Kirsten,
have you ever tried to talk elvish to them?!
Nellie loves when I read the elvish passages from LotR aloud to her...she's fond of poems anyway, but I think it's the soft pronounciation which is so appealing to cats...

Our neighbor's dog loves it when i tell her "Goooooooood girrrrrl"...but on the other hand I often call Nellie "Feines Määäädchen", which she likes just the same...

This is really an interesting thread and our cats seem to be all little Shakespeares with their fondness for wonderful words...lol...