Tuesday, August 25, 2009

raya: the anti-cat

This was the scene at our house back on March 30th when we finally got to bring Jonah home. Neither of the animals was too keen on our newest addition, and they both went round and round the car seat checking out the new intruder. Surprisingly, they are extremely tolerant of one another... I would even venture to say they are friends, but another human in the picture was not quite what they had bargained for.

And this one...


Well, he's still not so sure about Jonah, but he's certainly not losing any sleep over it. But give him some time, and I think they'll become fast friends. I mean, as soon as Jonah can throw a toy and play tug-of-war, Deac will have found his soul mate. In the meantime, though, Jonah thinks Deac is hilarious, and Deac just wants to be let outside. Such is life with a spoiled rotten dog. Long gone are the days of the baby voice and hugs being all for him. Move over, Deac. Jonah's in the hizzouse.


But this one...


She's a strange bird... err... cat. I've always thought cats were kind of aloof and stuck up (as so hilariously depicted in this post of an email I received), but Raya does not fit the bill. She's one sweet kitty. Always wanting to be petted and loved on. Loves attention. Soft like a bunny rabbit. Correctly uses the litter pan (at least most of the time anyway). She's all around the best cat I've ever had (and I've had many a cat)... or known of for that matter.

And Raya LOVES Jonah. She lies on the bed downstairs while we're doing dressing change, but when he starts getting really upset, when she knows he's in pain, she immediately comes over and starts rubbing all over our legs. She follows us from room to room and is usually not far from Jonah.

She comes up to his room when I put him down for nap in the afternoon, and does the same when it's bedtime. And once he's asleep, you can typically find her lying at the top of the stairs outside of the nursery.

This cat...




... is one of a kind. She is, in fact, very dog-like in her loyalty to our sweet Baby Jonut. It's been amazing to see how she senses when he's hurting and how she desires to make it better.

But look at this face...


Can you really blame her?

What is Deac's problem anyway???

34 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have always had a special place in my heart for cats...no matter what anyone says. Its amazing to me how animals can have the empathy for people, especially children as they do. Looks like Jonut has another special person in his life.

And no, I cannot blame that kitty. That sweet baby gets yummier every time I see a picture!!!

Tara said...

aww your cat looks like one we got before my 2nd son was born! We named her Callie and she was THE BEST cat ever and had more qualities of a dog than a cat. Our cat would curl up at the feet of my kids...

kdliberty said...

Your cat sounds a lot like my cat (whose face I borrow for the internet).Somebody sent Liberty to dog school one day becausese she is very dog like. She LOVES to quard me and is very loyal. Unfortuntely, someone forgot to tell her she can do very little to protect me. (Somebody 4 paw declawed her.) Liberty is also the best cat I ever had too!-kd

the Spocks said...

Our cat dislikes our daughter. She has since we brought her home. However, she is an older set in her ways cat. Makes me wish we had a dog.

Smart cat.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

They are so cute. That's one smart cat. Just wait until Jonah
is crawling around!

Katherine @ Grass Stains said...

Raya is a sweetie like our Scout! Scout has always been the same way about Jake, and he lets Jake yank on him all night long. They are big buddies.

Love seeing the latest picture of the Jonut!

Also, I meant to e-mail you. I hope you got the Aquaphor. Only let me know if you did NOT receive it and have no idea what I'm talking about. If you got it, that's great.

Precious 3 said...

My grandpa had ALS and lived with us his last 2 years. We had a cat, which my grandpa didn't care for. But the cat would sense when Papa was having a bad day, and would sit at his feet, or by his bed.

Ben and Meredith McDaniel said...

haha this is adorable! been thinking of you this week as our lil guys reach 6 months old!!! ok they seriously have to meet soon...can we come make a visit??

Katie said...

I'm glad she turned out to be good for something. Makes me a little more forgiving of the horrid stench she let out every time I picked her up while she was a kitten. I will never forget that cat and her gassiness...

the-mommy-person said...

No, can not blame the kitty. I wish I could meet Jonah! He forever has a special place in my heart.

KK said...

I've never heard of such a cat! Are you sure its not a dog? :)

Laura A said...

Don't worry - Deac will come around (I mean really, how could he not!)

Sadly, try as I have, I am just not a cat person. Probably because I'm so allergic to them! But it is neat how Raya loves Jonah (maybe she's channeling her inner dog!)

Hope you've had a great day, and that you'll have a restful evening!

Love from TX!
Laura

Anonymous said...

I used to have a cat exactly like this one when I was a little girl. I loved her so much! She was the most awesome cat I ever had!

Love the picture of Jonah!

queenmari said...

i love our cats! zoomer likes nothing better than to come be on the bed with daddy (phil) after chemo and just be with him as they sleep together. zoom gets so upset when one of the dogs intrudes on his quiet time with daddy, but i get the dogs back downstairs so it can be quiet again.

i love that picture of jonah. precious he is.

--mari

Tracy said...

We only have a cat, but he and our toddler are still the best of friends. He's very patient with Sam. Btw, in case anyone says the thing about cats trying to steal your baby's breath b/c of milk on their breath, it's not true. I asked my vet and pedi both since our cat was so cuddly with our son.

Anonymous said...

i have a tortoise shell cat too and she is just the same way! my godson is now 18 months old and they are best pals. she follows him around like a puppy, even sleeps at his feet during nap time, and he loves on her at every chance he gets.

i always say she is a dog-cat...must be a tortoise shell thing!

Claire said...

When I was a baby, my marmee says our cat was just the same. Yay for Raya and Jonah!

Cxx

Staci said...

When our first child was born we had 3 cats. The one that was my husband's cat, Lumbee, was the ONLY one who took an interest in the baby. Whenever Max would cry he would go and sit himself next to him and stare at him. If Max was in the cradle next to our bed, Lumbee would jump up on our bed and put his paw on the edge of the cradle to look in at Max. He was such a gentle cat :)

Anonymous said...

Love the fact that even the dog & cat are loving and protective of Jonah. Who could blame them, his personality is really BLOOMING.
Prayers Always,
2shoes

Toni :O) said...

I'm a dog person (highly allergic to cats) so I LOVE your dog. However, I think it's really sweet what your cat does around sweet Jonut! Love that boy and love that picture you posted of him. SO stinkin cute!

Rebecca said...

Such a sweet cat - we had a tender-hearted one too, it's just hard to explain how kind and loving they can be if you haven't experienced it - isn't it.

The Fabulous Baker Boys said...

What a great post! Your kittie looks like my kittie - Alley. She too is a very sweet kittie compared to the numerous ones I had before. And as others have said who can blame her - that sweet baby face and those sweet baby noises from the video.

Your family is in my thoughts and prayers each day! Have a blessed day! Love the Bakers

Kathy said...

That picture of Jonut just makes me smile!
He is a doll baby for sure!!

purejoy said...

that is one smart kitty!! and that is one little kiddie that looks like his mommy!!

Sharon and Michael said...

There is something about animals (cats and dogs) and children together. We have them, too. And they will check on the kids after we put them to bed at night. They will sniff where they should be if they are gone on an overnight.

Jonah keeps getting cuter and cuter.

Anonymous said...

Who could deny that face a THING!? That cat sounds so wonderful. Pets can do wonders. I would not have a house of kids without pets included! Hand in paw so to speak. Deac... He ain't got a problem. He's a DOG living a dog's life. He is so darned cute! You are blessed Patrice and I am blessed to be able to say I "know" you! Jennifer in Southeast, NC

Anonymous said...

Oh my word~You have the cutest baby and the cutest animals!! Blessing sister in Christ,Blessings to you and your sweet family !!!

Baby Bird said...

No, I can't...precious face...just wanna kiss it and zzzerbet his sweet little neck:)
Happy Thursday:) Love, Aimee

the-mommy-person said...

Good morning Jonah! I hope you have a wonderful day with Mommy!

Toni Clark said...

Looks like Jonah is turning into a little butterball. ADORABLE!! He is a gorgeous baby. He has the most perfect eyes and lips. God has big plans for this little man and I doubt there are many people who can't see that.

Alisha said...

He is a cutie! I love cats!

Unknown said...

My sister's cat does the same thing...follows her to the kids' rooms, one by one, while she puts them to bed at night. It's like, "okay, this is the routine, and I know it well."

Anonymous said...

What a sweet post about your Raya and what a special kitty she is. A lot of torties have what my vet refers to as "tortitude", but it sounds like Raya is the exception. Kudos to you for loving and treating your pets like family. They will certainly be some of Jonah's first and best friends.

Wendi Taylor said...

Hi. You don't know me. I read about (and prayed for) you and your family a while back when MckMama linked it (I was a follower of Stellan's story, but I digress). Anyway, I have found my way back over here, and realized I missed a lot, so I went back and started reading through all of your posts. Hope you don't mind. I'm telling you all of this so you don't think I'm some crazy stalker. Anyway, what moved me to comment on such an old post, is that your kitty Raya looks like a TWIN of my kitty, Little One. I mean, they are IDENTICAL. So cute. :-)