Best Buds: Liam and Chester

I'm already convinced some day, Liam and Chester will have a very special bond. I have been meaning to do a post focusing on it for awhile; a chronicle of how their relationship has developed since even before Liam was born! Some of these photos and videos you might have seen before, but some are new.

Chester has always been no ordinary cat, and pets like this often end up being the ones we remember most from our childhood. 15 years ago on this date, my beloved childhood cat Tig passed away peacefully in our presence laying in the sunshine in our backyard after approximately 20 wonderful years on earth. I'll always remember him, and smile. I hope Liam enjoys a similar experience with one, or both, of his kitties!

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Me with Chester a week before Liam was born

When Chester started noticing new baby items coming into the house, he made a point to try out everything and make sure it was safe for the new arrival. Sometimes he got Pumpkin to help out as well.

Pumpkin was a lot more shy about actual baby; polite at first, but timid when the baby started crying. But not Chester. Chester would run across the house about as quickly as I would, almost like he was concerned. And he was often close by, guarding us.

Within the first days we brought Liam home, Chester killed a "fattened" squirrel to celebrate. This may not sound so pleasant to you and me, for him this is a very high honor!

The cats wanted to be our little helpers, but we were all so tired they also had too hard of a time staying awake to put the laundry away. They found testing the safety of Liam's things more their style and went back to focusing on that for awhile.
Liam began to appreciate Chester's efforts, even though he wasn't quite sure how to show it yet!

In all these videos, Liam is 11 months old.. very close to 1 year

As the baby boy grew, Chester soon found another role he was excellent at: entertaining!






He also enjoyed being on the clean up crew, as the little nursling became a messy toddler! Broccoli? Sweet potatoes? Chicken! Chester would clean up them all.
Chester also loves greeting Liam after he wakes up, and sometimes comes up to sit with us when we're nursing.

Finally, Chester was delighted that his hard work paid off and now Liam was also able to start play with him!


He's grown surprisingly more sophisticated in his play over the last month or so too! I look forward to continuing to see how they grow and play together.