Molly's the only cat I've ever had that does this. She seems to do it the most when she wants attention, such as when she's hungry. If I'm trying to sleep in a bit and she wants breakfast, she always goes for my eyes. Every time. I swear she understands eyelids are a clue in getting me to get out of bed. Doesn't make it any more pleasant though, lol. For a while, I started ducking under the covers when I saw her coming, and she knew she was done for. So she'd go to my knees and snuggle in to sleep. But as soon as I snuck my face out of the covers again, she'd leap up and watch me, and the paw would come out again if my eyelids stayed closed for longer than 2 seconds.
She always hangs out in front of the computer screen at night when she's hungry, and if she feels I'm ignoring her (which I am, lol), she'll start staring at me, then she'll reach out a paw and try to touch my face, but I always duck. Dunno why, except maybe as a reflexive action to get away from the nail pricks (she extends them too, lol. What's up with that?). I always stroke her, though, since she is a touchy-feely cat and I want her to continue to use her actual personality to talk, rather than being something else to get my attention.
She's got great little paws, too. She's always flexing them when she feels good, kind of like she's always stretching and relaxing. The paws are big and sooooo defined (like real lion toes), unlike my other two girls, who have little furry nubs for toes. It feels strangely nice when Molly is sleeping on your lap or whatever, and she suddenly flexes her paws and stretches out a bit and starts purring.
She's the only one who doesn't get disturbed if I so much as lay a hand on her back while she sleeps. If anything, she sometimes even starts to purr. The other girls get frumpy, lol