In August 2006, we made a spur of the moment stop at an animal shelter to look at kittens. There were plenty of cuties, but Geoff fell in love immediately with the small & scrawny white one that was cuddled up and sleeping. Named Simba by his original owners, he had big ears and orange stripes on his tail. We simply couldn't leave without bringing the little boy with us. We named him Xander after a character from one of our favorite tv shows, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The shelter believed he was about 4 months old. Xander is quite the character. His favorite toy "Sock" was also his first. He likes to carry Sock around in his mouth and deliver him to us while we are sleeping. He also goes crazy for "Stick Bird" (a group of feathers & a bell on the end of a stick) and will do flips in the air to try catching him. He understands a lot of words, like "outside", "hungry?", "kiss", and "treat". His favorite game is hide and go seek. We throw a toy which he runs after while we hide. Then we call his name & he locates us! He is very proud of how fast he can find us. He rarely meowed for the first two years of his life, unless he was uncomfortable or wanted attention. After his second birthday, we noticed he was much more talkative. He has always been a major purr-er though! Xander Stats birthdate: estimated April 2006 breed: domestic shorthair size: approximately 30" in length from head to tail and 12 pounds nicknames: bub, pawless wonder, little cream soda, little boy, pumpkin, muffin, cottonball, fluffy, papoose, puppy, sha-sha likes: kitty massages, toys, treats, laying on our clothes, grooming himself, nuzzling us, going outside dislikes: getting wet, medicine, leaving the house, the vacuum cleaner, being held against his will Ashley & Geoff We started dating January 2003, when we both lived in southern California. Now we live in Las Vegas, NV. We got married on May 10, 2008. Geoff is a culinary school graduate and works in a Wolfgang Puck restaurant on The Strip. Ashley is an administrative assistant for a construction company. We love movies, music, shopping, and food. Xander is our first and only shared pet.