Newton has been been behaving strangely for the past few days. He has been meowing at the door, trying to see out of all of the windows, and being even more diligent about trying to escape.

First is the pace and meow.

Then the impressive vertical…

He sometimes catches the ledge (that is a little over 5’6″ of the ground) and holds on to look out.

After he comes down from the window, with a mighty flump, he tries the doorknob, like any well-mannered kitty.

Whatever is on the other side of that door must be pretty cool to warrant such amazing feats of feline daring!

Pierre is always looking for stripes that compliment his. In this case, we decided not to tell him they make his butt look big.

Oops! I think he heard us! We still love you Pierre!

Newton is hanging out in the cat window watching Cat TV.

He is puzzled why the flashy box is on his favorite TV show!

Newt says to step aside and let the birdies and squirrels show come back on.

Aahh, much better. Now if he could just have some kibbles and and a tall, cold milk, he would be set for the day!

Inspector Newton (Inspector N, the Committee Chair) is the first to come see the new rug.

After the head inspector tried it out, Pierre comes in to see if he approves.

The junior member of the committee, Ashton, is the last to investigate. She wanted to be sure her older brothers had made it safe prior to her arrival.

P says the underside meets his approval.

It looks like the committee reached a verdict. Newton gavels his approval. The rug can stay!

Sometimes Mom needs cuddles, too! Ashton gave the rare bed snuggle today. She could not have had better timing.

Newton has a rest on the back of the chair this afternoon. Although he and the other kitties had some play time today, most of the day was quiet, even from the felines in the house. Every day the heaviness will grow lighter, and the good memories will start to crowd out the sadness.

Thank you to everyone who commented on the blog to share your condolences. The outpouring of good wishes from the CB community has been truly overwhelming.

Sadly, Talia lost her fight against chronic renal failure, hyperthyroidism, and arthritis today.

She was a rescue, found on the roof of an office building by a roofer who brought an unweaned litter of black kittens down to the ground in a bucket. Her early days were spent being shuttled back and forth to work so she and her brother Louie could be bottle fed.

With such early socialization, she grew into a friendly, cuddly cat. Through five household moves, she always adapted easily as long as she could find a patch of sunshine or a warm lap. In recent years, she has helped bring up Pierre, Newton, and Ashton, making sure they had a good example and a firm paw when necessary.

The spot next to the pillow on the bed is empty now, but she remains in our hearts.

We love you and miss you, little bun.

All of that warm sun on dark fur! Talia is soft enough on her own, but add a sunbath and she is down right perfect for cuddling.

Cousin Nellie found a nice place to nap while the sheets were being washed. Naked beds make good crash pads!

Ashton found a great sunny puddle to have a bath.

She made sure to warm all sides equally. Even young ladies should watch out for tan lines!

Oops, a little longer on the other side.

Now the tummy…

Someone is jealous of her sun bathing spot…only one naughty cat has those red ears!

Ash said something to get Newton to go. She is making sure he is good and gone before she goes back to her fantastic sun puddle.