Happy First Birthday, Ellie!

She was the best surprise of 2011.

A random CH kitten who popped up four hours from our home turned out to be anything but random. You see, when I heard about her (well, “him” originally), I knew that the kitten was the one. It was a bizarre series of events, but Ellie’s story is amazing.

Fast forward a year, and I can’t even begin to tell you what a joy she is. I absolutely adore her; she is perfect. She feeds on love and radiates love every single moment.

Ellie loves. That’s her in a nutshell. She breathes purrs, and happily and spontaneously kisses anyone and anything — couches and walls included. For some reason I feel she’s just so joyful she wants to show her appreciation to everyone and everything every chance she gets.

She has a happiness barometer: her tail. Early on we realized that the happier Ellie is, the more her tail bends over her back. Most hours it’s constantly parallel to her spine. It’s so precious and endearing.

We adopted Ellie as a friend for CG, and that couldn’t have turned out any more perfect. Yes, sometimes CG gives the “Aww, Mom, why’d you adopt her?” face when she’s a bit rambunctious, but overall they’re the best of buddies. They snuggle, groom one another, share meals and come to one another’s defense. They’re truly a team.

Ellie’s come a long way on her own, too.

I remember the first day we brought her home I was a bit concerned at how unstable she was on our hardwood floors. While she’s still unstable (she’s moderate at best), she has become so much more capable. Her hind leg stance has widened to give her more support as she walks, and she has become an expert climber.

She still falls into her water dish, goes potty on her side and has chipped her canines, but that just makes her even more perfect. I love her exactly the way she is.

And because of that, I wish my tiniest darling the happiest (and admittedly belated — she was born on the 2nd, but we were out of town) birthday. I hope and pray that we will celebrate and cherish many more of her birthdays in the future as well as each day in between.