Parenting, by which I mean Pet Parenting

There are moments when Hal, the cats and I are hanging out and I see us as this little nuclear family. I’ll admit, the cats are treated like our children more often than not, and I do refer to Rascal as my baby (or my little monster depending on the situation). Most of the time, they eat, sleep and poop just like babies, and provide that ‘cute’ entertainment as only pets and babies can do.

Admittedly, I think about of how often I take pictures of the cats and wonder just how obsessive I’ll be when we have kids. All our children will know for the first few years of their lives is the blinding light of a camera flash and the sound of the lens auto focusing. But I'll have these special years memorialized forever (oh boy...). Hal should probably reign me in now.

In many ways, I consider Rascal practice for those infamous “terrible two’s” parents experience with kids. He’s like a precocious toddler who’s constantly doing things he’s not supposed to – climbing on shelves, lounging on the coffee table, playing with the blinds, chewing on inanimate objects and sometimes eating animate objects like bugs – all of which require a degree of patience and discipline on our part. I’m discovering that I’m good with the patience and Hal’s good with the discipline. When either of us is asked to demonstrate the other, I think we do a subpar or ineffective job. He and I should stick to what we're good at. Rascal also has his needy moments where he demands attention, but it’s balanced by his ability to be very affectionate. I can just see us describing one of our kids this way some day.

Miss Kitty is our independent one who prefers one-on-one time, whether it’s with one of us or with her toys. She’ll cry (and cry, and cry) for attention but a little goes a long way for her. It was a while before she warmed up to me, but Hal took it as a good sign that she did at all, and in under a year. I guess she accepted that I was here to stay. And now she sleeps on my pillow (or other cozy nooks).

We are a happy little family for now. And when the cats choose to spend time with us, it’s really nice to have the furry companionship, especially at the end of a long day. It makes me look forward to raising kids (the human kind), but for now I’ll settle for bonding time on the bed and the sound of them chasing each other around the house.