Ode to my cats

I love my cats. Nathan, Jr. (ala Raising Arizona. When they go to kidnap one of the Arizona quintuplets Ed tells H.I. to bring her the best one and when he comes out she says "which one did you get?" and he says "I don't know. Nathan, Jr. I think." He's our orange boy. I have a special place in my heart for orange boy tabbies because of Sunshine, the cat I grew up with who lived to be 16 years old. I had him from the age of 3 until I was 19. I still cry when I think about that cat.

Then there is Lucy. Rich and I have a special place for grey tabbies ever since Julia.
Those of you who lived in Tallahassee when Kelly and I lived together will remember Julia. She's hopefully still alive but Kelly and John let her stay with a new family when they returned from their extended road trip and found that she was happy as a clam in her new environment being able to go outside as she pleased and, of course, was utterly doted upon by her new family because one can't help but love her. We think Lucy chose us because as we were trying to capture the kitten we thought we wanted and who had escaped from our arms, I heard another cat meeping (both Lucy and Nathan were adopted as part of a rescue from a cat horder) and when I looked, there was Lucy, on her hind legs, meeping at us. I said to Rich (who was the one who wanted to adopt a kitten instead of two full grown cats) "that one looks like Julia. Why don't we take her instead." Rich LOVED Julia so that was about all it took to convince him.

Now, we are all a happy family. Well, the cats haven't been so happy since Theo arrived. Nathan has always been a momma's boy so the fact that my lap is almost always occupied by another baby doesn't sit well with him. When the baby is asleep, Nathan is quick to try to grab some time with me and sadly, I often don't want him because I need some time to have my own space to myself. But when I'm ready for a good snuggle he is always there. Lucy has adapted a little easier and in fact, would position herself on the edge of our bed and watch Theo sleep when he was still in his bassinet in our room. Once Rich had a bad dream about a scary baby demon and he couldn't fall back asleep until Lucy assumed her position because he knew she would protect him from evil spirits. Most recently, Theo has discovered the top edge of his vocal range and screeches like a banshee from hell. It's awful. It send the cats running from the room and giving us the most incredulous looks as if to say "what have you people done?" Moments like that, I long for the days when I only had furry babies because they never, ever make noises like that.

So, as the baby sleeps and Nathan sits on my lap while I type, I just have to say how much I love and appreciate our furry companions. Some people forget about their pets once babies are born but I still find solace in them and look forward to the day when Theo loves them as much as we do.