One of the very first posts I wrote on this blog was the first year of Hobbes. We brought him home on June 24, 2015, which means that he’s been in our lives just a little over three years now. Of course, last year, I had to write a two years of Hobbes post. Now I’m back talking about year three.
Before I get into the past year, let’s take a second to revisit baby Hobbes. I don’t miss the dumpster diving and pantry raiding of the early days. But I do miss having a tiny kitten face in my house.
Hobbes remains one of the craziest and sweetest cats I’ve ever known. He pushes my buttons in ways that none of the other cats do. For example, recently he’s taken to pinning Apollo and biting him mercilessly when he knows I’m busy (feeding Tommy, going to the bathroom, etc.). The phrase “you’re lucky you’re so cute” has never been as relevant as it is with Hobbes.
But he also has some of the sweetest tendencies ever, too. He settles right down with us at night and curling up on our laps while we’re on the computer. The blanket fort activity I mentioned in my two years of Hobbes post remains a thing he looks forward to many nights. He often spends the night sleeping on one of my pillows or right in between our pillows.
There have been a couple of key changes with Hobbes the past year. First, this is the year that Hobbes decided to start exploring all of the high places in the house. It’s no secret that cats love high places, and Hobbes is no exception. Remember last year how I talked about his love of ladders? (And if you watch my Instagram stories, you’ve seen a ton of stories of Hobbes on ladders over the past couple of years.) The high places obsession isn’t new. But Hobbes has reached a new level with it this year.
Hobbes spends a ton of time on the top of the refrigerator. He goes through periods where he wants to jump up on the edge of master bathroom shower every single day. (You know how it is with cats, one day it’s all he wants to do and then the next day he could care less.) In my how to clean a glass shower post, you can see how narrow and high this edge is and consequently, how crazy it is for a cat to jump up there. It took him weeks to work up the courage, and he was so proud when he finally did it. I’m still slightly terrified every time he’s up there, which of course, doesn’t bother him at all.
Hobbes will attempt to jump to the top of any door where there’s a decent gap between the top of the door and the ceiling. His other favorite high spot to hang out these days is in or on top of our dressing room shelves. He needs a boost to get up to the top, not that he hasn’t tried on his own a few times. Like many cats, he’s obsessed with spaces that aren’t accessible all the time. He loves trying to jump in the dressing room drawers when they’re open.
Second, this is the year that Hobbes met Tommy. Watching the relationship between Tommy and the cats has been one of the best things ever. The cats have such different personalities that Tommy really has a different relationship with each cat. Crazy cat lady talk, I know, but cat owners know what I mean. Initially, Hobbes felt like his role as the baby of the family was threatened and was adamant about still getting as much attention as ever (because you know the cats are really neglected now). He likes being the little guy again. Then we had a happy pre-mobile baby period where Hobbes felt comfortable hanging out near Tommy and did so fairly regularly.
Now that Tommy’s mobile, the whole game has changed. Hobbes is such a nut that he will actually play chase games with Tommy. I am not saying this in a delusional “my cat babies really do love my human baby” way. Hobbes is the little guy among two (slightly) older brother cats and is often looking for a new play challenge. Tommy gives him a run for his money.
Hobbes lets Tommy chase him around and around in a way I find truly remarkable. Of course, for now, Tommy’s still crawling, not running, and Hobbes understands his advantage completely. Even so, I think it goes without saying that most cats don’t tolerate little humans chasing them in any capacity whatsoever. Tommy will also engage Hobbes in little games. For example, he’ll try to poke Hobbes while he’s hiding under bubble wrap or in his crinkly cat tube (as in the video above). Tommy thinks these games are so funny. Most of the time, Hobbes will play with him for at least a minute or two at a time.
The one thing that Hobbes doesn’t love so much about Tommy is that he’s definitely figured out that people come over to see Tommy, not him. Again, I find this a little funny. Even with the addition of Tommy, I’m still at home all day most days. Hobbes still gets a lot of attention. But he’s been visibly jealous a few times when people have come over and spent time with Tommy. He routinely tries to charm my parents and Tommy’s birth family to get attention from them as well.
I continue to be impressed by how much Hobbes’ relationship with the other two cats, Apollo and Ares, continues to develop. Aside from the whole pinning and biting Apollo thing, the three cats get along so well. Apollo and Ares remain tight buddies (they are littermates who have been together from birth) but are both buddies with Hobbes, too. Hobbes is closer with Apollo, who is the sweetest cat in the world and the best brother bud any cat would ever want. Hobbes hangs out with Ares pretty regularly as well.
Finally, Hobbes remains the enthusiastic food beggar in the house. He is crazy about scrambled eggs and gets so excited as soon as I get out a small frying pan. Hobbes also loves tuna water and comes running at the first can opener sound. He goes back for seconds to make sure every last bit of tuna water is cleaned from his little plate. He loves anything that involves shredded chicken in the slow cooker and always comes to investigate when I open the slow cooker.
Hobbes also goes nuts when we get pizza or Arbys. I’m not quite sure why he gets so excited about pizza. But he’s shameless about trying to get into a pizza box. He fetches (yep, like a dog) balled up Arbys wrappers over and over again, bats them around like soccer balls, and then settles down to rip them into little pieces. If you watch my Instagram stories, you may have seen these antics once or twice.
We love you, Hobbes! Here’s to a fantastic year #4.
