Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Introducing a New Member of the Family!!!



No, it's not what you're thinking...we're not expecting. Instead, a stray cat came to the Nick's parents' shop a couple of months ago. After it stuck around for a while, nick decided to bring it home with him. I honestly didn't think the cat would last long at our house.

With two dogs and a barn full of who knows what critters, I thought the little kitten would be gone in a matter of days. However, this cat has proved to be smarter than the average cat. Within a couple of days, she learned where the dogs' boundary is for their underground fence. Slowly and carefully, for the last month she has gotten closer and closer to the line. The dogs stand for hours on end at the line waiting for the cat to come out of the barn. They stand so close to their boundary that their collars are beeping at them constantly...emitting their subtle warning that they will get zapped if they take a step closer. As a result, Nick has had to change the batteries in their collar about once a week. This free stray cat is costing us big bucks at this point!

Finally, last week, the cat came across the line into the dogs' territory. After six weeks of flirting from the other side of the boundary, the dogs were so used to her that she can come right up to them now. Sometimes, yes, they get a little riled up about her and she runs to the other side of the boundary into her own protected territory, but otherwise, it seem like the standoff at the McCormick corral might be over for a while.

By the way, we've named the cat "Kendall Gail."....Kendall because we think we still need a Kendall in Illinois, and Gail after my ornery aunt. Plus, it kind of goes together...like Crystal Gail...or Kendall Gill. For those who are upset that we didn't use their names in naming our pets, we're planning on adding to the family a "Kimmie Ruth" and a "Kori Anastacia" sometime soon!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

awww..i feel so loved...and i knew deep down you guys missed me..i know you won't show it..but i knew :P haha...funny story though with the dogs standing there..maybe if i have some time while i'm down i can head down south being that i haven't seen the house since it's done and i kinda want to see how huge luther is!! i can't promise anything but i really would like to!! love you lots and miss you tons!!
kendall

Anonymous said...

although..now that i think about it..i find it really funny that you named your cat with my name it..because i just don't see you guys as cat people really....interesting....

Nick and Kelly McCormick said...

We're not cat people at all, but we're even less mice people! And since the house had sat empty for quite a few months, we thought it was a good idea to get some preventative measures in place before this fall!!

Anonymous said...

Trust me, you really don't need to name anything after me (unless it's a baby!!)!!! You can save the honor for that, okay?

Grandma Budke said...

What a great cat story or dog story
depends on your point of view, I reckon.
I'm sure you'll get a lot of use
from your "family" room in the basement,maybe that should be a
"couple"room for now. I really would like to visit and see what all you've done, Kelly, but not until the middle of September.I'm
busy the next two weekends.Maybe
you and I can set a time during the popcorn festival, I hope so.
Love you lots!!

Anonymous said...

I love the cat! I still have a kitten I would be more than happy to give to you. You can name it anything you like. It has gotten a lot prettier too, it's stripes are really standing out. Just let me know. I loved watching the dogs sit and wait for the cat and it was really funny the way the cat teased the dogs.

See you this weekend
Gail