Happy Holidays from your favorite feline friends! :)

Greetings, everyone!

I know you usually receive this masterpiece before Christmas, but this holiday season has been hectic. Cash and I have been busy nursing our parents back to good health for the later half of December. Even though they got flu shots this year, they still developed a nasty case of the flu and then had ear infections and a sinus infection. They have had this croupy, yucky cough that makes them sound as if they are hacking up their lungs. We had to separate them because the two of them together and coughing made our house shake. Their voices also sound funny, as if they’ve been smoking multiple packs of cigarettes. We’re so glad their sickness can’t spread to us. They are finally feeling better!

Look how beautiful I am in the glowing light of the holidays. :)

While I was doing my best Florence Nightingale impression during their illness, Cash attempted to start typing our annual letter, but he realized he could only spell his name backwards and the word tuna, and his paws are too big for the keyboard, so his version of a letter wouldn’t have been all that fun, or even possible, to read. I had to take over, so here are some highlights from our 2014.

Cash likes to nap in his cheese house. See how it complements his eyes.

After I put my paw down and had a serious conversation with our mom about the importance of finishing what she started, she finally defended her dissertation and successfully completed her Ph.D. (doctor of philosophy) degree from the University of Tennessee. It was eight years in the making (as long as we’ve been writing this letter), but now both of our parents have doctoral degrees. Talk about the pressure for Cash and I to succeed in our third year of kittygarten!

The other exciting news about our mom is that she accepted a full-time position as a faculty lecturer in the College of Communication and Information at the University of Kentucky in August. She teaches four writing, public speaking and digital media classes each semester and has about 100 students total, ranging from “I want to clone this student because she/he is perfect” to “Reading your paper makes my eyes hurt.” Her students now call her Dr. DeVito, and many of them have started addressing her as “Dr. D.”

Check out the cool UK gear and supplies they gave our mom on her first official day!

Our dad finishes dental school in May and will graduate with his DMD from the University of Kentucky (so he’ll be Dr. Dr. DeVito) on Sunday, May 10. Yes, that is Mother’s Day, but here in the Bluegrass, it’s much better to have graduation ceremonies on Mother’s Day weekend instead of the weekend before, which is when the Kentucky Derby happens up the road in Louisville. Many universities start their spring semester a little later in January so graduation does not fall on Derby weekend. That’s a big no-no, or should I say, neigh-neigh. Anyway, we are looking forward to having family members come up and celebrate our parents’ over-educated achievements.

Our dad completed a summer internship at two dentist offices in Kentucky and learned a lot about how to run a successful practice.

The office staff at one of the practices loved our dad so much that they decorated Libby on his last day there. How cool!

He continues to see a variety of patients during his clinic schedule…a few wonderful patients, some OK patients and a number of insane patients who can’t understand which end of the toothbrush to use. We were able to see many family members during 2014.

Grandpa Sam visited us for more than two weeks in June. He stayed so long that Cash and I thought our parents had adopted him (like they did us) and this would be his forever home.

Our parents took him on a train ride on Father’s Day (probably the highlight of his year) and out to a nice dinner. Guess what they got him to try? Sushi…and he actually liked it!

Yummy in the tummy!

While he was in our neck of the woods, he also ventured into other parts of the state, and he and our dad went to a Cincinnati Reds baseball game. On the drive home to Florida, he wandered through parts of the Carolinas and saw even more trains and museums. It was a purrfect vacation for him! He had knee surgery in the fall and has been recovering nicely with physical therapy several times a week.

It might be hard to tell, but that's Grandpa Sam at the Bluegrass Railroad Museum in Versailes, KY

In September, our parents flew to Florida for a long weekend beach trip. Every year, Aunt Donna and Uncle George go to the beach with Grandma Bouffard, and to celebrate grandma’s 85th birthday this year, lots of family members joined in the sun and fun.

Isn't cousin Ava the cutest? I wonder if she's as loud and has as much energy as cousin Adley?

Our parents spent time with Grandma Betty and Grandpa JP, Aunt Allison, Uncle Matt, cousin Ava and many other aunts, uncles and cousins. Our mom got to shop at Publix three days in a row, which if you know our mom, was a thrilling experience.

During October, we finally had the chance to meet our human cousins, Judson and Adley. They drove up with Uncle Jason and Aunt Kristen and visited for several days. To say the kids LOVED us would be an understatement. Adley walked around the house mildly yelling, “Kitty, Kitty, Kitty!” for five straight days.

As soon as they returned home from an adventure, Adley was wanting out of her cat seat to see the "KITTY!"

Cash was a trooper and let them pet him and chase him. I don’t know where they get their energy from but it’s impressive. I tried to teach them the importance of taking naps early and often, but they never caught on. My favorite game to play with them was hide and seek, where I hid and they never found me.

Our parents took them to a fall festival at a local pumpkin patch where there also was a petting zoo and a hay fort!

Uncle Dave checked Judson's and Adley's teeth. They are doing a great job brushing and flossing! Check out those cool Halloween PJs.

Even though our mom officially graduated in August, UT doesn’t have a summer graduation ceremony, so she participated in the December commencement ceremony. She had to wear a long gown and a funny-looking cap, and then her adviser had to place a hood over her head, so she spent all this time earning her degree and all she gets is a funny looking outfit?!

Grandma Sharon and Grandpa Amos drove up from Florida to see her in this costume, and then our mom got the biggest surprise of her life. She was at the hotel in Knoxville getting ready for the ceremony when suddenly there was a knock at the door, and guess who it was??? Judson, Uncle Jason and Aunt Kristen were outside! 

Judson was a great addition to graduation weekend. Our parents missed Adley, but she had lots of fun playing with JuJu, Papa and cousin Lukey-man back in Florida.

From what I hear, some happy tears were shed, and it was a great weekend celebration, complete with a Publix cake, balloons, sunflowers and Judson singing, “Happy Graduation, Aunt Adda!” many times.

After celebrating in Knoxville the night of graduation, they traveled to Gatlinburg and saw all the wonderful lights and displays. They also broke out the Eskimo gear while waiting in line for a trolley ride. It was only in the 30s, but for Florida folks, that's downright cold!

It was a busy year, but our Christmas was nice and quiet with our parents making a homemade meal of seafood pasta and roasted asparagus.

Cash wanted to see the new movie “The Interview” that deals with two Americans trying to assassinate the evil dictator of North Korea, but our parents didn’t want him getting any ideas. Sometimes, I wish I could send Cash to North Korea. I have a strong feeling he wouldn’t return. ☺ We hope you enjoyed a memorable holiday season, and we wish you the best in 2015!

Happy New Year, Sammie, Cash, and Drs. Allyson (Beutke) and David DeVito

P.S. I love waking up early on Saturdays to watch Tim Tebow on ESPN’s College Gameday show. He does such a great job reading the teleprompter. I also think UF made the right decision in letting Coach Muschamp go since he clearly wasn’t a champ. Maybe the new coach will work out. The third time is the charm, right? Go Gators! Go Vols! Go Cats!