My Family

It's not often that I get them all in the same picture, but here they are: my family. I will go from left to right. Sebastian is the fat, longhaired grey cat sleeping on the armchair. You can see his ears poking up. He is overweight and doesn't move much unless there's food involved.
He is extremely lazy but lovable, and he likes to purr and knead with his paws. Sebbie is inordinately attached to me, and wishes he could still sleep in my bed. (I am allergic, so all felines are banished from the bedrooms.)

Tubby is the striped cat sitting on the red pillow. He was Greg's cat originally, and he makes a nice addition to our family, even though he's a scaredy cat. He's deathly afraid of the fire alarm and he loves to chase flies and spiders. Tubby is playful and friendly with us, but he hides when strangers come over. He is also the only one of our cats who is not overweight.

Greg is the one with the brown hair and the cup of coffee. He is neither overweight nor a scaredy cat, although he does check door locks rather obsessively. Knowing Greg, he is probably reading a book about: a.) a serial killer, b.) a famous and yet tortured artist, or c.) an airline crash.

Nick, of course, is the little guy in overalls with the board book. He's not overweight either, although he has been wearing a 12-month size since he was six months old. Since he's holding the book sideways, we know that he isn't actually reading it. But he likes to join in when we're all reading. I figure it's a good habit for him to pick up. Hopefully he'll wait to have coffee until he's a little older, though.

Molly is the calico/tortoiseshell cat sitting next to Nicholas on the couch. She always sits in the best seat in the house. In this case, she waited until I got up to take this picture, then immediately sat in the warm spot I left behind. Oh, and she likes to lick the whipped cream off of my coffee. That's why you can't see any in my cup on the table. Molly is quite chubby, and very moody and vocal. She's clearly the boss of the house. Also, she's the only cat who really likes to hang around Nick. Molly cries when he cries, and she'll rub her head on him to comfort him.

I think mornings like this are my favorite time. All of us sitting together in the living room, reading. (TheLately, Nick gets mad when he sees both Mommy and Daddy sitting on the couch without him. He yells until we pick him up and let him sit between us. Then he causes trouble. Can you see the mischevious grin on his face? (Nick's face, not Greg's.)

When I have a bad day, this is the kind of scene I picture to relax. The hot drink, the baby between us, cats purring contentedly, and the book on my lap. My family.