Bed and Bugs

The rainy season has started here, which brought the temperatures down. My bed has become my favorite place to nap again. I have become more playful with the cooler temperatures. Mom and I had several play sessions today. Mom has been wondering why my scratching post changes position, as she hasn't seen me scratching the post part, which makes it tip and move. I showed her today. I don't scratch the post, I attack it! I leap on it and wrap my body around the post, so it doesn't tip over and to go town on the post with my claws. That makes it move.

Last night I showed Mom that I am too interested in flying bugs. I was lying on her bed while she blogged, then she heard a big thump and turned around. I was on the floor eating a moth I had just caught. Mom was hoping that it wouldn't come up again, and it didn't. She let me have a tiny bit of her ice cream for dessert. Today I chased a big fly around the big room, but gave up the chase when it went into the kitchen. The floor in there is too slippery for a flying bug chase.

I have mostly been eating up all my food and helping Mom eat hers. I got a little mac and cheese for lunch and we had steak for dinner. Mom gave me tiny bites until I didn't want any more. I have it really good here and I love it.

Tuxie Tuesday

Mom didn't take a picture of me today, so here is an earlier one that she hasn't used yet. Sometimes I take the furminator away from Mom while she is brushing me. I like to rub my face on the handle. My tuxie bib still hasn't grown back all the way from when it was trimmed and shaved back in March. I got Mom up twice this morning for no reason. I still had food and didn't want to play. I just wanted to get her up. She doesn't get mad at me and she doesn't shut me out of her room, just grumbles a little. I got my cuddles just before time to get up for good anyway. I found out that Mom can multitask. I got her to play with me while she was talking on the phone just before she went to work. That was cool. Mom found my nip ball, so I don't get a new one. I had knocked it into my little PTU and it was under the towel.

Karen Jo: I don't really mind you getting me up, because you always let me go back to sleep for at least an hour before you do it again. I don't know why I thought to look for your nip ball in the PTU. Maybe it just occurred to me that it was one place I hadn't looked yet. I enjoyed playing with you while I was on the phone. It gave us some good time together before I went to work. I think I may go back to doing some Kitty Limericks. It's getting hard to find things to talk about every day since Herman is doing so well. I am overjoyed that he is doing so well, but we have gotten into a comfortable routine and there isn't always something new and interesting to say.

Training Mom

It's been really toasty warm here (in the 80s), so I have been doing a lot of this. I had my paw over my eyes when Mom got the camera out, but I moved it before she could take the picture. Remember when I said that I couldn't get Mom to play with me at oh-dark-thirty, no matter what I did? Well, I found a way around that. I just waited until it was barely getting light and woke Mom up like I do when I want early breakfast. She got right up and started following me down the hall. Instead of running into the kitchen, I ran into the big room and attacked one of my toys. Mom came in and played with me, but she had to turn on the kitchen light to see what I was doing and where the toys were. We played until I was ready to stop, then we went into the kitchen and Mom got me early breakfast. She went back to bed while I ate. I jumped up on the bed before she got back to sleep and snuggled up next to her and meowed for her to put her arm out for me to use for a pillow and she did. Then I stuck my head in her hand for scritches and she obliged. I even persuaded her to use both hands to pet and scritch me. I shifted over on my back. Now Mom knows perfectly well that when I do this, I want my chest petted, but her hand always wanders down to tickle my furchin, which I do NOT like. I usually put the bitey on her thumb when she tickles my furchin, but my head was sooo comfy that I just kicked her with my back feet until her hand went back to my chest where it belonged. I got petted for a nice long time, until I wiggled a bit away to let Mom know that I had enough and we both went to sleep. To show my appreciation, I didn't bug her again until it was full daylight and time for second breakfast, then I actually let her sleep again until it was time for her to get up. You have to give your Mom a little reward to help the training sink in.

Karen Jo: Thank you for letting me sleep today, Herman. I appreciate it. I just can't resist tickling your furchin. I just love it that you have that little round belly. As long as it's there, I know that you aren't losing weight, as that is the first part that goes away. What did you do with your nip ball? We played with it in the almost dark, but I can't find it anywhere now.

I'm not telling. If you can't find it, you will just have to get me a new one.

Karen Jo: I just might have to do that, but it will have to wait a few days, until I have some time off. You had fun with a bug in the kitchen tonight.

Yes, I did. I love it that bugs are starting to come into the house.

Karen Jo: You only seem to notice the ones on the floor, though. There was a big fly in the kitchen this morning and you never noticed it.

I was too busy looking out the kitchen window and sniffing the smells. I also discovered that I like macaroni and cheese with hamburger.

Karen Jo: That surprised me a little. I figured that you would go for the macaroni and cheese, but you have always turned up your nose at hamburger before. However, when I gave you a little spoonful of the mixture, you ate it all up.

You never can tell what I will want to eat. I like to keep you guessing.

Christmas in July

Looky! My package from Ricky for Christmas in July has arrived already! Just look at all this neat stuff. The plastic package had a purple furry mouse, a wand toy with a pink fuzzy critter and three cage balls with big jingle bells inside. Mom got a very nice picture frame and a cute gray wooden kitty.


Mom had to take the above picture really fast, because I really wanted to play with the blue fleece mousie.
Here I am with the purple mousie and the pink thing on the wand.

I just gave one of the plastic balls a good whap. I love them because I can pick them up with my claws and shake them and really send them flying. Thank you so much, Ricky! My lazy Mom has just finished her shopping tonight.

Karen Jo: I'm sorry, Herman. I have been working really hard lately and putting in overtime. I get off work so tired that I can barely drag myself home and feed and medicate you.

I wouldn't mind it if you were too tired to medicate me.

Karen Jo: Oh, yes, you would, when the poop puddles came back.

I guess you are right. I'm tired of talking about poop. I'm doing just the same, a mixture of solid poops and thick pudding poops. I won't mention it again unless something changes.

Look at my sidebar! I am now a member of the New Tuxedo Gang. Thank you so much for letting me join.

In other news, Mom and I have been having a great time together. Now when I wake her up for second breakfast, I want some cuddles first. On Mom's days off, we can cuddle for a long time. I'm too hungry to cuddle before early breakfast. We play at least some every day. Usually a little in the morning and more at night. I have learned how to whap my nip ball so that it flies up in the air and bounces. Mom hasn't found any more bald spots, so I guess I just did the overgroom/pull out a mat the one time. Mom was a bit worried that I was getting too bored while she was at work, despite having more toys than I can play with all within easy reach and the bird channel on cat TV on all day.

Karen Jo: I got a suggestion that I leave the people TV on for Herman while I am at work, but I am a bit afraid to do that. It is thunderstorm season here and I don't want the TV to get fried. Would the radio, turned to a talk or easy listening station work?

If you would just stay home with me, you wouldn't have to worry about it.

Karen Jo: I have to work to keep you in cat food.

I guess you better keep going then. ::big sigh::

More Tummy

Here's another tummy shot. You can see where I was spot shaved on my leg and side for my last big mat. Mom is falling asleep at the keyboard, so we will keep this kind of short. The solid poops are back. I didn't barf yesterday, but I did barf again tonight while Mom was at work. This one didn't upset Mom much, as she said it looked like I ate a lot of dry food, then took a big drink of water some time later. Lots of dry food plus lots of water means barf every time. I am not acting at all sick, so she's not really worried. Mom went to the vet to get me some more medicine and asked some questions. The bald spot is probably due to overgrooming or possibly a mat that I pulled out myself, though Mom didn't notice any mats in that area. The vet also said that the little bit of grated cheddar that I get every morning after I take my Interferon won't hurt my digestion at all.

Did you know that Bed Monsters can appear at both ends of the bed? I beat up some near my Mom's head this morning. They wiggled around and tried to get away, but I got them good.

Tummy Thursday

Mom took this picture because the Kool Kittie Krew wanted to see my pudgy tummy. I am still doing well, but I got all barfy today.

Karen Jo: You certainly did. You barfed this morning and again while I was at work. It wasn't a hairball and it wasn't because you ate a bunch of dry food, then drank a lot of water. It was all Stinky Goodness both times and I can't figure it out, unless you did eat some of the green pea and duck and it was too rich for you. I did take the green pea and duck away about eleven this morning, so I don't get why you would barf again this evening. I won't give you any more of it and we'll see if the barfs go away. If they don't, then it's back to the vet. I am feeling so frustrated. I do everything I can to make you all well, then something else happens. You are also going bald. I found a bare patch on your back just behind your shoulders. The skin looks perfectly healthy, no scales, crust or redness, no sign of ringworm, just no fur. This happened once before, when you were really sick. Your elbow got bald. I thought it might be from your sitting in the meatloaf position all the time and just rubbing the fur off on the carpet, but I pointed it out to the vet and she didn't seem to think it was anything to worry about. The fur there has grown back again. I wish I knew what was going on. I am definitely not bringing another cat into the house.

Abby wanted to know if I am an Alpha cat. Mom just doesn't know. I kept my hoo-has until I was almost two years old and that tends to make males want to be Alphas. I boss Mom around some. I insist that she get up early in the morning and get my breakfast and I decide when I want to be petted and when the brushing session is over. However, when I see Mom with the syringe, I know that I am going to get my medicine whether I want it or not, so I mostly cooperate. I have ridden to the vet twice with other cats in the car and I didn't react to that in any way. I just made my usual grumbling meows about being cooped up.

Tuesday, Toesday

My nip syringe has made me so mellow that I finally let Mom take a picture of my one pink toe pad. You can biggify the picture to see it better. I love using my syringe for a pillow when I nap. Sigh. I was doing so well with my solid poops that Mom cut back on my medicine to see how I would do. I went back to pudding poop, so I am getting all three doses per day again. We were both so hoping that I could get off the medicine and make solid poop all by myself. Mom ran out of baby food and tried the pill shooter on me again. I let her do it, once. When she got home from work, with baby food, she tried the shooter on me again and I really fought it, so it's back to the powdered pill in diluted baby food syringed into my mouth again. I am so used to it by now that I hardly resist it at all any more.

Mom went out this morning and came home with a roast beef sandwich for her lunch. I have always turned up my nose at roast beef before, so she was surprised when I told her that I wanted some of her sandwich. She was even more surprised when I ate the roast beef that she offered me. Then Mom went out again and came back a couple of hours later, saying that she wasn't leaving me any more today. I'm glad.

Karen Jo: I had to take care of some bank business and send off some stuff from the safety deposit box to the people winding up my Mother's estate. After lunch I went to the dentist. Now I'm going to goof off, spend lots of time with Herman and blog a lot.

I am finding things interesting that I never showed any interest in before. Mom put her shopping bag on the floor last night to take stuff out of it. When it was empty, I stuck my head in it and pushed it around the kitchen floor. Then I ran into the living room, watched the bag closely while doing wiggle-butt, then pounced it and slid across the floor. That was fun. I'll have to try it again.

Karen Jo: I am so glad to see this kind of behavior in you. Bags never held any attraction for you before. I think you are feeling even better than you were before you got sick. Maybe it's because you are very sure that this is your home now and you feel comfortable trying new things. Speaking of which, thank you all for your advice on my becoming a foster to FIV+ kitties. I do think it is probably too soon to subject Herman to any stress. The shelter hasn't called yet, so maybe they are really thinking it over, too. Since Herman has both FIV and FeLV, any kitty with just FIV would be in some danger of catching FeLV from Herman. I wouldn't be comfortable taking in a foster who didn't have both, because Herman has been all over the house. Herman seems very happy as an only cat, except he hates to see me leave for work. I know that he plays while I am gone, because his toys are all moved around when I get home. I don't know that he is actually lonely for company. I suspect that he just likes having me around.

I like having you around to feed me, for sure. You gave me that canned green pea and duck again. I have already told you that I don't like it.

Karen Jo: I will keep trying it on you every once in a while. I tried giving you grated cheddar for weeks before you decided that you liked it. Now you gobble down your cheese like it's the best stuff in the world.

Sigh. Moms! They are so hard to train.

More Fun

Mom took a lot of pictures of me during my first play session with my Oh Boy! Cat Toy syringe. Here I was rolling it back and forth. Look! I'm a model. I think this is so cool. Not much happened today. Our house got invaded by a stranger who stayed for a long time and I didn't get much play time with Mom.

Karen Jo: That was my Mother's financial adviser and the man who wrote her trust. I signed lots and lots of papers and I think I am almost through with settling the estate.

What I like to eat is taking an interesting turn. Mom was eating Hawaiian chicken and rice and I wanted some. She offered me a little piece of chicken, but I refused it. Then she dropped some rice and I ate it. I really wanted to lick up the juice from her plate when she was finished eating, but she wouldn't let me.

Karen Jo: That juice was mostly apple juice and if there is anything you don't need, it's apple juice.

I really didn't want Mom to go to work today. I meowed and meowed at her when she was getting ready to leave. When she gave me my good-bye pat I tried to catch her hand to make her stay, but, unfortunately, I scratched her instead. She knew I didn't mean it and forgave me instantly, but she still left.

Karen Jo: I have to go get green papers to keep you in food. You are eating wonderfully well and I have to keep buying more food for you. You are getting just a tiny bit pudgy in the tummy and I love it.

I have a question. Due to my success with Herman, his foster Mom recommended me to a local shelter who is looking for people to foster FIV+ cats. All his life, Herman has been an only cat, except for the six months he spent in his foster home and there he was isolated from the other cats. He growled at any cat who stopped to sniff at his door. Have any of you had experience with introducing new cats into a home with a cat who has had very little contact with other cats?

New Toy

Just a short poop report today. I have been making at least one solid poop per day since Wednesday. I hope I can keep it up. A package arrived for me today. As you can see, I found it very interesting. OK, Mom, open it up already!

Yay! It's the nip syringe from Oh Boy! Cat Toy that I won in a drawing that Tamar from I Have Cat held back when I was so sick. There was a slight mix up and it just arrived today. I am glad that it was delayed because now I am well enough to really enjoy it. I grabbed it as soon as Mom got it unwrapped. I even tore off some of the tissue paper myself. I sniffed it and bit it and rolled around with it. That is why the picture is blurry.

As you can see it is big enough to give it a good bunny kicking. I played with it for a long time, which is unusual for me. I even took my first afternoon nap with my head resting on it. It is sturdy and packed full of really good nip. I even got a little nipped out, which is also unusual for me. On the basis of this toy, I highly recommend Oh Boy! Cat Toy for really fun toys.

Award

I can hardly believe it. I got this award three times. Thank you, Curzon, Jadzia and Nimbus; Harry Spotter and Gotchi. I am really thrilled about it.

This award has some rules:
Rule 1. Thank the person who gave it to you.
Rule 2. Share 9 things about yourself.
Rule 3. Pass the award along to 9 bloggers who you think are fantastic.
Rule 4. Contact Blog award winners.

It's going to be hard to tell you nine things about myself that you don't already know, but maybe if I throw in a few things I have done lately I can come up with nine.

1. I have made four solid poops since Wednesday.
2. I weigh 12 pounds now. I have gained back all the weight I lost when I got so sick.
3. Mom won't get up to play with me at oh-dark-thirty even if I go all ninja kitty on her. She tried to calm me down by petting me, but I grabbed her wrist, bit her thumb and bunny kicked her arm until she cried for mercy.
4. I discovered Bed Monsters in my Mom's bed and I beat them up real good, too.
5. I don't like canned green pea and duck cat food.
6. Hairballs put me off my food for several hours.
7. I have joined the kitties who barf on the carpet. I laid a nice hairball in the hall, but put it next to the night light, so Mom wouldn't step in it when I got her up for early breakfast. Hey, I have to keep up my standing in the Good Kitty Club.
8. I have been licking my Stinky Goodness dishes clean, except after a hairball.
9. I love naked feet, especially the toes. I rub my head all over them, sniff them, lick them and even gently bite them.

I would like to pass this award along to:
Katie
Ayla and Iza
The Ozark Mountain Cats
Roxy and Lucky
Shadow, Molly, Trooder and Jake
Whicky Wuuddler, Oliver and Gerry
The Kattonic Cats
Parker, Rudy, Puff and Powder
Daisy and Harley

Award

I'll be turning the blog over to Mom soon for her award, but first the poop report. I had solid poops Saturday and Sunday, but when back to thick pudding poops on Monday. Mom did say that one of them had a shape, but was too flat to be solid. I am eating up a storm and playing THoE by myself and batting my toys around when it's cooler. It was so hot when Mom left for work that I was stretched out on the kitchen linoleum.

Karen Jo: Thank you for your report Herman. I received this award from Sammy and Andy's Mom. It's for us Moms who help our kitties blog. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. Answer the questions, then pick five Moms to pass it along to.

1. What would your prefect day consist of?

The day I finish up everything connected with settling my Mother's estate will be perfect for me.


2. How would you describe yourself if you were an item of clothing?

An old pair of hiking boots -- not much to look at, but comfortable and dependable.



3. What hobbies are you currently working on?

Catching up on last season's Doctor Who episodes.


4. Walking in the woods in wellies or bare foot on the beach?

Since I live in the woods, or very near, I would choose barefoot on the beach for a change.

5. Have you ever hugged or sang to a tree?

Frequently.



6. Growing your own veggies or nipping to the supermarket?

Nipping to the supermarket. My Mother and I used to grow our own, but I don't seem to have the willpower to do the work now.


7. Have you found anyone exciting in your family tree?

One of my ancestors fought in the Revolutionary War.

8. Slap up meal in a posh restaurant or fish ‘n’ chips from the wrapper?

Fish and chips from the wrapper.

9. Which element do you most resonate with, Earth, Air, Fire or water?

Air.


10. Do you believe in fairies?

Most of the time, but then sometimes I get all "rational" and think I'm being silly.

I would like to pass this award along to:

Monty Q's Mom

The Mom at Momma Grace and Company

Jan of Jan's Funny Farm

Sweet Praline's Mom

Beau Beau and Angie's Mom

Aftermath

Here I am in profile. Mom us using up some of the pictures she has already taken of me. It's gotten hot here and most of the time I am stretched out resting. I am still good for a short game of soccer in the morning, though. Ooooh, I think I had too much fun at my birthday party. I barfed the morning after.

Karen Jo: That wasn't a too-much-party barf, Herman. That was a hairball.

What's that?

Karen Jo: You haven't ever had one before because you never used to groom yourself much. Now that you are grooming yourself, you get loose fur in your tummy and it comes back up.

Gross! At least I was a good kitty about it and did it on the plastic mat in the kitchen. I did put me off my Medley for a while.

Karen Jo: Not for long. When I got home on Friday, you had eaten up all your Stinky Goodness and your Medley and the bottom of you pea and duck bowl was clearly visible. You are one hungry kitty!

I need to gain back the weight I lost. Besides, it's too hot to do much but eat and sleep. Saturday I made some good poops, too.

Karen Jo: You sure did. One all solid poop and one half solid poop. That's the most solid poop in one day so far.

Thank all of you for coming to my birthday party. It was a blast! Now Mom is going to get to work on my latest batch of awards, so she can post about them.

Birthday Party

Things went so well at the vet that Mom agreed that I needed a birthday party. I nicely let them shave off my mat and I have gained more weight. I weigh 11.2 pounds now. Happy Birthday to me! I am three years old today. Mom says we can do anything we want inside the house and out. There is plenty of food: lots of Stinky Goodness and crunchy food and roast beef and turkey and ham. There are niptinis and meowgaritas and cat milk and fresh water to drink. I have a nice big litter box full of fresh litter. The house is fairly big with a nice hall to play THoE down. It will be great to have company running down the hall. The couches have soft blankets on them for resting and anyone can use my bed, if they like. There is plenty of room on my platform and the table with the soft blanket and big pillow on it for watching the bird channel on cat TV. Mom will fill up the bird feeders for us. I have lots of toys to share and Mom says she will wave the wand toys for us. There are curtains to climb and chairs to curl up in. For you kitties who like to go outside, there are gardens to dig in and gophers to hunt. Oh, we are going to have so much fun! The party starts now and lasts until midnight, or maybe longer.

The party is going great. A whole bunch of kitties showed up for the sleepover last night, though we didn't do a whole lot of sleeping. We played Thundering Herd of Elephants up and down the hall, dumped out the toy basket and knocked toys all over the house, ate, drank and had a ball. In the wee hours we put the stereo on low and slow danced for a while. About four we got Mom up to replenish the buffet. By five there were kitties crashed out all over the place. The couches were full and so were the platform and the table and a bunch of kitties joined Mom in her bed. At seven we got Mom up for breakfast, as more kitties were arriving all the time. Mom staggered back to bed and we played fairly quietly until ten. Then Mom announced cuddle time in bed and we kept her busy for an hour giving ear and chin scritches and general petting and cuddling. Then it was time for my Interferon and Mom broke out the cheese and sardines. All the cheese was grated for easy nomming and it didn't last long. We had cheddar, cojack, provolone and Swiss. Then we put Mom to work getting the toys out of all the hard-to-get-to places we had whapped them into. Next it was time to feed the birdies and we watched cat TV for a while. There was curtain climbing and couch bouncing going on. We even had a litter flinging contest. The corn litter isn't much good for distance flinging as it is so light, so we tried to see who could fling out the most litter in one fling. Then we made Mom clean it up so we could do it again. For lunch Mom added pork roast to the menu. The wand toys are getting a good workout. Come on over if you aren't here already.

OK kitties, now it's time for the cake. Mom made this cool cake, but don't worry, there's no chocolate in it. It does have catnip in it. Mom used a spice cake recipe, but she used catnip instead of spices. The other stuff is colored whipped cream. Dig in. We have been having so much fun. There's a great gopher hunt going on in the back yard. All the windows are open, so we indoor kitties can cheer on the hunters. Khyra and Merdie are having a great time out there, along with the kitties who go outside. There's lots of sniffing going on, but I haven't seen any gophers yet. Meanwhile, indoors there's lots of kitties at the buffet and the niptinis and meowgaritas are flowing again. We are about to crank up the stereo for dancing again. Pretty soon it will be dark (in another hour or so) and we'll let the moths loose. That should be fun.

The kitties and woofies are coming in from the gopher hunt, as it is getting dark. I don't know if they caught any, but Artemisia is looking pretty smug. It's that magical time when it is dark enough for the moths to feel at home, but not so dark that we can't see them. The Katnip Lounge kitties brought the moths, so, Felix and Salem, would you like to do the honors and open the jar? Wheee! Lookit 'em fly!

Wow! The moth chasing was great fun. The moths have all been caught, or found really good hiding places now, so it's time for dancing. Mom will fire up the stereo and we have lots and lots of dance music records. Sweet Pea, thank you so much for cleaning my ears this afternoon. Would you like to dance with me?

Mom is going to bed at midnight, because she says that we tired her out. She did say that any kitties who want to can spend the night, just no more THoE after midnight. We can keep the stereo on, as long as we play it quietly and of course we can still drink and nom and play with the toys, as long as we don't make too much noise. Tomorrow is a work day, so everyone will have to teleport home by 10 am, so Mom can get the house back to normal and get ready for work. Thank you all so much for coming. I hope you are having as much fun as I am.

More Progress

Mom hasn't taken any more pictures of me lately, so here I am relaxing with my mousie from a while back. I am making more progress toward having normal poop. Mom has found two more solid poops in my litter box since I last blogged.

Karen Jo: It is a little frustrating. The solid poops appear about every other day with very thick pudding poop in between. Tuesday I started Herman's pulse with the antibiotic, so maybe that will help get him to solid poop all the time. I am very hopeful that he will get completely back to normal very soon.

I am really enjoying life and having lots of fun. Mom put my wand toys in a big vase and I played with my mousie all by myself for quite a while. I whap my nip ball around and play soccer with Mom. I watch the birdies on my platform and I really got into waking Mom up for food again.

Karen Jo: You were one hungry kitty last night. You woke me up three times before 8:00 am for more Stinky Goodness.

You did say that you missed my pre-dawn wake up calls. Well, you don't have to miss them any more. You had some interesting food for lunch.

Karen Jo: I had a catfish dinner from the nearby take-out place. I didn't give you any catfish because the cornmeal breading has hot spices in it.

I was more interested in something else you had.

Karen Jo: That surprised me. I never knew that cats liked coleslaw. You were so interested in it that I gave you a little, thinking that you would just lick the dressing, but you ate the cabbage, too.

It was yummy. Do I really have to go to the v-e-t in the morning?

Karen Jo: Yes, you do. We need to get that nasty mat off your side. You will feel better when it's over.

I suppose I will. I just don't like to go there.

Karen Jo: We will go with your foster Mom and Miss Kitty. You can meet her through your PTUs.

I just want it to be over with. You say I won't have to go back again for a long time, right?

Karen Jo: That's right. You won't have to go back unless you get sick again, because I think the Furminator will keep you from getting any more mats. At least I hope so. If everything goes well, you won't have to go again until next spring, when it's time for your wellness exam.

That sounds great to me. Maybe taking the nasty medicine is worth it after all.

Guess what? Thursday is my birthday. I will be three. I am trying to talk Mom into having a party for me.