Today I absolutely could not find one of our kittens, Ree Ree. She and her sister, Trill, are outside kitties that stay in our attached garage, but we often let them in for visits and so they can warm up a bit. They had been in for a couple of hours this morning when I had decided it was time to put them back out. Easily, I located Trill, a beautiful black calico with a cute dab of tan on the tip of her tail, and deposited her in the garage but Ree was no where to be found. I started calling for her, but was not too worried when she did not come, figuring she would show up sooner or later.
I got lost in a menagerie of other activities when I was suddenly on a mission to find a DVD we had been missing for a few days. It was Lincoln's favorite TMNT movie, the latest cartoon version, and he had been anxiously asking to watch it several times including this morning. So, armed with a heavy duty flashlight I combed over every hiding place I could think of to search, when suddenly I felt as though lightening had struck me. I had looked through almost the entire house for the DVD and I still had not seen Ree Ree.
It was very unlike her to not come trotting out when you approached, let alone when you were shining lights into holes that had not seen the breath of day in decades. Panic immediately set in. Something was wrong, Ree never disappeared for long periods of time. It had been at least an hour, maybe two, since I had seen her last. The adrenaline kicked in and immediately I began calling to her like a crazy woman. Of course the kids picked up on this in an instant, and sensing new drama in the air they became my begrudged sidekicks. There I was, an unkempt and still bedraggled mad woman frantically lifting up bed skirts and looking down floor vents followed by two toddlers who peered into any nooks and crannies I may have missed. I am sure it was quite a sight.
I began to double check all the holes I had previously plugged up during our remodeling so that none of the cats would be able to squeeze through into our construction zones. Unfortunately, that included peeping into an unused room I had been using to store Christmas gifts, and unbeknownst to me my son was right behind me. Peering around my knees he exclaimed, "Mommy, presents!" I immediately replied, "Those are for Nini and Papa, now get out of here!" Thankfully he did not understand the gravity of the situation we were literally standing in, and I was able to herd he and his sister on to other things.
All my construction holes looked in tact, so I tried thinking of other possibilities. I had ran the dryer that morning, and sometimes Ree liked to climb on the door while I was loading clothes, but surely I would have noticed if she had tried to climb in. Surely. I ran to the dryer, thinking 'Pleases, God, no!' I knew it had just ran a full cycle, and in a frenzy I unloaded all the clothes dreading what I would find. I grabbed handfuls of shirts and socks, pants and boxers (yes, I throw EVERYTHING into one load; I hardly ever separate) but found nothing. I put them back in, and thought, 'maybe I should look again.' I pulled the clothes out a second time, quickly going through each piece, a little relieved I had not found anything, but even then not a hundred percent convinced she was not in there somewhere. Putting them back, I searched a third time, and still saw no signs of Ree.
Fairly certain at this point she was definitely not in the dryer, I sat there on my knees about to cry. Where could that dang cat be? That is when my son said, "Don't cry mommy. We'll fin' 'er," in his three year old voice. Yes, I know, the parent is supposed to be strong for their children, and not sit there and cry like a maniac because they cannot find their kitty cat that they somehow lost in a disarrayed house of craziness. So, I did not cry. I sucked it up because that is what twenty-nine year old big girls do, hugged my kids and told them (and myself) I was sure Ree Ree would show up when she was ready.
We walked into the living room, defeated, when all of the sudden out of the corner of my eye I spied a grey and white furry foot peeking out from under my hope chest. That little devil had been under there the whole time, snoozing the day away pretty as you please. Relief washed over me like a sweet spring rain. Then I grabbed the little booger and kicked her toosh outside with her sister quicker than you can say, 'kitty kibble,' and leaned on the door after it was closed wondering how I was ever going to get anything accomplished today with my first two hours being consumed over looking for a cat-napped kitten. It set the tone for certain, but at least Ree Ree was finally found.
No comments:
Post a Comment