by sliding to it.

And Saffy?  Well, she exerts about this much labor every day.

Now With Kung-Fu Grip!

The holidays are just around the corner and soon everyone will be scouting the shelves for the newest, hottest product of the season.  Look no further!  Behold the toy every child will be begging for this season: Wonder Whiskers -- now with Kung-Fu Grip!

She climbs the highest cabinets, uses her super-sensing whiskers to locate danger, and her lifelike fur and body movement will entertain kids and adults alike for hours!

Get your Wonder Whiskers now...before the holiday rush!

Should I be Offended??

A Miracle Rescue, Kitten Snuggles, Happy Catladies, and Thank Goodness my Husband is Neutered

You know those mothers who hold an infant and suddenly feel the urge to have another one?  I am the mother of two teenagers, have held many infants since the birth of my two, and have NEVER felt the yearning (not even half a thimble of yearning) for another baby.  After the birth of my second, I promptly had my husband neutered and that was that.  Now kittens, on the other hand... I can hold a kitten and the kind of urge I feel is to stash that baby in my purse and make a break for it.  I could hold kittens all day long.  And I'm really, really good at it.  I think if anyone were looking for a kitten-holding expert, they'd hit the jackpot with me.

All this kitten talk is really going somewhere -- I promise.  Many of you know last week I was in the D.C. area attending the BlogPaws pet blogger conference.  On Friday night, I wandered into the hotel lobby and saw many of my cat-blogging friends lounging, laughing, and holding kittens!!  My desire to cash in my free drink ticket went right out the window and my kitten-radar zoomed in on the babies...especially one little girl named Blaze, who resembled my own Phoebe (and not by just a little)!

We learned the babies and their mama, Amberly, had just been transported by Georgia rescuers, Maria and Bobby to the hotel, where they landed in the safe arms of Robin, the rescue-queen from Covered in Cat Hair.  She and Sam would then take them back to their home in Connecticut and work with Kitten Associates (who also helped immensely and immediately with financial support surrounding the cats' care and transport) to make sure they found loving forever homes.  The story is truly a miracle and you can read it in its entirety on a more detailed post I wrote for Life With Cats.

Now back to the subject of holding kittens!!  We catladies were truly in our element and probably could have stayed in that lobby all night, loving on those babies.  In fact, after some of us went out to dinner, a few of us went back to Robin's hotel room for more kitten playtime.  

Here are some of the photos from that night:

Tamar from I Have Cat cuddles a Petie look-alike named Jack LiLac!

Ingrid from The Conscious Cat, holding Truffles, is a tortie-whisperer!

Here I am, getting a serious smooch from the Phoebe-twin, Blaze.

Nicky from Mew Brew borrows Blaze for awhile.

Caren from Cat Chat doing the two-step with Truffles

Caren, Joanne from Tiniest Tiger, and Tamar with Truffles and Flat Gracey

Dorian from Your Daily Cute gets a giant dose of cute from Truffles.

Sachie from My Himalayan Cat, Goma and Kate from Moderncat share some Jack LiLac snuggles.

A clowder of catladies!  Deb from Zee & Zoey, Ingrid, Sachie, Kate, Tamar, Robin from Covered in Cat Hair, Amy from Sebastian, the Sensitive Soul, me, Dorian, and Caren sharing the shot with Jack and Truffles.

The rescue team!  Sam, Robin, Bobby, and Maria (seated with Mama Amberly)

Amberly and the kittens' care expenses have added up -- please consider making a contribution by clicking on the ChipIn widget below.  Also, those sweet babies and their beautiful mama are available for adoption via Kitten Associates.