Two and Carrie taking and afternoon nap.

Two weeks after Mavis was born we were out running errands. Proeun’s paternity leave was almost up and we wanted to get as much done as possible so I wouldn’t have to go anywhere by myself during the first weeks after her birth. One of those errands was to pick up some chicken feed. We had seen a small independent place not too far away and wanted to try it out. When we arrived we saw some animals in a rabbit hutch by the door, I assumed they were rabbits and kept walking. Of course the children didn’t.

Turns out they were a couple litters of kittens that someone had dumped at the store. When Proeun asked how much the cats were and reply was, “they are free take them all if you like,” I knew we would be leaving with at least one cat. In the end we decided on 2 one for each of the older children.

Two had his eye on a cute gray one. Proeun was eyeing a black and white tom that showed particular spirit. We had been having mouse problems in the spring and fall and wanted to ensure that we had at least one mouser. On the way home Two announced that their names were Austin and Carrie.

Both have been beautiful additions to our family. While they are a little extra work the pay off is much higher. For weeks the children had their babies and I had mine. They carried their kittens around the house like proud parents. Carrie and Austin grew to be highly social with each other, our dog Hiro and us. But while Austin spreads his love around we noticed pretty early on that Carrie preferred Two and Two alone. She knows who her boy is and loves him to death. Two also knows who his cat is, he told me, “Carrie is my best friend.”

The two even sleep together at night and for naps. If for some reason we don’t nap at home or miss a nap Carrie is especially eager to sleep with Two the next day. I have been trying for days to get a picture of them sleeping together and yesterday I finally got one.

We haven’t seen any mice since they moved into our home.