Meet Claire A. Belle

Yes, I admit I'm crazy. But we have another pet at our house. For those of you keeping score, that is 3 black Labs (yes, three; yes, all living in the house), Reggie the cat (who now spends the majority of his time outside my house), and Claire. I can be bought for a price. And when I am considering buying, I always take into consideration what the payoff is worth to me. Welcome, Claire.

Reggie the cat is a sweet, loving cat. But Reggie the cat is a boy. And Reggie the cat love to go around my house marking his territory. It is a favorite game around our house to see who can be the first to find out what needs to be (a) washed or (b) thrown away because it has been marked by Reggie. That game got real old, real quick. After many trips to the vet, much expensive special cat food, we finally convinced (or bribed) YC that Reggie would be happy outside and he could still come in the house to sleep at night.

We tried this about this time last year. Except DH decided to put him out without telling YC. And Reggie got mad and decided not to come home...until we got a call in late January telling us he had our cat - about a half mile from where we live. So we gave him the benefit of the doubt and decided he had been reformed (Reggie the cat, not DH). Wrong.

Then The Dude decided not to stop Reggie when he ventured onto the deck last week. Oh, my word, the havoc that was reaped when YC found him on the deck and brought him back in. So being the smart mother/educator/briber that I am, I decided to ask YC if she'd like to have a new kitten. A kitten that would be all her very own; she could name it and play with it and wrap it up in baby blankets, etc., etc. But the only catch was, Reggie had to be an outside cat.

Welcome Claire. May you be smart in your young age. May you not claw my leather furniture. May you quickly learn where the litter box is...and what it's for. May you curl up with the dogs on cold winter nights. And realize Spencer is just kidding when he chases you down the hall. May you know that you can lead the life of Riley...as long as you follow my rules and leave my carpet unmarked.