I will be completely candid with you — I love cats more than almost everything and anything (I say "almost" only because my family is reading this). I come from a long, generational line of crazy cat ladies; while growing up, my mother and grandmother always owned two or more cats. My mother even had 5 cats at one time, yet managed to still spoil them all with rotisserie chicken meals (I told you they were spoiled) and baskets of cat toys. I have adopted 3 cats of my own over the last 3 years, and I am lucky enough to spend a lot of time with them because I work from home. In honor of National Cat Day, October 29, here are five of my favorite moments since I have been a cat owner:

1. 1. 1. My oldest cat, Tate, goes COMPLETELY insane if he hears the word “hammy” or hears me open the deli meat bag. I am not talking about the cute, puss-in-boots style begging for food: it consists of yowling, chipping the paint off my kitchen cabinets, frantically jumping on the bridge, biting my fingertips when I finally give him a piece, and then running away to eat his treat in privacy.

…I still give him ham every day.

2.Olive, my second adoptee, loves to sit in my bathroom window and hunt birds — unfortunately, this window is high up, and my toilet is his launching pad. I usually make sure the toilet lid is down because of my slightly irrational fear my cats will jump in head first and become stuck. However, a few weeks ago when I was preoccupied with work, I heard a loud splash and saw Olive just standing nonchalantly in the toilet.

3. 3. 3. I adopted my youngest cat, Triscuit, this past July from Best Friends Humane Society. I went there to learn about fostering kittens, but when I picked him up, he licked my nose and I was sold. Little did I know this kiss was not just one adorable coincidence; Triscuit is more like a puppy than a kitten. Every morning, I am woken up by him incessantly licking my face, kneading my back through the blankets (OUCH), or jumping on my bladder and stomach until I am forced awake. As soon as I give him attention, he usually wants to be left alone.

4. When Olive was neutered, he developed an infection and required a follow-up surgery. Though I was a nervous wreck the first few days after his surgery, it quickly became a hilarious week of recovery. Olive was high on his painkillers and condemned to the cone of shame. He meowed at the air, groomed his cone, ran in circles (and into walls), and constantly carried around his catnip banana.

5.

I love Jack Mormon coffee and walk to the shop every day, so I take Triscuit with me. At first, he was a bit afraid, but now his trip to the coffee shop is one his favorite times of the day. He loves to bite leaves off trees while we walk, flirt with the baristas, and knows he gets to eat whipped cream at the end.

Though three cats require a lot of responsibility and care, they give back tenfold with their unique personalities, weird quirks, and therapeutic purring. Happy National Cat Day to all my cat lovers, and share your own funny cat stories in the comments below! Don't forget to check out your local humane society to adopt or foster your own cat.