We adopted two kittens from the local animal shelter in 2008, and they have added life and energy (really, a scary amount of energy) to our household.  They have also added decoration in the form of cat hair tumbleweeds that like to hide from me while I’m cleaning the house and then jump out in front of my guests.

Miss Vera, sitting still for once.

Vera is the smaller, smarter, and warier of the sisters.  She is inclined to hide under the stairs when new people come over and to demonstrate mind-boggling feline athleticism with leaps to the top of the refrigerator.  She is named in honor of Jayne’s “very favorite gun” in the sadly defunct TV series Firefly.

Valentine surveys her domain.

Valentine is bigger, fuzzier, and quicker to warm up to new folks than her sister.  She has earned the kitty callsign “Chunks” for both her enthusiastic eating habits and her unfortunate tendency to get carsick every time we take a trip.  Poor thing is going to just love PCSing, I’m afraid.  She loves worming her way under blankets and jackets left lying on chairs, so one must be careful where one sits around here.  Val is named for Valentine Wiggin, the sister of the protagonist in Ender’s Game.

We love both our little monsters to death, even if my husband didn’t realize he was a cat person until after we brought them home.