Technically, Paul and I are pet owners but it's really hard for us to believe that, when our pets are such members of the family. How can you really own a dog who sleeps with his head on the pillow next to yours? Or the cat who lays on your chest as he kneads the hair laying on either side of your face? Then there's the cat who hangs out on top of the shower while you shampoo each morning and the one who reminds you to wash your hands by jumping up on the sink when he hears a toilet flush. Do you really own the cat who loves to be petted and brushed but hates all the attention, or the one who just wants to curl up in your lap? Even the bird reminds you who is in charge by singing at all times of the day OR night!
I know I drive my mom crazy with how we've spoiled our pets and let them have the run of the house. I used to agree with her, I would have thought someone like me was bonkers...but our pets have become part of our family. We got our first 2 kittens when we got married, which was also the time we started trying to get pregnant ourselves. Through infertility, adoption paperwork, and the waiting and waiting and more waiting, our pets have been the ones we nurtured and cared for.
Now that we have our own little baby girl, the pets are too much a part of our family to go back to "just animals". We are still nurturing our pets as we nurture our daughter. Although the cats are very indifferent to her now, one day that may change as she becomes the lap they want to curl up on. Wrangler (the dog) can be very jealous at times but it does seem that he cares about Sophie and she is certainly fascinated with him. When our adopted child finally comes home from China, it will seem only fitting that our family began with a marriage and the adoption of two little kittens.
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