#3 Favorite Memory From Fall 2008

Our newest addition to the family... Twilight.

No, we're not having a baby, oh, how I wish...

but we did get to bring home a bundle of joy that requires no diaper changes and she's pretty cute! Her name is Twilight and she has brought a lot of joy and laughs to our home. Read below how in the world we ended up with this kitty cat.

Twilight at approximately 6 weeks old.
This picture cracks me up - if I had time I'd Photoshop a bubble that says, "Help!" coming out of the kitty's mouth. Oh how little Angela adores the kitty. Oh how terrified we are when we see her swinging the kitty around by her front paws for a game. Yikes! Angela has spent quite a bit of time in time out since Twilight has come home with us. Most of the time, though, Angela is very careful and sweet like the picture below...

Natalie has always been our little "mama" - caring for babies, animals (small ones that aren't too scary) and even bugs and worms. It was no surprise that Natalie has become the most attached to Twilight. She carries her gently around like a newborn. The cutest part is that Twilight loves her so much back, that she lets Natalie carry her like an infant over her shoulder or laying on her back in Natalie's arms. They are quite the pair. Natalie finds the kitty as soon as she gets home from school. She holds her for most of her time at home. When she's doing her homework, the kitty is in her lap. When she eats her snack, the kitty is in her lap. Natalie is head over heels with Twilight.

Sarah will feel bad for not having a picture with Twilight too - I will have to get one later. She is very attached to Twilight too and often argues with Natalie that she is hogging. She's right. Sarah is the one who came up with Twilight's name and is a great guardian over our kitty when Angela is around. (o: She loves to have Twilight take naps on her lap while she is watching SpongeBob or whatever on TV. I think that would be Sarah's definition of heaven. And she is so proud when Twilight purrs while she is holding her because she knows that means Twilight loves her back.

So how did we end up with this little furry friend? That is a great question. I never would have believed that we'd have a cat if you told me three weeks ago. It was a very spontaneous decision and luckily, it has been one that we haven't regretted for a minute.

So back in August, we seriously considered getting a dog. The kids are getting old enough that we felt like we might be able to handle it. We researched in books on breeds and looked through pet care manuals and websites. After lots of research we picked a breed we liked - Border Terrier - and found a breeder in Portland. We knew that we didn't want a puppy - as cute as they are, I wasn't up for the house training. We lucked out because the breeder was retiring a mama dog right when we inquired about house trained dogs. We filled out a very in depth application (with references too!) and within a few days we had an appointment set up to come and meet Hope. We saw pictures of her on the website and thought she was perfect.

About a half hour before we were going to leave on the Saturday of our appointment, the lady called and informed us that someone just came and bought the dog. We were so sad. It took a few days to get over it, the girls were so disappointed, but I think it was a blessing in disguise. The more I talked to people and told them what we almost did, the more people (who were mostly dog-owners themselves) said, "Don't do it! They are so much work." We always planned on trying to find another dog after the Hope incident, but the more people I talked to and the busier life got when school started, the more glad I was that it didn't work out.

Fast forward to the kids' school Fall Festival. We had a fabulous time at this event. I helped a bit with it, as a member of the Booster Club and the girls were great sports to play in the gym while I set up with several other ladies. The girls got to "test out" some of the carnival games beforehand and couldn't wait to come back for more! We had a great time - I did a shift at the snack bar, we ate a healthy dinner of hot dogs, chips and soda with candy for dessert. The girls tried dunking their teachers in the dunk tank, got tattoos (Natalie wanted hers on her forehead - of course) and we tried out the inflatable obstacle course. We were doing everything to spend our tickets by the end of the night - Joe** (my secret husband for those of you who haven't read my entry a few weeks ago) went a little overboard on ticket purchases. (o: When the last ticket was almost spent, the girls noticed a "Free Kittens" sign. They ran over and asked if they could hold one. This dad who put up the sign was ingenious. His cat had kittens and he needed to get rid of them. So who better to dangle them in front of than elementary kids with parents somewhere in tow. The reason why the girls didn't see the sign before was because there were so many little kids waiting to hold the kitties and then begging their parents, "Can we have one, PLEASE!"

When we went over, there were two, maybe three kitties left. I thought it was cute to see the girls hold them, but didn't think much else about it until Joe** started up. "Let's get one! C'mon it'll be fun! Look how cute they are." Oh boy, it's one thing to have the kids doing it, but now I was completely outnumbered. After lots of secretive talking between the two adult members of the family, I finally conceded thinking that a cat was probably better for us and less maintenance than a dog. So we did it!

But we didn't tell the girls. I headed to the car with the girls while Joe** picked the black kitten with white paws. He hid the kitty in his jacket and we drove home like normal. We had to cover up a few "meows", but I have to admit, it was pretty fun being so sneaky. When we got home Joe** told the girls he needed to empty out his pockets because we brought home so much stuff. He went through everything and then said, "What's this?" and pulled out the kitty. The girls were so excited. Sarah said she knew what was going on when she saw daddy being so suspicious at the school. I could tell she suspected something because she had a funny grin the whole ride home.

We have since purchased a few kitty essentials - litter, litter boxes, a food bowl and kitty chow and we are full fledged cat owners. Who knew? Twilight fits in with our family perfectly (I almost did a cheesy "purr" pun, but resisted) and despite the girls fighting over her and the times she tries to walk on my laptop when I'm typing - things have been great with our little kitty. I saved the best picture for last - it says more than words could about why I have loved having her in our home...

Now this is a look of pure joy...