Team HelmsGood

This pretty kitten. She dislikes having her picture taken, so I keep any photo of her where her eyes are open.
She seems to know that her fur is black and then likes to sit on other things that are also black. In this way, she’s great at camouflage. Calliope is also quiet, graceful, and patient, which are good for hiding. Her black fur is very soft, and has little white patches in it that I like to call “stars.” Her stars become more plentiful as she ages. Little fur constellations that change over time.
Calliopants doesn’t hop on counters or wake me up at 3:30am every day to feed her. However, sometimes she will chew on crinkly plastic or try to take bobby pins out of my hair with her teeth so that one of us will wake up if the food container gets uncomfortably low. Me. She wants me to do it.
Crinkly things are her favorite! Those little crinkle ball cat toys are chewed to death, stored under things (with hair ties), or drowned in the water bowl far more often than anything else.
Plastic water bowls irritated her mouth, so we use ceramic bowls for the cats’ water.
She doesn’t care about catnip, is uninterested in most scratching post/devices, and is a little careless about eating treats from my hand. On the other hand, she loves mint and likes to smell our breath after we brush our teeth. Egg yolks are her favorite food, so far. If she hears an egg cracking, she will run to the kitchen! To save my fingers, I’ll drop or toss the cat treats on the floor, which she enjoys as a game AND a snack.
Our first playtime game was “Blanket Monster,” where she delights in trying to pounce upon my hand as it twitches about under the comforter like a mouse under leaves. Calliopoop is interested in games or toys where she gets to hunt a little bit. I was impressed to discover that she knows this is a game AND that the blanket is covering my hand…it’s fun for everyone! This is the smart cat in our house.
I taught her “all done” and “what time is it?!” These might be different from what you’re thinking. “All done, (sleepy time)” means, “petting time is over because I’m falling asleep.” Then she chooses to also sleep or hangs out with Ash for a while. “What time is it?!” has nothing to do with the clock, but is a phrase that lets her know that I’m going to sleep soon, so she can follow me to the bedroom for pets! Additionally, she has decided to start telling us when she thinks it’s bedtime. Her preference is all of us in the same space at the same time. She’s pretty snuggle-motivated. I completely understand this. She’s definitely the cat who communicates well with me.
Ash taught her “high five,” which is exactly what you’re thinking.
Calliocat knows the first part of her name, and will pay attention if we say it. She doesn’t know the whole name, so then I feel free to improvise.
Calliope and Ash were a package deal. I’m so glad. She was such a good beginner cat. She’s part of the reason I fell in love with him. ❤

This flooftastic dodo cat. She is naturally photogenic and beautiful all the time.
Fuzzface is talkative, flopsy, and demanding. She knows what she wants, how she’s going to get there, and tells us all about it. She doesn’t care about graceful, just being loved.
Just like Calliope, Baby Girl doesn’t hop on counters or wake me up at 3:30am every day to feed her! She is a scavenger and she’s taught Calliope to snoop around the kitchen for scraps. They have enough food, so this sometimes annoys me…but Ash reminds me that Floof McFurball was found in the median of C-470 as a baby. That’s likely how she survived and she’ll never grow out of that starving mentality, no matter how safe she is. Since frozen pizza cheese is her favorite scrounged treat, now I just figure she likes to eat pizza with us as a family.
Fluttery birdlike toys are her favorite! She likes when they make flapping sounds.
When there were trees outside our apartment, there were squirrels, and she liked chitter- chattering at them while they teased her from outside the window.
She likes all cat treats, is highly interested an scratching posts and climbing things, and is uncharacteristically dainty about eating from my hand. Especially for someone so careless with her claws!
This is our hairball cat. She has alllll the fur. The first time she expelled fur, she got scared/surprised. Hairball and hairball juice were all over the floor in her bedroom*. Now, she’s much more casual and calm about the process, though it disturbs *me* a bit.
*Yes, Squiglet used to have her own bedroom. She attacked our feet with her tiny handneedles during the night and harassed Calliope to no end during her first few weeks with us. What an adorable little terror she was!
Princess Flooftail understands “Blanket Monster” as a way to destroy the possible mouse creature that is squirming under the comforter. Her claws are still quite sharp. She does not understand that it’s actually my hand pretending to be the creature under the blanket.
She often spends time looking at the wall dividng our apartment from our neighbors’. We call that “Looking for Mouse.”
Thalesby enjoys sleeping near/on me, allllll the cheek scritches, and sitting on my lap while I’m in the restroom. Snuggles are the best thing for her. I love this so much. It can be a bit much when I’m working on the computer, though. This may be a monster of my own creation…
She doesn’t know the word “no.” She doesn’t know any tricks. Water bottles have no effect on her, because she’s So Furry. She’s so great at napping and loves sleeping in a very specific Amazon box. Her purrs are so very loud. We have great conversations.
I love that she watches TV and recognizes her reflection in windows and mirrors.
She hates vacuums but is chill about thunder. She has not outgrown suckling and is a little obsessed with it. Blankets, my arm, more blankets, my other arm…
I call her “Thalia” in hopes that one day she will learn her name… but she also has a million nicknames. Little Bitty. Furbuttons. TeenyMonkey. PurrMittens. Pretty Girl. This may not be helping.
Thalia was an aggressive kitten, my first baby kitty. I was constantly worried she’d get lost underneath or behind things and get stuck, or I wouldn’t know how to feed her. She did not get stuck nor lost, and she is well-fed. I’m so proud that she’s a loving and talkative grown-up cat. We’re friends and I love her so much. She’s so excited to see me when I come home! While Thalia is not the smart cat in our house (doors are super-confusing), she taught me that she can still be a great member of our family. ❤