Love Hate Relationship

This picture is hilarious of Twilight. I guess even cats have dorky faces and blink for pictures. It goes along with my topic well though because she looks so sinister.

So as many of you know, we were very spontaneous one night in October and came home from a school festival with a kitty; wild and crazy people that we are. (o: Now that we've had Twilight for a few months, we are into a nice little routine and I have learned many things I never knew about cats. I wouldn't call myself a cat person, so some of the things that cat people love has taken some getting used to. (I don't know if I'm necessarily a dog person either - I don't get why you have to be one or the other.)

So here's the nitty gritty - the whole truth - no fluff. If you want to know what it's really like to own a kitten, here you go - the good, the bad and the ugly...

Kitten's meows don't actually sound cute. They sound like a whiny baby. It is annoying.

Kitten's scratch and bite. We clip Twilight's nails, but unfortunately, can't clip her teeth. Kitties use these weapons for self-defense (which heaven knows Twilight needs when she is being malled or treated like a toy), but these weapons are also used when they are feeling "playful", which for a kitty is about 70% of the time. We have had to invest a lot more money in Bandaids and Neosporin. I am embarrassed sometimes how many Bandaids Natalie goes to school with.

I read in one of our cat manuals that owning a kitten is like having a toddler that can jump up to 4 vertical feet high - therefore giving them access to all kinds of additional trouble that you can keep away from a toddler. Everything on the tables, counters, bookshelves and even walls are easily accessible to a menacing cat. Cat-proofing is almost impossible. See below what she likes to play with behind my kitchen sink. I noticed one day when I came home that the little, red cacti had some little prickly parts missing. (insert evil laugh) Served her right.

Cat's poop. While I am very happy that cat's have that instinct to bury their you-know-what so that they go in a litter box. You still have to deal with the litter box. And you have to realize that even though cat's are inherently very clean animals, they can still have microscopic things you don't want to think about on their paws, etc. I've never seen anything gross on Twilight, but I am a little bit of a germaphobe so I can imagine.

Kitty Litter is messy. We have itty bitty pieces of kitty litter that get out of the box and on the floor daily. Little pieces all over in our laundry room and upstairs bathroom. I am constantly having to vacuum them up.

Cats like to be RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of everything you are doing. If I am reading, Twilight wants to either play with my bookmark dangling from my book or sit right between me and my book so I can't see the words. If I am working on my laptop, she sits right on the keyboard. If I am putting clothes in the dryer, Twilight wants to climb right inside and be a part of the excitement. If I am folding clothes, she jumps up at every piece of clothing I pick up. If someone comes over, she wants to be right on their lap. If I am cooking, she tries to get on the counter. And that leads to my next gripe...

Because of the aforementioned microscopic yuckies that I imagine all over Twilight's paws, I have been insistent that she not be on the table or counters. And guess where her favorite place to be is? So we have used the squirt bottle method. I think we have squirted upwards of 10 gallons of water on that cat and she STILL gets up on the counters and table. Sometimes immediately after experiencing the wrath of the squirt bottle. I think she actually enjoys the punishment. And that leads to my next item, that I think is one thing that makes Twilight unique...

We think that she loves water. Not just to drink, but to get into and play with. Whenever a sink is turned on, she comes running. Whenever the shower or bath get turned on, she is right there. She gets as close as she can to the water, without actually getting/falling in (except for two times). Until recently. She will actually get in the tub when it is just a few inches high now and get her paws and legs wet. She loves to curl up in the master bathroom sinks. Luckily, the toilet has not seemed to intrigue her, but I still insist the lids always remain down, just in case!

So with all these gripes, why do we still have her?

She is fun.

She is always making us laugh.

The girls LOVE her and Twilight makes them happy.

I love when she follows me around the house to do chores - she keeps me company. Especially those rare times when I am alone

She is fun to cuddle with (when she is not 'crazy cat').

She is teaching me to chill out.

She loves us and she needs us.

That's why.