First, we all rendezvoused at my house. Then, my parents and brother loaded up their cars full of felines (and one squirrel) and shuttled us over to my grandparents’ house. Grandma and Grandpa just love cats and were delighted to welcome our melting pot of catdom. We had one-eyed cats, two-eyed cats, black, white, tabby, tortoiseshell, calico, short hair, long hair and no hair – I think we represented just about every kind of cat there is! We must have been a sight spilling out of the cars when they stopped in the driveway. We were all mewing excitedly and bragging about what aqua feats we were going to demonstrate. We headed directly to the backyard and stopped and “ooooohed” when we spied the magnificent pool. Then we saw the pool toys piled near the slide. The race was on – it was every cat for him/herself. The rafts were the most popular, though there were some cute rings. I, personally, needed no accoutrements. To cannonball, one needs only nerve, strong legs and good lungs. I possessed all three so I was able to run at it with abandonment, jump high, yell “CANONBAAAAAAALLLLLL!” and finish with a huge splash. It did not take me long to establish myself as the cannonball champion, though Tank by far did the best belly flop!
The slide was a big hit. Every time I looked over, Cali was giggling away as she slid down with her legs flailing in the air. Every now and then a splashing fight would break out – and with so many cats in the pool it would get pretty wild! It would end when everyone was laughing so hard they couldn’t splash anymore.
I was pleased that first time guests Chunks, Humphrey and Sophia could join us. Vuvuzela joined us also as our youngest friend. I think she was surprised at how silly we adult kitties could be!
Bobbi isn’t much for swimming so she volunteered to help with the grilling. My Grandpa got it started and Bobbi was in charge of flipping the burgers. All that swimming combined with the wonderful smell of grilling burgers made us one hungry pack of cats! When Bobbi declared the burgers ready to eat, it started a wild cat stampede.
Somehow, Malcolm was first in line for the food. Everyone else lined up nice and orderly behind him. Bobbi piled our plates high with good ol’ American food – burgers and fries. Yummy! Poor Bobbi couldn’t cook the burgers fast enough for the hungry pack. It took a few rounds, but eventually every kitty belly was full. We did save room for one of my favorites – rocket pops. Nothing beats an icy cold red, white & blue ice pop on a hot summer’s day!
We knew we had to wait an hour before we could go back in the pool, so we played a rousing game of charades to pass the time. We asked Bobbi to be the official time keeper and let us know when we were allowed to swim again.
As soon as the clock showed we had been finished eating for an hour, we were back in the swim of things, though this time we were more subdued. We paddled around and relaxed knowing we still had a night of fireworks ahead of us. At one point I think we were all fast asleep – either on a raft or lounging by the side of the pool. It was a much needed rest and we awoke with renewed energy ready to be dazzled by pyrotechnics! Since we were going out in public, I invited each of my guests to pick a hat from my vast collection. They all had fun trying them on and deciding which was “them”. I think everyone did a great job and my friends all looked fabulous!
As the sun started to set, we began to get excited about the firework display we were going to see. It was going to entail another car ride which was always fun. I rode in the car my brother was driving and after a few miles of the cat rendition of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat” he lost patience with us and told us to stop singing that song. We stopped, but then started giggling and started to sing “100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall.” When we arrived at the park, Tristan was quite happy to see us all climb out of the car. We invited him to come along with us, but he said he was going to watch the fireworks from somewhere else.
It seemed to take forever for the skies to darken enough for the fireworks display to begin. The first one caught us by surprise, but after that they came one right after the other. We stood looking up with our mouths hanging open, only to close them slightly when an “ooooh, aaaaaah” was in order. Mom came up and asked us to smile for a picture. She got us all to look at the camera at once. Well, don’t tell her, but Dad was dangling a chicken wing over her head which is really why we were looking – but she was very proud of herself for getting such a lovely pose out of so many cats:
We knew the show was almost over when they started firing off one right after the other. It was a wonderful display of color and light! We said our final “Ooooohs” and loaded back in the cars to head home.
We were one tired pack of kitties when we finally returned home. It was quite the contrast to how we leapt out of the cars at my grandparents’ house. Now we were barely walking – there was also a lot of yawning going on. We all stretched out on the lawn until one by one my friends’ families arrived to pick them up. I ended up falling into a deep sleep and Mom had to come out and scoop me up and put me in my bed.
I hope your 4th of July was as much fun as mine. It was a busy week, but things are going to be getting even busier. I have booked a flight to Florida and I’ll be heading down there to visit my friends Punkin, Diesleda, Buck, Dewey, Marnie and Meadow! I can’t wait!
Have a great weekend!
Love & licks,
Josie
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